SUBTLY SPICY, SOFTLY HOT, SLIGHTLY SWEET BEEF STEW
Serves: 6-8 For the marinade:
1 bottle (750 mL) red wine, preferably fruity but dry 1/4 cup (60 mL) soy sauce 3 tbsp (45 mL) gochujang (Korean red chili paste), or more or less to taste 5 quarter-sized slices of peeled fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
Cilantro stems, reserved from gremolata, below (optional) Scallion greens, reserved from gremolata, below (optional) 3 lb (about 1.5 kg) beef stew meat (see note)
For the stew:
3 tbsp (45 mL) canola or other neutral oil
Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 large onion, trimmed, cut into 8 pieces, rinsed and patted dry 6 carrots, trimmed, peeled and cut into 4 pieces each
3 garlic cloves, germ removed and sliced into slivers 1-inch (2.5-cm) piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into slivers 1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh cranberries
1/3 cup (80 mL) water 2 cups (500 mL) beef broth 1 tbsp (15 mL) honey
2 points star anise
Pinch of black peppercorns A small sliver of cinnamon stick 1bayleaf
A strip of orange peel (save the orange for the gremolata)
For the gremolata:
3 scallions, white and light green parts only, finely sliced 2 tbsp (30 mL) minced fresh cilantro
1 tsp (5 mL) finely grated peeled fresh ginger, or more to taste 1 tsp (5 mL) finely grated or minced garlic, or more to taste Finely grated zest of 1 orange (orange reserved from stew) Fleur de sel or fine sea salt Cooked rice, quinoa or egg noodles, for serving (optional)
Working ahead:
The stew is tastier if you marinate the beef overnight or even up to 3 days in advance, and it’s easier to skim off whatever fat accumulates during cooking if you chill the broth for a couple of hours before serving time. You can also make the stew itself up to 3 days ahead. The gremolata can be made a few hours ahead and refrigerated. 1. Marinate the beef in a Dutch oven or a zipper-lock plastic bag. 2. Mix the wine, soy sauce and gochujang together until blended, then add the remaining marinade ingredients and stir. Add the meat and turn it around so that it is submerged; cover or seal and refrigerate overnight. (The meat can marinate in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.) 3. When you’re ready to cook, transfer the beef to a plate lined with a triple thickness of paper towels. Cover it with three more towels and pat dry. Strain the marinade into a bowl; discard the solids. If some of the solids have stuck to the meat, remove and discard them (without being too fussy).
4. To make the stew: Warm 2 tbsp (30 mL) of the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat.
5. Add the beef in batches — don’t crowd the pot. Season with salt and pepper and cook, turning to brown all sides, about 8 minutes. 6. Let each side of the beef get dark before turning it and browning another side. As the pieces brown, transfer them to a bowl.
7. Pour off the fat from the pot and add the remaining tbsp (15 mL) of oil. 8. When it’s hot, add the onion and carrots, season with salt and pepper and cook over high heat, turning as needed to colour the vegetables — don’t be afraid of getting a little char.
9. Add the vegetables to the beef in the bowl. Lower the heat and toss in the garlic, ginger and cranberries. Cook, stirring frequently and taking care not to blacken the garlic and ginger, until the mixture is fragrant and the cranberries have popped. Scrape over the beef and vegetables and stir.
10. Return the pot to high heat, pour in the water and cook, scraping the bottom, until you’ve picked up all the browned bits and most of the liquid has evaporated. 11. Return the beef and vegetables to the Dutch oven and stir in the broth and all the remaining ingredients, including the reserved marinade.
12. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover the pot and simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the beef is fork-tender. 13. Transfer the beef to a bowl — be gentle, as you want to keep the pieces intact. Strain the broth and discard the vegetables, herbs and spices (they’ve done their job and they’re too tired to be good now).
14. If you’ve got time, put the broth in a shallow pan and freeze it until the fat rises to the top so you can skim it off and then reheat the broth when needed. 15. If you want to serve the stew now, skim off as much of the fat as you can. Taste the broth for salt and pepper, return the meat to the pot and reheat. 16. Meanwhile, make the gremolata: Stir all of the ingredients together. (You can make the gremolata a few hours ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator.) I like to serve this in wide shallow soup plates, although bowls are fine.
