Escapism Cooking, In One Sense

When I got The Art of Escapism Cooking by Mandy Lee, from our library (this is not a book you want to buy without checking it out first) I thought, my word, what amazing looking recipes!  What wonderful photography!

Then, I realized that these recipes were for very involved, not to mention strange, concoctions.  Pages of instruction and hard to come by ingredients, many incorporating unique sauces, which needed to be created first, before using, in meals entitled for instance, Spelt Jianbing with Kettle Cooked Potato Chips, Clams Over Oatmeal, Chewy Layered Paratha, Korean Pork Belly Tacos with Pear on Sticky Rice Tortillas, and Semi-Instant Risotto with Pork Fat Crispy Rice Cereal.

This is not merely fusion cooking people, but more like Double Extreme Fusion!  And Lee gives her readers a few tirades on that subject, for example her rant on pizza: 

"Pizza has the potential to be Italy's ramen, a democratic arena of creativity, progressivism, and tolerance, if only the Italians could just chill the fuck out about it.  Is it really pizza?  Who says so, and who cares?  Neither the tomato itself nor baking stuff on top of a fermented dough was an original Italian idea, and if the Italians from a few hundred years ago were dumb enough to give a shit about that, then there wouldn't even be such a thing as pizza today.  All the dishes we eat today were fusion at some point in history.  And to say that this progression should stop and freeze at an arbitrary point for the sake of national pride is both dangerous and dumb-sounding."

Deconstructed Tenderloin BBQ

In line with the theme of using more of what is growing outside, I have come up with a new take on an old standard around here - Teriyaki Sauce.  In Hawaii, Teriyaki BBQ'd Chicken is a year-round staple. However, I just couldn't see having Bob go through firing up the BBQ and getting a bunch of charcoal to white hot, for like 2-3 minutes on each side of cooking, which is all this tenderloin, cut in 1/4 inch strips, took to broil.  I can stand the oven being on for that amount of time.  Besides which, he was recovering from a bad cold.  Poor guy.  So, this is a deconstructed Steak Tenderloin Teriyaki, with off the skewer zucchini, onion, and red bell pepper.

Isn't the fruit weird looking?

I'm using more of my Kaffir Lime leaves and fruit lately.  Before it was just the leaves occasionally in Thai cooking. Now we're finding uses for the fruit itself.  I used the zest recently in Ono with Pia and a Shrimp Risotto.   For this Teriyaki marinade, thin slices of the limes were added, which gave the meat a wonderful limey zing. It's now on my personal, internal, teriyaki recipe card.  There's no real recipe for teriyaki sauce, you just start adding spices to your base of shoyu (soy sauce).  But, in this case, I'll list what ingredients I included.

Teriyaki Marinade

1 cup shoyu (preferably naturally aged)
2 tablespoons roasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 tablespoons Mae Ploy  Sweet Chili Sauce
1 clove garlic, pressed
1 Kaffir lime, thinly sliced

For the Deconstructed BBQ

1 lb. beef tenderloin, sliced about 1/4 " thick
1/2 zucchini, sliced thinly
1/2  red bell pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 onion, cut in thin wedges

In a dish large enough for the meat and marinade, mix all the ingredients together well.  Add the meat and marinate for about 15 min.., then add the vegetables, stir together, and remove from marinade.  Arrange in a roasting pan with the meat on top.  Set oven on broil and grill about 4" from flame for 2-3 minutes on each side.  Or, until as done as you prefer.  I like mine still pink inside.

Use more vegetables if you like.  That's just what I had on hand.  This recipe was enough for 2 adults and 2 children (who don't care if they have any vegetables anyway).  But, I served it with a big ripe tomato, sliced and tossed with basil leaves, and rice on the side.We usually have a piece of tenderloin, as is.  Just barely done, and it is enough.  This is just over the top of awesomeness.  And, those strange little kaffir limes are going to be getting a lot more use around here.

Duck Confit in White Wine Reduction

For this dish I used my Confit of Duck legs topped with a sauce of white wine, Kaffir lime zest and Galangal ginger - an important and popular ingredient in the foods of Indonesia and Southeast Asia, especially in Thailand. For those of you unfamiliar with this Asian spice, here is some history and benefits from a Thai cooking site I came across in my search for the best ways of preparing the fresh root. I wanted to concoct a pan sauce that would both counter and complement the rich, unctuousness of the duck. Something light and zippy.

