Classic Cookbooks: Kasha Varnishkes
Cooking them properly is a different matter. The first time I tried, I got it just right: the grains were separate, firm, and nutty. Since then I have tended to produce mushy messes that are edible but not appetizing. The Joy of Cooking
Most people seem to love the textural contrast between the kasha and pasta, but the bowties seemed out of place to me. I have a feeling this is something best served by your seasoned cook of a granny, not whipped up in a gadabout young person’s kitchen. I used vegetable oil instead of schmaltz, so maybe the problem lies there and not in my pots’ lack of tradition and memory. The onion and mushrooms, in any event, were wonderful, and I will definitely be adding them to kasha in the future. If you’ve never tried kasha, you really should; it’s wonderfully healthy and satisfying. Just check out aboutkasha.com if you don’t believe me.
Kasha varnishkes is definitely included in both the 1997 and 2006 editions of Joy, but if anyone out there has older editions I would love to hear whether it appears in the 1975 book or earlier. Though it would strike me as an odd inclusion for such an essentially Midwestern book, I am eager to be surprised. The 1997 edition included some exciting new foods, but apparently the original voice was almost entirely suppressed, accounting for the somewhat sterile feeling it’s always given me. It seems the 2006 edition restored the personality of the original book (not to mention the original and more delicious recipe for chicken divan), which means it’s time for me to add another cookbook to my wishlist.
About the author: Robin Bellinger recently escaped a career in book publishing, which was really cutting into her cooking time. Now she is a freelance editor and can bake bread on Tuesday afternoon if she feels like it. She lives in midtown Manhattan with her husband and blogs about cooking and crafting at home*economics.
Kashka Varnishes
- serves 4 as a main or 8 as a side -
Ingredients
2-3 tablespoons chicken fat or vegetable oil
2 large onions, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups sliced mushrooms (button, shiitake, portobello, or a combination), optional
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
6 ounces bowtie pasta
1 large egg
1 cup whole kasha (whole roasted buckwheat groats)
2 cups hot chicken stock
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Procedure
1. Heat the oil in a skillet over a medium-high flame. Add the onions, mushrooms, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Brown and remove to a large bowl.
2. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until tender but firm. Drain and toss with the browned onions and mushrooms.
3. Beat the egg in a small bowl. Add the kasha and stir until all the grains are well coated. Wipe out the skillet and set it over a high flame. Add the egg-coated kasha to the skillet and cook, stirring, until the grains are toasted and separate, 2-3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and add and add the hot chicken stock. Stir, cover, and simmer until the stock is absorbed and the kasha is tender but not mushy, 7-8 minutes.
4. Stir the onion-mushroom-noodle mixture into the kasha. Taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.
5. The dish can be made 1-2 days in advance and reheated, uncovered, in a 350°F oven. If it seems dry, add 1/4 cup chicken stock
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13 Comments:
My extremely bedrabbled 1964 edition in paperback has them. BUCKWHEAT GROATS OR KASHA, Mrs. Rombauer announces, parboils them with schmaltz or butter and then bakes them for an hour. Additionally, she says that sauteed onions, salt, pepper and "some almonds" can be added for it to be served "as a luncheon dish".
lemons at 2:27PM on 03/05/08
Born and raised in Brooklyn, kasha was a stable food. I learned to cook it from my fathers Mother..Two tablespoons of butter and half a chopped onion, saute till clear add one cup kasha brown for five minutes add one egg stirring until kasha is coated , remove from heat. bring two quarts water to boil add kasha mix simmer for ten minutes and drain....salt nd pepper to taste serve... I make it to this day, much to the chagrin of my children. It is something you either love or hate. For me the unique smell of roasting kasha is a reminder of my youth and of the foods of New York..yummmmmmm
Kenzo at 4:27PM on 03/05/08
Kasha varnishkes are my idea of comfort food! I like Joan Nathan's recipe from Jewish Cooking in America:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/reviews/40010
There are also some interesting variations in the reader reviews - "Those who for some reason don't want to have the fried onions can try eating their kasha with ketchup or tomato sauce. That's what we did in Russia and it was pretty good!"
overw8 at 5:53PM on 03/05/08
Please don't use butter, vegetable oil or margarine. Schmaltz (chicken fat) is the only way to go.
