The Next Food Network Star, were you really surprised?

So the winner is ... Aaron. I like Aaron, I think he can cook pretty well. But in yet another example of style over substance and attention to marketing value, Food Network chose Aaron over the (by his own admission) more talented and (in many people's eyes) more polished Lisa (Adam was, in my opinion and stealing a Gordon Ramsey-ism, a bit of a donkey, but a media darling ... he needs more time in the kitchen practicing, but I like his humor). Aaron will probably be successful, and kudos to him for his hard work, but I probably won't watch ... the style is just too narrow and neatly fitting into a marketable menu rather than something I can learn from in all likelihood.

Susie Fogelson and Bob Tuschman give their insights here. I guess from a television network executive standpoint I understand the decision, but from a foodie standpoint I'm wondering if Food Network cares about foodies at all. Apart from Iron Chef America, and occasionally Good Eats, I'm feeling we're being a little ignored. If it really is about the food, I feel food network really needs to step up and expand our horizons a little. Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie is focused with laser precision on our niche, I suspect the maturation of home cooking will soon demand more shows with educational content. The question is, will Food Network respond to this demand before foodies give up hope and completely turn their backs on any show not featuring Alton Brown.

Whole Hog Eatin

We went to a pig roast this weekend at our friends' home and I was able to savor some great pork. The nasty bits were the best. I scarfed down my first pig tail, really yummy, texturally like eating great short ribs with more meat than I thought it would have; there's a picture of the festivities floating out there somewhere for a later post. The cheeks were a treat as well, I don't mind eating a little fat once in a while, and this was a real treat, sweet and delectable.

If you're turning up your nose and thinking what the heck is wrong with me, you probably need a healthy dose of Chris Cosentino over at Offal Good.

Ahi Poke with Chorizo Crumbles

My wife and I love ahi tuna, but only occasionally indulge due to the concerns around mercury content. This approach yielded what my wife called "maybe the best tuna I've ever eaten". Recently I became enamored with the magical flavor pairing of sudachi and very high quality soy sauce. In this application the sudachi is less pronounced, but marries very well with the addition of cilantro. The chorizo addes a gentle heat and a great textural contrast.

1 lb Thick sliced Ahi steak
Juice of 6 limes
1/4 cup sudachi juice
1/4 cup organic 100% soy sauce
kosher salt TT
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1/3 lb chorizo sausage

Just cube the tuna into 1" pieces, toss for 30 seconds in the lime juice (obviously you'll need high quality and very fresh tuna for this near raw preparation), then incorporate the other ingredients (minus the chorizo) and toss for another 30 seconds. I let this rest for 5 minutes before plating with the chorizo (which was cooked on low heat for 25 minutes and pulverized until evenly browned). This was my first attempt at poke, and as far as I can tell, it is extremely close to ceviche in preparation as both incorporate a very low pH citrus acid to denature the protein of the fish; I'll categorize recipes like this under "raw preparation" but think this dish is a fusion of Latin American and Japanese flavors.



On a side note, when I say evenly browned above, we're talking about the maillard reaction, not caramelization. I've read a few recipes recently which talk about caramelization of meats. This is incorrect technically, as proteins coagulate, starches gelatinize, and sugars caramelize (per On Cooking). The "caramelization" I believe these recipes refer to is actually the maillard reaction. I'm sure I've made the same mistake in my recipe descriptions at some point, and while coagulation might not sound as sexy, in the end I'd prefer to be technically accurate rather than propogate erroneous descriptions for the sake of marketing. Goodness knows I can't stand it when I see that the Olive Garden bastardizes the meaning of carbonara, so hopefully you'll appreciate the attention to accuracy and look past my limited marketing skills.



 

God Help You Green Chile

Brought home some excellent pork from a whole hog roast party at our friends' house, and then the next morning ran across some Hungarian Wax Chilis that were pretty nasty hot. After making the chili, we enjoyed a late night snack. We had some artisan tortillas we also grabbed from the farmers market, so we rolled up some of the pork, coated with the God Help You hot green chili, and a few crumbles of good quality american cheese (not the processes stuff). Killer burrito, the chile was nearing absurdly hot on its own, but hugging that amazing pork it took on a deeply satisfying flavor.

Chile ingredients:

1 Tbsp Epazote
1 1/2 Tbsp Mexican Oregano
1 lb fire roasted Hungarian Wax Chilis (5000-15000 scoville)
2 lbs Anaheim Chilis
1/2 lb Poblano Chilis
3-4 quarts water
1 Tbsp Xanthan Gum
5 cups chopped white onion
8 cloves garlic, smashed & chopped
32 oz can fire roasted tomatoes
3 tablespoons annatto oil
salt TT

Started with the hungarian wax chiles (which are about 3x hotter than jalepenos), the onions, and water and brought this to a boil with a little salt for about an hour. I used the stick blender about 15 minutes into the process and fumagated the house so completely with capsaicin that everyone but me evacuated ... in circumstances like this, it is very important to know that capsaicin is only fat and alcohol soluble. After an uncontrollable coughing fit and a few rounds of sinus clearing, a cold beer and a piece of cheese eased the pain (a little). Really, just smelling this stuff constricted my airways and left an irritating resin in my nasal passage and throat. I got a small glimpse of what pepper spray must feel like.



