cook's illustrated - june 2016

8/16/2019 Cook's Illustrated - June 2016

1/36


2/36

Doughnuts

- doughnuts get their lift from baking pow-der; a spiced sugar coating adds delicate crunch. With a custard

filling and a smear of chocolate icing, doughnuts

are a nod to the cake of the same name. are made bypiping egg-enriched dough into an elongated twist; the ring-shaped

variety are called . A generous portion of sweet

berry jelly fills the center of raised doughnuts.

are the bite-size treats made from the dough taken from the

center of ringed doughnuts. doughnuts featurecocoa- and/or chocolate-enriched cake dunked in a confectioners’

sugar glaze. The featherlight dough used to make doughnuts yields a soft, delicate result. were establishedby the French in New Orleans and are often enjoyed with café au

lait. A thin track of cinnamon swirls through glazed .

2 Quick Tips Quick and easy ways to perform everyday tasks,

from frying bacon to freezing bread.

BY ANNIE PETITO

4 Rao’s Lemon Chicken,Our Way

Getting a reservation at this New York institution

is nearly impossible, so we decided to re-create

its beloved lemony chicken dish at home.

BY ANNIE PETITO

6 Great Grill-RoastedBeef Tenderloin

To deliver great grill flavor to beef tenderloin,

we had to upend the most commonly held notion

about the source of that flavor. BY LAN LAM

8 Spanish Fried Potatoes Crispy potatoes served with a smoky, spicy

sauce— patatas bravas —are hugely popular

in tapas bars. To make them at home, we had

to rethink deep frying. BY ANNIE PETITO

10 The BestPan-Seared Salmon

For a crisp crust and a juicy interior,

the key is doing less, not more.

BY ANDREW JANJIGIAN

11 Easy Italian Soufflé A custardy sformato has the plush elegance

of a soufflé with a fraction of the fuss.

BY SARAH MULLINS

12 Korean Rice Bowl This comforting combination of rice, vegetables,eggs, spicy sauce, and a crisp crust is a restaurant

favorite. We wanted an efficient way

to make it at home. BY ANDREA GEARY

14 Dressing UpStrawberry Shortcake

Loads of fresh berries were a given.

But for a refined version of this classic dessert,

the key was engineering a cake that could take

the juice—and hold on to the berries.

BY LAN LAM

16 Our Asian Pantry While the universe of Asian ingredients is vast,

we turn to these staple ingredients to bring

authentic flavor to Asian recipes. And in somecases, the right product can be critical.

BY ELIZABETH BOMZE

18 Introducing Farro Risotto This Italian grain’s flavorful bran layer makes it

a challenge to coax into creamy farrotto.

BY STEVE DUNN

19 Sautéed Sugar Snap Peas What’s the secret to tender pods that retain

their namesake snap? Steam. BY SANDRA WU

20 Perfect Sticky Buns Sticky buns look inviting, but most are dry and

overly sweet, with a topping that threatensyour dental work. We wanted a version that

fulfilled its promise. BY ANDREA GEARY

PLUS: TESTING DRY STORAGE CONTAINERS

23 The Best Gas GrillUnder $500

It doesn’t matter how powerful a grill is.

If it can’t distribute and hold the heat where you

want it, your food will suffer. BY LISA MMANUS

26 Getting to Know

Sherry Vinegar The woodsy yet vibrant taste of sherry vinegar

makes it such a standout that it just might

become your favorite everyday vinegar.

BY KATE SHANNON

28 Ingredient Notes BY STEVE DUNN, ANDREA GEARY, ANDREW

JANJ IGI AN, ANNI E P ETI TO & DAN SOUZA

30 Kitchen Notes BY STEVE DUNN, ANDREA GEARY, ANDREW

JANJ IGI AN & L AN LAM

32 Equipment Corner BY MIYE BROMBERG

BACK COVER ILLUSTRATED BY JOHN BURGOYNE

M A Y & J U N E 2 0 1 6

America’s Test Kitchen is a real

2,500-square-foot kitchen located just out-

side Boston. It is the home of more than 60

test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists.

Our mission is to test recipes until we under-

stand exactly how and why they work and

eventually arrive at the very best version.

We also test kitchen equipment and super-

market ingredients in search of products that

offer the best value and performance. You

can watch us work by tuning in to America’s

Test Kitchen (AmericasTestKitchen.com) and

Cooks Country from America’s Test Kitchen

(CooksCountry.com) on public televi-

sion, and listen to us on our weekly radio

program on PRX. You can also follow us on

Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

PAGE 20


3/36

P

O T O K E V

I N WH I T E

L E T T E R F R O M T H E E D I T O R S

Confession tim e: We don’t really run this

m agazine.You do.

Okay, m aybe that’s a bit ofhyperbole.

But not very m uch.Because before we do

anything, w e ask you ifw e should do it.Then w e

solicit your input along the w ay.And then, w hen

w e’re finished, w e ask you how w e did.

Here’s how it w orks. When w e’re considering

w hat recipes to develop, w e survey a random panel

of you readers, asking, for each dish, w hether it’s

som ething you really w ant.I f80 percent ofyou say

yes, w e start testing incessantly to com e up w ith the

best possible version.When w e think w e’ve got it,

w e ask those ofyou w ho have volunteered to do so

to actually m ake the recipe in your ow n kitchens and

give us feedback.Iffew er than 80 percent ofyou say

you’re so happy w ith our recipe that you’lladd it to

your regular repertoire, w e go back to the draw ing

board (or, m ore accurately, the kitchen counter) toaddress your concerns.Then w e send it out to you

again.No m atter how m uch w ork w e’ve done, ifw e

can’t get at least 80 percent ofyou to love a recipe,

w e ditch it.(Ask our test cooks about the fam ous

chocolate fudge recipe that, despite tw o m onths of

testing, sits in the dustbin ofour culinary history.)

Finally, a postpublication survey lets us know how

m uch you liked not only the recipes but also the

stories and even the art in the issue.

It’s allabout giving you not what we think you

should have, but w hat you really w ant.One interesting thing about this is that what you

w ant changes over tim e.In this issue, for exam ple,

you’llfind plenty ofw hat you m ight call“Am erican

classics,” from Refined Straw berry Shortcake to easy

Skillet-Roasted Chicken in Lem on Sauce, sm oky

Grill-Roasted BeefTenderloin, and a new (and bet-

ter) version ofSticky Buns.These types ofrecipes willalw ays be a m ajor part ofour m agazine.

But there are also recipes here that would never

have appeared in our pages 10 years ago.There’s

Patatas Bravas, a classic Spanish potato tapa;Korean

Rice Bow l, w hich features the new ly popular Asian

condim entgochujan g;and Parm esan Farrotto, based

on a grain that has only recently com e to the atten-

tion of Am erican cooks.Oh, and w hen you read

about the sticky buns, you’llfind that the secret to

their am azing texture is a cutting-edge J apanese

technique know n astangzhong.It seem s that our w orld— or, really, your world—

is getting larger.We hope you like w hat w e’re adding

to it.We’llsoon find out.

The Editors of C ook’s Illustrated

YOU ’RE TH E BOSS

FOR INQUIRIES, ORDERS, OR MORE INFORMATION

COOK’S ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE

C ook’s Illustra ted maga ine ISSN 106 -2 21 , number 1 0,is published bimonthly by Boston Common Press Limited

Partnership, 1 Station St , Brookline, MA 02 4 5 Copyright

2016 Boston C ommon Press Limited Partnership Periodicals

postage paid at Boston, MA, and additional mailing o ces,

USPS 012 8 7 . Publications Mail Agreement No 0020 7 8 .

Return undeli erable Canadian addresses to PO Bo 7 5,

Station A, Windsor, ON N A 6P2 POSTMASTER Send

address changes to C ook’s Illustra ted, PO Bo 601 , arlan,

IA 515 3 -151 . For subscription and gift subscription orders,

subscription inquiries, or change of address notices, isit

AmericasTestKitchen com support, call 00-526- 4 4 2 in the

US or 515-2 8 - 6 4 from outside the US , or write to us

at C ook’s Illustr ated , PO Bo 601 , arlan, IA 515 3 -151 .

EDITORIAL OFFICE 1 Station St, Brookline, MA 02 4 5 61 -2 2-1000 fa : 61 -2 2-15 2For subscription inquiries, isit AmericasTestKitchencom support or call 00-526- 2

CooksIllustrated.com

At the all-new CooksIllustrated com, you can order booksand subscriptions, sign up for our free e-newsletter, or renew

your maga ine subscription Join the website and gain access

to 2 years of C ook’s Illustra ted recipes, equipment tests,

and ingredient tastings, as well as companion ideos for ev ery

recipe in this issue.

COOKBOOKS

We se ll more than 50 cookbooks by the editors of

C ook’s Illustrated, including T he Cook’s Illustra ted C ookbook

and Pa leo Per fected. To order, isit our bookstore

at CooksIllustrated com bookstore.

