Saturday 21 May 2011
Meatballs Recipe -- Italian Meatballs (Polpette) and Catalan Meat balls (Mediterranean cuisine from Catalonia)
| Italian Meatballs (Polpette) |
This dish is one variation of Italian meatballs cooked in sauce, and served as a main course. I formed my meatballs into patties so they actually are more like individual meat loaves. They are cooked in a tasty tomato sauce that can be served separately over pasta allowing this dish to become a complete meal. Because you are combining ground meet with other moist ingredients, and then are cooking the meatballs in sauce, they are very tender and moist even if you use such lean meats as ground turkey or ground sirloin as I used in my photos. Use good quality chopped tomatoes for the sauce such as Pomi or Muir Glen brands. I used Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes in my sauce which gave it a nice smokey flavor. Serves 4 to 6 Tomato Sauce: 1 28oz. Can Chopped Tomatoes 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil 1/4 Cup Finely Chopped Onion 3 Cloves Garlic, Peeled & Minced 4 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Fresh Basil Salt & Pepper Meatballs: 1 Pound Ground Meat Of Choice (Turkey, Beef, Pork, or Veal work well) 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil 3/4 Cup Finely Chopped Onions 3/4 Cup Pine Nuts 1 Cup Mushrooms, Finely Chopped (Button Or Baby Bella) 3 Garlic Cloves, Peeled & Minced 1/2 Cup Fresh Parsley, Finely Chopped 2/3 Cup Fresh Breadcrumbs 1 Cup Ricotta Cheese 1 Large Egg 1/4 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese 1 Tablespoon Lemon Zest, Minced Heat the oil in a large shallow saucepan, and add onions. Cook over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer while you prepare the meat. In a frying pan, heat the remaining olive oil. Add the onion, mushrooms, and pine nuts and cook until the pine nuts begin to turn brown. Add the garlic, stir well, and remove from heat. Combine the remaining ingredients with the onion mixture and mix until well blended. Form the meatballs into 6 separate patties, and brown in the frying pan used to cook the onion mixture until the meatballs are browned on both sides, turning carefully as needed. Gently place the meatballs into the saucepan holding the sauce and cover. Continue to cook the meatballs in the simmering sauce for 25 minutes more. Remove the meatballs and serve hot with a little sauce, using the remaining sauce to top your choice of pasta. Buon Appetito! Catalan Meat balls (Mediterranean cuisine from Catalonia) |
Catalan food is at once rustic and refined. This Catalonian meatballs recipe is the perfect example of that; it is a dish you would expect to find at an out-of-the-way country inn or a Michelin-star restaurant. Try serving it over hot rice or just-cooked couscous to soak up the delicious, red sauce.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Total Time: 65 minutes
Ingredients:
* 1 lb ground beef
* 1/2-lb ground pork
* 3 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
* 1 large egg, beaten
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 ground black pepper
* 1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
* 1/4 cup olive oil
* 2 strips bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
* Sauce:
* 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
* 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 2 cups water
* 1 cup pitted green olives
* 2 ounces cured ham, finely chopped
* 1 tablespoon tomato paste
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/16 teaspoon (pinch) ground cayenne
* 3 cups hot, cooked rice (optional)
* 1 tablespoon chopped, fresh parsley
Preparation:
Gently mix the ground beef and pork together with the garlic, egg, salt, pepper, and breadcrumbs. Form 1-inch meatballs with the mixture and set them aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and sauté the chopped bacon in the oil until it turns crisp. Transfer the cooked bacon to a cloth-lined plate to drain. Add the meatballs, in batches, and sauté them until they turn brown. Transfer the browned meatballs to a Dutch oven.
Add the chopped onions to the skillet and sauté them for 5 minutes, until they turn soft and light brown. Sprinkle the flour over the onions, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Pour the water over the onions and the flour and stir until the mixture is smooth. Add the reserved bacon, olives, ham, tomato paste, cinnamon, and ground cayenne to the sauce.
