There is nothing like the perfectly brined and roasted chicken leg with the combination of crunchy browned skin on a cold winter night. This is a one-pot dinner that when cooked perfectly is just as masterful as leather fruit served in the shape of a beetle (RIP Noma). Just because a combination of flavors might seem mundane, doesn’t mean that a symphony of flavors can’t be created that only increase in complexity, and deliciousness, with time.
Posts tagged savory
Seven Layer Dip
After a busy day at work, running a razor-sharp knife through a mountain of vegetables allows me to zone out for a few minutes. Turn on Buena Vista Social Club for background music and open a beer to complete the prep space. I am officially in kitchen-prep-meditation-mode. The fresher the vegetables…the better this recipe will taste.
Corn and Shrimp Bisque
If you have been to San Francisco’s revered restaurant Gary Danko, then you know the ingredients are the epitome of seasonal foods at their peak. A few years ago, I had the pleasure of enjoying a dinner at Gary Danko with my mom and corn-loving brother. While my mom and I selected scallop and lobster appetizers, my brother ordered the corn soup. I have been trying to replicate this ethereal sweet corn experience ever since.
Shrimp Stock
As I approach 40, I’ve started to think more about what goes in my garbage. ]There are so many ways to repurpose the “undesirable” aspects of ingredients in order to not only reduce waste but also improve flavor. Not to mention that you paid just as much for the “undesirable” aspect of the ingredient as you did for the desirable part. So why not make use of the intense shrimp umami flavor hiding in the shrimp heads and shells by making a simple shrimp stock? Yes, it does take a few extra minutes of prep work, but your taste buds, wallet, and planet will thank you later.
Lobster Bisque
Cape Cod lobster is worthy of an opera. The sweetness of the tail meat, the tenderness of the knuckles, and smell of briny, salty Cape Cod water that lingers on your palate the next morning. This lobster bisque is my ode to Uncle Frank and my way of ensuring that I waste nothing. After we have enjoyed fresh steamed lobsters, I ensure all the meat is removed from the bodies and the legs have been rolled. The shells get combined with whatever vegetables I have readily available (carrot, leek, celery) and submerged in water to make a stock. The stock yields an extra depth of lobster flavor to the bisque.
Cheesecake
The excess amount of heavy cream in this cheesecake gives it a velvety texture and cooking the cheesecake in a water bath takes it to the next level.
