Ugly Delicious

I highly recommend the Netflix series, Ugly Delicious. Each episode is about 40-50 minutes long and features an exploration of a different food- pizza, tacos, BBQ, etc. In particular, I found the episodes on fried rice and fried chicken to be especially interesting and thought provoking.

If you like the sarcasm of Anthony Bourdain, you’ll probably enjoy this series hosted by David Chang. If you don’t already know his name, you may recall it from a prior food email; I cooked from his book, Momofuku, for our Korean themed Super Bowl party a couple years ago. His attitude on camera is the same as in his cookbook and he doesn’t mind dropping a few cuss words, which I enjoy. I hope you find time to check it out.

Making a Run for the Border

This year, I took the same approach to celebrating Cinco de Mayo as I did in the last email I sent about it, which was in 2016. That one included all the history and how the holiday is really celebrated much more here than in Mexico. So I made Tex-Mex with careful attention to authenticity.

This year I took it further by recreating items you can find on Taco Bell’s menu, only made from fresh ingredients and virtually all components from scratch. After FIVE HOURS in the kitchen, we had...

Crunchwrap Supreme®

For the uninitiated, this is a large flour tortilla wrapped around Taco Bell’s usual fillings and a crunchy tostada. You start with the tortilla, then a layer of seasoned beef, then cheese sauce, the tostada, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, and finally a small tortilla to fill the whole that the large one will leave when you fold it up with pleats around the whole monstrosity. Mine came out about twice the size as Taco Bell’s at infinitely higher quality. A couple of the highlights to these components were…

Seasoned Beef- I used 92% organic lean beef and a custom blend of seasonings. Very tasty. Same Taco Bell effect, 10x the flavor and much healthier.

Cheese Sauce- This was the experimental star of the dish and my first foray into molecular gastronomy (using the scientific application of certain ingredients and techniques to alter the physical and chemical properties of food). In this case, I used sodium citrate to emulsify fresh cheddar and Gruère with water to create the  super creamy texture you experience from something like Velveeta. Only this is actually made from nothing but real cheese and a tablespoon of some perfectly edible powder that works scientific magic. For some reason a few people who I told about this thought it sounded scary and would prefer to eat Velveeta (which has NO real cheese in it but DOES have sodium citrate in it). Anyway, it was a hit and it served as queso for chips as well.

Refried Beans

I made these from dry black beans, cooking for hours with a ham hock and then half-mashed with a sofrito (classic sauce made from of fresh vegetables and spices). Very much worth the effort. Lightyears away from Taco Bell’s offering.

Mexican Rice

Not as labor intensive as the beans, but still fairly complex. I charred and then puréed a bunch of vegetables and tomatoes, fried the rice a little (technically making it a pilaf), then mixed it all together and added some broth and finished it in the oven.

Guacamole

Nothing particularly special here, it’s not too challenging to make incredibly tasty homemade guacamole, but this was very very good.

Smoky Red Salsa

Kara and I actually both like Taco Bell mild sauce and manage to keep a stash of packets in the fridge. I wanted something reminiscent but more complex. This features toasted guajillo chiles, fire roasted tomatoes, and a handful of Mexican spices. I started with a recipe, but then continued to add additional seasonings, sweeteners, and vinegar, etc, until I found the flavor I was looking for.

Virgin Margaritas (not on Taco Bell’s Menu, but necessary)

Where’s the fun, right? Well apparently, there’s a placebo effect, because everyone was sleepy, slurring speech, and dancing to embarrassing music with Gatsby by the end of the night. Basically made with frozen limeade and fresh juice from oranges, lemons, and limes. I rimmed the glasses with fleur de sel (expensive flaky French salt) because that’s what I had on hand and I’m fancy like that.

Here’s Kara’s Cinco de Mayo table setting, including the guacamole in a real (heavy) molcajete.

