On the move, on the web

Flying in to the Copper Canyon in a Cesna, Chihuahua, Mex

I'm back on the road in Mexico, two years after leaving and six years after my first visit, on my most intrepid tour yet. I managed to score a spot as food advisor on an upcoming series on Mexican food, so I am going places I never could have gone on my own, meeting new people and of course eating amazing new food.

If you are so inclined, join me here and on instagram (click over to the right) to see some fascinating food and people over the next few months.

Rarámuri Easter celebrations, Batopilas, Mex.

Bistec a la Mexicana

 The official Mexican Flag

My much tastier version of the flag, which only took 5 minutes. You decide which is better.

You would think that a dish that bares your country's name would be up there with the best, but as you can see from above it is more symbolism than definition at work here. Bistec a la Mexicana certainly does its best to demonstrate the diversity of Mexico, since it is hard to see it made the same way twice with omissions and additions of ingredients common throughout cookbooks, restaurants and even our faithful old friend, the internet. 

As such, I don't make any claims that this particular recipe is the one they ate the day they dreamt up the flag, or even that it is the best one out. But it is a good one and, more importantly I have covered a few things that I found sorely missing from quite a few recipes around such as the best cut to use, how to cook it for tenderness and best results. All covered below. Please hit me with any questions on the comments section, I am here to help you know.

Bistec a la Mexicana 

Nationalistic Beef

350g rump steak

2 tablspn oil 

1 heaped teaspoon sea salt, less for normal salt

300g tomato, boiled, cooled and peeled then chopped roughly

1 green Capsicum (aka bell pepper), sliced

1/2 white onion, sliced

1 clove garlic, chopped

4 shallots (scallions)

1 Jalapeño chile, sliced into strips (seeds optional)

chopped coriander

1. Slice the beef rump into strips, 3cm long and about 3mm thick.* Place in a bowl with the chopped shallots, sea salt and oil and mix well with your hands. cover and let sit for 20 mins to an hour.
2. Get a 25cm pan really hot, then add the beef (it should be room temperature so as not to cool the pan down too much) and basically stir fry for about 2 minutes until there is no pink surface. The beef should still be tender but cooked to at least rare. Remove to a bowl. 
3. Add a little bit of oil then the onion, garlic, chile and green pepper. Lower the heat and cook for about 5 minutes of stirring, letting the vegetables soften. Add the chopped tomato. 
4. After it softens and takes on a saucy consistency (add a splash of water if required), introduce all the beef and liquid that has come out of it. Check seasoning, add coriander and serve. Provecho. 

Notes

 *Rump steak is a tasty cut that will remain tender if not over cooked.**

Notes on notes

**Do not overcook the rump steak.

Helado de Cajeta y Nuez

If you are not familiar with cajeta, the moreish, delicate and intriguing caramel made from goat's milk then this is a great way to get acquainted. Made by reducing goats milk with sugar until it caramelises, it is a more sophisticated version of the famed dulce de leche and is ubiquitous in Mexico where it may appear in the form of a paste on bread (something like nutella), a hardened candy lollypop or the ice cream as below. 

It is such a distinct flavour, and takes me back to the Mercado 20 de Noviembre in Oaxaca where the helado stand always beckoned. This recipe has undergone a few incarnations, as I have tried to balance out the sour cream and milk to replicate somewhat the qualities of Mexican (or at least Oaxacan) milk, which is more complex and sour than Australian milk. Also I have settled on using store bought cajeta (though you can make your own), mainly because the concentration of sugar in frozen desserts must be quite precise to stabalise at a good consistency.

Helado de Cajeta y Nuez

Goat’s milk caramel and pecan ice-cream

2 cups milk

1 cup sour cream

300g cajeta

8 egg yolk

pinch of salt

2 tspn good vanilla essence

1 cup chopped pecans

1.    Bring the milk to the boil in a small sauce pan.

2.    Add the vanilla and salt.

3.    Whisk the egg yolks until frothy then pour in half of the hot milk, mix through then return to the pan.

4.    Cook on a low heat until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Pour into a bowl and add the sour cream and cajeta and mix through.

5.    Chill until mixture is at fridge temperature, then churn as per the instructions of your  ice-cream machine (the kitchenaid I used takes around 20 minutes). When almost fully set, add the pecans and decant into a chilled container. Freeze. Best served within 48 hours.

