What's for supper: Don't be afraid of Octopus!

There's been a lot of octopus talk lately. At least in my world, where people discuss such things. So I thought I better blog about my all time favorite octopus preparation. It's dead simple to make at home and once you do, if you like octopus in your congee, or in a salad, or just as a snack, you'll never go back.

I got this recipe courtesy of Carl at New Deal Seafood in East Cambridge. Carl is the best. He knows everything about cooking fish, offers recipes, steers you toward what is especially fine, and if he told me to jump off a bridge I'd do it. When I decided to try to make octopus the first time, he told me the method, and pointed me to Mario Batalli as the creator of the recipe. Search online and you'll find all kinds of spins on Mario's thing, or just follow along here.

So, first, get your octopus. I typically will buy half a guy, meaning four legs and some body. Carl sells previously frozen octopus and says it's actually more tender from the freezing. I don't know. I'm sure if you get it fresh it will be lovely.


As always kids, get your mise en place. In this case it's some sliced garlic, red pepper flakes and a wine cork. Easy peasy.


Next, get a big heavy dutch oven, or cast iron pot like a Le Creuset. Pour in a nice glug of olive oil and let it heat up on medium high heat with 4 or 5 cloves of sliced garlic and a good shake of dried red chile flakes. Once the garlic has gotten golden and fragrant (careful not to burn it!) toss in the octopus. Give it a few turns around in the hot oil -- it will immediately curl up and change color and seem even creepier. Never fear!


Now, throw in a wine cork. Yep. It's an old wives' tale and I don't know if it really makes a difference, but I always do and my octo turns out tender every time. Clap the lid on and put in a 300 degree oven for an hour and a half.

Test your cephalopod by poking a knife into it to see if it's tender. You'll notice all the good caramel colored sticky liquid in the bottom of the pot. This is the liquor from the octopus itself and it's just delicious. If the octopus isn't perfectly tender, leave it in the oven for another 30 minutes. I've never had to cook mine for longer than two hours total, but the timing will vary depending on how big the legs are.

Here is mine, after two hours.


Now .. once your octopus is cooked, you have some choices to make. I like mine unpeeled and warm, with the suckers still intact. I found out this Christmas that my mother does not. She likes hers peeled and cooled. It's really up to you, to peel or not to peel. But you can now use your octopus in a variety of dishes. I like mine on top of a bowl of congee (rice porridge) or in a dinner salad. You can marinade the cooked octopus in a lemony garlicky dressing greek style. You can toss with pasta with the liquor in the pot. You can just sit and eat it over the sink. But if you like octopus, you really should try making it at home.

Chopped up octopus:



Here's some on top of congee:

Ceviche time! (Or: cooking without heat in the kitchen)

It's not every day that one gets a special request for ceviche. But that's what happened in Newport this year, and how could I refuse? Our staggeringly good looking host said merely "I'd like to learn how to make ceviche" and with two eager cooks in the kitchen as well as access to the freshest local fish at Anthony's fish market just down the road, the game was on.

I'm no ceviche master (I'm not Peruvian, for one), but it's one of the easiest things to make, and there really isn't a recipe. I like this kind of "cooking" for those weekends when people are milling from porch to cocktail to hammock to deck chair. With my favorite cooking buddy beside me, the tunes cranking (check out the Black Keys btw), and a glass of wine or two down the hatch, we were OFF!

For ceviche #1 we used:
a pound of the freshest flounder cut into small cubes, maybe a half inch big
one hot pepper (not jalapeno because the store didn't have any, another small pale green hot pepper)
handful of cherry tomatoes, diced
half small red onion, finely minced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
handful of cilantro, finely minced
juice of 3 limes
salt to taste

Mix up all the ingredients and let it "cook" for 30 - 45 minutes. It will be done when the fish has gone translucent and feels firm to the touch. Taste a little bit and see. When you think the fish is done, stir it all up again and adjust the seasonings (may need more salt or more lime). Serve with tortilla chips.

Our first attemp was such a resounding success that we made it again the next night. For ceviche #2 we used:
about a pound and a half of the local flounder cut into small cubes
one hot pepper (jalapeno this time)
handful of cherry tomatoes, diced
half small red onion, finely minced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
handful of cilantro, finely minced
juice of 2 limes and one lemon
small dribble of the pickling juice from a can of jalapenos (secret ingredient, shhhh....)
salt to taste

It's hard to say which was the best -- the pickling juice did add a nice vinegar tang to the second one, but the first one was so eagerly gobbled up by our host that it might have been my favorite. I like to please people with yumminess.

