Beef Stew (reprise)

Today I revisited a dish that I have made several times in the past, but never been totally satisfied with it: beef stew. This time, I think I have tweaked it enough that I feel I can now lock it in as a "go-to" dish. It was successful on another front too. A while back I bought a big bag of chuck steak from Costcos., and divided it into three, using one third right away and freezing the other two. The portions, I estimated, were just enough for four-six people. So, I am not going to be left with enough stew for half the neighbourhood.

I chopped two medium yellow onions into quarters, then sauteed them with four cloves of garlic in a little olive oil till they softened.

Next, I seasoned my chuck, dusted the cubes with flour and browned them off in two batches. I deglazed the pot with about half a cup of red wine, then when that was reduced by about half, mixed in a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste, plus three bayleaves, and a good sprinkle of oregano and thyme. I resisted the temptation to use one of my new stash of dried chilis, particularly the costeño, which I am very curious about as it is unfamiliar to me.

Back in the pot went the meat, onions and garlic, plus a quart of my home-made tomato sauce from last summer, a cup of red wine and a tin of chicken stock. I am not 100% convinced the last item was entirely necessary, but I was worried about the depth of favour so I included it. Next time I will try it without and see.

I brought it up to a boil, covered it and popped it into a 275C oven for 90 minutes. After that, you bring it out and add 2-3 large sliced carrots and a couple of sticks of sliced celery, then simmer it on the stop for another hour.

By then it is fine as it is, but you actually have a couple of options just prior to serving. One, you can stir in a tablespoon or so of vinegar, or you can stir in a big spoonful of sour cream, turning it into a goulash. Or you can do what I did, and put these two items on the side and let people add whatever they like.

As is usually the case with these things, I am fully expecting it to be even better tomorrow. I do have a picture (below), but we were in such a rush to eat I had no time to really do it justice.

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Soup for You!

Early this morning, we got back from New York where we had spent the past six days. During that time we visited TV, watched Spider-man: Turn Off The Dark (again), as well as How To Succeed In Business starring Daniel Radcliffe and John Laroquette (both were tremendous). We watched three movies, Rango, I Am Number Four, and Battle: LA. The last two being equally flawed and ultimately disappointing. We visited MOMA, and also ate a goodly amount. Two of my favourite places were the highly regarded Sugiyama's on W55th, and La Bonbonniere on 8th Avenue in the West Village. The two restaurants are at opposite ends of the price spectrum, but Sugiyama's I could happily eat at every day. I can't even begin to describe the meal; just say it all blurred into one exceptionally happy food memory.

We paid a visit to the Lower East Side and The Meatball Shop, where we had a weird time. Firstly, the volume in the place is like a Hong Kong market place, which in case you've never been - is loud. Secondly, the meatballs were good, and the side of white beans were delicious. But the spinach was stone cold, as was the broccoli. I had waited longer than anyone for my meal as they forgot to put the order in, so I was not about to say anything. Finally, there were people lined up out the door, and we were waiting for a couple of chatterboxes -  a polite way of putting it - to finish their wine and leave so we could seat the rest of our party at our table. Thirty minutes they were sat there, uncaring, oblivious and unmoving until finally the manager kicked them out. Reminded me of this:

"You been here four hour!"

Lastly, on the way to Sugiyama's I passed by The Original Soup Man. Now, when you are about to eat a five-star kaiseki Japanese meal, stopping off to eat soup is not a great idea, even if it is legendary, so I made sure we went back. I only had time to get one soup - the split pea and ham. It was ... delicious. I also picked up a T-shirt:

As we walked back, our one and only celebrity sighting which was - apart from the top of Daniel Radcliffe's head after the play - Philip Seymour Hoffman sitting outside a restaurant. By the time we realized who it was, and remembered all three of his names, we were a block away.

I managed to pay a visit to one of my favourite places on the planet, Brooklyn's Bedford Cheese Shop. For anyone with even a passing acquaintance with cheese, this is a great place to be, and for fellow turophiles ... well, let's just say you will spend an awful lot of time and money there.

We stayed in Weehawken, which is home to the legendary Park Plaza Pizza. I love this guy's pizza - the crust is perfectly thin and has that balance between crispy and chewy that shows a real attention to detail. In addition to making great pizzas and calzones, he has a sign on the wall of his kitchen for the benefit of employees that says: "Mobile phones - first time, warning. Second time, fired." My kind of guy.

It also has a sizeable Latin American presence. There is a Brazilian-Portuguese restaurant run by Dominans, and a Peruvian supermarket, where I bought two packs of the small tortillas that are quite hard to get in the supermarkets I frequent, some Argentinian chorizo, some blood sausage, a block of Honduran-style fresh cheese, two packs of dried chilis - ancho and costeno, some Mexican oregano, and a pack of chimichurri mix, and a bottle of Valentina's salsa picante.

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Back home, after a few hours' rest, I set about making something with all my new ingredients. First, I made an ancho paste. I ground up one chile with a clove of garlic, a pinch of cumin, cinnamon, salt and pepper and olive oil and spread it over one whole chicken, which I segmented and roasted on a rack for about 30 minutes or so, then sliced up. I fried two of my four chorizos, and made some guacamole, some sour cream and onion, chopped up limes and cilantro. We piled everything high on warm tortillas and had a great time.

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Working Class Hero

A touch of melancholy today. No reason, but this song popped into my head.