David Ross

I've never tried Sous Vide cookery, but I've always had the question.....What about say a meat roast. Do you then pop it into a hot oven to get a caramelized crust on the meat?

They say in the article that in addition to prime rib, their method worked well for top round and eye of round roasts and all came out very juicy. Readers reported that they actually added salt at the table, debunking their thoughts ahead of time that the salt crust would make the roast too salty. They start by marinating the roast in a mixture of- 1/3 cup olive oil 1/4 cup grated onion 1 tsp garlic salt 1 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp dried marjoram 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1/4 tsp pepper Boneless beef roast 4-6 lbs. 1 3lb box Kosher salt 1 1/4c water Marinate the roast in a large bag overnight. The next day, line a roasting pan with foil. Combine the salt and water to make a thick paste. Insert a meat thermometer. (Before putting in the oven). Roast in a 425 oven for 16-18 min per pound for rare (140 degrees), 20-22 min per pound for medium (160). Let roast sit in crust for 10 min in salt crust after removing from oven. Use a hammer to break the crust and slice. Funny how so many of the old recipes call medium-rare at 140 degrees, which, in my experience would lean your roast more toward the definite medium range. I happen to go to about 132 for medium-rare.

I take the meat of the confit leg/thigh and toss it into some pappardelle pasta with wild mushrooms, sometimes some spinach. Then crisp the skin in a really hot oven and crumble it on top of the pasta.

I found an old newspaper clipping Amon my Mother's recipes for a salt-crusted beef roast. I don't remember she ever made it but I do remember it was a Holiday favorite that The Oregonian reprinted every year. Anyone ever done it?

I have a question about the wellington. I saw a cooking competition where the Chefs were marked down if they didn't wrap the meat and duxelles with a thin crepe, then the puff pastry. They explained that if you don't have the crepe layer the puff pastry won't rise properly. Is that true?

Tonight the leftover leg of lamb goes into a pot pie.

A few weeks back I found this wonderful small leg of lamb in the freezer section of a local market. Now mind you, most home cooks avoid this store as it's a "discount" 24-hour grocery store. The prices are incredibly low, especially given the fact you bag your own stuff. But I don't turn my nose up and pass this place by. They have some incredibly good products, like smelt and frogs legs, that I can't find anywhere else locally. I threw out the tag, but I believe this 4 1/2 pound leg of lamb was merely $2.99 a pound. It's the perfect size for a party of 4. It's from New Zealand yet with French on the label as it found it's way from New Zealand to French Canada down to Spokane. No fancy prep other than a rub of olive oil, salt, pepper. I "frenched" the end of the bone and wrapped it in foil. It just makes a nicer presentation at service. Then in a 325 oven for about 25 minutes per lb. for medium-rare. I raised the oven temp to 375 for the last 25 minutes. Then rest for about 15 minutes. Of course, the sides are what makes our Holiday Roasts delicious. I used some of the cranberry-huckleberry compote that I had served with the Thanksgiving turkey. It's a blend of cranberries, huckleberries, sugar, orange peel and Cointreau cooked down until it's thick. I've never tried it, but I suppose you could substitute currants or blueberries for the huckleberries. My standard red wine sauce is incredibly easy. 2 tbsp. of honey, cooked down with 1 diced shallot, 1 chopped garlic clove, rosemary, thyme and bay leaf, 2 1/2 cups hearty red wine, 1/2 cup beef stock. Reduce by 1/2, then strain. I add in about a tablespoon of butter and whisk in some Wondra flour to thicken. Then strain again and serve. I'm not a big fan of Brussels Sprouts, but after watching the current season of MasterChef UK the Professionals on BBC, I've been intrigued by the "blistering" technique the Brit Chefs have been using. I blanched the tiny fellows in salted water for about 3 minutes. Then dried on a towel and into a hot cast iron pan. No oil in the pan, no salt or pepper. They start to "blister" or rather, caramelize, and they turn out a bit sweet yet with the bitter flavor I've known from the Brussels sprouts Mother cooked. Now I started the day before with testing this potato tarte tatin as a side dish to the lamb- And while it looks delicious, it needs just a bit more work. I sliced Russets then soaked in water to release some of the starch. Then dried on towels and layered in a cast iron pan. Then butter in the pan, (as you do for apple tarte tatin), then layer the potatoes to the edge of the pan. Then into the oven at 375 for about 1 1/2 hours. Then invent, and voila, just like an apple tarte tatin sans the sugar. I just need to do some more work as the top layer of potatoes was crisp and golden, yet chewy in texture. So I turned to a new recipe, a delicious parsnip puree, which, I think, it perfect for a Holiday roast. It's got a clean flavor yet not so starchy and filling as potatoes. Just 1 lb. of parsnips, peeled and cut into dice. Then 2 cloves garlic, smashed, 1/2 cup heavy cream, 2/3 cup milk, 2 tbsp. butter, salt, pepper, nutmeg, thyme sprigs and a bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then simmer till the parsnips are tender, about 30 minutes. Take out the thyme and bay leaf, then chuck it into a blender or food processor and pulse into a puree. So here we have a leg of lamb, parsnip puree, cranberry-huckleberry compote, red wine sauce and blistered Brussels sprouts-

