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The Nasty Bits: The Tale of Veal
I'm still bitter that my once-secret trick -- oxtail stew, with oxtails bought for 79 cents a pound back in the early 1990s -- is now in the open, and the friggin' oxtails are pushing $6 a pound now. I blame you, celebrity chefs!!!
The 'Science' of food going bad?
One interesting note I have found over the years is that white mold is rarely worrisome. In many cases it is actually penicillin, and whatever it is, I not only encourage it on my salami when I am curing them, but will happily scoop off little spots o'mold where I see them and eat the rest of the item; tomato paste springs to mind.
Black mold, on the other hand, is no bueno.
As for aging of meat, one man's rotten is another's delicacy. I like to hang my pheasants for several days before gutting them, but I know a few people who will hang for more than a week. The meat stinks by then and will drive everyone out of the kitchen when cooking the bird...but by all accounts, is the finest flavored and tenderest poultry ever eaten. I've not been brave enough to go beyond 5 days.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Hear! Hear! I am trying to do the same thing with my fellow hunters -- getting them to eat more than just backstraps and endless meals of random ground venison, etc. I do find that hunters are far more likely than "regular people" to like heart and liver, however, which I think is a good sign.
Just one thing about the image, though: Since when were chicken wings considered "nasty bits?"
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Recent Comments | Response to Comments
Gluten-Free Tuesday: Juniper Berries
As a game cook, I use several pounds of juniper berries every year. Venison and duck are classics, but they go well with moose, antelope, goose, chupacabra, wild boar, wombat, pigeon, dove and especially hummingbird...
Seriously, the berries are soft and resinous, making them very tough to grind to a powder. You need to toast them first if you want this. I typically just coarse grind them. More rustic that way...
The Nasty Bits: The Tale of Veal
I'm still bitter that my once-secret trick -- oxtail stew, with oxtails bought for 79 cents a pound back in the early 1990s -- is now in the open, and the friggin' oxtails are pushing $6 a pound now. I blame you, celebrity chefs!!!
The 'Science' of food going bad?
One interesting note I have found over the years is that white mold is rarely worrisome. In many cases it is actually penicillin, and whatever it is, I not only encourage it on my salami when I am curing them, but will happily scoop off little spots o'mold where I see them and eat the rest of the item; tomato paste springs to mind.
Black mold, on the other hand, is no bueno.
As for aging of meat, one man's rotten is another's delicacy. I like to hang my pheasants for several days before gutting them, but I know a few people who will hang for more than a week. The meat stinks by then and will drive everyone out of the kitchen when cooking the bird...but by all accounts, is the finest flavored and tenderest poultry ever eaten. I've not been brave enough to go beyond 5 days.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Hear! Hear! I am trying to do the same thing with my fellow hunters -- getting them to eat more than just backstraps and endless meals of random ground venison, etc. I do find that hunters are far more likely than "regular people" to like heart and liver, however, which I think is a good sign.
Just one thing about the image, though: Since when were chicken wings considered "nasty bits?"
Do You Eat Radish Leaves?
I make a salad with them dressed with warm duck fat, salt and Meyer lemon juice.
Serious Cocktails: Getting a Grip on Grappa
A local winery in Amador County called Vino Noceto makes excellent grappas from Sangiovese and Moscato grapes. I actually prefer it to all but the best Italian grappas.
Serious Green: A Preview of 'Food, Inc.' in Theaters June 12
Not a lot of new ground plowed here if you have read or watched many of the recent food politics films or read the books (Omnivore's Dilemme, Fast Food Nation, Corn, etc) but the movie is a good primer for someone who doesn't live this stuff, as I am sure many of my fellow Serious Eaters do. What was especially interesting was the Monsanto bit -- pretty chilling...
What to do with Barley
I just did a barley risotto with duck stock, duck fat, onions and Greek mizithra cheese that you might like. Contrary to earlier suggestions, I would say don't rinse it -- you want that starchy coating to make the "creamy" sauce that marks a good risotto. Barley needs more water and more stirring to get this effect than does rice, so watch over it the first few times you make it.
Serious Efforts: vacuum sealing liquids in a Foodsaver for SV
I have a standard vacuum sealer with a "pulse" function that lets me stop the seal where I want it. I have used it for poached salmon as well as antelope with good results.