M A Y & J U N E 20 16

1

E D I T O R I A L S T A F F

B U S I N E S S S T A F F

Chief Executive Officer Da id Nussbaum

Chief Creative Officer Jack Bishop

Editorial Director John Willoughby

Executive Editor Amanda Agee

Deputy Editor Rebecca ays

Executive Managing Editor Todd Meie r

Executive Food Editor Keith DresserSenior Editors Andrea Geary, Andrew Janigian, Dan Sou a

Senior Editors, Features Eli abeth Bom e, Louise Emerick

Associate Editors Lan Lam, Chris O’Connor

Test Cooks Daniel Cellucci, Stev e Dunn, Annie Petito

Assistant Test Cooks Allison Berkey, Matthew Fairman

Copy Editors Jillian Campbell, Krista Magnuson

Science Editor Guy Crosby, PhD

Executive Tastings & Testings Editor Lisa McManus

Managing Editor, Tastings & Testings Scott Kathan

Senior Editor H annah Crowley

Assistant Editors Miye Bromberg, Lauren Sa oie,

Kate Shannon

Test Kitchen Director Erin McMurrerAssistant Test Kitchen Director Leah Ro ner

Test Kitchen Manager Alex x a Grattan

Senior Test Kitchen Assistants Meridith Lippard,

Taylor Pond

Kitchen Assistants Gladis Campos, Blanca Castan a,

Maria Elena Delgado, eather Ecker, Ena Gudiel

Design Director, Print Greg Gal an

Photography Director Julie Cote

Art Director Susan Lev in

Associate Art Director Lindsey Chandler

Deputy Art Director, Marketing Melanie Gryboski

Associate Art Director, Marketing Janet Taylor

Designer, Marketing Stephanie Cook

Staff Photographer Daniel J an AckereAssociate Art Director, Photography Stev e Klise

Assistant Photography Producer Mary Ball

Styling Catrine Kelty, Marie Piraino

Design Director, Digital John Torres

Managing Editor, Web Christine Liu

Social Media Manager Jill Fisher

Senior Editor, Web Roger Metcalf

Assistant Editor, Web Terrence Doyle

Senior Video Editor Nick Dakoulas

Test Kitchen Photojournalist Kev in White

VP, Print & Direct Marketing Da id Mack

Circulation Director Doug Wicinski

Circulation & Fulfillment Manager Carrie Fethe

Marketing Assistant Andrea ampel

Production Director Guy Rochford

Imaging Manager Lauren Robbins

Production & Imaging Specialists H eather Dube,

Sean MacDonald, Dennis Noble, Jes sica Voas

Chief Digital Officer Fran Middleton

Chief Financial Officer Jackie McCauley Ford

Senior Controller Theresa Peterson

Director, Business Systems Alice Carpenter

Project Manager Mehgan Conciatori

VP, New Business Development Michael Burton

Partnership Marketing Manager Pamela Putprush

Client Services Manager Kate ebrowski

Sponsorship Sales Associate Morgan Mannino

VP, Strategic Analytics Deborah Fagone

Customer Loyalty & Support Manager Amy Bootier

Senior Customer Loyalty & Support Specialist

Andrew Straaberg Finfrock

Customer Loyalty & Support Specialists Caroline Augliere,

Rebecca Kowalski, Ramesh Pillay

Senior VP, Human Resources & Organizational

Development Colleen elina

Human Resources Director Adele Shapiro

Director, Retail Book Program Beth Ineson

Retail Sales Manager Derek MeehanAssociate Director, Publicity Susan ershberg

Cover Illustration (Plums) Robert Papp


4/36

I L L U S T R A T I O

N J OH N B U R G O Y N E

C O O K ’ S I L L U S T R A T E D

2

Splatter-Free DeglazingPouring liquid into a hot skillet to degla e it can cause messy splatters To keep

his sto etop cleaner, Skip Redman of San Diego, Calif , co ers the pan with a

splatter screen and pours the liquid directly through the mesh into the pan Once

the splatter and si le subside, he remo es the screen to stir and incorporate the

browned bits of fond

SEND US YOUR TIPS We will pro ide a complimentary one-year subscription for each tip we print Send your tip, name, address, anddaytime telephone number to Quick Tips, Cook’s Illustrated , PO Bo 7 05 9 , Brookline, MA 02 4 7 , or to QuickTips AmericasTestKitchencom

No Mo re Sticky Jar LidsAfter struggling to open sticky honey, syrup, and jam jars, Katherine James of

Atlanta, Ga., now sprays the rim ofthe jar w ith nonstick spray before tw ist-

ing the lid back on. A couple oftricks:H old the jar at an angle w ith the open-

ing facing aw ay from you so you don’t spray directly into the food, and pulse

gently on the nozzle to avoid spraying too much.

Q U I C K

T I P S j C O M P I L E D Y A N N I E P E T I T O k

A S teadier Pou rfrom Syrup

Because it’s easy to pour out toomuch maple syrup over pancakes

or w affles, Mara Morgan ofBoise,

Idaho, controls the pour and cre-

ates a steady stream by affixing a

spare liquid pourer (the kind she

uses for cruets ofoil and vinegar)

to the top ofthe syrup bottle.

The pourer does get sticky, so she

removes and w ashes it

betw een uses.

Faster Food WrappingTo avoid repeatedly cutting plastic

w rap to individually seal up mul-

tiple portions offoods like muffins

or raw burger patties, Jennifer

Siegel ofW estfield, N.J., uses this

more efficient method.

1.Tear offa very long piece of

plastic w rap. Place individual por-

tions evenly along the bottom half

ofthe wrap.

2.Fold the top halfofthe plasticw rap dow n over the portions, and

press dow n betw een them and on

the ends to seal.

3.Cut between the portions

to create individual packets,

folding the edges under to close.

(W rapped foods can be placed

ina zipper-lock bag or stored

individually.)

More (and Better) Baconin the Pan

To ensure that bacon cooksevenly in the pan, Rob H ughes

ofSoquel, Calif., cuts the slices

in halfcrossw ise before cooking.

Theshorter strips (which happen

to be the perfect size for sand-

w iches) lay completely flat against

the surface;plus, he’s able to fit

tw o extra half-slices in the pan

w ithout overcrowding.


5/36

M A Y & J U N E 2 0 16

Frugal Fruit InfusionRather than throw ing straw berry

tops in the trash, Alexis Patrissiof

Ardsley, N.Y., saves them for flavor-

ing w ater.Steeping the tops from

1 pound ofstraw berries in 4 cups

ofw ater for 1 hour yields a lightly

sweet, fruity beverage, and because

the strawberries have already been

w ashed, there is no extra prep.

(Spent citrus halves also w ork w ell.)

Butter Wrapper D oublesas D ough Presser When pressed into a

baking pan for bar cook-

ies, dough often sticks tothe utensil.To avoid this,

instead ofusing a spoonor

spatula, Bridget Sciales of

New York, N.Y., uses

the w rapper from the

stick ofbutter called for

in the recipe, w hich is slick

enough to press against

the dough w ithout any

w orry ofsticking.

Easy-to-RecognizeH ard-Cooked EggsW hen M egan H oman of Rockw ood,

M ich.,makes a few hard-cooked

eggs for the coming w eek,she marks

their spaces on the cardboard carton

w ith the letter H so she doesn’t con-

fuse them w ith the uncoo ked eggs.

ContainingM ari na t in g M eatM iriam M iltenberger of St.D avid,

Ariz.,found that an empty plastic

salad greens container (one w ith no

holes in the bo ttom)w orks w ellfor

marinating smaller cuts o r chunks o f

meat.The plastic top snaps t ightly

to keep the meat contained;thecontainer is flat,so it stacks easily in

the fridge;and the container can be

rinsed and recycled after use.

A Grate WaytoTran sferFoodTo quickly tr anspor t cheese o r

vegetables that he’s shredded o n his

box grater,Tim G ranger of D ayton,

O hio,w edges a bench scraper that

is w ide enough to cover the opening

underneath the grater as he w or ks.

Then,he ho lds the tw o tools tightly

together to contain the food as he

transfers it to the mixing bow l.

Bookmarking RecipesWhen Nora Thom pson ofBandon, Ore., finds a recipe she w ants to try in a

cooking m agazine, she bookm arks the page w ith a sticky note on w hich she

w rites the ingredients she’llneed to buy.When she’s ready to shop, allshe

has to do is grab the note as her shopping list.

Freezing S liced Bread in PortionsTo easily rem ove and thaw slices ofbread for sandw iches from loaves storedin the freezer, IsabelAybar ofHouston, Texas, divides the w hole loafinto

groups oftw o or four slices.She then w raps each portion in parchm ent or

plastic w rap before putting them allback in the originalbag to freeze.


6/36


P H O T O G R A P

H Y : C A R L T R E M B L A Y ; R A O ’ S : G E T T Y I M A

G E S / N E W Y

O R K D A I L Y N E W S

Even i f you ’ve n ever landed a

table at R ao’s,N ew York C ity’s

legen dary Italian rest auran t,yo u

may have heard of its famous

ro ast lemon chicken . T he dish is a take

o n pollo al limone in w hich tw o small

chicken s are cut i n h alf and coo ked un der

th e restaur ant’s p ow erfu l br oi ler (called

a salamander).The d eeply b ro nzed b ird s

are then cut into pieces and bathed in

a simple, pun gent sauce of lemo n jui ce

(a fullc up per b ir d), oliv e oil, red w in e

vin egar,garlic,and dri ed or egano before

bei ng b riefly br oi led again and served

w ith crusty bread for dipping.

W ith its simple, bold preparation, thedish is un deni ably appealing,and the res-

taurant’s recipe (published in its coo kbo ok

and on th e Inter net) is hu gely po pular.Bu t

it’s no t perfect.W hen I tried to replicate it,

I hi t a nu mber of snags.Fir st:T he small,

quick-coo king b irds used at R ao’s are

no t available in mo st supermarket s, and

ho me b roi lers are no t nearly as pow erful

or ev en-heatin g as restaurant b ro ilers.A s a

result, the skin on the larger superm arket

birds (w hich h as more fat than th e skin o nthe you nger birds used at R ao’s) brow ned

unevenly and w as flabby since it didn ’t fully

render.T hen there w as the sauce.Pou ring it over

the chicken made the skin soggy,and marrying the

tw o co mpo nents at the last min ute made the flavor

transfer betw een th em superficial.Plus,the sauce w as

thin— fine as a bread dipper but no t viscous enou gh

to cling to the meat— and dow nright puckery.

T he go od n ew s w as that allof these flaw s seemed

fixable,so I set my sight s on makin g a mor e accessi-

ble versio n of the R ao’s classic and r efini ng its flavors.

P r o b l e m a t i c El e m e n t s

M y first task:picking the right chicken.A s an easy

alternative to the smallbird s,I decided to use bone-

in chi cken parts;3 pounds of mi xed w hite and dark

meat w ou ld roughly approximate the yield of tw o

smallchickens and w ould serve fou r.The R ao’s recipe

doesn’t call for b rini ng o r salting th e chicken, but

w e’ve found that both metho ds season the m eat and

help keep it m oist.T o m ake this a weeknigh t-friendly

dish,I chose brinin g,w hich can be done in 30 min-

utes (saltin g bon e-in ch icken pieces takes at least 6

hours to have an impact).I dried the brined meat’s

exterior w ellso as not to in hibi t brow ning.

