Cayenne pepper

Herring Salad – (Heringsalat) – (Sillsallad) – (Shuba – Селедка под шубой)

 

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At a time when “Regional” and “Ethnic” cuisine has spread all over the World and most of them have reached the far corners of our Planet, a large part of restaurant-goers consider themselves experts of some, or even many, different ethnic/regional cuisines.
Sadly (naturally), most experiences of these wannabe-experts come from a few visits of neighborhood “ethnic” restaurants and a subscription to the food channel, or, at best, a few encounters of local cuisine one has mustered on a once in a lifetime vacation to an exotic, foreign country.
Therefore, nowadays, when everyone pretends to be “food-hip“, “in” and “worldly“, everybody and Joe want to open a restaurant that serves food from around the World, with the proprietor and workers usually never having encountered a dish that is even close to its supposed origin.
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However, because of this worldwide spreading of cuisines,  most folks have had the pleasure to taste Scandinavian herring salad in one form or another, either in a restaurant or at home, sourced in a small plastic container at the neighborhood supermarket. These come in many different flavors and colors – with fresh dill, fresh chives, potatoes, red beets, cucumbers, pasta, capers, pickles of any type, apples, oranges, eggs, with matjes herring or salt herring, even with added sausage, etc, etc.
Many of them are surprisingly delicious, though, after all, these ingredients are hard to mess up. However, in my humble opinion, of the commercial type herring salads, most have one fundamental fault – they are diced way too small and evenly (which, admittingly, is the proper restaurant-way).
When one forkful contains five or more ingredients of very finely diced ingredients, the mix becomes one coherent mess in your mouth, which I find rather boring. I much rather have the ingredients diced larger, so that with each bite I have two or maybe three different textures and tastes, which results in the pleasure of each bite surprising me with a new combination of yumminess. 🙂
This salad can be served as an appetizer, first course, snack or main course, accompanied by steamed potatoes, sauteed potatoes, rustic bread, or Gouda crackers (as in these pictures).
Pls note that I did not include measurements – let the ratio be guided by your preferences – more or fewer veggies, herring, yogurt, mayo, and so forth – and eliminate any of the ingredients which you don´t like.  🙂
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Herring Salad – (Heringsalat) – (Sillsallad) – (Shuba – Селедка под шубой)

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Herring Salad – (Heringsalat) – (Sillsallad) – (Shuba – Селедка под шубой)

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Herring Salad – (Heringsalat) – (Sillsallad) – (Shuba – Селедка под шубой)

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Herring Salad – (Heringsalat) – (Sillsallad) – (Shuba – Селедка под шубой)

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Preparation :
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Pimentón En Crema (Peppers In Cream)

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Easy Does It ……….. 👍😎😃

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A week ago I bought a large bag of fresh, beautiful peppers at my neighborhood Turkish grocery store. Since then, I have eaten most of them, usually grilled and served as a side dish to meat or seafood, with tzatziki as a dip. Today I needed something to accompany my dumplings, and yet another grilled peppers dish did not sound very enticing.  Also, I did not feel like eating fish or meat and so I choose the bread dumplings to be the main component of the meal. Since dumplings need a good sauce to be properly enjoyed, this tasty cream sauce with pimentóns seemed to be the perfect combination. Low and behold, it turned out to be VERY delicious, and it hit the spot precisely 🙂
So what started out as a way to get rid of some veggies before they turn South, became a much-loved dish which I will prepare again in the near future. 🙂
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Pimentón En Crema (Peppers In Cream)

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Pimentón En Crema (Peppers In Cream)

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Pimentón En Crema (Peppers In Cream)

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Preparation :
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Easy Does it # 39 – “Tuna Salad”

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Pls don´t miss the link at the bottom of this page for a truly “different” cooking tutorial ……
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Easy Does it # 39 – “Tuna Salad”

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This salad is probably ? the first “Main Course Salad” that ever hit a restaurant table, way back then.
In the meantime, it has been re-invented/improved a million times, with the ingredients changing from year to year, season to season, cook to cook, household to household, country to country, and restaurant to restaurant.
Probably, the only constant were always salad greens, onions, and tuna, otherwise, the imagination for tuna salad knows no bounds 🙂 Other typical ingredients are (among a million others), anchovies, potatoes, eggs, artichokes, herbs, asparagus, etc, etc.
While I have to admit that my desire to create a “new” version of tuna salad has occasionally got the better of me, my favorite version is still this simple one featured here on this page. 🙂
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Easy Does it # 39 – “Tuna Salad”

