What Are You Simmering Right Now? A Place for Mid-Stew Musings

[jparrott]

Smoked goat chili. Texas style, no tomatoes. We'll see. But I have too much leftover goat to eat it any other way.

[Meaghan]

Smoked goat chili. Texas style, no tomatoes. We'll see. But I have too much leftover goat to eat it any other way.

Simmering and sizzling are my favorite two verb cooking verbs. Do you deliver?

[Pat]

Right now I'm simmering an improvised chicken soup. My husband's not feeling so great, so other plans have turned into chicken soup.

[monavano]

Right now I'm simmering an improvised chicken soup. My husband's not feeling so great, so other plans have turned into chicken soup.

I did the same thing mysef today (not sick however) with chicken stock, some ginger, star anise miso, chili flakes and noodles. I topped it off with cilantro and a good squeeze of lime. Good phake pho.

[Pat]

I did the same thing mysef today (not sick however) with chicken stock, some ginger, star anise miso, chili flakes and noodles. I topped it off with cilantro and a good squeeze of lime. Good phake pho.

That sounds wonderful. I'm working more on the bland end of the spectrum, but I was planning to put a little miso in at the end, and simmering a couple of star anise in the broth sounds like a good idea. Thanks!

[jparrott]

Chicken stock. 20lbs of backs, 5lbs of necks, 6lbs of feet, two 20-quart stockpots. Mmmmmm.

[zoramargolis]

Chicken stock. 20lbs of backs, 5lbs of necks, 6lbs of feet, two 20-quart stockpots. Mmmmmm.

Wow. That's restaurant quantity. Do you have access to a walk-in? If not, where do you plan to store all of that stock?

[jparrott]

Strain, chill overnight (according to New Pro Chef, the par yield for this much bones is about 16 quarts, as I don't count the amount of feet in determining par yield), de-fat, reduce to two quarts tomorrow (so 1/4 cup glace is a pint of full stock), chill again, cut the resulting Chicken Flubber into ~1/4 cup cubes, put each in a small ziploc bag, freeze in a large ziploc bag.

[zoramargolis]

Oh. So, you're planning to reduce the contents of two twenty quart stockpots down to two quarts of chicken Jello. You could sell tickets to your house as a chicken soup steambath tomorrow. Be sure to save the schmaltz--use it for making confit and matzo balls.

[Pat]

chicken giblets for gravy to go with the chicken roasting in the oven

[Sthitch]

I just took 8 pounds of short ribs out of the oven after braising for 24 hours, now I am reducing the cooking liquid. The ribs were sent to me by my cousin from a mystery breed of cattle that he is toying around with raising, all he would tell me is that the breed is from the Alps.

[Anna Blume]

No stew, but lentil soup w pancetta and freshly roasted chestnuts. One reason to be grateful for a real winter's day.

[Pat]

Chicken soup. It smells wonderful and is making the kitchen warm.

[Al Dente]

Al's Hunk O' Brisket Chili. Turned out real good!

[Soup]

put up garbi jhim (braised short ribs with root veggies) before I left this morning in the slow cooker. Will be ready come dinner time.

[monavano]

Actually, the simmering happened on Sunday, but this morning I drained and strained a big pot of chicken soup. This is the second time I've tried this method-place chicken parts, vegetables and herbs in the basket insert and make soup. Then, let cool a bit and store in the refrigerator until the next day. Skim fat off top and withdrawl basket and toss. Strain and place into chinese take out quart containers (man I eat a lot of hot and sour soup!). Freeze. I got about 10 quarts this time.

Right now, a pot is simmering with about 2 quarts of stock and carrots (with a bit of tomato paste). When it's hot, I'll add extruded farina, parmesan and eggs.

[jparrott]

Matzo ball soup. Never made it before. Oy, I'm nervous .

[Al Dente]

Matzo ball soup. Never made it before. Oy, I'm nervous .

I've always meant to make this, but haven't gotten around to it. Are you following a particular recipe? I can make a mean chicken stock, but don't have a clue about making a matzo ball.