A s for the cook ing metho d, a com pariso n of

con vent ionalhome b ro ilers to salamander s explained

w hy the for mer w as yielding such uneven results.

M ost salamander s co mpr ise mu ltiple closely aligned

parallelelemen ts th at disper se heat ev enly o ver the

surface of the food.W ith ho me broilers,the design

of th e heating element can vary con siderably:Some

mo dels have a single bar run nin g dow n th e middle

of the oven, others a serpentin e coil— and neither

projects w idespread,even heat.Plus,the h eat outpu t

and the distance you can put b etw een the element

and the foo d vary;I needed to low er the ov en rack 10inches from th e element in our test kitchen o vens to

ensure that the chicken pieces cooked thro ugh before

burn ing,but not every home oven o ffers that option.

T he mo re foolproo f approach w ould be

to sear the chicken o n th e stovetop and then

finish cooking it in the oven in the sauce.

D oin g so meant I could inco rporate the

flavor fulfon d left in the pan after searing the

chicken pieces into the sauce,and I cou ld

also m aximi ze the flavor transfer b etw een

the chicken pieces and the sauce.

A fter pattin g the ch icken parts dry , I

bro w ned them in a 12-inch ov ersafe skil-

let,transferred them to a plate,and b ri efly

sautéed mi nced garlic and shallot in the

rendered ch icken fat.To balance the acidity,

I reduced the amount of lemon juice to ¼

cup and skipped the vin egar (w e couldn’ t

taste it w ith allthe citr us).To thi s mixture Iadded 1 cup of chicken broth— w hich w as

just enou gh liqui d to subm erge the bottom

halves of the ch icken pieces w hi le leaving the

skin exposed.In essence,I’d b e braising th e

meat— but unco vered so that the exposed

skin cou ld crisp in th e oven ’s heat.

In less than 15 m inu tes,the skin w as crisp

and the w hite meat w as cooked throu gh;

the dow nside w as that I had to remove the

breasts from the pan b efore th e legs and

thighs, w hich took longer to cook, w eredone.A s for the sauce,coo king the lemon

juice had w eakened the fruit ’s flavor,and th e

consistency w as stilltoo thin .

To keep the skin crisp, we pour the lemon gravy around—rather thanover—the chicken before serving.

Rao’s Lem on Chicken, Our WayG etting a reservation at this New York institution is nearly impossible,so we decided to re-create its beloved lemony chicken dish at home.

j B Y A N N I E P E T I T O k

N w Y r k ’ s o u g h e s t a b l e

U nless you’re a New York City A-lister, you

probably haven’t dined at Rao’s. The tiny East

H arlem institution, famous for its Italian Ameri-

can classics and quirky policies, is like a club forlongtime regulars and celebrities, including Al

Pacino, Woody Allen, and Robert D eNiro.

W a t c h t o m e o g e t h e r

A step-by-step video is available

at CooksIllustrated.com/june16


7/36

M A Y & J U N E 20 16

5


N : J A Y L A Y M A N

Through Thick and ThinT he easiest w ay to synchron ize the don eness of the

w hite and dark meats in th e oven w as to extend

the cookin g time of the dark meat on the stovetop,

brow nin g it on both sides rather than just the skin

side so that it w ent into the oven at a higher tem-

perature than th e w hite m eat.Pro blem solved.Since I w as coo king the lemon juice, I knew

that adding mo re of it to th e sauce w ou ld on ly

incr ease the acidity, no t the flavor. A dded at the

end of cooking, it made the sauce sour. Bu t the

arom atic com poun ds in lemo n zest are mo re stable

and retain mo re fruit y lemon y flavor w hen heated.

A fter try in g vari ous amo un ts o f zest, I settled on

int rodu cing 1 tablespoon righ t before I added the

chicken fo r th e brigh t,citrusy boo st I w as after.(For

more information,see “The Chemistry of Cooked

Lemo n Flavor .”) A s fo r thi cken ing th e sauce,I fir st tr ied the most

conventionaltactic— removing the cooked chicken

from th e liquid and tenting it w ith foil to keep it

w arm,w hisking some cornstarch into the sauce,and

bri efly simm ering it.It w orked,but at the expense of

the chicken’s skin,w hich steamed under the foiland

lost its crispi ness.Bu t w hat if I thi ckened the sauce at

the beginni ng instead by adding flour ,wh ich is mo re

heat-stable than co rnstarch, to the arom atics? T he

tricky part w as that as the chicken cooked, it shed

juices that thi nn ed the sauce,so it to ok a few testsbefore I determi ned th at 4 teaspoons o f flou r made

for full-bo died,lemo ny gravy.I also sw apped in bu tter

for the chicken fat because I found that the rendered

fat varied from b atch to batch.T w o tablespoons of

bu tter gave me a perfectly rich sauce.After transferri ng

the ch icken to a servin g platter,I gave the mi xture a

w hisk to smo oth it ou t and scrape the flavorfulfond

from the sides of the pan back into the sauce.

A comb in atio n of chopped or egano , parsley,

and m ore lemon zest— stirred in to th e sauce and

sprinkled over top— added fruity brightn ess thatcomplemented the crisp skin;mo ist,flavorfulmeat;

and silky, lemo ny sauce. T hi s w asn’t exactly R ao’s

chicken,but in the spirit of N ew York,I could say

I did it my w ay.

SKILLET-ROASTED CH ICKEN

IN LEMON SAUCE

S E R V ES

W e serve our version o f R ao’s chicken w ith crusty

bread,but i t can also be served w ith rice,po tatoes,

or egg no odles.T o ensure crisp skin,dry th e chickenw ellafter brini ng and pou r the sauce aroun d,not o n,

the chicken right before serving.

½ cup salt

3 po unds bo ne-in chicken pieces (2 split

breasts cut in halfcrossw ise, 2 drum sticks,

and 2 thighs), trim m ed

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 large shallot, m inced

1 garlic clove, m inced

4 teaspoons all-purpose flour

1 cup chicken broth

4 teaspoo ns grated lem on zest plus ¼ cup juice

(2 lem ons)

1 tablespoon fresh parsley leaves

1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves

1. D issolve salt in 2 quarts cold w ater in large

container. Submerge chicken in brine, cover, and

refrigerate for 30 minu tes to 1 ho ur.R emove chickenfrom brin e and pat dry w ith paper tow els.

2. Adjust ov en rack to low er-mi ddle po siti on

and h eat oven to 475 degrees.H eat oilin ovensafe

12-in ch skillet over medi um -hi gh h eat unti l just

smokin g. Place chi cken skin side dow n in skillet

and coo k untilskin is w ellbrow ned and crisp,8 to

10 mi nu tes. T ransfer breasts to large plate. Flip

thighs and legs and con tinue to cook u ntilbrow ned

on second side, 3 to 5 min utes longer. T ransfer

th igh s and legs to plate w ith breasts.

3.Po ur of f and di scard fat in skillet.R etur n ski lletto mediu m heat;add butter, shallot, and garlic and

coo k u nti lfragrant,30 seconds.Sprin kle flou r evenly

over shallot-garlic m ixture and coo k, stirri ng con-

stantly,un tilflou r is ligh tly bro w ned,abo ut 1 minu te.

Slow ly stir in bro th and lemon juice,scraping up any

bro w ned bits,and brin g to simmer.Co ok untilsauce

is slightly reduced and th ickened,2 to 3 mi nu tes.Stir

in 1 tablespoo n zest and rem ov e skillet fro m heat.

R eturn ch icken,skin side up (skin shou ld be above

sur face of liqui d),and any accumu lated jui ces to skillet

and transfer to oven.C ook,u ncovered,untilbreasts

register 160 degrees and thi ghs and legs register

175 degrees,10 to 12 m inu tes.

4. W hile chicken coo ks,cho p parsley,o regano ,

and remainin g 1 teaspoo n zest together un tilfinely

min ced and w ell comb ined. R emov e skillet from

oven and let chicken stand for 5 mi nu tes.

5. T ransfer chicken to serving platter. W hisk

sauce,in corporating any b row ned bits from sides

of pan, until smooth and homogeneous, about

30 seconds. W hisk half of herb-zest mixture intosauce and sprin kle remaini ng half over chi cken.Po ur

some sauce around chicken.Serve,passing remaining

sauce separately.

SCIENCE The Chem istry ofCooked Lem on FlavorVirtually all of the lemon flavor we perceive is due to volatile aroma compounds that enter our noses as we

chew and swallow food—a phenomenon called retronasal smell. In fact, the only flavors we actually per-

ceive from our tastebuds are sour and bitter compounds. Both lemon juice and zest contain volatile aroma

compounds (limonene in juice; neral, geranial, and linalool in zest), but because the compounds in each

behave very differently when exposed to heat, we use a combination of juice and zest in our lemon sauce to

achieve a balance of fruitiness and acidity.

JUICE KEEPS ITS AC IDITY

The aroma compounds in lemon

juice, which are suspended in wa-

ter, are highly volatile and readily

evaporate when heated. But its

acidic compounds are unaffected

by heat, so juice added duringcooking will contribute bright

tanginess but little fruity flavor.

ZEST KEEPS ITS FRUITINESS

The aroma compounds in zest

are less volatile than those in juice

when exposed to heat because

they are trapped in oil glands within

the peel’s cell walls. Zest added

during cooking will thus lend no-

ticeable lemony taste to food; weadd more at the end of cooking

for a final hit of fruity flavor.COOKED

JUICE

m ost fruity

arom a com pounds

evaporate

acidity is

unaffected

COOKEDZEST

few fruity

arom a com pounds

evaporate

fruity flavor stays

largely intact

Better Results w ith a Backw ard Method

M ost recipes for roasted chicken with a sauce call for cooking the chicken and then making the sauce. But here we

quickly brown the chicken and then braise the meat in the sauce, which not only melds the flavors of the meat and

sauce but also eliminates the need to tent the chicken and compromise its crackly skin while making the sauce.

