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So I have neglected my poor blog over the past few months and I apologize. Many big changes have taken place in my life. Over the last month I have resigned from my job and taken a posistion as a research chef for a large foodservice and consumer food manufacturer. Me and my girlfriend have moved in together for the first time and relocated to the east San Francisco Bay Area.
It has been quite a nightmare moving two people, three cars, a vespa, and a kitchen full of toys across the country. But we have finally settled and have started learning the lay of the land and the new culinary scene to be explored!
So more things to come. I hope to share more personal experiments and adventures now that I’m immersed in a completely foreign environment.
As a kid growing up I always remember my mom making steamed buns, but she would twist it up… She would stuff the buns with pepperoni and marinara sauce for calzones or make inside out hamburgers (which weren’t really inside out but the name sounded fun) with meat, cheese, pickles, and onions. The possibilities are endless.
A while back I took a class in authentic Chinese cookery and pulled the chef aside to teach me how to perfect these lovely pillows of dough. Much care and time is taken in preparing the dough to have a perfectly fluffy, chewy, sticky bun. And the filling? Well, it is equally important. It also can be extremely versatile; ranging from traditional BBQ pork to the wacky Americanized version my mom came up with. I’ve even done versions with eggs, cheese, and bacon for breakfast. Awesome.
What Chef Chu-Yen Luke taught me was one of the best bao recipes I’ve had outside of many traditional bakeries. Here’s how it’s done.
Dough
Ingredients
- 5 – 5 1/2 C. - All purpose flour (If you can find bleached flour it is more traditional)
- 2 1/2 t. - Instant/Active dry yeast
- 2 t. - Baking powder
- 2 T. – Sugar, granulated
- 1 T. – Salt
- 1 T. - Cooking Oil (In Chinese cuisine, cooking oil almost always referred to peanut oil)
- 2 C. – 95-100 degree water (Bring water to a boil, then cool to desired temperature)
1. Combine the water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl. Let the mixture rest for about 2-3 minutes so that the yeast can start to bubble and activate.
2. Meanwhile, make a mixture of the dry ingredients and sift them together.
3. Unlike traditional bread making, add your flour to your water. Once it starts to pull together, knead your oil into the dough.
4. Continuously knead on a floured board (or a dough hook with a mixer) for about 15 to 20 minutes. You will end up with a smooth and elastic ball.
5. Place dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a damp cloth and place in an area where it can maintain a temperature above 90 degrees. Usually, an oven that has been turned on for a few minutes and shut off it works well.
6. Once the dough has doubled in size, pull the bowl out and roll it into a large log about 2 inches in diameter (depends how big you want the finished bun). You are then going to slice cylinders of dough about and inch and half in length.
7. Place the dough in your hand with the flat side down and make a dent in the center. Fill with about 2 T of the filling of your choice and then proceed to fold. Whatever your filling is, it is important to make sure it is cooked before hand. There is no guarantee that raw meat will fully cook in the steaming process. You can just pull all the dough together to the center. OR you can make it nice with the traditional spiral pattern. There is a good photo demonstration here.
8. Place the baos on pieces of parchment paper about 3″x3″. Cover them once again with a damp towel and let them proof in a warm spot for another 30 to 45 minutes until they double.
9. While the baos are proofing, prepare a steamer. If you have a wok you can get a bamboo steamer tray for a relatively cheap. If you want you can add aromatics to you steaming liquid like ginger, scallions, and garlic. The aroma will infuse into your dough as it steams. Arrange the buns so they aren’t touching, parchment and all, in your steam basket. Steam on high heat for about 9-10 minutes.
**You can also bake the bao in a 400 degree oven until golden brown for a different texture.
10. Eat the bao hot. Alternatively, you can let them cool, individually wrap them in plastic, and place them in the freezer. To reheat just place them in the microwave for about a minute on high and they will come out just as moist and delicious!
There will be a recipe for traditional Chinese BBQ pork filling soon! But experiment with some things first.
Over the Fourth of July weekend I had an awesome idea for a party. Instead of making everything for people I would have set everything up to have people make it themselves. So I threw a “Chipotle” party! People had their choice of tortillas I then made:
Shredded Pork Carnitas, Spiced Chicken, Spiced Steak, Cilantro Lime Rice, Sour Cream, Guacamole, Pico De Gallo, Corn Salsa, Roasted Tomato and Tomatillo Salsa, Bacon Braised Pinto Beans, Black Beans, Shredded Lettuce.
It can be a lot of work, but a lot can be done a head of time and you can even organize people to bring each component to save on money and time.
Everything turned out very good. But the chicken that I made out turned out incredible. Like cannot even put into words incredible. Like maybe Chipotle the chain should use my recipe. It makes you want to get up crank up some Merengue and do a little dance. And it was so simple! So I need to jot it down while it is still fresh in my mind.
