Je Mange

Fried Rice: Dumplings, Fried Egg, Sausage

2009-12-04T17:20:00.003-05:00

Simple fried rice: refrigerated dry white rice, soy sauce, salt, white pepper, scrambled eggs, scallions
Sauteed sausage: thai sweet sausage started in a little water and slightly carmalized
Fried egg: cooked hard, salt and pepper
dumplings: store bought, oil, water, frozen dumplings, covered, browned, sauced in black vinegar, sriracha, sugar, kecap manis and finished with sesame oil

Gratin

2009-12-04T12:11:00.002-05:00

I love the gratin.

I havn't made then for a long time. I generally like to keep it simple. Maybe garlic, onions, herbs, cheese.

A gratin is very simple to make. The hardest part is cutting the potatoes the same thickness and having enough time to let it cook properly. With a little planing its very simple.

I used a med sized dutch oven, 8 med russets, ~2 cups of cream & half 'n half and 1 stick of butter. Seasoned with salt, white pepper and some of the nastiest bottled parm in existence. You'd probably do well to cut back on the butter, to say 1/2 a stick or 1/4 C

Peel and slice the potatoes about the thickness of a silver dollar or a toonnie. I used a japanese mandolin, very easy and useful. theyre used all over in restaurants and cost just 25$.
Dry off your potatoes if desired (i just shook them off in a collander) and make layers in your dish. season with decent amounts of salt and a little white pepper, place dabs of butter, layer again and so on.
I then poured in the dairy until i could barely see it. Then I pushed down on the whole thing, pressing out air and compacting it; a very important step.
On top I put the cheese though itd have been fine without it. Traditionally cheese is not used, the 'cheesy' flavour is achieved by the Maillard effect on the dairy.
I baked at 350 for about 1.5 hours. I put it on a jelly roll pan in case it spilled over. My dish was fairly deep so it wasn't really needed. There should be no more liquid except butter and the potatoes should be tender and giving yet not falling apart or turning into mush.

Soup yet again

2009-11-14T21:28:00.003-05:00

Soup again....

Sauteed onions, garlic, greens
steemed lop cheung, dried shrimp and black mushroom
heat broth (chicken stock, water and broth powder)
cooked some ramen
added everything else
topped with some left over braised pork
a fried egg
and a splash of sesame oil
deep fried indonesian shrimp chips on the side

Chicken Soup

2009-11-10T18:06:00.003-05:00

I'm starting a cold so I wanted something warm and nourishing.

4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 big shallot diced
sauteed in chicken fat
chicken stock/water
dehydrated shrimp
dehydrated black mushrooms
lop cheung
chunks of poached chicken
generic ramen
some of the seasoning mix from the ramen
chiffonade of chinese greens (dark and leafy)
dumplings on the side
sliced poached chicken on the side, sauced in indonesian katchup manis
splash of sesame oil on top of soup

i was missing some scallions.

2009-09-26T08:07:00.002-04:00

Yes I'm still eating; we're still eating but little documentation.

Recently I sauteed pork chops, braised pork shoulder and tossed our new favourite eggo noodles.

The pork chops came out fantastic. I just used salt (a lot of it, enough that you'd think you're over salting it) and fresh black pepper. Season both sides and let it sit for 30 min or more depending on thickness. I dusted some with flour, you could also pat them dry but even the ones I didn't dust came out golden brown. I used a good amount of oil heated up quite high but not so high that the pan/chop burned before it was cooked. Don't over crowd the pan. These chops are delicious when done right, that is seasoned well and browned well. They're great with the aggressively flavoured noodles, sliced over top.

For the braised pork shoulder I cut a large piece into smaller pieces; a little smaller than 2 golf balls together. I used a Singapore braise recipe I've often used for ribs in the past. After braising until super tender I removed the meat and reduced the liquid, letting the meat sit in the liquid over night helps tremendously, and then you can easily degrease it too.

I've been buying a dry egg noodle with shrimp in it. they are thin yellow and delicious. I've just been cooking them al dente and then tossing with canola, oystersauce, a little fish sauce, sriracha and toasted sesame oil at the end. Sauteed and fresh veggies often go on top or the side but lately I leave them separately so everyone can take as much as they want.

basil chicken a la lazy

2009-02-05T11:10:00.003-05:00

My sister kuna and tony made their basil chicken from a thai cookbook. I've made it a few times because shayo really likes it, and i like it too.
so i bought everything for it but im sick and tired and i didnt want to follow a recipe. i had to wash dishes and cook and eat. it was already 7pm.
so I just improvised.

3 chicken breasts, broad thin slices
3 bell peppers, med dice
1 largish onion, med dice
4 clove garlic, sliced thing
basil, small handfull

marinade:
<1 T tomato paste
3 T terriyaki sauce (something I found in my fridge and i want to use up) or sub soy and sugar
1 T sriracha sauce
1 T salt (that terriyaki wasnt salty!)
1 T dark soy
1 t sesame oil
1 T cornstarch
1 T oyster sauce (they really arent made equally. we like the red panda bottle)

sauce:
1/2 - 1 C water or stock
1.5t cornstarch dissolved in 2 T cold liquid: just guestimate
tomato paste: as needed
terriyaki sauce: as needed
sriracha: as needed
salt: as needed

garnish:
very thin chiffonade
~1 T sesame oil

1. marinate meat for about 30 min left out
2. stir fry over very high heat the bell and onion, after they have charred a bit and softened up add the garlic and turn heat down a bit. cook for another couple min. remove
3. stir fry the meat in batches if need be, let the meat first sit in a single layer and develop some browning, then stir and fold until there's no more raw meat visible. add the veg and
4. add the liquid for the sauce, stir and cook it, adjust seasonings, thicken with as much of the cornstarch mixture as needed. imagine tangy bite of the sriracha, a hint of sweetness balanced by the tomato with undertones of earthy mushroom soy.
5. stir in some basil. adjust seasoning again.
6. garnish each dish with some basil and sesame oil on top and serve immediately.

other thoughts: red and yellow bells work nicely with the green basil. this dish should be very aromatic with the basil and sesame oil.

Herbed Milk Chicken

2009-01-29T17:55:00.004-05:00

So this is something I created today. It's Chinese New Year so I've mostly been cooking and eating Chinese food but tonight I wanted something different.

I had a bunch of skinned chicken thighs cut in half and low on aromatics, 1 onion, shallots and garlic.

The idea of butter chicken came to mind (I have a ready jar of ghee in my cuboard) a tasty Indian dish but I had no clue of its ingredients and was too lazy to check. From butter my mind went to Italien spices of which I have ample dried. This dish developed itself, it is rich, creamy, balanced and aproaching etheral.

This could be a soup, sauce or a saucy dish over rice, potatoes, pasta or some other light grain. I think I'll cook up some orzo.

Don't be too concerned about over salting. Since chicken is fast cooking its very important to season it well enough and usually in advance (esp if its thick). My sauce was too salty initially but the milk took care of it. It's an interesting practise to make something no longer salty as opposed to coming at it from the other end (many people are afraid of putting too much salt in and would be agasht at the amount of salt used in restaurants). Whenever you cook a food in a large amount of liquid it should be slightly over seasoned in order to get enough salt into the protein. If the liquid is under seasoned it will just leach salt from the protein.

5 shallots, sliced
1/2 head of garlic, sliced
1.5 quarts of chicken, seasoned
2 T butter: clarified, whole or ghee
2 t thym
1.5 t rosemary
1.5-2T summer savory
2 t black pepper
1+ t light vinegar (I used some high quality sushi rice vinegar, which is lower acid)
plenty of salt
~1c water or stock
1t thai sriracha sauce
~1 c milk; heavy and delicious (we have a fine organic milk from Archer farms)
1-3 T roux

Sweat the garlic and shallots in the butter, season with salt
put the chicken in, turn it and let it get white all over.
add thyme, rosemary, savory and pepper, turn.
add stock/liquid and vinegar.
bring up to a boil. lower heat for a simmer, covered.
dont over cook! cook for about 8 minutes, checking the largest piece.
remove the chicken, blend the liquid (I used an immersion blender)
pass the liquid through a fine mesh
put the liquid back on the heat, add the hot sauce and milk. dont put too much milk or too little, adjust as desired.
adjust the acidity, it should be rich but not cloyingly so.
adjust seasoning.
mix in roux to desired thickness
have loved ones taste it and be impressed.

Other thoughts:

further processing of the meat in order to get more herb flavor inside, perhaps marination if its not thick, an herb brining or a paste.
garnish with fresh herbs. use something that's in the dish, not parsley.
I think marjoram would be delicious too.

