1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. turmeric
1 boneless chuck roast* or 1.5 lbs of lamb stew
1 c. green onions, green parts only, finely chopped
1.5 c. spinach, finely chopped
1/2 c. italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/4 c. cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1/4 c. chives or scallion tops, finely chopped
1/4 c. fenugreek leaves, finely chopped
juice from one lemon
4-5 dried persian limes, leemoo-amonee
1 can red kidney beans
1 tsp. turmeric
1 boneless chuck roast* or 1.5 lbs of lamb stew
1 c. green onions, green parts only, finely chopped
1.5 c. spinach, finely chopped
1/2 c. italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/4 c. cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1/4 c. chives or scallion tops, finely chopped
1/4 c. fenugreek leaves, finely chopped
juice from one lemon
4-5 dried persian limes, leemoo-amonee
1 can red kidney beans
Saute the onion over medium-high heat in a couple of tablespoons of canola oil until it is a deep golden brown. We call this piaz-daagh. Add the turmeric, frying another minute or two, then add the stew meat. Toss well to coat in turmeric, and cook until the meat is browned well on all sides.
- Meanwhile, fry the herbs in a health splash of canola oil until they are fragrant and deepening in color. Watch them carefully as they will go bitter if burned. You want them to be a deep, dark green without blackening.
- Add the fried greens to the meat & onion mixture, stirring well. Add 1.5 - 2 cups of water (you want a "slurry", but not "soupy" mixture). Season with salt & pepper to taste (easy on the pepper). Add the lemon juice, turn the heat down, and let the whole thing simmer, covered, for 1.5-2 hours, or until the greens are mostly softened. (Note: if you are using dried beans, you will want to add them at this point)
- About an hour into the simmer, add the leemoo-amonee (any sooner and they will turn the stew bitter), pushing them down into the liquid. They will want to pop back up, so try to cover them with a few pieces of meat to keep them submerged.
- Finally, add the drained kidney beans, and cook another 30 minutes. Check your seasoning level, adding more lemon juice if needed (before you do, though, press down on the dried limes to get them to release the liquid they've absorbed)
Serve with Polow or, if you're slumming it, with lavash bread.
2) Spicy Thai Shrimp with Mint Raita
Raita
- 1 cup nonfat yogurt
- 1/4 cup peeled, seeded and diced cucumber
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
- 1/4 cup mint leaves, minced
- 2 tsp lemon zest
Shrimp
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp minced fresh ginger
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 24 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/4 cup Thai red chile paste (at Asian grocery stores)
- Juice of 2 lemons
- 2 tbsp snipped fresh chives
In a bowl, combine all raita ingredients and set aside.
Heat olive and sesame oils in a medium saucepan over high heat. Sauté ginger and garlic about 45 seconds. Add shrimp and chile paste, tossing to cook evenly, about 3 minutes. Add lemon juice and stir. Serve raita with shrimp; garnish with chives.
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3) Cucumber, Tomato and Feta Salad
6 cups coarsely chopped English hothouse or Persian cucumbers 2 large tomatoes (about 1 pound total), coarsely chopped
1 bunch scallions, chopped
1 cup assorted pitted olives (such as Kalamata or Gaeta), halved
1 7-ounce package feta, crumbled, divided
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mint
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Combined all ingredients and mix and toss.
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4) Grilled Rosemary Chicken
- 2 3–4-pound chickens, each cut into 4 pieces, backbones removed
- 3/4 cup olive oil, divided
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice plus 1 lemon
- 12 rosemary sprigs, divided
- 10 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
- Kosher salt
- 1 large pinch smoked paprika
- Tomato Jam
Arrange chicken in a glass baking dish. Drizzle with 1/2 cup oil and lemon juice. Coarsely chop leaves from 10 rosemary sprigs. Toss chopped rosemary and garlic with chicken to coat; season with salt, pepper, and paprika. Cover; chill for 3 hours or overnight.
Build a medium fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to medium-high. Let chicken come to room temperature. Brush off marinade; grill chicken, turning occasionally, until browned and almost cooked through, about 20-22 minutes for legs and thighs, 16–18 minutes for breasts. Pour remaining 1/4 cup oil into a small bowl. Dip 2 rosemary sprigs in oil; occasionally baste chicken with sprigs until cooked through, about 5 more minutes.
