Brussel Sprouts

It is brussel sprout season here, in Montreal. It's time to get the most beautiful and pepperiest brussel sprouts you can. Did I mention that the way they grow is quite a sight as well? Go to your local market and see how they grow.

The problem people have with cooking vegetables, like most other fresh foods, is overcooking and over-seasoning. Another key tip is: never boil vegetables. Boiling vegetables not only reduces its vitamin count but also kills its taste. I have the same procedure with most vegetables: a quick steam and an even quicker toss in some butter, on a pan. For those who do not have a steamer or a bain marie, do yourself a favour and get one.

Vegetables are a perfect side-dish for meat since they cook as fast.

Serves 2:
- 16 brussel sprouts
- 1 tsp butter
- pinch of salt

1. Bring your steamer to a boil.
2. Put in brussel sprouts. Let cook for about 4-5 minutes (Try them to figure out how crunchy you like them. I like mine crunchy; so, 4 minutes works for me). Take the brussel sprouts off of the heat immedieately once they are at your liking.
3. Prepare a pan at low-medium heat. Add butter.
4. Throw in brussel sprouts and salt. Swish them around in the butter for about 20 to 30 seconds.
5. Serve.

Try putting cream cheese (preferably organic) on the brussel sprouts when they are served. So good. I feel like children might like that one too.

I recommend combining this recipe and my lamb chop recipe to make a lovely (and really quick and easy) meal. Add in some nice red wine and you'll be in heaven (I vote for a St-Emilion or a Chateauneuf-du-Pape).

Lamb Chops

Quebec has some of the best lamb I have ever tasted. From the region of Kamouraska, this lamb is plump and might be slightly fatty. However, its fat melts into a rich flavour. Even for the non fat-eaters (like myself), this lamb's fat is quite irresistible. When cooked right, it becomes a foie gras- like delicatessen.

The secret to good lamb (and meat in general) is to not overcook it. Meat cooks really fast and many people fail to know/ remember that. Also, to preserve its natural rich flavour, you want to keep the seasoning to a minimum. Good meat = high heat + fast + minimal seasoning.

Serves 2:
- 8 lamb chops (Kamouraska lamb is really plump; you definitely wouldn't need more than 4 chops a person)
- 2 gloves of garlic, finely chopped
- pinch of sea salt
- 1 tsp of coarsely granulated black pepper
- 1 sprig of rosemary, finely chopped
- 3 sprigs of coriander, finely chopped

1. Preheat oven to a high broil (make sure the heat is coming only from the top and turn it up to the maximum your oven can go to, which is 500 C on most ranges). 
2. In a bowl, add garlic, salt, pepper, rosemary, and coriander. Mix it all up.
3. Wash the lamb chops (always wash your meat and in cold water). Cover them up with the mixture.
4. Place the chops onto a grilling rack and throw it into the oven (when it reaches its appropriate heat of course).
5. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side depending on how you like them cooked and on the thickness of your chops. Sometimes, I cook the chops for only 2 minutes on each side; I like them pink and slightly bloody. Never cook lamb chops for longer than 4 minutes on each side. Actually, I even discourage cooking them for that long.

Fast, easy, and you'll love yourself for it. Just make sure to eat the chops right away because they lose heat pretty quickly. Anything that cooks quickly loses heat quickly. Also, remember to always buy meat from a local butcher shop rather than a grocery store (you'll taste the difference).

Green Papaya Salad

Green papaya salad is very refreshing and quite filling. It makes for the perfect summer or light meal. Apparently, it's really popular amongst the ladies.

