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July 23, 2008
Potatoes O'Brien
I'm a sucker for potatoes in just about any form, but Potatoes O'Brien is right up there for me. Take your time with them, and if you're in a hurry you can microwave the potatoes a bit before you add them to your skillet. I like to use our Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva, with a mixture of baby yellow and red bell peppers and red onion. I seasoned them up with a bit of Survival Spice® and let them get nice and tender.
Great with just about anything, from eggs to steak! I could eat a bowl by themselves.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:43 AM | Comments (0)
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July 14, 2008
Pragmatic Guacamole
Here's the guacamole I made for the basa tacos we had recently. I know, everybody's got their own way of making guac, and everybody's technique is the 'traditional' way, but as long as you've got smashed up avocado and anything else, you've got guacamole.
I like a rustic presentation myself- diced in large enough pieces so you can see what you're getting. Avocados, small diced red onion, a concassed (box cut to eliminate the seeds and watery innards) tomato, though I don't bother to peel them; minced jalapeno, and lots of cilantro are my base. For quick flavoring I add some tomatillo salsa, otherwise I frequently reach for the Survival Spice®, which adds a ton of flavor, and is handy when you don't have a jalapeno handy or if you're making it at a friend's house when you don't feel like raiding their pantry. I would hope you would have given them a tin of Survival Spice®! Friends don't let friends eat boring food.
Cook something good over the weekend? Email me a few pictures!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 10:29 AM | Comments (2)
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April 07, 2008
Survival Grilled Tofu
In an ongoing effort to "take care of ourselves", whatever that means, we've been eating more vegetarian dishes lately. To most people who have tried tofu, most think of it as a large pencil eraser in terms of a flavor profile, but it certainly doesn't have to be that way.
My technique for our weekly tofu night is still evolving, but lately a few days before we're going to eat it I've been slicing a package of extra firm tofu in half, then gently pressing as much moisture as I can. I rub all sides generously with our Survival Spice® barbecue rub, then put it in the fridge for a day or so.
The morning I'm going to grill it I slap together a simple of marinade of soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, which to me gives a more 'meaty' flavor, and Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgine di Oliva; turning the tofu slices a few times to marinate them evenly.
Though it will never top some of the meat dishes I've featured here over the years I have to say, it tastes great!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:59 AM | Comments (4)
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December 22, 2007
Easy Oven Roasted Chicken w/Rosemary potatoes and Asparagus
Unfortunately these days, it would seem, on the rare evening that I get to cook anything at home, my focus is more on words like 'simple', 'easy', and 'quick' than my old goals of 'astounding' and 'unforgettable', but the news isn't all bad. Indeed, as I do everything I can to minimize prep time and shopping hassles I'm rediscovering how good simple meals can be.
For this no-hassle oven fried chicken I replaced a traditional breading station like the one at the link with a zip-loc bag. The basic steps were the same, but simpler- for a change I started with some organic chicken breasts and some Tabasco sauce in the bag, coated them, hit it with some more Tabasco, then added a mixture of flour and Survival Spice®, tossing it well to coat it fairly evenly. I didn't use bread crumbs because, well, I didn't have any on hand and easy was the point here, remember?
I prepped some red potatoes, tossing them with kosher salt, Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva, cracked black pepper and some dried rosemary and put it all in to roast. While the chicken and potatoes were roasted, I trimmed up some asparagus, coating it with some more of the amazing olive oil, and with about 10 minutes to go I popped them in the same cast iron skillet with the potatoes and gave everything, including the chicken, a good squeeze of lemon juice, which really makes all the flavors pop.
Two cast iron skillets, one EZ-Hook®, and a one quart Ziploc® bag. Simple. And really, really good.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 06:21 AM | Comments (1)
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December 12, 2007
Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
Well, I was hoping this would be a longer post, but with the holiday crunch being what it is, I'll just have to hope that I'll have the time to add to this later. (UPDATE: I added some extra images and fleshed it out a bit more, for your dining pleasure.)
This is a spaghetti squash, halved, roasted along with some garlic, a small onion and a red pepper, then the good stuff flaked out with a fork and roughly chopped. I took the empty skins, which are quite robust, and ladled in some marinara sauce and some parm reggiano.
The veggies were tossed with some Survival Spice®, pine nuts, dry herbs, and more parm then stuffed into the skins. These roasted until it was hot, then I topped it with some home made bread cubes and a blend of mozz, asiago, provolone and more parm, then broiled it until it was brown and bubbly.
Served with a small steak on the side, it was great. I'd like to try this again soon with some crumbled sausage of some sort.
I will add to this, I took lots of pictures in the process. Really...
By the way, the seeds were terrific, roasted with some Survival Spice® and some of our Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgine di Oliva.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 04:19 PM | Comments (2)
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December 04, 2007
Barley soup with rosemary focaccia
I made some smoked turkey stock from our Thanksgiving turkey last week, and put together a veggie barley soup with some of the stock. We had eaten at Monti's Saturday night, and ate an absurd amount of their rosemary focaccia, so I decided to make some to have with the soup.
Good and good for ya.
The Gordon Biersch Marzen is a decent beer, especially on sale, but it would probably pair up better with a burger.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:09 AM | Comments (1)
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October 01, 2007
Polenta Cakes with Sauteed Vegetables
I picked up a package of polenta the other day, similar to the one I have linked here. I'd never worked with pre-made stuff, and Julie had never had polenta, so a side dish experiment was in order.
