Ninth week in lockdown and even though there’s still no sign of life in any of New York’s 18,000 restaurants, my kitchen hasn’t stopped cranking them out like a hand sanitizer factory. At this point I’d like to say a little prayer: “Dear God, please bless my dishwasher and make sure it never stops running. Amen.”

 

SUNDAY

I will never dispute the fact that browning meat is one of the most crucial flavor-forming processes in any braised dish. But browning is also a time-consuming ritual that usually ends up in oil-smeared cabinets, floors, light fittings and counter-tops. I not only adore the rich, dark and wonderfully Asian flavors of this Braised Short-rib, but there’s no browning required. Eat your heart out. Literally.

CHINESE BRAISED BEEF

DIRECTIONS

Sprinkle gelatin over 2 1/2 cups water in Dutch oven and let sit until gelatin softens, about 5 minutes. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. (Unless using a slow cooker.)

Heat softened gelatin over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until melted, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in sherry, soy sauce, hoisin, molasses, scallion whites, ginger, garlic, five-spice powder, and pepper flakes. Stir in beef and bring to simmer. Remove pot from heat. Cover tightly with sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil, then lid. Transfer to oven and cook until beef is tender, 2 to 2 1/2 hours, stirring halfway through cooking. (Alternatively you can use a slow-cooker on High heat for the same time duration.)

Using slotted spoon, transfer beef to cutting board. Strain sauce through fine-mesh strainer into fat separator. Wipe out pot with paper towels. Let liquid settle for 5 minutes, then return defatted liquid to now-empty pot. Cook liquid over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened and reduced to 1 cup, 20 to 25 minutes.

While sauce reduces, using 2 forks, break beef into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Whisk cornstarch and remaining 1 tablespoon water together in small bowl.

Reduce heat to medium-low, whisk cornstarch mixture into reduced sauce, and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Return beef to sauce and stir to coat. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until beef is heated through, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle scallion greens over top. Serves 4.

 

MONDAY

This week kicked off with Memorial Day, and so I had to figure out an indoors-outdoors recipe to make it feel a bit more like the holiday it normally is. And while a stove-top burger might be as taboo as ice-cream in winter, when you grind your own short-rib, bake your own brioche buns and mix your own special sauce, it’s the real deal.

SHORT RIB CHEESEBURGER

For the burger:

INGREDIENTS

• 1lb boneless short-rib
• 1 tblspn cooking oil
• Salt and pepper
• American or Swiss cheese slices
• Brioche sesame bun
• Pickles, lettuce, tomato etc.

DIRECTIONS

Grind the short-rib and bring it to room temperature. Divide the mixture and shape it very loosely into balls. Do not be tempted to press them into patties or compact them too much. You want to keep them fairly loose. Heat a cast-iron skillet on Medium-high until it is almost smoking. Add the oil and when the oil is hot add the meatballs, gently pressing them down into patties. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook without disturbing them for 3 minutes. Flip them and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and drape a square of cheese over each patty and cover. Turn off the heat and let the cheese melt for another 2 minutes. Serves 2.

For the Sauce:

DIRECTIONS

Whist all ingredients together and refrigerate until needed. Serves 6.

 

TUESDAY

There are probably a zillion recipes for glazed pork chops, but this one involves a breading batter, which is every bit as simple as it is delicious.

HONEY GARLIC PORK CHOPS

DIRECTIONS

In a medium saucepan add the 2 tbsp olive oil and minced garlic. Cook over medium heat to soften the garlic but do not let it brown.
Add the honey, soy sauce and black pepper.
Simmer together for 5-10 minutes, remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.

Sift together the flour, salt, black pepper, ground ginger, nutmeg, paprika and cayenne pepper.
Make an egg wash by whisking together the eggs and water.
Season the pork chops with salt and pepper, then dip the meat in the flour and spice mixture.
Dip the chop into the eggwash and then a final time into the flour and spice mix, pressing the mix into the meat to get good contact.

Heat a skillet on the stove with about a half inch of canola oil covering the bottom. You will want to carefully regulate the temperature here so that the chops does not brown too quickly.
Fry them gently for about 4 or 5 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy.
Drain on a wire rack for a couple of minutes before dipping the cooked pork chops into the Honey Garlic Sauce.
Serve immediately. Serves 4.

 

WEDNESDAY

As the weather heats up and the days get longer, you’re going to start seeing more and more salad-y dinners on my lists. I generally don’t start cooking until after the 7pm first responders “clap”, but when the sun only sets after 8:30pm, I don’t want us to be doing major dishes at 10pm. Know what I mean? This is a delightful room-temperature salad and the shrimp can be easily substituted with cooked salmon.

ROASTED SHRIMP AND ORZO SALAD

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and a splash of oil, and bring the water to a boil. Add the orzo and simmer for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it’s cooked al dente. Drain and pour into a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Pour over the hot pasta and stir well.

