Concentrate

All right, here’s a challenge.  How do you take a pot of shrimp and pasta, perfectly prepared to delight you and dinner guests, then pour in five cups of stock, and avert disaster?  Not just that, but bring it instead to triumph, much better than what originally was intended?  Quite a baffler.  Is there a solution?  There…

Dishwasher’s Holiday

Whether that dishwasher is a person, or an appliance, little matter. Making a complete dinner that cooks up in one tray is sure to save on dirty dishes now and on work later. That’s the beauty of Chicken Traybake, a concoction in which, as the name suggests, poultry, a side, and a sauce for both…

En la Cocina de Mama

Or, for Anglos, translated to English, “In Mom’s Kitchen.”  That’s where Mexico City chef Enrique Olvera had the best Entomatado de Res, or Beef and Tomatillo Stew, he ever experienced (or created) in his illustrious career.  Splendid as a standalone dish or in filling warm corn tortillas, it’s home-cooked meat and potatoes made infinitely more…

Really, Just Like Chicken?

Saying something is “just like chicken” has become something of a culinary joke by now, a sure sign the speaker lacks imagination or descriptive ability.  Maybe so, but what if something is surprisingly similar to chicken?  Especially when it’s not even meat?  Cauliflower achieves such a feat when it’s prepared after the Lebanese fashion and…

They Gave You Some Sauce, Right?

An important point, because Jaew dipping sauce is vital to vaulting Thai Grilled Pork Skewers (Moo Ping) past excellent all the way to legendary.  Already, the thinly sliced meat ribboned onto skewers allows the flavorful marinade to permeate every square millimeter.  Then, dunking it in the jaew after grilling enacts some new kind of magic. …

Tried and New

Whatever else its challenges, the oncoming coldness makes hearty meals beautifully satisfying and even more delicious. These charms glow with additional radiance when novel ingredients take their appreciation to brand-new levels. Food which already was warmly comforting becomes bracing in its newfound delights. Chicken stew is a great example. The Korean version is called Dak…

What about Milk?

As the notes accompanying the recipe in the July-August 2019 Milk Street explain, Catalans like to dunk carquinyolis, local almond cookies, in coffee or in a sweet dessert wine.  Good advice in principle, though difficult in practice.  Coffee is an unfortunate choice, while a Catalan dessert wine could be a pricy acquisition for so limited…

The Mighty Walnut

As walnut trees are common in many parts of the Near Eat and particularly in forests throughout the Caucasus mountains, it’s not surprising the region’s people favor the flavorful nut the tree produces.  Today’s dish, Chicken with Walnut-Cilantro Sauce, is one way cooks in Georgia (the country, not the US state!) make good use of…

Mushrooms, Most Honorable

Indeed, not only do shitake mushrooms bring today’s entry much regard, they also glorify it with anticipation of a great meal.  The Japanese invented a word to describe the fifth element to engage the tongue, umami.  The term has gained wide acclaim lately, both in and out of food circles, and it signifies a delightfully…

Treasure Beyond Gold and Jewels

Indeed, Persian cookery engages not just the eyes and nose, but it captivates the taste buds as well, unfolding flavors that subtly hint at the delights that await.  The visuals, though, beguile, and make the first pass at seduction. Persians call the pilaf Javaher Polow, or Jeweled Rice, and fittingly so.  Saffron sets the rice…