Tag: cooking

Dutch cuisine19 Comments

Kale with Mashed Potatoes and Smoked Pork Sausage (Boerenkool met worst)

StefanGourmet

Since I had all this left-over kale from the kale salad with goat cheese I made recently, I decided to make a very traditional Dutch dish: boerenkool met worst. I’ve eaten this lots when I was a child, but never made it myself before since I never really liked it. I discovered that I actually quite liked this version, since it tastes a lot better when you remove the bitter stems from the kale. And perhaps my palate has evolved a bit, too? I’m not sure if the traditional smoked pork sausage (rookworst) is available anywhere outside of this country. … Continue reading Kale with Mashed Potatoes and Smoked Pork Sausage (Boerenkool met worst)

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)8 Comments

Butternut Squash Lasagne (Lasagne alla Zucca)

StefanGourmet

Pumpkins and Butternut Squash are in season again, and M&M inspired me to make butternut squash lasagne. I used her recipe for Roasted Carrot and Butternut Squash Lasagna as a starting point and made my own version. Often I find dishes with pumpkin or butternut squash to be lacking in taste, but this turned out really well. This was also the first time I made fresh wholemeal pasta, since I agree with M&M that it complements the squash nicely. You could also make it with white flour only as the difference in taste was quite subtle. Making lasagne from scratch … Continue reading Butternut Squash Lasagne (Lasagne alla Zucca)

Basics10 Comments

Home-made Beef Gravy

StefanGourmet

When preparing meat and gravy, you always have to decide whether you want most of the taste to be in the meat or in the gravy.  It is very simple really: all the flavor that goes into the gravy, will go out of the meat. You can’t have both, unless you cheat a little by using other meat to flavor your gravy. And that’s exactly what this recipe is for, or for cases when you just want the gravy and don’t need the meat. Of course you can buy gravy in the store, but home-made is so much better and really … Continue reading Home-made Beef Gravy

Secondi di Pesce (fish dishes)8 Comments

Sole Meunière

StefanGourmet

The best way to prepare really fresh sole is to simply fry it in butter. In French this is called Sole Meunière. Of course it is much easier to fry the sole perfectly in clarified butter than in regular butter, so I decided to celebrate my first batch of clarified butter by making sole meunière. This recipe is remarkably simple, but if you have fresh sole it will also be remarkably delicious! Ask your fish monger to make the sole ready for pan-frying. This means removing the head and and cleaning it, as well as removing the skin. Season the … Continue reading Sole Meunière

Basics59 Comments

Clarified Butter

StefanGourmet

So far, I have been too lazy to had never seen the need  make clarified butter. I mostly used a mixture of olive oil and butter when I wanted to brown something. The butter did burn once in a while when I wasn’t being  careful with the heat, but I didn’t really know how to clarify and just didn’t bother. I finally did give it a try, and it turned out to be quite easy and make a huge difference: both easier and better browning! So from now on I will be clarifying butter, and I urge you to not … Continue reading Clarified Butter

Cooking10 Comments

Kale Salad with Grilled Goat Cheese, Bacon and Walnuts (Salade de Chèvre Chaud aux Lardons)

StefanGourmet

I remember being surprised when I read about kale salad for the first time on Emmy Cooks, since kale is usually eaten cooked in the Netherlands with mashed potatoes and smoked pork sausage (boerenkool met worst). Fresh kale is also mostly available in winter, not the best season for eating salads. When I was travelling in the USA, I found kale to be used for salads everywhere and even made my own ‘Trail Mix’ version of Emmy’s kale salad a few times. Since it is unseasonally warm at the moment and therefore suitable weather for a salad and I saw a … Continue reading Kale Salad with Grilled Goat Cheese, Bacon and Walnuts (Salade de Chèvre Chaud aux Lardons)

