Author Archives: Chef Justice Stewart
Middle Eastern-Style Lamb Necks w/ Saffron Cous Cous
While in the market last week I came across an interesting cut of meat, lamb necks. Now I know every part of the animal is used in the food world, but this was new to me. I decided to challenge myself and cook this part of the lamb, so I grabbed a couple of packages of it. Also it didn’t hurt that this cut of meat was quite inexpensive. This is not uncommon with unusual cuts of meat such as necks, shanks, liver, and tongue; all are usually cheaper. With cheaper prices comes the challenge of cooking these items properly because the meat is usually tougher.
The great thing about this meal is that you can turn $10 ingredients into a restaurant quality meal! I decided to cook the neck the same way I would prepare shanks. The dish I decided on had a Middle Eastern flair with spices such as cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Since I’m a fan of the bold flavors from the Middle East. I then paired it with a bright saffron cous cous cooked with golden raisins. The verdict = Thumbs up! You should try this recipe at home and tell me: Should I pay for this in a restaurant or cook it myself? Bon appetit!
Lamb necks
Ingredients:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 pounds of lamb necks
1 onion, halved, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp turmeric
3 cups chicken stock
1 can diced tomatoes
fresh coriander leaves, to serve
greek-style yogurt, to serve
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Directions:
First season the lamb necks with the salt & pepper. Heat the oil in a stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the lamb necks and cook, turning, for 5-7 minutes or until brown. Transfer to a plate. Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes or until soft. Add the cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon and turmeric and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds or until aromatic.
Return the lamb necks to the pan with the stock and tomato. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 1:30 – 2 hours. Uncover and cook, stirring, for 30 minutes or until the lamb is tender. Transfer the lamb necks to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Increase heat to high and bring the stock mixture to a boil. Boil, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Skim any fat off the top and discard. Plate the lamb with the cous cous and drizzle with the pan sauce. Serve with Greek style yogurt and garnish with Coriander or parsley leaves.
Saffron Cous Cous
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 teaspoon crushed saffron threads
1 medium onion, sliced into crescents
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chicken stock (you can use reduced sodium if you prefer)
One 10-oz. box couscous (1 1/2 cups)
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
In a medium frying pan (with sides at least 2 in. high) over medium heat, melt butter. Add saffron and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add onion and salt and cook for 3 minutes. Add the raisins and cook, stirring often, until onions are translucent, about 7-8 minutes.
Add chicken stock and 1 cup water and bring to a boil. Add couscous, stir, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes.
Fluff couscous with a fork, then gently stir. Garnish with parsley or coriander leaves and serve.
No knife needed!
Share this:
Meatless Monday! Jicama & Cannellini Bean Salad
1 large jicama (1 1/2 pounds), peeled & cubed
1/2 red bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, finely diced
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1 14 oz can of Cannellini Beans (drained & rinsed)
1 large fresh nectarine sliced into small squares
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2-3 mint leaves finely chopped
1/3 cup lime juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
dash of cayenne
dash of paprika
Salt
Directions:
Simply toss all ingredients together (except lime juice, salt, and olive oil) and refrigerate for about 1 hour. Remove and add lime juice and olive oil and toss well. Salt to taste and enjoy. Bon Appetit!
Share this:
Later Gator! My valiant effort at cooking Creole-style food…
I took this picture in Louisiana during a visit to the bayou in 2007
Cajun & Creole cuisine are a couple of my favorite types of food to eat. These cuisines are similar to each other but also quite different, which is something I learned a few months back from my friend, ex-Army veteran, Derrill Guidry. He is a great cook from Louisiana and should know such things, so I trust him. Also on his food page, The “G” Spot, he displays his skills in the Cajun and Creole arena. Both of these cuisines have roots stemming from French cuisine, along with influneces from Africa, Spain and to a lesser degree a few other countries. One of the major differences between Creole and Cajun food is in the type of roux (pronounced “roo”) used as the base of sauces, soups, stews, and other savory dishes. Creole roux is made from butter and flour (as in France), while Cajun roux is made from lard or oil and flour. Most people have the misconception that all Cajun food is spicy, which is not the case. There are a few more differences, and I hope to cover this subject in more detail in a later post, but right now let’s get on with tonight’s dish: Alligator & Shrimp Creole!
