House of Annie

A bit of this and a bit of that

The only thing about Elizabeth’s recipe is that it doesn’t come with exact measurements. This is very common for recipes handed down from our parents’ or grandparents’ generation—I’ve found that so many of them just use the eyeball method so they never have precise measurements. “Oh, just throw in a bit of this and a bit of that and then taste and adjust” seems to be their mantra. So for this khau yoke recipe, I had to guess on amounts (and lucky you, readers, I noted them down—though again, use my measurements as a guide and go with your own tastebuds for best results).

Now, khau yoke is an ambitious dish and I recommend you do this only when you have the time as there are many steps. It isn’t totally difficult but there are many different cooking methods employed and then the steaming time is rather long so read the whole recipe through and map it out in your own head before attempting!

Things I learned

Here are some things I learned after making this dish:
1. Make sure your pork and taro are the same size in thickness and height. I had some pieces of taro that were taller than the pork and the bowl and those pieces did not soak up any of the sauce and so remained rather hard.
2. Steam it for the full 3 hours for maximum tenderness on the taro.
3. Don’t slice the pork and taro too thick but don’t make it too thin either as that will cause the taro to disintegrate. 1/4 inch thickness seems to be reasonable (I had 1/2 inch thickness and the taro did not soften well).
4. Make sure you get taro that is “powdery”. I have no idea what this meant really but thankfully, here in Malaysia, I just had to tell the seller at the market that I was making khau yoke and she chose the right taro for me. According to my mom, if you touch a cut piece of taro, the good ones will leave a trace of white powder on your finger or your knife. Try that out and see if that works for you.

5. When preparing taro, don’t get the taro wet as you’re peeling it. This will cause the taro to become slimy and slippery AND on top of that it could make your hands itch. Instead, use a paper towel to hold the taro as you’re cutting off the skin. Wipe off any residual dirt from the cut taro and do not wash. (If you absolutely have to wash your taro, slice them first, then put into a colander and run some water through and drain.)
6. Making khau yoke does involve boiling, deep frying, and steaming. Prepare ahead. It’s a complicated dish. And yes, I actually deep-fried AGAIN! Can you tell I love my husband?

Now, this recipe did end up giving me a LOT of khau yoke so I recommend that if you only want a small portion to halve it. OR, impress your friends and share some.

Khau Yoke recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 lb (300g) pork belly (buy it in a big slab)
1 medium taro (ask the vegetable seller to recommend a fluffy taro)
1/2 Tbsp thick soy sauce
2 tsp chinese 5 spice powder
Marinate:
1 1/2 cube nam yue (preserved red beancurd)
1 Tbsp taucu (brown bean sauce)
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbsp thick soy sauce (divided)
Oil for deep frying
Sauce:
3/4 cup - 1 cup water (add more water if you prefer more sauce)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
dash of pepper
pinch of Chinese 5 spice powder
1 tsp soya sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp Shao Hsing Wine
1/2 cube nam yue
1/2 tsp thick soy sauce

Method:
1. Bring a pot of water to boil. Blanch the pork belly for 2-3 mins to make for easier slicing. This process also helps to get rid of the porky smell and helps to achieve a slightly crispy skin when deep frying.
2. Remove from water and let cool. When cool enough to handle, use a fork to prick all over the pork belly skin several times.
3. Rub the belly pork with dark soy sauce & Chinese 5 spice powder. Leave to marinade for 30 mins.

Before serving, Elizabeth recommends that you arrange lettuce leaves on a round large serving plate. Remove khau yoke carefully from the steamer & let it cool a little. Turn the steamed khau yoke over onto the lettuce leaves carefully.

If you’re not so good at this, forget the lettuce leaves and just place a plate over bowl and turn over that way to ensure less mess (like me!). Then decorate sides of dish with cilantro or other greens to make it attractive. And yes, this is important since you have taken the time to make this immensely complicated dish. Present with pride and watch husband devour!

Enjoy!

Cheers, Annie

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When Annie and I got married in Hawaii, one of my groomsmen made kalua pig for the big banquet after the wedding. Real kalua pig, cooked in an imu in his backyard the night before the wedding. Instead of coming to my bachelor party, the guy stayed up late to tend to the pig. That was a special wedding meal!

