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Improving my cooking skills (2003)

MatthewB

By MatthewB
in Cooking

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fresco

fresco

Posted
Posted
if i make this sauce again it will be in the summer when red peppers are 5 for $1, not $2.79/lb.

I may not be doing the sauce. Red Peppers were $4.49/lb at Giant yesterday. :shock:

I will be making the celery root and apple puree tonight, since I didn't get it made last week. Emma thinks celery root is the ugliest vegetable she's ever seen. :smile:

Because of their enormous price swings, red peppers are well worth buying and freezing.

We get a couple of bushel baskets in September, roast them on the Weber, and then clean and freeze, packed flat. They're just about as good as fresh when they thaw.

Arthur Johnson, aka "fresco"
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Mottmott

Mottmott

Posted
Posted (edited)

Can someone explain the wild price range of red peppers? I bought them at $1 for five of them at the Italian market (Phila, about a week ago) at the same time they appeared elsewhere at $3+/lb in the same city.

In the case of many other foods, I see SOME explanation: upscale market vs supermarket, organic vs conventional. With red peppers it seems so capricious.

Edited by Mottmott (log)

"Half of cooking is thinking about cooking." ---Michael Roberts

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SethG

SethG

Posted
Posted (edited)

I think there are two common varieties of red pepper around, at least in the Northeast U.S.A. One variety is long and thin, and tends to be a little wrinkly and relatively cheap. The other is called "Holland Fancy," or something, looks perfect, and is priced accordingly.

Edited by SethG (log)

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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SethG

SethG

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So, I made the fish meal last night. Everything went well enough. I liked the sauce, liked the roasted garlic in the potato mash. I'm not so sure I cared for the buttermilk in the potatoes so much, though.

And I messed up the fish. I went with cod fillet, which falls apart easily. Too easily for me, anyway! I totally destroyed one fillet, and overcooked them both. The sauce was the saving grace.

The leeks were easy and great.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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SethG

SethG

Posted
Posted
Buttermilk potatoes are the norm in my house. I love the tanginess of the buttermilk. Of course, I supplement that with lots of ultra-heavy cream and butter! :wink:

The flavor was fine-- that wasn't the problem. And my wife, who is rather picky about what constitutes correct mashed potatoes, gobbled them right up. I found them a bit too loose, even though I made the exact weight of potatoes specified in the recipe. Next time I'd use less buttermilk, or mix it with some cream, or use less liquid and more butter.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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eskimoted

eskimoted

Posted
Posted

I agree Seth, Cod can be a pain to work with because it flakes easily, but it tastes so fantastic.

The trick is not to fondle it overly. I cook cod a lot here in Tokyo; often marinate in miso, sugar, mirin and sake (this is the Nobu dish that tastes spectacularly brilliant but is sadly overpriced at the restaurant). http://starchefs.com/NMatsuhisa/html/recipe_05.shtml

2 easy ways to cook, put it in a fish cage and under a broiler on as high as it will burn.

Other way is to pan cook and not turn but put the pan to finish under the grill too.

Either way, there's no turning to break the flakes apart.

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SethG

SethG

Posted
Posted
Shall we do another menu? Something easy? I'm ready to do some cooking this week.

You know I'm there, dude.

And I do love cod. But I've never fondled it.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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MatthewB

MatthewB

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Posted

I was looking through NWTC this morning & a couple of items grabbed me . . .

-- Fillets in Green Curry Sauce (pp. 228-29)

-- Creamy Garlic Fish Soup After a Bourride (pp. 262-63)

I'm thinking about the Fish Curry tomorrow evening & the Bourride over the weekend (depends on my SO's work schedule).

I'm also considering doing Beef Rendang. I've liked & would use again Jenna Holst's recipe in her Stews.

FWIW, on Friday night, I made Bittman's column recipe from this week--Beef Stew with Prunes. Much easier than our beef stew, not as elegant, yet more interesting flavors. I recommend it.

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hjshorter

hjshorter

Posted
Posted
I was looking through NWTC this morning & a couple of items grabbed me . . .

-- Fillets in Green Curry Sauce (pp. 228-29)

That sounds good to me too.

I printed Bittman's recipe this morning after Bloviatrix posted about it on the dinner thread. I love prunes and thought it looked interesting.

Heather Johnson

In Good Thyme

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MatthewB

MatthewB

Posted
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Posted
I was looking through NWTC this morning & a couple of items grabbed me . . .

-- Fillets in Green Curry Sauce (pp. 228-29)

That sounds good to me too.

