Thursday, February 18, 2010

New Ingredients

I may not get into cooking ruts, but I do tend to use the same ingredients over and over, like cilantro, parsley, chicken, lemon, etc..

So, I decided to be adventurous and try something new in my cooking. This month I tried tarragon and short ribs.

The Verdict

Tarragon: Beautiful herb, but not to my taste. It has that "black licorice" flavor, kind of like fennel. YUCK. I just don't like that flavor profile AT ALL. I used it in a creamy sauce for chicken.

Short Ribs: I freaking worked my butt off all day to get these puppies tender. The day before Valentine's Day, I roasted the ribs, braised them with aromatics in a red wine sauce, strained the cooking liquid, and refrigerated them overnight to be able to skim the congealed fat off the top of the liquid. On Valentine's Day, I sauteed some bacon, parsnips, and pearl onions and added the cooking liquid and the short ribs to re-heat. Was the cooking marathon worth it? Absolutely. When placed over a potato puree, it was heaven on a Waterford china plate. I can't say exactly what Graham said, but I'll have you know, these ribs were damn good. Simply said.

My next mission: Collard greens.

5 comments:

Jules AF said...

EEEEEEEWWWWW. I hate the black licorice flavor.

lisa said...

mmmmmmmmmmm. I've always been too nervous to try making ribs--where'd you get the recipe?

Shannon said...

That sounds amazing. I have been too chicken to try doing ribs (pardon the pun), but every time I have them I think that I should try making them. You should post the recipe!

Unknown said...

That's fancy, too bad in a week Graham will develop a rib allergy, right before he develops the oxygen allergy.

Tara said...

Wowie, those short ribs sound good. I like tarragon/fennel but Justin hates it, too.
Please tell me you've seen the Office episode with the collard greens (Michael, colored greens?) so funny..

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