A Visit To A Master Kitchen Knife Maker

I love watching almost anything Anthony Bourdain does. In this new web series, (sponsored by Balvenie Single Malt Scotch Whisky) Tony visits masters of handcrafting. The first one I saw takes him to Olympia, Washington where Bob Kramer crafts custom kitchen knives from meteors. The process is fascinating and the result is a truly magnificent chefs knife. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. (One of the others in the series is a visit to a forge where they hand craft cast iron skillets).

Ton-Yuk-Kui (Korean Pork Fillets)

There are many things in the Korean recipe world that titillate the taste buds, but one of my favourites  is the dish known as Ton-Yuk-Kui, or Korean Pork Fillets. This is a dish that everyone around the table at my house loves. It makes about 4 servings and is a great main course. It is easy to prepare and cook, too and that always goes a long way in my book.

Ton-Yuk-Kui Recipe

2 Pounds pork tenderloin, sliced thin
3 Tbs sesame oil

The Marinade

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water
3 Tbs sugar
2 scallions, chopped fine
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 inch piece of peeled ginger, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all marinade ingredients. Reserve 1/3 of the marinade for later use. Add pork slices to remaining marinade and allow to marinate for 2-3 hours at room temperature.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Remove the pork slices from the marinade and dry on paper or kitchen towels.

Coat bottom and sides of a baking sheet with the sesame oil.

Place the pork slices on the baking pan in a single layer and cover with foil.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Pour reserved marinade into a pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove cooked pork to serving dish and pour any cooking juices into the marinade. Allow to simmer for a couple of minutes more. Pour a bit of it over the pork slices and serve the rest of it with the meat.

Maque Choux

One of my favourite Cajun dishes is Maque Choux, a combination of sweet corn and meat with a nice hint of spiciness. This is a classic Louisiana dish and comes in a variety of styles. You can make it as a vegetarian dish, by the simple expedient of leaving the meat out, or make a more classic version using pork, chicken or crawfish. I prefer meat in mine and this version of the recipe reflects that. You can use canned corn for this, but fresh, seasonal corn, cut from the cob, is the best way to go.

Maque Choux

1/2 cup oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
3 cups fresh whole kernel corn (or canned if it's out of season)
1 Tablespoon garlic, chopped
1 cup white wine
1 cup water
Cayenne pepper to taste
Salt to taste

2 Lbs meat (chicken, pork or crawfish),cut in bite sized pieces

Heat oil over medium heat in large skillet. Saute' onions and bell pepper until onions are translucent. Add corn, garlic, water, wine and seasonings and stir. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 1/2 an hour. Add meat and return to simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Serve over long grained rice or by itself. If you feel the need for more heat, sprinkle with Louisiana hot sauce.

Crystal Tofu

Lots of people run from tofu and still others decline to eat it because of its rather bland taste. Having lived in Asia I like tofu, in its varied forms. One of my favourite ways to eat and prepare it though, is my take on Crystal Tofu. It makes a great side dish for a Japanese meal or just a fine use of tofu. It is packed with protein and is gluten free. Best of all is that it is something even the kids will enjoy. It's a great summertime side when served nice and chilled.

Dipping Sauce
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs sugar
2 Tbs sake
5 Tbs dashi broth

1 block firm tofu (10-12 oz)

Toppings
4 green onions, chopped
2 Tbs fresh grated ginger
 1 sheet nori, cut into strips

Combine dipping sauce ingredients in a small pan and heat till sugar is dissolved then chill.
Drain tofu and cut into bite sized pieces. Place in serving dish.
Prepare toppings.
You may serve the tofu individually with small bowls of dipping sauce or pour the dipping sauce over the tofu and let it marinate for 20-30 minutes, then serve. Sprinkle toppings over tofu and serve.

Serves about 4 people.