I had a sneaky feeling that Survival Spice® would pair up well, so I heated up a skillet, sprinkled some slices of the polenta, and fried them up while I sauteed a mix of red peppers, Chimayo chiles, yellow squash and white onion.
Man, it worked like a champ. Apparently you can puree this with liquid to make a smooth polenta, which is more what I'm used to. I'll have to try it, but having a few of these in the fridge sure makes life easy. Easy is good these days...
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:57 AM | Comments (1)
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August 30, 2007
Living Lettuce- Ever tried it?
I bought a head of "Live" Butter (bib) lettuce at Sprouts Market the other day. Normally I would have been happy with the standard fare, but this was all they had at the time.
I guess the thinking is that by leaving the roots attached, it retains its freshness longer. At $2.99, it had better be good!
Ever tried this? Just curious if you think $3 is a bit steep for a smallish head of lettuce, even if it is substantially fresher.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 10:58 AM | Comments (3)
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August 16, 2007
Grilled Survival Garlic Chicken, Sweet Potatoes & Brocolli
In another of a long-running series of "What Did You Have for Dinner Last Night", here's a quick rundown of a quick dinner.
I threw a bunch of minced garlic in Ziplock bag, along with the ever present Survival Spice™ and a few all natural chicken breasts to marinate, while I fired up our gas grill. I took a nice sweet potato and cut it into 4 wedges and threw it in the microwave for about 2 minutes, so it could cook through while I got a steamer basket ready for some organic brocolli crowns.
Once the sweet potatoes were tender, I drizzled on a bit of our organic TIbvrtini Extra Virgin Olive Oil and seasoned them with some kosher salt and pepper.
Okay, brocolli's in the steamer and the chicken and sweet potatoes are ready to go on the grill. I grilled the taters on medium high, to get some grill marks and carmelize the sugars, then turned them down to finish cooking while the chicken was cooking. A few pecan wood chips made it all nice and smoky.
Sorry, nothing fancy about this, but it was wonderful.
Been cooking, especially with Desert Island Foods®.com products? Email me!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:25 AM | Comments (3)
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July 06, 2007
Grilled Summer Salad with Shrimp and Eggplant
I hope you all had a great Fourth of July!
My menu planning for yesterday was dictated by the 116º scorcher we had. You know me- I love to take a day to smoke a big ol' hunk of meat, but after a day outside sunnin' and funnin', the last thing I wanted to do was spend a lot of time over a hot grill.
So... with operating parameters set, what to make? On hand- shrimp, leftover brown rice, tomatoes, a red onion, cilantro and a globe eggplant. Easily obtained at the market- red bell peppers, anaheim chiles, lemons, and jalapenos. Aha! I have a plan...
I cut the eggplant in wedges, removing about half the skin and salting them fairly liberally, then cut the peppers into wedges, too. Into a one gallon ziploc bag they went with the red onion, with an obscene amount of crushed garlic, some Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva, a spash of Tibvrtini Aceto di Vino Blanco, and some kosher salt and black pepper. I left them at room temperature to marinate while I tossed the shrimp into another bag with some more garlic (okay, a lot more) and plenty of Survival Spice™, which absolutely rocks on grilled shrimp.
All that was left to prep was to concasse some roma tomatoes, and clean some cilantro. Into a work bowl they went.
I built a hot fire with pecan wood, and let it settle down a bit. Once everything was marinated, I emptied the bag of veggies onto the hot grill, then went about getting some serious color on the veggies. The eggplant got special attention, blackening the skins and filling the eggplant wedges with tons of pecan flavor.
Once the veggies had great color, but were still between al dente and fully cooked, I took them off the grill, chopping them coarsely and adding them to the cilantro, brown rice and tomatoes already in the work bowl. I added a glug of Tibrtini Novello, about half a lemon's worth of juice, and seasoned to taste.
While that sat, I grilled off the shrimp at high heat just long enough to change the color, and squeezed some lemon juice on them before I took them off the grill.
Plated it up, and man did it hit the spot. Light, but huge flavors, and just the right temperature on a scorching day.
Try this technique with whatever you have on hand. It's the perfect summer meal.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:01 AM | Comments (3)
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October 18, 2006
Simple Grilled Salmon and Asparagus
After a busy day, there's nothing simpler than firing up a good gas grill with a few wood chips and grilling your dinner. No pots, no pans, very little cleanup, and really delicious.
Last night was salmon filets, oiled and rubbed generously with our Survival Spice™ barbecue rub, which is fantastic on salmon. After the salmon was on the grill for a few minutes, I added some lightly oiled and seasoned asparagus. A good squirt of fresh lemon juice during the last 5 minutes of cooking, and that was it.
Healthy, amazing and easy. Three of my favorite words.
What did you have for dinner last night?
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:58 AM | Comments (2)
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September 06, 2006
Grilled Corn on the Cob with Survival Butter
Grilled, boiled, whatever, I love corn on the cob, which to me is one of the best things about summer. I've talked about Survival Butter before, but until Ana mentioned using it on corn on the cob, and raving about the flavor, it really hadn't occurred to me to try it.
Here's a shot of the Labor Day feast, where I tried it for the first time, and I have to say I loved it, too. I'm all for being a purist with corn, even omitting butter most of the time, but try this for a great change.
