Monthly Archive for May, 2008

5 ways to get food inspiration

Published
by
marc
on May 21, 2008
in Kitchen talk
. 17 Comments

So 2 months of actively posting and almost 80 recipes later, it suddenly struck me (like a clean sliding glass door), that at this rate, I may someday run out of original recipes to post. My goal has always been to post at least 1 recipe a day, but with work being as crazy as it is and my list of ideas dwindling, I started to wonder if this was realistic.

Then I thought about what I did when I hit a cooking rut before I started this blog. This list quickly came together and I thought I’d share it with all of you for that day when you just can’t figure out what you feel like making.

      
  1. Rummage through pantry/fridge This almost always works. I’m one of those people that just buys the most random shit, often because it’s something I’ve never cooked with. Given the microscopic dimensions of my kitchen and “European” fridge, it’s required that I go through and cull the contents of my fridge and pantry on a regular basis. I’m not the most organized person in the world, so digging through the pantry is like a veritable treasure hunt of surprises which inevitably leads to a train of thought that goes something like this: “That tamarind paste would go nicely with the rice stick noodles… Ohh and I have prawns in the fridge…. shit! where did this mint come from?…”
  2. wander around a food market

    3. When I have time (and money), I like to hit up local food stalls such as the ones at the farmers market (the little one at Tompkins Square, not the massive cluster f*ck at Union Square) and the Essex Public Market in the Lower Eastside. Although I’ve been around the block when it comes to food, I’m still a virgin to many ingredients I find at these joints. There’s also the encounters with old-flamea that I tired of long ago. Seeing them so fresh, tender and green really reinvigorates the lust in me to get to know it them over again.

  3. troll food blogs

    4. As much as I love checking out all the amazing things the food community comes up with, I try not to get more than a rough idea from other blogger’s posts like I did with this Hamachi Carpaccio that was inspired by a Panna Cotta.

  4. pull out cookbooks

    5. This really has to be reserved for weekends as I can spend hours flipping through and looking at pictures of tasty things. But that’s usually all I look at… the pictures. As the name of this blog implies, I’m your typical guy’s-guy that doesn’t ask directions, rarely reads the manual before operating heavy machinery and almost never follows recipes

  5. eat out

    6. While this can be incredibly inspirational, I try to keep this to a minimum as it’s too easy to rack up a few grand in debt eating out in NY and there’s nothing that kills the mood to cook like getting a $20,000 credit card bill (yes this actually happened to me when I first moved here). Now I try to keep it to one dinner a week at smaller (read: cheaper) more innovative (not another steak tartare rehashed with Asian ingredients) restaurants. Perilla is a great example, using fresh local ingredients to fill out a small, innovative menu that isn’t about to go 12 rounds with my wallet.

So that’s it for me. Now tell us how you get inspired in the kitchen? Share your comments below:-)

      
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Chicken Biryani

Published
by
marc
on May 20, 2008
in Indian and Poultry
. 12 Comments

While most often associated with northern Indian cuisine, Biryani is a dish with Persian origins found in various forms from Iraq to Thailand. As you might imagine, there is a huge variety of different preparations stemming from the vast swath of land it calls home. Common elements include some type of meat (goat, lamb or chicken), rice, and spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaves, coriander and mint.

I’m not going to say that my recipe originates anywhere specific, but it rely heavily on Indian flavours. Though it takes a bit of prep work, it’s not complicated and there’s a lot off leeway to improvise with your own blend of spices. The chicken gets married to the rice between layers of caramelized onions. This symbiotic relationship keeps the chicken moist while infusing the rice with some serious flavour.

It’s fantastic with a cucumber raita and a squeeze of lemon, cooling off the heat while adding a fresh zing that brightens all the spices in the dish. The ingredient list below might look intimidating at first glance, but there’s nothing all that exotic on the list and it all comes together in about an hour + cooking time.
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Buta Udon (Udon with braised pork)

Published
by
marc
on May 19, 2008
in Japanese, Pork and Soups & Stews
. 10 Comments

Amy from We Are Never Full (one of my favourite blogs) mentioned in her last post how she hates it when idiots ruin a dish then try to call it “authentic”. I’d have to say I’m totally on-board with her on that, but at the same time I do enjoy coming up with my own ways of making things.

