Another fusion recipe from Bobby Flay's Boy Gets Grill, and a particularly good one. I used those thick-cut Niman Ranch loin chops from WF, cooking an extra one for leftovers. The rub has the usual paprika, mustard, cayenne, salt and pepper, but adds ground versions of star anise, ginger and allspice. I only had whole star anise of I used the big mortar and pestle to grind it down. It was the most distinctive flavor in the rub, which is put on only one side of the oiled chops and grilled first to form a crust.
The accompaniment, keeping to the Asian theme, is a "wild" mushroom salad with soy vinaigrette. I like to clean and slice mushrooms (as long as I don't have to do it every day), so I got a mixed pound of cremini and shiitake (Flay also lists chanterelle and oyster with these two kinds, by way of example). It's not mushroom season and WF yet so those were my only two choices besides portobello. You sautee sliced shallot, minced fresh ginger and chopped garlic in some peanut oil, and the mushrooms and cook until tender, then stir them into a vinaigrette made of soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, and toasted sesame oil, add some chopped cilantro and season to taste.
I got small portions of Brussels sprouts and stir-fried Asian style cabbage from the prepared foods table to have something else on the plate and it made a terrific weekday meal.
Friday, September 21, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Pork tenderloin, butterflied chicken
Two more grill recipes from Bobby Flay, who livens up traditional dishes with fusion elements or adapts classic treatments to the grill.
His Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Guava Glaze is attributed to a Cuban friend and he considers it predominantly Cuban. He suggests apricot jam as a substitute for guava jelly, so that's what I used. The glaze combines the jam with Dijon mustard, orange juice and salt and pepper. There is also a "mojo" consisting of red onion and garlic sauteed in vegetable oil, then adding several cups of orange juice and lime juice with a chopped half of a habanero chile and boiling that down by half, then stirring in chopped cilantro and cumin seeds. So you grill the pork tenderloins, brushing with the glaze (save some to brush on after taking them off the grill), then slice and serve with the mojo drizzled on top. The pork absorbs much of the flavor from the glaze and the mojo rounds it out deliciously with just a little kick from the chile.
We paired this with Sarah Jenkins' Moroccan Salad, which, although it may seem an ocean removed from Cuba, was actually a very harmonious combination. The salad consisting of finely diced and chopped tomato, cucumber, yellow bell pepper, onion, parsley and cilantro, is dressed with lime juice, olive oil and ground cumin. Simple, easy, tasty.
Flay's Butterflied Chicken with Rosemary-Lemon-Garlic oil was less satisfactory. The problem here is that grilling a whole chicken in the manner described by Flay means you have all the fat dripping onto the charcoal and flavoring the meat with that burnt fat smell. Also, even butterflied, a whole chicken is hard to cook through on a grill, and not possible at all in the 25 minutes specified in the recipe. So the marinade was great and the finish with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and coarsely ground pepper was a nice nod to a classic Italian treatment, but we will not be repeating this recipe.
Jenkins's shaved fennel salad, dressed with lemon juice, parsley, olive oil and a big pinch of piment d'Esplette was an easy and fresh accompaniment.
His Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Guava Glaze is attributed to a Cuban friend and he considers it predominantly Cuban. He suggests apricot jam as a substitute for guava jelly, so that's what I used. The glaze combines the jam with Dijon mustard, orange juice and salt and pepper. There is also a "mojo" consisting of red onion and garlic sauteed in vegetable oil, then adding several cups of orange juice and lime juice with a chopped half of a habanero chile and boiling that down by half, then stirring in chopped cilantro and cumin seeds. So you grill the pork tenderloins, brushing with the glaze (save some to brush on after taking them off the grill), then slice and serve with the mojo drizzled on top. The pork absorbs much of the flavor from the glaze and the mojo rounds it out deliciously with just a little kick from the chile.
We paired this with Sarah Jenkins' Moroccan Salad, which, although it may seem an ocean removed from Cuba, was actually a very harmonious combination. The salad consisting of finely diced and chopped tomato, cucumber, yellow bell pepper, onion, parsley and cilantro, is dressed with lime juice, olive oil and ground cumin. Simple, easy, tasty.
