Wild Pacific Sockeye Salmon Gravlax

Last week I bought whole side of wild Pacific Sockeye salmon and decided to make gravlax for New Year snacks. I was surprised how this salmon differs from farmed Atlantic salmon in color, taste and texture. For cooking I prefer the Atlantic salmon but for Gravlax I like the Pacific better. I don’t think that it has even half of the oil that farmed salmon has and the color is deep rich red versus pink-red of Atlantic. Process for curing is exactly the same as in my Gravlax blog.

Notice the deep red color. I just trimmed the pictures but the color wasn’t modified.

Crêpes with Seafood and Mornay Sauce

Since I had a leftover of clams and shrimps from last night’s meal (Spaghettini con Vongole) I had to come up with some recipe that will utilize them. As I wrote in my Crêpe post, I came across my crêpe pans and idea for our dinner started to jell. After I made the crêpes all I had to do was make the seafood filling and Mornay sauce. The filling was a cinch; I just added some pink salmon to clams and chopped shrimps and reheated it in their own juices. Then it was on to Mornay sauce which is basically just a Béchamel sauce with cheese. I used Fontina and Gruyere cheese. Also, when I melted the butter for Béchamel I sautéed chopped shallots till soft then added the flour and when light roux was made I poured in the heated milk and chicken stock (no clam juice or fish stock on hand) in 1:1 ratio. When the sauce thickened I whisked in grated cheese until smooth. Salt, white pepper and freshly grated nutmeg seasoned the Mornay sauce.

Then it was to assembly and final prep. Assembly is very simple: put a tablespoon of filling in center front of crêpe, 2 tsp. of sauce on top and roll like taco. Place in buttered baking pan and when all crêpes are placed in pan, cover with aluminum foil and bake in 350°F for 15 – 20 minutes, basically just to reheat it. To serve, pour some sauce on preheated plate, place crêpes on top and then pour more sauce on top. Garnish with shrimps sliced along spine in half, sprinkle chopped parsley and enjoy. It is (was!) so good!

Start Béchamel with butter and shallots.

Add flour and make roux. Finish by adding milk and then cheese. 

Heat clams, pink salmon and shrimps. Now it is on to assembly. 

Place in buttered baking pan and when all crêpes are placed in pan, cover with aluminum foil and bake in 350°F for 15 – 20 minutes, basically just to reheat it.

Notice the arugula garnish on left side of plate. I grew it in my cold frame till first big snowstorm first week of December when it was harvested and stored, unwashed, in Ziploc bag in an unheated garage that had a constant temperature of about 5 °C. Four weeks and it is still as fresh as when it was picked! Incredible green.

Crêpes

Few days ago when I was reaching for my favorite stainless steel frying pan I spotted my French made 20cm black steel crêpe pans. I bought them while attending George Brown College (Chef School) back in 1978-79 and they are perfectly seasoned. I did use them a lot back in Toronto but haven’t touch them since moving here. Out came my school recipe for crêpes and it was just like if I made them on weekly basis. Again, the recipe has to be adjusted by pretty much everybody because every bag of flour has different moisture content and even milk differs. On top of it to tell you how long to cook the first and second side of crêpe batter is impossible because every frying or crêpe pan is different and so are the burners.

Basic recipe, makes about 24 crêpes (20cm diameter) :

3 eggs, large

2 cups 3.25% milk (or more)

1/2 t. salt

1-1/2 cup flour

Beat eggs, milk and salt until smooth. Add 2 cups of milk and beat, again until smooth. Test if the batter is light. It should have a little thicker consistency then 35% cream. Adjust accordingly (too thick, add milk; too thin, add flour).

The crêpe pan should be hot but not too hot. When you pour in batter it should just set but not bubble right away.

Perfect consistency.

My set up is ready: butter with brush and batter in a 30 ounce measuring cup.

Perfect (for me) crêpe pan temperature is 280°F and 290°F. I love my infrared thermometer.

This is largest burner on my stove at very low. Perfect setting.

Time to turn over: edges are free and small pinholes in center have formed.

Well cooked crêpe. 

My crêpes are ready for all sorts of fillings like seafood (clams, pink salmon and shrimps) in Mornay (cheese) sauce. That will be next post.

Spaghetti con Vongole

Spaghettini with Clams and Shrimps.

