Oswald Rivera

Author: Oswald Rivera (page 48 of 83)

Shakshuka

April 1, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

Shakshuka which translates as “mixture” in Egyptian Arabic, is a dish very common in the Middle East. It’s simply a mess of eggs poached in tomatoes, greens, bell peppers and onions. What I like about this flavorsome dish is that it’s traditionally prepared in a cast-iron pan. Of course, you can use any adequate deep skillet if cast-iron is not your thing. In North Africa they use an earthenware pot. Either way, it’s a glorious mix which can also include spicy sausage (a Spanish innovation) or salty cheeses. In Israel, it’s a popular breakfast dish served with challah bread.

Another thing I like about shakshuka is that you can add or change anything to it. So it works for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Caribbean shakshuka would add oregano, garlic and parsley. French shakshuka could add a hollandaise sauce, Mexican shakshuka could add re-fried beans.You get the idea, It’s versatile, quick, and delicious. What more could you want?

SHAKSHUKA

1/2 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 large green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into strips
1 teaspoon brown sugar
I bay leaf
2 tablespoons chopped scallions
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried
4 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped, or 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon saffron thread (or can substitute turmeric)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bunch spinach, washed and sliced into ribbons
1 15-ounce can white kidney beans, drained
4 to 8 eggs, depending on how many servings
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
4 ounces crumbled feta cheese (can substitute goat cheese, Parmesan, Asiago, or Romano)

1. In a large cast-iron skillet, toast cumin seeds over high heat for approximately 2 minutes. Lower heat to medium, add oil and onion. Sauté until onion is soft and translucent. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add bell peppers, sugar, bay leaf, scallions, and thyme. Cook over high heat, stirring until peppers are browned (6-8 minutes).
2. Add tomatoes, saffron and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. If mixture becomes too dry, add a little water.
3. Remove bay leaf. Stir in spinach, reduce heat to low, and cook for 4-5 minutes until spinach is wilted.
5. Stir in beans. Increase heat to medium, and bring mixture to a simmer. Reduce heat to low. With the back of a large spoon, make evenly spaced shallow hollows for as many eggs as you are using. Carefully crack each egg into a hollow. Season each egg with salt and pepper, cover pan and cook gently until eggs are set (10-12 minutes).
6. Spread cheese over mixture. Allow heat to soften the cheese, and serve shakshuka with crusty bread.
Servings: 4 or more.

Hungryman’s Special Stuffed Chops

March 25, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

I have a friend whose mother passed on; and while he was packing up her possessions, he came across a small, pocket cookbook, more like a pamphlet with, the title, Pork for Two. He gave the book to me, and I found it fascinating. The book, I think is from the 1950s (it has no copyright date). It was published by the National Pork Producers Council (Des Moines, Iowa), and is a compendium of pork dishes popular to that era. It has such gems as “Basic Frozen Pork Mixture” and “Fruit Glazed Butterfly Pork Chops.”

A recipe from the book that intrigued me is “Hungryman’s Special Stuffed Chops.” Admittedly, I don’t have that much experience with stuffed pork chops. I’ve done stuffed fish, lamb, fowl, even steaks. But never chops. So, I figured, Give it a try. And the end product is delicious. Note that the booklet is geared toward two servings; but the recipe can be doubled, if desired. Also, the ingredients call for double-rib pork chops but, as I discovered, boneless loin chops are just as good. Another thing to note is that it includes canned mushrooms. You can use fresh button mushrooms; it works just as well.

HUNGRYMAN’S SPECIAL STUFFED CHOPS

2 double-rib pork chops, cut 2-1/2 to 3-inches thick
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 can (3 ounces) chopped mushrooms, drained
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup herb seasoned stuffing
2 tablespoons dry white wine
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken broth

Cut a pocket in each chop by cutting into center of chop from rib side, parallel to the bone and surface of chop. Sprinkle with rosemary, salt and pepper. In a medium skillet, melt butter. Cook onion in melted butter over moderate heat till onion is tender, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Stir in mushrooms, stuffing, and 2 tablespoons wine. Stuff half the stuffing mixture into each chop. Pour 1/2 cup wine and broth over chops. Bake, covered, in a 350° F. oven till chops are done, about 1-1/4 to 1-1/2 hours. Makes 2 servings.

