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By J.Ho, March 8, 2006 11:05 am

Since half of my heritage is southern, what better time to reminisce about home cooked southern food than on a cold day in New England?

It ain’t steak and it ain’t chicken. So what is it? Chicken fried steak is a slice of tenderized beef round that is dipped in egg and flour, then fried and smothered in a creamy, peppery pan gravy. Like grits, if it’s made right, it’s heaven. If it’s not, it’s awful. This is THE dish that cast iron skillets were invented for. No matter where my travels take me, I’m on a never ending quest for delicious chicken fried steak. Four out of five times I’ll order it somewhere, it’s not all that great. Three out of five, it’s downright awful. But that one in five, or sometimes, one in ten, it’s magical!!!

2 cups plus 3 tablespoons of flour
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
3 eggs
½ cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
1 cup vegetable shortening
4 8-oz pieces trimmed beef top round, pounded to ¼ inch thickness
Pinch of ground cayenne pepper

Put 2 cups of flour into a wide, shallow dish and generously season with salt and pepper. Put eggs, cream and ½ cup of the milk into another wide, shallow dish and beat well.

Heat oven to 200°. Melt shortening in a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat until hot or about 360° on a candy thermometer. Meanwhile, working with one piece of meat at a time, lightly season both sides with salt & pepper. Dredge beef in seasoned flour, shaking off excess, then dip each side into egg mixture, then dredge in flour again, shaking off excess. Fry meat, turning only once, until dark golden brown on each side, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a wire rack set over a baking sheet and keep warm in oven. Repeat seasoning and cooking process with remaining meat and flour and egg mixtures, transferring meat to oven to keep warm.

Discard all but about 3 tablespoons of the oil from the skillet and heat over medium heat. Add remaining flour and cook, whisking constantly, until golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add remaining milk, whisking constantly. Season gravy with cayenne and ½ teaspoon of black pepper and cook, whisking constantly, until consistency is slightly thicker than that of heavy cream, about 1 minute. Season to your liking with salt. Divide chicken fried steak between four plates and spoon plenty of gravy over each.

Serve this with buttered corn, green beans, biscuits and mashed potatoes … wash it down with some lemonade or a Southern Cherry and you’ll be in heaven.

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By J.Ho, March 8, 2006 7:15 am

Go away or I shall I taunt you a second time-ah!

Most Monty Python purists should catch that one. Recently a friend and I were loosely discussing planning a trip to Paris. Living in Europe for many years I got to visit Paris several times. I’d love to go back and I think we’re serious about it this time. I dusted out my trusty old French Provisional cookbook and sliced and diced through it to find some great recipes that I’ve tried in the past. The ones that follow are simple and awesome. For the record, I love French cooking! I don’t speak French, however, I do kiss that way.

The steak:
1 pound of top sirloin (one large piece preferably)
Salt and crushed black peppercorns
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons brandy, warmed (zap it in the micro for 10-15 seconds)

Season the steak with the salt and peppercorns and brush it with a little oil. Heat the butter and olive oil in a heavy pan. When it’s very hot add the steak. Cook the steak, turning only once, to your desired doneness. Remove the pan from the heat, pour the warmed brandy over it and ignite. When the flames have died down, transfer the steak to a serving dish and keep warm.

The sauce:
6 tablespoons white wine
2 tablespoon butter
1 large clove garlic, crushed and minced
4 teaspoons fresh tarragon or dill, finely chopped
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
6 tablespoons heavy cream
Salt & freshly ground black pepper

Pour off the liquid from the steak into a small saucepan. Add the garlic, herbs and mustard to the saucepan, whisking well. Add the cream, and heat over very low heat, whisking all the time until the sauce is very hot, but not boiling. Season with salt and pepper. Slice the steak, against the grain, into ¼ inch slices. Pour the sauce over the steak and serve with Lyonnaise potatoes and leeks in white wine sauce.

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By J.Ho, March 7, 2006 4:49 pm

Since my heritage is ¼ Italian (Neapolitan), I figured I’d share one of my favorite Italian recipes. Veal Scaloppine alla Marsala is quite popular in Italian restaurants, but you rarely find it in the home kitchen. This is a technique that is easy, light and delish!! As always, if you try any of these, I demand feedback!

2 to 2 ½ pounds veal cutlets
All-purpose flour
12 tablespoons sweet butter
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
8 slices of imported Italian prosciutto, diced (don’t use any of the domestic crap)
2 large garlic cloves, mashed and minced
2 teaspoons crumbled dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup fine Marsala wine or sherry
4 cups white mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
½ cup fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, leaves only, chopped fine

Pound veal cutlets thin and sprinkle with flour on both sides. Shake off any excess flour. Place butter and olive oil in a large skillet and heat. Add the veal slices and the prosciutto. Sauté for three minutes, then turn and add garlic, rosemary, salt & pepper. Cook for two more minutes. Add the wine, cover and sauté for three minutes. Uncover the skillet and add the mushrooms and parsley and cook slowly for six minutes longer. Serve with a green salad and/or a side of pasta.

This recipe also works well with chicken.

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By J.Ho, March 6, 2006 2:17 pm

There are two ways I do tri-tip: dry rubbed or marinated. There are several packaged dry rubs available in local supermarkets. I found one great Santa Maria-style packaged dry rub, but I forget the brand name. Grilled tri-tips are awesome if you’re looking for a quick cooking, good quality slab of beef. Who isn’t looking for that?

Dry Rub
1 tablespoon ground cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon ground paprika
1 tablespoon granulated garlic powder
1 tablespoon granulated onion powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons finely ground sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon white pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Liberally pack on the dry rub to a nicely marbled tri-tip roast. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cooking. This dry rub also goes well with ribs and pork roasts.

Marinade
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup light olive oil
½ cup white sugar
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup black pepper
½ cup garlic salt
½ cup freshly chopped garlic
½ cup dried minced onions

This should be enough to marinade two four-pound tri-tip roasts. Whisk all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Pour a little of the marinade in the bottom of a large plastic storage container. Place the trimmed tri-tips in that container and pour the rest of the marinade over the roasts. Let stand in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours (overnight would be best). Turn them over and mix ‘em up a bit while they are marinating.

Remove tri-tip roasts from the refridgerator and let stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. Cooking instructions should be the same for either dry rubbed or marinated tri-tips. Heat grill to medium temperature. Place roasts on grill and cook for about 35 minutes (turning once), or until desired doneness. Remove the tri-tips from the grill and let rest for about 5-10 minutes before slicing.