We don't have a pit in our backyard in San Jose but we still like to enjoy Hawaiian-style kalua pig and cabbage every now and then. For our Ultimate Hawaiian Backyard Lu’au, we made our kalua pig the night before. We shredded the pork and reserved the juices from the bag too cook the cabbage on the day of the lu’au.

Recipe for Kalua Pig with Cabbage

Ingredients

1, 5lb pork shoulder
2 Tbsp Hawaiian sea salt
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 cloves garlic, peeled
3 slices ginger
2 tsp liquid smoke
2 heads cabbage (or more), chopped

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 325*F.
2. Place the pork shoulder in an oven roasting bag.
3. Add all the ingredients to the bag and massage it in to the shoulder.

4. Seal the bag and place it in a roasting pan. Cut a few holes in the top of the roasting bag to allow steam to escape.
5. Pour some water into the pan until it comes about halfway up the sides of the pan.
6. Insert a remote probe thermometer through one of the holes in the bag and into the center of the pork shoulder. Set the target temperature for 195*F.
7. Place the pan in the oven and roast until the shoulder reaches the target temperature.
8. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the pork to cool.
9. Remove the pork from the oven bag, but reserve the juices from the bag in a stock pot. Refrigerate the stock.

10. Shred the pork shoulder using a couple of forks. The pork should shred fairly easily, but you can also chop up some of the tougher chunks.

11. The next day, you will find that the fat from the pork juices has risen to the top of the juices and congealed. You can now easily remove all the fat.

12. Bring about half of the reserved juices to a simmer in a large pot or saucepan. Add half the chopped cabbage and cook the cabbage down until softened, then add half the shredded pork.

13. Mix well until the pork has been heated through. Empty the kalua pig and cabbage into a serving tray and cook the remaining stock, cabbage and pork.

Enjoy!

Aloha, Nate

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What is Laksa?

According to Wikipedia, laksa is a spicy, soup noodle dish, originating from the merging of Chinese and Malay cultures (also known as Peranakan or Nyonya) which is found primarily in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. Okay now, show of hands: How many of you know have tasted laksa? All right, now how many of you have tasted Sarawak laksa? That’s what I thought, very few.

Like me, most people are familiar with the curry laksa, a coconut-and-curry-based dish found in Singapore or KL. There’s also assam laksa, that sweet-spicy-sourish, fish-based dish found in Penang (I am absolutely in love with assam laksa from Penang!). But I didn’t know about Sarawak laksa until one day on maybe my second trip to Malaysia, when Annie’s cousin in KL took us to a stall in Bangsar that was known for its Sarawak laksa.

At first, I didn’t know if I’d like it. The broth was thin and brownish. There were a few prawns in it, plus shreds of chicken and strips of egg omelette. There was coconut in it, but no sharp curry flavor like curry laksa. Instead it was a mysterious but harmonious blend of spices, punctuated by a generous helping of fresh coriander. After first tasting it, and then finishing the entire bowl, I knew it was something I could enjoy again and again.

Looking for Laksa

When we first arrived in Kuching, we tried some Sarawak laksa from a stall near the hotel. It wasn’t very good – heavy on the white pepper, which covered up the nuances of flavor. Disappointing, but not daunting.

Later on, we moved into a house rented from a friend. We were cleaning up the place one day, when the friend brought over some lunch (what did I tell you about Kuching hospitality?). It was Sarawak laksa (of course, being already in Sarawak, they just call it laksa here).

This laksa was awfully good. I finished it all in no time, and was left longing for more. Our friend said that the laksa was made by a relative who owned a laksa stall. She gave us the location so we knew where to find the place.

Grace Place Sarawak Laksa Stall

One thing I have to note here. In Kuching, everybody eats early. This is especially true if you want to eat Sarawak laksa. The best laksa stalls are sold out by midmorning; after 10 am, you may either get the dregs, or you may get nothing.

So we were very fortunate when we recently showed up at 10:30 at the laksa stall, to find Aunty Rose still tending there. But as you can see, there wasn’t much soup left in her pot! She was literally scraping bottom to fill our order.