Ceviche can be made with scallops, shrimp, mixed fish (select firm white fish for the best result) or in any combination you like. You can add in diced radishes or jicama for crunch, or avocado for creamy lusciousness. Ceviche can be down and dirty or tarted up and sophisticated -- you can serve it as they do in Mexico with saltines, or in lettuce cups or endive spears for a light starter for a dinner party. So the next time you don't feel like cooking, whip up a batch of ceviche, crack a tall frosty beer, and enjoy your summer night.

** With my apologies for the crappy blue picture. Twas the twilight dontcha know?

Gran Gusto, Cambridge MA

Gran Gusto is one of those hole in the wall Italian trattorias that flies under the radar of the trendy and hip and it's not a coincidence it's one of my favorites. Their approach is very traditionally understated -- excellent ingredients, prepared simply, and served with little fuss. It's elegant in the way a crisp white shirt can be elegant when worn with confidence. Gran Gusto has that confidence and it's sexy.

Last visit I had something I'd not seen before and it was a new (to me) pasta shape -- Scialatielli with shrimp, radicchio and cherry tomato. This is like a chunky square instead of flat fettuccine with a great al dente bite. The bitter radicchio and sweet tomatoes and shrimp were an inspired medley of flavors, and this is a combination I'll recreate at home even if I can't find the pasta shape.

Then we had the special pizza -- a white pie with buffalo mozzarella, prosciutto, a drizzle of good olive oil and summer truffles. Black summer truffles from Umbria don't get the hype that their autumnal white cousins do, but these specimens were outstanding. The aroma that wafted up after our waitress shaved the truffles on the hot pizza made heads turn, and the combo of creamy cheese, salty prosciutto and heady tubers was a delight. The pizza at Gran Gusto is one of my favorites in town anyway (great crust) but this was over the top good.

The pizza:

The truffles:

The close-up money shot:

At Gran Gusto, you will be greeted by the Italian host who will probably kiss your hand upon arrival and your cheek upon leaving. (More likely if you're a lady.) And by the end of the evening you will have been transported to another time -- a time when no one has "manipulated" your food in the kitchen, or forced it into a leaning tower of architectural wonderment. You will have had a very good meal served humbly, with very good wine and hopefully very good company. And you will hope to race back soon, well before the next truffle season begins.

Gran Gusto
90 Sherman Street
Cambridge, MA
617-441 -0400

One perfect bite -- oyster slider at Island Creek Oyster Bar

I love Island Creek Oyster Bar for many reasons. The front of the house staff is excellent at making you feel special from the minute you arrive. The room is big and bustling but not too loud. The menu is varied and everything I've ordered so far in a dozen visits has been great -- from raw oysters, to chowder, to crudo, to dessert (get the warm cookies and ice milk, and thank me later!)

But for me, their one perfect bite has to be the oyster slider. It's a perfectly fried oyster on a mini brioche bun with lime aioli and a few leaves of arugula. In this application I don't mind the brioche as it squishes down and snuggles up to the crispy oyster. You get the briny oyster, the tangy aioli, the peppery greens and yes, a definite buttery slick.

This is not a great picture but you get the gist:

I could eat three right now!

Island Creek Oyster Bar
500 Commonwealth Ave.
Boston 02215

Peachfarm Seafood -- soft shell crab season!

One of my favorite places in Boston's Chinatown is down some stairs, in a windowless basement with a cacophonous kitchen, a dumpy bathroom and a fish tank in the entrance. There are other, spiffier, places to eat in our little Chinatown -- places where they don't hurry you along, or try to sell you fish that they need to move in a quick hurry. But Peachfarm Seafood is where it's at during soft shell crab season.

Frozen soft shell crabs are available year-round at most Chinese restaurants in town, but there is a short time in early May when they are fresh and that's the time to score yourself a platter.

Salt and Pepper frying is a pretty standard street food approach in many Cantonese kitchens, and our wealth of Taiwanese restaurants in town are deft with the fryer as well (if perhaps a little sweeter with the addition of five spice in their spice mix). Done right, the dish is perfectly balanced and never greasy. The folks at Peachfarm know how to FRY, and they specialize in salt and pepper fried anything (pork chops, shrimp, squid, etc.) It's when they turn the salt and pepper treatment to the fresh creamy crabs that something extraordinary happens.