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Easy Does it # 39 – “Tuna Salad”

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mix everything with 1/3 cup herb vinaigrette

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check/adjust seasoning

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Preparation :
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And now, one for the road, not to be missed :
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Paris Hilton cooks Lasagna at her own “Cooking Show”
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I am torn between being sad, amused, disgusted and/or outraged about the fact that some folks (many ? !!!) find this to be an actual tutorial to learn cooking.
It is without a doubt a tutorial for various bad traits – but cooking is definitely not one of them 🙂 😦
This episode is one of the worst examples of how bad “cooking shows” have actually become. Most are shameful, ridiculous, bad, stupid and, flat-out, pure garbage.
My only hope is that this particular one is supposed to be satire and not to be taken seriously, but, judging from the ladies behavior and the general state of mind of the kind of people who watch crap like this, chances are that it is meant to be taken seriously:-(
God help us all !
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Red Curry/Coconut Ramen With Nappa Cabbage

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During the past view years, with thousands upon thousands of books, articles movies, documentaries and everybody and his/her dog writing about Ramen – the best, the most original, the most exotic, the cheapest, the most expensive, the most complicated, the simplest, the craziest, and what not else about Ramen, the latest craze we are to believe in and are bombarded with is always the final, definitive, all previous wisdom erasing, Fad.
Some, (most?) folks have forgotten what Ramen, or comfort food in general, is all about – when it feels just right what your mom in her kitchen, or the waiter in a five-star restaurant, or the street cook from his cart, sets in front of you and you happily enjoy every aspect of the dish to it´s fullest – the taste, the texture, the aromas, the ingredients, the colors, the surroundings, and last but not least, the company.
Ramen does not really need (deserve ???) all this silly nonsense and mystique which some folks want to make us believe is essential and exists in some mysterious stockpot in some obscure location, prepared by a “Master Artist”, who dedicated his/her life to one particular dish.
Dear God, pls spare me from any more of this pretentious BS !
Like any other thing in the Universe, sometimes there are exceptions to the rules, but……….. 🙂
Just like any other bowl of soup, or any other dish out there, there are awful ones, mediocre ones, average ones, good ones, superb ones and occasionally, a sublime one, which is usually the result of somebody who brings decent ingredients, at least a bit of knowledge, and A LOT OF LOVE to the stove. No mystery, no art, no alchemy.
Dear people, Ramen it is just a bowl of noodle soup !!!!! No matter how simple or complicated – it’s just a bowl of noodle soup !!!!!
And like ALL other food, it should taste great, should not cost an arm and a leg for something simple and basic, and most of all, it should leave you full, satisfied and happy 😉
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I know that I am not the only one who is tired of the loudmouths in our industry, most of whom have nothing else to offer than flash, glitter, and show, never mind the taste and satisfaction of truly wonderful food.
So then, this, like most of my posts, is about comfort food, good food, easy to prepare food, and, last but not least, affordable food. 🙂
I hope, in this spirit at least, ChefsOpinion serves you well 🙂
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Red Curry/Coconut Ramen With Nappa Cabbage

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Red Curry/Coconut Ramen With Nappa Cabbage

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Red Curry/Coconut Ramen With Nappa Cabbage

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Preparation :
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Capon Tacos

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Capon Tacos

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I believe, nowadays most everybody is familiar with chicken tacos.
These here beauties are essentially the same, except that the chicken has been replaced with the much more succulent and tasty capon.
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What Is a Capon ?
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Excerpt of an article by Danilo Alfaro on “thespruceEats”
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“A capon is a special type of chicken created to make the meat more tender and less gamy. It is a rooster that has been castrated before reaching sexual maturity, which improves the quality of the meat; after that, it is fed a rich diet of milk or porridge. The lack of testosterone makes for a more tender, flavorful meat that is a delight compared to regular chicken. Unfortunately, in the United States today, it may be rare to see capon on a dinner menu or in the grocery store.

