As American as Olive Oil and Wine

Roze, of the blog MorelsAndMore (www.morselsandmore.blogspot.com) started a discussion a couple weeks ago of just what constitutes American food. It got me thinking about the history of our cuisine, including recent changes in how we eat. I personally couldn't imagine surviving without olive oil and wine, but these are recent arrivals on many American tables. Here's my take on how they got there. Apologies to Fussell and Pollan.

America is a frontier nation that turned middle class aspirant after the Industrial Revolution and never looked back. The frontier mentality viewed any attention turned toward refining cuisine as effete. How could anyone possibly do better than a steak and a piece of pie? There was a time in our history where if you weren't a farmer or a member of the gentry you were probably living on beans, fatback and corn bread (and corn whiskey). That was American cuisine, and if that wasn't good enough for you, you were a snob! When we finally grew into an affluent nation capable of turning it's attention toward cuisine we'd developed a deep class anxiety. Everyone was out for the comfort and constraint of a middle class lifestyle. This reached its height in the postwar boom.

The definition of "classy" in America mostly came from Anglophilic Northeasterners. They ate bland food, and a nation aspiring to better themselves took the cue from them. (Think of those bland warhorse dishes that were the height of American cuisine until the latter part the last century: Beef Wellington and Lobster Thermidor). After all, who was eating spicy, boldly flavored food? Poor people, mostly immigrants and the descendants of slaves. Ethnic foods were spicy. Prejudice against bold flavor has only recently begun to unravel in American cuisine. We still have a way to go.

But we've made progress, as evidenced by our choices of wine and salad dressing.

Ranch dressing is incredibly popular in America. What is it, really? A buttermilk riff on German yogurt dressing. Mayo based dressings have been equally popular here. The default in most of the Western world is vinaigrette. Why is it only recently catching on in America? First, vinaigrette has a sharp flavor. Sharp flavors traditionally don't do well with us unless they're offset by sweetness, like in ketchup or BBQ sauce. (When vinegar was used to dress American salads it was often offset with sugar, hence my lack of surprise over the recent popularity of balsamic vinegar). Also, vinaigrette contains a ethnic ingredient that Americans have only very recently embraced: olive oil. Not very Anglophilic stuff. C.E. Edgar naming Popeye's love interest Olive Oyl sent a very clear class signal about her: she was the daughter of immigrants - a woman from the lower rung of society. A perfect fit for his free-swearing sailor character.

Wine is equally telling. Until very recently who in America was drinking wine? The elite, drunks, Italians, Jews and those wacky Californians. American wine was sweet (much of it still is). Makes sense, as both the Germans and the English traditionally had an affinity for sweet wine, and our food culture owes more to them than we realize. (The American affinity for sweet drinks was unparalleled, though. In the past only the most dirt poor would drink water. Summertime soft drinks were lemonade or sweet tea. It's no surprise that Pemberton's temperance era creation has become as much a symbol of America as our flag). The elite may have been drinking dry wine, but it was, of course, imported. And they were considered snobs, so their opinion didn't count, anyways. I'm old enough to shudder over the memory of wine coolers and white zinfandel.

How did both olive oil and drier wines lose their stigmas and gain American acceptance? In a uniquely American manner: food fads. As a nation with shallow food roots we're given to food fads. As a capitalist country there's incentive to encourage such fads because there are pots of money to be made from them. 1970's lipophobia transformed olive oil from an ethnic novelty to a mainstay of the American kitchen, but only here would we market "lite" olive oil for those who found its flavor too bold. More recent studies that showed the health benefits of wine led to it becoming commonplace on the American table. Still, most American wines are fruity and less than dry. But drier wines that pair well with food can now be found just about anywhere in America. I think that's a good thing.

There you have one benefit of our current obsession with eating our way to health; we're starting to get over some longstanding food prejudices. (Of course this obsession is ironic, given how much of our food is anything but healthy). We even seem to be on the edge of spicy food losing its stigma, which is exciting, but that will be a later post.

