Tag Archives: Food Vocabulary

December 17, 2009

Cooking Notes and Vocabulary (Gnocchi)

By swfoodworks

I’ve been waiting to make these little treats for the last two days.  Actually, I’ve been looking all over San Francisco for a gnocchi paddle.  Two days, five wasted hours, and an indulgent trip to Kamei Restaurant Supply; still no paddle.  But, a new pasta roller, shinny martini shaker, bread knife, and crazy grooved rice scoop / gnocchi paddle stand-in did make it home with me.  So tonight, the gnocchi!

If you’ve made (or eaten) these guys before, you know they are delicious little chunks of potato fluff.  Most recipes ask for you to boil the potatoes, but I would like to recommend a different approach.  Bake them.  And keep the skins on too.  The potato skin has most of the aroma, and potatoes cooked in their jackets retain more of that aroma in the flesh (in my opinion).  If you think about it, bake them a day (or two!) ahead of time.

Baking the potatoes will yield a less waterlogged flesh than boiling.  And that’s good.  When making the gnocchi, you want to incorporate a little egg, and just enough flour.  With boiled potatoes, I find that I end up adding a lot more flour to get the consistency I’m looking for.  Also, some recipes will ask for you to boil, mill, and then bake the potato flesh.  This seems like a lot of work (and time) just to end up with baked potato flesh.  But I’m open to feedback here :)

Here’s the recipe that follows below:

Chef Louise’s Parmesan Potato Gnocchi

Yield : About 250 pieces (i.e. sh@tload)

  • 6 ea Russet potatoes (baked, peeled, shredded)
  • 3 3/4 cups all purpose flour (plus some for shaping)
  • 1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 yolks
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Here are some important things to remember.  Once the potatoes have cooled and been peeled (I try to wait a few hours, and up to two days), think about this process as a work of pastry.  Try to keep the potato light and fluffy.  Work lightly with just the fingers to incorporate the flour.  Try to get almost all of the little potato bits covered in flour.  You should end up with something that looks a lot like wet sand or the beginning of a biscuit mix.  Incorporate the cheese in the same way.  Add any salt / pepper / dry seasoning (I like a little nutmeg) the same way.  Then incorporate the egg all at once with a fork.  Bring the dough together, and give it a few turns (knead it a few times) to make sure that everything is incorporated and holding together well.  Then proceed with the shaping process.

Gnocchi Basics

Peeled Russet

Shredded Potatoes

Flour, Incorporated

Seasoning

Fork It

Brought Together

Gnocchi Loaf

Start with a small piece of dough on a lightly floured surface.

I find that pulling the dough towards me with one hand keeps everything together and makes a uniform roll.  Once the roll is big enough, I move to both hands.

Roll the piece out to a uniform diameter.  Usually, a half inch is a good size.  If the gnocchi are uniform in size they will cook at the same time.  You don’t have to freak out about this, but you are welcome to.

Cut pieces off that are pretty close to the same size.  I use my thumb joint as a guide.

Put each gnocchi on the grooved surface, with the cut ends parallel to the left-right motion of the thumb.  Some people will use the tines of a fork for this process.

This doesn’t entail several hours looking for a gnocchi paddle, but as my good friend says “To each, they own”.

Fork gnocchi / Paddle gnocchi

Here’s another point of interest.  Cook the gnocchi in simmering, salted water.  They will rise to the top when they are almost done.  Let them simmer for a minute and then remove them.  They will be cooked through and fluffy.  Some recipes ask for you to cook in boiling water.  I prefer to simmer.  Do what you like best.

You can reserve to a perforated tray, or even a resting / wire rack.

If you plan on eating these right away, toss them with oil (to keep from sticking) and keep them in a covered container, or put them into your sauce and serve.  Otherwise, proceed once the gnocchi have cooled a little bit, toss them with oil (olive or neutral), and set them out to cool on some parchment or a clean kitchen towel.  Reserve for your future use.

