May 04 2011

Authentic Mexico with Chef Kurt Spataro

I joined other students at the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op this past Monday to learn from Centro Chef – Kurt Spataro about the flavors, techniques, and ingredients that celebrate regional Mexican cooking – just in time for Cinco de Mayo!

I’ve loved the co-op’s local chef series and knew that I needed to add Chef Spataro’s class to my calendar for Spring.

Chef Kurt and Chef Dio talked strategy before the class got started. Judging from the table of ingredients and the recipe handout, the chefs in the back kitchen were in for a wild ride and we were in for a fun evening filled with wonderful food.

We started off the evening with chips, salsa and guacamole provided by the co-op.

It’s definitely hard to say “no” to chips… or wine…

The selected wine for the evening was a 2008 Colonia Las Liebres Bonarda. Although originally an Italian grape variety from Piedmont and the Oltrepo-Pavese region, the Bonarda grape has enjoyed much greater success in the rich soils and generous climate of Argentina, where it is one of the main grape varieties grown. Our table gave it a two thumbs up, it paired well with our tasting menu for the evening.

Chef Kurt talked about how he got into authentic Mexican cooking and mentioned that he started by reading Diana Kennedy’s cookbooks and was mesmerized by the ingredients. He later had the opportunity to travel to Mexico to take many classes from Diana.

Chef Kurt talked about Mexican cuisine being pork based. There were several jokes about the perception of Mexican cuisine not being classified as “sexy, expensive, or indulgent” because of that. He then went on to talk about pork back fat and pulsing it in the Cuisinart and baking it in the oven at 300 degrees F. and then pouring off the fat… Julie at our table said, “yep…definitely not sexy” – everyone laughed… we had a really great table last night!

The first dish of the evening was Tlacoyos – oval shaped fried or toasted cakes made of masa and commonly served as an appetizer. Our tlacoyos were filled with ricotta. We learned about the different types of masa, lard and how to make the tomatillo salsa topping.

The serving platters were gorgeous and the tlacoyos had the perfect amount of heat – I loved where the evening was headed.

The tlacoyos were prepared on a flat top grill known as a comal. I also learned that there isn’t any lard in tortillas and that I could purchase Keller Crafted Meats “Leaf Lard” at the co-op. Leaf lard is the highest grade of lard obtained from the visceral fat deposit surrounding the kidneys and inside the loin – again, “not sexy.” 😉

I also learned about using avocado leaves as a spice.

After toasting the leaves on a comal, they can be added whole, ground, or crumbled to your dish. The leaves have an anise-like flavor and are often used as seasoning in regional dishes. Chef Kurt included them in the second dish of the night – Enfrijoladas.

The Enfrijoladas were incredible – topped with chorizo, crema and black bean sauce.

The co-op stocks a Kendall Farms Creme Fraiche and that is what was used for the dish.

Chef Kurt mentioned that Herdez was a preferred brand for canned chipotle chiles. What’s cool about the co-op classes is that you learn about the ingredients, they pass the containers around from table to table and then you can purchase some of them with your coupon from class. A lot of times I see a recipe ingredient list and I don’t even know where to start.

We also got to learn about epazote – a Mexican herb.

I thought the leaves smelled like tires, ha! I looked it up on the Internet as part of the research for this post and found that they compared it to gasoline – so tires? Not too far off my friends.  Epazote has been used in Mexican cuisine for thousands of years dating back to the Aztecs who used it for cooking as well as for medicinal purposes. Although epazote is poisonous in large quantities, it has been used in moderation to help relieve abdominal discomfort (gassiness) that can come from eating beans.

We also learned a little bit about hoja santa (holy leaf).

The large heart-shaped leaf is widely used in Mexican cuisine to wrap foods (such as fish and cheese) and to season while cooking. I kind of thought it smelled like root beer, but others thought it had a slightly anisey flavor. Root beer, tires… yum!