 

 

How to Joint a Chicken

All going to plan, over the next month or two I will be posting recipes from classes I have been ttaught over the past year. In that time I have had the opportunity to cover quite a bit of ground, so will start including a few more instructional "cheffy" things which I hope you will find useful. Something here today that covers an ingredient quite commonly used in Mexico, the bird.

The idea of butchery and knife skills to me, is to be able to control the produce you buy and use as you become less reliant on others to prepare it. There is also something quite satisfying about doing this sort of thing, learning the anatomy of a bird or fish and seeing the animal as a whole which I think is an important cognitive experience for any serious cook.

This basic breakdown will render the bird broken down into two breasts, two wings, two marylands and a carcass for stock. You could continue the process to yield two drumsticks and thighs separated out, but I didn't think of that when I was doing it so no photos of that step I'm afraid.

Let's get to it.

How to Joint a Bird

 

1. Place the whole chicken on a clean board with the tail end facing toward you.

2. Make an incision one side of the breastbone cartilage, starting at the neck. In one motion, cut down towards the tail keeping the knife following -and guided by- the breastbone.   

3. Use the knife to separate the breast meat from the rib-cage. Gently push the meat away with your other hand to give a better view of where you are cutting, and leave as little meat as possible on the carcass. 

4. Continue cutting and folding the breast, and eventually only the shoulder joint will hold the breast on. Fold the breast back to give a clear view. 

5. Push the tip of your knife into the joint and it will separate easily. You are not cutting bone, only making a small incision through the cartilage. 

6. Flip the bird over and place your thumb on the hip joint. Pull the drumstick towards you until the joint pops out. You can now make a cut straight from the top of the maryland to the tail. Be sure to cut around and include the oyster. Repeat steps 1-6 on the other side of the chicken. 

A great recipe for Helado de Cajeta coming next week. Thanks as always for checking in.

X'ikil Pak, a Mayan Dip

Served here with fresh made tortillas and boiled egg, simple and delicious.

Something very nice below from a class I taught a few weeks back. X'ikil Pak (See-keel Pack) is a nutty, sweet and bright "dip" composed of many of the usual suspects. This concoction does benefit from being stone ground in a molcatjete (Mexican mortar and pestle), but of course we are not all blessed with the patience or physique to perform such a task. So then, the blender will work well but do observe the technique described to get a good consistency.

X'ikil Pak

1 cup raw hulled pepita
2 egg tomato (around 200g)
1 clove of garlic
1/4 of a white onion (around 100g)
100ml water
chopped coriander
sea salt, to taste

1. Toast the pepitas gently on a comal (or in a dry pan), moving frequently to ensure an even heat. They will be ready when they are lightly golden and somewhat puffed up (when raw they are quite flat, the sides will bulge). Remove from the pan and let cool.
2. Toast the tomato, onion and garlic on a comal.
3. Place the cooled pepitas in the blender (or molcajete) and process until quite fine, almost to a powder consistency. Add the water, salt, onion and garlic and blend again until smooth. Roughly chop the tomato and add along with the coriander. Pulse the blender a few times, leaving the tomato a little chunky. Serve with fresh tortillas.

Diana Kennedy Comes to Town

Diana Kennedy is often described as "the Julia Child of Mexican Cuisine". She has authored eight books and is recognised as the world's leading authority on Mexican food. Her most recent book, Oaxaca al Gusto was awarded the prestigious James Beard Cookbook of the Year award for 2011, and is one of the most determined pieces of work I have ever seen.

Hence, I was pretty thrilled to have the opportunity to cook with her in Sydney a few weeks ago, in a demonstration class at the Essential Ingredient Sydney. Diana prepared Sopa Tarasca tipo Conde, Camarónes en Pipian (recipe below) and a whole Barramundi in the style of Huanchinango a la Veracruzana.


Mrs Diana Kennedy and myself, pondering the pot of prawns.

The food was all stunning, and her detailing of the process and concepts behind each step of the preparation. It was quite an eye opening experience over all. Not quite as eye opening as the next day, when my beautiful son Liam was born, a healthy 8 pounds and perfect. It has been quite a year.

The following recipe appears in The Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy, published by Clarkson Potter/ Publishers, 2000.