[Scott Johnston]

Try the simple matzo ball mix. Generally I am opposed to mixes, but this one is really good.

I've always meant to make this, but haven't gotten around to it. Are you following a particular recipe? I can make a mean chicken stock, but don't have a clue about making a matzo ball.

[jparrott]

No schmaltz around, so mine was matzo meal, eggs, water, olive oil (sephardic!), salt, pepper.

[johnb]

Chinese (Sichuan) red cooked beef--Fuschia Dunlop recipe in Land of Plenty. Smells and tastes pretty good so far. Due to the guest list I went easy on the chili sauce.

[Waitman]

A fucking basset hound-sized Zuni Cafe salt/milk cured Eco-Friendly wallet-unfriendly wascally wabbit that my wife and daugher both refused to eat on vague moral grounds, in a madeira/plum braise that was excellent. I have leftovers, if anyone's hungry.

[zoramargolis]

Try the simple matzo ball mix. Generally I am opposed to mixes, but this one is really good.

No schmaltz around, so mine was matzo meal, eggs, water, olive oil (sephardic!), salt, pepper.

These two different approaches go to the heart of the matzo ball conundrum: floaters vs. sinkers. Which of the two you prefer tends to depend on what you ate when you were growing up. Me--I am strongly in the floaters camp. The ability to produce a fluffy, light matzo ball was adjudged to be the hallmark of a good cook, where I came from. And woe betide the hostess who served leaden matzo balls to guests--she would be privately mocked for years afterward. My mother discovered fairly early on that the most reliable way to serve light-as-a-feather matzo balls was to use Manischewitz Matzo Ball mix. Know why they are so light? Baking powder.

Want to know the best way to make fluffy, light matzo balls without a mix? Add some baking powder. Now this presents a major dilemma to the super-observant during Passover, since they eschew not only yeast, but all forms of leavening, including chemical. Which begs the question: we know that the ancient Jews were in such a hurry to leave Egypt, that they didn't have time to let the bread dough rise, hence all who have followed have been forced to eat matzo to commemorate this historical event. However, if there had been such a thing back then as baking powder, allowing a quick rise, don't you think the Jews would have used it, rather than eat crispy cardboard? I do.

In any case, the observant lovers of light matzo balls try all manner of techniques to achieve lightness without leavening during Passover, including beating the eggwhites separately, using carbonated water in the mix. I have never had success with either of these methods when I have tried them. I stick with Manischewitz mix.

[Mark Slater]

These two different approaches go to the heart of the matzo ball conundrum: floaters vs. sinkers. Which of the two you prefer tends to depend on what you ate when you were growing up. Me--I am strongly in the floaters camp. The ability to produce a fluffy, light matzo ball was adjudged to be the hallmark of a good cook, where I came from. And woe betide the hostess who served leaden matzo balls to guests--she would be privately mocked for years afterward. My mother discovered fairly early on that the most reliable way to serve light-as-a-feather matzo balls was to use Manischewitz Matzo Ball mix. Know why they are so light? Baking powder.

Want to know the best way to make fluffy, light matzo balls without a mix? Add some baking powder. Now this presents a major dilemma to the super-observant during Passover, since they eschew not only yeast, but all forms of leavening, including chemical. Which begs the question: we know that the ancient Jews were in such a hurry to leave Egypt, that they didn't have time to let the bread dough rise, hence all who have followed have been forced to eat matzo to commemorate this historical event. However, if there had been such a thing back then as baking powder, allowing a quick rise, don't you think the Jews would have used it, rather than eat crispy cardboard? I do.

In any case, the observant lovers of light matzo balls try all manner of techniques to achieve lightness without leavening during Passover, including beating the eggwhites separately, using carbonated water in the mix. I have never had success with either of these methods when I have tried them. I stick with Manischewitz mix.

Thanks Zora. Floaters are preferable to sinkers. But, really, now. Which came first? The matzoh or the ball?

[Anna Blume]

I had pet frogs when I was a kid. I can't bring myself to eat frog.