Chipotle Chicken

2009-01-27T16:19:00.003-05:00

3 large onions (substituting shallots for some or all if you have them)- med dice
1/2 head garlic, sliced
1.5 T paprika
3 T tomato paste (and some diced sun dried tomatoes if you have some)
5 chipotle, seeded, cut in half or chopped fine if you want to eat them
2 green thai chili if you have them, seeded and chopped fine
dry sherry, chinese cooking wine or light wine to deglaze, about 1/2 cup
stock, about 1.5 cup (you can also use tomato water)
1/4 cup ketchap manis (thick, dark sweet indonesian soy sauce) or 2 T sugar with dark (double black or mushroom) soy equaling 1/4 cup
protein equaling about 12 largish drum sticks; well seasoned with salt beforehand. you should not salt it more than an hour before cooking it. if using tofu make sure to salt it well!

1. sautee onions in olive oil or appropriate fat until translucent (season with salt), add the garlic (season with salt) and cook until onions are brownish and you have a slight fond. dont burn it.

2. add tomato paste, paprika and chiles. cook for another several minutes adjusting heat to avoid burning. season with some more salt.

3. deglaze with alcohol making sure to clean the bottom of the pan.

4. add the other ingredients except the protein. depending on the length of cooking time for your protein you should let the sauce cook and meld, adjusting salt as needed. tofu and fish take little time to cook. you can brown your protein but with the dark soy and tomato paste i usually don't.

5. once your sauce is brought up to a near boil taste and reseason. you can then add whatever it is you're adding. i like using drumsticks or pork shoulder. comercial meats and some varieties of tofu let off a lot of water others don't so you may need to add more stock, you can always reduce the sauce by itself at the end.

6. you can braise or just briefly cook food in this sauce. tender beef, tofu and seafood would be very short. Chicken has to be cooked through but is still pretty fast. Tough meat requires true braising and could take many hours.

7. once cooked you may do several things. you can strain the sauce, blend it, blend and strain or leave as is. if youve left seeds in your peppers you may very well want to strain it. You can also saute veggies and toss in the sauce and cook briefly to let it meld. make sure to adjust seasoning, veggies give off lots of water. I like to saute onions, bell pepper and sliced garlic and toss it.

8. with any real braise the food is usually best the next day while spending the night emersed in its sauce. degreasing is often useful, when i deskin/fat chicken before cooking i dont bother. otherwise and easy method is to put the meat in the container large enough for everything. put the sauce in another contain with a narrow mouth and let it sit, seperate and congeel in the fridge for an hour or two. defat it, let the sauce come to room temp or heat it and pour it over the meat. deep fried, frozen and pressed tofu would probably benefit greatly from letting it sit over night.

9. as veg i think thinly sliced celery, sliced galic and med-small diced vidalia would be delicious.

Sauerkraut

2008-02-16T21:27:00.002-05:00

Sauerkraut is known as choucroute in France, also spelled sourkraut or simply referred to as kraut. It's an integral part in the reuben sandwich. It can be bought in bags or cans from grocery stores. It is very popular in France and the Germany area. There it is normally eaten as a plate with fatty items like sausages and such charcuterie items.

Sauerkraut is very easily made, all you need is salt, water, green cabbage, an opaque container, 70 °F and about two weeks. The procedure is simple: bring to a boil 4 L of water and 200 g of salt, cool, put thinly sliced cabbage in your container, cover with salt water, weight down the cabbage (possibly wrapping the top with cheese cloth) with a plate, put the cover on, put it in a cool corner and mark your calender. Two weeks later its all set; to eat, braise it in its brine water and some clean water adjusting for acidity.

Grinder

2008-01-17T18:01:00.000-05:00

Recently I bought a vintage all metal grinder attachment for my kitchenaid standing mixer.
Why would I buy an old part? The current food grinder offered by kitchenaid has a plastic housing which tends to crack. I will mainly use this to grind meats to make forcemeats; which are used in sausage, terrine, paté and such.

Thus far I have made basil-tomato chicken sausage and garlic porc sausage; they are delicious.
I will spare technical detail for another time. Suffice it to say that I marinated, ground, taste tested, stuffed and cooked & froze 8 lbs of sausage.

Here is a poor picture of my grinder. I also have a fine grinding plate which is essential for my purposes.

Mexican Feast

2007-09-23T16:06:00.000-04:00

So we're planning to do some Latino cookin' for a while. Lately we've eaten at a delicious Ecuadorian joint in my old hood of Astoria. Also at a place in our current neighborhood a country style Mexican place.

Today I cooked refried beans, a chipotle-tomato braised chicken and pork dish and yellow rice. There is no recipe per say for any of these, just flavours, intuition and some care. A note about chipotle peppers; I used a caned version. These peppers are smoked jalapeños and canned with some delicious sauce. I cant remember the brand I use but there's a picture of a black haired Hispanic woman on the front with an orange background.

I used black beans but they say you can use pinto as well. Soak them over night. Sauté onions and garlic; add cumin, hot pepper powder, oregano, thyme and S&P. Cook out for a little then add the beans with enough water to cover about an inch. Bring to a boil and turn down to medium. Let it cook until tender adding water as needed. Once cooked blend about 2/3 of the beans until smooth and pasty; add the rest of the beans and mix in. Sauté some more onion, season as desired with anything from above and cook the beans until rather tight and pasty. You can do this in portions or by adding some a cup at a time. Taste and season.

For the rice I followed a basic pilaf formula. I used turmeric, S&P, onions, garlic, cumin, chicken stock and chopped tomato. It was a little under seasoned when cooked but you can always adjust it afterwards. It

The chicken-pork dish was just a simple braise. In the braising pot I sautéed onions, canned chipotle peppers with the sauce, garlic, red bell peppers and carrots. I seasoned it with cumin, allspice, thyme, bay leaves and of course salt and pepper. For liquid I used some chicken stock, a bit of corona I was drinking, some Pinot Noir and tomato puré. I then seasoned the meat with salt and pepper, dusted with flour and browned it in batches. Put everything in the pot, bring to a boil and simmer, covered, until done. You'll have to remove the chicken first since it will finish cooking before the pork, generally. Afterwards I removed the meat and discarded the bay leaves and blended the sauce to make to make it thick and rich (also so that my girlfriend who has trouble with veggies will get her vitamins). If need be reduce the sauce further to proper consistency.

I served it with sour cream and a small salad of shredded red leaf with cubed tomato.

Shrimp & Scallops and Chips

2007-09-09T09:48:00.000-04:00

My Partner Unit requested deep fried food for her birthday. This is a toss back to our vacations to Canada during which we'd chow down at roadside-seaside seafood shacks on the East Coast.

For this I used a beer batter that I learned in cooking school. I made scallops, shrimp and onion rings. You can either season the food items with salt and white pepper or season the dusting flour; if you season the flour make sure to over season it.

For the shrimp I removed all shell, tail, legs and intestinal track; it runs through the length of the body on the top side. Sea scallops sometimes come with a little hard piece of connective tissue on the outer side which is peel off. Dry the seafood well on a towel and season if desired.

Slice onions thinly, about 5mm; I only used the larger rings and saved the smaller center rings for other uses. For French Fries use russets; cut them fry shape however thick you like but make sure they're consistent. Soak the cut fries for 30 minutes in cold water. Par-cook them at around 250°F for 6 minutes without browning; if they start browning take them out immediately. Let then cool completely before cooking the final time; this step allows starches to come to the surface and will help give a crispy exterior.

I actually par-cooked the battered food aswell, until the batter was just set and ideally before developing the golden hue. I did this so I could toss it all back right before we were ready to eat, so that every thing's hot and crispy when sitting down.

Ingredients:

5 oz Flour
1t Baking Powder
1t Salt
1t White Pepper
½ Egg
1 C Beer, very cold
Flour for dusting

Heat oil to 350°F-375°F
Sift your dry ingredients.
Set up a plate or bowl with flour for dusting.
Set up a cooling rack over a jellyroll pan or some device to place the fried food.
Make sure you have tongs and/or a spider to manage the food in the oil.
Beat Egg and mix with beer. Add dry ingredients, mixing until just combined; there should be some small lumps. Set the bowl in an ice water bath.
Arrange your items in a logical, easy to maneuver, fashion (food->dusting->batter->fry oil->cooling rack).
Work in small batches, whatever you're comfortable with.
Cool or hold in the oven until ready to finish cooking; or just cook all the way until nice and brown.
Once finished cooking season immediately with salt.

Chicken Pork Adobo

2007-07-14T13:52:00.000-04:00

This is a recipe from Molly Stevens' "All About Braising"; which has proved to be excellent on several occasions. This is a Filipino version mind you, other ethnicities use the term 'adobo'. In fact Molly uses the term 'adobado' but I think it's the same thing, when in the Philippines we used the term adobo, as well, all Filipinos I've known use the later.

Anyhow, I know for sure this dish is tasty.

Chicken and/or pork are most popular but any other type of meat may be used. Leave the skin on the chicken. The pork should be appropriate for a shorter braise, you don't want the chicken to fall totally to pieces waiting for the port to cook tender. If need be you can remove the chicken until the pork is ready.

