Hungarian Mushroom Soup

Sun, 13 Nov 2011

Lately, I've been on an Eastern European bent. The recipes seem to be rustic, filling, and comforting. It doesn't hurt that many of them include sour cream and cheese, which is always a plus in my book. 

The first time I had Hungarian Mushroom Soup was in Hungary of all places. My tour package included a stop in the twin cities, Buda and Pest, and I knew close to nothing about them. Although, the visit quickly became a highlight of my grand tour of Europe. The historic buildings and scenery were amazing. Seeing a wine fountain in an underground maze was pretty darn cool. The cosmopolitan areas of the cities felt like any of the other big cultural hubs, alive and full of energy. 

I am a sucker for soups. They have layers of flavors, and usually don't hurt the pocketbook. Another reason I love soups is their connection to a particular culture. It is my belief that any particular cuisine or country will have some traditional soups. Hungary is no exception. I had a small bowl of Hungarian Mushroom Soup at some cafe after doing the typical sightseeing. The weather changed on a dime that day, going from sunny to rainy in 35 minutes. The soup hit the spot to warm me right up after getting drenched. 

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion (chopped)
1 8 ounce package mushrooms (quartered)
2 teaspoons dill
1 tablespoon paprika
2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable broth)
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon of saltsalt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped)

Directions:
1. Melt butter in a pot.
2. Add onions and saute until tender.
3. Add mushrooms and saute until the mushrooms are cooked.
4. Add dill, paprika, salt and chicken broth.
5. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Mix the milk and flour in a bowl.
7. Add the milk mixture to the pot, cover and simmer for another 15 minutes.
8. Add the lemon juice, salt and pepper.
9. Remove from heat.
10. Add the sour cream and parsley and stir.

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Basic Beef Tacos

Fri, 11 Nov 2011

The other night there was a nice beef rib roast on sale, and it's hard to turn a great deal down; especially, when the price of food seems to go up week to week. And with a cut of meat this big, it easily lends itself to several meals and dishes. 


Normally, I like to cook dinner, but sometimes it feels nice to have someone else take over the kitchen. Tonight, I was the sous-chef and helped with some of the prep work. Chopping tomatoes, grating cheese, and cutting some onions. Peter handled the bulk of the cooking, and seemed to enjoy it. Maybe I should hangup my apron more often.


His cooking style is a lot different than mine. I usually like to adhere to a recipe, because I figure it's how the author wanted it prepared. Peter on the other hand is never hesitant in exercising his poetic license, and loves to take liberties with a dish. While this process can lead to some scrumptious creations, it makes writing a formal recipe a bit more difficult.      


Ideally, this recipe will allow everyone, including Peter, to make these tacos anytime. I certainly enjoyed them this time and hope all of you will, too.


Ingredients:
2 tomatoes, chopped
juice of 1 lime
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/2 lb of beef, cut into thin strips
1/2 small yellow onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 New Mexico chiles (or other red chili), soaked in water for 20 minutes.
small tortillas
sour cream
grated cheese
herb to garnish like cilantro or parsley


Preparation
1. Cut beef into half inch pieces. 
2. Add the tomatoes, onions, and garlic to a pan over medium heat. Cook for 5 minutes.
3. Seed the chili peppers after re-hydrating them, and add to pan. Cook for 2 minutes.
4. Add the lime juice and beef. Cook for 6 minutes.
5. Reduce any liquid left in the pan.
6. Assemble tacos with the tortilla, beef filling, sour cream, and other garnishes.

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How to Seed A Bell Pepper and Cut Perfect Strips

Sun, 6 Nov 2011


Today, I want to focus on a quick way to prepare bell peppers, and to get uniform cuts. I've never liked the conventional technique to remove the bell pepper seeds and veins; where you slice it in half and scoop the core out. It seems like a slow and inefficient way to prep a pepper. Plus, it makes it even more awkward to get nice uniform pieces.  The methods most commonly known and taught are in the video shown below. However, the second video will show an even better method.

The more efficient method is demonstrated by someone known for lightning fast knife skills, Martin Yan. In this video he demonstrates how to prepare several types of vegetables, but the bell pepper scene is roughly 2:30 minutes in.


I think the rolling method is a much better way to prepare peppers, and ingredient prep is usually the most time consuming part of cooking, as far as active hands-on time goes.