Asian cuisine15 Comments

Noodle Soup with Beef and Cabbage

StefanGourmet

Our trip to France disrupted my usual routine to decide every Friday what to eat for the upcoming week and to do all of the grocery shopping needed for that. So on Tuesday after work there were no groceries in the fridge for cooking, nor a plan. So I went to the supermarket (since specialty stores like butchers were already closed) and had to decide on the spot what I wanted to make with the produce available. I bought some wet-aged south american sirloin and Chinese cabbage to stir-fry and serve with rice. When I came home, I decided to … Continue reading Noodle Soup with Beef and Cabbage

Asian cuisine4 Comments

Japanese Mixed Grill

StefanGourmet

This is one of my favorite dishes from “Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art” that is surprisingly easy to make and absolutely delicious. As often in Japanese and Italian cooking, the key is in the quality of the ingredients. I used very fresh line-caught sea bass from the North Sea. You just wrap the ingredients in foil and cookt them in a hot oven for a bit, that’s all! It may not look like much in the photo, but you better believe me that the taste is outstanding. I adapted the recipe and made it even more simple, since there is … Continue reading Japanese Mixed Grill

Asian cuisine13 Comments

Japanese Simmered Eggplant

StefanGourmet

I made this simmered eggplant dish as a side for the wagyu teriyaki. I adapted the recipe for Spicy Eggplant from “Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art” and the result was delicious. If you serve it in a nice bowl (as you should with any Japanese food), the result will be impressive even though it’s quite easy to make (if you had already made the dashi anyway, that is).  I used a western eggplant rather than small Japanese eggplants (which are not available around here), and I replaced the dried red peppers with shichimi togarashi because that is what I had on … Continue reading Japanese Simmered Eggplant

Asian cuisine12 Comments

Wagyu Flank Steak Sous-vide Teriyaki

StefanGourmet

Recently I tried wagyu flank steak sous-vide for the first time, and liked the results with 24 hours at 56C/133F, but decided that I wanted to try 48 hours at 55C/131F as well since I was expecting that would be even better. Turns out my expectation was correct! This time I made it teriyaki style and it was outstanding. Please note that you could use the same method to prepare regular steak teriyaki, the only difference is that the steak would only need 4 hours or so at 55C/131F instead of 48. In this recipe, the teriyaki sauce is not … Continue reading Wagyu Flank Steak Sous-vide Teriyaki

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)23 Comments

Pappardelle ai Funghi Porcini (Pasta with Fresh Porcini Mushrooms)

StefanGourmet

Right now porcini mushrooms (also known as cepes in Frech or eekhoorntjesbrood in Dutch) are abundant in Dutch forests. Since good quality fresh porcini mushrooms are usually next to impossible to find, I jumped at the chance to get some to make pappardelle ai funghi porcini. Fresh porcini mushrooms should be firm and the spores (underneath the cap) should be white as shown in the photo. Stay away from porcini that are soft or have yellow spores, since they will become mushy and smell badly when you sauté them. Even in Italy I noticed that such bad porcini mushrooms are … Continue reading Pappardelle ai Funghi Porcini (Pasta with Fresh Porcini Mushrooms)

Asian cuisine11 Comments

M&M’s Ginger Glazed Salmon

StefanGourmet

Fellow food blogger Meatballs & Milkshakes is a good source for reliable recipes. And so I was intrigued a while ago when I saw a recipe for Ginger Glazed Salmon that she called her favorite salmon recipe, and is basically salmon teriyaki with the addition of ginger and sake substituted by red (?!) wine. But since I trust M&M I decided to give it a try anyway and I was glad I did, because it was great! Not only is the sauce very good, also the way of cooking the salmon medium rare in a low oven is given sous-vide … Continue reading M&M’s Ginger Glazed Salmon