The Holiday Roasts in these vintage booklets and cookbooks are mighty impressive.

Speaking of a Holiday Prime Rib Roast, here's a photo from my collection of vintage cooking booklets. This one is from Arden Farms, which was a large dairy company in California. Typically these booklets were put in grocers and butcher shops and were sponsored by all sorts of companies. Many of them don't have dates, but from the photos I can usually target the date a booklet was published. In this case I'd say the late 30's or 40's. While today this roast would shock folks with the amount of fat, it's the kind of roast I remember my Grandmother and Great Aunt serving in the 60's on their cattle ranches in Central Oregon. I would die for that roast this holiday season.

That's a good question. I loosely wrap around the gingerbread house with some of the "snow" around the bottom. My assumption is to let it have some air flow around it. Then I put it in a big plastic bin with a loose fitting lid and store it in a back close so it doesn't get bumped. I thought that the candy would get somewhat soggy and soft but it has survived now for three seasons so I think it's a fairly decent way of storing it.

That is a wonderful roast duck and a good entrant in our Holiday Roast Cook-Off,

This is year #3 working on my gingerbread house project and I think it's just about finished, although I have a few more ideas for adding some candies next year.

My oh my you are talented people. I don't bake much and only make candy once a year, so you folks provide me with plenty of ideas and learning opportunities. This is the reworking of my Almond Butter Crunch recipe--a candy I've been making at the Holidays for years. I think the tinkering with the recipe this year has paid off. Batch #1, meh, #2, er better. Used sliced almonds in the brittle this year and spread it really thin. Spread the chocolate on top rather than a drizzle, and garnished with chopped, toasted almonds and a sprinkle of sea salt this year. This batch is being readied for delivery to friends in New York and Las Vegas.......

I've had this source for "FLÆSKESTEG" (Danish Pork Roast) for some time now. I've not had great reception from local butchers providing me with the cut of pork, skin and rind on, so I can further cut and score it myself, so this may be a good online source. https://www.nordichouse.com/detail.aspx?ID=105