Trader Joe's - The Supermarket for People Who Don't Cook

The Trader Joe's near me in Manhattan is a crowded nightmare, with queues frequently stretching to the back of the store. I can't even go in it. So I'm kind of late in coming to the party, as far as the Trader Joe's love fest is concerned. I've been in friends' apartments and seen quality products they've purchased for cheap at TJ's. I understand how their Aldi-like business model allows this to happen. Skip the middle man, brand it yourself and pass the savings on to the customer. Makes sense. But I never got to wrap my head around the phenomenon that is Trader Joe's... Until now, having just returned from a lovely, spacious, rock and roll themed location on Sunset in West Hollywood.

I get it. It's as clear as day, now. I know why so many rhapsodize about this place. I understand.

You know how the Food Network on TV started out doing cooking shows, then realized that home cooks were a pretty small audience to target? What did they do? They took a cue from popular Japanese television shows, and started airing programs about food geared toward people who didn't actually cook. And what happened? They got huge. My father, who has probably cooked no more than ten meals in his life (other than grilling, of course) watches the Food Network all the time. He loves it. He loves food.

What does this have to do with Trader Joe's? They've pulled off a similarly brilliant move: They've positioned themselves as the supermarket for people who love food, but don't really cook. Most of what they carry could be described as "ready to eat" or "heat and eat" foods - it's a sea of "value added" products. They offer a wide variety, the quality is pretty high and the prices vary from fair to downright cheap! Need your hand held in the kitchen? How about vacuum sealed bags of cooked rice? How about several varieties, variously seasoned and ready for the microwave? That'd go great with that vegetarian Indian entree in aisle four, wouldn't it? (The place is pretty vegetarian friendly - they know their demographic. Like in Whole Foods, young women are disproportionately represented among the shoppers). Looking for the upscale, world-beat, modern versions of the TV dinner, canned soup, snack foods, frozen entrees, dump and stir, heat and eat? Look no further! What about those who might scoff at such processed foods? Lure them in with organic processed foods! Let's see them scoff now! And for the cherry on top of the sundae: unbelievably cheap wine. No wonder the place is a goldmine.

I'll admit I admire it. I wish I'd thought of it. Hell, I wish there had been one near me when I was in college. Then again, I might never have learned to cook if a Trader Joe's had been part of my young life. It might never have occurred to me that a little bit of effort in the kitchen would allow me to do so much better. What motivation would I have had? Some of the stuff they sell is really good, as far as convenience food goes. Yeah, a love of food is part of what got me into cooking, but being a starving musician who wanted to eat a greater variety of foods than I could afford to go out for was an equally big motivating factor. There's so much inexpensive variety at Trader Joe's it's almost scary.

So what's there for me? Not much. I like cheap olive oil, basmati rice, pine nuts, etc, but I can find those things elsewhere. And elsewhere I don't have to wade through mountains of unnecessary packaging, all emblazoned with the Trader Joe's brand name. I'm not going to be tempted by the chicken chipotle wrap sitting next to the plastic container of seven layer dip. Sorry. I'm looking for ingredients from which I'll make my own meals, thank you very much. You can't even buy a bunch of parsley there! What they sell is a few sprigs in a rigid plastic box for the greater part of two dollars. The lion's share of what I bought today was a loaf of bread, some smoked fish, some sliced ham, salad makings and a bag of pasta. Like I said, it's a supermarket for people who don't really cook.

Leftover Maintenance

None of us want to waste food, yet we do. A big culprit when it comes to wastefulness is your fridge, notably leftover dishes or ingredients that get pushed to the back and forgotten about until they're inedible. People simply don't get excited about eating the same thing two days in a row, especially when it's likely to have suffered from time spent in the fridge. So instead they figure they'll get to the leftovers later, and that day never comes.

How did generations of grandmothers who never wasted a scrap of food get around this? They'd transform leftovers from one meal into an entirely different meal the next day. They had a whole repertoire of dishes created for the sole purpose of using up leftover this or that. Some of these were on the humble side, but humble and delicious are not mutually exclusive! Here are a few of my favorite leftover transformations:

Italian Bread Soup

This is something to do with leftover Italian (or French) bread that's gone stale overnight. Cut the bread into cubes and fry in olive oil with a pinch of crushed red pepper. Throw in some chopped garlic and fry for another minute. Cover with chicken broth (or stock), break up a few canned tomatoes into it, and gently simmer for ten minutes. Add a finishing herb (Italian parsley, basil or even chopped fresh rosemary leaves) and serve topped with grated Romano cheese.