Thanks, Ana!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:11 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
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September 05, 2006
Grilled Pork Chops and Corn on the Cob
Pork chops and corn on the cob- sure sounds like Labor Day to me!
There's a few ways you can go with pork chops- super thin, so you can cook them quickly on high heat, leaving a nice crispy bit of pork goodness. You can also go with a thick-cut pork chop that you can still cook quickly, or smoke nice and slowly.
These were grilled over pecan wood, which is my default grilling wood these days, at a fairly high heat. I lot of people like their pork cooked to death, but I'm not one of them. For them, go the thin/crispy pork route.
Sigh. I have to talk about this for a minute, so indulge me. I really, really hate to even bring it up, because it's such a rare thing anyway and a serious buzz kill, but seriously, it's okay to eat juicy pork chops. Really. They can even be a bit pink, and still have no chance of containing trichinosis. By the time your pork is medium rare to medium, it's fine. Want to hear numbers? Okay. Trichinosis, even in the incredibly remote chance of infection, is gone at 138º. Medium rare pork is right around 145º. Even medium, around 150º, is still moist. If in doubt, use an instant read thermometer, and relax. Sorry for digressing, but the whole "pork paranoia" is so pervasive, it makes me crazy, and I think knowledgable people don't talk about it enough because it's unappetizing. Hope this helps.
Where was I? Right, chops. I rubbed them well with our Survival Spice™ barbecue rub, which is so good on pork that even the chops will send you a thank you note!
After they came off the grill, I let them rest a few minutes. Pork chops, because they're generally so lean, really benefit from resting 5 or 10 minutes or so before service.
Man, they were good. The sauce you see on the side is from a friend's company that I'll talk a bit about later in the week, but suffice it to say it's one of the best bottled sauces I've had!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 06:41 AM | Comments (7) | TrackBack
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August 10, 2006
Grilled Ribeye and Corn
I took this picture in front of the chiminea by the pool. Chiminea's are a sort of ceramic outdoor fireplace, great for taking the chill out of the nighttime Arizona air during the winter. I'm looking forward to firing it up again soon!
Ribeye's are one of my favorite steaks- packed with flavor, and incredibly tender and juicy when cooked properly. I marinated this in worcestershire sauce, Colman's mustard, and tons of freshly ground black pepper, which enhances the flavor of the beef while adding a nice zip and depth of flavor. I grilled it, along with an ear of corn, over mesquite until medium rare.
I cook corn in different ways, depending on my mood and how many ears I'm grilling. Often I'll flavor the finished ears with butter and Survival Spice™, which does a great job of bringing out the natural sweetness. This time, though, I just peeled back the husk and removed the silk, removing the outermost husks. I then wrapped the corn up with one of the husks, tying a clove hitch to hold it together. Geeky, but effective...
A small green salad, and a nice bottle of Burgundy on the side. Big flavors, good times.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:26 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
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August 04, 2006
Survival Halibut with Veggie "Noodles" and Avocado Salad
Here's another in a series of healthy, yet utterly delicious dinners I've been making lately.
The fish dish, Alaskan Halibut (thanks, Lloyd!) was lightly oiled and seasoned with Survival Spice™, then just coated with fresh bread crumbs mixed with more Survival Spice™. Fried over medium heat in a cast iron skillet with a squirt of lemon juice, it had a great crunch on the outside, and was nice and moist throughout.
As for the side dishes, I was craving pasta but didn't want the carbs, so instead I sliced red onion, Italian zucchini and yellow squash in thin, noodle-like strips and sauteed them in Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva and plenty of lemon juice. I talked about the Poolside Avocado Salad the other day, and the cilantro vinagerette I drizzled over the plate really gave it a nice fresh flavor, and brought the whole thing together.
The "noodles" were really a great alternative to my pasta craving, try it!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 10:30 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
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August 01, 2006
Simple Appetizer- Poolside Avocado Salad
Busy, busy around here today, but I wanted to share something I made as a side dish yesterday- an modified form of guacamole.
I don't know what made me do this- I was going to make traditional guacamole, but the avocado halves kept their shape and looked so great after I cubed them, I decided to just fill the cavity where the seed was with diced red onion, lemon juice, cilantro and some Survival Spice™. If I had fresh tomatoes, I would have done a concasse, but I didn't. Such is life, I guess.
I was generous with the lemon juice, and to give it another dimension I made some cilantro oil with a bunch of fresh cilantro, some Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva, which made it absolutely magical, and a little lemon juice and kosher salt. A quick drizzle of that, and it was good to go.
And it went. Quickly.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 03:15 PM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
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July 31, 2006
Veggie Stuffed Red Bell Peppers
I know, another vegetarian dish, blah blah blah, but when you can pack a dish totally full of great flavors and make it healthy, it's just good, period.
Did I just say that?
I mean, I'm such a carnivore-- stuff me full of spare ribs, a Cowboy Ribeye, or a grilled chicken and I'm a happy guy, believe me.
But I've always enjoyed veggie dishes that are packed with flavor- a great veggie curry, or spinach and garlic pizzas, that don't make me aware that I haven't had any meat in the entire meal. So when I saw beautiful red bell peppers with a perfect shape for stuffing, I knew what was going to be on the menu.
