Agua de Jamaica (Hibiscus Tea)

This isn’t exactly a New Orleanian recipe, but it ought to be as it tastes exactly like a cherry sno-ball. Agua de Jamaica (ha-ma-IKE-uh) is a brilliant crimson drink made from the dried flowers of a hibiscus plant (Hibiscus sabdariffa) and is very popular in Mexico, Central America, Texas, California, Egypt, and Latvia (of all places). Here in California you can find bottled Jamaica in most stores along with powdered mixes.

Agua de Jamaica
2 ounces flor de jamaica (dried jamaica flowers)
3/4 cup granulated sugar (or to taste)
6 cups cold water

Bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Add the flowers and the sugar and stir while the mixture boils for one minute. Pour into a glass bowl (or other non-corrosive bowl) and steep for at least 2 hours like you would tea. The flowers stain, so be sure to use a non-staining bowl if you don’t use glass. Strain the mixture through a sieve pressing on the flowers to extract as much liquid as possible. Taste for strength and sweetness. If it’s too strong, add bit of water or if it’s too tart then add more sugar.

Cover and refrigerate until time to serve. Serve over cracked ice.

Mirliton Casserole, a Mexican-Creole fusion

School’s out for summer and we’ve moved. Now that I have more time to cook, I thought I’d try to make mirliton casserole again. I realized as I was gathering my ingredients that I didn’t have any mushrooms, but I did have a can of pickled carrots (zanahorias en escabeche) from our local Latino grocer. I love these. If you’ve never had them, they are carrots pickled with jalapeños and onions. The vinegar adds a nice edge to the dish I didn’t know it needed.

Latino Mirliton Casserole

3 medium mirlitons, boiled, peeled, and diced
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
3 toes garlic, minced
1 lb. chicken thighs, deboned and diced
1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced on bias
1-14 oz. can diced tomato or Ro-tel (canned tomato and jalapeño)
1 small can pickled carrots (zanahorias en escabeche)
1 tablespoon parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste
2-2 1/2 cups seasoned bread crumbs

optional:
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Halve the mirlitons and boil them in lightly salted water until you can pierce them all the way through without using excessive pressure. Then remove them from the pot and set them aside to cool.

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat and sauté the chicken until browned. Add sausage and brown. Add onion and bell pepper, sauté until wilted. Add garlic and sauté until everything is soft and tender. Add carrots, tomato, and spices. Scoop the cooked mirliton meat into a bowl and mash or dice well.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Add to the the mirliton meat to the mixture and cook until the sauce forms a paste-like consistency (15 minutes).

Begin working in bread crumbs into the casserole mixture (this is best done a little at a time). When all the crumbs are added, you should end up with a somewhat dry paste that sticks to the spoon. If it is still too moist, add a few extra bread crumbs, if the mixture it too wet it will run during the baking process. If your stuffing mix turns out too dry, moisten it with a little canned chicken broth.

Transfer the mixture to a large casserole dish. Put the dish into the oven on the center rack, and bake it uncovered for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the topping turns a toasty brown. For a little extra, liberally sprinkle the casserole with shredded Parmesan cheese when it has 10 minutes left to bake in the oven. This will form a nice crusty topping on the dish.

Technorati Tags: Creole, Food, Main Dish, New Orleans, recipe

Carnival Shrimp

In honor of carnival season and crab season, this is a stuffed shrimp recipe—New Orleans style. This dish has all the hallmarks of good creole cooking… butter, wine, and seafood! Unfortunately for me, I had to use prawns in this recipe because jumbo gulf shrimp are unheard of out here. Prawns have a much blander taste than gulf shrimp do (it’s due to their diet), so I compensated by seasoning each shrimp. I didn’t include this step in the recipe because some folks are lucky enough to have access to real shrimp. If you use prawns, sprinkle each raw prawn with Old Bay before topping.

Carnival Shrimp

1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup flour
1 cup water
1 medium bell pepper, diced
1 lb. lump crab meat
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 Tablespoon Creole seasoning
1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)
2 lbs. large shrimp (or prawns)
Italian bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 350º. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add diced onion and cook until the onion glistens. Add flour and make a quick roux. Add water and thin out the roux. Add bell pepper, salt, Creole seasoning and stir until everything is incorporated. Add wine. Cook mixture for 2 minutes (5 minutes if wine was added) until bell pepper is soft. Fold in crab meat and try to keep pieces as whole as possible. Set mixture aside while you clean and peel shrimp. Butterfly the cleaned and peeled shrimp and lay each shrimp on a greased baking sheet. Take a tablespoon and top each butterflied shrimp with a tablespoonful of the crab meat mixture. Sprinkle enough bread crumbs over each shrimp to just cover. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Serves 6.

