kosher salt

Hearts On Fire

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If you have followed ChefsOpinion for some time, you know that I am very fond of Offal.
I understand of course that not everybody shares this fondness, but for the most part, in most of the offal dishes that I blog about, the offal can be replaced with more run of the mill proteins, such as shrimp, chicken breast, sliced beef and even vegetables.
For the rest of us – offal rock! 🙂
In the past, when my wife and I used to go with friends to Brazilian Churrasqueiras, everybody thought I was mad when I stuffed myself with grilled chicken hearts, while Maria and our friends enjoyed their Picanha, Entrana, and other more popular cuts. But for me, the meat-course always started with a bunch of chicken hearts. I was only ever able to find them in Brazilian Churrasqueiras, so I always took advantage of the opportunity to indulge. Nowadays, I go out very seldom, so when the craving for chicken hearts hits me, I have to prepare them myself.
I prepare them in different ways, grilled, braised, fried or simmered in soup.
Last night I felt the need for something spicy, so I prepared the hearts as follows – I seasoned them with soy sauce and lots of garlic, coated them in corn starch and then fried them in pure chili oil. The result was truly “Hearts on Fire ” – they were hellishly spicy from the chili oil but the more subtle-seasoned bok choy toned it down a bit and when eaten together, the result was pure culinary bliss – very tasty,very spicy, very addictive 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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How to make Home Made Chile Oil
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Hearts on Fire

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Preparation :
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: blanch baby bok choy in salted water, shock in ice water, drain

: simmer one cup of chicken stock, season with 1 tblsp soy sauce, 1 tsp garlic paste, 1 tsp grated ginger and a dash of salt, thicken with a bit of corn starch slurry

: add bok choy to sauce, simmer one minute until heated through

: arrange bok choy on serving platter, nape with sauce, cover, keep warm

: season hearts (or other protein) with kosher salt, soy sauce and granulated garlic

: dust with corn starch, mix well

: fry hearts at high heat until crisp on the outside but still juicy on the inside

: add scallions and whole pickled chilies

: serve hearts over bok choy

: Hearts on Fire

: Hearts on Fire

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Wing Recipe # 1001

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Seems like everybody and their mother has THE BEST recipe for chicken wings, and, I have to admit, I myself have a few of them.
Now this one is definitely among the very best and I hope you will give it a shot.
Maybe you will even agree with me that these wings are among the very best, if not THE BEST OF THE BEST ? 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Wings Fly !
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More Wings on ChefsOpinion
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Wing Recipe # 1001

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Preparation :
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: mix julienned red onions with soy sauce, garlic paste, lime juice and sriracha

: mix olive oil, lime juice, chopped capers, chopped cilantro, kosher salt and cayenne pepper

: season wings with kosher salt, granulated garlic and sriracha, fry until crisp on the outside but not completely cooked through, remove from fat, blot dry, season with soy sauce, sriracha and garlic paste

: place on wire rack, bake at 375 until browned

: when top of wings are browned and crisp, remove from oven

: turn wings upside down

: spread onions on top of wings, bake at 375F until onions are caramelized

: remove wings from oven, dredge in the herb-lime seasoning

: plate wings on serving dish, douse with more of the herb-lime seasoning

: Wing Recipe # 1001

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Schwäbisches Rotkraut Mit Kasseler Rippenspeer Und Knoblauchkartoffeln

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Easy now with the German tongue breaker – it’s just red cabbage with smoked pork loin and garlic potatoes, jawohl 🙂
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The secret to a good red cabbage (as well as sauerkraut) is to cook it long enough and to bind the juices, two simple steps that most cooks ignore. Unlike some other recipes steeped in a long tradition, in my opinion, this one does NOT improve with modernisation or simplification. It is a very straightforward preparation which will be rewarded with a great dish, wonderful in taste, texture and presentation.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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P.S.
Although this dish does not really need a sauce, I am a typical “Schwoab“, who loves sauce with everything.
So I made a sauce with the drippings from the kasseler, some finely chopped tomatoes and a shot of red wine 🙂
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Sauerkraut on ChefsOpinion
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Schwäbisches Rotkraut Mit Kasseler Rippenspeer Und Knoblauchkartoffeln

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Preparation :
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: saute sliced onions in a generous amount of duck or pork fat until translucent, add finely sliced cabbage

: to one pound of cabbage, add 1/2 cup red-wine-vinegar and 1 cup red wine

: add sugar, kosher salt, cayenne pepper,2 bay leaves, 1 cinnamon stick

: grate 1 unpeeled apple into the cabbage, add two cups of water or stock and simmer until the cabbage is tender