This poultry was once considered a luxury and during the early part of the twentieth century, the capon was the chosen bird for Christmas feasts, especially for the wealthy. Working-class families saw capon as a rare treat because it was quite expensive. Compared to rooster meat, which can be quite gamy, capon meat is tender and flavorful. It is also relatively fatty and has a high proportion of white meat. The absence of sex hormones causes the difference in taste and texture between capon meat and rooster meat. The lack of the hormone also allows more fat to form on the bird’s muscles making them tender and buttery. Due to the nature of sex hormones, the rooster must be castrated before it reaches the age of maturity, otherwise, the changes in muscle density will have already occurred.
Castration makes the male chickens less aggressive too, which means less fighting among the birds. While roosters typically need to be separated, capons can usually be penned together without fear of feathers flying. They are also less energetic than other poultry, which helps their meat stay tender. While the lack of testosterone does mean that capons are smaller than the average rooster, a capon is still larger than an average chicken.

You can prepare capon like any other poultry dish. Typically, capons are roasted and the procedure for doing so is similar to roasting a chicken; due to its larger size, however, the cooking time will be longer.
Traditionally, roosters are braised. For instance, the classic French dish coq au vin involves braising a rooster in red wine. That is because their meat is tougher than chicken meat and they are usually slaughtered at an older age, which toughens the meat as well. As such, braising is also a good cooking technique for preparing capon.
A capon is more flavorful than a chicken as well as a turkey, with tender and juicy meat that is is void of any gamey taste. It is full-breasted and has a high-fat content, keeping what could become dry white meat nice and moist as it cools.
If you do manage to find capon meat in your local grocery store, you can follow a braised chicken recipe to prepare it. A whole, cut-up capon combines with bacon, leeks, onion, garlic, rosemary, tomato paste, chicken stock, and white wine and cooks slowly until bubbling and cooked through.

A roasted capon is a perfect centerpiece for a dinner party or holiday table. Keep it somewhat simple or try something a little more exotic.
Depending on where you live and how specialized your local supermarket is, you may be able to find a capon in the poultry section. Since capon is not an item that is bought often and therefore restocked regularly, it is important to look at the “sell-by” date, as well as the quality of the meat and make sure it’s fresh.
If you don’t see a capon in the poultry case, it is worth asking the butcher if he can get one for you. Otherwise, specialty groceries and online meat purveyors are your best bet.
If you don’t plan to cook the capon immediately, you can store it in the refrigerator for two to three days. To be sure that no liquids escape into your fridge, place the packaged capon in a plastic bag first. For longer storage, you can freeze the capon for three to four months, although it will begin to lose its flavor after two months. If the capon came with giblets, remove them before freezing and store separately.
In a 4-ounce serving of roasted capon (including the skin), there are 259 calories and 13.2 grams of fat, as well as 97 milligrams of cholesterol (which is 32 percent of the daily recommended value). Capon also has 32.7 grams of protein, making it a good source of this nutrient.”
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End of excerpt
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Read here all about   Capon
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Capon Tacos

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Capon Tacos

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Capon Tacos

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Capon Tacos

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Capon Tacos

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Preparation :
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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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A stew is one of these typical, beloved, easy to prepare dishes that have almost disappeared from fine restaurant menus and, sadly, from most household dining tables (or kitchen tables).
Many home cooks shy away from it because of the extended cooking time. But, once you realize that the actual prep time is usually short and easy, things look a lot more simple. After all, as long as you are at home, you can do whatever you want/need to do around the house as long as you check on your stew once in a while. The reward is a meal chock-full of flavor and debt, hardly achieved with any other cooking method (this one being “Braising.” )
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While this one looks like a typical goulash, the seasoning changes it into a very different animal.
In my own opinion, not better or worse, just different. I eat stews and goulash regularly, so I love to change the ingredients/seasoning often, to avoid monotony in my nutrition.
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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Beef Goulash & Bread Dumplings

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Preparation :
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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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If you have followed ChefsOpinion for a while, you might be aware of my passion for soups, especially for chicken noodle soup, prepared any-which-way.
Without a doubt, the soup featured on this page is by far the best chicken noodle soup I have ever tasted.
The combination and the amount used of the special chicken and all the veggies, as well as the seasoning/aromatics and the six hours of cooking resulted in a heavenly broth, for which only the wide rice noodles and garden-fresh cilantro was needed to transform these simple ingredients into a wonderful, immensely satisfying culinary delight. 🙂
( The plate prepared for the original photo shoot already was all that – but then, the plate I prepared later on with all the “secondary cuts” (neck, wings and dark meat), which was originally not intended to be included in this post, was even better and “hit it out of the park” )  🙂
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P.S.
To prepare the best tasting chicken broth, one must use “Suppen Huhn” (Boiling Fowl, which needs to simmer between three to six hours to be sufficiently tender for the meat to be enjoyed.
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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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And later on, the second helping looked like this :
(Originally, these photos were not intended to be published 🙂 
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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Not Your Mama´s Chicken/Noodle Soup – “Chicken Pho” (Phở Gà)