History of Galangal

Galangal is now grown in most Southeast-Asian countries, but was first harvested for use in cooking and medicine in China and Java. But by the Middle Ages, galangal had traveled extensively, and was already in common use throughout Europe. Referred to as "the spice of life" by St. Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179), galangal was, in fact, one of her favorite remedies. This famous herbalist used galangal to treat everything from deafness and heart disease to indigestion.
During the 13th-14th centuries, galangal was used by the Turkic peoples (who occupied much of present-day Russia) as a tea, and by the Arabs as a stimulant for their horses. It was used extensively throughout the East as a snuff for nasal infections, and in both Europe and Asia as an appetite stimulant and aphrodisiac.
Today, galangal is still in use in Russia, where it is used to make vinegars as well as liqueurs. It also has a thriving market in India, where it is not only valued as a spice but also as a perfume to make deodorants. Presently galangal remains, however, most commonly used in Southeast-Asian countries like Thailand, where the spice is not only a medicine, but has become part of the daily diet-which tells you how healthy Thai cuisine really is!

So, enough about that particular ingredient. I love it though, and am cultivating even more to supply my habit, since it does so well in Hawaii. Here's my little bed of galangal, behind the Mexican Heather.



Another ingredient from our garden is the lemon factor, both in my Lemon Mead and Preserved Lemons. You can see the gnarly galangal roots here.  The Kaffir lime used for its zest is also home grown.

 Confit of Duck, is an incredibly delicious and succulent preparation involving a salt cure, then slow cooking submerged in duck fat.  Though if you are in a hurry, it can be bought prepared. Or if the duck fat puts you off, you can use olive oil. I like to buy a whole duck, break it down, render the fat and use that. Aside from making confit with the giblets and legs, it's great for frying up potatoes, as I did for this meal.


The duck is preserved beneath a lovely blanket of duck fat, 3 weeks in the fridge, then brought to room temperature (so the tender meat won't pull off when you remove it).

Duck Confit with White Wine Reduction

This dish was partly inspired by Mario Batali's recipe for Duck with Preserved Lemons and Kumquat Vinaigrette from his book, The Babbo Cookbook.

Serves 2

2 confit of duck legs
1 tablespoon duck fat, grapeseed oil or olive oil
1/2 onion
3/4 cup duck or chicken stock
3/4 cup dry white wine (I used my lemon mead)
2 tablespoons galangal ginger, finely minced and pounded in mortar or food processor
1/2 teaspoon kaffir lime zest
1 tablespoons honey (taste, you may want more)
salt and white pepper to taste
for garnish - 1 preserved lemon quarter - skin only, rinsed and sliced thinly

Preheat oven to 350F

First, remove your duck legs (brought to room temp.) from the fat, and wipe down excess with a paper towel. In an ovenproof saute pan, heat the tablespoon of duck fat or grapeseed oil (does well at high temperatures) over high heat until smoking. Add duck legs and saute them, skin side down, until the skin is crispy. Remove pan from the heat and place it in the oven to heat through, for about 5 minutes. Plate and set aside, covered with foil, to keep warm.

In the same pan, saute the onion, until translucent and turning golden brown, then add galangal, and saute a few more minutes, add stock and wine. Reduce by half the amount over medium-high heat. Lower the heat, and add your kaffir lime zest and honey. Simmer gently about 5 minutes.

Pour over the duck and garnish with preserved lemon slivers. Serve with a salad of mixed greens (Ruhlman suggests a salad of arugula, red onions and and cerignola olives). I used arugula from our garden, some romaine lettuce and red onion macerated in Sherry vinegar. Amazing served with potatoes pan-fried in duck fat. Soooo good. I added in a few little sweet potatoes from my garden too.  Nice with a glass of dry Lemon Mead.


So, all in all, this meal used a number of items home grown, and I'll be sending it along to enter in the May Grow Your Own event, hosted this time by The Daily Tiffin.

As a short addendum, there was just enough sauce and duck left to have over pasta for my lunch next day. Topping with a bit of parsley was a good flavor and color note. I'd add it to the main dish next time.

Spicy Guava Chutney

It felt like a real Fall Harvest Frenzy around here this morning. I chopped up, yes ... more guavas, added some exciting tropical spices - Hawaiian chili peppers, allspice, ginger, kaffir lime leaves, etc. and made up a batch of chutney. Meanwhile cacao pods were roasting and then, cooling for me to husk, grind and make into truffles. In between which I was trying to get a batch of macadamia nuts shelled . I'll put them in the truffles after a bit of toasting.

For those interested, the recipe for Guava Chutney:

5 cups guavas, peeled, cut in quarters, seeds removed; then cut into thin slices
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 thumbs young ginger or 1 thumb mature, peeled and sliced thin
2 cups water
1 lb. granulated sugar
2 cups vinegar
2 kaffir lime leaves, shredded, stems removed
2 whole allspice leaves (or allspice powder)
1  1/2 Hawaiian chili peppers, seeds removed (or not if you want it hotter) & minced
1/2 teas. salt
1/4 teas. coarsely ground black pepper
1/3 cup raisins

Cook the guavas with ginger, garlic and water, then add sugar, and remaining ingredients. Cook, on a hot fire, stirring occasionally until thick. Ladle into jars. This made 3 normal size jam jars and one smaller jar.

Guavas turn a lovely deep burgundy red when given a long cook.