Some folks contend you can only taste the coating and the fry job, but I disagree. Yes, this is primarily a texture play, but I think the flavor of the softies comes through in that funky oceany deep and almost buttery way. The contrast between crispy legs and soft creamy bellies makes each bite a little different and when you get a little sliver of jalapeno with your bite, all the better.

To round out our meal, the crew ordered a few other favorites. And while every dish was delicious, it's the memory of the crabs that will keep me going until next time. Or next year.

Clams in black bean sauce:



Salt and Pepper fried pork chops:



Beef chow foon (dry style):

One perfect bite -- salmon on a bagel from Russ and Daughters, NYC

My pilgrimages to the lower east side in Manhattan usually include a trip to Katz's Deli for some pastrami (hint: tip your cutter and he'll give you a nice taste while he works), maybe a nip into Kossar's for bialies, and as often as possible a visit to Russ and Daughters for their superlative bagel sandwiches.

I love the ritual of taking my ticket from the old machine and shuffling to the back of the store to wait for my turn. When it finally comes, I eagerly and greedily taste the various salmon varieties on offer (nova, belly lox, Irish, Scottish, pastrami cured ....) and finally make my selection.

This time it was Scottish salmon on an everything bagel with cream cheese, red onions and capers. There is nothing better than unwrapping this beauty and contemplating it for a moment or two before that first bite. The silky smoke of salmon with the sharpness of onions and tangy capers combine with the cream cheese to make for a perfect mouthful. Don't be afraid of the lines, they move fast, and the yammering of the fish cutters provides world class entertainment while you wait.

Russ and Daughters
179 East Houston Street
New York, NY 10002

Why can't WE do this? Wine Lunch at Zely & Ritz, Raleigh NC

On a recent trip to North Carolina I was blown away by the wine lunch at Zely & Ritz, a small chef-driven spot in the heart of downtown Raleigh. The concept is simple ... take a restaurant that is not usually open for lunch, plan a "family-style" menu and pair with great wines from local shops and distributors. Oh, and do it all for $15 / head. This is an idea that should surely spread around the nation ... please someone bring it to Boston!

Reservations are necessary and the tables are all set with silverware and glasses when you arrive. Then the wine guy (or gal) gets up and starts talking about the wine as the food is served.... in our case we had Devon from SourGrapes who was cute as a button and even more fun to chat with at the table. We also sat with the Chef (when he was done in the kitchen) and the Owner, as well as April from the wine store Sip in Cary. Couldn't have been nicer company with lots of fun conversations.

We had:
Mussels with apple and apple cider with an '09 Bauer Grun

Chef later told us this dish also included his house-made cider vinegar. I'm not a big fan of "sweet and meat" but the apples and mussels went together surprisingly well. The Grun is a cousin of one of my favorites .. Gruner Veltliner, and was a bright start to the meal.


Next up: Grilled Polenta with Rabe and local Blue Cheese with '08 Octavin Arbois Chardonnay

This Chardonnay was a particularly spendy bottle ($30) and it was quite good .. non-oaked and very light bodied. Not sure I'd ever purchase it but I was glad to get to taste it.


Finally, risotto of chicken with vegetables with '10 Las Lilas Vihno Verde Rose (favorite!)

The risotto tasted like Grandma's chicken soup with extremely flavorful shreds of chicken, some carrots and celery, and the creamy rice texture was comforting. But the wine! Now, I love some Rose in the summertime -- it's perfect to quaff when it's hot out but this Vinho Verde Rose was spectacular and my eyes have been peeled for it ever since. Real depth of flavor and low alcohol.


We were served a green salad with cucumbers, radishes and green apples with a light vinaigrette. All this plus very good fresh bread to mop and sop and a few more wines -- '09 Boisson Grenache and '08 Alto 3 Reserve Malbec. The pacing of the wine was kind of off, with the reds at the end coming much more quickly than the whites at the beginning. After the Rose the Grenache was a little stark and the Malbec at the end was just "there". But the whole meal was lovely and I'm still thinking about it weeks later.

So, I'm thinking some of my favorite restaurants in town aren't open for lunch. Maybe I'll send them this post and see what they can do. Being Boston, they'd charge about $50 for it, and quite honestly, I'd be happy to pay.

Seared scallops with melted leeks and truffle cream

A friend gave me a jar of truffle cream -- a magical product that I had never heard about before. (This is the same friend who gives me birthday cheese, and old Time Life cookery books. He's a good guy.) The cream is a whole 'nother animal from truffle oil, which can taste faux, so don't be put off. Anyway, I've been thinking of ways to eat up this heavenly elixir and decided to make scallops with melted leeks and truffle cream. Holy smokes! It's dead simple to make and it doesn't take much time at all. So that makes for an easy weeknight supper that still feels like a splurge. If you don't have the truffle cream, that's okay too. It's just sooooo luscious with it.

