Category: In the Kitchen

Salmon Poached in White Wine with Penne and Asparagus

This delicious seafood pasta dish comes together in about 45 minutes, is simple to make and relatively inexpensive.  Its clean, bright flavor profile yields a result greater than the sum of its parts and it is therefore both perfect for a weeknight dinner and elegant enough for a romantic dinner for two.

Time: 45 minutes
Level: Easy
Cost: Approximately $4/plate
Serves: 4

Ingredients

  1. 1 large salmon filet, approximately 1lb, cut into four pieces and skin removed
  2. 2 TBSP Kosher salt
  3. 2 cloves garlic, minced
  4. 1 small shallot, minced
  5. 1 TBSP unsalted butter
  6. 1 TBSP olive oil
  7. zest of 1 lemon
  8. 1 TBSP capers (optional)
  9. 1lb asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces
  10. 1/3 bottle cheap but drinkable dry white wine
  11. 1 box (1lb) penne pasta, cooked according to package directions
  12. Handful (approximate 1/3 – 1/2 cup) fresh parsley, finely chopped
  13. juice of two lemons
  14. grated parmesan cheese (optional, for serving)

Instructions

  1. Begin by heating water for pasta and blanching asparagus.  Make sure it is at a rolling boil and then add a good 2 TBSP of Kosher salt.  Blanching the asparagus will turn the water green, but also impart a vegetal favor to your pasta which is subtle and quite nice.
  2. Heat butter and olive oil in a large sauté pan until melted over medium low heat.  While butter is still foamy, lower the heat to low and add the shallots, garlic and lemon zest.  Cook until fragrant and shallots are soft, 2-3 minutes.  If the garlic starts to brown, you’ll have to start over, so go slowly and use very low heat.
  3. When aromatics (shallot, garlic, lemon zest) are just barely sizzling, add white wine and capers, if using.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.  Add the salmon filets to the liquid, cover the pan, and allow to sit at a bare simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until salmon reaches an internal temperature of 130°F.  If you are using a very good pan with excellent heat retention, you may be able to off the heat entirely and allow the salmon to poach in the residual heat.  Bottom line:  The lower and slower the better.
  4. While salmon is poaching prepare asparagus and pasta.
    1. Add asparagus to boiling water, return to a boil, and cook 3-4 minutes.  Remove with a slotted spoon and rise immediately under cold running water (or shock them in an ice bath) to stop the cooking process.  Set aside.
    2. Cook pasta according to package directions.  If salmon is still not done once pasta is finished, drain in a colander and set aside.  Be sure to reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water.
  5. Once salmon is up to temp, carefully remove to a cutting board and allow to rest.  Be careful, it will be very tender and flakey and you don’t want it to fall apart just yet.
  6. Add penne and asparagus to sauté pan and toss in the sauce until well combined.  Add a couple tablespoons of pasta water to thicken the sauce if neccessary.
  7. Slice salmon filets into small, bite-sized pieces and add to the pan with the sauce, asparagus and penne.
  8. Squeeze the juice of two lemons into the pan and add a handful of chopped parsley.  Use salad tongs to gently toss until combined and serve.  Pass parmesan at the table.

New Mexico Sopapillas

I love these guys – puffy, airy little pastries designed to do one thing: be a delivery mechanism for awesome flavors.  They are a staple of New Mexican cuisine, and as far as I can tell, almost exclusive to it as well.
Sopapilla literally means “little soup pillow” and that’s what they are best at – sopping up delicious sauce from the plate, or soaking in delicious chili.  My first encounter with a sopapilla was at a Sadie’s in Albuquerque, NM back when I was in high school.  This was also the first time I encountered Chili Verde, chili in general, and food that was legitimately spicy.  I had been wanting to try to make these for years, but for a whole variety of reasons never got around to it until the other night, and they were amazing.  Sprinkled with a bit of cinnamon sugar or a drizzle of honey, they also make an awesome breakfast.  Also, this was REALLY easy.

