Dinner! 2002

[Adam Balic]

Miss J - Wow! That sounds wonderful. What is "Strange Flavour"?

[Miss J]

"Strange flavour" refers to a combination of specific, strong tastes in Sichuan cooking. In this case, a fairly ordinary dish of cold chicken slivers and spring onions was covered with a sesame dressing that exhibited the "strange" taste combo, ie chili (in an oil form), a good amount of Sichuan pepper, a bit of sugar, and light soy...so it was hot, sweet, salty and tingling with ma (that weird numbing sensation that Sichuan peppercorns cause). And it was cold, creamy and nutty to boot - a veritable mouth-clash of texture and flavours.

So, it's not really a technique so much as a set of sensations - I have a recipe for strange flavour peanuts that's basically roasted peanuts candied in caramel and combined with ground Sichuan pepper, chili and salt. Zippy.

[researchgal]

Our pre-Sopranos dinner:

Antipasto platter--soprasetta, asiago, sicilian olives

Basil tagliatelle with tuscan meat sauce (my take on Barbara Lynch's recipe from last Wed's NYT)

Blanched brocollini, sauteed w/garlic, red pepper-infused evoo

Arugula salad with mixed cherry tomatoes and feta

Biscotti, white peaches

Dolcetta with dinner

Moscato after

[SobaAddict70]

Spaghetti with a sauce of chopped fresh tomatoes, EVOO, pureed roasted garlic, pancetta, red pepper flakes, and Italian parsley. Roasted figs, stuffed with ginger-infused mascarpone (mascarpone, with some finely chopped crystallized ginger folded in). Evian.

SA

[Wilfrid]

Bison strip steak from Union Square. Came frozen, so after thawing well in advance I took the trouble to dry the steaks pretty thoroughly.

Seared with a red wine sauce from the pan juices. Some well-flavored yellow carrots from Windfall Farms. I also bought some striking red salad leaves from them, which turned out to be too strongly flavored - almost a citrus flavor. What the heck were they?

A modest Turning Leaf Shiraz.

[laura]

a just picked from my garden meal, with a few additions, Swordfish{from Whole Foods} as an aside, I think their fish looks better, the swordfish was very fresh and

from Mass. Anyway, I picked japanese eggplant, small yellow squash, big boy

tomatoes, marinated them in olive oil , s,p and rosemary. The swordfish was

marinated in sesame oil and soy sauce, I grilled everything with additional rosemary branches, sprinkled lemon juice on the grilled foods, added a few boiled

ruby crescent potatoes and I was in heaven.

[Toby]

... Windfall Farms.  I also bought some striking red salad leaves from them, which turned out to be too strongly flavored - almost a citrus flavor.  What the heck were they?

Were they amaranth? I got some this summer, didn't like the raw taste, so sauteed them in oil with a little ginger, garlic, dried chile, and they were better. (If amaranth, there's a discussion somewhere about them.)

[FoodMan]

My wife does not cook much but she has a couple of very good recipes. Yesterday it was her garlic stuffed roast. basically a round roast stuffed with as many garlic cloves as you can get in there (or like-- and I like lots of it) then slow roasted until medium with some onions and carrots. For a side dish I prepared a potato gratin from Mastering the Art of French cooking. It was layered potato slices with tomatoes, onions, and anshovy/garlic/herb/EVOO paste, then the whole thing is sprinkled with Parmesan and baked. Very Yummy.

For dessert I made a classic "Tiramisu" from the latest issue of "Food & Wine". It was rich, creamy and sublime I will definitley make it again.

Tonight--- What else Garlic roast beef sandwiches with homemade chilli jelly mayonaise (sounds weird/tastes great).

FM

[Jinmyo]

FoodMan, chile jelly mayonnaise doesn't sound weird. I just don't know what it means.

[FoodMan]

FoodMan, chile jelly mayonnaise doesn't sound weird. I just don't know what it means.

When making mayo just add a tbsp of chile jelly (hot pepper jelly-- I used jalapenos and a little mint to make mine ) to the egg and blend (I use a blender to make my mayo) before you add the oil. Then proceed as normal....

result: a spicy/tangy/sweet mayo that goes great with garlic roast beef sandwiches (IMHO)

Does this help?

FM

[Jinmyo]

Yes, FoodMan. Thanks. Sounds good.

[Adam Balic]

Breton Artichokes (French market in Glasgow for weekend, wife picked them up) stuffed with seasoned pork. Braised for and hour then finished in oven (just to brown the meat, as it looks a little icky after braising).

Good Olive oil/lemon juice to dip and Roasted potatoe wedges. Potatoe and fresh artichoke go very well together, not sure we. Maybe it is because artichokes have a chemical in them that makes things taste sweeter?

