Picadinho de Carne (Brazilian beef stew) from Falling Off The Bone by Jean Anderson

Apr18

Starches like pasta and side dish vegetables like broccoli are easy to improvise recipes for. They cook quickly and are hard to mess up. But preparing a luscious meat dish requires much more finesse, especially when dealing with tougher, wallet-friendly cuts. Fortunately for us home cooks, Jean Anderson (James Beard Award-winning author of over 20 cookbooks) dispels all the mysteries of cooking with less tender cuts of meat in her cook, Falling Off The Bone. In the book, she covers beef, veal, lamb and pork. She describes from which part of the animal each cut comes from and discusses the best methods for cooking them and why.

Here is the first recipe I made from the book. It is a classic Brazilian beef stew, which is the perfect recipe for a tough, virtually un-marbled cut of beef like bottom round (meat from the well-exercised, hind leg area of the cow). Many thanks to Justin Schwartz, the editor of this book, for sending me a copy of the newly released paperback edition!

Recipe from Falling Off The Bone by Jean Anderson (Wiley, 2010)

(Yield: 4 large or 6 small servings)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp corn or peanut oil (I used vegetable)

2 large yellow onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 1/2 lbs finely diced bottom round or ground lean beef chuck (I used bottom round)

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 ground ginger

1 14 oz can diced tomatoes

1/2 c finely chopped pimento-stuffed green olives (I skipped these)

1/2 raisins

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp raw sugar (I used regular granulated)

1 tsp salt + 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Procedure: Heat oil in large skillet (I used my Dutch oven) over moderately high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened, 8 to 10 min. Push all to the side and add beef. Brown well, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 12 min. Stir in all remaining ingredients, turn heat to low so that mixture simmers very slowly. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Then taste and re-season if necessary. Serve hot.

The spices, sugar and raisins make this a very flavorful, well-balanced beef stew. And because of the long simmering time, the tomato sauce ends up coating the meat like a gravy.

I chose to serve it over pearl cous-cous but Anderson recommends tossing it with pasta, or ladling it over potatoes, hamburger buns as in sloppy Joes, or rice.

Take it from someone who tends to be intimidated by cooking with unknown to me meats, this book is a truly invaluable find. I see myself referring back to it for recipe ideas for years to come.

Lamb curry

Jan19

Saucy, aromatic, meaty foods are what life is all about. Well, my life, anyway.

Forget chicken soup. This is what your soul needs.

(Yield: 4 large or 6 smaller portions)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 lb lamb shoulder, cut off the bone, fat trimmed and discarded

1 large yellow onion, roughly diced

1 large carrot, sliced

1 orange bell pepper, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

8 oz canned tomato sauce

1 tbsp yellow curry powder

1 tbsp (2 tbsp for spicy food lovers) canned Panang curry paste, which looks like this

1 14 oz can unsweetened coconut milk

1/4 c water

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Procedure: Rinse meat and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into 1″ cubes. Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over a high flame and add lamb. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook until browned on all sides, about 3 min, flipping once. Remove meat from pot, reduce heat to medium and add vegetables. Season with a pinch of salt and cook until slightly softened, about 5 min, stirring frequently, making sure to scrape bits from bottom of pot. Next add tomato sauce, garlic and curries. Stir and cook for 1 min. Then add coconut milk and water. Stir, cover pot tightly with a lid and bring to a boil. Once boiling, crack lid, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 20 min, stirring occasionally. Then remove lid and simmer for another 10 min. Turn heat off. Taste and re-season if necessary. Serve hot; over rice, if desired.

Ground turkey stew

Oct9

Since early last spring, it has been collecting dust in the far end of my kitchen. But alas, the season of autumn has come and it is time to pick up where we left off. I tense up my arms and try to move swiftly, as it always manages to seem heavier than it was when I last hid it. Yet its unwieldiness doesn’t faze me. I am happy and my mouth stretches into a wide smile; my mind races with ideas, my hands are shaking in anticipation. I take the lid off and look inside, imagining the endless variety of ingredients that can be contained in its round walls. I am talking, of course, about my Dutch oven.

