After eating at three-star restaurants and trying complicated recipes, it’s easy to forget that simple food can be great, too. Fortunately I only need to browse one of Biba Caggiano’s cookbooks to be reminded of that, and that is where … Continue reading Gnocchi with Fish Sauce (Gnocchi con Sugo di Pesce)
Babi Panggang is Malaysian/Indonesian for “roasted pork”. So why did I spell it with only one ‘g’ in the title of this post? Because this is the Dutch version that is only known in the Netherlands (and perhaps Belgium) and … Continue reading Babi Pangang (Pork with Sweet & Sour Red Sauce)
Acqua Pazza (which literally means “crazy water”) is a dish from Campania, the region of Naples. It can be either a primo piatto or a secondo piatto. As a secondo, it is fish cooked with cherry tomatoes. As a primo, it is … Continue reading Spaghetti all’Acqua Pazza (Spaghetti with Fish and Tomatoes)
Thanks to Miranti’s blog The High Heel Gourmet, I’ve been getting into homemade Thai from scratch. It is very different to my usual Italian stuff, but just as delicious in a completely different way. With the batch of thai red … Continue reading Thai Fish Cakes (Tod Mun Pla)
I’ve never yet tried my hand at lobster bisque, and so when Auldo claimed his lobster bisque was top notch I asked him to give me a demo. The result was outstanding, and he volunteered to do a guest post … Continue reading Auldo’s Lobster Bisque
This is what I prepared for our secondo piatto for Easter dinner: lamb shank ‘Italian style’ sous-vide with white asparagus sous-vide. Both lamb and asparagus are perfect to celebrate Spring. I’ve blogged about lamb shank sous-vide before, and that was a very … Continue reading Lamb Shank and Asparagus Sous-Vide
Usually I am a substance over form kind of guy, but this time around I went for the look — without forgetting about flavor of course! The flavors in this dish are a classic combination: lamb, rosemary, eggplant, and potato. … Continue reading Lamb-Eggplant-Potato Mosaic
This post is another example of how good very simple dishes can be. I had never thought of tomato risotto, and saw it for the first time on Le Ricette di Baccos. I tried it, and it was absolutely wonderful. … Continue reading Tomato Risotto (Risotto al Pomodoro)
After my post about Viennese potato salad, it won’t be a surprise that my next post that was inspired by my trip to Vienna is about Wiener Schnitzel. Although this is probably the most famous savory dish from Vienna (unfortunately … Continue reading Wiener Schnitzel
Each region in Italy has its own pasta shapes and pasta recipes. For the southern part of the island of Sardinia the shape is called malloreddus or gnocchetti sardi, and the traditional dish using them is called Malloreddus alla Campidanese. … Continue reading Malloreddus alla Campidanese (Sardinian Pasta with Tomato and Sausage)
Pork tenderloin is amazing cooked sous-vide, it is the most tender and juicy pork tenderloin you have ever tasted. And it is so easy to do: simply season the pork tenderloin with salt and pepper, vacuum seal it, cook it … Continue reading Pork Tenderloin Sous-Vide with Sweet & Sour sauce
Kees and I like to enjoy Spring Break in Miami Beach to enjoy some long awaited sun after the cold rainy winter with little daylight in the Netherlands. As Miami Beach is relatively close to DFW, we thought it would … Continue reading StefanGourmet & REMCooks Fusion: Ancho Chile Ravioli with Smoked Bacon and Sage
Many Italian dishes have an amazing return on ‘investment’: a low number of ingredients and a simple and quick preparation yields a lot of flavor. This is certainly also true for linguine with scallops, although it is fair to say … Continue reading Linguine with Scallops (Linguine alle Capesante)
Rack of lamb is one of my favorite meats. When I saw a rack of venison, it looked just like a huge rack of lamb and I couldn’t resist buying it. I cooked it sous-vide with sage and served it … Continue reading Rack of Venison Sous-Vide with Salsify and Pickled Green Cabbage
A few months ago I had a wonderful appetizer at Ron Gastro Bar in Amsterdam: a salad of chicken gizzards confit, celeriac, celery, and cream of foie gras. It also had crispy chicken skin and freshly shaved truffle, but what … Continue reading Chicken Gizzards Sous-Vide with Celeriac and Cream of Foie Gras
I had never heard of Jambalaya, but it looked delicious when I saw Shrim & Crayfish Jambalaya on REMCooks. (Kees had heard of it, because it is the title of a Carpenters song. Go figure.) I decided to try it, … Continue reading Shrimp Jambalaya
When we visited Conor and ‘the Wife’ in Tipperary, she made us a wonderful meringue cake with raspberries using her mother’s recipe. It was lovely and we loved it. I decided then and there that I would bake one too, … Continue reading Almond Meringue Cake with Amarena Cherries
Bison is not usually available around here, so when I saw a bison ribeye I picked it up at once. Great meat like that needs very little, so I decided to only ‘warm age’ it sous-vide, and then quickly pan … Continue reading Bison Ribeye with Eggplant