: add a small amount of corn starch slurry, mix well

: simmer another minute, check/adjust taste

: turn heat to lowest setting, add sliced kasseler (smoked pork loin), let meat heat through, about 4 minutes, depending on thickness

: meanwhile, saute small cooked potatoes in garlic oil, season with kosher salt and cayenne pepper

: Schwäbisches Rotkraut (Red Cabbage Swabian Style)

: Schwäbisches Rotkraut Mit Kasseler Rippenspeer Und Knoblauchkartoffeln

: Schwäbisches Rotkraut Mit Kasseler Rippenspeer Und Knoblauchkartoffeln

: Schwäbisches Rotkraut Mit Kasseler Rippenspeer Und Knoblauchkartoffeln

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Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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My original intention for breakfast this morning was to just pile some smoked salmon on a slice of bread and wait for lunchtime to come around for a more substantial meal. But then I saw the pomegranate and bean sprouts in the fridge, as well as an open container with Greek yogurt. Needless to say, I couldn’t stop there and all of a sudden, breakfast started to morph into what became this great brunch.
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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Preparation :
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: bake potatoes at 375F until done, let cool slightly

: season sliced radishes with kosher salt, let stand for 15 minutes

: cut top off of the potatoes

: remove “flesh” from “skin”

: coarsely chop smoked salmon

: mix the potatoes, salmon, greek yogurt, scallion, garlic paste, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, fill back into potato skins

: dress romaine lettuce, fresh spinach, sliced salted radishes, bean sprouts and tomatoes with honey/mustard dressing and fresh ground black pepper

: select a pretty serving platter 🙂

: arrange salad, dragon fruit slices and baked potatoes nicely on platter, sprinkle with pomegranate-seeds

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

: Stuffed Baked Potato With Smoked Salmon, Dragon Fruit And Salad

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Crispy Pata

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This super tasty and crispy dish is one of my all-time favorite Pinoy dishes. Usually it is made with a whole pork leg, but I also like it just the way I was introduced to it many years ago while living in the Philippines, with the cheapest cut of the leg, the feet.
The first time I had this dish was in Manila, when the maid I employed offered to share some of the food she cooked for herself and her husband that day. She was a bit shy to offer, since she thought the food might not be good enough for me, what with all the bones and stuff. She also used only the Feet, since she could not afford to buy the whole pork leg. I remember how happy and proud she was when I loved her cooking. After that, I had her cook for me this and other local specialties often, which we usually shared on the rooftop terrace which was a big deal for her and her husband. (This was in the early 80’s – a maid used to make $20-$30 a month, even less in the countryside. My maid’s husband was the caretaker at our apartment-building of 6 apartments, he made about the same salary. But, to their luck, they were allowed to sleep under the staircase on the ground floor, which they closed off with cardboard and a curtain and therefore considered them self fairly safe, comfortable and overall lucky with their living accommodations.)
Thankfully, times have changed, but there is still way too much poverty around the world and too many people must endure this kind of poverty or, sadly, worse 😦
But thinking about food should be a happy occasion, so back to the present and our Crispy Pata. While it is easy to prepare, you might want to do the frying outside if you can (think deep-fried turkey) In any case,be extremely careful when frying the feet or the whole leg in deep fat, because the moist meat tend’s to splatter a lot. A covered fryer will give some protection but still – use the utmost care !!!
Serve with atchara or avocado.
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Bon Appetit ! Kainan na !
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Click here for Atchara
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More Crispy Pata on ChefsOpinion
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More Pigs Feet on ChefsOpinion
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P.S.
Don’t even think about discarding the pork stock! It will make a very flavorful soup, as you can see below.
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Crispy Pata

Pork Soup With Pasta, Corn And Egg

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Preparation :
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: pigs feet

: score the skin

: simmer the feet with kosher salt, chili flakes, a dash of lime juice and lots of garlic paste

: meanwhile, mix chopped chilies, garlic paste, chopped onions and chopped cilantro with kosher salt and white vinegar

: chili-vinegar dipping sauce

: chili-vinegar dipping sauce

: skim the scum and most of the fat during simmering

: strain the stock, check / adjust the seasoning, add pasta, kernel corn, scallions and egg yolk to serve as an appetizer to the crispy pata

: when the feet are very ! tender but NOT falling apart, remove the feet from the stock, let dry for at least one hour

: fry in 375F oil until the skin is very crisp and the meat is still moist and juicy

: serve with atchara or avocado

: douse liberally with the chili-vinegar sauce

: Crispy Pata

: Crispy Pata

: Pork Soup With Pasta, Corn And Egg

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How To Turn Radiators Into A Delicious Dish…….

