Culinaria: recipes, memories ...

[Hunter B]

Well, I just found out wer're having a bbq on the boat. Steak, corn, and quail. That's all I know ATM.

[Darb]

I assume you'll be using a "Transom Hibachi" ?

I love quail, but I rarely get to cook it, because my wife (who's a total softie) cringes and says they're too cute to eat.

It's been a few years, but if I recall, I like to spatchcock (split open along the spine, and open flat, like a book), lightly marinate and grill them. They're also good partially deboned. I recommend Jacques Pepin, for that one ... and you can do most of the prep in advance, before getting on the boat.

[Hunter B]

I assume you'll be using a "Transom Hibachi" ?

Could you please define?

I love quail, but I rarely get to cook it, because my wife (who's a total softie) cringes and says they're too cute to eat.

Ouch. Well, we don't have it too often either, maybe we will when we go hunting again, but for now, my dad's fixated on fish.

It's been a few years, but if I recall, I like to spatchcock (split open along the spine, and open flat, like a book), lightly marinate and grill them.

Hehe, well, that's exactly what we're doin. I need to find out what the marinade is though.


Mod note: fixed broken quote tags. Laurie

[Aunflin]

Quail too cute to eat?

A baby's too cute to eat or a kitten or a puppy--and I still don't get why duck's too cute to eat--especially if you get one from the Asian market with the head still attached: definately ain't cute... I had to cut the head off before I could cook it--darn thing freaked me out, though I did use it and the giblets to make a tasty stock...

[nzilla]

Eew, giblets! Nothing but muscle tissue and cutaneous layers for me, thank you!

[mccormack44]

Whenever I get a bird with liver and giblets included, I cook it all (including the neck) in water (about 3 times the volume of the poultry parts) until the heart or gizzard is done. The heart, liver, and gizzards are then cooled and cut up for the cats, the neck is discarded (carefully — because of the cats), and the broth goes into my frozen stock collection.
I can't tolerate organ meats and neither can my husband, but we don't have any reaction to the stock; and this nice rich stock makes a great addition to any dish I wish to use stock in. I never get enough of this stock to supply my stock needs for any dish, but it always enriches whatever other stock I do have on hand.

This works for both chicken and turkey, the two types of poultry I most frequently buy. I've done it with duck once or twice, but we don't care for duck. We've never had goose, but I'm sure that would work just as well.

Sue

[Darb]

A "Transom Hibachi" is basically a small shallow rectangular charcoal grill (Japanese term = Hibachi) that hangs off the end of your boat (re: the "Transom") over the water, so that any grease drippings or ask that falls through the drain hole dont foul your boat deck ... no drip can required. They're handy ... and when you're done grilling, you just lift off the grating, and dump the contents into the water, and brush it out.

I can't tolerate organ meats and neither can my husband

If that a gout-related issue with purines ?

Anyway, I enjoy liver ... but I usually prefer to slice and saute it, rather than boil it in my stock. Leaving it in poulty stock tends to impart a slightly murky-bitter flavor. That's just me though.

[nzilla]

But hibachi aren't generally used to cook food on in Japan; they're mostly for tea and warmth.

BTW, Brad, your avatar just slays me.

[mccormack44]

It's not related to gout as far I know; we don't get the classical symptoms (as learned from novels) and no doctor has suggested it.

We do get severe indigestion and nausea. (As an anemic mother-to-be I was given ONE liver shot, it swelled up like a balloon, and the doctor stopped the process. So, in my case, it may be a pure allergy. I never list it on my allergies list, since it's fairly easy to avoid.)

We do tolerate — barely — braunsweiger, which sometimes turns up in hor d'oeuvres; but we never buy it. There's no sense in tempting fate.

Sue

[Darb]

But hibachi aren't generally used to cook food on in Japan; they're mostly for tea and warmth.

BTW, Brad, your avatar just slays me.

Here's an example of an American-style hibachi ... here ya go.

You can find such things in well-equipped marine and boating supplies stores.

[Hunter B]

Yep, that's pretty much what we used.

And, I've never seen it called a hibachi. It's just sold as a marine/portable bbq.

[tollbaby]

Here ya go, Brad... Lemon Bars!

bottom layer: 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter or hard margarine, softened

second layer: 2 large eggs
3 Tbsp. lemon juice, fresh or bottled
1 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup medium coconut
1/4 tsp. salt

icing: 1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
2 Tbsp. butter or hard margarine, softened
4 tsp. lemon juice, fresh or bottled

Bottom layer: Crumble all 3 ingredients until mealy. Press in ungreased 9x9 inch pan. Bake in 350°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes (175°C for the non-Americans).

Second layer: Beat eggs slightly. Stir in next 6 ingredients. Spread over first layer. Bake in 350°F oven for 30 minutes until set in center and light brown in color.

Icing: Combine icing sugar, butter and lemon juice in small bowl. Beat well, adding more lemon juice a bit at a time as needed for easy spreading. Spread over cooled bars. Allow to set. Cuts into 36 squares (ha!).

you can vary the amount of lemon juice added to increase/decrease lemon flavor to taste.