Serves 3:
- 1/2 green papaya (do not confused and buy a regular papaya)
- 3/4 cup of fresh cilantro (aka coriander)
- 1/2 cup of crushed peanuts
- 1 to 3 bird's eye chillies, finely sliced (depending on how spicy you want it)
- 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1/2 tsp of sesame oil
 - 1 tbsp of tamari sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 tsp of tamarind puree
- 1 tsp of finely chopped anchovies
- 1 to 2 gloves of finely chopped garlic
- 1 tsp of honey
- 1 tsp of pepper (preferably green pepper)
- (optional) 3 slices of bacon, chopped or beef jerky, chopped

1. Cut up the green papaya into slightly-bigger-than-matchstick-sized strands. This might take a while.
2. In a saucepan, on medium heat, add the sesame oil, anchovies, and meat (if you choose to use it). Let cook for about 30 sec (or 1.5 minutes if you are adding meat).
3. Add in tamari, garlic, tamarind puree, honey, and pepper. You can also add the chillies here if you want a spicier sauce. If not, you can leave them on a plate so that people can have the option to have a spicier salad or not. Cook for another minute.
4. Take the mixture off of the heat and put it into a bowl. Add in the lime juice and mix.
5. On serving plates or a bowl, put down your papaya.
6. Pour the sauce onto the papaya.
7. Add cilantro, peanuts, and chillies (depending on your preference).

There you have it: green papaya tastiness.

Pho

The secret to Pho is in the broth. A nice, well spiced and carefully thought out broth differentiates a Pho from any other broth. The main thing to remember about broth making is that the longer you simmer it, the more intense its flavours become. Pho broth takes a minimum of two hours to prepare. However, the majority of the process is a simmer. So, there's no need to be alarmed; this is a simple and easy recipe. Also, a broth's flavour matures over the days; so, you can keep it for a while.
 I will break this recipe down into two parts: the broth making and the actual soup making.

Broth:
Serves however many you want (2 cups of water per person)
- 1 beef shank
- 1/2 fennel
- 1 yellow onion, cut in two
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp of black and/ or green pepper (you can replace this with fresh peppercorns)
- 1 tbsp laurel leaves (aka bay leaves)
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 2 to 4 (depending on how spicy you want the broth) bird's eye chillies (these are chillies native to South-East Asia)
- 2 tbsp of galangal and/ or ginger (these are roots of the same family; however, galangal has a more tea-like taste to it)
- 2 tsp honey
 - up to 4 L of water (depending on how much broth you want to make) *The more water you have, the longer you have to simmer your broth for in order to obtain the same flavour. However, 2 L shouldn't take longer than 2 hours.

1. In an appropriate pot (big enough and with a lid), at medium heat, put in all of the ingredients.
2. When the liquid reaches its boil point, bring the heat down to low or simmer (stick to low if your pot and/or stove isn't that great).
3. Wait 2 hours. Taste the broth to see if it is to your liking. If you want it to be more flavourful, keep it on for a little while longer up to 2 hours longer.
4. When done, strain the broth. Also, try that meat that's left over on the shank. Sweet sweet tasty meat. You can throw it into the soup later or just eat it. Oh, don't forget the marrow. Spread that on a toast; it'll be delightful. Fun facts about marrow: it's high in nutrients (especially in vitamin K, which prevents things like Cancer) and is a fat soluble fat (it'll help you burn calories).

Soup:
Serves 2
- 1 L of the lovely Pho broth you just made
- 2 hand-fulls of thicker rice noodles
- a few slivers of paper-thin sliced yellow onion
- 6 sprigs of coriander
- 2 sprigs of Thai basil (change it up to a sprig of mint and a spring of regular basil if you cannot find Thai basil)
- 1 cup of raw paper-thin sliced beef filet (or contre-filet or bavette) *You can change this to pieces of grilled chicken, grilled shrimp, etc.).
- lime wedges
- (optional) thinly sliced bird's eye pepper if you want the soup even hotter (be careful, this pepper is bloody hot) *Remember to wash your hands with alcohol when dealing with hot peppers.
- (optional) 1 cup of chop suey (aka bean sprouts) if you like them (I don't.)

1. In a smaller pot, throw in the warm broth. Heat it up until its boil point.
2. Add noodles. Leave broth on heat for about 2 minutes or as directed on the back of your noodle pack. However, I never ever trust directions in the back of noodle packs since they always ask you to leave in the noodles until the point of soggy nastiness. Simply, try a noodle after 2 minutes and gauge its cooking time.
3. Remove off heat. Serve into bowls.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowls. I recommend adding the beef last minute since it cooks really quickly in the broth.

