Tuesday, December 10, 2019

SAVE THE CARCASS!

While there are many tasks in the kitchen that I genuinely enjoy, my favorite one hands down is making stock.  Anytime I have leftover poultry carcasses (turkey from Thanksgiving, rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, leftover roasted chicken of whatever parts, duck, pheasant ... anything), I put the remains in ziplock bags and stash them in my freezer.  When I have the time, I use the foraged bones to make stock.  My culinary school textbook may offer an exact recipe for this, instructing one to use a mirepoix (50% onion; 25% carrot; 25% celery), with a fancy bouquet garnis (a mix of herbs, peppercorns, and whatever tied in cheesecloth), but I boldly say F&%$ that.  I use what I have in my fridge and to hell with the cheesecloth.  I have 2 carrots, an onion, some celery, half a bunch of parsley, some garlic, peppercorns, cloves, bay leaves, sage or thyme or whatever, a few mushrooms ... in the pot it goes.  Screw the ratios and fancy verbiage.  It's a matter of utilizing ingredients; waste not, want not.



My turkey this year was too big to fit the entire thing into my largest stock pot, so I cut it into pieces and did two batches.  Upon putting the carcass(es) in the pot (again this goes for any feathered fowl), add enough cold water so it covers the contents.  Place the pot on the stove and slowly let it come to a gentle simmer -- *NOT* a boil.  As it bubbles, a foamy substance will rise to the surface.  With a spoon, carefully skim it off and discard the scum.  Those are the impurities (blood, fat, etc.) in the bird that you do not want in your stock, that will make it cloudy instead of clear.  Do not stir, just slowly skim.  This may take a while and a little patience, but stay strong!  

Once the abundance of foaminess subsides, add your aromatics.  My preferred mix, generally speaking, is onion, carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, additional herbs (thyme, sage, oregano, chervil, rosemary ... really anything), bay leaves (like 2 max), cloves (maybe like 10), peppercorns (maybe like 10), mushroom remnants work well if I have them, ginger.... Again, it's not a recipe; it's leftover stuff in my fridge.  Also keep in mind that stock is a base for a dish you will use it in, so don't worry about seasoning it or adding too many flavors; keep it simple.  

After that, just keep the stock at a very low simmer, skimming the scum as needed.  Let it go for 6-8 hours, replenishing the liquid as needed.  Honestly, it just sits there filling your home with a potpourri of homemade wonder.  My Thanksgiving turkey this year alone produced two perfect gallons of stock, which I transferred to 2-cup containers that are stored in my freezer. While the cooking time may seem trepidatious, trust me when I say it is worth the effort.  It just sits on the stove while you watch TV.  


Following it's stint on the stove, you will need to strain it.  I use a kitchen accessory called a chinois so I can press the solids through it in order to extract the juices.  However, you can use a regular strainer, lined with a couple layers of cheesecloth if you want.  If you use a strainer NOT lined with cheesecloth, do not press the solids because you do not want chunks in your stock.  


Ideally, one would want to put the vessel used to strain the liquid into, into an ice water bath so it cools quickly.  When I do this at home, I wait for the stock to cool a little and then divide it into smaller containers (2-cup is my preference).  Once it stops steaming, I put lids on and, labeled and dated, it goes in the freezer to be thawed as needed.  

Additionally, it can be stored in the fridge if used within 5 days. However, one may notice that when taken out, it will look like jello.  This is a good thing!  When the bones cook for that long, the gelatin breaks down and releases itself into the liquid.  That is a a good sign.  When heated, it will melt and become liquid again.  Think of it as "bone butter".  

In conclusion, there are so many benefits to making stock at home.  First, it saves money.  I have 2 gallons of stock from one turkey for basically free.  How much does a good quality stock cost at the store?  I'm not talking about the bargain brand ones, with the laundry list of mystery ingredients -- the good ones.  Maybe $4.00 a quart?  Secondly, there's no packaging waste.  Lastly, ingredients that may simply have been discarded are being utilized for another purpose.  Save the carcass and enjoy!

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Love What You Do; Do What You Love

These are my kitchen shoes.  That's what they looked like brand new.  Currently they are stained here and there with various food products.  "Work clean" they say.  Somehow, it's always a messy job.

