Flavorful Fish Recipe from the Middle East

I've been testing and trying out flavors of the Middle East, as well as working to amass the tastiest low-cal dishes for our health regimen. Luckily, it seems to be a relatively easy task, and in the same week I read about Chreime (or Chraime), and then saw it on television.

Chreime or Fish Stew

Chreime is a fish stew. It has either tomatoes or roasted red bell peppers, or both. It is best with a nice firm, white fish like halibut, snapper or cod. But where, exactly, this dish originates is debatable, apparently. In the show I saw, they said it was originally a Jewish dish from north Africa, but that it has sort of become a dish of Israel.

Cooking Chreime or Fish Stew

I have no roots in Israel or the Middle East, so this is only recounting what I heard or read, but however this dish came to be, it sounded like something that would tempt my husband - who generally does not eat fish. As it happened, one recipe is in one of the many cookbooks he got for me to explore Middle Eastern cuisine (just because I commented that I didn't really know much about that whole section of the world's cooking!). 

When a recipe is well known, there are always going to be similarities. I like to adjust amounts to my own taste. Some recipes use what is to me an extraordinary amount of cumin. I do not care for cumin. If I can actually taste cumin as a stand-out flavor - it's just way too much. Some recipes call for a whole lot of smoked paprika. This is great, as I love it, as does my husband. Others call for just a little bit. Some recipes add lemon juice, some not. As I mentioned, some use red bell pepper, some use tomatoes and some use both. Some use onion, some do not. Some use stock, some add water, some do not. 

What is generally included is the fish of course, and cumin, paprika (smoked or plain or hot!), something as a red base (tomatoes, red bell peppers, roasted red bell peppers, tomato paste, etc) and lots of garlic. So here is what I put together to make this dish, and I have to say, that it is truly flavorful, absolutely delectable, and lo-cal! And best of all, my husband loved it! What better way to enjoy a dinner?

Chreime or Fish Stew

Chreime, or Fish Stew

Serves 4

1 pound firm white fish fillets (haddock, snapper, cod)
6 - 8 cloves garlic
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 red bell peppers, roasted, peeled, chopped, 
    (OR 1 large jar roasted red bell peppers, drained, chopped)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
½ cup water or fish stock
1½ tablespoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 - 2 tablespoons lemon juice
large handful cilantro, coarsely chopped 

In a small bowl or with a mortar and pestle, smash together the garlic with the salt, until it makes a paste. Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat the oil and add in the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onions are soft and translucent. Add in the peppers, tomato paste and stock (white wine can be used, if preferred), stirring to mix. Sprinkle on the paprika, cumin and lemon juice, then add in the garlic paste and bring to a simmer. Nestle the fish fillets in among the sauce and cover. Cook for about 10 minutes (more, or less, depending on the thickness of the fish fillets), or until the fish flakes easily with a fork. Sprinkle on most of the cilantro and stir in, reserving some for garnish. Serve immediately, with either brown rice or couscous.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Various Things I Have Been Working On

Middle Eastern Cookbooks

I haven't been writing many blogs. It certainly isn't due to lack of cooking.

Ever since my husband came home with a stack of Middle Eastern cookbooks for me to try out, I have been reading through recipes, book after book . . . and trying some of them out. I've made a version of "Rose Harissa," though mine is not hot spicy, but just spiced. I made a Moroccan bread with cheese rolled and folded into it. These flat breads were amazingly delicious, but loaded with a tablespoon of butter/oil per bread; lots of fat calories, not even counting the cheese. They sure were good though! And I made a Moroccan dinner with chicken and rice, loaded with dried fruits. Last evening I made "Nan e Barbari" from the "Hot Bread Kitchen Cookbook" (third from the bottom of my "stack"), available on Amazon.

This bread recipe is found all over on the internet, usually under the name of Persian Flatbread or just Barbari. Looking through many of the recipes (at least 10 of them), they are all very similar. It is a simple enough recipe, using flour, water, salt and yeast. What sets this particular bread apart is the shaping of it, and also the fact that it uses a cooked flour/water topping called "roomal," that seems to play the part of sealing in moisture and creating a nice crust.

Persian Flatbread - Nan e Barbari - Barbari

Looking through the recipes, I also watched one video, and liked how this young woman made her Persian Flatbreads. The site I watched was on YouTube, here, and shows the method well. I believe it helps to have the recipe in front of you, or like me, to have already tried it, and then see what kinds of changes might have been good. 