After the first hour, I added the anaheims (raw, chopped), the poblanos, and the garlic. Next I added the annatto oil (made by steeping annatto seeds in olive oil for about 10 minutes on medium-low heat). The annatto gave the mixture a golden hue and a little earthiness. I gradually added the epazote and oregano tasting progressively after 5 minutes of incorporation each time. I wanted to have a little mint note in the background from the epazote, and temper this with the oregano in the foreground (which was easier said than done as the chile was wicked spicy). Finally I added the tomatoes and let the whole mess simmer for another 2 hours, allowing it to reduce by half. I blitzed everything with the immersion blender and then thickened the still liquid mixture with Xanthan once the right flavor concentration was achieved.

This was my first attempt at cooking with hungarian wax chilis, and while they don't have the forward flavor of poblanos, jalepenos, or habeneros, they give off a lot of heat and work well in combination with other Mexican flavors. Sure these are nowhere near the heat of an habanero, but they are eventually much nastier than serranos, the heat attack is late but very persistent. The xanthan was an excellent thickener, but make sure to use an immersion blender to incorporate evenly; thickening happens quickly, and clumping was easily remedied by the blender. I personally enjoyed it on its own, but this is not for the intermediate capsaicin enthusiast ... as my wife remarked "this is so hot it's just silly", so if you too attempt to eat it on its own, God Help You and have cold beer or glass of milk at the ready.



 

Seared Sea Scallop with Sherry Vinegar Reduction & Smoked Paprika

Nothing special here, just a scallop flash seared in very hot grapeseed oil, served with a sherry vinegar reduction with a little brown sugar, topped with kosher salt and hot smoked paprika.



Simple, Spanish-influenced good eats.


 

Pan Braised Green Beans with White Wine, Summer Savory, Worchestershire, and Bacon

We hit two farmers markets this weekend and found that all the local produce is starting to come into season. Green beans picked that morning caught our eye, and pan braising (I guess I had braising on the brain that day) was how I decided to go after retaining the peak flavor of the beans while avoiding boiling (steaming would have easily yielded good results, but I wanted to experiment with a complex flavor pairing, though the same pairing could have been approached just through a vinaigrette as well). Since Culinary Artistry didn't list braising as a common approach with green beans, the rebel in me chose the path less traveled.

In a cold casserole I added lardons of sugar cured bacon and turned on a low flame to render the fat a bit. Just as the edges began to brown, I added a bottle of white wine (cheap California Sauvignon Blanc), a tablespoon of summer savory, several dashes of worchestershire, a few dashes of white wine vinegar, and salt. I brought the liquid to a simmer to cook off the alcohol, then reduced to low, added the beans, and covered to pan braise for 90 minutes, careful to keep the braising liquid below boiling, really at just a bare simmer.



The flavor pairing and the technique worked well. The bean pods were desicated and concentrated in flavor, soft but not mushy, with some firmness still in the inner seeds. The flavor combination was once again inspired by Culinary Artistry ... I can't wait for the follow-up book The Flavor Bible by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg; my copy is already pre-ordered.

 

Flat Iron Steak Braised in Cassis, Port, Thyme, and Roasted Garlic

So this was a half hearted attempt at doing something different with a cheap cut of meat. Flat Iron steaks are not of the quality of ribeyes, filets, or in my opinion, even sirloins. But they are designed to be more tender than what shoulder meat is typically thought to be (though not free of collagen-rich connective tissue). So the thinking was really low heat braising would be a good way to go. On that note, I think the dish was successful, the concept that is. However, the dish failed on at least two practical fronts.

The first main reason for failure was the savory flavor of the meat was robust enough that something was just off, clashing if you will with the braising liquid. I seared the steak for about 1 minute a side in olive oil, applied kosher salt and fresh black pepper, and added port, cassis, french thyme and a head of garlic. I think the critical error here was putting the head of garlic in raw, rather than roasting it first. Roasted garlic has a sweetness that pairs well with other caramelized fruit sugars, and I believe should have worked with the port / cassis. The garlic was really great, but the roasted garlic flavor was entirely absent from the steak, instead it was just aggressively garlicly which did not work. I think the thyme was a distraction here as well, maybe adding fresh thyme at the end would have worked, but adding dried thyme at the beginning seemed to help the garlic to fight with the sweetness of the fruity braising liquids.

The second reason for failure was my oven and my neglect of precision; you need some precision to do low temperature braising. The process was 30 minutes at 250F, 30 minutes at 200F, and 60 minutes at 150F. I added a half a cup of water after each of the first 30 minute intervals, which should probably have been sufficient to keep the internal temperature of the meat near 150F. The concept was to avoid cooking past medium doneness while maintaining a sufficiently high temperature to break down the collagen that gives meat its toughness. More specifically, the goal was to keep the meat temperature between 151F and 170F, but as I was juggling 7 dishes at the time, and I neglected to use a temperature probe thermometer to obtain the needed precision. I'll need to determine how calibrated this oven is at various stated cooking temperatures, as I think it's running hotter than I specified.