When you are ready to use the stored gnocchi, you can steam, saute, simmer, (microwave?) and serve with whatever sauce / garnish sounds tasty.

For my treat tonight, I sweated some diced onion, zucchini, and garlic with some chili flakes and rosemary.  Then I threw in some diced tomatoes and kumquats.  It was just what I was looking for.  I used 10 gnocchi for this portion which was a nice (smaller) side dish size.  I snacked on about 15 naked gnocchi while I was making them.  Quality control, of course.

Your first gnocchi may not be picture perfect, but hopefully they taste great.  It takes a little while for some people to get a ‘feeling’ for both the dough and the shaping.  If they look really terrible, just dim the lights, eat them with lots of red sauce and grated cheese, and find an excuse to try making them again soon.

Eat well and Be well!

-Scott

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November 23, 2009

Cooking Vocabulary and Notes (Whipped Potatoes)

By swfoodworks

Our second chapter in the series that follows my last coaching session.  Mashed (or whipped) potatoes are filled with emotion.  It seems like every family gathering has someone who is ‘responsible’ for the potatoes.  And that person, having assumed the ‘responsibility’, becomes very serious about the business of potatoes.  Zealous even.  The method, recipe, specific ingredients, equipment?, and timing become a rigid and sacred heirloom, greeted at the table with raised eyebrows and verbal cues of admiration.

So I get it.  People really like mashed potatoes; really, really.  And they have a proud place alongside our other sacred foods (pies, roasts, gravy, cookies).  And I love this.  I love that people can get worked into a froth over a vegetable dish.  That’s the power of food in action.

All I intend to lay out in this article are the bare-bones of this dish.  When you cook at home, employ as many variations and tweaks as you see fit.  Here’s the basic out line for the potatoes my client and I made.

Whipped Potatoes -

  • Wash the potatoes well (we used one large Russet)
  • Cut into uniform pieces
  • Put in a pot with just enough room to hold the potatoes covered by less than an inch with cold, salted water.
  • Bring the pot to a simmer
  • Bay / Thyme / Garlic / Peppercorns are all welcome
  • Cook until a paring knife easily enters the flesh
  • Drain, saving only the potatoes
  • Return the potatoes to the pot and cook them over a medium high heat for a couple of minutes
  • Add the dairy (milk, butter, cream, sour cream, you name it) by whisking it into the potatoes (we used about 2 oz. of butter and a cup of milk)
  • Add the seasoning (salt, pepper, cayenne, wasabi, olives, chopped basil, etc.) by whisking it in
  • Correct the seasoning to your taste and keep warm or serve right away

And now the fun begins, endless variations, and some technical thoughts.

First, if you don’t want or like the skins, peel and proceed.

Some people simmer the potatoes whole, some like smaller pieces.  No big whoop.  The only point to remember is that if the pieces are smaller, the cooking time will be shorter, and therefore the cooking water should have more salt in it.

Choose a pot that will hold the potatoes and water (or stock), but it doesn’t need to have much more volume than that.  If you are cooking four potatoes in three gallons of liquid, here are the things you are doing:  wasting time, energy, and potato flavor.  It will take a lot longer for the water to come to a boil, and the essence of the potato will be diluted instead of kept close.  Just a thought.

Always taste the water before you start cooking.  If it’s over-seasoned, there’s no coming back or saving thirty minutes worth of cooked potatoes.

I like to add bay, fresh thyme, and garlic to my cooking potatoes, if I have them around.

Cook until you can put your paring knife into the potato without resistance.  Get those guys out of the water, and put them back into the same pot (minus any not-potato bits).  At this point you could put a lid on them while you are heating up your dairy, or just continue full speed ahead.  If you are making gobs and gobs of potatoes, I recommend heating the dairy up first to avoid a gummy mess.  If you are only cooking three or four potatoes, dive in.

Cook the potatoes in the dry pot, and you’ll get rid of some unneeded moisture, making room for the absorption of more dairy goodness.