For most of these creative endeavors I caveat the post with something along the lines of “inspired by”. This dish however has its roots firmly planted in my New York apartment, yet I could totally picture it being served in an Okinawan noodle bar. Okinawa is the southern-most island of Japan, just a stones-throw from Taiwan and their food takes cues from their neighbors, using a lot of pork and fish.

Rather than using a traditional dashi based soup stock for udon, I’ve combined some braising liquid from the pork belly kakuni I made the other night with dashi to create a tasty, though unconventional broth for the noodles. If you’re a ramen maniac or an udon fanatic (or better yet, both), this may be your perfect bowl of noodle soup as it falls somewhere in between the two while tasting entirely different from either

I used Sanuki Udon noodles which are much thinner than other types of udon, yet they have a pleasantly firm texture when cooked al dente. The soup has a deep almost indescribable savory flavor met right in the middle by a subtle sweetness and a mellow zing coming from the long-cooked ginger. It’s inexplicably light, yet rich at the same time. The slices of pork on top start melting like butter on contact with the hot soup. Putting a slice in your mouth gives it just the nudge it needs to sublimate into a pool of rich meaty goodness.

I know it’s not every day you have Japanese braised pork laying around, but to be honest, I actually made the pork last night with the intent to make this udon today (yes, it’s THAT good).

2 C dashi
1 C braising liquid from buta kakuni (fat skimmed)
1-2 Tbs soy sauce (depending on how salty the braising liquid is)
2 bundles udon noodles
8 slices of buta kakuni
scallions finely chopped

Put the dashi and braising liquid in a pot and simmer. Taste the soup adding up to 2 tablespoons of soy sauce if needed. If after adding 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, it’s still not salty enough, supplement with salt until you’re happy.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Following the package instructions, boil the udon until about 1 minute before they are done. For example, if the directions say to cook for 6 minutes, boil them for 5. This is because the noodles continue to cook once you add them to the soup.

Drain the udon and give it a quick rinse to get rid of any extra starch. Put the noodles in 2 bowls, top with 4 slices of pork belly each, scatter some scallions on top then laddle the hot soup over everything. Other great toppings include baby mizuna greens (pictured), enoki mushrooms (pictured), or a poached egg. Serve with a little white pepper to sprinkle on top.

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Stir fried lettuce

Published
by
admin
on May 19, 2008
in Chinese and Vegetable
. 5 Comments

I know… it sounds weird, most of us are put-off when the lettuce goes all wilty in a sandwich, but when the right kind of lettuce is quickly sauteed over high heat it makes a delicious vegetable side dish. It retains its crisp texture and the greens become almost fluorescent in color. The part I like best is that the bitterness of the lettuce fades away while the sweetness is brought forward.

When cooking lettuce it’s important to use the right kind. Soft pillowy lettuce like butterleaf isn’t well suited for being cooked. Your best bet is to use crisp lettuce with a firm stem like Romaine or Iceberg. While iceberg will work just fine, I tend to find its flavor almost non-existent, so really you just want to get a nice head of Romaine lettuce.
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Buta Kakuni (Japanese braised porkbelly)

Published
by
marc
on May 18, 2008
in Asian, Japanese and Pork
. 13 Comments

Pork belly is one of those unctuous guilty pleasures that you know will kill you some day, but you can’t resist taking another bite. Unlike “pork butt”, porkbelly actually comes from the belly of the pig and has layers of glorious fat. Salted and smoked, this cut is called “bacon”… need I say more?

Cooked over low heat for a long period of time, much of the fat renders out (which you skim off) and the collagen in the tough bits breaks down into gelatin making the entire thing dissolve in your mouth on contact. While I love porkbelly how ever it’s prepared, it’s so rich that I like simple preparations the best.

In Japan, buta kakuni is served as an appetizer along with some beer or sake. Literally translated it means “stewed square cut pork”. While it’s traditionally cut into cubes, I actually like leaving it in longer strips then slicing it before serving.

The dried sardines and pork make a flavorful broth while the ginger and garlic evens out any overly fishy or porky tones. The braising liquid has a small amount of soy sauce for added umami and “that Japanese taste”, but it’s mostly seasoned with salt with just a touch of sugar to balance it all out.

This goes great with some stir fried greens (flavored with the braising liquid), but I also love having slices of this over udon noodles with some of the braising liquid in the dashi.
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