218 keeping Recipes

any liquid can be reduced just by heating it - but why would you want to do that, answer comes back to two of our old friends, flavor and consistency (texture)., by reducing any flavored liquid you intensify its flavor and at the same time thicken it. you can continue this process until what you have left is a syrup if it contains sugar, or a sauce if it does not., this is 1 of the most important tools in the kitchen , believe it or not, because a great sauce can rescue an indifferent meal., literally any liquid can be reduced ., a few uses, wine is frequently used in cooking , both as a marinade and as an addition to sauces for meat., there are some problems with it though, 1 of which is that you need a really good wine and quite a lot of it to produce a reasonable sauce for, say, six people., on the other hand , if you use pure grape juice and reduce it to a syrup, that syrup, added to any sauce (or gravy if you prefer) will lift it into the realms of gourmet ., more , you don tsp have to make your reduction on the night you prepare your meal. you can reduce a liter of grape juice at any time to the consistency and flavor you want; then just store it in the fridge., you can do the same thing with any fruit juice - prune is sensational - and store it until needed. just about all of them will do things for ice cream, pies or tarts that will have your guests demanding the recipe, pork with apple sauce use a carton of fresh apple juice from the supermarket and reduce it. and if you want a real sensation add in a glass of apple brandy during the reduction process., are you getting an idea of how simple this is, take any carton of fresh stock straight of the shelf and reduce it. you will transform it into something even the manufacturer won tsp recognize. but beware, you need to start out with good quality in the first place, because when you reduce a liquid you intensify all the flavors, and not just the good ones., if it s salty to start with, for example, it will be salty beyond belief by the time you ve reduced it even by half. so if you are going to use a supermarket stock, make sure it s an extremely good 1., believe me when i tell you that stock cubes should not be used for reduction sauces., thickeners, because you will be tasting as you go (won tsp you ), you may find that you get the flavor you want before the desired consistency is reached., a couple of hints right now for your sauces., sweet ones can be thickened successfully without loss of color by adding in liquid glucose early on in the reduction process. surprisingly, this will add little in the way of sweetness and produces a beautiful velvety sauce when whisked., if you get it wrong and add too much, no problem. stir in a little extra water to thin it., reduction pans, reductions need to happen rapidly in serving to preserve flavors. and the greater the surface area of the liquid the faster the water will evaporate., however you may want to whisk something into the sauce while its cooking - such as butter or olive oil for example - and for that i find a small wok is best; 1 with a handle., a wok is less likely to reduce so fast that the sauce is burnt while your back is turned. but try both methods and see which you prefer. you may even end up using something totally different., no magic to this. whatever works for you, that s what you should use, in this and everything else to do with cooking., just bear in mind that what you re after is speed and ease of use. as well as a great tasting result, of course. :>), keeping, if they should dry out , simply add a little water and heat through., sauces containing meat juices of any kind must be frozen if you re going to keep them, and should be brought to boiling point before being used again. there is no need to thaw them out to do this, in fact it s better not to. simply drop the frozen cubes into a saucepan, melt them over a gentle heat, and then bring swiftly to the boil., why do you do this to avoid food poisoning, that s why. you are making sure that any bugs introduced into the sauce during the preparation process are killed off., worry , this will not be because of anything you have done wrong (i hope!), but because bacteria are part of our everyday lives and they exist in every kitchen, however clean., in fact your food , and especially your meat, is crawling with wildlife that you will never see. don tsp worry about them. careful handling and simple precautions will ensure that these miniature monsters can never multiply enough to harm either you or your guests.

