Category Archives: roasted meats and veggies

Jun 29 1 comments
grilled, barbequed, smoked, and fried, roasted meats and veggies

Pork, Fig, & Rosemary Browned Butter

To frame this post, I’d like to tell you Dan’s recommended names.  First was “Pork Fig Fat.”  Secondly, he went with PORK FIG AWESOME.  I was partial to both, but thought I’d give a more descriptive title.  No matter what you call it though, this dish was exactly what I needed.  You see, tonight was the first night that we have been home to cook dinner since last week, something that has left me feeling off center and a bit cranky.  Also, I ate some old marshmallows so that could be a contributing factor.

I started dreaming about figs mid last week, but beyond stuffing them with goat cheese and wrapping them in proscuitto (done) and fig ice cream (coming soon), I couldn’t think of anything interesting.  I wanted something sweet yet salty, juicy yet firm.  Figs are such a strange texture and flavor, I knew I needed to pair them with something that wouldn’t overwhelm them.  Something that would act as the facade broach to your neck scarf.

Incidentally, this dish was over 50% accident.  On Sunday night I was drinking a beer, but then I got too tired to finish it.  I didn’t want to waste half of a very nice beer, so I thought beer brine!  And that is what I did.  I was going to cook this Monday night.  But then we had to go to Pennsylvania to sort out some issues transferring the title of our car, so instead of marinating 24 hours, the pork marinated 48.  I was also going to put goat cheese on top of the pork, but I forgot that one.

I am glad to say that, with the exception of forgetting the cheese, this dish was a combination of happy accidents.  Like making a mixed tape of a handful of artists that don’t seem to go together but completely work (so much so that you start writing letters to them encouraging a tour).  I want to write letters to the pork and fig boards.  I want to let the browned butter association know about this.  I’ll probably just settle for letting you know.  It’s good.  Damn good.  As Dan described, the fig almost tastes like it’s the pork fat, but sweeter and more succulent than expected.  Which explains his first title suggestion.  Also, it explains his face whilst waiting for me to finish taking pictures.

Pork, Fig, & Rosemary Browned Butter

2 boneless pork chops

6 black mission figs

1 cup beer

2 tbsp honey

1 stick of butter

1 sprig of fresh rosemary

2 garlic cloves

4 slices goat cheese

Salt & pepper

Olive oil

Place pork in a bowl and pour honey and beer over, completely submerging.  Stick in the fridge and marinate at least 4 hours, or up to 48.

To Grill This Dish:

Remove the pork from the marinade.  Pat dry and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper.  Fire up the grill.

Cut figs in half.  Brush both sides with olive oil.  Set aside.

In a medium skillet over low heat, melt butter with rosemary and sliced garlic.  Allow to cook, stirring occasionally, until it is dark brown.

Grill pork for 5-7 minutes.  Flip.  When you’ve flipped the pork, put the figs on the grill open face down.  Place cheese on top of the pork, allowing it to melt slightly.  Cook 5 minutes and remove everything.  Let meat rest at least 5 minutes.

Combine figs and pork on a plate.  Top with browned butter sauce and serve.

To Roast This Dish:

Remove the pork from the marinade.  Pat dry and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper. Heat oven to 350.

Slice figs in half.  In a roasting pan combine pork and figs.  Slice the butter and place the pats around the dish.  Slice the garlic thinly and sprinkle over everything.  Add rosemary, salt, and pepper.  Cover.  Let cook about 30 minutes.  Top with cheese and serve.

Feb 06 4 comments
roasted meats and veggies, tutorials

A Perfectly Cooked Steak

Oftentimes I begin to compose posts for this site in my head, far from my computer screen.  Whether I’m driving through suburban Maryland trying to avoid 495 or laying in bed trying to fall asleep, stories will begin to form in my head.  Incidentally this is also how I wrote my wedding vows, over the course of many a late night.  This week I was thinking about this post, how when I was learning to cook meat I would have loved a detailed, in depth post.  In my head, this post began “now that grilling season is upon us.”  Which immediately reminded me that grilling season is not upon us.  That if you listened to that groundhog this week, grilling season will never be upon us.