Continue reading "Veggie Stuffed Red Bell Peppers"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:43 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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July 25, 2006
This would make a Vegetarian out of Dagwood
I love roasted veggie sandwiches. When I have time I like to grill them first, but this version was a simple sauté. I cooked the veggies in two batches- first, baby red, orange and yellow bell peppers, Anaheim chiles, Italian zucchini, and a red onion in some Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgene di Oliva until they were nice and tender. Towards the very end of their cooking, I seasoned them and added some balsamic vinegar to give them a little acidity and to bring out the natural sweetness of the veggies.
Next, I repeated the process with some with some crimini mushrooms. You can do them at the same time, but because they release so much moisture and cook away to nothing so quickly, I've learned that it's well worth your time to take this extra step.
I sliced and toasted an 8" square foccacia with some fontina cheese, sliced a few Roma tomatoes (salting them seperately), and assembled my Veggie Dagwood.
What a great sandwich. I'm a carnivore, but I've found that with some veggies dishes, such as pizza and curries that have so much flavor, I really don't miss the meat.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:09 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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July 21, 2006
Stuffed Grilled Squash
I made these to serve along with the Grilled Chicken Cordon Bleu last weekend, and I'm going to do it more often.
It was a busy weekend geeking on the chicken technique, so I was really scrambling for a side dish. Fortunately, I had some Parmesan bread crumbs in the freezer from the Kid's Parmesan Chicken Strips I made a while back, which made my job a lot easier. Once again, making extra and freezing it saved the day!
I just halved some yellow squash, then scooped out the middles, saving it to mix with the bread crumbs. I lightly oiled the squash lightly and seasoned them with Survival Spice™. Next, I just rough chopped the squash bits, mixed it with more Survival Spice™ and the bread crumbs that had already been mixed with parm and some dried herbs, then filled the squash.
They took about 15 minutes on a hot grill, and were amazingly good. Try it!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:00 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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June 26, 2006
Cuban Onions and Garlic Chicken
(Photo: Mary)
This wraps up the dishes I made for Cuban Night, a fun Cuban Food-Fest we had recently. In addition to the Fried Plantains and Masitas de Puerco, I made a few other Cuban staples.
Continue reading "Cuban Onions and Garlic Chicken"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 06:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
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June 20, 2006
Fried Plantains
Here's another shot of the fried plantains I made for Cuban Night recently. As I mentioned the other day, plantains are basically a larger, starchier banana. They make an interesting substitute for potatoes, kind of a cross between a regular potato and a yam. It's a simple dish, just peel and slice them on the bias: heat some peanut, corn, canola or even light olive oil: fry until golden brown and a bit crispy, then let them drain on paper towels. I like a bit of kosher salt on them, but that's purely subjective.
Update: In the comments, Prairie Biker mentions topping his twice-cooked plantains with "aji chombo", which is a hot sauce made from an aji pepper, which has similar heat to a habenero. I couldn't find the one I've had before, which kicks butt, but I put up an Amazon link to a sauce that looks like the real deal. I always keep Sriracha sauce around, myself, to add a little kick to just about anything.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:24 AM | Comments (5)
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June 01, 2006
John's Survival Frites
(Photo: John's Survival Frites)
I'm finally getting around to posting the Survival Frites from the great dinner party I attended in Chicago in May. These amazing frites were dreamed up by John, who also made the veal piccata that night.
The potatoes were deep fried until really crispy, then dressed with olive oil, minced garlic, Survival Spice™, extra kosher salt and parsley. I shot this picture while they were still in a work bowl, the oil and flavor soaked into the potatoes as they sat.
They were unbelievably, mind-blowingly good. When I raved about them as we were eating, John mentioned that the secret ingredient was the Survival Spice.
I didn't know until he told me. Amazing what a little of this stuff will do to a dish. I'll definitely be making these, soon. I just hope I can do John's idea justice.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:59 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
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April 03, 2006
Chilebrown does Truffles
Have you ever eaten or cooked with truffles? Pricey, sure, but there's nothing quite like them.
I got a series of emails from Paul, aka Chilebrown a few weekends ago that I'm just getting around to posting, where he used truffles for the first time. I gave him a few tips, but the main one regarding truffles is the importance of pairing it with fat, be it oil, butter or even foix gras to help carry the flavor. Truffles are tricky devils, the flavor is usually just about gone by the time you've swallowed it, so one of the things that fat does in a dish is to help hold flavor to the tongue, and to both spread flavor across more taste buds and hold it there longer. Paul also infused our Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgine di Oliva, which you can see in the picture, with his left over truffles. I can only imagine how good that is, Mmmmm....
If you have pictures of a dish you're made, share them!
Continue reading "Chilebrown does Truffles"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:14 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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February 20, 2006
What would George and Abe eat?
(I like to call it Mt. Chefmore...)
Happy President's Day, everyone. Are you supposed to say happy, really? I guess you do if you don't have to work, I guess. Well, we don't get the mail today, and because I don't have to deal with shipments I had time to goof off a bit.
As I pondered what to make for dinner tonight, it got me thinking about what our past President from days of yore might have had for dinner on this special day, though I guess it really wasn't all that special at that point. Anyhoo, I have these really cool recipes from the late 1800s so I thought I might offer this as something they might have enjoyed.
Continue reading "What would George and Abe eat?"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:10 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
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February 08, 2006
Simple Grilled Chicken and Potatoes
(Photo: TPCs Simple Grilled Chicken and Potatoes)
Being especially lazy last night, dinner was simple, quick and delicious- grilled chicken breast with Survival Spice™ and an all natural plum chipoltle sauce I'm evaluating that's amazing, plus a salad of organic greens with a vinegarette recipe that I'm about ready to post. The highlight, though, was a really simple and fast way to do potatoes on the grill.