Let chicken rest for 15 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Cut lemon in half lengthwise, then cut thinly crosswise into half-moons. Add to chicken with any leftover basting oil; toss to coat. Serve chicken on a platter with Tomato Jam alongside.
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Directions
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Feijoada (Brazilian Black Bean Stew)
- pepper. Simmer uncovered 30 minutes more. Stir in chopped cilantro and parsley just before serving.
~How to Cook Everything a Little Better~
Cook Corn
Instead of boiling corn on the cob, dot it with a little butter, salt, and black pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast (350 degrees) until tender.
Caramelize a little honey in a sauté pan and, when the corn comes out, brush with the honey.
—Alex Guarnaschelli, Butter, New York; host of Alex's Day Off (Cooking Channel)
Bread Meat
After you've breaded a piece of meat for panfrying (dip in flour, dip in a water-and-egg-white mixture, dip in bread crumbs), spray the breaded meat with a little water from a spritz bottle. The moisture will prevent the crumbs from absorbing too much oil while still preserving that crispy crunch.
—David Burke, David Burke Kitchen, New York
Make a Sandwich
Less is more. Proportion is key, making sure each element balances the next. I like a fresh slaw tossed in a light vinegar for some crunch and some acidity. Throw in the protein of your choosing, bearing in mind the salt that comes with cured or smoked meat. And when is adding a fried egg a bad thing? Butter the outside of your bread, griddle it, and that's a sandwich.
—Michael Schwartz, Michael's Genuine Food & Drink, Miami
Hold a Knife
Pinch the dull side of the blade with your pointer finger and thumb where the blade meets the handle. Wrap your other three fingers around the handle, leaving your thumb and pointer finger gripping the heel of the blade. Practice on a big bag of vegetables.
—Kelsey Nixon, host of Kelsey's Essentials (Cooking Channel)
Scramble Eggs
For two eggs, add two tablespoons of water and two tablespoons of heavy cream, season with salt and fresh-cracked black pepper, and whip the hell out of them with a whisk until frothy.
Melt some butter over medium heat and cook the eggs, not touching them until they are partially set. Then start some light stirring until they're almost finished, and turn the heat off. They will finish cooking because the pan is still hot.
—Randy Zweiban, Province, Chicago
Grill Fruit
Start with ripe, juicy fruit with a high moisture content. Lightly brush on all sides with melted butter or coconut milk. Make a dessert rub by combining one cup sugar with one tablespoon cinnamon.
Set up your grill for direct grilling — a preheated grate over a hot fire: Brush the grate clean with a stiff wire brush. Oil it with a paper towel folded into a tight pad, dipped in oil, and drawn across the bars of the grate. Oiling prevents sticking and gives you killer grill marks. Dip fruit in rub to coat on all sides, shaking off excess.
Grill the fruit long enough to turn the sugar and fruit juices into bubbling, golden caramel.
—Steven Raichlen, author of The Barbecue Bible; host of Primal Grill (PBS)
Cook a Lobster
Use water that's as close to seawater as it can be — extremely salty or, better yet, seawater itself. And don't use much: Put three or four inches in the pot, and when the water is steaming like mad, add the lobster. A pound-and-a-quarter lobster takes about nine minutes. Afterward, don't shock it in ice water. That makes the meat tougher. Just let it cool down.
—Dave Pasternack, Esca, New York
Sear a Scallop
Make sure the scallop is totally dry — use a paper towel for this. Season it with salt. Get your (small) pan very hot and add cold oil. This way, the scallop will never stick. Once the scallop is in the pan, do not touch it. At all. It will caramelize. Flip it once and serve.
—Michael White, Ai Fiori, New York
Make a Spice Rub
Start with spices that are whole (as opposed to ground) and fresh (as opposed to sitting in your cabinet for three years). Black pepper always goes well with coriander and mustard seed.
Cinnamon always goes well with clove, anise, and allspice. Cardamom is usually too strong. Toast spices in a dry pan on the stove over low heat for a couple minutes, then grind them. (You can use a clean coffee grinder.) Then rub it on whatever meat you're cooking.
—David Katz, Mémé, Philadelphia
Season Meats
Salt draws moisture out, so season just before sautéing meat or fish. If you salt too early, the surface of the flesh will become wet and will not get that nice golden crust. And if you marinate meat, remember to pat dry and
season it just before you sear.
—Frank Stitt, Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham
Sauté Garlic
Start with a cold pan, add olive oil, then garlic, and turn burner to low heat. Through the gradual increase of temperature, you'll infuse the oil with the flavor of garlic while it turns slightly brown.