6 cloves garlic, sliced

½ C white wine vinigar
½ C water or savoury liquid
2 T soy sauce
2 t lime zest or some type of citrus
2 bay leaves, torn in half
2 t brown sugar
½ t salt
½ cracked black pepper
3.5-4 lbs of meat

Put everything in a ziplock bag or a dish and let marinate for up to 2 hours. Don't go much longer otherwise the vinegar will ruin the texture of the meat.
Put it all in a pot and bring it up to a boil, turning down to a bare simmer, covered.
Cook until done! Until the meat is pull apart for tender. Maybe about an hour?
Remove all the meat. Brown in batches in a skillet or under the broiler (my new, preferred method).
Strain the remaining liquid. Put back over heat and reduce until it thickens. Taste for salt and pepper.
Eat.

Ice Cream: Coconut

2007-07-03T19:47:00.000-04:00

I recently bought a used Donvier icecream maker. It is a handcrank churner utilizing a frozen bowl.

My first attempt turned out wonderfully.

I made a 40% fat custard infused with freshly grated coconut. Adjust the cream and milk according to your desired fat ratio(keep in mind most decent commercial ice cream has a fat content of >18%) Churning the next day proved effortless: it only took ~25 minutes of intermittent cranking.

Crème anglaise a la coconut:

6 Yolks
Sugar 6 oz

Heavy Cream 3 C
Meat of 1 Coconut, grated

vanilla ½ t
salt, pinch

Scald dairy and coconut. Let stand for 20+ minutes.
Bring back to a scald. Wisk yolks and sugar.
Strain dairy. Temper dairy into the yolks, be careful not to make a froth from too much agitation.
Return to heat over med-low, stirring constantly.
Cook until done! It should be thickened slightly, coating the back of a spoon, the consistency just more than heavy cream.
Chill in an ice bath to halt further cooking.
Churn per your ice cream machines directions.

The Golden Kiwi

2007-06-21T20:21:00.000-04:00

On one of our fruit buying excursions in china town we found these. Lighter in colour than the more common kiwi.

The flavour is different and not unappealing. I'd describe it as smoother and subtle.

I'm not sure if these are to be found notoriously unripe as are the others.

I think they might look nice as garnish, intermingled with the darker, greener kiwi, say on a fruit tart.

Pastry Cream, Part Deux

2007-06-12T20:36:00.000-04:00

Pastry cream is versatile in its ability to assume different flavours. It lends itself to infusion of its liquid (such as cinnamon, vanilla beans & tea to suggest a few). These items could be strained out or left in; the vanilla bean's husk is removed but the seeds remain.

After the cream has been cooked you may also add distinguishing ingredients. Liqueur and extracts are clear choices but more substantial ingredients might also be added: chopped candied citrus peal, roasted coconut, nuts.

Pastry Cream

2007-06-10T01:00:00.000-04:00

Pastry cream is a rich, versatile, easy and quick custard used as fillings in cakes, tarts, éclairs, pies and other pastries. It can be flavoured in any fashion.

Ingredients:

Milk 16 oz
Sugar 2 oz

Egg Yolks 5
Cornstarch 1.25 oz
Sugar 2 oz

Vanilla ½ t
Butter 1 oz

Scald the milk and sugar.
Whisk the yolks and sugar, then add the cornstarch and whisk.
Temper the milk into the yolk mixture.
Return to pot and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly.
Cook until thickened and brought up to a boil. To test, stop mixing for a few seconds, the custard should 'blurp'.
Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla. Continue whisking until smooth.
Bladder wrap in saran wrap or a container with some saran wrap placed on top. It is important to protect the cream from air otherwise a skin will form.
Chill until ready for use.

Cream Cheesecake

2007-05-22T17:34:00.000-04:00

A light recipe (in nature not calories) which my even my girlfriend enjoys. I've scaled it down 80% of the original which yields over 18 pounds.

Cooking time will vary depending on taste and pan. I cooked mine in ramekins and a small loaf pan, naturally the latter took considerably more time. Just try the toothpick test; it should remove clean, for the most part.

I've never cooked a cheese cake before but this recipe calls for a brief stint on high then long, low temperature cooking. There should be little to no rising, souffléing or browning.

The crumb is up to you. I'd suggest a crumb crust of graham crackers, stale cookies, corn flakes, stale cake or teddy grahams. I put teddy grahams in a small food chopper to break them down to crumbs. Then I added a pinch of salt and just enough melted butter to bring it together. Put the crumb on the bottom and/or sides. I'd suggest only the bottom if making it in ramekins.

Take out the cream cheese a few hours ahead of time to let it soften slightly.

A note on the recipe/formula format, the lines separate ingredients found in different vessels. For instance in this recipe we would use 3 bowls.

Without further ado;

Cream Cheese 2 lbs
Sugar 11.2 oz
Cornstarch 1 T
Lemon Zest, dash
Vanilla Extract 1 t
Salt 1 t
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
Whole Eggs 6.4 oz
Egg Yolks 2.4 oz
▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
Heavy Cream 3.2 oz
Milk 1.6 oz
Lemon Juice, a squeeze

Prepare the baking dish with crust (or not).
Mix the cream cheese until smooth and pliable. Mix in the sugar, cornstarch, zest, vanilla and salt.
Beat the eggs together and add a little at a time making sure to fully incorporate before adding more.
Add the liquids slowly while mixing.
Cook at 400°F for 10 minutes, afterwards turning down to 225°F. Cook for another 30-40 minutes before checking, then check every 10-15 minutes.

Veal Fricassee

2007-05-16T09:25:00.000-04:00

Fricassee is a white stew or braise, often seen with chicken but it can be made with any white meat. It is really delicious and a great way to use tough meats.

I bought some cheap veal breast, cutting the meat into chunks and using the bones to make stock. I used the stock in the sauce and to make a tasty rice pilaf.

The bouquet garni used here is comprised of carrot, leek, thyme and bayleaf. Just use several slices of carrot, 1 sprig of thyme, some green of a leek or onion skin and 1 bayleaf.

Fatty Veal Meat 1½ lb
Salt & White Pepper TT
Whole Butter 1½ oz
Onions, small dice 1½ oz
Garlic, chopped ½ t
Flour 2 T
White Wine 2 T
White Stock 2½ C
Bouquet Garni
Heavy Cream, scalded ½ C

Liberally season veal in salt and pepper.
Cook meat in butter without browning for 2 min, stirring.
Add onions and garlic, cook for another 2 min, without browning.
Add the flour and stir well to make a blond roux, cook for another 3-4 min.
Add wine and stock, mixing well.
Add bouquet garni.
Bring to a boil.
Taste and adjust seasonings.
Reduce heat to a bare simmer cover partially.
Cook about 30 min until tender.
Remove and reserve veal.
Strain liquid, discarding onions and any lumps.
Return sauce to pan.
Add scalded cream, mix until fully combined.
Taste and adjust seasonings.
Return veal to pan and serve.

Broiled Thai Curry Shrimp

2007-02-06T15:48:00.000-05:00

Ingredients:

8 shrimp (about 25-30 count) with heads and shells intact
1 T Thai red curry paste

Marinate shrimp with curry paste in a bag for 30-60 minutes. Dilute paste with some water if necessary.
Cover broiler pan with foil and preheat for atleast 15 minutes.
When read to cook remove shrimp and pat dry.
Cook in a single layer for about 20 seconds. If using smaller shrimp reduce this time, it should cook about ⅓ of the way.
Using tongs flip shrimp and cook for another 20 seconds.
Remove immediately lest they become over cooked. They should be slightly under done to account for carry over heat/cooking.
Serve immediately. Try serving with Thai sweet chili sauce.

Seafood Dinner

2007-02-06T15:34:00.000-05:00

So my girlfriend has been very health conscious lately. By request I made lots of seafood for her. We went to a windy Chinatown and bought: 2 lbs of shrimp (with heads and shells intact), ½ lbs bay scallops and 2 salmon tails.

I ended up making:

Broiled Thai Curry Shrimp
Sautéed Salmon Fillet in Teriyaki Broth
Sautéed Shrimp and Scallops with a Crustacean Butter Cream Sauce
Kombu Dashi Rice Pilaf

I also served very cold and very good sake. Unfortunately the sake was ill received. Also the scallops were of poor quality upon tasting, in my opinion.

Thai Curry Paste

2007-02-05T21:14:00.000-05:00

Well I had some success. After three hours of intermittent pounding I developed approximately 2 cups of brown sludge. It is terrifically flavourful and very hot.

Certainly I'm not pleased with spending so much time and watching so many crappy movies. However I feel that I've learned a thing or two about using a mortar and pestal; I think next time it will take me much less time.

