Extra Schmaltz!

This dish (sometimes called lagman) is part of Sogd cuisine, food from what we call "the 'stans", in the general region of The Silk Road. The recipe is from one of my most prized possessions: a self-published cookbook from our tour guides in Tajikistan. Characteristics of this cuisine are various noodles and dumplings, rice dishes, lamb and beef, and lots and lots of herbs. This dish is traditionally made with hand-pulled noodles, but a reasonable substitution is dried bucatini. I recommend cooking the meat in a pressure cooker or insta-pot for tenderness & time saving. This makes enough for two people. Double for more. Noodles: 1/2 lb. bucatini, cooked in well salted water Sauce: 2 Tbsp. oil 1/2 lb. ground lamb or beef 1 clove garlic, minced 1 onion, sliced thin 1 cup shredded cabbage 1 turnip, peeled and cubed 1-2 Roma tomatoes, diced 1 red bell pepper, diced 2-4 c. water or broth salt and pepper to taste Garnish: 2 Tbsp. parsley, minced 2 Tbsp...

Nothing like a beefy hot bowl of noodles on Christmas Eve! I was able to make this with odds and ends I had on hand. You can top it with whatever vegetables and things you have. I had only a small piece of lean beef, but if you have something with more bones and cartilage you'll get more flavor. You could also use pork or chicken. 6-8 oz beef 1/2 yellow onion, with skin 1" knob of ginger 2 garlic cloves 8 black peppercorns 2-3 dried shiitake mushrooms 2" piece of kombu (optional) 6 c. water 2 Tbsp. oil 1-2 tsp. dashi granules 2 Tbsp. rice wine or sherry 3-4 Tbsp. light soy sauce 1 tsp. sesame oil 1 tsp. rice vinegar salt and sugar to taste 2 bundles dried udon noodles 3 green onions, sliced thinly Garnish ideas: 1 carrot, julienned 2 leaves Chinese cabbage poached eggs 1/4 c. soft tofu, in cubes Pickled daikon (takuan) 7-spice powder (shichimi togarashi) Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in the base of your pressure cooker, and sear the outside of the beef...

I think this recipe has every flavor your tongue can taste in it. Spicy chili oil, astringent and cooling Szechuan pepper, salty and bitter pickled greens, meaty pork, and just a hint of sweet and sour. Some of the ingredients may seem exotic, but many of them can be substituted with more common things. This recipe is easily scaled for however many people are eating and for individual tastes, as you add the seasoning to each bowl individually. I make lots of the pork topping and freeze it for later use, because the other items are in my cupboard all the time. It is based on this YouTUBE recipe. Pork Mixture 1 lb. ground pork 1/2 c. Chinese pickled vegetable/cabbage 1/2 c. chopped bamboo shoots salt Brown the ground pork with a few pinches salt. Rinse the pickled vegetable and squeeze out the excess water. Chop finely. Add the vegetable and bamboo shoots and heat through. If you don't have the pickled vegetable (you can find it in a can at the Asian store), add finely chopped cabba...

I'm re-posting this - it was originally in the Melukhiyya with Vermicelli Rice entry, but I think it'll be easier to refer to it if it's in its own entry. I've updated it a bit, since I had a word translated wrong (I don't think that it's made with lard as I thought - I had mistranslated) Arabic Vermicelli Rice Vermicelli(I believe this is the English word for it. Very thin, twisty noodles. I believe they are wheat based) Rice 2x water/quantity of rice. Oil, butter, or clarified butter (Damascus is famous for using the latter) Cube of chicken bullion (optional. One could probably use any extra chicken broth from the above recipe as well) 1) Heat the fat, then crumble(if its not pre-chopped into 1/2-1 inch or so pieces) and brown the vermicelli. You have to make sure to properly brown it, or else it will become one with the rice upon cooking. Though it can be easy to burn it. 2) Add the rice. Reem prefers to cook it for a little while in the oil, though her moth...

My minestrone, made with potatoes, carrots, small red beans, green beans, fresh tomatoes, and sproingy noodles. All just stuff I had on hand. I just learned a great tip for making this free-form soup: add a couple spoonfuls of pesto at the end! I thought I should post the recipe (or more like, guidelines) as a reminder of this tasty dish. There are basically no rules for minestrone, so just use what you have on hand. I added a ham hock by simmering it for a long time in the broth and cutting the meat off of it to add to the finished soup, but you can use pancetta or bacon or just leave it vegetarian if you like. Rainbow of colors, get ready to turn into rainbow of flavors! several pieces pancetta or bacon (or 2 Tbsp. olive oil) mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrots, diced) red pepper flakes (optional) 3-4 c. stock or water 1 can tomato sauce a few dashes of red wine bay leaves mixed vegetables, diced: --white things like potatoes, parsnips, or celeriac --summer squash or winter squash -...