Technorati Tags: Creole, New Orleans, recipe, Seafood

Daube

Daube is a larded pot roast slowly braised in wine. The word has the same root as the spanish adobo, which is braising meats in wine or acid. The acids in the simmering liquid help to break down all the sinews and tendons in the meat, which release collagen and make a rich sauce. The larding step helps make the final gravy much richer and it adds flavor to the roast. Rather than dicing the garlic, my grandmother would add entire cloves into the larding slits. She probably went through an entire head of garlic doing this. You can do it that way, but crushing the garlic releases more of the garlic flavor, in my opinion. We used to have this most Sunday afternoons when I was a kid… yum!

Daube

1/4 lb. salt pork fat
1 shoulder roast (~5 lbs.)
1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered
2 toes of garlic, diced
4 whole bay leaves, ground
1/2 tsp. clove
1/2 tsp. thyme
4 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. black pepper
1-2 tablespoons of flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 carrots, peeled, and cut into 1/2 chunks
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup dry red wine
1-2 quarts boiling water (depends on size of pot, see below)
2 tablespoons dark roux

First, slice the salt pork into 1/4 inch thick strips. Make incisions about 3 inches long and 1 1/2 inches deep every couple of inches across the surface of the roast. Insert the slices of salt pork into each slit. This is called larding. Finely dice 1 quarter of the onion (about 1 cup) and the garlic. Combine this with the ground bay leaves, clove, thyme, 1/4 tsp. of the salt and 1/4 tsp. of the black pepper. Mix this thoroughly. Insert some of this mash into each slit, pressing it into the salt pork. Dust the outside surface of your roast with flour. Next, in a heavy 8-quart pot heat the olive oil. Brown the roast well on all sides. By following this all important step, you are both searing the meat, and you are starting your gravy for later. Add carrots, onion, parsley and remaining seasonings and cook until everything is well browned. Add red wine and just enough boiling water to cover the roast. Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for 3-4 hours or until beef is fork tender.

When roast is done, lift it out of the pot with a long fork and allow the juices to drain back into the pot. Set meat aside and allow it to rest for 15 minutes. Remove your vegetables and set aside. Strain the gravy into a large sauce pan and add roux to the saucepan to make a gravy for your roast. Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to a strong simmer and allow some of the excess liquid to boil off. Stir constantly. After about 10 minutes of this, you should have a velvety, rich gravy. Slice meat into 1/4 thick slices, serve with vegetables, add some gravy and enjoy.

You may add diced tomatoes to the pot before simmering to increase the dish’s acid content. I added quartered yukon gold potatoes to the pot about 2 hours into cooking (they’ll be over cooked if you add them any sooner).

If you can get real French bread (vietnamese bakeries often have it if you don’t live in New Orleans) you will want to use the leftovers for po’ boys—especially the gravy. Some folks serve daube with spaghetti noodles—either by topping the noodles with the meat and then gravy or by using red gravy in lieu of the daube’s gravy.

Po’ Boy made from leftover daube.

Technorati Tags: Creole, French, Main Dish, New Orleans, recipe

You just don’t get it

I gave more money to New Orleans charities than I have to any other individual cause in my life. I didn’t do it so the people down there could continue to have parades.

Blog post here. I have little of value to say about Richman’s post, anything civil that is. But thank you for that lesson in civility Mr. Richman. I’m sure the people of New Orleans will now think you are the exemplar of decorum.

Favorite comment in response?

Alan, much like a dog that’s been fixed, you don’t get it.

Ashley… I love you, man.

Technorati Tags: Hurricane, Hurricane Katrina, Katrina, New Orleans, We Are Not OK

Red Beans, my way

This is essentially the same recipe as the Creole style beans but uses lard from bacon.