The motivation for this approach came of a passage I read in Molecular Gastronomy by Hervé This ...

At 40C (104F) meat becomes opaque because the protins in it, initially folded into a ball, begin to unfold before they coagulate (thus becoming denatured); at 50C (122F) the muscle fibers begin to contract; at 55C (131F) the fibrillar part of myosin (a protein that, along with actin, is essential for muscle contraction) coagulates, and collagen (a protein that gives meats their toughness) beings to dissolve; at 66C (151F) various other proteins coagulate; at 70C (158F) myoglobin no longer fixes oxygen, causing the inside of meat to turn pink; at 79C (174F) actin coagulates; at 80C (176F) the cell walls are ruptured and the meat becomes gray; at 100C (212F) water evaporates; and at temperatures higher than 150C (302F) so-called Maillard (and other) reactions produce brown and flavorful results. - p.169 in Molecular Gastronomy



The results were gray meat, and a tougher texture than the sweet spot I was seeking would have yielded. I think the technique has some promise though, and is similar in concept to sous vide, but lacking the high degree of precision possible with an immersion circulator. I'll have to revisit this approach after figuring out how accurate my ovens are.

You might be asking why blog about the failures? Well I believe to some extent (and this is a gross over simplification), we learn through either disciplined indoctrination of what is produced by knowledge creators (experts), or through experience in our own experimentation which often involves failures. While most people don't have a high precision sous vide cooking mechanism, I'm hoping to maybe find similar results that are accesible to anyone with a pot, a thermometer, and some very fundamental technique. To paraphrase Hervé This, good food comes of love, art, and a technial element (technique).

 

Hydrocolloid Densities

Martin over at blog.khymos.org has put together a revised collection of information on hydrocolloids. It is a fantastic resource that keeps getting better. One thing he's trying to do is gather up densities for various elements used to create hydrocolloids (suspensions, gels, spherification), so as to allow more people to experiment with molecular gastronomy techniques through volumetric measurement (most people don't have high precision scales sitting around, so being able to use a teaspoon improves convenience).

Anyway, I wanted to contribute to this effort so took an hour to weigh some of the chemicals in my pantry. I used a 50g limit scale with 0.01g accuracy, and a childrens plastic medicine cup for the container. I've also noted the texture / consistency of each material, as it seems some will have greater variation than others when volumetrically measured (when I say sticky below, the substance tends to cling to the container's outside a bit, I brushed this off). I followed the steps to measure outlined on blog.khymos.org. These densities are meant to supplement Martins document here, specifically the table on page 60 in the appendix. If you happen to have some sodium alginate laying around the house, please take 10 minutes to weigh it as outlined, and help demystify these techniques for other would-be molecular cuisine people out there.

Sample container empty weight 2.66g
Sample container filled with water 29.12g
Inferred volume of sample container 26.46 ml

Sodium Citrate samples (gross) - 31.33g, 31.21g, 31.36g
average net sample weight - 28.67g
inferred density - 1.08352 g / ml
notes: not sticky, evenly sized crystals
brand: willpowder.net

Calcium Lactate samples (gross) - 20.92g, 20.82g, 20.93g
average net sample weight - 18.23g
inferred density - 0.68896 g / ml
notes: sticky, powder that when agitated is dusty
brand: willpowder.net

Calcium Chloride samples - 23.82g, 23.87g, 24.01g, 23.95g
average net sample weight - 21.2525g
inferred density - 0.803193 g / ml
notes: very uneven spherical granules, some stickiness
brand: willpowder.net

Calcium Lactate Gluconate samples - 17.90g, 18.07g, 17.88g
average net sample weight - 15.29g
inferred density - 0.577853 g / ml
notes: sticky and easily compacted powder, dusty when agitated
brand: willpowder.net

Guar Gum samples - 18.69g, 18.80g, 18.66g
average net sample weight - 16.056667
inferred density - 0.60683 g / ml
notes: very fine powder, not sticky
brand: bulk (vitamin cottage)


 

What herbs / spices / chemicals are in my pantry?

``Tell me what you eat, and I'll tell you who you are.''

-Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

Had to clean out the pantry, well the spice shelf anyway ... here's what I found. What's in your pantry? And who the heck am I?