The next dish of the evening was my favorite. Pollo en pipian verde. The photos I took do not do the dish justice…

The sauce on this chicken was mind blowing. Had we not been in public, I’m pretty sure the entire table would have licked their plates clean. I loved the dish so much, I asked Chef Kurt if I could share it with you readers. He agreed and made me promise that I will definitely make it at home. That’s a no brainer, this dish will be made many times at home. Thanks Chef Kurt!

Pollo en pipian verde
3.5 – 4 lbs. Chicken Thighs or Legs and Thighs – they used boneless thighs
1/2 White Onion, Thinly Sliced
2 Cloves Garlic Crushed
Water
Salt

Combine ingredients in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil – skimming off the foam that rises to the top. Add salt and turn down the heat to a simmer. Cook until the chicken is tender when pierced with a fork. Let the chicken cool in the broth, then remove the chicken, strain the broth and reserve.

For the Sauce:
1 Cup Raw Hulled Pumpkin Seeds
12 oz. Tomatillos
2-3 Serrano Chiles
A Few Romaine Lettuce Leaves
1/2 White Onion – Rough Chopped
2 Garlic Cloves – Chopped
4 Sprigs Cilantro
1/8 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
6 Peppercorns
1/2 Inch Piece of Cinnamon
2 Cloves
1.5 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
2.5 Cups Chicken Broth

Directions:
Toast the pumpkin seeds in a saute pan until they begin to swell and pop. Be careful not to brown the seeds. Place the tomatillos and chiles in a saucepan, cover with water and simmer until tomatillos are tender, but not falling apart. Grind the spices in a coffee grinder or with a mortor and pestle (Molcajete). In a blender, place seeds, tomatillos, chiles, spices, cilantro, lettuce, onion, and garlic and process until smooth – adding some broth if necessary to grind the mixture efficiently. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, Add the pumpkin seed mixture and fry, stirring constantly for 4-5 minutes or until quite thick. Add 2.5 cups of broth and the cooked chicken and simmer for about 30 minutes. Season with salt. If sauce becomes too thick, add a little more broth. Radishes were used as a garnish.

This sauce would be incredible on fish (salmon), boneless chicken breast –  if you aren’t a dark meat fan, pork, shrimp… I think it would go with just about anything.

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The last dish of the evening was Puerco en Adobo.

Boneless pork shoulder in a wonderful sweet, tangy, spicy, adobo sauce. We learned about the different chiles Ancho, pasilla, etc. and the reason behind frying your sauces – it takes the raw onion and garlic flavor out of the sauce. It enables you to cook some of the ingredients bringing out the flavors.

I’ve become so used to Americanized Mexican food that this class opened my eyes to many new possibilities in my kitchen. I usually try to come up with something fun for Cinco de Mayo at home and I’m thinking one of these dishes will be showcased at my house this year. Who’s coming over for dinner?

Question: What’s your favorite Mexican dish?

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=4661

May 02 2011

Udon Noodles w/Broccolini & Spicy Tofu

I seem to keep going back to my May 2011 Cooking Light Magazine… probably because I’ve been eating much healthier – minus the food truck meals ;). The Udon Noodle with Broccolini and Spicy Tofu shared the page next to the Orzo Salad with Spicy Buttermilk Dressing recipe. Scoring two excellent recipes in one magazine is great! I continue to have good luck on vegetarian options in Cooking Light.

The Ingredients:
8 oz. Water-Packed Extra-Firm Tofu – I used Wildwood Organics High Protein Super Firm Tofu – no water, easy to use
5 Tablespoons Peanut Oil – divided
2 Tablespoons Lower-Sodium Tamari or Soy Sauce  – I used low sodium soy sauce
1.5 Teaspoons Sriracha – divided
Cooking Spray
6 oz. uncooked dried udon noodles – I used  what I had, Hakubaku Organic Soba, Japanese Buckwheat Noodles (a thinner noodle)
6 Cups Water
1/5 Teaspoons Kosher Salt
8 oz. Broccolini
3 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar – I only had seasoned, so I used that.
1 Tablespoon Grated Peeled Fresh Ginger – I used my frozen Dorat brand.
1 Teaspoon Dark Sesame Oil
1/2 Cup Thinly Sliced Radishes
2 Tablespoons Chopped Dry-Roasted Cashews – toasted – I didn’t toast mine (just forgot)

Directions:
I skipped the first step of pressing my tofu to let it drain – since I got the “no water” easy to use kind. If you are using the other kind, allow 30 minutes to drain between pressed paper towels before cutting into cubes.

