Author Archives: diningwithdinks

On The Menu — 9/13/2015

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Week of September 13th

Sunday:

Autumn has been calling my name recently, hence the hankering for the traditional Sunday dinner below:

  • Roast chicken with plums and shallots
  • Roasted potatoes with rosemary and garlic:  This is an easy one — scrub potatoes and toss in a pan with a few good glugs of olive oil. Add chopped fresh rosemary (or any other fresh herbs you like), whole garlic cloves and salt and pepper. Your house will smell divine.
  • Crisp green salad with a simple mustard vinaigrette

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Monday:

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Tuesday:
  • Pan-roasted chicken with feta and figs:  I adore fresh figs. I like them plain, stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon, chopped into yogurt, made into jam … oh the pleasures! We had a tiny fig tree that produced 3 figs every season (has since died), but I relished those 3 bites of glory each year. That being said, it’s fig season. Go get some.
  • Grilled broccolini with lemon and pine nuts 

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Wednesday:

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Thursday:
  • Grilled tuna burgers with lightly pickled fennel and mache slaw: I am going bun-less and plan to serve these bad-boys over a slaw of sorts. Gently pickle thinly sliced fennel (cucumbers would also be excellent here and more traditional) in white wine vinegar with a pinch or two of sugar. Toss this mixture with a bit of sesame oil,  mache, toasted sesame seeds, roasted peanuts and some heat — I am partial to Gochugaru, a Korean ground chile flake.
  • Wasabi mayonnaise and pickled ginger,  for serving

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Friday:
  • Crispy-skinned grilled Maryland rockfish: the trick to getting the skin crispy-crunchy is in the preparation. Pat the fish dry and set in the refrigerator, uncovered, sans salt and seasonings for an hour if you can. The skin will dry out and viola, crispy, potato-chippy fish skin. Season the fish once you get it on the grill, skin-side down to start.
  • Grilled eggplant and peppers from the farmer’s market
  • Grilled corn on the cob, also from the farmer’s market

 

Grape Raita

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Grape Raita

Note: recipe adapted from Indian Home Cooking by Suvir Saran and Stephanie Lyness.

Ingredients: 

3 cups plain yogurt

1 1/2 cups seedless grapes, halved

2 tsp ground, toasted cumin

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or paprika

Tempering oil: 

2 Tbsp canola oil

2 tsp cumin seeds or black mustard seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

6 fresh or frozen curry leaves, torn

salt to taste

Preparation:

Whisk the yogurt in a bowl until smooth. Stir in grapes, followed by cumin, sugar and cayenne or paprika. For the tempering oil, heat the oil with the cumin or mustard seeds in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook until the seeds darken and begin to crackle, 1 to 2 minutes. Add fennel seeds and curry leaves and cook, uncovered, stirring, 5 to 10 seconds. Pour hot tempering oil over the yogurt and chill. Just before serving, stir in the salt.

Broccoli with Beech Mushrooms and Roasted Chile Paste

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Broccoli with Beech Mushrooms and Roasted Chile Paste
Recipe adapted from Vietnamese Home Cooking by Charles Phan
3 cups broccoli florets
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon roasted chile paste
1/2 cup beech mushrooms (or shiitake, just about any mushroom will do)
2 tablespoons rice wine
2 tablespoons chicken stock
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Bring a medium pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the broccoli florets and cook until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain, rinse with cold water until cool. Set aside. (I have omitted this step in the past with great results).
Heat a wok or skillet over high heat. Add the oil, garlic, chile paste and mushrooms; toss well to coat and let cook stirring, 30 seconds.
Add the broccoli and toss well, then add the rice wine, chicken stock and fish sauce and cook, stirring, until the liquid  reduces by half, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and serve immediately.

Vietnamese Roasted Chile Paste

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Roasted chile paste

Note: recipe adapted from “Vietnamese Home Cooking” by Charles Phan. 