There aren't many exact measurements in this recipe, as I just improvised. Enjoy!

Melt a nob of butter in a heavy saucepan, add thinly sliced (and carefully washed) leeks and stir to coat. Let sweat for a bit and then add 1/2 cup of water, salt and pepper. Turn heat down and melt leeks for 30 - 40 minutes, adding more water if it evaporates. Mixture should be wet at the end of the cooking time, but not soggy, so if necessary, crank up the heat at the end to get rid of too much water. "Melted" leeks will be basically falling apart at the end of the cooking time. (At this point you can shut the heat and leave it as you go get yourself another glass of wine, or grab your camera, or whatever it is you do as you waggle around the house.)

Meanwhile, sear seasoned scallops in a very hot lightly oiled pan for no more than 3 minutes on each side, leaving them slightly underdone. Remove from pan and tent loosely with foil. They will continue to cook while they rest. Steam spinach and add to a little butter in a skillet, season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.

When you are ready to serve, raise the heat on the leeks and add a splash of heavy cream. Let reduce until sauce is how you want it -- coating the back of a spoon is about right for me. Turn off heat and stir in a dollop of truffle cream if you have it. Place a mound of leeks in the middle of the plate and top with scallops (drizzle a little of the cream sauce over top). Serve spinach alongside.

Plate of Turkish Mornings

With a name like that, it has to be good right?

Istanbul'lu is a tiny little Turkish place in Teele Square, Somerville. The chef/owner Huseyin Akgun has a bit of a following from his days running Istanbul Cafe on Beacon Hill before moving to Allston and finally ending up in Somerville. He and his crew are turning out large flavors and even larger hospitality. The brunch platter of yumminess is simply one of the most beautiful things I've eaten in a long time. And absolutely delicious.

The platter changes slightly based on the season but you will usually see turkish olives (dreamy), kasar (sheep's milk cheese; similar to a mild unsalted feta), beyaz peynir (turkish white cheese), sucuk (dry spicy sausage), thinly sliced pastrami, fruit (this day lovely kiwis), honey, rose jam, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers -- all served with baskets of warm bread.

$13.50 will feed two, maybe three with another dish or two. They serve omelets and other egg dishes as well as soups and sandwiches at brunch, heartier fare like lamb stew and kebabs at dinner time.

237 Holland Ave
Somerville, MA 2144
http://www.istanbul-lu.com/

Shrimp Creole -- if I can cook it son, you can too!

Back to experimenting in the kitchen! I've been eating out a LOT and cooking the standards when I have time to cook, but I had my first go at Shrimp Creole on Fat Tuesday this year. I followed an online recipe almost to the letter, which is unusual for me, but I didn't know what to expect and I wanted to get it right. I do believe I done good!

The recipe is here, and some pictures of my progress are below:

First, prepare your mise en place, most importantly the "trinity" (celery, onions, green peppers). I added jalapenos for heat and more garlic than the recipe called for. Spices include white and black pepper, thyme, "cajun spice" and cayenne. You'll also need canned tomatoes and tomato paste. Plus fish stock or shrimp stock.



In a heavy pot, begin to gently saute your veggies. At this very early point, it's important to be patient, bringing all the elements to the proper level of doneness before moving to the next step. Low and slow is the way to go bub.



Push the veggies aside to make a little "hot spot" in the pan and add tomato paste to let the rawness cook out. Take your time, have another spritzie!



Add tomatoes, and stir in your spices and bring up to a bubble. Here I used a tin of Muir Glenn fire roasted tomatoes with garlic and they were super. Fresh tomatoes or regular diced tomatoes will work too.


Now add your fish stock (or shrimp stock if you've made it) and let it bubble for 30 - 45 minutes until all the flavors come together in the pot.


Add your shrimp and barely simmer until cooked through. This takes less than 10 minutes. More like 7. Just don't boil them, you don't want them to get tough.


Serve with white rice and garnish with green onions.


If you can't make it down to NOLA, make this dish and laissez le bon temps rouler!

Make Mine Messy!