More detailed description would read:

“Spaghettini with Clams and Shrimps in a wine, clam juice and cream sauce and finished with a dash of truffle oil, tarragon and nutmeg”. Basically, that’s the whole recipe and I make it in all seasons even though it does look like a comfort food. This is my version of “Spaghetti con Vongole”.

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil

3 or 4 shallots, finally chopped

3 Tbs. chopped parsley

1 can of baby clams, drained and separated

1/3 cup shrimps, chopped

1 c. of white wine

1/2 cup 35% cream or whipping cream

Nutmeg, pinch

Hot pepper flakes, to taste

1/2 tsp. white pepper

1/4 tsp. dried tarragon

Truffle oil, dash (optional)

Process:

Start your pot for spaghettini.

Heat frying pan and when hot add olive oil and then shallots. Sauté for few minutes but don’t allow to brown. Pour in wine and cook off. Add clam juice and cook till only about 1/4 cup remains. Add clams and shrimps and sauté for about 2 minutes. Add cream and cook under medium heat till sauce starts to thicken. Add parsley, tarragon, nutmeg, white pepper, chili pepper flakes and truffle oil.

When spaghettini are cooked al dente, drain and toss with the cream sauce.

Serve on preheated plates. I do not grate cheese over seafood pasta but if you want to, go ahead.





Duck Soup

Without doubt this must be most complicated version that I have ever came up with. This soup included 13 ingredients (in blue) and I have to count how many heat processes I’ve managed to use (roasting, simmering, boiling, sautéing). Let me count:

1)     I roasted the bones, necks and wings with root vegetables for 3 hours.

2)     I simmered the above for stock for another 3 hours and then I strained and degreased the stock and removed meat from necks, backs and wings.

3)     Boiled barley for 40 minutes and drained.

4)     Boiled wild rice at the same time in another pot for 55 minutes and drained.

5)     Sautéed sliced gizzards, hearts, shallots and cremini mushrooms in duck fat for 20 minutes.

6)     Returned the stock to simmer and added: Raw carrot, celeriac, leek, celery, garlic, wild rice, barley, sautéed shallots, gizzards, heart, mushrooms and duck meat.

So, it comes to six separate heat processes taking well over 7 hours over 2 days: 1 roasting, 2 simmers, 2 boils and 1 sauté.

What we ended up with was most incredible soup with every texture imaginable. Will do again next Christmas, for sure. It was well worth it.

Roasted Duck Joke

 Mom, Dad, is that you? What happened?



Roasted Duck Legs with Red Cabbage and Dumplings

(Traditional Christmas Dinner)

As I noted in my previous blog this is perfect Christmas dinner for just two of us.

Since I had quite a few pieces of rendered skin from last night when I cut up the duck I used it as a bed form my legs so that the meat will not dry up. Both sides of legs were sprinkled with a bit of salt even though they were brined and about a tablespoon of crushed caraway seeds. Incredibly, there is no garlic. I covered the legs with parchment paper and then aluminum foil. The paper is there because the salt on duck would burn holes in aluminum if it comes into direct contact. I use it every time if aluminum foil would touch piece of salty food.

Duck is roasted similar way as pork roast but it takes only about 2-1/2  to 3 hours for meat to be off-the-bone tender and skin nicely golden and crisp.

First half hour in 375°F, then 350°F for 2 hours and back to 375°F for 15 - 30 minutes or till skin is golden. It is served with sautéed red cabbage (from jar J) and steamed dumplings.

  

Ready to be covered and roasted.

After 2 hours uncover and roast until golden brown.



Preparing and Deboning Duck (Christmas Dinner)

This is first step in preparing our Christmas dinner.

I used to roast whole duck for Christmas (goose is more traditional but for 2 people terrible waste) but lately I have realized, as I mentioned on Duck Breast blog, that by the time legs are tender the breasts are overcooked. There is no comparison whatsoever to chicken breast which needs lots of seasoning to taste anything whereas duck breast needs just salt and pepper.

Anyway, ducks are dressed, the bones are roasting for incredibly tasty duck soup and fat is being rendered in separate pan next to pan with bones at 350 °F for 3 hours. Tomorrow morning I’ll start the duck stock and in afternoon I’ll be roasting the duck legs and serve them with sautéed red cabbage and steamed dumplings.

Four legs will be brined overnight and roasted tomorrow and breasts will be vacuum packed and flash frozen.