BROWN THE CHICKEN

TO BUILD FLAVOR

After searing the chicken to develop

the flavorful brown bits called

fond (and crisp the skin), we sauté

minced shallot and garlic in butter.

ADD THE AROMATICS,

FLOUR, AND LIQ UID

We use a generous amount of flour

to thicken the braising liquid (lemon

juice and chicken broth)—no need

to reduce it once the meat is done.

WHISK IN THE HERBS

AND REMAINING FOND

Just before serving, we whisk the

sauce to incorporate the herb mix-

ture and any fond that has built up

around the skillet during braising.


8/36


6

P H O T O G R A P H Y : C A R L T R E M B L A Y

Grilled to a perfect m ediu m-

rare, a rosy-pin k, ultratender

beef tenderloi n i s a great cen-

terpiece for summer enter-

taining. T he on ly trou ble is,th is cut’s

flavor i s fairly mi ld. T o amp th in gs up,

many r ecipes callfor smo king the tender-

loin o ver w ood chips,w rapping i t w i th

cured m eats like pancetta or b acon, or

rubb ing it w ith an abun dance of spices.

T he result? T he meat’ s delicate flavo r i s

ov erw helmed.I w anted a grilled beef ten -

derloin th at tasted beefy— no t smoky or

porky or spicy— w ith just eno ugh flavor

fro m the grillto com plemen t and amplify

the r oast’s naturalflavor.A nd o f cou rse,Iw anted the roast to b e perfectly coo ked.

Inner Perfection

I settled o n a ready-to -go cent er-cut ten-

derloi n (also kn ow n as Ch âteaub ri and)

rather th an a larger w ho le tend erloi n.

T he center -cut op tio n co mes cleaned

of fat and silverskin by th e butch er and

makes eno ugh to ser ve a smallgrou p.A ll

I had to do w as tie the roast at 1½ -inch

in tervals to keep it uni for m in shape,ensuring even cooking and an attractive

presentation.

A fter season in g my ro ast w ith salt and pepper

and giving it a thin coating of oil to encourage

brow ni ng,I fir ed up th e grill.I decided I’d start my

testin g on a gas grillsin ce it w ou ld be mor e chal-

lengi ng to p ro duce gri llflavor;on ce I’d perfected

the co okin g method, I w ou ld translate the recipe

fo r a ch arco algrill.

M any recipes call for grilling tenderloin ov er

mediu m h eat,bu t thi s necessitates con stantly tur n-

ing th e roast to ensure even coo king,and inev itably

some of the meat just beneath the surface overco oks.

I knew I’d r ely o n i nd irect, low -and-slow heat to

cook m y roast through since it w ould be the mo st

gentle and even. T he hi gher th e heat the meat is

exposed to,the mo re its proteins con tract,and th us

squeeze ou t juices,so by keeping the ro ast away from

inten se direct heat,I w ou ld also be min imi zing th e

jui ces lost.A fter t he g rillw as preheated,I tur ned off

allbu t th e prim ary bur ner and placed th e ro ast o n

the coo ler si de o f th e gri ll.W ith a little experim enta-

tion ,I found that keeping th e grillat 300 degrees

and placing t he tenderloin about 7 inch es from th e

prim ary burn er yielded a roast w ith an in terio r that

w as rosy and juicy fr om edge to edge.

Dripping w ith Flavor

W ith th e inside of the roast loo king goo d,I turn ed

my focu s to impro vin g its flavor and exterio r

appearance— it needed some brow ning, and i t

didn ’t t aste gri lled.T he t w o attribu tes are related.

Part of grillflavor is attribu ted to brow nin g— both

the deep co lor t he ro ast develops w her e it com es

in contact w ith the b ars of the grill’s cooki ng grate

and the overall bro w ni ng the exterior develops

through indirect heat. T hat much is pretty w ellknow n. Less w idely kno w n i s the fact that grill

flavor also co mes fro m th e meat’s drippi ngs h it-

tin g th e h eat di ffusers on a gas grill(also kn ow n as

flavor izer bars) or th e ho t co als on a char-

coalgrill. T hese drippings br eak do w n

into new flavorful compounds and then

vaporize, w aft up,and condense when

they hit th e food,sticking to i t and adding

th at grillflavo r.

T he dr ippi ngs are generally a comb ina-

tion of fat and juices, but a con versation

w ith our science editor inform ed me that

the fats have a much bigger r ole in creat-

ing gri lled flavor .Pro blem:C hâteaubri and

is a very lean cu t,so I didn’ t have mu ch to

w ork w ith. Bu t I had an o utside-the-box

though t:W hat if I put something else on

the grillalon gside th e tenderloi n th at could

pro vide the fat that tr anslates into great grillflavor? W hatever I cho se,th ou gh, w ou ld

have to be cheap and readily available. I

came up w ith a short list of optio ns:bacon

and salt po rk. I made tw o tenderloin s,

usin g a differen t po tent ialgrill“flavor izer”

for each.In b oth cases,I put t he flavor izer

directly o ver th e lit b urn er to maximi ze the

rendered fat it exuded.

Bacon w on o ut.It w as easier to w ork

w ith, and it b oo sted the gri lled flavor o f

my ro ast w itho ut produ cing a hard-to-contro lfire as the salt por k did. T hat is,

as lon g as I didn ’t lay th e str ips ou t flat

on the grill. T he key w as shaping a few strips of

bacon in to a co mpact block b y stacking th ree slices

and then th reading them accordio n-style ont o a

metalskewer. Positio ned over the heat diffusers,

the bacon heated thro ugh slow ly,r enderin g its fat

at a measured pace.

O ver th e hou r-lon g (give or take) cooki ng tim e,

the bacon defi ni tely bo osted th e grillflavor o f the

tenderloin ,bu t m y t asters agreed that it stillw asn’t

as good as they th ough t it co uld be.M y ro ast loo ked

bur nish ed,b ut it w asn’t really bro w ned. I needed

Great Grill-Roasted Beef TenderloinT o e l i v e r r e a t r i l l l a v o r o e e f e n d e r l o i n e a d o p e n d

t h e o s t o m m o n l y e l d o t i o n b o u t h e o u r c e f h a t l a v o r .

j B Y L A N L A M k

No, that bacon isn’t an accompaniment to the meat. It’s there to drip fatonto the coals—in this case not a problem but a solution.

See the Proper Setup



Oil Meat for Looks and Flavor

Rubbing the meat with oil before grilling helps prevent

sticking, of course, and also helps develop flavor and

color. When heated, the oil’s unsaturated fatty acids

quickly break down and join with meat proteins to form

compounds that accelerate browning and add flavor.(These compounds form as part of the M aillard reac-

tion as well as a separate reaction.) So for the prettiest,

most flavorful meat that doesn’t stick, oil it.


9/36

M A Y & J U N E 2 0 16


N : J O H N B

U R G O Y N E

the savory flavors that occur w hen m eat brow ns via

a process called the M aillard reaction for the best,

m ost rounded grillflavor.

Brow ning Basics

I headed back outside to try again. This tim e, Icooked the tenderloin quickly over high heat until

it w as lightly brow ned, keeping in m ind that too

m uch tim e spent over direct heat w ou ld lead to

overcooking. I then m oved it to the cooler part

of the grill to cook through. The results w ere

prom ising— the roast tasted grilled— but I w anted

even m ore flavor.

More tim e on the heat w asn’t an option;I needed

a w ay to speed up the brow ning.I knew from test

kitchen experience that the M aillard reaction occurs

m ore readily as pH increases.And the easiest w ay to

raise the pH in this situation w ould be to apply som e

baking soda.I m ade a paste by com bining baking

soda w ith the salt, pepper, and oil I w as already

rubbing on the tenderloin’s exterior and carefully

applied this m ixture. This tim e, the tenderloin

brow ned m ore readily, and the difference in flavor

betw een this roast and m y previous attem pts w as

obvious.E ach bite ofjuicy, pink m eat offered up all

the flavor that grilled m eat should have.

Translating this recipe for a charcoalgrillw as fairlysim ple.I used just 4 quarts ofcharcoal(enough to

filla large chim ney starter two-thirds full) and spread

the coals evenly over halfthe grill.I nstead ofcenter-

ing the bacon skew er over the coals, w here the fire is

hottest, I kept it near the center ofthe grillw here the

heat is gentler so that it wouldn’t render too quickly.

While the roast cooked, I put together a couple

ofno-cook sauces to serve w ith the tenderloin.Both

chim ichurriand a cherm oula w orked w ell, lending

fresh, bright flavor w ith plenty ofherbs.They w ere

the ideal sum m ery m atch for m y savory, m eatygrilled tenderloin.

G R I L L R O A S T E D B E E F T END E R L O I N

SERVES 4 TO 6

Center-cut beeftenderloin roasts are som etim es sold

as Châteaubriand.You w illneed one m etalskew er for

this recipe.The bacon w illrender slow ly during cook-ing, creating a steady stream ofsm oke that flavors the

beef.Serve the roastas is or w ith our Cherm oula Sauce

(recipe follow s). For our Argentinian Chim ichurri

Sauce recipe, go to CooksIllustrated.com /june16.

2¼ teaspoons Kosh er salt

1 teaspoo n pepper

2 teaspoo ns vegetable oil

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 (3-pou nd) cent er-cut beef tende rloi n roast,

trimm ed and tied at 1½ -inch inter vals

3 slice s baco n

1 Com bine salt, pepper, oil, and baking soda in

sm allbow l.Rub m ixture evenly over roast and let

stand w hile preparing grill.

2 Stack bacon slices. Keeping slices stacked,

thread m etalskew er through bacon 6 or 7 tim es

to create accordion shape. Push stack together to

com pact into about 2-inch length.

3A FO R A C H A R C O A L G R IL L:

Open bottomvent halfw ay.Light large chim ney starter tw o-thirds

filled w ith charcoalbriquettes (4 quarts).When top

coals are partially covered w ith ash, pour evenly over

halfofgrill.Setcooking grate in place, cover, and open

lid venthalfw ay.Heatgrilluntilhot, about5 m inutes.

