Osso Bucco - Shank Right!

In football terms, when you "shank right", you miss a field goal to the right side.  Off a righty kicker's foot, it functions like a slice in golf.  Starts off ok, but ends up tailing off wide right.  I will never forget when the Buffalo Bills lost in the Super Bowl to the New York Giants.  How did they lose?  Yep, wide right, or to my earlier point, a shank right.  A Scott Norwood field goal attempt in the waning seconds would have won the game.  "Wide Right" will forever be curse words in Buffalo.

So, what does this football story have anything to do with the Year of Meat, and Osso Bucco in particular?  Veal Shanks!  That's what!  And when you cook them right, you get Shank Right, which I have to assume Osso Bucco in Italian means Shank Right, right?  It's the kind of meat, when cooked right, sort of melts off the bone.  And when prepared in the right sauce, you get a rich, hearty comfort food.  Serve it on top of a simple Parmesan Risotto,  and you get a "stick to the ribs" kind of comfort food.  Is there a better kind?

Let's talk recipe.  I made a rub of rosemary, thyme, basil, oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper, and rubbed it into the veal shanks.  In a Dutch Oven (thanks for the many laughs over my use of my Dutch Oven, by the way), heat up some olive oil, and brown all sides of the veal shanks, and then set them aside on a plate.  Add to the oil and drippings some carrots, onions and chopped (thick cut) prosciutto, and cook for about 10 minutes.  Add some garlic, white wine, chopped tomatoes and chicken broth.  Once to a boil, add in some chopped basil and thyme, a bay leaf and some lemon peel.  When all that is mixed in, add the shanks back in and place in the oven at 325 degrees for 2 hours, turning the shanks every 30 minutes.

While that is cooking, I made a gremolata (a garnish for the osso bucco) of lemon zest, garlic, chopped basil and pepper.  And about 1 hour into the cooking, I made a parmesan risotto.  Melted some butter in some canola oil, added in a chopped shallot and cooked for 3 minutes, then added in arborio rice.  Made sure the rice got stitted wet in the butter/oil/shallots, and then added some white wine, and then spent the next 30 minutes adding in a ladle of chicken broth and stirring until dry, adding another ladle and stirring until dry, and kept doing that "add ladle/stir until dry" process the whole time.  Once the rice was fully cooked (no crunchy al dente texture), I added in more butter, some chopped parsley and fresh grated parmesan.  Yum!

While in the midst of the "add ladle/stir" process, I removed the Dutch Oven from the oven, transferred the shanks to a plate under foil, and put the Dutch Oven over the stove to reduce the sauce by half.  Brought it to a boil, and did just that.  Added the shanks back to the sauce, and we were ready to go.

This was rich meat in a rich sauce over a rich risotto.  The gremolata garnish (which I almost forgot) helped cut into the richness, and gave the dish a lively zesty life to it.  Good stuff!!!  Shank Right!!!

21 down, 38 to go!

Boston Rolled Pot Roast - Food, Wine and Company

This entry is my third pot roast and fourth roast overall in my Year of Meat.  And one thing I learned from the prior ones is that when cooking enough food to serve four or more people, it's best to have four or more people there to eat it!  What's nice about this year's quest, is that when we have plans on the calendar to have friends over, I can look to my remaining list of Paulina cuts and choose one ideal for the group.  Well, for this past Saturday night, we had plans to host friends with whom we haven't gotten together since October.  Too long, as we all agreed at the end of the night.

I remember when I was growing up, my Mom would often refer to guests for dinner as "company", as in, "we've got company coming over for dinner".  Is that expression still used?  I know I don't use it anymore.  But I like it.  Well, this past Saturday, we had company.  So, what to make?  Well, I decided I was going to use the Boston Rolled Pot Roast as the cut of choice.  So, what recipe should I use?  Well, a quick search online for 5 star recipes for Boston Rolled Pot Roast revealed one from Food Network Magazine's Ina Garten.  What was it called?  You guess it, Company Pot Roast.