Time: 30 minutes
Level: Easy
Cost: Really, really cheap seeing as they’re made from stuff you probably have on hand
Makes:  Approximately 18-24 sopapillas

Ingredients

  1. 3 cups all purpose flour, plus perhaps 1-2 TBSP
  2. 2 tsp double-acting baking powder
  3. 1 tsp salt
  4. 1 cup whole milk
  5. 1/4 cup warm water
  6. 6 TBSP unsalted butter, melted
  7. 1.5 quart (48 oz) vegetable or canola oil, for frying

Instructions

  1. Combine dry ingredients (1-3) in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
  2. Create a well in the bowl using the dry ingredients, it should look like a little volcano; a mound of ingredients with a little hole, perhaps 2 inches in diameter, in the top.
  3. Combine wet ingredients (4-6) in a 2 cup measuring cup and whisk briefly to combine.
  4. Add about half of the wet ingredients to your flour-mixture volcano.  Using your hands, begin scooping the dry ingredients from the edges of the volcano into the wet ones on top.  Add the rest of the wet ingredients and continue to mix until a rough dough has formed.  If your dough is super sticky, coat it with 1 TBSP flour.  Once the dough is fairly consistent, coat with 1 more TBSP flour and cover with plastic wrap or a clean towel.  Punch down and fold a few times to make sure everything is really worked together.  Allow dough to rest for 20 minutes.
  5. Once dough is rested, remove it from the bowl and divide into two parts.  Place one part back in the bowl and cover while you work with the other part.  On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to about 1/8 inch thick, trying to get it as consistent as possible.  Cut off rounded edges to make a rectangular piece of dough and discard the trimmings.  Cut dough into rectangles approximately 1.5″ x 2″.  Repeat with the remaining dough.
  6. Heat oil in a large pot to 375°F – 400°F
    • Cook’s Note:  When frying stuff, I’ve found that my 5qt sauté pan is actually the perfect size.  480z of oil comes do about 2″ deep, which is all you really need to fry just about anything.  The fact that it’s fairly wide (12″ across) means that the oil will come up to temperature more quickly and I can fry things in larger batches.  There’s only one serious drawback:  A sauté pan has a handle, and handles can be accidentally knocked, and the potential for knocking a large volume of 400°F oil onto yourself or the floor is a VERY bad thing.  So, if you use your sauté pan for this, PLEASE make sure the handle is pointed AWAY from you, toward your stove, and well away from any place it could be inadvertently knocked.
  7. Once oil is up to temp, carefully slide a sopapilla into the oil.  It will submerge, sizzling quite a bit, and then float to the top.  Then the magic happens:  Before your very eyes, it will puff into a beautiful little pillow.  Continue to fry for 2-3 minutes until golden brown, and the flip with a slotted spoon to brown the other side.  Once you’ve done one as a tester, you can probably do 3-4 at a time.
    • Cook’s Note:  If your sopapilla doesn’t puff, chances are your oil isn’t the right temperature.  It’s got to be hotter than 350°F but no hotter than about 410°F.  Remember:  Every time you add a sopapilla to the oil, it’s going to bring the overall oil temp down a couple of degrees.  This is why I recommend starting with your oil somewhere between 375°F – 400°F.   Either that or you’re trying this at high-altitude.  In either case, if after a few test batches your sopapillas don’t puff, don’t worry – they’re still tasty.
  8. Once fried, remove sopapillas to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain.  Repeat until all sopapillas are fried.  They can be kept warm in a 200°F oven for 30-45 minutes.  Also, they refrigerate pretty well and can be gently reheated in a 325°F oven until just warmed through, about 5 minutes.

Peruvian Style Roast Chicken with Jalapeño-Cilantro Sauce

This delicious, succulent chicken served with a green sauce similar to a creamy chimichurri is a sure crowd pleaser.  This version is a loose adaptation of J. Kenji Lopez-Alt’s  grilled recipe featured on his blog Serious Eats.  While it could also work out quite nicely on the grill, this version is executed in the kitchen and is one of the best things I’ve made in a long time.