I also think it's helpful to prep the ingredients as best as possible. For instance the recipe calls for chopped items, I could process them in a small food processor. (Why not do the whole thing in a food processor you ask? Well there's lots of oils and flavours that develop through pounding; such as the seeds of the chilies all have to be crushed.)

The ingredients, going clockwise, starting left of the yellow can, at the 6:10 position.

chopped garlic
chopped cilantro roots and stems
chopped reconstituted dried chilies, half seeded
chopped roasted fresh chilies
ground roasted coriander seed and Thai white peppercorns
ground roasted cumin and caraway
freshly grated nutmeg
chopped lemongrass
rind/zest of kaffir lime
chopped shallots
shrimp paste

And there is salt in the mortar. First you begin with the garlic and form a paste, adding each successive ingredient only when the current is well incorporated.

Thai Showdown

2007-02-03T00:22:00.000-05:00

So it all began with some friendly competition of gift giving between Shayo and I at Christmas. A food book she had given me, which proved to be exceptional, lead me to 'Cracking the Coconut' by Su-Mei Yu. (Incidentally the book I was given was Steingarten's 'It must have been something I ate'. She trumped me in books but I won overall. Varily I gave her no books since she's not read any books I gave her from the Christmas prior.)

Yu's book takes a traditional approach to Thai cooking. Last week I found a huge mortar and pestal in Chinatown and schlepped the 40 lb weight back home. According to Yu the cornerstone of Thai foods flavour is composed of in a base paste consisting of salt, garlic, Thai peppercorns and the stems and roots of cilantro. Thankfully we buy a full case of cilantro at work every week, dirty roots included. Normally we curse and toss them out but I snagged and cleaned some for my experiments.

I've done my research. I've consulted my Thai grocer. I've bought the necessary(and the unnecessary) ingredients and corresponding gadgets (actually I still lack a full sized food processor). I even have a fresh coconut and a backup of frozen shredded coconut defrosting in the fridge. I felt this precaution prudent since fresh coconuts are notorious for not being fresh (the water inside is rancid, the flesh is brown, bugs infest the skin, its molding etc).

So with the final purchase of some whole nutmeg I feel confident in tomorrows Thai showdown where the true curry is distinguished from the posers. I'm not actually battling anyone but my chef and Thai grocer want to have a taste. I personally hope to create something better than the ubiquitous Thai pastes found in those colourful cans, tastes so commonly found in the scores of those charming Thai restaurants which abound in New York City.

Risotto

2007-01-15T20:33:00.000-05:00

Well it seems that I was a bit overconfident in my last post; I havn't been cooking at all. Sure there's been plenty to write about but I can't seem to muster the energy to post photos.

Last week my school break ended and in my second class I learned to make basic risotto.

Risotto is often made with a short grain rice from Italy called Arborio. After sautéing onions in your choice of fat the rice is added and brown slightly. Warm flavourful liquid is added; thus you should have an additional pot on the heat to keep the liquid warm. Maintain a simmer and continue to stir the rice. Once the liquid has nearly all gone add more and continue to stir. At this point you might add different ingredients and flavourings. Cooking the rice slowly and maintaining the heat will coax the starch from the rice. Risotto is served al denté, thus other foods must be timed to finish with it and not vice versa. Risotto is also a very slack dish; there's lots of liquid, its creamy almost like rice porridge.

For traditional risotto, the sort I made in class, parmesan cheese and butter are added at the end; make sure to do this off the heat since the sauce may break due to the quick addition of a large amount of fat. Make sure to add salt and pepper to taste. The ratio of liquid to rice is something like 5 to 1 but this really depends on the evaporation. Two factors influence evaporation: area of cooking vassal and heat; be mindful, you can not rush risotto.

Cooking Again: Garlic Apple Roast Chicken

2006-12-03T15:33:00.000-05:00

After two colds and a virus I'm feeling better again. Besides being sick I have also been rather busy. In the past weeks I've been entrusted with keys to the restaurant; I now open on Fridays. I've written the test for the New York Foodhandlers certificate, which I aced. I volunteered for my former chef instructor, helping to give people a class themed on Thanksgiving sides. For American Thanksgiving I co-cooked a meal with my brother (whom is staying with us til he gets on his feat). And tonight I'm making roast chicken and mashed potatoes.

I've brined a 6 lbs chicken for 5+ hours. I made a sweet garlic brine and stuffed the chicken with a few apples.

Ingredients for 1½ gallons of brine:

1 qt hot water
1¼ gallons cold water/ice

5 bay leaves
1½ C salt
½ C sugar
¼ C honey
½ T pepper corns
½ T thyme
2 T lemmon juice

Combine all ingredients except the cold water. Bring to a boil, simmer for 5 min.
Add cold water/ice.
Once brine is cold submerg in it the chicken under refridgeration.
Brine the chicken for 4-6 hours.
Remove the chicken and discard the brine. Roast the chicken or reserve for later use.

Note:

Reduce the salt by half if you wish to double the brining time.
Use any water soluble aromatics and seasonings in your brine.
Double the recipe as needed.

Kabocha-San!

2006-11-10T17:12:00.000-05:00

Here's a nice picture of a delicious fruit; the kabocha squash. My first encounter with this little fella was at work. We've been serving this squash diced, steamed with skin on; salt, pepper and a little olive oil to round out the flavour.

Last night my brother and I were cruisin' Chinatown and happened upon some squash at one of my favorite chinese grocers. I picked one up and if it goes well this weekend I'll serve it at Thanksgiving.

Goodbye Chef: Adieu

2006-11-03T19:43:00.000-05:00

Well the chef is certainly dead. No yeast, no nothin. Just a gooey and now rock hard mass of flour. Next I shall try jump starting the culture with some grapes from a local corner grocery; the type of store that keeps their wares out on the sidewalk exposed to air. Apparently yeast enjoy spending time on grapes, so even if the grapes are from some other area chances are there will be some local boys hanging out on the grapes.

To use the grapes simply put them in the starting mixture of 1 part flour, 1 part purified water, close the container and maintain a temp around 65 °F to 85 °F. Check for yeast activity and start feeding around day 3.

Pound Cake: Elvis Style

2006-10-31T19:49:00.000-05:00

We're baking a decadent desert tonight. It's in honour of my brothers immanent arrival scheduled for tomorrow evening. We'll try to save him some.

We've baked this pound cake once before. It was super rich, fluffy and tasted sweetly of eggs. That recipe called for 5 eggs, Elvis preferred his cake with 7; which is how we are preparing it this evening.

Pound cake got its beginning by consisting of a pound of eggs, a pound of butter, a pound of sugar and a pound of flour. This resulted in something quite dense and artery clogging. Though still apt to clog arteries the recipe we're following will produce something also quite light.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
5 large eggs (or 7 per Elvis)
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour (Sift 3 times before measuring)
1 cup whipping cream

Butter and flour 2 9by5 inch loaf pans (or whatever else fits, just be sure to check it).
Whisk salt and baking powder into pre-sifted flour. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar together in an electric mixer until light, fluffy and almost white, 4 to 5 minutes, stopping mixer once or twice to scrape down sides.
Add eggs one at a time slowly, beating well after each addition.
Add one third of flour mixture into the mixer set at low speed.
Add half the whipping cream. Mix.
Continue alternating flour and cream, ending with flour.
Add vanilla. With rubber spatula scrape down sides and bottom until completely mixed. Pour into loaf pans, up to 2/3 full.
Start in a cold oven. Place pans on middle rack of oven. Turn oven to 325 degrees. Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. (Note: It only took ours about an hour, so check early)

Is the Chef Dead?

2006-10-28T19:03:00.000-04:00

Well it has been 4 days. My chef dosn't seem to be doing well. No bubbles, no yeasty beer smells, no foam; none of the signs of yeast.

It seems to be separating; a stinky watery substance on top, a goopy floury substance on bottom. From what I've read the watery stuff is known as hooch, though if I don't have a yeast colony then it ought not be hooch. Hooch is said to be harmless; it can be poured off or mixed in. I wonder if the smell I'm smelling is that of rancid water and flour?

Tonight I poured off the hooch since the whole thing is rather watery. I mixed in some more flour and water. I'm going to leave the cover half off.

If you build it they will come.

The Chef: Naturally Leavened Bread

2006-10-24T12:14:00.000-04:00

Well I've gone and done it; I've started what I hope to be a long line of naturally leavened bread, leavened by wild Brooklyn yeast. Perhaps I will pass on this line of yeast to my children and to my children's children? It's rumoured that in China there are old very lineages, hundreds and hundreds of years; I'd sure like to taste one of those dumplings!

There's no telling if this first attempt will be successful. It may just mold or not ferment at all. Anyhow the idea is that there is yeast floating all about and that stirring up some water and flour will provide a nice habitat for said yeast. Hopefully in about 3-4 days I'll have tell tale signs of yeast life and proliferation; bubbles.

