Recently in Side Dishes Category
The story explains that Louisiana shrimpers are still struggling because not only do they have to contend with the issues of storm recovery, but also depressed prices because of foreign shrimp imports. Imported shrimp are everywhere, even in my favorite suburban New Orleans grocery store.
They may be imported from Thailand, but that pound of shrimp was convenient. They weren't cheap, though, at $10/pound. The Caesar salad package is also a quickie item. I don't like the dressings that are usually included with these ready-to-serve salad packages, so I picked up some local Caesar dressing.
Sal and Judy's is a very popular restaurant on the Northshore, and they've branched out into their own line of products. Given the numerous Caesar dressings on the grocery shelf, I punted and went local.
The shrimp were pre-cooked, and that's one of the big issues the local shrimpers have with the imports. The shrimp are farm-raised, then peeled, steamed, and packaged. Unlike New Orleans boiled shrimp, these look good, but they're bland and boring.
This is what makes the difference between bland-and-boring and the shrimp we know and love down here, Crab Boil. It says right on the bottle that Zatarain's Crab Boil is "concentrated," but that's an understatement. When boiling shrimp, the bottle says to use one tablespoon for five pounds of raw shrimp. That's one tablespoon for five pounds of head-on, unpeeled shrimp. In other words, if you spill this stuff, call for a hazmat cleanup.
The Thai shrimp were frozen, so I defrosted them for a few minutes in the microwave. I added two drops of Crab Boil to the water in the container, mixed it all up a bit, and microwaved them on high for a couple of minutes. Boiling the water in the dish generated a good bit of crab-boil steam, which helped improve the flavor.
With the shrimp as done as they'd ever be, it was time to make the salad. The easiest way to make sure you don't put too much dressing on the salad is to pour it in first. Coat the bottom of a mixing bowl with the dressing, then add the lettuce to it.
Add some croutons and toss it all together.
In spite of the crab boil, the shrimp were missing some of the magic, so I sprinkled some creole seasoning over them and the salad. It did give them a bit of a kick as well as adding some more color to the plate.
Total time to fix and serve this is about fifteen minutes.
The bottom line on the shrimp is simple: the imports are boring. In the future, I'll buy raw shrimp and boil or saute them myself. The ease with which these pre-cooked shrimp can be served up makes them tempting, but they're just not the same!
the grocery had some nice-looking pork sirloins, so I picked up three and cooked those with a pasta side dish from The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Italian called "Pasta with Olives."
For the pork, I browned them in a skillet with a little lemon-pepper seasoning, deglazed the pan with some white wine (Woodbridge Sauvignon Blanc), then tossed them and the pan drippings into the oven (350F) for about 20 minutes.
While they were in the oven, I made the pasta. The recipe is simple: olives, olive oil, heavy cream, and pasta. I usually do this with an 8-ounce jar of pitted green olives (or fresh if the grocery has nice ones). Tonight, I used half pitted olives and half anchovy-stuffed olives. (All green olives here, btw.) The family doesn't care much for the anchovies, so I got those for myself. :-) Chop the olives and saute them in a skillet with 3-4 tbsp of olive oil. I usually add some cayenne to this for good measure. Stir in the cream and let simmer. Serve over pasta. I did this in two pans to keep the offending anchovies separate.
Both dishes came out very nice. I served them with corn-on-the-cob and cruncy french bread, along with the rest of the wine.
Creole Asparagus
Dedicated to Gus, the Theater Cat, from CATS! :-)
The Podcast (29:52, 27.3MB)
The Recipes
Lemon-Butter Roasted Asparagus
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Yields: 6 Servings
Ingredients:
* 2 pounds asparagus, trimmed, rinsed and dried
* 1 tbsp olive oil
* 2 tbsps melted butter
* salt and cracked black pepper to taste
* 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
Method:
Preheat oven to 400°F. In a small mixing bowl, toss asparagus with olive oil and butter. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Arrange asparagus on a baking sheet. Bake 15-20 minutes or until asparagus are tender. Sprinkle with lemon juice and serve.
Asparagus au Gratin
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Yields: 4 Servings
Ingredients:
* 1 pound fresh asparagus spears, trimmed
* salt and black pepper to taste
* 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
* 2 tbsps butter
* ¼ cup flour
* 1 cup milk
* ¼ cup heavy whipping cream
* 2 tsps lemon juice
* ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
Method:
Preheat oven to 225°F. Add asparagus to a pan large enough to hold them lying flat. Cover asparagus with boiling water, and add salt to taste. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until tender. Carefully lift asparagus with a spatula, and transfer to paper towels to drain. Reserve ¼ cup of cooking liquid. Arrange asparagus with tips all pointing in one direction on a warm, ovenproof serving dish. Cover and keep warm in oven. Simmer mushrooms in 2 tablespoons of reserved asparagus liquid for 2 minutes or until tender. Drain and arrange over bottom half of asparagus. Cover and continue to keep warm while making sauce. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter and stir in flour until smooth. Continue to cook and stir 1-2 minutes or until golden. Remove from heat. Slowly stir in milk, cream, remaining asparagus liquid and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Return sauce to heat; simmer and occasionally stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Pour over mushrooms and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Asparagus tips should remain exposed. Cover exposed portion of asparagus with foil, and place dish under broiler 2-3 minutes or until sauce is browned.