Herbs & Spices
Guajillo Chile
Ancho Chile
Tellicherry black peppercorns
Pink peppercorns
Turkish bay leaves
Mexican oregano
Greek oregano
Parisien bonnes herbes
Rosemary needles
Epazote
Marjoram
French thyme
Aleppo pepper flakes
Mysore green peppercorns
Smoked paprika hot
Super blue lavendar
Urfa pepper flakes
Smoked paprika sweet
Rubbed sage
White peppercorns
100% pure wasabi
Conventional wasabi powder
Ground white pepper
Chili piquin
Chili powder
Red pepper flake
Garlic powder
Emeril's essence
Cloves
Dehydrated onions
Herbes de provence
Curry powder
Ground cumin
Fine herbes
Cayenne pepper
Sri lankan curry
Summer savory
Bouquet garni
Dundicut peppers
Ground coriander
Annato seeds
Madagascar bourbon vanilla beans
Chinese ground ginger
Dill weed
Conventional Stick cinnamon
Coriander seed
French chervil
Chinese five spice
Chimayo chile
French tarragon
Gumbo file (sassafras)
Star anise
Onion powder
Allspice
Ground cinnamon
Black sesame seeds
White sesame seeds
Ground english mustard
Sweet basil
Ground cardamon
Tasmanian pepper berries
Fennel seed
Chinese red chiles
Miniature thai chilles
Tamarind paste
Japones chile peppers
Horseradish powder
Blade mace
Juniper berries
Spanish saffron

Chemicals
Citric acid
Agar agar
Soy lecithin granules
LM pectin
Calcium phosphate
Powdered gelatin
Sodium alginate
Methylcellulose SG A150
Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose E4M
Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose F50
Calcium lactate gluconate
Calcium lactate
Guar gum
Xanthan gum
Tapioca maltodextrin N-Zorbit
Methylcellulose A15C
Hydroxypropylmethylcellulose E15
Sodium citrate
Calcium chloride



 

New Books

Should be receiving a few good ones tomorrow, including:

• The Man Who Ate Everything by Jeffrey Steingarten


• Molecular Gastronomy by Hervé This


• Kitchen Mysteries by Hervé This


• The Oxford Companion to Italian Food
  

Can't wait to dig into the works of Hervé This, a man who can correctly be called a molecular gastronomist, and who says the work of Ferran Adria and others is Molecular Cuisine. Steingarten's book will certainly have a few sharp witted laughs in it.

I've also preordered the following:

• The Flavor Bible by the amazing authors of Culinary Artistry and due out in September


• A Day at El Bulli by Ferran Adria and due out in October


• Alinea by Grant Achatz and due out in November

Should keep me busy for a while absorbing such diversity of culinary talent.

 

Mizuna Restaurant in Denver

My wife and I enjoyed a spectacular meal at Mizuna to celebrate our anniversary this weekend. We reveled in the chef's tasting menu and were lucky to meet the very gracious Frank Bonnano, executive chef of Mizuna, who signed a copy of his Mizuna cookbook for the occasion. Predictably, our zeal was met with epic food, genius pairings ... a simply luxurious experience once again.

A standout was the braised rabbit with fava beans, absolutely delicious. Other highlights: seared duck breast with foie gras sauce, lump crab salad with heirloom tomato and buttermilk, seared monkfish, curry shrimp soup shooter, and a superb pinot noir that was grown from the clippings of Romanée-Conti.

In total we enjoyed 12 different tastes, 5 different wines, and 3 hours of bacchanalian consumption. The biggest surprise of the evening, a fabulously floral white wine from Greece; this was startling, as I previously had regarded Greek wine as typically substandard (though occasionally interesting with Greek food), and some of it being so bad as to be unfit to wash one's tires with it ... obviously I'll have to give Greek wine another chance.

Hopefully the Michelin guide folks will take notice of this gem hiding in a nondescript little corner on 7th and Grant. I've contacted Michelin, pleading with them to take a look, I'll let you know if I hear anything... "Dear Michelin Guide, Please check out Mizuna in Denver, it is a restaurant without peer in Colorado, worthy of two stars in my opinion. I've eaten at about a dozen Michelin 1-2 star restaurants in New York, Paris, and Italy and would put Mizuna near the top of this class."

Molecular Gastronomy News Feed

For the food science geeks in the room, check out the right side of the page and notice the new links to various blogs that pay strong attention to molecular gastronomy, under the heading "molecular gastronomy news". This will be updated on an ongoing basis with new sources. So if I can't always satiate your experiential cuisine cravings, I hope this will help tide you over. Here is the link if you want to get the RSS / Atom feed, and here is a URL if you want to bookmark the feed for web viewing.

 

Vote Now - August mystery dish

Just set up a poll to get your feedback on a mystery dish you can make me prepare for August. Please vote in the poll (upper right corner of the page), and feel free to throw in your own additional ingredients that I have to cook with by posting your comments. I promise to research your proposed components for flavor harmony (i.e. on a scientific and heuristic basis), and I promise to cook at least one dish based on your inspired ingredients. Feel free to challenge me and throw me for a loop, after all, this is all about gastronomic guesswork.

 

Fava Beans w/ Prosciutto Vinaigrette & Cracklings

Used the rest of that prosciutto hock to render some fat that I used to prepare a vinaigrette for the fava beans. The vinaigrette was made with a couple tablespoons of the rendered fat, white balsamic vinegar (relatively cheap stuff from Alessi), olive oil and a touch of sea salt. The cracklings came of rendering chopped pieces of the end of the hock, which rendered over low heat in a saute pan for about an hour, stirring occasionally. The fava beans were boiled for about 10-12 minutes after shelling. I plated the beans, coated with the vinaigrette and then topped with some prosciutto and skin cracklings.