Red Beans, my way

1 lb. red kidney beans (again, see if you can find Camellia beans)
1 lb. bacon
1 lb. smoked sausage
1 large yellow onion
1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
10 cups chicken stock
3 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme)
2 toes garlic, minced
Kosher salt to taste (optional, the bacon has a lot of salt)
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon creole seasoning or to taste
1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
Hot sauce (Crystal is best) to taste

Soak beans overnight in a large pot and use enough water to ensure the beans remain covered in water. Rinse beans and pick through them for rocks and dirt. Put beans back into pot along with chicken stock. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Continue to simmer for one hour. While the beans are simmering, cook bacon in a heavy skillet. Set aside bacon pieces and drain off excess fat into a heat safe dish or jar. Put half of bacon fat back into your skillet and sautee onions. Leave the brown bits at the bottom of the pan (the gradoo), you will get a lot of flavor from this. When the onions have wilted, add bell pepper and sautee. When vegetables are wilted, add sauteed vegetables, bay leaves, and seasonings to the beans that have simmered. Bring back up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 2 more hours or until beans have become tender and made their own thick sauce. Add sliced smoked sausage to the beans towards the last hour of cooking. Stir occasionally to prevent bottom from scorching. Adjust seasoning as you go.

Serve over hot white rice, use at least one cup cooked rice per serving.

Serves 6

Technorati Tags: Creole, Food, Main Dish, New Orleans

Red Beans, my mom’s way

This is essentially the same recipe as the Creole style beans but uses more of a country flair that folks in Southern Mississippi or Bogalousa might take. This recipe is good if you are using older beans, the marrow from the bones helps thicken your sauce. The smoked ham also adds a flavor that is rich and complex that you won’t get out of a bottle of liquid smoke. It takes a bit longer if you try to do it all in one day, but you can make the ham stock in advance and refrigerate or freeze it for later use. G. said this recipe reminds him of the beans at Mother’s on Poydras and Tchoupitoulas.

Red Beans, my mom’s way

1 lb. red kidney beans (again, see if you can find Camellia beans)
2 quarts ham stock (see below)
1 large yellow onion
1 bell pepper, seeded and diced
3 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme (1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme)
2 toes garlic, minced
Kosher salt to taste
1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon creole seasoning or to taste
1 teaspoon worchestershire sauce
Hot sauce (Crystal is best) to taste

Soak beans overnight in a large pot and use enough water to ensure the beans remain covered in water. Rinse beans and pick through them for rocks and dirt. Put beans back into pot along with ham stock. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Continue to simmer for one hour. After the beans have simmered for one hour, add vegetables, ham (picked from the ham shanks… you can throw the bones in there, too. Just be sure to pick them out when the beans are done.), bay leaves, and seasonings. Bring back up to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 2 more hours or until beans have become tender and made their own thick sauce. Stir occasionally to prevent bottom from scorching. Adjust seasoning as you go. You may need to smash about a cup of the beans along the side of the pot and stir that in to make a thicker sauce, sometimes if the beans are not so fresh they won’t cream up as well… that’s why you need to get Camellia beans.

Serve over hot white rice, use at least one cup cooked rice per serving.

Serves 6

Ham Stock

4 quarts cold water
2 lbs smoked ham shanks or hocks (hocks are fattier but have more flavor, if you want more meat use shanks)
1 large onion cut up
1 large bell pepper cut up
3 stalks celery cut up
small handful black peppercorns
3 bay leaves

Place all your ingredients in a large stock pot and pour your water over everything. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 3 hours. Occasionally skim the fat and protein scum off the top. After 3 hours pour through a fine sieve into a large pot and skim off the excess fat. Reserve the liquid and pick through the ham bones for any meat you’d like to reserve, you may toss the rest. You may use this immediately for your red beans or refrigerate it for later use. Refrigerating the stock will also allow you to get any extra fat you may have missed by skimming.

Technorati Tags: Creole, Food, Main Dish, New Orleans

Mellytawn (Mirliton) Casserole

There are some dishes that are quintessentially New Orleanian, dishes that you won’t find an equivalent taste anywhere else, this is one such dish. I don’t know if it’s the ham/shrimp blend, the bread crumbs, the mirliton or the combination of all these elements put together, but this tastes like my grandmother’s kitchen to me… my comfort food.

Mirliton is the word for chayote squash in Louisiana, and they are coming into season here and they are large, cheap and plentiful. This is but one of many dishes you can make with this delicious squash.