[Darb]

Aunflin: I tried the English curry powder recipe I posted on the previous page.

* First of a ll, a correction - the recipe, if I recall, makes 8-10 tsp, rather than 10-12, so it's roughly 1/2 - 2/3 a standard spice bottle.

* The flavor's a tad off ... when I figure out why, I'll post a correction. The fact that I substituted bay for curry leaf is probably part, but not all, of it. As is, it tastes a bit too much like regular sambar powder.

Ok, here's my 2nd attempt at English Curry Powder:

Qty Ingredient
2 tsp Coriander Seeds
1 tsp Cumin Seeds
1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
5-10 Curry Leaves (slowly dry toasted over low heat, until brittle){NOTE: If you lack curry leaves, substitute 1-2 bay leaves.}
1 tsp Paprika, ground
1 tsp Turmeric, ground
1 tsp Garam Masala, ground
¾ tsp Besan Flour
¾ tsp Garlic, powder
1/8 tsp Ginger, ground
1/8 tsp Dry Mustard (yellow), ground
1/8 tsp Black Pepper, ground
1/8 tsp Cayennne Pepper (Red Chile Powder), ground
1/8 tsp Asafoetida, ground

Directions:
1. Dry toast (over med-heat), cool & set aside whole seeds in spice mill.
2. Dry toast (over lowest heat) curry leaves until dry and brittle, and combine with toasted seeds.
3. Combine all ingredients in spice mill, and grind until very fine.

Note: Just for posterity, McCormick’s curry powder lists the following ingredients, in decreasing order - coriander, fenugreek, turmeric, cumin, black pepper, bay leaves, celery seed, nutmeg, clove, onion, cayenne, ginger.

I increased the amount of curry/bay leaves, and increased the fenugreek.

I'll let people know how it turns out.

[Teamtunafish]

Seeing as we're talking grilling, a real good Lime Peppered Chicken consists of chicken marinated in a can of limeade, undiluted, and about 2 teaspoons pepper. Let it sit overnight, then grill. Yum!

[Darb]

Sounds tasty, but you'd need to make sure the limeade isn't too acidic, and/or that you use so much of it that chicken begins to 'ceviche' (i.e., the proteins can denature {get cooked by} the acid) after a few short hours.

Use it sparingly, and stop marinating if the chicken meat begins to whiten.

p.s. That same recipe should work well for squid ... and you can use ginger ale for the same purpose.

[Kvetch]

Hmm. this seems like a good place to do a little lyrical waxing - if it isn't, move it around.

As people probably know, I've just been on holiday to Greece. While eating on the continent is not easy for a vegetarian - I ate Spagetti Napolitan for seven days running, and quite a lot of the rest of the time, and I dined Greek salads until feta was coming out my ears. However, there are a few things I'd like to enthuse over and recommend

* Σπανακόπιττα (Spanakopitta)
This is a street food dish, usually macerated spinach and feta wrapped in filo pastry and cooked - and it is absolutely delicious. There are reams of recipies on the web if anyone wants to try and make it. Do not leave Greece without trying it.

* Tomatoes
Greek tomatoes are possibly the nearest thing to heaven on this earth - compared to the fairly lackluster things you get in the UK (even if you buy organic), Greek tomatoes are huge, juicy and flavoursome. I see now why 'Greek' salad is a popular dish - which leads me onto

* Feta
I love salt cheeses (Roquefort being another one, but that is different matter), and I love soft cheeses. Feta is a combination made in paradise for me. I've been eating the stuff all my life (another advantage to growing up in a multicultural area) and I can't praise it enough.

* Olives.
mmmmm. I generally prefer large green brined olives, but the Kalamata style (small black or red in oil) is pretty incredible when you are eating the olives not 50 metres from where they were picked.

* Dolmades (Stuffed vine leaves)
Delicious, although it is difficult to find out if the damn things contain mincemeat or not. If you make your own, make sure to marinate them in Olive oil (E.V. for preference) and lemon juice

* τζατζίκι (Tzatziki)
A sort of yoghurt based cucumber/garlic based dish - It is hard to incorporate garlic into British cooking, but I love the stuff, and this dip contrasts the contrasting flavours of cucumber and garlic brilliantly. Similar, if not exactly the same as the Indian raita.

* Watermelon.
One of the fruits that is hard to find outside of London in the UK, so I rarely get hold of it here, but what better way is there of ending a meal than with iced watermelon? Several restaurants we ate at served watermelon as a meal closer automatically, in the same way as they provided bread with the meal. - very civilised IMO

* Kataifi (A dish that can be spelt a hundred different ways, and which ?I don't know the greek spelling of)
A syrup (i.e. honey) drenched dessert of pistachio (?) wrapped in shreeded filo. Feindishly unhealthy, but delicious.


I want to go back now...

