Cooking with "Tapas" by Jose Andres

[Nina C.]

I learned how to make fabada asturiana in Spain some 35 years ago and have been making it from memory ever since.  Looked at the link to JA's recipe and noticed a couple of things to coment on.

1.  He doesn't use morcilla (blood sausage).  Neither do I, for two reasons.  First, I don't like it; don't like eating blood anything.  Second, it is unavailable where I live, and if not here, unlikely available anywhere in the US except perhaps tienda.com or in NYC. 

2.  He adds onion, not in the recipe I was taught.

3.  He uses different forms of pork than I do (see below).

I went to cocinavino.com to check recipes there (this site is based in Spain and in Spanish only; also uses only metric measures).  Like JA's, all the recipes offered there are made with white beans (fabes in Asturiano, or habas blancas in Spanish).  JA's entire head of garlic is in line with the entire heads called for in recipes there.  The pimentón, saffron and chorizo afree with those recipes.  Spanish recipes also call for punta de jamón (tip from jamón serrano) and and lacón (a boiling type ham similar to ours from Galicia and Asturias), both of which I always use when making fabada here.  The bacon is not in the recipes there; the ham hock is in a minority of them. The pimentón and saffron JA calls for are part of what I learned and the cocinvino.com recipes.   

Hope this helps.

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Thanks so much for your reply Dorine. I ended up using Anya Von Bremzen's recipe to make it - here are the results: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showto...74entry130797

I think it could have been done without the morcilla as it was a little intense for some of my guests. But I enjoyed the contrasts in the meats. I might put less morcilla in next time.

[Zee]

I made the "olives marinated in orange and thyme-infused olive oil" two days ago. I quadrupled the recipe, packed them in jars, and am letting them sit for a while before giving them away as Christmas gifts to family and friends. The problems I've encountered so far are:

1. There wasn't enough liquid to cover all the olives, garlic, orange peel, etc. So, I topped each jar off with some more olive oil.

2. The orange juice and vinegar separate from the olive oil. I've been giving each jar a light shake twice a day for the last two days. The colour, which was never clear from the start, is turning quite muddy already.

3. The garlic are turning a blue-ish green colour (what the heck!?). Not quite looking like mold (not fuzzy, yet), more like a tint. What's going on?

[docsconz]

I made the "olives marinated in orange and thyme-infused olive oil" two days ago. I quadrupled the recipe, packed them in jars, and am letting them sit for a while before giving them away as Christmas gifts to family and friends. The problems I've encountered so far are:

1. There wasn't enough liquid to cover all the olives, garlic, orange peel, etc. So, I topped each jar off with some more olive oil.

2. The orange juice and vinegar separate from the olive oil. I've been giving each jar a light shake twice a day for the last two days. The colour, which was never clear from the start, is turning quite muddy already.

3. The garlic are turning a blue-ish green colour (what the heck!?). Not quite looking like mold (not fuzzy, yet), more like a tint. What's going on?

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From Harold McGee's New York Times column The Curious Cook as linked to here.

According to chemists at the China Agricultural University in Beijing, aging the garlic gives it a chance to accumulate large quantities of one of the chemicals that generate the color; fresh garlic doesn’t green much at all. And a strong green color develops in Laba garlic only with acetic acid, the main acid in vinegar (also found in sourdough), because it’s especially effective at breaching internal membranes and mixing the cell chemicals that react together to create the green pigment. The pigment itself turns out to be a close chemical relative of chlorophyll, which gives all green leaves their color.

[docsconz]

This book continues to be one of our favorites. This being the height of tomato season, my wife decided to make the gazpacho, amazingly a recipe that we hadn't actually done before despite the positive experiences mentioned in posts above and the great photos from Bilrus. Not only is the gazpacho delicious, my wife said that it was the easiest recipe for it that she has ever made.

[jm chen]

I made a meal for 8 almost entirely from this book last night, and I've got to say, these recipes continue to deliver on the promise.

The chorizo-potato stew ("potatoes Rioja-style with chorizo") can cook for 45 minutes or three hours or whatever time you need it to. The garlic shrimp recipe works just as well for scallops. The red wine syrup from the Oranges in Red Wine recipe is really delicious, especially if you serve the oranges and syrup over cheesecake ice cream. And although I don't know if I'd make it again given that Idiazabal cheese is about $20/lb here, the marinated Idiazabal is simple and impressive and addictive. Probably almost as good with manchego.

Now I just need to figure out what to do with a cup and a half of leftover romesco.

[markemorse]

Now I just need to figure out what to do with a cup and a half of leftover romesco.

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a few omelettes?

we have on occasion also turned our leftover romesco into a sort of tapenade by adding a good amount of finely chopped green olives to the mix.

Edited March 28, 2008 by markemorse (log)

[Bricktop]

Forget corned beef hash with poached eggs! I want THAT!!!!

[MikeHartnett]

I bought the book yesterday after reading this thread, and last night I made the garlic soup, onion flatbreads, and green beans with pearl onions and tomatoes. They all turned out quite nicely, and I easily managed to complete the three of them, including making the flatbread dough, in about an hour and a half. I really enjoy this book, and I'm looking forward to using it quite a bit.

[Malawry]

The Route 11 potato chip tortilla is a standard in my repertoire now. It's so much easier and faster than the traditional method and it tastes fabulous, especially with a generous pinch of saffron. A definite win.

[raybeezbabee]

Jose Andres, in his reply to this thread, mentions working on a minibar book. Does anyone know if such a book was ever completed and released? I cannot find it.