I use dates in my sticky toffee pudding but have never used them in a savory dish. The recipe for date puree is from the December 1988 issue of Gourmet and from Chef Gunter Seeger. It was used as a garnish for a dish of Duck Breast with Glazed Cippoline Onions and a Caramel Vinegar Sauce. The recipe calls for just blanching the dates in boiling water for two minutes, then peeling and pitting them. I think you can skip the peeling, pitting stage. Then it's passed through a sieve and put in a piping bag to put a small amount on the plate. I think you could serve it in a small dish at the table. The sauce sound interesting and I think would go with duck, goose or even rich pork roasts. The recipe starts with caramelizing 2 tbsp. of sugar in a saucepan, then stir in 1 tbsp. of water, and 3 tbsp. of balsamic vinegar. The Chef specifies duck stock, but I think you could add chicken stock. Sometimes I'll use chicken stock as a base but add duck parts to give it some richness. So you add 2 cups of stock and reduce the sauce by half. Then you add 2 tbsp. of "glace de viande." Few folks probably make that today, nor do they probably make demi-glace. You can buy concentrated demi-glace paste, but I think you could also just add in some butter mixed with flour as a thickener. It won't have the full body of demi-glace but would work. I found another sauce that I will try with ham that also uses vinegar. Saute some onion, carrot and celery in olive oil. Then add bay leaves, thyme, parsley, leek and rosemary. Add 2 cups of red wine and 1/4 cup ruby port. Reduce by half and then add 2 smoked ham hocks to the pot, and pour in 4 cups chicken stock, cover and simmer for 2 hours. Then pull out the ham hocks and strain the sauce. Cover and chill, then skim off the top fat layer on day two. Reduce the sauce by 1/2, then stir in the smoked ham pulled off the hocks, 2 tbsp. of butter and some vinegar. The recipe calls for red wine vinegar, but I would probably use sherry vinegar or balsamic. I have found some good fruit flavored balsamic vinegars that would be good. And I think a Kentucky accent would be to add some coffee a'la red eye gravy.

I've grown weary of Top Chef in recent years. While I realize that editing adds drama for the viewer, and I suppose people like Chefs sniping at one another and running to grab a mushroom out of the pantry, it's just not my thing much anymore. I do watch some of Top Chef toward the end of the competition and I'm always interested in seeing what the Chefs create, but I can only take so many wedding catering challenges. I've been hooked for a few years now on MasterChef UK The Professionals and The Great British Menu, both on the BBC. You can catch it on YouTube and I find it far more interesting, creative, inspiring and more focused on the real challenges a Chef faces in a restaurant kitchen.

I'm saving the leg of lamb I have in the freezer for Christmas or New Year's Day dinner. But this weekend I'm looking at a Holiday Roast that we sometimes forget--stuffed. I don't have a good local source for pork belly, certainly not a large pork belly. If I did, I'd stuff it and roll it, tie it and some sort of roasting to crisp the skin. But I'm pondering a stuffed pork roast or maybe stuffed flank steak rolled and tied into a roast. For the pork, I like the idea of using dried fruits or prunes soaked in Armagnac. For the steak, maybe something with chorizo. And I've got two sauces that might work, a basic red-wine reduction, and then I found an old recipe out of Gourmet Magazine for a vinegar and date sauce that sounds quite good for pork or game.

I started a new Thanksgiving Tradition, er---post Thanksgiving Tradition this year. While the bird the family roasted for Thanksgiving dinner was o.k., I always buy a turkey to cook for myself the next day. But after roast turkey and turkey tettrazini, I wasn't in the mood for turkey soup. So I decided to smoke the thighs, drumsticks and wings. 4 hours at 275 for four hours, and surprisingly, nice and smoky and chewy but not dry. Just as I like smoked turkey.

The slow-roasted duck method should work for any tastes. The meat is well-done so to speak, yet juice and tender. As far as ham goes, today I was going through my old Bon Appetit and Gourmet November and December issues dating back to 1973 and found a country ham recipe. I think I may order a country ham, soak it of course, then cook it in a bag and glaze with Coca-Cola.

The duck I roasted would have generously served two. On the plate I showed two thick breast slices and one leg, but you could stretch one duck to serve 4, especially if you've got plenty of delicious side dishes. For 10 people, I think three ducks would be really safe in terms of enough. But I teach cooking and I'm always stressed we won't have enough for our students, so, if I was teaching a class on roasting ducks for 10 students, I'd do four ducks!

Overnight I got to thinking that I should probably do what I've always wanted to do, smoke a Holiday roast. I could do turkey, some sort of beef or turkey, but I may venture out and smoke some other type of roast.

I agree and this time I was surprised at how much duck fat I keep spooning out of the roasting pan. I'll use that to fry some potatoes with the next roast.