17. If you’re serving rice, quinoa or noodles with the stew, spoon it into plates or bowls and top with the beef. Ladle over the broth and sprinkle with gremolata. Storing: Stored in an airtight container, leftover stew can be frozen for up to 2 months. Note: You can make the stew with boneless stew meat or you can mix it up with a few chunky bone-in cuts, like oxtails and short ribs, which will add more flavour and texture to the mix. Play around and see what you like, remembering that bony cuts usually have less meat, so you might have to increase the amount you need for the stew.
Serves: 6
2 scallions
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1/2 cup (125 mL) white wine or white vermouth
1/2 cup (125 mL) water Fine sea salt
6 to 8 oz (170 to 226 g) fresh or frozen salmon fillet, skin and any pin bones removed 2 tbsp (30 mL) unsalted butter, softened
1 small shallot, minced (about 1 tbsp/15 mL), rinsed and patted dry
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 lb (114 g) smoked salmon, cut into thin strips or small squares
1/4 cup (60 mL) mayonnaise 2 tbsp (30 mL) grainy Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) honey
1 tbsp (15 mL) capers, rinsed, patted dry and finely chopped if large
2 tbsp (30 mL) minced fresh dill 1 tbsp (15 mL) minced fresh cilantro
Crackers, toast or dark bread, for serving
Minced (or thinly sliced) fresh herbs, for serving (optional)
1. Trim the scallions, mince the white and light green parts and set aside.
2. Toss the dark green parts into a medium saucepan, add the wine, water and a pinch of salt and bring to a boil.
3. Drop in the salmon and lower the heat so that the liquid just simmers for a minute (3 minutes if the salmon is frozen), then remove the pan from the heat, cover and set aside for 10 minutes.
4. Drain the salmon (discard the cooking liquid) and transfer to a plate; refrigerate for 20 minutes.
5. Using a spatula and working in a medium bowl, beat the butter until it’s spreadable.
6. Grate the lemon zest over the butter, squeeze the juice from half of the lemon into the bowl and add the reserved minced scallions, the shallot, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
7. Blend thoroughly, then stir in the smoked salmon.
8. In another bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mustard, honey and capers. Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice into the bowl and stir in some pepper. Scrape this out over the smoked salmon mixture and blend well.
9. Remove the poached salmon from the fridge, cut it into bitesize pieces and gently stir them into the smoked salmon mixture. Fold in the dill and cilantro, then taste for salt, pepper and lemon juice.
10. You can serve the rillettes now, but the flavour and texture are better if you pack them into a sealed container and refrigerate for at least 6 hours. Serve with bread or crackers and, if you’d like, put out minced herbs that can be sprinkled over each serving.
Storing: The rillettes will keep, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Note: This dish doesn’t need to be made with expensive salmon, smoked or fresh. If you can buy smoked salmon bits, get them. They’re sometimes cut from the end of the salmon fillet and so they’re a little saltier — taste before you add any more salt to the rillettes.
As for the fresh salmon, I’ve had good results using frozen wild Alaskan salmon fillets. If they have skin on them, I put them — still frozen — skin side down in a pot of simmering water for 1 minute and that’s enough to loosen the skin so it’s easy to remove.
Also, it’s OK to poach the salmon when it’s still slightly frozen — just cook for 3 minutes.
MISO SALMON RILLETTES
1. Use the same amounts of fresh and smoked salmon and cook the fresh or frozen salmon as instructed. Beat 3 tbsp (45 mL) softened butter until spreadable.
2. Mix in 3 tbsp (45 mL) white miso, grate over the zest of 1 lemon, squeeze in the juice from half of it and add 1 minced shallot.
3. Season with a pinch of salt and a little pepper. Blend thoroughly, then stir in both salmons, 3 tbsp (45 mL) minced mixed herbs (or use cilantro) and a splash of Sriracha.
FRENCH-ASIAN SALMON RILLETTES
1. Use the same amounts of fresh and smoked salmon and cook the salmon as above, adding 1 tbsp (15 mL) seasoned rice vinegar and a pinch of togarashi (Japanese spice blend) or cayenne to the poaching liquid.
2. Mix butter, lemon zest and juice, shallot and minced scallions together and stir in the smoked salmon.
3. In another bowl, mix 1/4 cup (60 mL) mayonnaise, 1 to 2 tsp (5-10 mL) gochujang (Korean red chili paste), the juice from the remaining lemon half and 1 tsp (5 mL) seasoned rice vinegar.
4. Add to the smoked salmon and blend well. Add the sliced poached salmon and the cilantro.