I also use the vac sealer method for confit of wild duck and goose and I LOVE it -- doing it this way uses less fat and because the fat sets up firm in the fridge, keeps the confited meat coated and sealed. I have set confited goose legs in the fridge this way a month and they were still delicious.
I have not been able to get that compression effect Thomas Keller talks about with fruit, however. I think that needs the high-pressure model.
'SF Chronicle' Columnist Defends Foie Gras
What's with the Canada goose icon? No one makes foie with wild geese (although I've eaten a few wild goose livers almost that fatty), and domestics don't look like that. No biggie, but I'm just sayin'...
Is the celebrity chef culture over?
I miss the Two Fat Ladies...
Trichinosis in Free-Range Pigs: Cause for Concern, or Sloppy Editing and Writing?
I'm with Meat guy -- I shoot for 145 degrees as well. It is still "blush of pink" that way, and still plenty juicy.
Trichinosis in Free-Range Pigs: Cause for Concern, or Sloppy Editing and Writing?
OK, so I read the study in question, because a few people asked me about it. I will say at the start that the op-ed was not my favorite, and as a former writer of pieces like this I detected all sorts of tricks clever opinion writers use to bend reality to their point of view; it is part of the craft.
But let's just take the writer at face value: The study he refers to looked at 329 "free range" hogs and tested them, and then found 2 -- yes, only 2 -- that had even the presence of antibodies for the trichinae parasite.
Now the presence of antibodies is not a 100 percent guarantor that the hog is infected. They probably do have trichinae worms, but the presence of antibodies also can mean that the hog has defeated the parasite at some point in its past and has a strengthened immune system because of it. (think Nietzsche)
But for the sake of argument, let's just say both of those hogs actually had trichinae: 2 pigs out of 329 is a REALLY good set of odds. Why? It's all about perception. Most consumers are still convinced ALL hogs carry trichinae worms, so given this, even the Gucci hogs are beating the odds.
So the bottom line for me is that I'd still rather buy pork from a "walkin' around pig" that had an honest immune system -- and yes, a less than 1 percent chance of carrying trichinae parasites -- than a factory hog. And I'll cook that walkin' around pig the way I like it: with a nice blush of pink at its center.
Good BBQ in Virginia?
Allman's in Fredericksburg. Awesome. I little farther than what you are looking for, but true VA BBQ starts at Stafford Courthouse...
Duck
This is a tough one to comment on as there are so many ways to go with it, but the iron-clad advice I would give is to serve the breasts in one meal done hot, fast and medium-rare, the legs/thighs/wings in another done slow, low and falling off the bone -- and make a quart of duck stock with the carcass.
Dinner Tonight: Caldo Verde
Just made caldo verde the other night -- trick is to get black cabbage (which I grow), or black kale or at least a savoy, roll the leaves in a cigar and slice them AS THIN AS HUMANLY POSSIBLE. Cook your soup as long as it needs to (I use ham hocks, blood sausage, pork shoulder, etc), then add the cabbage in right at the end. Let it cook for only 5 minutes or so, so it is still vibrant green. Oh, and the version of caldo verde I make uses potatoes cooked to the point where they dissolve and add body to the soup. I puree the potatoes with a boat motor...
Serious Efforts: Whole Deer Neck
Ok, since someone called out "Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice!" I have been drawn to this site...Deer neck, eh? Odd one, this. If you are a good boner (couldn't resist), you could remove the vertebrae the way you debone a lamb's leg. Save the bones for stock with lots of aromatics (rosemary and juniper are a must).
As for the neck, make a stuffing. I'd suggest lots and lots of mushrooms, herbs, and various onion-y things (garlic, leeks, onions, etc), and maybe some pine nuts or chestnuts tossed in. Smear onto one side of neck meat and then tie and roll like a roulade. Smear outside with bacon fat (OK, you can use salt and olive oil) and roast at 250 degrees for about 4-5 hours, then put a hate on the thing at 450 degrees for a final 15 minutes or so to get a nice crust.
If you are not such a good boner (again, couldn't resist), make stew meat out of it or use it for sausage or a venison sugo. If you are feeling especially unadventurous, use it for chili.
At any rate, that's my $0.02.
