Joys of Ginger

Practical person that I am (well, perhaps obsessive-compulsive is the more accurate descriptor...), I used to avoid recipes that called for ginger seeing as it's highly perishable and impossible to buy in small quantities.  After just 2 days in the fridge, all those knobs of ginger purchased in order to obtain the one measly tablespoon of the freshly grated stuff would be soggy, stringy, and discolored.  But those dark days are behind me, ever since I found Marc Matsumoto's delightfully simple solution to my ginger-itis: how to make fresh ginger last.  Peel it, submerge it in vodka (or your tasteless, odorless, colorless ethanol of choice) and presto, you're stocked up with fresh, ready-to-use ginger for days - weeks, even!

Obviously, this revelation has led to a 500% increase in my use of ginger and that's good news, since ginger happens to be one of those handy foods that not only makes everything infinitely more delicious but also delivers a load of health benefits: it is said to settle the stomach, reduce pain and inflammation, prevent cold and flu symptoms, and it even works as a heartburn remedy.

Here are a couple of tasty ways I've used my arsenal of ginger lately:

Ginger Chicken (adapted from Marc Matsumoto's recipe)
Makes 4 servings

1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 bunch scallions, white and green separated, thinly chopped
sesame seeds for garnish

Rinse and pat dry the chicken thighs.  Combine the soy sauce, honey, vinegar, ginger and garlic in a bowl and toss with chicken.  Marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a skillet.  Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken in a single layer, leaving space between each piece (you may need to cook it in batches).  Regulate the temperature so that the marinade doesn't burn (too high) yet the chicken doesn't leech water (too low) - you want it just right to get that nice crust dark brown crust.  Fry one side of the thighs, then flip and fry the other.  Remove to a plate.

Wipe the burnt bits out of the pan and add the rest of the marinade and the white part of the chopped scallion, returning the pan to medium-high heat.  Bring the marinade to a boil and return the chicken to the pan.  Turn the chicken pieces as the sauce reduces, until you have a nice glaze that's sticking to the chicken.  Serve garnished with green scallion and sesame seeds, over rice.

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Homemade Ginger Ale
Makes about 8 cups

4 big knobs ginger, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup honey, or to taste
1 liter seltzer
Lemon slices for garnish

Combine the ginger and 4 cups water in a pot.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer about 40 minutes.  Strain out the ginger and mix in the honey, stirring until it's totally dissolved.  Transfer to a container and chill.

When ready to serve, mix 1 part seltzer to 1 part ginger brew in each glass, with a slice of lemon and a few ice cubes.

Sweet & Tart (and loving it)

I'd like to introduce you to one of my favorite books, A Fistful of Lentils by Jennifer Felicia Abadi.  People, meet book; book, people.  It's a cookbook, obviously (and can be purchased here).  It reveals the delectable secrets of Syrian-Jewish grandmother cooking, while also giving the reader little glimpses into the history of the author's own family, as told by her grandmother and other elder family members.  It's a fun read, the recipes are straightforward and well-tested, and once you get the hang of the cooking style, with the words of all these relatives swimming around your head, you kinda start to feel like one of the family!

Below is a pretty close interpretation of the book's Dja'jeh Mish Mosh.  My minor changes are the addition of a marinating step with spices for extra oomph, using honey instead of brown sugar, and leaving the dish uncovered for the final 30 minutes of baking.  Otherwise, full credit goes to Ms. Abadi and her Grandma Fritzie.

Sweet and Tart Chicken with Apricots

Recipe adapted from, "A Fistful of Lentils: Syrian-Jewish Recipes From Grandma Fritzie's Kitchen," 

by Jennifer Abadi. (c) 2002, used by permission from The Harvard Common Press.

