Peaches in a Crust (Single Servings)

In the search for mango alternatives, I discovered that peaches have a similar texture. I made successful chutney using frozen peaches. My exuberance left the freezer with several pounds of frozen peaches that were begging to grace the dessert menu. Why not make a simple pie in an individual serving size. Prior experience suggested that a small pie bakes in 25 minutes.

2~3 tablespoons butter

2~3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon white sugar

1 pound frozen peaches

Pinch of nutmeg

Pinch of cinnamon

1 piecrust, rolled out (frozen pie crust is fine)

2 Teaspoon Demerara sugar

Melt butter in a frying pan, add sugars. When well heated, add peaches. Cook mixture and toss a few minutes. Add spices and a pinch of salt. Taste peaches. If not tart enough, add a bit of lemon juice. Split peaches into two oven safe Pyrex bowls. Cover top of peaches with a pie crust. Cut a slit in the middle of the pies to allow steam to escape. Sprinkle crust with Demerara sugar crystals.

Bake at 400 F for 25 minutes until golden brown. Serve very warm. Good with whipped cream.

Chinese Style Sausage Lap Cheong

This Chinese ingredient will help you extend your Chinese menu with a real popular flavor additive. Lap cheong is used throughout the world and there are many varieties as shown in this video on Asian Travel in Singapore. Most of these are made with pork and chicken, but some include liver. With the diversification of American cuisine, many Asian ingredients are made in the USA as well. Amazon.com shows 33 varieties they offer online but one of my favorites that is Kam Yen Jan Chinese Style Sausage Rose Wine Flavored . If shopping at an Asian market you will be able to find it cheaper.
Many families just pop a few sausages into their rice cooker if making fried rice. The rose wine or rice vinegar rose flavored make the rice more aromatic. Try steaming the sausage and slicing thin in scrambled eggs with a few sliced scallions and a touch of Fish Sauce. In my kitchen, these sausages find their way in ramen, soups, and hot pots.

Chicken Tomato Vegetable Soup

This is low fat and very hearty. You can make it as spicy as you like.

4 Boneless breasts of chicken, chopped

2 Quarts chicken stock

3 Cups of cold water

1 Large yellow onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper

4 Sweet carrots, chopped

2 Small yellow crookneck squash, chopped

1 Can red kidney beans

1 Can white butter beans

1 Cup string beans, chopped

2 Cloves crushed garlic

Pinch of red pepper flakes

White and black pepper

2 Teaspoons onion powder

1/2 Teaspoon sage

2 Bay leaves

1 32-ounce can of crushed tomatoes

1 cup Ditalini pasta

Cut up vegetables, add stock and water. Add spices, beans, garlic, cut up chicken. Bring to a boil then simmer three hours. Add pasta and cook until pasta is al dente. Serve with a good sour dough bread.

Spanish Chicken with Olives and Wine

This dish was modified from an original recipe that was acquired by Katherine Ottesen, my mother while on vacation in Spain. She barged into the kitchen and refused to leave unless they shared the recipe. It is bursting with solid Mediterranean flavors. It is a whole meal, easy to prepare and cooks in one hour. All that is needed is good bread to make the meal complete although we usually serve it over steamed white or brown jasmine rice.

1 Chicken, cut up or legs, thighs, and wings (4 pounds)

1 large can of pitted black Californian olives (may also want to consider half and half with green olives as a variation.)

4 Vine ripened large tomatoes, quartered in wedges

2 Green bell peppers, sectioned into 1/2 slices, seeded and stemmed.

(or 1 green bell pepper and 1 yellow bell pepper, etc.)

1 Cup of dry white wine

2 Cloves of crushed garlic

1 Large yellow onion, peeled, coarsely sliced

2 tablespoons best cold pressed olive oil (i.e. best virgin olive oil rich in flavor)

1 tablespoon sweet butter

Salt and pepper to taste

Smoky Spanish paprika (pimentón) to taste (optional)

Cut up chicken into pieces, sauté at 350 (medium) in butter and oil in a large skillet (equipped with a lid) until lightly golden brown. (Drain of excess oil.) Add pepper and a little salt. Add wine, garlic, then cover the chicken with all the other ingredients. Reduce heat to simmer, cover and cook one hour. Toward the end of the hour look at the liquid level. Partially crack the lid to allow the sauces to thicken somewhat – not absolutely necessary but a thicker sauce will help concentrate the flavors. When done, taste the sauce and correct the salt as required. Also add Spanish paprika optionally. (You may choose to remove the vegetables and chicken from the pan so you may turn up the heat to thicken the sauce by driving away excess moisture; in this case, platter the chicken and vegetables and pour over the thickened sauce.) Serve either with fresh Italian Bread or steamed rice or both.

Enhancing Savory and Flavor

Glutamate (the Umami taste) has a long history in cooking. Fermented fish sauces, rich in glutamate, were already used in ancient Rome.