Make sure to use filtered or spring water; chlorine may inhibit yeast growth and give your breads an off taste. There are plenty of choices of flour; stone ground this, organic that. I used what was in my cupboard, unbleached white all purpose flour. You can also use fancy methods of introducing yeasts, like grapes or raisins. I'm looking for wild Brooklyn yeast so I did not attempt this.

In turn one must feed the colony (also known as starter, the bitch (as in "feed the bitch") or the chef). This is done by adding equal parts of water and flour. I've read that it should be fed every day, ramping up feeding towards the end (when bread will be made). If everything goes according to plan feeding should start around day 4.

Thanks Giving Au Canada

2006-10-11T18:40:00.000-04:00

This post was long in comming. We lost the internet for nearly a week and I've been pretty busy with life recently.

Anyhow for our Canadian Thanksgiving I made a Thompsons Turkey; a madening affair consisting of more thank 20 ingredients. (I'll restrain myself from posting the monsterous recipe here, do an internet search and you can find it) Our sides included lumpy (but delicious) buttermilk mashed potatoes, stuffing and spiced brown sugar carrots.

I'll not give any recipe since none existed. However I'll tell you what I put into the carrots and 'tados.

Spiced Brown Sugar Carrots:

Cut in a consisten size
Bake in small amount of boiling water or roasted in oven (if oven, add a little water and oil)
When cooked add brown sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon, as desired

Mashed Potatoes:

Season boiling water well with salt
Mash while still warm
Use lots of unsalted butter
For liquid: butter milk, heavy cream and/or evaporated milk
Also try sour cream, cottage/riccota cheese, a finely grated strong tasting cheese
Don't use too much buttermilk, a little goes a long way

Mother's Apple Sauce

2006-10-04T21:05:00.000-04:00

We had a tone of apples in our fridge; some left over from our Vermont trip in August, some which we've bought since. Perhaps we should be more judicious in our apple buying.

This is my mother's recipe which she made all through my childhood. We would buy bushels of apples every season from a place called Smithy's on the east side of Saint John. Afterwards she would can the apple sauce, among other fruits; notably pears (they figured hugely in my mind). We would keep the apples on our back porch. The whole place would smell of apples; fond memories. The apples would be cold and crisp, delicious in my opinion; I definetly prefer my fruit cold.

This is not so much of a recipe as a procedure. There are no measurements only a basic method and suggestions (I've added a few of my own).

Wash, peel, fourth and core apples.
Add some water (or I'd suggest some fruity liquid like pear juice) to prevent burning.
Cook over medium low heat. As the apples soften break then up and stir.
Season with sugar (or any sweetner of your choice; I'm curious about Chinese rock sugar). Note that you must do this by taste since apples will vary in sweetness every time.
Season additionally with anything you fancy; perhaps lemon juice, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground cloves, raisins or nuts (or maybe wasabi, star anise, five spice powder, or ginger?)
Consistency is a matter of preference or intended usage. Some like their apple sauce thick and chunky others like it smooth like the store bought.

To make it thinner add more liquid.
For chunky sauce don't break up the apples so much.
Thicker; cook it very low and reduce by evaporation.
Silky smooth, try running it through the blender.

Singapore Spiced Pork Ribs

2006-10-02T17:59:00.000-04:00

I stole this recipe from "The Complete Asian Cookbook" (5th ed.) by Charmaine Solomon. I took a peek online and it seems there is a modern version of this book; mine is from '82, hard bound and has lots of retro photography. Frankly I'm curious and may have to buy the current version.

Anyhow this dish has become one of my old standbys; it really is delicious if you're open minded enough to eat pork with your hands. There are only a few areas in which I tweak the recipe. I sometimes use maltose for the honey. Rice maltose is traditionally used in glazing Peking Duck; many recipes in books that substitute the more esoteric Asian ingredients call for honey. Maltose is much cheaper and I like to think it is more authentic.

Another area which I tweak is cooking time. The recipe calls for an hour of cooking, I double that at a minimum. I simply find that the fat needs more time to render and become tender; essential for this type of dish.

I also like to substitute one tablespoon of dark soy sauce for light soy sauce. I find when trying to achieve deep, rich flavour and dark brown colour dark soy sauce helps tremendously. Let me also mention light soy sauce. I am not referring to low sodium soy sauce; never use this abomination. If you must cut back on your sodium intake then use it only to season food that has been cooked (eg white rice); under no circumstances should it be used for cooking. The 'light' refers to colour and flavour, contrasting from the 'dark' soy sauce (whose most common form is mushroom soy sauce). In general when Asian recipes call for soy sauce they refer to the light version.

You may have trouble finding small cut ribs. If you have a heavy cleaver (I use a 6$ stainless steel monster I picked up in Chinatown) and a good cutting board (I've split the thin ½ inch ploy boards) it's really easy to cut them yourself. If you're not shy you can ask the butcher to do it for you. They can run them through their band saws; very quick and a standard service. I prefer to cut them myself since a whole piece is cheaper (and its fun).

If you decide to cut them yourself (a process known as fabrication) simply cut the ribs top to bottom between the bones. Next cut each bone with a cleaver; you're looking for pieces about ¾ of an inch long. If you position the rib thin side up it will be easier to cut. Also if you don't go all the way through try turning it over and snapping it or another, lighter, hack will make quick work of it.

There are two methods of cooking these ribs; stove top or in the oven. I have always cooked them on the stove until today. I finally bought a roasting pan after a terrible experience browning lamb bones and mirepoix on jelly roll pans. I must say that I've been more than happy with the stove top results. However I now prefer the oven method; it is much easier since the stovetop method usually occupies two burners. In the oven I easily had enough room, even for a double batch.

Ingredients:

3 lbs Pork Ribs
4 Garlic Cloves
1½ t Salt
½ t Black Pepper
½ t Five Spice Powder
1 T Maltose
1 T Roasted Sesame Oil
2 T Light Soy Sauce
1 T Dark Soy Sauce
½ C hot water or stock

Crush and coarsely chop the garlic on top of the salt.
Add all ingredients except for the stock into a bowl or roasting pan; mix well. I often let then marinate for as much as 30 minutes to over night although results are still delicious without.
Cook in oven in roughly a single layer at 350°F for 30 minutes.
Add the stock and mix. Cook for another 1:30 hours or until brown and tender. Mix occasionally, say about every 20 minutes.

If cooking on the stove top:

Follow steps 1 & 2 as above.
Brown the ribs in a heavy large pan over medium high heat.
Add stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and cook, half covered.
Stir well every 20 minutes or so until ribs are deeply coloured and very tender; about 1:30 hours. If ribs run dry of liquid (other than fat) add some stock or water otherwise they will burn.

I would further recommend utulizing the sauce; especially if the ribs are being eaten later or another day. Usually we can't keep our hands out of them once they are finished.

Remove the ribs from the pan.
Deglaze the pan with stock.
Strain the resulting sauce into a tallish container.
Let stand or store in the fridge; then degrease.
Serve the ribs reheated with the sauce.

Beef Noodles

2006-10-01T21:37:00.000-04:00

This is the girlfriend's plate of noodles; half a pound of food. My beef noodles have sort of evolved over time. I guess it could be called beef lo mein however the way I cook it every bite should be full of beefy flavour. The beef has been cut the same width as the noodles; the noodles themselves are firm and bouncy, covered in delicious sauce. I find that adding other ingredients (such as scallions, egg, leafy greens, ginger, peppers etc) detracts from the dish, which is beefy goodness. Hence the dish's name (Beef Noodles) instead of beef lo mein.

I prefer to use the thicker, fresh egg noodles than Italien pasta or thinner Asian noodles. The size is just right to be mimiced by beef; both from a cutting point of view and their firmness. I also favour them over the rice flour noodles which are greyish white; I prefer the flavour of the egg noodles.

Ingredients:

~5 oz lean beef
~1 T soy sauce
1 t & 1 T fish sauce
1 T & 3 T oyster sauce
2 t cornstarch
1 lbs egg noodles, fresh (can be frozen)
vegetable oil

Cut beef into thin strips about 2-3 mm in width & height and about as long as your index finger. Combine with soy sauce, 1 t fish sauce, 1 T oyster sauce and cornstarch in a bowl and marinate for atleast 30 minutes, preferably about 2 hours.
Put noodles in a pot, covered with cold water. Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Remove and strain; run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Sprinkle with about 1 T of oil; toss briefly and set aside.
Bring beef to room temperature. Heat a larger skillet over high heat. Add about 2 T oil, allow oil to heat, then add beef. Turn beef constantly until most of the meat is seared, about 2 minutes. Do not overcook. Set aside.
In the same skillet add the noodles, set heat to medium-ish. Toss so that they are evenly heated. Once the pan approaches dry (a few minutes) add the 1 T of fish sauce.
Continue to toss another 2 minutes then add the oyster sauce and continue to toss until it is evenly distributed.
Add the beef and toss again until evenly distributed. If there is sauce still in the bottom of the pan, continue tossing until it is almost dry.
Serve hot.

