paul o' vendange

Fifi, I find veal is neutrally flavored when compared with beef, so that its concentrated stock won't add a definitive, overriding character to whatever I use it for; rather, I find it adds a wonderful mouthfeel, and a mild, savory sweetness without screaming "beef." Its versatility as a carrier is its beauty - fruit reductions as much as mushroom, etc. Stuck for dollars, I find brown chicken stock is nearly as good, if not having as much depth of character - "length." Paul

Absolutely, breast is great. Loaded with gelatin, nicely trimmed with meat. I'd use it exclusively if I could afford it (on a commercial basis). Paul

I am afraid to admit I couldn't get past his personality, which, as a young lad normally rabid for cooking shows (usually, "best chefs of..." and Galloping, when Graham Kerr was actually galloping) tended to drive me batty. So, I never got into his shows nor did I ever acquire one of his books. I think I was too early addicted to French cooking, and almost single-mindedly wanted to learn everything I could about the culture, language and cuisine. My first "teacher" was Pepin at 11, followed by Escoffier, et al. Have I missed something here? Are his books enjoyable/informative? Paul

I use lobster butter more often, but for either I learned from James Peterson: break up the cooked shells with a wooden mallet, in a kitchen towel, until of manageable size for a mixer. Mix with oil until the oil is uniformly colored, about 1/2 hour. Heat in low oven for about an hour, add water to cover by couple of inches and chill. The oil will rise to the top, the shells will sink. Carefully decant off the oil (or use a separator in this step). Strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer to be sure and remove all impurities.

Well, thank you, but from the looks of your cuisine you didn't need any help. Any time, though. Paul

Did a duck extravagansa, as an experiment on muscovy v. pekin. The Pekin came from Wild Acres, out of Minnesota. The Muscovy, frozen, from Grimaud Farms. Made a duck liver crostini - applewood bacon, marsala, shallot, and a rough chop of capers, anchovies, garlic, and diced, MR duck liver. Excellent. Superlative. Thank you Paul Bertolli and Chez Panisse. (Thank you Mediterranean circle). Treated the breasts the same way - 24 hours ahead of time, s/p; 1 hour before searing, pulled and tempered. Fifteen minutes before searing, dusted with "poultry spice," quatre epice on speed. Both served with sweet potatoes "savonette," creamed corn (creamed with corn "milk" only), and an integral sauce of a cassis-duck stock, and fresh blackberries. Muscovy legs, braised with aromatics (onion, leek, carrot, shallot and garlic), tomatoes, garni, duck stock and balsamic, left to cool for a day and reheated. The jus reduced and served as a sauce. Pekin legs, confit. The braise was universally praised. The toe-to-toe winner on the seared breast was the Wild Acres Pekin. Most found the Muscovy "nice," but reminiscent of filet, not duck. I would agree. Underwhelmed on the muscovy flavor - surprisingly, I felt the Pekin was a touch more gamy, when if anything I expected the Muscovy would be. No surprise in the Pekin's juiciness. The Pekin was, in a word, extraordinary. I will need to get in the Muscovy fresh to make a fair comparison, but as of now, much to my surprise going in, I too voted for the Pekin. I know Wild Acres has developed an extraordinary line of ducks, and that my be a big part of it - generous breasts, very red meat, a great product (standard disclaimer - no affiliation, but may buy when we open). Lemon sorbet with Chambord to finish.

Lucy - Absolutely, unequivocally gorgeous - congratulations on such a triumph. And thank you for the photos and descriptions, they alone are worth the price of admission. Paul

Jin - PLEASE tell me where you obtained your merde du supermarche! I've got a dinner for my in-laws coming up, and need it to accompany my vin, grand cru du vomitesse. I'm stumped where to go. Paul

I would think either way would be great. I tend to like less steps between the freshly cut animal, and a simple, but finished, pristine sauce, an extension or intensification of the main taste (thank you, Thomas Keller, among others). Therefore, it's my preference to add the herbs to the reducing sauce directly. The reason I don't add the rosemary any sooner is because it is so volatile, and, to me, a little rosemary goes a long way. Your mileage may vary, of course. I add the pepper near the end for similar reason - except, I have found that if I add the pepper too long before the end, all the nice, spice and resin quality tends to dissipate and only heat remains. Cheers, Paul Oh, just saw your picture. Nope, these just came from your butcher this way. You could French them, meaning just incise around the rib bone beginning near the "eye," and scrape away the meat to the distal end, for presentation's sake, if you'd care to. Save the trimmed meat for something, i.e., your small sauce, if you're making it.