You can always flavour your broth with hoison sauce. It's easy to make too. So, here we go:
-1/2  tbsp of peanut butter
- 1 tbsp soy sauce (or tamari sauce)
- 1 to 2 gloves of finely chopped garlic
- 1 tsp of rice vinegar
- 1/2 tsp of sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp chili paste or hot chillies
- 1 tsp honey
- 1 tsp of black and green pepper

Simply, mix the ingredient in a bowl.
However, the Pho is lovely without it.

Brisket

Brisket, like many stew-like things, has its benefit: its taste improves over days (up to an extent, obviously). On top of being the lovely dish it is, brisket is also ideal to make into sandwiches the following day. That is, if it lasts that long. There are many ways to make brisket; however, they all take a long time. Some people marinade the meat for a day or two before cooking; others simply cook it for a long time. This recipe demands a 12 hour cooking time. Don't try to cheat by cooking it for less; I tried that once and it just wasn't as good.

Serves 3
- 650 g of brisket beef
- 1/3 cup of butter
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3/4 cup cup of fennel, chopped
- 6 slices of bacon (smoked or euro, from the butcher only) cubed
- 4 gloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 ancho pepper, crushed
- 1 chipotle pepper, cruched
- 1 to 3 scotch bonnet peppers depending on the spiciness you want (be careful, these are damn hot peppers) *Remember to always remove the seeds from hot peppers before cooking with them if you don't want extremely unpleasant surprises. Also, after dealing with the peppers, wash your hands with both soap and alcohol (alcohol is key) to avoid even worse surprises (like a deathly painful burn in the eyes or other unmentionable places).  
- 1 cup of mushrooms, chopped
- 1 apple, chopped (I put in a Honey Crisp apple.)
- spices (espelette, mace, Jamaican allspice, ginger, coarsely crushed black pepper, green pepper, paprika, laurel leaves, etc; a pinch of each will do) + salt- fresh herbs (rosemary and coriander)
- 1 tbsp hickory (if you cannot find hickory, put in a drop of liquid smoke)
- 1 tsp grains of paradise (don't worry about it if you can't find them; they aren't the easiest thing to find)
-1/2 cup of broth (either beef or chicken) *I keep fat and jelly left over from other dishes (eg: roasted chicken leftover juices) and use that instead of broth.
- 2 oz of vinegar (I use either cognac vinegar or apple vinegar.)
- 2 oz of apple cider or apple juice (or change it up and put in a light beer instead)
- 1/2 oz of alcohol (either a pastis, a scotch, or a cognac)
- 1 tsp of grape must

1. In a crockpot (the cast iron pot is crucial) on medium heat, put in butter.
2. When butter begins to boil, brown the meat in it on both sides and remove the meat from the pot (this means that you will cook the meat for about 30 sec on each side). Do not forget to remove the meat. Set the meat aside.
3. Throw in onions, fennel, and bacon. Cook for about 4 minutes uncovered.
4. Add peppers, mushrooms, apple, spices, herbs, hickory, and grains of paradise. Cook for about 5 minutes, covered.
5. Bring the temperature to low (the lowest in fact). Add in broth, vinegar, apple cider or juice, alcohol, and grape must. Stir.
6. Add in the meat. Make sure to cover up the meat with the contents of the crockpot. Cover.
7. Let cook for 11 hours on low heat.
8. With tongs, pull apart the brisket. Cover and let cook for one more hour.

I recommend serving the brisket atop of mashed potatoes or in a sandwich. Enjoy; it's really good. 

Gumbo with Pernod Shrimp

Gumbo is an okra based dish. The beauty about okra is its texture when it's cooked; the crunchiness of the seeds combined with the viscosity of the okra juices makes for a very interesting experience. Combine that with spice and more tastiness and you've got yourself a lovely gumbo.

The gumbo and the Pernod shrimp are two separate dishes but make a great combination. However, feel free to eat them separately or mix and match them with other tastiness.