Free Squash

2006-10-01T08:15:00.000-04:00

I got home late yesterday after doing some shopping at the local department store for varmint control devices. No sooner had I closed my door there came a knock, I had been followed up to my second story appartment. Lo and behold a smiling landlady, in her outstreched hands an offering of squash. We thanked her with many slight nods of the head, also smiling. I guess this means she wants more soup?

Roast: Beef Eye Round

2006-09-27T20:27:00.000-04:00

The eye round roast is fabricated from the primal called the round. Primals are large, standardized cuts of meat take from the carcass. Since bovine are so large we generally don't use a whole primal but cut it down into smaller cuts; this process is called fabrication. These smaller cuts are not standardized per se but many are in general use.

The round is essentially the bovine's back leg. Cuts from the round are generally thought of as tough (and cheap). The rule of thumb is that the closer the cut is to areas of work the more connective tissue and flavour it has. Connective tissue connects muscles to each other and to bone. The cut I bought is called the eye, which is a long muscle in the leg.

As you can see from the photo the meat has large fibers, one obstacal in creating a tender dish. Cuts from the round don't have to end up tough, the cook simply needs to account for it's needs. Meat with high connective tissue benefit from certain methods of cooking; braising, slow roasting & stewing. This meat would also be good in stir fry taking advantage of marination.

Tonight's challenge was slow roasting. The method I used is based upon several sources: Cooks Illustrated, Good Eats, my text book On Cooking 3rd Ed. and another book called La Varenne. I'll tell you now that I had mixed results; encouraging but it could have been better. I found that the meat had good flavour and was fairly tender if cut very thin otherwise it was tough.

Ingredients:

3-4 lbs Cheap Beef Roast
Salt & Pepper to taste
1-2 T fat
~1 C Mirepoix, medium dice
~⅓ C Red Wine
~1 C Stock

Preheat oven to 250°F.
Season roast with salt and pepper as desired. Don't skimp on the salt.
Brown the roast in some fat over medium high heat. Use olive oil, vegetable oil or mixed with some butter. The pan should be heavy-ish, conforms to the roast (not too big otherwise the fond will burn) but not too small (the roast shouldn't press the sides).
Remove the roast and put the mirepoix in the bottom, rest the roast on top.
Cook the roast in the oven until 110°F internal; about 45-60 minutes.
Increase the oven's temperature to 500°F and cook the roast to 130°F internal; about 15 minutes.
Remove the roast from the oven, set the roast aside to sit for 20 minutes. This allows the juices inside the roast to redistribute evenly throughout the meat.
During this time put the pan over medium high heat. Add the wine and scrap up all the little brown pieces, dissolving them (this is known as deglazing).
Cook the wine down until it is almost gone, about 3 minutes.
Add the stock, bring to a simmer and reduce for another 5 minutes or to desired consistency. Strain.
Slice the meat quite thing, no more than 3 mm.
Serve.

Next time I will try using a roast from the chuck primal; there is more marbling which helps keep the meat more tender and juicy. Or perhaps I'll try my hand at barding or larding; techniques in which pork fat is used to cover or is internally distributed thereby basting the meat as it is cooked.

Soul Seasoning

2006-09-26T19:12:00.000-04:00

Spice Supreme has a new ace up its sleeve; atleast I think its new, I've never seen it before. I enjoy looking through the spices to discover their new concoctions.

Mama'soul sea-zon-nin is comprised of salt, black pepper, red pepper, garlic, onion, 'spices', oleoresin paprika & calcium stearate; in that order.

On Sunday the ball'n'chain and I went to Astoria to get a free stock pot. Sadly the R rain failed us and we got out and walked, figured it wouldn't be too bad. We ended up walking 30 plus blocks at top speed. After securing the 32 qt mammoth we felt a bit peck-ish; enter Mike's Diner, just off the last stop on the N train. We both decided upon the goo'ol hamburger deluxes.

These burgers come with fries, onion rings, pickles, lettuce, tomato (two slices) and slaw. We were very excited about the onion rings; sadly we only received two each; we ordered a side of onion rings. The fries were good, above decent; not as crisp as I'd have liked. The burgers were tasty and juicy, decently sized at 7 oz.

After finding this jewel seasoning I decided we would have another go at hamburgers (after listening to the woman rave about them and the need to visit other burger joints). I seasoned both burgers with salt, black pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. I also worked in some bread soaked with milk; apparently it helps keep well done patties moist. I dusted the soul seasoning on both sides of my slab of meat.

We ate our beef on sesame seed buns with sautéed onions. The only other condiment used was ketchup. Interestingly enough compared to Mike's meat ours was discernibly larger. Likely Mike uses rather fatty cow.

Conclusion: we both found the burgers very tasty but found that mine was more so.

I'm forced to reconsider my culinary endeavours; perhaps my dishes need a little more soul....

Stock: White Chicken

2006-09-25T14:21:00.000-04:00

Today I'm making white stock (as opposed to brown). In French cuisine stocks are divided into two camps; white and brown. My Chef instructor is of the opinion that the biggest difference between home and professional cooking is the use of stock. Using stock instead of water gives much more depth to any dish.

I'm using 7 lbs of chicken bones, mostly carcasses I bought in China Town and some thigh bones from my freezer. These items are known as the nourishing element of the stock, thus defining its nature; I'm making chicken stock.

I have read in Asian cookbooks about using pork to enhance the flavour and consistency of stock. I've added 2 lbs of pork knuckle bones; I chose the knuckles since they are high in collagen which makes stock gelatinous (one sign of good stock). If memory serves I've read accounts of Carême or Escoffier suggesting the addition of pork to stocks and braises.

The quantity of mirepoix is given as a ratio to the quantity of bones (and meat if you're rich). The ratio is 1 to 7 by weight. Mirepoix is roughly a mixture of onions, carrots and celery; their ratio is 2:1:1 by weight respectively. So I should have about 1⅓ lbs of mirepoix, half of which is onion. Honestly I rarely weigh them, I just go by approximations. I think it would be a good idea to weigh these ingredients at the beginning to create a baseline upon which to make approximations in the future.

The last component of stock is the sachet or bouquet garnis. Generally it is a mixture of herbs and spices often inside cheese cloth. You could even use a tea ball or nothing at all since the stock will be heavily strained (however only do this is youre using whole herbs otherwise it becomes difficult to skim). The most basic bouquet garnis is comprised of the bayleaf, pepper corns, thyme and parsley stems (or whole, with roots depending on who you ask) if you have it.

Without further theorizing (more will come later) the procedure for white chicken stock:

Ingredients:

7 lbs chicken bones
½ lbs Onions, small dice
¼ lbs Carrots, small dice
¼ Celery, small dice
2 Bay leaves
½ T Pepper Corns
½ T Thyme
5 sprigs of Parsley

Put chicken bones in a large stock pot (in the vicinity of 23 qts).

Fill with cold water 2" above bones.

Bring to a simmer, skimming the top of scum and oil as needed.

Once simmering skim well.

Add mirepoix and bouquet garnis.

Bring to a simmer.

Continue skimming as needed. About every 10 minutes during the next 40 minutes.

Chicken stock in general simmers for 4 more hours, beyond this rough guideline I can only say cook until done.

Strain the stock.

Cool in an ice bath or running water in the sink.

Store in fridge.

Once the grease has hardened on the top remove it (a procedure known as degreasing). The stock itself should be fairly clear and gelatinous. If you find there is debris in your stock bring it just to a boil and strain through a finer mesh.

A few points on stock making in general:

Never use hot water to begin stock; this will result in a cloudy stock.

Do not cover the stock, even when bringing it to a simmer.

Do not allow the stock to boil.

Do not stir the stock; don't disturb the bones. This will push impurities back down into the stock.

When straining to not push on the strained items, it will simply force out impurities.

Purple Bell Peppers

2006-09-24T22:49:00.000-04:00

Over the weekend past the girlfriend and I stumbled into the Union Square Greenmarket and purused several stands before limping onward. We saw Vermont honeys, buffalo and produce; these particular bell peppers caught my attention. Not only have I never seen purple bell peppers but they have a pungent aroma; hopefully they are well ripened.

The produce man described them as being sweeter than green but less so than red bell peppers. I really have no idea what to do with them especially since my girlfriend is rather picky. She likely won't eat them unless they are cut small or hidden.

Here they are unwashed, I won't wash them until I'm ready to use them. As you can see from the photo they look almost dusty. This is due to a waxy coating. Some fruits (yes they are a fruit, they have seeds, they are the plants ovaries) develop a waxy coating once picked. This is to help retain their moisture and thus they keep longer. In a wry manner this is a survival mechanism; if they spoil too soon the predators won't eat them and thus their seeds won't be dispersed.