3B F O R A G A S G R IL L :Turn allburners to

high, cover, and heat grilluntilhot, about 15 m in-

utes.Turn prim ary burner to m edium and turn off

other burner(s).(Adjust prim ary burner as necessary

to m aintain grilltem perature of300 degrees.)

4

Clean and oil cooking grate. Place roast onhotter side of grilland cook untillightly brow ned

on allsides, about 12 m inutes.Slide roast to cooler

side ofgrill, arranging so roast is about 7 inches from

heat source.Place skew ered bacon on hotter side of

grill.(For charcoal, place near center ofgrill, above

edge of coals. For gas, place above heat diffuser

of prim ary burner.Bacon should be 4 to 6 inchesfrom roast and drippings should fallon coals or heat

diffuser and produce steady stream of sm oke and

m inim alflare-ups.I fflare-ups are large or frequent,

slide bacon skew er 1 inch tow ard roast.)

5 Cover and cook untilbeefregisters 125 degrees,

50 m inutes to 1¼ hours.Transfer roast to carving

board, tentw ith alum inum foil, and letrestfor 20 m in-

utes.Discard tw ine and slice roast½ inch thick.Serve.

C H E R M UL A S AUC E

MAKES ABOUT 1 CU P

To keep the sauce from becom ing bitter, w hisk in

the olive oilby hand.

¾ cup fresh cilantro leaves

4 garlic clov es,m inc ed

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoo n paprika

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon salt 3 tablespo ons lem on juic e

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

Pulse cilantro, garlic, cum in, paprika, cayenne,

and salt in food processor untilcoarsely chopped,

about 10 pulses.Add lem on juice and pulse briefly

to com bine.Transfer m ixture to m edium bow land

slow ly w hisk in oiluntilincorporated and m ixture

is em ulsified.Cover w ith plastic w rap and let stand

at room tem perature for at least 1 hour.(Sauce can

be refrigerated for up to 2 days;bring to room tem -perature and rew hisk before serving.)

W hen Fat Sizzles,G r illFlavor BuildsA common assumption about grill fla-

vor is that it comes from burning coals.

While the compounds rising up from

burning charcoal may deliver some

flavor, far more significant is the flavor

imparted when fatty drippings hit the

coals (or the heat diffusers of a gas

grill). As these drippings sizzle and pop,

new complex compounds are created

that waft up and get deposited back

on the food. These compounds (along

with the browning and char the food

develops on its exterior) are respon-

sible for characteristic grill flavor.

So what does this mean for beef

tenderloin? Since this lean cut doesn’t

have much to offer in the way of fattydrippings, we needed to find a differ-

ent source. The answer:bacon.

1

2

3

The skewered bacon is placed

at the edge of the coals, where

some (but not all) of its drip-

pings will hit the coals, minimiz-

ing the chance of flare-ups.

The fat in the drippings breaks

down into new complex

compounds.

These flavor compounds

vaporize and waft up.

The compounds condense on

the tenderloin (which cooks

over indirect heat on the

cooler side of the grill), addingcharacteristic grill flavor.

1

2

3


10/36



Patatas br avas are a quintessential

tapas offering, the perfect bite

to nibble betw een sips ofsherry.

These chunks of crispy fried

potatoes are served w ith a smoky, spicy

tomato sauce (bravas means “fierce”)

and sometimes a thick, garlicky mayon-

naise, or ali oli , to balance the heat. In

Spain, patatas bravas are served at virtu-

ally every tapas bar but rarely, if ever,

made at home.

That being the case— and because I’ve

alw ays wanted to be able to serve these

at home w ith drinks or even alongside a

simple roast— I w as glad to find that recipes

for the dish abound. But w hen I tried ahandful in the test kitchen, the results w ere

disappointing. The potatoes didn’t have the

supercrispy, w ell-brow ned exteriors and

fluffy interiors ofthose I’ve enjoyed in tapas

bars, and the bravas sauces lacked complex-

ity. Finally, most of the recipes w ere very

involved, but I w anted the workload to be

reasonable.

T h e o a d o u p e r c r i s p y

Though some recipes called for w axypotatoes, I w ent straight to floury rus-

sets, w hose tightly packed, starch-filled

cells sw ell up and separate from one another dur-

ing cooking, resulting in just the dry, fluffy interi-

ors I w as after. I began b y trying the tw ice-frying

method called for by many recipes. It involves

parcooking the potatoes in relatively cool oil

(about 250 degrees) and then giving them a sec-

ond, brief fry in hotter oil to crisp and brow n.

During the initial fry, some of the starch mol-

ecules (mostly amylose) on the exterior of the

potato loosen and are hydrated by moisture in

the potato. This starchy gel settles on the outside

ofthe potato, creating a thin shell that crisps up

during the second fry.

Indeed, double-frying delivered good, nicely

crispy results. H ow ever, it w as time-consuming and

required multiple batches.

In a test kitchen recipe for home fries, w e call

for parcooking the potatoes in w ater instead ofoil.

In that recipe, w e add baking soda to the boiling

w ater to help create a starchy coating. H ere’s how

it w orks:Alkaline baking soda triggers a chain reac-

tion that causes the pectin on the exteriors of the

potatoes to break dow n and release a substantial

layer of amylose from the potato cells that, w hen

fried, develops into a thick crust. W e also toss the

drained, parcooked spuds w ith kosher salt to rough

up the layer ofpotato cells and create lots ofnooks

and crannies. The extra surface area means there are

more pathw ays by w hich moisture can escape and oil

can enter the potatoes during frying— a process that

leads to a thick, porous, ultracrispy coating.

To give this method a try here, I added ½ tea-

spoon ofbaking soda to 2 quarts ofw ater, brought

the w ater to a boil, and added the potato pieces.

Once the w ater returned to a boil, I set a timer for 1minute— just long enough for the pectin in the exte-

rior potato cells to break down— and then drained

the spuds, put them back into the empty pot, and

let them dry out for about 1 minute over

low heat. Next, I added 1½ teaspoons of

kosher salt, vigorously stirring until the

exteriors w ere coated in a thick paste. I

spread the pieces on a baking sheet w hile

I heated 10 cups of vegetable oil (most

recipes call for about this much) in a large

Dutch oven. Once the oil hit 350 degrees,

a standard temperature for deep frying, into

the hot fat w ent the potatoes. I fried them

in three 6- to 7-minute batches until they

w ere deep golden brown, draining each

batch and sliding them onto a baking sheet

and into a 200-degree oven to keep w arm

as they finished cooking.

As soon as I crunched into my first bite,I knew that things had gone according to

plan. The potatoes w ere encased in shells

that w ere even thicker and crunchier than

the ones I’d produced w ith the double-

fry method. P lus, they stayed that w ay,

even w hen dunked in sauce (a placeholder

recipe, for now ). I still had tweaking to do,

though. First, some ofthe potato chunks,

w hich hadn’t been in the hot oil for very

long, w ere undercooked at the very center.

Second, I had been hunched over the stovefor w hat felt like an age, shuttling batches

in and out ofthe oil and transferring them

to the low oven to keep w arm. Could I streamline

the process?

N t S o D e e p r y i n g

One place to trim back was the amount of oil: I

w ondered if10 cups, w hich took a long time to heat

up, w as overkill. Sure enough, the potato pieces only

needed to be just submerged— not sw imming— in

oil. Three cups ofoil w as enough to just cover the

pieces (any less w ould require flipping to ensure

allover brow ning).

I had cut the amount of oil by more than tw o-

thirds;could I also reduce the amount ofhands-on

time? The simplest solution w ould be to fry all of

the potatoes in one shot. This w ould increase the

overall cooking time, but maybe that w asn’t all bad

since the potatoes w ere emerging a bit underdone

anyw ay. Since the oil temperature would surely

drop w hen I added so many spuds, I heated the oilto 375 degrees instead of350. It fell to about 300

degrees when I added the potatoes and crept up to

350 during frying.

If you prepare the sauce and parcook the potatoes in advance, all you needto do at tapas time is fry the potatoes.

Spanish Fried PotatoesCrispy potatoes served with a smoky, spicy sauce— p t t s br v s— are hugelypopular in tapas bars.To make them at home, we had to rethink deep frying.

j B Y A N N I E P E T I T O k

W a t c h a t a t a s a p p e n

A step-by-step video is available at

CooksIllustrated.com/june16


11/36

M A Y & J U N E 2 0 16

H appily, the process worked beautifully and was

mostly hands-free:I only nudg ed the potato piecesoccasionally with a wire skimmer (a slotted spoon

would also work) while they were frying to separate

any that were sticking together and to encourage

even browning . About 20 minu tes later, I pulled

out a single batch of supercrispy, browned potatoes.

D eep frying had never been so easy.

Getting Saucy

With the potatoes perfected, I moved on to the

smoky, spicy tomato sauce. I sautéed sweet smoked

paprika with minced g arlic, salt, and a healthy doseof cayenne, cooking the mixture until it sent up

wafts of heady fragrance. For the tomato element, I

turned to tomato paste thinned with water, which

provided bright, sweet flavor and a smooth con-

sistency. Finally, after simmering the sauce briefly,

I stirred in a couple of teaspoons of tangy sherry

vinegar. The result was vibrant, tomatoey, and full

of spice and smoke.

I was tempted to whip up an alioli (the Spanish

take on aïoli) as well, but i n an eff ort to save time,

I decided to experiment with a hybrid sauce. While

not entirely traditional, adding j ust ¼ cup of store-

bought mayonnaise to the bravas mixture created a

twofer sauce featuring the best of both worlds:The

mayo added creaminess and h elped the sauce cling

to the potatoes, but the sauce still boasted plenty of

brightness and heat to cut through the richness of

the potatoes.

To re-create a tapas experience, I spread some

sauce on a platter and piled the potatoes on top,

passing the remaining sauce for dipping. When Inoticed the pace at which my colleagues consumed

this batch of potatoes, I smi led—and started to prep

a second batch.

P AT A T A S B R A V A S

SERVES 4 TO 6

While this dish is traditionally served as part of a

tapas spread, it can also be served as a side dish with

grilled or roasted meat. Bittersweet or hot smoked

paprika can be used in place of sweet, if desired.