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Preparation :
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Around The World In 20 Minutes – Pork Neck Steak, Chilies, Onions And Bucatini With Herbs & Parmigiano Reggiano

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Around The World In 20 Minutes – Pork Neck Steak, Chilies, Onions And Bucatini With Herbs And Parmigiano Reggiano

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Fusion cooking at it´s finest and most delicious :
Arachis Oil from South America (Peru or Brasil), Bucatini and Tomato Paste from Italy, Pork Neck Steak from Germany, Hoisin Sauce and Soy Sauce from China, smoked Paprika from Spain, Mirin from Japan, Maggi Seasoning from Switzerland and Chiles from Mexico.
Prep time, including pasta, 20 minutes.
As for the Napkin ring, old, sterilized tomato paste cans are my idea of witty, pretty and cheap economical tools/deco.  🙂
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Around The World In 20 Minutes – Pork Neck Steak, Chilies, Onions And Bucatini With Herbs And Parmigiano Reggiano

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Around The World In 20 Minutes – Pork Neck Steak, Chilies, Onions And Bucatini With Herbs And Parmigiano Reggiano

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Around The World In 20 Minutes – Pork Neck Steak, Chilies, Onions And Bucatini With Herbs And Parmigiano Reggiano

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Preparation :
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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tsatsiki, Cilantro, And Arugula On Greek Bread

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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tzatziki, Cilantro, And Lettuce On Greek Bread

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Since I have moved from the US back to Germany a few months ago, I have re-discovered many food-items from my youth in Germany, which I had not seen for many decades. One of them is this Greek bread (Prosimi), which, way back then, our neighbor in Gechingen offered to us kids often. My Dad preferred “Black Forest Black Bread” (Which therefore automatically made that the bread of choice for the whole family), but we kids loved the white, mild and fluffy Greek bread, which was much more suited to a child´s palette. 🙂
Now, there is this great Greek vendor with a food truck outside my favorite supermarket, so whenever I go shopping there, I make sure I get a bunch of Goodies from his supplies. Besides the bread, he as a huge selection of cheese spreads and pickled veggies, which I also adore. Unfortunately, most of his offerings are the traditional Greek meze, namely feta cheese and various types of olives, both of which cause me to experience culinary horror 🙂 (I can´t stand neither, never have, never will) 😦
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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tzatziki, Cilantro, And Lettuce On Greek Bread

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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tzatziki, Cilantro, And Lettuce On Greek Bread

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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tsatsiki, Cilantro, And Lettuce On Greek Bread

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“The Ultimate Mushroom Sandwich” – Sauteed Rock Oyster Mushrooms With Grape-Tomatoes & Peppers, Goat Cheese Spread With Sun-Dried Tomatoes, And Fried Onions, Tsatsiki, Cilantro, And Lettuce On Greek Bread

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Preparation :
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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin  (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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I feel so lucky to be in Germany during the mushroom season. Mushrooms are so affordable right now, you can buy them by the basket for a few € and really pig-out without putting a dent into your wallet.
I prepare different varieties at least three times a week, and still, I don´t get tired of them.  🙂
As usual with fresh, quality produce, most of the time, simple is best. Most mushrooms just need to be sauteed in butter or EVO with a bit of salt and pepper and voilà – a meal fit for a king and queen can be had in minutes.
And potato gratin of any type – well, not much needs to be said about that. It makes a great side dish, or just served by itself with a few leaves of green by its side, it will be a wonderful meal on its own. 🙂
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P.S.
This amount of mushrooms serves 2 main courses, while the Dauphinoise serve 10 portions. You can, of course, scale up the mushrooms to feed up to 10 pax. However, the dauphinoise heat up great and can also be served at room temperature, so when the next meal time comes around, you´ll be glad you prepared more of it. 🙂
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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Sautéed King Oyster Mushrooms with Pommes Dauphinoise (Sautierte Kräuterseitlinge mit Kartoffel-Gratin (Pleurotes Du Panicaut)

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Pommes Dauphinoise

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Preparation :
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