Yesterday was a grey drizzly day, perfect for braising.

I'd bought a packet of short ribs at the farmers' market on Saturday. I
browned them well on all sides and removed them from the pan. The
accumulated fat was poured off, then I deglazed with mirin and dark soy
sauce. A couple chunked onions and a sliced mandarin were added, then the
beef was added back in. The pot was covered and went into a 250°F oven for
an hour and a half. The meat was served with steamed broccoli and white
rice.

This was a kind of teriyaki beef. The bitterness of the mandarin peel was a
nice counterpoint to the sweetness of the mirin, and the broccoli went very
well with it.

(The poured-off fat went onto the dog's dry food. She had a GREAT day!)

Bob

On Dec 14, 4:35 am, "Bob Terwilliger" >
wrote:
> Yesterday was a grey drizzly day, perfect for braising.
>
> I'd bought a packet of short ribs at the farmers' market on Saturday. I
> browned them well on all sides and removed them from the pan. The
> accumulated fat was poured off, then I deglazed with mirin and dark soy
> sauce. A couple chunked onions and a sliced mandarin were added, then the
> beef was added back in. The pot was covered and went into a 250°F oven for
> an hour and a half. The meat was served with steamed broccoli and white
> rice.
>
> This was a kind of teriyaki beef. The bitterness of the mandarin peel was a
> nice counterpoint to the sweetness of the mirin, and the broccoli went very
> well with it.

Sounds good. I wonder if hoisin sauce would also have worked with the
mandarin. -aem

Christine wrote:

>> Yesterday was a grey drizzly day, perfect for braising.
>
> Did you use the new Le Crueset pot?

We only had a couple pounds of short ribs, WAY too little for that pot. I
used my Calphalon "everyday" pot.

http://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Comm.../dp/B00006FX83

Bob

On Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:33:21 -0500, Kajikit >
wrote:

>On Mon, 14 Dec 2009 13:12:58 -0800, Christine Dabney
> wrote:
>
>>On Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:52:50 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:
>>
>>>Christine wrote:
>>>
>>>>> Yesterday was a grey drizzly day, perfect for braising.
>>>>
>>>> Did you use the new Le Crueset pot?
>>>
>>>We only had a couple pounds of short ribs, WAY too little for that pot. I
>>>used my Calphalon "everyday" pot.
>>>
>>>http://www.amazon.com/Calphalon-Comm.../dp/B00006FX83
>>>
>>>Bob
>>>
>>>
>>Nice. I have a few pots similar to that, in All-Clad. My Brazier is
>>one such, and I use it all the time. I also have a Le Crueset buffet
>>pan, which is great for things like that...
>>http://www.chefsresource.com/le-creuset-buffet.html
>>
>>But I will usually jump at the chance to use my Le Crueset...whenever
>>there is a need to braise something.
>>
>>Christine
>
>That's the pot I use all the time if I want to take something from the
>stove to the oven... you can make a nice dutch pancake in it.

APN has been dropping posts like crazy in the last few hours (I can't
even see my own OPs), so I only have 3 posts in this thread.

Somebody please clue me in about why I would need one of those
shorties instead of using a regular dutch oven. The only difference
as far as I can see is height. OK, they're cute as all get out - but
why would I *need* one?

--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

aem wrote about the mandarin-teriyaki short ribs:

> Sounds good. I wonder if hoisin sauce would also have worked with the
> mandarin.

Might be worth trying, but now I'm out of short ribs. I'm on a bit of a duck
kick at the moment, so maybe I'll try mandarin-hoisin crispy duck. But I
still want to make some kind of duck-kumquat-honey-chestnut-mace thing based
on the Alinea "quintessential autumn" dish -- after all, autumn is almost
over!

Bob

sf wrote:

> Somebody please clue me in about why I would need one of those
> shorties instead of using a regular dutch oven. The only difference
> as far as I can see is height. OK, they're cute as all get out - but
> why would I *need* one?