I had a pet chameleon and a pet mouse; my mother adopted a praying mantis that lived on a geranium in the kitchen. To this day, I can't do lizards, rodents or insects, either.

The old edition of the Larousse Gastronomique (the new edition is much less French and/or charming) they had a little drawing that told you how to tell a skinned rabbit from a skinned cat. I think I'll take it to the market Sunday to see if Bev is on the up-and-up, or just skinning us city slickers.

On the subject of les chats: clicquez-vous ici. (For more info see Amazon.com w title and author's name.)

* * *

Is it Upton Sinclair or what that is behind our inability to buy game in this country, something Europeans can pick up at the market? Earlier this year, someone at Whole Foods was shilling venison from New Zealand, I believe, where the pretty little spotted fawns are treated humanely as they grow up as domesticated animals. The food isn't local because our over-abundant supply of deer isn't farmed.

[zoramargolis]

Is it Upton Sinclair or what that is behind our inability to buy game in this country, something Europeans can pick up at the market? Earlier this year, someone at Whole Foods was shilling venison from New Zealand, I believe, where the pretty little spotted fawns are treated humanely as they grow up as domesticated animals. The food isn't local because our over-abundant supply of deer isn't farmed.

The recent beef recall certainly echoes *The Jungle* doesn't it? But I am sure that the ban on game came from the same impulse to regulate food safety. During the 2007 Christmas bird count, Jonathan met a guy who grew up in Upstate New York on a farm where his father raised deer for restaurant venison. All manner of game is farmed. If you want wild game, however, you need to be or befriend a hunter. It isn't legal to sell it, although I do know that in some places, hunters can donate to organizations that feed hungry and homeless people.

[Al Dente]

Osso buco! One of my faves...

[Pool Boy]

bouef borgoniogne (or however the heck you spell it)

[Al Dente]

bouef borgoniogne (or however the heck you spell it)

I just call it Beef Borgnine...

[Pat]

pork shoulder in the crockpot

[Mark Slater]

I just call it Beef Borgnine...

More like ham.....

[monavano]

More like ham.....

Ernest Borgswine.

[pax]

I did baked beans in the crock pot yesterday that were the best I've ever made. My family is gobbling them.

[hillvalley]

Golden roma tomato sauce with basil, savory, and garlic.

[laniloa]

Ratatouille with my haul from the farmers market. The markets I've found around here are really small --- 5-7 vendor small. Gotta keep checking out different markets until I find a decent one. The local peaches are just starting and they are mighty juicy and sweet.

[zoramargolis]

The local peaches are just starting and they are mighty juicy and sweet.

Where you are located in Massachusetts must be the upper northern limit for peaches, unless someone is bringing them in from a somewhat southern latitude. I seem to recall that the winters were too cold for peach trees where I lived in Southeast Vermont, right near the border with New Hampshire and Mass. Global warming may be changing that.

[laniloa]

Where you are located in Massachusetts must be the upper northern limit for peaches, unless someone is bringing them in from a somewhat southern latitude. I seem to recall that the winters were too cold for peach trees where I lived in Southeast Vermont, right near the border with New Hampshire and Mass. Global warming may be changing that.

There are a bunch of peach orchards around here. I spoke to a fourth generation MA peach farmer briefly yesterday at the market and hope to get out to his farm next week for some you-pick peaches and tomatoes. I remember peach picking trips in CT and MA when I was a kid.

[porcupine]

Twenty-plus pounds of Roma tomatoes.

[jparrott]

Note to stock-makers. The meat counter at Whole Foods Fairfax sold me a 40lb case of Bell&Evans chicken backs for the princely sum of....$36. Now I happened to luck into them having one available (they usually do have smaller quantities of backs in their poultry case), but I imagine you could call ahead and order one or more such cases. Now for a double-dose of stock-making today!

[porcupine]

Note to stock-makers. The meat counter at Whole Foods Fairfax sold me a 40lb case of Bell&Evans chicken backs for the princely sum of....$36. Now I happened to luck into them having one available (they usually do have smaller quantities of backs in their poultry case), but I imagine you could call ahead and order one or more such cases. Now for a double-dose of stock-making today!