I came up with this recipe at The Byway, when my roomies and I were famished and didn't have much in the house except some iffy potatoes, some freezer-burned sausage, and some fabulous pesto given to us by a friend. The whole turned out to be far greater than the sum of its parts and now this is one of my standbys. It can be made with either pasta or potatoes, but I think it's best with the more unexpected potatoes. This dish is especially welcome in the dead of winter when basil seems like a miracle. Here it is with pasta, but I assure you it's tastier with potatoes. 3-4 links of Italian sausage, sliced into rounds 2 handfuls of waxy potatoes (~1.5 lbs), cut into large-bite size chunks OR 3/4 box pasta 1 onion, diced into large-ish chunks 2 green peppers, cut the same as the onions (optional) 2-3 spoonfuls pesto Olive oil for frying Boil the potatoes in well-salted water until they're mostly cooked, but not falling apart (or make pasta). Drain well, reserving a cup o...

For mom's birthday I decided to make her some pelmeni (Russian dumplings) with my awesome new pelmeni-maker. I learned about this clever device when we had crazy Russian neighbors on Jackson Street, and the babushka of the house invited us over and made a batch of pelmeni. I hadn't come across the mold in any of the Russian stores around town so I turned to eBay and sure enough I found it there. I ordered it and it was delivered within 3 weeks for under $25. It's a fantastic way to decrease the labor involved in making tasty, tasty little dumplings. The instructions that came with it were very poorly translated into English, but Joe's roommate was able to translate them much better from the original Russian. So far I've only made meat-filled pelmeni, but the possibilities for fillings are boundless and could involve potatoes, vegetables, kasha, or whatever you can think up. Here's the step-by-step process I used with recipes along the way: The Dough This is a ba...

This might just be the perfect weeknight meal. Have you ever thought to yourself, "wouldn't it be awesome if there was a combination of scrambled eggs and macaroni and cheese that also contained ham and only took about half an hour to make?" Then this is the recipe for you! It's incredibly simple and deeply satisfying. Make this and a simple vegetable side and you'll be full for hours and possibly even ready to run a marathon. My version is fairly close to the original Italian style, but with more locally available ingredients. Instead of pancetta I used diced ham, and instead of romano cheese I used sharp white cheddar. Some recipes complicate things by adding peas or parsley, but really it's supposed to just be noodles, eggs, cheese, black pepper, and a little ham (you could even use leftover roast fowl instead). I'm an overachiever, so I made my pasta from scratch, but this is still totally delicious with boxed noodles. TIP: You must remember to reserv...

I often wind up with leftover pasta and struggle to find ways to use it. This recipe is a great way to use it with stuff you probably have around the house, and doesn't involve heating up the kitchen at all. If your noodles are stiff from being in the fridge, microwave them for a minute or run them under hot water before adding the dressing. I recommend using chunky-shaped noodles, but if you use spaghetti I would chop it up a bit first. If you don't have a green pepper, you could use celery or broccoli middles or any crunchy veg. Dressing : Juice of 1 lime or lemon 2 Tbsp. tahini 1-2 cloves garlic ~1/4 c. olive oil 2 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. white pepper pinch cayenne (optional) Salad : 2 -3 c. cooked pasta 1 can tuna, drained and in pieces 1 green pepper, diced 1/2 onion, diced chopped fresh parsley (optional but recommended) In a food processor or blender, blend together the lime juice, garlic, tahini, and seasonings (make sure the garlic is pulverized well). Drizzle in the oliv...

This is taken from Lillian's original handwritten recipe. I'm thinking of making it soon, so I figured I'd post it: Ingredients 1 chicken 7 kaffir lime leaves 2 stalks lemon grass Ginger 2 cans mushrooms (straw, etc) 2 cans bamboo shoots, cut into thin pieces 1 can coconut milk Rice noodles Red curry paste Bean sprouts Thai Basil Limes Instructions 1.Fill big pot with the amount of water corresponding to the amount of soup you want(1/2, 2/3, enough to cover chicken) and add: chicken 4 kaffir lime leaves 2 stalks lemon grass 5 big slices of ginger Boil until chicken is fully cooked(~1 hr) 2.Meanwhile: Slice up 2 cans bamboo shoots Slice up 2 cans mushrooms Wash bean sprouts and Thai basil Slice limes 3.Once chicken is cooked, remove it and ALL seasoning items from the stock pot Debone and shred chicken 4.Boil a separate large pot of water for noodles; cook them, drain them, rinse them in cold water and coil them into bowl sized portions and...