Anyway, it doesn’t matter that it’s not the appropriate time to grill things.  It doesn’t matter that it is CURRENTLY SNOWING (like, three feet on the ground snowing).  Mostly those things don’t matter because I don’t have a balcony or a backyard and therefore do not have a grill, which means that grilling season doesn’t exist for me.  What does exist is “pan roasting” season, which, in my opinion, is a great way to cook steak.  First of all, let me just say that it took me a really long time to learn how to cook a steak perfectly.  Maybe it had something to do with my being a vegetarian, the fact that my father prefers everything still bleeding, or maybe learning to cook meat is something that just takes time.

In my opinion, a “perfectly” cooked steak is salty and crunchy on the outside with a medium rare center.  Medium rare means pinkish red but warm.  Less cooked alternatives are rare, which is red and warmish and bloody, which is  a cool center.  More cooked alternatives are medium, a solid pink and warm center, medium well (very light pink center), or well done, which is a waste of your money (in my opinion.  Though we do have friends who order their steaks done and dip them in ketchup).  Pan roasting is exactly what it sounds like, cooking over medium heat for a longer period of time on the stove top.  The reason I like pan roasting steaks is partially because, as I mentioned, I don’t have a grill and partially because it creates a delicious crust on the steak, which I think is vital.

As for measuring doneness, I rely on three separate methods (because I have served grossly undercooked meat before and don’t care to repeat it.)  First, there is temperature.  I  use a meat thermometer to take the temperature of the center of the steak, which should be 145 for medium rare.  Secondly, there is the hand test.  With this test you compare the firmness of your hand in various positions to the firmness of the meat.  An open hand has the same firmness as rare meat, thumb to pointer is medium rare, thumb middle finger is medium, thumb to ring finger is medium well, and thumb to pinky is well done.  Finally, there is simply the test of time.  I’ve heard that you don’t want to flip a steak on the grill/in the pan more than once.  I’m not sure why but that always sticks with me while I’m cooking steak.  So, I try and decide on a time per side based on the thickness of the steak.  If the steak is 1/2″ thick I’ll cook it 8-10 minutes per side.  For a steak that’s 1″ thick I’ll go 10-12 minutes.  Usually I combine a general time forecast with a meat thermometer and frequent firmness tests.  It’s obsessive, yes, but the payoff (a perfectly good steak) is large.

Finally, lets discuss seasoning.  Kosher salt and pepper.  That’s it. I use my cast iron pan to pan roast, sprayed with canola oil.  I sprinkle a generous portion of kosher salt and pepper on each side and voila.  Actually, lets also discuss what kind of steak you’re buying.  For this method, eating it with only salt and pepper to bring out the flavor, I buy grass fed, organic strip steak.  Because the flavor is so amazing that it’s an almost otherworldly experience.  It’s just… perfect.  You could also use filet mignon, porterhouse, sirloin, or t-bone.  The key is cooking it over low to medium heat for a longer amount of time so the flavor has the opportunity to really blossom.  Also, after you’ve cooked it, you must let it rest.  ”Resting” the meat is just what it sounds like, letting it sit.  You do this so the juices can redistribute, which is vital to having a juicy, delicious steak.  Now if you’ll excuse me I’m off to doing what I’ve been doing best lately, being sick in the snow.  Hello Gilmore Girls marathon!

dan measuring the snow outside our window. how much? too much.

Pan Roasted Strip Steak

1 lb strip steak (enough for 2)

1 tbsp kosher salt

1 tbsp black pepper

Heat a cast iron pan over medium low heat (3 or 4 or a gas stove).  Spray with cooking oil and let the pan warm.

Pull out your steak and pat it down with a paper towel.  Meat won’t get that crisp edge that is essential for the perfect steak unless it is dry when it touches the pan, so dabbing it down is essential.  Sprinkle half your salt & pepper on each side.

When your skillet is hot, place the steak on the pan and set a timer for 12 minutes (for a steak about 1″ thick).  When the 12 minutes is up, flip the steak and reset the timer for another 12 minutes.  During this time you can also take the temperature and check the firmness.  At the end of the final 12 minutes, or when the inner temperature is 145 for medium rare, remove the steak from heat.  Set aside and let rest 10 minutes.

Carve and serve.

Jan 01 2 comments
holiday, roasted meats and veggies, vegetables

Collard Greens, for Prosperity

I joke a lot here and around the interwebs about my distain for escarole.  I’ll clarify that, as an adult, I’m actually fine with escarole.  But as a child I hated it.  It was the one food that I absolutely could not eat, the only thing I couldn’t stomach.  Until I became a vegetarian, and then there were lots of things I couldn’t stomach (including meatloaf).  I read somewhere once that kids have something like twice as many tastebuds as adults, and therefore taste everything twice as intensely,which is why children often have catastrophic aversions to certain foods.

The point of this story is that my mom’s lucky New Year’s day dish was lentil soup and escarole.  Gag.  Which is why I always preferred my dad’s lucky foods, collard greens and black eyed peas.  On New Year’s Day, greens (whether they be spinach, escarole, collards, chard, etc) are served to bring prosperity.  The greens are traditionally cooked with ham, because pork symbolizes progress.  Other common foods for ringing in the New Year are beans (prosperity), fish (good luck), and anything circular, like cakes (the year comes full circle).

This year I opted for fish and collards, skipping the ham hocks and beans because after a few batches of bean soup, I’ve been kind of beaned out lately.  And when it comes cuts of the pig, I’m not the biggest ham fan (I prefer the shoulder).  Collards cooked without ham are cooked essentially the same way, just pan roasted with water or stock, served with garlic and onions.  Because collards are a tough green pan roasting is the ideal way to cook them, low and slow for 45 minutes to an hour allows them to soften and develop flavor.

Instead of resolutions this year I’ve written my “culinary life list.”  Right now it’s 100 things, but it may grow.  It’s a list of things, all food related, that I’d like to accomplish before I kick the bucket.  Do you have a life list, culinary or not?  What’s on it?

Collard Greens

3-4 large collard leaves

1/2 white onion

2 garlic cloves

Salt & pepper

Red pepper flakes

1 tsp nutmeg

2 cups mushroom broth (or vegetable stock)

3 tbsp butter

In a medium size pan, melt butter.  Mince garlic and chop the onion, and saute both in butter until soft.  Add salt, pepper, nutmeg, and red pepper.  Chop the collards into 1/2″ strips.

Add the collards a handful at a time, wilting them before you add more.  Use tongs to toss the greens with the butter and onions.  Add broth, cover.  Simmer on low heat for 45 minutes to an hour.

Uncover and allow the broth to reduce.  Serve and enjoy a year of prosperity!

 

Nov 20 0 comments
holiday, roasted meats and veggies

Roasted Mango and Habanero Turkey


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Nothing freaks me out as much as cooking whole turkeys.  Part of it, I think, stems from my years as a vegetarian.  Cooking all meats makes me squeamish, but there’s also just something about turkey.  Roasting whole chickens, which is essentially the same thing just a little smaller, makes me uncomfortable, but it’s doable.  But the turkey.  The big, honking, scary turkey gives me agida.  Ogeda? The willies.

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You know what didn’t help?  This year, MY TURKEY DIDN’T HAVE LEGS.  I spent more money than I’m willing to admit on an organic free range antibiotic free Whole Foods approved turkey because Dan and I are on this kick where we’re buying ethically raised meats.  And on top of being antibiotic free, it was also leg free. And you know what helps you understand which way is up when cooking a turkey?  THE LEGS AND WINGS.  I couldn’t figure out which way was up!  It’s whole center of gravity was off, it wouldn’t sit straight in the roasting pan and it kept falling over and I’m 99% sure I cooked it upside down.

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Thankfully, even though I cooked it upside down and I had no legs to truss together and I was home sick with a nasty stomach bug, it tasted amazing.  Totally delicious.  Now, you may think that the whole habanero thing is intense and scary and way too spicy for your “not the pepper again” family, but it’s not.  First of all, roasting a habanero takes a lot of the punch out of it, and so the marinade gives the skin a little extra (very subtle) flavor, and keeps the meat perfectly moist.  It’s incredible.

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Don’t forget, springing this recipe onto your springpad, either from b&s or my springpad page, will automatically enter you to win $100!  And if you’re feeling generous, spring all my thanksgiving 2009 recipes to help me win $500!

Roasted Mango & Habanero Turkey

1 habanero

1 mango

1 cup orange juice

1 whole turkey (preferably with legs)

Salt & pepper

Aluminum foil for turkey triangle

*If you’d like your turkey to have an extra punch, you can inject the marinade into the meat of the turkey.  If you’d like to do so, double all the ingredients (save the turkey) and make twice as much marinade.

Heat your oven to 400 degrees. Roast whole mango for 90 minutes and whole habanero for 20. Let cool.

Peel mango and use a knife to scrape pulp off into the food processor. Combine with orange juice and pepper. Blend.

Remove your turkey from it’s packaging and remove any innards. Slather with marinade. Cover in plastic wrap and marinate overnight.

When you’re ready to cook your turkey place in a roasting pan legs up. Tie the legs together.

Fit your turkey triangle. A turkey triangle keeps the white meat juicy while cooking the dark meat. Make a triangle out of the foil and fit it around the body of the turkey.

Heat your oven to 500. Cook turkey at 500 for 30 minutes (without triangle). Then drop the temperature down to 350, put on the triangle, and cook until the temperature of the breast is 165.

Allow to rest 20 minutes before carving.

Nov 09 2 comments
roasted meats and veggies, vegetables

Apartment Kabobs


kabobs5

I know, logically, that it’s not winter yet.  I also know that I should stop whining about the fact that the seasons are changing and just embrace it, because it’s going to be a very long winter.  But did anyone else notice that it was 30 degrees on Saturday? I mean, seriously?  That’s BELOW FREEZING.

kabobs4

It’s times like these that many people say oooh, it’s chilly!  Let’s light a fire!  Let’s have soup!  Sometimes I’m that person.  Sometimes I can curl up in a heavy blanket with a bowl of thick, creamy, life-giving soup.  And when I am in that mood, I’m so happy.  But that’s usually like October 15.  When by “change of season” I really mean “it’s 60 degrees out.”  Not when it’s 30 degrees out.  That’s when I close my eyes and try and magic myself somewhere tropical.

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Unfortunately for me I have yet to successfully magic myself anywhere, which means that I have to resort to recreating some of my summer favorites inside my cold apartment.  Take the shish kabob.  A summertime favorite ’round the world.  A combination of marinated meats and veggies all skewered and cooked over hot coals.  How could you go wrong?!?  You may be thinking that “cooked over hot coals” is the imperative phrase here, something tricky to recreate in the winter let alone in an apartment with no balcony or yard.

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Wait for it… THE OVEN!  Shish kabobs, marinated and placed on a rack, can be roasted in the oven with essentially the same results as a grill.  I mean, you lose the grill flavor and the pass time of grilling things, but still- this means shish kabobs year round!  You can vary the vegetables (and meats) that you use, but pretty much everything tastes good skewered.  It’s the on-a-stick principle.  That’s why fairs and renaissance festivals have the best food.

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Apartment Kabobs

Marinade:

2/3 cup red wine vinegar

2/3 cup olive oil

4 tbsp honey

Paprika

Cayenne

Garlic

Cumin

Chipotle

Cinnamon

Coriander

Kabobs:

1 steak, cubed

1 white onion

1 green bell pepper

1 cup cherry tomatoes

1 cup mushrooms

1 cup tomatillos

1 eggplant

Chop steak, onion, pepper, and eggplant.  Put the steak in one bag and the veggies in another.

Use a food processor or immersion blender to combine the marinade ingredients.  Pour half with the meat and half with the veggies.  Marinate overnight.

Line a baking sheet with tin foil.  Place a cooling rack on top.  Stick different combinations of veggies and meat on skewers and line up on the rack.  Roast at 400 for 15 minutes, or until meat is cooked.  Let cool.

Serves 6.