I f you m ake this substitution, be sure to taste the

sauce before deciding how much cayenne to add, if

any. A rasp-style grater makes quick work of turn-

ing the garlic into a paste. For information about

our favorite smoked paprika, see “Tasting Smoked

Paprika” on page 28.

S a u c e

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 teaspoons garlic, m inced to paste

1 teaspoon sw eet sm oked paprika

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ –¾ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ cup tom ato paste

½ cup w ater

2 teaspoons sherry vinegar

¼ cup m ayonnaise

o t a t o e s

2¼ pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut

into 1-inch pieces

½ teaspoon baking soda

Kosher salt

3 cups vegetable oil

1.FOR THE SAU CE:H eat oil in small sauce-

pan over medium-low heat until shimmering. Addgarlic, paprika, salt, and cayenne and cook until

fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomato paste and

cook for 30 seconds. Whisk in water and bring to

boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low

and simmer until slightly thickened, 4 to 5 minutes.

Transfer sauce to bowl, stir in vi negar, and let cool

completely. Once cool, whisk in mayonnaise. (Sauce

can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours. Bring to room

temperature before serving.)2.FOR TH E POTATOES:Bring 8 cups water

to boil in large saucepan over high heat. Add pota-

toes and baking soda. Return to boil and cook for

1 mi nute. D rain potatoes.

3. Return potatoes to saucepan and place over

low heat. Cook, shaking saucepan occasionally, until

any surface moisture has evaporated, 30 seconds to

1 minute. Remove from heat. Add 1½ teaspoons

salt and stir with rubber spatula until potatoes are

coated with thick, starchy paste, about 30 seconds.

Transfer potatoes to rimmed baking sheet in sing le

layer to cool. (Potatoes can stand at room tempera-

ture for up to 2 hours.)

4. H eat oil in large D utch oven over high heat

to 375 degrees. Add all potatoes (they should just

be submerged in oil) and cook, stirring occasion-

ally with wire skimmer or slotted spoon, until deep

golden brown and crispy, 20 to 25 mi nutes.

5. Transfer potatoes to paper towel–lined wire

rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt to

taste. Spoon ½ cup sauce onto bottom of large plat-ter or 1½ tablespoons sauce onto indi vidual plates.

Arrange potatoes over sauce and serve immediately,

passing remaining sauce separately.

TW O S U C ES IN O N E

In tapas bars,patatas bravas are often served

w ith two condim ents: a sm ok, spicy, tom atoey

bravas sauce as w ell as a garlick m ayonnaise, or

alioli. W e tooka shortcut and threw together a

tom ato paste–based bravas sauce, using sw eetsm okd paprik and cayenne pepper to provide

the ignature sm ok and heat and then m ixing in

¼ cup of store-bought m ayonnaise. The result?

A sm ok, spicy, tom atoey, and cream y hybrid

sauce— in short order.

R E C IP E T E S T IN G For Supercrispy Potatoes, Put a Shellon ThemPatatas bravas are com m only m ade by frying the potatoes tw ice. The rst fry creates an exterior “shell”

of gelatinized starch that turns crispy during the second fry. D ouble frying w ork well, but it’s tim e-

consum ing, so w e lookd for an alternate m ethod. W e found that boiling the spuds in bakng soda–laced

w ater and then tossing them w ith ksher salt before frying produced a crust that w as even m ore sub-

stantial than that of the double-fried potatoes. H ere’s how it w ork: Bakng soda causes the pectin onthe exterior of the potatoes to breakdow n, releasing a gloppy, starchy paste that fries up crispy. Kosher

salt roughs up the surfaces of the potatoes, creating m any nook and crannies through w hich steam can

escape. A s the steam escapes, it leaves behind sm all holes, and the hot oil lls those holes, helping to

reate a substantial, brittle crust. –A nnie Petito and D an Souza

TRADITIONAL

WAY

Double-fried potatoes

boast a nice crispy shell,

but the process is m essy

and tim e-consum ing.

FRIED ONCE

Frying the potatoes

w ithout any pretreatm ent

isn’t ideal.They em erge

from the oilpale and lack-

ing a crispy coating.

PARBOILED

AND FRIED

Parboiling the potatoes

prior to frying helps cook

them through but doesn’t

create a crispy shell.

OUR WAY

For crispy potatoes w ith

less fuss, w e parboilthem

w ith baking soda, rough

them up w ith kosher salt,

and then fry them once.


12/36


10

P H O T O G R A

P H Y : C A R L T R E M B L A Y

The Best Pan-Seared Salm onFor a cr isp crust and a juicy inter ior,the key is do ing less,no t mo re.

j B Y A N D R E W J A N J I G I A N k

Pn - s e a r i n g a l m o n o u n d s o t r a i g h t f o r -

w a r d h a t ’ v e e v e r i v e n u c h h o u g h t

t o t h e t e c h n i q u e . No r m a l l y , I ’ d a d d a

l i t t l e i l o o n s t i c k k i l l e t , e t t o o d

a n d h o t , s p r i n k l e a f e w s k i n l e s s f i l l e t s o n b o t h

s i d e s w i t h s a l t a n d p e p p e r , s l i d e t h e m i n t o t h e

p a n , a n d c o o k t h e m o n b o t h s i d e s u n t i l t h e f i s h

w a s c o o k e d t h r o u g h a n d n i c e l y b r o w n e d o n t h e

e x t e r i o r u t t i l l i n k n h e n s i d e .

B u t w h e n I g a v e t h i s a p p r o a c h a m o r e c r i t i c a l

l o o k , I c o u l d s e e t h a t i t h a d t w o f l a w s . W h i l e t h e

f i s h h a d a n i c e r o s y i n t e r i o r a t i t s t h i c k e s t p o i n t , i t

w a s a b i t o v e r c o o k e d a n d d r y a t t h e t h i n n e r e n d .

P i e c e s u t r o m h e e n t e r f h e i l l e t r e u r r e f -

e r e n c e f o r t h e i r m o r e u n i f o r m t h i c k n e s s , b u t e v e n

t h e s e a p e r n n e n d . ) e c o n d l y , h e x t e r i o r s f

t h e i l l e t s e r e o r e o u g h h a n r i s p . a n t e d o

t a k e a d v a n t a g e o f t h e i n t e n s e h e a t o f t h e s k i l l e t t o

p r o d u c e o l d e n - b r o w n , l t r a c r i s p r u s t n a l m o n

f i l l e t s h i l e e e p i n g h e i r n t e r i o r s o i s t .

T h e o l u t i o n o h e r y n e s s r o b l e m a s e l a t i v e l y

e a s y : s a l t . W e s a l t a n d b r i n e m e a t a l l t h e t i m e , a n d

b o t h t e c h n i q u e s a p p l y j u s t a s w e l l t o f i s h . B e y o n d

s e a s o n i n g h e l e s h , h e a l t l s o e l p s e e p t o i s t .

S a l t i n g o u l d e e p h e x t e r i o r f h e i s h r i e r h a n

b r i n i n g a n d t h u s w o u l d s e e m l i k e t h e b e t t e r c h o i c e

s i n c e m y g o a l w a s c r i s p , b r o w n e d c r u s t . B u t , t h i s

b e i n g a q u i c k w e e k n i g h t d i n n e r , I d i d n ’ t w a n t t o

w a i t 2 o u r s o r h e a l t o o t s o b . r i n i n g o o k

a b o u t 1 i n u t e s , n d s o n g s a t t e d h e i l l e t s

d r y w i t h p a p e r t o w e l s b e f o r e c o o k i n g , I f o u n d t h a t

t h e r e a t m e n t i d n ’ t i g n i f i c a n t l y n h i b i t r o w n i n g .

A o r h a t r o w n i n g , e c i d e d o o c u s n e t -

t i n g a r e a l l y n i c e s e a r o n o n l y t h e f l e s h s i d e s i n c e

i t w o u l d b e f a c i n g u p w h e n t h e f i l l e t w a s p l a t e d .

P l u s , a t t e m p t i n g t o b r o w n b o t h s i d e s w o u l d j u s t

l e a d t o o v e r c o o k i n g . C o o k i n g t h e f i s h t h r o u g h

w i t h h e l e s h i d e o w n h e n t i r e i m e r o d u c e d

a o n d e r f u l l y r i s p r u s t , u t t l s o e f t e i t h n

u n w o r k a b l e i l e m m a : E i t h e r h e a c e - u p s k i n n e d )

s i d e w a s n e a r l y s u s h i - r a w , o r t h e r e s t o f t h e f i l l e t

o v e r c o o k e d w h i l e I w a i t e d f o r t h e f a c e - u p s i d e t o

c o o k h r o u g h . o v e r i n g h e a n i t h i d o w a r d

t h e n d e l p e d o o k h e i s h h r o u g h o r e v e n l y ,

b u t h i s r a p p e d o i s t u r e , o f t e n i n g h e r u s t .

T h e r e a s n e i e c e e f t o i n k e r i t h : h e e a t

l e v e l . W h a t i f I a d d e d t h e f i s h t o a c o l d p a n a n d

then u r n e d n h e e a t ? h i s o u l d l l o w h e i s h

t o c o o k t h r o u g h g e n t l y a s t h e p a n s l o w l y c a m e u p

t o e m p e r a t u r e . ’ d h e n l i p h e i l l e t s v e r f t e r h e

s k i l l e t a s o o d n d o t o h e y o u l d o r m r u s t

a n d i n i s h o o k i n g h r o u g h .

I q u i c k l y d i s c o v e r e d a p r o b l e m s t a r t i n g w i t h a

n o t - s o - h o t s k i l l e t : N m a t t e r h o w g e n t l y I c o o k e d

t h e i r s t i d e , t e n d e d o r y u t n d u r n o u g h n

t h e e r y x t e r i o r . h e n a s k i n n i n g h e a l m o n o r

m y e x t e s t , a m e p i t h h e o l u t i o n : e a v e h e

s k i n n . t o u l d e r v e o r o t e c t h a t i r s t i d e s t

c o o k e d , n d o u l d i m p l y e m o v e t f t e r l i p p i n g h e

f i s h . e m o v i n g h e k i n t h i s t a g e a s l s o h o l e

l o t a s i e r h a n e m o v i n g t r o m h e n c o o k e d l e s h .