Time: 90 minutes (30 minutes inactive)
Level: Easy/Intermediate
Cost: About $4/plate (depending on which pantry essentials you have on hand)
Serves: 3-6

Ingredients

For the Chicken:

  1. 1 whole chicken broken down into 8-10 parts, plus a couple of extra breasts or thighs if you’re feeding a crowd
  2. 4 tsp kosher salt
  3. 2 TBSP ground cumin
  4. 2 TBSP paprika
  5. 1 tsp coursly ground black pepper
  6. 2 TBSP granulated garlic
  7. 2 TBSP white wine vinegar
  8. 2 TBSP olive oil
  9. 3/4 cup white vermouth
  10. 1 shallot (or 1/2 white onion), diced
  11. 3 cloves garlic, minced
  12. juice of 1 lemon

For the Green Sauce:

  1. 3 jalapeño peppers, relatively finely diced, stems removed (and seeds and membranes removed if you don’t like the heat)
  2. 1 bunch fresh cilantro, large stem portions removed
  3. 3 cloves garlic, minced
  4. 2 tsp dried oregano
  5. pinch Kosher salt
  6. juice of two limes
  7. 2 TBSP red wine vinegar
  8. 1  shallot (or 1/2 white onion), minced
  9. 1/3 – 1/2 cup sour cream

Prep

For the Chicken:

  1. Begin by brining your chicken.  In a large bowl, mix together 6 cups cold water and 1/4 cup kosher salt.  Whisk until salt is dissolved.  Add chicken and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to two hours.
  2. Combine dry spice rub ingredients (ingredients 2-6) in a bowl or tupperware container and whisk or shake vigorously to combine.
  3. Prep ingredients 7-12 and arrange your mise-en-place

For the Green Sauce:

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into appropriately sized container and refrigerate.

Cook:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F
  2. Remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry with paper towels.  In a large tossing bowl, add 2 TBSP olive oil and 2 TBSP white wine vinegar and toss to coat.  Add 1/2 of dry spice mix and toss to coat again.  Add remaining spice mix and toss to coat a third time.
  3. Heat 3 TBSP of a high smoke-point fat (I used bacon fat this time, but grapeseed oil, vegetable oil, or ghee would also work) in a large sauté pan, until very hot (350°F – 375°F)
  4. Place half of chicken, skin side down, into the skillet and brown for 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown.  Flip chicken over and brown 2-3 minutes more.  Remove from pan and set on a wire rack placed on a rimmed baking sheet.  Repeat with remaining chicken.  You should have a nice fond in the bottom of your pan.
  5. Add onion or shallot to pan and sweat until very fragrant, 3-4 minutes, and some of the fond begins to incorporate into the onion.  Add garlic and sauté until fragrant but not burned, 1 minute more.
  6. Add vermouth and flambé.  Bring to a boil and scrape up any brown bits still stuck to the bottom of the pan.  Reduce sauce to an almost syrup-like consistency, and then baste chicken using a spoon.
  7. Place chicken in oven and roast until breasts are 150°F – 160°F and thighs and legs are 160°F – 170°F
  8. Remove from oven, place on a serving platter, and squeeze lemon juice all over chicken.   Let rest for 10 minutes.  Spoon green sauce over chicken and serve.

Note:  I served this with some garlic toast and a bacon-avocado Caesar Salad, using the bacon bits from which I rendered the fat in Step 3 of the cooking process.  It was delicious.

 

 

 

Honey Glazed Chipotlé-Lime BBQ Chicken

This BBQ Chicken is tangy, sweet, spicy and fresh.  All the right flavors and a unique twist on classic BBQ chicken.  Searing the chicken in a hot skillet ahead of time renders out a good bit of fat and leads to perfectly crispy skin.  Finish either on the grill or in the oven and follow the instructions below to get perfect, bite-through skin and a beautiful end product.