For making mashed potatoes, go ahead and use your potato masher.  They will have lumps, and the lump lovers will rejoice.  If you prefer a smoother, lighter consistency, invest in a sturdy wire whisk.  Whisking produces a more homogeneous, emulsified end result, and I dig it.

The final step could be the addition of flavor enhancing garnishes.  For instance, my client and I made Wasabi Whipped Potatoes.  As a final touch we made a slurry (a mixture of powder and liquid, resembling heavy cream) of wasabi powder (a quarter cup total) and whisked that into the potatoes.  It added a pleasant lingering peppery note.

Don’t forget to season.  Potatoes love salt and pepper, and they can be really one dimensional in their absence.

As Harold McGee points out in On Food and Cooking:

Waxy potatoes require more mashing to obtain a smooth texture, exude more gelated starch, and don’t absorb enrichment as easily.  The classic French pommes purees, pureed potatoes, are made from waxy potatoes, pieces of which are pushed through a fine sieve or food mill and then worked hard – to the point of having what an eminent French cookbook writer, Mme Ste-Ange, called a “dead arm” – first alone and then with butter, to incorporate air and obtain the lightness of whipped cream.  American recipes take a more gentle approach, sieving mealy varieties and carefully stirring in liquid and fat to avoid excessive cell damage, starch release, and glueyness.

I try to avoid ‘dead arm’ at every step, so I’m on board with using mealy potatoes (the Russet, Long White, and Yukon families).  I hope that there are some take home point in here.  A well-made bowl of potatoes is a delicious gift.  Cherish the next one you enjoy.

Never Stop Thinking / Learning -

-Scott

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November 22, 2009

Cooking Vocabulary and Notes (Pan Roasted Filet of Beef)

By swfoodworks

I spent some time with a great client a few nights ago, and we worked on his steak cooking skills.  First, a trip to the market, followed by seasoning a cast iron skillet, leading us into a pan seared steak.  We also put together a mushroom sauce and some whipped potatoes.  As he concisely stated, ‘there are a lot of moving parts’.  I wanted to break down that night into smaller, digestible chunks.  So I’ll post three (or four) series of notes to try and capture it all.

Pan Seared Steak –

  • Choose a thicker cut (filet, strip, ribeye)
  • Pre-Heat the oven to 350
  • Season the steak (salt and pepper) and massage the seasoning into the meat
  • Turn on your vent or hood fan
  • Bring the oven-safe pan (with a little vegetable oil) to a high temperature
  • Place the steak in the hot pan and give it a gentle press to make sure the entire surface is in contact with the pan.
  • Sear like this for 3 minutes or so (depending on the thickness, heat, moisture, etc.)
  • Flip the steak, and cook for slightly less time
  • *Take the steak’s temperature now, so you know how far away you are from your desired doneness.  Or just wing it.
  • Pop the whole pan/steak into the 350 degree oven for 5 minutes or so (variables, variables)
  • Take the steak’s temperature after 5 minutes.
  • 140 degrees is a pretty nice medium, so depending on the size of the steak, desired doneness, and so on, remove the steak from the oven anywhere from 5 to 10 degrees below the desired temperature.  Bigger steaks will rest longer, and therefore should come out further from the desired final temperature.
  • Allow the steak to rest at least 5 minutes (lightly covered, or not).
  • Enjoy

These guidelines for pan-seared (then oven-roasted) steak can also be used for thinner cuts; more on that later.  When choosing your steaks, look for “rib” or “loin” cuts that have nice little flecks of white (fat marbling).  Here’s what Cook’s Illustrated has to say.  For me, the ribeye, skirt, flank, and hangar are winners in the flavor category.  Strips, filets, and T-Bones definitely win the swimsuit round.  If you have the time, let the steak warm up (sit out at room temperature) before you cook it.  This will slightly reduce your cooking time, and help retain moisture/tenderness.  There is some debate about seasoning the protein before cooking or after, I say go ahead and season before you cook, and rub it into the steak.

