Also called Twice-Cooked Pork this, like Kung Pao Chicken and Ma Po Tofu, is an iconic Sichuan dish known around the world. And like any such traditional food it comes in seemingly endless variations. In such cases I like to read as many different recipes as I can until I feel I understand the essence of its preparation. The consensus that I tried to capture here is that it includes pork belly or fresh bacon, garlic, Chinese black beans, chilies, and a green, usually Chinese leeks, bell peppers, or cabbage. Of course, it you don’t like my recipe there are thousands more you can choose from.
Put the bacon into a saucepan along with the ginger and water to cover. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain, reserving the cooking liquid for another use, discard the ginger, and cut the pork into strips and inch or so long by ¼-inch on a side. Set aside.
Quarter the onion through the root then cut each piece into ¾-inch slices. Cut the cabbage in half through the stem and remove the core. Slice each piece into thirds parallel to the original cut, then crosswise at 1-inch intervals.
In a wok over high heat warm the oil until it begins to smoke. Add garlic, fermented black beans, and chilies if using. Stir fry for a few seconds until fragrant then add the pork and continue to cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until the meat is crispy. Add the onion and stir fry for 2 minutes then add the cabbage and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes. Pour in the water and scrape anything that is stuck to the bottom of the work. Finally stir in the sauces, mix in well and allow to heat through, about 1 minute. Serve immediately over steamed white rice.
Enter bœuf bourguignon into an English-language search engine and you will find many minor variations of Julia Child’s classic from her Mastering the Art of French Cooking (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc. , 1961) 315-317. But type the same term into a French-language search engine and you will find a much richer variety of recipes. One that I found especially intriguing was Joue de Bœuf Bourguignon, beef cheeks, which strikes me as likely to be the original version of what is clearly a peasant dish. And the wine would likely have been equally modest, probably some that had passed beyond drinkability. The recipe here is one with a Québécois flair that I translated and adapted from the web site Femmes Québec (you can find the original here). Their introduction to the recipe sums up the dish perfectly: “This tasty dish is one of the most famous in French cuisine. You can prepare it in advance and keep in the refrigerator for a day or two before serving: it will never be better. Or you can freeze it in individual portions for a good month. Serve it with boiled potatoes, noodles, or rice as you wish.” Oh, and in case anyone asks, this is technically not a stew but a braise because it is cooked in the oven.
Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Pat the beef cubes dry with paper towels; they will not brown properly unless they are completely dry.
Film the bottom of an enameled Dutch oven with a bit of olive oil and set over medium-high heat. When hot add the bacon and cook until the fat is rendered out and it begins to crisp, about 4 or 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon remove the bacon, leaving as much fat as possible in the pot, and set aside.
Working in batches so that the beef cubes are in one layer and not crowded, brown the meat well on all sides, about 5 minutes, adding a bit of olive oil between batches if needed. Remove each batch to a bowl. Do not be tempted to rush this step; thorough browning ensures the best flavor.
Turn the heat down to medium and adjust the oil in the pan. Sweat the onions and carrots for 3 minutes then add the mushrooms and salt. Sauté, stirring often, for another 5 minutes or until the mushrooms become fragrant and begin to give up their liquid. Remove the vegetables and mushrooms to bowl and set aside.
Turn off the heat and return the beef cubes to the pot. Sprinkle on the flour and mix with a wooden spoon to coat the meat evenly. Pour on the wine and stock. They should just cover the meat. Turn the heat to medium-high and stir, scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, thyme, and black pepper. Return the mushrooms and vegetables to the pot along with the bay leaves. Bring to a boil, cover, and place in bottom of the oven for 2 hours. Add the parsley before serving. If using dried parsley let it sit in the broth for about 10 minutes to rehydrate.
The lowly sausage is, in my opinion, a thing of beauty. Nearly every culture makes them using an amazing variety of ingredients from animal blood to rice. Here in Binghamton we are fortunate to have available very good fresh Italian sausage made by Lupo’s of spiedie fame. This simple stew surrounds the spicy Italian sausage with vegetables making a filling one-dish meal perfect for a cold winter night.
Serve 2 to 4
Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onions and carrots as sweat for about 5 minutes or until they begin to soften. Meanwhile brown the sausage in skillet to render out some of the fat. Add the tomatoes and garlic to the Dutch oven and cook for a couple of minutes than add the sausage, potatoes, stock, and oregano. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 45 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Add the green beans and continue simmering for another 10 minutes. Serve!