This was so simple. I sliced some red potatoes, drizzled them with a bit of Tibvrtini Olio Extra Virgine di Oliva, and popped them into the microwave until they were just about cooked through. I'm not a big fan of microwaves for anything but reheating, but it works pretty well in this case, and it sure saves a lot of time. I do recommend oiling them before nuking, I think it helps mitigate the mealy 'microwavy texture' nuked potatoes get.
Here they are on the grill. Dig the E-Z Hook® in action. I can't tell you how easy this makes life. It's become absolutely indispensable around here, I have to say.
I grilled them until they were crispy outside and soft inside, which only took as long as the chicken did to cook. I hit them with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, and dinner was served.
What did you have for dinner last night? Email me!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:42 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
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January 24, 2006
Survival Spice and Tofu
We're proud of Survival Spice™, our 2006 Scovie Award winning barbecue rub, but it really picks things up around the office when we get customer emails. Here's a great one from a customer in Mesa, AZ:
My 6 year old daughter is a Vegan (for the most part, a matter of taste). Her favorite dinner food is Tofu, sliced thin (1/2 inch), brushed with an Herb Flavored Olive Oil and Balsamic Vinegar with Survival Spice sprinkled on it - Broiled til golden brown in the oven - with MORE dipping oil on the side. I ran out of Survival Spice a while ago and tried different "Mrs. Dash's", my own sorry mixtures - she knew. She KNEW!In fact, last night's dinner was the motivator to order more Survival Spice; "Mama, this isn't like it used to be, it smells wrong and it isn't pretty". ROFL!!!!! I knew exactly what she meant.
Have something to say about Survival Spice™? Let us know!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:32 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
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December 07, 2005
Alaskan Halibut, Green Beans and Potatoes in vinagerette
(Another charming, slightly out of focus photo by yours truly...)
Just a simple weekday dinner, nothing fancy. Okay, the weekend meals aren't that elaborate either, most of the time, I gotta admit. Not during the holiday crunch, anyway...
As I was steaming some red potatoes and green beans, I took some fantastic Alaskan halibut (thanks again, Lloyd!), drizzled it with a bit of oil, and a touch of lemon juice and Survival Spice™.
While that was on the grill, I made a quick vinagerette of some butter, Tibvrtini Olio Extra Vergine di Oliva and Tibvrtini's amazing Aceto di Vino Bianco, along with some salt and pepper in a bowl.
When the veggies came out of the steamer, in they went into the dressing, sucking up the butter and all those great flavors.
The halibut was terrific, subtle with a great buttery texture. Just a pinch or two of seasoning was plenty. This would make a killer Nicoise salad. Hmmmm.... if there were any leftovers, that is.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:39 AM | Comments (6)
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October 25, 2005
3 cheese ravioli with pasilla cream sauce and asparagus
(TPCs 3 cheese ravioli with pasilla cream sauce and asparagus)
This was an excellent combinations of flavors that I served last night with some Alaskan halibut filets that I'll post tomorrow. Per Lloyd's request, I'm developing some Southwest fish dishes for him after he was kind enough to ship me a sampler of some of the most superb seafood I've ever tasted straight from Alaska.
After blackening the skins off of a few pasilla chiles, I pureed them with bit of homemade chicken stock and some heavy cream, then reduced it quite a bit. I balanced the heat with a touch of honey, seasoned with a bit of Hawaiian sea salt, shredded a bit of grana padano cheese, and that was it. It was really good, the pasilla cream sauce paired beautifully with the halibut and asparagus as well. A bright gewurztraminer did a great job cutting through the cream without overpowering the halibut.
Highly recommended. I'll elaborate a bit more tomorrow, but I have to say I'm looking forward to making this again soon for a proper photo shoot.
Update 10/27: I've had some emails asking for more information about this dish. The raviolis, which contain ricotta, mozerella and parmesan cheese, come through a good friend from a company in Los Angeles who makes them only for restaurant use at this time, but they are starting to test locally in a Whole Foods market there on a limited basis. All I can say is that I've had 5 or 6 kinds now, and they're extraordinary.
Pasilla chiles are known as chilacas when fresh and chile negros when dried. The chilacas, which I knew would look great with the asparagus and the halibut, with a nice warmth in the heat profile. Working with halibut, which has such a subtle flavor, I knew I needed to complement it in terms of texture- cream, a bit of crunch in the pine nuts, heat without overwhelming flavor from the pasillas, etc., and not in terms of strong flavors.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:37 PM | Comments (6) | TrackBack
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September 28, 2005
Shauna's "Salmon/Sausage Frittata and Watermelon Sorbet"
Wow, Food Fight Four is complete, and Shauna has submitted a beauty to close it up! I've excerpted most of her post at Gluten Free Girl, but go to her place for the whole thing, along with lots of other great stuff.
Shauna drew MC's Northwest Salmon with a Twist"" as her dish to interpret, and she definitely took the ball and ran with it. Apricot sausage? Watermelon sorbet? Right on.