Pour the sauce over the meatballs in the Dutch oven. Cover with the lid and cook the mixture over low heat for 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through and the juices run clear. Serve the meatballs and pan sauce over rice, sprinkled with parsley.
This Catalonian meatballs recipe make 6 servings.
Introduction to the 10 Most Popular Cuisines in the World
Introduction to the 10 Most Popular Cuisines in the World
10. Lebanese Cuisine
The Lebanese cuisine is the place where you can taste all the goodness the Middle East has to offer. Foods are generally Mediterranean, high on vegetables, little meat and full of flavors. Perhaps the most famous dish worldwide is the appetizer mezze – a selection of dips, pickles, salads and nibbles with Arabic bread. It also includes an abundance of fruit, fresh fish and seafood and little animal fat. The country is also famous for the Arabic sweets, Tripoli being referred to as the “Sweet Capital” of Lebanon.
The Lebanese cuisine is the place where you can taste all the goodness the Middle East has to offer. Foods are generally Mediterranean, high on vegetables, little meat and full of flavors. Perhaps the most famous dish worldwide is the appetizer mezze – a selection of dips, pickles, salads and nibbles with Arabic bread. It also includes an abundance of fruit, fresh fish and seafood and little animal fat. The country is also famous for the Arabic sweets, Tripoli being referred to as the “Sweet Capital” of Lebanon.
With a significant influence from the Turkish and Italian cuisine, the Greek cuisine is a focused around olive oil, vegetables and herbs specific to the Mediterranean region. Eating in Greece is a different experience from Greek restaurants in other countries – gyros for example is considered by Greeks junk food. Restaurants now offer an authentic eating experience, being up to date with the latest culinary trends and stocked up with regional specialties. The Taverna and Estiatorio are widespread, being the places where you can find affordable authentic cuisine.
8. Spanish Cuisine
For a lighter approach on food, we turn to the Spanish cuisine, containing a variety of meat and fish, as well as vegetables. It is also influenced by the seafood available from the surrounding waters. Spanish cuisine uses the most oil among all Western and Central European cuisines. One of the most popular drinks in Spain that goes perfectly with its national dishes is sangria, a drink made of wine and fruits.
7. Japanese Cuisine
Known for its seasonality of food, aspect and quality of ingredients, the Japanese cuisine is rapidly becoming a trend worldwide. White rice and soybeans are the ingredients you should expect to find in almost any dish. According to Michelin Guide that ranks cities worldwide for their restaurants, Tokyo is the most delicious city, with 150 top-ranked restaurants, as opposed to Paris and London that have 148. Apart from its capital, it is fascinating to uncover the local cuisine throughout Japan.
6. Mexican Cuisine
Known for its varied flavors and spices, Mexican Cuisine is a result of the Spanish conquistadores’ interaction with the Aztec culture. Most of the Mexican food we eat today is a delicious combination of ancient traditions, Aztec, Mayan and Spanish. The French also had their part in the story, adding baked goods such as sweet breads and the bolillo. You can easily choose the restaurant you are going to eat in by popularity: restaurants with good food usually attract all the customers. There are also exotic options for your menu, such as iguana, insects, rattlesnake, deer and even spider monkey.
5. Thai Cuisine
Many people say Thai food alone, with its balanced mix of hot, sour, bitter and sweet, is a good enough reason to visit the country. The foods are characterized by the use of fresh herbs and flavors, such as lime juice, lemon grass and fresh coriander. Similar to many Asian cuisines, rice is the main component in Thai foods as well. You will often come across nam pla, a strong fish sauce, shrimp paste and noodles. If you’re looking to get a kick of out your lunch, you should try the raw beef, fermented fish paste or deep fried insect larvae mostly present in the Northeast, where eating insects in fairly common.
4. Indian Cuisine
One of the world’s most sophisticated and diverse cuisines, only one part of the Indian cuisine is known to the world. The Indian food served in restaurants worldwide is North Indian, also known as Mughlai or Punjabi. There are other 3 categories of Indian cuisine: South, East and West. The foods are mostly vegetarian, but many include lamb, goat, chicken meat and even fish. Indian cuisine is usually very spicy so in order to enjoy the food, start slowly and in a few weeks you’ll get accustomed to the flavors. Meals are usually eaten without cutlery, while seated on the floor, but these traditions are starting to change for the restaurants oriented to the Europe or the US.