S u r e n o u g h , h i s o r k e d e r f e c t l y . E v e n e t t e r ,

t h e k i n h e d n o u g h a t s t o o k e d h a t a s b l e

t o o o k h e i s h i t h o u t e e d i n g o d d i n g l e r o p

o f i l o h e a n .

T h i s s a l m o n w a s e x c e l l e n t w i t h j u s t a s q u i r t o f

l e m o n , u t a n g o - m i n t a l s a n d i l a n t r o - m i n t

c h u t n e y w e r e b o t h e a s y t o m a k e , a n d t h e i r b r i g h t

f l a v o r s a l a n c e d h e a l m o n ’ s i c h n e s s .

PA N S EA R E D S A LM O N

SERVES 4

T o n s u r e n i f o r m o o k i n g , u y 1 - o 2 p o u n d

c e n t e r - c u t s a l m o n f i l l e t a n d c u t i t i n t o f o u r p i e c e s .

Us i n g s k i n - o n s a l m o n i s i m p o r t a n t h e r e , a s w e

r e l y o n t h e f a t u n d e r n e a t h t h e s k i n a s t h e c o o k i n g

m e d i u m a s o p p o s e d t o a d d i n g e x t r a o i l ) . I f u s i n g

w i l d s a l m o n , c o o k i t u n t i l i t r e g i s t e r s 120 d e g r e e s .

I f o u o n ’ t a n t o e r v e h e i s h i t h h e k i n , e

r e c o m m e n d e e l i n g t f f h e i s h f t e r t s o o k e d .

S e r v e w i t h l e m o n w e d g e s o r M n g o - M n t S a l s a

r e c i p e f o l l o w s ) . F o r o u r r e c i p e s f o r C i l a n t r o - M n t

C h u t n e y a n d P a n - S e a r e d S a l m o n f o r T w o , g o t o

C o o k s I l l u s t r a t e d . c o m / j u n e 16

Ko sher salt and pepper

4 (6- to 8-ounce) skin-on salm on fill ets

Lem on w edges

1. i s s o l v e u p a l t n 2 u a r t s a t e r n a r g e

c o n t a i n e r . u b m e r g e a l m o n n r i n e n d e t t a n d t

r o o m e m p e r a t u r e o r 1 i n u t e s . e m o v e a l m o n

f r o m r i n e n d a t r y i t h a p e r o w e l s .

2. S p r i n k l e b o t t o m o f 12 i n c h n o n s t i c k s k i l l e t

e v e n l y i t h e a s p o o n a l t n d e a s p o o n e p p e r .

P l a c e f i l l e t s , s k i n s i d e d o w n , i n s k i l l e t a n d s p r i n k l et o p s f i l l e t s i t h e a s p o o n a l t n d e a s p o o n

p e p p e r . H e a t s k i l l e t o v e r m e d i u m - h i g h h e a t a n d

c o o k i l l e t s i t h o u t o v i n g h e m n t i l a t e g i n s o

r e n d e r , s k i n b e g i n s t o b r o w n , a n d b o t t o m ¼ i n c h

o f i l l e t s u r n s p a q u e , 6 o i n u t e s .

3. Us i n g o n g s , l i p i l l e t s n d o n t i n u e o o o k

w i t h o u t m o v i n g t h e m u n t i l c e n t e r s a r e s t i l l t r a n s -

l u c e n t w h e n c h e c k e d w i t h t i p o f p a r i n g k n i f e a n d

r e g i s t e r 12 e g r e e s , 6 o i n u t e s o n g e r . r a n s f e r

f i l l e t s s k i n s i d e d o w n t o s e r v i n g p l a t t e r a n d l e t r e s t

f o r i n u t e s e f o r e e r v i n g i t h e m o n e d g e s .

M A N G O M IN T S A LSA

M A K ES A B O U T C U P

A j u s t h e a l s a ’ s e a t e v e l y e s e r v i n g n d d d i n g

t h e a l a p e ñ o e e d s , f e s i r e d .

1 m ango,peeled,pitted,and cut into ¼ -inch

pieces

1 shallot,m inced

3 tablespoo ns lim e juice (2 lim es)

2 tablespoo ns chopped fresh m int

1 jalapeño chile,stem m ed,seeded,

and m inced

1 tablespoo n extra-vir gin oli ve oi l

1 garli c clove,m inced½ teaspoon salt

C o m b i n e l l n g r e d i e n t s n o w l .

The skin insulates the f ish during cooking and releasesits fat—no oil is necessary.

See H ow to D o It




13/36

P

O T O G R A P

Y C A R L T R E M B L A Y

A tow ering ch eese soufflé is m y favorite

brunch offering, bu t som e m ay con-

sider w hipping egg w hites and assem -

bling a w ater bath too m uch w ork for

a Sun day m orning. An idealalternate dish com -

bines the richness and elegance ofa cheese soufflé

w ith less w ork.

Enter sformato, an elegant Italian b aked egg

custard w ith a plush but light texture. It’s surpris-

ingly easy to m ake: M ost recipes I found w ere

based on a bécham el(a m ixture ofbutter cooked

w ith flour and m ilk) and then thickened w ith eggs

and flavored w ith sharp cheese like Parm esan or

Pecorino Rom ano.Som e included vegetables that

w ere processed into the batter, w hich w as ladled into

a baking dish (or ram ekins for individualsformati)

and baked in a m oderate oven for about 30 m inutes.

A restaurant version I’d h ad w as turned out of a

ram ekin (the dish’s nam e com es from the I talian

verb sformare, m eaning “to unm old”) and garnished

w ith m inced fresh herbs.

My attem pts at a recipe resulted in loose, soggy,

or curdled custards— hardly com pany-worthy.So I

got to w ork on rich, dense, but silky sform atiw ith

pronounced cheese flavor and elegant form .

Like any custard, the texture of m y sform ati

w ould largely depend on the ratio ofdairy to eggs, as

the proteins in eggs provide structure.When heated,

these proteins link up and form a netw ork thattraps w ater: The m ore dilute the egg proteins, the

looser the resulting custard.Severalsoupy custards

contained just tw o eggs in relation to severalcups of

bécham el, so upping the num ber ofeggs w as a given.

My bécham elw as basic: a roughly 1:1 ratio of

butter and flour (plus m inced garlic for arom atic

depth) cooked until a paste form ed, into w hich I

w hisked a few cups ofm ilk.I seasoned it w ith salty,

rich Pecorino Rom ano, plus black and cayenne

peppers for a touch ofheat.To that base, I added a

range ofeggs (from four to eight), ladled the custard

into six ram ekins, and baked them (set on a w ire rack

in a rim m ed baking sheet for stability and airflow

under the ram ekins) in a 325-degree oven.Cooked

to about 175 degrees, the sform atiw ere nicely set

and silky; letting them rest for abo ut 20 m inutes

allow ed them to set up further and ensured that they

turned out of the ram ekins cleanly.

I w asn’t surprised that m ore eggs delivered richer,

nicely firm results— but even w ith eight eggs, the

custards weren’t qu ite as cream y as I’d hoped.An extra yolk m ade them m ore decadent but also

overly eggy.Instead, I built extra richness into the

bécham elby sw apping halfthe m ilk for half-and-half.

With m y a silky b ase set, I varied the flavors by

processing roasted red peppers into one version and

thaw ed frozen spinach into another.To dress up the

sform ati, I enhanced a classic Italian grem olata w ith

butter-toasted panko crum bs and extra Pecorino.

Rich, silky, and elegant, m y take on sform ato w as

textbook brunch fare— w ith a m inim um offuss.

LEMON-H ERB SFORMATI

S E V ES 6

The sformati w illsoufflé in the oven but w illsettle

back to their originalsize w hile cooling.To take the

tem perature of the sform ati, touch the probe tip to

the bottom of the ram ekin and pullit up about 1

inch. Fresh thym e can be used in place offresh tar-

ragon, ifdesired.The sform atican be served w arm or

at room tem perature.For our free recipes for Roasted

Red Pepper Sform atiand Spinach Sform ati, go to

CooksIllustrated.com /june16.

Sformati

8 large eggs

1 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (1¾ ounces)

all-purpose flour

1½ cups whole milk 1½ cups half-and-half

1½ ounces Pecorino Romano cheese, grated

(¾ cup)

¼ teaspoon pepper

Pinch cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

2 teaspoons chopped fresh tarragon

½ teaspoon grated lemon zest

G r emolat a

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ cup panko bread crumbs

¼ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese

¼ cup chopped fresh chives

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Salt and pepper

1 F O R T H E SFO R M A T I:Adjust oven rack to

upper-m iddle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease six 6-ounce ram ekins and place on w ire rackset in rim m ed baking sheet. Whisk eggs and salt

together in bow luntilhom ogeneous and set aside.

2

Melt butter in m edium saucepan over m edium

heat.Add garlic and cook untilfragrant, about 30

seconds.Stir in flour and cook for 1 m inute.Slow ly

w hisk in m ilk and half-and-half until sm ooth.

Increase heat to h igh and bring to sim m er, 2 to 4

m inutes. Continue to cook, stirring constantly, 1

m inute longer. Rem ove pan from heat and w hiskin Pecorino , pepper, and cayenne untilsm ooth.Let

bécham elcoolfor 5 m inutes.

3 Whisk chives, tarragon, lem on zest, and

reserved eggs into bécham eluntilsm ooth. Divide

m ixture evenly am ong ram ekins (filling should be ¼

inch from top ofeach ram ekin).Bake untilcenters

register 175 to 180 degrees, 30 to 35 m inutes.

4 F O R TH E G R E M O L A TA :

While sfor-

m atiare baking, m elt butter in 8-inch skillet over

m edium -low heat. Add garlic and cook until

fragrant, about 30 seconds.Add panko and cook,

stirring frequently, untilgolden brow n, 1 to 2 m in-

utes. Let m ixture cool for 2 m inutes, then stir in

Pecorino , chives, and lem on zest.Season w ith salt

and pepper to taste.