turkey , legs and thighs cut from carcass, keeping drumsticks and thighs attached, wings cut from breast, dried chiles de arbol, crumbled, kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, thyme, sage, rosemary, bay leaves, lemon zest (yellow part only ; from about 1/2 lemon), duck fat, allspice berries, juniper berries, fennel seeds, kosher salt, sugar, onion, sliced, carrot, peeled , cut on a diagonal, fennel bulb, sliced, flat-leaf parsley, thyme, bay leaves, dried chiles de arbol, sliced yellow onion, sage sprigs, thyme sprigs, unsalted butter, melted, kosher salt , freshly ground pepper

celery, diced, green pepper, diced, sweet onion, diced, cucumber, diced and seeded (i like to keep the skin on but your choice), tomato, diced, tomato soup, water, italian dressing (your favorite ), fresh ground black pepper, worcestershire sauce, v 8 juice, red wine vinegar, garlic powder (to taste), hot sauce, 4 dashes (or more )

bacon slices (2 oz), cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-wide strips, unsalted butter, fresh corn kernels (from 3 to 4 ears ), fresh lima beans in pods, shelled (1 1/2 cups), or, frozen baby lima beans, thawed, diced (1/3 inch) green bell pepper, scallions , cut crosswise into 1/3-inch pieces, keeping white and pale green parts separate from greens, heavy cream, water, salt, black pepper

sweet italian sausage (any flavor ), chopped onion, diced garlic cloves, chopped green pepper , and, red pepper, chicken broth, beer, portabella mushrooms, scallions , chopped keeping the greens for topping, penne pasta, crushed salt, cracked black pepper, lemon pepper, basil, cinnamon, drained diced tomatoes, parsley, parmesan cheese, you may also use 1/2cup . tomato sauce

water, knox gelatin, unsweetened coconut milk, cream of coconut, heavy cream,chilled, crumb crust, sweetened flaked coconut,toasted, cream of coconut, cocoa, vanilla extract, pure coconut extract, salt, combine the cream of coconut and cocoa in saucepan,heat ,whisking until the cocoa is dissolved and sauce is smooth.remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla and coconut extracts,and salt.cover and can keep at room temperature,just reheat before serving with a slice of the cream of coconut pie.

butter or y substitute like utterly ly., light brown sugar ., self-raising flour , sifted., eggs, beaten ., grated zest and juice of 1 lemon. (keep zest and juice separate), grated zest and juice of 1 orange.(keep zest and juice separate), caster sugar ., plain chocolate (optional)

escargot, drained,rinsed,cleaned (i always buy the big ones), mushroom cap (however many you need, and i keep the tails for an omelet), semi-salted butter, garlic, minced (or more ), swiss emmenthaler cheese, fresh grated parmesan cheese

sized pieces chicken meat or 400 g beef or 400 g lamb, plain flour , to dredge the chickens, beef, lamb, before adding to the skillet, onion, finely chopped, tomatoes, chopped (skin & seeds removed), canned tomato paste, purple plump aubergines (keep skin on) or 1 medium eggplant, cut into small cubes (keep skin on), freshly chopped garlic or 2 garlic paste, salt, fresh basil , paste or 1 tbsp leaf, finely chopped, cayenne powder or 1 tsp red pepper flakes, olive oil, water, sugar

rice a roni, marinated artichokes, drained & chopped, green onions, sliced, green pepper, chopped, mayonnaise, curry powder, grilled or poached chicken, shredded, this is the actual recipe from the restaurant. i use some of the seasoned chicken that i cook & keep in the freezer (see my garlic & lime chicken fajitas, and omit the curry, as i am not a big fan), i would also add some capers

yellow bell peppers , cut in half lengthwise (keep the stem on, remove the seeds and ribs, red peppers are fine too, i just happen to like the col), olive oil, chickpeas, drained and rinsed, artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained , and rough chopped, black olives, sliced (buy they pre-sliced to save time), frozen spinach, drained well (i didn tsp use all the spinach, about 1/2, but as mentioned, this recipe is so easy you can really use), tomatoes, lightly seeded and diced, onion, fine chopped, scallions, diced fine, feta cheese, crumbled, fresh parsley, fine chopped, fresh basil, fine chopped, olive oil, red wine vinegar, dried oregano, kasseri cheese (you can substitute any good melting cheese, i just happen to love kasseri)