It's pretty rare to get fresh fava beans here in Denver, looks like the ridiculously short season has begun and I'll be lucky to find them again. It's really tough to get good at cooking something you see only once a year, but this combination worked well. The flavor combination was inspired by perusing Culinary Artistry.

 

Tuna Ceviche w/ Thai Chiles & Chipotle Sauce

A very simple preparation, definitely hoping to get some of your input on ceviche as this was off the cuff and not that well conceived. The end product was pretty good but I know it can be so much better. Please, post your ceviche methods!

I just chopped up some tuna remaining from the previous recipe, added about 5 dried thai chilis to the fresh juice of 5 limes, and let rest for 20 minutes. I served with a pinch of salt and a few drops of tabasco chipotle sauce.



Ceviche is something I'd really like to get better at, it's a great way and simple / quick method to enjoy really fresh seafood.

 

Grilled Tuna w/ Sudachi, Soy Sauce & Horseradish Dust

Found another application for the horseradish dust I made this week, and also stumbled upon a brilliant flavor combination that I'm sure is old hat to many Japanese chefs. The concept here was to use a bitter component that was not hot and subtler than wasabe, and introduce a delicate citrus flavor to the savory saltiness of the soy sauce. I've used Ponzu sauce, which has a tart citrus flavor, with soy sauce before, but I guess I didn't catch onto the general usefulness of citrus and soy pairing until introducing Sudachi juice. The sudachi imparts a very zesty citrus flavor and aroma, quite tart on its own, but delicious with the soy sauce.

Here's the preparation:
- organic 100% soy sauce TT
- bottled sudachi juice TT
- horseradish dust (dehydrated fresh horseradish root run through a spice grinder)
- thick ahi tuna steak

Cut 1-2 2" cubes out of the tuna steak & coat with olive oil. Coat a 400F grill with canola oil and put the tuna on, rotating after 90 seconds. After the initial flip, give it 30 seconds on the 4 remaining sides. Plate with equal parts soy sauce and sudachi juice. Top with a little kosher salt and a line of the horseradish dust on top.



Excellent flavors with really good tuna. Sudachi can be found at larger Asian food markets, mine was procured at H-Mart. Not only was I thrilled with the sudachi, but will definitely remember the citrus / soy sauce combination for other applications.

 

Asparagus w/ Toasted Parmesan

Simple preparation, works as a starter or side. For the toasted parmesan, just sprinkle some of the cheaper stuff (I used pre-grated bella parmesan here) onto a cookie sheet and toast at 350F in the oven for about 10 minutes. Then just coat the asparagus with olive oil, a little kosher salt, and into a 500F oven for about 6-7 minutes. Finish with black pepper and toasted parmesan. Sure to be an easy hit with guests.




 

Pont-l'Évêque w/ Walnut Consommé Curd & Toasted Walnuts

Ok, this one is really out there. As a consequence of making the Walnut Crema, after poaching a couple cups of walnuts in salted water, I was left with a surprisingly nice walnut broth. I saved this for a couple days, clarified it by straining through a chinois, and then set about coming up with something to do with it.

I settle on a curd by combining the walnut consommé with a 10% (by weight) dose of heavy cream, a couple splashes of sherry vinegar, added 1% (by weight) of mono-calcium phospate, then heating this to 160F. I then poured this into blender, got a vortex going on medium high, then added 2% (by weight) of Low-Methoxyl Pectin (LM Pectin). I let the blender go on high for about 6-7 minutes, then poured the mixture into a small sheet pan that was lined with a silicone pad (smooth side up). I let this rest at room temperature for 20 minutes, then refrigerated overnight to set.

I love Pont-l'Évêque cheese from the Normandy region of France, and decided to pair this with the curd and some toasted walnuts for texture and different nutty note. The curd on it's own was not that palatable, interesting but intense. When eaten together, the walnuts, curd and Pont-l'Évêqu were really good. I'd call this experiment a qualified success, though my friend who sampled the curd called it "Flabby Salt" (ouch).



I think the ides of the walnut consommé deserves a more focused attempt rather than the leftover preparation herein, but still this was a fun first attempt at a curd from something quite different. The magic here is the use of a pectin that can tolerate low-acidic environments and still produce a gel. I have to say that LM Pectin will be making future appearances in my cooking. Kudos to Ideas in Food for the help on the %'s.

 

Cowboy Ribeye w/ Port reduction & Horseradish Dust

More fun with texture and flavor here, as I took a page out of the French Laundry cookbook for the Horseradish Dust ... after all, if you are going to be a cowboy, you're going to get a little dusty (there I go playing with my food again).

The horseradish preparation essentially involved dehydrating fresh horseradish root. I used the benriner to create small shreds, this worked a lot better than a cheese grader as the root is suprising moist when fresh. The shreds were then spread out on a plate and microwaved at 20% for two separate rounds of 15 minutes about 20 minutes apart (30 minutes with the microwave on total). This drying process pulled away most of the astringency of the root, and after obliterating these to a very fine dust in a spice grinder (old coffee grinder), the final flavor was subtle, even delicate, but distinctly of horseradish.

