Teriyaki Glaze

Teriyaki Glazed Chicken on a Pineapple Plank

     The word teriyaki derives from the Japanese noun teri, which refers to a shine or luster given by the sugar content in the teri, and yaki, which refers to the cooking method of grilling or broiling. Traditionally the meat is dipped in or brushed with sauce several times during cooking.  This salty-sweet sauce is delicious on fish, poultry, pork, and beef.   Basic recipes I've seen have 3 main ingredients - soy sauce, mirin, and sugar.

     Like many people these days I'm attempting to watch my intake of corn-syrup and other additives.  On a trip to the grocer the other day I found myself reading ingredient lists and many of them left me tongue-tangled and confounded.  It's no secret corn-starch and corn-syrup are widely used as thickeners but that doesn't mean I have to eat them.  I don't like the flavor, texture, or cloudiness this thickener produces.  A finished glaze should be shiny and clear.  There should be teri in your yaki!

     There are some store-brands I like, but I find the vast majority of them lack complexity (especially the cheap ones).  I prefer teriyaki with a citrusy/ginger note.  To the basic ingredients I like to add fresh ginger and citrus rinds (orange, lime, lemon, and pineapple).  I also use brown sugar instead of white.  As with many things, time is the ultimate ingredient.  When I make a glaze I let it reduce a little further than usual.  This makes a little goes a long way and if you need it thinner - you can always dilute it with water or stock.  Use it as a marinade, a glaze, or a dip.  It's fantastic.

~Ingredients:
10 oz soy sauce
5 oz mirin
5 oz rice vinegar
4 oz pineapple rind
4 oz citrus rind (orange, lemon, lime)
0.5 oz garlic (minced)
1 oz fresh ginger (minced)
6 tblsp brown sugar

~Method:

• In a large saucepan combine all ingredients and set over med-high heat until boiling.  Reduce heat to a mild simmer and let the liquids reduce and the sauce holds to the back of a spoon.  A 60% reduction yields just over a cup of finished sauce.
• Strain mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove the solids. 

~Yield:
1 cup sauce.

Roasted Sweet Pepper Sauce

Sweet peppers or Bell peppers are native to Mexico and other Central American regions and were spread to the rest of the world by Spanish and Portuguese explorers during 16th and 17th centuries.  Today they are used around the world.  The largest producer is China. The fruit is green when young and then progresses to shades of red and yellow as it ripens on the vine.

I love cooking shows, but there is a part of me that gets a little miffed because so many of them - especially the "reality" type ones - rely on doing things in 20 minutes (or less).  In my kitchen, the best ingredient I've found is time.  A flavorful, deep, complex sauce takes time.  If you are in a hurry this recipe is likely not for you.  However, if you want a sweet pepper sauce that actually tastes like peppers, taking the time to roast the peppers makes all the difference.  Start to finish this sauce took me just under two hours.

The other day I acquired a nice bag of mini red, yellow, and orange peppers. I've been nibbling through them, but like many who live small - I'm challenged to use them up before they go bad. A quick search for red pepper sauce on the web yielded lots of recipes - but most of them relied on adding cream and/or tomatoes. I wanted a sauce that would showcase the peppers themselves without being weighed down by cream or altered by the acidity of tomatoes. This is what I came up with.

~Ingredients:

Fresh red/yellow/orange sweet peppers (see below for quantity) 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 of a large sweet onion (medium diced)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1/4 cup white wine (approx)

1.5 cups pork stock

sugar (optional to taste)

salt & pepper to taste

~Method:

• Roast the peppers:  Cut peppers in half (pole to pole) and remove stems, seeds and membranes.  Place them cut-side down on a lightly oiled sheet pan (or use parchment for easier clean-up).  Place in a hot oven and roast for 20-30 min or until skins are darkened.  Remove the pan from the oven and cover tightly with foil.  Set the tray aside and let them "steam" to loosen the skins.  When cool enough to handle, peel off the tough skins and compost.  Cut the remaining tender flesh medium dice and set aside.

• In a 10" flat sided skillet over medium heat, melt the butter.  When butter is hot add onion and saute until onion is soft, translucent, and beginning to release moisture.  Add diced sweet peppers and garlic and continue to saute about 5 min.  Add white wine to deglaze the pan and reduce until alcohol flavor cooks off and liquids are reduced.  The mixture should still be wet with only a little moisture remaining.  Add the stock to the pan and increase heat to medium-high.  When the mixture comes up to simmer, reduce the heat slightly and simmer until stock volume is reduced to about 1/2 cup.

• Transfer pan contents to a food processor and puree until smooth.  Pass this mixture through a fine-mesh sieve and press to separate liquids from solids into a small clean saucepan.  (You can re-purpose the remaining solids at this stage as a spread for sandwiches or a dip for crudites .  Maintain the sauce over low heat and finish seasoning with salt, pepper, and sugar to taste.

As you can see above I used this as a sauce for breaded chicken, but it also makes a good pasta sauce.

Lime Cilantro Aioli

ai·o·li

[ahy-oh-lee]

noun Cookery .

A garlic-flavored mayonnaise of Provence, served with fish and seafood and often with vegetables.

There is a lovely tradition of Latin American flavors colliding with traditional French techniques here in Florida.  To me the world of food is funny.  The base for this cold emulsion sauce is credited to the French region of Provence, but with the addition of a little Lime and Cilantro its flavor gets transported all the way across the Ocean and lands solidly in the Caribbean.  I have been looking into more hearth healthy oil-based accents as a flavor substitutes for cheese in my all time favorite breakfast food - the Omelet.  Aioli is a fantastic sauce for veggies and eggs.  It's also a great condiment for poultry based sandwiches and wraps.