After almost a decade of cooking for people privately, I decided to take on the job of "prep cook" in a hotel kitchen.  There is a coffee shop that sells things like granola yogurt parfaits, breakfast sandwiches & burritos, various salads, sandwiches, etc.  That's what I do for the first part of my day.  After I am finished with that, I prep for the next day making sure I have enough eggs, sliced meats & cheeses, breakfast burrito mix, soft cooked eggs .... It's pretty easy stuff.

Nonetheless, from the moment I walk into the kitchen until the time I leave, my brain and my body does not stop working.  There is not one second of idleness.  What I do is low on the totem pole, but I put my heart and soul into what I do.  Planning 2 steps ahead and not wasting movements in the kitchen is key.  You focus, you run, you go non-stop.  As you perform your job, you try as hard as you can to not injure others in the process.   "KNIFE!"  "HOT PAN!"  "CORNER!"  "BEHIND!"  "COMING THROUGH!"  At the same time, people are shuffling around you with hot pans and knives.  There are things that fall on the floor that may cause you to slip.  It's an orchestra.  And there is a constant mind f*ck of how one can be faster or cleaner or better in general.  In the kitchen, there is no such thing as perfect.

On top of that, I move as quickly as I can so I can help my chefs with prep and learn from them.  The sooner I finish my tasks for the coffee shop, the sooner I can be with them.  The best part of my day is spent learning.

In conclusion, I am truly dedicated to and extremely proud of what I do.  When I come home, I am more tired than I have ever been in my life. My entire body aches -- head to toe.  However, no matter how much my body is relenting, my heart is always screaming "WOW THAT WAS AWESOME!"



Wednesday, March 20, 2019

Trudy's Pierogi With Kraut From Sts. Peter & Paul in Detroit


My boyfriend gave me a cookbook that was his mother's called "Wildlife Chef".  Tucked inside was a yellowed piece of paper, very neatly folded into thirds.  Written in his grandmother's beautifully meticulous cursive handwriting was this recipe.  Of course, I had to make it!  And it was wonderful.  


For the Kraut:

1 large jar of kraut
1 onion, sliced
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon oil
Salt & pepper, to taste

Drain juice from kraut.  Put in boiling water for 5 minutes.  Drain in a colander under cool water.  Squeeze dry. 

In a fry pan, melt butter and add oil.  Sauté onion, and cook over medium heat until a little caramelized. 

Put kraut in frying pan with sautéed onion.  Add salt & pepper to taste.  Cook until a little brown. 

(Filling for pierogi, or can be served as a side dish)

For the Pierogi:

2 cups flour
½ cup warm milk
1 whole egg + 1 yolk
2 tablespoons sour cream
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter for richer dough (optional)

Mix ingredients and knead into a soft, pliable dough.  Let rest for 10 minutes covered with a warm bowl. 

Divide dough into halves and roll thin.  Cut circles with large biscuit cutter. 

Place a small spoonful of filling a little to one side.  Moisten edge with water.  Fold over and press edges together firmly.  Be sure they are well sealed to prevent the filling from running out. 

Drop pierogi into salted, boiling water.  Cook for 5 minutes.  Lift out of water carefully with a slotted spoon.

Serve with melted butter. 

*********
Beth's note:
When I make pierogi, I melt butter in a fry pan, then add the boiled pierogi to the butter.  Cook on one side until they are browned, then flip and fry the second side.  I like to serve them with a dollop of sour cream.  

Also, if you are not eating them all right away, place on a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper or parchment paper dusted with flour.  Put in the freezer until well frozen and stash in a large ziplock bag.  They will keep for at least a month.


