Country Style Ribs For The Urbane Cook

One of the best cuts of pork to cook and eat is the country style rib. These can be made in  variety of ways. They're  a great meal on these frigid night, hearty and rib sticking. It's a nice change up from the usual winter fare.


John Willoughby, a regular contributor to the New York Times Food section and cookbook author, wrote about these beauties for today's cooking section. Country style ribs weren't so desirable years ago.It's actually not a rib for starters, more a blend of both white and dark meat..Butchers had truble selling this cut.It didn't look as lean or smooth as other pork cuts. It usually wound up in sausages or secreted in the bottom of a package labeled loin chops.Sometime in the late Sixties or early Seventies a clever Chicago butcher, Cliff Bowes, came up with the idea of fashioning these chops into s strip of ribs. To achieve this he butterflied them and cut through the ribs. Home chefs can identify them by their shape. They  are a slender section of rib that curves nicely at the bottom.Some of them have a flat ,  little two or three inch section of bone along one edge. Not to worry.It just means that the chop was cut from the section of shoulder that was adjacent to the rib. Just remember that this cut does have , more fat, more connective tissue and more dark meat.

The recipes Mr. Willoughby gives are perfect for this time of year.The first one has the braised with chipotle.. They're first rubbed with a spicy mix of cumin, coriander, ground chipotle peppers and cayenne. Cinnamon gives it it an earthy sweetness. The rubbed ribs are then braised in a Dutch oven Onions are garlic are added. To counterbalance this is orange and lime juices. The ribs are then simmered for an hour and fifteen minutes. The sauce is the ladled onto the cooked ribs along with pomegranate seeds. The other recipe has pears and sweet potatoes. This is a stew that also has fennel and onions  The spice is caraway seeds and allspice for a distinctly Slavic European vibe. The pork is cut into one inch cubes  and sprinkled with kosher salt. These ar e left to stand for one hour before. They're then dried and sprinkled generously with pepper.Again the cubes and the bones (please save them) are browned in a dutch oven. After al the cubes and bones have been browned add the fennel and onion to the pot. All the other ingredients , including the meat and bones, are then added, along with chicken stock and simmered for an hour. Guests can put a dollop of mustard on their portions of stew if they want.I'd just serve this with wamed rye bread and butter.

Country ribs are a great dish.for these cold winters night. Serve them with a spicy chipotle sauce or a mellowed stew, sweet with pears , squash and fennel. either way, they are filling and satisfying.

It's The Barbecue Issue!!! Part One

Every one's thoughts turn to the outdoors when Memorial Day rolls around on the calendar. it's not the clear blue sky and balmy temps that 's the lure but the grill. It's barbecue season, with all the fun  and good food that come with it.It's time to leave a hot kitchen for a cool  grill.

The New York Times Food section covered all things related to it in today's issue. It's a keeper . especially for those planning on a big barbecue this weekend. One of the best articles is by regular contributor, Sam Sifton. He explains the basic, starting with the most basic - the fire.He parses the difference between direct heat (perfect for hamburgers) and indirect heat( good for slower cooking meats). There is also a how too about creating both on the same grill, whether it's a gas or charcoal fueled one. He then explains how meats from chicken to seafood to pork, beef and lamb, should be prepared and cooked. Mr Sifton recommends novice  grillers to go with the easiest - chicken. There are also tips on  on grilling all the meats along with how to prepare different types such as chicken breasts, shrimp and hamburgers. Melissa Clark gives a how to on how to roast an entire chicken outside.It's actually done in a skillet placed on the grill.One of the best things about cooking this way is that the drippings get saved as opposed to being dissipated . They can be used to saute sides. Ms. Clark uses it to saute spinach spiked with garlic and anchovies. Home chefs can vary the greens with ramps or chard.

Of course veggies are an important part of the cookout . John Willoughby and Chris Scheslinger wrote about the side side of barbecuing. Vegetables are surprisingly good for grilling. They grow tender without losing their flavor and can retain it days afterwards in the fridge.Both Mr. Willoughby and Mr. Scheslinger recommend bell peppers,eggplants and tomatoes. Even lemon and lime slices can be grilled, their juices lending some smokiness to dipping sauces.There is a smoky chimichurri sauce recipe that would be great with any grilled steak. Home chefs have to try the  recipe for red onion chutney that takes the grilled alliums to another level,thanks to brown sugar and a melange of spices that include chili and cumin. Chefs around the country are also on this grill anything bandwagon too.Another Food regular, Jeff Gordonier traveled around the country to see what professional cooks are throwing over the coals.There are glazed grilled carrots that are cooked first and then tossed into a dressing.Onions can be charcoal cooked  so their middles become creamy, savory puddings  while hunks of olive oil soaked bread can be tossed on the grill to  become toasty and smoky.Oranges can be cut and place don skewers to be toasted into chips.Anything can be used in a barbecue, a great idea for chefs who may be running low on food and ingredients.