For me, I added more flour, in an effort to approximate what the book said the dough should be like, but might have been better off leaving the dough just as wet as it started out. A wet dough leaves nice big holes in the finished product, and would be a definite plus. Other than that, for such a simple bread, the flavors were absolutely tremendous, and I would certainly make it again in a heartbeat.

I had already started a dinner from another of the cookbooks, one that was supposed to use lamb stew meat, but instead I used beef stew meat. It was highly flavored with so many things I was really curious how it would taste in the end. It used allspice and cardamom, dill and garlic, sesame tahini and a LOT of sumac! I mean a LOT! The recipe was for two pounds of meat, but I was using just one pound, so I divided the recipe in half. Even so, it called for ONE CUP of ground sumac. Yikes. Well, for starters, though I had sumac, I certainly didn't have a whole cup of it, so I used what I had, which was ¼ cup. Even at that much, the dish was decidedly pink colored from the rosy sumac, and for my husband and me, had sufficient sour notes to not need more. We are not Middle Eastern, and not accustomed to some of the flavors. But regardless, the flavors were extremely delicious and we really enjoyed the meal.

Another Wine Tasting Coming Up

Meanwhile, another wine tasting has been scheduled, this time for December 20th. So close to Christmas, this will be a bit of a busy time to be making so many extra things. Still, my appetizers are part of the deal, so I have been thinking on what to make for this wine tasting. I like to pair my foods as closely as possible to a particular style of wine, so that both wine and food are at their best advantage. In this case, I do not have much control over which wines will be served, so I can only hope and suggest. For now, I am working on two new appetizers. I made one a few days ago, using two different methods. I am still deciding which I shall ultimately use. One is decidedly easier, and the other decidedly more finicky to make, though these last are cute as buttons, so I am leaning in that direction.

Smoky Andouille & Corn Tarts or Pouches

I opted to use some Andouille sausage, along with corn, mozzarella and smoked paprika as flavors. If Andouille sausages are not available, use any smoked and highly flavored sausage, such as a good Kielbasa. Despite the fact that I used the smoked paprika in both the tart dough and in the filling mixture, the "smoky" flavor seemed curiously absent. Still, the dough had the most lovely warm hue. And either way, the flavors were wonderful, so these are a keeper, no matter what. Best of all, they pair magnificently with a nice Malbec (I was drinking "Layer Cake" Malbec).

Making the little tarts, shown at left in the photo above, you would proceed the same way as for countless other tarts. Divide the dough into little balls, then press into mini tart tins. And, I am talking of mini, as in 24 little tiny bites in one tart tin. These are all of 1½-inches across. Lovely little appetizer bites. Easy to pick up and walk with. Easy to take a bite and then a sip of wine. 

Two little cookie scoops

I used one of the two mid sized "cookie scoops" to scoop the filling into both the little tart shells and into the pouches, but more about the pouches in a minute. If you don't have these little cookie scoops, firstly, you really should get some, because they are absolutely invaluable! But, the smaller sized scoop I have is about a two-teaspoon capacity. The slightly larger one is one tablespoon capacity. The two-teaspoon sized scoop is just right for both these tarts and the pouches. Just for decorative purposes, I set a slice of jalapeno pepper on top of each of the tarts. This is entirely optional.

Smoky Andouille & Corn Tarts or Pouches

Makes about 45

Smokey Andouille & Corn Tarts

TART DOUGH:
½ cup unsalted butter
6 ounces cream cheese
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon smoked paprika

FILLING:
2 andouille sausages (about 12 - 13 ounces, total), chopped finely or in tiny dice
1⅓ cups canned corn, drained
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 ounces mozzarella shreds
3 scallions, minced
3 large eggs, lightly whisked
1 - 2 fresh jalapeños, sliced into thin rings, optional
1 egg, mixed with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash (optional for pouches)

Make Tart Dough: Cut together all the ingredients with a pastry cutter or two forks, or rub together with fingers. Once the dough starts to come together, bring it all into a ball and allow to rest for a few minutes. Divide the dough into the wells of 48 mini tart pans (approximately 1-inch across at the base). Press into bottom and up sides of the wells, then set into refrigerator until needed.