(Yield: 6 servings)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp olive oil

3 garlic cloves, sliced

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 ½ lbs ground turkey

2 tsp chili powder

1 ½ tsp poultry seasoning

1 c shredded white cabbage

1 carrot, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 tbsp yellow or brown mustard

12 oz crushed tomatoes

¼ c water

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 potatoes (to peel or not to peel is your decision)

Salt/pepper

Sour cream and dill for garnish

Procedure: (It’s important to remember that dishes with numerous ingredients with different cooking times also require the seasoning of every layer.) Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat; add olive oil and garlic. Cook until fragrant, about 1 min, and add onion with a pinch of salt. Cook until translucent. Raise heat to high and add turkey, chili powder and poultry seasoning. Break up with a wooden spatula and cook for about 8 min, stirring frequently. Next, add cabbage, carrot and pepper, along with mustard.

(Still seasoning every layer, right?) Stir to combine and cook for about 12 min, or until vegetables have softened. Then add tomatoes, paste and water. Stir, bring to a simmer, cover tightly with lid, lower heat and cook for about 10 min. Finally, add potatoes, cover, and cook until potatoes are cooked through, 15-20 min. Turn heat off. Taste and re-season if necessary. Serve hot, topped with sour cream and chopped dill.

If you are interested in more fall recipes, see: Chick pea stew, Pumpkin curry w/ chicken and Coq au vin.

Chick pea stew

Oct1

Chick peas, aka garbanzo beans, are one of my favorite ingredients to cook with. They are healthy (high in protein and fiber), tasty and, most importantly, versatile – they’re like the chicken of the legume world. I tend to use the canned variety because it’s a lot more convenient and time efficient than boiling the dried kind, but if you have the time and desire to cook your own, more power to you.

This recipe is vegetarian and vegan friendly.

(Yield: 4-6 servings)

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

1 small yellow onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 vine tomatoes, chopped

½ tsp sugar

½ tsp cumin

2 15 oz cans chick peas, drained and rinsed

1 c packed baby spinach leaves

Salt + pepper

Procedure: Heat a high-sided skillet over medium heat and add olive oil. Add onion with a pinch of salt and cook until translucent, 3-4 min. Add garlic and cook for 60 secs. Add tomatoes, a pinch of salt and pepper, sugar and cumin. Stir, turn heat down to low, cover and cook for 10 min, stirring occasionally. Then add chick peas and spinach. Stir continuously to warm chick peas throughout and wilt the spinach. After spinach has wilted, about 2 min, turn heat off, taste and re-season if necessary. Serve hot over creamy grits or polenta, or with hunks of fresh bread.

If you are interested in more chick pea recipes, check out my falafel post as well as this chick pea and eggplant sauté.

Coq au vin

Jan22

I’ve attempted making Coq au Vin (for help pronouncing this French name, click here) once before and it was alright, but this time, it was truly lovely. This is because I’ve acquired a Dutch oven since then and was able to braise the chicken the way it was meant to be. The meat was super tender – it literally fell off the bone – and the sauce thickened to a perfectly rich consistency.

*The preparation of Coq au Vin usually starts with the rendering of bacon fat but I skipped this step. I know, I know, this is nuts and totally unlike me but I recently found out I have high-ish cholesterol, which doesn’t come to me as much of a surprise as I’d like it to, so I’m trying to be less of a fatass now.

*I served this dish simply, with buttered Stelline pasta – “tiny stars” – the combination of which I found to be pretty dope. In her book, Julia Child suggests serving Coq au Vin with buttered boiled potatoes. It is Julia Child, so that must be a pretty good idea, too.

