more about bulgur (wheat)

.....forgot to add a link to my last posting.

to see the (comparative) differences in sizes and colours — and types— of bulgur wheat, look here.

red hot ..... or not

routinely used in turkish cooking, and also in some other mediterranean cuisines, this potent bright red paste packs quite a punch in terms of flavour. while it can be bought in jars from (middle eastern) grocery stores which carry it, the paste is quite easy to make at home and stores well for several weeks in the fridge as long as it is covered with oil, as you would do for harissa. depending upon the brand you buy, it will vary in degrees of heat level however with a homemade one you can control the spiciness.

different people make this different ways. one of the "real" ways to make this involves cutting, seeding & blanching the peppers {some people salt them to extract excess water}, grinding them and then leaving the finished mixture to dry outdoors. over a few days in the hot summer sun, it will lose moisture and then darken to a thick reddish maroon colour. i'll be honest — while i prefer making foods the proper and authentic way, the idea of the potential for insects colonizing the prepartion is a big deterrent for me for a variety of reasons, in addition to the "yuck!" factor. i digress....

i make it a much quicker way, one which my aunt's friend showed her — almost in the same manner which i saw, several years back, in a book by author, p. wolfert. doing it the way i show here takes 30 to 45 minutes, preparation and cooking time factored in. it is very straightforward and uses everyday red (capsicum) peppers. most of the work, if you can call it that, comes in reducing the mixture over the stovetop. the only drawback to this method is the 'spitting' of it while it cooks down. i suggest putting either tea towels or newspaper (safely weighed down!) around the stove top and counter.

so what does one do with this paste? well, we used it to add to either bulgur or rice dishes. it was mixed with the water or broth and then this was added. since it has a lot of flavour, very little salt or pepper, if any, was necessary. that, LOL, is about all we ever did with it; i'm sure there are many other dishes it is used in.

the amount here only makes about 1/3 of a cup (or maybe a little more). if you want, you can adjust the amounts as you need. if you don't like very hot things, reduce the amount of red chili peppers you use but don't omit them! make sure to keep the paste covered with oil at all times to create a seal so no mold will develop. as i said earlier, made this way it's good for quite a few weeks (which is why i only make a small amount at a time). use about a heaped tsp per 2 cups of liquid or to taste.


quick (turkish) red pepper paste

makes ~ 1/3 c paste

ingredients:

2 very large red peppers
1 to 2 dried red (cayenne) peppers
2 tbsp water
1 tbsp olive oil (not extra v)
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt

2 tbsp olive oil, extra (not extra v)

method:

before starting:

reconstitute the red cayenne peppers in 1 cup of boiling water and let sit for 1 hour until softened. with rubber gloves or under running water, remove the hard stem end and the seeds. leaving a few is ok. if you're into intense heat, then just the stem ends. i don't suggest it. cut the chilis into several pieces

continue on:

take the red (capsicum) peppers and wash them well. cut them in half and seed them and then cut them in strips.

place the red peppers, the chili peppers, 2 tbsp water the salt and sugar and 1 tbsp of olive oil.

blend it for about 4 to 5 minutes (depends upon your blender) until fully puréed. it will be foamy and bright orange.

place the mixture into a dutch oven or wok and bring to a boil, stirring, over high heat.

reduce heat to medium high and let the mixture cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

reduce heat again to medium low and let cook until it is visibly thickened. when you pull the spoon through the mixture, you will see remain separated for a bit before coming back together again.

at this point, add 2 more tbsp of olive oil (only use regular as extra v is too strong). mix well and keep cooking.


you will know the mixture is ready when it has lost most of its liquid and comes together in a single mass.

let the mixture cool completely on a plate.

place it in a jar and pour mild olive or vegetable oil over it and refrigerate. make sure oil is covering it before putting it back in the fridge.

enjoy!

demystifying semolina

i've been asked several times what semolina is and if the person asking has purchased the right product for some of the recipes posted to my blog. instead of explaining it each time, i am posting the answer here. this is the very 'short course' on semolina. here is the longer course on flour & wheat.

read and understand! :))

* * * * * * * * *

the first things you need to know are:

there are 3 types of wheat:

1 - hard wheat

*hard kernels -- high gluten -- used mostly for bread flour

2 - soft wheat

*soft kernels -- low gluten -- used mostly for pastry flour and "semolina"

3 - durum wheat

*very hard kernels -- very high gluten -- used mostly for pasta & couscous & "semolina"

each has a winter type and a spring type harvest.