Yung Squash Soup

2006-09-24T17:41:00.000-04:00

My landlady is a little old Asian woman; she happens to grow vegetables in the front courtyard. Recently she presented us with gift of squash. In the past she has given us mint grown from her garden.

To be honest I've never cooked with squash before, let alone eat it with any regularity. Having no idea what to do with it I took a page from work and made a soup based upon our Butternut Squash Soup.

The ingredients and procedure were described to me and the following recipe is an approximation since I didn't measure anything nor had any measurements to go by. What I can say for sure is that this soup turned out wonderfully and I'd certainly make it again.

At work we add kernel corn after it has been puréed. I think boiled potatoes would work well or perhaps reserved small diced squash and carrots. I didn't have any coconut milk in my cupboard but used evaporated milk and desiccated coconut. I steeped the milk and coconut and strained it out.

I named this soup 'Young Squash Soup' not after the type of squash, I have no idea what type it is nor its age. The soup is named after its benefactor Mrs Yung.

Mirepoix & Tomato Pincé

2006-09-19T13:28:00.000-04:00

"Mirepoix" is a French culinary term; it is a combination of vegtables used primarily in stock. The use of mirepoix is to impart nutrients, depth and flavour. In some preparations it is used in the final dish, as in poisson à la nage, but usually it is strained out. The ratio of vegtables is (loosely) 50% onions, 25% carrots and 25% celery. The size of the mirepoix is directly related to the cooking time. In brown sauce preparation it is going to be cooked for a very short periode of time therefore we need a very small cut; say about ½ an inch cubes. As a counter point, the mirepoix used for veal stock, which simmers about 8 hours, the vegtables might be cut at 1 ½ inches.

Tomato pincé used in brown sauce is loosely any tomato product used to impart depth and colour; adding richness. The tomatos acidity is often utilized as well; it helps bring out the flavours and balances. In the industry tomato paste is commonly used.

Brown Sauce to Demi-Glace

2006-09-18T22:58:00.000-04:00

Demi-glace is derived from the French traditional Brown Sauce called espagnole. Espagnole is traditionally not used as such; it is normally made into demi-glace to create its daughter sauces. Here is an earlier post using demi-glace in a sauce.

Creating demi-glace can be expensive and time consuming. We sometimes use what is called a "jus lié" in its place. It is simply brown stock thickened with starch (such as arrow root) or reduced to the correct thickness. Jus lié lacks the depth and body achieved by the traditional demi-glace however in modern American cooking reductions (as opposed to sauces thickened with starches) are often more popular.

To make 1 pint of espagnole you will need:

2 oz Brown Roux
~1.5 pt Brown Stock
1C Mirepoix
~1 tsp Tomato Pincé

Create the roux, add the mirepoix towards the end to caramelize.
Add pincé, then wisk in the brown stock.
Bring to simmer and reduce until nappé. If need be add stock to thin.

To make demi-glace:

one part espagnole
one part brown stock

Combine ingredients.
Reduce by half.

Ken Hom: Cookbooks

2006-09-12T22:46:00.000-04:00

I bought my third cookbook by Ken Hom yesterday; "Ken Hom Chinese Cooking". It is a very handsom hard cover book published by the BBC. The photography is modern as is the layout however I wish there were more photos of the dishes and in the ingredient section. I've perused the recipes and they all look lovely. It is marketed as an updated version, recommended as a reference. I can't wait to try the recipe for "deep fried milk".

I like Ken Hom, the BBC and this book however if I were to choose out of all my Ken Hom cookbooks it would be "Chinese Technique: An Illustrated Guide to the Fundamental Techniques of Chinese Cooking by Ken Hom with Harvey Steiman". This is a much older book with mostly black and white photos however there is a plethora. It is the only cookbook in which I have seen step by step instructions on skinning a whole chicken (leaving the skin intact), stuffing it and then deep-frying it. This book instructed me to fabricate a whole chicken, as well as leading me in making Peking Duck the first time. Don't get me wrong, I am happy to have both but one can not replace the other.

A Scale is Worth a Thousand Words

2006-09-12T12:37:00.000-04:00

We bought this scale while out shopping yesterday. It was a nifty 9.95$ at Marshalls. We also bought a digital thermometer, also by Polder, for 14.95$. It is the type with a probe on a metal lead meant to be used in the oven.

Scales are quite important when cooking with dry food stuffs due to altitudes and humidity. Don't ask for the science behind it, I'm not particularly sure. I was like you, I didn't mind so much if my dry goods were off a little, to measure by volume was fine, I just wanted to eat dinner; however I've found that many cookbooks give only weight measurements for dry.

Thermometers are very important as well. Some people like to cook food until they are absolutely positive it is done, yet this method usually leads to over cooking. It is true that with lots of meats you can tell its doneness simply by pressing on it. I feel it is best to develop a point of reference based upon rigorous temperature readings. Also it is much harder to determine doneness through feel alone with large cuts of meat cooked in the oven, hence my thermometer. This handy tool also has neat features like an alarm once the present temperature has been reached.

Döner Kebab, Canadian Style

2006-09-11T10:49:00.000-04:00

My first attempt at creating an Eastern Canadian Shawarma; aka donair.

The results were just about passable; I'd make it again once in a while. It reminded me of home in a good, nostalgic way. It was certainly good enough to wet my interest in developing my own recipe.

I pulled the recipe from the net, the recipe is Dash Rip Rocks’. I won’t reproduce it here but I will say that I used ground pork and minced onions & garlic as opposed to ground beef and powdered garlic & onions (simply because I didn’t have any in the house). I did not toss the meat as much as the recipe indicated and I believe it suffered. The loaf was much easier to cut after it had cooled overnight.

In the future I’m planning on trying it again with ground lamb. I’ll tweak the spices and do away with the minced garlic in the sauce. The sauce itself didn’t thicken enough for my liking; I’ll have to experiment with it.

Fried Rice with Sweet Thai Sausage

2006-09-05T19:41:00.000-04:00

A delicious fried rice which has naturally evolved over time. Fried rice is something I first attempted about 10 years ago. Over the past 3 years my fried rice has improved beyond my expectations (or perhaps it was taste buds doing the developing?).

Fried rice should not be heavy or sticky; it should be light and fluffy. It should satisfy its purpose, which it is generally either meant to function as a backdrop to the rest of the meal or as a full fledged active component of the meal. This will define the character of your fried rice.

The most important thing to remember when cooking fried rice is moisture. Remember that different types of rice have different moisture contents when cooked; how you cook the rice also plays a role. I find that simple is best using long grain white rice; use whatever method you prefer just make sure its not too sticky, some moisture is fine though. I use a rice steamer to cook my rice; my girlfriend boils it on the stove. She overcooks it sometimes but otherwise both methods work fine.

When making fried rice it is best you use day old rice. Refrigerated rice is firmer and has less moisture; its texture is perfect for making fluffy fried rice. You can also use rice that has been frozen. Before you add the rice to the pan make sure that you crumble it or break it into small pieces. I recommend taking out the rice ahead of time to bring it closer to room temperature.

With regards to added ingredients be mindful of their moisture content. For instance if you add parboiled mix veggies (eg corn and veggies) make sure they aren’t wet. Never pour off the water and overturn the pot into the fried rice. For such an instance I recommend using very little water and boiling it all off, leaving the veggies dry.

As with all Asian cooking be conscious of the size and shape of the ingredients. My thoughts on the matter, try keeping all the ingredients about the same size and shape. One exception is for a main ingredient like shrimp.

My Thai fried rice is very simple; it is light and fluffy with little pieces of delicious sweet sausage. I’ve only found this sausage at my favorite Thai grocer. I was unable to find it online but, if memory serves, they deliver. The best way to serve it in fried rice is to cut the sausage in halves, cut each half into fourths lengthwise, then cut them into cubes. I believe that’s just about a small dice. Next slightly brown them in a dry pan over medium heat (they burn easily due to their high sugar content). Do not substitute Chinese sausage.

Without further ado:

Salt and Pepper to taste
4-5C long grain white rice (see above)
1.5 Thai Cooked Sweet Sausage, browned
2 T light (in terms of colour) soy sauce
1/3C of kernel corn; parboiled and dry
3-4 scallions, bias chopped
3-4 eggs

Heat a good sized frying pan or wok over medium high, add enough oil to cover bottom plus a little more. Use more oil if your pan is not non-stick. Add rice, stir coating the rice.
Add soy sauce, mix and stir, breaking up lumps of rice. Let rice heat. As the rice heats it will become much easier to break up all the clumps, dont kill yourself trying at this point.
In a smaller skillet brown the sausage and add to rice. Mix in.
Whip the eggs and season with salt. Scramble the eggs in the small pan. Make sure to use a generous amount of oil and that it is hot enough. Set aside.
Heat corn in the small pan with enough water to just cover. You may add a little sugar to the water as it cooks. Cook until dry. Add to rice.
Add the eggs to the rice, mix. Never add soy sauce after you've added the egg, it will ruin the beautiful yellow of the eggs.
Season with salt and pepper. At this point you can hold it for quite some time. It is best to add the scallions just before eating to enjoy their crisp flavour.
Add the scallions, mix and heat for another minute.
Serve immediately.

