The Hirshon Tartar Sauce

August 21, 2019 by The Generalissimo Leave a Comment

Tartar Sauce Image Used Under Creative Commons License From pinterest.com

My Citizens, the Condiment King (yes, that’s a super-geeky reference to the most ludicrous comic book villain of all time!), YOUR TFD!, has descended from the summit of Mt. Erebus (the location of his hidden lair in Antarctica) to gift you with the sacred tablets of culinary Law! Inscribed upon them, in hoary and ancient runes from the Time before Time, is this – the recipe for that most noble of condiments: TARTAR SAUCE!

Don’t turn up your nose, Citizen – tartar sauce elevates the most humble fish fry into something worthy of song and story – and today, I share my version of it with the members of TFD Nation!

Tartar sauce (in the UK, New Zealand and Australia, tartare sauce) is a mayonnaise or aioli-based sauce, typically of a rough consistency. It is most often used as a condiment with seafood dishes.

Tartar sauce is based on either mayonnaise (egg yolk, mustard or vinegar, oil) or aioli (egg yolk, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice), with certain other ingredients added.

In the UK, recipes typically add to the base capers, gherkins, lemon juice, and dill. US recipes may include chopped pickles or prepared green sweet relish, capers, onions (or chives), and fresh parsley.

Chopped hard-boiled eggs or olives are sometimes added, as may be Dijon mustard and cocktail onions.

Paul Bocuse describes sauce tartare explicitly as a sauce remoulade, in which the characterizing anchovy purée is to be substituted by some hot Dijon mustard.

The sauce and its name have been found in cookbooks since the 19th century. The name derives from the French sauce tartare, named after the Tatars (Ancient spelling in French of the ethnic group: Tartare) from the Eurasian Steppe, who once occupied Ukraine and parts of Russia.

Although it is unlikely that the Tatars ever made or consumed Tartar sauce, the actual origin of the sauce is indeed found East of France, which may have inspired the confusing name. In Turkey and the Levant, a condiment known as tarator has traditionally been used as a condiment to fried sea food.

Turkish and Levantine tarator is usually a sauce based on tahini, not mayonnaise or aioli, but in regards to being a creamy, tangy accompaniment to fried fish and/or seafood, it is extremely similar to tartar sauce.

The fact that tartar sauce made its first appearance in Western European cuisine in the mid 1800s coincides with a period of Orientalism (during which various aspects of Middle Eastern culture were glorified and absorbed by Western European cultures) lending credence to the idea that tartar sauce was adopted by France from the Arabic world.

Hellman’s introduced its commercial Tartar Sauce in jars in the 1920s. This was a natural move for Hellman’s, as Tartar Sauce is based on mayonnaise, though more sophisticated versions now use crème fraîche or fromage-frais instead of the mayonnaise.

As eruditely noted in frenchcountryfood.com:

The origin of the word mayonnaise is controversial, the first meaning of the word appearing in 1806. It could come from Mahon (Mao), the capital of Minorca in the Balearic Islands, Spain, occupied by the British and conquered by the Marechal de Richelieu in 1756. the later had presented to his cook this sauce called “the mahonnaise” made with only two ingredients at his disposal: egg and oil. Nevertheless, the sauce began to be described shortly before this event.

Another hypothesis is based, after Careme, a derivative of magnonaise (verb magner or handling) or, according to Prosper Montagne, of moyennaise (or moyeunaise), moyeu which means egg yolk in old French. It has also been proposed to relate to the word to the old verb mailler meaning ” to beat”.

Joseph Fabre says, for its part, that mayonnaise is an alteration of the word magnonnaise derived from Magnon (Lot-et-Garonne), one cook Magnon was first popularized in the South, he notes that the sauce was named either mahonnaise, Bayonnaise and mayonnaise.

The French city of Bayonne (sauce “in Bayonne”) could also give its name to this type of sauce by orthographic transformation.This explanation would seem to be confirmed by the fact that there is no written record of the sauce to “mayonnaise” before the beginning of the nineteenth century, so long after the capture of the city of Mahón.

A final hypothesis, more controversial, and issued by the linguist and historian Nicolas Lepreux suggests that mayonnaise come from the Mayenne region, and the “e” will be changed into “o” over time: the apocryphal story said that the Duke of Mayenne would have eaten, at the eve of the battle of Arques, too much chicken seasoned with a sauce, remarkable, so the next day he fell from his horse and lost the battle.

So, let’s make one thing crystalline-clear: TFD prefers His tartar sauce the original way, with mayo – dissenters shall be immediately purged from the ranks of TFD Nation! The truth is, some things are best kept close to their humble roots and this recipe is one of them.

That said, I do elevate my tartar sauce with classic French seasonings as well as a goodly hit of spice from the New World via the use of some Old Bay seasoning and some Tabasco for a heated finish on the palate.