Some sauces, ferments, condiments are similar and maybe used together or individually regardless of their country of origin. Monosodium glutamate (MSG), a form of an amino acid called glutamic acid is used in many Asian cultures as a flavor enhancer. While people are quick to point out MSG still has salt, using some MSG reduces the amount of salt needed for the same level of salty taste by 40%. Monosodium glutamate used to be produced by a process involving wheat and formerly was not gluten free giving rise to the urban legend that MSG gives people stomach problems eating at Chinese restaurants. At this point, international and national bodies for the safety of food additives consider MSG safe for human consumption as a flavor enhancer.

Many of these sauces and condiments are salty as umami is enhanced with salt. Salt varies considerable in many of these products just look at the range seen in types of soy sauce.

Salt in Commercial Sauces

Seasoning or Sauce	Teaspoon
Chinese Maggi Seasoning Sauce	400
European Maggi Seasoning Sauce (from an extract of corn gluten and soy protein mixed with water)	480
Thai Golden Mountain Sauce similar to Maggi. Uses two flavor enhancers but no MSG. The flavor enhancer disodium guanylate is, according to Wikipedia, "produced from dried fish or dried seaweed" to create the taste of umami.	420
Bragg’s Liquid Aminos	320
Knorr Liquid Seasoning	410
Kitchen Bouquet Browning & Seasoning Sauce	10
Lee and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce (Anchovy Sauce)	10
Soy sauce made from soy and wheat (tamari)	330
Low Sodium Soy Sauce Kikkoman	173
Black Soy	170
Mushroom Soy	430

Here are some of my commonly used seasoner in my kitchen. (If only I had a bigger kitchen sigh...)

In this picture, left to right, Chinkiang Black Rice Vinegar (a characteristic smoky flavor), Black Soy, Tamari Soy, Kitchen Bouquet, Marin (sweet rice wine), seasoned rice vinegar, brown rice vinegar, Mushroom Soy. When buying these, generally the more it costs the better it is. The best brown rice vinegar from Japan is rare and expensive as 100 year old balsamic,and usually taken as a health tonic. Brown and black vinegars have high concentration of essential amino acid. Medical researchers now believe it is the amino acids present in vinegar that are partly responsible for its medicinal effects.

Common flavor enhancers include fish sauces, shrimp sauce, tomato paste, shrimp paste, bean paste, vegetable pastes, dried shrimp, soy sauce, Nestlé Maggi seasoning sauce, oyster sauce, dried  mushroom, amino acid products, vinegars, wine, sherry, port, brandies, onion family vegetables including garlic, broths, stocks, demi-glace, fruit pastes, meat extract, cheese, and ground nuts. Nestlé Maggi seasoning sauce is a dark-colored, vegetable protein-based sauce that is different depending in which country it being sold. Kitchen Bouquet is a browning and seasoning sauce primarily composed of caramel with vegetable flavorings made in the US and first shown in Europe exhibit at the Paris Exposition of 1889.

A good example of a wide mix of flavors is the recipe for my steak sauce. My recipe uses tamarind paste, orange rind, raisins, lime, Kitchen Bouquet browning sauce, tomato paste, brown sugar, peppers, onions, herbs, spices and vinegar. (See my cookbook page) It shows a complexity but a complimentary result.

Reductions sauces are prime candidates for complex flavor enhancers. For a great steak or chop I often make a reduction that is flavored with red wine, dried mushrooms (prefer porcini), some type vinegar or balsamic, maybe port, herbs, shallots and a demi-glace or stock. A hint of Worcestershire Sauce, tomato paste or some other sauce may also be used. These reductions are easy to make and are not expensive and the result is a high quality gourmet experience.

Gong Bao Ji Ding (Kung Pao Chicken)

This Sichuan dish may well be the world's most popular Chinese dish. It is also one of the few Chinese dishes that have largely remained authentic worldwide. A blend hot, sweet and sour - this delightful chicken dish is also quick to prepare. The chicken slices easier if it is slightly frozen.

5~6 Boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into thin bite sized pieces

3 Cloves of garlic, minced finely

1 Tablespoon finely minced peeled ginger

10 scallion, sliced on the diagonal into 1 inch lengths

2 Tablespoons peanut oil

Handful of whole dried red chilies (show courage)

1 Teaspoon toasted ground Sichuan peppers added just before serving

2/3 Cup toasted peanuts

For the marinade:

2 Teaspoon Tamari soy sauce

1 Teaspoon sweet rice wine or Shaoxing wine or dry sherry

1½ Teaspoon cornstarch

1 Teaspoon seasoned rice vinegar

1 Tablespoon water

For the sauce:

2 Teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 Teaspoon cornstarch

1 Teaspoon Mushroom soy sauce

1 Teaspoon Tamari soy sauce

2 Teaspoon Chinkiang (Black rice vinegar) or seasoned rice vinegar

1 Teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 Teaspoon Marin

1 Tablespoon chicken stock or water

Pick out any black seeds and stems from a tablespoon of Sichuan pepper berries and discard.(It’s just the hulls we grind.) Heat a small pan until hot and toast pepper hulls until fragrant (30 seconds or so). Turn out into a mortar or grinder. Grind into a not too course grind. Set aside.