For a nicely browned surface, it is important to bring the oven-safe pan and oil just to the point of smoking.  This is the case for any protein that you want to sear.  Also, if you want to get all “chef-crazy” you should pat the surface of the steak dry before cooking it, to increase the browning.  Find a spot in the pan the size of your steak.  Ensure that spot is coated in oil by swirling the oil, or slightly tilting the pan.  Lay the steak in the pan, letting it fall away from you to avoid oil splattering back on you.  Give the steak a gentle pat to ensure that the surface is uniformly in contact with the hot pan.  Watch the steak for a few minutes, and don’t move it.  You should see moisture rise to the surface, and browning all around the bottom, or pan side.  Next, pick up the steak, and set it back down as before, in an oil-coated spot.  Let the steak brown a little.  At this point you could take a temperature reading (or not) and then put the pan into the oven.

I would check on your steak after 4 minutes, and take its temperature again.  You can always cook it longer, but you can’t un-cook it.  Be gentle when handling the steak to take the temperature.  If you bang it around, or mash it with the tongs, (not that you would) you will lose some of the moisture you’re trying so hard to hold onto.  Once you reach your determined pre-resting temperature (5-10 degrees below final temp.) remove the pan, and let the meat rest.  Some people like to loosely cover the steak at this point.  As you wish.  The resting, however, is pretty important.  You are letting the moisture (which you’ve just scared away from the surface) return to the surface, and you’re also letting the external temperature equalize into the center of the steak.

For thinner cuts of steak, you won’t need the oven.  The steak will come to temperature in the pan, and rest briefly.  As an added bonus, when you rest the meat you could treat it to a little pat of butter on top, to nurture and moisturize.  A compound butter is fantastic, or little olive oil is nice too.  Alternately, if you want to finish your steaks on the range, a nice way is to baste them.

Stay tuned for more in this series -

-Scott

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November 18, 2009

Let’s Make Soup

By swfoodworks

I’ve been eating this really versatile curried carrot and lentil soup for the last couple of days, and I got inspired to chat about soups in general.  Good soup is a gentle indulgence.  Few plates of food can be as satisfying, and few spoken about with such reverence, passion, and gusto.  I don’t want to pretend that I know what makes soup great, or even what makes a great soup.  Soups, like all foods, are intimate, personal affairs colored by experience and preference.  But I will speak to the general practice, or technique of soup, through this example of my recent product.

Like most of my cooking, soup starts with ingredients that happen to be staring me in the face.  This is my ‘best guess’ recipe for the carrot-lentil-curry soup, and an explanation of both how this soup happened for me, and how it might happen for you.

 

1 large red onion (rough chop)

2 cups carrot (thin slices)

2 TBSP garlic (rough chop)

2 TBSP red curry paste

1 tsp chili flakes

1 bunch rosemary (in cheesecloth)

1 cup lentils

1 qt chicken stock

1 can diced tomatoes

1 tsp red wine vinegar

1 TBSP butter

Salt and Cayenne pepper to taste

As you may know by now, I’m not huge on recipes.  To borrow a phrase; no one ever steps in the same recipe twice, for it’s not the same food, and they aren’t the same person.  And so, with cooking, it’s all about looking, responding, and using techniques.  As a side bar, I’ve been listening to Tim Ferriss’ audio book, “The 4-Hour Work Week“, and have subliminally been motivated into thinking in acronyms.  I didn’t realize it until just now.  Thanks Tim, great stuff so far!  EDGE is a decent acronym for cooking well.

E-valuate

D-ecide

G-ather

E-xecute

Evaluate the ingredients, the weather /season, consider who you might be cooking for (your audience), and whatever else informs your cooking.  Based on your evaluation, Decide which direction to take the ingredients (bisque, stew, curry, chowder, puree, broth, etc.).  Gather the items that you need, if that requires shopping or going to the pantry, and literally bring them all together (mise en place).  Then, Execute your vision using a short list of techniques.