~ Hank
Wild Duck
Ciaobella: Do you live in Sacramento? I know Simon's and Frank Fat's will do this for hunters here. I would love to know which restaurant your uncle brings them to!
As for the original question, I cook wild ducks and geese probably 50 days a year (yes, I am something of a marsh rat), and have tons of recipes here.
What you do with ducks depends on their condition: Fat ducks that aren't shot up get roasted, skinny ducks get braised, shot-up ducks are for rillettes, carnitas, sausage, etc. Unless you have a beautiful, fat duck (which you'll want to roast), break down the birds so you can cook the breasts medium rare (with a few exceptions, you want ducks to be pink, not gray or brown.) and braise the legs and wings.
And don't forget the livers make excellent ravioli filling and the hearts a tasty, if unusal, stir-fry. And the carcasses make fantastic duck stock or broth.
'Exotic' Meats: What's Your Pleasure?
I just barbecued a jackrabbit in a mustard sauce. It was fantabulous!
Basically everything I eat is "exotic" because I hunt or fish for pretty much all my meat. Weirdest? Sea cucumber was pretty nasty, although I kinda like jellyfish. No North American game meat is too terribly "weird" tasting, if it is cooked properly. Maybe turtle.
I bet whale or seal would be pretty odd, although I have eaten neither. Fishy beef is how I hear it described. Mountain lion is said to taste like pork, as is coyote.
Spike's Scallops from Top Chef
There is nothing wrong with frozen scallops -- you just can't then sear them the way Spike wanted to. He should have seen the product, known the issue and made ceviche out of them, or quenelles, or a tartare, a souffle -- anything the added water won't really affect that horribly. His judgment failed him not only on choosing a limiting ingredient, but on what he chose to do with that ingredient once the choice was made...
Eating and hanging out in Sacramento
Hey Kathy,
I live in Sacramento, and I can tell you your choices are myriad. It would help to know what you are looking for? Upscale? Dive? Taco truck? World-class haute cusine? Believe it or not, Sacto has it all -- you just need to know where to look.
White wine recipes?
Any recipe that calls for red wine can use white wine -- it is a common way to "lighten" winter dishes for springtime. The difference between a red wine-simmered stewing hen and a white wine-simmered bird (or lamb, or even beef!) is noticeable and very appropriate for this time of year. So have at it!
Is Copper River Salmon worth its weight in gold?
Copper River salmon is sockeye, which is a smaller and redder salmon than chinook. Fiddleheadfern is correct: Buy *any* Alaskan sockeye and you will be a happy person.
Sadly, I live in California and am experiencing the Year Without A Salmon. I was in shock for a while, but I have just made the acquaintance of the Pacific white seabass, which is so freakin' awesome I am wondering where it's been all my life!
Get ready for $40 a pound king salmon later this year...or switch to another fish.
Thresher shark
It's basically swordfish -- and along with mako shark sold as such by disreputable fishmongers -- so use any sword recipe. Turkish walnut sauce over grilled kebabs is nice. Poached in olive oil is also good.
Keep in mind that mercury levels in thresher are pretty high. Don't feed it to young kids, and don't eat more than 2-3 meals of it per month.
Shad Season
You should come to California or Oregon, where the two largest American shad runs in the world are. There are so many in the Sacramento you can keep 25 a day...
...and it should be said that while certain species of shad do occur worldwide, the American shad is only native to the East Coast from Florida to Labrador. It was planted in California in 1871 and spread to the West Coast after that.
Our season has just started now, and will run into July. I will be sharpening my knives to fillet the fish, which takes some doing. Once filleted, you can do all kinds of things with shad, which earns its Latin name sapidissima.
As for the roe, I flour it, cook it in bacon fat, and serve with chervil and a wedge of lemon.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Lamb tongue tastes exactly like bologna. Grilled sweetbreads (thymus glands) on a bun is like a fishwich without the fishy taste. Try them some time.
Do you blog? What's your URL?
Cocina Savant
http://cocinasavant.blogspot.com/
Weekly pictures, recipes, and thoughts from a husband and wife who love books and cooking for each other.
Gluten-Free Tuesday: Juniper Berries
thanks for the post!
I have had two ounces of Juniper berries (also from World Spice!) sitting in my cupboard for a few months just wishing they were being better used. So far I've been crushing them and adding them to loose black tea, which is delicious, but I've been hankering for some new ideas.