She also said some nice things about yours truly that I'm not sure I deserve, but I really appreciate it. When I formulated Survival Spice™ for production, I was a maniac about sourcing premium ingredients. I wanted to produce an all natural product because it tasted better than anything else I tried, not because I was aware of Celiac Disease at that point. Happily, when I checked with my suppliers, they each said their ingredients were gluten free, so I felt comfortable spending the money to have it verified by an independent lab. There are lots of good resources on Shauna's blog for those with Celiac disease, if you know someone please pass her site on to them.
Continue reading "Shauna's "Salmon/Sausage Frittata and Watermelon Sorbet""
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:56 AM | Comments (6)
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September 27, 2005
TPCs Mediterranean Madness
(All photos: Mary, of TPC's Mediterranean Madness)
Okay, so I overdid it. Ana's entry really got me thinking about a style of food that I haven't prepared nearly enough, and it was time to correct that a bit. Ana's salad featured homemade falafel and pita bread, so I had to make those, but what else? Part of the charm of Mediterranean cuisine is all the wonderful side dishes- dips, spreads, salads, so I had to make some of those, too.
This was getting to be a lot of work, and I hadn't even gotten to an entrée yet! To keep it simple, I decided to grill a bunch of kabobs, chicken, shrimp and lots of veggies. Something for everyone, and some low/no carb options for those who requested it. I'll post some recipes later, lots of pics and comments are posted below. Thanks to Mary, a great photographer friend of mine, who took all these great pictures, despite inadequate lighting and all of us trying to steal food off the plates before she could shoot them.
Continue reading "TPCs Mediterranean Madness"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:10 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack
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September 15, 2005
Diana's version of Paul's Puffy Corn Omelet
Our first 'interpreted' dish is in. Diana has submitted her version of Paul's Puffy Corn Omelet and did a great job customizing the original Gourmet recipe to the ingredients and kitchen equipment available. I really like the fact that she kicked up the heat a bit, but still kept the spirit of the dish.
She apologizes for the picture quality, but I believe her when she said it tasted great! Nice job, Diana!
Keep those interpreted dishes coming in by emailing them here. All interpreted dishes will be available in the FF4- Interpreted category in the side bar.
I'll open the voting on the 'Original' submitted dishes category tomorrow, so take a few minutes to review the entries!
Continue reading "Diana's version of Paul's Puffy Corn Omelet"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 10:17 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack
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September 06, 2005
Ana's Salad with Homemade Falafel and Pita Bread
(Photo: Ana's Salad with Homemade Falafel and Pita Bread)
I've got more entries to post, with everything going on I'll keep the contest open until Friday, just let me know if you're working on something. Email your picture and recipe here.
Ana kicks ass. Her entry shows off her homemade falafel, and though there's no pita in the picture she sent, she's included her favorite pita bread recipe as a bonus. I guess if I was a runner like Ana, I could eat falafel and pita in the same meal, too!
Her recipes for falafel and pita bread are below the fold.
Continue reading "Ana's Salad with Homemade Falafel and Pita Bread"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:56 AM | Comments (3)
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August 31, 2005
Food Fight submission- Puffy Corn Omelet
(Photo:Gourmet Magazine- Puffy Corn Omelet)
Sorry to take so long to get this posted, but lots going on at Desert Island Foods™.com, and life in general.
Paul "Chile" Brown has submitted a recipe he found in Gourmet magazine called a Puffy Corn Omelet that I don't have a link for yet. Paul is also a recent runner up from Food Fight #3:
This recipe is from Gourmet Magazine. I liked it because the ingredients are few and simple. Right now corn is the bomb. I want to make this recipe with my Homemade bacon. I saw a recipe that you use this cure on Pork Butt for 10 days. You rinse and then smoke to 140 degrees. It is supposed to turn out like a cross between Canadian Bacon and country Ham. We will see. I should be smoking it next Tuesday.Peace, Paul
Paul's heading out on vacation soon, so we probably won't see his version before the contest ends, but you gotta like the idea of adding bacon to just about anything. Right? I have a few more entries to post yet. Keep em coming by emailing them here! See the posts below for rules and guidelines.
Chile's recipe is below the fold.
Continue reading "Food Fight submission- Puffy Corn Omelet"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 11:41 AM
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July 27, 2005
Survival Fries- version 1
These turned out pretty well for a first attempt. I've been updating the "How to use Survival Spice™" page to try to keep up with all the suggested uses I get from customers. One of the suggestions was on roasted potatoes, so I thought I'd give it a try. I would do it slightly differently next time, so I'll tell you what I did and what I'll do next time. The recipe is in the extended entry.
Continue reading "Survival Fries- version 1"
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
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July 24, 2005
Cowboy Ribeye au Poivre with South of the Border-laise Sauce
I did quite a bit of cooking this weekend because I'm working on a few recipes for a party at the end of the month and I'm updating some content on the Desert Island Foods™.com site. The first version of the 'Survival Fries' I made are here.
Dinner Saturday night was my quick Franco-Phoenix version of a classic- Steak au Poivre with a Bordelaise sauce. I've been thinking about it since Dr. Biggles had made a cool version from an old cookbook last week, so I thought I'd see if I could do a quick version of one of my favorite sauces without an important ingredient, veal demi-glace.
It turned out really well and was an interesting experiment. I'll do a quick summary here and I'll do a more comprehensive recipe later if enough of you are interested.
