Crispy, salty, subtly sweet, delicious pork. I like to mix it with rice and serve it in a lettuce wrap with fish sauce as an appetizer, or just over rice also with a side of fish sauce as a decadent main. This recipe is an adaptation of the one found in Andrea Nguyen's excellent cookbook Into the Vietnamese Kitchen.
Ingredients:
1/4 C oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2 small cloves garlic, minced
1 lb ground pork
3 T fish sauce
1 T Vietnamese Caramel Sauce
1 t sugar
3 green onions, thinly sliced
Add the oil to a skillet and saute the onion and garlic on medium for a few minutes until soft. Add in the pork, and break up the pieces as much as possible until the meat has cooked through. Add everything else except the green onions and cook on medium high for 10-12 minutes or until the meat develops brown caramelized spots. Add in the green onions, toss for a minute or so, and remove from the heat.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Lasagna
Who doesn't love lasagna? A nice big brick-like portion of noodles, cheese, and tomato meat sauce, plus the recipe makes enough for even a family to eat to get a couple of meals out of it. It's also something that you can make largely ahead of time; you can make the sauce the day before (and it's better if you do), and you can assemble the whole thing and stick it in the fridge until 30-45 minutes before you want dinner.
Ingredients:
Sauce:
1 lb sweet Italian sausage out of casings and shredded. (You could also use 80/20 ground beef, but if you're doing that add an extra 1/2 t toasted fennel seeds)
1 lb hot Italian sausage, out of casings and shredded
NOTE: If your sausage is particularly lean sweat a couple of slices of salt pork (diced) before adding the sausage
two small yellow onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can san marzano tomatoes, crushed
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 C water
1 1/2 t dried basil leaves
1/2 t fennel seeds, toasted
1 t Italian seasoning (a mix of marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and oregano works well)
Salt to taste
3/4 t ground black pepper
4 T flat leaf parsley, de-stemmed and chopped
Dash crushed red pepper
The filling:
2 lbs ricotta cheese
1 C flat leaf parsley, de-stemmed and chopped.
1 1/2 C of grated romano
2 eggs
salt to taste
3-4 T heavy cream
The rest:
Roughly 1 lb dried lasagna noodles (though I try to have extra on hand)
Mozzarella or provolone for the top, preferably smoked
In a large pot, lightly brown the sausage, then add the onion and garlic and saute for a few minutes. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients, and simmer for a couple of hours, covered and stirring occasionally. Adjust taste towards the end if necessary. If the sauce tastes a little flat add another couple of minces cloves of garlic at the end of cooking. At the end of cooking fish out the bay leave and use an immersion blender to break up the larger chunks of sausage to get a smoother sauce.
Mix all of the filling ingredients together while the sauce is cooking; it's easier to work with when you go to assemble if the filling is warm.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and put in the noodles, working in batches if necessary; cook to al dente. Ladle out enough sauce to put a thin layer on the bottom of an oven-proof pan (I use a 9"x13" pyrex), put down the first layer of noodles, then spread a layer of filling, then a layer of sauce. Put a layer of noodles down, and repeat filling and sauce. For most pans you'll be able to put down one more layer of noodles on top of that sauce, then put sauce on top of that and top with mozzarella. You may have enough sauce left to make another pan, depending on pan size. Bake at 375 until the cheese is golden brown, 35-45 minutes.
Notes:
I keep the filling and noodles a little vague intentionally, because a lot depends on just how much you put down, and it's just easier to make the sauce the limiting ingredient as it's the most complicated part. A variation on this is to add in a thin layer of spinach with each layer of cheese, just be sure to use either baby spinach or thawed frozen spinach, stemmed, squeezed dry, and keep the layer thin.
You could also put down a layer of bechamel on the top before adding the layer of cheese to add moisture and richness.