4. Dolci (dessert)9 Comments

Home-made Ginger & Honey Ice Cream

StefanGourmet

  This recipe comes from the booklet that came with the ice cream maker. It’s so original and good that I keep making it, with as the only tweak that I add some fresh ginger juice. Ginger in sweet syrup (Dutch: stemgember) and sweet ginger syrup (Dutch: gembersiroop) are available in nearly every supermarket in the Netherlands, but I am not sure if it is as easily available elsewhere. Ingredients   35 grams (1 1/4 oz) sweet ginger, chopped 1 1/2 Tbsp ginger syrup 1 Tbsp honey 70 grams (2 1/2 oz) sugar 250 ml (1 cup) whipping cream 250 … Continue reading Home-made Ginger & Honey Ice Cream

Secondi di Carne (meat dishes)9 Comments

Sweet and Sour Pork Tenderloin (Filetto di Maiale in Agrodolce)

StefanGourmet

I’ve mentioned before that my Italian cooking adventures all began with the great books by Biba Caggiano. One of my favorite recipes from one of her earliest books, Modern Italian Cooking, is the one for sweet and sour pork. She uses pork loin, but I’ve always used pork tenderloin instead since it is more tender. This dish is original, delicious, and easy to make. It cooks quite fast as the tenderloin is cut into slices and it is best when cooked to medium rare or medium. Give it a try! Ingredients For 2 servings 1 pork tenderloin (about 300 grams / … Continue reading Sweet and Sour Pork Tenderloin (Filetto di Maiale in Agrodolce)

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)11 Comments

Pasta with Lamb, Vegetables, Honey & Thyme

StefanGourmet

I used to make this Italian-French fusion dish that I had invented myself on a regular basis, but hadn’t for a while as I was concentrating on more traditional dishes. I wanted to make something with lamb, remembered this dish and realised that I hadn’t blogged about it yet. So I made it again and decided to make it again more often since it is very flavorful. You can make this with any tender lamb such as lamb loin, lamb tenderloin or leg of a young lamb. Ingredients For 2-3 servings 300 grams (2/3 pound) boneless tender lamb 150 grams … Continue reading Pasta with Lamb, Vegetables, Honey & Thyme

Cooking13 Comments

RV cooking in the USA

StefanGourmet

I’m back home after three weeks of travelling together with Kees from national park to national park with an RV in Utah, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Colorado. It was a wonderful trip and very different from most of our vacations in the sense that they usually involve a lot of eating out at gourmet restaurants. This trip included only one such meal (at Alinea) plus two dinners at steakhouses (of which I can recommend Fleming’s). I had saved up some posts before leaving that I had scheduled to be published while I was travelling, so there have been at least … Continue reading RV cooking in the USA

1. Antipasti (appetizers)4 Comments

Mackerel Ceviche

StefanGourmet

Ceviche is a South American way of ‘cooking’ seafood in lime juice without using any heat. I like to use it with a strong-flavored fish such as mackerel, since the citrus would otherwise overpower the delicate taste of the fish. It is very easy to make; the only thing you need is very fresh (sushi grade) fish. I am not a big fan of cilantro (coriander), but in small doses it adds something to this dish. Ingredients For 2 or 4 servings as an appetizer 4 sushi grade mackerel fillets without skin, about 450 grams (1 pound) total weight 4 … Continue reading Mackerel Ceviche

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)6 Comments

Spaghetti ‘Salmonara’

StefanGourmet

This is not an authentic dish, but my own invention. It is a fish version of the well-known spaghetti alla carbonara that uses smoked salmon and red onion instead of pancetta or guanciale. Just like real carbonara, the ‘sauce’ is raw egg that is only cooked slightly by the heat from the pasta. It only takes as long as it takes to cook the spaghetti. This dish is quick, easy, tasty, and healthy thanks to the omega-3 fatty acids in the salmon. Ingredients For 2 servings 200 grams (7 oz) spaghetti 250 grams (9 oz) smoked salmon 1 red onion, chopped … Continue reading Spaghetti ‘Salmonara’