Not all WF will do that for you; last time I asked in Bethesda they wouldn't take an order (they used to). The Kentlands store had about eleven pounds frozen, labelled "backs and necks", but they were necks only, which couldn't be determined until they thawed later.

[legant]

Chicken Stew (adapted from Cook's Illustrated) with the very abled assistance of an 8 y.o. budding chef. She did 95% of the stew -- chopping, measuring, mixing, pouring -- leaving me to brown the chicken and saute the onions. Hmm... I guess that makes me her sous chef.

[Pat]

Lamb and split pea soup. I simmered some neck bones with vegetables and lots of rosemary in the crockpot on Friday and made stock, which went into the refrigerator. Now I'm finishing the project on the stovetop with some yellow and green split peas from Trader Joe's.

[vickie]

Wild Boar in Red Wine.

[streisfeld]

Baby back rib chili with sausage for extra heft. I'm pro-bean (mashed not whole) and pro-tomato.

[jparrott]

Oy. That sucks. Kentlands had necks? The "backs and necks" in the WF Fairfax case are always backs. Would like to be able to buy necks as well...

[Soup]

Not right now but for lunch today, made cabbage soup. Basic left over fridge cleaning exercise. Cabbage, chicken stock and dashi stock (didn't have enough chicken stock), carrots, celery, onion bunch of seasoning, left over ham bits and bunch of other veggies that were on it last days in the fridge. At the end I added some cooked orzo.

It turned out really good. Served with some afgani bread, every one really like it (except my youngest).

BTW, been having a lot of luck with cabbage lately. Give this over looked ingredient a try.

[DanCole42]

My pants.

Made chicken stock. I usually strain it about 10-15 times. That's a lot of chances for spillage.

I smell like soup.

[zoramargolis]

Last night: made ham stock with a lot of mirepoix and aromatic herbs. Chilled outside.

This morning: removed the ham bone and the solidified fat. Strained off and stored a portion of the stock. Left the mirepoix with the remaining stock in the pot. Added yellow split peas (Why yellow? that's what I had in the pantry, and I didn't want to make a trip to the store for green...)

Just added some diced ham that had been removed from the bone prior to stock-making.

[mdt]

My pants.

Made chicken stock. I usually strain it about 10-15 times. That's a lot of chances for spillage.

I smell like soup.

That seems a tad bit excessive. Is there a reason that you strain it so much?

[DanCole42]

That seems a tad bit excessive. Is there a reason that you strain it so much?

Top restaurants will strain upwards of twenty times. I also skim constantly.

Stocks shouldn't be cloudy or have visible particles in them!

[Mrs. B]

Crock pot experiment. Trinity + 1 diced carrot, 4 bay leaves, dried thyme, garlic, 1 lb Salavdorean red beans 1.5-2 lbs smoked pork necks, water to cover. Cooked 4 hours yesterday, slowly reheating on low now.

If this works I will be pretty pleased. Smells good, no muss, no fuss and 1st time putting crock pot to the task for which it was created.

I will also get to use the fuzzy logic rice cooker that Santa was kind enough to leave under the tree. What a lovely piece of work that is!

[Al Dente]

That seems a tad bit excessive. Is there a reason that you strain it so much?

I thought he was suggesting that he strains the soup through his pants. A novel idea, but I'd only eat that soup if it was Giada's or Padma's.

[DanCole42]

I thought he was suggesting that he strains the soup through his pants. A novel idea, but I'd only eat that soup if it was Giada's or Padma's.

An idea is forming in my head... do you know a good bottling company?

[mdt]

Top restaurants will strain upwards of twenty times. I also skim constantly.

Stocks shouldn't be cloudy or have visible particles in them!

Twenty times, really? I will need re-read my texts. Clear stocks are really only needed when making consomme and then they use a raft to clarify. Seems to be a waste of time and effort if you are going to use if for a braise or stew.

[DanCole42]

Twenty times, really? I will need re-read my texts. Clear stocks are really only needed when making consomme and then they use a raft to clarify. Seems to be a waste of time and effort if you are going to use if for a braise or stew.