Serves 4


CHICKEN:
3 pounds chicken pieces (white and/or dark), skinned
1/4 cup kebab spice (or whatever spice blend you prefer; optional)
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons oil

SAUCE:
2 tablespoons oil
2/3 cup coarsely chopped yellow onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
One 6-ounce can unsalted tomato paste
1-1/4 cups cold water
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins is best)
3 tablespoons honey
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon tamarind paste
1-1/4 cups dried whole Turkish apricots

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Marinate the chicken: Rinse the chicken pieces under cold running water, pat dry, and sprinkle with spices, salt and pepper and place in a casserole, covered, for 15 minutes to marinate.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  When the oil is quite hot, add the chicken pieces, a few at a time, and brown, cooking for 2 to 3 minutes per side.  Repeat with the rest of the chicken and set aside.

Prepare the sauce: Heat the oil in the same skillet over medium heat and cook the onions until golden and soft,  3 to 4 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook, stirring, an additional 1 minute, being careful not to burn it.

Combine the remaining sauce ingredients except the apricots in a  bowl and pour into the skillet with the onions and garlic.  Bring the sauce to a boil over high heat.  Turn off the heat and set aside.

Arrange the chicken pieces snugly in one layer in a roasting pan.  Cover the chicken with the apricots and pour the sauce over the apricots, reserving 1/2 cup for later.  Cover with aluminum foil or a tight lid and bake for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, pour the remaining sauce over the chicken and continue to bake, uncovered, until the chicken is tender and almost falling off the bones, another 30 minutes.  Serve hot over rice or your favorite grain (I like this with freekeh, smoked green wheat.

Sunday Suppers: Chicken Mughlai Curry

Back to the universal meat pleaser: chicken!  Short post today; after working a vegan wedding the past 2 days, I'm feeling pretty taciturn and inactive.  I spent the little energy I had left on this tasty, easy dish.

If you're interested in the recipe, check out Grace Parisi's great book, Get Saucy.  It's a 436-page sauce bible that is a great addition to any well-rounded cookbook collection.

Buen Provecho!

Sunday Suppers: Chicken Tetrazzini

For our make-more-to-store meal this week, I was looking to do a big, hearty chicken-noodle situation, and after numerous searches it became clear that the best bet for a rib-sticking casserole would be a dish named after the Italian opera star, Luisa Tetrazzini, for whom this was created circa 1910, legend has it, at the Knickerbocker Hotel in NYC.  Sweet!

There is no universal standard for this dish, but all recipes out there agree on a few general parameters: non-red meat (i.e. chicken), mushrooms, butter, cream, Parmesan, sherry or wine, and noodles.  My version is a slightly healthier version, with milk instead of cream and minimal cheese.  Even still, the aromas emanating from your oven will be as rich and palatable as a Puccini aria!

Chicken Tetrazzini (printable recipe)
serves 6

a 4-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces
3 celery stalks, with the leaves
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and halved
1/2 bunch thyme

1/2 pound broad egg noodles

5 tablespoons (2.5 ounces) unsalted butter
8 ounces mushrooms, destemmed and sliced thin
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Sherry
1 cup cream/milk
freshly grated nutmeg
salt and black pepper to taste
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

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Prepare the chicken: Combine the chicken, celery, carrot, half of the onion, and the thyme in a large pot with enough water to cover it by 2 inches, and bring to a boil.  Salt generously, and reduce heat and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until the chicken is tender.  Remove the meat from the broth and let it cool on a plate.  Separate the meat from the skin and bones, returning the skin and bones to the broth, and shred the meat into small pieces, reserving it.  Simmer the broth until it is reduced by half, then strain it, discard the solids and skim the fat, and boil the broth until reduced to about 2 cups.

While the broth reduces, cook the noodles in a kettle of well-salted boiling water until just al dente and drain well, reserving a cup of the pasta water.

Prepare the sauce: Chop the remaining half onion.  Melt the butter over medium heat and add the chopped onion and sliced mushrooms.  Cook until softened, about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle in flour, mix well, and cook about 2 minutes longer.  Add sherry and turn heat to medium-high to burn off the alcohol.  Stir in the reduced broth, milk and nutmeg, and simmer until slightly thickened.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. (Warning: your broth will already be well-salted, so don't go crazy.  Generous pepper is recommended, though.)