Gumbo:
The key thing to remember about okra is that it can take a while to cook and an extremely long while if you do it wrong. Also, overcooked okra is pretty gross. Here's the secret: if you put acidity into your okra in the beginning, it can take up to an hour to cook due to some crazy chemical reaction okra has to acid. So, add in your tomatoes, lemon, or garlic only towards the end when the okra is pretty much cooked. Also, if you plan to use onions, make sure they are cooked before throwing in the okra. I also recommend using a cast iron pot (aka slow cooker aka crockpot) since it's amazing in retaining moisture and heat, which is crucial to cook your okra faster.

Serves 2:
- 500 g okra
- half a yellow onion, diced
- 1 tbsp butter
- 6 slices of bacon (unless you have an inclination against pork) * Please buy bacon at your local butcher shop and never prepackaged factory bacon. I recommend (medium thickness) smoked bacon or euro bacon (aka back bacon) if you want leaner bacon.
- 1/4 cup of chicken broth
- fresh peppercorns (if you can get your hands on them) and/or green and pink crushed peppercorns
- 1 sliced or crushed ancho pepper
- spices (I put in espelette, ginger, mace, and a tad bit of paprika.) + salt
- 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 250 g shiitake mushrooms
- 250 g chopped fresh herbs (I put in coriander and green onion.) 
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese (optional)

1. In a crockpot at medium to high heat, throw in butter.
2. As the butter begins to bubble, throw in the onion right away. Do not wait longer than that because the butter will burn. Butter melts really quickly on cast iron and ceramic, so be attentive. Cook for 4 minutes.
3. Throw in bacon. Let cook for 1 minute.
4. Throw in okra. Cover. Let cook for 5 minutes.
5. Add broth, ancho pepper, spices, peppercorns, and salt. Let cook for five minutes.
6. Add shiitakes and garlic. Cover. Let cook for 2 minutes.
7. Take off of heat. Add parmesan and herbs.

Now that the gumbo is ready, it's time for the shrimp. Leave the gumbo covered in the crockpot while you make the shrimp. The cast iron will retain its heat. Making the shrimp is the fun part but it demands speed.

Serves 2:
- 8 jumbo shrimps (aka tiger shrimp)
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp of pink peppercorns
- 1 tbsp of paper thin sliced fennel (optional)
- pinch of salt, espelette, mace, and ginger powder
- 2 gloves of garlic, finely chopped
- 1/2 oz of Pernod (or Ricard or Absinth; basically an anise based alcohol)

This is going to be fast, so get you shrimp cleaned and ingredients ready before you start. Don't forget to clean your shrimp in cold, salted water. Also, get tongs (or chop sticks) ready to flip those shrimps unless you're awesome and you flip them with a nudge of the wrist while holding the pan handle.

1. In a pan at high heat, throw in butter.
2. Once it begins to bubble (which is really quickly), remove off heat and throw (leave the burner on) and add peppercorns, fennel, spices, and garlic. Mix it us with the butter and put it back on the heat.
3. Once the butter bubbles again (which should be about 1 second), throw on the shrimps. Cook for 1.5 to 2 minutes. Turn the shrimps and cook for another 1.5 to 2 minutes.
4. Lift the pan above the heat and throw in the Pernod; it will sizzle like crazy. Swish your shrimp around in the Pernod immediately. Do not put it back on the heat; it is ready and tasty.

To serve it together, just put the shrimp over the gumbo. I recommend making the shrimp as an appetizer sometimes too. The sizzling and the speed really impresses people; so, try it out during a dinner party.

Steak Tartare

Tartare is a favourite dish of mine; it's easy, it's raw, and tastes so damn good. The absolute most important thing about tartare is the freshness of your meat or fish. Only get meat from a trusted local butcher. Same goes for fish. Here's a little trick in checking your fish's freshness: lift the gills; if there's blood, it's fresh. Stay away from fish with no blood in the gills. Another subject of debate is the grinding of the meat. My answer to that is no grinding. I always hand cut my meat because I feel that it retains the moisture better.