Creole Roux
Now most of the people I know (excluding chefs) hear the word “alligator” and run for the hills! They wont go anywhere near it, even when it is cooked — and no longer baring teeth. The fact is, alligators have been hunted and consumed by humans for centuries. The tenderloin I purchased looked no different from boneless chicken cutlets (certainly not green and slimy like some of you think). There are two different species of alligators, one in North America and the other in China. The Chinese alligator is listed as a critically endangered species, while the American alligator is plentiful, and can be found throughout the Southeastern United States. Louisiana and Florida have the most alligators: over one million wild alligators in each state with more than a quarter million more on alligator farms. Obviously, I will use farm raised alligator, and obviously an alligator from Louisiana since it’s Creole. The meat yielded a mild taste somewhat like chicken, and unlike its wild counterpart, which I am told tastes a tad bit more like frog legs or fish. The soft texture is sometimes compared to veal. While this wasn’t my first time cooking gator, it was my first try at a Creole-style dish and it was just absolutely delicious! The Creole flavors where exciting to the taste buds and the alligator and shrimp cooked to perfection. Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup butter
1 cup peeled chopped tomato
3/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 whole chopped green bell pepper
1 1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 1/4 cups chicken or fish stock
1 cup tomato sauce
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp white sugar
1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce
2 bay leaves
1 lb alligator tenderloin cut into 1 or 1 1/2 inch sized cubes
1 lb large/jumbo shrimp, shelled (tail on is optional)
3/4 lb smoked chicken sausage, sliced (Traditionally, you’d use Andouille sausage, which a more heavily spiced sausage, but I used chicken since I don’t eat pork)
Directions:
Mix together oregano, salt, white pepper, black pepper, cayenne pepper, thyme, and basil in a small bowl; set aside. Brown the sausage slices is a small frying pan and set aside.
Melt butter in a large saucepan oven over medium heat; stir in tomato, onion, celery, green bell pepper, and garlic. Cook and stir until the onion is almost translucent, about 4 minutes.
Stir in chicken or fish stock, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, hot pepper sauce, and bay leaves. Reduce heat to low and bring sauce to a simmer. Stir in seasoning mix and simmer until the flavors have blended, about 20 minutes.
Gently stir in shrimp and alligator; bring sauce back to a simmer add sausage and cook until the shrimp and gator are done, about 20-30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and garnish with yellow celery leaves or parsley. Serve with a crusty bread or rice.
Shrimp & Alligator Creole
Share this:
Stir-Fried Calamari, Shrimp, & Tilapia With Cilantro and Garlic
This is a quick and easy stir-fry recipe for seafood. This is the type of meal I usually prepare during the work week when I get home and I am too tired to cook a more complicated meal. I am sure there many of you home cooks and foodies who do not cook for a living feel the same way. With this recipe I suggest that if you are impatient with prep work (we all are) buy your squid already cleaned and ready to cook. I chose to clean my own squid, but it was well worth it as I was able to salvage and cook the tentacles as well as the calamari rings. :) So I hope you enjoy this quick and easy Stir-fry! Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
1 lb shelled and deveined shrimp
1 lb squid cleaned and cut into bite sized pieces
2 tilapia filets cut into 2 inch chunks
2 tablespoons of peanut oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger
1/2 tsp – 1 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust the heat to your taste)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup fish stock
cooked Jasmine or white rice
Cilantro (minced) or chopped scallions for garnish
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
First rinse and pat dry the cleaned shrimp, squid, and fish. Heat a wok or skillet over high heat and add the peanut oil. Immediately add the red pepper flakes, garlic, and ginger. Cook for 10-15 seconds stirring a couple of times, and when the garlic begins to color add the fish, shrimp, and squid and cook stirring frequently until all the seafood is opaque. Add the stock and cilantro leaves; stir and simmer for about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Garnish with fresh minced scallions or cilantro and serve with cooked rice of your choice.