Ingredients:
Sauce:
1 lb sweet Italian sausage out of casings and shredded. (You could also use 80/20 ground beef, but if you're doing that add an extra 1/2 t toasted fennel seeds)
1 lb hot Italian sausage, out of casings and shredded
NOTE: If your sausage is particularly lean sweat a couple of slices of salt pork (diced) before adding the sausage
two small yellow onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (28 ounce) can san marzano tomatoes, crushed
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 C water
1 1/2 t dried basil leaves
1/2 t fennel seeds, toasted
1 t Italian seasoning (a mix of marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and oregano works well)
Salt to taste
3/4 t ground black pepper
4 T flat leaf parsley, de-stemmed and chopped
Dash crushed red pepper
The filling:
2 lbs ricotta cheese
1 C flat leaf parsley, de-stemmed and chopped.
1 1/2 C of grated romano
2 eggs
salt to taste
3-4 T heavy cream
The rest:
Roughly 1 lb dried lasagna noodles (though I try to have extra on hand)
Mozzarella or provolone for the top, preferably smoked
In a large pot, lightly brown the sausage, then add the onion and garlic and saute for a few minutes. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients, and simmer for a couple of hours, covered and stirring occasionally. Adjust taste towards the end if necessary. If the sauce tastes a little flat add another couple of minces cloves of garlic at the end of cooking. At the end of cooking fish out the bay leave and use an immersion blender to break up the larger chunks of sausage to get a smoother sauce.
Mix all of the filling ingredients together while the sauce is cooking; it's easier to work with when you go to assemble if the filling is warm.
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and put in the noodles, working in batches if necessary; cook to al dente. Ladle out enough sauce to put a thin layer on the bottom of an oven-proof pan (I use a 9"x13" pyrex), put down the first layer of noodles, then spread a layer of filling, then a layer of sauce. Put a layer of noodles down, and repeat filling and sauce. For most pans you'll be able to put down one more layer of noodles on top of that sauce, then put sauce on top of that and top with mozzarella. You may have enough sauce left to make another pan, depending on pan size. Bake at 375 until the cheese is golden brown, 35-45 minutes.
Notes:
I keep the filling and noodles a little vague intentionally, because a lot depends on just how much you put down, and it's just easier to make the sauce the limiting ingredient as it's the most complicated part. A variation on this is to add in a thin layer of spinach with each layer of cheese, just be sure to use either baby spinach or thawed frozen spinach, stemmed, squeezed dry, and keep the layer thin.
You could also put down a layer of bechamel on the top before adding the layer of cheese to add moisture and richness.
Friday, October 3, 2014
Thai Vinegar with Chiles
Simple pickled chiles in vinegar; it can be searingly hot when you first make it, but it will mellow out some with age. It's the perfect side to Pad See-ew (I won't make Pad See-ew anymore if I don't have some of this in the fridge). Don't try to substitute other vinegars for the while vinegar; it just wouldn't taste right.
2/3 C Thai chiles, finely chopped (this is VERY hot, you can use just a couple of peppers if you want)
1 1/3 C white vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt or fish sauce to taste
Combine the ingredients in a jar and leave at room temperature for a day before moving to the fridge. Keep in mind when you're adding the salt or fish sauce that you don't want the vinegar to be salty, you just don't want it to dilute out whatever you're adding it to.
2/3 C Thai chiles, finely chopped (this is VERY hot, you can use just a couple of peppers if you want)
1 1/3 C white vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt or fish sauce to taste
Combine the ingredients in a jar and leave at room temperature for a day before moving to the fridge. Keep in mind when you're adding the salt or fish sauce that you don't want the vinegar to be salty, you just don't want it to dilute out whatever you're adding it to.
Friday, August 15, 2014
Basic Rib Rub
This is my basic rub for pork when I'm making BBQ, and it's especially good on ribs - the recipe makes enough for a typical rack of baby back ribs. You can easily change out ingredients or change amounts to get a different flavor, but this base is pretty well rounded; just make sure to put it on fairly heavily and at least half an hour before transferring the meat to the smoker so the rub has a chance to adhere. I've also included a quadrupled recipe which makes enough for a serious smoking session.
1 T pepper
1.5 T garlic powder
1/2 T mustard powder
1 T onion powder
1/2 T cumin
1 T paprika
5-6 T brown sugar
1 T cayenne, or to taste (this makes it moderately spicy)
1.5 T salt
4x recipe (makes about a quart)
4 T pepper
6 T garlic powder
2 T mustard powder
4 T onion powder
2 T cumin
4 T paprika
20 T brown sugar
4 T cayenne, or to taste (this makes it moderately spicy)
6 T salt
1 T pepper
1.5 T garlic powder
1/2 T mustard powder
1 T onion powder
1/2 T cumin
1 T paprika
5-6 T brown sugar
1 T cayenne, or to taste (this makes it moderately spicy)
1.5 T salt
4x recipe (makes about a quart)
4 T pepper
6 T garlic powder
2 T mustard powder
4 T onion powder
2 T cumin
4 T paprika
20 T brown sugar
4 T cayenne, or to taste (this makes it moderately spicy)
6 T salt
Sunday, August 10, 2014
Arugula, Walnut, and Blue Cheese Salad with Duck Confit
A rich salad, but one that takes some work because you'll have to make the duck confit (recipe to follow) yourself if you want to get the full richness of the dressing.