Omelet: Sauteed Cachucha Peppers, Mushrooms, and Spinach - with a Cilantro-Lime Aioli

I chuckle a little when I read a recipe and it has you do the simplest of things in a food processor.  It's not that I don't think food processors don't save time... they most certainly do - IF you are making huge volumes.  I laugh because in my opinion, As a single person, making a small batch of fresh mayonnaise involves so much LESS cleanup when you do it the old fashioned way - in a bowl with a whisk.  Fresh mayonnaise transcends what you buy in the store.  You have complete control of the flavors, additive, and consistency.

Ingredients:

~Emulsifiers

2 cloves garlic - minced

splash EVOO

1/2 t. kosher salt 

1 lime - zest (juice separated)

1 large egg yolk (use the white in your omelet!)

1/2 t. Dijon mustard

~Emulsion

3/4 C. canola oil

1/4 C. EVOO

~Finish (to taste)

fresh cilantro - minced

reserved lime juice

kosher salt

Yield:

About 1 C.

Method:

1. (Prep emulsifiers) On a cutting board, combine garlic, EVOO, and Kosher salt.  Mash with the edge of a Chef's knife until it forms a paste.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together mashed garlic mixture, lime zest, egg yolk, and Dijon mustard until smooth, well combined, and salt is fully dissolved.
2. (Emulsify) Slowly, and in a  steady stream, add canola oil and whisk vigorously with Emulsifiers to form a mayonnaise.
3. (Finish) Adjust flavor to taste by adding fresh chopped cilantro, lime juice, and salt.  Thin to desired consistency with water.

Tips:

Cold yolks emulsify faster than room temp ones.

Pizza Sauce

This weekend I tried out a recipe I've been meaning to try for some time...
 http://www.pizzamaking.com/thincrust.php

I am a HUGE fan of pizza and I have been ever since I can remember.  One of my favorite activities as a kid was when the whole family went to Me & Eds Pizza to celebrate birthdays.  I recall they had a wonderful bubbly cracker crust and lately I've been seeking to replicate it.  It seems where I live, the fashion in pizza is a very thick, doughy crust.  In my abbreviated research this is often referred to as a "Chicago" crust.  The above recipe is referred to as a "California" crust.  It comes as close as any I've found to matching the texture I'm after.  It is crisp yet chewy and stands up to heavy toppings.

Thin crust pepperoni pizza with green peppers and mushrooms

Another challenge on my quest for pizza perfection is the sauce.  Too often when I make pizza at home I open a can or a bottle and try to be happy with what comes out.  No more!  I prefer a pasty sauce to a liquid sauce and I feel it holds more flavor in the high temperatures of cooking pizza.

1.5 oz dried sun-dried tomato
6 floz boiling water
6 oz Tomato past
1 tsp chili paste
2 cloves fresh garlic
1 small fresh shallot
1/2 tsp black peppercorns (crushed)
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp dried red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp chili powder
1-2 tbsp honey
1t white wine
salt & pepper to taste

1. Rehydrate the sun dried tomatoes in 6oz. boiling water til soft.  Reserve tomato water.
2. Combine remaining ingredients in a food processor and pulse til blended and coarsely chopped.  When blended turn processor on and add water and wine in a continuous thin stream.  Blend til smooth.  Refrigerate about 30 min. prior to using to allow flavors to meld.

Chardonnay Sun-Dried Tomato Cream Sauce

As a young single person, one of my weeknight "go-to" dishes was a tomato Alfredo sauce served over pasta.  Typically, I would reheat a bottle of commercially available sauce, and toss into it whatever pasta was in the pantry and crown it with whatever steamed vegetable  the "crisper" had to offer (usually broccoli).

My tastes have evolved since then and much has changed about my knowledge of how to extract maximum flavor from simple ingredients.  This is an ongoing project for me and I continue to refine the flavor profile.  Deconstructing what I loved about the dish I set out to develop a sauce that has a creamy texture, a strong tomato flavor, A notably boozy note, and a salty finish.

 I'm happy to introduce this as I find it a marked improvement over what you can buy commercially.  I selected Chardonnay  for this dish because I like its robust oakiness.  Any dry white wine would work.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups heavy cream

2 ounces sun-dried tomatoes (dry style, very thinly sliced)

1 bay leaf

1 tsp dried red pepper flakes

1 garlic clove (crushed)

1 tablespoon olive oil 

1/8 tsp salt

1 sweet yellow onion (peeled, thin pole to pole slices)

1 garlic clove (minced)

1 ounce tomato paste

8 ounces chardonnay

8 ounces tomato juice

2 ounces Parmigiano Regiano (finely grated)

white roux

Method:  

1. Infuse the cream:  In a small saucepan over low heat combine cream, bay leaf, red pepper flakes and 1 crushed garlic clove.  Bring to scald, lower heat, and reduce to about 1 cup volume.  Remove bay leaf and keep warm.  
2. Caramelize aromatics:  In a large sateuse, heat olive oil over medium heat.  When oil is ready add onions and toss lightly with salt to draw out the moisture.  Saute onions until they start to caramelize.  Add minced garlic and stir to combine.  If garlic begins to burn, reduce heat.  Add a bit more oil to the pan if things get too dry.    
3. Deglaze, reduce, and thicken sauce: When the onions and garlic have caramelized, add the tomato paste and stir well.  Heat for about 1 minute or until the tomato paste begins to stick to the pan.  Deglaze the pan with the wine, scrape the suc from the pan.  Add warm cream mixture and tomato juice, stirring well.  Heat through and thicken with white roux and reduce to desired consistency.  Remove from heat and stir in the cheese a little at a time.  
4. Serve over hot al-dente pasta.