Posts tagged ‘Sunday Night Special’

Jul 12

Sunday Night Special: Thai Beef Salad

I think it's generally accepted that salads are good hot weather food. It's too bad that salads tend to be really boring, or maybe I just hate the varieties that I make myself. I'd much rather eat a professionally crafted bowl of greens than suffer through my sad renditions.

Thai salads are easy to make, generally healthy and taste a hundred times better than some god-awful Caesar concoction. I went for beef because we had a Styrofoam flat of economy type steaks in the freezer. They weren't really suited for purist treatment, but became a perfect meaty sponge for herbs and spice.

There doesn't seem to be a hard and fast recipe for this dish (nor a proper name–I thought it was yam nuea, but the recipe I settled on was called nahm dtok, which must be off because Googling that phrase only brings up 25 hits. I suspect the dish is more Laotian, which may or may not have anything to do with its small web presence). Some are more like a larb and use roassted rice powder and chile powder rather fresh chiles. Tomatoes, scallions, or mint sometimes show up and sometimes don't. I went a little insane trying to find a definitive version.

Eventually, I just gave up and looked to David Thompson's Thai Food. It was one of the simplest recipes I found and the man knows his shit. My only beef is that he doesn't specify servings (perhaps this is explained somewhere in the book and I missed it). I would guess that using 5 ounces of meat would make this for one. I mean, Americans eat 12-ounce slabs at steakhouses. I suppose if you were being more Asian and serving lots of dishes with small portions intended 5 ounces would suit more eaters. But then, I treated this as a main entrée and doubled it for two.

Grilled Beef Salad
Nahm Dtok

5 oz. beef rump or sirloin
4 red shallots, sliced
2 tablespoons shredded pak chii farang
handful of mixed mint and cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon ground roasted rice

dressing
pinch of white sugar
3 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons fish sauce
very large pinch of roasted chile powder

First, make the dressing; it should be pungently hot, sour and salty.

Chargrill the beef to your taste. Slice beef, and combine with shallots and herbs. Dress the salad and sprinkle with roasted rice.

Serve with a wedge of cabbage and a few snake beans.

* * *

I didn't use the pak chii, which I just learned is culantro (a.k.a. sawtooth herb), not a super hard herb to find in many parts of NYC since it's popular in Puerto Rican cooking. I used to think grocers were just misspelling cilantro because they seem to enjoy doing that quite a bit, but that is the commonly used name here. And I used a mixture of shallots and red onion and tossed in half a tomato, just to use up produce that had been languishing in the fridge.

Northern Thai salads call for sticky rice. I happened to have the glutinous grain, but didn't have the proper set up. I really just need to buy one of those Thai rice steamers because improvising with a metal vegetable steamer in a large pot is a mess. You need cheesecloth and I just put the soaked rice in loose and it got too wet. The end result was more mushy than sticky, though it firmed up a bit after getting some air.

I opted for cucumber slices on the side. As you can tell from the photo I'm not presentation obsessed. The cucumbers had strips of missed skin still on and seeds that didn't fully get scooped out. I had also intended the meat to be rare, though it came out more medium-well. Gordon Ramsey would call me a donkey or a fat ass or something if he got a load of my kitchen standards.

Bonus Yam/Yum/Thot Fun

And because I have a more than minor obsession with name brand bastardized recipes, here's a Kraft doozy that calls for peanut butter (unbranded), A.1. Teriyaki Steak Sauce and KRAFT LIGHT DONE RIGHT! Zesty Italian Reduced Fat Dressing. At least they have the decency not to use the word yum in the title.
Hormel's rendition is a little less disturbing, but does make bizarre use of HERB-OX® Beef Flavored Bouillon Granules.
Here's a most awesome adaptation from Hidden Valley that uses, yes you guessed it, Hidden Valley® The Original Ranch® Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix. Or as us common folk call it, ranch dressing.

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Jun 12

Sunday Night Special: Penang Fried Chicken

I woke up this morning wanting fried chicken. Hey, it happens. On those occasions when you practically drink until dawn, delicate light fare just doesn't appeal. Grease and spice, while probably not the wisest choice, is where it’s at.