without getting into all the minutiae, suffice it to say each wheat is a type of its own (with many varieties) giving different types of flours and wheat products. a variety of parts of the wheat kernel are used for the various flours and products made from it.

eg. whole wheat (meal) flour includes the bran coating; all purpose doesn't.

if you noticed, both soft wheat and durum wheat produce the much used product called semolina. this is where much of the confusion arises. the truth is..... it is confusing! more than once, i have seen it described in terrible terms in cookbooks. either the explanation was vague or just plain wrong. this coming from cookbook authors! hopefully, after reading this you won't be confused.

so, what is semolina anyway?! the easiest way to visualize/understand it is to first realize what it is and where it comes from. semolina is, in botanical terms, the endosperm. this means it is basically what eggwhite is to an egg (yolk). it is the albumin — starch portion — of the wheat grain. when processed, it is very small and granular.

there are 2 types of semolina depending upon which type of wheat is used:

[I] HARD WHEAT [Yellow] SEMOLINA (type: high gluten, high protein)

*comes from durum wheat ergo called 'durum semolina'
*can be bought in 2 types: granular + flour

-GRANULAR type is mostly used to make couscous along with durum flour.

-FLOUR type is mostly used for noodles, breads and baking (often called "pasta flour")

*is always YELLOW

-you should consider this type as the "bread flour type" of semolina as it is commonly used in making PASTA, COUSCOUS, (a type of pasta) & BREADS and BAKING due to its gluten percentage/ratio.

* * * * * * * * *

[II] SOFT WHEAT [White] SEMOLINA (type: high carb, low protein & low gluten)

*comes from different varieties of soft wheat
*can be bought in 2 types: granular + flour

-GRANULAR type is called:

solet in hebrew or smeed(i) in arabic;

in english it is also known under names such as cream of wheat, farina or wheatlets.

in hindi and other similar languages it is called either sooji or rava/rawa.

-FLOUR type is called:

firkha in arabic or farine de semoule in french.

be careful because there are different grinds, depending on the company/mill which is producing it: often you will see wheatlets #1 or 2 or 3. decide which is most appropriate for your recipe.

note that for nammoura cakes, the granular type is typically used. for baking cakes and certain breads, the flour type is used. in indian cooking, the granular type is used for a variety of recipes depending on geography.

*both kinds are always an 'OFF-WHITE' or WHITISH colour.

(this is how to tell the difference between hard wheat and soft wheat kinds -- as a general rule).

-you should consider this type as the "pastry flour type" of semolina as it is commonly used in making BAKED GOODS. it is used differently (sometimes) in indian cooking however.

NOW GO MAKE SOMETHING! :)

kitchen essentials — basic vegetable broth

one of the essential items in any good kitchen is stock [broth], be it from an animal source — like chicken, beef or fish — or from vegetables. a vegeterian stock is easier and faster to make than one like chicken and can almost always be used in any recipe you are making, especially if you follow kashrut.

the following recipe will take about one hour to cook and leave you with a very good tasting vegetarian stock which can be used right away or divided up and frozen in either half cup or one cup portions (some people like to freeze their stock in ice cube trays). freezing your broth is a good idea as you always have some on hand.

an advantage to making your own vegetable broth is that you can decide what flavours you like and control the level of salt and seasonings. in addition, this particular one which i found years ago in some book someone lent me (name of it now long forgotten!), and uses up common vegetables we often have, many of which are laying around in the vegetable bins of our refrigerators.

you can use whichever vegetables you want but be wary of those which are said to leave bitter aftertastes or distinct strong flavours. this also goes for various herbs like parsley (leaves vs stems controversy). people have differing opinions about this topic. go with what you think tastes good and those which you like. different countries have different parameters for which flavours are "good" — in the end, it's a matter of personal tastes. an interesting thing about this recipe is the use of caraway seeds. believe it or not, it makes for a great enhancement and does not leave any distinct caraway (i.e. strong) taste.

an important thing about making this stock provide maximum flavour is the way you prepare your vegetables. this was not part of the original recipe but something i incorporate into most stocks i make which are vegetable based. since most of the flavours are sealed within the vegetables themselves, just throwing them in the soup pot whole or even large chunks does little to extract their essences. cutting root vegetables (the main ingredients in this recipe) lengthwise to expose the most of their inner surface allows for maximum amount of extraction; cross cutting onions and garlic almost to the root ends does the same thing and allows them to be fished out later in their whole state. as a final note, this recipe adds the cleaned skins of the onions to give the stock its golden colour. remove the outer loose skins and wash them well and them wash the skins which cling to the onions before cutting them as mentioned above (keep them attached!).