The recipe below is enough for about 9-10 lbs of chicken:
- 4 T -Ancho Chile Pepper, Ground, Toasted
- 4 T -Chipotle Chile Pepper, Ground, Toasted
- 1 t -Pepper, Black, Ground
- 2 t -Cumin, Ground, Toasted
- 2 T -Oregano, Mexican Style, dried flakes
- 2 t – Garlic, Powder
- 4 t -Onion, Powder
- 50 g -Yucateo Annatto Condimento ( Annatto Seed Paste )
- 1 T – Sugar, White Granulated
- Kosher Salt to taste ( About 1-2 T)
- 1 t – MSG ( optional )
Mix the spice blend together well. The achiote paste will be moist so it will take a bit of mixing with your hands to get it to blend fully. Once blended smother your chicken with it. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs. They are relatively cheap and very fatty, which is key to having moist tender chicken. I recommend letting the chicken marinate for at least 2 hours or even overnight, but it isn’t necessary. Grill on high heat until cooked through. The thighs almost cannot be overcooked. The fat will render leaving a moist, tender, piece of dark meat that can be enjoyed whole or cut into strips or cubes. Great for tacos, salads, lunchmeats, pasta, skewers. It’s just great.
Unfortunately, all 10 lbs were eaten before pictures could be taken.
I am lucky enough to have some members in my family to catalog some of our lineage before they passed on. One of the best resources is a collection of recipes and history that my godmother published for us. It is very basic, passing down recipes that our elders prepared when they were younger. I have slowly been going through it to sharpen my skills for authentic stanley cooking to impress my relatives. Also, since homestyle cuisine and comfort food are a hot trend right now, digging through your grandmother’s cookbooks usually contains a plethera of ideas. There are some great recipes and I plan on sharing them as I make them.
Now, when making Cochinita Pibil you can just make a small amount in the oven as I highlighted in previous post. BUT, If you really want to make it authentic you better go big or go home.
Traditionally, fires are made in large pits with rocks on the bottom. The fires burn and heat the rocks and once well heated, the banana leaf wrapped pig if lowered onto the hot stones, covered, and left to cook for the day. Alternatively, you can construct your own pit to roast a pig relatively easily and inexpensively without doing a lot of damage to yard. Over the last 4th of July we can a pig roast and here’s how we did it.
Your first step is to construct a pit. Choose a spot that you don’t mind being charred such as a dirt area, gravel driveway, or sandy area. Make sure that if there are any weeds or pants in the area that you pull them or burn them well before starting your pig or else you will affect the taste. Optionally, you can line the bottom with tin foil.
Using cinder blocks found at a local hardware store build a large box about 3 feet by 4 feet in size. It will take about 60-80 bricks depending if you need to make it bigger for your pig. Place cinder blocks on their sides in the corners with the holes facing out and put more blocks in front of them to block the holes. These will be you access to add more fuel to the fire one everything has started cooking. This pit will be what we’re using for our covered style roast, but will also work for rotisserie style roasts as well if you want to construct a large rotisserie.
The next step is to get your pig. You want a whole hog, head on, that has been dressed and cleaned. 60-80 pounds is the best size to get. Any bigger and you will be waiting for a year for it to cook and the meat will dry out. Any smaller and you won’t have enough to eat! Figure about 1.5 to 2 pounds per person. It may seem like a lot, but you will lose a lot of weight to the cooking process, butchering, and waste of bones and excess fat. Once you get your pig you may need to defrost it overnight, if not then we can go straight to preparing and marinating the hog.
**WARNING PICTURES MAY BE GRAPHIC TO SOME….If you are offending by sight of a butchered pig please stop reading. Nothing inhumane was exercised during this cookout**
 Inject with marinade I’ve lost a few pictures so I’ll bring everyone up to speed. Butterflied the hog by hitting a chisel through the skull and cracking the rib bones along the spine. This will give a even heat distribution. We then want to marinate it overnight. The recipe I posted earlier works well, you just have to puree everything as well as possible to have it be inject-able. I used a slightly different recipe:
200g achiote condimento ( achiote paste)
3# onions
3 cups pasilla pepper powder
2 cups salt
1/2 cup cumin
1/4 allspice berries
60 garlic cloves
8 whole chile arbols
4 cans orange juice concentrate
2 1/2 cups vinegar
4 cups lemon juice
1 cup of tequilla
1/2 cup olive oil
1 can mango concentrate
4 cups water
Once you get everything marinated you want to let it sit overnight. Placed in a large plastic bag in a bathtub with ice on top works well. You want it to stay cool but not let the water seep into your bag.
Now were back to our our pit the next day. You can use wood or charcoal or both. Up to you. Heat it the center to get some good coals going. This might take about 30 to 45 minutes.
 3 bags of charcoal You are then going to spread the coals to the four furthest corners. To replenish fuel you will add coals to the stone access holes that you made. At this point we are ready to add the pig. The pig is laid on a large grill that we made with non-galvanized steel fence material that has bars of steel re-bar threaded through it. We used a pattern like this =I=I=I= You then layer the entire grill with banana leaves that have been soaked in water. These are easily found at a local Mexican grocery store in the freezer aisle. Once you have placed the pig down, cover it with more leaves and place another grill frame on top of the peg. Using wire coat hangers secure the two sides of the grill together to make a solid cage. This will be important for flipping the pig.
