Cholent

[kurl]

I was inspired to create this thread after consuming some of a particularly poor rendition of cholent made by my mother today.

See, being Jewish, you'd think my family would have some infallible secret recipe for the divine stuff, but we're Sfardic, and Cholent did not run in either of my parents' respective bloodlines.

I'm not quite sure what we're doing wrong, but it just doesn't quite have the magic. Does anyone have some tips or recipes, either to make a good traditional version or a heretical one?

[kurl]

Probably shouldn't have posted this on a Friday night, in retrospect.

(Reminds self to bump this after Shabbat.)

[jackal10]

There are splendid and woderful traditions of Sephardic slow cooked sabbath foods. Dafina and Hamins are the sephardic equivalent of the ashkenazic Cholent.

Claudia Roden (mey she have ten thousand blessings) has a whole chapter of her book (The book of Jewish Food) devoted to them.

Your mother's Cholent might not be that bad: Cholent is like that. As Cladia Roden (she also gives recipe for Cholent) says:

"A test of 'who is a Jew' is supposed to be whether you like cholent. One of my Israeli friends found himself eating it with friends in Jerusalem. When he complained that it was not very good one of his companions replied "Its not supposed to be"".

Hence the tradition of the Shabbos afternoon schluf (snooze), and evening prayers for one's stomach to recover...

[Suzanne F]

As an advance taste of Rabbi Ribeye's sermon, um I mean discourse on this very subject, I have posted his Cholent a la Wilson with Jakoi on eGRA.

[jackal10]

I'd add eggs, either in the shell to be cooked long and slow in the cholent to the good Rabbi's recipe...

Personally I think butter beans are essential in Cholent

[kurl]

Trust me, growing up in a neighborhood with a fair proportion of Ashkenaz Jews, I know the glories of cholent -- what's being produced in our crock pot is far from glorious, and it's definitely not some other dish entirely, it's mererly cholent without historical context.

I'll try that recipe.

[cakewalk]

When cholent is good, it is very very good. When it's bad ... fuggedabowdit!

You're right, by Saturday night or Sunday, you'll have a lot more answers on this thread.

Sephardic cholents (there are so many different versions) are delicious, different flavorings and ingredients than standard Ashkenazi stuff. But I find that they all really need to mellow overnight. I never made cholent in a crock pot. How many hours do you let it cook?

I always put whole wheat berries in cholent. They can sit on the blech for days, probably, and still retain shape and still have some bite to them. Also nice is to add some almonds. I don't like eggs in cholent, they develop a flavor that makes me wince. But throw in some chick peas, they're great. Oh the list is endless.

[Gifted Gourmet]

As an advance taste of Rabbi Ribeye's sermon, um I mean discourse on this very subject, I have posted his Cholent a la Wilson with Jakoi on eGRA.

As a person who has eaten and thoroughly enjoyed this dish prepared by Rabbi Ribeye (nee Wilson) some twenty years ago, I can gleefully attest to the wonderments of his completed cholent! Even to such an extent that I have found subsequent "copies" sadly lacking in that certain "je ne sais quoi" .... and stopped even eating cholent as a result ... why settle for less than perfection? Even my local "This Can't Be Cholent" outlet bears only the faintest resemblance to his "original" conception ...

The addition of the Grapenuts, while initially astoundingly brilliant in their simplicity, makes the "jakoi" quite indescribable ... possibly even healthful ... yet not exactly a "spa dish" ...

It is a dish which will leave you breathless with pleasure even long hours after its presentation, ingestion, and digestion ... I consider him to be the Jean-Georges of the Rabbinical Gourmetocracy ... four stars to this chef .. try the recipe, you won't be disappointed! oh yeah, needs more salt sometimes ...

[bloviatrix]

Any particular type of cholent you want? It's not just the diffence in Ashkenaz vs. sephardi style. But, you can tell which part of eastern europe a person's family come from by the style of cholent they make. Some make it very soupy primarily with beans, barley and no potato . Others do a thicker style that's heavy on potato.

Couple of things I can think of. First, you ate cholent on Friday night. It's a sabbath lunch dish. Won't taste as good if you eat it at the wrong time. Afterall, part of the joys of a good cholent is waking up on saturday morning with the whole house redolent of the smell.

Second, and I know this will sound crazy, but your mom made it. For some reason, cholent is like grilling. It's the men who make it best, even if they're completely incompentant in the kitchen. It's in their DNA. On those rare times when I make cholent, it is ALWAYS a disaster. It turns out poorly seasoned and gloopy. So, Blovie is the designated cholent maker. I'm not allowed near the pot.

Now that I got that out of the way.....

Part of the problem with cholent is the amount of starches - the potatoes and barley just absorb all the seasonings so the flavor ends up being very muddy and the texture can glue-y. I know Blovie toasts and then cooks the barley separately before adding it. Other good flavoring agents are Goodmans onion soup mix (it's all about the sodium) and ketchup. The meat is also important. You don't want meat that's lean. Flanken is good because it gives you the bones and the fatty meat. But you need sizable chunks otherwise the meat will disintergrate into nothing.

I'll ask Blovie to add his expertise when he has a chance.

[Kenk]

I would recommend using olive oil. Be generous with it. Add some spices that are toasted in the oil before adding the other ingredients.

Try using a personal combination of:

Cumin

Coriander

Allspice

Mace

Chili peppers

Cloves

Fenugreek

Nutmeg

Thyme

Oregano

Make a Cajun spice mixture and use it.

Onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne, pepper, salt, thyme, oregano

A good sugestion.

Allspice, corainder, funugreek, cumin, thyme.

There is no reason not to use them. You can find a history of these spices being used in Jewish cooking from Europe and North Africa and throughout the Middle East.

I have some spice mixtures from Israel that have excellent spice combinations that use these ingredients.

[kurl]

Part of the problem with cholent is the amount of starches - the potatoes and barley just absorb all the seasonings so the flavor ends up being very muddy and the texture can glue-y.

I think your diagnosis (particularly this part) is spot-on.

There will be great cholent experiments in May when I get back home from school...

[bloviatrix]

There will be great cholent experiments in May when I get back home from school...

If I may be so bold....

Cholent is best between Sukkot and Passover (kind of like the prayer for rain ). It's stick to your ribs and pass out for a long nap kind of food. You might want to wait until next winter break to experiment.

[Gifted Gourmet]

V'nomar omain, Bloviatrix! Most definitely not a warm weather idea ...

even if it is followed by a parve sorbet and begun with a chilled gazpacho ...

but when the snows of winter arrive? Perfection! (we don't have snows of winter in Atlanta, you fully comprehend.. this is purely poetic license on my part ... and a bit of wishful, or wistful, thinking)

[bloviatrix]

Not that I have anything against cholent, but it's not my ideal long simmered shabbat lunch. But then, I'm a non-traditionalist. Our preferences are (in no order):

Chili

Stew - lamb or beef

Short Ribs - braised

I've been contemplating cassoulet. But it's getting warmer, so maybe next winter.

[Gifted Gourmet]

I've been contemplating cassoulet.  But it's getting warmer, so maybe next winter.

I have always thought of cholent as the Jewish form of "cassoulet", minus the duck ... but, then again, why not add the duck?

Edited March 14, 2004 by Gifted Gourmet (log)

[bloviatrix]

I have always thought of cholent as the Jewish form of "cassoulet

Have you and Blovie been chatting behind my back?

He says the same thing.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Yes, there it is out in the open ... we have been meeting secretly in a sordid little oneupsmanship contest on the differences between purist cassoulet and its johnny come lately upstart, cholent ... whew! I feel better now that it is public knowledge!

Cassoulet takes longer (some three days!), and contains more pork, mutton, and/or goose ... will opt for the kosher cholent for now ...

an excerpt from something about cassoulet http://www.luxuryweb.com/Recipes/Cassoulet/cassoulet.htm

one of the most famous dishes of France, Cassoulet, a rich, hearty stew of various meats, beans, fats, and aromatic vegetables and herbs, all simmered in layers for three days and topped with a fine golden crust

Edited March 14, 2004 by Gifted Gourmet (log)

[kurl]

Cholent is best between Sukkot and Passover (kind of like the prayer for rain ). It's stick to your ribs and pass out for a long nap kind of food. You might want to wait until next winter break to experiment.

I understand your concern, bloviatrix, but rest assured that these experiments will be for scientific purposes. By next year's winter break, I hope to have developed the sort of infallible recipe for Jewish comfort food that many others seem to have.

(Also, for the record, the frequent often fairly-obscure Jewish references are one of this Ramaz graduate's favorite aspects of eGullet.)

[Suzanne F]

Now, I have never made, and rarely eaten, cholent (we were not that strict), but my brain is ticking. Why not chunks of lamb instead of beef? And chickpeas -- together they could cook forever and still be wonderful. Hmmmmmm.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Why not chunks of lamb instead of beef? And chickpeas -- together they could cook forever and still be wonderful. Hmmmmmm.

I am quite sure lamb would make for an entirely different cholent/cassoulet ... and, should one add barley, is this not a more solid form of scotch broth?

You know, with all this talk of trying out different ingredients, I feel totally compelled to try out some of these variations and let the carbs fall where they may!

[bloviatrix]

I'm just waiting for someone to develop a lo-carb cholent.

[kurl]

Might resemble something like the "cholent" I had one Passover when we were staying in an Ahskenaz-certified-kosher-for-pesach (read: no Kitniyot) hotel. If I recall correctly, it had neither beans nor barley... can you guys have potatoes on passover?

Anyway, the dish was humorous but unsuccessful.

[Gifted Gourmet]

I'm just waiting for someone to develop a lo-carb cholent.

Bloviatrix, low carb cholent is like a steak ... pure protein ...

Low carb cholent does not fulfill the mitzvah of feel bloated and sleep it off ...

[Gifted Gourmet]

can you guys have potatoes on passover?

Potatoes in and of themselves are fine for Passover ...even possible to make a Passover cholent with them: http://starchefs.com/Passover/Contest/entry8.html

ever look up the Passover concept of "gebroks"? This is a stringency in which some Orthodox Jews do not eat starches made from matzo meal or cake meal mixed with a liquid for seven of the eight days of Passover ... so they can not make matzo balls because the liquid might make the matzo flour "rise" ... instead, they use lots of potatoes and sometimes slice up a flat egg pancake into "noodles" for their soup ...

a better explanation, yet essentially what I have posted, can be found here (just scroll down to "gebroks"):

http://www.jewish-holiday.com/Pes63laws.html

Edited March 14, 2004 by Gifted Gourmet (log)

[bloviatrix]

I know I've said this elsewhere, but if the Rabbis knew all the things that potatoes could be used for, they would have forbidden them as well.