So you've made a huge mess in the kitchen and now its time to clean it up. But how?
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Friday, October 21, 2011
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Granny Zaglin's Spaghetti Sauce
Level of Difficulty - Intermediate
Ken Zaglin was my college roommate for a couple years til he turned weird on me. In all fairness, I probably turned weird on him as well. In fact, I think the biggest reason we became friends was because when we stood next to each we looked like an ad for Smith Brother's cough drops, it was the Seventies and Smith Brothers were cool in an anarchistic way.
In any event, this recipe was passed to us from his mother who got it from her mother who got from her mother who brought it from the old country, home of all great spaghetti sauces, Poland.
Step 1:
Chop up the following:
1 Onion (slices approx. 1/8" x 1")
1 Green Pepper - NO SEEDS (slices 1/8" x length of the pepper)
1 Whole Clove of Garlic (too much garlic is a contradiction in terms)
2 Stalks of Celery (sliced 1/4"-1/2")
Step 2:
In the biggest goddam pot you have, cover the bottom with Olive Oil. This means just cover it - no more. If a monkey could swim in there, pour some off. Apply a high heat. When the oil is hot, throw in the garlic and stir quickly.
Tip 1: You can tell if the oil is hot by throwing a little grain of garlic in it. If it sizzles, its ready. If the oil is bubbling its way too hot. Either turn it down a bit and wait for it cool a little or if the oil actually burned, toss it and start over.)
When the garlic is browned (not black) throw the rest of the shit in there and turn the heat down to medium. Stir more or less vigorously. I don't know what that means, more or less vigorously, just don't let the veggies burn.
When the onions turn clear add the following:
1 Can of Tomato Paste
2 Cans of Tomato Sauce
And add a bissel* of the following:
Salt, Black Pepper, Sugar, Oregano, and Basil
Also if you have it - 1 Bay Leaf.
Add your meatballs or sausage or whatever you're doing with the sauce. Cover and turn the heat to the lowest possible temperature and simmer for about a month and a half. Seriously, the longer the better. Its edible in a few hours but really good after 6 or 8 hours. When you can't find any of the vegetables you started with, its done. Its even better tomorrow.
Serves 50-60
This is smallest portion size possible
*Bissel - A bissel is a Yiddish term with no clear meaning. Think of it as a little bit. My grandmother sometimes used it to describe a pinch of something that would fit into the crevice of her palm. Sometimes it was a couple of cups. It was all relative to the portion size she was cooking.
Tip 2 - Simmering foods for long periods melds all the flavors together. You will want to add more salt, pepper, oregano, basil, garlic, etc. to suit your taste. So check it every few hours and add as you go but remember that all the flavors generally become more intense the longer you cook it.
Tip 3 - To reheat be sure to cover the bottom of the pan with olive oil again.
Ken Zaglin was my college roommate for a couple years til he turned weird on me. In all fairness, I probably turned weird on him as well. In fact, I think the biggest reason we became friends was because when we stood next to each we looked like an ad for Smith Brother's cough drops, it was the Seventies and Smith Brothers were cool in an anarchistic way.
In any event, this recipe was passed to us from his mother who got it from her mother who got from her mother who brought it from the old country, home of all great spaghetti sauces, Poland.
Step 1:
Chop up the following:
1 Onion (slices approx. 1/8" x 1")
1 Green Pepper - NO SEEDS (slices 1/8" x length of the pepper)
1 Whole Clove of Garlic (too much garlic is a contradiction in terms)
2 Stalks of Celery (sliced 1/4"-1/2")
Step 2:
In the biggest goddam pot you have, cover the bottom with Olive Oil. This means just cover it - no more. If a monkey could swim in there, pour some off. Apply a high heat. When the oil is hot, throw in the garlic and stir quickly.
Tip 1: You can tell if the oil is hot by throwing a little grain of garlic in it. If it sizzles, its ready. If the oil is bubbling its way too hot. Either turn it down a bit and wait for it cool a little or if the oil actually burned, toss it and start over.)
When the garlic is browned (not black) throw the rest of the shit in there and turn the heat down to medium. Stir more or less vigorously. I don't know what that means, more or less vigorously, just don't let the veggies burn.
When the onions turn clear add the following:
1 Can of Tomato Paste
2 Cans of Tomato Sauce
And add a bissel* of the following:
Salt, Black Pepper, Sugar, Oregano, and Basil
Also if you have it - 1 Bay Leaf.
Add your meatballs or sausage or whatever you're doing with the sauce. Cover and turn the heat to the lowest possible temperature and simmer for about a month and a half. Seriously, the longer the better. Its edible in a few hours but really good after 6 or 8 hours. When you can't find any of the vegetables you started with, its done. Its even better tomorrow.
