13 May 2011 8 Comments
in American Series, Recipes, Video Tags: borlotti beans, chili, chili cook off, chipotle, chuck steak, con carne, garlic, Malibu, Texas
Many a cook has been judged on the quality of his or her chili. Whole lives on the cook-off circuit have been made or ruined based on their deftness of hand with garlic and chili powder.
Last year, I almost entered the local Malibu Labor Day chili cook off. I may do so this year. There’s something decidedly appealing and American about these events. Every municipality, from the upscale resort to the redneck town, has one. More
06 May 2011 14 Comments
in Pork, Recipes, Video Tags: carnitas, fennel, fennel powder, finocchiona, Italy, orange, pork shoulder, recipe, video
Certain flavors were just meant to be together. Such it is with pork and fennel. Add orange, and you’ve got a divine trinity of deliciousness. And here, I share one of my best grilling preparations with you. Make this for your next barbecue, tell your friends you made it up yourself (I don’t mind), and you’ll be revered in the backyards of your neighborhood.
I love pork shoulder. It’s one of the least expensive cuts, it’s usually huge, and it’s got an amazing flavor and meat/fat ratio. Confirming its pedigree, it’s the pork most often used for Mexican carnitas. Now that’s some street cred! More
29 Apr 2011 3 Comments
in Cooking Tips, Recipes, The Pantry Tags: halibut, Japan's Favorite, Ponzu, secret weapon
Some of my favorite secret-weapon ingredients come from the cuisine of Japan. Ponzu is one such product.
"Japan's Favorite" ponzu
You’ve probably been eating ponzu all along, even if you didn’t know it. It’s the citrussy soy sauce they put on top of certain dishes at the sushi bar. But it has uses far beyond that in your kitchen. More
22 Apr 2011 9 Comments
in American Series, Recipes, Sensational Salads, Video Tags: buttermilk, fried chicken, Joy of Cooking, KFC, leftovers, potluck, the South, Thomas Keller
To kick off my new series of posts on classic American dishes, I chose the most iconic dish of them all — fried chicken. While I’m not convinced anyone will ever do a better fried chicken than the Colonel, I thought I’d give it my best.
If you begin to research the origins of fried chicken, you quickly find yourself wading in some murky waters — with references to everything from Vietnam and West Africa to medieval Europe, the existing literature flavored with converging allusions to homesteading, the Deep South, the Civil War, slavery, industrialization… which makes sense. Throw some flour on chicken and put it in some oil. What could be more elemental? More
skinny girls & mayonnaise 