The short answer is, "Height matters."

Bob

On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:26:59 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

>sf wrote:
>
>> Somebody please clue me in about why I would need one of those
>> shorties instead of using a regular dutch oven. The only difference
>> as far as I can see is height. OK, they're cute as all get out - but
>> why would I *need* one?
>
>The short answer is, "Height matters."
>
LOL, cute answer - but not "getting" it, sorry. Why can't I use a
regular (heavy) pan with a lid of similar shape? I have deep pans and
I have lids that are not flat. What is it about the "height" of a
Dutch Oven that matters so much?


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 01:23:08 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

>aem wrote about the mandarin-teriyaki short ribs:
>
>> Sounds good. I wonder if hoisin sauce would also have worked with the
>> mandarin.
>
>Might be worth trying, but now I'm out of short ribs. I'm on a bit of a duck
>kick at the moment, so maybe I'll try mandarin-hoisin crispy duck. But I
>still want to make some kind of duck-kumquat-honey-chestnut-mace thing based
>on the Alinea "quintessential autumn" dish -- after all, autumn is almost
>over!
>
Are you buying duck pieces or whole ducks and butchering them? I've
been on the verge of a duck binge for quite a while, but I only see
duck legs (frozen) if it's not the whole duck. It hasn't been a real
"duck hunt" to this point, so maybe there is more to be found off my
beaten track.


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.

sf wrote:

>>> Somebody please clue me in about why I would need one of those
>>> shorties instead of using a regular dutch oven. The only difference
>>> as far as I can see is height. OK, they're cute as all get out - but
>>> why would I *need* one?
>>
>>The short answer is, "Height matters."
>>
> LOL, cute answer - but not "getting" it, sorry. Why can't I use a
> regular (heavy) pan with a lid of similar shape? I have deep pans and
> I have lids that are not flat. What is it about the "height" of a
> Dutch Oven that matters so much?

OK, there are three longer answers:

First, the shorter pans have less volume. When you're doing a braise (which
I was), you want the cooking space to be quite confined, so that when the
pan is covered less evaporation occurs, and (incidentally) so that less
energy is needed to heat the metal of the pan.

Second, the shorter pans are better at evaporation than the taller pans, so
when you're trying to concentrate your braising liquid before covering the
pan and putting it into the oven, the reduction takes place a lot faster.

Third, if you're making a casserole (or paella or risotto or Dutch baby) in
the pan, it's a LOT easier to serve from a shallower pan.

Bob

sf wrote:

>> I'm on a bit of a duck kick at the moment, so maybe I'll try
>> mandarin-hoisin crispy duck. But I still want to make some kind of
>> duck-kumquat-honey-chestnut-mace thing based on the Alinea
>> "quintessential autumn" dish -- after all, autumn is almost over!
>>
> Are you buying duck pieces or whole ducks and butchering them? I've
> been on the verge of a duck binge for quite a while, but I only see
> duck legs (frozen) if it's not the whole duck. It hasn't been a real
> "duck hunt" to this point, so maybe there is more to be found off my
> beaten track.

Both: I bought whole duck to make duck stock and roasted duck, and I bought
duck breasts to make that recipe for seared duck with orange-tea sauce. For
the Alinea thing, I'll need a whole duck, but if I made mandarin-hoisin duck
I can probably just use duck breasts. I get duck breasts from a local meat
market, but I saw that Whole Foods has them too.

Bob

On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 02:15:29 -0800, "Bob Terwilliger"
> wrote:

>I get duck breasts from a local meat market,

Good idea. I have a tiny butcher shop near me. He's so small, he
doesn't have much selection but says he'll try to get what you want.
I'll ask him.

>but I saw that Whole Foods has them too.

Whole Foods isn't an option for me. It's so inconvenient that I never
go there. Thanks.


--
I love cooking with wine.
Sometimes I even put it in the food.