For the salad:
1 bunch arugula
1/2 head of frisee
1 1/2 C toasted walnuts, chopped
4 legs of duck confit
2 C dried cranberries or dried cherries
1 1/2 C crumbled blue cheese
Dressing:
2/3 C olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T sherry vinegar
1 1/2 T Dijon mustard
2 T shallot, chopped
2-3 T of confit fat*
3 T of confit jelly*
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t liquid lecithin (optional, but it emulsifies the dressing well)
Preheat your oven to 425 F, then warm up the duck legs for ~12 minutes. Cool slightly, then separate the skin before shredding the duck. Crisp up the skin in a skillet as you would bacon.
Microwave the confit fat and jelly to liquify, then combine with the other dressing ingredients in a blender, and pulse to combine. Check for seasoning; if you omit the confit fat and jelly you'll probably need to add a fair amount of salt. Adding lecithin ensures that your dressing doesn't break as easily and makes it thicker and creamier; liquid lecithin can be found relatively cheaply in most health food stores.
Shred the arugula and frisee, then add the walnuts, blue cheese, and cranberries; top the salad with crumbles of crispy duck skin.
*Note: these are things that you can only get by making the confit yourself; after curing I confit my duck legs in a mixture of bacon grease and either lard or duck fat. When you get done with the confit you can separate out the fat from the liquid that comes out of the meat while being cooked. The liquid that comes out develops a LOT of flavor and gets a lot of gelatin from long slow cooking (it will set up like jello in the fridge making it easy to separate the fat and liquid). Both the fat and the jelly bring a lot of flavor and salt, so if you don't have these your dressing will be flatter and need more seasoning; it also won't have the same body, even with the lecithin.
For the salad:
1 bunch arugula
1/2 head of frisee
1 1/2 C toasted walnuts, chopped
4 legs of duck confit
2 C dried cranberries or dried cherries
1 1/2 C crumbled blue cheese
Dressing:
2/3 C olive oil
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T sherry vinegar
1 1/2 T Dijon mustard
2 T shallot, chopped
2-3 T of confit fat*
3 T of confit jelly*
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t liquid lecithin (optional, but it emulsifies the dressing well)
Preheat your oven to 425 F, then warm up the duck legs for ~12 minutes. Cool slightly, then separate the skin before shredding the duck. Crisp up the skin in a skillet as you would bacon.
Microwave the confit fat and jelly to liquify, then combine with the other dressing ingredients in a blender, and pulse to combine. Check for seasoning; if you omit the confit fat and jelly you'll probably need to add a fair amount of salt. Adding lecithin ensures that your dressing doesn't break as easily and makes it thicker and creamier; liquid lecithin can be found relatively cheaply in most health food stores.
Shred the arugula and frisee, then add the walnuts, blue cheese, and cranberries; top the salad with crumbles of crispy duck skin.
*Note: these are things that you can only get by making the confit yourself; after curing I confit my duck legs in a mixture of bacon grease and either lard or duck fat. When you get done with the confit you can separate out the fat from the liquid that comes out of the meat while being cooked. The liquid that comes out develops a LOT of flavor and gets a lot of gelatin from long slow cooking (it will set up like jello in the fridge making it easy to separate the fat and liquid). Both the fat and the jelly bring a lot of flavor and salt, so if you don't have these your dressing will be flatter and need more seasoning; it also won't have the same body, even with the lecithin.
Friday, May 30, 2014
Cornbread
Simple cornbread, perfect to accompany BBQ. This is cooked in one of the greatest pieces of cookware ever: a cast iron skillet, which gives it a wonderful crunchy exterior.
