Uncategorized

We just got Fuschia Dunlop's latest cookbook, Every Grain of Rice. Her other books have been really good, and we happened to have some high-quality pork belly -- uncured bacon with the rind still on. So we decided to make this tonight:

Red-Braised Pork

1¼ lb (500g) boneless pork belly, with skin, or shoulder
2 tbsp cooking oil
4 slices of unpeeled ginger
1 spring onion, white part only, crushed slightly
2 tbsp Shaoxing wine
2 cups plus 2 tbsp (500ml) chicken

...

This is the one we now make instead of the earlier version. The matzo balls are fluffier and the texture less variable from batch to batch. (The other recipe is a bit tastier when it's at its best, but when the matzoh balls are like little rocks, it's no fun.)

2nd Avenue Deli's Matzo Balls

From Arthur Schwartz's Jewish Home Cooking

Makes about 12.

4 large eggs
⅓ cup schmaltz (rendered chicken fat)
¼ teaspoon plus 1 tablespoon salt

...

I thought I had posted this long ago, but it seems not. Well, here it is: Quite possibly my favorite dish.

Pock-Marked Ma’s Bean Curd (Fuschia Dunlop)

1 block bean curd (about 1 pound)
4 baby leeks or 2 leeks
½ cup peanut oil (¼ cup will do)
6 ounces ground beef
2½ tablespoons Sichuanese chili bean paste (Toban Jian)
1 tablespoon fermented black beans
2 teaspoons ground Sichuanese chiles (hot, but not really optional)
1 cup “everyday stock”

...

and pork is my favorite meat.

Here's a pork goulash with sauerkraut, from David Waltuck's Staff Meals from Chanterelle:

Pork Goulash, Szeged Style

¼ cup canola or other vegetable oil, or more as needed
2½ pounds boneless pork shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut into 1½ -inch cubes
2 large onions, sliced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
3 strips thickly sliced good-quality smoked bacon, rind removed and discarded, cut crosswise into ⅛-inch pieces

...

I didn't get to make Hoppin' John for the shelter on New Year's Day, but cassoulet is close in spirit and only a couple of days late.

The authentic (though nobody can agree on it) cassoulet Toulousaine or cassoulet de Carcassonne uses preserved duck legs or goose legs. Too expensive for the quantity I'm making (a quadruple recipe!) or too tedious to make yourself. This version by Mark Bittman skips the confit de canard and tastes damn good.

Cassoulet
Mark Bittman, How to Cook

...

I've been meaning to make this for some time. On Saturday, I did. I made half a recipe because there were only four of us, but it was fabulous.

Momofuku Bo Ssam

Pork Butt
1 whole bone-in pork butt or picnic ham (8 to 10 pounds)
1 cup white sugar
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt
7 tablespoons brown sugar

Ginger-Scallion Sauce
2½ cups thinly sliced scallions, both green and white parts
½ cup peeled, minced fresh ginger
¼

...

Here's a classic gumbo:

Paul Prudhomme's Shrimp, Okra and Andouille Smoked Sausage Gumbo

Makes 9 main dish or 18 appetizer servings

⅓ cup pork lard (preferred), chicken fat or vegetable oil
2½ pounds okra, quartered lengthwise and sliced (8½ cups)[I use frozen sliced okra from Safeway]
1½ t white pepper
1½ t ground cayenne pepper
1 t black pepper
2 c finely chopped onions
10 cups seafood stock [chicken stock will do]
2 c peeled

...

I've made this a couple of times now, and I think it's worth posting. The preparation is easy, and anyone with a gas grill or a Weber-type kettle grill can do this kind of indirect heating. (I use our Big Green Egg.) The recipe comes from Rick Bayless's Mexican Everyday:

Serves 4

For the Marinade:
1½ tablespoons ground ancho chile powder (available from national companies such as McCormick, Mexican groceries and internet sites)
1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican

...

This is from this week's Washington Post food section:

Apricot Ancho Lamb Shanks

4 lamb shanks (3 to 4 pounds total)
Salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more as needed
3 large dried ancho chili peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions (2 pounds total), cut in half, then cut into thin half-moons
1 quart low-sodium beef broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
4 ounces (½ cup) dried apricots

...

This recipe uses matzohs like lasagne noodles to make a filling one-dish centerpiece for the Passover dinner. The trick is to use thin matzohs and to pour over them enough broth and egg mixture to moisten the dish sufficiently. The instructions look long, but only because each vegetable is sautéed individually before being layered in the baking dish.

This is also delicious made without meat.

I include Marcia's notes, which are the result of making this dish many times. ...