poblano chile casserole with corn and cheese, fresh poblano chiles, butter, yellow onion, chopped, garlic cloves, minced, fresh corn kernels, or frozen thawed (from about 6 ears or two 10-oz packages), grated manchego or monterey jack cheese, cooked white rice, crema or sour cream, red salsa (see recipe below ), grated queso anejo or parmesan cheese, char chiles over gas flame or under broiler until blackened on all sides. enclose in plastic bag and let stand 10 minutes. peel chiles. starting at stem end, carefully cut 1 slit down length of each chile, leaving stems and tops intact if possible. carefully remove seeds and veins from chiles., preheat oven to 350 degrees f. melt butter in heavy large saute pan over medium heat. add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. add garlic and saute 1 minute longer. add corn and saute 2 minutes. season to taste with salt and pepper. cool completely. stir in manchego or monterey jack cheese. stuff chiles with corn mixture., butter 15x10-inch baking dish. place rice in prepared dish. nestle stuffed chiles in single layer into rice. mix crema and red salsa in medium bowl; pour over chiles and rice. sprinkle with anejo cheese., bake until chiles are heated through and sauce bubbles, about 25 minutes (about 40 minutes for refrigerated casserole)., red salsa, vegetable oil, yellow onion, thinly sliced, garlic, sliced, fresh jalapeno chili pepper, stemmed, seeded and thinly sliced, salt , or to taste, canned plum tomatoes with their juices, in a saucepan over medium heat , warm the vegetable oil. add the onion and saute until soft, about 10 minutes. add the garlic, chili pepper and salt and cook for 2 minutes longer. add the tomatoes and their juices and reduce the heat to low. cook the tomatoes, stirring occasionally to break them up, until soft and the juices have reduced by half, 10-15 minutes., let cool slightly , then transfer to a blender. puree until smooth, then strain through a sieve placed over a bowl. set aside to cool completely for use as a table salsa. or reheat gently over low heat to use hot. to store, cover tightly and keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

extra-large shrimp, peeled and deveined, low-sodium soy sauce plus 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce (keep divided), dry sherry plus 1/4 cup (keep divided), green onions, garlic cloves, minced, grated gingerroot, peanut oil or 5 tsp vegetable oil, low sodium chicken broth, lemon (juice only), cornstarch, fresh ground black pepper , plus additional to taste, asparagus , tough ends removed, sliced on the bias into 2-inch lengths, carrots , cut into 2-inch-long matchsticks, salt, jasmine rice, cooked

cumin, garbanzo beans drained , keeping 1/2 can of liquid, roasted garlic, paprika, tahini

lamb bones from the meat, carrot, onion, stalk celery, bouquet garni ( thyme sprig, parsley stalks and small bay leaf) tied with string, boneless lamb or mutton (from the shoulder or leg; keep bones for stock), chopped onions, chopped carrots, good tsp cumin seed, american tbsp, plus 2 tsp flour (2 irish tablespoons) *see note, mutton or lamb stock, salt and freshly ground pepper, flour, salt, butter, water, water, egg, slightly beaten, salt, cm) in diameter , 1 1/2 inches (4 centimeters) high, note: an irish tbsp is the same quantity as an american tbsp plus a tsp

beets (about 5 oz each), red wine vinegar, water, granulated sugar, muscovy duck (separate legs, keep for another time), fine sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, granulated sugar, extra virgin olive oil, diced shallots (about 4), garlic cloves, crushed, diced peeled beets , (about 2 medium), sugar, balsamic vinegar, dry red wine , such as point noir or syrah, fleur de sel, freshly ground black pepper, ground cinnamon, unsalted butter

cake flour , sifted, ice water (or amount needed), salt, egg, beaten, unsalted butter, cut into small cubes (keep very cold), garnet yam, peeled and diced (about 2 cups), madeira wine or 2 cups cream sherry, apples, cored, peeled and diced, sultana raisin (white raisins), ground cinnamon, ground ginger, mace, brown sugar , packed, butter, egg yolks, egg whites, rose water , which i did not use

pre-cut oxtail, shallots, skinned, carrots, skinned, tips removed (keep skin and tips), stalk celery, cut into 5cm-pieces, tomatoes, diced, salt (or to taste), pepper (or to taste), sugar (or to taste), butter, olive oil, nutmeg (or to taste)