Gluten-Free Tuesday: Juniper Berries
While living in Germany, I learned how to make great sauerkraut with juniper berries, apples and potatoes.
Gluten-Free Tuesday: Juniper Berries
I add juniper berries to the mixture I use to brine pork and poultry. mmmm, not only does it taste wonderful, I love just opening the jar to smell it.
The 'Science' of food going bad?
And there is the always useful and interesting shelf-life guide:
The Nasty Bits: The Tale of Veal
Chichi, and a cow has two tenderloins! Should be half the price of oxtail, if there were any justice. :)
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
I love organ meats.
The 'Science' of food going bad?
To keep your beef safe for you and your family here are some tips to remember :
4 C's (Cool It, Clean It, Cook It, Don't Cross It)
1. "Cool It" When shopping, choose your beef items at the end of your shopping trip. When home put your beef in the refrigerator immediately. Total "room temperature" exposure for meat is two hours.
2. "Clean It" When ready to prepare your beef product make sure all cooking surfaces and utensils are clean.
3. "Cook It" When cooking beef, especially ground beef, the magic internal cooked temperature is 160 degrees, for more information go to: www.safeandsavory.com.
4. "Don't Cross It" in other words, keep raw meat and cooked meat separate, never shall the two cross, keep in separate cutting boards, bowls when stir frying and plates for grilling.
For more information about safe cooking go to www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com and www.safeandsavory.com
The 'Science' of food going bad?
I should probably go into another conversation with my thoughts on this but being 40something, does anyone remember being young and having food sit out at parties/cookouts for like ALL DAY and then sit ON THE COUNTER or in the fridge for a week or more while we were still eating the leftovers? It can't be just me. How did we survive?
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
I certainly wish the "nasty bits" were more mainstream. I'm a big fan, particularly of liver in any concoction and head cheese. Though I could never serve these dishes to guests. And when folks raid my fridge for leftovers they're sometimes aghast :)
I was actually drawn to the "nasty bits" because of how economical they are and quickly fell in love with the strong flavors and variety of textures. Those very textures seem to flip people out who aren't used to them though.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Where's the haggis and sweetbreads?! Love the article, Barber's such a sensible man.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
lemonfair is correct—those would be necks, gizzards, and wings. Definitely not the most nastiest of bits, I have to agree. If you are unsatisfied, click over to: kidneys, tripe, and whole hock.
The Nasty Bits: The Tale of Veal
Meh. I don't mind paying higher prices for oxtail. A cow only has one, you know!
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Oh - and I believe the picture is fowl necks, wings, and gizzards. Not exactly the nasty bits.
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
I don't disagree with the premise, but if I had to sign up for this I'd move over to the vegetarian line. (The exception is giblets in my thanksgiving stuffing.)
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Kudos to Dan Barber! Love his closing sentence: "Democratizing the carcass should be the future of food".
Here in Indonesia, as well as most of Asia, 'democratizing' the whole animal is already an integral part of cooking, and as Barber made the point: it makes a whole lot of economic sense.
Just to give one example of the nasty (but tasty) bits we enjoy here: one very popular dish is the "Goat Feet Soup", served in the humblest of settings. Yes, the feet of the goats are the main attraction (hooves intact, how's that for not wasting anything?), plus other organs that would never grace the menu in America... even, ehm, the goat's 'family jewels'. Click this link and browse through the photos, if you have the stomach for it... (ha! :)).
Dan Barber Says We Need to Like Organ Meat
Agree with 'Hunter Angler' about all those special possibilities...and the photo does no justice. Photo captions would be appreciated...what exactly are we looking at?
The Nasty Bits: The Tale of Veal
Oh I love oxtail. Shame it has gotten so pricey. I make a great Thai/Chinese style braise...mmmmmmmmmm
Bought a Beef Heart... What do I do?
I just bought a beef heart on a serious whim and I'm thinking about cutting it up and tossing it up in a crock pot full of some spicy creole seasoning with beans (not sure what kind) and then toss some onions bell peppers and garlic and let it simmer all day while I'm at school. (will that work? or is it a bit much??) of course it will all be served over rice.
