Extra Schmaltz!

I never would have expected that one of the best meals I ever made would be a sandwich. Of course, the roast beef could be served as-is or with a sauce, but combined with the aioli (garlic and olive oil mayonnaise) and served on a roll with some roasted red peppers it's outstanding. This is a case when 'slow food' really pays off. The white bits on top are real provolone, which doesn't slice well, but tastes great. Roast Beef 3 lb. rump roast, rolled with butcher's twine ~1.5 quarts of warm water 3 Tbsp. wine 3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 1/2 c. Kosher salt 1/4 c. brown sugar 2 cloves garlic, smashed 2 bay leaves 5 allspice berries 10 black peppercorns, lightly crushed 1/4 tsp. celery salt Dissolve the salt and sugar in the warm water, wine, and Worcestershire sauce to make 2 gallons of brine. Add the spices. Place the rump roast and brine in a one-gallon ziploc and refrigerate overnight. Preheat the oven to 325°. Pat the roast dry and then coat ...

This recipe comes from the galley copy of the meat version of The Schwarzbein Principle. With salt added, of course (and a few other tweaks). I also use bone-in chicken breasts, which takes longer but produces juicier results. Allow some time for marination. Served with Twice-Baked Potatoes . I removed the chicken from the bone after cooking. 4 bone-in chicken breasts 1/3 c. olive oil 2 Tbsp. dry sherry 4 tsp. Kosher salt 1 tsp. dried oregano 1 tsp. dried cumin 2 Tbsp. chopped shallots 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 tsp. black pepper Combine the ingredients in a dish suited to marinating (or ziploc bag). Place the chicken in the dish and spoon the marinade over, making sure to get some under the skin. Marinate at least one hour, mixing once or twice. Preheat oven to 350°. Place the chicken breasts in a greased baking dish and bake until the chicken is tender and reaches an internal temperature of 165°, 60-75 minutes. Baste frequently while baking.

If you are confused, those are pink potatoes on the right. It may not be the most sophisticated cut of beef, but it's cheap, easy to find, and if you follow my directions, delicious. This makes a lean, slice-able roast. I made a 5-lb. roast, but you can make this with a 3- or 4-pounder, just adjust the cooking time. Allow some time to let the roast season before you roast it. Preheat oven to 325. 1 5-lb. eye of round roast 4 Tbsp. Kosher salt 2 Tbsp. paprika 2 tsp. ground pepper 1 tsp. garlic powder 1 tsp. thyme 1/2 tsp. ground coriander roasting vegetables (optional) oil Combine the spices. Pat the roast dry and rub the spices into it. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and let sit for 1-2 hrs or more. Heat some oil for frying in the bottom of a roasting pan. Brown the roast on all sides. Place in the oven to roast. Add more oil to the pan if it starts to scorch. I found that my roast cooked faster than most recipes said, probably because I was shooting for medium-ish instead of well-do...

This is a very basic recipe that can be adapted with any flavors that you prefer. It differs from Joe's previous pork recipe in that it's brined and it doesn't have a crusty coating. I also used a cheaper pork sirloin roast (~$ 6-7 for the whole shebang), which turned out every bit as flavorful and tender as a more expensive cut. I adapted this from the America's Test Kitchen recipe to create a version of utter simplicity. A 3-4 lb pork loin roast Brine: 2 qts water 1/2 c. salt 1/4 c. sugar 2-4 Tbsp. fat, ideally including bacon grease Seasonings--I used: white pepper ground mustard nutmeg salt Optional gravy: 2 Tbsp. flour 1 tsp. sage 1 tsp. ground mustard 1 c. chicken broth 2 Tbsp. apple cider or 1 tsp sugar Combine the brine ingredients. Submerge the pork in the brine for 1-4 hrs. Remove and pat dry. I untied the roast for better brine penetration and then re-tied it later, but this is optional. When the roast is dry, rub it all over with the seasonings. Pre-heat yo...

When peppers are on sale, it must be time for pizza! We got 8 big red ones and proceeded to roast them. There are two rules to this: (1) it won't work on an electric stove, so don't even try (you can, however, roast them on a barbecue grill); (2) do not do this right after you have just cleaned your range. Begin by putting each pepper above a medium-high flame. I was able to group two or three together on each burner. (I am really enjoying our "new" stove with the extra long burner in the middle. The pancake griddle that fits over it is seeing a lot of action). Using long tongs, turn peppers often. (I finally found the perfect application for my huge tongs with the silicone coated tips). You will begin to see the burn pattern from the flames and can turn them accordingly. The object is to blacken as much of the skin as you possibly can. As each pepper is done, place it into something with a cover. I often see recipes that suggest putting them in a plastic bag, but ...

I braise meat all the time and have posted an example of it, so I decided to do a dry heat method. This is essentially very similar to my jerk ribs , but in the oven rather than digging my grill out of a snowbank. When it comes to roasting, there are a couple basic rules. The first is to use something to hold the meat up off the bottom of the pan, preventing blackening but also keeping parts of the meat from boiling in the juices. This is often done with a rack, but the best method in my opinion is simply to lay the meat on a bed of veggies, for reasons that will become apparent at the end. Second is that you generally want to do something like a 80/20 method, where the meat is covered and on low heat for 80% of the cook time, and uncovered, often on higher heat, for the other 20. For this particular example, I used: 1 rack pork spareribs Onion Potato Carrot Beer Spices etc I made a basic meat rub with sage rosemary salt and pepper and decked the meat up nicely. Throw the veggies in ...

Hold the phones (or drumsticks) ladies and gents, because I have 'discovered' an amazing new way to cook chicken. Despite my efforts at creating the crispiest and tastiest exterior, Dan invariably pulls the skin off of the chicken I make. I can deal with that (it's his loss) but I knew that there must be a better way to get the flavor directly onto the meat without time-consuming and subtle brining. Enter the skinless roast. Cooking chicken this way is fast and flavorful. You can even save the skin for making schmaltz later! The following recipe is enough for one cut-up whole chicken, so double it if you want enough for leftovers. This is easiest if you have kitchen shears. Preheat the oven to 400. 1 cut-up whole chicken 4 Tbsp. brown sugar 2 Tbsp. Kosher salt 2 Tbsp. chili powder 2 tsp. ground black pepper 1/4 tsp. cayenne (to taste) 1/2 c. olive oil Cut and pull the skin off of the chicken, reserving the skin and wings in the freezer for later use in schmaltz and chicken ...

This topic keeps coming up and it can be hard to find a definitive guide when you're in the heat of the kitchen moment. I'll try to sum up the most important facts about brining. Brining is a great way to tenderize and add flavor to meat. It is more effective than marinating, which can backfire when the acid in the marinade starts denaturing the outer layer of protein on your meat, thus degrading its final texture. The 'magic' of brining was described to me this way (though I am omitting the more scienc-ey terms): Because the meat contains far less salt than the brine, the salt from the brine is inclined to more into the meat to even out the overall salinity of the brine + meat system. As the salt moves into the meat, it brings other flavors from the brine with it, such as aromatics, herbs, sugar. It also hydrates the meat so that even as liquid is lost during the cooking process, there's more liquid in the meat in the first place and the liquid is attracted to th...