Today's New York Times Food section will help any home chef  deal with grilling . There is some great advice that will work for  this year and for seasons to come. Save the section. It's truly invaluable

Rediscovering Your Broiler

For many home chef broiling is a rare experience. It's usually not thought of for cooking steaks, even now when the weather is still warm enough to grill outside. Yet broiling adds to meat,poultry  and fish , giving them a  nice juiciness without all that overpowering smoky flavor. It's time to rediscover this important part of the oven.

John Willoughby did just that and wrote about it in yesterday's New York Times Food section Sixty years ago broiling was de rigeur for home chefs.It was used mostly for chops and steaks and they were usually over broiled until they were dry and flavorless. The method  fell out of favor with only restaurants using them and being renamed as the salamander. (this from the Greeks who attributed the animal with fire producing ability). Luckily a new generation is discovering broilers and using them to create a variety of dishes. His friend and cooking partner, Chris Schlesinger started with steaks, namely because his girlfriend, Suzanne wanted them and the time of year was not agreeable to outdoor cooking. Her craving happened in the middle of a snowstorm. The stomach wants what the stomach wants and Chef Schlesinger decided that pan cooked steak would end up in a smoky kitchen. That's when his broiler snobbery had to be over come and the broiler was the only method left to produced perfectly grilled filet. He was hooked, graduating from beef to chicken to fish.

There are a few warnings to heed before trying out your oven's boiler. Remember that every broiler has its' quirks and peculiarities. Different ones heat to different temperatures and the distance between heat and rack varies from oven to oven. Home chefs have to be active in the cooking process.As with outdoor grilling, it's important to check in often on the food and move it around to avoid one side getting burned or cooked before the other side. Before even starting the broiler needs to be preheated  for five to ten minutes, preferably for the longer period of time. As with grilling select tender and thin pieces of meat to broil.Fish steaks, chicken and steak strips are all fine. Stay away from whole chickens ( although you can broil Cornish hens thanks to their small size) and wholes roasts. Save those for the oven. Pay attention to where the food is positioned. (this doesn't apply to the old fashioned under the oven type). The meat has to be close enough , namely three to four inches away to cook properly. Also nix the Pyrex or any glass  container because they will break. Buy  those aluminum  a roasting pans which can be used many times and then discarded without cleaning.

Home chefs should rediscover broiling. It's a lost method of cooking that should be resurrected. It produces  deliciously broiled meats, that are juicy and succulent,

Healing Recipes

Can a cookbook cure a person?Surprisingly yes.In the case of one centenarian New Yorker classic and beloved French recipes did the trick in healing her.The cure starts with devotion and ends with a potluck feast. The New Yorker is Ruth Levy ,a tough Bronx native who once decoded Nazi intercepts during the Second World War.Her story was the subject of an article written by John Willoughby in yesterday's New York Times Dining section.Ms Levy wound up with an almost lethal case of pneumonia and as she healed, had all sorts of books read to her by a distant cousin, David Vos.All sorts of books were read to her as she made it from the hospital to rehab to finally back home.One book was the classic cookbook,Clementine In The Kitchen.It's about an American family living in France and blissfully enjoying French cuisine prepared by their cook Clementine.When the rumblings of a War are heard the family including Clementine head back to Massachusetts where she introduces the locals to the joys of French cooking.The book was written by Samuel Chamberlain. As a carrot for Ms . Levy to get completely better Mr. Vos promised a feast from the cookbook.It was a potluck salute to the book and it certainly did the trick making Ms.Levy feel better. The recipes were tweaked to her liking.Red wine, was used in coq au vin as opposed to white, no capers in the deviled eggs and heavy cream instead of egg whites in a sinful chocolate mousse. One recipe that wasn't in there yet celebrated the book was a flour less cake made with Clementine orange made by pastry chef and family friend Dawn Datso.Ms. Datso made this Passover appropriate cake is kind of reminiscent of the top half of a Boston creme pie.It is redolent of the clementines with it and almond flour are the two main ingredients of the cake.A decadent chocolate glaze is then poured over it and allowed to set before putting candied slices of the fruit on top as decoration. Food is one of the best medicines out there.Ms. Levy was lucky to have good French food waiting for her so to speak at the beginning of her recovery. What a great way of celebrating with good food and good friends.

