Recipe: Nokake (Native American Blue Corn Cakes)

I love nokake (no-kah-kay). Perhaps it is because they are so base, simple and sustaining. It could be that they kind of remind me of the elven bread called "lembas" that sustained Frodo and Sam on their way to Mordor in The Lord of the Rings, (Geek check!). I do know that they are delicious.

The recipes for corn cakes predate the arrival of the Europeans on the American continent. There are many different recipes that include all manner of ingredients including dill, bacon bits, bear grease and even wood ashes (for real good chemical and nutritional reasons). They were an important food stuff for the Native Americans and influenced the cooking of the colonists and American food today. Cornbread, corn pone, corn sticks, hoe cakes, johnny cakes and a host of other corn meal breads find their origin in nokake.

This recipe is based on one published by Wampanoag Indian chef Sherry Pocknett. Sherry runs a catering business and also operates a the "Sly Fox's Den", a Native American foods concession stand she operates at many pow wows including the Pequot Nation's annual "Schemitzun". I've made some changes to her recipe to suit my personal taste, but the heart of it is hers.

I use nokake as a platform for several "stack" types of recipes. One consists of the nokake, topped with roasted acorn squash and then a layer of smoked pork tenderloin. The resulting dish is DELICIOUS and one of my favorites. It, and others like it will find their way here as photo opportunities present themselves.

Nokake are versatile, you can alter their preparation between sweet or savory depending on your needs. This recipe leans towards savory.

Nokake (Corn cakes)

2 cups blue cornmeal (I prefer blue, you can use white or yellow)
1/2 cup flour
2 TBS honey
1 heaping TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1-1/2 cups water
1 bunch scallions/green onions (green part only), chopped
1 cup fresh sweet corn kernels
Pepper, to taste
3 TBS peanut oil
Butter

In a large bowl, sift together the cornmeal, flour, honey, baking powder, and salt.

Slowly add the water until the resulting mixture is the consistency of hot oatmeal.

Stir in the scallions, sweet corn, and pepper.

On a large griddle or skillet, heat some of the oil on medium-high heat. Ladle enough batter into the skillet to make a 5-inch cake.

Cook for 6 to 8 minutes per side.

Brush the surface with butter.

Continue making corn cakes, adding more oil as needed.

Recipe: Nokake (Native American Corn Cakes) from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk
http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Three-Cheese Baked Ziti with Italian Sausage

Today's world food you can prepare at home is a familiar one to many people. Baked Ziti comes in a myriad of styles and interpretations. That's because it's good and everyone takes their own angle at it. For many of my Italian friends it is one of their favorite comfort foods.

I'm not going to stretch the truth here, the recipe below is a little involved, but not really complicated, nor does it demand any special talents or tools. It's a large recipe that is suitable for a family dinner or even a party. Generally, this dish will get my family through three days worth of dinners. Correction: three days worth of welcome dinners!

Leftovers can make some folks groan, but there's a way around that kind of resistance. One restaurant trick I suggest using with this dish or similar ones like lasagna or chicken or eggplant parmesan is having a quantity of hot marinara sauce reserved for dressing the dish while placing it on individual serving plates. Sure, this may be common sense for a lot of home cooks, but I cannot count how many times I've been served similar dishes without the benefit of some fresh sauce! That's the reason I suggest the extra marinara first in the ingredients below.

Three-Cheese Baked Ziti with Italian Sausage

1 quantity of Sun-Dried Tomato Marinara Sauce
2 1 lb. boxes of ziti
3 TBS olive oil
4 cloves garlic (crushed)
1 lb. Italian sausage (skin peeled off)
1 lb. ground beef
1 28 oz. can roasted tomatoes (I use Muir Glenn Fire Roasted, see link at top of page.)
1-1/2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 tsp ground fennel
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper (to taste)
2 TBS sweet butter
1 lb. ricotta cheese
3/4 lb. mozzarella cheese (shredded)
1/3 cup parmesan-reggiano cheese (grated)
1 large tomato (thinly sliced)
1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Make the Sun Dried Marinara Sauce and keep it on a low simmer on your stove while you prepare the other ingredients.

Place a large sauce pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and when it begins to shimmer add the crushed garlic and cook it until it browns and softens. Remove the garlic and allow it to cool, then mash it into a paste and set aside.