1 tablespoon Sichuan peppercorns

1 tablespoon annatto seeds

1/2 cup finely chopped shallots

1/2 cup canola oil

1/4 cup finely minced garlic (about 8 cloves)

1/4 cup red pepper flakes

1/3 cup ground bean paste

2 tablespoons rice wine

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons light soy sauce

1. Combine the peppercorns and annatto seeds in a spice grinder (or use a mortar and pestle) and grind coarsely. Set aside.

2. In a small saucepan, combine the shallots and oil over medium heat and cook, stirring frequently, about 6 minutes, until the shallots are light gold. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for about 4 minutes longer, until the garlic and shallots are lightly browned.

3. Stir in the red pepper flakes and the peppercorn-annatto mixture, mixing well. Add the ground bean paste, wine, sugar and soy sauce, and continue cooking, stirring, for 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely. This makes about 1½ cups of paste. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container, up to 3 months.

Jack’s Bistro — a Neighborhood Favorite

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The last time my husband and I ventured to Paris, I spent hours pouring over more than 100 restaurant reviews, meticulously highlighting passages and taking notes in an attempt to suss out the city’s prime local eats.

The neighborhood joints we discovered were indeed spectacular, but sometimes I forget that we have just the type of hideaway I hunt down when traveling right here in Canton — Jack’s Bistro.

It’s a cozy, neighborhood gem with a kitchen that consistently turns out both innovative dishes and those that feel like old friends.

In the mood for fun and playful? Take a bite of their 100% ground bacon burger. That’s right, it’s an all-out baconfest for pig lovers. No beef between those buns.

Searching for some comfort? Go for the Guinness-braised filet mignon. This is my personal favorite menu staple and it’s perfect every time. The meltingly-tender beef, the velvety sauce, the smoky bacon grits — it’s an entirely lick-worthy plate, something I have been known to do on occasion.

Or always.

Have a hankering for some exotic funk? There are several options on the ever-changing menu for those with adventurous palates.

The spicy Somboon mussels offer an incredible tangle of Asian flavors with fresh herbs, sour citrus, pungent fish sauce and a hit of heat. These plump morsels are not to be missed. It’s hard not to order this appetizer over and over again.

Of course, when you repeat, you forgo an opportunity to try something new on the menu, a dilemma my husband and I both often face at Jack’s. It’s a good problem to have. Mussels or a fresh cucumber ribbon salad? Grilled kale with apricots or chocolate mac and cheese? My favorite steak or duck cassoulet? Or those chewy ramen noodles in a heady broth?  It’s always an internal tug of war.

Guinness-Braised Filet

Guinness-Braised Filet

On a recent visit, the Guinness filet won the entree battle, but I did manage to venture over to the dessert menu and sample something new — durian fruit creme brulee.

I love that this kitchen even gets kooky with dessert. I was too intrigued to pass this one up. It was durian fruit afterall, the southeast Asian fruit that some say emits a stench so vile it’s been compared to festering raw sewage, among other choice aromas.

I so needed to sample this exotic treat.

There was a touch of barnyard on the nose, but otherwise it was mild, slightly sweet, with a hint of nuts and a whiff of onion in the mix. I do give the kitchen points for creativity, but the flavor profile wasn’t what I look for in a dessert. Durian fruit aside, the creme brulee itself was absolutely luscious. If they ever put a traditional creme brulee on the menu, my waistline is in real trouble.

I don’t know how much longer the dessert will be available, but if you’ve ever had the desire to try this peculiar fruit, don’t miss your chance. I suggest you hightail it on over before it disappears.

Durian Fruit Creme Brulee

Durian Fruit Creme Brulee

Although on my most recent visit I devoured my go-to steak, I am eager to return as I now have my eye on new menu items. I look forward to soon slurping up the Malaysian coconut-milk curry and tasting whatever creation my husband chooses. And that, quite simply, is the beauty of Jack’s. The kitchen seduces you with its pure comfort food and consistently lures you back with intriguing menu surprises. It’s bold. It’s delicate. It’s downright wacky sometimes. I am so lucky this bistro is in my neighborhood.

And if you live in Baltimore, so are you.