Food for thought: Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook

Posted on October 11, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers

If you are going to get just one book on Texas barbecue, Legends of Texas Barbecue Cookbook is a good choice. Robb Walsh is an active but impartial reviewer of the turbulent smokehouse scene who has commented on this blog from time to time. He describes the basics of how to do it, organizes the content along logical story lines (pork is completely separate from beef, for example, as it should be) and doesn’t shirk from controversy (he explains the origins of the Kreutz/Schmidt family feud in Lockhart, for example).

And recipes! In addition to original guidance for cooking basic dishes, Walsh shares a number of recipes he has picked up in his many days on the Texas barbecue trail. Laura Novostad’s Confetti Slaw, which we modified to produce this version, is one good example. (The current edition has been updated with 32 new recipes… including Aaron Franklin’s Expresso Barbecue Sauce.) Like on Burnt My Fingers, he tries to keep the preparation straightforward so you get a lot of good taste for a reasonable amount of effort. Check it out.

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Recipe: Two-Minute Cole Slaw

Posted on October 7, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Two Minute Cole Slaw

Two-Minute Cole Slaw

One minute in express checkout line + one minute mixing ingredients = two-minute cole slaw. And it’s pretty good for the time invested. You do need to let it sit an hour or so before serving, however. Inspired by Laura Novostad’s Confetti Slaw in Robb Walsh’s BBQ cookbook; she told him she came up with the recipe because her Taylor TX diners were no longer content with canned peaches as the only side dish. Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:
14-oz package cole slaw mix (OR equivalent amount of shredded green cabbage/red cabbage/carrots)
1/2 c Wishbone or other bottled Italian dressing
Options:
A little chopped onion (maybe 2 T for the 14-oz cole slaw package)
Cider or white vinegar to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Method: Toss the cole slaw mix with the dressing then refrigerate 1 hour before serving. If you have a bit of patience, taste and add salt and vinegar if needed to round it out.

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Recipe: Buttermilk Cheese Grits

Posted on October 4, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Shies Cheese Grits

Buttermilk Cheese Grits with Shiso

Cheese Grits are the traditional accompaniment to braised short ribs but when they’re made with lots of butter the net effect is just too heavy and fatty. So I cut the fat with buttermilk and added some shiso leaves for contrasting bitterness. Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:
1 c polenta or yellow or white corn grits
3 c water (approximate)
1 c buttermilk
2 T butter
½ c or more grated sharp cheddar cheese (variations welcome as long as the cheese has some personality to it)
1 t salt
½ t ground pepper (black or white)
2 T or more shiso, basil, mint or other bitter herb, chiffonade

Method: Bring 2 c water to boil with salt and add polenta. Simmer until it begins to thicken then add butter, cheese and pepper. When cheese is melted add buttermilk. Watch closely and stir frequently as the mixture continues to thicken. Taste after 5 minutes or so to confirm the grits are smooth and flavorful, not at all crunchy. Add more water/buttermilk/cheese/seasoning if you like and continue simmering.

Finished grits should be thick enough to stick to spoon instead of dripping off, but not thicker; they will continue to thicken a bit after you turn off the heat. Just before you serve, mix in the shredded bitter herbs.

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Recipe: Kentucky Short Ribs

Posted on September 29, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Kentucky Short Ribs

Kentucky Short Ribs with Buttermilk Cheese Grits and a side of milkweed*

Why Kentucky Short Ribs? Because instead of a regular flour dredge, I used the leftover 11 herbs and spices mix from the KFC Chicken recipe. Otherwise, this is a classic prep that will bring out the best in these succulent body parts. Allow 1 large rib per person (3/4 lb).

Ingredients to serve 4:
3 lbs short ribs
½ c KFC mix for dredging OR ½ c all purpose flour mixed with 1 t salt and ½ t black pepper
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
4 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 T butter
2 T olive oil
1 c red wine
Water
3 bay leaves
Few sprigs fresh thyme (optional)
½ lb mushrooms, cleaned and sliced

Method: heat oil and 1 T butter in a dutch oven; sauté onions and garlic until soft then add carrots and cook for a few minutes. Reserve the vegetables in a bowl. Dredge the short ribs in flour mixture and brown the ribs, turning until all sides are nice and crisp. Do this in batches if necessary. Pour off excess oil, then return the vegetables to the pot and add wine, bay leaves and optional thyme. Cover and cook 1 ½ hours over low heat or until meat has started to pull away from the bone and is very tender; add water as needed to make sure you have a good amount of liquid at the end.

