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.