Assemble the dish:  Preheat the oven to 350 and oil a 3-quart casserole dish.  In a large bowl, toss together the chicken, noodles, and sauce.  If the mixture seems too dry, add a little reserved pasta water, just a splash at a time, to your liking.  Turn the mixture out into the prepared dish and sprinkle the top with the Parmesan.  Bake in the center of the oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top is slightly golden.

First you get a chicken...

Admit it, there's nothing better than a roast chicken. As my bro Paul said to me yesterday, it's on par with doing laundry as far as simple satisfactions go. Let me explain: you get your little chicken load ready, you fire up the oven, pop it in, and in one scant hour, PRESTO, you've got delicious chicken meat for days.

So, yesterday I believe I made the best roast chicken of my life. It's perfectly moist, with a crisp, salty browned skin, and a delectably sweet aroma due to the bed of sweet Vidalia onions I cooked it over. And I can't stress enough the role that tons of garlic and herbs plays in producing the most perfect of chickens. I crammed as much thyme and peeled garlic cloves in there as I possibly could (pardon me, dear chicken). And then I trussed the legs together with kitchen twine so that nary a drop of delicious chicken juice could escape from that herbaceous cavity! Mwa-ha-ha!

Here's how it's done, people:

Best Roast Chicken
(makes 4-6 servings)

One 3- to 4- pound organic chicken
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
1 bunch thyme
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large Vidalia onion, cut into chunks
1 lemon, quartered
1/4 cup dry sherry

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Rinse the chicken and pat it dry, inside and out, so as not to risk steaming it.
2. Salt and pepper the cavity, then stuff it with herb and garlic. Truss the chicken by tying the ends of the drumsticks together over the main cavity, close to the breasts (see photo). This helps keep the breasts from drying out and also allows the bird to cook more evenly.
3. Next, give the bird a fine, even coating of salt. Not just a sprinkle or a pinch, but a visible crust. Season with pepper and brush all over with the olive oil.
4. Put the chicken in a roasting pan or oven-proof saute pan and surround it with the onions and lemon. Place in the center of the preheated oven. Roast it for 50 to 60 minutes, without opening the oven to baste or steal a peek, until a thermometer inserting into the thigh reads 160 degrees F and the juice runs clear.
5. Remove it from the oven and baste it with the rendered juices. Let it rest 15 minutes before carving and serving.
6. While the chicken rests, strain the pan juices, reserving the onions, and skim off the fat. Put into a small saucepan with the sherry, and heat over medium-high until the sauce reduces somewhat, about 5 minutes. Pour over the bird and serve with the reserved onions.

Spring is here!

And this means the asparagus has sprung!

Walking home from work yesterday, I spotted a sweet deal at my local green grocer: huge bunches of beautiful pencil asparagus for just $1 each! (Oh Astoria, how I love thee.) At the same time, my stomach was calling for tacos. Now, you might scoff at the idea of tacos with asparagus, but at that moment a lightbulb of craving went off in my brain (or my gut?), and a slightly crazy idea was born. The resulting repast? Shredded chicken tacos with crunchy asparagus and guacamole. Easy and very rich in vitamin S! (that's for Spring, silly.)
Pulled Chicken Tacos with Asparagus and Guacamole
(serves 3-4)

Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 bunch pencil asparagus (about 1 pound)

- 3 ripe avocados, halved and pitted
- 1 medium red onion, chopped small
- 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and minced
- 2 plum tomatoes, cored and diced
- juice of 2 lemons- 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
- salt to taste

To serve:
- corn tortillas (I used blue corn - very aesthetically pleasing)
- sour cream
- Mexican beer with lime

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350 deg. F. Rinse and pat dry the chicken breasts and place in a medium baking dish. Coat with olive oil and sprinkle evenly with salt, cumin, and paprika. Bake for 45-60 minutes, until the inside is not pink, or an instant-read thermometer reads 165 degrees.

2. Meanwhile, salt a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Rinse asparagus and cut off the toughest part of the stem, at the very bottom. Chop the remaining asparagus stalks into half-inch segments and drop into boiling water for a minute only (you want the asparagus bright green, not yellow-brown and overcooked). Drain quickly and shock with cold water immediately to stop the cooking. Set aside.