Meanwhile, sauté mushrooms in 1 T butter. Add to the short ribs about 15 minutes before servings so the flavors can merge. Serve over polenta, grits or other starch to soak up the delicious gravy.

*Yep, the milkweed’s back. A late season second crop came up in my yard so I grabbed a bunch of the young tender shoots and sautéed them up like this.

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Five most popular non-recipe posts on Burnt My Fingers

Posted on September 27, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers

We have a few big shifts in these guys as we celebrate our fifth anniversary.

  1. What’s the best flour for baking bread? Yes, that’s a good question and we answer it along with an explanation.

  2. The sauce that made Mr. Durkee famous. The current owner of the brand is not interested in its history but our readers certainly are.

  3. Why I’m not buying a Sansaire sous vide device. The alternative device I recommended has long since been discontinued, but folks keep coming back for discussion. Be sure to read the comments.

  4. Turkey Joints from Nora’s of Rome, NY. A secondary mission is to explore the quirky food traditions of upstate New York, where your correspondent spends most of his time. I made a detour on a bitter cold day and got some, but not all, of the story of this esoteric candy.

  5. Stuff to Buy. This page provides Amazon links to some hard to find or especially handy kitchen items which we use on a regular basis. We get a small commission if you end up ordering them, which helps pay for the pixels.

Also, these didn’t make the top five but get honorable mention for orneriness of the commenters. Check out Can Barbecue Be Racist? (I knew that title would be like squirting lighter fluid on a raging fire) and A Long Strange Trip to the Perfect Pickle.

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Is it okay to eat in the car?

Posted on September 23, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers

If you are a regular Burnt My Fingers reader, you’ve surely asked yourself this question at one time or another: Is it okay to eat in the car? Of course, we’re not talking about a handful of chips or nuts, but that bahn mi sandwich or sack of lengua tacos you planned to spread out on a table at home but it smells so good, right now.

Although I tear into most foods with atavistic vigor, I try to bring a little brainpower to bear on this conundrum. Instant gratification is great: I’m the kid that always chose one cookie now vs two cookies later in the Emotional Intelligence exercise. (If they weren’t so good you had to have them immediately, why would you want them?)

But I often like to adjust my foodstuffs once I get them home—add condiments, and so on. And it’s a more profound eating experience when you can concentrate on the food and not be distracted by the whizzing cars to your left and right and ahead and behind you (which you’re supposed to be paying attention to, actually). And the biggest concern of all: I might spill something on the floor and thus not get to eat the ultimate morsel of the meal.

I have a practical friend, an art director, who solved that last problem when she was spending many hours on the road visiting clients in Southern California. She put a great big honking beach towel in her car. Spread it out before you drive and all crumbs will be caught for examination at the next stoplight. And as a bonus, you don’t get grease stains on your pants or skirt—something that’s important to some people, though perhaps not to us.

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Silly about shiso

Posted on September 20, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Scallop Crudo with Shiso

Scallop Crudo with Shiso

Shiso is an aromatic bitter herb with a flavor profile in the same ballpark as mint and Thai basil: metallic, sharply sour but with a hint of sweetness, and an underlay of smoke or maybe cinnamon. The big (3-4” across) shiso leaves are perfect for wrapping around a wad of rice or fish as is done in sushi restaurants; it’s a natural with uni. Shiso is also called the “beefsteak plant” because its feral flavor makes some think of a rare piece of beef.

Shiso Bush

My shiso bush

I love shiso and couldn’t get enough of it, until I ended up with two productive shiso plants in my back yard. They were about to go to seed and I’ve been scrambling to find creative ways to use it up. Rule of thumb: anything fishy tastes great with shiso. For proof, buy a few leaves at a Japanese market, cut into chiffonade, mix with scallops that have been sliced into thirds and add some good olive oil: you’ve just made scallop crudo with shiso. Those store-bought leaves are pricey so, if you like what you tasted, make plans to plant shiso plants next spring.

Here’s another rule: it’s safe to experiment with shiso in any recipe that calls for basil, as a 1:1 replacement by volume. The other night I stuck a few chopped leaves in a grilled cheese sandwich for a tart flavor accent. And I mixed some shiso leaves into cheese grits to serve with some nice short ribs.

Grilled Cheese Shiso

Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Shiso

Just when I was running out of ideas, I ran across the Culinarius Eugenius website and a recipe to make salt shiso pickles. Pickled shiso? Why not. That’s what they do in Korea with perilla, shiso’s cousin. The remaining leaves were pressed into a jar, each sprinkled with a few grains of salt, and are now tucked away in the back of the refrigerator as they cure. Now the plants are starting to flower and I’m planning to harvest a few seeds for next year.