I'm going to do the fish & curry tomorrow night.

Also, broccoli via the steamed/sauteed method in NWTC--with some hot chili sesame oil & what not.

And, jasmine rice.

This afternoon I picked up Wolfert's Slow Mediterranean Kitchen. I've been going through it this afternoon & evening. Plenty of recipes that I want to cook.

Anyone here interested in doing some recipes from SMK?

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SethG

SethG

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Posted
I'm going to do the fish & curry tomorrow night.

Also, broccoli via the steamed/sauteed method in NWTC--with some hot chili sesame oil & what not.

And, jasmine rice.

This afternoon I picked up Wolfert's Slow Mediterranean Kitchen. I've been going through it this afternoon & evening. Plenty of recipes that I want to cook.

Anyone here interested in doing some recipes from SMK?

I'll try to do the fish and broccoli sometime later this week. Sounds good.

I don't have the new Wolfert book but I've been sort of exploring her books a lot lately. I bought Mediterranean Grains & Greens recently, and checked out the Eastern Mediterranean book from the library. I haven't made anything from that one yet, but it looks great.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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hjshorter

hjshorter

Posted
Posted

While the Wolfert book sounds great, I will not have enough time to spend on "slow" food for the next 2-3 weeks. :sad:

I looked up the green curry fish and bought some cod today.

And we may be cooking the Mediterranean Fish Stew for Christmas dinner since there will only be four of us. :smile:

Heather Johnson

In Good Thyme

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edemuth

edemuth

Posted
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I'm always up for a curry... will likely get to it this weekend. Already have the jasmine rice (well, jasmati, FWIW).

Do the recipes in Slow Mediterranean Kitchen require a clay pot or other special equipment?

Erin
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MatthewB

MatthewB

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Do the recipes in Slow Mediterranean Kitchen require a clay pot or other special equipment?

Some recipes in SMK do call for a clay pot or a tangine but not as many as I assumed before I actually went through the book. (And she does offer alternative vessels most, if not all, of the time.)

But as far as special equipment--and very interesting, I might add--is the need for a remote thermometer, especially for some of the chicken recipes.

I didn't see Wolfert mention it, but I'll note that you stand a good chance of destroying remote thermometer probes when you're using them in ovens over 450 degrees F (approximately). So, definitely use a probe but don't use it when the oven is at higher temperatures.

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MatthewB

MatthewB

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Posted (edited)
I'm going to do the fish & curry tomorrow night.

Also, broccoli via the steamed/sauteed method in NWTC--with some hot chili sesame oil & what not.

And, jasmine rice.

The fish curry was extremely easy & very good. I'll do it again as I've a couple extra red snapper filets in the freezer now.

I added shallots, sesame oil, hot pepper flakes, & fresh basil to the broccoli. That's a standard recipe for me.

Unfortunately, I assumed jasmine rice in the pantry but only basmati showed up. So we made due with that.

One issue: Only green & white on the plate! :laugh:

Edited by MatthewB (log)
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hjshorter

hjshorter

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Posted
One issue: Only green & white on the plate! :laugh:

Add some diced red pepper and it would look very "seasonal" :laugh: I got a pomegranite yesterday...maybe a few pomegranite seeds for garnish?

Fish curry for us tonight, and a trip to the asian market this afternoon. Some fresh holy basil and lime leaf would be nice for the herbs in the recipe.

Heather Johnson

In Good Thyme

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SethG

SethG

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Sorry, but I never got 'round to the green curry fish. Maybe this week.

Are any of you up for some more Julia/Jacques sometime soon? I can propose, and I'm also happy to be led. You've led me to good stuff.

Another thought: We're having a vegan to dinner on Monday. I can come up with a meal on my own, but maybe you'd like to join me in something Indian, perhaps, or... what?

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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snowangel

snowangel

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Posted
My mother-in-law is here for the week, so I'll have someone to keep the kids out of the kitchen. :smile:

Sounds like you have the perfect opportunity for some labor intensive recipes!

Where are you on the home-selling front?

Susan Fahning aka "snowangel"
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SethG

SethG

Posted
Posted

We're having some friends over this weekend. I'm thinking about making a Jules et Jim meal:

one of the leek/potato soups

salmon fillets cooked en papillote

artichoke bottoms with the mushroom stuffing

rice pilaf again, but this time I'll include the peas and asparagus.

Anybody want to join me? And does this sound good to you? Also, if any of you have used the papillote technique, I have a couple questions.

"I don't mean to brag, I don't mean to boast;

but we like hot butter on our breakfast toast!"

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