3. Chinese Cuisine
Originated in various parts of China and now spread throughout the world, Chinese cuisine is now eaten by a third of the world’s population every day. The cuisine is easy to create, economical and tasty. Most of the food is prepared in bite-sized pieces because the Chinese culture regards knives and forks as weapons. Usually, every person at the table is given a bowl of rice while the other dishes are shared by everyone at the table. Some dishes are cooked from endangered species, such as facai moss while others from meat you would want to avoid such as dog.
2. Italian Cuisine
Perhaps one of the oldest in the world, the Italian cuisine can be traced back to the 4th century BC. It became what is today along with the discovery of the New World, that brought potatoes, tomatoes pepper or maize on the list of ingredients. An Italian meal is structured into several sections: antipasto (the appetizer), primo (pasta or rice dish), secondo (meat course), dolce (dessert). Italy is also famous for over 400 kinds of cheese, including the famous Parmigianino Reggiano, and 300 types of sausages.
1. French Cuisine
Starting with the Middle Ages that brought rich banquets to the French Revolution, where refined techniques were used, French Cuisine can be called in the 21st century “haute cuisine”. It is as popular as the poetry or French arts, a meal at a restaurant comparing to “a sort of theatre you can eat”. Pastries are a large part of French cooking. Cheese and wine are also a major part of the cuisine, being perhaps the most famous of all. The modern restaurant has its roots in French culture so restaurants are bountiful, but as for recommendation before deciding on one. In Paris alone, there are over 5,000 places to eat, with prices and menus to suit anyone’s taste.
Foie gras is a popular and well-known delicacy in French cuisine. Its flavor is described as rich, buttery, and delicate, unlike that of a regular duck or goose liver. Foie gras is sold whole, or is prepared into mousse, parfait, or pâté (the lowest quality), and may also be served as an accompaniment to another food item, such as steak. French law states that "Foie gras belongs to the protected cultural and gastronomical heritage of France."[3] Another European cuisine employs fattened goose liver almost to the extent as in France; in Hungary, libamáj (lit. 'goose liver') is produced, as in France, both at the small farm and larger commercial levels, and is consumed both plain and in cooking by all levels of society. As with French foie gras, tinned libamáj is exported and can be purchased around Europe and North America.
The technique of gavage dates as far back as 2500 BC, when the ancient Egyptians began keeping birds for food and deliberately fattened the birds through force-feeding.[4] Today, France is by far the largest producer and consumer of foie gras, though it is produced and consumed worldwide, particularly in other European nations, the United States, and the People's Republic of China.[5]
Gavage-based foie gras production is controversial due to the force feeding procedure used. A number of countries and other jurisdictions have laws against force feeding or the sale of foie gras.
Black pudding, blood pudding or blood sausage is a type of sausage made by cooking blood or dried blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. The dish exists in various cultures from Asia to America. Pig, cattle, sheep, duck and goat blood can be used depending on different countries.
In Europe, typical fillers include meat, fat, suet, bread, sweet potato, onion, chestnuts, barley, and oatmeal while in Spain and Asia, potato is often replaced by rice.
Appellation d’origine contrôlée (AOC), which translates as "controlled designation of origin", is the French certification granted to certain French geographical indications for wines, cheeses, butters, and other agricultural products, all under the auspices of the government bureau Institut National des Appellations d'Origine (INAO).