Cajuns, like their French Canadian cousins, have a definite sweet tooth. How else to explain the popularity of maple sugar pie among the latter and the probable invention of pecan pie by the former? This recipe, that I adapted from Emeril Lagasse’s Louisiana Real and Rustic (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1996), satisfies that sweet tooth as well as the Cajun love of cayenne and pork. Sweet but not cloying and spicy but not hot it is a tasty dish indeed. I served it simply with French-cut green beans.
Serves 2
Preheat oven to 400°. Prick the sweet potato a few time with a small knife and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Bake in the hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes. You will be able to smell when it is done. Set aside to cool.
Break the pecans into pieces with a mortar and pestle or with a rolling pin on a cutting board.
Mix the thyme, oregano, garlic powder, black pepper, salt, cayenne, and paprika in a small bowl. Pat the pork chops dry and coat generously with the rub. Heat a cast iron skillet (it really is the best pan to use for this recipe) over medium-high heat. Add the oil, let heat for a few second, then the pork chops. Brown for 5 minutes per side then remove to a plate and set aside.
Reduce the heat to medium and sprinkle in the flour. Stir to combine with the fat in the pan, adding a bit more oil if needed. Cook the roux, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes until well browned. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are soft, about 5 or 6 minutes. Mix in the water, pecan pieces, and cayenne. Bring to a boil then add the sweet potatoes mashing until smooth. Stir in the syrup and green onions. Return the pork chops to the pan and bury in the gravy. Simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.
For Christmas my brother-in-law, Jim, and his lovely wife, Sarah Jane, gave me a collection of locally made chutneys. The box came with recipes including one for tandoori tofu. I was intrigued, never having considered the idea of using tofu in Indian recipes. A little online research showed that tofu is actually rather popular in India where many people are vegetarian. tandoori tofu, however, seems to be an American invention. No matter, the recipes I found were interesting enough that I decided to give it a shot. My recipe, using tandoori paste from a jar, is a distillation of several of those I found online and the one that came with the chutney. I served it with plain basmati rice and saag aloo, pureed spinach with potatoes and yoghurt, accompanied by various chutneys and Indian pickles.
Saag is a dish of cooked greens that originated in the Punjab, an ancient region along the tributaries of the Indus river now divided between India and Pakistan. Traditionally it is made with mustard leaves but in the West spinach is more common. Saag can be served plain or with the addition of meat, saag gosht; cheese, saag paneer; or potatoes, saag aloo. Some recipes call for the potatoes to be fried, others insist that they be boiled, while yet others just say “cooked.” Sometimes the dish contains yoghurt, sometime yoghurt and heavy cream, sometimes neither. (Since the yoghurt I had in the fridge had gone bad I used a sour cream—not authentic but not bad either.) And sometimes the spinach is pureed and sometimes not. Whatever variation you choose, saag is tasty as either a side dish or main entrée.
A note on cooking the tofu: the ideal way to cook it would be on a charcoal grill but mine is buried in the snow. Because I was in a hurry I tried doing it in cast iron skillet with a little bit of oil. The result was rather unsatisfactory so I recommend doing it in the oven as I describe below.
Preheat oven to 375°. Cut the tofu into two pieces half the thickness of the original block. Place between folded paper towels, cover with a small cutting board and modest weight. Let stand for about 30 minutes then cut each piece in two so that you have four sticks each 3½ inches long by 1-inch square. Using a small spatula, spoon, or your fingers coat lightly by thoroughly on all sides. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the meal.
Boil the potato for about 15 minutes or until it can be easily pierced with a small knife. Remove the peel with your hands under running cold water. Cut into ½-inch cubes and set aside.
Heat the oil or ghee in a non-stick fry pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until soft and beginning to color. Add the garlic, ginger, and spices. Cook, stirring, for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spinach and water, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool a bit.
Place the tofu into the oven and bake while finishing the saag aloo, about 15 minutes.
Using a blender or food processor puree the saag, in batches if necessary. Return to the pot along with the potato and a bit water if necessary. Simmer another 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in the yoghurt and allow to warm through.
Serve over hot basmati rice.