Meanwhile, place the shrimp on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread out in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through. Don’t overcook!

Add the shrimp (or shredded cooked salmon) to the orzo and then add the scallions, dill, parsley, cucumber, onion, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving. Serves 4.

 

THURSDAY

You can never have too many cucumbers, but if you do, here are two amazing cucumber salads.  A few weeks ago, I shared my Chicken Satay recipe. This is a heat-free, meat-free variation that uses a very similar peanut sauce – but with the fresh crispness of Persian cucumbers.

CUCUMBER SALAD WITH PEANUTS

DIRECTIONS

Toss cucumbers with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt in a colander. Set aside to drain. Chop peanuts, cilantro (or mint) and red-pepper flakes together until very fine. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, garlic and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. Add up to 1 tablespoon water, if needed to thin mixture. Transfer salted cucumbers to the bowl with dressing and toss to coat.

To serve, place half the cucumber salad on the plate, sprinkle with half the peanut mixture. Repeat with the remaining cucumber salad and peanut mixture. Drizzle with chile oil, if using, and serve immediately. Serves 4.

 

And I ate something very similar to this one in Greece a few years ago. It’s a heavenly combination of sweet, sour and surprising. (And it has show-stopping good looks too.)

STRAWBERRY CUCUMBER SALAD

DIRECTIONS

Arrange the strawberry and cucumber slices in concentric circles in a round, shallow dish. Sprinkle with the hazelnuts, balsamic vinegar and freshly ground pepper. Serve immediately. Serves 2.

 

FRIDAY

OK, confession time. I’m not a great baker. There, I said it. Mostly because you have to be so darn accurate, and also because it’s more about chemistry than alchemy. Whatever. But this week we were inspired to bake the world’s most foolproof Challah ever. It’s another America’s Test Kitchen offering that…just…works. It turned out to be a whole lot larger than we were expecting, but it is a profoundly majestic, statuesque, mahogany work of art with a soft, fluffy, sweet and nostalgia-filled inside. (It also made for an amazing French toast on Sunday. See below)

EASY-BRAID CHALLAH

SATURDAY

I happen to think that the only thing more wonderful than pairing fish with Green-goddess dressing is when you can blister the skin into a crunchy crisp. You can use practically any red or white fish here, but after making eye contact with a handsome Red Snapper, all I could think of was: “Get in my belly!”

CRISPY SKINNED FISH WITH GREEN GODDESS

DIRECTIONS

Place fish fillets, skin sides up, on a wire rack set inside a rimmed baking sheet. Chill, uncovered, at least 1 hour or up to 8 hours or overnight.

Process scallion greens, watercress, 1/4 cup fresh herbs, mayonnaise, sour cream, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon water, anchovies, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a blender until smooth, about 30 seconds. Cover and chill until ready to serve.

Preheat oven to 500°F with rack in lowest position. Season both sides of fillets with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high until a wisp of smoke forms.

Lay 1 fillet, skin side down, in skillet, and immediately press down on fillet evenly and with firm pressure using a stiff spatula; press 30 seconds. Check the skin by gently lifting a corner of the fillet; if it needs a little more time to begin lightly browning around the edges, cook an additional 15 seconds. Add the second fillet and repeat. Transfer skillet to lowest rack of preheated oven; cook according to fillet thickness, about 8 minutes per inch. Cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium. Add lettuce and 1/4 teaspoon salt to skillet; cook, tossing occasionally, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add broth; cook, tossing occasionally, until lettuce is tender, 2 to 4 minutes.

Spread dressing evenly on 2 plates. Top evenly with braised lettuce, fish fillets, hazelnuts, and remaining fresh herbs. Drizzle fish with remaining 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Serve immediately. Serves 2.

 

SUNDAY

When I asked one of my dear friends from Oklahoma if she’d ever eaten French cuisine before, she giggled a little, looked at me oddly and then replied, “Why, of course. French fries. French toast. I love French food!” But seriously, if you’re one of those people who thinks that French toast is just bread dipped into beaten egg and fried in butter, then please prepare your mind to be blown.

DELUXE FRENCH TOAST

DIRECTIONS

Heat 10- to 12-inch skillet (preferably cast-iron) over medium heat for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, using a hand-mixer, beat egg lightly in a bowl. Whisk in butter, then milk and vanilla, and finally sugar, flour, and salt, continuing to whisk until smooth. Pour the mixture into a pie plate and soak bread without oversaturating, about 40 seconds per side for challah or 30 seconds per side for sandwich bread. Pick up bread and allow excess batter to drip off; repeat with remaining slices.

Swirl 1 tablespoon butter in hot skillet. Transfer 2 slices of the prepared bread to skillet; cook until golden brown, about 1 minute 45 seconds on first side and 1 minute on the second. Serve immediately. Continue, adding 1 tablespoon butter to skillet for each new batch. Serves 2.

Stay safe. Stay sane, but most importantly – stay at home!