Add the Italian sausage and ground beef to the oil and cook until crumbly and well browned.

Add the roasted tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken stock, fennel, bay leaf, mashed garlic, salt and pepper to the sausage and ground beef mixture. Mix well, raise to a boil, lower to a healthy simmer and continue cooking for 30 minutes stirring occasionally. You want it to reduce and thicken.

While the sauce simmers cook the ziti in the normal way being sure to keep it al dente. When the pasta finishes cooking, drain it and pour it into a large bowl. Gently mix in the butter to coat the ziti.

When the sauce is done, check for seasoning and adjust, remove it from the heat. Add the finished sauce to the ziti and blend it well.

Take a 10 x 14 baking dish and spread the ziti and sauce mixture evenly within the pan. Take spoonfuls of the ricotta and slip the ricotta under the ziti at regular intervals throughout the ziti. Now firmly level and press the ziti into the pan. You are looking to get it to pack a little so it will hold it's shape like lasagna after baking and cooling.

Sprinkle the mozzarella evenly over the top of the ziti, followed by the parmesan-reggiano. Then take the tomato slices and lay them out over the top of the mixture. Finally, sprinkle the bread crumbs over the mix and pop the pan into the oven for 35 to 45 minutes. You're looking for the top to get golden and bubbly here.

Remove from the oven and allow it to cool and set for at least 20 minutes.

Take your serving plates and spoon a generous portion of the marinara onto it. Carefully cut and remove a block of baked ziti and place it on the plate. Then add more marinara to the top. Serve with a sprinkle of cheese and perhaps some basil.

Red wine, crusty bread - HEAVEN!

Recipe: Three-Cheese Baked Ziti with Italian Sausage from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Sadie's Crab Rangoon (Cheesy Triangles)

Today's world food that you can prepare at home comes from China by way of North America and includes cream cheese! Crab Rangoon is a popular Chinese-American dish found throughout North America. Like General Tso's Chicken its origin is sketchy and disputed. That of course doesn't affect its popularity at all. As I've written before and will no doubt write again: A food's origins can be sketchy or lost with time, it doesn't matter because the truth is in the taste.

Generally, the crab rangoon you'll find in most Chinese restaurants are simple and good, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. If you're going to go through the effort of preparing something at home, you might as well make it as best you can. I think you'll find the recipe below offers a little more depth and complexity compared to the average takeout crab rangoon. That's a good thing and takes almost no extra work on your part.

You may also be surprised to see that I recommend using real OR imitation crab meat. It's all about week to week economics for me. When crab meat is on sale I'll use it, when it isn't, I'm not too proud to use the imitation stuff. Neither are most Chinese restaurants, more often than not they're using the imitation stuff exclusively.

You'll see I call for the addition of some MSG. Use it if you like, avoid it you're sensitive to it. I find that it does make a difference in this dish's authentic taste.

Finally, I dedicate this dish to my 4-year-old daughter Sadie. She has always loved crab rangoon but calls them "Cheesy Triangles". One day her mom took note and asked me to begin making them at home for my daughters. That worked out great because I love them as well!

Sadie's Crab Rangoon

1 to 1-1/2 cups (packed) crab meat/immitation crab meat (shredded)
2 8 oz. packages of cream cheese (I use Philadelphia brand)
1/4 cup sour cream
3 green onions (white and very pale green parts only, sliced thin. Use the green parts to garnish)
1 clove garlic (minced fine)
1 tsp ginger (minced fine)
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp MSG (Ac'cent)
Package of wonton wrappers (enough for 50 to 60 crab rangoon)
Small bowl of cool water
Peanut oil for frying

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sour cream, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sugar and MSG until smooth and well-combined.

Thoroughly fold in the crab meat and green onions to the cheese mix.

To form the crab rangoon:

Place the small bowl of water on your work surface.

Place a wonton wrapper on your work surface. Place 1 to 2 teaspoons of the cheese and crab mix in the center of the wonton wrapper (the proper amount depends on the size you bought).

Take your finger and dip it in to the water. Run your finger on the outside edge of the wonton square. Then gently fold it over to form a triangle shape. Seal the edges firmly so they don't open during frying. You will find that as you seal one edge, the other may raise a bit, that's okay, go with this, it makes the process quicker and easier. Once you get the hang of it you'll be moving right along. Grab another person to help and you'll be flying!