The origins of AOC date back to the 15th century, when Roquefort was regulated by a parliamentary decree. The first modern law was set on May 6, 1919, when the Law for the Protection of the Place of Origin was passed, specifying the region and commune that a given product must be manufactured in, and has been revised on many occasions since then. On July 30, 1935, the Institut National des Appellations d'Origine (INAO), a branch of the French Ministry of Agriculture, was created to manage the administration of the process for wines. In the Rhône wine region Baron Pierre Le Roy Boiseaumarié, a trained lawyer and winegrower from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, successfully obtained legal recognition of the "Côtes du Rhône" appellation of origin in 1937. The AOC seal was created and mandated by French laws in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. On July 2, 1990, the scope of work of the INAO was extended beyond wines to cover other agricultural products.
AOCs vary dramatically in size. Some cover vast expanses with a variety of climatic and soil characteristics, while others are small and highly uniform. For example, the Côtes du Rhône AOC "covers some 400 square kilometres (154 square miles), but within its area lies one of the smallest AOCs, Château-Grillet, which occupies less than 4 hectares (9.8 acres) of land."
Camembert
Camembert is a soft, creamy, surface-ripened cow's milk cheese. It was first made in the late 18th century in Normandy in northern France.
Camembert was reputedly first made in 1791 by Marie Harel, a farmer from Normandy, following advice from a priest who came from Brie.[2]
However, the origin of the cheese known today as Camembert is more likely to rest with the beginnings of the industrialization of the cheesemaking process at the end of the 19th century. In 1890, an engineer, M. Ridel invented the wooden box which was used to carry the cheese and helped to send it for longer distances, in particular to America where it became very popular. These boxes are still used today.
Before fungi were understood, the colour of Camembert rind was a matter of chance, most commonly blue-grey, with brown spots. From the early 20th century onwards, the rind has been more commonly pure white, but it was not until the mid-1970s that pure white became standard.
The cheese was famously issued to French troops during World War I, becoming firmly fixed in French popular culture as a result. It has many other roles in French culture, literature and history. It is now internationally known, and many local varieties are made around the world.
The variety named "Camembert de Normandie" was granted a protected designation of origin in 1992 after the original AOC in 1983.
Wednesday 18 May 2011
Anglo-Indian cuisine - Kedgeree
Kedgeree (or occasionally kitcherie, kitchari or kitchiri) is a dish consisting of cooked, flaked fish (sometimes smoked haddock), boiled rice, parsley, hard-boiled eggs, curry powder, butter or cream and occasionally sultanas.
Kedgeree is thought to have originated with an Indian rice-and-bean or rice-and-lentil dish Khichri, traced back to 1340 or earlier.[1] It is widely believed that the dish was brought to the United Kingdom by returning British colonials who had enjoyed it in India and introduced it to the UK as a breakfast dish in Victorian times, part of the then fashionable Anglo-Indian cuisine.[2] It is one of many breakfast dishes that, in the days before refrigeration, converted yesterday's leftovers into hearty and appealing breakfast dishes, of which bubble and squeak is probably the best known.
Hobson-Jobson cites Ibn Batuta (c. 1340) mentioning a dish of munj (moong) boiled with rice called Kishrī, and cites a recipe for Khichri from Ain-i-Akbari (c. 1590). According to Hobson-Jobson, while fish is eaten with kedgeree, the use of the term for “mess of re-cooked fish ... is inaccurate”.[3]
An alternative view is that the dish originated from Scotland and was taken to India by Scottish troops during the British Raj, where it was adapted and adopted as part of Indian cuisine.[4] The National Trust for Scotland's book The Scottish Kitchen by Christopher Trotter traces the origins for the kedgeree recipe to books by the Malcolms dating back to the year 1790. According to this theory the dish travelled to India then returned to the wider UK.
The first view, that it was and remains an Indian dish, is evidenced by the popularity of the dish throughout the subcontinent today.
The dish can be eaten hot or cold. Other fish can be used instead of haddock such as tuna or salmon,[4] though that is not traditional.
Sunday 8 May 2011
Francesinha
Francesinha
Francesinha (meaning Little Frenchie or simply Frenchie in Portuguese) is a Portuguese sandwich originally from Porto, made with bread, wet-cured ham, linguiça, fresh sausage like chipolata, steak or roast meat and covered with molten cheese and a hot thick tomato and beer sauce served with french fries
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