all purpose easy vegetable stock

makes ~ 8 cups (2 L)

ingredients:

vegetables:

2 large carrots
3 stalks celery
1 good and ripe tomato (leave whole)
2 large parsnips (essential!)
2 medium/largish onions
1/2 head garlic cloves (keep attached)

seasonings/herbs:

2 tsp salt
1/2 - 1 tsp sugar
20 black peppercorns
1/2 - 1 tsp caraway seeds
2 bay leaves

parsley (italian flatleaf type)
small amount of dill, if wanted

method:

wash all your vegetables well and prepare them.

from the carrots, celery and parsnips, remove the root tops. you can peel the carrots and parsnips if they need it or you prefer them that way (if you want to keep them for another purpose later, them peel them).

cut the celery into large chunks and set aside.

cut the parsnips and carrots lengthwise. make sure to do this! then cut them into large chunks and set aside.

take the loose skins (if any) off the onions and wash them and set aside. then take the onion with remaining skin still attached and cut it with a cross cut ALMOST to the ROOT end to keep it whole. set aside.

keeping it whole (attached), clean off the garlic. with a small paring knife make slits in all the garlic buds through the skins, and set aside.

if you are using other vegetables, decide what's best on how to prepare them.

measure out your seasonings and herbs and set aside.

in a large pot, place the vegetables and the seasonings EXCEPT the fresh herbs.

add 8 cups of water only and bring to a boil.

cook the stock on medium low covered for the first 30 minutes.

add the fresh herbs and cook for another 30 minutes.

remove the stock from the stovetop and let it cool down until it's warm.

strain the stock through a FINE sieve and either reserve or discard the carrots, celery or parsnips. the onion and garlic will be for the garbage.

at this point, taste the stock and adjust the seasonings (i.e. more salt/sugar).

use as necessary or freeze the rest.

enjoy!

kitchen essentials — homemade mayonnaise

growing up, store-bought mayonnaise never made its way past the doors of my home until my late teens. up until that time, my parents, both europeans, refused to buy it, believing something was wrong with it — for some reason, they couldn't get past the idea of north american mayonnaise being completely white and made with preservatives. it definitely did not look like the the kind they knew.

mayonnaise was always made by hand, arduous as it may seem, and in small quantity. whether that was by design or just because it wouldn't last as long as a manufactured one, i don't remember having oodles of it in the fridge ever. what i do remember is that it was the colour of buttercups and with one taste of it, you immediately knew it was sinful and definitely not to be consumed in large amounts.

making your own mayonnaise, is a must try — at least once — to see the difference between the real stuff and store-bought. it's also a good exercise in trying your hand at classic cooking and "la technique". the homemade version is 1,000 times richer tasting and, in my opinion, infinitely superior. those who have never had it may find it not to their liking mostly because they have never had the real thing before and expect mayonnaise to taste like the hellmann's or kraft's version.

before embarking on such a project, there are several things to note when making your own:

• all ingredients absolutely need to be at room temperature;
• only use the freshest of eggs — old egg yolks just won't do;
• the final mayonnaise must be kept refrigerated; don't leave it out on the counter;
• beginner and novice cooks should opt for using an electric beater rather than whisk (at least for the first several times);
• rinse your (metal) bowl with hot water and dry it before starting.

now go crack your egg and make some homemade mayonnaise and impress yourself and those around you! :)


homemade mayonnaise

yellow like butter, thick and creamy smooth, this unctuous and centuries-old silky egg and oil emulsion is easier to make than you think. it's also better than anything you'll ever buy from a store. use it on your sandwiches, pipe it into fancy rosettes on your hors d'oeuvres or just eat it with a spoon!

makes approx. 3/4 - 1 cup

ingredients:

1 egg yolk, at room temperature
6 oz vegetable oil or 5 oz veg + 1 oz olive oil
{you can use up to 8 oz of oil per egg yolk}

1/4 tsp salt
1 - 1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
1/2 heaped tsp dry mustard powder*

2 - 3 tbsp salted water, optional**
1 tbsp boiling water

*is used to help emulsify the ingredients and add flavour
**use to thing down the mayonnaise

method:

make this at your own risk — raw eggs not recommended for elderly, youngsters or infirm.

in a metal bowl with a good whisk (or electric mixer), beat the egg yolk with the salt, mustard powder and vinegar. beat it until it lightens in colour (pale yellow) and is well-blended.

now the tricky part ..... introducing the oil.

this must be followed EXACTLY or you'll end up with a curdled mess (which can be salvaged)*; adding the oil must be done very gradually or it will not bind properly with the lecithin in the yolk.