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine 2 tablespoons peanut oil, soy sauce or tamari, and 1 teaspoon Sriracha in a bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add tofu cubes to mixture and toss gently to coat. Let sit in bowl for 15 minutes.

Remove tofu from bowl with slotted spoon, reserve sauce mixture in bowl. Arrange tofu in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet coated with cooking spray.

Bake tofu at 350 degrees F. for 10 minutes or until lightly golden. Mine took about 15 minutes.

Cook noodles according to package. I ended up cooking my noodles in the water that I cooked my broccolini in and that worked great. I was afraid it would turn green, but it didn’t.

For the broccolini – Combine 6 cups water and salt in a large pot/pan over high heat, and bring to a boil. Add broccolini to pot and cook for 3 minutes or until crisp tender. Drain and plunge broccolini into ice water.

Drain well and then chop broccolini. Add remaining 3 tablespoons peanut oil, remaining 1/2 teaspoon Sriracha, rice vinegar, ginger, and sesame oil to reserved tamari/soy sauce mixture in bowl. Stir mixture well and add the baked tofu, noodles, broccolini, and 1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes and gently toss to coat. (I skipped the additional Sriracha – I tasted it and thought it was spicy enough for me – I added a little more rice vinegar instead. It should be noted… I’m a spice whimp).

Sprinkle dish with cashews and serve. Yields 4 – Serving Size  = 1 and 1/4 cups noodle mixture and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cashews.

Nutrition Info.  – Calories 438 | Fat 24.7g | Protein 14.3g | Carbs 38.4g | Fiber 3.4g | Sodium 572mg

If you aren’t a tofu fan or you have family members that wouldn’t touch the stuff – this dish would taste great with shrimp or chicken as well. I love that it’s a basic recipe that can be switched up. Next time I’m thinking of adding grilled bok choy.

Questions: Are you a tofu fan? If so, what is your favorite type/brand? How do you like to cook it?

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=4577

Apr 30 2011

SactoMoFo – Operation Divide & Conquer

SactoMoFo was a total success/ZOO. Wow… the crowds were huge! We decided to get there around 11:30 a.m. to start waiting in lines. There were 6 of us, so we were prepared to divide up to tackle multiple lines at once.

Deede and I immediately jumped into the line for Chairman Bao – a San Francisco truck offering traditional Chinese steamed and baked buns.

I called Kristen and while leaving her a voice mail – saw that she was about 30 people ahead of us in line. SWEET! We gave her our order and I hopped into line number 2 at Seoul on Wheels  – another San Francisco truck featuring Korean tacos, while Deede went to check on the guys over at General Jim’s.

Chairman Bao’s line easily had 75-100 people in it before the truck even opened for business. They had a 5 bun limit, which worked out perfectly. I opted for the Crispy Garlic Tofu with Miso Greens Steamed Bun, but ended up tasting the Red Sesame Chicken with Scallion and Bok Choy and the Tender Pork Belly with Pickled Daikon.

The Crispy Garlic Tofu Steamed Bun – was in my opinion, the shining star of my SactoMoFo day. I must recreate it. I’m pretty new to cooking tofu, expect a dish on the blog later this week – but I’m thinking a little panko and Garlic Gold Nuggets might just create something sort of close.