Ginger Steamed Fish

March 16, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

Once in a while, as a break from broiled, backed, or fried fish, steamed fish is the go-to dish. Simple to prepare, and quite healthy. I’ve discovered that, with an Asian flair, it does the trick. A little soy sauce, a little fresh ginger and you’ve got yourself a marvelous meal. The recipe given below follows this trend. For a dish such as this, rice is the usual accompaniment. This time around I served it with soba (or buckwheat) noodles; but you can use whatever pasta, or grain, desired. The fancy-dan foodies called it fusion cooking.

Note that it’s best to cook the noodles while fish is steaming (and ginger sauce is being prepared) and combine everything at the end.

GINGER STEAMED FISH

4 cod, halibut, striped bass (or any flaky white fish) steaks or fillets, 4 to 6 oz. each
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and minced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/4 cup sesame seeds
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 scallions, sliced, for garnish
12 ounces soba/buckwheat noodles, cooked according to package directions

1. Bring about 2 inches of water to a boil in a regular or bamboo steamer. If you don’t have a steamer, set four mugs upside down in a large pot, add water, and place a large heatproof dish on top. Place four portions of fish on plate or steamer, cover and bring water to a boil. Steam fish until tender (about 5-6 minutes per inch of fish).
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl combine ginger, garlic and sesame seeds. Heat oil in a medium skillet over high heat. Add ginger mixture and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add sesame oil and soy sauce and cook 1 minute more.
3. Place noodles on a serving platter. Add fish on top; and pour sauce over fish and noodles. Garnish with scallions and serve.
Yield: 4 servings.

Pollo Guisado (Stewed Chicken)

My father called this dish the poor person’s banquet. It is similar to that popular Italian entrée, chicken cacciatore, but with a Puerto Rican boricua slant. What I like about this recipe is that the ingredients can be added or changed to suit the circumstances or the pocket book. If desired, roasted red peppers can be substituted for green bell peppers (pimento). You can add peas. mushrooms or almost any other vegetable you have on hand. Or keep it simple. Some folks prefer to remove the skin from the chicken before cooking. Others like to retain the skin since it renders a richer flavor. It’s all a matter of individual taste.

In the island of Puerto Rico, for this dish, the accompaniment is rice and beans. Back in Spanish Harlem, when I was growing up, in our family we paired this dish with macaroni. For some reason, my father loved it with tubular pasta like macaroni or rigatoni. It was our thing. Actually, you can serve this recipe with whatever you want—be it potatoes, pasta, quinoa, couscous, or kasha. It’s that versatile.

The dish calls for sofrito, that popular base condiment used in our cooking. My prior post (Biftec Estofado – 03/04/17) has a quickie way to prepare sofrito. Refer to that and you won’t have any problems whipping it up. And, as noted in that post, under no circumstance get the store-bought variety—it’s chemicalized crap.

POLLO GUISADO
(Stewed Chicken)

1 medium stewing chicken, about 2 1/2 pounds, cut into serving pieces
2 cloves garlic, peeled
8 whole peppercorns
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
1 bay leaf
4 sprigs fresh parsley
2 medium Idaho or Maine potatoes, halved and quartered
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sofrito
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
8 pitted black olives, rinsed in cold water and halved
1/2 medium green bell pepper, cut into strips

1. Rinse chicken pieces under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Put the garlic, peppercorns, salt and oregano into a mortar and pound until crushed. Rub this seasoning thoroughly into the chicken pieces.
3. In a large pot or casserole (a Dutch oven is great for this), place the chicken pieces along with the bay leaf and parsley sprigs. Add water to cover chicken pieces. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium. Cover and simmer until chicken pieces are tender (about 20 minutes).
4. Add potatoes, onion slices, sofrito, tomato sauce and olives. Stir and combine.
5. Cook, covered, until potatoes are tender and sauce has thickened somewhat (about 1/2 hour). Garnish with bell peppers.
Yield: 4 servings.