Serves 50-60
This is smallest portion size possible
*Bissel - A bissel is a Yiddish term with no clear meaning. Think of it as a little bit. My grandmother sometimes used it to describe a pinch of something that would fit into the crevice of her palm. Sometimes it was a couple of cups. It was all relative to the portion size she was cooking.
Tip 2 - Simmering foods for long periods melds all the flavors together. You will want to add more salt, pepper, oregano, basil, garlic, etc. to suit your taste. So check it every few hours and add as you go but remember that all the flavors generally become more intense the longer you cook it.
Tip 3 - To reheat be sure to cover the bottom of the pan with olive oil again.
What can I boil?
As noted earlier most anything can be boiled but without doubt some things are better than others. Lets start with pasta
Pasta comes in hundreds of shapes and sizes making it seem like there is a secret knowledge base somewhere that delves into the right choice. Wrong. Take it from me, all pastas taste the same. Spaghetti tastes like macaroni tastes like penne. All the same. Unless you get into the exotic stuff like spinach fettuchini or tomato and basil spaghetti it all tastes the same. I would generally advise staying away from the fancier flavored pastas until you are more experienced because dealing with another flavor that you have no control over can make the results somewhat unpredictable.
The trick to choosing the right pasta is thinking about what you are doing with it. If you are doing meatballs then you want certain shapes, if you are doing primavera (vegetables) then you want other shapes. Spaghetti and meatballs are a timeless recipe going back thousands of years because it just makes so much sense. The idea is that you wrap the spaghetti around the fork and then shove a piece of meatball on the end. Without the meatball the spaghetti unravels or slides off, hence the need for a meatball. You wouldn't do meatballs with macaroni because you would be chasing macaroni around the bowl for hours.
Step 1:
Follow the directions in my earlier post for boiling water.
Step 2:
When you have a rapid boil, add the pasta - not before!! Add the pasta too early and you will end up with a brick of pasta because the whole thing will stick together in one big inedible lump of semolini shit. When working with pasta it's important to keep in mind, that if you look at the ingredients for pasta, its not whole lot different than Elmers Glue.
Step 3:
No no no.......don't walk away yet!! You need to keep stirring the pasta GENTLY after you add it to the water. Did you notice how your rapid boil reduced to no boil at all when you added the pasta? Stir it around a bit until the rapid boil comes back otherwise you will end up with the aforementioned semolina-glue shit brick.
Cook al dente. From the Italian dente meaning jagged or tooth al dente means just slightly firm. I don't know why but it does. Overcook pasta and you have mush, under cook pasta and you have crunchy shit that will constipate you for week. So cook to taste.
Tip 1:
Add a tablespoon of oil to the water and it helps keep the pasta from sticking together.
Tip 2:
If the pasta is done before the sauce, strain it, throw it in a bowl, and toss with some oil to keep it from sticking together.
Pasta comes in hundreds of shapes and sizes making it seem like there is a secret knowledge base somewhere that delves into the right choice. Wrong. Take it from me, all pastas taste the same. Spaghetti tastes like macaroni tastes like penne. All the same. Unless you get into the exotic stuff like spinach fettuchini or tomato and basil spaghetti it all tastes the same. I would generally advise staying away from the fancier flavored pastas until you are more experienced because dealing with another flavor that you have no control over can make the results somewhat unpredictable.
The trick to choosing the right pasta is thinking about what you are doing with it. If you are doing meatballs then you want certain shapes, if you are doing primavera (vegetables) then you want other shapes. Spaghetti and meatballs are a timeless recipe going back thousands of years because it just makes so much sense. The idea is that you wrap the spaghetti around the fork and then shove a piece of meatball on the end. Without the meatball the spaghetti unravels or slides off, hence the need for a meatball. You wouldn't do meatballs with macaroni because you would be chasing macaroni around the bowl for hours.
Step 1:
Follow the directions in my earlier post for boiling water.
Step 2:
When you have a rapid boil, add the pasta - not before!! Add the pasta too early and you will end up with a brick of pasta because the whole thing will stick together in one big inedible lump of semolini shit. When working with pasta it's important to keep in mind, that if you look at the ingredients for pasta, its not whole lot different than Elmers Glue.
Step 3:
No no no.......don't walk away yet!! You need to keep stirring the pasta GENTLY after you add it to the water. Did you notice how your rapid boil reduced to no boil at all when you added the pasta? Stir it around a bit until the rapid boil comes back otherwise you will end up with the aforementioned semolina-glue shit brick.
Cook al dente. From the Italian dente meaning jagged or tooth al dente means just slightly firm. I don't know why but it does. Overcook pasta and you have mush, under cook pasta and you have crunchy shit that will constipate you for week. So cook to taste.
Tip 1:
Add a tablespoon of oil to the water and it helps keep the pasta from sticking together.
