Wednesday, June 21, 2006

 

NYC Eye-Talian Grocery

Glutton's Club reader and frequent tipster Gabe has a story to tell. It is a story of cured meats, Italian-American celebrity look-alikes, tomatoes and Gluttony. It is a good story and one that has decided what I'll be having for dinner tonight. I like stories like this.


Hi Matt,

OK, so here's the detail (only some of which I mentioned when we spoke). I visited my brother in Soho this weekend, and he took me to his favorite Italian grocery, DiPalo's (225 Grand, I think - it's right on the edge of Little Italy and Chinatown). Not only do they have great food, but one of the guys who works there is a dead ringer for Chazz Palminteri (including his voice).

I had to forgo all kinds of good things that wouldn't have been stable enough for a hot day in the city and the long drive home, but I did leave with these:

1) Excellent parmegiano reggiano, very crumbly and especially sweet
2) Sopressata: one hot, one sweet, and one with wine and garlic
3) Several cans of true San Marzano tomatoes (Pastosa brand), bearing a number of seals indicating authenticity: denominazione d'origine protetta, certificazione agroalimentare, pomodoros marzano dell'agrosarnese-necerino

Everything was fantastic, especially the sweet and wine & garlic sopresetta.

The tomatoes came with a story: I learned that the "italian" tomatoes I've been buying up 'til now (brands like Cento and Pastene, with a "packed in Italy" designation, no salt, and a higher price than the cans of the same brands packed in California) allegedly contain San Marzano tomatoes that have been sprouted in Italy, shipped to California to be grown to maturity and harvested, then shipped back to Italy for canning.

I cooked a simple reduced sauce yesterday (nothing but a little oil and garlic, briefly sauteed before adding one can of the tomatoes, then boiled violently for a few minutes to diminish the acid and simmered until reduced down by 2/3), and it was markedly brighter, sweeter, and had a stronger tomato flavor than a similar sauce made with either California tomatoes or San Marzanos "packed in italy."


G

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

 

magical middle ground between grilling and BBQ

The other night I was cruising to whole foods across the street from work to pick up some stuff for my lonesome gourmet dinner. As I entered, I did an inventory of what I had in the fridge that needed to be used. I remembered some bacon, some cherry tomatoes and not much else. The weather was as warm as a fat persons armpit so I was looking to avoid indoor cooking if possible. By the time I reached the meat counter, I had decided to wrap the bacon around some bone-in split chicken breasts and grill 'em. The tomatoes would go nicely with some feta, herbs and red wine vinegar in a salad and some bread toasted on the grill would provide a starch.

The chicken ended up the star of the show. I put a mixture of chopped sage and garlic combined them with salt and pepper and put it all under the skin and wrapped the chicken with bacon using toothpicks. When the coals were ready, I had another revelation: use smoke and indirect heat instead of searing them. So I did. the result was saltimbocca gone mad in a house fire. After about half an hour on the medium hot part of the grill with hickory chips on the coals and the lid on, I had mildly smoked chicken with beautiful herb and bacony flavors. When I cut into the breast, it was literally bursting with juicy goodness. I have never seen such a thing, not even even after a proper brining.

I admit, the recipe needs tweaking. Next time I'll use pancetta instead of maple cured bacon to let the smoke from the fire alone provide that element and I'll season the bird with more salt and pepper and less fresh herb than I did. A little paprika might be just the trick. The second breast was my leftover meal tonight and it was still damn good. I think I'll replicate it for a crowd next time to see what they think.

 

ice cube absurdism

It's been frickin' hot and crappy here lately so I suppose we've all come up with different measures to keep cool. Some around here like plenty of ice in their beverage. A funny side effect resulted this evening.

Someone in the house decided an ice cube tray needed cleaning. They dutifully washed the tray and put it in the dish strainer (or is it "drainer"?). I was doing my own dishes later and saw it there and thought to myself, "wait, what?" before filling it with water and putting it in the freezer.

I think that to myself fairly often, I think it comes with having housemates but this one was exceptional.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

 
Pork Tenderloin is what I would ask for if I could only eat one more cut of meat for the rest of my life. The same part of the pig as what filet mignon is on a cow, this is a deliciously tender cut that is remarkably simple to cook and takes flavors from marinades superbly. It costs far less than filet however and is ideal for simple prep. Serve with pinot noir, riesling or a saison.

quick and dirty recipe:
-combine chopped garlic, dijon mustard, salt and pepper, red wine vinegar, fresh rosemary sprigs, dry white wine and olive oil for the marinade.
-Put the pork and marinade in a bag for at least a few hours.
-Remove from marinade and grill for a few minutes on each side until internal temperature reaches 125, 120 if you're manly. If using charcoal grill (as you should be), you can toss the rosemary sprigs on the coals for a little flavorful smoke.
-Allow to rest at least 5-10 minutes under foil, collecting juices.
-Slice in thickish slices and serve. Pour juices over the slices once plated.

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