A Good Rub

Mostly everyone has spent the last two or three months grilling meats.They also have been soaking those cuts and chops in marinades,thinking that they've doing the meat a favor. They aren't The best treatment for any cut is a good dry or semi dry rub. This is what brings out the flavor of the meat, whether it be beef, poultry  fish or lamb.

It was the subject of an article in yesterday's New York Times Dining section., The piece cowritten by Dining's latest regulars, John Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger tells of the minuses of marinades and the pluses of a dry rub. A rub is infinitely better. It brings out the flavor of the meat better along with letting the rub's melange of flavors shine through.A marinade simply doesn't do this .It imparts a kind of washed out flavor. You may taste some of what's left over but it won;t be the robust zing as with the other . The two writers/chefs recommend adding the rub after the grilling for a better , sharper more focused taste

Both Mr. Willoughby and Mr. Schelsinger give very good recipes for meats and even vegetables.They use both traditional and nontraditional ingredients. Baby back ribs have a rub composed of dry roasted peanuts along with chili powder. It is actually a semi dry because again the unconventional orange juice and traditional hoisin sauce are also included into the mix. There is a chicken with a deconstructed pesto where the chicken is grilled first then tossed They also offer a simple lamb kebab with traditional Greek flavorings. What is different is the added twist of tomatoes with a simple salt and pepper rub and then a  toss into curry and minced golden raisins after a yogurt bath.

Put away those marinades. Think rubs, especially a rub after the meat's already been grilled. It means a tastier barbecue and a more flavorful and memorable taste

Paella Both For Land And Sea

Paella is one of those dishes that works well in the summer.It ISA versatile dish that can use both land and. Sea ingredients.It is a dish that can be made on a grill or even a fire pit.All in all it's a great dish ,chock full of tasty ingredients ,flavored with spices. This delicious dish was the subject of an article in today's New York Times Dining section . The piece written by Dining regular John Willoughby tells of a yearly contest between his writing partner , Chris Schlesinger and restaurant owner Valerie Burgo of South End Formaggio of Boston. Mr. Schlesinger is known for a seafood paella while Ms Burgo is famed for her land inspired paella.There is even an audience that tries out both.Either way ,both is a winner.There's nothing like a flavorful paella ,redolence with spicy meats and al dente rice.This last is a special Spanish style one that rapidly soaks up the liquids. This gives the rice a chewy external while the inside is creamy and moist What is the difference between land and sea paellas.Ms Burgo uses rabbit which is seared before being added to the dish.This maintains the meats smokiness throughout the dish.Other meats include chicken ,the traditional spicy Spanish sausage, chorizo along with jam on .A seafood paella is redolent with shrimp and clams.Chicken and choriz is laso used as is the traditional bomb a rice.Mr Schlesinger adds a scraped garlic garnish to. His along with a savory mix of saffron ,sherry and cumin.The best part for both is the crust at the bottom called rak rak. This is a crunchy addition to already tasty dish.. Paella is one of the best summer meals out there.It is a delicious mix of spices meats and rice.Whether you make it land inspired or sea influenced ,it is a veritable dish of the gods.Make it any way this summer, and enjoy the cornucopia of different flavors.

Frying On The Grill

Everyone us enamored with their grills. After all this method of cooking has always been the most satisfying. Yet any barbecue chef can explore a new way - frying of creating delicious dishes on an outdoor stove. Not only that , frying is also healthier too in this case. There's a wide range of foods that can be easily pan fried too, increasing a grill's versatility.

This was the subject of an article in today's New York Times Wednesday Dining section. The piece, cowritten by  regular contributors, John Willoughby and  Chris Schlesinger explore frying as an alternative to  grilling, especially on the larger grills.The technique works the best of you have a propane fueled stove . It should have in or about 30,000 BTUs enough to heat up a frying pan full of oil. As far as frying pans, don't use your regular kitchen one. Try an outdoor one from such brands as Sportmans Outdoor Skillet and or Camp Chef LumberJack Skillet.These are heavier and can stand up to the intense heat.

What fries well outside? Both writers Willoughby and Schlesinger recommend fish thanks to an eccentric named Captain Ned. This barbecue guest brought fish along with  his skillet as well as the ingredients for a fish fry. It turned out to be one of the best fried fishes that the authors had.. Frying  in th e great outdoors proved a crispy exterior and and  melt in your mouth tender inside. They also recommend scallops which prove to be perfectly tender. However don;t limit outdoor frying to just fish. You can make paella as well as schnitzel and of course chicken. The last will be better than indoor and you won't have the messy kitchen to deal with afterwards

Think about frying this grilling season. Doing so will add variety to your barbecue.  You can have a tasty fish fry or enjoy a seafood or chicken paella. This is a lot better than the average grill fare.