Prepare garlic, ginger, and scallions. Assemble the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

Cut the chicken into thin bite sized pieces. Thin strips cook quickly and maintain tenderness when flash cooked in a hot wok. Add the marinade ingredients and stir in the chicken pieces. Let marinate 15 minutes.
Into a hot wok, add peanut oil and then toss the chilies until fragrant. Add and stir-fry chicken for several minutes until nearly fully cooked. Now add the ginger, garlic, and spring onions and stir-fry another minute. Stir the bowl of sauce ingredient then add to wok. Thicken the sauce then add peanuts. Remove from heat. Sprinkle with ground Sichuan peppers. Serve immediately.

Notes:

1.       Sichuan (Schezuan) Pepper aka Prickly Ash - This pepper is not actually a member the pepper family. It has a unique aroma and flavor that is neither hot nor pungent; rather it has lemony flavor and creates a tingly numbness in the mouth that enhances chilies usually used with it. Only the outer husks are used; the shiny black seeds are discarded as they have a hard gritty sand-like texture. Husks are stemmed then toasted before mortared or ground then added to the dish just before serving. Sichuan pepper are one of the traditional ingredients in the Chinese spice mixture five-spice powder and also Japanese shichimi togarashi, a seven ingredient seasoning often found as a shaker on the condiment tray of your Asian noodle shop. Shichimi togarashi is made typically with equal parts each of ground red chilies and ground sansho (berries of the prickly ash tree related to Sichuan pepper) plus one portion each of the following: dried orange or yuzu peel, black sesame, white sesame, ginger, and nori flakes. Due to their lemony undertones, this pepper works well with duck, chicken and fish. Sichuan culinary history reaches all the way back to the Ba and Shu kingdoms in the 21st to 5th centuries BC. During the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907), a 50 volume cookbook was published. Despite its reputation to the contrary, not all Sichuan food is red-hot. Of the eight major culinary cuisines in China, Sichuan cuisine is perhaps the most popular throughout the country and across the world.

 

Sichuan (Schezuan) Pepper aka Prickly Ash

New York Meatballs

Not once in the seven years I lived in Italy was I served meatballs. The Italian-Americans may have made these popular but no place more so than New York. There are several meatball shops every few miles specializing in meatballs. The best of these grind their own meat. As any fine cuisine, the finest ingredients make the best product. Virtually all the Italian recipes I have seen use bread as a tenderizer but its Italian bread that has some chew and texture. Substitute Sourdough bread if you cannot find Italian bread.  Italians use their bread stale then soak it in water. Freshly ground bread crumbs will do the job just as well. Chef Lidia Bastianich’s dredges the outside of the prepared meatballs in the flour until lightly coated so that they get a crispy texture when fried. Most meat balls finish cooking by simmering in sauce, which defeats a crisp outer layer. Cheese is a common ingredient to add flavor. Mario Batali’s meatballs use pecorino Romano while other chefs use Parmigiano Reggiano. Universal to most other recipe is one egg per  1 ½ pound of meat, Italian parsley, diced onion, minced garlic, crushed red pepper, herbs and spices. Most recipes include pork and ground beef, or just pork. The upscale meatball might also include veal. I have made this recipe to include lamb, beef and pork to maximize its flavor. A mixture with too little fat will be necessarily dry and less flavorful. Ribeye steak and Boston butt have the requisite amount of fat. Most of the fat renders when baking. Mario Batali make simmer his meatballs in a suace without a oven or frying, hence excess fat renders into that sauce.

½ Pound of ground ribeye steak

½ Pound ground Boston Butt Pork roast

½ Pound ground lamb shoulder

1 Egg, beaten

3 Cloves garlic, minced

1/3 Cup grated pecorino cheese

Chopped Italian parsley

1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon water

1 Teaspoon Worchester sauce

1 Cup fresh breadcrumbs from sour dough (more for more tender)

Toast these spices (below) until fragrant and then grind in a spice or coffee bean grinder

1 Teaspoon paprika

1 Teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

2 teaspoons Herb de Provence

1/2 teaspoons celery seeds

1 Teaspoon crushed red pepper

1 Teaspoon black pepper

2 Teaspoon sugar

Have ready a simmering quart of great tomato sauce or ragu to simmer the meatballs once baked.

Prepare meat ingredients. Toast spices then grind. Mix spices into meat. Make a sample meat ball and fry in olive oil. When cooked, taste meatball and correct the seasoning as necessary.

Line a tray with tin foil for easy cleanup. Make golf-ball sized round meatballs and space just ½ inch apart on a foil lined tray. Place meatballs in refrigerator for 40 minutes to firm up. 

Preheat oven to 350 F. Bake meatballs on tray in oven for 30 minutes. Using tongs, place meatballs in a baking dish and gently simmer in a prepared tomato sauce or ragu for 15 minutes more.