Fritatta of Leftover Pasta

Any leftover long pasta will work here, regardless of how it's been sauced. To serve two heat olive oil (or a small amount of butter) in the bottom of a 10" pan. Add just enough leftover pasta to cover the bottom of pan. Grate some cheese (I use Romano) over it, then pour in three beaten eggs. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for ten minutes (or until eggs have set on top). Serve pasta side up, with a salad.

Fried Rice

Hot oil + whatever veggies you have lying around (garlic, onion, celery, carrot, green peas, bell pepper, whatever) + any leftovers (meat, fish, poultry, sausage, ham, whatever) + cold leftover rice + an egg + soy sauce (or fish sauce) = fried rice. That's the order it goes down in the wok. Keep things moving quickly once the rice hits, and make sure the egg fries a bit on the bottom of the wok before it gets stirred into the rice. Garnish with chopped scallions or cilantro if you have any lying around. Hot sauce works, too.

Cold Shoulder Francais

Cold leftover roast meat can be served thinly sliced with Dijon mustard (or horseradish for beef), cornichons, bread and butter. Just plate it attractively. Add a salad and a glass of wine and forget you're eating leftovers.

Open-faced Sandwiches w/Gravy

Here's an Americana classic for leftover roast meat and gravy. Reheat the sliced meat in gravy, and use it to top a slice of bread. (Any bread will do, but rye works really well). Eat with knife and fork. Both my mother and grandmother used this to stretch extra meals out of a roast. It's superb with turkey or pot roast. If you're a little shy on the gravy, thin it down with a little water and a pinch of salt. If it looks too damn brown and plain garnish with some chopped chives, so it looks classy.

Soup

Leftover bird carcasses and ham bones make excellent soups. Like many, my grandmother made turkey noodle soup from the leftovers of the holiday bird. She added a big can of tomatoes to it, which I've never seen anybody outside my family do. Try it, it's delicious!

Omelettes

Many leftovers can make surprisingly good omelette fillings. I've had luck with garlic mashed potatoes, ratatouille and sauteed veggies. If all you have leftover is a small amount of something ask yourself: Could this make a good omelette filling?

Red Sauce

Many leftovers can get a new lease on life as part of a red sauce for pasta. My wife particularly likes using leftover grilled meat and veggies. Leftover red sauce can be frozen and added to the next one you make. I knew a guy whose red sauce always contained the frozen remains of the last one he'd made. His sauce never tasted the same way twice!

Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Toasted Walnuts

Sorry I've been away for so long. Been doing the rock and roll thing: a couple weeks rehearsing in LA, then a week in Tokyo playing shows with Julian Casablancas. It's a pretty top gig: great music, travel and incredibly cool people to work with. (Not to mention how good LA and Tokyo were to a spoiled New Yorker out looking for a bite to eat, even on the cheap). Upon arriving home to the Lower East Side NYC's summer had faded, with the specter of autumn in the night air. I was ready to eat something other than Mexican or Japanese food, of which I'd freely indulged in during my travels - preferably something home cooked and reflective of the changing season. My wife insisted on stepping up to the plate (pardon the pun).

Even though I'd been looking forward to playing around in my own kitchen after weeks on the road, I was too jet lagged to protest leaving the cooking in her capable hands. The smell of the beets roasting while we caught up over a glass of wine made for wonderful anticipation. The play of flavors - roasted beets (sweet), toasted walnuts (mellow), goat cheese (rich and sharp), salad greens in Balsamic vinaigrette (sharp and sweet)- was perfect as the evening cool set in. A couple heirloom tomatoes she'd picked up from my brother's garden even found their way onto the plate. Lucky me, I didn't have to lift a finger.