Flay's Butterflied Chicken with Rosemary-Lemon-Garlic oil was less satisfactory. The problem here is that grilling a whole chicken in the manner described by Flay means you have all the fat dripping onto the charcoal and flavoring the meat with that burnt fat smell. Also, even butterflied, a whole chicken is hard to cook through on a grill, and not possible at all in the 25 minutes specified in the recipe. So the marinade was great and the finish with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese and coarsely ground pepper was a nice nod to a classic Italian treatment, but we will not be repeating this recipe.
Jenkins's shaved fennel salad, dressed with lemon juice, parsley, olive oil and a big pinch of piment d'Esplette was an easy and fresh accompaniment.
Friday, September 14, 2012
Jack Rose
There are helpful whiskey consultants so my out-of-town guest and I each had a flight -- three 1-oz. pours -- of single malts you will never find in a store and would have trouble finding in Scotland. They were without exception outstanding. The one cask strength was very strong, so you should be sure you have acquired that taste before ordering one of those.
The decor, which displays bottles of whiskey in floor-to-ceiling shelves on three sides, is outstanding. It was nice weather for the rooftop patio, but the menu is limited there and the view in the "dining saloon" is too special to pass up.
The New American food was fine: I had the artichoke soup special (lots of cream and salt but all right) and the pork chop, while my companion had the watermelon salad (which I sampled at it was excellent) and the risotto.
But I would return to spend some time at the bar and drink, eating only as necessary to keep tasting the voluminous assortment of whiskey. It is a very special place for whiskey lovers, and right here in DC!
Proof
Our first meal at this downtown wine restaurant was with some friends from out of town and we had a great time. We decided to share the chef's platter of house salumi and it turned out to be an inspired choice, because the cold cuts were plentiful and delicious. Plus, it's a fun thing to do.
The entrees were very good if not terribly original. I had a great lamb dish with lentils. My companions chose variously the pork chop, the salmon and a tofu "napoleon," and they all seemed very happy with them. One of the visitors ordered the cheesecake for dessert and we all ended up digging in. It was creamy -- the type you eat with a spoon -- and an excellent way to round out the meal.
The wine list was pricey and our two lower-price choices, while quite drinkable, were not outstanding, with the Piedmont red a better choice than the Chinon. But the point is to share a bottle of wine, or two, have some great food and an enjoyable evening. The table we had was along the window and not too close to other tables, so -- a rarity these days -- it was not too noisy and we were able to have a good conversation.
In short, it's a great place to meet friends for dinner and I'm sure we'll be back for that purpose.
The entrees were very good if not terribly original. I had a great lamb dish with lentils. My companions chose variously the pork chop, the salmon and a tofu "napoleon," and they all seemed very happy with them. One of the visitors ordered the cheesecake for dessert and we all ended up digging in. It was creamy -- the type you eat with a spoon -- and an excellent way to round out the meal.
The wine list was pricey and our two lower-price choices, while quite drinkable, were not outstanding, with the Piedmont red a better choice than the Chinon. But the point is to share a bottle of wine, or two, have some great food and an enjoyable evening. The table we had was along the window and not too close to other tables, so -- a rarity these days -- it was not too noisy and we were able to have a good conversation.
In short, it's a great place to meet friends for dinner and I'm sure we'll be back for that purpose.
Thursday, September 06, 2012
Roast beef
Perhaps the most distressing thing about shopping at the butcher counter at Whole Foods is when I ask the person behind the counter whether they have a top round roast and she looks at me like I'm a Martian with horns sprouting out of my head. I don't mind that English isn't her first language but I would like it if I could ask for a cut of meat and she has a clue what I'm talking about.
You can read anything you like in a cookbook about which cut of meat is ideal for a certain dish, but given the streamlined situation at supermarket butcher counters and the absence of any alternatives, you literally take pot luck when you go shopping for it. There have been a couple of sporadic attempts at setting up gourmet butcher shops in DC but their offering is even spottier than in the supermarket.
Long story short, I had to settle for what I could find on my own to follow Molly Stevens roasting technique for top round. In this case, it was a 2 lb. bottom round roast in a package. When I got home I found out of course that bottom round is much less desirable than top round. Stevens says if you attempt to use bottom round she can only recommend that you roast it very slowly and cut it very thin. In his River Cottage Meat Book, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall says bottom round is suitable only for a slow pot roast.
I counted on the WF grass-fed beef being good enough quality to try oven roasting anyway. So I salted and peppered it, seared it in a cast iron skillet as instructed by Stevens, and popped it in a 250-degree oven until it reached 125 degrees. I sliced it very thin and surprise, surprise, it was delicious.