Jamie Forrest at 6:20PM on 03/05/08
I like the smell but not the taste. Growing up in a Jewish family I've had plenty of chances to like it.
CanadianFoodieGirl at 6:57PM on 03/05/08
there's actually a recipe for kasha varnishes? i thought it was just something my mom threw together when i was a kid (and we had it all the time). kasha's tasty, you can never go wrong with onions & mushroom. . . but the bowties always seems out of place to me.
redhead at 8:55PM on 03/05/08
I'm going to have to go ahead and disagree with Jaimeforrest. The best alternative to schmaltz (and there is a good alternative) is called Niafat. It's a vegetable-based product that looks and acts like schmaltz without the whole OMG EW CHICKEN FAT feelings. Now that Passover is coming up it should be pretty easy to find.
Stufsocker at 10:01AM on 03/06/08
Here's the missing ingredient - gravy.
Preferably from a slow braised fresh brisket loaded with onion.
Spoon liberally on the sliced brisket and kasha varnishkas.
Heaven !!!
Grifola frondosa at 10:32PM on 03/06/08
Thank you for checking your cookbook, lemons! And thanks a lot, Grifola frondosa...now I want brisket for breakfast.
I wonder why chicken fat seems so weird to me when I have no problem with duck fat. I guess I should try rendering some and cooking with it.
My mother's response to this post was to recall an episode of Seinfeld when Mr. Costanza, staying with George for some reason, was eating kasha in bed and offered to share. I don't remember that episode, but just the idea of it kills me!
Robin Bellinger at 8:57AM on 03/07/08
I agree with "redhead"s comment above. I grew up in Manhattan with a Polish/Jewish mother and Kasha Varnishes was a staple in our westside apartment. I always thought it was my mothers invention until later in life. She never used a cookbook, just threw things together. Here's how she made it. 1 cup med kasha and 1 egg beaten, mix together. Melt margerine in a pan and saute w/a little garlic. Saute kasha w/salt & Accent , then add boiling water about double the amount of kasha. Let boil down until water disappears, then put the lid on and let it simmer about 1/2 hr or 45 min. Serve w/bowtie noodles. She always accompanied this dish w/her special meatballs. 1 lb meat, garlic, 11/2 slices bread soaked in milk, green pepper, addent, oregano, onions, tomato sauce and salt & pepper. Saute onion, garlic, and minced green pepper in oil. Mix meat into balls and add to pan. Sprinkle oregano over all & a little Accent. Cover and stew a little, then add a little tomato sauce. Use judgment on amounts, Mom did. Ummm! Ralph Gutierrez
tourista at 11:32AM on 03/12/08
I agree that the bowties seem strange...but I wonder if you could use orzo or ditalini...thus still having the "pasta contrast" but getting more of a pilaf consistency, overall.
akk328 at 1:45PM on 03/12/08
What a Kasha surprise! Never used whole buckwheat to make the dish.
Always medium cut groats. My grandchildren (who live with me) hate the stuff. It sure brings back nostalgia of the winter in the bronx and I love to make it as it is actually a fun dish to prepare. Is this a traditional russian dish or is it widespread in the northern European countries. Perhaps someone can answer this question.
Larry Lansky at 7:02PM on 03/12/08
I grew up on kashe varnishkes courtesy of my American born mom of Polish descent.
The first time my Russian daughter-in-law came to the states, I wanted to make her feel comfortable and prepared this for her. Well, she hates Kasha and her entire family in Moscow avoids Kasha (buckwheat) at all costs.
yanasbubby at 11:02AM on 03/20/08