1/2 C butter, melted
1/2 C white sugar
2 eggs
1 C buttermilk
1/2 t baking soda
1 C cornmeal
1 C all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
Kernels from an ear of sweet corn (you can use two ears if you want extra fresh corn taste, but the cooking time increases slightly)
1-2 T rendered bacon grease, chilled (or oil/shortening if bacon grease isn't available)
Place a 10" cast iron skillet in the oven and preheat it to 375 F. Continue to heat it for another 15 minutes after the oven comes to temperature to ensure that the skillet is hot.
Meanwhile mix together all the ingredients except for the bacon grease.
When everything has preheated grease the skillet with the bacon grease; if the grease is chilled you can generally use a fork to move it around the sides and bottom of the skillet to cover the whole surface. Add the batter and bake for ~25 minutes, or until done.
1/2 C butter, melted
1/2 C white sugar
2 eggs
1 C buttermilk
1/2 t baking soda
1 C cornmeal
1 C all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
Kernels from an ear of sweet corn (you can use two ears if you want extra fresh corn taste, but the cooking time increases slightly)
1-2 T rendered bacon grease, chilled (or oil/shortening if bacon grease isn't available)
Place a 10" cast iron skillet in the oven and preheat it to 375 F. Continue to heat it for another 15 minutes after the oven comes to temperature to ensure that the skillet is hot.
Meanwhile mix together all the ingredients except for the bacon grease.
When everything has preheated grease the skillet with the bacon grease; if the grease is chilled you can generally use a fork to move it around the sides and bottom of the skillet to cover the whole surface. Add the batter and bake for ~25 minutes, or until done.
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Bacon Mac and Cheese
Yet another mac and cheese post, this one is more of a classic mac and cheese with a little bacon thrown in; you could leave out the bacon, but bacon rocks.
1 1/4 C whole milk
1/2 lb macaroni or shells
3-4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
11 g sodium citrate
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T butter (or use the fat from the bacon)
1 T dijon mustard, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Cook the pasta according to package directions until just shy of al dente. While that is cooking saute the onion and garlic in the butter until translucent. Add the milk and sodium and bring to a simmer. Add the cheese, a handful at a time, allowing it to melt in while stirring frequently. Blend the cheese sauce either in a blender or with an immersion blender. Add the mustard, bacon, salt, and pepper. Adjust seasoning and add the pasta to the sauce. Cook while stirring just until the pasta has reached al dente.
1 1/4 C whole milk
1/2 lb macaroni or shells
3-4 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
11 g sodium citrate
1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T butter (or use the fat from the bacon)
1 T dijon mustard, or to taste
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Cook the pasta according to package directions until just shy of al dente. While that is cooking saute the onion and garlic in the butter until translucent. Add the milk and sodium and bring to a simmer. Add the cheese, a handful at a time, allowing it to melt in while stirring frequently. Blend the cheese sauce either in a blender or with an immersion blender. Add the mustard, bacon, salt, and pepper. Adjust seasoning and add the pasta to the sauce. Cook while stirring just until the pasta has reached al dente.
Saturday, May 10, 2014
Chipotle and Chorizo Mac and Cheese
Another take on mac and cheese using sodium citrate to make a perfectly smooth cheese sauce. This one mixes a little spice and smokiness in with the rich and creamy cheese sauce. This makes and excellent side dish, or you could just fill a bowl and eat it for a meal. If you left out the chorizo and pasta this would also make an excellent sauce for burritos.
11 g sodium citrate
8 oz hot pepper cheddar (or white cheddar), shredded
3 chipotles in adobo sauce, minced
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/4 C half and half
2 T butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t smoked paprika
1/4 t mustard powder
1/4 lb Mexican chorizo, browned
2 C dry macaroni, cooked according to package directions
Melt the butter and saute the onions and garlic until just starting to brown. Add the half and half, sodium citrate, chipotles, paprika, and mustard. Bring to a simmer and add the cheese a handful at a time; once all the cheese has been incorporated mix with an immersion blender. Add the chorizo and adjust seasoning as needed. Mix in the pasta and serve.
11 g sodium citrate
8 oz hot pepper cheddar (or white cheddar), shredded
3 chipotles in adobo sauce, minced
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/4 C half and half
2 T butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 t smoked paprika
1/4 t mustard powder
1/4 lb Mexican chorizo, browned
2 C dry macaroni, cooked according to package directions
Melt the butter and saute the onions and garlic until just starting to brown. Add the half and half, sodium citrate, chipotles, paprika, and mustard. Bring to a simmer and add the cheese a handful at a time; once all the cheese has been incorporated mix with an immersion blender. Add the chorizo and adjust seasoning as needed. Mix in the pasta and serve.
