#broth-making

#broth-making

Griot is considered a national dish of Haiti and all it takes is a taste to understand why. Adored by José Andrés, this dish is a wonderful mix of cooking techniques; marinated pork shoulder is slowly braised and then fried, leaving the meat tender and flavorful.

The etymological root of goulash is the gulyás - cowherds who drove long-horned cattle over the Great Hungarian Plain, and would boil their beef into a gulyásleves (goulash soup).

"The recipes that you have as a child are very powerful, they are very visceral. They stay with you, too. I remember many recipes, but certainly one of them, when my mother used to go to the garden just before we ate, and unearthed those tiny potatoes we called grenaille in France, which are like a fingerling potato."

The word 'allium' is the name of a group of vegetables including garlic, onions, chives, leeks and others that are botanically related. Because of the myriad ways they influence flavor, in states ranging from raw to cooked (even burnt), they're culinarily related too.

It is a side dish that has main-character energy. Think about it. You put bacon in ice-cream and it is the bacon that sings. You use candied bacon as a cocktail garnish, and suddenly that is all anyone's talking about. But, while all bacon is great, some bacon is just greater than others. If you disagree, try some Chinese-style bacon called Lap Yuk or La Rou.

Few low-prep dishes satisfy and delight on busy weeknights like one-pot pastas, and one of the best ingredients to take your pasta dishes to the next level is vegetable broth. Boiling dry pasta directly in vegetable broth instead of water imparts bolder flavor as the pasta soaks it up. Plus, you'll end up with a pot full of starchy cooking liquid from the boiled pasta, which can provide a solid base for building a pan sauce.

Bones give the broth body, and dark meat adds richness. While white meat chicken, say from the breast of leftover rotisserie chicken, may be easy to add to your soup, it won't give you great depth of flavor like a drumstick would. She prefers to keep the skin on and the bones in as the meat cooks in the soup, noting that any excess fat can be skimmed off prior to serving.

Of the five mother sauces, velouté is extremely under-appreciated and not talked about enough. It's what we as Americans call gravy, which we know has so many various uses. Velouté, which means velvety in French, is made with a light roux (or a mixture of flour and fat, like butter), stock or broth, and some seasoning like salt and pepper, and a bay leaf.

Don't be intimidated by fresh mushrooms. They are prized for their flavor and versatility. Look for firm mushrooms that are free of soft spots or mold. Wash them just before using them but be sure to store them unwashed. Never submerge in water to wash them because mushrooms absorb like a sponge and become mushy. Wipe with moist paper towels. Some prefer to clean them with a soft-bristled mushroom brush. If extremely dirty, they can be very briefly dunked into cold water and wiped dry.

These citron noodles were inspired by the Buddha's hand citron I bought at the farmers' market last week. I find it near impossible to pass them up, and love their ability to perfume my entire kitchen while I dream up their citrusy fate. The fava beans came from the next stall, and everything else you see here was already on hand at home - furikake, chili crisp, butter, and miso.

Ramen, as well as instant ramen, holds a universal appeal, which is thanks to its ability to be both familiar and versatile. Some of the best ramen noodle recipes are the ones you know by heart, while others you come up with on the spur of the moment with whatever's in the kitchen. Unconventional as it may sound, even marinara sauce can be used to put together a bowl of ramen, and a good one at that.