you had me at french fries tossed in ketchup...

I like to eat a lot of different things.  I think that most of us do (at least I hope so).  But once in a while, I stumble upon something that I REALLY dig and can't get enough of.  Sort of like seasonal eating( the consumption of a food at it's tasty peak to the extent that you never want to see said food until the following season, i.e. sweet corn, nectarines, grapefruit, etc.) but instead of fruits and veggies, i'm just using condiments (kind of like a U.S. school cafeteria).

The first time that I had tried this sauce was at a snacky party my friend Rashi was throwing.  I had loaded up a plate with all sorts of goodies and then came to a dish that looked to be just french fries tossed in ketchup and garnished with scallions.  I was already excited about ketchuppy fries, but when I tasted these, it was far more than I had bargained for.  if you've ever gone to a szechuan restaurant and ordered prawns in chili sauce, this sauce is sort of similar to that. except it's less ketchuppy, and more awesomey.  It's not too sweet like a lot that I've had and the saltiness of the soy and the spiciness of the sriracha really round out the flavors. Most of you probably have the three main ingredients knocking about your pantry/fridge, so let's give it a go and cover the world in tangy waves of crimson!

ok, I know that somewhere on this site there is a little blurb about me loving intense prep work (and I do), but you know what else I like?  easy prep work.  causal friday prep work.  there isn't much to this sauce ( even with a few of my own additions) and it takes very little time to make. so honey, throw on those khaki pants and a polo shirt and let's make some magic happen!

Indo-chinese chili sauce: (this is enough sauce for about a pound of boneless chicken pieces.  If you need more just make accordingly and don't forget to adjust the seasoning to your taste.  if you want more sweet- add more ketchup, more salty-add more soy, and spice it up with more sriracha, it's totally up for interpretation).

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tbs. soy sauce

1 heaping teaspoon sriracha

1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated

small handfull cilantro, minced

scallions, sliced to garnish

ok, if I am making this for chicken or shrimp, I stir fry the meat (seasoned with a little salt and peps) in a wok over high heat in a little peanut oil.  when it is nearly done, i'll add the sauce (mixed up ahead of time, all but the scallions), and toss the meat in it until it glazes all the pieces.  If I am going to be eating it with rice, I will also add already cooked rice to the wok so that all of the rice gets coated with the tangy goodness. If you find that the sauce is a little dry, go ahead and add a little water or stock until you reach your desired consistency.  Like I said before, give it a taste and add more ketchup/soy/sriracha, as you like.  enjoy.

this sauce woud also be good on: shrimp, prawns, squid, fried tofu or paneer, french fries, anything...

Dish recommends: sriracha hot sauce. flavor booster. regal rooster.  this cocky sauce will keep all of your other condiments in check. don't mess with the rooster.

ps--I was out of scallions at the time that I took the above pic so I used cilantro as a garnish. I'm aware.

a good mayonnaise hard to find...

It seems lately that there has been a shift in american consumerism.  Words like Artisan and Organic are becoming more and more commonplace on grocery shelves and this is a good thing.  We go out of our way to buy free range eggs and hormone free milk, but people, we are overlooking one crucial thing.  Condiments.  that's right, all the fixins, and more specifically, mayonnaise.  Mayonnaise, you ask? yes, I'll say it again, Mayonnaise!  Where has the artisan mayonnaise gone? Does it even exist? Is it thinking of me? and, will it ever return someday?  Ok, you get the point. there aren't a lot of options out there for good mayo.  So what's a peep to do when they don't want to buy a jar of the ubiquitous, white fluff? I'm glad you asked...

Homemade mayonnaise:
1 egg yolk (free range, please.  seriously, quit buying factory farmed meat and eggs, it's bad stuff.)
healthy pinch of sea salt
tsp dijon mustard
lemon juice squeeze
1/2 cup olive oil
ok, if you have a blender, this will be a lot easier, but you can do this with just a big bowl and a whisk, if not.  place the egg yolk in the blender along with the salt and mustard and lemon juice and give it a quick whizz, until incorporated. now, slowly ad the oil a couple drops at a time, until it starts to thicken.  now, increase the oil to a very small stream and mix until an emulsion is created (about a minute or two).  if your mayo breaks and the oil is resting on top, you went too fast, try it again.  it should look like the thick stuff in the pic above.  transfer to a small dish and add a couple grinds of black pepper if you like.  this recipe is totally up for interpretation too, so if you would like to add more salt/lemonjuice/whatever, do it.  you could even add some other tasties like pesto or chipotle peppers, or roasted garlic.  the point of the whole thing is that this stuff is wicked easy to make, takes less than 5 minutes, and it's all stuff that you should have lying around anyway.  Store-bought mayo is full of canola or vegetable (highly refined pirates) oil which is not very good for you, by making it with a good fat (olive oil), you increase the health value of this popular condiment.  give it a try, you'll be the most popular kid on the block.
DISH recommends: reading this article.  we've been lied to, people. it will change the way you feel about fat. and maybe mayonnaise.