Serves 2 as a main course:
- 500 g of fresh meat (opt for the bavette)
- 1 large egg yolk (I like to put a duck egg yolk in.)
- 2 tsps of dijon
- 1 tsps of olive oil
- 1 tsp of ketchup or a tomato based sauce
- 1/2 of cognac
- 2 tbsp of chopped capers
- 1 tbsp of chopped cornichons (these are the very little sour pickles)
- 2 tbsp of finely chopped onion (I use yellow onion since it's the sweetest)
- 1 tsp of finely chopped garlic
- 1 tsp of chopped chives
- 1 tbsp of finely chopped parsley
- 1 tbsp of grated parmesan
- 1 tsp of finely chopped anchovies
- 1/2 tsp of black pepper
- pinch of salt
- pinch of espellete
- a few drops of tabasco sauce or a pinch of cayenne to liking (spicy or not spicy)
- 1/2 a tsp of grated or chopped truffle (optional) - some people cannot stand the intensity of truffle, so watch out

1. In a bowl, add all of the ingredients but the meat.
2. Only towards the end (right before serving), chop up the meat really finely and add into the mixture. (You will need a good and sharp knife for this and a wooden cutting board. Nothing else will do. Also, your hand may hurt.)
3. Either shape your tartare with a round and thick cookie cutter or shape it into a patty with your hands. Serve it right away. I recommend serving it with salad and freshly made croutons. Also, add a little lemon slice atop of the tartare; a little bit of lemon juice adds interesting flavour.

The beauty of tartare is that you can mix and match ingredients to your liking. However, I suggest not straying too far away from the basic recipe since it will overpower the taste of the meat.

Softshell Crab

Softshell crab is not for the faint-hearted. As you devour the crabs, you can feel their legs and almost every other part of it be crushed by your teeth. However, softshell crab makes for excellent sandwiches and sushi.

It is key to buy the animals live since it's vital to its freshness. To start, you have to kill the creature by cutting off its face with scissors. Then, you will find the gills and rip them off. I guess you can always ask the employees at your local fish market to do that as well. Once cleaned and rinsed, you're good to go. Here's a seafood cleaning tip: always wash your seafood in cold salted water as it helps keep its texture and flavour.

When preparing the crabs for cooking, always put your rub in the leg crevices and in the inside of the shell. When cooking, always cook the crab shell down first.

Serves 2:
- 1 to 2 crabs, depending on size and what you are using them for (eg: 1 per person if you are making sandwiches)
- 2 gloves of garlic, finely choped
- 1 tbsp chives
- 1 tbsp coriander
- 1 tsp crushed or chopped ancho pepper
- a pinch of chipotle pepper
- pinch of salt
- pinch of pink pepper
- 1 tsp honey

1. In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients other than the crabs.
2. Rub down the crabs with mixture.
3. Cook the crabs. I like to BBQ them about 4 minutes on each side.
4. Either eat them straight or put them in a sandwich with a nice and hot sauce or even some plain yoghurt.

Chomp. Chomp.

BBQ Calmari

When it comes to food, especially seafood, I say less is more. Sauces and overzealous spicing can easily destroy the aromas and subtle flavours of produce. BBQ calamari is an easy and fast recipe that demands only simplicity.

Serves 2:
-8 calamaris
-1 tbsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice
-2 tbsp olive oil
-pinch of salt
-pinch of black pepper
-1 tbs capers
-chopped chives


1. Prepare BBQ.
2. Cut up each calamari into six thick strips and score them. (Scoring calamari tenderizes its flesh, allowing for a faster cooking time and a better texture.)
3. In a bowl, mix calamari, 1 tbsp of olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
4. Kebab your calamari (so it doesn't fall through the grill).
5. BBQ calamari 4 minutes on one side and 3 min on the other.
6. Take calamari off of the sticks into a bowl. Add the rest of the olive oil, chives, and capers. You can also adjust the flavour by adding more lemon juice.

Enjoy.