(Yield: about 4 servings)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp olive oil

1.5 lbs (about 6 pieces) chicken legs, bone in, skin on

1 large yellow onion, diced

2 medium carrots, roughly chopped

1 stalk celery, roughly chopped

10 oz crimini mushrooms, stemmed, halved

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 dry bay leaves

2 oz cognac

2 tsp all-purpose flour

About 1.5 c (half a .75L bottle) dry red wine

About 1.5 c low-sodium chicken stock

Salt/freshly ground black pepper

Fresh parsley for garnish

Procedure: Place a Dutch oven over high heat and add oil. Wash and pat dry chicken and season both sides with salt and pepper (remember to season each layer hereafter). Add to pot. Cook for about 4 min, until golden brown, turn, and cook for 3-4 more min. Remove from pot and set aside. Lower heat to medium-low and add onion. Sauté until translucent, about 4 min, and add carrots, celery, mushrooms, garlic and bay leaves.

Sauté until softened, about 8 min, stirring frequently (make sure to scrape chicken bits off of the bottom – that’s the good stuff). Turn heat off and pour in cognac. Light a long match and hold over cognac. Turn heat on and a flame should appear – keep extremities and loose clothing away! (This is a good time to start preheating the oven to 325F). When the flame subsides, stir in flour and cook for 60 sec. Then add wine and bring to simmer. Simmer for 4 min, to evaporate alcohol, and add chicken stock. When the mixture is boiling again, nestle chicken pieces pack into pot. Chicken should be totally covered in liquid; if it isn’t, add more wine or stock.

I used this awesome, clean and tart Cono Sur Pinot Noir. It’s one of my favorites and it’s super cheap.

Cover pot tightly with lid and place into preheated oven. Take it out 90 impatient minutes later and garnish with parsley. Serve warm, preferably with the same wine you used for cooking. Bon appetit!

So how’s your weekend going? Have you done/eaten anything exciting? Share below!

Veal and mushroom stroganoff

Oct29

I’ve always had a hard time figuring out what to do with veal. I’ve tried making veal schnitzel before but it was too… veal-y. But this recipe, I like.

(Yield: 4 servings)

Ingredients:

3-4 tbsp olive oil

1 lb veal loin, fat trimmed

3/4 tsp dry thyme

1 small yellow onion, diced

8 oz white button mushrooms, thinly sliced lengthwise

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 c dry white wine

3 tbsp sour cream

1 tsp all-purpose flour

Salt and pepper

Slice veal into 1″ strips and season with salt, pepper and thyme. Place a large saute pan over high heat and add 2 tbsp oil. Add half of meat into pan. Brown for 3-4 minutes, stirring once. Remove, add second half, repeat. Remove all meat and set aside.

Bring heat down to medium, adding more oil to pan if necessary. Add onion with a pinch of salt and saute for 1 min. Add mushrooms and saute for about 4 min, until brown, stirring occasionally. Bring heat down to low, and add veal back to pan with garlic and wine. Simmer for about 4 min. Add sour cream and flour. Stir and cook for 1 min, until thickened. Turn heat off and re-season if necessary. Serve immediately, over white rice.

Easy beef stew

Oct2

Right now, and presumably for another month or so, New York City is experiencing perfect weather. It’s chilly early in the mornings and at night, but still warm and often sunny in the afternoons. It’s a good time for light sweaters and cardigans but there isn’t yet need for a jacket. I don’t know about you (and feel free to share in the form of a comment) but this type of weather makes me painfully nostalgic; and hungry for warm, rustic foods. Like this stew.

Although the cooking time is approximately two hours, they are mostly inactive, so you don’t have to worry about over-working yourself…

(Yield: 4-6 servings)

Ingredients:

2-3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 lb “stewing” beef, cut into 1″-cubes

3/4 tsp chili powder

1 tsp dried thyme

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 yellow onion, diced

1 tsp tomato paste

1 c water

2 dried bay leaves

3 russet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1″-cubes

2 large carrots, peeled, chopped

1 tbsp flour

Salt/freshly-ground black pepper

Heat the oil over high heat in a heavy-bottomed, large pot. Rinse beef cubes and pat dry with paper towel. Season beef with chili and thyme, and salt and pepper. Sear in oil, in two separate batches (do not over-crowd pot!), for about 2 min per side – just to caramelize the outside. Add onion, garlic, bay leaves and tomato paste. Stir and cook until onion is translucent, about 4 min. Add water and bring to boil. Cover tightly with lid, turn heat down to low, and let cook for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, add potatoes, carrots and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir. Cook for another 40 min, or until vegetables are soft. Stir in flour. Cook for another min. Turn heat off, remove bay leaves, and re-season if necessary.