Funny you should mention ham. I was pondering actually curing a ham, but given the fact that it needs to age--and there are good hams out there, I'll be buying a ham. Just so many choices to choose from. I think I may use my Father's old method which was to cook the ham in a brown paper bag, then bring it out at the end to give it a blast of high heat.

I might be a bit odd, but during the Holiday season I don't just reserve a roast for the actual day of the celebration. Each year I pull out some favorite recipes, then add some new dishes to the roster. And I like to stay in the spirit of Holiday cooking by preparing roasts throughout the long season from Thanksgiving to Christmas and on to New Year's. For my first Holiday roast, I chose a time-honored family recipe for slow-roasted duck. I buy 3 or 4 ducks during the Holidays because they are usually on sale, sometimes less than $3 per lb. And this recipe couldn't be easier. Once the duck is thawed, I let it sit, uncovered, in the fridge overnight to dry out the skin. Just season the cavity with salt and pepper, then stuff it with a quartered onion and a head of garlic cut in half. Then I tie the legs to cover the cavity and use this meat tenderizer to poke some holes in the duck breast. This aids in releasing fat during roasting to keep the skin crisp. During roasting I use a baster to take up the fat in the roasting pan, which I reserve for sauteeing potatoes later. Now this next step may be at odds with your duck cookery. I start by roasting the bird in a 275 oven for three hours. Then another 40 minutes or so at 375 to crisp and brown the skin. Sounds like it would leave one with a rubber duck doesn't it. But everytime the duck comes out incredibly juicy and fall off the bone. It isn't intended to be a medium rare seared duck breast. Now my sides are a bit unique. This is a first year try at combining huckleberries and cranberries. I do make huckleberry compote each year, but this year I decided to do a new twist on the typical cranberry sauce. Of course, living in Eastern Washington I am fortunate to have fresh huckleberries in season and then scads of them frozen to use throughout the year. I really don't think there are any substitutes for huckleberries, but the general thought was to combine a tart yet sweet, fragrant berry with the cranberries. Just one can of whole cranberries, then about a 1/2 cup of huckleberries, orange zest, a glog of Cointreau orange liqueur, a couple of cloves and a grate of nutmeg. Surprisingly, I didn't add any sugar. The canned cranberries had sugar, and this year's crop of huckleberries was quite sweet. Spaetzle with roasted pearl onions. This was a combination of items I had in the pantry and fridge. Not innovative but delicious. I buy dried Spaetzle at a local German deli and added pearl onions that had been roasted in some of the fat from the duck. Slow-roasted Duck with Cranberry-Huckleberry Relish-

A gargantuan haunch of beef for Christmas dinner, ca. 1957 As a child in the late 1950's, our Holiday table was graced with turkey at Thanksgiving.....and another turkey at Christmas. It wasn't until the 1970's that my Father finally made good on his Christmas promise to "give us a Christmas Goose" by actually cooking one. To this day, I remember how little meat there was and it was dark, tough and chewy. We had indeed been given a Christmas Goose! Yet in later years Father (who always coated the meat with some type of rub), and Mother (who cooked the roast), redeemed themselves and cooked regal prime ribs of beef for Christmas dinner. The Holiday roast, (as my UK friend Helen calls it), is a thing of beauty and an adventure for cooks around the globe. And while turkey and prime rib still reign supreme, I for one like to venture to the farm and forest to procure other delights for the Holiday roast. Right now I have duck (which will be slow-roasted and served with prized wild huckleberries) and a leg of lamb in the freezer, but I'll be adding some wild Scottish grouse, wood pigeon and a fresh American ham to the larder for roasts throughout the Holiday season. Please join me in celebrating the Holiday roast with a special eG Cook-Off. We place no boundaries or regulations on your cookery. Whether it's sous vide, stuffed, smoked, barbecued or braised, roasted, grilled, broiled, fried or flamed, all manner of cooking techniques are welcome into the discussion and feast. See our complete Cook-Off Index here: https://forums.egullet.org/topic/143994-egullet-recipe-cook-off-index/