Grace Place Sarawak Laksa

Aunty Rose put a lot of effort into making a quality laksa. Every day, she would wake up at 4:30am to heat up her soup. By 6:30, she would be at the stall, selling her laksa. She’ll finish at around 2 pm, then head home to start prepping the ingredients for the next day. By 8 pm, she’d be done prepping and off to rest before the next day comes and the cycle begins again.

I don’t think I could survive that kind of life. But Aunty Rose does it with calm grace, and a smile.

Aunty Rose’s Laksa

Her laksa is thoroughly enjoyable from the first bite to the last slurp. Mix in a little homemade sambal belacan, add a squirt of kalamansi lime juice, and dig in. The thin rice vermicelli noodles still have a little crunch to them. The shredded chicken is flavorful in its own right. The bean sprouts, normally an afterthought, have their tips meticulously picked (another sign of the care she puts into her food).

And the broth? Oh the broth! Rich, savory, coconutty, with a pleasant chilli heat to it, it is slurp-alicious! This is not a broth to be left alone once you’re done eating the noodles. This is a broth that is good to the last drop. Next thing you know, it’s all gone.

You push back from your bowl with a sigh, face slightly sweaty, nose lightly runny, lips and throat tingly. You’re satisfied for now, but you know you want to come back for more.

Grace Place Sarawak Laksa

Unfortunately, you can’t have any more. You see, as of the end of September, Aunty Rose has retired from her stall. (Notice the “Stall for Rent” banner in the pic below.) I literally got the very last bowl of Aunty Rose’s laksa!

I asked Aunty Rose what she is going to do in her retirement. She laughs. “I’m going to clean my house!” Too many years of dedication to the stall, and to her laksa, left her with little time to do anything else.

I say she deserves her break. Of course, it would be a shame to just let her recipe be lost, wouldn’t it? So we asked her if she would share it.

That’s right. We got her laksa recipe!

And we’re going to share it. Because you see, our shipping crate has arrived in Kuching and will be delivered shortly. We have a contractor who is coming to replace and upgrade the lighting in the kitchen. Soon, we’ll be posting recipes (including laksa!) once more.

Life is good!

Aloha, Nate

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Pandan is a plant with long, tough green leaves. When cut or crushed, the leaves give off this wonderfully sweet, herbal aroma. Cooking with pandan leaves will infuse the pandan flavor into the food. For instance, toss a few pandan leaves in a pot of rice with some coconut milk, and you have nasi lemak!

When we were living in Hawaii, I had a huge stand of pandan growing in the side yard of my Mom’s house. I had nurtured this stand from a small keiki given to me by my friend’s mom. I was very proud of how large it had gotten. (And very sad when I found out my sister had pulled it all out!)

When we moved to San Jose, we couldn’t grow pandan because it is a tropical plant that can’t take the cool California winters. We had to make do with frozen pandan found in the Asian grocery stores. Most of the recipes we made calling for pandan actually used a bottled pandan extract paste. Fresh pandan was just too hard to come by.

Pandan growing in our yard

One of the first things we made in the new House of Annie was barley tea, boiled with pandan leaves. I was starting to come down with a sore throat, so this barley tea with pandan was perfect. Unfortunately, we didn’t have any gingko nuts or fuchok to make it more fancy.

Boiling Pandan with Barley

No matter. When it was finished, boiled and cooled, I drank nearly the entire pot by myself! It really hit the spot.

Barley Tea with Pandan

We’re so happy to find this pandan stand in our yard. In actual fact, every house here in Kuching has a pandan plant growing. Our stand just happens to be so large because no one’s been living in the house for almost two years. That’s a lot of pandan to cook with!

So, we need your help. Give us recipes that call for pandan! Leave a comment and tell us what you’d do with all this fresh pandan.

Aloha, Nate

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This post is entered in the 2nd Anniversary edition of the Grow Your Own roundup, created and hosted by Andrea of Andrea's Recipes.