Wednesday, June 13, 2018

Hey, AB



Hey, AB.
It’s me, Beth.  We never met, but I am pretty sure we should have.  Pretty sure we would have shared some amazing meals together, not to mention loads of laughter, not to mention drinks!  You got me through the grueling experience of culinary school,  as I went through a divorce and watched my mother slowly die.  Working in the kitchen sucks, but I somehow find the chutzpah to suffer through it.  Also, I have been to 47 states, 5 Canadian provinces/territories (I've smuggled in pot and alcohol), Japan (solo trip!  I smuggled drugs in there, too!), 9 European countries (also some solo adventures there), not to mention Mexico (I've bribed security guards at the airport!), various Central American countries and the Caribbean.  I love people and I love food.  The hours I spent in front of the TV watching No Reservations are countless.  We are kindred spirits.  You turned me from a cook into a chef; from a tourist into a traveler.  Even in my home town of San Diego, I talk to everyone and love every soul I come in contact with.  That was the gift you gave me. You may be gone, but I’m not.  You left a mark on me ; you affected me.  All I can say is thank you.  We all have our struggles – me too.  But thank you.  Your influence in my life was and is a gift.   

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

7 Kitchen Tasks and Recipes I Hate!

This may come as a surprise to you, but there are days I want to rip my hair out in the kitchen.  I absolutely love what I do, but there are a few things that I hate.  Some are certain recipes I have to cook at work, and others are prepping tasks that make me want to blow my brains out.  Here is a short list of examples:

  1. ANYTHING regarding chocolate.  Anyone that knows me, knows I hate it.  The nasty smell of it, the feeling of it when it melts on my fingers, the gross way it leaves a chocolaty trail in my mouth when I attempt to eat it.  It's disgusting.  Even thinking about it gives me the chills.  In a bad way.  This is #1 on the list for a reason.  I hate touching it, chopping it, smelling it.  Yuck.
  2. Cleaning spinach.  My clients have me make creamed spinach at least once a week.  They buy 4 giant bunches that are more often than not coated in dirt and mud.  I have to soak them in the sink at least twice to get rid of the grit.  Then, most tedious of all, I have to remove the stems from the leaves, one at a time.  It takes like 30 minutes.  There is no sense in buying the fresh spinach.  First of all, it's expensive.  Secondly, frozen spinach is exactly the same thing.  It would save me time and them money, but for some reason they opt for the fresh stuff.  I get paid, so I can't complain I suppose.
  3. Touching chicken.  Even at home, I always use gloves.  The skin, the fat, the flesh ... it is so nasty.  And I clean everything with bleach afterward that the chicken could have possibly breathed its salmonella on.  As a side note, I will say that I got a 97% on my chicken fabrication final in culinary school.  But, ew.  Raw poultry is for the birds.  
  4. Prepping shallots.  Random, I know.  But they are a pain in the ass.  The skin is super thin and sometimes impossible to peel off.  Then you get shallot twinsies that have the space in between them that is coated in black mold that is super nasty.  It gets on your fingers, it stinks .... Ugh.  I hate those things.  
  5. Cooking rice on the stove.  This is my Achilles heal.  For some reason, I always screw it up.  It ends up an over cooked, starchy mess and scorched to the bottom of the pan every time!  I have a rice cooker now, which is the secret to my rice cooking success.  Well worth the investment.
  6. Noodle Kugel.  That makes me dry heave just thinking about it.  It's supposedly Jewish comfort food, but that is highly debatable.  It's egg noodles, baked in a dish with this nasty custard laced with raisins and cinnamon.  Imagine creme brulee with pasta.  I take so much pride in what I do, but I made this the other day and I gagged as I was plating it.  It's so awful.  I can't even taste-test it, and I feel badly serving it.  But my family loves that stuff.  Go figure.
  7. Martha Stewart's Oven Baked Sweet Potato Fries.  I saved this for last because these things are the bane of my existence.  I must have made this recipe 50 times, but 25 of those times were fixing the recipe so it worked.  The "fries" would come out mushy every time, or they would stick to the pan.  One has to first pre-cook them in the microwave, then plop them onto a cookie sheet so the excess moisture can steam away.  Then you whip egg whites with brown sugar.  Coat the "fries" in the mixture then bake them off at a very high temperature.  They'd come out masked in a cloak of scrambled egg whites.  And mushy.  Way to go, Martha.  Recipes are a suggested guideline, people.  They do not always work and you have to use common sense and instinct to fix them.  
Don't get me wrong.  I love what I do.  I love the people I cook for, and I usually wake up in a great mood knowing that I am blessed to be able to earn money at what I am passionate about.  But there are days I want to cringe.  