The cowboy ribeye was obtained from a local farming family who raises their grass-fed beef organically, finishing these with corn and flax seed; this results in a lot of the good fat like Omega-3 being present. Totally superior quality to what you can buy in the store to be sure. Another cool thing is cowboy ribeyes are really hard to come by around these parts, total coup at the farmer's market. I grilled this monster steak



at 550F for about 3 minutes a side, achieving a medium-rare doneness (this helps to melt the fat against the bone, enhancing the flavor). I split this with my buddy as the steak weighed in at over 1 1/2 pounds, but let it rest for 5 minutes before portioning.



For the port reduction, I reduced 1 cup of 2000 vintage Barros port (not the good stuff, but not bad, very plummy), with a chopped shallot and a tablespoon of tasmanian pepper berries. I strained the sauce before plating.



The port and horseradish dust were delectable with this very high quality steak, killer eats really.

 

Prosciutto Hock Cracklings with English Peas & Balsamico

Found a nice little hock of prosciutto at the truffle this week and decided on a simple preparation with some fresh locally grown organic English peas that I snagged from a farmer's market. I diced the meat of the hock and sautéed this in Italian olive until slightly crisp, then added the peas, and finished with some good quality balsamic vinegar. When you have ingredients that are this great, achieving success is like falling off a log.




 

Intermezzo - Peppadew Peppers stuffed with Blue Cheese

Nothing too crazy here, just found these nice sweet-pickled but spicy peppadew peppers at whole foods and decided to try something a little different. Sweet and salty goodness. Apparently these peppers have only been known to exist since the 1990s.



Wasn't sure what to post this under, so thus begins the intermezzo category.

 

Sesame & Coriander Crusted Tuna w/ Strawberry Cilantro Gelée

This is a recipe inspired by the August Royal Foodie Joust over at The Leftover Queen. The challenge this month is to create a dish with the following ingredients: Seafood, Cilantro (coriander), and Sesame.

My approach was to accent a familiar flavor combination, like tuna and wasabe, with some contrasting textures and complementary flavors that might be unfamiliar to some. Specifically, I wanted to bring out the nuttiness and crunchy texture of sesame, and contrast that with a savory application of strawberries by marrying this with cilantro in a soft textural element. This is a small plate preparation designed as a early course in a larger meal, but you could increase the tuna portion and make this an entrée.



- 1 tuna steak, good quality maguro is best
- 1/4 cup white sesame seeds
- 1/8 cup black sesame seeds
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- kosher salt TT
- 2 tsp wasabe powder, rehydrated
- 1 lb very ripe strawberries
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 lime
- 7.5 grams gelatin

Finely chop 1/2 of a bunch of cilantro leaves, carefully removing stems (about 1/4 cup). Clean and destem the strawberries, then blend to liquify for 1-2 minutes. Pass the mixture through a fine mesh strainer or chinois (recommended) to extract just the strawberry juice. Take 750 ml of the strawberry juice and combine with the fresh juice of 1 lime. Bring the mixture to a bare boil and whisk in 1 packet of unflavored gelatin (7.5 grams). Remove from heat and continue to whisk until the gelatin is fully incorporated. Combine the chopped cilantro and incorporate evenly. Pour the mixture into a small square plastic container (approximately 5" x 5"), and allow to set in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Toast a 1/4 cup of white sesame seeds in a medium hot non-stick skillet for 3-4 minutes, tossing frequently, until a light golden brown color begins to take shape. Reserve the toasted white sesame seeds. Toast a teaspoon of coriander powder in the skillet for about 30 seconds, smoke will start to form quickly so agitate the pan but give it 30 seconds. Toss the white sesame seeds with about half as many black sesame seeds and the toasted coriander to form an even mixture and then spread these on a large plate in an even layer.

Take a tuna steak that is about 1 1/2 - 2" thick, and cut cylindrical shapes out of it. Gently salt the tuna with kosher salt, just a little. Prepare a paste of wasabe, and coat the tuna cylinders completely with a thin coating; in this case I used 100% pure wasabe, sans horseradish, as it has a softer burn and almost fruity sweet flavor, a personal preference kind of like choosing good mustard over the yellow stuff. Then role the tuna in the sesame and coriander to cover completely.

In a small sloped saute pan, bring 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil to medium high heat. Place the tuna cylinders upright to begin searing. At the same time, tilt the pan toward you and using a small spoon, bathe the tuna in the grapeseed oil for about 90 seconds. Turn the tuna once and repeat the bathing for another 60 seconds.

Plate the tuna on the center of a small plate, a coffee cup saucer is perfect. Cut 2 circular portions of the strawberry cilantro gelée and place these slightly offset and overlapping from the center of the tuna.