I've never made or even tried Nonya style fried chicken, but I've always been intrigued by the notion. We defrosted a slew of drumsticks and I decided to make five my way. James is a purist and didn't want anything to do with my poultry aberration. Each to his own.

I'm looked at about five recipes before deciding on this one written by an American rather than a Malaysian. It seems that traditionally, the chicken is marinated, dried and then fried twice, that's it. But I like a little coating on my fried chicken, so went with a version that employs a light dredging.

Some make the curry powder from scratch. Some simply call for meat curry powder, a designation possibly unique to Malaysian recipes that always confounded me. They frequently specify fish curry powder or meat curry powder. Curry powder in America is kind of general as it is, though I have a bottle of Vietnamese and a can of Indian. It never occurred to me that different meats would require different spice blends, though it certainly makes sense. I made sure to pick up packets of each type, Baba's brand, while in Kuala Lumpur last summer. It looks like the main difference is the prominence of turmeric in the fish curry powder.

Though not always specified, when Singaporean-Malaysian dishes call for mustard powder I think they mean hot English style, like Colman's. Colonial influence, correct? Look no further than the Worcestershire sauce for that tip off. But I haven't found it in the few places I've looked, not even the new amazingly stocked Fairway. (But I could've missed it since they have this annoying display style of not putting like with like. Instead they separate pedestrian from gourmet. The standard cheddar and Monterrey jack blocks are in the back of the store, while all the artisanal cheeses are near the front cheese counter. Salsa shows up in three places: store-made with deli items, brands like Frontera in one spot and Old El Paso types in another.)

I ended up using the hair dryer technique to try and get the remaining marinade to stick to and sink into the chicken. It worked until the device over heated and did that scary thing where it just clicks off and won’t re-start. At least I didn’t blow a fuse. Combined with the warming-up deep fryer, I was probably taxing the electrical limits of my Brooklyn kitchen (two apartments ago, my fuse would blow if I used any combination of microwave, toaster or coffee maker at the same time as the hair dryer).

I think the oil might’ve been a little too hot, as the first batch turned out a bit dark after 12 minutes. The second batch fared slightly better. The flavor was subtle, but definitely noticeable. Slightly sweet and spicy, which was further enhanced by the Worcestershire dipping sauce. I like that sweet/meat combo, though. One of my favorite fried chicken experiments used a sugar and tea marinade. And I loathe sweet tea for drinking. For brining? Good stuff.

Rice might've been nice, white toast points traditional, but I ate my chicken starch-less with a spicy pickled cucumber relish.

Penang Fried Chicken
Inche Kabin

3 pounds chicken pieces
Salt, to taste
¼ cup dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon meat curry powder
2 teaspoon mustard powder
2 tablespoons ginger juice
3 tablespoons coconut milk
1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
Canola or peanut oil for deep frying
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup rice flour or cornstarch

Sauce
1 teaspoon mustard powder
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons lime juice
1 teaspoon soy sauce
2 red chiles, sliced

Rinse the chicken parts well, pat dry with paper towels and rub with salt.

Whisk together soy sauce, curry and mustard powders, ginger juice (I used grated ginger, which is juicy but also a little chunky), coconut milk and sugar. Put chicken in a large zip lock bag and pour marinade over. Put in refrigerator and marinate for at least four hours and ideally over night.

Drain chicken pieces, shaking off excess marinade, place on baking sheet and let dry completely, about 3 hours. Alternatively, dry with a hair dryer.

Heat frying oil to 350 degrees.

Sift flour, rice flour and salt together in large bowl. In batches, dust chicken with flour mixture. Fry the chicken, a few pieces at a time, until golden and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Drain chicken on paper towels.

Mix all sauce ingredients and serve on the side.

Serves 4-6.

This recipe is an amalgamation of those found in the following books:

Terrific Pacific Cookbook by Anya Von Bremzen and John Welchman. Workman. 1995.

Nonya Flavours: A Complete Guide to Penang Straits Chinese Cuisine by Julie Wong (editor). Star Publications. 2003.