This orange muffin came about because I saw a recipe for Orange Bundt Cake on Campari & Sofa, and thought it would be nice to make this as muffins for a pretty dessert. Claudia’s source for the recipe was Marcella … Continue reading Orange Muffins
In the same session as Modernist Cuisine Pulpo a la Gallega, we also prepared the Shrimp Cocktail from the Plated Dishes volume of Modernist Cuisine. This preparation is quite a contrast with the traditional Avocado and Shrimp Cocktail I blogged about a few days ago. It looks very pretty and is a lot of work. The combination of beets, shrimp, passion fruit, and horseradish is original and works quite well. I liked the passion fruit ‘leather’. We were not enthusiastic about the passion fruit brown butter fluid gel or the pressure-cooked sesame seeds. The verdict? It was an interesting experience and quite tasty, but I don’t think I will make this dish again. Continue reading “Modernist Cuisine Shrimp Cocktail”
Conor has invited me to join his board. He had commissioned four handmade chopping boards to be cut from the same block of walnut by his friend Terry from 2 Wooden Horses and has sent them as Christmas gifts to Richard, Nick and myself. As chairman of the board, Conor challenged us to use the board. And so all four board members are showing today what they have done with their boards.
The first thing that came to mind was a dish that is certainly fit for a board: Bistecca alla Fiorentina. This is a T-bone steak as it is served in the Tuscan city of Florence. I have prepared the Bistecca alla Fiorentina in the traditional way that doesn’t take into account the latest ideas on how to prepare a steak but is delicious anyway. A true Bistecca alla Fiorentina should be of a special Tuscan breed of cattle called Chianina. It should be about two fingers thick (4 cm or 1.5 inches, about 750 grams/26 oz). It should be cooked over a charcoal fire and otherwise as little as possible should be done to it: only salt and freshly ground black pepper should be added, strictly after cooking. Such a simple preparation with such a lot of flavor is certainly fit for a board of which Conor is the chairman.
And so thanks to Conor, Kees was building a charcoal fire in our back yard in the middle of January. Luckily the local hardware store still had some leftover charcoal from last season.
Continue reading “Fit for a Board: Bistecca alla Fiorentina”
After all the complicated cooking over the holidays, I felt like making something simple. I felt I should give salsify another chance (especially after Eha had proclaimed it her favorite vegetable), and I had picked up some guinea fowl breasts. I decided to cook both sous-vide (no surprises there) and to pair them with a porcini mushroom sauce and mashed potatoes. This made for a fine meal. Continue reading “Guinea Fowl and Salsify Sous-Vide with Porcini Sauce”
Braised beef is known as “draadjesvlees” in the Netherlands. This literally means “thread meat”, referring to the flaky structure of the meat. Good draadjesvlees should be juicy and tender, not tough and dry. This means braising it over low heat for a long time. One of the most common cuts that is used for this “sucadelappen”, which in the US is called flat iron steak. The difference is that in the Netherlands the tendon is in the middle is left in and after long braising is eaten. The braised tendon looks like candied peel, which is “sucade” in Dutch. Hence the name.
The dish I prepared can be made with or without sous-vide. With sous-vide cooking, a flat iron steak or other types of beef that are usually braised, can be cooked for 24-72 hours at 55-57ºC/131-135ºF to obtain the texture of a tender steak cooked to medium rare. I’ve very rarely used sous-vide to get the texture of a traditional braise. Exceptions have been duck confit and pulled pork. This is the first time I’ve prepared draadjesvlees sous-vide. I cooked it for 5 hours at 88ºC/190ºF. The result was comparable to a good traditional braise on the stovetop. The advantage is that there is less margin of error.
The advantage of cooking the beef sous-vide at 88ºC/190ºF is that that is also a fitting temperature for cooking the potatoes and parsnips sous-vide. Continue reading “Braised Flat Iron Steak with Parsnip Fondant (Draadjesvlees)”
Sometimes I can be a bit of a purist (OK you may laugh). Everyone can do as he pleases in the kitchen and everybody can eat what he likes, but please let’s not confuse each other by calling things what they are not. If you want to eat spaghetti with bacon and cream, fine, but don’t call it carbonara (which is made with guanciale or pancetta and eggs, and definitely without cream). There is nothing wrong with using garlic and parsley in a pasta sauce with meat and tomatoes, but don’t call it bolognese. I always try to prepare dishes as authentic as possible, which is sometimes difficult as most of the dishes I cook have not originated in the Netherlands. So I try to research and disclose it on my blog when I am not sure about the authenticity or when I cut corners.