We all know those people who eat pizza with a fork and knife. We know folks, even loved ones, who daintily dab at the corners of their mouths to remove any vestige of BBQ sauce when eating ribs. We even enjoy our finicky Aunt's predilection to bring along wet-naps in her handbag to clean up the horrors of food related mess. But I am not one of those neat eaters ... I like to roll up my sleeves and get down with my grub. If meat juice drips down my arm or tumeric yellow curry plops into my lap, all the better. I suppose this is why I love the hamburger at Toro so much.



Firstly, the size of the actual burger is perfect. This is a 6 ounce burger in a neat and tidy bun. No need to employ snake jaws to get it in your maw. You don't feel like curling up in a ball when you finish the whole thing (which you will).

What is NOT tidy is what you get if you order it "messy" and I always do. Then this burger is slathered in the same cheese sauce that the kitchen uses to douse its grilled corn -- a tangy funky creamy limey garlicky cotija cheese with espelette pepper. The only adjustment I have to make is discarding the lettuce leaf, and I think they should just leave that out altogether as it offers nothing. But whatever -- the slice of pickled red onion and the short-rib goodness of the meat itself stand out.

But what happens when you chomp down on this burger is nothing short of magical. The crusty crunch of the seared meat and the melting juicy innards combine with the messy cheese and make a perfect balance of salty, meaty, tangy, and squooshy textures together. The flavors hang so well. And before you know it, you've eaten your whole burger, asked for more napkins, and been thankful that you are a messy eater. I know I am.

While you are there and on a roll, order the churros to finish. Yes, they are greasy. Yes, you need to eat them with your mitts. Yes, they are dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon that will get on your "nice jeans". (It's OKAY!!! They are just jeans!!!) But just try it and you'll be licking your fingers and praising the messy in all of us in no time!

Get messy y'all!

Toro
1704 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 536-4300

Taco Tuesdays!

I love taco night. Making a big pile of tacos for friends (or just yourself) is satisfying and fun. As this was one of my favorite dinners growing up, I submit my mama's fried taco method for your consideration.

As you can see from the pictures, this is NOT a fancy meal. No special ingredients are required. Get yourself some tortillas*, some Mexican cheese, the meat of choice (I like ground turkey here, but beef or chicken or chorizo works just as well) and fixins.

Fixins may include:

• diced tomatoes
• cilantro
• red onion
• hot sauce
• avocados
• lime wedges
• jalapeno rings, or fresh jalapenos
• etc...

* Note: the tortillas can be controversial. I like small flour tortillas, and this method calls for frying them up to make them crispy. Of course you can use hard taco shells and watch your meal crumble all the way down your shirt, or you can use corn tortillas. It's up to you. But try it my way and see if you don't like it a lot!

1. Make the meat filling: sautee up your ground meat in a little bit of oil and once the pink has gone, start adding spices to taste. I like cumin, Mexican oregano, smoked paprika, chile powder, garlic and the kitchen sink. Be sure to use more seasoning than you think you need as the filling should be quite highly spiced. You only use a bit for each taco. Once the spices have been stirred in and the meat looks close to done, add the secret ingredient -- v8! Yep, a glug of the magical veggie elixir will bring the whole thing together and give it a little looser feel. To a pound of meat I usually add about 3/4 a cup, but eyeball this to ensure it's not soupy and not dry Goldilocks.

Meat filling:


2. Fill the tacos: put a small layer of cheese on one tortilla (don't overfill!) and top with a spoonful of meat. Try to get all the stuff out to the edges but leave a little space so they don't overflow and make a mess.

3, Fry the tacos: Heat up a sturdy pan (I use cast iron) over medium high heat. Once it's hot, add a slick of canola (or peanut or vegetable) oil. Just enough to coat the pan, not a puddle. Now place your taco, open faced, into the pan. It should sizzle right away if the pan is hot enough, but if not it's not a huge deal. Like pancakes or crepes, the second or third one will be better. Fry for 2-3 minutes and check the underside for color. Once it starts to get very lightly brown the cheese should have started to melt, and you can fold the taco in half, making it into the traditional half-moon shape. (Variation: you can also leave it open-faced the whole frying time, and add fixins while still flat. Then just fold it or roll it up once garnished. My mom always folded so that's what I do.) Continue frying for a few more minutes, flipping from side to side, until golden brown and delicious. Remove to a paper towel lined plate. You can pop the plate into a low oven to make a batch for the family. Or you can just gobble them up as you go which is what I often do.

4. Garnish: this part is completely up to you. I add the tomatoes, onions, cilantro tangles, hot sauce and avocado if I have it.

5. Devour. Repeat.


Buen Provecho! Enjoy!