Allow this delicious sauce to grace your next fish fry or seafood dinner – you will indeed thank me, my Citizens!

Battle on – the Generalissimo

The Hirshon Tartar Sauce

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3 ratings

The Hirshon Tartar Sauce

Ingredients

¾ cup Best Foods / Hellman’s Mayonnaise (strongly preferred) or Duke's as a second choice (it's thinner in consistency than Hellman's, you may want to increase to 1 cup if using Duke's) - any other brands will get you sent to the Siberian salt mines!
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp. minced fresh Italian parsley leaves
2 Tbsp. minced shallots
1 ½ tsp. drained sweet pickle relish + ½ tbsp. brine - TFD endorses Wickle’s brand
1 ½ tsp. minced cornichons
1 tsp. Old Bay Seasoning (or to taste)
½ Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp. minced capers + ½ tbsp. brine
¼ tsp. Tabasco
2 tsp. minced fresh tarragon
¼ tsp. horseradish (optional but TFD loves it)

Instructions

Combine all ingredients in bowl and refrigerate until needed.

https://www.thefooddictator.com/the-hirshon-tartar-sauce/

The Hirshon Portuguese Spicy “Woodpecker” Beef And Pickled Vegetables – Pica Pau

August 20, 2019 by The Generalissimo Leave a Comment

Pica Pau Image Used Under Creative Commons License From portugalia.com.mo

My Citizens, there can be no arguing the fact that the cuisine of Portugal is both delicious and sadly far less well known than its neighbor on the Iberian peninsula (aka Spain). Former Portuguese colonies such as Brazil, Mozambique and Macau DO know the savor of this windswept country’s recipes and today I would very much like to share a delicious appetizer with you from the land of Port. I speak of the oddly-named ‘pica pau’, which means ‘woodpecker’ in Portuguese.

The odd name does not mean in any way, shape or form that this recipe calls for woodpecker – the name actually derives from the fact that you have to keep using a toothpick or cocktail fork to eat the delicious meat and pickled vegetables from the dish. Do it fast enough – and you should do it fast, or risk other people eating your food! – and the motion is like a woodpecker pecking at a tree. 🙂

It is traditionally served in cervejarias (beer houses), where it is usually washed down with lots of draught beer. I’d personally serve it with this spectacular Portuguese dessert and a simple roast meat entrée – and a cold draught beer.

The origins of this dish are rather obscure, but it may in fact derive from a popular Portuguese sandwich known as Francesinha (meaning Little Frenchie or simply Frenchie in Portuguese).

This Portuguese sandwich, originally from Porto, is made with bread, wet-cured ham, linguiça, fresh sausage like chipolata, steak or roast meat, and covered with melted cheese and a hot thick tomato and beer sauce.

Daniel da Silva, a returned emigrant from France and Belgium, tried to adapt the croque-monsieur to the Portuguese taste when he moved to Porto. He first created the special sauce and populated the sandwich with local meats in 1953 at ‘A Regaleira’, a restaurant in Rua do Bonjardim, Porto; the Francesinha quickly became a very popular dish and deeply associated with the city, although it can be sometimes found elsewhere in Portugal.

Pica pau may in fact be a breadless variant of this sandwich, in which a steak is cut into bite-sized pieces and covered with sauce.

As to making this delectable appetizer, you first need to start with some seriously good beef – I prefer fillet of beef, but it can be expensive. Be sure and ask your butcher to give you the tail ends of the fillet, as it will be significantly less expensive without compromising flavor.

The pickled vegetables are also an integral part of the flavor profile of the dish – rather than make my own, I actually prefer to use a pre-made substitute of Chicago-style giardiniera. It uses carrots and cauliflower, which are the traditional pickled veggies used in pica pau and you can buy it in a hot and mild version bundle on Amazon! I also like a bit of pickled onion in my pica pau – this is my preferred brand.

The spicy condiment that ties all this together is called piri piri oil, and it is made from African birds eye peppers known – unsurprisingly – as piri piri. Fresh piri piri peppers are nearly impossible to find in the States, but I find Thai bird peppers make a fine substitute. Dried piri piri peppers may be bought here. The recipe is lightly adapted from one I found on the Los Angeles Times website by by Tessa Kiros.

The sauce is flavored with white wine, brandy and sweet yellow mustard – again, Portuguese mustard is really tough to find here in the States, so I suggest either use your favorite sweet mustard or my heretical choice of French spiced mustard. Given the probably origins of pica pau, I don’t think I’m venturing too far down the apostate path. You can buy it here.

Citizens, this recipe is one that I am positive will find favor with the bold palates of TFD Nation – I hope you see fit to try it post-haste!

