Read In the Hands of a Chef Online
Authors: Jody Adams
In the Hands of a Chef (49 page)
4.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. As soon as the oil is hot, sear the cod bundles on one side until the pancetta is pink and slightly crispy, about 5 minutes. Carefully turn the cod over and cook until the fish is opaque, 3 to 4 more minutes. Transfer the cod to a platter and keep warm.
5.
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in the sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring, until soft, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and then add the greens. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until just wilted, about 1 minute. Transfer the greens to four warm plates.
6.
Add the water and lemon juice to the sauté pan and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Whisk in the capers and any juices that have accumulated on the fish platter, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
7.
Transfer the fish to the plates with the greens. Spoon the sauce over the fish, garnish with the lemon wedges, and serve immediately.
A
lthough pancetta is often called “Italian bacon,” that description is misleading. Pancetta is hung and cured in a process similar to that of prosciutto, and it can be eaten in its uncooked state, an adventure most cooks would forgo when it comes to bacon. One of the most delicious samples of street food I’ve ever eaten was a grilled cheese, potato, and pancetta sandwich in Aix. A line of eager customers was snapping up the sandwiches as fast as the streetcorner vendor could pump them out with his old-fashioned hinged waffle iron. The potatoes were sliced thin and precooked. The pancetta was only heated long enough for the cheese to melt and the bread to crisp. It was still pink and soft, though warm, and incredibly good. Keep this in mind when sautéing the cod bundles—the pancetta wrapping should only be partially crisp, and still fairly pink, when finished. Don’t treat it like bacon—you’ll only sacrifice the pancetta’s rich texture, as well as overcook the fish.
I
created this duck dish
more than eleven years ago for my first menu at Michela’s, based on a Sicilian tradition of pairing duck with green olives. It was an immediate hit. When my partners and I opened Rialto, the first thing customers familiar with my food asked was, “Where’s the duck?” It’s been on the menu almost continuously ever since.
In Steamed and Pan-Roasted Duck (page 247), I instruct you to steam the bird and then to slowly pan-roast it on top of the stove. This recipe uses a different strategy for rendering the fat and crisping the skin. It calls for roasting the duck in the oven at a low temperature (so the fat renders without smoking), then crisping the duck pieces in a covered heavy sauté pan on top of the stove.
Much of this recipe can be prepared in advance. You can make the optional sauce the day before and reheat it later. You can also roast the duck ahead and cut it into pieces, leaving yourself only the step of crisping it on top of the stove before serving.
Unless your idea of a good time is scraping roasting pans, use a nonstick or disposable deep roasting pan and a nonstick V-rack.
MAKES 2 ENTRÉE SERVINGS (SEE DUCK FOR MORE THAN TWO, PAGE 319, IF YOU WANT TO STRETCH IT)
One 5-pound Long Island duck, with neck and gizzard
MARINADE
½ cup balsamic vinegar
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup Dijon mustard
1½ teaspoons mustard seeds
1½ teaspoons dried rosemary
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
½ small white onion, chopped into ¼-inch dice
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
About ¼ cup vegetable oil
4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Green Olive and Balsamic Vinegar Sauce (recipe follows; optional)
4 sprigs rosemary for garnish
DO AHEAD:
Marinate the duck the night before roasting.
1.
Remove the paper sack containing the gizzard, heart, and liver from the cavity of the duck. If you’re going to make the sauce, rinse the gizzard, then wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until you’re ready to make the sauce. Set the heart and liver aside for another use or discard (the liver would only make the sauce muddy). The sack may contain the neck of the
duck, or the neck may simply have been placed inside the cavity. In either event, retrieve the neck and rinse, wrap, and refrigerate it until ready to use in the sauce.
2.
Cut off the wing tips (the last two segments of the wings) and refrigerate with the neck for use in the sauce. Cut off the fatty flaps around the neck opening and trim the fat from around the opening to the cavity. Discard the fatty trimmings. Rinse the duck inside and out and pat dry. Carefully poke the skin of the bird all over with a fork or skewer. Try not to penetrate beyond the fat layer into the meat—if you poke too far, the juices will run out during cooking along with the fat. Poking the skin from a sharp angle instead of straight in will help.
3.
Mix all of the marinade ingredients together in a large bowl. Roll the duck all around in the marinade, making sure that plenty of marinade flows inside the cavity. Cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
4.
When ready to begin roasting, preheat the oven to 325°F.
5.
Remove the duck from the marinade (don’t scrape off the marinade); set the marinade aside. Season the bird inside and out with salt and pepper. Set the marinated duck breast side down on a nonstick V-rack in a roasting pan. The duck must be at least 2 inches above the bottom of the pan. Pour the remaining marinade over it. Add ¼ inch of water to the roasting pan to keep any drippings from burning. Place the pan in the oven and roast for 1 hour.
6.
