Category Archives: Recipes (Savory)

Creamy Grits with Blistered Tomatoes, Pickled Serrano Chiles, and Sunflower-Miso Tahini

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Tuck into this novel version of grits.

Tuck into this novel version of grits.

 

Let it soak, let it soak, let it soak.

Yes, that’s me taking liberties with the refrain from a certain Christmas song that we’ll all be hearing on repeat soon enough.

But it’s also the mantra that Chef Josef Centeno adheres to when it comes to making grits.

San Antonio-raised Centeno is chef-owner of six Los Angeles-area establishments: Baco Mercat, Bar Ama, Orsa & Winston, Ledlow, P.Y.T, and Penny-Ante Provisions catering. Before opening those, he worked at Daniel in New York, and was chef de cuisine at Manresa in Los Gatos.

I zeroed in on his “Creamy Grits with Blistered Tomatoes, Pickled Serrano Chiles, and Sunflower-Miso Tahini” recipe when I received a review copy of his new cookbook.

“Baco: Vivid Recipes From the Heart of Los Angeles” (Chronicle Books) is by Centeno and Betty Hallock, former deputy food editor of the Los Angeles Times.

BacoBook

The cookbook showcases his imaginative dishes that reflect Los Angeles’ dynamic, exciting food scene today. His dishes are inventive — not in the molecular, shake-your-head kind of way — but in the clash of ingredients and flavors that somehow make potent magic together.

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Haloumi with Grapes

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Pair unusual grapes with an unusual cheese with delicious results.

Pair unusual grapes with an unusual cheese with delicious results.

 

Get a load of these grapes.

I sure did when I spied Moon Drops at my neighborhood Whole Foods recently.

How can you not notice these beauties that sport such an unusual tubular shape that do give them a rather otherworldly appearance?

They are juicy, sweet and with just enough tannin from their inky purple-black skin to keep everything in balance.

Moon Drops was developed by the Grapery in Bakesfield.

Incredible, edible Moon Drops.

Incredible, edible Moon Drops.

After buying a bunch, I ate quite a few just right out of hand. But I also saved some for this recipe, “Haloumi with Grapes.”

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Portobello Mushroom & Celery Salad with Black Garlic Crumbs

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Black garlic and portobellos are a heavenly combination.

Black garlic and portobellos are a heavenly combination.

 

Black garlic is gold.

If you haven’t yet tried this ingredient, it’s high time that you did.

Whole bulbs of garlic are cooked at a low temperature over several weeks to completely caramelize them. The result is garlic without its acrid aggressiveness. Instead, it is the flavor of dark molasses crossed with balsamic, along with the butteriness of garlic. It adds a jolt of umami to anything. The cloves turn squishy, sticky, and yes, black.

Just squeeze the cloves out of their papery skin to use them, chopped or pureed in vinaigrettes, stir-fries, spread on crostini, or rubbed on steaks, chicken or fish before cooking.

Discover the joys of black garlic.

Discover the joys of black garlic.

Black garlic is available in packages at gourmet groceries, Whole Foods, and on Amazon.

“Portobello Mushroom & Celery Salad with Black Garlic Sourdough Crumbs” is an ideal way to get your fix of black garlic goodness.

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Patricia Wells’ Easy Steamed Cod with Rosemary and Seaweed Butter

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Embrace the steam.

Embrace the steam.

 

I always think that steaming is an under-appreciated and so often under-utilized cooking technique.

I think people fear that steamed foods will turn out bland, mushy, almost hospital-like sterile in nature.

But when done right, steaming is a gentle way of cooking that preserves moisture and flavor.

Case in point: fish.

I love grilling fish or sauteeing it, especially to get the skin crisp. But being Chinese-American, I also adore steamed fish. There’s nothing like a whole steamed fish brought to the table at a banquet meal. The flesh falls apart with impossible tenderness. Its texture is rendered beyond silky. And there’s just a lovely delicacy to it, no matter how small or large the fish.

my_master_recipes

Patricia Wells knows fully well the merits of steaming. In fact, the five-time James Beard Award-winning writer and cooking teacher devotes an entire chapter to steaming in her new cookbook, “My Master Recipes: 165 Recipes to Inspire Confidence In the Kitchen” (William Morrow), of which I received a review copy.

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You Barely Have To Lift A Finger For Featherweight Slaw

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A crunchy slaw with loads of flavor to make in a flash.

A crunchy slaw with loads of flavor to make in a flash.

 

This slaw may be featherweight, but it’s a heavyweight in flavor.

With a flurry of napa cabbage, sesame seeds, almonds and green onions, it’s a little like Chinese chicken salad. But not.

The secret is freshly grated ginger that really gives a ka-pow of bright, sharp throaty warm heat. Since I’m an avowed ginger addict, I even added a little more ginger, well, because why not, right?

“Featherweight Slaw” is from “Food52 Mighty Salads” (Ten Speed Press) by the editors of Food52.

Food52MightySalads

The book, of which I received a review copy, features 60 recipes for an array of salads perfect for dinner or lunch. There is everything from leafy salads such as “Chard Salad with Garlic Breadcrumbs & Parmesan” and grain salads such as “Brown Butter Brussels Sprouts & Crispy Quinoa” to pasta salads such as “Half-Blistered Tomato Pasta Salad” and meat salads such as “Thai Pork Salad with Crisped Rice.”

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