I just do what Thomas Keller tells me to do.

[jparrott]

Really? You have 3 or 4 commis working in your kitchen? Cool!

[DanCole42]

Really? You have 3 or 4 commis working in your kitchen? Cool!

I don't need this kind of treatment. I have gelatin in my knickers.

[mdt]

I just do what Thomas Keller tells me to do.

I should have figured it was a Keller technique. Way too fussy for normal home cooking. Hell way too fussy for most restaurants too.

[Anna Blume]

Wild Boar in Red Wine.

Whence, pray tell?

[Anna Blume]

Rob Weland (Poste) made an excellent sunchoke velouté at the Penn Quarter farmers market some time earlier in the fall, garnished w pickled sunchokes, and canned separately, wild mushrooms. Flecked w chervil from his restaurant's garden.

While I think a history and analysis of the current trend of serving soups as moats surrounding bits of this and that deserves its own thread, I loved how the vinegary bite and texture of the mushrooms, especially, played off the richness of the soup.

Well, finally, sunchokes are in season locally, available at Dupont Circle again, probably, on January 18, and before then, at WFM. I bought a ton and began by making the soup.

The chef calls for 1 cup of diced shallots, some garlic, 1.75 lbs. of scrubbed, peeled, sliced sunchokes, to be cooked w 4 T butter, and around 3.25 cups stock; 2.25 cups heavy cream go in at the end, most into the pot before blending, the rest, whipped and whisked into the finished purée. S & P. No mirepoix. No herbs. Strained.

Went with a couple of leeks instead of shallots to make life easier, and about 1/4 the amount of cream. The freezer held stock prepared w Eco-Friendly chicken feet and a turken. After months of relying on canned broth, it was great. Soup is wonderful on its own, especially strained through a pair of pants Dan lent me.

I have sunchokes left over and I am tempted to start the pickles tonight since, apparently, they are a traditional Southern thing. FYI, sunchokes are native to North America, if prized more by Italians than by many of us.

[Poivrot Farci]

Coufidou à la Nivernaise

Simmered beef neck with a disciplined garnish of carrot, turnip, onion, potato and mushroom.

[Pat]

potato soup

[lperry]

Chestnut, white bean, and kale soup. Corn stick pans are heating in the oven.

[agm]

Stock, with the carcass of a duck I smoked this weekend, also onion, carrot, celery, leek, thyme, rosemary, bay leaf and black peppercorns. It's probably the base for a butternut squash and chestnut soup.

[Poivrot Farci]

Garbure.

Navy beans, cabbage, my espelette and rosemary sausage, smoked ham hock, salted pork belly, pork shoulder, parsley root, turnips, carrots and pearl onions ladled over toasted slices of Heller’s not very good rye bread or directly into Garth Brooks' and Stevie Wonder’s mouths.

[Pat]

Molly Stevens' Red Cabbage Braised with Maple & Ginger

I've made this numerous times, and I always forget that I need to start early.

[edenman]

Braised oxtail. Real simple: browned in the oven for a half-hour then submerged in a bottle of pinot noir, a 1/4 cup sherry vin, and 3 c chicken stock. 1 tsp each dry thyme and oregano. Smells amazing in here right now.

[jparrott]

That sounds yummyriffic.

Watching the Bourdain Azores episode right now. He mentions Cozido a Portuguesa, a pork/sausage/cabbage/potato/collard stew that is built in the pot (i.e. no browning/deglazing), moistened and baked forever.

I'm interested, what are your favorite stew/casseroles done in this way? I do love making Lancashire hotpot (a wonderful vehicle for the bony, stewy bits of really good lamb), but do people have others?

[Anna Blume]

This time sunchokes played minor role along w parsnip as leftover roasted vegetables, if again, in making soup.

Roasted Zora's favorite winter squash cut side down, w slick, oiled garlic cloves (skins on) inside cavities.