Biftec Estofado

March 4, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

This is a simple, no frills way to prepare beefsteak; and it comes from my cookbook Puerto Rican Cuisine in America (Perseus Books). The recipe calls for traditional spices and onions and not much else. However, it’s ingredients include sofrito and aji dulce, or sweet chili peppers. Sweet chili peppers can be found in any Caribbean or Asian market. Sofrito is a base seasoning used for countless dishes in our cooking. A good recipe for sofrito can be found in my post of 11/08/10. Or you can also access the video version (11/23/15) which gives you a step by step method of making the condiment. If for some reason you don’t have the time or inclination to research the thing, a quick method is thus—in a blender or food processor, puree until smooth: 1/4 cup chopped cilantro; 1 medium green bell pepper, chopped; 2 clove garlic, crushed; 1/4 pound sweet chili peppers; and 1/4 cup parsley. That’s it. You can store any leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days or indefinitely in the freezer compartment. One last caveat: under no circumstances buy the processed, bottled sofrito you find in the supermarket. It’s chemicalized crap.

The dish is called ‘smothered steak” because, traditionally, the beef is topped, or smothered, with onions. It also calls for steaming the meat as it cooks in the pot. A good cut of beef is called for this preparation (we user sirloin or top round). We would not recommend boneless chuck. The usual accompaniment to the beef chunks is rice or boiled potatoes.

BIFTEC ESTOFADO
(Smothered Steak)

2 pounds beef sirloin or round steak, trimmed of all fat and cut into 1-inch chunks
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
1/2 medium green bell pepper, seeded, cored and chopped
2 aji dulce (sweet chili peppers), chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
Dash of sage
Juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sofrito
1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

1. Wash meat and pat dry with paper towels. Place meat in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and pepper, add bell pepper, sweet chili, garlic and sage. Mix well and sprinkle with lemon juice. Cover and marinate for 15-20 minutes.
2. Heat oil on medium flame in a large skillet or heavy frying pan and sear meat on both sides. Add marinade ingredients, water, sofrito, and onion slices. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 30 minutes or until meat is tender.
Note: If desired, the onion slices can be stir-fried in a little oil and arranged over the beef when it’s done. It works either way,
Yield: 4 servings.

Apple Brandy

February 24, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

This recipe comes from a dear friend, Felix, from the South Bronx. It’s home-made apple brandy. How Felix, from the environs of the Bronx, got hold of this recipe, I have no idea. My research indicates that apple brandy was quite popular in Colonial America where, of course, apples were prevalent. It was a favorite nip of Presidents George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Lyndon B. Johnson. It has a distinctive lineage. Oh, yes, it gained a rep as one of “patent medicines” of the 19th century. You know the scene from countless movies, where a Dr. “So and So” comes to town in a wagon with a big sign on the side advertising a “medication” that will cure everything from whooping cough to cholera. That’s where the term “snake oil” comes from. I don’t know about its medical benefits, but apple brandy was a most popular potion in many a frontier household.

When one thinks of apple brandy, what comes to mind is the French apple-based Calvados. A drink distilled from selected apples grown in the Normandy region in France; and which traces its history as far back as the 8th century. The other beverage that also pops up is applejack, an other concoction popular in the colonial period which was made by taking the alcoholic fruit juice from concentrated cider and leaving it outside to freeze during the winter cold. It was called “freeze distilling.”

No such process is needed in Felix’s apple brandy. All you need is a good batch of apples (red not green), some vodka (or gin), sugar or other sweetner (I use maple syrup) and spices of your choice. Easy as pie. In fact, it’s apple-like flavor is great as an after dinner drink or with dessert. To my mind, this recipe is more akin to a fine liqueur than brandy. It’s a smooth, sweet elixir with a distinctive flavor, to be enjoyed with friends and family in a relaxed setting. Thank you, Felix.