With the impending storm on the horizon and not having any demi-glace, I decided to make it indoors so I could maximize the use of pan juices. I rubbed the steak with whole-grain mustard and a quick rub of smashed black peppercorns, brown sugar, coffee and kosher salt while my cast iron skillet was heating up. In a bit of oil and butter I cooked the steak to rare, knowing that carry over heat would bring it to medium-rare, then removed it from the skillet and wrapped it in foil while I made the pan sauce.
I added enough flour to the skillet to soak up the juices, then added a bit more oil and butter and sweated a few minced shallots until translucent. I deglazed with a cup or so of good red wine (a Penfold's Shiraz) and reduced it 50%, whisking to incorporate the roux and pan drippings. For a Southwestern touch, I added a teaspoon of adobo sauce for some extra depth of flavor and some background heat. The resting beef at this point had released some juice, so that went in as well.
After adding a few sprigs of fresh thyme, I added a can of chicken stock. A good beef stock would been my preference, but you use what you've got and it worked out fine because of all the beef flavor in the cast iron and from the steak. I cranked up the heat and reduced this 50%, until it was starting to thicken up a bit. I turned off the heat, whisked in a few pats of butter and some chopped parsley.
Meanwhile, I did a quick sauté of Asparagus, Crimini Mushrooms, and Pine Nuts.
Good stuff.
What did you cook this weekend? Leave it in the comments and email me a dish you're particularly proud of.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 12:00 PM | Comments (2)
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July 01, 2005
Corn Risotto
the pragmatic chef's™ Corn Risotto
This is basically an upscale Southwest version of creamed corn, with a nice cheesy kick. Thanks to Lesley for the original idea.
3T unsalted butter, though salted will work.
1 small onion finely chopped
2 cups fresh tender corn kernels, about 4 ears. Fresh is best but use a good quality frozen corn (thawed and excess water drained off) if corn isn't in season or you're feeling lazy.
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup shredded Fontina cheese (2 ounces) Monterrey Jack is a reasonable substitute.
1 tbls minced jalepeno or serrano chiles, roughly 1 pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper TT (to taste)
Cilantro for garnish, coarsely chopped. You can skip this if you don't care for cilantro or you're out (as I was the day I made it for the picture).
Preheat broiler on low. On the stove top, melt butter in skillet and saute the onion til lightly browned. Add the corn and cook until hot stirring often. Pour in the cream and bring to a full boil.
Cook, stirring, until the cream has reduced a bit but it still has the loose quality of traditional risotto. Add the jalapenos, warm them up and then season to taste. If you don't let your chiles warm up enough, you may not realize how spicy your dish is going to be.
Pour the mixture into a shallow baking dish. Scatter shredded cheese over the top. Place under the broiler until the cheese is melted and the corn is bubbling slightly. Don't overdo it!
Serve on warm plates garnished with salsa fresca or in pasta bowls with Traditional New Mexico pork chile and warm tortillas.
Serves 4-6 as a side dish.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:18 AM | Comments (0)
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June 30, 2005
Frozen dinner- Stuffed Pork Loin and Cheesey Potatoes
Raided the fridge for dinner yesterday, time's a bit tight these days keeping up with Desert Island Foods™ biz.
I had made this stuffed pork loin for about 25 friends and family members this winter and had some left over. Normally I would have done a roulade with it but with having to do 2 full loins in the time I had, I figured I'd try it this way. The stuffing was probably hot Italian sausage, pine nuts, parsley, garlic, Colman's mustard and fresh bread crumbs, though I tend to do it differently every time. I seared it on the grill with a bit of pecan wood then finished it in the oven, you can see a bit of the smoke ring in the pork if you look closely.
I originally served it with a Poblano creme sauce but that was gone. For this, I just reduced some chicken stock with some mustard and fresh rosemary and thyme. Sliced the now-thawed loin and simmered it in the sauce so it could pick up some of the pork and stuffing flavors.
The potatoes were in the freezer too, an American take on Pommes de Terre Boulangere. Sliced potatoes baked in chicken stock, onions and fresh thyme. Topped off with Jack and Cheddar cheese and broiled until brown and bubbly. Kids call them 'Cheesey Potatoes' and I like that name just as well, really!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:28 AM
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Belgian Fries
Man, is Michel (aka King Cone) obsessed with French Belgian Fries! Here's a Belgian website dedicated to the fried potato. The site includes a section dedicated to the "frietkot" or fry shack, little booths that serve only fries.
He also includes the recipe for preparing and cooking a proper fry, which I endorse. The twice cooked method is the ultimate way of insuring a crispy fry that's tender inside. Unfortunately there's no direct link to the recipes section so follow the main link above and click on 'recipes' in the left sidebar.
BTW, a Belgian fry is never served with ketchup or vinegar, only mayonaise. Okay, he kinda loses me there...
Check out the site, this guy is really into it!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:52 AM | Comments (1)
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June 16, 2005
Grilled Salmon w/Asparagus and Crispy Salmon Skin Strips
Easy and good. Here's how I like to grill salmon fillets. A bit of oil and Survival Spice™ on the top and the bottom gets oil and a generous amount of kosher salt to help crisp it.
Onto a medium-high grill bottom side down until the skin is set up enough to remove. Flip the salmon onto the presentation side a a slight angle (if quadrillage is your bag), remove the skin and keep it on the grill where it will get enough heat to get crispy but not burned. If there is a lot of dark meat on the filet, scrape most of it off with your spatula and season the bottom with more Survival Spice™.