Serve with fresh bread.

Make extra stew if you like – it tastes even better on the second and third days.

Italian sausage and vegetable stew

Mar31

Allow me to preface this recipe by expressing how happy I am that Richard Blais won Top Chef Masters! I was rooting for him all season. His passion is so inspiring. What did you guys think of the finale?

Now the recipe: as mentioned in previous posts, I’ve become quite the fan of Italian sausage (dirty jokes aside, please), so I’m trying to think of interesting ways to prepare it. Like most stews, this dish is clearly quite heavy, and also like most stews, it tastes better the next day.

(Yield: 4 servings [for 4 very hungry people])

Ingredients:

2 tbsp olive oil

6 sweet Italian sausages

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 green bell pepper, chopped

1 large carrot, chopped

10 oz baby bella mushrooms, quartered

3/4 tsp paprika

1 pinch of cumin

3/4 tsp salt/ 1/2 tsp pepper

1 tomato, chopped

1 tsp all-purpose flour

1 c low-sodium beef stock

Heat the oil on high heat in a heavy pot. Fry sausage links on all sides until crispy, about 4 min. Remove from pot, set aside, and turn heat down to medium. Add onion, garlic, carrot, bell pepper, mushrooms and seasonings. Cook for 10 min, stirring frequently. (Meanwhile, cut the sausages diagonally, into 1/2″-thick pieces). Add flour, stir to combine. Add tomato, sausage pieces and stock, and stir. Bring stock to a boil, turn heat down to low, cover with lid, and simmer for 35 min, stirring occasionally. Then cook uncovered for another 5 min. Serve hot, with crusty bread.

Coq au Vin: Take one

Jun25

As my excitement to go to Paris is increasing by the minute (less than a month left!!!), I’m craving French food more than ever.

Coq au Vin [coke oh vaahn] is a traditional French dish of seared rooster, simmered with vegetables in chicken broth, red or white wine and herbs. Rooster is hard to find these days, unless you raise and slaughter it yourself, so for the most part Coq au Vin today is made with chicken. I read a few recipes but didn’t follow any specific one. This recipe was adapted to what I had on hand and it turned out pretty good for a first time. I’m planning to keep working on it though.

(Servings: 4)

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon

1 lb chicken breasts, cut into chunks

½ c + 1 tbsp flour

½ tsp poultry seasoning*

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

10 oz cremini mushrooms, quartered

2 medium carrots, chopped**

¼ c cognac

¾ c chicken broth

1 c red, full-bodied wine, such as Burgundy

2 bay leaves

*Use Herbs de Provence if possible.

**I ran out of carrots so I had to omit them for this time.

In a large pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon until crispy and remove from pan. In a shallow dish, combine ½ c flour with ¾ tsp salt+pepper and poultry seasoning. Toss the chicken in the flour mixture and brown in bacon grease on all sides, on medium-high heat, about 5 min. Add the vegetables and sauté for about 3 min. Remove pan from heat and add cognac. Immediately light a long match, hold it over the pot and light the fumes. The cognac will catch fire and the flame will burn out within 1 min. Turn the heat back on. (The flambéing did not work at all for me so I had to let it simmer for a few minutes to burn out the alcohol.) Stir in the broth and wine and add the bay leaves and extra flour. Bring the mixture to a boil, turn the heat down to a simmer, cover and cook for 40 min, stirring occasionally. Then remove cover and simmer for another 10 min to let the sauce reduce and thicken. And voila! Top with reserved bacon and serve with hunks of fresh baguette.