Meanwhile, made quick vegetable stock w scrapings from squash, etc., which ultimately had to be supplemented w a can of Swanson's chicken broth to transform something sludgy into a pretty good soup on a bitter cold day.

MIrepoix w excess onions sautéed before adding Le Puy lentils and stock. When lentils mostly softened, dumped in all the roasted vegetables (skins off cloves & squash). Lots of parsley later.

Puréed a bit more than a pint of results, adding it back into the pot for texture's sake. Finished seasoning. Dab of thickened yogurt in bowl. Whole wheat toast w mashed avocado, olive oil and fleur de sel on side.

[Anna Blume]

Zora: Consult Post 60 above for the sunchoke velouté (recipe by Chef Rob Weland, Poste) I recommended yesterday.

As for the remaining sunchokes in the fridge, I may either adapt that recipe for a combined parsnip-sunchoke soup, or prepare two batches, one of each, to serve side by side in the same bowl.

Since sunchokes and potatoes complement one another so well (gratin, for example), they would be worth combining in a more rustic soup with bacon and leeks. Same with turnips, sautéed with fresh thyme leaves.

(Chicken stock answers the title's question.)

[monavano]

Slowly simmering in the crockpot-pork shanks from Babes in the Wood for a ragu to go over rigattoni. This was inspired by the pork ragu at Rustico (BITW supplies Rustico each Sat. after the Old Town market). The seasoning, browning and braising builds and deepens simple, fresh flavors. I'm hoping that the taste of the pork comes through just as it did at Rustico. I'll let you know on Wednesday or Thursday .

[bookluvingbabe]

I don't really want to believe we are getting a bunch of snow tomorrow.

But since I have Smith Meadow pork shanks defrosting, I think I'm going to embrace the possibility of cold, wet weather and do some sort of braised pork stew.

Suggestions welcome-- I won't be cooking until tonight.

Thanks!

[Heather]

Pot roast with beef stock, pearl onions, rosemary, and red wine.

[Al Dente]

So I was browning some meat for a beef braise when I came across this little guy. Hey, he looks familiar. Finally I figured it out, it's Cecil the Turtle from Bugs Bunny!

[Anna Blume]

Brodo. One of those ^ and two packs of turkey wings.

Half will go towards a chickpea & pasta soup. Rest gets frozen.

[LauraB]

Barley stew with mushrooms, leeks and kale -- hearty, but still light. Need a break from all of the heavy Christmas food and oncoming New Years meals!

[porcupine]

Hungarian goulash, to be served over spaetzle.

[MMM]

Beef, Leek and Barley Soup from Laurie Colwin's Home Cooking. Never tried it before, but sounds good!

[Pat]

I'm making some kind of soup from leftover roasted potatoes and shallots.

[KMango]

Spicy Makanek, browned in a skillet, then added to a slow cooker with chopped fennel, Muir Glen fire roasted diced tomatoes & green chiles, leeks sauteed in the pan juices left behind from the sausage, and a couple of bay leaves.

Not sure how power-popping seasoned the sausage may be (a Lebanese Butcher creation). So, in six hours or so, I will taste the brew to see what's missing.

Plan to serve it over turmeric rice and something green on the side.

Updated to include pic. In a word: outstanding!

Edited January 3, 2010 by KMango

[monavano]

Two, count'em two pots of chicken soup consisting of necks, body and gizzards. Also, split onions with skin, whole garlic cloves, chopped carrots and celery (with hearts), fresh dill, bay and....the last of my fresh ginger from Next Step.

This is the first time that I'm using gizzards for stock. When I had gizzards for the first time in December (Koo Zee Doo), I noted that they were intensly chicken-flavored. So, I'm giving them a try.

Will report back!

[Pat]

Turkey chili to be started presently.

[Anna Blume]

Beef stock from roasted bones and trimmings (Smith Meadows Farm). How long do you all simmer beef stock? It's been 2 hours and I don't have time for 5 or more.

[Pat]

Turkey chili to be started presently.

Ha! The meat had been in the refrigerator for 24 hours and still wasn't thawed, so the dish became chicken chili.

