Raw vs. Roast: Oysters and Bone Marrow

They told me oysters were an aphrodisiac.  I would describe as more like a sloppy, seawater kiss.  My first oysters tasted like how I imagine slimy, frog tongues taste.  These grey, ghost-like forms floated on top of puddles of briny ‘oyster liquor’.  Once I slurped the nectar from the shell, I was instructed to gulp down the rest of it whole.  Slowly, it slithered down - that cold, fat, amorphous glob.  The second one was given a quick chew.  I found its texture to be like rubbery flesh and the aftertaste to be straight salt-water.  It’s not that I had a “bad oyster” (admittedly it was a pestering thought on my mind – I have heard the stories!), I just like being able to chew what I eat, and not feel repulsed by what goes down.  Why I still appreciate the oyster is because it stemmed from the challenge to prepare food that had not been tried before.  For me, the reward of these oysters was not the taste, but rather the excitement leading up to the completion of a dare. 

 Shucking oysters would seem to be a job reserved for only hardened seafarers, the Brawny Man, or Chuck Norris.   But a sharp finesse and a good angle can take you a long way.  I remained constantly haunted by the image of slicing through the web of my fingers.  I needed step-by-step instructions, and hands on, guided assistance. That is why I provide you with this link to hopefully help: http://www.marylandinfo.com/sponsorships/how_to_shuck_oysters.html.  

I gingerly placed a teaspoon of mignonette into the oyster shells, open like bodies waiting for autopsy. The mignonette, made of diced shallots, red wine vinegar, fresh parsley, and black pepper, was my lifesaver while eating these.  I enjoyed that more than chasing with a shot of Belvedere vodka. 

So while the oysters were a bit too much to swallow, I am considering keeping meat-butter on hand.  What’s meat-butter, you say?  Sold in stores as bone marrow, we dubbed it meat-butter.  Spreadable, creamy, and extremely dense, it satisfies like an entree and only costs you $2 a pound.  Seldom have I felt a stronger urge from my inner carnivore.  The taste is unforgettable, perhaps because its consumption seems so sinfully taboo.  The marrow itself is chalk full of vitamins and minerals, so there is a reason it is treasured by your natural heart.  Roasting the bones is simple and takes less than a half hour.  In a 450˚F oven, roast the bones for 15-20 minutes.  Fat will leak out of the bottom, so make sure you have a pan that can capture the fatty goodness.  When the marrow starts to bubble slightly, it is ready to be eaten.  Larger bones will take longer.   

 The only negative is that bone marrow is not highly photogenic.  Granted, we did eat the marrow pretty rare.  The pasty-pink color in the photo doesn’t capture the true golden shimmering of the rose colored marrow.  It can have a globby texture but, I appreciated its delicacy.  Toasted slices of French bread served as the base, and the marrow was placed on top of a bed of crunchy, citrus parsley salad.  It was as light as an appetizer, but hefty enough to satisfy your protein craving.  It’s definitely not something you will see at the cafeteria, and I would be surprised to see it on even a high-class restaurant’s menu.  But making it is a) novel for the guest and b) cheap for the host.  Some groceries do carry it, just call ahead and ask.

Slammin' Salmon Frittata

  

 Those obnoxious highlighter yellow “SALE” stickers were a stroke of marketing genius.  Ever the penny pincher, I could not resist picking up a 2 pound package of salmon for just $12.  There had to be at least half a dozen fillets in the package – what a deal!  Even before the checkout lane, I was adding up the possibilities.  Not surprisingly, once I opened the package I realized that $12 salmon was quite a fishy purchase.  But I was not going to be a fish out of water with this one. 

Puns aside, the way to use not-so-great-quality fish is to give it the supporting role.  Sure, that fillet may not look like star quality.  But when flaked apart, the taste will make you glad it still made the cast list.  Salmon went with swimmingly alongside green onions, tomatoes, dill, and goat cheese, but red peppers, mushrooms, basil, or feta cheese could be excellent substitutes.  Really, it was like making a giant omelet, so add you favorites.  Using fresh salmon rather than canned allowed us to keep the salmon moist without being chewy.  The frittata was fluffy and filling, best served for a “breakfast for dinner” night.  Pairing it with a fruit salad, whole grain toast, or even a blueberry muffin would make the dinner complete. 