The flavor of the strawberry and cilantro plays well with the sesame, tuna and wasabe with a toasted coriander note in the background. The textural contrast of the crisp crust, semi-firm meat of the rare tuna, and soft gelée was very enjoyable.

For the food science geeks out there, the strawberry / cilantro pairing is based on research from Khymos, and the gelée used a 1% concentration of gelatin.

 

Idiazábal & Añejo Soup

So this soups was inspired by 2 different soups by Jose Adres and Rick Bayless. However it's probably not recognizable as a fusion of Spanish and Mexican influences. I'd characterize this as rustic in composition and refined in flavor.



1 cup water
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 oz Idiazábal cheese, medium dice
1/3 cup Herradura Añejo tequilla
1 white onion, small dice
2 oyster mushrooms, chopped
2 shitake mushrooms, chopped
kosher salt TT
white peppar TT
smoked hot Spanish paprika TT

Combine the water and cream in a small sauce pan and gently warm to a simmer. Add the Idiazábal to allow it to melt for about 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a small saute pan over medium heat, to 2 tablespoons spanish olive oil add the onion and a little salt to sweat these to transparency. Add the mushrooms to the onions and saute for about 3-4 minutes until these are cooked through. Add a couple tablespoons of the Añejo to the saute pan and reduce, being careful to not aerate the alcohol vapors and cause a flame (reducing the flame if you're using a gas stove might be a good idea at this point). After a couple minutes, repeat the Añejo addition to the saute pan twice more and again reduce each time.

Once the Idiazábal has mostly melted, pour the liquid in the sauce pan through a mesh strainer and into the saute pan, discarding the remaining bits of the cheese. Blitz the mixture with an immersion blender on low, you don't want a complete puree, just break up the remaining chunks a bit and marry the flavors. Add the remaining Anejo and season with the salt and white pepper to taste. Plate in a small soup bowl and top with a pinch of the Spanish paprika.

The flavor profile is rich, pungent, savory, and earthy with a slight heat on the finish, it feels very old world.

 

The Magic of Ferran Adria & El Bulli

Ferran Adria is a magician with flavor & texture. Whether you want to call this molecular gastronomy, experiential cuisine, or the new cookery it's hard to refute the level of research, innovation, and technique the goes into Ferran Adria's magic.

Here is a clip from Decoding Ferran Adria wherein Anthony Bourdain enjoys one of the master chef's 32 course menus (yes 32 courses).



The pea ravioli was created with a technique called spherification which utilizes sodium alginate mixed with a food essence, that is then gently dropped into a bath of calcium chloride. This causes a thin membrane to form that encapsulates the essence, which when bitten into has the structural effect of caviar as the flavor essence bursts open.

Here is a clip demonstrating this technique to make fruit caviar.



To really understand Ferran Adria's magic, you have to start with understanding his philosophy.

Maybe someday we'll fully understand Ferran Adria's code.

Here's one more clip with Bourdain eating with Ferran Adria at El Bulli.



Like anyone who tries to change something, there are critics. But the magic of Adria will not be quashed by these, more likely it will unleash a new generation of innovators.


 

Grilled Banana Scallops w/ Maytag Blue Cheese & Guava Gelee

The Great Cooks Community has a challenge running on grilled fruit for dessert. If you have a second, please take time to join the community and vote for me (pretty please with maytag blue cheese on top?). I decided on a semi-savory but very fruity and sweet approach. I had already been researching some unusual flavor pairings with Guava and then ran across the announcement of the challenge, so decided to jump in with something that might take people back a bit.



The logic behind this dish is that banana, rum, guava, and (believe it or not) blue cheese share several common volatile flavor components that make them blend together somewhat magically. Certainly there is precedent for guava and banana pairing, but I decided to push the envelope a bit with the rum and blue cheese. The rum didn't seem like too far of a stretch from bananas foster, so I added a bridge element of brown sugar (which I use in my bananas foster preparation anyway). The blue cheese I knew would be austere, so I decided to sandwich that between the banana and the guava, with the idea that you'd spear these from the top and eat banana first, then blue cheese, then finish with the guava.

Here is the preparation (per person):

1 ripe banana, cut into 4 scallops (ok a little taller than a scallop), discarding the tips
¼ cup guava gelee
4 1”x1” slices of Maytag blue cheese (avoid stilton, fourme d'Ambert, etc, these are too musty for this)
½ cup spiced rum
brown sugar to barely coat the banana

For the guava gelee, use a non-concentrated pasteurized guava juice (which will be slightly blended with pear or apple juice), along with a ~0.9% mix of gelatin by weight: I used 300 ml guava juice & 3g of gelatin. Bring the juice to 180-200F then whisk in the gelatin. Let sit overnight in the fridge. Agitate before serving, you're going for a consistency that is thinner than jello, slightly thicker than jelly (though the heat of the bananas will melt this a bit, so work quickly and carefully when plating).