 

Japanese

Though I’ve been cooking plenty, I haven’t done a food email in a long time. I also keep intending to set up a blog for this but constantly get sidetracked. Anyway, here’s the food email I know you’ve all been absolutely dying for:

I’ve enjoyed cooking as far back as I can remember; my first cookbook was a gift at the age of 5 or so, and I was the only teen I know of in high school that cooked dinner for their prom date instead of going to a trendy restaurant. Years later, Japanese was the cuisine that made me get serious. The first high end cookbook I opened was “Practical Japanese Cooking Made Easy and Elegant” gifted to me by Kara. Many sushi rolls and dozens of cookbooks later, I still love the cuisine. I gravitate toward Asian flavors and I’ve branched out specifically to Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, and some Chinese, but Japanese is still where my heart is.

This is a collection from the past few months with my latest favorite cookbook, “Mastering the Art of Japanese Cooking” by Morimoto. One particularly interesting thing he explains in the book is that most Japanese follow the principles of ichiju sansai which translates to “one soup and three dishes.” I tried to include a soup with every meal if the main course wasn’t already similar.

Also, of note when discussing Japanese cuisine, is dashi. This is the broth that builds the base in as many dishes as chicken broth does in Western cooking, but it’s much simpler to make and more delicate—yet equally complex—in flavor. It’s really just seaweed (kombu) steeped in water, and then usually adds bonito flakes, which is essentially dried and smoky tuna shavings (removed before serving). It takes minutes to make, and even in the U.S. the ingredients aren’t too hard to find.

Shrimp Shumai, Miso Soup, Ingen No Goma Ae (Green Beans with Sesame Dressing), and Ginger Rice

I have a handful of shumai recipes on standby and these are really good, but here, making a miso soup from scratch really is worth it- that’s the stand out. Neither Kara or myself were fans of the very sweet room-temp green beans though.

Kaisen Yaki Udon (Stir-Fried Udon Noodles with Seafood)

Thick noodles, shrimp, squid, mussels, snow peas, and shiitake mushrooms in a broth with typical Japanese flavors like sake and soy sauce. Can’t go wrong.

Shrimp and Scallops with Lemony Soy, Karashi Ae (Brussels Sprouts and Mushrooms with Mustard Dressing), and Ginger Rice

Kara LOVES Brussels sprouts, mushrooms, and mustard, so not only was that a no brainer recipe to try, I enjoy the coincidence that the Japanese name for the dish has her name in it, phonetically, at least. The “lemony soy” marinade is not from Morimoto and the ginger rice is an old simple standby inspired by Vongerichten.

Tamago Supu (Japanese Egg Drop Soup), Sake Shioyaki (Salt-Grilled Salmon), and Yasai Itame (Stir-Fried Vegetables)

Everything I love about Japanese cooking here. Quality ingredients treated simply and with love. The salmon is rubbed with LOTS of salt, rests for an hour, rinsed, and is then grilled or broiled. The salt brings out the flavor beautifully.

Nikujaga- Japanese Beef Stew, and Crispy Asian Brussels Sprouts (not Morimoto)

I was really excited to try this recipe, as Morimoto relays memories of trying his first pot roast in America and wondering where the flavor is. I have to admit, we must have different tastebuds here. I found this dish to be delicious, but its delicate balance of salty and sweet, and carefully chosen variety of textures (including shirataki noodles, made from yam) just can’t be described as a stronger flavor than a good old Western pot roast, Texan, French, or otherwise.

Food and Photography

I haven’t sent out a food email in quite a while, though I’ve been cooking plenty and just haven’t gotten around to writing anything up yet. In the meantime, here’s a very interesting article about photography’s influence on food and vice versa. It’s long and is mainly a history lesson, but I found it to be fascinating and at least worth skimming for my foodie friends. Enjoy.

http://www.foodandwine.com/lifestyle/40-photographs-moments-changed-way-we-eat

The Process

Over Labor Day weekend, I cooked each evening—probably more on that coming later—but this series of pictures from the last night sums it up. I took the first one as I was just starting on our third big meal and Kara took the next two snaps. One is a nice shot of food in progress and the other is how pretty much all my cooking endeavors end.