3. Now go ahead and make your guacamole: Scoop the avocado out into a large bowl and break up roughly with a wooden spoon. Add the onion, jalapeno, tomato, lemon juice, cilantro, and season to taste with salt. Mix well and set aside.

4. When chicken is fully cooked, remove from baking dish and allow to cool completely. Then, using your fingers, shred the chicken into small, taco-appropriate pieces.

5. Finally, in a hot, dry skillet, warm your tortillas - about 1 minute per side - and keep warm by wrapping in a clean kitchen towel until ready to serve.

6. To serve, pile some chicken, guacamole, crunchy asparagus, and sour cream on a warm tortilla, roll up, and enjoy with your favorite Mexican beer!

Chicken pizza?!!

Yes, folks, you read that right: Chicken pizza. Or, really, chicken lamejun. Lamejun is a flatbread made in Armenia and Turkey that is typically topped with ground lamb, onion, and spices chopped finely into a paste. This non-traditional version, again taken from Ana Sortun's "Spice," is a wonderful adaptation. Imagine an aromatic chicken meatball spread all over a thin piece of bread (called lavash). Having just acquired an 11-cup Cuisinart food processor (thanks, Mom!), I thought I would take it for a test drive with this simple recipe:

Chicken Lamejun with Roasted Red Peppers, Pistachios, and Za'atar
(makes 4 large lamejun)

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 small Spanish onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 scallions, trimmed and minced
1 teaspoon za'atar (see previous post)
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg white
1/4 cup milk
1 cup toasted and ground pistachios
4 rectangular pieces of lavash
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 roasted red peppers, deseeded, skinned, and sliced into strips
Homemade labneh (see previous post) for serving

1. Trim chicken breasts of any cartilage or fat and cut into 1- to 2-inch cubes.
2. Grind the chicken in a food processor until you get a smooth paste, for about 1 minute.
3. Use the pulse button to add in the onion and scallions, za'atar, salt, and egg white.
4. Remove the mixture to a small bowl, and stir in the milk and pistachios.
5. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
6. Spread a thin, even layer of the chicken mixture onto each lavash, all the way to the edges.
7. Put the lamejuns on a baking sheet or a pizza stone (or even in a baking dish that is too small, so the ends hang over the sides - you'll end up with a bowl-shaped lamejun!) and bake for about 15 minutes, until the lavash is crisp and the chicken mixture is totally cooked (it should be completely firm).
8. Serve each lamejun with a few red pepper strips and a dollop of labneh cheese.

Dan enjoyed his lamejun!

Spicy food for the Soul

Friday night dinners have become a real thing around here for the past few weeks. Last time, it was the "spoon lamb" with my rice pilaf. This time, I improved upon my rice with a fancy new spice mix I made, and served it alongside some Persian fried chicken (me!?? fried?? health nut...no more??) and salad with pomegranate vinaigrette.

I just worked all day and I'm not feeling too chatty, so I'll just dump these pictures and quick blurbs into your lap(top) for you to gander at.

Sweet (and savory!) dreamzzzz...Take 2 of my pilaf involved the same basmati rice, this time with carrot ribbons braised in orange juice and zest, chopped toasted pistachios, and a spice blend that featured dried rose petals, black pepper, cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, and nutmeg, ground to a fine and fragrant powder in my spice grinder. I mixed the spice with some olive oil to make a paste, with which I coated the still hot rice, thus quickly cooking the spices and allowing them to melt into the soft floral scent of the basmati. Mmm, can you smell that....?

The Persian Fried Chicken recipe came from page 56 of Ana Sortun's book (still my new obsession), so I can't disclose the thing, but I'll tell ya this: I marinated chicken thighs in yogurt, garlic, and mint, and then dredged them in paprika-spiked flour, and fried them in a vat of hot oil until they looked like something deeply Southern. But they tasted Middle Eastern! Quite tricky.
The spinach salad was refreshing and dressed simply:
- 1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
- 3/4 cup olive oil

I'm considering going into business selling my own spice blends:
Whaddya think?