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Jun 7

Sunday Night Special: Prawn & Pineapple Curry

Yeah, it's already Tuesday, but these things take time. This venture wasn't wholly a success, as is occasionally the case when I make Malaysian style curry pastes from scratch. I suspect that my ingredients (and much of those in the U.S.) just aren't the same as what you'd find in a tropical climate. Freshness is an issue for sure. And I wasn't about to make coconut milk from scratch like the original recipe called for, that's where I draw the line. But I had jumbo prawns and a pineapple (thank you, new Fairway) that needed to be eaten and my mind immediately went to S.E. Asia.

I'm always wary of the amount of shallots called for. Fifteen seemed a little outrageous, so I used maybe ten. The end result was very bitter and slightly medicinal, and I'm not sure if that was due to the shallots (I'm always paranoid that they're going moldy, but then I have a violently irrational fear of mold) or galangal or lemongrass (I've been using frozen) having gone bad. Now that I think about it, the problem might be that I don't use enough oil (I cut the three tablespoons down to two) at high enough heat and the paste never properly cooks because it stays too wet. Hence, raw tasting shallots, galangal and lemongrass.

I ended up just picking the prawns out of the curry and eating them with my hands. I mean, you kind of have to to get the shells off anyway. There's no way I could let a meal go to waste. Well, unless it was moldy.

Prawn and Pineapple Curry

Ingredients
12 large prawns
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 stalks lemongrass, lightly crushed
½ small ripe pineapple, peeled and sliced
1/3 cup coconut cream (thick cream from top of an opened, unshaken can)
1 2/3 cup coconut milk (remaining left in can)
1 ½ teaspoons salt

Paste
8 red chiles
15 shallots, peeled
Galangal, 2" knob, peeled
Turmeric, 1" knob, peeled (I resorted to a teaspoon of ground spice)
Shrimp paste, 1" square piece
3 candlenuts

Wash prawns. Trim off feelers and legs. Leave unpeeled.

Heat oil in kuali or wok. Fry lemongrass and paste until fragrant and oil separates.

Add pineapple slices, then coconut milk. Bring to a slow boil and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Put in prawns and simmer until almost cooked, then add coconut cream and salt. Simmer until thoroughly cooked.

Adapted from Rasa Malaysia by Betty Saw. Marshall Cavendish. 2005.

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May 22

Sunday Night Special: Pad Prik King

I recently occured to me that the only cooking I ever document is what I do on Sundays. That's simply because Sunday night is the only evening when I have the time and energy for silly crap like snapping photos of ingredients and typing up ingredient lists. Why fight it? I'm starting a new category: Sunday Night Special. The following recipe is from last Sunday, not today. I don't ever actually post anything in real time–I tend to mull things over, but mostly I'm just lazy. Let's see if the fish curry I plan to embark on in a hour or so ever makes it up here or not.

I never see cilantro with the roots intact, so when I found a dirt-caked pile of rooty herbs at Western Beef, I bought some with the primary intent of cutting, cleaning and saving the roots for later use in Thai recipes that always seem to call for them when I'm empty-handed. (Last week, for the first time, I saw rau ram, a.k.a. laksa leaves at Hong Kong Supermarket in Sunset Park. But I wasn't sure how well they'd hold up in the freezer and I didn't have any plans for any Malaysian recipes in the immediate future, so I was forced to pass.)

I decided to make a dry curry using pork and long beans David Thompson's paperback Thai cookbook from the early '90s, not the encyclopedic behemoth, Thai Cooking, that dazzled everyone a few years ago. I love that obsessive tome, but for a simple every day recipe, the smaller book usually suffices. I followed it fairly closely, though I didn't de-seed my chiles and used short ribs (I thought I had pork belly in the freezer, but I couldn't find it) primarily because I don't have a cleaver to chop down big ribs.

The result was very strong and rich, though not from coconut milk. I guess the ingredients were naturally rich. I tried a canned prik khing paste last night for a similar recipe and thought the one from scratch was superior (though James seemed to like the prepared sauce better, but that's psychological because he bought the can) I think even the good canned pastes, end up being too salty and flat. The freshly pureed paste was also considerably hotter than the canned version, which I had to spruce up with a couple chopped chiles.