APPLE BRANDY

2 1/2 pound red apples
2 cups vodka or gin
2 cups brandy*
1 cup maple syrup or honey
3 cups water
3 cinnamon sticks
2 vanilla beans

1. Wash and rinse apples, and pat dry with paper towels. Cut into wedges.
2. Place apples in an airtight glass container (a mason jar is perfect for this). Pour vodka and brandy over apples. Cover tightly and store in a dark, cool place for at least a month. I find that a closet is great for this. Note that the longer you age the drink, the more concentrated its flavor.
3. Strain though a fine mesh strainer into a large pot or bowl.
4. In a medium pan, combine maple syrup (or honey) and water. Add cinnamon sticks and cook at a low boil for 1/2 hour. Put aside and let cool. Combine with strained apple mixture and pour into an airtight container. Add vanilla bean and let age for another month or more. You can start drinking the apple brandy after a month or let it age a bit longer for a more pronounced flavor. Enjoy.

*Note: With the brandy (as with the vodka or gin), you don’t need top of the line stuff. You can keep the Napoleon Brandy for other occasions. The finer qualities of an expensive brandy or cognac would be subsumed by the other ingredients in the recipe. In fact, I use the cheapest brandy I can fine, and it still renders a smooth, sumptuous drink.

Spiced Rubbed Steak

February 9, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

How about a great steak dinner for St. Valentine’s Day? And by “great” I mean something that’s fairly quick and easy to prepare. Of course, your significant other won’t know that. They’ll see that steak dish and go “Oh my!” And you’ll have it in the bag for the rest of the evening.

St. Valentine’s Day dinners are special occasions. This is not a mac n’ cheese thing—unless, of course, your valentine loves mac n’ cheese. In which case, go at it. But if it’s special then the steak will have to be special. By that I mean filet mignon, or T-bone, or even better yet, porterhouse steak. That’s the dish given below. This is where the spice rub comes in. Improvise: take whatever you have in the cupboard, mix or grind all the spices, rub on each side of the meat, let stand 30 minutes, and roast. Nothing could be easier. With a bottle of champagne, or your favorite bubbly, and you’re set for a great evening.

This dish can be served with the old stand-by, potatoes, or whatever vegetables desired. Want to impress your darling even more, you can do dumplings or tostones (fried green plantains – see post of 9/9/10).

SPICE RUBBED STEAK

2 2-inch porterhouse steaks
2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
2 garlic cloves, crushed, or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons fresh chopped thyme or 1 tablespoon dried
2 tablespoons fresh oregano or 1 tablespoon dried
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Wash steaks under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Crush peppercorns and garlic in a mortar or spice mill.
4 .Place crushed spices in a small bowl, and mix in salt, thyme, and oregano.
5. Brush both sides of meat with olive oil. Then rub with spice mixture into each side. Set aside and let stand 30 minutes.
6. Place in oven-proof dish and roast for about 25 minutes for rare ( to be sure, meat thermometer inserted into center of steak should register 125 degrees F.). Let stand 10 minutes, and serve.
Yield: 3-4 servings.

Easy Rigatoni (or any pasta)

February 7, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

This is the easiest pasta dish I know. At it’s simplest it’s pasta (of whatever kind you like) with garlic oil and hot red pepper. And the beauty of this dish is that you can innovate by adding whatever ingredients you need. The basic recipe is the same. The additions will give you the innovations you desire.

In the recipe given I used rigatoni (they were on sale at the supermarket and I said, What the hell, let’s go with it). That’s why I call the dish “Easy Rigatoni.” But you can use string types like spaghetti or linguini; or tubular ones like ziti, rotini, or even plain elbow noodles. So the dish can be can be Easy Angle Hair, Easy Perciatelli (or Bucatini), Easy Fettuccini, etc. The choices are infinite. Also, to the base recipe I added onion, black olives and, of course, Parmesan cheese (you can substitute Romano or Asiago). If you like, you can add seafood or meat, or whatever strikes your fancy. Or keep it plain and simple. It’ll still be worth the effort, which is minimal.

