teleology
here is a recipe with five ingredients that can be prepared even by people who take pride in not knowing how to cook. i am told it is japanese.

canned or pouched tuna
honey
soy sauce
eggs
rice

proceed thus:

cook the rice. short-grain is preferred here.
add tuna to a warmed frying pan at medium-low heat. if the tuna is packed in water you will need to drain and oil the pan. now add honey, about a quarter cup for a can of tuna, and cook until the tuna begins to get dry. add honey to adjust the sweetness. now add soy sauce to the level that you like, which is 1-2 tablespoons / can tuna for most people. fry until it is dry.
scramble the eggs. you would like a relatively large curd, so cook them quickly at a strong heat.

fill your bowl with rice, then add egg and tuna on top. eat with chopsticks.

variations are welcome.
- posted by Jesse @ 1:26 PM 1 comments

 
coagulate
according to Hervé This, a pinch of flour added to the egg mixture for custards, sabayons and quiches, makes them more forgiving and more tolerant of higher temperatures during the baking. do pro chefs agree with this advice?
- posted by Jesse @ 3:44 PM 1 comments

 
Why not?
If you're looking for something to fry up...consider coating it with french fries as well.
- posted by Jenna @ 7:47 PM 0 comments

 
soup and french scientists
Antoine-Augustin Parmentier convinced the French that potatoes were edible. many french dishes made with potatoes bear his name.

Potage Parmentier (Potato Leek soup):

i am making some changes to the joy of cooking recipe. it is satisfying and light at the same time.

you will gently fry the firmer parts of as many leeks as you can afford (no less than two, no more than eight) in half a stick of butter (70g) until they are quite soft.

have some potatoes peeled, about three large ones. those of the type "gold" do well here. slice them in centimeter thick disks.

you then add about five cups of liquid. my preference is that the soup be light, so i would not advise making it entirely stock. also be wary that your stock may have some gelatin in it that can stiffen the soup. therefore i advise one cup of stock (fish, chicken, or shrimp) and four cups of water. simmer covered until the potatoes are well cooked.

now the place where i differ most sharply with joy of cooking. they say to purée the mixture, but i advise using a simple potato masher (one of which i bought in the aftermath of the recent scandal, and the recent scandal is probably the reason why i had this change of heart about puréeing, because i am now so cautious about making things too stiff, or horresco referens, "gluey", by wounding the potato starches.) until you have a thick of porridge with small but palpable lumps of potato in it.

now add salt, white pepper, and a touch of milk or creme.

dip crusty bread in it. good with ale.


--------------------------------------
Louis Camille Maillard has a reaction named after him. quoth wikipedia:

The Maillard reaction is a chemical reaction between an amino acid and a reducing sugar, usually requiring heat. Like caramelization, it is a form of non-enzymatic browning. The reactive carbonyl group of the sugar reacts with the nucleophilic amino group of the amino acid, and forms a variety of interesting but poorly characterized molecules responsible for a range of odors and flavors. This process is accelerated in an alkaline environment as the amino groups are deprotonated and hence have an increased nucleophilicity.

I am proposing a standard chicken soup that uses all of the same ingredients as your standard recipe, but makes use of the Maillard reaction to improve the sapidity.

do so:

prepare a hot oven, 425-450F, and roast on your broiler pan:

1 celery heart
1 large carrot
1-2 lbs chicken necks or other unappreciated
1 onion
3 cloves garlic, unpeeled

turn everything over with tongs every 10 minutes or so. when something becomes very well browned, put it in your stockpot and wait for everything else to finish browning. when everything is finished browning, add water to just cover everything, then a bouquet garni. simmer your stock, skimming, leaving uncovered, adding water as necessary, 1-4 hours.

meanwhile, put three or four chicken thighs, their skin on, on the broiler pan and roast them, turning every 10 minutes, until they are done (about 30 minutes). it the skin should be crispy, dry and browned. remove the skin, salt it, and eat it or give it out as a snack. the reason i advocate the broiler pan is because moist conditions (viz. steam in equillibrium with wtaer) slow down the glorious maillard reaction. let the meat cool, then remove the bone and slice it across the grain. crumble the slices and reserve them. the reason we roasted the meat separately and have delayed adding it to the soup is so that it doesn't lose any flavor to the boiling stock.

once the stock is done, remove the solids, return it to the pot, then add

salt to taste
chopped carrots
diced potatoes

the potatoes will absorb some of the salt you added as they cook. when they are done, turn off the heat and stir in the chicken meat. add black pepper to taste.
- posted by Jesse @ 9:09 PM 1 comments

 
herrings
I have unearthed a valuable document about herrings. if anyone is going to write a history of herrings, then let this serve as a signpost.