I could also have eaten a huge serving of the pickled daikon from the pork belly bun. Not a huge fan of pork belly, but the other’s really liked it. The Red Sesame Chicken was pretty spicy – took a very small bite and went back to heaven/my tofu. Deede delivered some food to the guys while everyone else waited in their lines.

The guys hit up General Jim’s because the line was short. They got some snacks – Garlic Fries and Philly Cheese Steak Nachos…

Dan snapped a nacho photo with his iPhone – thank you technology. If it wasn’t for texting, tweeting, etc., it would have been hard to divide and conquer.

Lots and lots of crowds. Many people bailed to eat at local restaurants – I look at that as another huge success for SactoMoFo – bringing lots of business to local restaurants. You definitely needed to be patient – I turned it into a positive, having fun chatting with people in line. I saw my girlfriend Cherri – who blogs over at Sweet Life of a Cherri – it was great to visit for a few minutes with her and her family. I also ran into a few other bloggers and friends.

Not the best photo of the Seoul on Wheels truck – but I couldn’t resist the little Miniature Schnauzer – I saw at least 3 today. It made me miss Higgy at home. My wait time at Seoul on Wheels was easily over an hour. I chatted with a Mom and her daughter for a good portion of the time… until Deede’s husband delivered popsicles to us from Fat Face.

The orange one was Thai tea and sweet potato and the other one was plum basil. They were both incredible and I loved that Deede’s wheels started turning after a few bites. It’s her goal to recreate the popsicles or similar sorbets and it’s my goal to be her taste tester. We also tasted a lime and avocado popsicle and the guys had kiwi mango and strawberry lemonade. A huge hit and very refreshing after waiting in lines for so long… and mouth soothing after the spicy stuff.

Back to Seoul on Wheels…

I tm’d the guys to get their orders – 2 spicy pork BBQ and 1 chicken BBQ, got the girl’s orders – 2 rib eye BBQ and we were good to go. I opted to try the chicken.

The chicken was great, but super spicy – like lip burning spicy in a good way. The burning stopped after a few more popsicle bites. 😉

The girls enjoyed the Short Rib Korean Tacos and the guys gave the Spicy Pork two thumbs up as well.

Deede delivered the guys their food at the Mama Kim’s line – while Kristen got in the Spencer on the Go line. I wandered around to look at the other trucks.

People had been waiting in the Curry Up Now line for over an hour. A taste of their Tikka Masala Burrito would have been nice, but I was satisfied with my choices and there was no way I was waiting in another line.

Whole Foods rolled out their truck featuring assorted sausages, hot dogs and tots.

The best part of the Whole Food’s Truck was the “Bust a Move” dancing hot dogs…

I finally made my way back to the Spencer on the Go line to chat with Kristen while the guys still waited over at Mama Kim’s.

The Mama Kim’s food came up just as they announced that Spencer on the Go had run out of food. (It was only 2:00 p.m.) Lots of French foodies and people wanting to try the truck from the Food Network’s “The Great Food Truck Race”  TV show. They were serving escargot lollipops, lobster cappuccino, braised lamb cheeks and chocolate pudding. Kristen had already been in line for an hour, total let down… but at least we had Mama Kim’s to try.

Dan and I shared a BBQ Tri Tip & Slaw Slider with a side of Sweet Potato Chips – the chips were awesome. Deede got the Chicken Bahn Mi and let me take a bite. Lots of sharing going on all day. It was a fun way to taste things without feeling totally stuffed. I LOVE my friends for putting up with me since I found out about the event months ago. If it was just Dan and I, we probably would have waited in one line and bailed.

I’m glad the event was such a huge success and that major crowds came out. It will be interesting to see the estimated numbers on the news tonight. It would be very cool if everyone signed the petitions that were circulating around –  to get the 30 minute parking ordinance changed. I hope all parties involved (restaurateurs, truck owners, and city officials) can come to a compromise that works for everyone.

A great day of food and fun with friends. Can’t ask for more than that…

Permanent link to this article: http://foodiddy.com/?p=4592