Time: 60 minutes
Level: Easy
Cost: About $4/plate (depending on which pantry essentials you have on hand)
Serves: 3-6

Ingredients

For the Glaze

  1. 1 small onion or normal sized shallot, finely diced
  2. 3-5 cloves garlic, minced
  3. 1 TBSP unsalted butter
  4. 1 can Adobo Chiles in sauce
  5. 1 7oz can tomato sauce
  6. Juice of 4 limes
  7. 1 TBSP low sodium soy sauce
  8. 1/4 cup honey

For the Chicken

  1. 1 or 2 4-5lb fryer chickens, broken down into 8-10 parts, depending on how many you’re feeding  (figure that a chicken will feed 3-4 people)
  2. 1/4 cup Kosher salt
  3. Drizzle of Olive Oil
  4. 3-6 TBSP flour
  5. 2-4 TBSP paprika
  6. Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

PART ONE:  Begin by brining your chicken:

Once you’ve got your chicken broken down into parts, place the chicken parts in a large bowl and cover with cold water.  Add about 1/4 cup salt and mix around with your hands until the salt is mostly dissolved in the water.  Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 hours.

Cook’s Note:  You can skip this step if you’re in a rush, but even 30 minutes in a light brine will lead to a considerably juicer and product.

PART TWO:  While the chicken is brining, make your glaze:

  1. Melt butter in a sauté pan or large frying pan over medium heat until foamy but not browned (use non-stick here if you like).
  2. Add onion and garlic and sauté until fragrant and onions are mostly translucent, 3-5 minutes
  3. Add can of chiles, along with their sauce, and sauté with onions and garlic, another 3 minutes, or until chiles barely being to caramelize
  4. Add tomato sauce, lime juice and soy sauce and stir to incorporate well
  5. Stir in honey and reduce, stirring continually, until mixture has thickened and a light glaze begins to appear.
  6. Off the heat and allow to cool

PART THREE:  While your glaze is cooling off, prepare the chicken:

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F or begin preheating grill (see Part 5, below).
  2. Remove chicken from the brine and pat dry with paper towels.  Place chicken in large mixing or tossing bowl and drizzle with olive oil.  Toss to coat.
  3. Add flour, paprika and pepper to the bowl with the chicken (if you didn’t brine ahead of time, add a generous pinch of kosher salt here as well).  Toss again to coat and let stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.

PART FOUR:  While your chicken is standing, finish your glaze

  1. Add your glaze to a blender or food processor and pureé until mixture has the consistency of marinara sauce
  2. Divide your mixture into two separate bowls (for two batches) and reserve

PART FIVE:  Cook the chicken

  1. Begin by heating 3 tablespoons ghee, clarified butter, grapeseed oil, vegetable oil or Canola oil in a cast iron or stainless steel skillet until shimmering and very hot (any oil or fat with a high smoke point will work fine here)
  2. Add half the chicken pieces to the hot skillet, skin side down, and brown, 5-6 minutes.  Flip and continue to brown the other side, another 3-4 minutes.  (Note:  If your chicken is still stuck to the pan when you try to flip it, it isn’t ready.  Wait until a light prodding with a set of tongs sets it free and flip).  Remove, reserve, and repeat with remaining chicken pieces.

If Finishing On The Grill

  1. Light a gas grill on one side only, or alternatively bank charcoal on a charcoal grill to one side, creating a hot side and cool side of the grill.  Add a few wood chips for extra smokey flavor.
  2. Place seared chicken on the cool side of the grill, skin side down.  Place the breasts farthest away from the heat and the dark meat closer to the heat.  Baste chicken with first batch of glaze.  Flip, so that the chicken is skin side up, and baste again.  Discard any glaze that remains from this batch.
  3. Cover the grill and cook until breasts reach an internal temperature of 150° – 160°F and thighs and legs are 160° – 170°F.
  4. After about 15 minutes, use the second batch of glaze to baste your chicken a second time.  Use this opportunity with the grill open to take your chicken’s temperature with an instant read thermometer.  Be sure to leave chicken skin side up.
  5. When chicken is up temp, move chicken over to hot side of grill and cook, starting skin side down, until nicely charred.  Repeat on the other side.
  6. Remove, and allow to rest, skin side up, for 10 minutes before serving.  DO NOT COVER WHILE RESTING – your perfectly crispy skin will get all soggy!