Camarones en Pipián

Shrimps in Pumpkin Seed Sauce

Serves 6-8

675g Medium size shrimps, unshelled

2 ½ cups cups cold water, approximately

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1 cup (250ml) raw pumpkin seeds (about 115g)

1 small bunch cilantro, roughly chopped

4 fresh serrano chiles or any fresh, hot green chiles, roughly chopped with seeds

½ small white onion, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

2/3 cup thick sour cream

Shell and devein the shrimps and set aside. Put the shells, tails and heads, if any into a saucepan, add the water with salt and cook over a medium heat for about 20 minutes, to extract the flavour and make a light broth. Strain and discard the shells, reserving the cooking liquid. Allow the liquid to cool a little. Add the shrimps and cook over a gentle heat for about 3 minutes, or until they are just turning opaque. Drain the shrimps, reserving the broth.

In a heavy, ungreased frying pan, toast the pumpkin seeds lightly, stirring them often, until they swell up and begin to pop about-do not let them brown. Set them aside to cool and then grind them finely in a coffee/spice grinder. (Alternately they can just be added to the blender with the broth in the next step, but the sauce will not be as smooth.)

Place the shrimp broth, pumpkin seeds, cilantro, chiles, and onion in a blender and blend together until smooth.

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the blended pumpkin seed sauce and cook over a very low heat, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan constantly, for about 3 minutes. Stir in the sour cream, adjust the seasoning and just heat through-about 3 minutes. Then add the shrimps and heat through for another 5 minutes. The sauce should be of a medium consistency. Serve immediately.

Serve with fresh, hot tortillas or crusty French bread. Despite the temptation to do so, it is better not to serve it on top of rice or all that lovely sauce will be sopped up and lost.

NOTE: This pipián can be prepared ahead up to the point of adding the shrimps. I do not suggest freezing this dish.

¡Andale Pues!

Huachinango a la Veracruzana

Veracruz lies nuzzled in the southern part of the Gulf of Mexico, not too far away from Cuba and Hispaniola from where Cortéz sailed in 1519. The area was one of the first conquered by the Spanish, and has long had quite a distinct character, as I suppose so many port cities do. The mix of the indigenous history, European culture, African slave elements and even the strong ties to Cuba's recent history make this a fascinating place.

The heat of the city in June is pure oppression, with the pavement scorching and baking, and helados half-melted before they are even paid for. My first trip there, I resolved to spend evenings in the Zocalo watching elderly couples dressed in white dance like swans, as I waited until it had cooled enough to consider a meal.

So around 10 o'clock every night, Juanita cooked for me in her little restaurant two blocks from the square. She gave me this recipe, which varies little from many others you might find in any given book but for the fact she chars the tomato to begin. Also she preferred a single red chillie, rather than a pickled jalapeño as is more commonly used (incidentally, jalapeños are from Veracruz state, and named after it's more northern city, Xalapa).

Huachinango a la Veracruzana
Red snapper in tomato, olive and caper sauce

1 red snapper, about 1kg
2 egg tomato
1/2 small white onion, sliced
1-2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons capers, with a little of the brine
8 green olives
2 sprigs thyme
a pinch of dried Mexican oregano
cracked black pepper
1 small red chillie, cut in half
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup olive oil
salt

1. Trim the fins from the snapper, and score the sides with a sharp knife.* Rub salt into the cuts, then rub the juice of half a lime. Leave to sit for one hour.
2. Char the tomatoes on a comal or under a grill. When soft, blend with 50ml water.
3. Heat the olive oil in a pan until hot. Place the fish in the pan, and cook for around three minutes until the skin is nicely coloured.**
4. Turn the fish over and cook the second side to the same degree. Remove the fish to a baking tray.
5. Lower the heat and ad the onion to the pan, cook for around one minute, then add garlic and bay leaves. Cook a further minute, then add remaining ingredients including blended tomato and lime juice. Bring to the boil then simmer for two minutes.
6. Pour over fish and bake for 15 minutes at 190º.
7. Serve with red rice and a little olive oil.
   

*My snapper was a little monster and wouldn't fit in the pan, so I trimmed the fillets off. It's not as hard as it looks: Use a sharp knife to cut into the fish near the backbone, then just slowly follow the contour of the bones, peeling the fillet back as you go. If you get stuck, change direction and keep cutting until you have removed it cleanly. Flip the fish over and repeat the process. You may find the second try will be a little easier, but just go slowly and please, use a sharp knife or you will just destroy the little fellow. Pictures of my simple process below.

**To cook fillets, seal the flesh side first after seasoning well. When nicely coloured, flip over gently and cook skin side until crispy. Remove from pan to a plate, cook the second fillet the same way, then remove. Follow step 5 of the above recipe, but reduce the sauce a little further, then pour over the fillet.


Cut in slowly along the backbone, peel the fillet away so you can see the bone you are cutting the flesh from.