The turkey is going to go into this tonight. I'm very excited that the Times has put so many of its old recipes online now. For years, I credited this to an unknown newspaper clipping that I thought was the Times, but I wasn't sure. A recent google for all the key terms brought up the recipe on the NYT site . I love this recipe.

[monavano]

Ha! The meat had been in the refrigerator for 24 hours and still wasn't thawed, so the dish became chicken chili.

The turkey is going to go into this tonight. I'm very excited that the Times has put so many of its old recipes online now. For years, I credited this to an unknown newspaper clipping that I thought was the Times, but I wasn't sure. A recent google for all the key terms brought up the recipe on the NYT site . I love this recipe.

This reminds me of Country Captain, which I love! I use manzanilla olives vs. black olives.

[jparrott]

Beef stock from roasted bones and trimmings (Smith Meadows Farm). How long do you all simmer beef stock? It's been 2 hours and I don't have time for 5 or more.

Most beef or veal stock methods I've read/worked with call for a 6-8 hour simmer.

[Pat]

This reminds me of Country Captain, which I love! I use manzanilla olives vs. black olives.

That would be good in this. I usually use kalamata olives, but I've used other kinds.

A note if anyone makes this: It takes considerably longer than the 10 minutes she specifies for the bulgur in this to cook.

[zoramargolis]

Fabada Asturiana. I brought back some dried fabes Asturianas from Spain, a highly prized very large white kidney-shaped bean that I've seen at A&H Seafood selling for $35 a pound. They were 16 euros a kilo in Seville (I bought a quarter kilo). I figure they've got to be pretty special, if Spanish people are willing to pay such high prices for them--they were about 4-5 times more expensive than other dried beans in the same store in Seville. I soaked them overnight, and they are currently in a pot with a hunk of slab bacon, chorizo, and Jamie Stachowki's smoked duck sausage, saffron and bay leaves. The recipe, from Janet Mendel's My Kitchen in Spain, called for Asturian morcilla (smoked blood sausage), which I didn't have--morcilla isn't my favorite sausage anyway--so I added clove, cinnamon, pimenton and pepper, the spices that the morcilla would have contributed to the pot.

[monavano]

Fabada Asturiana. I brought back some dried fabes Asturianas from Spain, a highly prized very large white kidney-shaped bean that I've seen at A&H Seafood selling for $35 a pound. They were 16 euros a kilo in Seville (I bought a quarter kilo). I figure they've got to be pretty special, if Spanish people are willing to pay such high prices for them--they were about 4-5 times more expensive than other dried beans in the same store in Seville. I soaked them overnight, and they are currently in a pot with a hunk of slab bacon, chorizo, and Jamie Stachowki's smoked duck sausage, saffron and bay leaves. The recipe, from Janet Mendel's My Kitchen in Spain, called for Asturian morcilla (smoked blood sausage), which I didn't have--morcilla isn't my favorite sausage anyway--so I added clove, cinnamon, pimenton and pepper, the spices that the morcilla would have contributed to the pot.

I bought Jamie's smoked duck sausage at Falls Church. It's delicious.

I'm going to grill it and make a bean dish too. Good ideas for flavors in your post above.

[zoramargolis]

Fabada Asturiana. I brought back some dried fabes Asturianas from Spain, a highly prized very large white kidney-shaped bean that I've seen at A&H Seafood selling for $35 a pound. They were 16 euros a kilo in Seville (I bought a quarter kilo). I figure they've got to be pretty special, if Spanish people are willing to pay such high prices for them--they were about 4-5 times more expensive than other dried beans in the same store in Seville. I soaked them overnight, and they are currently in a pot with a hunk of slab bacon, chorizo, and Jamie Stachowki's smoked duck sausage, saffron and bay leaves. The recipe, from Janet Mendel's My Kitchen in Spain, called for Asturian morcilla (smoked blood sausage), which I didn't have--morcilla isn't my favorite sausage anyway--so I added clove, cinnamon, pimenton and pepper, the spices that the morcilla would have contributed to the pot.