Pork with Snake Beans and Chile Paste
Pad Prik King Tua Fak Yaew

2 tablespoons safflower oil or 4 tablespoons if using pork ribs or leg
2 cloves garlic, crushed
7 ounces pork belly, fresh bacon or pork ribs or leg, steamed and sliced into smalls strips
3 tablespoons of the chile paste
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 ounces snake beans, cut into 1 ¼" lengths
6 kaffir lime leaves, shredded
3 fresh large red chiles, halved and deseeded

Chile Paste
5-10 dried red long chiles, deseeded and chopped
3 red shallots, chopped
2 cloves garlic
½ stalk lemongrass, sliced
1 teaspoon galangal, peeled and chopped
3 cilantro roots
1 tablespoon dried shrimp, rinsed
1 teaspoon salt

In a medium pan, heat the oil, add the garlic and fry until golden. Add the pork and fry until it begins to color. Add the chile paste and fry for about 5-8 minutes or until fragrant; if necessary, moisten with a little water to prevent the paste from sticking. Add the fish sauce and sugar. Mix in the beans, kaffir lime leaves and chiles, fry for another 2-3 minutes, or until the beans are cooked. It will taste quite rich and spicy.

To make chile paste, puree all the ingredients in a food processor (or mortar and pestle), using as little water as possible, until fine.

Adapted from Classic Thai Cuisine by David Thompson. Ten Speed Press. 1993.

Here's a fun site with Thai cooking videos. Watch stir-fried pork with long beans being made (scroll down to #9). They're not scared of MSG in Thailand.

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Apr 25

It’s a Mockery

If I don't watch it, I'm going to turn into Rachael Ray, mangling traditional food with shortcuts and messed up ingredients. I'm not ashamed. Last night I was in a pinch and wanted to make something easy with stuff I had on hand, so I turned to a packet of Brahim's instant rendang that I bought at a Carrefour in Singapore.

I find many of the packaged pastes in Asia to be a notch above many mainstream American counterparts, but maybe I'm just thinking of McCormick taco seasoning and powdered alfredo sauces (James likes the Knorr carbonara sauce, but I'm not completely convinced).

The Brahim's is a just add chopped meat and water and simmer affair. Simple. But I didn't have traditional beef on hand, or even chicken in its ideal form. Using boneless, skinless chicken breast instead of a hacked up chicken was very American of me. I definitely prefer the bones and the skin, but I had two giant bags of breasts from Costco in the freezer that needed to get used. Plus, somehow I can justify the oil and coconut milk when using a leaner, albeit less flavorful, cut of poultry.

I needed a basic vegetable side dish and thought of stir-fried water spinach, kangkung, kangkong, whatever you like to call it (not king kong, however) but that's not going to happen on a Sunday night in Carroll Gardens. Korean deli spinach is as good as it gets, and it sufficed.

Mock Kangkung Belacan

5 bird chiles
4 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons dried shrimp, soaked in water and drained
1 tablespoon shrimp paste
1 bunch of spinach
1 tablespoon oil
¼ cup water

Puree chiles, garlic, dried shrimp and shrimp paste in a food processor or mortar and pestle. Fry paste in oil for about four minutes (normally, you'd use 3-4 times the oil, but I'm skimpy with cooking fats and use a nonstick pan). Add the spinach and water and toss until wilted and cooked down.

Serves 4

I'm not really bothered by strong smells (I think I'm permanently stuffed up) so shrimp paste doesn't bug me. It is pungent, though, so novices beware. We opened up a bunch of windows and you could still smell the belacan fumes all night. Also, a pinch of sugar probably would've been a nice addition, but it didn't occur to me until right now.

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Apr 18

Sixteen Pounds of Joy

Irrational & Impromptu Easter Dinner Menu

Spiced Caramelized Cauliflower Florets
Creamy Artichoke Dip with Pita Chips
Roasted Asparagus with Sage and Lemon Butter
Potato Gratin with Mustard and Cheddar Cheese
Fresh Ham with Cracklings and Pan Gravy
Italian Cheesecake

* * *

Every so often I become irrationally influenced by the food media. Last Wednesday’s “Got a Crowd Coming Over? Think Big” in the New York Times convinced me that I needed to cook a humongous fresh ham.