spaghetti bolognese

I'm sure that most people have made spaghetti with some sort of meat sauce.  I know i've had (and made) my fair share of them, but up until recently, I had just not been that big of a fan of meat sauces with pasta.  That is, until I read the book HEAT. In this book, we follow bill buford around on his quest to learn more about the origins of italian cooking (which entails everything from working in mario batali's kitchen at babbo, to being a butcher's apprentice in italy.)  It is the time that buford spends in tuscany (more on this later) that inspired me to give this dish another go.  You see, the problem I have with most meat sauces is that they usually end up just tasting like a bad version of italian chili.  If I am going to deny the beauty of a traditional, meatless, red sauce, I want it to taste like, well...meat. lots of meat. I want to feel like it was worth giving up the perfect tomato sauce. I want to be rewarded with a meat trophy. and what better place to achieve such a badge of merit, than in tuscany, where most of the food is brown.

                                          

Buford spent some of his time in the book as a butcher's apprentice to a man named dario.  he is often revered as one of, if not THE best butchers in the world.  Mario batali's dad also trained under this guy before opening salumi, in Seattle, Washington.  Anyway, one of buford's tasks whilst there, was making a meat sauce that was sold at the shop.  It was heavy on the meats, with spices I had never used in italian cooking, light on the tomato, and well, let's just get to it, shall we:

Bolognese Sauce (Inspired by the book HEAT, and by my ladyfriend's constant request to meat up my sauce)
1.5 pounds mixed ground meats (your choice here, I used a pound of ground beef and .5 pounds ground pork, but you could get all crazy and use lamb, turkey, venison, yak, you get the point.  OK, fine if you want the truth, I actually had some bratwursts that I squeezed out of their intestinal home for the ground pork part.  sometimes we make food, sometimes we make do...)
2 slices prosciutto, minced
1 onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 red chile, minced
1 green (I used poblano) pepper, minced
small handful of flat italian parsley, minced
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
salt and peps
2 tsp coriander powder
couple healthy dashes fresh ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp marjoram
1/4 tsp fennel seed ( crush with the side of your knife or something blunt before adding)
1 tsp dried oregano
handful of fresh basil, stems and leaves separated, minced
port wine
big handful of cherry or grape tomatoes (left whole)
pasta water
ok, here's the do:
take all of your minced veggies (including the minced basil stems) and saute them over med heat in olive oil, about 10 or so minutes until softened and starting to golden-ize. add the prosciutto, ground meats, and a little salt and pepper.  go until your meat is browned, breaking up any large chunks with a wooden spoon. now, add the tomato paste, cherry tomatoes, and spices (along with a bit more salt and peps), give it all a good mix and deglaze your pan by going around it a couple of times with some port wine. cook until most of the liquid has evaporated and then add your tomato sauce, an empty tomato sauce can full of water, and a little more port. turn to low and boil your pasta.   once your pasta is done check your sauce.  it should be pretty dry (if not turn heat up and cook off most of the liquid.  now, add a couple ladles full of pasta water to the sauce.  this will help mix all of the flavors and add some more liquid into the mix.  I like my bolognese more on the dry side, but this last minute addition really ties the sauce together (does it not!).
DISH recommends: HEAT.  usually I'm a nonfiction fan, but this was a really fast informative read.  If you are a fan of food and wonder what it is like to work in a professional kitchen, this is a pretty realistic representation.

You would not believe the things i've put down the bathroom sink...

