Ultimate Cook Book_ 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas - Bruce Weinstein [60]
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6. Vietnamese Picadillo
Makes about 1 cup
1 teaspoon peanut oil
2 medium scallions, white and green parts minced separately and set aside
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
6 ounces lean ground beef
1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter or tahini
1 tablespoon lime juice
2 teaspoons fish sauce
¼ to ½ teaspoon chili paste
1 medium radish, minced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves
Heat a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat. Pour in the peanut oil, wait for a few seconds, then add the white parts of the scallion. Stir-fry for 30 seconds, just to soften, and then add the ginger and garlic. Stir-fry for 15 seconds before crumbling in the ground beef. Continue cooking, stirring constantly, until the meat is browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and cool for 10 minutes.
Whisk the peanut butter, lime juice, fish sauce, and chili paste in a small bowl until smooth. Stir into the ground beef mixture along with the radish, cilantro, mint, and the green parts of the scallions. Set aside for 20 minutes or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
Salads
DRESSED SALADS ARE WESTERN FARE. THEY BEGAN THEIR CULINARY LIFE IN the early years of the Roman empire as a digestive aid. By the Renaissance, a salad, like revenge, was a dish best served cold; salted meats and greens were tossed with citrus, raisins, and nuts, dressed with oil and vinegar, and sprinkled with paprika or sugar. In the nineteenth century, tossed greens were such a European obsession that one Frenchman, the Chevalier d’Albignac, is said to have made a living in London by going house to house and dressing his patrons’ salads.
But surely the exact moment when salads came of age is when they passed into cliché—via Shakespeare, of course. In Antony and Cleopatra, to be exact. Toward the end of the first act, the Nile Queen laments her youthful dalliance with Caesar: “My salad days, when I was green in judgment…”
She may have grieved for hers; we welcome ours. In the spring and summer, the markets burst with produce: lettuce, tomatoes, radishes, cucumbers, the whole fare.
Unfortunately, all salads are here today, gone tomorrow. Tuna salad can’t last more than a day or two; potato salad simply won’t. Summer’s heat puts the spike to tender greens and winter inevitably careens around the corner, smashing the market to bits. Even vinegar, the longtime and perfect mate of lettuce, is actually its enemy: one splash and those water-doped cells start to break down.
Perhaps their transitory nature gives salads such a lasting pleasure. For a little while, salad days are the best days you can have, whether you’re dating Caesar or not.
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The Ultimate Salad Bar
Doesn’t everyone know how to make a salad? A recipe for one is about like a recipe for cheese and crackers. Here, we’ve just tried to clarify the choices. We start with the greens themselves, then move on to the important sparks and spikes like fruit, nuts, croutons, and even grilled chicken that make a salad more than just lettuce in a bowl. Finally, we offer thirty dressings that can make a salad stand on its own, whether you serve it before or after the main course.
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A Greens Primer
Our markets overflow with greens. There’s a wide variety to this leafy fare, but the best salads are made with a combination of greens, no one predominant. Here, we map out the territory so you can develop a signature mix that reflects your taste.
Lettuces
Long the centerpiece of a salad, these floppy, flappy greens are divided into four categories.
Butterhead Lettuce
Common Varietal(s): Boston, Bibb
Exotic Varietal(s): Red Butter, Green Butter, Tennis Ball, Grosse Blonde Paresseuse
What It Looks Like: Big-eared, concave leaves curling up into a loose ball
What You Look For: An earthy smell, a tight root, and no rust spots on the leaves
What You Get: