More than 10 years ago I witness something I'd never seen before. I don't remember the show, most likely on PBS, where all great cooking shows go to die. I watched Jacque Pepin with a sharp knife and a deft hand remove the bones from a whole chicken. All that remained was a s meat blanket ready to be stuffed and roasted. I was in awe. In the past I've taken a knife skills course and the crowning achievement of my final class was the deboning of a chicken. It was a pity that I forgot my steel and my instructor was too busy flirting with the ladies of the class to lend me his. Results? confusion, frustration and a mangled bird. Since then I haven't attempted a deboning, not because I was scared off but I had no reason to do so. I generally buy whole organic birds and disassembling them myself to keep myself familiar with the bones and save a few bucks but never had the occasion come up that required a deboning.
But recently I watched a Ricardo Larrivée Christmas special in which Ricardo's butcher gave him a boneless turkey for his stuffed turkey. This got me thinking? My in-laws tend to only eat the white meat (a.k.a. boneless meat) so why not try it? Still on the fence whether to do it or not I thought I'd try a chicken before I commit to taking on a turkey. And so last night I did. My knife was sharp(ish) and freshly steeled and I was off. Starting with the back of the chicken and slowly, carefully cutting along the ribcage. Then the joints of the legs then continuing along the ribcage to the breast. Then I removed the bones from the legs and thigh and cut off the wings altogether. What I was left with was a layer of skin and meat which I stuffed with a quick stuffing of fried onion, peppers, garlic, various dried herbs, salt and pepper and bread slices cut into cubes. tied it with butcher's twine and roasted it for an hour or so. The results were better than I hoped for. Definitely a successful experiments.
Food, glorious food This blog is dedicated to the magic and science that is food and cooking. To the ingredients, cooking methods and cuisines, that when combined in the right alchemy, turn simple, ordinary ingredients into something extraordinary. And my fascination with it.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
The Quest for Christmas Dinner
'Tis the season to start working on the annual Fake Christmas Dinner. Well, not actually fake but a week pre-mature. A tradition started last year when my wife and I flew to Halifax a week early to have Christmas with her family and in the process avoided the Christmas chaos, the last minute shopping, the delayed flights, the outrages airfare, and having to decide which family to spend Christmas day with. And a bonus, I got to make the turkey. Something I never had the opportunity to do at my folks house. Partially because they're up every holiday from the crack of dawn, peeling, chopping, salting, yelling. But mainly because they do it so well that I dare not try.
Last year's turkey wasn't my best work. the skin was a little crisp on top due to my bad timing with the foil, and not as flavourful as a thanksgiving bird I did a few years back. But still the stuffing and gravy covered anything the bird lacked. But this year, I've started my planning early. Thanks to our neighbours to the south and their Thanksgiving, I get multiple newsletters in November on how to make the perfect bird. So I've collected a few recipes to experiment with. As always I go over each recipe and see if there's anything that stands out as something I want to try or amalgamate with others and this years crop ranges from the traditional bird (which I'm always trying to perfect) to molasses and cranberry glazed. I stay away from the deep fried or grilled birds because I don't have easy access to either a huge fryer or grill for three hours. But a stickler for the tradition I would rather make it in an oven and truly let the flavours of the bird shine rather than smoke or grease.
Brining is a must. The magic of salt and water makes the bird moist and flavourful right to the bone. I have an apple cider brine that I've used for the last two turkeys and it works wonders. I'm going to finalize my menu this weekend and shop for the main ingredients this weekend. Fake Christmas is next Thursday. I'll keep you posted and if it works out I'll share the recipe.
Last year's turkey wasn't my best work. the skin was a little crisp on top due to my bad timing with the foil, and not as flavourful as a thanksgiving bird I did a few years back. But still the stuffing and gravy covered anything the bird lacked. But this year, I've started my planning early. Thanks to our neighbours to the south and their Thanksgiving, I get multiple newsletters in November on how to make the perfect bird. So I've collected a few recipes to experiment with. As always I go over each recipe and see if there's anything that stands out as something I want to try or amalgamate with others and this years crop ranges from the traditional bird (which I'm always trying to perfect) to molasses and cranberry glazed. I stay away from the deep fried or grilled birds because I don't have easy access to either a huge fryer or grill for three hours. But a stickler for the tradition I would rather make it in an oven and truly let the flavours of the bird shine rather than smoke or grease.
