Text 28147, 120 rader
Skriven 2009-09-01 21:36:00 av JIM WELLER (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av RUTH HANSCHKA
Ärende: bad spaghetti sauces
============================
-=> Quoting Ruth Hanschka to Jim Weller <=-

 
 -> My wife's ex-husband is Danish and adds a 1/2 cup of brown sugar to
 -> his very bland pasta meat sauces. Also mustard and ketchup.

 RH> That sounds very Scandinavian

Yup.

 -> her step-father is German. He adds perhaps a quarter cup of
 -> sugar to an otherwise nicely seasoned sauce which I can just barely
 -> tolerate.

 RH> That sounds nasty too

Only half as bad.

MMMMM-----Meal-Master - formatted by MMCONV  2.10

     Title: Stewed Beets With Beet Greens And Ginger
Categories: Indian, Vegetables
  Servings: 4

      2 lg beets with their green tops
           (about 1 pound total)
      2 TB canola oil
      1 ts black or yellow mustard
           seeds
      8 md fresh curry leaves
      2    fresh Thai, cayenne, or
           serrano chiles, stems
           removed, cut in half
           lengthwise (do not remove
           the seeds)
      1 ts coarse kosher or sea salt
      3    lengthwise slices fresh
           ginger (2 inches long, 1
           inch wide and 1/8 inch
           thick), cut into
           matchstick-thin strips
           (julienne)

There are a few reasons I've chosen this recipe for Stewed Beets
with Beet Greens and Ginger from Raghavan Iyer's 660 Curries to kick
off our week of curries.

First, this recipe is the first dish I tried at home, and it was a
great success. Second, I am a die-hard fan of beets, but not in a
million years have I ever thought of them in the context of Indian
cuisine. As it turns out, their natural sweetness melds perfectly
with the earthy flavors of mustard seeds and curry leaves and stands
up to the heat of a few spicy chiles and a good amount of ginger.
Third, this recipe doesn't call for too many hard-to-find
ingredients. Mustard seeds can be found in most supermarkets, though
fresh curry leaves might be a bit more difficult to come by. Try a
market that specializes in South Asian or Indian products. Once you
locate a purveyor of curry leaves, snatch up as many as you can;
they'll keep in the freezer for a long time and will prove
indispensable for future endeavors into Indian cooking.

The process of making this curry is typical of many of the vegetable
curries in 660 Curries: Toast the spices in a small amount of oil
until fragrant, stir-fry the vegetables briefly, add a few more
flavoring elements and a bit of liquid, and simmer. It couldn't be
more simple, but somehow the progression of steps is a bit different
than most Western recipes. 

One thing I really love about this recipe is that it's one of the
few beet preparations I've seen that harmoniously uses all parts of
the beet: the sweet bulb, the crunchy stems, and the pleasantly
bitter, toothsome greens.

The finished dish is a perfect shade of deep magenta; pair it with
some basmati rice and a bit of raita or yogurt and you're all set.
Healthful, satisfying, intensely flavorful, and the presentation is
a knockout.

1. Separate the greens from the beet bulbs (you can cut them off or
twist, yank, and tear them away-whatever your state of mind). Rinse
the greens under cold running water and shake off the excess water.
Arrange the greens in a stack on the cutting board and slice the
bunch into thin shreds-including the deep red, juicy stalks,
Transfer them into a small bowl. Trim off and discard both ends of
each beet bulb. Peel them with a vegetable peeler, and rinse then
under running water. Cut the bulbs into 1-inch cubes.

2. Heat the oil in a medium-size saucepan over medium-high heat. Add
the mustard seeds, cover the pan, and cook until the seeds have
stopped popping (not unlike popcorn), about 30 seconds. Add the
beets, curry leaves, and chiles. Stir-fry to coat the red beets with
the mustard seeds, 1 to 2 minutes. Then reduce the heat to
medium-low, cover the pan, and cook, stirring occasionally, until
the beets are braised, 10 to 15 minutes. (The beets will sweat,
releasing some liquid, in which they will cook.)

3. Add the beet greens, salt, ginger, and 1 cup water. Once the
blood-red curry comes to a boil, cover the pan and simmer, stirring
occasionally, until the beets have absorbed most of the liquid and
are tender when tested (or more appropriately, tasted), 25 to 30
minutes. Then serve.

Adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer.

Posted by Caroline Russock

  From: Serious Eats                    
 
MMMMM-------------------------------------------------

Cheers

YK Jim


... There will be beer in heaven, otherwise it wouldn't be heaven would it

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