Salmon Frittata

Ingredients:

2-3 T olive oil

1 cup salmon fillets, cooked and flaked

5 eggs

¼ cup milk

2 T lemon juice

2 tsp Dijon mustard

1 T dill weed

¼ tsp oregano

Salt and pepper

1 small tomato, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

4 green onions, sliced

Goat cheese (separate into dollops)

Instructions:

1.       Season salmon with olive oil, salt, and pepper.  Cook for about 3 minutes per side, or until flaky but not dry.  Flake apart to make about 1 cup of salmon.

2.       In large mixing bowl, combine eggs and milk.  Whisk vigorously until eggs are well beaten.

3.       Add all remaining ingredients, except 2 T olive oil and goat cheese. 

4.       Heat 2 T olive oil in 12-inch cast iron skillet over high heat. 

5.       Meanwhile, preheat broiler to HIGH, or 450˚.

6.       Once very hot, add in egg mixture.  Lower heat to medium low, cook for about 5-6 min, popping air bubbles that may form.  Drop in cheese at this time.  

7.       Place skillet into oven, cook for about 3-5 more minutes.    

8.       Serve immediately.  Makes about 4 servings.

Live Lobsters for New Years Eve

When we picked up lobsters for New Years Eve dinner, I was sure that the evening would be something out of a Hollywood horror movie, “Attack of the Lobsters”.   This year my family and I tried our hand at cooking live lobsters.  What says classy more than lobsters and champagne?  Plus, the grocery was having a sale on these lobsters: $8.99 a pound. 

Once the lobsters were unloaded, all people present were prepared for the invasion.  Fresh out of the bag, our monster stars looked like giant, creepy alien insects.  The creatures sat on the counter with antennas waving, large claws clamped with rubber bands, hairy legs, and a fishy smell.   Was I really about to eat this over-sized aquatic bug?  Surprisingly, their menacing qualities did not go further than appearance.  After washing them off and putting them in the sink, they laid dazed and docile.   Perhaps they did not realize the pot of boiling water had their names on it. 

Chatter in the kitchen centered on the actual boiling of the lobster.  Would it scream and cry for a prolonged period?  Kick the lid off in a struggle for life?  Clad with oven mitts, tongs, and stainless steel cookware, the tension mounted.   Maybe the lobsters were just waiting to attack!  The movies have sold us on thinking this would be the case.  However, only two were mildly eventful: one cried for about 5 seconds and another one protested by flapping its tail as I dropped it in.  I hardly know why the banter about the ethics of cooking a live lobster exists.  The cry was so faint and whistle-like it was barely audible.  Most of them fell limp into the water, and in a matter of minutes were completely cooked.   No fight to the pot, no pleas for life – just the sound of bubbling water and a vent fan.  I suppose this lack of drama and excitement is the reason you have never heard of an actual movie called “Attack of the Lobsters”. 

As the apprehension released, the cooking process became like clockwork.  Boil the water, plop in the lobster, and cover for 15 minutes or until red.  Each lobster had their own personal, aromatic steam bath, however if you are cooking for more than two I would not recommend the individual attention.  If your pot is big enough you can cook two at a time.  My pot was about 6 quarts, though I would recommend an 8 quart pot because I had trouble with water bubbling over.  The lobsters’ lack of personality and pizzazz did not affect their taste.  They were still meaty and divine, especially when dunked in butter.  The lobster tail is often touted as “the best part of the lobster”.   However, our table voted for the tender, plump claw and leg meat as king. 

So if you can boil water, you can cook your own lobster.  It takes some time to get over first appearances, but fresh lobsters will be a food you will gladly have for dinner again.

*Note: on further lobster investigation, I have learned NOT to rinse lobsters with tap water or put them in a bucket of tap water.  This suffocates them, making them a little dead.  And is perhaps why their final struggle was so light.