Share this:
French-Style Antelope Chop /w Herbed Merlot Sauce
Now to put the spotlight one of my favorite meats, antelope! Many of you have never tried it, but trust me, I think it’s time you should. Antelope is indigenous to Africa, and parts of Europe & Asia. North American antelope are referred to as “Pronghorn”. I do not hunt so I purchase most of my game meat from www.Fossilfarms.com. The animals are farm raised and fed naturally with no hormones. The meat is very lean and high in protein, and most of all it’s tasty. This was my first try at antelope chops and I loved it! They may resemble deer but they are actually members of the same animal family as goat. The meat is mild tasting with a similar taste to venison, finely grained, and get this, one-third the calories of beef!
Antelope that are hunted in the wild are said to have “gamey” or “sagey” taste. As I explained in previous posts, the “gamey” flavor comes from the fact that the animals in the wild eat a very varied diet of weeds, acorns, wood bark, etc. This flavors the meat distinctively. Sagebrush makes up a large part of the antelopes diet, which may explain the “sagey” flavor. Since we are used to eating meat that is grain fed, which has a much milder flavor, game meat tastes strange to us now. We don’t need to worry about that here since this meat is farm raised. I cooked this the same way I would prepare a lamb chop, pan seared it and popped it in a 450 degree oven for a few minutes. I then pair it with roasted asparagus & potatoes (cooked in a bit of duck fat), and added my herbed merlot sauce to seal the deal. All I can say is wow! It was very tasty and a big hit in my household. So I highly recommend you try antelope — you wont regret it. Bon Appetit!
French-Style Antelope Chop /w Herbed Merlot Sauce
Share this:
Pan Roasted Halibut w/ Parmesan Baked Asparagus
Roasted Halibut w/Parmesan Baked Asparagus & Herbed Potato Medley
Ok home cooks & foodies, This is a relatively easy recipe for a very delicious fish, Halibut! You can use fresh or frozen, this is sure to be a hit at your dinner table.This no-fuss recipe is big on flavor and looks delicious on the plate. You can use halibut, cod, or haddock for this dish, it does not matter because they all work. I served it up with parmesan baked asparagus (recipe coming soon) and potatoes. Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
1 lb halibut fillets (thickly cut)
2 Tbsp olive oil (divided in half)
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (you can use less if you can’t tolerate heat)
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
pinch of dried parsley & oregano
Directions:
Combine all the dry spices and mix well. Rinse the fish in cold water then pat dry. Brush the fish with half of the oil and season it generously with the spice mix. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put the remaining oil (or you can use a high heat non-stick spray) in a cast iron skillet or other heavy bottomed pan and heat over medium-high flame. Sear the halibut on one side for 3 minutes. Flip the fish and place the pan in the pre-heated oven for 5-7 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Plate the fish and served immediately. Enjoy:)
Share this:
Rabbit Cacciatore
Ingredients:
4 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion
1 cup of sliced white mushrooms
1 large celery stalk, julienned
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
3 Lb rabbit cut into 8 pieces ( you can use chicken if you like)
1 large garlic clove crushed
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup of tomato sauce
1 cup of vegetable or chicken broth
1 Tbsp freshly chopped oregano
2 Tbsp freshly chopped parsley
additional parsley for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat; then add mushrooms and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside and keep warm. In a large 5- to 7- quart wide heavy pot , heat remaining 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat . Add onion, carrot and celery; cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables are softened, about 7 minutes. Remove the vegetables from the pot and place on the side with the mushrooms.