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Polenta, Grits, Whatever

The original recipe actually calls for for grits but since I didn’t have any white cornmeal, I decided that I’d just have to adapt it slightly. I just happen to have a lot of polenta cornmeal leftover (after baking the Corn Bread) and I don’t want it to go to waste. After all, polenta and grits are just cousins from the other side of the pond. (Please don’t hurt me for saying that polenta and grits are pretty much the same thing!)

And please don’t get me wrong, I love grits too, It’s just that cornmeal gets rancid pretty quickly so I want to try to use up my stash as quickly as possible (or else resort to freezing it— but my freezer is full enough without trying to shove more into it!).

Garlic Cheddar Polenta with Shrimp and Asparagus

This recipe is so yummy. It’s because of that Worcestershire sauce man; it’s killer with shrimp if you haven’t already discovered that from my other shrimp recipe with W sauce. And of course, it doesn’t hurt to put sharp cheddar in the polenta either!

I actually made extra polenta because I wanted to have leftovers that would harden up that I could then make into cakes. But I ended up eating all the leftover shrimp and asparagus with the polenta the next day (the polenta was hard but softened once I heated it up in the microwave). Next time, I guess I’ll have to make even more!

Garlic Cheddar Polenta with Shrimp and Asparagus

adapted from Fine Cooking

Ingredients

4 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 clove garlic, minced
2-1/3 cups low-salt chicken broth
1/2 cup polenta corn meal
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated extra-sharp Cheddar
1/2 lb. medium-thick asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal into 1-inch pieces
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce
1 to 2 scallions (green parts only), thinly sliced

Method

1. Heat 1/2 Tbs. of butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds.
2. Add the broth and bring to a boil over high heat. While stirring constantly, pour in the grits and 1/4 tsp. salt. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the grits are thickened, 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Stir in the Cheddar cheese.
4. Season to taste. Cover the polenta and set aside.
5. Heat 1 Tbs. of butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus, sprinkle with a little salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender and a little browned, 3 to 4 minutes.
6. Add the shrimp and cook until the shrimp is opaque and the asparagus is tender, 2 to 3 minutes.
7. Reduce the heat to low and add the Worcestershire sauce. Melt the remaining 2-1/2 Tbs. butter into the shrimp and asparagus. Season to taste.
8. Serve the shrimp and asparagus over the polenta, sprinkled with the scallions.

Garlic Cheddar Polenta with Shrimp and Asparagus

A delicious weekday meal that you can whip up quite quickly. So make it soon, ‘kay?

Cheers, Annie

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Japanese Oden

Some Japanese students at the dorm made Oden and shared it with me. I loved it and have since recreated it myself several times. Oden is a really simple dish that is perfect when the weather is still cold and you’re not feeling like anything too heavy.

The base stock is a dashi made with kombu and bonito flakes. I’ve cheated by using the Japanese Hon Dashi (Bonito Fish Soup Stock) when I’m in a hurry. Depending on your needs, feel free to make the stock from scratch or use the Hon Dashi (which is what I did this time around). If you have access to an Asian/Japanese grocery store, you could even get a pack of oden soup base mix and then your work is made even simpler.

Build on the Base

The rest of the ingredients is a mixture of daikon, boiled eggs, and different types of fishcakes. Some recipes call for the addition of konnyaku (konjac gelatin) and potatoes. That is the beauty of oden—it allows for a mixture of ingredients based on what you like.

I LOVE fishcakes of all sorts and I love going to the Japanese store and browsing all their different fishcakes and choosing the ones I want to put into my oden. One of the fishcakes I discovered that I absolutely love is called hanpen. If you can find this, you have to try it. It’s a very soft fishcake that comes in a block and that you cut into triangles to add to the soup stock. It expands quite a bit as you simmer the soup. The texture is pillowy soft and airy. It’s a textural wonder and very different from any other fishcake I’ve ever had. I always try to put that in when I can.

The only other ingredients besides the fishcakes that I feel are necessary are the daikon and boiled eggs.

Japanese Daikon Radish

I sometimes add the konnyaku for the textural component it lends but decided against it this time. And if you can get it, do get some of the seasoned yellow Japanese mustard to eat with it. They sell them at Asian grocery stores right next to the wasabi tubes—same brand, different colored mustards.

Once you’ve boiled it for a while, serve it with rice and fight for the fishcakes and ingredients you like best!