Rebaked Beans

What better to open up the holiday season than with baked beans. Nothing beats them as a side to a good ham and even better with a pork roast. There's a new old way to cook them - in the ground. Yup, that's right , you can bake them in a deep pit for a tastier treat.

This was the subject of an article in today's New York Times Dining section. The article written by John Willoughby,a sometimes contributor to the Wednesday section. He interviews master baked bean maker and chef Chris Schlesinger who is a bit of an innovator in other areas too. He first introduced live fire grilling to New York restaurants via his own his own. HE also is an expert in pit roasting cuts of meat too. Baking beans then was a no brainer. Like slow cooked meat, slow cooked beans are a wonderful blend of tangy and smoky , sweet and tart all at once. It's a slow melding of beans, maple syrup smoked pork along with mustard and flavorings.it comes from the Abenaki Indians of Maine where there are still bean bakes. These rival clambakes as far as with food, flavor and fun

For those ambitious enough to build a baked bean pit, keep in mind that is is labor intensive.You will need to dig a whole a little wider than the bean pot  There does need to be a pot to contain the beans and other ingredients (I imagine nothing fancy).There has to be six inches between the top of the pot and top of the hole.The fire has to be built with cord wood and then add about ten softball sized rocks to maintain the heat. You have to wrap the beans and other ingredients in foil before burying them . the beans have to be cooked for six hours but the taste is worth it however.

Baked beans are always a holiday treat. Baking them in the ground is a new old way of doing such It may be labor intensive but worth it

Blue Crab Season

This is the season not for apples but for the Atlantic  blue crab. Right now the tasty shellfish is running.It's a fall tradition in some areas to have crab fests and either eat them with drawn butter or in delicious and varied dishes.Either way, eating them is a great way to welcome in a new season.

The species was mention in a cowritten column in yesterday's New York Times Dining section. Regular contributor John Willoughby along with Chris Schelesinger wrote about the crabs, and gave ideas for how to make them. Late September is the time when the shellfish are at their most bountiful.They're found along Massachusetts' southeastern coast in the briny tidal rivers. Dozens of crabbers come out to catch them. This requires some skill along with chicken necks. The meat is dangled on lengths of twines in the rivers and the crabs come to get them. It is then, that crabbers slip a net under the shellfish and scoop them up into buckets.

All this is worth it. Blue crab meat is one of the most delectable, even beating out the famed Dungeness and stone varieties along with the Jonah for flavor and texture. After steaming they can served with drawn butter or made into a variety of different dishes.The recipes given are varied. There is the spicy Malaysian ginger chili which is a mix if the meat, fiery spices and scallions. For those who like a calmer and tamer crab and corn relish served on sliced beefsteak tomatoes.You can even just have the corn relish on its' own. A more down home recipe is a hush puppy made with the crab along with bacon and corn meal. Remember though to use lump or flaked crab meat. These are taken from the body and are more tender. Meat from the claws tends to be fibrous and a little chewy.

Now is the time for Atlantic blue crabs. Have them to celebrate the new season ahead. Try them the traditional style with butter or more adventurous ways with Malaysian spices or seasonings. They'll taste good no matter how you have them.!

Kick Up The Grill With Indian Spices

By now everyone must be sick of barbecuing. It's the same thing dinner after dinner or party after party. meats are either  spritzed with lemon or lime or slathered with an overly sweet sauce. Yet barbecue can be revived with new spices and new cooking methods.

Reviving a tired barbecue menu was the subject of the New York Times Dining section article today.The piece, coauthored by John Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger tells how any griller can make an end of season grilling exotic and tasty. Tne Indians have a certain way of dealing with enhnacing their food. Since there are so many different spices, how each one will be used is carefully thought out. For most newbies to this kind of cuisine it's best to start with the basic spices. According to the authors start with whole ones and grind them fresh. The aromatic oils within them start to act and are at their most powerful.There are also two methods to further bring out their flavors , roasting and letting them sit in oil. Both let the spices' flavors blooms and give optimum flavor.

What spices can liven up a mid summer grill? Chili and curry work wonders, especially curry which is just a great flavor. There's nothing like curried chicken or shrimp but you can also try a curried pork chop too for a different spin. Turmeric is another spice that would go well with any meat.Another plus is that it's good for you and can stave off cancer.It has a very mellow flavor, and would work well rubbed on chicken legs and wings and then have them crisped over the fire.What is great about these spices is that they can be combined to create a variety of flavors for any kind of meat., whether beef, poultry or fish.

Grilling can be boring if it's been done for the past two months. However a new injection of Indian spices can turn an ordinary rack of ribs or chicken into something special. It gives new life to tired barbecue.