However, this gung ho undertaking posed a logistical problem. It turned out that I was going to be home alone on Easter, so thinking big wasn’t the wisest. But I’ve never been terribly astute and once I want to make something, it’s impossible to get out of my head. So, I invited a handful of friends over. I’m not sure if eight constitutes a Timesian crowd, especially when that number includes a few vegetarians and a couple stray Jews (how come calling someone a Jew is pejorative while Jewish is ok? Forgive me, I wasn't raised amidst diversity), er, nice Jewish girls.

Side dishes seemed relevant, just in case no one was feeling hammy. I went for the simple, hearty and economical approach, nothing sophisticated. My criteria for ingredients were that they had to be found at Western Beef (my favorite all-purpose NYC grocery store) where I assumed (rightly) that my fresh ham would be readily available. The smallest roast available was a little over 16 pounds, but at under 20 bucks for the whole porcine shebang—how could I resist? And the Lee brothers (they are siblings and not “partners,” correct?) thought they were getting a steal at $1.59/pound. Please, try $1.19. Western Beef never disappoints.

Cheap

Well, if you stick to meat. They had like every iteration of Mexican and South American cheese, but no white cheddar. I didn’t think white cheddar was a specialty item, but I was sticking to my guns, no stressing over the meal, no foodie sourcing of ingredients. So, sharp orange cheddar it was.

Before

The artichoke dip was merely a device to try and use up at least a fraction of the half-gallon Costco jar unloaded on us last month from James’s parents (at least I like artichoke hearts—there are like three big bags or gingersnaps that have been stagnating at the back of our downstairs shelves for over a year). Unfortunately, after scooping out 18 ounces, there was still more than half left.

After

It’s nice when vegetables are a hit. I ran out at the last minute in a pair of holey sweats and giant t-shirt with dark brown hair dye stained into the collar because I feared the two bunches of asparagus I’d purchased the day before would be insufficient. I was right, and thank god no one of any importance saw me looking like I belonged on secretly videotaped What Not to Wear footage. I could’ve done with more cauliflower, which was intended as a snacky appetizer instead of filling the house with jelly beans and Cadbury eggs (besides, I knew James would be sent home with chocolate bunnies and Lindt truffle eggs because that’s been the routine for the past three years). The sugar and spices render the florets caramel-sweet almost like candy, not Peeps candy, but a savory, semi-healthy (never mind the massive amount of melted butter used to adhere the cinnamon and paprika) treat.

Cracklings

Thankfully, I ended up with six ham-eaters, but even at a generous pound per person estimate, that still left a good nine pounds of meat, allowing one pound for the bone. The cracklings were also a nice touch, but then, I’m abnormally fond of crispy skin and fat. I see tacos (this is one of my favorite recipes—I’ve been using it for years) and cubanos in my future. I’m sure there are more uses for roast pork, but those two top my list. And certainly, freezing is always an option.

Ham & gravy

I deferred to neighborhood bakeries for a last-minute dessert. I’m not even sure what I bought, some sort of Italian cheesecake with either candied fruit or rice pudding pellets (I’m not sure which) strewn throughout and a lattice top. It was a non-special order item that was still warm (too bad I’d be refrigerating it overnight) when I spied it at Brooklyn Bread Company around the corner from my apartment. Yes, I’m Italian food ignorant.

Mystery cake

P.S. How the hell do you center things in TypePad? Not being able to control my HTML is one of the many things about blogging that drives me insane. No matter what I do, my text and images align left.

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Apr 12

I Heart Swad

I used to think Patak's was the shit, but then I got wise to Swad. Perhaps this brand is the Kraft of India, I don't know, but they do seem to manufacture every food product you could ever want–from chickpea flour to ready to eat meals (better than the ubiquitous Tasty Bite boxes that are probably getting more popular in the city thanks to Trader Joe's). And it's all packaged so sensibly with both Hindi and English terms and a large color photo.

One of my most favorite products, and not just in the Swad canon, is something called Far Far Coloured (more generically, I think they're called farfar or wafers). At least on a visual level. I'm not sure about taste as I haven't attempted cooking mine yet. It looks like rainbow colored pasta, but if I'm correct you deep fry it. There aren't any directions on the bag. The only place I've seen a before and after preparation pic is an egullet post.