Turn, don't flip the fish 60º when your fish has the first grill marks. Grill a few more minutes until your presentation side looks good. Flip the fillet onto its now-seasoned bottom and cook until done.
I'm begging you, don't overcook your fish! Most people grill fish until it flakes and that's too late. By the time the connective tissue (myocommata, for bonus points) breaks down the actual meat is overdone. You want to pull it off the grill just before it flakes and carry over heat will do the rest.
Cut your crispy salmon skin into strips. I really like salmon skin if it's cooked well, some folks don't. Such is life.
Oh, the asparagus? Oiled and salted, onto the grill. A good squirt of lemon when it comes off. Easy.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:11 AM
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June 11, 2005
Grilled Corn and Squash Quesadilla
Actually, it was lunch today, but I love quesadillas. Such an easy and delicious way to use up leftovers. Grated Jack and Cheddar cheeses, some salsa, homegrown oregano and you're all set.
Easy to prepare, too. Fire up your grill with a medium fire or pre-heat a 375º oven. (If you use your oven, make sure there's something on the shelf underneath your quesadilla to catch drippings.
If you have a pizza pan or sizzle platter fine, otherwise you what you've got. Start with a little oil on the platter and lay down your first tortilla. Use whatever you want for filling, just make sure it's cooked first, the veggies in mine would have never gotten cooked in time if I hadn't. You really should have some kind of cheese to hold it together if you want to flip it. Don't overfill it! Lay your top tortilla in place and brush some more oil on top.
Slide your prepared quesadilla onto the grill or oven rack. Give it a few minutes, take a peak underneath and rotate 60º if you've gotten your grill marks going. (Proper quadrillage is always worth bonus points in my book.)
Okay, flipping. The easiest way is to put your plate back on top of the quesadilla, slide your spatula (wide is good) underneath and whle pressing down a bit with the platter, smoothly and confidently turn the whole thing over in one movement.
Grill the other side until the whole thing is nice and gooey. Check it by lightly lifting the top tortilla. Slide it back onto the platter and serve with more cheese, sour cream and guacamole.
Oh, and a nice cold Shiner Bock. Life is good...
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 02:43 PM
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June 09, 2005
Grilled Corn on the Cob
I also grilled a few ears of corn. This is so easy, I don't know why people make a huge production out of it and it's a great technique because the corn is cooked in the husk, which gives it even more flavor.
Lay the whole ear on a hot fire, husk and all. You can pre-soak but with really fresh corn I don't feel it's necessary, the kernels and the silk should contribute enough moisture to create the steam you need. Keep it turning, removing the husk layer by layer as they burn away. You don't want to do this too early because you'll lose that seal that's keeping the steam in. I keep a plastic bag around for the husks and I just hold the ear with my tongs and pull the husks off by hand. You might want to keep a side towel handy for this if you're not a total masochist like I am...
In around 15 minutes, push on a few kernels. If they feel soft and well, cooked you're about there. Take off the rest of the husk, give the corn a few minutes on the coals to sear off the silk, and enjoy!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:02 AM
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Seared Ahi with Grilled Rosemary Squash
Easy and amazing. Zip the rosemary leaves off into a ramekin with a little olive oil while you're seasoning the fish, which was just canola oil and Survival Spice™.
Season the squash with S & P then drizzle with the infused oil. Don't do this too far in advance so your veg doesn't absorb too much oil and get mushy. 10 minutes is plenty. This is all about fresh, clean flavors.
Drizzle the fish with a bit more oil, then lay the ahi best side down on the hottest part of the fire and the squash away from it a bit. If the fish sticks, don't move it! Eventually it will lift away on its own.
After a few minutes, sneak a look at the fish and squash to see if you have grill marks yet. If you do, rotate 60º and give it a few more minutes. Flip and get ready to plate! Ahi should not be overcooked. Feel it with your finger, if it's mushy wait a minute. When it's just starting to set up but still has some give to it, you're good to go!
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 07:47 AM
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May 16, 2005
Sweet Fried Red Cabbage with Kielbasi
Submitted by Steve from Seattle- Food Fight™ winner 5/14/2005:
This dish came from my great aunt Kate.
She used to make it for us as kids when we visited her in northern Michigan.
I got the recipe from my grandmother,(Kate's sister), years after Kate passed away and i make it quite often still.
Heres the breakdown of ingredients:
1 6" red cabbage
2 Red apples
1 red onion
4 strips bacon
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar...not apple flavored vinegar
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 lb polish sausage
1/4 and core the cabbage and slice into 1/4" slices
Cut the apple into 1/8ths and core, slice the 1/8ths into 1/4" pieces
1/4 the onion and slice into 1/8" slices
Cut the bacon strips into 1/2 pieces.
Cut the polish sausage in 1/2 lengthwise and slice into 3/4" pieces
Mix the vinegar and brown sugar in a small bowl.
In a seperate pan, brown the sausage slowly to your liking. ( i like mine a bit crispy on the outside for this dish)
Brown the bacon slowly till crispy in a 16" saute pan and remove from grease.
Add the cabbage, apples, and onion to the grease and cook covered, sitrring now and then, till well cooked down and liquid is gone.
Remove the lid and fry the cabbage mixture till it starts to carmalize a bit then add vinegar brown sugar mix. Stir around to deglaze the pan and add the bacon and cooked sausage.
Posted by The Pragmatic Chef at 08:20 AM