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Lamb Chops with Tahini and Date Couscous

Sat, 5 Nov 2011

I tend to favor recipes that pack a lot of flavor with little preparation time. These recipes are usually simple to execute, and difficult to bungle. Recently I made Middle Eastern style lamb chops with lemon date couscous, and it fits all those criteria. The fruity couscous provides some brightness to the dish and adds more depth to balance the minimally seasoned lamb. The tahini sauce brings nuttiness and bitterness to temper the sugary dates. You can easily have this Middle Eastern inspired meal on the table in 20 minutes, leaving time to do other things; making a dessert like baklava, or just kick your feet up and relax.

Ingredients:

Sauce

1/4 cup jarred sesame tahini, well stirred
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, pressed or very finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
salt

Lamb:
4 lamb chops
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper

Couscous:

1 cup couscous

1 cup of boiling water
8 dates stoned and finely chopped
2 lemons juiced and zested
small bunch of mint and parsley chopped finely

Preparation:

1. Whisk together tahini, 1/4 cup water, lemon juice, garlic, cumin and 1/2 tsp. salt. Set aside.

2. Boil 1 cup of water, and add it to couscous. Cover couscous with a towel for 10 minutes.

3.  Fluff couscous with a fork and add the dates, lemon juice, zest, and herbs. Set couscous aside.

4. Sprinkle chops on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chops and sauté until browned on both sides, about 8 minutes per side. 

5. Drizzle chops with tahini sauce and serve with couscous.

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Agnello Scottadito Alla Diavola

Tue, 1 Nov 2011

Agnello Scottadito translates into English as finger-burning lamb. Legend has it people could not stop themselves from picking at the freshly grilled lamb chops, and they burned their fingers in the process. Hence, it is now a tradition to eat this dish using your hands. Many dishes seem to taste better when using your hands anyway. After wolfing down this dish both barehanded and with a fork, I can honestly say the lamb tastes much better using your hands. 


Ingredients:
4 Lamb Chops
6 cloves garlic minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, no stem
2 tablespoons of white wine
1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 yellow heirloom tomato, diced
zucchini, sliced thinly  
salt and pepper to season


Preparation:
1. Season the lamb chops with rosemary, salt, and pepper.
2. Grill each side for 8 minutes for thin lamb chops ( more or less time depending on thickness of chops). 
3. Heat the olive oil in a pan, and add the minced garlic. 
4. When the garlic starts to change color, add the wine and stir. Reduce the sauce by half, add parsley and red pepper flakes before setting the sauce aside.
5. Cook the zucchini in the same pan as the sauce until soft. 
6. Assemble a plate with the lamb chops, zucchini, and diced  tomatoes. Drizzle some sauce over the dish, and reserve the rest for dipping the lamb.

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Duck Fat Potatoes

Mon, 31 Oct 2011

Duck fat is an amazing substitute for regular cooking oil, particularly for frying potatoes. Add a little salt and pepper, and you have a great side dish or appetizer. 


Potatoes cooked in duck fat is a classic french preparation to accompany duck confit, and it's known as pommes de terre à la sarladaise. I first had this dish at a French restaurant in San Francisco, L'ardoise, and it was incredibly crisp and flavorful. Now I make them at home whenever I happen to have some duck fat on hand.    


While Alton Brown isn't my favorite culinary talking head, but what I respect and admire about him is his knowledge for all things food. He does a very good job of explaining the history and basic preparation of ingredients, and he demonstrates the proper cooking techniques throughout the show. His show is a live version of the classic kitchen reference On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. Here is an excerpt from Alton Brown's show "Good Eats" on how to prepare duck, and to render the fat for future use. I would fast forward to the 3:34 mark to get his instruction on rendering the fat.

Ingredients:


duck fat (enough to completely cover the pan in fat)
new potatoes (or any variety you like)
salt and pepper


Preparation:


1. Add the duck fat to the pan and heat for 2 minutes.
2. Slice the potatoes thinly (I used a food processor).
3. Add the sliced potatoes to the pan and cook until brown, flipping them cook evenly and get a nice color on both sides.
4. Remove potatoes from pan and blot them with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper immediately.
5. Let cool and serve.

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Peel Head of Garlic Under Ten Seconds

Sun, 30 Oct 2011




Peeling garlic is a step common in many cooking recipes. Depending on how many cloves it calls for, the  easy task becomes more of a chore and time consuming. This is a great tip on peeling an entire HEAD of garlic, in under 10 seconds! If you only need a few cloves, you can set the peeled cloves aside for another recipe. Chances are you'll  need garlic for something.

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