If Finishing in the Oven

  1. Set chicken on a wire rack over a baking sheet, skin side down.  Baste chicken with first batch of glaze.  Flip, so that the chicken is skin side up, and baste again.  Discard any glaze that remains from this batch.
  2. Bake in 350°F oven until breasts reach an internal temperature of 150° – 160°F and thighs and legs are 160° – 170°F.
  3. After about 15 minutes, use the second batch of glaze to baste your chicken a second time.  Use this opportunity with the oven open to take your chicken’s temperature with an instant read thermometer.  Be sure to leave chicken skin side up.
  4. When chicken is up temp, switch oven to BROIL – HIGH and cook for 2-3 minutes, until nicely darkened.  Watch carefully that it does not burn.
  5. Remove, and allow to rest, skin side up, for 10 minutes before serving.  DO NOT COVER WHILE RESTING – your perfectly crispy skin will get all soggy!

 

 

Thai Red Coconut Curry with Chicken

This delicious Thai dish is full of fresh, bright flavors and is the perfect balance between spicy, sweet and savory.  It also comes together in about 30 minutes, making it the perfect dish for a busy weeknight or some time when you don’t want takeout but aren’t wanting to spend a ton of time in the kitchen either.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

  1. 2-3 lbs chicken breasts, thinly sliced
  2. 2 TBSP red curry paste
  3. 1 small onion, diced
  4. 1 small shallot, diced
  5. 1 red bell pepper, sliced
  6. 1 orange bell pepper, sliced
  7. 1 zucchini, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
  8. 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
  9. Zest of 2 limes
  10. 1 TBSP fresh ginger, grated (or 2 tsp dried powdered)
  11. 1 TBSP anchovy paste or 2 TBSP Thai Fish Sauce (because umami!)
  12. 2 TBSP sweet Thai chili sauce
  13. 2 TBSP soy sauce
  14. 1 cup cheap saké (or chicken stock, if you don’t want to use alcohol), for deglazing
  15. 2 cans full-fat coconut milk
  16. juice of 2-3 limes
  17. 1 TBSP brown sugar
  18. 1 cup fresh basil, leaves roughly torn
  19. Garnish:  Freshly squeezed limes and cilantro (optional)
  20. White rice, for serving

Mise-En-Place

  1. In a medium bowl, mix curry paste and cubed chicken and set aside
  2. Prepare ingredients 3-7, combine, and set aside in a medium bowl (this is your base)
  3. Prepare ingredients 8-10, combine, and set aside in a small bowl (these are your aromatics)
  4. Prepare ingredients 11-13, combine, and set aside in a small bowl (this is your umami bomb)
  5. Measure out saké or chicken stock
  6. Open cans of coconut milk
  7. Measure out brown sugar and lime juice and mix together in a small bowl
  8. Prepare basil and set aside

Cook

  1. Add about 2-3TBSP coconut or olive oil to a large saucepan and heat over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking.  Add chicken with curry paste and sauté until chicken is ever so slightly browned (it doesn’t need to be cooked through) and fragrant.  Remove with a slotted spoon and reserve (it’s fine to put it back in the same bowl, you’re going to finish cooking it in the sauce later anyway).
  2. Lower heat to medium.  Add your base (ingredients 3-7) and sauté until onions are translucent and peppers have become quite soft, 3-5 minutes.
  3. Add your aromatics (ingredients 8-10), and continue to sauté until very fragrant, 1-2 minutes
  4. Add saké or chicken stock (flambé if you like), and bring to a boil, scraping up anything stuck to the bottom of the pan.  Once boiling, reduce to a simmer.
  5. Add umami bomb (ingredients 11-13) and stir well to incorporate
  6. Stir in coconut milk and brown sugar/lime-juice-mixture, and continue to stir until sauce is well incorporated.  Bring sauce to a boil and allow to reduce by approximately 1/3
  7. Add chicken (and any juices) back to the sauce and stir in.  Allow to simmer, 8-10 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.
  8. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, stir in the fresh basil and cook for 1 minute.  Off the heat, cover, and allow to sit for 5 minutes to give flavors a chance to marry.
  9. Serve over white rice and garnish with a few squeezes of fresh lime juice and fresh cilantro.