This salad isn't exactly breaking news in the food world. I remember scoffing at it as "yuppie chick food" back in the 1980's. (What can I say? Back then sushi, arugula and dry wine were considered pretentious. Goat cheese didn't stand a chance). Between the cheese and the toasted walnuts there's just enough substance to stand as a meal on its own, though it also makes an excellent first course. The classic cheese to use here is chèvre, but lower moisture goat cheeses can be substituted. If using a lower moisture cheese use less and slice it very thin (a cheese shaver works well for drier types).

As far as wine goes, this salad is friendly to many: crisp whites with good acidity and light to medium bodied reds work well. If you like whites with more residual sugar than is currently fashionable bust them out. Sparklers are a good call, too. We went with a lighter bodied red (a St Laurent from Germany). It was a great pairing.

This recipe will serve two for a light supper or a weekend lunch.

2 large beets, peeled and cut into just bigger than bite sized cubes
2 oz chèvre (or other goat cheese - see above)
handful of walnuts, roughly chopped
salad greens for two
heirloom tomato, sliced (optional)
1/2 clove garlic, finely chopped
extra virgin olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss beets in a bowl with a little olive oil (about a Tbs), salt and pepper. Place in baking dish (or tray) and roast. Depending on how tender the beets are to begin with they will cook in 40 min to an hour. (Start checking them with a fork after 40 min). They're done when they've shrunk a bit and are easily picked up by being speared with the fork. Let them cool for a few minutes (they can be served warm, but not hot).

While beets are roasting you have plenty of time to get everything else ready: Toast the walnuts in a dry pan over medium heat, shaking them around every couple minutes so they don't burn. Once they've picked up a little color cut the heat and set aside. Toss the salad greens in a bowl with a drizzle each of oil and vinegar, the chopped garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. Arrange greens on one side of each serving plate and top with tomato slices (if using). Arrange beets on the other side of the plate, drizzle lightly with vinegar and top with walnuts and small dollops of chèvre. Serve immediately.

Bean Thread Noodles

When it's hot and humid I pine for South Asian food. Jennifer Brennan's excellent book, One Dish Meals of Asia, helped me get over my initial trepidation over approaching this cuisine in my own kitchen. (It's also a good read, which can't be said about all cookbooks). Her recipe for Laotian Odds and Ends Noodles was my first experience cooking bean threads (also called glass noodles), which are made from bean starch. I've been making variations of Ms Brennan's recipe for almost two decades - it's become one of "my" signature dishes. This is exactly the kind of dish I love: easy to make, inexpensive, practical home cooking that's good enough to serve to guests. It's also perfect hot weather food.

These noodles are no longer only found in Asian markets; recently I've seen them in supermarkets. They should not be difficult to track down, depending on where you live. That goes double for fish sauce, which is easy to find these days. At the table I offer any of the widely available Asian style hot sauces (Sriracha aka "Rooster" sauce, sambal oelek, chili garlic sauce) so each diner can adjust the heat to their taste. Those are the only "exotic" ingredients you'll need for this dish.

I use ground pork (preferably coarse ground), but ground beef, chicken, shrimp or any leftover meat you have will work; the meat is a supporting player here, not the star of the show. The cooking will go pretty quickly, so be sure to do all your prep work (cleaning, chopping, etc) in advance.

Bean Thread Noodles, Laos Style

This will make dinner for two with leftovers. If a third shows up you'll have enough. If you like your food on the salty side go a little heavier on the fish sauce.

large onion, cut in crescents
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
small piece fresh ginger, peeled, smashed and chopped (optional)
oil for frying (a few Tbs)
at least 1/2 lb ground pork (or other meat)
just over 1 Tbs fish sauce
4 50g hanks bean thread noodles (about 7 oz)
2 cups chicken broth
bunch cilantro, washed and chopped
bunch scallions, sliced into rounds

To garnish:

lemon and/or lime wedges
sliced cucumber (optional)
Asian style hot sauce, to taste
2 eggs
oil for frying (1 Tbs)

Heat oil in wok or large pan. Add onions and fry for a minute or two. Add garlic and ginger (if using) and fry for another minute. Add meat and continue to fry until meat is partially cooked. Add fish sauce and stir. Add bean thread noodles and broth, shifting the contents of the wok to make sure the noodles are covered with liquid. Lower the heat as the noodles absorb the liquid. Heat a small pan with a little oil. Beat the eggs and pour into small pan to make a simple omelette while noodles are finishing in the wok. When the omelette has set flip it in the pan and cut the heat. Once the noodles have absorbed all the liquid check to see if they're tender (if not add a little water). Turn the heat off the wok and stir in the scallions and cilantro. Transfer noodles to serving dish. Use a spatula to cut the omelette into strips, and lay them out attractively on top of the noodles. Garnish with lemon/lime wedges and cucumber slices (if using). Serve with hot sauce. If you prefer it saltier a squirt or two of fish sauce at the table will do the trick.