*if you screw up, start again with another egg yolk, mustard and salt and use the curdled mixture in place of the oil. it should re-amalgamate without any problems. just go slowly as described in the procedure.

the first step is to add, literally drops, of oil to the lightened yolk mixture. this allows the lecithin to activate.

gradually add 1 tsp of oil to the yolk mixture, completely incorporating it. this is repeated several times, until you see it start to thicken up.

always make sure the oil is completely incorporated (not visible to the eye) before adding more oil.

the final step with the oil is to introduce the rest of it, by tablespoon.

once you have a nice emulsion, you may add the rest of the oil by 3 tablespoon amounts.

you may, along the way, thin down the mayonnaise with teaspoons of salted water but only once the mayonnaise has stabilized and thickened. do not add it in the "teaspoon" stage.

to finish the mayonnaise, as it is called, 1 tbsp of BOILING water is added and mixed in well. the mixture must then be refrigerated for at least 2 hours for it to thicken up maximally. the water is added to prevent oil seepage and make a more stable mayonnaise.

use the mayonnaise within a week, or so, and make sure it is refrigerated as it contains raw egg yolk.

enjoy!
(in small quantities, of course!)

kitchen essentials — tamarind paste

tamarind is one of those essential ingredients that is found in many different cuisines, from the west indies all the way across to the far east and is used as a souring agent in a variety of dishes, as well as in candies and drinks. it is something i use often and have grown up with. for some, however, this is a new and unexplored ingredient.

the fruit of the tamarind tree grows in pods which look like large over-sized and somewhat flattened peas in a pod. the skin of the pod is a very dark brown and within each pod is the fruit itself, brown and sticky. see my post here for more information about it.

the sticky fruit inside the pod is either compressed into blocks, with or without seeds, or made into a very thick syrup which is sold as the concentrated form. generally, it's best to buy the blocks without the seeds as it makes it easier to process in your kitchen. the concentrated form, while not usually my first choice, is much simpler to use. one just adds it to whatever one is cooking. most people prefer the taste of the block form of tamarind though.

often, making the paste is considered very labour intensive which is why some people like the concentrate. i usually make a lot and freeze it in containers until i need it. it will last for months frozen. so, to make the paste, the only the you need to do is soak the block and strain it carefully. not so hard to do ;) you just have to remember not to make it in a metal bowl — it chemically reacts with it while it soaks, therefore use either glass or plastic.



tamarind paste

making this in larger batches and freezing it for later use in small containers is a time saver. of course, if you don't use it regularly, you're better off just making the called for amount following the instructions below at the time of making your recipe.

ingredients:

dried tamarind block
hot water

for a small batch:

i use a ratio of 1/2 lb (250 g) tamarind to 2.5 c water

and a large batch:

1 lb (500 g) tamarind to 5 c hot water

method:

take your piece of tamarind and place it in your container.

add your hot water and cover the bowl or container and let it sit for at least 2 hours. you can leave it overnight, too.

once it has soaked, take your hand and squish it to break it up or use a wooden spoon.

press the tamarind through a fine sieve over and over again extracting as much liquid as you can.

make sure to keep pressing as much as possible. check the bottom of the sieve and scrape off and add the concentrated paste to the bowl your extracting into.

once it has been extracted, mix it all together and either use in your recipe or freeze for later.

easy as could be!

kitchen essentials — a potent paste

one job i really do not like doing is chopping garlic and it seems i do it often. some weeks, it's almost a daily task as i use it in many things. to get around this menial task, i often make up a jar of either finely minced, or [somewhat] completely puréed, garlic from several bulbs and store it in the freezer for quick use.

the freezer? yes. i got tired of my batches of unpredictable "cyanotic-looking" garlic. depending on several factors, garlic may turn light green or blue in a [safe to eat] chemical reaction. this process usually takes place about 1/2 hour after it has been made, so far as i've noted. freezing your batch prevents this from happening though you have to freeze it right after you've made the paste. while nothing will happen to you if you eat this funky coloured garlic, it doesn't sit well with me — garlic should be white, not green or blue.

storing garlic in oil in the fridge, over long periods of time, can also be "iffy" in that it can harbor bacteria which have the potential to colonize over time. storing the garlic paste in oil in the freezer is safer and does not leave you with a block of ice — the finished paste does not freeze completely solid and is quite amenable to being taken from, and used, on the spot.