When I found this recipe online I was a bit dubious about its authenticity because it called for olive oil. But it also specified gochujang, a popular Korean red chili paste, and sounded good I had to try it. I did make a couple changes, however. I couldn’t use they gochujang carried by my local Wegman’s because it contained wheat flour so I substituted some gluten-free Korean BBQ sauce and eliminated redundant ingredients in the recipe. I added the Chinese black beans and the Sriracha in an attempt to replicate some of the flavor of the gochujang. Also, the original recipe did seem awfully spicy, even for me, calling for an entire tablespoon of cayenne in addition to three tablespoons of the hot chili paste. The version belong is still spicy, perhaps too much so for many, but the flavors are wonderful and it is very easy to make. To reduce the heat, leave out the Sriracha.
Serves 2
Cut the tofu into 1-inch cubes, place in a small bowl, and coat with Korean BBQ sauce. Combine the black beans and Sriracha in another small bowl and set aside.
Film the bottom of a wok with oil and sauté garlic, carrots ,and onion over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes or until slightly softened. Add the tofu and BBQ sauce to the pan along with the broccoli, green onions, and black bean/Sriracha mixture. Gently fold everything together then add the water, cover, and let steam for about 5 minutes. If there is too much liquid in the wok, turn up the heat and let it boil off before serving.
Serve hot over steamed rice.
As it happens, chicken parmesan is not from Parma, in the north of Italy, nor is it even from Italy. Rather it is the invention of Italian-American immigrants from Sicily who patterned it after a similar eggplant dish from their homeland. The origin of the name is the matter of some dispute; some think that it refers to parmesan cheese commonly used in its preparation but the more likely etymology is the Sicilian word parmiciana meaning louvers which the overlapped slices of eggplant resemble. In any case, today it is thoroughly American. Mine is a simple classic interpretation except that I used ground corn flakes in place of bread crumbs to make the dish gluten free. You could equally well simply forego the breading altogether and lightly pan fry the chicken in olive oil flavored with herbs. And while chicken parmesan is most often served over pasta, I have opted for gluten-free polenta.
Serves 2
If using 1 large chicken breast lay it on a cutting board halve it horizontally. Using a meat mallet pound the chicken to ¼-inch thickness. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper then dust with the flour, shaking off any excess.
Put the corn flakes, oregano, thyme, and a good grind of black pepper into a food processor and pulse to a fine meal. If using bread crumbs, just mix in the seasonings. Spread onto a plate. Beat the egg lightly in a shallow dish.
Preheat oven to 350°. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add enough olive oil to just cover the bottom. Dip a piece of chicken into the egg then place onto the corn flakes or bread crumbs and turn to coat evenly. Put into the hot pan. Repeat with remaining chicken. Cook for about 2 minutes per side reducing the heat if need be to prevent the coating from burning. When done, remove to a plate.
Spread a thin coating of marinara sauce in the bottom of a shallow baking dish just large enough to hold the chicken. Place the chicken pieces in the dish side by side. Coat with ½ of the remaining sauce. Cover with the mozzarella then the rest of the sauce. Top with the grated hard cheese. Bake in the hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted and starts to brown. Serve over spaghetti or slices of polenta lightly fried in olive oil.
There are few things that I enjoy more than fixing dinner for surprise guests so when my sister and niece called to say that they were on their way from Long Island back to Rochester and could stop in about 2 hours later I leapt into action. What to make, I thought. Well, there is a pork loin roast in the freezer and about a dozen Cornish game hens. I settled on the game hens. My first thought was to thaw them in cold water then split and roast them. After an hour in the cold water it was clear that they would never be ready in time. That left thawing in the microwave. The problem with that is that parts of the birds, especially the wings, come out cooked. So I decided to make a casserole instead. The recipe I adapted from Joanna Farrow & Jacqueline Clark, The Mediterranean Cookbook (New York: Lorenz Books, 2004). When the chickens thawed I removed the giblets, cut out the back and wing tips, then quartered them. The giblets went into a stock pot while the backs and wing tips went into my stock parts bag in the freezer. And this is how I cooked them. I served the casserole simply with Spanish potatoes.
Serves 4
Preheat the oven to 375°. Coat the chicken pieces with paprika. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat then pour in about ⅛ inch of olive oil. When hot add the chicken pieces, working in batches, and brown on both sides. Remove to an oven-proof casserole leaving as much oil as possible behind.