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Our top five recipes (2016 edition)

Posted on September 15, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Three bean salad KFC style

Three bean salad KFC style (plus bonus garbanzos)

This month marks the fifth anniversary of Burnt My Fingers. Thanks for sticking around! As is our custom, we’re reporting the top five recipes measured in page views over the last year. Actually there are six because I have a little trouble believing the stats for #5.

#1. The Colonel’s KFC Three-Bean Salad. And why not? If the Colonel no longer serves it, we will… and we just might improve it with some bonus garbanzo beans.

#2. Vincent’s Garlic Cole Slaw. Sadly, the last Vincent’s seafood restaurant in Plano, TX closed this year, so the only way to get this reeking ambrosia is to make it yourself.

#3. General Tso’s Shrimp with Garlic Sauce. This is a home-grown, from-scratch recipe originated right here, as we attempted to duplicate the Spicy Garlic Shrimp at Taiwan Restaurant on Clement in SF and ended up with something much better.

#4. Squash Casserole a la Highland Park Cafeteria. Great to see there are so many lovers of this Texas classic, as well as the HPC itself. (Although I did get a comment this year from a former HPC employee who said our recipe was different than how they make it at the cafeteria.)

#5. Pickled Tripe. Really, people? I suspect hackers in the Amish Country of Pennsylvania, even though I thought they were not supposed to use electronic gadgets.

#6. Fried Calamari Chinese-Style. The only thing better than Italian-style crispy fried squid is Chinese-style, where you get bonus fried chili rings mixed in.

Happy anniversary to us. Wonder what the list will look like next year?

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How to win a food festival

Posted on September 13, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Hamlet and Ghost

How to win a food festival: candied bacon on a skewer and minty whisky cocktails from Hamlet and Ghost at the 2016 Saratoga Wine and Food Festival

This year I attended the Saratoga Wine and Food Festival as a guest of my friends at Yelp, so was able to skip my usual blogger duties. I took the opportunity to think about how to make the most of an event like this one, after you’ve paid $75 or so for a short window of merriment. Here are a few strategies:

  1. Arrive early. The crowds tend to get thicker as the event goes on, and many of the most popular stations will run out of food. Why chance it? There’s usually a backup at the gate when the event opens, so 15 minutes after is just right.

  2. Head for the back. People tend to gravitate to the first thing they see once they get inside, so those first few stations will be mobbed. Walk right past and head for the rear wall. Remember, when you’re standing in line you’re not eating/drinking (unless you’ve brought something from another station, which doesn’t seem a proper thing to do).

  3. Eat before drinking. The food runs out first. Plus, not a bad idea to coat your stomach before pounding beer/wine/hard liquor.

  4. Have a liquor strategy. You can’t drink everything and don’t want to since quality is likely to vary widely. Decide on a particular drink category and stick to that. This day was hot and muggy, so the choice was easy: iced punches with vodka/bourbon/tequila/whatever. I had exactly one beer and one sip of wine beyond that.

  5. Wear dark clothes. Should have put this first. You are inevitably going to spill something from those awkward plates so be prepared. And if you get through the afternoon without an accident (which I actually did today) give yourself a high five at the end.

  6. Study the program. Should have put this first as well. At this event there was a map of stations so I could be sure I wasn’t missing anything I wanted to try. I also checked the kitchen demo schedule to find a nice time to take a break and watch some entertaining chefs grilling off meats.

  7. Take off your wristband when you get to your car. Presumably you have not over-imbibed. Even so, why advertise the fact you’ve just spent the afternoon at a booze fest?

The restaurants, too, have a strategy for winning a food festival: serve something that is dramatic, with wide appeal, unlikely to be repeated by others, and characteristic of the experience of dining with them. The clear winner for me was Hamlet and Ghost, a retro bar known for its innovative cocktails and small plates. Candied bacon on a skewer with a minty whisky cocktail on the side was just right. This treat was gone within the first hour of the fest—see #1 above.

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Refried beans from the can

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Burnt My Fingers
Old El Paso Traditional Refried Beans

Old El Paso Traditional Refried Beans

There are very few items I will heat and eat straight out of the can. Old El Paso Traditional Refried Beans is one of them. When a guest approvingly guessed I had added lard, my answer was no ma’am, that’s the way they come.

The one embellishment I generally do add is to grate some cheese on top while it’s heating in the saucepan, then cover and let the cheese get nice and gooey, Tex Mex style. After the meal, I’ll mix in leftover chopped onion, jalapeños, salsa and whatever other bits might remain from the condiment tray and use the result to make quesadillas. Give this a try.

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