Asparagus and Crawfish with Glazed Hollandaise
Ingredients
1 lb. asparagus woody ends cut off
1/2 cup chopped cooked crawfish tails
1 1/2 Tbs. finely grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup hollandaise sauce (see below)
1. Bring a pan with about a half-inch of water to a slow boil and drop the asparagus in it. Let it cook for about three minutes. Then take them out of the boiling water being careful not to break them. Run cold water over them to stop the cooking and drain.
2. Heat the broiler. Arrange the asparagus in one row all parallel to one another on a broiling pan. Sprinkle the crawfish and the Parmesan cheese around the center of the asparagus. Pour the hollandaise over the center of the asparagus row leaving the tips clean.
3. Broil the asparagus until the hollandaise begins to glaze light brown on the top. Remove from the oven. Remove six to ten at a time wither topping intact using a metal spatula.
Serves four to eight.
Chicken With Crabmeat And Asparagus In Pastry
Ingredients
4 chicken breasts, skinned and deboned
6 oz. Jumbo Lump Crabmeat
3 Tbs. chopped green onion, white part only
4 tsp. butter
Pinch Creole Seasoning
Puff pastry dough, cut into four sheets about 3 x 8
24 medium asparagus spears, lightly poached
3 eggs, beaten
Buerre blanc sauce:
4 oz. white wine
1 oz. lemon juice
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
1. If necessary, trim the hard, woody parts of the asparagus and peel the bottom third. Bring a quart of lightly salted water to a boil and poach the asparagus until slightly tender but still crisp. Drain and set aside.
2. Pound the chicken breasts lightly to flatten. Top with the crabmeat, green onions, butter, and Creole seasoning.
3. Place the chicken atop puff pastry. Place the asparagus on either side of the breast, and roll up the puff pastry sheets tightly around the chicken.
4. Brush the pastry with the beaten egg and place on a lightly oiled baking pan. Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for 15-18 minutes, until pastry is browned. Serve atop buerre blanc. For a richer dish, top with bearnaise sauce.
5. To make the buerre blanc, combine the wine and the lemon juice in a skillet and reduce by half. Lower the heat to a simmer and slowly whisk in the butter until it emulsifies into a translucent, creamy-looking sauce.
Serves four.
New Orleans and Creole Potato Dishes
The Podcast (30:57, 28.3mb)
The Recipes
Brabant Potatoes - See the Creole Chicken Podcast
Creole Parsley Potatoes
Yield - 12 Dinner Servings
Ingredients
4 LBS CREAMER RED POTATOES
2 TBSP LEMON JUICE
1 GALLON CHICKEN STOCK
1/2 LB BUTTER
1 TSP WHITE PEPPER
1 TSP SALT
1 BUNCH CILANTRO (Chopped)
Method
Peel potatoes, wash in cold water and douse with lemon juice. (This will stop potatoes from turning brown.) Use a large stock pot and over high heat, boil the potatoes in the chicken stock. Test the potatoes for doneness after 10 minutes, by cutting one in half with a knife. The potatoes should be watched carefully and removed the minute that they are cooked though. Do not over cook the potatoes. The potatoes can be refrigerated at this time for service latter or held covered in a warmed serving bowl.
Over medium heat, melt the butter in a large cast iron skillet. Add the potatoes and lightly fry in the butter. Add the remaining seasonings, turn frequently to coat all sides of the potatoes with the cilantro. Continue cooking for an additional 3-5 minutes. Serve immediately.
Alternate Method #1
1 TSP SPANISH PAPRIKA
1/2 TSP GROUND CAYENNE PEPPER
Add the above ingredients at the end, the deep red color and taste will greatly enhance this dish.
Alternate Method #2
Use crab boil in lieu of the chicken stock, this add a distinctive South Louisiana flavor.
Creole Potato Salad
* 3 pounds red potatoes, cubed
* 1/2 cup mayonnaise
* 1/2 cup creole mustard
* 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
* 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
* 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
* 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
* 6 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
* 1 medium size sweet onion, diced
Cook potatoes in boiling salted water to cover 12 minutes or until tender, drain and cool slightly.
Stir together mayonnaise, creole mustard and the next six ingredients in a large bowl; add potatoes, eggs, onion, tossing gently.
Serve at room temperature or chilled. Serves 8
Pomme de Terres Soufflees (Soufflee Potatoes from Antoine's Restaurant)
2 pounds large potatoes
Oil
Salt
Wash and peel the potatoes and cut lengthwise into slices 1 1/4 inches wide and one-eighth inch thick. Soak the potato slices in cold water to remove excess starch.
Have two pots filled with oil, one at a moderately hot temperature (275 degrees F) and the other at a very hot temperature (400 degrees F). Drain the potatoes and dry them carefully. Put a single layer of potatoes into a frying basket and lower the basket into the moderately hot oil. Keep moving the potatoes around, dipping the basket in and out of the oil until the potatoes begin to brown and to puff. The partially cooked potatoes may be set aside for awhile before the second stage, or may be finished immediately.
Put the partially cooked potatoes in a basket and dip the basket into the pot of very hot oil. Again be careful to cover only the bottom of the basket with potatoes and to keep them moving around in the oil until they are golden brown, well puffed and crispy.
Remove from the oil, drain on absorbent paper and sprinkle with salt for seasoning. Serves 6.
