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Sunday, March 31, 2019

Tallow Roasted Potatoes



























Ah, potatoes.  Surely one of nature's most versatile culinary creations.  You can fry 'em, mash 'em, bake 'em, even shred 'em and hash brown them.  But I've always found that one of the ways that makes them sing is to roast them, and yet my roast potatoes never measured up to what I would get in some of the finer restaurants around town.

Until now, that is.  Now that I discovered tallow. 

What is tallow, you ask?  Well, if you're familiar with lard (and if you read this blog, surely you are) then you know that lard is merely rendered pork fat.  Tallow, my friends, is simply the bovine equivalent of such--for tallow is rendered beef fat.  This lipid is perhaps even more flavorful than its porcine cousin, but rare and hard to find these days, mainly because it is just as high in saturated fat so not the healthiest of choices.**  But, in moderation, why not? 

If you remembered how good a certain McBurger places fries used to be during your childhood (if you're as old as me, anyway) then it is because they used to fry them in tallow.  But, other than rendering your own from cooking a roast or similar, tallow can be hard to come by.  That's why I was overjoyed when I saw this in my Xmas stocking last year. 



Yes, three jars of fat.  I must have been an extra good boy.  Here is the holy trinity of cooking fats, lard, tallow and, perhaps the greatest, duck fat.  But to day we're focused on the tallow.  We'll just be using a small amount, tossing the taters in it so that it sticks to the surface, where it will transform them into golden delicious morsels of potato goodness. 

Ingredients

2 lbs Potatoes, a Mix of Red and Yukon Gold
2 Tablespoons Beef Tallow, warmed to liquid consistency
2 Teaspoons Granulated Garlic
1 Teaspoon Dry Thyme
1/2 Teaspoon Salt

If you're using tallow out of a jar, it should be fine if unopened, otherwise check to make sure it doesn't have any off smells, as tallow, like any fat, can go rancid.  Jars like this should be refrigerated after opening and used within a month or so. 



Preheat oven to 425F


Gently heat the tallow until it is liquefied but not too hot. 



Slice your potatoes into bite sized pieces. 



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Put them in a large plastic ziplock bag. 





Add the seasonings and shake to evenly distribute them. 



Add the melted tallow and shake to coat the potatoes.



Let the potatoes rest at room temperature for 15 minutes or so.  This will allow the tallow to slightly penetrate the potato surface, which will help you get a golden brown crust on the potatoes. 

Spray an oven safe dish with non-stick cooking spray and then dump your potatoes into it.  Evenly distribute them. 



Roast at 425F for 40 minutes or so, until potatoes are golden brown on the outside. 



Let cool a couple minutes. then serve right away. 

Here we've served them with some Halibut Poached in Bacon Broth and wilted spinach. 



Until next time,


Chris
 

**Note, other fats will work for this recipe--it's the fat that is giving you your nice golden brown surface.  You can achieve this with dry potatoes, but they will be overcooked inside.  Some other fats to try--Duck Fat does wonderfully, and Lard ain't too shabby either.  You can make a healthier option by using pure olive oil (not extra virgin, as this will smoke) but the potatoes won't be as good as with the tallow. 

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Improved Veal Piccata



















Ah, Veal Piccata--one of my favorite go to Italian dishes.  It's simple, quick and easy and you get a heck of a lot of flavor from just a few simple ingredients.

I've had a Veal Piccata recipe here on the blog since its first year, and it is a pretty good recipe.  However, two things:  One, this was sort of an improvised recipe, made on the fly while we were traveling in Tuscany.  Two, I've tweaked and (in my opinion) improved my Piccata technique over the years.  I decided it was high time to revisit this dish and present the version I am now cooking.  (Hey, if Alton Brown can do 'Good Eats Reloaded,' we can do something similar here)

Anyhoo, Piccata as I mentioned is a simple dish, and it is one of the best ways I know to feature veal escalopes, which are thin slices of what would be the round steak area of a full grown cow.  This recipe sears them so that have a nice browning on the outside, but are still pink on the inside, and a lovely and tart sauce is made in the pan afterwards.  Let's get started.

Veal Piccata

4 Thin-Cut Escalopes of Veal, about three oz each
1/2 Cup Flour
1 Clove Garlic. Minced
1/3 Cup Dry White Wine
1 Cup Chicken Stock
3 Tablespoons Butter
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
2 Tablespoons Capers (or more to taste)
1/4 Teaspoon Salt (or more to taste)
Pure Olive Oil for Sautéing
Corn Starch for thickening sauce

Start with your escalopes of veal.  They should be sliced about a 1/4 of an inch thick.  I usually cook two per person, so just multiply out however many you'll need.



Heat a couple tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet.  Get ti pretty hot, like 425F if you have a thermometer.  You want the veal to sear quickly but not overcook.

Place the flour in a breading tray and dip the veal in on both sides, shaking free any loose flour.




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Then, when you're sure your skillet is hot, slip two or three cutlets into the skillet--don't crowd them.



Let sear for about 1 minute a side or so and then flip.  A nice golden brown crust should form on them as they cook.



When you've finished all your cutlets, place them on a plate and cover with foil to keep warm.  Now we'll make the sauce.

You should have some lovely browned bits left behind in the skillet.



Add the minced garlic and let simmer for a few seconds.  Then add the white wine to this and deglaze the pan.



When the wine has reduced by half, add the chicken stock.



Reduce your heat and let this simmer for a few minutes, until it reduces by a quarter or so.  Add the butter and let melt.



Add the lemon juice



and the capers and let simmer for a few minutes.



At this point, taste the sauce and adjust the flavor with the salt if necessary, and if it needs a little more garlic flavor, some granulated garlic (sparingly) can be added.  Should be just a hint of garlic flavor--mainly the sauce is tart and savory.

When the sauce is to your liking, mix a tablespoon of the corn starch with a quarter cup warm water and stir.  Mix this into the sauce to thicken it.


Serve the sauce over the cutlets, with maybe a little extra on the side.



Here we've served them with some roasted tomatoes on the vine and some angel hair pasta, which takes to the remaining sauce nicely.



Until next time,


Arrivederci!

Chris