—Marco Canora, Hearth, New York; author of Salt to Taste
Instead of boiling corn on the cob, dot it with a little butter, salt, and black pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast (350 degrees) until tender.
Caramelize a little honey in a sauté pan and, when the corn comes out, brush with the honey.
—Alex Guarnaschelli, Butter, New York; host of Alex's Day Off (Cooking Channel)
Bread Meat
After you've breaded a piece of meat for panfrying (dip in flour, dip in a water-and-egg-white mixture, dip in bread crumbs), spray the breaded meat with a little water from a spritz bottle. The moisture will prevent the crumbs from absorbing too much oil while still preserving that crispy crunch.
—David Burke, David Burke Kitchen, New York
Make a Sandwich
Less is more. Proportion is key, making sure each element balances the next. I like a fresh slaw tossed in a light vinegar for some crunch and some acidity. Throw in the protein of your choosing, bearing in mind the salt that comes with cured or smoked meat. And when is adding a fried egg a bad thing? Butter the outside of your bread, griddle it, and that's a sandwich.
—Michael Schwartz, Michael's Genuine Food & Drink, Miami
Hold a Knife
Pinch the dull side of the blade with your pointer finger and thumb where the blade meets the handle. Wrap your other three fingers around the handle, leaving your thumb and pointer finger gripping the heel of the blade. Practice on a big bag of vegetables.
—Kelsey Nixon, host of Kelsey's Essentials (Cooking Channel)
Scramble Eggs
For two eggs, add two tablespoons of water and two tablespoons of heavy cream, season with salt and fresh-cracked black pepper, and whip the hell out of them with a whisk until frothy.
Melt some butter over medium heat and cook the eggs, not touching them until they are partially set. Then start some light stirring until they're almost finished, and turn the heat off. They will finish cooking because the pan is still hot.
—Randy Zweiban, Province, Chicago
Grill Fruit
Start with ripe, juicy fruit with a high moisture content. Lightly brush on all sides with melted butter or coconut milk. Make a dessert rub by combining one cup sugar with one tablespoon cinnamon.
Set up your grill for direct grilling — a preheated grate over a hot fire: Brush the grate clean with a stiff wire brush. Oil it with a paper towel folded into a tight pad, dipped in oil, and drawn across the bars of the grate. Oiling prevents sticking and gives you killer grill marks. Dip fruit in rub to coat on all sides, shaking off excess.
Grill the fruit long enough to turn the sugar and fruit juices into bubbling, golden caramel.
—Steven Raichlen, author of The Barbecue Bible; host of Primal Grill (PBS)
Cook a Lobster
Use water that's as close to seawater as it can be — extremely salty or, better yet, seawater itself. And don't use much: Put three or four inches in the pot, and when the water is steaming like mad, add the lobster. A pound-and-a-quarter lobster takes about nine minutes. Afterward, don't shock it in ice water. That makes the meat tougher. Just let it cool down.
—Dave Pasternack, Esca, New York
Sear a Scallop
Make sure the scallop is totally dry — use a paper towel for this. Season it with salt. Get your (small) pan very hot and add cold oil. This way, the scallop will never stick. Once the scallop is in the pan, do not touch it. At all. It will caramelize. Flip it once and serve.
—Michael White, Ai Fiori, New York
Make a Spice Rub
Start with spices that are whole (as opposed to ground) and fresh (as opposed to sitting in your cabinet for three years). Black pepper always goes well with coriander and mustard seed.
Cinnamon always goes well with clove, anise, and allspice. Cardamom is usually too strong. Toast spices in a dry pan on the stove over low heat for a couple minutes, then grind them. (You can use a clean coffee grinder.) Then rub it on whatever meat you're cooking.
—David Katz, Mémé, Philadelphia
Season Meats
Salt draws moisture out, so season just before sautéing meat or fish. If you salt too early, the surface of the flesh will become wet and will not get that nice golden crust. And if you marinate meat, remember to pat dry and
season it just before you sear.
—Frank Stitt, Highlands Bar and Grill, Birmingham
Sauté Garlic
Start with a cold pan, add olive oil, then garlic, and turn burner to low heat. Through the gradual increase of temperature, you'll infuse the oil with the flavor of garlic while it turns slightly brown.
—Marco Canora, Hearth, New York; author of Salt to Taste