Mushroom Picking Season

Mushroom picking season is my favourite. From late July until the frost falls, eastern Canada and north-eastern US flourishes with various kinds of delicious mushrooms. Wild chanterelles and porcinis (aka boletes) are some of the most flavourful foods to existence.  However, I highly discourage people who do not know their funghi to venture out there to a possible death sentence. You can always go to your local farmers' market to purchase wild mushrooms. Wild mushroom recipes coming up.

BBQ Smoked Ribs

The trick to BBQ ribs is moisture, low heat, a long wait, and no sugar. Succulent ribs take patience, a whole 12 hrs of it. The key things you have to know about preparing ribs are the following: avoid direct heat; never place the meat on a direct flame. Make sure the flames are surrounding the meat or are on the opposite side of the BBQ. Always have a metal bowl of liquid on the BBQ to keep moisture circulating. Never coat the ribs with am ingredient containing sugar until the end as it will cause the meat to dry out since sugar burns easily (this means no tomato based sauces). Here's the down-low:

Serves 2:
-2 to 3 lbs of ribs (I use beef)
-a rub (combination of spices and herbs) I combine: ancho pepper, chipotle pepper, espelette, thick ground black pepper, rosemary, coriander, dill, garlic, and chives.
-applewood (or maplewood)
-3 oz of liquid (I use apple juice).
-a BBQ sauce (this is when the sweetness can come in). I combine apple cider vinegar, honey, a combination of hot peppers (chilli, chipotle, espelette, ancho, etc), garlic, and herbs (coriander, dill, thyme, etc). You can add crushed tomato for flavour.




1. Prepare your ribs. Cover you ribs in the rub thoroughly.
2. Prepare your BBQ. Make sure there is enough coal to burn for 12 hours (you may have to replace it once) or enough propane in the tank. Make two hand full size balls of applewood chips in aluminum foil with holes to throw onto the BBQ. Get a nice flame from the coal and smoke coming from the wood chips. Put the bowl of apple juice onto the grill as well (make sure the bowl is oven safe).
3. Once the BBQ is ready, put the meat on, fat down, away from the direct heat. Close up that BBQ, while still allowing for airflow in order not to kill the flame.
4. I recommend checking the ribs after a couple of hours to see if they aren't drying out, to see if the bowl needs more juice, etc. If the ribs seem to be drying out, I recommend taking them off the heat and covering them with aluminum foil. Check the ribs and the BBQ every so often.
5. Make the BBQ sauce: combine all BBQ sauce ingredient into a saucepan over low heat and cook for 20 minutes.
6. At the last hour or two (hour 10 or 11), put the ribs into aluminum foil if you haven't already and pour some apple juice or beer onto the ribs. Put it back on the BBQ.
7. After about half an hour to 45 minutes, cover the Ribs in your BBQ sauce and place back on the BBQ. Cook for about another 15 minutes in or out of the aluminum foil depending on their moisture.

After the laborious process, you can enjoy the sweet sweet taste of succulent ribs.



 

Lobster Sandwich

The perfect lobster sandwich consists of sweet, yet simple bread, fennel, fresh herbs, butter, and perfectly cooked lobster. The magic is in the fennel.

Serves 2 people:
1.5 to 2 lbs of lobster
1/3 cup of butter (preferably organic; the taste is phenomenal)
1/2 cup of paper thin slices of fresh fennel
1/2 cup of fresh herbs (I vote coriander and chives; but, you can use whatever you like.)
pinch of salt
sliced bread (I go for sweet buttery bread. I even recommend trying it on a croissant.)

Optional (to change up flavours):
2 tsps of finely chopped garlic 
1/2 cup of finely sliced cucumber
pinch of espelette
pinch of pink peppercorn

1. Steam live lobster. The rule: 7 min for first lbs and a minute to two more per lbs.
2. Melt butter at low heat.
3. In a bowl, add melted butter, fennel, herbs, and spices. (Add optional flavouring here too).
4. Remove the meat from the steamed lobster and cut it into generous chunks. Add to bowl mixture.
5. Once mixed, make sandwiches with the bread.

This will be the best lobster sandwich you have ever had.