Dodd, James Solas. An essay towards a natural history of the herring. By James Solas Dodd, ... London, 1752. 197pp. General Reference

here is a fragment thereof:

The Method of salting and curing Herring was found out, as some say, A. D. 1397 ;tho' others bring it down to A. D. 1416. And it is observ'd, that William Buckelsz, or Bachelen, a Native of Bier Uliet, render'd his Name immortal, by the Discovery of the Secret of curing and pickling Herrings ; and the Emperor Charles V. coming into the Low Countries made a Journey to the Isle of Bier Uliet with the Queen of Hungary, on Purpose to view the Tomb of the first Barreller of Herrings. The Method is as follows: When the Herrings are design'd for the white Pickle, as soon as they are taken out of the Sea, one of the Crew appointed for this Office cuts them open, and carefully separates the Guts from the Rows, the Firmness of which is a great Mark of their being well done ; then casting away the Guts, and leaving the Rows sticking whole to the Fish, they are first well washed in fresh Water, then put into a strong Brine, that will bear an Egg, made of fresh Water and Sea-salt, where they are suffer'd to lay fourteen or fifteen Hours ; then taking them out, they drain them, and when well drain'd, dispose them evenly in Rows in the Barrels, pressing them well down, and strewing a Layer of Salt both at Top, and at the Bottom. When the Barrel is thus filled, they stop it close down, lest any Air should get in, or Brine run out ; for the Air rusts the Herring, and the Loss of the Brine, by depriving some Part of their due Proportion of Salt, may cause them to stink ; and when they are repack'd, take the same Care. There hath been Objections made, that the Dutch Herrings eat not so rancid, more mellow, and taste less of the Salt than ours ; but let the Objectors consider how long they have been in Salt, and the short Time ours have. It is not with Fish as with Flesh, where, when the salt hath insinuated itself into the more close Texture of the Meat, after a Time it ceases to preserve, and preys on and destroys the Substance of the Meat ; but the Fish being more lax, and containing more Moisture, its longer Continuance mellows the Substance, and takes off the fiery Heat of the saline Particles. Thus as they sell no Herrings at home till foreign Marts aare serv'd, they may well in Holland eat more mellow than those here, that are sold and eaten almost as soon as caught ; and whatever some may imagine, it is certain that the longer a Barrel of Herrings is kept unopen'd the less of the Salt and more of the Delicacy of the Fish will be tasted. The later in the Season the Fish are caught, as they are fatter ; so is it, that they are more rancid, unless they are stronger press'd, which indeed is the only real Difference. The Curers of the Pilchards take especial Care in their Pressing, and was a little more Force used to our Herrings, none could tell any Difference between them and the Dutch.
- posted by Jesse @ 8:45 PM 0 comments

 
spring rolls revisited
having had a bit more experience than last time i posted, and having learned from various experts, I want to give some advice on how to elevate the level of your spring rolls.

in the area of herbs, you may want to expand beyond cilantro, basil and mint.

all of these herbs work well, and can be combined at will: (i looked up their names at this website)

kinh gioi: vietnamese balm
tia to: purple perilla
diep ca: fishscale mint
ngo gai: sawtooth mint
fresh chives

for the rice vermicelli, use it sparingly. let the herbs and meat carry the flavor of the roll. using too much is what unscrupulous restauranteurs do.

for the wrappers, they are not all created equal. you want one that absorbs water well, is of even thickness, and is flexible when moistened. the brand i trust is hieu 2 ca vang (two goldfish brand).

for the dipping sauce, give it the flavor of the meat that you choose. for example, if you use shrimp, save the shells and make a shrimp shell stock. simmer hoisin sauce with the stock. if you use pork, braise it or roast it, then simmer the hoisin sauce with some braising liquid or deglazed pan drippings. nuoc cham can be added to your sauce profile.
- posted by Jesse @ 9:29 AM 1 comments