Tip 2:
If the pasta is done before the sauce, strain it, throw it in a bowl, and toss with some oil to keep it from sticking together.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Technique 1 - Boiling
Boiling is perhaps the most versatile technique because in a pinch, almost anything can boiled. Lets begin......
Ingredients:
One Pot
Sufficient Water to fill said pot.
Step One:
Place the water in the pot but be careful not to fill the pot to the top. You will want place enough water in the pot to cover whatever it is you are boiling while leaving enough room at the top for water expansion (we'll get to that later).
Step Two:
Some chefs will tell you to add salt to the water but not one of them can tell you why. Its not to taste because you would be better off adding the salt to taste after the food is done. Some will tell you it brings the water to boil faster. The laws of physics dictate that the salt makes the water denser and therefore inclined to absorb heat faster. True, but to make a significant difference in the time required to boil a pot of water you would have to add so much salt that it would make the food inedible. The same goes for the theory that the salt helps retain the heat, so that when you add the food which brings down the temperature of the water and thus reduces the boil, the salt helps regain the boil faster. This is all bullshit. There is no good reason to add salt except that it makes some people feel warm and fuzzy.
The Campbells Soup people did a study and found that no matter what they put in the can, people always added something once it was on the stove. If they made it salty as the Dead Sea somebody would always add salt because it gave that homemade touch.
I have tested with and without salt many many many times and I am telling you what it is - there is no reason on Gods green Earth to add salt to boiling water. None
Step Three:
Add heat. There is no question here that heat is the secret to a good boil. The more heat the better. In addition to heat, as you have learned in high school physics, you can also add pressure. There are two ways you can add pressure. The first is to place your hands on either side of the pot and squeeze firmly. I don't advise this method. The second is to put a lid on the pot. This will go a long way to bringing you water to a boil.
At some point you will see lots and lots of bubbles rising thru your water. The technical term for this is a Rapid Boil. When in the company of professional chefs you may throw this term around and they will instantly assume you are one of them. Then you can ask: "Do you prefer the salt method or the unsalt method?" Thus sealing the bond between you and opening the door for sharing of recipes which professionals only share with other masters of the trade.
In any case, regardless of what food you are preparing, you will probably not want to add it to the water until you have achieved a Rapid Boil.
Ingredients:
One Pot
Sufficient Water to fill said pot.
Step One:
Place the water in the pot but be careful not to fill the pot to the top. You will want place enough water in the pot to cover whatever it is you are boiling while leaving enough room at the top for water expansion (we'll get to that later).
Step Two:
Some chefs will tell you to add salt to the water but not one of them can tell you why. Its not to taste because you would be better off adding the salt to taste after the food is done. Some will tell you it brings the water to boil faster. The laws of physics dictate that the salt makes the water denser and therefore inclined to absorb heat faster. True, but to make a significant difference in the time required to boil a pot of water you would have to add so much salt that it would make the food inedible. The same goes for the theory that the salt helps retain the heat, so that when you add the food which brings down the temperature of the water and thus reduces the boil, the salt helps regain the boil faster. This is all bullshit. There is no good reason to add salt except that it makes some people feel warm and fuzzy.
The Campbells Soup people did a study and found that no matter what they put in the can, people always added something once it was on the stove. If they made it salty as the Dead Sea somebody would always add salt because it gave that homemade touch.
I have tested with and without salt many many many times and I am telling you what it is - there is no reason on Gods green Earth to add salt to boiling water. None
Step Three:
Add heat. There is no question here that heat is the secret to a good boil. The more heat the better. In addition to heat, as you have learned in high school physics, you can also add pressure. There are two ways you can add pressure. The first is to place your hands on either side of the pot and squeeze firmly. I don't advise this method. The second is to put a lid on the pot. This will go a long way to bringing you water to a boil.
At some point you will see lots and lots of bubbles rising thru your water. The technical term for this is a Rapid Boil. When in the company of professional chefs you may throw this term around and they will instantly assume you are one of them. Then you can ask: "Do you prefer the salt method or the unsalt method?" Thus sealing the bond between you and opening the door for sharing of recipes which professionals only share with other masters of the trade.
In any case, regardless of what food you are preparing, you will probably not want to add it to the water until you have achieved a Rapid Boil.
Step 1 - Cooking Techniques
There are a number of techniques for cooking food. But they can basically be categorized in these eight methods:
1) Boiling
2) Baking
3) Basting
4) Broaching
5) Frying
6) Grilling
7) Poaching
8) Roasting
We will cover all eight eventually.
1) Boiling
2) Baking
3) Basting
4) Broaching
5) Frying
6) Grilling
7) Poaching
8) Roasting
We will cover all eight eventually.
The Intro
This blog is intended for my son who is serving with the Peace Corps in Bulgaria, but on his own and learning to cook for the first time. I am hoping to pass along some rudimentary kitchen knowledge which had he been paying attention, he would have known by now.
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