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“Radiatore with Salame and Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Garlic-Confit Cream”
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Pasta, garlic, cream and other “stuff” 🙂 – always quick and easy to prepare, yet very rewarding with big flavors and a lovely texture.
This is the kind of food I prepare when I “don’t feel like cooking”. After all, the whole preparation takes only a few minutes and is easy enough to be handled by a novice in the kitchen, all one needs is a few good ingredients and a passion for food, the rest will fall into place all by itself 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Radiatore with Salame and Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Garlic-Confit Cream

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Preparation :
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: saute garlic in olive oil until just starting to change color

: add salame julienne and onion julienne, saute until onions are translucent

: add julienned sun-dried tomatoes and heavy cream, season with kosher salt and fresh-grated black pepper

: simmer until cream starts to thicken, remove from heat, add grated parmesan, check / adjust seasoning

: add fresh cooked radiatori with a bit of the cooking water, mix well

: plate on serving dish, sprinkle with freshly shredded parmesan

: Radiatore with Salame and Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Garlic-Confit Cream

: Radiatore with Salame and Sun-Dried Tomatoes in Garlic-Confit Cream

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Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

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Image: Property of Panoramio

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Click here for a short Video of Hotel Wiedenfelsen
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It seems about time that I dedicate a dish and name it for the place which started it all for me, the wonderful, elegant and classy “Hotel Wiedenfelsen” in the Black Forrest in Germany.
Before and during the time I was lucky to be am apprentice in this gem of a hotel, the tourist industry in Germany was dominated by hotels like this.
Medium in size, family-owned hotels and restaurants which were the pride of families which, in many cases, had operated these hotels and restaurants for generations. Sadly, because of changing demands, the industry took a sharp turn during the 70’s and many of these wonderful places became obsolete in a fast changing landscape of mostly chain-operated hotels. Only the strongest and the luckiest survived, while the rest gave way to cookie-cutter operations without charm and soul, or they just ceased to exist (including Hotel Wiedenfelsen). It has since seen various attempts to re-invent itself under different ownership, but has never managed to come even near it’s former glory).
Things were of course very different during the hotels heydays, the time during which I had the fortune to be accepted for a three-year apprenticeship under the tight and competent leadership of the Executive Chef (and son in law of the then-owners) Karl Mueller. Karl was a generous and warm person, taking care of us apprentices as if we were family. He was also extremely professional, strict and a severe applier of high culinary standards.
Although ours was a relatively small hotel (about 70 rooms, two restaurants and one banquet space), the standards with which our hotel operated were very high and impeccable indeed.
It was mostly because of these high standards of the whole family who owned and operated “Hotel Wiedenfelsen” that I have become the person I am and the chef I was for nearly five decades. Admittedly, it took an iron hand, a (seemingly at the time) short leash and not a few “fresh ones” to shape me (and a bunch of other apprentices) into the professional I became, but, looking back today, I am grateful to the Mehr family and the Mueller family to have never given up on me and guided me into the right professional and personal direction.
All of this (and more) went through my head yesterday while I was cooking this dish which was the first lamb dish Chef Mueller taught me so many years ago………..
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Thanks Karl, Uschi, Herr und Frau Mehr. God Bless ! 🙂
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Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

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Preparation :
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: remove excess fat from a de-boned lamb leg

: cut into cubes, season with kosher salt and cayenne pepper

: saute lamb in olive oil until browned

: add sliced onions and garlic paste

: add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and same amount (volume) of water (or red wine if you prefer)

: season with finely chopped fresh rosemary, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, a dash of ground cumin and a dash of dried or fresh oregano

: simmer slowly until lamb is tender but NOT falling apart

: add cooked chickpeas and small raw carrots

: simmer until carrots are tender

: add diced bell peppers, simmer two more minutes

: add grape tomatoes, remove from heat, check / adjust seasoning

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: serve stew over pasta, rice, mashed potato or cous cous

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: Lamb Stew “Wiedenfelsen”

: Bella – first bite as usual 🙂

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Shrimp And Vegetable Salad With Cheese/Garlic Bread

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Last night proved to be one of these dreary nights when I am not able to sleep, so at 5.00 am I decided to give it up, get up and start the day. I had my usual breakfast of two bananas and a glass of ice-cold, reduced fat milk, which usually carries me for a few hours until the early afternoon or even early evening. Not so today. At 10.30 am I decided I needed something a bit more substantial, which lead me to prepare this great concoction. Because of the delicious but very filling large amount of garlic/cheese bread I devoured, I’ll be fine for the rest of the day and will probably just have a few fruits for dinner 🙂 😦
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Shrimp And Vegetable Salad With Cheese/Garlic Bread

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Preparation :
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: spread a generous amount of garlic-confit paste on sour dough bread (or your favorite bread)

: sprinkle with finely grated parmesan and fresh ground black pepper, bake at 375F until golden