**Second Note: I do not yet have an adequate guide on how to eat the lobster.  I was too hungry and lazy to do it methodologically – it was pretty much caveman style.  But I would refer you to this internet site on how to crack and eat a whole lobster: http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/how-to-eat-a-whole-lobster-118405?image_id=1477239

Cooking a Live Lobster

1.       Fill a large pot [at least 6 quarts] halfway with water.  Season with salt, pepper, thyme, parsley, rosemary, bay leaf.  Bring to a rolling boil.

2.       Gently place lobster head first into the boiling water, be careful of the tail – it may flap.  You do not have to remove the rubber bands from the claws prior to cooking.

3.       Cover with lid and hold making sure that there is no struggle [especially if you have more than one in the pot], reduce heat slightly so as to prevent over boiling.  If it begins to over

4.       1 lb. lobster 9 - 10 minutes
1 1/4 lb. lobster 10 - 11 minutes
1 1/2 lb. lobster 11 - 12 minutes
2 lb. lobster 12 - 13 minutes

5.       Meanwhile, melt a stick of salted butter with a few squirts of lemon juice for dipping.

6.       Remove lobsters from heat, let cool – these crustaceans are hot!

Basil Pesto Tuna Salad with Havarti, Kalamata Olives, and Tomato with Dijon Vinaigrette

Wow. What a mouthful, right? That’s exactly what I thought with a mouth full of this playful, zesty salad. Hunks of still-pink, seared tuna, soft havarti cheese, ripe Kalamatas and fresh, red tomatoes laid gently on top of a delicate bed of lettuce was picturesque for a hungry belly. It appears that I apprehended a copy of the latest menu item from some trendy, upscale restaurant. College kitchens can be more chic than we get credit for. We know that tuna steak is different from tuna fish [in a can]. Tuna steaks gained popularity during outbreaks of “mad cow disease” as an alternative to beef steaks. Quite the choice as tuna steak is quite flavorful, not too fishy, can be eaten rare, and has protein enough to rival our dearly beloved steak.

Salads can brag about the use of the full color spectrum: green lettuce, yellow corn, red pepper, black beans, etc. But when they also can boast the gamut of taste: savory, sweet, zesty, salty, etc. – unroll the red carpet! That deserves a Golden Bowl Award. My celebrity salad tonight featured: ruffled green leaves, pleasantly crisp; tuna smothered in basil pesto had an aromatic smell and a meaty taste; havarti, kalamata olives and tomatoes made the perfect triad of buttery, briny and sweet; and a zesty Dijon vinaigrette tinged with lemon and vinegar drizzled on top. Poor lettuce; she is consistent, but often upstaged by the many five star toppings that sit on top of her.

This won’t be some “nobody” salad you will find at your local cafeteria salad bar, so impress your friends with your debut salad while you can. Keep toppings, lettuce and dressing separate so that you can bite into fresh salad fixin’s every time afterward.

Basil Pesto Tuna Salad with Havarti, Kalamata Olives, and Tomato

Ingredients:

About 2-3 T basil pesto

1 T olive oil

1 tuna steak

Salt, pepper, garlic

Havarti Cheese, diced

Kalamata olives, sliced

Tomato, diced

Head of your favorite lettuce

Instructions:

1. Heat a frying pan over medium high heat until hot. Add 1 T olive oil. Season tuna with salt, pepper and garlic. Place on frying pan.

2. Sear tuna for about 2-3 min per side. [Should appear still dark red inside, just browned about a ¼ in – it’s safe to eat!]