There is a certain freedom that comes to you when you let things go. In my case, it has been letting go of the comforts that even a really bad kitchen can provide you. The past two weeks we have been letting go of many things...like walls...and a sink (you know, nothing major). This was depressing me at first, but it made me realize how much you can still do with very little at your disposal. I still have(minimal(it was out of commission for about a week due to plaster dust taking over our lives)) access to the flair (not much longer though, we had a gas line installed this week, just waiting on electrical, drywall, etc, before we hook it up!)so I still have a heat source and we have been washing dishes in a bus tub (not recommended:). About half of the food pictured was made on webster. I just put a cast iron pan in the coals and use that as my heat source. it works pretty well. The ham was mame's idea. we were without the use of the flair for a while and she suggested we use the smoker for it. it turned out really great and we made a glaze for it out of jaggery, tamarind concentrate, and water. the sweet and sour flavors went really well with the smokey, hammy goodness. next pic is pepper steak made on the grill. turned out a little spicy. mames and I are used to it (we've been conditioning for years), but I gave some to my neighbor and think it may have taken him down. also did some white beans in tomato sauce with homemade meatballs, sauteed pork chops, and potato and bean nachos. the nachos are one of my favorites (as far as nachos go), and ridiculously easy to make.

nonfoodstuff:

hmmm...already went over house stuff. lets see here...did finish a fantastic book I picked up a couple weeks ago. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, was the book's title and I thoroughly enjoyed it. it took a while to get going but as I look back on it, I am glad that the author wrote it the way that she did. I have a really weird process on picking out the books i want to read. I just go to the bookstore and look around. Sometimes (I know this is bad...) i will buy a book because i think that the cover is interesting (Yeah, I judge...).

jaggery/tamarind sauce

1/4 c jaggery

1.5 tbs tamarind concentrate

2 tbs water

heat until solids dissolve. brush on pork, fish, chicken, etc and grill/smoke/roast. or use as a dip for samosa or papadum.

potato and bean nachos (super easy)

2 russet potatos

14 oz can pinto beans

8 oz can tomato sauce

1 onion minced

1 pablano pepper diced small

2 tsp cumin

1 tsp cumin seed

1 tbs coriander

1 tsp chile powder

salt and peps

big hand full cilantro

salsas of your choice ( I think i used salsa verde and some red salsa heavy on the cilantro)

sour cream

feta cheese or cotijo cheese

cilantro to garnish

corn chips ( i like frontera corn chips)

oven at 400F

cube up the potato and fry along with half of the cilantro, onion and pablano, cumin seed, and salt and pepper until the potates are done. set aside. while that is going (in a saucepan) fry the rest of the onion and pablano, the cumin powder, coriander, chile powder, and cilantro. once that has some nice color and is starting to soften, add the beans and tomato sauce and turn to low until heated through. you can either smash them up or leave whole (i smash). once these two parts are done you can either make the nachos now or refrigerate for later (if you are one of those people who think ahead). Spread the chips out on a big sheet tray, top with the beans and then the potato mixture. add the cheese and then bake (if you are a warm salsa person, you can add the salsas now, if not just hold off and top later). garnish with sour cream, cilantro and salsa.

Canned Heat in my Heels tonight...

Lots of exciting things happening this week! I just finished my first real attempt at canning. I'm pretty excited but also a bit nervous that I'll inadvertently botulize myself. I think I'm ok though, I hear the lids popping as we speak (or should I say as I write?). I pickled some beets that were given to me by martha's mom. I'm pretty excited for those. I spiced them up with some apple cider vinegar, cumin, coriander, cloves, and allspice, oh, and also red pepper flakes. We'll see how they turn out. I was going for more of an Indian-style "pickle" here. The other stuff I canned was kind of a hodge-podge of sorts. Dill, garlic, onions, jalps, anaheims, green tomates, baby carrots, and also some radishes. We'll see, we'll see...too early to tell as of yet. The garden is doing fairly well, although something (or someone) has been eating some of our precious tomatoes. We suspect squirrels or rabbits, but there is that shifty neighbor kid... Wife's non-vegetable gardening is going bonkers. She planted some lamb's ear that is starting to dwarf the house, at least we'll have some shade now:)

Food stuff: Made some corn chowder last week. It was really good. I tried my bread trick (scroll down to recipe) here again and it definitely added another layer of creaminess to the soup, beyond the natural creaminess of the corn's "milk".

Had some mid-week salmon with cauliflower puree and a strawberry balsamic reduction. Let's just pause here for a second and talk about rethinking sauces. I don't know about you guys, but I get so tired of claggy, creamy sauces, that are used just for the sake of having a sauce. They are often times laden with butter/ cheese and wicked salty and just not that good. I would really encourage you to try out making some simple reductions to pair with meat or veggies. They bring a really pleasant, clean dimension to the food that you eat, and in the case of the gastrique (vinegar reduction), the vinegar taste leaves the reduction and the natural sugars stand out and really heighten the flavor of what you are eating.