: Cheese&Garlic Bread

: sprinkle radish, cucumber, tomato and peppers with kosher salt, let rest for 10 minutes, discard excess liquid

: mix vegetables with ranch dressing

: marinade shrimp with lime juice, finely chopped chilies, kosher salt, olive oil and chopped cilantro

: drizzle some of the shrimp marinade over iceberg leaves

: top with veggie salad

: top veggie salad with shrimp

: Shrimp And Vegetable Salad With Cheese/Garlic Bread

: Shrimp And Vegetable Salad With Cheese/Garlic Bread

: Shrimp And Vegetable Salad With Cheese/Garlic Bread

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Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina

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Quote from Ciao Italia :
“Anything alla fiorentina, meaning Florentine style, usually signifies that spinach is in the dish”.
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If you wonder why I put this quote at the beginning of this post, the answer is simple:
“Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina” is traditionally (originally?) prepared by stuffing a chicken breast with a mixture of chopped blanched spinach and grated cheese, then sauteed in fat or baked in the oven.
While this can be a very enjoyable variation, I have seen many other ones, some even just grilled, served with or without any spinach. This was actually in Florence some years back, when Maria and I visited a fancy restaurant off the beaten track and I ordered a “Bistecca Alla Fiorentina” for myself (beef-heaven on earth) and Maria ordered the “Pollo Alla Fiorentina”, which was presented as a simple grilled chicken breast served on a bed of spinach.
As for the reason I prepare my version the way I do is simply because I feel it is a far more tasty and juicy version of the widely touted as original version of “Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina”.
Coating the chicken allows the breast to stay very most while you can cook the meat to just being done, while if you stuff the breast and then cook it, by the time the stuffing is heated to a safe temperature, the breast will be much too dry.
So, as usual, while I don’t claim that my version is the “Original”, I strongly believe that it is the improved version of a venerable, classic dish 🙂
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
(Controversial, sometimes) 😦 🙂
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Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina

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Preparation :
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: butterfly skinless chicken breast in half

: score the surface to allow more coating to adhere to the meat

: mix equal parts of raw chopped spinach, grated parmesan cheese and whole eggs, season with kosher salt, garlic paste and cayenne pepper

: dust the breasts with flour, then dip into spinach/egg mixture, saute in olive oil

: almost done…………

: meanwhile, saute freshly cooked penne in garlic-oil, add chopped tomatoes, grated parmesan, sriracha, kosher salt and maggi seasoning (optional), mix well

: plate the pasta, sprinkle with grated cheese

: top with chicken, sprinkle with more cheese and basil leaves

: Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina

: Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina

: Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina (notice how juicy the chicken breast is)

: Bella eats Petti Di Pollo Alla Fiorentina 🙂

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Pulled Pork “Havana Loco”

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For most of my life I detested the very idea of pulled pork. My professional training as a cook had taught me that if something falls apart, it is overcooked and therefore non grata. In addition, the pulled pork I was introduced to during my early years in the USA was almost always smoked for many hours, then completely inundated in (most of the time crappy) “bbq sauce”.
The whole thing seemed to me to have the texture and taste of some lousy half-smoked cigars mashed-up and mixed with ketchup and vinegar, more often than not served on a limp, tasteless burger bun. As a result, for many years I stayed away from pulled pork.
This changed when I got to travel in Latin America and in Latin American-circles, where pulled pork took on a very different dimension, one which I was finally able to wholeheartedly embrace. Usually braised in the oven for hours, with lots of cilantro, lime, garlic, various citrus juices and sometimes the addition of onions and/or chilies, the pork tastes lively and fresh, not at all heavy or greasy or overly sweet. Usually, it is served with white rice and yucca or a simple salad and most of the time with some kind of spicy, vinegar based condiment.
Below find my own take on pulled pork, as I imagine I would serve it at my imaginary, popular nightspot in a Havana of long-gone times, with hot girls dancing to the Rumba, Mojitos flowing freely and eating, drinking, dancing, making love and enjoying life being the only thing on everybody’s mind……………..
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Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Pulled Pork “Havana Loco”

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Preparation :
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: whole porkbutt, shank removed

: cut pork butt in half, reserve one half for another recipe, score skin of porkbutt in a criss-cross pattern

: orange, lime, kosher salt, chili flakes, garlic paste

: mix the juices from the fruit, 2 tblsp salt, 1 tsp chili flakes, 2 tblsp garlic paste with 2 pints of water, pour into pan with porkbutt, lightly cover with alu-foil, cook at 350F for 4 hours or until pork falls apart when lightly squeezed

: meanwhile, make sauce by blending with a beurre-mixer or in food processor : lime juice, garlic paste, cayenne pepper, cilantro, kosher salt and olive oil