I don't like to spatchcock my crapaudine. Many do, though. Paul

I'm with balmagowry - s/p, that's it. However, I'm also a big fan of a bit of sauce made from the animal itself, as an extension of the pure flavor of the meat. You mentioned white beans, which I also love, esp. with shank. Have you considered doing a small sauce, using a bit of reduced lamb stock from riblets or the like? I enjoy making a simple integral sauce this way, with in addition to mirepoix, garlic and tomato, an infusion of rosemary the last 1/2 hour, and black pepper the last 10-15 minutes (to get the spice/resiny character, without that much heat). But you still can't go wrong - start with good meat, and trust it. My humble $0.02. Paul

I punch out the marrow in my femur bones and reserve that for finishing, as in bordelaise, or making something with them - crusted, fried, persillade for something truly decadent. As they are essentially nothing but fat, I'd rather remove them up front rather than in the deglazing or clarifying portion of the stock. That said, and I'd agree with most folks it is likely you fried either the marrow (or your bones from a high heat), one thing I'd ask is whether your second batch nicely filled the brazier or whatever it was you were using to roast the bones in? May be a simple question, but if there was space around the bones, they would be more likely to burn (glaze turning to charcoal) in shorter order. Just a thought. I think you are spot on with your final thoughts - paying more attention to the roasting process. No more important lesson have I discovered than to trust no "rule" of roasting, braising, etc. - inherently, each batch is radically different and, in the instance of roasting bones, I try to pick them at the nexus between that rust red/brown and just over the top. Shame about the 2d batch. I hold the animals I cook and eat in high regard, and when I have dumped something in waste I feel it (not as much as the animal, of course). Good luck. Paul p.s.: edited to add, like you I have been cooking since I was a kid. I worked through La Technique by the time I was 12 or so, and had the high honor of torching my eyebrows and forelocks with a rather ebullient crepe suzette, before a collected company of 20 or so, at the tender age of 10. From a fellow self-taught cook, cheers.

Lemon, Garlic & Thyme-Scented Poussin, pan roasted, with a double stock reduction, lemon and garlic confits, galettes, and tons o' parsnip puree, our favorite root veggie (through a tamis with butter, touch of salt and parsnip-infused cream, and that's it). Riesling. Also, poussin ballotine (with oven dried tomatoes and goat cheese), but will not likely keep it as an oven roast - spit roasted, yep. But, overall, prefer it plain and simple, with the lemon, thyme and garlic quick marinade, above. Paul

I love sage as well. Some things I use it in are: oven-dried tomato and three-cheese raviolis, in a sage-brown butter; with braised rabbit and cippolines, infusing the jus near the end with sage and more aromatics; and most especially with pork roast - a blade end pork roast, brined for several days with aromatics, spices, thyme, sage. The day I roast, I split the meat into chops, leaving them intact at the back (chine/rib); pack between the chops with garlic, thyme, sage, black pepper and rosemary; tie tightly together and roast to 130, then butter baste for 10 minutes or so; split into chops, using reserved herbs with butter and finish pan roasting to sear the "interior" side of the meat, to bring it all to 145-150. Tent and eat. Paul

Dumpling, the restaurant will be located in Marquette, Michigan, in the heart of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Our first love for many years and looking forward to the venture. Paul

A Fave - Roast double rack of pork with sage, garlic, thyme and rosemary; parsnips puree (to answer the thread on parsnips - parsnips, YUMMMM!), pinot from some non-descript place and a chocolate-espresso pot de creme with an orange tuile (warm up to our own restaurant, opening in July of this year - all Yooper bound, welcome to Waterstone - the fire is going and your table is ready - there, shameless plug). Cheers all, Paul

Last night, lightly smoked, grilled pork loin, cabbage and pancetta braised in an auslese riesling, soft parmesan polenta. This morning, a large brioche, sliced, dusted with confectioners and broiled a bit, strawberry jam, good turkish coffee. Paul

Oven-Dried Tomato and Ricotta Raviolis with a Balsamic Brown Butter. Roast Lobster with a Roast Corn Timbale, Fennel and Red Pepper Chutneys. Edited to add: Got rid of the rest of my ratatouille of the other night with two personal pizzas, topped with fresh garlic, oregano, basil, mozz, and the ratatouille. Used honey a la Puck v. sugar. Great crust. We downed what we think is a great value, Yellow Tail Shiraz at 6-something a bottle.