EASY RIGATONI

1 pound box rigatoni
1/2 cup olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
1 medium onion, peeled and slice into thin rings
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 small hot red pepper, seeded and crumbled into tiny pieces
1 5.75-oz. can large or jumbo black olives, drained and sliced in half
Parmesan cheese

1. Cook rigatoni in salted water according to package directions.
2. While pasta is cooking, heat 1/2 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft and translucent.
3. Add garlic and hot red pepper, and cook about 2 minutes more.
4. Drain rigatoni, stir in garlic/hot sauce. Add two tablespoons olive oil, mix well, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

Crab Cakes

January 19, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

Put crab cakes on a restaurant menu, and it’s gonna sell out pretty quick. They’re a favorite all season long. Crab cakes are actually a type of fish cake popular through out the U.S. The ingredients may vary but every recipe I’ve come across always contain bread crumbs, mayonnaise and eggs. And then you can add whatever seasonings desired. So, don’t be shy, experiment. Usually served as an appetizer, it’s an easy dish to prepare at home. In the Rivera clan we love crab cakes. The preferred topping for crab cakes is tartar sauce. With or without the tartar sauce, we eat them for breakfast with eggs, and an an entrée for dinner with rice, veggies or whatever.

The recipe given follows the traditional method of frying in butter (if you’re worried about cholesterol intake, you can substitute olive oil). Or you can bake the suckers: just preheat oven to 375 degree F. and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

CRAB CAKES

1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs
2 6-oz. cans crab meat, drained
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter

1. In a medium-sized bowl combine all ingredients, mixing by hand, Form into good-sized patties, about 1/2-inch thick.
2. In a large skillet (I prefer cast-iron) heat butter over medium heat. Fry patties until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes on each side.
Yield: 4 servings (about 8 patties).

Broiled Tofu

January 10, 2017 / Oswald Rivera / 0 Comments

I didn’t come across tofu, or bean curd, as an edible until my young manhood. It was sometime back in 1970, when I had just returned from Vietnam that I came across this product that had been a staple of Asian cooking for centuries. We never had such a thing when I was growing up in Spanish Harlem. When I first tasted it, at the behest of some adventurous vegetarian friends, I was, to be honest, underwhelmed. The thing had no flavor. But then I discovered that, ironically, that was the beauty of it: tofu can acquired whatever flavor you give it, whether cooked or not. In my bachelor days I had a lady friend whose signature dish was plain tofu, cubed, seasoned with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little soy sauce, and served over rice or whatever grain was available. That such a simple dish could be heavenly, was new to me. Over the ensuing years, tofu has become a national rage, and tofu cookbooks abound, all celebrating its health benefits.

I’m not that much concerned about its health aspects, so much as its flavor profile. As noted, stir-fried, sauteed, boiled or baked, bean curd will take on whatever flavor designation you desire. You can make it mild to the taste, or more spicy as in a previous post in which I rendered Fried Tofu with Sichuan Peppercorn Sauce (05/14/14). The recipe given does not incorporate hot peppercorns of any type. It’s just a simple preparation of broiled tofu with whatever spices you have on hand. Served over steamed white rice (or brown rice, if you must), and nothing could be tastier or better for you.

BROILED TOFU

14 ounces firm or extra firm tofu
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon olive oil or vegetable oil
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon rice vinegar (can substitute white vinegar)

1. Rinse tofu under running water and pat dry with paper towels. Slice into 1-inch cubes. The best way to do this is to slice the tofu into 1-inch rectangles, then slice rectangles into cubes.
2. Heat broiler on high and arrange a rack in top third of oven.
2. Whisk the soy sauce, olive oil, pinch pf pepper, oregano and garlic powder in a medium shallow bowl. Dip the tofu pieces in the soy sauce mixture to coat (let the excess sauce drip back into the bowl). Then lay the pieces on a baking sheet, or place in a baking pan (for this I always use my trusted cast-iron pan). Set the remaining sauce aside.
3. Broil the tofu until browned, about 10-15 minutes, turning the tofu every 5 minutes to brown on all sides, and remove from oven.
4. Add the scallions, vinegar and sesame oil to the reserved sauce and toss to coat. Serve with steamed rice.
Yield: 4 servings.

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