Place each finished crab rangoon on a large sheet of wax or parchment paper. Cover with a kitchen towel to keep moist while you make the others.

When finished forming the crab rangoon:

Place a pan suitable for deep frying over medium-high heat. Immediately pour the peanut oil to a depth of about 2". Heat to 350°F.

Cook the crab rangoon in the hot oil (turning once) in small batches. They cook quickly. When finished frying, remove them with a spider or slotted spoon and drain on a rack or paper towels.

NOTE: I find that I should cook them just a shade or two lighter than the "golden brown" I'm looking for. They seem to darken more a few moments after you remove them from the oil. You'll know if you fry them too long because the the cheese and crab mixture will start to seep out from the seams.
Recipe: Crab Rangoon from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Chickpeas and Chorizo

Today, our world food that you can cook at home comes from the Iberian Peninsula. Chickpeas and Chorizo, (or Garbanzos y Chorizo as it is known in Spain) is a very popular tapas dish. It is one of those humble but fortifying dishes that the Spaniards and Portuguese are masters at creating. Trust me, I'm a fan of such foods and you are going to see many of them here.

Don't be discouraged if you can't find chorizo at your local market. You can find it online or you can substitute your favorite spicy sausage. That's what is great about simple dishes, they usually allow you forgiving avenues of exploration.

I have seen a great deal of variation in this dish. It can run the range from a simple preparation of little more than chorizo, chickpeas, onion, salt and pepper, to something a little more seasoned like the recipe below.
Chickpeas and Chorizo (Garbanzos y Chorizo)

20 ozs. chickpeas (cooked fresh or canned)
1 bay leaf
2-3 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 quart chicken stock
2 TBS olive oil (I use Portuguese)
1 large onion (chopped)
2-3 cloves garlic (chopped fine)
1/8 tsp dried thyme
1 lb. chorizo links
1/4 cup fresh parsley (chopped)
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Place a large sauce pan over high heat, add the chickpeas, bay leaf, cloves, cinnamon stick and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer while you prepare the other ingredients.

Place a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the 2 TBS of olive oil, when it begins to shimmer add the onions and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and thyme and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes. Stir frequently, do not burn the garlic!

Add the chorizo to the onion, garlic and thyme mixture and cook. Flip the sausage frequently and stir the onions around so they don't burn (it's okay if they caramelize a bit).

When the skins of the chorizos darken and caramelize, remove them from the pan. Slice the links in 1" pieces and then reintroduce to the fry pan.

Remove the bay leaf, cloves and cinnamon stick from the simmering chickpeas. Add the chickpeas and broth to the chorizo and onions in the frying pan. Raise heat to high and simmer, stirring frequently.

Using a potato masher, mash some of the chickpea mixture in the frying pan. This thickens it up nicely. Test for seasoning and adjust to preference.

When most of the liquid has been reduced, remove from heat. Toss in the chopped parsley and fold throughout.

Serve hot in bowls. Drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil and serve with a hearty wine and crusty bread.

Recipe: Chickpeas and Chorizo (Garbanzos y Chorizo) from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk http://wwwm.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: General Tso's Chicken

Today's world food that you can prepare in your home kitchen is one of the most popular Chinese dishes in North America. It's origin is disputed and it may not even be a Chinese dish at all, but rather a Chinese-American dish that was a fusion of both Hunan and Szechuan styles that better appealed to North American palates.

In fact the dish itself is known by a dizzying array of names that include: General Tso's, General Tao's, General George's, General Tsao's, General Zhou's, General Mac's, General Gao's, General Gau's, Chou's, General Tzo's, General To's, General So's, General Joe's, Jordan Chicken, General Toso's, General Chow's, General Chicken, Admiral Tso's, Pei Wei Spicy and General Chu's. You say poe-tay-toe, I say pah-tah-toe, who cares! As I say: the truth is in the taste.

Depending on what you read or who you listen to, this dish may have first been prepared by any number of people. A sampling of popular origin stories would include:

A.) Either General Zuo Zongtang (the dishes namesake regardless of personal participation), his wife or chef during the 1800's of the Qing Dynasty.

B.) The chef of popular Chinese politician Tan Yankai who used the hero's name on the dish to honor him around 1900.

C.) A Taiwanese chef by the name of Peng Chang-kuei may have first prepared the dish in New York in the early 1970's.