Secondi di Carne (meat dishes)11 Comments

Sous-vide Rib Steak finished on the BBQ

StefanGourmet

  Once a year Kees throws an overnight party on our boat with about 25 friends, which involves a BBQ, a lot of beer, and a lot of fun. This year I decided to tag along (drinking wine rather than beer) and had a great time as well. I brought along 5 kilograms (11 lbs) sous-vide pre-cooked beef that was finished on the BBQ that was a big hit. All of it was devoured in five minutes. It was good quality marbled Irish beef, but since it was a cut that can usually only be prepared as a braise or … Continue reading Sous-vide Rib Steak finished on the BBQ

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)9 Comments

Fresh Pasta with Rabbit (Tajarin al Sugo di Coniglio)

StefanGourmet

I really liked the fresh tagliatelle with rabbit at Bussia, and so I decided to make a similar dish. Tajarin al Sugo di Coniglio is a dish from the Piemonte region, where narrow tagliatelle (taglierini) are called tajarin in the local dialect. It really brings out the delicate flavor of the rabbit, which pairs very well with the delicate pasta. I decided to enhance the rabbit flavor by using rabbit stock rather than chicken stock. Ingredients For 4 servings 1 kg (2.2 lbs) rabbit legs 1 small onion, minced 1 carrot, minced 1 celery stalk, minced 1 glass (100 ml) … Continue reading Fresh Pasta with Rabbit (Tajarin al Sugo di Coniglio)

Asian cuisine6 Comments

‘Japanese’ Salad

StefanGourmet

This salad isn’t truly Japanese, but it does include some Japanese ingredients and I did find the dressing in a booklet with recipes that are supposed to be Japanese. This post is all about the dressing which is really good. The salad is good too, it just isn’t very authentic. Ingredients lettuce shii take mushrooms bean sprouts green onion 2 Tbsp oil cherry tomatoes For the dressing 2 Tbsp rice vinegar 3 Tbsp Japanese soy sauce 2 Tbsp sesame oil 1/2 fresh red chile pepper Preparation Remove the tough stems from the shii take mushrooms and slice them. Sauté the … Continue reading ‘Japanese’ Salad

1. Antipasti (appetizers)13 Comments

First experiment with Agar Agar: Beetroot Tagliatelle

StefanGourmet

When I say beetroot tagliatelle, I don’t mean tagliatelle flavored or colored with beetroot, but tagliatelle made of mostly beetroot, without any flour. It is a simple form of modernist cuisine (not capitalized, since I’m not referring to the book). I had eaten tomato tagliatelle at Piazza Duomo, one of Italy’s best restaurants in Alba, and thought I could use agar agar to try something similar with beetroot. I don’t have a juicer so I used beetroot puree rather than beetroot juice. Agar agar is a gelling agent that is made from red algae that has the interesting quality that … Continue reading First experiment with Agar Agar: Beetroot Tagliatelle

1. Antipasti (appetizers)8 Comments

Kale Salad with Apples, Trail Mix, and Blue Cheese

StefanGourmet

I was intrigued when I read about a kale salad on EmmyCooks.com, as kale is something that I had never associated before with a salad. Kale is called boerenkool (“farmer’s cabbage”) in the Netherlands, and is eaten boiled with mashed potatoes, gravy and smoked sausage. In the Netherlands boerenkool is a winter vegetable and is not available fresh in summer, so I haven’t been able to try this salad until now. As I am currently touring national parks in the USA with an RV, I noticed that kale is indeed available here as a summer vegetable. So I decided to … Continue reading Kale Salad with Apples, Trail Mix, and Blue Cheese

Cooking3 Comments

Improvised Chicken Fajitas

StefanGourmet

Some believe that I only eat food at the level of Alinea, or at least cooked sous-vide. But since one does have to eat, I do adjust to the circumstances and, depending on the circumstances, will eat almost everything. As we are currently touring national parks in Utah and Wyoming with an RV, quite some adjustment is necessary. Luckily I can enjoy what I’m eating anyway. The burners in the RV are so bad that it takes 15 minutes to bring half a liter (2 cups) of water to a boil. So cooking on those is out. But at the campsite in … Continue reading Improvised Chicken Fajitas