Fry the onions in the skillet for about 3 minutes or until just soften. Add the garlic and chourico and continue to fry for another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, bay leaves, and sherry. Bring to a boil and pour over the chicken in the casserole. Deglaze with pan with a bit of water or chicken stock and add to the casserole. Cover and bake in the oven for 45 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
First, let us clear up a bit of linguistic confusion. A picnic ham is not a ham at all but comes from the front leg of the animal. Sometimes it is called a pork shoulder but that is often incorrect as well since small picnic hams, the ones with two bones in them, come from forearm. To confuse things even more picnic hams are sometimes called Boston butts. Compared to real ham a picnic ham generally is less expensive and contains more fat. Perhaps because my roots are in New England where picnic hams are especially popular I favor them for their smaller size and excellent soup bones. The one I prepared today was from Camillia Foods in Buffalo who call it callie ham, a term that seems to be of African American orgin. Their ham is salt and sugar cured then hardwood smoked with no added water (many supermarket hams are labeled “ham and water product” and contain 15% or more water).
The producer of the smoked picnic I cooked recommends boiling it or boiling then baking. I chose the latter course with a twist. I cooked it first in my pressure cooker for 30 minutes (after using a hacksaw to remove a bit of bone so that it would fit). That brought it to about 100° and seemed to really seal in the juices. I finished it in a 375° convection oven on a rack over a baking pan into which I poured the water from the pressure cooker, about 2½ cups (I had to add another cup about half way through bakiing). Before baking I removed the skin from the ham and scored the fat. When the ham reached an internal temperature of 145° I shut off the oven and left the ham in it until it reached the recommended 160°. I served it with a baked sweet potato and brussels sprouts.
In a couple days, when the meat is mostly gone, I will use the bone to make pea soup. Watch for the recipe.
Were I a celebrity chef I might well call this “deconstructed paella;” but I’m not so I won’t. I have simply combined a classic Spanish tapa with a classic Spanish rice dish. But there is a twist. To add color and flavor I have added Tobago seasoning pepper to the rice. These peppers taste a lot like habaneros that are of the same species but without most of the heat—if you remember to remove the seeds and placenta (membrane). The red onion is also not traditionally Spanish either but I did not have any Spanish onions on hand. All of the vegetables were frozen; I generally avoid fresh vegetables in the winter because, having been trucked or flown in from warmer climes, they usually have little flavor (to say nothing of their carbon footprint!). The best, of course, are the ones I bought at the local farmers’ market and froze myself. One ingredient that may be unfamiliar is pimentón, or Spanish smoked paprika. You may not find it in your local supermarket but it is readily available online. It comes in picante (hot) and dolce (sweet) varieties. For the garlic shrimp I recommend the hot but if all you can find is the sweet just add a bit of cayenne. You could use ordinary paprika but the result will just not be the same. Note that cooking paella the traditional way—uncovered on the stovetop—is tricky. Unless you have mastered the technique I suggest that if you are having company you cover it with foil and bake in 350° oven instead.
Serves 2
Thaw the green beans is cold water then blanch in boiling water for about 1 minute. Refresh in cold water, drain, and set aside.
Put the saffron into a small bowl and cover with the 2 Tbsp. of hot water and set aside to bloom.
Peel and devein the shrimp leaving the tail on. Rinse, dry, and set aside.
Heat a small paella pan or fry pan over medium-low heat and pour in enough oil to barely cover the bottom. When the oil is hot add the onion and fry, stirring frequently, until softened, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add the garlic and continue cooking until it begins to turn golden, another 5 minutes. Add the rice and stir for 2 minutes. Put in the peppers and stir for another minute. Pour on half of the water, then the saffron, and finally use the other half of the water to rinse the saffron bowl into the rice. Season with salt and pepper. Raise the heat to bring to a boil then set over medium-low heat, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Fold in the green beans and continue to cook with preparing the shrimp.
Heat a non-reactive, preferable stainless steel, frying pan over medium high heat. Add enough olive oil to just cover the bottom then put in the crushed red pepper and sliced garlic. Cook for 2 minutes or until very fragrant. Add the shrimp and cook for about 2 or 3 minutes per side. Pour in the lemon juice and sherry then turn up the heat to boil off most of the moisture. Sprinkle on the pimento then season with salt and pepper to taste. Turn onto the paella and server immediately.