Edited to say: Obviously, all things depend on time and temp. 170 for twenty minutes will kill most things. Bringing to boiling temp for 2 minutes will kill more. Sustained boiling will kill all. But merely bringing to boiling temp will allow some things to live through - i.e., spores. I'd agree, the real problem (assuming an effective sanitation regime) isn't the living beasty, but its metabolic by product. Blecch.

Man, too many to name. But my cornerstones: Jacques Pepin, La Technique (now incorporated with his La Methode in one volume, Complete Technique). It was my bible, beginning when I was 12, when I worked it cover to cover; and I still rely on it. Escoffier. (Duh). Louis Saulnier, Le Repertoire de la Cuisine. Richard Olney, Simple French Food. CIA, New Professional Chef. Madeleine Kamman, The Making of a Chef. LaRousse Gastronomique. Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, Culinary Artistry. James Peterson's books, esp. Sauces, and Fish and Shellfish. Books by Joel Robuchon. I have learned from his fervent desire to grab all that is intrinsically valuable from a material, without extrapolating it to hell. "Food should taste like what it is Thomas Keller, the French Laundry Cookbook. Hands down, my absolute most important lessons over the last year - I have always shied from too much abstraction on the plate; almost an aggression of composition (or deconstruction, post-modernism, blah blah blah), but what I love about Chef Keller is, like Chef Robuchon, his intense focus on composition and flavor - the thing is every bit what it is, intensely concentrated, beautifully inviting, all without bells and whistles (I loathe "engineered" food - my bent; I can't handle more "ice cream of sea urchin beak with salamander toe 'spritzies.'" ). Anyway, enough of the soapbox. I rely on The French Laundry Cookbook a great deal. Lately, Michel Roux's work.

My cousin, Rick Boyer, was Jekel's winemaker and General Manager. I am proudly biased. But I have long wondered why Brown-Forman, as you point out, Craig, a liquor concern, has anything to do with the wine business. Decisions made at a corporate level, far removed from the vineyard, and, beyond, belying even economic or accounting-sheet common sense, all speak to what is wrong with the seemingly ineluctable and mad rush to consolidation. I won't go further, though I have much to say. It's a damn shame. Buy local. Support quality; support artisanal producers who care and have the goods to back it up. Paul

Been playing with "two ways" meal ideas. Before dinner, generous goblets of Lillet with orange twists. Afterward, fully glowing, winter root vegetable and apple soup Duck two ways: seared breast; braised leg stuffed with wild mushrooms and sausage. With port-dried fig duck sauce (thank you Thomas Keller) and ginger-pear chutney. Saffron-parmesan risotto. Duck with a Littorai 2000 (Savoy Vineyard, Andersen Valley) Pinot Noir. Walnut and preserved-satsuma plum tart (plums from my Aunt/Uncle, California), muscat creme anglaise. Oban neat. Cheers, Paul

Ah, to have riggwelter at the source. Love the humor, and just about everything, in the beer. My brewhouse is set to emulate Yorkshire water. Fine, fine area. We only got as far as Stoke on Trent when we were in England, and enjoyed many of Titanic's excellent beers. Hope to get back. I am very sorry to hear of your loss - I hope you and your family heal soon, and are gifted with another pup before too long. Cheers, Paul

OK Chad, will do! Cheers, Paul

Theakston (great name - the Apostate Paul is one of my favorite brewers - love Black Sheep products) - sorry, been out of the egullet loop for awhile - EGCI? Whatever helps, I'd be glad to do. If you guys want a basic recipe and technique breakdown for say, a basic english bitter, you bet. Just need to know what would best do for all of you. Things will change depending on equipment, water, yeast, etc. - of course, a million variables. But I can share what I have learned over the years. Just let me know what you all want. Paul