Tomato Concassé

2006-09-05T18:22:00.000-04:00

Tomato concassé is diced tomato which has been peeled and seeded. Technically the tomato only requires a rough chop but making a uniform dice is more pleasing to the eye, especially when the tomato is being used for garnish. The procedure is simple and with some practice can be preformed very quickly.

1. Remove the tomato skin (2 mothods)

a)Blanching:

Set up a pot of water to boil (not too small) and a bowl of ice water (or very cold water).
Mark an “x” on the tip of the tomatoes with a small knife (this will help you peal it).
Cut out the vine end (top) of the tomatoes, cutting as little tomato as possible.
Add tomato(s) to the water (not so much that the temperature of the water is brought down too much) the tomatoes should be able to swim.
Remove tomatoes after about 30 seconds (depending on the tomatoes freshness; the more fresh it is the less time it needs) you can take out a tomato and check the skin to see if its ready.
When the tomatoes are ready immediately plunge them into the water to stop the cooking process.
Peel the tomatoes. The skin should be slightly transparent. The tomato should be smooth and no flesh should come off on either the skin and by rubbing the tomato. If flesh does come off you have cooked the tomato too long (a very easy thing to do, simply continue)

b) Roasting:

Setup a bowl of ice water (or very cold water).
Mark an “x” on the tip of the tomato with a small knife (this will help you peal it).
Cut out the vine end (top) of the tomato, cutting as little tomato as possible.
Put tomatoes into a flame (eg over a fire, gas burner, blow torch). Let the skin char slightly and start to come away where the skin has been pierced.
Plunge the tomatoes into the water and then peel.

** Note you need not roast tomatoes as long as you would roast a bell pepper unless you wish for a roasted flavour (however I have not tried this myself). In my experience it is easier to roast if you need very little tomato.

2. Cut tomatoes in half through the middle (as opposed to from the top through to the bottom).
3. Seed the tomatoes. Do not squeeze them otherwise the tomato flesh will be crushed. I suggest two other methods, the first giving a cleaner product. For either method you can tap/slap the tomato on the cutting board (cut side down) to help remove the loosened seeds.

a) Lay the tomato on its side, cut side facing your knife hand. Using a paring knife cut the membrane holding the seeds in each compartment of the tomato. Scrape out the seeds with the blade of the knife. Do not hold the tomato in your hand since your knife could easily go through the tomato and into your hand.

b) If the tomato is large enough: hold the half in your hand and insert your fingers into the different compartments of the tomato, digging with your fingers to loosen the seeds. Dump and scrap out the seeds.

4. Clean up your work area.
5. Position the tomato half standing, cut side on the board. Use your knife to cut a ‘petal’; going from the top center downward, curving at first then straight down. Cut 3 or 4 ‘petals’ depending on the size of the tomato. There should be little membrane on the petals. Cut off any white/yellow/green membrane or flesh.
6. Dice or rough chop your petals depending on the intended usage.
7. The inner core and membrane can be used if it is ripe. Simply cut what can be used.

Jeffrey Steingarten: The Man Who Ate Everything

2006-09-04T22:20:00.000-04:00

I happily received this book for my birthday last. I'm sure there are heaps of reviews of this book out there, let me be brief. Nearly every page was a delight to read, every second page encouraged chuckles and laughter.

I've yet to try any of the recipes but am eager to. I simply don't have the time or funds to rush out and try them all immediately. I will certainly post regarding those misadventures.

In closing I will unabashedly advise each and every one of you to rush out and buy this book for yourselves and loved ones (Barring that try your local library or liberating it from an undeserving relative). I can say this since only those who enjoy food a great deal would be reading my blog (know thy audience).

Chasseur Sauce with Sirloin Tips

2006-09-04T11:08:00.000-04:00

My Companion whined for more steak so I picked up sirloin tips cut from the round. While shopping we also bought cremini mushrooms, cheap madeira, parsley and aged mirin.

The round is cut from the back leg and butt of the steer; a tough and sinewy cut. The sirloin is cut from the piece of the steer next to the leg, however part of the sirloin extends into the round, thus sirloin tips of the round. The general rule for tenderness of cuts is that the farther one gets from the 'working' areas the tenderer the meat.

Also, a steer is a male bovine that has been castrated. In North America most of the beef we buy in restaurants and stores is from steers. Retired dairy cows end up in the fast food grinders.

Mirin is a sweet Japanese wine. Ideally it should be golden yellow, rich textured with an alcohol content of about 14 percent. It should be good enough to drink. Normally you will find synthetic mirin which is generally unacceptable. Beware of recipes that sugest substituting sake or other rice wines; mirin is quite distinct. The best mirin I’ve found is imported from Mikawa

Japan.

Ingredients:

Salt & Pepper
Steak (or other protein)
1/4 C Chopped Mushrooms
2T Chopped Whites of Green Onions
3/4 C Red Wine
1C Demi Glace
4T Tomato Concassé
Brown Stock
1-2T Chopped Fresh Parsley

Season steak with salt and pepper.
Cook the steak until done, set aside.
Degrease the pan of most of the fat.
Sauté the mushrooms until slightly cooked, season with salt.
Add the onions and continue to sauté for another minute.
Deglaze the pan with the wine and reduce until almost dry.
Add demi glace, bring to a simmer and cook for several minutes.
Cut mean into strips; reserve run off juices.
Add tomato and meat juices.
Reduce or add stock if sauce is too thick; it should just coat the back of a spoon.
Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with parsley and serve.

*Note: Chasseur sauce (also known as Hunter sauce) is normally made with white wine. You can also use other types of onion aromatics and tomato products.

Nappé

2006-09-03T15:05:00.000-04:00

As such “nappé” is a conservative culinary term used to describe the proper thickness of sauce; the thickness being so that the sauce will coat the back of a spoon. Another method to determine if the liquid has reached the proper thickness is to draw a spoon through the sauce, it should come together after a moments pause (this is, of course, in the pan and the sauce is about a centimeter in depth).

I say conservative since in modern American cooking (and quite possibly others) there is seen a great divergence from the old standards in French sauce making. Much thinner sauces are often used and deemed acceptable. There is a trend to make sauces without a starch thickener; such as reductions, broths and purées.

I am unsure if the term is actually used in modern French kitchens; I see no entry for the word in Larousse Gastronomique or in La Varenne Pratique. Nor after a cursory glance through the sauce entry of Larousse (which is extensive being around a dozen pages) did I see any use of the word.

My culinary arts text book defines nappé as such: (1) the consistency of a liquid, usually a sauce, that will coat the back of a spoon; (2) to coat food with a sauce.

Verily in French the word means tablecloth or a cover.

White Miso & Onion-Garlic Sauce

2006-09-02T21:52:00.000-04:00

Tonight dinner was composed of 3 parts:

-White long grain rice
-Pork and bean sprout stir fry
-Braised chicken thighs

According to my partner the bean sprout dish tasted ‘wholesome’; she promptly slid her share onto my plate. It seems the state of wholesomeness is diametrically opposed to that of savoury.

The chicken was defrosted yesterday & seemed a bit off; I have yet to learn respect for the Art of Freezing. A usefull skill that is often abused.

The sauce was delicious if not a tad too sweet for some. It also thickened too much. Cardinal rule: take it off the flame just before nappé otherwise it will become too thick by the time it reaches the table.

Salt
5 chicken thighs, skin removed
1 medium onion, small dice
1-2 cloves of garlic, chopped
4-6 T red wine
2-3 T white miso
1 T oyster sauce
3 to 4 T brown stock

Season chicken with salt.
Brown both sides of chicken; set aside.
Degrease pan except for small amount of grease.
Add onions, sauté briefly. Add garlic.
Continue sautéing until onions are slightly browned, take care not to burn the garlic and fond.
Deglaze pan by slowly adding red wine; reduce until almost dry (au sec).
Combine miso, oyster sauce and stock; add to pan.
Return chicken to pan (with any juice that may have run off).
Bring to a simmer and turn heat low. Partially cover and cook until done.
If sauce thickens too much while cooking add additional stock.

Welcome Fellow Gourmandes

2006-09-02T18:22:00.000-04:00

Since I have little time for activities unrelated to food I decided to create this blog. For those whom aren't aware of my situation let me enumerate briefly:

I love food and sleeping.
This summer I formally began studying culinary arts at The Art Institute of NYC (formerly known as The New York Restaurant School).
I work full time at a restaurant called Second Helpings.
My girlfriend loves to eat yet hates to cook.