5

Rem ove sform atifrom oven and let coolfor

20 m inutes.Invert sform ationto individualplates.

Sprinkle evenly w ith grem olata and serve.

Let the sformati cool for 20 minutes before unmolding

Easy Italian SouffléA custardy sform ato has the plush elegance of a soufflé w ith a fraction of the fuss

B Y S A R A H M U L L I N S

See the Proper Texture

A step-by-step ideo is a ailable

at CooksIllustratedcom j une16

M A Y & J U N E 20 16

11


14/36


12


At its most basic,a rice bow lis

no t so mu ch a recipe as it is a

practic alstyle of eatin g pop u-

lar across A sia:T op w arm rice

w ith an array of season ed vegetables,a

fri ed egg,maybe a smallamo un t of m eat,

and a piquant sauce,and stir it up for a

com plete mealthat’s true com fort fo od:

no ur ish in g, flavor ful,t exturally in terest-

in g,and health y.

T o m e,the ultimate interpretation of a

rice bow lis Ko rean dolsot bibimbap,w here

the rice takes on a brow n, crisp crust that

makes the dish very satisfying.Bibim means

“mixed,” bap means “ri ce,” and a do lsot is

the heavy single-serving stone bow lin w hichthe bib imbap is tradit io nally assembled.T he

vesselis heated and th en coated w ith sesame

oi lso the so ft rice sizzles w hen it’s pi led in.

W hi le the garni shes are arranged on top,the

heat retained in the stone crisps the botto m

layer of rice,w hich gets combin ed w ith th e

softer rice and oth er components w hen the

dish is mixed together.

I don ’t ow n a set of the ston e bow ls,so I

usually go to a K orean restaurant for bib im-

bap.But since many of the ingredients arestaples,I w anted to try simu lating sto ne-

bow lbibimbap at home.And w hy stop at

the traditi on alsingle-servi ng si ze? T he assembled

dish is so impressive that I knew I’d w ant to show

of f for guests and make a family-style dish that w ou ld

serv e at least fou r.

i b i m b a p a s i c s

First I’d make the rice and the sauce,w hich could

sit w hile I prepared the garni shes. Ko rean cooks

use soft, sligh tly resilien t sho rt-grain w hi te rice for

bi bimbap because its clingy sur face helps it for m a

mo re cohesive cru st than smoo th lon g-grain rice

w ou ld.I rin sed the grains in severalchanges of cool

w ater to w ash aw ay excess starch th at makes the

rice to o sticky.I then simmered equ alparts rice and

w ater,plus a bit of salt,in a covered saucepan w hi le

I turn ed my attentio n to the sauce.

T he primary component w ould be gochujang,a

thick K orean chile paste that’s sw eet, savo ry, and

spicy. T he rest of the sauce, w hich I based on a

Ko rean recipe,w as toasted sesame

oil and a bit o f sugar along w ith

enough w ater to make the mixture

just ru nn y enou gh fo r dr izzling.

Part of w hat makes bibimbap so

impressive to serve— the tidy piles

of color fuland textu rally v aried gar-

nishes— is also w hat makes it a bit o f

a marathon to prepare.O ne shortcut

w ould be to cut back on the nu mber

of garnishes,starting w ith th e meat.

Authen tic bu t hard-to-fin d dri ed

ferns and daikon radishes w ere next

to go ,and I slimmed th e rest of the

list to a mix of cho pped spinach,

shredded carrots, and sliced shiitake mushr oo ms. Isautéed th em sequentially i n a skillet fo r even coo king,

season ing each batch w ith so y sauce,sugar,garlic,and

scallions befor e return ing them to indivi dualbow ls.

T o b uild a substantialcrust of r ice,I’d

need som ethi ng that, like a dolsot, held

heat for a lon g time. It occur red to m e

that my cast-iro n skillet behaves the same

w ay. I set it ov er high h eat, added veg-

etable o iland a lit tle sesame o ilfo r a flavo r

bo ost,carefully added th e rice,and patted

it i nto an even layer. I let the rice co ok

for 2 minutes to get the crust going and

then arranged the garnishes on top before

fry in g the eggs in a separate skillet I had

w armed.I placed the fini shed eggs in the

center of th e vegetables, dri zzled on the

sauce,removed the pan from the heat,and

stopped br iefly to admir e the lov ely sigh t.

Later I w ou ld be glad I had paused,becausethin gs w ere abo ut to get ugly.

Al l Mx e d U

Stirrin g transfor ms the orderly bibi mb ap

in to a jum ble of color s and t extures.It’s

an imp ressiv e sight, bu t it w as especially

dramatic t hi s tim e because my skillet w as

too shallow to con tain everythi ng; rice,

vegetables,eggs,and sauce w ent ev ery-

w here. Plus, the crust had broken into

ver y sm all pieces th at qui ckly lost t hei rcrunch in the soft rice.

T he first change w as obviou s:Sw itch to a

deeper D utch ov en to better accommo date the mix-

ing step.I’d stillhave to co ok the th ree vegetables

separately,but since th ey w ere allseason ed sim ilarly,

I made a mixture of soy sauce,sugar,

scallio ns,and garlic (and a lit tle b it

of w ater to help th ings co ok) that I

could add in measured amo un ts to

each batch. B oth stainless-steeland

cast-iron D utch ovens wo rked,but

the heftier en ameled cast-ir on pot

yielded a m ore substantialcrust,so

I w ent w ith that.

Fin ally,I w as tempted to try a con-

trov ersialstep:not rinsing the rice.I

made two batches— one w ith rinsed

rice and one w ith unrinsed— and,

frankly, the shortcut w as wo rth it.

T here’s so much going on in this dish

that my tasters didn’t n otice mu ch o f a difference.T o make sure everyone go t substantial pieces

of crust,I mixed the bibi mbap in tw o stages,first

com bin ing th e vegetables,eggs,and soft ri ce and

To ensure that all the components are done at the same time, fry the eggswhile the rice sizzles and forms a crust.

Korean Rice Bow lThis comforting combination of rice, vegetables, eggs, spicy sauce, and a crispcrust is a restaurant favorite.We wanted an efficient way to make it at home.

j B Y A N D R E A G E A R Y k

E s y o M k e —

a n d M k e Ah e a d

D on’t let the lengthy recipe

intimidate you. The pickles, chile

sauce, and vegetables can all be

prepared ahead, so all that’s left

to do on the day of is cook the

rice and eggs. Plus, leftover pick-

les and chile sauce make great

condiments for other applica-

tions like sandwiches, burgers,

noodles, and eggs.

S e e h e o w l o m e o g e t h e r




15/36

then digging deep and scraping up the crust in big

pieces that stayed crunchy

I was delighted with my family-style bibimbap,

but it was missing a crisp, pungent element. In a

Korean household or restaurant, a dish of the spicy

fermented cabbage known as kimchi would fill thatrole and if you can get it ( kimchi is a ailable in

many supermarkets and Asian markets , it’ s a great

addition As a stand-in, I quickly pickled a mi ture

of bean sprouts and sliced cucumbers It made for a

bright, fresh accompaniment that could also be pre-

pared ahead of time and it completed my v ersion

of this hearty, sa ory one-pot meal

K OR E A N R I CE B O W L ( D O L S OT B I B I M B A P )

SERVES 6

For a quick dinner, prepare the pickles, chile sauce,

and egetables a day ahead warm the egetables to

room temperature in the microwa e before adding

them to the rice . You can also substitute store-

bought kimchi for the pickles to sa e time The

Korean chile paste gochujang is sold in Asian markets

and some supermarkets If you can’t find it, an equal

amount of Sriracha can be substituted But because

Sriracha is more watery than gochu ang, omit the

water from the chile sauce and stir ust 1 tablespoonof sauce into the rice in step . For a true bibimbap

e perience, bring the pot to the table before stirring

the egetables into the rice in step

P i ckles

1 cup cider vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

1½ teaspoons salt

1 cucumber, peeled, quartered lengthw ise,

seeded, and sliced thin on bias

4 ounces (2 cups) bean sprouts

C hi le Sau ce

¼ cup gochujang

3 tablespoons w ater

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 teaspoon sugar

R ice

2½ cups short-grain w hite rice

2½ cups w ater

¾ teaspoon salt

V egetables

½ cup w ater

3 scallions, minced

3 tablespoons soy sauce

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 carrots, peeled and shredded (2 cups)

8 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, capssliced thin

1 (10-ounce) bag curly-leafspinach, stemmed

and chopped coarse

Bibimbap

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

4 large eggs

1 O R H E I C K L E S : Whisk inegar, sugar,and salt tog ether in medium bowl Add cucumber

and bean sprouts and toss to combine Gently press

on egetables to submerge Co er and refrigerate for

at least 0 minutes or up to 2 hours

2 F O R T H E C H I L E S AUC E : Whisk gochu-

j ang, water, oil, and sugar together in small bowl

Co er and set aside

3 F O R T H E R I C E : Bring rice, water, and salt

to boil in medium saucepan o er high heat. Co er,

reduce heat to low, and cook for minutes Remo e

rice from heat and let sit, co ered, until tender, about15 minutes

4 O R H E E G E T AB L E S : While rice cooks,

stir together water, scallions, soy sauce, garlic, and

sugar eat 1 teaspoon oil in Dutch o en o er high

heat until shimmering. Add carrots and stir until

coated Add cup scallion mix ture and cook, stir-

ring frequently, until carrots are slightly softened

and moisture has e aporated, 1 to 2 minutes Using

slotted spoon, transfer carrots to small bowl

5

H eat 1 teaspoon oil in now-empty pot untilshimmering. Add mushrooms and stir until coated

with oil Add cup scallion mi ture and cook,

stirring frequently, until mushrooms are tender and

moisture has e aporated, to minutes Using slot-

ted spoon, transfer mushrooms to second small bowl

6 eat remaining 1 teaspoon oil i

cook's illustrated - june 2016

Documents