Secondi di Pesce (fish dishes)10 Comments

Fish soup (Zuppa di Pesce)

StefanGourmet

My parents came over for dinner and my dad’s favorite dish is fish soup filled with different kinds of seafood. There are many varieties of this type of soup, including bouillabaisse from France and zarzuela from Spain. It can’t be a surprise that my version is Italian style and therefore called zuppa di pesce. The quality of this soup depends solely on the freshness of the seafood used, and there are hardly any ingredients besides the seafood itself. It is a very elegant dish that looks great to boot. From sous-vide cooking we’ve learned that the ideal temperature to cook … Continue reading Fish soup (Zuppa di Pesce)

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)16 Comments

Risotto al Basilico

StefanGourmet

This basil risotto was inspired by a similar risotto we got at a recent dinner at restaurant Bussia in Amsterdam. Their version was lighter and greener, but this was just as delicious. The lighter and greener style may in part have been to blanching the basil leaves to set the color and lighten the taste, something I did not do and may try next time. Ingredients For 2 servings 130 grams (2/3 cup) risotto rice 1 bunch fresh basil (about 50 grams/2 oz) 1 small onion, chopped 5 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1 glass (100 ml) dry white wine … Continue reading Risotto al Basilico

Secondi di Pesce (fish dishes)11 Comments

Sea Bass poached in fresh Tomatoes (Branzino al Pomodoro Fresco)

StefanGourmet

I have tomato envy. I read all those posts of fellow food bloggers who are buying heirloom tomatoes at farmers markets, or even harvesting perfectly ripe tasty tomatoes from their own backyard. And given the local climate here, I have to make do with tomatoes that come from a greenhouse and are just not the same. If you do have access to good tomatoes (as well as fresh sea bass), do yourself a favor and make this recipe. I promise it will be an outstanding way of tasting what summer is supposed to taste like! This is one of the … Continue reading Sea Bass poached in fresh Tomatoes (Branzino al Pomodoro Fresco)

Secondi di Carne (meat dishes)5 Comments

Pork Ribs Sous-vide

StefanGourmet

When Conor wrote about pork ribs, I knew I had to try pre-cooking them sous-vide rather than boiling. Sous-vide cooking allows us to get ribs that are both tender and succulent. Since I had never made pork ribs before, I wanted to experiment a little before serving them to my friends at a BBQ. For this trial run I seared the ribs in a hot frying pan rather than firing up a BBQ, since it was only the two of us on a week night. I tried two flavors: Conor’s paprika – honey – soy marinade and Italian style sage … Continue reading Pork Ribs Sous-vide

2. Primi (pasta, risotto)18 Comments

Pasta with Carrot sauce (Fusilli alle Carote)

StefanGourmet

Before I started blogging, I used carrots mostly as supporting ingredients in stocks and stews, one of the few exceptions being hutspot sometimes in winter. Fellow bloggers have inspired me to give carrots a leading role as well. This is another primo piatto using carrots inspired by 35aweek.com with some adaptations. This one’s even easier to make than the carrot risotto. And if you prepare the carrots the night before like I did, it only takes as long to prepare this dish as it takes to boil the pasta. Fusilli (similar to the rotelle used by K. on $35 a week) are a good pasta … Continue reading Pasta with Carrot sauce (Fusilli alle Carote)

Cooking15 Comments

Pizza ai Funghi (Pizza with Mushrooms)

StefanGourmet

Now that I’ve got the hang of making great pizza at home using cold-fermented dough and baking it tender but crispy in 3 minutes on an aluminum plate, it is time to make pizzas with different toppings. Mushrooms are always a favorite, and the most important thing to get it right is to always sauté the mushrooms before putting them on a pizza. When you bake the mushrooms raw, they will release a lot of liquid that will make your pizza soggy. For additional flavor I like to sauté the mushrooms trifolati, with garlic and parsley. Ingredients For 1 pizza cold-fermented … Continue reading Pizza ai Funghi (Pizza with Mushrooms)