So I can't vouch for the authenticity of the recipe, but this is turns out more or less like the deliciousness of a Lao-Thai restaurant back in Madison. I based the recipe heavily on this recipe , though I didn't follow it exactly. The reason for the name is something of a dispute. Some say that it's a pre-drinking/hangover meal, others say that its spiciness causes people to drink lots of cold beer. Also called Pad Kee Mao. Quantities are given as I made it yesterday, YMMV: 1 large white onion (cut into thin slices) 1 large green bell pepper (thin slices) 3-5 cloves garlic a lot of thai basil (leaves separated from stems) 4 large tomatoes, preferably peeled then chopped in large chunks. 1 bulb shallot Thai bird peppers(I used like 4, but they were green and of varying sizes. It should be spicy) 1 pound chicken boneless skinless chicken thighs(cut into thin slices) Wide rice noodles Sauce (I just eyeballed this): Oyster sauce Rice Vinegar Lime or Lemon juice Fish Sauce Suga...

Looking for a meal that uses some spring greens but can also fortify you through an evening of thunderstorms? I have the soup for you! I'm basically on a quest to Re-Master the Art of Jewish Cooking by Jennie Grossinger (a la Julie Powell's Mastering the Art of French Cooking in Julie/Julia ), but not quite as ambitiously or confessionally as Julie. I intend to haphazardly work my way through the cookbook, updating the recipes for modern palettes and throwing Kosher-ness to the wind. I started this project a while back (though I didn't announce it), so I'll go back and label the recipes: AoJC. I don't intend to hijack the blog with this venture, but I thought I'd let you know why I'm making so many recipes from The AoJC. Carry on posting as usual. Beef Soup with Greens In the AoJC, this recipe is known as flanken soup. Flanken-style short ribs are beef short ribs cut against the bone, similar to what you'd find in a Korean restaurant. More commonly you...

When the weather warms and my clothing has become snug, my thoughts turn to lighter foods for supper. At work I usually take a filling lunch and then have a slice of Jeff's wholesome toast at about 4:00, so by evening I just need a little something to break up the work day and the best part of the day. My current favorite is rice noodles, in any form, floating in broth and whatever is handy. I start by boiling a big pot of water as soon as I walk in the door. (I have to do this immediately upon entering the kitchen, because if I stop and feed the dog first, autopilot will take over and I will completely forget about the noodle water. I think this is a by-product of aging memory and the fact that I am the only one waiting to eat). After I feed the dog, I get comfy and then begin preparation for my soup: chop up vegies, soak dried mushrooms, pick asparagus, onions or whatever is in season from the garden, and then cook the noodles. Sometimes I will drop crunchy vegetables into th...

Is it the artist or the tools that make greatness? In the case of this macaroni and cheese, I would humbly say it's the artist. However, tools help a hell of a lot...as you will see from these photos. Dan's dad is a photography enthusiastic and today I got to have fun with macro lenses. Nothing can make my lazy food photography look so good as schmancy camera equipment, so behold! Also, below is my definitive macaroni and cheese recipe. Masterful Mac 'n' Cheese Crusty, bubbling, cheezy goodness. 1 lb. macaroni noodles, cooked al dente (don't rinse!) 1 lb. cheese, grated (use more than one kind) 1 1/2 c. whole milk 1/2 c. sour cream 2 Tbsp. butter 3 Tbsp. flour 1 tsp. seasoned salt 1 tsp. dry mustard 1 tsp. dried onion flakes 1/2 tsp. half-sharp paprika 1/2 tsp. black pepper 1/4 tsp. white pepper Optional Topping: 2 Tbsp. butter 1/4 c. cracker crumbs 1/2 tsp. half-sharp paprika 1/2 tsp. seasoned salt Basically you start off with a simple bechamel sauce and add cheese...

Made a tasty green bean dish based on the harissa (tunisian chile sauce) I found in the supermarket. I'll try those ingredient lists Lillian seems so insistent upon. Some garlic Some sausage Green beans Onions Harissa Couscous In this particular case I would estimate I used 400 g of green beans, 2 smallish merguez sausages (sorta a maghrebin chorizo; in fact I bet chorizo would be great for this dish) amounting to about 100 g, 4-5 cloves of lightly crushed garlic, 1 small onion, and a good spoonful of harissa. So I sweated/lightly fried the sausage garlic, and onions (julienned) until the sausage was cooked, the onions becoming clear, and the garlic soft. The green beans, halved and with the stringy bit at the end cut off followed. I gave the whole a dash of red wine and balsamic vinegar (add those to ingredient list), set phasers to 3 (out of 10, so medium lowish?), and let it all cook with periodic tossing. Green beans are done when you bite them and they don't taste like gra...