garlic paste

a staple item for many kitchens, this easy to make paste can be stored for a good while and save you time while cooking.

ingredients:

2 large bulbs garlic, peeled and cleaned up
kosher salt
olive or vegetable oil [extra V oil is too strong; don't use it]

method:

peel and clean up all the cloves of garlic. slice them in half and remove any germ stems that are growing (the green part in the center); if you have young garlic you won't need to do this.

place the garlic in either a food processor or a sharp bladed blender and process until the garlic is broken up. add 1 to 2 tsp of salt to help it from sticking.

add 1/2 c of oil in 2 additions and process the garlic to the point you like it.

place the garlic mixture in a VERY CLEAN (sterilized) glass jar. add more oil to make a runny type paste. stir with an extremely clean spoon or knife.

note that any water introduced to the paste will potentially spoil the paste, so make sure all is very clean and dry.

store in either the fridge, if you don't mind the garlic turning colour (if it happens), or in the freezer.

the paste will be good for a few months.

butterflies and bowties

this will be the second part to my earlier post this week about orecchiette pasta. this dough, however, is made with eggs and is the standard [fortified] pasta dough of northern italy. while the dough for the orecchiette can be used as a substitute, the egg rich dough is more yellow due to the yolks and the texture a little different.

the dough, in this case, was used to make farfalle, or little butterflies. these easy to make shapes are also know as bowties and used in a haimishe (home-y) jewish comfort food dish called kasha varnishkes or kasha with bowties. left to sit out over a day or two to dry, if not cooking the same day, the pasta can be stored indefinitely for later use. the fresh ones can also be frozen after sitting out and drying a bit.

admittedly, this shape is a little more work than the orecchiette. the satisfaction you will get from having made your own, though, is well worth the hour or two of effort it takes. it is also a good project to involve kids with as they actually get to see where REAL pasta comes from!

i, again, use a combination of durum semolina and regular all purpose flour for this dough but it can be made with just all purpose or a combination of all purpose and whole wheat. i would only use a 1:1 or 2:1 combination (ap & wholewheat respectively) for a whole wheat version. too much whole wheat flour would make it impossible to roll out by hand.


farfalle or bowtie pasta

ingredients:

1/4 c durum semolina*
3/4 c + 2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 large egg mixed with 2 tbsp water

-extra flour and water, as needed

*you can omit and use only AP flour or whole wheat

method:

mix flours together with salt.

make a well in center of flour and add egg with water.

beat the egg in the center and slowly incorporate flour.

trying not to break the well until as late as possible, gather up the dough and start kneading.

either add more flour or a bit of water at this point to make a kneadable dough. it really depends on how much the flour absorbs and the humidity in the air.

take note: though some people say it's the opposite, i feel it is better to err on the side of adding too much water than too much flour initially. it is much more difficult to hydrate a dry dough than it is to add more flour to a wetter one.

the dough should be fairly soft yet firm.

cover the dough well and let rest for at least an hour. it can sit for a few hours.

cut the dough into 3 equal pieces. cover the other two pieces to prevent drying out.

on a large, very well-floured board, roll out the dough to about 1/8" thick.

you will need to take your time and flip the dough over quite a few times, rolling and reflouring each time. with practice you will be able to get it quite thin. this is important or the pasta will end up too thick.

roll the dough from north to south and then flip it and roll from east to west to try to expand it as much as possible.

with a fluted cutter (you can also just use a knife), cut around the periphery of the dough close to the edge to make either a rectangle or square. place the scraps with the remaining dough and work them in when you roll the next batch.

now cut the dough into rectangles which are approximately 2 inches by 1 1/4" inches. you can make them the size that you want really but these dimensions make a nice bowtie.

take one of the rectangles and with your two fingers start to push on either side of the 1 1/4" part.

with your pointing finger, on either on the same hand or your other one, place it in temporarily the center and press the edges together tightly, removing your finger!!

do this over and over again until all the farfalle are formed. important note: if drying these, do not close them up too tightly or they won't cook through to the center well. not a good 'mouthfeel' ;P. you want to close them at their centers so they retain their shape.

you can now either cook them or let them dry on a tea towel for a day or two, depending on your weather. flip them over after several hours so they dry on each side.

do not store them unless they are completely dried or they will grow mould.

cooking time depends whether they are fresh or dried. i don't think i need to tell you how to do that! and remember, well-SALTED water!! none of this 1/4 tsp business. 1 to 3 tsp depending on how much water you use.

enjoy!