For example:  Knowing that I wanted to make a soup (because it was a crisp San Francisco day and soup sounded satisfying), I opened the refrigerator with that in mind.  We had carrots from our last CSA delivery.  Seeing the carrots reminded me of a great Thai curry, carrot, coconut soup I used to make a lot, so I started thinking about that soup and poked around for more good stuff.  Red onion, garlic, red Thai curry paste, fresh herbs, chicken stock, lentils, not the soup I used to make, but good soup stuffs for sure.  So I brought all the ingredients out to play and proceeded with what I would call “Soup Basics”.

Step One – Sweat the veggies and / or aromatics.

This is the basis of so much cooking.  Cut your aromatics (onions, and garlic here) and cook them with plenty of oil over a medium low heat until they are soft and translucent.  BUT, since carrots are a major part of the soup, I started by cooking the carrots first, and adding the aromatics once the carrots were mostly tender.  I also add the curry paste here to cook it and develop the flavor, as well as the chili flakes to really bring out the spice and infuse it throughout the whole soup.  Could just just throw it all in together?  Sure.  I mean, were making soup here, a puree of vegetable matter soup.  But, I cook the way I cook.  I feel like the vegetables will all be uniformly soft and cooked through if I cook them this way.  Please suit yourselves.

Step Two – Add liquid

I just gave my copy of Michael Ruhlman’s Ratio to a friend.  For the number folks out there (and I see you), this is a well made book that will offer insights into cooking techniques and principals.  I didn’t measure when I made this soup, but I’m sure the ratio of liquid to solids is very close to the ratio you can find in his book.

Once the vegetables were soft, I added the chicken stock and then the lentils and fresh herbs.  I brought to all of this to a boil, reduced to a simmer, put a lid on it, and went for a jog.  When I get back the lentils were soft, and ready to roll.  At this point, I could have served the soup as a hearty lentil stew of sorts, but that wasn’t where I was headed.

Step Three – Correct the consistency and seasoning.

So, instead of the lentil stew looking back at me, I wanted a creamy puree.  I wanted to add a little more depth of flavor, along with some color and moisture at this point, so that’s when the can of tomato bits came to the party.  I removed the bundle of herbs and puree the soup until I was satisfied with the consistency.  Then I tasted for balance.  For me, the soup needed a little more bite of acid and a good punch of salt.  I also felt like a little chunk of butter would be welcome.  For me, it’s almost always welcome, let’s be real.

I hope that you found some inspiration for your own cooking in this recap.  Please contact me if you make this recipe, and let me know how it came out in your kitchen.

Eat well, and Be well-

-Scott

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November 3, 2009

Baking with Michael Ruhlman’s ‘Ratio’

By swfoodworks

So far, I’ve got a little bit of a crush on this book.  The subtitle, “The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking” is absolutely on point.  Here’s the take-home message:

“This book is about the culinary fundamentals, without which, as Esoffier said, nothing of importance can be accomplished.  Nothing.  But because it’s about the fundamentals, it’s also about all the thing you can do with those fundamentals, about variation and improvisation.  While it’s filled with recipes, I like to think of it as an anti-recipe book, a book that teaches you and frees you from the need to follow”.

I think I’ll keep finding interesting little bits as I get further and further into the reading.  For now, I’ve been inspired by one of the first chapters about bread.  The ratio is simple, 5:3, 5 parts flour to 3 parts water.  Of course, there are limitless variations, and some techniques must be observed for good bread making.  But, that simple ratio was the basis for the following loaves.  A good pinch of salt and a package of yeast later, and we were ready to roll.  The story is below in pictures.  I can’t recommend this book with more enthusiasm.  Anyone who is curious about cooking / baking / science / recipes, will find this a fascinating read that will inform the way you think about food and cooking.  Cheers!

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