Tag Archives: meat

Faux gras recipe is pretty good

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Chicken Faux Gras on a cracker

I caught an episode of Diary of a Foodie from 2007 (Season 1:  Contraband Cuisine) the other day, and Ruth Reichl provided a recipe for imitation foie gras that she spoke highly of.  Since I don’t eat foie gras (French for “fat liver”) due to the force-feeding procedure involved in its production, I’m always happy to find a recipe that might reasonably mimic its taste and texture, which are mild and silky, respectively.  I figured that I had nothing to lose by trying it, since I’d be fine with a good chicken pate anyway.

The result was excellent, I think, in terms of texture and look.  If you formed this stuff to look like foie gras you’d be hard pressed to think it wasn’t the real thing.  Taste was good, but certainly fell short of real foie gras, which I expected, since I doubt there is any concatenation of ingredients out there able to match that buttery and mild liver flavor.

Final verdict:  All three of us really liked this recipe, and it is the closest I have ever come to foie gras.  If you think of it as a smooth, mild and creamy chicken liver pate, you’ll be fine.  I will be making this for the holidays, that’s for sure.

You will find the recipe on  the Gourmet website here.  Note that I did not bother with the gelee, and I made only half, since it is very rich and does not keep long.

SPAM is not mystery meat!

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Hawaii’s SPAM Cookbook

SPAM may be an acronym for shoulder pork and ham, or spiced ham, depending upon which resource you consult.  Hormel indicates that Spam Classic (I love that) is made from “pork with ham, salt [I’ll say!], water, potato starch, sugar, and sodium nitrite.  If you set aside the saturated fat, salt and processing, I guess it’s not as bad as a non-food item that’s sold as food.  I don’t know.  I like to have SPAM musubi or some SPAM and eggs a couple times a century, so it’s not such a big deal for me.  My father loved SPAM, since he ate it in the army, and he would often be seen opening a can with that crazy key resulting in a sharp ribbon of metal that would sometimes slide off course and become vewy intewesting.

When I make SPAM I use the turkey variety, which does not have mechanically-seperated turkey, by the way.  (The USDA requires that it be listed if used.)  This contains less saturated fat, and is the lesser of several evils.  While turkey SPAM does not have the texture of “real” SPAM (and that says something), I usually marinate it in a teriyaki-like sauce anyway, so it winds up tasting the same.

I found a simple recipe in Hawaii’s SPAM Cookbook that I adapted.  It tastes good served over rice – close to SPAM musubi, especially if you serve it with a few strips of nori and season the rice with sushi vinegar.

Soy Sauce SPAM

1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup mirin
2 teaspoons grated ginger
SPAM, sliced; I use two 12-ounce cans for our family of 4 plus a large dog

1).  Bring all except SPAM to a boil in a low skillet; I use a large skillet so I am able to spread the SPAM out
2).  Lay in sliced SPAM and simmer over low flame for 3 or 4 minutes, turning over midway through

Serve with rice and have a bottle of hoisin sauce standing by.

Spam over rice in a bowl

Country pork ribs

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Country pork ribs in a bowl

While it’s true that we’re trying to cut costs here at the home front right now, I have always made country pork ribs (from the blade end of the loin, by the shoulder) because they’re so good – tender, great flavor, and an open canvas for dry rubs.  I also prefer them to pork roasts because more of the surface area is subject to seasoning and caramelization.  They go on sale for about $1.80 a pound in these parts, and that’s when I nab a huge package, since they make great leftovers.

When you buy pork country ribs, they may or may not have bones, but they won’t have many in any case; these guys are eaten with a knife and fork.  Try to find some that do not have an overabundance of fat, but you’ll want decent marbling since this keeps the meat moist.

Easy Country Pork Ribs

Massage in a spice rub and Kosher salt, lay them out on a sheet pan with plenty of space between, and convect-roast them at 375 deg. F. for about 45 minutes, depending upon thickness.  They need to reach an internal temperature of 160 deg. F.

Spice rub suggestions:  shawarma, carne asada or cajun; ground thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper.

Pulled pork sandwiches

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pulled pork sandwich piled high

A recent hankering by one of the residents here for pulled pork sammies created the need for a large hunk of slow-roasted pork.  One trip to Smart & Final later, I was well on the road.  I make my pulled pork somewhat differently than the rest of the universe, wanting all the elements of slow and low cooking but no smoke.  I rub the a boneless pork shoulder down with a mix of coarse salt, coarse pepper and paprika and then roast at 215 F. for about 9 hours – covered.  I then uncover the thing and roast for an hour at 375 F. or so – convection, to get some crispness on the sides.  I generally use a whole shoulder, which weighs in at over 10 pounds, but if you cannot find a whole boneless shoulder you can use boneless versions of what is called the “butt” or the “picnic” (these are the two cuts that make up a pork shoulder) or even “cushion meat,” which consists of boneless odds and ends of shoulder (it should be, anyway).  Once it’s out of the oven let it rest for upwards of an hour and then pull apart with two forks.  I serve this on nice rolls covered with hot pepper sauce and/or coleslaw with little sweet pickles on the side.

Grammy Elaine and NY strips

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Warm potato salad in stainless steel bowl

Gramma Elaine is here so we grilled New York strips.  My Mom’s friend, Rita, joined in, as well as Jon, who is spending the weekend, so it was a hoot.  Accompanied by seared fig halves with walnut vinaigrette and warm potato salad a la Chef Erwin Pirolt (one of my cooking school instructors and arguably the most ornery) were the steaks grilled rare by Renate, Sr.  The backyard is a problem, though, in that we just cannot block the sun.  This is a by-product of having a corner house without a real backyard.  We have a couple of market umbrellas rigged up, but to no avail.  I love the space this house has to offer, but I miss my beautiful landscaping at the old Albany house!  We would have been able to eat this meal there in style. 

searing halved figs in skillet

Searing halved figs in skillet

To make the seared figs, just buy Mission figs, gently wash and dry, cut lengthwise and sear in a hot non-stick pan until browned, but not mushy.  Place them on a platter, cut side up.  Prepare a vinaigrette with 1/3 part orange juice, 2/3 part walnut oil, a splash of lemon juice, a dash each of ground rosemary and onion powder and salt and pepper.  Pour over figs.  Shave a bit of hard Italian cheese, like Asiago, on top, if you like.  Note that I include here photos of the warm potato salad in its first phase of construction, and when it has had time to marinate.  If I were you, I would allow it to do the latter.  By the by, sorry about the large quantities in the recipe, but if you are able to divide, you’ll be fine.  I also show the figs in preparation for those who have not worked with figs in the past.

Renate senior and jon at BBQ in summer of 2008