[Miss J]

A post-Chinese dinner party meal:

Leftover rice fried with small cubes of fish-fragrant beancurd, shreds of chicken, garlic-y pak choi and an egg. Flavours brightened up with chili bean paste, shaoxing wine and a splash of light soy.

Figs for dessert.

[helenas]

Winter squash season is kicked off with herbed crespelles stuffed with

roasted butternut squash and smoked chicken breast, topped with gruyere and crisped to perfection.

[Jinmyo]

Wild mushroom risotto with truffle oil and almonds.

Warm salad of wilted pea greens and lupini beans with a mint vinaigrette.

Roasted celery and fennel au gratin.

Chipotle crusted bone-in pork loin chops with assorted peppers.

[Wilfrid]

Two bison strip steaks, as Beloved is on a diet.

One got a southwestern rub (ready made, Dean & Deluca), the other got pebble-dashed with crushed black peppercorns. A nice side of pinto beans braised with onions and pieces of smoked slab bacon. And some green beans to ward of scurvy.

The last of the cheddar to the follow with raisin-cinnamon bread from Tompkins Square greenmarket.

[Adam Balic]

Tired last night so Indian meal abandoned. Risotto with Chestnut, Black Cloud and Porcini mushrooms.

[J Acord]

Risotto (is tuesday Risotto night in the UK?) with morels and lardons. Topped with crispy prosciutto. The risotto wasn't quite right though, I think the cheese dominated a bit too much, ah well you live and learn... oh and about 1/2 of a bottle of a not particularly remarkable wine.

[Wilfrid]

I liked dessert last night. I tried just baked fresh green figs without mucking them about. No sugar, no pastry/cobbler/crumble topping, no cream. Then ate them plain.

Ultra-sweet. And the great texture as the goo with the seeds oozes out. Oh, yes. A glass of Pedro Ximenez would have helped, had one been to hand.

[Jinmyo]

Pulled out the electric table grills.

Bulgogi strip loin. U 10 shell-on shrimp. Asparagus (out of season but they were cheap). Scallions. Fresh shitake. Green onion pancakes. Grill yer own.

Deep-fried shrimp heads and legs.

Kimchee.

Miso shiru.

Gohan with gomasio.

[Liza]

Brined and seared pork loin served on a stack of bi-color tomatoes. Garnished with slices of jalapeno and apple; a kind of honey-horseradish dipping sauce.

[Priscilla]

Throwback poulet au vinaigre, with some of the last of the Romas from the garden, and just about the last of the tarragon vinegar I put up, the label says, in September 1989. Can this be?

No, I mean, can this be that it's been that long since then I have been able to get tarragon to grow? Guess it's true. In 1989 I had a tiny space with a couple of half barrels, and the French tarragon from the herb guy at the farmer's market grew like a veritable weed. A gift--I really love tarragon. Many Bearnaises were made and many bottles of vinegar put up. But no luck since, growing-wise.

A big old potato pancake made of shredded potatoes, using as the cooking medium the butter and emitted schmaltz discarded after deeply browning the chicken. Redleaf salad, dressed with more of the attriting 1989 tarragon vinegar, achieving the desired flavor layers, long-cooked vinegar in the chicken, raw on the salad. Portuguese-type rolls.

[SobaAddict70]

Nothing too fancy: broiled skinless chicken breasts, rubbed with EVOO and pureed roasted garlic; steamed veggies (drizzle of EVOO, splash of lemon juice); couscous; cranberry chutney on the side. Green tea. Plums.

[Jim Dixon]

Brined a pork tenderloin then larded it with the last bits of the pancetta from Salumi, roasted in convection oven.

Ground cherry sauce for pork made by cooking shallots and halved fruit in olive oil, adding some Pinot Grigio and balsamic vinegar and reducing a bit, then a stick blender to puree, back on heat, then off and finish with butter

Lenticchie al Mauro (lentils from Castelluccio cooked the way Mauro, a farmer I met in the bar in Castelluccio, told me after scolding me for putting cheese on them, "Solo aglio, olio, sedano, sale, e aqua.")

Sliced tomatoes from back yard with olive oil and fleur del sel

Jim

[SobaAddict70]

Butter chicken makhni (chicken marinated in yogurt and spices, then cooked in a tomato/yogurt gravy, finished with a pat of butter); spicy carrot rice (basmati rice, infused with sweet Indian spices (cinnamon, cardamom, cloves), mixed with shredded carrots (fried the carrots in ghee along with mustard seeds, cumin, and black pepper, until the carrots were soft)); date raita (chopped dates, chopped deveined and seeded chiles, yogurt, chopped cilantro); store-bought lemon pickle. Spinach, sauteed in EVOO, along with A LOT of minced garlic. Sweet (plain) lassi.

SA