Serious Green: A Preview of 'Food, Inc.' in Theaters June 12
Great movie! It's very Different to see these issues and not just read about them.
Best TV Chef? Worst TV Chef?
I miss "Microwave Master" with Donovan Jon Fandre, "Capril's Kitchen" with Caprile Pence, "Cooking Monday Through Friday" with Michelle Urvater and "Sunshine Cuisine" with Jean-Pierre Brehier.
As far as the worst, I would rather watch the chef on "The Muppet Show" than Alton Brown. David Rosengarten was so much more professional and didn't rely on forced humor.
Serious Green: A Preview of 'Food, Inc.' in Theaters June 12
I got to see this (for free!) in an advance screening ... The film is a bit of a re-hash of "Omnivore's Dilemma" and "Fast Food Nation" ('Omnivore' author Micheal Pollan is interviewed in the film, as was Joel Salatin, owner of Polyface Farms, who was interviewed in Pollan's book). I would say that this film is the equivalent of "An Inconvenient Truth" for food production (The production company behind this film actually produced "AIT" as well). The film defenitely aspires to the dramatic, especially during the opening title page, with businessmen with briefcases walking through a blackened field towards factory machines (evil., evil!)
Still, the film does provide many eye-opening scenes that are dramatic... huge cattle farms .... images of dead and/or diseased cows and chickens. There ARE some scenes of inside the slaughtering houses in this film (but thankfully, not too many scenes, and the film does prepare you before showing anything too gruesome). There is an un-intended (or is it?) effect of the scenes inside the slaughter-houses: The film is rated PG, meaning it is acceptable for young viewers, even though some of these images are disturbing. But think - these images are from our food production model. Shouldn't our food production methods be able to be seen by anyone? Is meat processing something that has to be rated R? This relates back to one of the film's primary themes: we would all change our eating habits if we really understood the source and production of our food.
I wouldn't say the film is necessarily a "hatchet job" ... it squarely points the finger at large agra-businesses and government agencies, but that's because they are an easy target: They DO a lot of the bad stuff that the film claims they do, and they try very hard to keep information about their business below the public radar.
Overall, I though the film was very good and eye-opening ... It has made me and my wife think about our food purchases when we go grocery shopping, so this last week instead of buying our groceries at our local "bargain warehouse" grocery store (WinCo ... if you are from the NW, you know WinCo...), we tried getting our groceries from the local farmer's market and Whole Foods. It was more expensive, but when it comes to our food and our health, we both decided that this was important. The film also states at the end of the film some statistics on how you can change the environment and food production model, including such ideas as "buying organic", "buy local", "buy in-season only produce", etc. The tough part is that many people simply do not have the funds to purchase organic or local foods (the film interviews a family of four on food stamps, who finds it cheaper to feed their family a dinner from the dollar menu at McDonald's than it is to buy just a few vegetables). They ARE more expensive ... part of the reason is our skewed farming methods, and the laws that protect and favor industrial food production. But like the film suggests, if we, as a public, change our eating and buying habits, businesses will have to follow suit if they want to keep our business.
I give this movie 4 out of 5 stars.
Does anyone know anything about growing artichokes?
Beth
I live just outside of Chicago, IL, and last year I planted 6 artichokes and they grew really large, but no artichokes. So I let them die back and I covered them with leaves and they came back this spring. So now they are growing large and I have about 6 chokes on ones of the plants and it is only the middle of June.
If I can grow them in Chicago, then you should be able to grow them in California. Kathryn
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About HunterAnglerGardenerCook
Website: http://www.honest-food.net
Location: Sacramento, CA
About: I write. I fish. I dig earth, raise plants, live for food and kill wild animals. I drink bourbon, Barolo or Budweiser with equal aplomb and wish I owned a farm. I am the omnivore who has solved his dilemma.
Favorite foods: Wild game, mushrooms, pork, salami, odd salad greens, tomatoes, mandarins, salmon belly, garlic...I could go on...
Last bite on earth:
As a game cook, I use several pounds of juniper berries every year. Venison and duck are classics, but they go well with moose, antelope, goose, chupacabra, wild boar, wombat, pigeon, dove and especially hummingbird...
Seriously, the berries are soft and resinous, making them very tough to grind to a powder. You need to toast them first if you want this. I typically just coarse grind them. More rustic that way...