Monday, May 14, 2018

Tomato Sauce 101


There are 3 things I do not mind buying in a can:

  1. Chipotle peppers in adobe (smoked jalapeno peppers in a lovely tomato sauce) -- they are a great addition to marinades, baked beans, chili, taco meat ... you name it!
  2. Beans -- I never cook beans from scratch.  The canned versions save me so much time and they taste perfect.  Just give them a good, healthy rinse with cold water and proceed.
  3. TOMATOES! -- most especially the Italian variety (they just taste better!).  Even in California, with our year round growing season, the time of year when tomatoes are at their peak is limited.  And the ones you buy at your random supermarket most likely were picked before they were ripe in some far-off land, so they are mostly water and zero flavor.  The canned ones are optimal, especially for soups and sauces!

Beth's Super Easy, Homemade Tomato Sauce

Chef's note:  You can easily double or triple this recipe.  It takes just as much time and energy to cook 2 quarts as it does a gallon.  Just put it in pint-size containers and store it in the freezer for when you need it.  Making tomato sauce from scratch is much easier than one would think.  It not only tastes better, but it is much better for you than the processed stuff in a jar.

2-28oz cans canned tomatoes (preferably Italian, whole; crushed by hand)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
8-10 garlic cloves, smashed with skins removed
1/2 teaspoon dried chili flakes (plus more to taste, at the end)
A big handful of basil
1" square of Parmesan cheese rind, or just a chunk of Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon of sugar, or to taste
Salt & pepper, to taste




Heat oil over medium heat in a pot that will fit the tomatoes.  Add the garlic cloves and fry them until they are golden brown.  The best way to achieve this is to tip the pan so the cloves are essentially deep-frying.  Once they are starting to brown, use a spoon to pull them out and discard them (or you can leave a few -- it's a matter of taste!).  What you are doing is making sure that the garlicky flavor gets infused with the oil.  

Sprinkle in the chili flakes and cook for about 30 seconds.  Don't let them burn or the sauce will be bitter!  


Very carefully, slide the tomatoes into the oil.  It will spatter, so use caution.  Stir well, and bring to a simmer.  Add the basil and Parmesan bits, and stir to incorporate.  Reduce heat to low, and stir frequently.  Do not allow the bottom to burn!  Continue cooking until the sauce is nice and thick, about 30 minutes or so.  It should coat the back of a spoon.  

Once it is nice and thick, you can either leave it chunky or you can use an immersion blender to puree it a little bit.  (Or carefully pulse in a food processor).  Just be sure to remove the chunk of parmesan.

Season to taste with a little sugar, salt & pepper, and even additional chili flakes if desired.  

Makes 2 quarts.

Saturday, March 31, 2018

My Birthday Tribute to My Mom


My mother was amazing.  She was very artistic and could do wonders with her needlework.  She was patient, kind and never panicked, which made her an amazing nurse (not only professionally, but also to her daughters).  I don’t ever remember her yelling at me – I loved her too much to do anything that would get me into any real trouble.  She was my best friend and, at any age, I felt like I could tell her anything.  She had beautiful blue eyes that she rolled at the world often.  But for her girls, she was always there with a shoulder to lean on or, worst case, to cry on; there was never a shortage of hugs, or encouragement.  The pride that she had in both my sister and me alike often gives me the motivation to keep going and to strive to be the best that I can be. 


However, we all have our Achilles heel, and she was a terrible cook.  For example, a typical meal might involve something Stouffer’s refers to as S.O.S.  It’s shaved “meat” of some kind in a creamy sauce.  Stouffer’s packages it conveniently in plastic so you bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the S.O.S. in it until it is warmed through.  Meanwhile, make toast.  Place the toast on a plate, with the S.O.S. on top.  For those of you not in the know, “S.O.S.” stands for “shit on shingles”.  Pretty accurate.