To accompany, I used a Sarah Jenkins recipe I've been wanting to try for tahini roasted cauliflower. You just roast the cauliflower florettes at 400 degrees for 45 min. then toss them along with chopped parsley in a dressing of tahini paste, water, garlic, lemon juice. Very, very tasty. We'll do more tahini vegetables, I think.
Update: Great roast beef leftovers, too. Whipped up the horseradish sauce Stevens has in the recipe -- heavy cream, creme fraiche, prepared horseradish, dry mustard, squeeze of lemon juice, salt and pepper. Also got a nice tomato salad variation from Epicurious -- sliced tomato sprinkles with salt, pepper, capers and pieces of basil, drizzled with a shallot vinaigrette.
You can read anything you like in a cookbook about which cut of meat is ideal for a certain dish, but given the streamlined situation at supermarket butcher counters and the absence of any alternatives, you literally take pot luck when you go shopping for it. There have been a couple of sporadic attempts at setting up gourmet butcher shops in DC but their offering is even spottier than in the supermarket.
Long story short, I had to settle for what I could find on my own to follow Molly Stevens roasting technique for top round. In this case, it was a 2 lb. bottom round roast in a package. When I got home I found out of course that bottom round is much less desirable than top round. Stevens says if you attempt to use bottom round she can only recommend that you roast it very slowly and cut it very thin. In his River Cottage Meat Book, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall says bottom round is suitable only for a slow pot roast.
I counted on the WF grass-fed beef being good enough quality to try oven roasting anyway. So I salted and peppered it, seared it in a cast iron skillet as instructed by Stevens, and popped it in a 250-degree oven until it reached 125 degrees. I sliced it very thin and surprise, surprise, it was delicious.
To accompany, I used a Sarah Jenkins recipe I've been wanting to try for tahini roasted cauliflower. You just roast the cauliflower florettes at 400 degrees for 45 min. then toss them along with chopped parsley in a dressing of tahini paste, water, garlic, lemon juice. Very, very tasty. We'll do more tahini vegetables, I think.
Update: Great roast beef leftovers, too. Whipped up the horseradish sauce Stevens has in the recipe -- heavy cream, creme fraiche, prepared horseradish, dry mustard, squeeze of lemon juice, salt and pepper. Also got a nice tomato salad variation from Epicurious -- sliced tomato sprinkles with salt, pepper, capers and pieces of basil, drizzled with a shallot vinaigrette.
Monday, September 03, 2012
Roast duck with mustard-mint glaze
We stumbled upon a great little menu drawing once again on Bobby Flay and Deborah Madison. As always, I jump at the chance to use my rotisserie attachment and I love to cook duck anyway, so this was perfect. Flay recommends putting the duck uncovered in the fridge overnight to help the skin crisp up during roasting. Otherwise, just salt and pepper and onto the spit. The glaze is made of Dijon mustard, honey, prepared horseradish and some chopped up mint. You apply this the last 20 minutes of the roasting and then once more after you take the duck off the spit. Really tasty.
Madison's India-inspired chickpea salad with tomato and cucumber garnish paired perfectly with the duck. The cooked chickpeas get stirred into a panful of oil, onion and ginger with some Indian spices -- coriander, cumin, turmeric and garam masala. The garnish is diced cucumber, diced plum tomato, a diced jalapeno pepper, chopped cilantro, Dijon mustard and lime juice, spooned over the mounded chickpeas.
The sharp and spicy mustard tied the two dishes together; it was balanced in the duck with the honey and in the salad with the chickpeas.
Proof to me once again that you just can't beat good cookbooks for finding recipes. There's no way I could have searched for this combination on Epicurious. When I say "stumbled" above, it's the serendipity of random access.
Madison's India-inspired chickpea salad with tomato and cucumber garnish paired perfectly with the duck. The cooked chickpeas get stirred into a panful of oil, onion and ginger with some Indian spices -- coriander, cumin, turmeric and garam masala. The garnish is diced cucumber, diced plum tomato, a diced jalapeno pepper, chopped cilantro, Dijon mustard and lime juice, spooned over the mounded chickpeas.
The sharp and spicy mustard tied the two dishes together; it was balanced in the duck with the honey and in the salad with the chickpeas.
Proof to me once again that you just can't beat good cookbooks for finding recipes. There's no way I could have searched for this combination on Epicurious. When I say "stumbled" above, it's the serendipity of random access.
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