Canned Tuna For Dinner Again?

I only eat canned tuna once a week, but I enjoy it. The stuff is healthy in moderation, easy to deal with and it's cheap. The best stuff seems to come from Italy (not so cheap), but an excellent inexpensive choice is out there: Genova Tonno in Olive Oil. It's quality yellowfin from Tri Union, the same people who bring us Chicken of the Sea. That means your supermarket can get it if they don't already carry it. At just over two bucks a can the stuff is a wonderfully cost-efficient indulgence: meaty, salty, rich and delicious. The olive oil is a perfect foil for the clean tuna flavor. It's good enough you can forgo the mayo on a sandwich; just drain and put the fish on a good sliced roll, like they do in Spanish cafes.

If you're feeling slightly more ambitious try this:


Salade Niçoise

This classic French recipe transforms a tuna salad into an elegant (and complete) meal. Like anything simple, the quality of the ingredients is the difference between good and great. If creamy new potatoes, fresh green beans and perfect salad greens are available at your local farmer's market they'd be the way to go. If you're at the mercy of your supermarket so be it, the result will still be delicious. This recipe serves two for lunch, but you can just add more stuff to make it substantial enough for a supper. A glass of white wine doesn't hurt, either.

For the salad:

6-10 small new potatoes, scrubbed and cut into bite sized pieces
big handful of string beans, cleaned and broken into bite sized pieces
salad greens for two

For the toppings (tuna is a must, with any combination of the rest):

5 oz can quality tuna in oil, drained
hard-boiled egg, cut in half
2-4 anchovy fillets
Niçoise olives
cornichons
capers
chopped parsley

For the vinaigrette:

small clove garlic, finely chopped
pinch salt
ground black pepper, to taste
3-4 Tbs red wine vinegar
6-8 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard

Boil potatoes in lightly salted water. When they start to soften (test with a fork) add the green beans, cooking until potatoes are tender. Drain and cover with cold water for a couple minutes. Drain again and place potatoes and beans in the bottom of a salad bowl. Cover with salad greens and toppings. Mix together vinaigrette ingredients in a small bowl. Dress the salad with the vinaigrette just a little wetter than your taste, as the potatoes on the bottom will soak up some of the dressing. Serve immediately.


I promise to blog about something other than canned tuna next time.

Italian White Bean and Tuna Salad - My Kind of Fast Food

Chefs (with the exception of obvious shills) have been telling us for years that fresh food is where it's at - a matter of pride for any cook. That's hard to disagree with, but equally hard to live up to on a daily basis. Plenty of people come home exhausted from work at 8PM knowing they ought to be in bed by 10:30. They don't feel like doing any cooking, regardless of how quick the recipe might be. Can't they just open a couple cans and get something delicious and healthy for supper without having to cook?

In general I'd say the answer is no, but I've found a very few recipes that almost work that way and give a good result. Here's a favorite:

Italian White Bean and Tuna Salad

Cutting corners like this flies in the face of Italian cooking; it's a miracle this dish works. It will serve two for lunch. For supper I'd add more tuna and serve with good bread and white wine. The freshness comes from the parsley and red onion. I don't add any salt since the canned beans and tuna (not to mention the capers) are already heavily salted. This takes five minutes to make.

15 oz can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
5 oz can quality tuna in oil (or more, to taste), drained
small bunch Italian parsley, washed and chopped
up to 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
1 tsp capers in vinegar (optional)
2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 Tbs olive oil
fresh ground black pepper, to taste

Mix all ingredients together in a serving bowl. Serve. Congrats!