This is what mirlitons look like:

Finished casserole:

Mellytawn (Mirliton) Casserole

6 medium mirlitons, boiled, peeled, and diced
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
6 toes garlic, minced
2 lbs. shrimp, peeled and chopped
1 lb. ham, small diced
1-14 oz. can diced tomato (you can substitute 1 large fresh tomato if you have some)
1 cup mushrooms, roughly chopped
1/4 cup parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Creole seasoning
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups seasoned bread crumbs
1 egg, well beaten
1/2 cup buttered corn flakes, crumbled

optional:
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

First, take your mirlitons and boil them whole in lightly salted water until you can pierce them all the way through without using excessive pressure. Then remove them from the pot and set them aside to cool.
In a large saucepan, melt your butter over medium heat and sauté the trinity until slightly wilted. Add garlic and mushrooms and sauté until everything is soft and tender. Slice the cooked mirlitons in half lengthwise, remove the center seedpods, and throw them away. Then take a paring knife and carefully peel the outer skin away from the pulp. Once the skin is removed, dice the pulp into small pieces and set it aside as well.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Add the shrimp and the chopped ham to your sautéed vegetables and turn heat to medium-high. Within 2 to 4 minutes time, the shrimp will turn pink and the ham will brown slightly around the edges. Add to the mixture the mirliton pulp and the diced tomato. Then stir the pot constantly for 15-20 minutes, cooking the pulp and the vegetables together over medium-high heat until a chunky paste forms. Add the spices and herbs and be sure to fold them well into the mirliton, shrimp, and ham blend.

Begin working in bread crumbs into the casserole mixture (this is best done a little at a time). When all the crumbs are added, you should end up with a somewhat dry paste that sticks to the spoon. If it is still too moist, add a few extra bread crumbs, if the mixture it too wet it will run during the baking process. If your stuffing mix turns out too dry, moisten it with a little canned chicken broth. Then when you’re satisfied with the final consistency, quickly stir in the egg to bind everything together (be sure to temper it!).

Finally, transfer the mixture to a large casserole dish. Then liberally top the casserole with the buttered cornflake crumbs, put the dish into the oven on the center rack, and bake it uncovered for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the topping turns a toasty brown. For a little extra, liberally sprinkle the casserole with shredded Parmesan cheese when it has 10 minutes left to bake in the oven. This will form a nice crusty topping on the dish.

Variation: instead of ham, try 1 lb. cleaned crab meat.

This feeds a lot of people! I should have halved the recipe, we wound up with two casseroles. Before we ate I said “I hope you like it, we’re going to be eating it for awhile.”

Technorati Tags: Creole, Food, Main Dish, New Orleans, recipe

Crawfish Pasta

Crawfish Pasta

1/4 cup olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped
2 toes garlic, minced
1 can whole tomatoes
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
2 lbs. crawfish meat
1/2 cup red sherry
1 1/2 cups water
Creole seasoning, Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
1 lb. cooked pasta

In a large saucepan sauté onion, celery and parsley in olive oil. Cook until golden brown and translucent. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce and water; then season. Cover and simmer for 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Test seasonings and add crawfish and sherry; continue to cook for 30 minutes. Add cooked pasta to sauce and mix well. Serves 8.

Technorati Tags: Creole, Food, Italian, Main Dish, recipe, Seafood

Fried Grits

Grits is a common dish in the cuisine of the Southern United States and it shares many characteristics with the foodie favorite, polenta. The primary difference is that grits are made from coarsely ground hominy which is corn that has had the hull from the kernel of the corn removed before grinding (called Nixtamalization, protecting us from developing pellagra) and polenta is essentially yellow corn meal. When properly cooked, grits and polenta have similarly smooth textures, “grit” referring to the texture of the dried corn before cooking. This recipe will transform a food with “low class” connotations into one with world-class expectations. Serve anytime you might have polenta.

Fried Grits

2 cups cooked grits (preferably leftover and refrigerated)
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon of Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper (white, if you want to be extra fancy)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Heat olive oil over medium-low heat in a skillet. Roll cold grits into a large log and cut the grits into 1/4 to 1/2-inch slices. Beat eggs with your salt and pepper. Dip the slices of grits into the egg wash and brown each side in the oil, 5 minutes on each side.

Technorati Tags: Food, Main Dish, recipe, Vegetarian