But before I can do the main course justice, can I talk about the deliciousness that my wife put together for an appetizer?  She put together chopped radicchio, pepperoncinis, toasted pine nuts, goat cheese and some oils/vinegars and rolled that "filling" into salami rolled into little cones.  I have joked in the past about meat cones, to rival ice cream cones.  Never did I think that my wife would be the one to make me my first meat cone.  It was delicious!  To be fair, the filling was vegetarian, but the cone was salami and that counts to me.  So good!!!

OK.  To the main course, the Company Potroast.  Put a rub of Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper all over the roast.  Then, dredged the entire roast in all-purpose flour.  Then, browned the entire roast (which took about 20 minutes to get every side) in a dutch oven with olive oil.  Removed the roast and added more olive oil and cooked up carrots, celery, leeks, onions, garlic, salt and pepper.  Added in some canned crushed tomatoes, cognac, red wine, thyme and rosemary.  Ultimately, got the roast back into the dutch oven, covered it, and put it into the oven for a couple of hours.  After removing from the oven, I put half of the vegetables and sauce into a blender and pureed it.  Added the puree back to the pot, and stirred in some butter mixed with flour to thicken it up a bit.  Carved the roast, and served it on a platter with plenty of the sauce/gravy.  And when put on my plate, served it with even more of the sauce/gravy.  Paired this deliciousness with a 2009 Nickel & Nickel Merlot, and the meal was indeed a success.  And this completed the quality triumvirate of Food, Wine and Company.  A grand success.

But let's talk dessert. I have to throw props to my wife yet again.  She made a whipped lemon cream dessert that is served with crushed graham crackers, with little crystals of sea salt sprinkled over it.  YUM!  We opened an Italian white dessert wine which paired with it perfectly.  Again, yum!

Looking forward to more Food, Wine and Company!  20 down, 39 to go!

Oxtails - 44 Years Down, 44 Years to Go

Last night, I made oxtails.  Similar to other cuts on this year's quest, I had neither cooked oxtails before last night nor had I ever ate them prior to last night.  I had seen them on menus, and deftly avoided them.  I am not averse to trying new things, but if I'm looking at a menu, I tend to gravitate to what sounds good.  And oxtails?  Well, they just don't sound good.  I googled oxtails yesterday to understand exactly what it was that I was about to eat.  Well, although they aren't truly the tails of oxen, they are the tails of the cow.  Yep, the tails of the cow.  I was truly spooked out.

I found a recipe by a reputable famous chef, a recipe which had a 5 star rating.  But, all the reviewers were people who are big fans of oxtails, and who were comparing this recipe to other oxtail recipes.  So, at least I felt good in that if I was going to enjoy this meal, I chose the right recipe to use.  But, the reviewers weren't like me, people who had never tried them.  They were fans.  And so I began.

Salt and pepper on them.  Browned them in a Dutch oven.  Set them aside and in sequence, added carrots, onions, celery, leeks, green onions, garlic, ginger, tomato paste, flour, beer, allspice and beef broth.  Returned the oxtails to the Dutch oven and covered/simmered for a little over two hours.  Served them with mashed potatoes, and took my first bite of oxtail in 44 years.

I must admit, I enjoyed avoiding oxtails for 44 years.  And I will enjoy avoiding them for the next 44 years.  On my 88th birthday, I hereby commit to eating oxtails.  And I am not looking forward to it.

Please note:  These statements are NOT an indictment on the quality of the meat nor the quality of the recipe.  Rather, it's a texture/gamey thing beyond which I couldn't get.  But at least I tried them!

19 down, 40 to go!

Boneless Top Sirloin Steak - Reaching the Hilltop

On old Route 1, north of Boston in a town called Saugus, once existed a famous establishment called Hilltop Steakhouse.  I had relatives a few towns north of Saugus, so many a drive took place past it.  It was famous, from my perspective, because it had a 70 foot cactus out front.  Here is a link to an article with photos about Hilltop's closing.  Ironically enough, I never made it to Hilltop, but I was intrigued for two main reasons.  First, being young, I was enthralled with the 70 foot cactus.  Second, there was ALWAYS a line out of the building to get in.  Perhaps it was because of the high quality of the food.  Perhaps it was because the prices were below market.  But perhaps it was because others were as impressed as I was with the 70 foot cactus,

I'm disappointed I never made it to the Hilltop.  Rumor has it that the catcus is up for auction.  Count me in on wanting to see where the lucky winner places that behemoth.