I go nuts buying Swad whenever I hit Patel Brothers (do note the Swad logo watermark on this site) in Jackson Heights. Canned, boxed, bagged, jarred, frozen, I covet all of it. You can use as little or as much Swad as you'd like. I don't usually feel like making cheese from scratch, and sometimes I'm not up for toasting and grinding spices. Mincing garlic and ginger isn't a problem for me, but if that's too much you can buy the essential combo in a jar. I keep it on hand just in case. Same goes for frozen items like bird chiles that aren't easy to find in Carroll Gardens, or more obscure vegetables like drumsticks. Fresh spinach is fine, but I love Swad's tidy ziplocked palak that comes pureed in little blocks ready to cook with.

Last night I made a lazy palak paneer, which I'm sure would make purists cry, but I'm not anal about Indian cooking they way I am with S.E. Asian dishes. Essentially, I cooked down onion, garlic and ginger then added garam masala, a few hot pepper flakes, then tossed in a bag of spinach with cheese cubes following soon after. I splashed in a little half and half, as it was the only creamy thing in the house. Really, you should make your spice blend and brown the cheese separately. And the whole thing ends up as a rich ghee-filled amalgam. Instead, I used canola oil and raw cheese, as I'm trying to watch the rampant fat. It wasn't half-bad, but more vegetable forward and less like creamed spinach.

I used Swad brand paneer, garam masala, palak and mango pickle. Unfortunately, I was all out of Swad radish-stuffed naan. A nice Swad gulab jamun would've been the perfect nightcap, but I had to settle on a quarter tub (I actually managed to only eat one serving) of Ben & Jerry's Turtle Soup, which was kind of boring for that genre of ice cream. I like more crap in my frozen desserts.

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Feb 8

Let Them Eat Football Cake

What to make for a Super Bowl party that's really just an excuse to eat bad food and break in a new larger than life plasma TV? Of course, I had to at least skim my favorite messed-up standby, the Kraft site (I also enjoyed how Food TV had Steelers themed food that was all pierogies, kielbasa and sauerkraut while Seahawk fare consisted of wok seared Dungeness crab, oysters, smoked salmon and taro chips. Is that like blue state/red state cuisine demarcation?) because they know how to celebrate (using as many Kraft products per recipe, of course). I was a little wowed by the Cheesy Football, and amused by the sixth (at this moment in time) comment:

This cheese ball was so great! it was such a big hit at our super bowl party we will be having thanks to this website…i have so many great ideas to share w/ u and my friends of all ages including newborns! thank you see u there !

Uh, newborns are allowed to eat this shit? Or does Crazymel20041 just like hanging with newborns? I'm totally confused.

So, I skipped the Cheesy Football, and went pretty bar food basic: guacamole, hot jalapeno crab dip, and saucy little smokies. I'll admit I went with the cocktail wieners simply because we had half of a two-pound Costco bag in the freezer (same with jalapeno poppers, which I also cracked open).

Oh, and it was hard to resist the bizarre simplicity of the half jelly, half chili sauce smokies recipe (a variation floating around the internet is half jelly, half mustard). Grape jelly isn't something I keep around the house (poppers and smokies, sure, but grape jelly? You've got to be kidding) and I had the good fortune of having recently opened and nearly orphaned a jar of pineapple jam in the fridge that I'd only needed one tablespoon of. I conceded and bought a jar of that ketchupy Heinz chili sauce and shook in an additional blob of sambal oelek. Pu-pu platter perfection.

James manned the deep-fryer because it gives him purpose. He went to town with Buffalo wings and Jane showed up later with cornmeal breaded okra, which also got the hot oil treatment. We had intended to deep-fry a few candy bars, but reason got the better of us.

The past couple of years Rich has brought over his specialty, and my nemesis, Cincinnati Chili. I like to believe that I'm not a fussy eater. Really, the only thing I hate is melon, but there are items that are low on my list, just not in full loathsome territory. Those things include spaghetti, chili and wieners, all components of this regional treat.