D.) Another Chinese chef named T.T. Wang may have first prepared the dish also in New York, also in the early 1970's.

In my extensive (well, not really extensive) research, I have even found a similar, more savory Australian variant of the dish also called "General Tso's Chicken". See, a wonderful, engaging, mystery with some controversy, a perfect element to immortalize this dish!

In any event, this is an extremely popular dish in North American Chinese restaurants and buffets. It is sweet and spicy goodness and not all that difficult to prepare in your home kitchen. There are no exotic ingredients and it can be replicated in even the most humble of home kitchens. Try it, you'll like it.

The recipe below is a good representation of the dish as I have had it in a number of Chinese restaurants on the East Coast of the U.S. and Canada. Personally, I'm still tweaking it so that it tastes just like it does at my favorite local Chinese restaurant. I'll change it here when I do.

General Tso's Chicken

For the sauce:

2/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 TBS garlic (minced)
1 TBS ginger (minced)
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup sherry or white wine
3 cups chicken broth

For the chicken and broccoli:

3 lbs. boneless chicken thighs cut into 1" square pieces
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 egg
1 cup cornstarch
4 cups of broccoli florets
2 tsp ginger (minced)
2 tsp garlic (minced)
3/4 cup peanut oil (plus more oil for deep-frying)
2 cups green onions (thinly sliced, reserve a little for a garnish)
16 small dried hot peppers or 2 tsp red pepper flakes

In a large bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and the water. Add the garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, sherry/wine and chicken broth. Stir until sugar dissolves completely. Move to the refrigerator until needed.

In separate bowl, beat the egg, soy sauce and white pepper together. Add the chicken and coat it well. Add cornstarch to a smaller bowl and thoroughly coat each piece of chicken. When finished return the chicken to the bowl. Add all but 2 tablespoons of the peanut oil to help stop the chicken pieces from sticking together.

Heat a wok over medium high heat. Add two tablespoons of the peanut oil to the wok. Immediately, add the ginger and garlic and swirl once. Add the broccoli and stir fry for a few minutes. Add a little water if necessary. You want the crunch to remain in the broccoli, DO NOT OVERCOOK OR BURN. When done, remove the broccoli from the wok and set aside.

Replace the wok over the heat. Add enough of the frying oil to fry the chicken in small batches. Fry the chicken until golden brown, remove and set aside to drain. Continue until all the chicken is cooked.

Remove all but 1-2 tablespoons of the oil from the wok. Replace the wok over the heat. Add the green onions and hot peppers and stir fry for a few moments (don't burn!). Then add all the sauce and stir while cooking over medium heat until the mixture begins to bubble and thicken (this can happen quickly so be prepared). As soon as the sauce starts to thicken, add the chicken and broccoli and stir to coat well. Cook until everything is warmed through.

Remove from heat. Serve over rice garnished with green onions or a light sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Recipe: General Tso's Chicken from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Recipe: Three Sisters Red Curry

Today, my world food at home recipe is a bit of fusion. A melding of Native American and Thai food. It's not as strange as it may sound, in fact given all the ingredients, anyone familiar with both cuisines can see the common sense in it.

The "three sisters" refers to the staples of the tribes of the East Coast of central North America. They are squash, beans and corn. The cultural and mythological references to their origin are many, but the one I like most speaks of an otherworldly maiden seen walking on a moonlit night, in each footprint that she left grew squash, corn or beans. That's some beautiful imagery, no?

In practical terms, the farming of the three sisters was nothing short of genius. On a mound of dirt, corn would be planted, then beans around the corn. This way the beans could grow up the corn and thus produce more fruit, while the corn benefitted from the support of the bean's vines in heavy wind. Around the base of the mound was planted squash. It's broad leaves would shade the ground and keep it from drying out. It's prickly stems would discourage pests and varmints from compromising the crop. Yes, genius.

Earlier this week I was considering making dinner with the food I had on hand. I was thinking of doing some Native American dish, but my wife asked for a Thai curry with some sticky rice. 2 + 2 =4, and Three Sisters Red Curry was born. It is a delicious, spicy and rich red curry that benefits from the contrasting sweetness of the squash (I used sugar pumpkin) and sweet corn. The beans of course make it satisfying and filling. I chose pork for the protein, but chicken or beef would work just as well.