Japanese Oden

serves 6-8

Ingredients:
1 lb daikon (about 3 medium sized ones), cut into 3/4 inch rounds or if really big, halved and then cut into 1 inch half moons.
6 hard-boiled eggs, shelled
4-5 packages of assorted fishcakes (I like to get one packet of hanpen, one kamaboko, sliced, some fried fishballs and various other shaped ones)
1 package of konnyaku (cut into 8 triangles or if you want to be fancy, cut into flat rectangles, then cut a slit in the center and turn over to form ribbon pattern)*
6 small potatoes, halved*
7 cups dashi (make your own or use 7 cups water and 1 tsp hon dashi)
1/3 cup soy sauce, or to taste
1/4 cup mirin, or to taste
1 Tbsp sugar, or to taste
Hot yellow mustard paste

*optional ingredients

Method

Japanese Oden

Enjoy!

Cheers, Annie

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Ultimate Rib Showdown Scoring Tally

The overall winner: Smoked!

The surprise loser: our barbecue “standard”, Texas Smokehouse BBQ.

And it is very interesting to note that Boiled and Baked came really close to beating out Grilled.

Grilled Ribs

Scoring was all over the map.  Diners A and C scored these the lowest, even under Texas Smokehouse. But Diners M2 and S scored these the highest.  The rib rub I used was originally meant for grilling, and meant to be served with a sauce.

Personally, I liked how these ribs turned out, especially the bark. But they took almost as long to cook as the smoked ones, and those foil packets of smoke chips didn’t add very much smoky flavor to these ribs.  I missed that smokiness.

Texas Smokehouse BBQ Ribs

I’ve had really good ribs in Texas. While these ones from Texas Smokehouse BBQ may have the same texture as those from Williams Smokehouse, they are nowhere near as good.  Almost everyone scored Texas Smokehouse the lowest.

When Diner M2 was tasting and scoring these ribs, he looked up and exclaimed, “why did you do this to me!?”  As soon as Diner A bit into them, he knew they came from Texas Smokehouse BBQ.  “They have the same chemically taste as the first time I had them.”  What chemically taste, you ask?

Texas Smokehouse BBQ’s cooker is right outside their front door, facing the street.  You can’t miss it.  You also can’t miss seeing that they are using Kingsford charcoal briquettes and lighter fluid instead of wood logs or lump charcoal. A sure sign of cutting corners.  Listen, if you see someone grilling or barbecuing, and a bottle of lighter fluid is nearby, DO NOT EAT THE FOOD.  It’s just not going to taste good.

One other thing.  Texas Smokehouse BBQ has a solid 4-star rating on Yelp.  Makes me wonder what good these ratings are if people don’t know what good ‘cue tastes like in the first place.

Boiled and Baked

My barbecue purist instincts have kept me from making boiled and baked ribs ever since I started cooking ribs.  I turned up my nose at any restaurant rib that I knew wasn’t cooked in a smoker.  For me, if ribs didn’t spend at least 3 hours cooking in wood smoke, it wasn’t barbecue.

But, I realize that some people don’t like to wait that long to eat. Some people are perfectly fine with boiling away flavor as long as the meat gets tender. You can replace that lost flavor by drowning your meat in sauce.

Even though I didn’t bake these ribs in sauce, they still came out tasty.  The paprika and the sugar in the rub combined to make a sticky outer coating for the ribs.  Diner I scored these ribs the highest.

(Oh well.  I guess someone had to be the contrarian. ;-) )

The Winner: Smoked Ribs

Both 8Chocolate and Thom guessed it right.  The Smoked ribs came out on top (as I hoped they would).  None of the other methods could match the depth of flavor that cooking in wood smoke brings. 

The only downside I could see was, the smoke overshadowed a lot of the subtler flavors in this rub.  Of course, this rub that I used wasn’t made for smoking.  While I smoked four slabs of ribs using this rub, I also smoked another two slab of ribs using my tried and true salt and pepper rub.  The smoke complements the flavors in the salt and pepper rub instead of competes with it.