I'm still not quite clear on the eating procedure. There's the pasta, which gets topped with the chili and grated cheese, but then there are those whole wieners floating in the chili to contend with, not to mention the hot dog buns and oyster crackers. It's all very confusing. Three-way, four-way, five-way?! I will say that I like the cinnamon as a chili component, it's not a spicy style, but weirdly mole-ish.

And while the Cheesy Football got a pass, the theme lived on in Patrick's Staten Island supermarket football cake. Score!

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Jan 23

Hamming it Up

I have a pretty high tolerance for yuck. Mostly this means that I'm not bothered as I should be about urine, feces (I was recently joking how that would be the perfect marriage proposal gimmick. Enough with all the rings bathed in champagne or nestled at the bottom of a crème brulée. I would get the biggest kick if a guy was like "this catbox is a mess" and managed to get me to clean it. And as I sifted the poop logs out, a litter-crusted diamond ring would emerge from the nasty rubble. My eyes would well up, my heart would soar. Beautiful.) and the like, but I have a serious, serious problem with mold.

It's almost irrational, and the only substance that will induce immediate involuntary throat contractions. Even the smallest whiff of that distinct earthy odor induces the gag reflex. (I have a pet peeve with the movie/tv cliché where someone who is upset or traumatized throws up.) I've never puked from stress or horror, but mold, yeah. Even if I calmly tell myself green and white fuzz is harmless and try to stare it down, I start to retch. I almost went into cardiac arrest cleaning out a plastic container filled with rancid coconut milk.

So, I was excited and hesitant to tackle a country ham that had made its way into our home. I love the salty meaty taste, but feared the bacteria coating that's a part of the aging process.
Everyone seems to have their own prep and cooking preferences for country ham, a lot of the steps conflicting. Do you clean and scrub first? Boil or bake? Soak overnight or for a couple days? I ended up looking to anal-in-a-good-way Alton Brown, for this undertaking.

Since we had the idea to make the ham on a Saturday for a late Sunday morning meal, we had to cut the soak time down to 24-hours. Luckily, we had a cooler large enough to contain the porky behemoth. Oh, and yes, it was thoroughly sloughed and washed first (I'll admit that I sat this task out). We then roasted it for a couple hours in a Dr. Pepper and pickle juice bath. Many recipes call for brown sugar and/or cloves, but this demented soda and pickle byproduct combo won me over with its ungainly nature.

And well, it turned out good. The only dilemma being what two humans are supposed to do with so much ham. I whipped up a batch of biscuits (not my strong suit, mine always turn out flat and crispy rather than fat and fluffy. And the recipe that was supposed to yield 16 only produced eight. You'd think that if my results were half the intended amount that that they'd be larger not smaller) and we proceeded to stuff them with thin ham slices drizzled with "brown eye gravy," the Dr. Pepper and pork fat combo that filled the pan. I think my blood pressure went crazy from all the sodium, but other than shortening my life by a few months the country ham experiment was a success.

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Jan 10

Melt with You

I had to put this Christmas gift fondue pot to work pronto. I vowed to clean up my food act beginning Jan. 9 and steaming vessels of melted cheese don’t really fit into that virtuous plan. I had to go out with a bang.

No time for experimenting, I opted for a traditional gruyere and emmental combo with a hit of kirsch. (Do you know what would've been really classy? Kraft Crumbles fondue. Totally crumbelievable. Ok, I was just joking, but Kraft has quite a few fondue recipes as it turns out.)

The only addition to the original recipe was a touch of freshly grated nutmeg. I’m not trying to make a statement, The Vampire wine happened to be a party leftover and the only white I had on hand, though I think pinot grigio is acceptably dry for a fondue base.

I had a fromage fest both Friday and Sunday because who knows when I'll have another chance in the near future.

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Posts tagged ‘Sunday Night Special’

Sunday Night Special: Thai Beef Salad

Sunday Night Special: Penang Fried Chicken

Sunday Night Special: Prawn & Pineapple Curry

Sunday Night Special: Pad Prik King

It’s a Mockery

Sixteen Pounds of Joy

I Heart Swad

Let Them Eat Football Cake

Hamming it Up

Melt with You

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Occasional Instagramming

Yes, it’s come to this

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The Past Will Haunt You

Pigeonholing 101