 Marinated split hog ready to be caged. We then place in on our pit and completely cover the entire thing with tin foil. Place a thermometer probe in the center NOT through the meat. You want to maintain a temperature of about 250 to 275 degrees. 6 – 7 hours for a 25 – 50 pound pig, and 8 – 9 hours for a 50 – 75 pound. For this style of roast because the hog is split you will want to stay closer to the shorter times. Every 2 hours you will want to flip the hog by picking up the corners with some friends and doing a quick flip.
 Everything is set and cooking Once your hog hits about 150-160 degrees you are good to go. Remove it from the heat, let it rest for about 20 minutes, butcher, and enjoy!
I have decided to start posting some of my personal recipes. They do not all have pictures but I assure you they are tested and delicious. If you have any questions feel free to comment and I’ll answer.
Puerco Pibil (Cochinita Pibil)
This is one of the best tasting pibil recipes I have used thus far. Cochinita Pibil, which roughly translates into small buried pig, is a traditional cooking process in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. It usually involves digging a pit a wood fire or hot rocks and covering a whole suckling pig with banana leaves and roasting. This can take up 9 hours and often times will have a party or large gathering of people to join the roast. This recipe was adapted for home use and still has great flavor. It can be a little salty if you have a piece of pork butt that is really fatty, but once it makes it onto the tortilla with some fresh veggies and a lime wedge, it’s just right. You can usually find banana leaves in the freezer section and annatto seeds in the spice section of any Mexican oriented grocery stores. I have made this before with an entire pig and will include some pictures and instructions on we we did this soon.
5 Tbs. annatto seeds
1 Onion, chopped
3 Tbs Pasilla Pepper, ground
1Tb Paprika
2 Tbs. salt
1 Tbs. peppercorns, crushed
8 whole allspice
2 tsp. cumin, whole
1/2 tsp. cloves, whole
8 garlic cloves, minced
2 habañeros (deveined, seeds removed)
1/2 cup orange juice concentrate
1/2 cup white vinegar
juice of 5 lemons and limes
splash of tequila
5 lb. pork butt, cut into 2″ cubes
1 lb. banana leaves
- Combine all ingredients and marinate overnight.
- Line a pan with banana leaves. Place all of the mixture inside, covering with more leaves.
- Cover the pan tight with foil and braise at 275-300 F until tender. About 3-4 hours.
- Serve with rice, tortillas, and fried plantains.
Chicago, like many towns, if known for its food. But here in the windy city its not just any kind of food that we are known for. It’s the messy, fun, lovable staples of American cuisine that we are famous for. Hot dogs, burgers, pizza, and sausages. On top of that, we have a diversity of cultures that is practically unmatched.
There has been a recent trend that has been escalating in the United States. The street food trend. This is partly because of the economy, but mostly because these foods are FRICKEN delicious. They are the foods that people eat everyday and love. They are staples from cultures around the world.
What better place to eat street frood than in the street right? People don’t need all the bells and whistles to go with there street foods. They dont need hand and foot service or a white tablecloth establishment. Go figure that Chicago, our great food town, has so many restrictions in place that having a mobile food vendor is a nightmare. Virtually impossible.
I’ve done a lot of research on the matter. So have a lot of other chefs. See the article in the Chicago Reader http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/chicago-street-food-trucks-philip-foss-troy-marcus-johnson-matt-maroni/Content?oid=1733152
There is also the activist chef movement Chicago Food Trucks
To see the actual laws that are preventing this activity from happening take a look through Chicago’s Municipal Code. Click on Title 7, then Chapter 7-38.
Today I was led to the Food Genome (http://www.foodgenome.com/home) site by a friend. Its framework is very similar to a the way that http://www.pandora.com or http://www.musicovery.com is run. The user inputs personal preferences or the just browses the site and the site will log all the information that you explore and suggest more based on your profile.
The site is in BETA still and still needs a lot of work, but could provide some amazing resources to everyone in food education and exploration. I’ll be meeting with some friends to discuss potential ideas revolving around this sort of “AI” learning system with food. Because food, like music, is subject to personal taste and opinion it is different from person to person. This will allow the computer to give educated suggestions.
Also the genome can also be used to categorize larger sets of data to show trends in dinning in type of foods, set areas (such as town, city, state, region), and movements in the food community. This information could be extremely useful for restaurants, processors, and product developers to help serve the consumer.
I am new to the whole wordpress bogging thing and thought it would be a good way to start my own personal website. But let me tell you it is driving me nuts! Its so hard to customize some of the themes into something unique! That being said the site is still a work in progress and will probably be changing quite a lot until everything kinda irons out. I’m hoping to do a lot of fun things with it.
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