3. Remove from heat, let cool to room temperature.

4. Rub with basil pesto, slice into bite sized pieces.

5. Prepare other toppings. Toss with salad. Drizzle with dressing.

Admittedly, the Dijon Vinaigrette was made up on the fly, without measurements but basically here it is:

Dijon Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

2 T Dijon mustard

1 T red wine vinegar

3 t lemon juice

2 brown sugar

One clove garlic, minced

Salt and pepper

½ cup vegetable oil

Instructions:

1. Mix together all ingredients except oil.

2. Whisk in a small stream of oil into thickness.

Rock the Boat: Braised Rockfish with a Lemon Cream Sauce

Some go through life with the misunderstanding that fish must be dredged in flour, deep fried in a bubble bath of fat, and smothered with tartar sauce. These poor unfortunate souls! Rockfish, an Atlantic Coast gem also known as the striped bass, should not be defiled as such. Don’t get me wrong, the occasional fried fish fillet is fine. Sometimes I am in just the mood for those battered, breaded catfish or cod sandwiches.

Although this bass can be cooked in almost any fashion – fried, grilled, baked, broiled etc. – I indulged in its meaty, yet flakey texture by braising it. The fish was a bit pricier, about $18 a pound, so perhaps store this one for one of those special nights during the long, drawn-out school year. I assure you it is well worth the pocket pinch. [And I know this is such a sharp contrast to my last post about being so broke…well, I had this one when I came back to visit the parents so I got a little financial help.]

Side dish pairings for this dinner escape me; they were fleeting in comparison. I loaded my plate with as much fish as anyone was willing to spare from their own portion. My first experience with rockfish was a delicacy to be favored, as well as savored. The thick buttery cream sauce cut with the acidity of the lemon and punch of white wine was a great compliment to the rockfish; no lingering, pungent fishy taste. Braising the fish was allowed for a crisp outer layer, while leaving the delicate layers of meat to simmer slowly.

I could not have been more pleased with the outcome of this succulent dish. Cooking fish is a sensory art – I have turned a fish into shoe leather before, but this time may have been my most excellent attempt yet. It was perfectly cooked and wonderfully seasoned, without drowning it in an overpowering sauce or spice rub.

I also have fished for striper before, having not yet had a fruitful cast. Knowing what waits on the other end of the line though will make me strive all the more in my future ocean escapades.

Braised Rockfish with a Lemon Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

1 lb rockfish, one side with scales

Salt and pepper

Lemon juice

2 T unsalted butter

About ½ cup water

¼ cup dry white wine

2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions:

1. Divide fish, season with salt, pepper and a few squirts of lemon juice.

2. In sauté pan with lid, heat butter over high heat.

3. Place fish, scale side down, into pan. Allow fish to sear uncovered until crisp on scale side, turn over, repeat. About 3 min on each side – should see fish turn more solid white color.

4. Reduce heat to medium low, add water – will splatter, allow water to cook down. Add wine and cream.

5. Cover and cook for about 10-15 min. Make sure fish has cooked all the way through but DO NOT overcook. Fish should flake when forked and melt like butter in your mouth. Overcooked it will become rubbery.

A Name Can Say It All: Adadaba Shrimp and Avocados

Adadaba. Although seemingly counterintuitive, this is not an infant’s first babbles. It’s a spice and a very intricate and comprehensive one indeed. When they called it “multi-purpose”, I thought: Okay, flavors should then blend well with chicken, vegetables, some red meat, some fish, etc. I hardly expected it to include everything in an advanced spice rack! Over 40 spices go into this super-spice.

Ingredients: Allspice, Basil, Celery Seed, Cinnamon, Cloves, Cumin, Curry Powder (a blend of 7 spices), Dextrose, Dill Weed, Granulated Garlic, Garlic Powder, Ginger, Marjoram, Nutmeg, Granulated Onion, Onion Powder, Onion Salt, Oregano, Sweet Paprika, Parsley, Black Pepper, White Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper, Rosemary, Sage, Sour Salt, Sea Salt, Savory, Spearmint, Tarragon, Thyme, Turmeric and MSG.

When I opened the tiny package I had bought from the Seattle market to take a whiff, it was like an entire spice family reunion! The amount of spices blew me away. Perhaps all you are able to utter after experiencing it is the mindless prattle: “adadaba”.