Another one of our staple meals was Tuna Noodle Casserole.  While the exact details of this recipe are lost, I know it included condensed-cream-of-something-soup, canned tuna, egg noodles and (ew) potato chips to give it that nice crust on the top.  My mother would cook this in an orange oven-safe, round dish that was reminiscent of Le Creuset (but way not).  This was not one of my favorite meals.  When I asked what was for dinner, and she said “Tuna noodle casserole”, I actually cringed. 

Also, macaroni and cheese was another favorite.  Not just straight up from the box (although it was), but she would add things to it.  Sometimes it was sausage, which was OK.  Other days it was Spam, which, even as a child, I was not OK with.  My dad would alternate his condiments on such meals between ketchup and syrup.  As an adult, I alternate my Mac N Cheese topping between the two.  I know how gross that sounds, but it’s pure nostalgia to me!  (Minus the Spam, of course).

Lunch items were often grilled cheese sandwiches (with Miracle Whip), Lipton chicken noodle (from the packet), Stouffer’s French bread pizza, and pizza rolls.  As an adult, after a long day in the kitchen, these are tried and true guilty pleasures (although I take a giant pass on the Miracle Whip).  Not every day staples in my diet, but I admittedly indulge in them from time to time. 

Other entrees included (but were not limited to) meatloaf, which made me throw up once.  Slumgullion, which was not always that terrible.  It’s kind of a chili-mac thing – browned ground beef, kidney beans, tomato sauce and some kind of pasta like macaroni or shells.  I am still a sucker for crunchy tacos which, out of the other possible dinner options was always a welcomed treat!  I would take tacos any day over uber dry pork chops or Salisbury steak.

Side dishes were often frozen veggies heated in the micro with butter.  Salad always included iceburg lettuce with a ketchup-based dressing that was a recipe of my Aunt Elsie’s.  On holidays, the go-to side dishes were green bean casserole (the old-school one with the cream-of-whatever soup and the canned, fried onions) and sweet potato casserole (again, old-school with the marshmallows).  Her potato salad was always a hit, with celery, onion, bacon, hard cooked eggs, mayo … my grandmother’s recipe, which I have actually adapted and improved a little bit.

But let us not forget dessert.  If it was your birthday, she would more often than not cook a cake from a box.  Nothing wrong with that!  As kids, we never complained.  The problem was that sometimes the cakes were raw in the middle!  She would just cover up the sagging middle with more frosting.  My poor mom. 

And then there was her famous jello mold with the pineapple chunks.  She had a special Tupperware mold she used, that had interchangeable bottoms that you could swap out according to what holiday it was.  If it was Christmas, there was a Christmas tree one, etc.  It went on the bottom of the bowl, so when you unmolded it, the selected design was on the top of the mold.  She was a nurse, and her first Thanksgiving with my dad, she made her jello mold.  She took it to work with her and left it in the hospital refrigerator.  After her shift, she went and had dinner at my dad’s with my brothers (I was not born yet).  The following day, one of the doctors she worked with approached her, giggling like a school boy.  “SANDY!  So who got the suppository????”  The answer was “no one”.  My mother was mortified.  As soon as she got off of work, she went to my dad’s house to inspect the remaining jello mold and she saw the suppository right on the edge, next to where the very last scoop had been taken.

Her food was not always terrible.  In the summer, she liked to barbeque.  We had a charcoal grill and she made pretty good hamburgers and grilled a killer New York steak.  In the summer, we would go to farm stands where she would buy corn on the cob, tomatoes and green beans.  Those meals were my favorites. 

In short, people are always asking me what got me into cooking.  One would assume I was in the kitchen with my mom, propped up on a stool and helping her bake chocolate chip cookies.  That pretty much never happened.  We made sugar cookies together one year for Christmas and I got so frustrated at the end that I ended up mixing all the food coloring together to get black frosting.  No, I knew from a young age my mother could not cook.  I also knew I liked food and my palate was pretty well developed at a young age from, well, being force-fed things. I knew I wanted to cook better, so I learned.  I started reading cookbooks.  I traveled.  I went to culinary school, and upon graduation was the recipient of The President’s Award.  My motivation throughout school was to make my mom proud.  Like I said, she always taught us to work hard and to try our best.  Although she was a terrible cook (and a victim of 70’s and 80’s cuisine), she inspired me to become a better one.