Cook Like a Rock Star - Anne Burrell [57]
4 Add the wine, bring to a boil (BTB), and reduce by half, 3 to 4 minutes.
5 Add the tomatoes, chicken stock, and bay leaves and season with salt. Bring to a boil (BTB) and reduce to a simmer (RTS); cook for 15 minutes. Taste to make sure it’s delicious; adjust the seasoning as needed.
FOR THE CABBAGE AND STUFFING
1 Add the vinegar to large pot of well-salted water, bring it to a boil (BTB), and set up a large bowl of well-salted ice water. Add the cabbage to the boiling water and cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until just tender; immediately plunge it into the salty ice water. When the leaves are cool, remove them from the water and pat dry. Reserve.
2 Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil. Add the onion, fennel, and red pepper and season with salt. Bring the pan to medium heat and cook the vegetables until soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool.
3 In a large bowl, combine the sausage, bread crumbs, Parm, chicken livers (if using), and egg. Season with salt, add ½ cup water, and mix well to combine; if the mixture seems too dry, add up to another ½ cup water—it should be kind of wet. Stir in the onion-fennel mixture.
4 Make a 1- to 2-inch tester patty. In a small sauté pan, heat a bit of oil and cook the patty. When it’s cool enough, taste it to make sure it’s delicious—if it’s not, reseason.
5 Lay each cabbage leaf on a flat work surface. Spoon about ¼ cup of filling into each leaf. Fold the outside edges in and roll the leaf around the stuffing. Place each roll on the work surface with the seam side down so the roll will hold itself shut. Look at us, always thinking!
6 Add the cabbage rolls to the sauce, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, then uncover and simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve the cabbage rolls with the sauce spooned over them.
Coolio—stuffed cabbage!
Brined Pork Chops with Fennel Pollen
SERVES: 6 • TIME: ABOUT 30 MINUTES ACTIVE TIME AFTER 2 DAYS IN THE BRINE
I grew up hating pork chops. My mom used to make pork chops that were about as fat as a piece of paper (that’s all that was available back then), and she would cook them for a really long time—until they were dry and flavorless. Sadly, today so much commercially raised pork has so little fat in it that even if you cook it correctly, it can still be like eating your shoe. That’s why I love this brine—it infuses the pork with moisture and flavor, so you end up with a succulent and delicious chop. Then I crust it with one of my super-secret flavor weapons—fennel pollen. I discovered fennel pollen when I was working in Tuscany; it’s expensive but is so worth it. (If you can’t find it or don’t want to fork out the cash, toasted ground fennel seed is an acceptable substitute.) This is such a great combination of flavors that you will never think of pork chops the same way again!
MISE EN PLACE
3 to 4 tablespoons kosher salt
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fennel seeds
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 bay leaves
1 onion, cut into ½-inch dice
2 carrots, cut into ½-inch dice
2 celery ribs, cut into ½-inch dice
4 cloves garlic, smashed
6 bone-in pork loin chops (nice fatties!)
2 tablespoons wild fennel pollen (or substitute toasted ground fennel seeds)
This is a plan-ahead recipe! The brine takes a couple of days, but it’s really worth the effort.
1 In a large bowl, combine 2 quarts water with the salt, sugar, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, red pepper, bay leaves, onion, carrots, celery, and garlic. (The amount of salt and sugar you use depends on your personal taste.) Submerge the pork chops in the brine, cover, and refrigerate for 2 days (if you don’t have 2 days, at least brine the chops overnight). Remove the chops from the brine, discard the brine, and cook these bad boys!
2 Preheat the grill to medium-high.
3 Roll the fat edge of each pork chop in the fennel pollen.
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