Cooking from "Bitter: A Taste of the World's Most Dangerous Flavor, with Recipes" (Jennifer McLagan)

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Previously I described radicchio and gorgonzola pasta sauce, for which I used Roquefort.  Yum.

 

Tonight I made grilled radicchio with creamy cheese, namely Pierre Robert, as specified.  When I was reading this recipe a few nights ago, I was enjoying a wedge of Pierre Robert on sale, having purchased a full wheel.  Yum.

[SylviaLovegren]

Those all sound delish.  Now if someone could come up with a way to make bitter melon not taste like ground metal with a side of poison, that would be something!

[Arey]

I bought the book based on something I read here.  I made the white asparagus recipe and it was alright.  I would like to try the Belgian endive with anchovy dressing, but have  problems.  How would I get the equivalent of canned anchovies (which I really don't like )from bottled anchovies which I'm addicted to.  I use Bellino anchovies with capers, since I can no longer afford Ortiz anchovies, and since I only cook for one, what would be some other uses for the anchovy dressing?  I would have liked more grilled recipes for bitter greens.  Earlier this week I had a grilled Belgian endive and Treviso radicchio salad with balsamic vinegar and parmesan.. My small George Foreman Grill is perfect for grilling vegetables if you only cook for one, and the  only thing I use it for is vegetables.

I was surprised she didn't throw some anchovies into her sauted broccoli rabe recipe.  I think it adds something to them.  If I ever see cardoons down here, I'll try them too.I don't live in the part of New Jersey that has Pierre Robert cheese, far less on sale.  I live in the part that frequently has American cheese on sale, or Kraft Single slices for the gourmand portion of the population.

Edited to add that stuffed bitter melon with black beans is a real treat.  There use to be a Phillipina lady , now retired, running an Asian grocery store halfway between where I am and Philadelphia who use to make weekly trips to NYC and bring back all sorts things from a restaurant up there, and I got the stuffed bitter melon whenever she had it.   The Asian supermarket down here occassionally has frozen stuffed bitter melon, and the label says it's stuffed with "gray feather", but I've never bought it.

Edited November 29, 2014 by Arey (log)

[gfweb]

I love sauteed romaine. Sauteed in butter till its dark brown. Nutty, sweet, bitter. Great with fish and mild meats.

[Arey]

I'ts also good grilled, but your idea sounds good.  I'll have to try it soon.

[gfweb]

I do a halved romaine. Cut side down till wilted and brown, then flipped to wilt the back of the butt.  Here's a photo. I don't cook so long that the browned parts are crumbly, they stay soft

 

The soy/red wine infused onions are pretty neat with tenderloin too.

 

Edited November 29, 2014 by gfweb (log)

[tdatta]

Those all sound delish.  Now if someone could come up with a way to make bitter melon not taste like ground metal with a side of poison, that would be something!

Many people salt it after cutting to draw out the moisture and allegedly some of the bitterness, it's also common practice to squeeze the moisture out after salting it. Don't know for sure if it reduces the bitterness, but it obviously helps to season it.

My favorite recipe using bitter melon is to slice it thin (say about 3 mm), and shallow fry it till it's crispy. I do salt it after cutting, let it sit for about 5 minutes and then pat dry before frying. Also I use mustard oil to fry it.

Goes very well as a crunchy complement to rice and lentils.

[Anna N]

Rutabaga purée with caramelized shallots and pork chop in coffee black currant sauce.

I really wish I had made a better job of the photograph!

[Anna N]

Belgian Endive Flemish Style.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Tonight was a work night, so something quick:  Bitter's grilled radicchio with Pierre Robert and balsamic vinegar, accompanied by fettuccini alfredo.

 

M.R.  ...much M.R.

 

Satisfaction was way out of proportion to the effort.

[Anna N]

Tonight was a work night, so something quick:  Bitter's grilled radicchio with Pierre Robert and balsamic vinegar, accompanied by fettuccini alfredo.

 

M.R.  ...much M.R.

 

Satisfaction was way out of proportion to the effort.

I was so, so tempted to make a repeat of the pasta with radicchio and blue cheese last night but managed to talk myself out of it. It is too easy, too good that the puritanical side of my nature says get thee behind me Satan! But how much longer I can resist I do not know. There are other recipes in the book that I must try. The grapefruit curd for a start.

[Anna N]

Obviously a photograph cannot convey the taste or texture of this grapefruit curd. Those who know me and know my cooking style will tell you that I am a stickler for following a recipe the first time I use it. Perhaps if I had listened to my own preaching this might have been all it should have been. Tomorrow I will throw on my hairshirt and try again because even mucked up it was still amazing.