Brining is a must. The magic of salt and water makes the bird moist and flavourful right to the bone. I have an apple cider brine that I've used for the last two turkeys and it works wonders. I'm going to finalize my menu this weekend and shop for the main ingredients this weekend. Fake Christmas is next Thursday. I'll keep you posted and if it works out I'll share the recipe.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
"The 7 Numbers" gets an 8
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Last Friday evening my wife and I found ourselves on the Danforth, And en route to the inevitable sea of Greek restaurants whose menus are as familiar to me as my own last name we came across 7 Numbers. A restaurant I was told about by a fellow foodie whose taste tend to be for the pricer cuisine. But knowing my love of home cooking he recommended 7 numbers, a family run restaurants whose original kitchen was helmed by a real italian mama Roza Marinuzzi. The Danforth is their second location. The original closed down and re-opened in Forest Hill. As we entered we were seated not by a hostess or waiter who were busy hustling around, but by a man who I'm assuming is the manager behind the bar waving us to a seat nearby. As odd as it may seem I instantly felt comfortable knowing that there was no protocol or seniority here. You need a seat, you get a seat. the menu is split into 5 courses. Not really in the pasta mood we went for our appetizers, main, and vegetables. First up was the Calamari, I am a huge fan of Calamari, from rings with dipping sauce to baked whole w/ a lemon wedge. and tend to order it in most restaurants just to see what they serve up. What I got at 7 numbers was a bit different. Rather than rings the Calamari was cut lenghtwise, lightly floured and fried, no dip, no lemon on a bed of green. as I started eating the texture was a bit odd but by the end I thorougly enjoyed it. Next up was the braised lamb, which was fall of the bone tender and wonderfully seasoned, accompanied by a spiced broccoli and a glass of wine from Abruzzo, my favorite wine region in italy, it was a wonderful meal. And since we skipped the pasta coarse there was room for what my wife deemed "the best flourless chocolate cake I've ever had" not much higher praise than that. Up until now I haven't mentioned the waitstaff, because other than taking our order and bringing our food there were like ghosts, which in my opinion is the perfect service. The restaurant experience is between you, the food, and your company. Too many actor/waiters working extra hard at being seen in my opinion, I prefer the barely noticable yet when you need them, your plates are taken away and your water glass is refilled. Speaking of water, the only hint at a downside was the slight taste of dirt in the water, I'm hoping it's because it came from a clay jug (can't quite remember) but it was noticable. And as we awaited our bill I remembered the foodie that led me here. The foodie who once recommended I order a $100 aged balsamic risotto. The only way I'd eat $100 plate of rice and vinegar is if someone else is paying and I don't like them very much. So you wouldn't believe my shock when the bill was under $60.
Overall the food was affordable, very good and the waitstaff did their job. Therefore The 7 numbers was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I wonder what the Forest Hill location is like?
Monday, November 2, 2009
As Promised, the Gravy
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I'm sure there's better but this one worked just fine for the meatloaf. I don't remember if it was lumpy or not but I actually enjoy the little dumplings. If this is an issue you can fry the onions/mushrooms and Oil/Flour/stock separately. Strain the stock through a seive then add them to the Onion/Mushroom mix. I just like to get some of Mushroom juice into the flour for that extra bit of mushroomy goodness. Enjoy.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Meatloaf: Comfort Food for Carnivores
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My favorite of all foods is comfort food. Good, simple, and damn tasty. I figure the mastery of home cooking starts with the foods we all know and love. The ingredients are easy to find and the meals are generally inexpensive and go a long way. I have put together a great tome of recipes I've collected from magazines and websites over the years and most pages consist of different comfort foods. I take no credit for any of the recipes I put up here, they are generally a combination of two or three recipes from my collection with some additions of my own. This one I have made with lean ground beef, I'd like to say I ground the meat myself but I was trying to make something quick and simple. I also added the chipotle with some of it's adobo sauce for a bit of heat and smoky flavour. If it's up here then it means I enjoyed it. If I brand it with my "Old Man" stamp then it means that this will be my staple recipe when making this meal in the future. I also made a quick onion and mushroom gravy which I will post a little later. along with a nice cucumber salad my wife and I had a wonderful meal and two more dinners that followed. Maybe even a lunch. Can't quite remember.
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