Smoked Turkey Breast

Barbecue sauce

Low Country Hoppin’ John

Skillet Cornbread

Green Beans and Asparagus

I brined the turkey with my new favorite go-to brine: 1 to 1 to 1: one gallon water, one cup kosher salt, one cup brown sugar, an hour per pound. Elaborate brining recipes are not worth the trouble or expense in my experience, and I’ve tried many. But I DO like to brine. I smoked the bird for about 4 hours on the Big Green Egg hovering around 250º with lump charcoal and a bunch of mesquite wood chips.

One of my favorite homemade barbecue sauces is Memphis style from the Neelys. Tart and tangy. Don’t worry, Texas, I do your spicy style too.

I’ve written about it before, but Hoppin’ John is basically a rice dish with peas. You can make it simple, which is not very good, or you can put some love into it with the right ingredients and make it a standout. I use Sean Brock’s recipe from Heritage and in this case I used purple hull peas from summer roadside stands along Southern interstate highways and a couple of New Mexico Hatch chiles from the end of the season.

One of my favorite techniques for green beans—and in this case, asparagus, too—is essentially sautéing in a bit of hot olive oil until just starting to blister, then splash a few tablespoons of water in and cover for a few minutes. Season with minced garlic, salt and pepper, and throw in a pat of butter for perfect crisp-tender veggies.

Finally, let the food digest as you fall asleep on the couch in an embarrassing and weird but somehow comfortable position with a Labrador retriever by your side, if not on top of you. Be sure to wear your old clothes reserved for cooking and painting only.

Golden Zucchini

You know those HUGE zucchinis you see this time of year? Yeah, we miss growing our own, but we picked up a couple of beautiful gold ones at the farmer’s market that weighed about a pound each. I stretched it out to three dishes—nearly a week of zucchini—about ten servings in total.

Cannelloni with Scallops and Zucchini

This was our favorite. Homemade pasta wrapped around a filling of sweet scallops and sweet golden zucchini, lightly coated with a creamy sauce reigned in by earthy thyme and bright lemon juice. Divine combination of flavors.

Summer Vegetable Casserole

Vegetables arranged in layers: yukon gold potatoes, heirloom tomatoes, vidalia onions, orange bell peppers, and golden zucchini, tossed with olive oil, garlic, thyme, and topped with a bit of Parmesan cheese. Roasted in the oven to make the house smell amazing.

Pasta and Fried Zucchini Salad

I’ve made this before and mentioned it in emails, but this time I used the gold zucchini and the proper pasta, which I worked hard to hunt down, finally finding it at an Italian market/deli called Jimmy's. The pasta is called strozzapreti, which means “priest choker”. It has all the ingredients a Kara should love- pasta, edamame, basil, zucchini, lemon zest, and capers.

 

 

 

A Comedy of Yummy Errors

I set out to do a quick, inexpensive, and healthy fish dinner. I should have read the instructions first (which I normally do, obsessively).

Steamed Red Snapper with Ginger and Scallions

I already had almost everything I needed in my pantry from the ingredients list for this Asian-inspired recipe. It called for wild striped bass which I knew would be pricey, but I figured I’d just get something comparable that looked good. I wanted the skin on the fish and ended up limited to red snapper when I was at the market—less expensive than the bass, but not exactly cheap.

Then I realized the scallions, ginger, and jalapeños were to be fried in batches (plus the ginger needs to be cut into matchsticks). Now it’s time-consuming and slightly less healthy… and smokes up my house and makes it smell like frying oil. As for health, at least they’re just garnishes.

Then—and this was the kicker—I found out I needed a covered steaming vessel that would fit a heat safe plate large enough to hold all these filets and the sauce. After about 30 minutes of experiments, I had devised a contraption using strategically broken bamboo skewers straddling a wok that would hold a pie plate that would hold the fish and could still be covered.

The recipe was tasty, though not quite worth that effort, and I failed on most of my original goals, but I did get it done.

Served with baby bok choy over ginger basmati rice...