There’s No “I” in Chef
Finesse. I think after 5 plus years of trying to learn to cook at a higher level I might be finally incorporating a little finesse in my game. I’m very excited about it.
At the market on Saturday we bought ramps for the first time. Ramps are an onion-like plant that appears in the spring and you can use the whole plant from the small bulb to the pink stem to the greens. I found a recipe in Gourmet for ramp soup and decided that would be Sunday dinner. On Sunday morning I got up and started a pot of chicken stock using the necks, wing tips, etc I’m always accumulating in my freezer. I waited until the last hour of simmering (about 6 hours later) to add the mirepoix because I had read in multiple places that simmering veg for more than an hour adds cloudiness and off flavors to stock. Following that advice, I wound up with a paler but much clearer and lighter tasting product. So far, so good. I used the stock in the recipe as instructed and followed the rest of it to the letter except for using a blender to puree the soup in batches. Instead I played Iron Chef and used my immersion blender to puree the soup right in the pot and then strained it into a second pot (this also made for easier cleanup – I hate cleaning the blender).
The soup came out a beautiful spring green color, was silky-smooth and the subtle flavors of the ramps and Vidalia onion were perfectly framed by the sharpness of the freshly-grated parmigano-reggiano. It was the best soup I ever made from scratch and I was proud that it truly was from scratch; if I had used boxed or canned stock it would’ve taken something away from the overall experience. Was it fast? No. Was it rewarding? You bet.
Monday night I made a pork tenderloin using the trotter stock as the base for a marinade. I took some of the stock and added a shallot, some garlic, brown sugar, salt, cumin and paprika to it and marinated the pork overnight. I seared off the pork and put it in the oven and while that was going I added a couple smashed garlic cloves, a bit of salt, some powdered ginger and some Quebec honey (from Marche Atwater) and let it reduce quite a bit to create a sauce for the loin. It came out so well the Mrs wanted to save the bit that was left in the pot at the end of the meal.
So here I am, blowing my own horn. After more than 5 years of screwing around in the kitchen, I have learned to cook a little bit. Of course, I also know that some of the positive result is luck. Food does not always behave as it should but when you execute well and it does it’s magic.
Of course, the next step would be to cook this way consistently but that's difficult when you're hardly ever home 5 days out of 7 on average. It's like learning to play a musical instrument when you can only practice once a week. It takes a lot longer to get to a level where you feel like you're making real progress. Fortunately I have people who are willing to be subjected to my "experiments". I'm extremely grateful for that because without their encouragement I might be back to Campbell's out of a can.
At the market on Saturday we bought ramps for the first time. Ramps are an onion-like plant that appears in the spring and you can use the whole plant from the small bulb to the pink stem to the greens. I found a recipe in Gourmet for ramp soup and decided that would be Sunday dinner. On Sunday morning I got up and started a pot of chicken stock using the necks, wing tips, etc I’m always accumulating in my freezer. I waited until the last hour of simmering (about 6 hours later) to add the mirepoix because I had read in multiple places that simmering veg for more than an hour adds cloudiness and off flavors to stock. Following that advice, I wound up with a paler but much clearer and lighter tasting product. So far, so good. I used the stock in the recipe as instructed and followed the rest of it to the letter except for using a blender to puree the soup in batches. Instead I played Iron Chef and used my immersion blender to puree the soup right in the pot and then strained it into a second pot (this also made for easier cleanup – I hate cleaning the blender).
The soup came out a beautiful spring green color, was silky-smooth and the subtle flavors of the ramps and Vidalia onion were perfectly framed by the sharpness of the freshly-grated parmigano-reggiano. It was the best soup I ever made from scratch and I was proud that it truly was from scratch; if I had used boxed or canned stock it would’ve taken something away from the overall experience. Was it fast? No. Was it rewarding? You bet.
Monday night I made a pork tenderloin using the trotter stock as the base for a marinade. I took some of the stock and added a shallot, some garlic, brown sugar, salt, cumin and paprika to it and marinated the pork overnight. I seared off the pork and put it in the oven and while that was going I added a couple smashed garlic cloves, a bit of salt, some powdered ginger and some Quebec honey (from Marche Atwater) and let it reduce quite a bit to create a sauce for the loin. It came out so well the Mrs wanted to save the bit that was left in the pot at the end of the meal.
So here I am, blowing my own horn. After more than 5 years of screwing around in the kitchen, I have learned to cook a little bit. Of course, I also know that some of the positive result is luck. Food does not always behave as it should but when you execute well and it does it’s magic.
Of course, the next step would be to cook this way consistently but that's difficult when you're hardly ever home 5 days out of 7 on average. It's like learning to play a musical instrument when you can only practice once a week. It takes a lot longer to get to a level where you feel like you're making real progress. Fortunately I have people who are willing to be subjected to my "experiments". I'm extremely grateful for that because without their encouragement I might be back to Campbell's out of a can.
Comments
I will remember the grill light.