A Charcoal Interlude

Well, now that grilling season is upon us, (not really. Like most of us I grill year round), the hunt for charcoal begins. The stores around me are just now starting to get restocked in that area and I managed to get three bags of Royal Oak 100% All Natural Hardwood Lump Charcoal for the fantastic price of $7.00 per 17.6 lb bag at my local Super Walmart. Great deal. While this is normally my go to charcoal I am currently coming off of using a bag of Kingsford Charcoal Competition Briquets, (bought after being recommended to me by Chris Lilly, the pitmaster at Big Bob Gibson in Decatur, Alabama). While this is Chris' go to for competition grilling, I was less than impressed by it. It didn't impart much flavour to the meats being cooked and it just didn't seem to produce the same high searing heat that Royal Oak Lump normally does. It also produced copious amounts of ash. It seems to work out well for Chris, though. They keep winning competitions.
   I do believe that I'll be sticking to the lumpen goodness for the foreseeable future. I've never really cared much for standard briquet charcoal and the more expensive Competition grade just didn't light my fire. Sorry, Chris. For those of you who like lump charcoal you might want to give your local Walmart a check. At $7/17.6# this is a deal that cannot be beat, (that deal may not be the standard at all Walmarts, but you never can tell).

Velvet Corn Soup With Crab Meat

Back when I was still working in the restaurant business my favourite food to create and cook was soup. Always loved coming up with something new and different for my customers. But my absolute favourite soup recipe comes from the 1977 cookbook "Chinese Cooking, The Easy Wok Method", by Karen Lee Aland. This soup was a family favourite and one I always looked forward to eating.
   It is simple to prepare and the ingredients aren't hard to come by. You can easily substitute fresh crab for canned. And the soup may be made in a pot or a wok. And the recipe scales up very easily, as you may well want to, as this soup demands coming back for seconds. Or thirds.

There are still a few copies of the cookbook out there at Amazon.com and other online retailers. It's well worth adding to your library.


Velvet Corn Soup With Crab Meat


Ingredients

1 cup crab meat, washed and drained
6 cups chicken broth
2 cups sweet corn, cream style
2 eggs, separated; yolks lightly beaten, whites stiffly beaten

Seasoning

1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Marinade

1 slice ginger, minced
2 tsp cornstarch
1 Tablespoon dry sherry

1. Marinate the crab meat in the ginger, cornstarch and sherry for about 1 hour.
2. Heat the chicken stock. Add the corn and bring to a boil.
3. Add the crab meat mixture and return to the boil.
4. Turn the heat down to a simmer and stir in the egg yolks. Then fold in the egg whites. Simmer for a few minutes and then serve.

A Few Dressings For Salad Season

With the coming of Spring we get to look forward to the crisp, fresh salads that are coming our way,
(I really don't look forward to the bagged offerings of Winter). And with the salads comes the dressings. While I use a handful of quick dressings, I'd always rather make my own. They're not difficult and they are way tastier than the mass produced offerings. Here are a few of the favourites at our house. They can easily be made in a bowl, but sometimes a blender or food processor will help the job along much better.

This is an old favourite around here and usually gets made all through the year. It goes great on a nice, fresh taco salad. Do use a blender or processor for this one. It will go a lot easier.

Thousand Island Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup chili sauce
1/4 green pepper
1/2 stalk celery, sliced
1/4 small onion
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt

Put ingredients in blender or food processor and blend till everything is combined and vegetables are finely chopped.  Makes about 2 cups.

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French Dressing

1/2 cup neutral oil (canola or any nice salad oil)
2 Tablespoons cider vinegar
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Just a quick dash of cayenne

Add all ingredients to processor or blender and mix till combined. Chill and shake before serving.

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I saved the best for last. It's a favourite of everybody's and is just flat out delicious. This recipe originated from a 1984 version of the Campbell's Great American Cookbook, but got some major modifications from me over the years. I think you'll like it.

Blue Cheese Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup crumbled Roquefort or other blue cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1 glove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
a few dashes of Tabasco sauce
buttermilk

Combine all ingredients, except buttermilk, in small mixing bowl. Mix till combined. Thin out with buttermilk till desired consistency is reached. Chill. Serve over your favourite salads or use as a dip.