Macerate the banana scallop in the rum in a little bowl for about 2-4 minutes, you don't need much time to impart flavor, and too much time with leave the bananas as mush. Pull the scallops from the rum and coat gently with brown sugar, no clumps just a nice even coat that melds with the rum on the surface. On a 500F grill that is coated with a high temperature cooking spray (like PAM with Palm oil), place the bananas on their ends, then rotate 90 degrees every 30 seconds, and finally rotate to the back and front (leaving the grill open the whole time). We're going for a quick caramelization here that leaves some pretty grill marks. Remove from the heat after no more than 3-4 minutes.

I have to say that I love this, and I'm not a big dessert guy, mostly because I avoid the cloyingly sweet stuff. This experiment has me thinking I might be on to something with my research on flavor combinations, please let me know what you think if you're bold enough to try it!

 

Hickory Smoked Pork Chops w/ Rose Air

This combination was inspired some research into volatile flavor elements, and interestingly I found that smoked meat, bacon, and rose scents and flavors shared several volatiles. What this means is that somehow they will just work. In my time studying to become a sommelier, I learned that wine pairing fell into three methods:

1. Cook with the same wine you drink, almost will always work so long as the food itself likes wine


2. Complement the food with the wine, based on similar scents, body, or flavor


3. Contrast the food with the wine

Number 3 is the hardest to pull off for wine, you're ultimately still dependent upon some type of bridge element. In this recipe, I went down the path of #2 by finding multiple shared volatile compounds that affect aroma and flavor.

Really, I'm totally playing with my food here ... the dish should really be named “Ring around the Rosie Pork Chops”, as it started very floral and melded into a smokiness that reminded me of the children's rhyme (flowers to ashes, or something a little less morbid than the real meaning of the rhyme). I really enjoyed how unusual the floral rose flavor was, and the honey helped to further bridge the rose air with the pork.



For the pork chops, I put some hot charcoal into a metal bowl (outside in a fire safe place), then covered with hickory wood chips that had been soaking in water for one hour. Directly onto the wood chip I placed thin cut, boneless, center-cut pork chops and covered with aluminum foil for 10 minutes. I finished the chops by cleaning off the chips, then grilling for 2 minutes each side on a 400F grill.

Here is the rose air:

100g Rose Water
20g high quality raw honey
0.36g lecithin (0.3%)

It's essential that you follow the proportions with the lecithin, too much will result in a destabilized and oily foam. Heat the rose water and honey to combine, then add the lecithin and use an immersion blender in a small container (I used an old yogurt container). Tilt the liquid to one end to help with aeration. The airy foam will accumulate gradually, this is technically an air since it is mostly air.

While this is technically not a hydrocolloid, but I must give kudos to the hydrocolloid resources assembled by Martin over at Khymos which helped me achieve success here.



 

Crostini w/ Brown butter Criminis & Walnut Crema

Found a perfect place for that leftover walnut crema. Just made 2 tablespoons of brown butter and tossed 2 cups of 1/4-1/8" sliced creminis. For the crostini, cut a baguette on the bias and spritzed with olive oil, then into the oven at 350F for 15 minutes, until golden brown. The crema was spread to cover the crostini and then topped with a healthy portion of the creminis. Unbelievably earthy with an interplay of different nuttiness from the walnuts and the browned butter, I think this would pair well with a Morvedre or Primitivo. Buon appetito!




 

Another new toy - Waring Commercial Immersion Blender

Finally replaced that old consumer-grade stick blender.



I'm not being snobby here about performance, the old Braun one we had was fine ... only problem was that the bottom is not really a sealed unit, so food invariably ended up in there under this little plastic cover and all over the rubber gasket ... yick, it is being submerged in new food repeatedly ... yick, yick. I've had my eye on the waring for a while, usually it goes for over $100, but grabbed one here for much less.

Notice the NSF on the box, this indicates that the unit is designed to be easily cleaned and not cause cross contamination in restaurant environments. Funny that this is only seen frequently on commercial equipment when I guess I see a similar need for food safety at home ... buyer beware I guess.

 

Molecular Gastronomy A Go-Go

Time for some spherification baby! Ok, so if you know what I'm talking about without clicking the link, you just gained +5 food geek points (not sure if you should be proud or not). Without worrying about what Molecular Gastronomy is or what the proper words are for expressing an appreciation of such (people argue at great length about all this), I'm getting more serious about this hobby and recently placed a pretty big order with Chef Goldfarb at Willpowder. I've been geeking out all day on various topics in this area and can't wait to do some more formal experimentation. My wife has sternly advised me not to blow up the house, so if you don't know what the heck I'm talking about stay tuned.

In the meantime, here's a new piece of equipment to help with my transformation into a



mad scientist, muuahahahahahahahahaha.



This little bad boy is obviously a scale, and yes I already have a scale. But this one is accurate to 1/100th of a gram, essential when you want to use a 0.26% concentration of Methylcellulose to make Wylie Dufresne's cream cheese noodles.

Don't get blinded by all the science just yet, a micro trend within this food science business is discerning workable flavor combinations, so really the point is to excite the senses and find things that taste, smell, and feel good going down the hatch. Who knew that white chocolate and caviar, pineapple and blue cheese, or strawberry and cilantro were all good flavor pairings?