Season the rabbit generously with salt and pepper. Add rabbit pieces and cook, turning pieces several times until lightly golden, about 5 minutes per side. Add the reserved vegetables and mushrooms to the pot, then add the wine. Increase heat to high and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Add the tomato sauce, mix well and bring to a simmer then add half of the stock and bring to a gentle boil. Add chopped parsley and oregano, stir well, reduce heat to low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally and adding remaining broth gradually as sauce thickens, until rabbit is very tender, about 1 hour. Garnish with parsley and serve with pasta of your choice. Here I served it up with cheese stuffed ravioli. Bon Appetit! :)
Share this:
Spicy Seafood & Chickpea Curry
Although winter in the northeast has been a pretty mild one with above average temperatures this year, we still look to eat comfort foods such as soups and stews. If you are a follower of this blog you may have noticed by now I am a seafood lover, and while shopping this weekend I bought some Mahi-Mahi filets. Mahi, also known as Dolphin fish, is a very popular fish among chefs everywhere and is highly sought after. Mahi meat is firm with a large flake and a mild, sweet flavor which made it perfect for the type of stew I planned to prepare. I also decided to add two other seafood favorites of mine: fresh jumbo shrimp and blue claw crabs. Along with the fresh herbs and spices I intended to use in this stew, can you say yummy? To top it all off, the stew will be delivered to the table in a fresh sourdough bread bowl which is always a comforting hit at the dinner table. So enjoy this recipe and give me a little feedback on what you think :) Enjoy
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs Mahi Mahi cut into chunks
8 – 10 large shrimp, shelled and deviened
2 blue claw crabs
4 bowl size sourdough loaves, optional
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (add spice according to your taste)
1 Tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 13oz cans of diced tomatoes
6 tablespoons of fish or chicken stock
1 can chickpeas, drained
4 Tbsp plain yogurt
1 Tbsp mango chutney (homemade or store bought)
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro and some leaves for garnish
salt & pepper
Directions:
First remove outer top shell of the crab then clean out the the internal organs and cut each crab in half leaving 4 total clusters (you can have your seafood guy do this). If you are using bread bowls you need to carefully carve it open so it resembles a bowl, and use the scooped out bread for dipping. Heat oil in a large saucepan the add the onions and sautee until soft but not browned. Add tumeric powder, curry powder, chili powder, and garlic to the pan and fry for 3 minutes until spices become fragrant. Add the stock, 2 Tbsp of cilantro, tomatoes, and tomato paste then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes. Add stock as needed if it reduces. Throw in the shrimp, chunks of fish, crab clusters, and the chick peas then simmer for 10 minutes or until the fish has cooked. Mix in the mango chutney and simmer for 1 more minute and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and add an even amount to each bowl including 1 cluster of crab for each. Garnish with fresh cilantro leaves and 1 Tbsp of yogurt in each bowl and serve immediately. Bon Appetit!
Share this:
Meatless Mondays! Baked Stilton/Walnut-Stuffed Baby Bella Mushrooms
At one point in my younger years I really did not like mushrooms and I really could not tell you why. Today I enjoy all different types of them, so I like to experiment and try them in a multitude of ways. This recipe will make a hearty appetizer or if you want you can serve it up with crusty bread to soak up the garlic flavored juices. Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
1 lb medium-large baby bella mushrooms
4 oz of Stilton cheese
juice of 1/2 lemon
6 Tbsp melted butter
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup of white bread crumbs or panko (I used stale baguette I had in the kitchen already)
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 oz of freshly grated parmesan cheese
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Directions:
First, core the stems from the mushrooms with a pairing knife, leaving only the cap. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees Farenheit and place the mushrooms in an ovenproof dish and sprinkle half the garlic over them, then drizzle about 3 Tbsp of the melted butter over them along with the lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and bake 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Gently cream the Stilton cheese with the chopped walnuts and mix in about 2 Tbsp of the breadcrumbs, then fill the mushrooms evenly with the mixture, do not over-stuff. Pre-heat the broiler. Mix the remaining garlic, breadcrumbs black pepper, and melted butter in a bowl and stir in the parmesan cheese and parsley. Cover the stuffed mushrooms with the breadcrumb mixture and broil for about 5 minutes until crisp and browned. Serve immediately and enjoy :)
Stuffed Baby Bella Mushrooms
Gourmet De-Constructed 