The Bottom Line

I think I accomplished what I set out to do, which was to compare the different rib cooking methods in as fair a way as possible.  There were some glitches along the way (like leaving out the salt!) but I got a definitive answer, one that I am happy with.

Now, I wish I could say that the question has been answered for all time, and everybody should just go out and buy a Weber Smokey Mountain to smoke their own ribs from now on.  I wish I could tell people to never boil ribs ever again, or face my wrath.  I wish I could tell people to avoid boiled, oversauced restaurant ribs at all costs.

I wish I could say that.

But some people (like those living in condos in California) cannot have charcoal burning smokers or grills on their wooden decks.  Some people can’t afford a smoker, even if they could have one.  Some people don’t want to wait that long to get their barbecue fix.

Peter M had some sage words in his comment to the previous post:

The rest (smoke/no smoke)is a matter of taste.
One could do BBQ over wood coals and screw it up with a bad rub and/or bad sauce.

Some people don’t like smoke. Some people love sauce on their ribs.  It’s a matter of taste.

Also, I myself have ruined a batch of ribs by oversmoking them, or by screwing around with the rub too much.  Smoking by itself isn’t going to make a good rib.  It’s the care one puts into the cooking that makes the difference.

I just happen to care about making great barbecue.

So, go ahead and boil and bake and grill your ribs to your heart’s content.

Just don’t call it barbecue.

Please?

Taking Sides

What’s a barbecue without sides to accompany the heavy meats?  Each of our guests contributed a dish to the party:

Annie’s Cornbread

Annie made this cornbread using a recipe from Peter Reinhart’s “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice”. The polenta soaked in rich, tangy buttermilk overnight, adding a delicious, sour bite to the cake.  Of course, the addition of bacon on top doesn’t hurt.  We will blog this recipe for cornbread in another post.

Carolyn’s Potato Salad

FoodGal Carolyn brought a sublime potato salad from a “certain restaurant in Yountville” (no, not that restaurant).  Utilizing Dijon mustard as well as whole grain mustard, plus fresh chopped tarragon and capers, I believe this recipe comes from Gordon’s Cafe and Wine Bar.  The recipe is featured in the Williams-Sonoma San Francisco Cookbook by Janet Fletcher.

Betty’s Bean Salad

Our friend Betty brought a beautiful bean salad to the party.  Among the surprising and tasty ingredients were chopped red cabbage and pine nuts.  It would be perfect for a summer picnic.  If Betty would share the recipe with us, I’m sure we’ll make it again and blog about it too!

Felicia’s Pavlova

Our friend Felicia brought over two different pavolovas for dessert.  The baked meringue was crisp and airy on the outside while the inside remained soft like a marshmallow.  Here, the classic strawberries and kiwis were paired with sweet mandarin sections and fresh berries.  I don’t have a good pic of the other pavlova, but let me tell you, it was equally as good.  I hope we can get the recipe from Felicia to share with you all.

Thanks!

Thanks to all our guests that night who made the party so fun and memorable.  Thanks also to Foodbuzz for giving us the opportunity to do this as a 24, 24, 24 event.  Hopefully we can do more fun parties like this in the future!

Aloha, Nate

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A Real Surprise

So consider my surprise when I was presented with this big chunk of beef which was then thinly sliced and served with boiled carrots, potatoes and cabbage, with a mix of two mustards to schmear on said items.

Real Corned Beef

I didn’t quite know what to expect of its flavors because boiled foods have never appealed to me. But I must say, that that meal was a delightful surprise. I enjoyed every bite.

Failing Under Pressure

The next time I had it was at Nate’s home. He told me he was going to make corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick’s Day. And after having experienced the wonders of this simple meal at June’s, I was glad to go over to his place to have some. Imagine my surprise when I saw him cubing the corned beef and throwing it into a pressure cooker along with the carrots and potatoes to cook.

Somehow, cutting up the meat into cubes caused all the flavor to be released into the liquids, leaving the corned beef bereft of taste. Texturally, it wasn’t very appealing either. And the potatoes and carrots were pressure cooked to death. Since we were dating at the time, I think I tried to be polite about the dish. I did not enjoy it but I ate it anyway.