In the package, the spice is a burnt orange color, with flecks of green and brownish black. When I smelled the chaotic culmination of spices, the obvious dominant spice jumped out at me first: curry, garlic, turmeric, cumin, tarragon, etc. I decided to test it out on some shrimp; a nice clean, light meal for this blisteringly hot day of over 102˚. Also, I figured that my ordinary shrimp and rice could use the extra “oomph”.

The waft I got from the adadaba only brushed the surface of the deep intensity of flavor that it punched out when eaten. After cooked and mixed in with food, the curry and turmeric paint most a yellow color, speckled with some black dots from the pepper and darker spices. The flavor was spicy, but with strong aromatic qualities. It was delicious; however I was glad to have had the rice to dilute some of it down, as I had just dredged the shrimp through a little bowl of the adadaba. Next time I might add filler of some sort; just a teaspoon or two of flour to help keep the balance.

The recipe itself was simple. And when you hardly want to move out from underneath the fan blowing cool air on your face, that’s a plus.

Adadaba Shrimp and Avocados

Ingredients:

7 raw shrimp, shelled and deveined

Less than 2 T adadaba spice

About 2 tsp all-purpose flour

1 T olive oil

1/3 rice

1 T lemon juice

½ ripe Hass avocado, chopped

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Cook rice.

2. Heat olive oil in small frying pan over medium high heat until hot.

3. Mix adadaba and flour, dredge shrimp through.

4. Fry shrimp until pink and nearly curled – about 1 min a side.

5. Add lemon juice, avocado, salt and pepper and cooked shrimp to rice. Mix. Serve.

Dill Shrimp and Mushrooms: No Small Feat

Poor dill, eternally confined to pickle seasonings. Tonight I sprung him from that stereotypical prison and together we wrecked delicious havoc on my shrimp and mushrooms. Our accomplices were few; admittedly, dill did most of the work. So, you might want to rethink your preconceptions about his “pickle past”; dill’s influence is sure to grow in your kitchen after your first few encounters.

Dill has a very aromatic smell and a grassy, crisp taste, with some lemon, caraway or even pine aftertastes. It is best used in its fresh ferny form I am told. However, when your budget for herbs and spices is limited, a tiny bottle of dried dill will serve you well. Also, while we are on the topic of fresh foods, I also used frozen shrimp even though the ‘fresh’ ones were on sale. Why? Well, first off because I have developed a bad habit of letting fresh things go bad because I buy too much food on a regular basis. Second, frozen shrimp is flash frozen when caught. You could think of these shrimp in a state of suspended…freshness? Maybe that’s pushing it. The point is that they taste the same, but are usually cheaper and stay longer in the freezer. There is no “use ‘em or lose ‘em” game.

The recipe itself is simple. The cooking process, however, can get a bit tricky. Overcooking mushrooms or shrimp can turn light delicacies to pieces of chewy leather. Mmmmm. So be aware of these signs:

-mushrooms should be darker in color and just fork-tender

-shrimp should be light pink throughout – once they have curled, take them off!

Enjoy this dish by itself for a light spring/summer meal, or pair it with cucumber, mild cheese, cream sauces, potatoes or some fluffy lemon rice for a side. Just remember that the shrimp and mushrooms cook relatively quick, so plan your other dishes accordingly – cold shrimp and mushrooms, yuck!

Either way, dill will fit your dinner bill.

Dill Shrimp and Mushrooms

Ingredients:

9 raw shrimp

8 mushrooms, sliced about ¼ in thick

2 T olive oil

1 T butter

1 T lemon juice

1 t or so of dill [to taste, really]

Salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Thaw shrimp in cold water for about 15 min. Clean and devein shrimp.

2. In large skillet, heat 2 T olive oil over medium heat. Meanwhile, wash and slice mushrooms.

3. Once oil is hot, add mushrooms. Cook for about 5 min, or until brown and fork-tender. Remove and keep warm.

4. Add butter and lemon juice to skillet. Add shrimp; cook for about 2-3 min, or until pink throughout.

5. Season with salt, pepper and dill. Add mushrooms back in, toss.

6. Serve!

Makes 1 serving. NOM: 9.5