Step 1: Make gnocchi. I had lots of leftover potatoes that were starting to go all mushy. I'm sure we all know how to trot the gnocchi tango, but heres a quick recap: Boil peel and mash potatoes a) Add about a cup of flour and one egg per pound potatoes. And lots of salt. b) Mix it all up until doughy like. c) Make it into whatever shape you damn well please d) Boil em until they float e) Profit! Now I've got about 5 pounds of gnocchi to use. The other night I killed some leftovers birds with one doughy stone (hah!) I like my gnocchi fried in butter/olive oil until nice and crispy on the outside and soft and doughy inside, so that's what I did. Then, I sautéed some thin sliced carrots, diced red onions, and copious scallions. Oops, I guess we're in step 2 now. Added some leftover red sauce and meatballs. Tossed it all together, shaved parmesan on top, and a final garnish with tarragon. Lillian weighs in: Hi there! I love to make gnocchi too and I have a few more tips: y...

Here's the perfect dish for a cold night and several subsequent cold days as tasty planned-overs. I use an 'authentic' (supposedly) version, rather than the Lutheran church cookbook version that has all kinds of crazy things in it, like macaroni and tomato sauce. In this version the only thickening comes from the potatoes as they break down from cooking. I make mine a touch spicy, since that's just how I roll, but that's probably not 'authentic'. The dish will be much yummier if you add some stew-bones or oxtail, so try not to omit those. I threw in some parsnips, which added a lot to the flavor. 2-3 oxtails or stew-bones 2 lbs cubed boneless chuck 2 Tbsp. lard, shortening, bacon drippings, or oil 2 large onions 4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks (you can also sub-in parsnips, rutabagas, or turnips for some of the taters) 3 heaping Tbsp. sweet Hungarian paprika (I sub-in 2 tsp. sharp paprika) 1 qt. water S & P In a large, heavy pot, br...

So the other day, while playing cards at my friend Rim's house, we got to talking about cooking, and I mentioned that I really don't know how to cook any Syrian food. She offered to show me how to cook some upcoming Friday(her day off). We ended up deciding to make it an iftaar, since we tried to invite our other friend Rasha (that didn't work, since iftaars are usually a family thing, and therefore she ended up eating with her family) and because Kathleen from my program is fasting. In the end, it was a bunch of Christians (and me) having an iftaar, but it was a lot of fun. Due to the chaos of the whole event, I didn't witness the cooking of everything, but I've listed the recipes for most of the stuff below. She also cooked some stuff the day before, and so I don't have the recipes for that stuff. I didn't annotate those dishes in the picture of the spread below: Here're the recipes: Maqluuba("Upside down") with meat Maqluuba is one of the Pa...

Considering it was the 'day of rest', we at the Byway did anything but. We got up, made a big breakfast (french toast, bacon, and fruit salad), and then set to cleaning the basement. It looks SOOO much better now! The shale foundation still seeps water when it rains (as it is currently doing), but now at least we got rid of most of the clutter, cobwebs, and fixed a dryer ventilation problem. To reward all our triumphant and weary workers I decided to make a nice dinner. I'd been wanting to make a sweet kugel, what with the high holy days rolling around (not that I'm religious--I just like the food), and I thought this would be a good night for it. I wanted to accompany it with a beef roast, but since Melanie can't eat beef we had a pork roast instead. I really have a habit of making one dish from a kosher or halal culture and accompanying it with pork--probably because pork is so versatile and I'm burned out on chicken. This will be lengthy: Roast Peppery Po...

Here is a fantastic side-dish that has the added benefit (?) of smelling like every Jewish home I visited as a kid. It also uses buckwheat groats (when cooked, called kasha), which is a nutritional and agricultural powerhouse. Like quinoa, buckwheat is a seed rather than a grain, and contains tons of high-quality protein and many vitamins and minerals (and if you go by the articles about it, cures and prevents nearly every ill). Buckwheat is a great cover-crop for farmers and it grow very quickly. The recipe calls for bow-tie noodles, which--face it--are just plain fun. It goes really well with roasted chicken. This is modified from The Art of Jewish Cooking by Jennie Grossinger: 1/2 box of bow-tie noodles, cooked in salted water 1/3 c. butter or schmaltz 1 large onion, diced or sliced finely 1 tsp. thyme 1 tsp. black pepper salt to taste 1 1/2 c. roasted buckwheat groats, whole or cut 2 1/2 c. boiling water 1 1/2 tsp. salt 1 egg, beaten First, cook your noodles. Heat up a large pot an...