Battle on – the Generalissimo

The Hirshon Portuguese Spicy "Woodpecker" Beef And Pickled Vegetables - Pica Pau

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5 ratings

The Hirshon Portuguese Spicy "Woodpecker" Beef And Pickled Vegetables - Pica Pau

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. grapeseed oil
1 ¾ lb. good-quality beef tenderloin, cubed
Sea salt and ground white pepper
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 ½ ounces lardo (pork fat), diced
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, smashed
2 bay leaves
1 Tbsp. Portuguese sweet mustard, or use your favorite sweet mustard or TFD's heretical choice of Savora mustard condiment
Splash of white wine
Splash of brandy
2 Tbsp. pickled vegetables, diced - TFD prefers a 50/50 mix of mild and hot giardiniera
2 Tbsp. gherkins, diced
malt vinegar cocktail onions, whole to taste
¼ cup top-quality black olives, pitted
4 Tbsp. thick-sliced cured ham, diced - ideally Ibérico, Serrano or Parma ham
½ bunch of parsley, finely chopped
***
Piri-Piri chili oil:
5 fresh Thai 'Bird' chiles with seeds (TFD change, original called for red fresno chiles, which are also good)
7 small dried piri piri chiles
3 garlic cloves, peeled (TFD change, original was 2)
2 Tbsp. whiskey
½ tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 bay leaf
2 tsp. black peppercorns (TFD addition to original recipe)
1 tsp. coarse salt
1 cup olive oil, divided
***
Country bread and lemon wedges, to serve

Instructions

At least 4 days before making the woodpecker beef, make the piri-piri oil so it has time to mellow.
Stem and roughly chop the fresh and dried chiles. Pulse the chiles and garlic in a food processor or use a mortar and pestle to mash them to a paste. You need about 2 tablespoons of chile paste.
Scrape the paste out into a small saucepan, add the whiskey and heat over low heat until warm. Add the lemon zest and juice, vinegar, bay leaf, salt and 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (you can add extra garlic if you want it more garlicky). Simmer until aromatic, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and lightly whisk in the rest of the oil.
Pour into a sterilized jar and refrigerate for at least a few days for the flavors to mingle. The oil will be hot at first, but you’ll find it will settle and mellow later.
Place a large pan over high heat and sear the beef in the grapeseed oil, seasoning generously with salt and pepper. Once seared – but NOT cooked through – move the beef on to a tray, reserving the juices.
Add butter and olive oil to the pan, then the pork fat. Add the onions and cook quickly, stirring constantly. Add the garlic and bay leaves, then the mustard, and stir through. Add the meat and reserved juices, the wine, brandy, pickles, pickled onions, gherkins, ham and parsley. Adjust the seasoning with salt and white pepper.
Mix everything for 15 seconds, still on high heat, then remove from the stove. Transfer to a warm serving tray and serve immediately with the suggested garnishes and a small dish of the piri piri oil for dipping or sprinkling on individual portions.

https://www.thefooddictator.com/the-hirshon-portuguese-spicy-woodpecker-beef-and-pickled-vegetables-pica-pau/

The Hirshon British Indian Restaurant Chicken Korma

August 20, 2019 by The Generalissimo Leave a Comment

Chicken Korma Image Used Under Creative Commons License From myheartbeets.com

Citizens, welcome to the final installment of our series on how to make a proper British Indian Restaurant (BIR)-style curry – we conclude with the mildest curry of the lot: chicken korma! The Satan-born hellfire of phall may indeed make you bleed from all your orifices, and the Madras packs a good kick as well – but Korma is incredibly mild and ideal for those with spice intolerance.

BIR-style korma is fascinating to me, as it is the closest to its distant ancestor from India – phall, Madras and tikka masala have no real analogues in Indian cuisine, but Korma is actually quite close indeed.

What differentiates BIR korma is the use of the ubiquitous curry base that is the foundation of all BIR curries – this is what gives it the distinctive flavor profile that Commonwealth curry lovers find intoxicating and irresistible.

In the United Kingdom, a korma as served in curry houses is a mildly spiced dish with a thick sauce that often features almonds, cashews or other nuts, and coconut or coconut milk. In the 21st-century, chicken korma has several times been cited as the most popular curry in the UK, replacing chicken tikka masala in surveys of public eating habits.

The Indian version has deep historical roots with Muslim Maharajahs of the classical period. The English name is an anglicization of Urdu قورمہ, more accurately transliterated qormā, and derived from a Turkic root.

The word korma is derived from Urdu qormā, ḳormā or ḳormah, meaning “braise”, and refers to the cooking technique used in the dish.

The Ain-e-Akbari (life chronicles of the emperor Akbar written by Abul Fazl) suggests that Korma was created in the royal kitchens of Akbar the great, and though Korma is not one of the 30 recipes mentioned in the Ain-e-Akbari (Akbarnama), it is safe to assume that its cooking method and ingredients have remained the same for more than 500 years.