So, why am I talking about the Hilltop Steakhouse?  First, because of the cactus.  But secondly, because (and I may be wrong here) my suspicion is that it was the kind of place where you can get some less expensive cuts of steak, but have it prepared so well that it doesn't matter.  The 70 foot cactus didn't scream Prime Rib Eye Steaks or Beef Tenderloin, it screamed Top Sirloin in my book.  And that's what I'm screaming about now.  Let's discuss.

Thanks yet again to Michael Symon's Carnivore, I put together a recipe for Top Sirloin with Chanterelle Mushrooms.  Amount of Top Sirloin I bought at Paulina?  26 oz.  Amount of Chanterelle Mushrooms I bought at Whole Foods?  14 oz.  Not to quibble on prices, but the mushrooms cost more than the meat!  I found that aspect interesting, as it speaks to a number of aspects of the recipe.

Seasoned the Steak overnight with a mixture of sugar and Kosher salt.  Took it out an hour before cooking.  And seared it for 4 minutes per side in a roasting pan with olive oil.  Out came the Sirloin, in went the mushrooms, shallot, garlic, and eventually mustard, soy sauce and red wine.  Each time I added an ingredient and cooked/stirred for a minute, my response was "ooh, this is going to be good" based just on the smell.  And with each new ingredient added, the response was simply repeated again and again.

After finishing the mushroom sauce, I carved the steak and poured the sauce over it.  Served all this over mashed potatoes, and it was comfort food deliciousness.  Loved it!  I may not have made it to the Hilltop Steakhouse, but this recipe made me feel like I did.

18 down, 41 to go!

Rump Roast - Do the Rumpty Rump

One of the many great outcomes of the Year of Meat is the number of roasts I get to make.  Earlier this week, I had actually chosen a different cut to make.  But then I was looking at the remaining cuts, and I realized that I still had 7 beef roasts alone still to go, not even including the pork, veal and lamb ones.  And with winter (finally) coming to a close, "roast season" is nearing an end, only to return again late next fall.  When the weather is nice, I plan to be outside grilling and smoking as much as possible.  Sure, I can roast outside, but I can't grill or smoke inside.  So, there is a bit of a natural sequencing that should occur with my 40 some odd remaining cuts.  And that order commences with getting some roasts done while the weather is still wintry.

So, let's talk Rump Roast.  Like many other cuts in this Year of Meat, I have never bought a Rump Roast.  I have never cooked a Rump Roast.  In fact, I don't think I've ever ordered Rump Roast in a restaurant.  I would assume that I had it at some point when I was young and my Mom would simply generically tell me that we were having "a roast".  First, let's be clear, Rump Roast is not an expensive cut of meat.  And there is a reason for that.  That said, if you prepare a Rump Roast correctly (which thanks to Emeril (click here), I did), and have a quality cut from Paulina (which I did), it can be a delicious meal.

My wife is a big Emeril fan and she had previously put together his "Essence" seasoning from scratch.  So we used that along with some salt and pepper and put a rub on the roast.  In a dutch oven, with hot olive oil, I seared all sides of the roast to build a bit of a seal for the flavor (about 4 minutes per side).  Into the oven set at convection roast at 275 degrees, it cooked for about 1:45 until the internal temperature got to about 130 degrees.  On the side, I made the simple rice in Emeril's recipe, and served with a side salad.  This was basic "meat and potatoes" but we used rice instead of potatoes.  But it was inexpensive, sizable and delicious.  Nothing overly fancy in terms of flavor profile, just a simply delicious straightforward meal.  A solid thumbs up from me.

17 down, 42 to go!