Flip the duck breast side up. Carefully prick the thighs with a fork again (remember not to penetrate the meat). Rotate the pan so the opposite side of the duck is now toward the back of the oven. Continue roasting until the skin is dark brown and just about all of the fat has melted off the body of the duck, another 2 to 2½ hours. (If you’re going to make the sauce, now is a good time to do it.) The duck is done when the leg bones have a little play in the socket when you try to wiggle them. If you prick the thickest part of the thigh, the juices should run clear; an instant-read digital thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh should read 180°F. Let the duck rest for 20 minutes before breaking it down.
7.
When the duck is cool enough to handle, cut it into 4 pieces, according to the directions on page 250.
8.
Heat a ⅛-inch layer of vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed sauté pan over high heat until very hot. A nonstick pan will help alleviate the chance of sticking, but it’s not necessary if the pan is heavy and you don’t add the duck until the oil is quite hot. Sprinkle the duck pieces liberally with salt and pepper. When the oil is almost smoking, add the duck pieces skin side down. Do not disturb the duck pieces once you have set them in the pan. Allow them to sear for 1 minute, then adjust the heat to low, cover the pan, and cook until the meat is warm and the skin is crisp, about 15 minutes. Pour off any excess fat that accumulates. Sprinkle the meat side with the balsamic vinegar.
9.
Arrange the duck on a warm platter. If you’ve made the sauce, drizzle it around the meat, making sure to distribute the olives evenly about the platter. Garnish with the rosemary sprigs and serve.
Green Olive and Balsamic Vinegar SauceI
usually prepare this sauce
while the duck is roasting, but if it’s easier for you, you can make it a day ahead and reheat before serving. Omit the final addition of butter and olives until you’re ready to serve it.
MAKES ABOUT ½ CUP
Wing tips, neck, and gizzard from 1 duck
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 shallots, coarsely chopped
½ small carrot, peeled and coarsely chopped
½ celery stalk, coarsely chopped
½ teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
½ teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
2 bay leaves
½ cup dry red wine
2 cups Chicken Stock (page 31) or 4 cups high-quality canned low-sodium chicken broth, reduced to 2 cups (see page 32)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (optional)
10 large Sicilian green olives, pitted
1.
Using a cleaver or sturdy knife (don’t use your favorite knife—chopping bones can ruin the edge), chop the wing tips and neck into 3-inch pieces. Coarsely chop the gizzard. Heat the vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the chopped wing and neck pieces. Cook until well browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Pour off any excess fat. Add the gizzard, shallots, carrots, and celery. Cook until well browned, about 5 minutes.
2.
Lower the heat to medium. Add the herbs and wine and reduce to a glaze, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the chicken stock and reduce until the sauce coats the back of a spoon, about 25 minutes. Strain. (There should be about ½ cup.) Season the sauce with salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon vinegar, or more, to taste. Keep warm, or reheat when ready to serve. Just before serving whisk in the butter, if using, and add the olives.
A
lmost every duck recipe you’ll ever see in a cookbook is for one duck. I didn’t know this (or was too obtuse to notice) until the time came to write my own recipes. At our house, we frequently cook two ducks at a time. We have two children, and if we want to have company and duck the same night we have no choice but to cook two ducks. Both of the duck recipes in this book will easily double. Marinade, sauce, etc.—double them all.
A large roasting pan, especially one of the extra-large disposable ones, will usually hold two ducks side by side on V-racks. If you use a disposable roasting pan (and I always use either nonstick or disposable), use two, one inside the other, so there won’t be any question of the pan holding the weight of two ducks. You also need two large heavy-bottomed sauté pans for crisping or pan-roasting, depending on the recipe. For the Roasted Marinated Long Island Duck, you could crisp the duck in batches, keeping the first batch warm for 15 minutes in the oven while you crisp the second, but for the Steamed and Pan-Roasted Duck (page 247), which cooks entirely on top of the stove, you definitely need a second pan. I have an inexpensive cast-iron frying pan for just such situations. I improvise the lid, resorting to an old circular platter (the heat is on low, so I’m not worried about breaking it) or even aluminum foil.
Can you stretch one duck to serve four eaters? Yes, if there are plenty of other things to eat, and you make a few adjustments in your carving technique. Begin by following the instructions for How to Break Down a Duck on page 250. Continue the process by cutting each breast piece crosswise in two. Cut the legs off the thighs. You will end up with 4 breast pieces, 2 legs and 2 thighs. Believe it or not, there’s usually a leg or thigh piece left over at the end of the meal.
B
elieve me, if there’s a
way to go wrong with geese, I’ve probably done it, including filling my house with a black cloud of acrid smoke when I once tried to “jumpstart” the goose at 500°F. But I love the rich flavor of goose meat so much that I persevered through my mistakes until arriving at the method outlined in this recipe. I’ve also picked up a few tricks for accurately determining when the goose is not just cooked, but
done.