The last dish there is some braised korean ribs with veggies. I haven't really made a lot of braised asian food, but what I have done, I have really enjoyed. This was just some korean beef ribs, carrot, celery, green beans, cilantro, and garlic. for the braising liquid, I used one can beef broth, 1/2 of a bottle of stout (wink wink), some hoisin sauce, and some soy sauce. It was a really nice change from a typical braise and the slow cooking time made the meat fall apart. I pulled it from the ribs and it ended up much like the texture of shank meat, and equally tasty.

Non-foods: I have always been an avid reader, but within the past year, I have turned quite a few pages. It is a really good way for me to wind down after work/working out, and helps me get sleepy. So, naturally, along the way during this last year, I have read some gems and also some let downs. Last week I started reading Memoirs of a Geisha. It is pretty rare that you come across a book that is written like a painting is painted. I'm not going to go into a lot of detail, just know that it is a beautifully written book. finished it this morning.

ok, back to the reductos:

basically, what I do is put an amount of vinegar in a pot (let's say 1/2 cup), and then I add some sugar (about a tbs), or juice (1/4 cup-ish). turn the burner on med-high, and then let it reduce (by about half) until it has thickened slightly. It will thicken more as it cools. You should be able to coat the back of a spoon with it and run your finger across the spoon. the line you make should just hold.

some combinations I like are:

Balsamic/pomegranate (great for Fish/chicken)

Apple cider vinegar/honey (awesome on pork, smoked meats)

Red wine/beef broth (your new favorite "steak sauce")

ale/orange juice/sugar/fresh garlic (oh man is this good on on grilled chicken)

DISH recommends:

cuisinart saucier. ok, seriously? SERIOUSLY! this is on mega-sale right now. If you don't have a saucier, then pick one up. the sloped sides are great for reducing in a flash, and the pour spout is totally rad-tastic. 15 clams. sheesh!

Let me take you down...sorry, couldn't resist

I'm convinced that until yesterday, I had never tasted a strawberry. I have no idea what the cardboardy, bland dull pink things I was eating were, I just know that they pale in comparison to the hoard I ate yesterday. Wifeshow and I went out to roca berry farm yesterday afternoon and picked strawbs for about an hour. We netted 10.5 pounds. we were so excited the whole way home, driving in our deliciously berry-scented saturn, until we realized, "uhh...what are we going to do with 10.5 pounds of strawberries. Besides eat them as is, of course. Well, so far we made some preserves (which are mind bending, I must say) and a pretty tasty vinaigrette, but I think that I will make some strawberry-rhubarb something or other later on in the day. I am also going to make some smoked pork butt and convert it into a cassoulet of sorts. Better get going, here are a few recipes to try out, but do yourself a favor and go to roca berry farm, you can buy already picked if you are a lazy sack:)

strawberry preserves.

4 pounds cleaned/stemmed/hulled strawbs

1 cup sugar

couple good squeezes lemon juice.

put the berries and sugar in a large mixing bowl, and squeeze them, mashing them up with your (clean) hands (think playing in the mud when you were little, except you can lick your fingers afterwards, even though I probably did anyway). Pour this mixture into a large saute pan with high sides and reduce over med-low heat for about 40 minutes, checking every 5 minutes to skim off foamy stuff. make sure it is not sticking to the bottom, you don't want to burn it. let cool completely and then store it in clean jars or whatever in the fridge. You can also can this stuff, just sterilize your jars and lids and then pour into those and following the directions here: canning tips

strawberry walnut vinaigrette:

1-2tbs balsamic vinegar

salt and peps (pinch or so)

3-4 strawbs

roasted walnut oil

in a medium mixing bowl, smash up the berries with a fork, or spoon, or your thumb, or whatever, add the balsamic, salt and peps, and sugar. give it a little mix. while whisking this mixture, slowly pour in your oil until it emulsifies, you'll know when...trust me. use on salad or grilled fish/chicken, or as a dip for bread.

(note) the "1-2" tbs, is just depending on how much you want to make. Obviously, the more vinegar you add, the more oil you'll have to whisk in to get an emulsification. I tend to make dressing in small batches. just my own pref.

DISH recommends:

Cuisinart saute pan w/cover, 5.5 qt. I used this to make my preserves. I use it for tons of stuff, if you don't have a high-sided saute pan, you really should invest in one. I would consider it essential in your kitch.