Essential in every kitchen is a good stock. This recipe is used in Gordon Ramsay'sDuck with Gooseberry Sauce. I often make the stock with cooked chicken bones leftover from a roasted chicken and most times I leave out the tomato paste and flour. Any time we have chicken bones, I try to make stock to freeze for later use.
1. Roast the chicken bones at 400° for 20 minutes.
2. Put the carrot, onion, celery and leek in a large pan with the oil and cook over a medium heat until golden. Add the herbs, garlic, tomato puree and flour and stir for a few minutes. Add the roasted chicken bones, cover with plenty of cold water and season lightly. Bring to the boil and skim.
3. Simmer for 1 hour and then pass through a chinois/sieve. Adjust the seasoning.
Makes approximately 4 cups of stock (depending on how much water you use).
The Puerto Rican in me always screams for a traditional meal this time of year. Christmas in Puerto Rico is all about sharing music, drink and great food with friends and family. The traditional meal is a feast of lechón asado (spit-roasted pork), rice with pigeon peas, pasteles wrapped in plantain leaves, arroz con coco and, to drink, lots of rum and coquito.
To welcome the season, I decided to try a family recipe for pernil (roasted pork shoulder). For those of us who don't have the facility to prepare a spit-roasted pig, pernil is a as close as we can get to good roasted pork.
I called my grandfather, Pito, before getting started to ask him about the recipe and the process. This was my first time and I was particularly worried about getting the chicharrón (pork rind) just right. A good pernil is measured by how good the chicharrón is, he explained. Pito walked me through his process, which included thoroughly piercing the skin with a sharp object (like a barbeque fork or metal kebob stick). Before I said goodbye, I told him how excited I was to make a "traditional" pernil. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, he was quick to correct me and say this was his original recipe and not "traditional" pernil.
We enjoyed the roast and had plenty left over for a few rounds of cubanos throughout the week. I must confess my chicharron was not as crispy as I would have liked it to be. I don't think this particular pernil would have passed Pito's standards. He is a perfectionist when it comes to the kitchen. He approaches cooking like a science: exact measurements, process and technique. Pito's un-traditional pernil recipe is wonderful and quirky. I will continue trying until I get it just right!
Pernil
juice of 6 limes, about 1 cup of liquid
8 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 8-pound pork shoulder with skin
3 cups water
6 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1. Preheat oven to 375°. With a sharp object, like a barbeque fork or a metal kebob stick, pierce the entire skin thoroughly (the perforations will allow for a very crispy chicarrón).
2. Grind the garlic in a mortar and pestle. Add lime juice, salt, oregano and cumin and mix well.
3. Use a small steak knife to perforate the skin and meat. The perforations should be about 2 inches deep and about 2" apart. Use your hands to push the garlic mixture into the perforations. Place the pork in a roasting pan and rub the rest of the garlic mixture on the meat, avoiding the skin.
4. Roast in the oven for 30 minutes until the juices have caramelized in the bottom of the pan. Combine the water and vinegar and add to the bottom of the pan (avoid wetting the top side of the skin). Cover with aluminum foil and roast for 1 hour. Occassionally baste the pork with the liquid avoiding the skin.
5. Uncover the roast. Sprinkle the skin with a teaspoon of salt and roast for another 1 1/2 hours. Continue basting the pork every 20 minutes until the skin is crisp and toasted throughout and the thermometer reaches a temperature of 177°F.
Plate by Jim Shack. Photo by Marta Bartolomei Edmonds.
Fresh and easy to make, this cranberry relish recipe has become a favorite compliment to our roasted turkey. I prefer to use fresh cranberries and crystallized ginger. If you pack the relish into heated canning jars, the jars will naturally seal and will keep in the refrigerator for two months. This recipe sure beats canned cranberry sauce.
The original recipe can be found at epicurious here.
Spiced Cranberry and Orange Relish
1 1/3 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
2 small navel oranges
2 cups fresh cranberries (8 oz; thawed if frozen)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
1. Bring sugar and water to a boil in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer syrup, without stirring, washing down any sugar crystals on side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water, 5 minutes.
2. While syrup simmers, cut oranges, including peel and pith, into 1-inch pieces, discarding any seeds, and combine with cranberries, cinnamon, and cloves in a food processor.
3. Add sugar syrup and pulse until fruit is finely chopped. Transfer relish to a bowl and stir in ginger. Chill, covered, 1 day for flavors to develop.