Follow-up report on the beans. They have a wonderfully smooth, creamy texture and a mellow flavor, enhanced no doubt by the smoked meats and spices that made up the stew. I will definitely make this again, although I'm not sure that these specific beans, at $35 a pound, are necessary. The beans' texture reminded me a lot of Greek gigante beans, and while these are a challenge to find (dried, that is--the canned ones are easy to find) and are relatively expensive, I know where to get them--I even have some in my pantry.

[monavano]

Two, count'em two pots of chicken soup consisting of necks, body and gizzards. Also, split onions with skin, whole garlic cloves, chopped carrots and celery (with hearts), fresh dill, bay and....the last of my fresh ginger from Next Step.

This is the first time that I'm using gizzards for stock. When I had gizzards for the first time in December (Koo Zee Doo), I noted that they were intensly chicken-flavored. So, I'm giving them a try.

Will report back!

Reporting back to say that I got 8 quarts of stock and 6 quarts of chicken soup (stock with meat and vegs) from the ingredients. The ginger is really nice and fragrant and curiously, marries really well with grated nutty parmesan that I added to a batch I'm eating now. I don't get the dill so much, so perhaps that's something I'll skip during the simmering process, and save for the end.

[zoramargolis]

A hearty soup sort of day. The impulse is irrisistable, as is the aroma. It was like this many of the days we were in Spain, but I had no way to cook.

Currently on the stove: barley, white bean and wild mushroom (lobster, porcini, and black trumpets that we gathered in the Catskills last summer) soup with Eco-Friendly smoked pork belly and Jamie Stachowki's smoked duck sausage, lots of aromatic veg and herbs.

[mdt]

Spicy Black-eyed pea and kale soup.

[bookluvingbabe]

Split pea soup. I planned it before I knew we were in for more snow but it seems just about perfect for the anticipated weather.

[marketfan]

Chicken stock. Don't know what I am doing with it yet, but I know it will be useful this weekend....

[qwertyy]

Nothing! I am simmering nothing right now! But I fully endorse the simmering:

I got back today from a very long month in a hotel room in Ethiopia--eating every meal out, except for the meals I ordered in--to find a fridge that contains two bottles of champagne, a jar of pickles, seven kinds of mustard, and a rind of parmesan. This is depressing when you consider that jetlag is decidedly incompatible with pre-snow storm grocery shopping.

But am I depressed? No! Because I simmered the heck out of December, and have a freezer bursting with chili and soup--cream of broccoli, carrot and wheat berry, chunky tomato and bacon, turkey stock.

Simmer away, friends! Even if you don't eat it this weekend, one day, not too long from now, you'll be happy you did.

[kirite]

Nothing! I am simmering nothing right now! But I fully endorse the simmering:

I got back today from a very long month in a hotel room in Ethiopia--eating every meal out, except for the meals I ordered in--to find a fridge that contains two bottles of champagne, a jar of pickles, seven kinds of mustard, and a rind of parmesan. This is depressing when you consider that jetlag is decidedly incompatible with pre-snow storm grocery shopping.

But am I depressed? No! Because I simmered the heck out of December, and have a freezer bursting with chili and soup--cream of broccoli, carrot and wheat berry, chunky tomato and bacon, turkey stock.

Simmer away, friends! Even if you don't eat it this weekend, one day, not too long from now, you'll be happy you did.

Shrimp Scampi in garlic, scallions, white wine, and parsley.

[goodeats]

Chicken stock. Don't know what I am doing with it yet, but I know it will be useful this weekend....

Sounds like pho or noodle soup time! That's what I did with mine - made Chinese noodle soup with leftover chicken meat and some fish balls. This weekend's plan is to simmer some chili and creamed corn soup....

[DanCole42]

I'm doing the exact opposite of simmering... temperature-wise at least. Time-wise, it's about the same.

Just-made banana ice cream is hardening in the freezer. Added a little shot of bourbon to go with the cold.

[bettyjoan]

Simmered some marinara sauce while watching the Superbowl last night. Turned out really tasty. The not-so-secret ingredients? Fennel seeds and balsamic vinegar.