[laurie]

My sister married a 1st generation Greek-American, and picked up a few recipes from his mother. I've had:

* Spanakopitta
This is a street food dish, usually macerated spinach and feta wrapped in filo pastry and cooked - and it is absolutely delicious. There are reams of recipies on the web if anyone wants to try and make it. Do not leave Greece without trying it.

The only way to get me voluntarily to eat spinach. It is fabulous!

* Tzatziki
A sort of yoghurt based cucumber/garlic based dish - It is hard to incorporate garlic into British cooking, but I love the stuff, and this dip contrasts the contrasting flavours of cucumber and garlic brilliantly. Similar, if not exactly the same as the Indian raita.

I've had this mostly as a dip, but it's also great as a sandwich spread instead of mayonnaise or mustard - I love it in a lettuce-and-tomato-in-pita sandwich - or as a salad dressing (if you prefer a thinner dressing, just add a little olive oil).

* Watermelon.
One of the fruits that is hard to find outside of London in the UK, so I rarely get hold of it here, but what better way is there of ending a meal than with iced watermelon? Several restaurants we ate at served watermelon as a meal closer automatically, in the same way as they provided bread with the meal. - very civilised IMO

Ah, Kvetch, you must come to the States in the summer - watermelon for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, any day you want it.

* Kataifi (A dish that can be spelt a hundred different ways, and which I don't know the greek spelling of)
A syrup (i.e. honey) drenched dessert of pistachio (?) wrapped in shreeded filo. Feindishly unhealthy, but delicious.

Similar in taste to baklava - and just as sinfully good ...

[Kvetch]

Don't be suprised if I turn up at your door, demanding watermelon, OK>

[wolfspirit]

Don't be suprised if I turn up at your door, demanding watermelon, OK>

Watermellon is very good, very plentiful.

I find cantelope tastes better, and it's only ~$1 a cantelope, which is enough for a couple of days, when it's in season.

wolfspirit

[laurie]

Don't be suprised if I turn up at your door, demanding watermelon, OK>

Anytime (in summer, that is), Kvetch. But be prepared for a seed-spitting contest. It's a tradition at my house.

[mccormack44]

You melon lovers are getting to me — HARD. Why didn't someone also mention Honeydew, always my favorite?

I can't eat melons when ragweed is present. They cross-sensitive me and my allergic rhynitis and other allergy symptoms get much worse. And — of course! — ripe melons coincide with ripe ragweed. So the joys of summer melons have been out of reach for me for the past 21 years.



Sue

[Kvetch]

I like most melons, but honeydews - no. I don't think they are unpleasant as such, but I'm not a fan. Watermelon is still the best.

Being unable to eat melons due to ragwort? That sucks.

[Darb]

Here's an updated version of a classic 1920's style seafood casserole that I reworked last night. I apologize in advance for the ugly format ... this is pasted directly from MS Word, and the formatting doesnt translate cleanly.

[quote]Casserole, Seafood
Origin: My version of an old classic, loosely inspired by a couple of old 1920's era recipes I saw. My version is a lot less heavy than the verisons that inspired it (which invariably used butter & cream w/lavish abandon).
Batch: 3 qts generously serves 6 people as a 1-dish entree.
Time: 30 mins to assemble, 30 to bake.

Amt Ingredient
1 tbsp Cooking Spray, Oil or Softened Butter
9 oz CRACKER CRUMBS

• I use "Nabisco Saltines", ground into med-fine meal (9 oz = approx 1 qt meal). Since 2 sleeves = 8 oz, feel free to subsitute something for the extra 1 oz vs opening a 3rd sleeve. Dried bread crumbs will serve in a pinch, if used with restraint.
  Note: "Ritz crackers" will probably work in place of the saltines. Matzoh, however, will *not* (it'd expand waaaaaay too much, because it's unleavened).

¾ tsp Old Bay Seasoning
½ tsp, ea Paprika + Cayenne + Black Pepper
¾ cup Fresh Parsley (leaves and tender stems), flatleaf, chopped fine
6 oz Yellow Onions, 1/8" dice (4 oz = ¾ cup), sauteed til softened
6-8 oz Green Peas, thawed
3 lbs MIXED RAW SEAFOOD

• I typically use equal parts Scallops (bay), Shrimp (diced), and Fish (salmon & flounder, 50:50, diced ½â€

[mccormack44]

Had an interesting side dish tonight, inspired by something I've been getting at a chain restaurant (don't remember if it is Applebee's or Macaroni Grill).

1 cup cooked brown rice
1 pkg. frozen spinach

Heat together and serve.
The restaurant version used orzo instead of rice and added pine nuts. I was avoiding wheat tonight, so used the rice. I deliberately used more spinach than the restaurant version. And lacking pine nuts at this time, I sprinkled about a tablespoon of sesame seeds over the mixture to add crunch.

Served this with chicken breasts and commercial mixed vegetables. A simple meal, but quite good.

My husband asked that I try a creamed spinach with the rice next time I try this.

Sue

[Darb]

Creamed spinach would definitely be a nice touch ... as would crumbled feta or grated cheddar.

Some buttered bread crumbs, and a trip under a broiler would probably be nice too.