You can get a little creative with the other ingredients as well. Acorn or butternut squash could be substituted for the pumpkin and pintos or some other beans can work where I chose Anasazi beans. It's all good.

Three Sisters Red Curry

1-1/2 cups of coconut milk
2 TBS red curry paste
3/4 lb. of pork loin (trimmed of fat and cubed in bite-sized pieces)
1-1/2 cups of chicken broth
2 cups of sugar pumpkin (cut in 1" cubes)
1 cup cooked beans (I use Anasazi, pintos will work fine)
1 cup of fresh or frozen sweet corn
2 TBS fish sauce
1 TBS palm sugar (brown or turbinado work fine)
1/4 cup of chopped cilantro
1 jalapeno (thinly sliced into rings and de-seeded as a garnish)

Place a large saucepan or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the coconut milk and heat for a few minutes until it begins to thicken and simmer. Add the curry paste and stir until it is dissolved.

Add the pork cubes and cook for a few minutes stirring frequently. Be sure the meat gets coated well.

Add the chicken broth, pumpkin, fish sauce and palm sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue to cook stirring occasionally until the pumpkin is tender but still firm, (about 7 to 12 minutes).

Add the beans and the sweet corn and continue simmering for a few more minutes.

Plate in shallow bowls, sprinkle generously with cilantro and garnish with jalapeno pepper rings. Serve with sticky or jasmine rice.

Recipe: Three Sisters Red Curry from Chop Onions, Boil Water by Henry Krauzyk http://www.choponionsboilwater.com

Products I love: Cast Iron

Hands down, dollar for dollar there is no better deal for cookware than cast iron. People can say what they want about any other cookware and short of some specialties like a carbon steel wok, some bakeware or the odd stainless saucepan I'm going for cast iron. Aluminum? No way, I'm not touching it, I've heard all I want to about aluminum. Teflon impregnated pans? Sorry, a long time ago I worked with Teflon and the warnings on the barrels were enough to never permit me to let food touch it. Fancy copper-clad stuff? Right, for the cost of one saucepan I could outfit an entire kitchen in cast iron and never miss the copper.

I'm opinionated when it comes to cast iron. I'm religious when it comes to cast iron. I come from a long line of down-home, swamp-yankee, cast-iron-cooking-and-loving people. Chances are if I'm cooking in it tonight, it is cast iron.

Cast iron, like wood, cotton and leather has stood the test of time. There's a weird purity and soul in that stuff you know? Cast iron is still out there and available. There's a reason for that. It is because it is SIMPLE and it WORKS. In fact it works well.

As I sit here typing this entry I am surrounded by my cast iron cookware. It inhabits every burner on my stove and there are seven pieces hanging on one wall alone! All manner of frying pans, friers, cauldrons, dutch ovens, griddles, comals and combos.

I love cast iron!

I LOVE cast iron!

I LOVE CAST IRON!

There's no excuse not to use it. It holds heat, it's non-stick, it's inexpensive, and now it come pre-seasoned. Plus it's nearly indestructible! Sure, restaurants need stainless and aluminum because they need heat fast and they need it to cool fast. However, in your home kitchen, where food better than ANY restaurant can be cooked at your will, you want cast iron.

Hey single guys, do you want to buy one pan that you can cook everything in? Then grab a decent-sized cast iron dutch oven guys. You can fry, braise, boil, roast, stew, soup, sauce, sauté and almost every-other-dang-cooking-thing in it. Plus, you'll still be cooking in it when you're a grandfather!

In the old days like the 1980's you had a choice between a few well-known manufacturers. There was Wagner and Lodge. Today, in my opinion there is one choice: Lodge. Sure there's the fancy French stuff and one pan can set you back a couple of hundred dollars, but that same pan produced by Lodge can be had for about fifty bucks at your local Hellmart or other outlet.

Sincerely and honest-to-God, I only recommend what I believe in on this blog and I'm giving you my number one, hands down, first choice for a product I love. Buy cast iron folks! Buy it new, by it antique or ask your old aunts and grandmothers for the stuff they don't use. You will not be disappointed.

Oh, and if its rusted? If it looks funky? It can be refreshed, do not throw it away! Scrub it, sandblast it, do anything but throw it away! The stuff has soul people, It absorbs those who use it into it. It becomes part of your family. It deserves to.
Products I love: Cast Iron