What does this introduction have to do with Thai green curry? I’ve never been to Thailand and I don’t eat at Thai restaurants often, but when I do I tend to like the food. And so I thought I’d do some research and try to prepare an authentic Thai green curry. I found the High Heel Gourmet blog and had a blast reading it. You think I am a purist about Italian food? Check out this lady! I quote: “If you want to follow the “Do it yourself” recipe that uses green onion, cilantro, ginger root, lime juice and THE WHOLE POD of cardamom to make green curry paste so much, go ahead, but don’t call it Thai curry paste and please, don’t serve the curry to the Thais. They would barf!” I love it! She even critiqued Richard’s green curry, but was very nice about it. (That is actually how I discovered her blog.)
As the High Heel Gourmet appears to know her stuff, I decided to go by her rules. I managed to find the authentic ingredients as specified and prepared my first Thai green curry with it, and absolutely loved it! Also my friends loved it, who have been to Thailand and who eat at Thai restaurants all the time. The curry had great depth of flavor and tasted very fresh. This was of course due to making fresh green curry paste from scratch. That is not a lot of work if you own a blender, the work is in finding the ingredients. It was hot but not extremely hot, and you can of course control the heat by using less or more chili peppers. Continue reading “Thai Green Curry with Shrimp”
Happy New Year everyone! May you eat well in 2014! On New Year’s Eve we eat oliebollen (literally: “oil balls”) in the Netherlands. Oliebollen are deep fried yeasted batter, often filled with raisins. They have been prepared in the Netherlands … Continue reading Oliebollen
For the main course of our Christmas dinner I wanted to prepare iberico pork, as I had liked it so much when I tried it for the first time. Because REMCooks’ pork with pomegranate sauce had looked so Christmas-like with the red and green colors when I first saw it, I thought it would be nice to do a pomegranate sauce for this pork as well. I prepared a very simple sauce: reduced pomegranate juice mixed with pork demi-glace, garnished with fresh pomegranate arils. It worked very well with the pork. Continue reading “Iberico Secreto Sous-Vide with Pomegranate and Chervil Root”
Usually I first pick a dish and then the wine, but for the antipasto for this year’s Christmas dinner I did it the other way around. A friend of ours had brought a sparkling red from the Loire region, made from cabernet franc. I thought it would be great with the ham of lamb that I made last year, when paired with some salt-roasted beetroot. This way of preparing beetroot concentrates the flavor without making the beets too salty. Continue reading “Ham of Lamb with Salt-Roasted Beetroot”
When I saw the chocolate pomegranate tart on REMCooks, I knew I was going to bake it as dessert for Christmas dinner. The pomegranate aryls are so photogenic and Christmaslike. I thought the combination of chocolate and pomegranate would work well, and it did! The pomegranate really helps to lighten the chocolate and it was delicious. So thanks to Richard McGary, I was whacking pomegranates to get those pesky seeds out on Christmas morning 😉 Continue reading “Chocolate Pomegranate Tart”
Happy Christmas everyone!
Risotto with pear and gorgonzola is a well-known dish in Italy. I had made it before, but a post by Francesca about risotto with speck and apples reminded me that I had never blogged about it. To add some crunch, I decided to include some walnuts as well. The combination of the sweet pear, piquant gorgonzola, and crunchy walnuts works very well with the creamy rice. Continue reading “Risotto with Pear, Gorgonzola, and Walnuts”
This history of this dish and the origins of its name are uncertain according to Wikipedia, but it definitely plays an important role in my personal food history as Beef Wellington was one of the first gourmet dishes I learned to prepare. It was at the christmas party at my first job back in 1997. We were a small team at the office and since many of us loved to cook, for a christmas party we cooked our own dinner under supervision of a chef. I loved it and have since prepared it many times following the same recipe, even though I later found out that Beef Wellington often also includes pâté (which is not included in this recipe). Beef Wellington is beef tenderloin, wrapped in puff pastry with a umami bomb called duxelles (mushrooms, ham, tomato paste, shallots, garlic, and parsley). I always serve it with haricots verts and a strong red wine sauce. It is a great dish for festive occasions. Continue reading “Beef Wellington”