Now if this had been my first experience with corned beef, I probably would never have wanted to eat it again. I decided that the first chance I got, I would boil it the way June did it and let Nate have a taste. Nowadays, boiling our corned beef is the method of choice.

A New Way to Enjoy Cabbage

The one thing I’ve never really enjoyed about corned beef and cabbage was the boiled cabbage. The carrots and the potatoes were fine because they absorbed all those wonderful flavors from cooking in the briny broth. But the boiled cabbage was always just soggy and limp, and it’s no wonder that that was always one of the last things that got finished up.

I decided this year that I would try a new way of cooking cabbage. As I looked up corned beef recipes, I came across this Irish dish called colcannon. It calls for potatoes to be boiled and cabbage to be shredded and then steamed, and then both ingredients to be mixed together with some milk and seasonings.

I didn’t know how well this combination would work, but many reviewers highly recommended it. I decided to tweak the recipe a little bit by still boiling my potatoes in the pot with my corned beef, but instead of steaming the cabbage, I decided to sauté it with butter (because, you know, butter makes everything better!).

The results? Smashing! Cabbage was no longer the last thing to go. As a matter of fact, it is so good, I could eat this all on its own, even without the corned beef. I would eat three helpings of this if not for the fact that the butter and potatoes would just go straight to my hips.

So here I offer you an easy to prepare St. Patrick’s Day meal. I hope you give colcannon a shot. It is a simple and tasty dish that would make a great side any time of the year, but especially now when cabbage is so cheap.

Corned Beef Recipe

Buy any size corned beef that you like. We prefer the larger sized ones so that we will have enough leftovers to make corned beef hash (that’s another post). Having tried some corned beef made from leaner cuts of beef, I would suggest sticking with the point cut of the brisket. Most of the fat is boiled off, but enough is left to keep the meat tender.

Either freshly corned beef, or cryovac’d corned beef is fine. If you get the cryovac’d corned beef, simply follow the instructions on the packet. With a freshly corned beef, all you have to do is put it in a large pot and completely submerge the meat in water. Make sure that your pot is large enough to hold not just the beef but also the carrots and potatoes you will be adding later. Bring it to a boil and then cover and let it simmer for three to four hours depending on how big your cut is.

Meanwhile, prep your carrots. Try to choose fatter carrots for this cook. Peel four to five large carrots and cut them in half or thirds, depending on how big your carrot is. In the last hour of your cook, add the carrots to the pot with the corned beef.

Peel your potatoes, about one large potato per person (I recommend Russets). Add the potatoes in the last half hour of your cook. If you really don’t have the space in your pot, finish cooking your beef and carrots, remove them to rest in a warm oven, and then cook the potatoes in the broth.

Colcannon Recipe

adapted from Epicurious. Makes six to eight servings

six to eight large Russet potatoes, peeled
1 to 1-1/2 cups scalded milk
1 medium head cabbage, cored and shredded
4 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste

1. Boil potatoes in the corned beef broth. (if you’re making this dish on its own, just use salted water.)

2. While potatoes are boiling, heat a large saute pan and melt butter in it over medium heat.

3. Once butter has melted, throw in the shredded cabbage. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Saute the cabbage until cabbage is soft but not browned.

5. When potatoes are tender, remove from water and place into a large bowl. Mash the potatoes or run them through a ricer. Add one cup of milk, and cabbage. Combine well. If the potatoes are dry, add more milk until you get a nice, creamy consistency.

Mashed Potatoes and Cabbage for Colcannon

6. Taste and season with more salt and pepper. (Don’t skimp on the salt and pepper. The pepper really brings this dish alive.)

Colcannon

Feel free to spice this colcannon up if you want. We were thinking we might try it next time with some mustard seed or dill seed.

Serve this up alongside the corned beef and carrots. Don’t forget to serve it with some Dijon mustard and sweet honey mustard on the side.

Corned Beef, Carrots and Colcannon

Enjoy your St. Patrick’s Day meal!

Cheers, Annie

PS: Besides the corned beef, there’s another reason I really love St. Patrick’s Day. Can you guess what it is? ^_^

This post was entered in the March Potato Ho Showdown roundup, hosted by Krysta from Evil Chef Mom.

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