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Vegetarian Bao Filling
This is a vegetarian filling for Bao made of tofu and mushrooms. It's reminiscent of char siu (Chinese BBQ pork), though obviously without the goodness of roasted pork it's not quite as awesome.
3/4 lb shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, halved, and thinly sliced
oil to stir fry
3 shallots, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T chile bean paste
3-4 T hoisin
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 lb extra firm tofu, pressed to drain and diced
2 T soy sauce
salt to taste
Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until lightly smoking. Add the mushrooms and stir fry until the mushrooms have lost much of their moisture and browned (browning the mushrooms will take a fair amount of time); you may need to add a little oil if you didn't have enough to start with. When the mushrooms are browned add the shallots and garlic, still over high heat, and stir fry for 30 seconds to a minute. Add the chile bean paste and stir fry until fragrant; add the soy sauce and remove from the heat.
Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix to combine. Adjust seasoning, then fill the dough and cook according to the bao recipe.
3/4 lb shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, halved, and thinly sliced
oil to stir fry
3 shallots, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 T chile bean paste
3-4 T hoisin
3 green onions, chopped
1/2 lb extra firm tofu, pressed to drain and diced
2 T soy sauce
salt to taste
Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until lightly smoking. Add the mushrooms and stir fry until the mushrooms have lost much of their moisture and browned (browning the mushrooms will take a fair amount of time); you may need to add a little oil if you didn't have enough to start with. When the mushrooms are browned add the shallots and garlic, still over high heat, and stir fry for 30 seconds to a minute. Add the chile bean paste and stir fry until fragrant; add the soy sauce and remove from the heat.
Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix to combine. Adjust seasoning, then fill the dough and cook according to the bao recipe.
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Korean Spicy Pork
A spicy (well, by Korean standards) stir fried dish of pork with vegetables, similar to dak galbi.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 lb pork loin, trimmed and thinly sliced
a medium onion either quartered and thinly sliced or cut in to thick slices (see note)
2 small zucchinis, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4" slices
3 cabbage leaves, trimmed and chopped into roughly 1 inch squares
3 green onions, chopped
1 C chicken stock
Marinade:
6 T koch'ujang (Korean red pepper paste)
4 T koch'u karu (Korean red pepper powder)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 T corn syrup
2 T sesame oil
2 t grated ginger
1 T mirin
2 T chicken stock
ground pepper to taste
2 T sugar
2 T soy sauce
Mix together the marinade ingredients, then add the pork; allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Heat a little oil in a wok or large non-stick skillet and stir fry the onion until it starts to wilt (or see note about not adding it until after the pork goes in). Add the pork and marinade mixture and stir continuously until the pork is close to done. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook, stirring frequently, until the zucchini is just done. Adjust the seasoning as necessary.
Note: I thinly slice the onion and cook it before adding the pork because I don't like big crunchy pieces of onion. For a more traditional version cut the onion into bigger pieces and add to the pan shortly after the pork.
Ingredients:
1 1/4 lb pork loin, trimmed and thinly sliced
a medium onion either quartered and thinly sliced or cut in to thick slices (see note)
2 small zucchinis, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/4" slices
3 cabbage leaves, trimmed and chopped into roughly 1 inch squares
3 green onions, chopped
1 C chicken stock
Marinade:
6 T koch'ujang (Korean red pepper paste)
4 T koch'u karu (Korean red pepper powder)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 T corn syrup
2 T sesame oil
2 t grated ginger
1 T mirin
2 T chicken stock
ground pepper to taste
2 T sugar
2 T soy sauce
Mix together the marinade ingredients, then add the pork; allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes. Heat a little oil in a wok or large non-stick skillet and stir fry the onion until it starts to wilt (or see note about not adding it until after the pork goes in). Add the pork and marinade mixture and stir continuously until the pork is close to done. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook, stirring frequently, until the zucchini is just done. Adjust the seasoning as necessary.
Note: I thinly slice the onion and cook it before adding the pork because I don't like big crunchy pieces of onion. For a more traditional version cut the onion into bigger pieces and add to the pan shortly after the pork.
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