Sunday, August 3, 2008
Cooking with no recipe
This is the best time of year to cook without a recipe. Next time you go to the market or grocery store don't take a list, instead look at the produce and decide what the freshest and tastiest samples are and build a recipe in your mind from there.
Here are a few hints:
*If Mediterranean ingredients such as tomatoes, eggplants and zucchini all look good, think of a ratatouille. I make it by sauteing separately (for about 5 minutes each) in olive oil sliced onions, eggplants, zucchini, red pepper and tomatoes, turn all the vegetables into a large pot, throw in half a dozen whole cloves of garlic and some salt and simmer on low until the vegetables have almost melted into each other, about an hour. Stir in some chopped basil before serving if you wish and accompany it with some crusty bread. If a stew doesn't appeal, take those same vegetables and roast them instead. Toss the chopped vegetables in olive oil and spread out on a baking tray in a single layer if possible. Roast at 400 degrees until the edges are browned and all the vegetables are soft. Serve over couscous to which you have added a lot of parsley.
*If you have left overs in your fridge, keep them in mind. A chicken or roast beef can be sliced and added to a vegetable salad. See the recipe for an Asian style dressing from my blog about Vietnam. You can buy a rotisserie chicken if you don't have leftovers! Lamb pares beautifully with cherry tomatoes, mint, red onion slices and feta cheese. A plain dressing of olive and lemon juice is all that's needed.
*Everyone loves corn, but you don't have to just boil it and serve it whole. If you have a teenager who has braces on their teeth they will thank you if you strip the kernels off before cooking. I use a serrated bread knife. Right now the corn is so good you can eat it raw. Alternatively, saute some onion and chopped pepper for 10 minutes then add the corn and some salt and toss to heat through. If cornbread is on your menu add fresh corn -and maybe some grated cheese too- to the batter before baking, this will dramatically improve the cornbread made from a mix. Bake the cornbread for an extra 5 or 10 minutes. Corn pudding can be whipped up quickly by pureeing raw corn and adding cream or half and half in a ratio of 2 parts corn to 1 part cream. Add 1 egg for each cup of liquid, season boldly, maybe adding some chili too and bake at 350 degrees until the center is almost set. Serve warm.
* Buy a vegetable that you haven't cooked before or at least not for a long while. If you don't know what to do with it, ask the vendor or Google for recipes.
It's good for a cook to step out of the comfort zone every now and then.
Here are a few hints:
*If Mediterranean ingredients such as tomatoes, eggplants and zucchini all look good, think of a ratatouille. I make it by sauteing separately (for about 5 minutes each) in olive oil sliced onions, eggplants, zucchini, red pepper and tomatoes, turn all the vegetables into a large pot, throw in half a dozen whole cloves of garlic and some salt and simmer on low until the vegetables have almost melted into each other, about an hour. Stir in some chopped basil before serving if you wish and accompany it with some crusty bread. If a stew doesn't appeal, take those same vegetables and roast them instead. Toss the chopped vegetables in olive oil and spread out on a baking tray in a single layer if possible. Roast at 400 degrees until the edges are browned and all the vegetables are soft. Serve over couscous to which you have added a lot of parsley.
*If you have left overs in your fridge, keep them in mind. A chicken or roast beef can be sliced and added to a vegetable salad. See the recipe for an Asian style dressing from my blog about Vietnam. You can buy a rotisserie chicken if you don't have leftovers! Lamb pares beautifully with cherry tomatoes, mint, red onion slices and feta cheese. A plain dressing of olive and lemon juice is all that's needed.
*Everyone loves corn, but you don't have to just boil it and serve it whole. If you have a teenager who has braces on their teeth they will thank you if you strip the kernels off before cooking. I use a serrated bread knife. Right now the corn is so good you can eat it raw. Alternatively, saute some onion and chopped pepper for 10 minutes then add the corn and some salt and toss to heat through. If cornbread is on your menu add fresh corn -and maybe some grated cheese too- to the batter before baking, this will dramatically improve the cornbread made from a mix. Bake the cornbread for an extra 5 or 10 minutes. Corn pudding can be whipped up quickly by pureeing raw corn and adding cream or half and half in a ratio of 2 parts corn to 1 part cream. Add 1 egg for each cup of liquid, season boldly, maybe adding some chili too and bake at 350 degrees until the center is almost set. Serve warm.
* Buy a vegetable that you haven't cooked before or at least not for a long while. If you don't know what to do with it, ask the vendor or Google for recipes.
It's good for a cook to step out of the comfort zone every now and then.