The Indian korma was always white to symbolize purity and the divine nature of the Emperor, but the British version is typically colored yellow.

As noted in a fantastic article on dawn.com, the history of chicken korma is inextricably tied to the royal Moghul court of India.

Korma probably derived from the Persian Koresh, a ghee-based mild stew the Moghuls indianised using cream, yogurt, ground almonds, saffron and aromatic spices.

It is said that if the Indian cook could cook a Korma he could cook for the Moghul court. If he could cook a dozen variations he would be the king of the kitchen and cook for the emperor’s table,’ writes Pat Chapman the English food writer, in his book India Food and Cooking.

But some believe that the Korma has central Asian roots and is referred to askhorma, qorma, kurma and kavurma and its mughlai version was created in the 16th century through the experimentation of Rajput cooks in the royal kitchens of Akbar the Great, under the supervision of Mir Bakawal, the master of kitchens and one of the court navratans (Akbar’s nine gems).

The Rajput cooks on creating the dish, named it Korma, in honour of the warrior Rajput ‘Kurma’ tribe.

Korma literally means braising the meat, and the method for cooking Korma was initial braising of meat in ghee (clarified butter), yogurt and spices and then simmering it in water until completion; blanched and finely ground nuts were also used as thickening agents.

It is said that the cooks in the royal kitchens marinated the meat in yogurt, fried onions and spices before cooking it for the emperor’s dinner table, and after the initial braising of the meat, the dum-pukth method was initiated until completion, or open lid simmering, but the temperature was always controlled hence the yogurt was never allowed to curd.

The BIR korma recipe I’ve created is 90% true to the UK original – I have, however, deviated from the norm with two heretical touches (both are optional). The first is that instead of coloring the korma yellow with food coloring (the normal way it’s done in curry houses), I instead call for saffron water, which is far more Indian.

I also call for golden raisins as a garnish, which is typical of the Indian korma but not of the BIR version. I happen to like them in this recipe – if you so prefer, you can garnish with food-grade dried rose petals.

As with the other BIR recipes in the series, I strongly encourage you to read this fantastic tutorial before starting this or any of the other curries – it will give you the confidence to do it right!

My preferred brand of ghee can be purchased here, Kashmiri chili powder is here, and my preferred brand of rosewater is available here (with a bottle of orange flower water as well!).

Citizens, I am so happy you have joined me on this journey into the world of British curries – I hope you have learned a lot, eat well from it and teach others the unmitigated joys of BIR! 🙂

Battle on – the Generalissimo

The Hirshon British Indian Restaurant Chicken Korma

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6 ratings

The Hirshon British Indian Restaurant Chicken Korma

Ingredients

5 Tbsp. ghee
1 Tbsp. garlic paste
1 Tbsp. ginger paste
3 cups heated base curry sauce
***
pre-cooked chicken Tikka:
1 ¾ lb. chicken breasts, diced into 1" chunks
1 cup thick whole milk yogurt
2 Tbsp. ginger/garlic paste (equal amounts of each blended with a little water)
2 tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. garam masala
1 tsp. ground coriander seed
2 Tbsp. ghee
1 tsp. Kashmiri chili powder (or paprika)
1 tsp black pepper
juice of ½ lemon
***
4 tablespoons cashew paste
½ teaspoon water with crushed saffron in it - it should be very yellow
1 Tbsp. cumin powder
½ tsp Kashmiri chili powder (or paprika)
½ tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
7 green cardamoms - lightly smashed
1 tsp. sugar (use more or less to taste)
½ cup heavy cream
1 cup coconut milk
3 tbsp. fresh chopped cilantro
1 tsp. rose water (TFD endorses Cortas brand)
***
For garnish:
golden raisins (TFD note - dried rose petals are the traditional choice here in the UK, but I like the way they look and taste in this recipe and they ARE used in the Indian version of korma)
fried cashews
minced cilantro (optional)

Instructions

For the chicken tikka, mix all ingredients well in a bowl, cover and leave to marinate for at least 3 hours in the fridge. Take it out 30 minutes before you're ready to grill these (you want to bring the chicken up to room temp) then thread the chicken onto skewers.
Place under a very hot preheated grill and cook for 10 minutes or so, turning halfway. They should be just cooked through, looking a bit charred. Cover loosely with foil and set aside while you make the korma sauce.
Melt the ghee in a frying pan over medium heat.
when bubbling hot, stir in the ground spices and green cardamoms.
Fry for about a minute and then add the garlic and ginger paste and cashew paste.
Stir this into the hot ghee and then add the curry sauce, heavy cream and coconut milk, followed by the cooked chicken.
Stir to combine and add the saffron water.
Bring to a simmer and the add the chopped cilantro and rose water. Add the sugar.
Garnish and serve immediately with naan.

https://www.thefooddictator.com/the-hirshon-british-indian-restaurant-chicken-korma/