Smoky Andouille & Corn Pouches

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Make Filling: Combine all filling ingredients except the jalapeno and egg wash, and mix well. Using about 2 teaspoons filling per tart shell, fill the shells. Top each little tart with one jalapeño slice and bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until golden and set.

ALTERNATE POUCHES: To form the little pouches instead of tarts, roll the dough out very thinly. Cut the dough into 3-inch squares. If any square is a little too thick, roll it a bit more and trim. Moisten all along the outer edge of the square with water. Begin by making a little pocket to fill. As shown in the first picture below, bring up two of the corners and pinch closed the seam this creates, creating a pouch at one end. Scoop some filling into this little "cup" (figure 2), then bring another corner to the center, pinching along that seam (figure 3) to seal tightly, and finally bring up the last corner, and pinch the seam to either side to seal the pouch completely.

Making Smoky Andouille Corn Pouches

Make the egg wash and using a pastry brush, apply the wash to all the upper surfaces of the pouches. Set the pouches onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for 22 to 25 minutes, or until golden.

MAKE AHEAD: If needed, these can be made, baked and cooled, then frozen for up to 3 weeks. To reheat for serving, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Set the frozen pastries onto a baking sheet and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until heated through.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Fabada Asturiana and Fabes versus Favas

I received the latest issue of Food & Wine Magazine recently; the issue was all about Spain, and the trip through Spain was hosted by José Andrés. I have been to Barcelona, once, for a day, and loved the city, or all I got to see of it. Food though, was not stellar in the one restaurant we got to try.

That said, I have tasted foods that are Spanish in origin, such as Paella Valenciana, or Caldo Gallego, though I was not in Spain to taste them at their source. I know some of the flavors and know that I love them. This issue of Food and Wine was just dreamy, with all the foods and recipes, and though I had heard of Fabada Asturiana, I had never eaten it. Still, it certainly got my attention (along with at least 15 other recipes), and though I am not at all fond of Morcilla, or blood sausage (I did taste it a few times in Guatemala), with all the other meats in this soup/stew, one sausage would not be terribly missed, at least in my book!

My Fabada Asturiana

The meats called for in the Food and Wine recipe, along with many others I researched online, are ham hocks, slab bacon, morcilla (blood sausage) and Spanish chorizo. As it happens, I had ordered a couple of packages of chorizo and had them in my freezer. And then I came to the beans: Asturian Fabes.

Asturian Fabes

Here began the search, because in most places, "fabes" (which is plural for Faba or Fabe beans) are interpreted as Fava beans. Let me just say: Fabes and Favas are NOT the same bean. Fava beans will not replace Fabes in this dish. As far as I can learn, Asturian Fabes are a vining bean, probably a runner bean variety of Phaseolus vulgaris.

Asturian Fabe Beans (shown top right in the photo below - photo source found here) grow in Asturias, in the mountainous areas of northwestern Spain. They are a large, white bean (though I had no luck finding exact measurements), and shaped similarly to cannellini beans. They are described as creamy textured and flavored. Many places cite how very large these beans get once cooked, since they start out quite large in dried form. I went online to look for Asturian Fabes, and let me just say that they are not easy to find, and once you do find them, they are (to me) exorbitantly priced. I chose not to pay $19.95 (now, as of 2022, $24.00) plus $9.95 S&H for just one pound of beans, on LaTienda.com. Believe it or not, I couldn't find them on Amazon! The one thing that kept getting substituted was Fava Beans.

Clockwise from top left: Fava Beans;  Asturian Fabes;  (map of Spain with Asturias in red), Mexican Royal Corona Beans

Fava Beans

By contrast, fava beans (seen top left in the photo above - photo source found here), also called broad beans, are from the scientific classification Vicia faba. They grow on a bush-like plant. They look entirely different, and are most often eaten fresh. Dried, they are a deep tan/brown and look nothing like the white Asturian Fabes.

The one other kind of bean that was suggested to take the place of the Asturian Fabe beans was dried cannellini beans. Cannellini beans are smaller than the Asturian Fabes, but are similar in texture and are a good substitute.

What I Chose to Use

After searching fruitlessly for Asturian fabes that were reasonably priced and having no success, I went to Rancho Gordo. I have not bought beans from Rancho Gordo very often, but what I have gotten is of exceptional quality. They grow heirloom varieties of beans, some that were nearly lost completely, sometimes due to nothing more than the trickiness of growing them. I really admire those brave souls that are working to bring back heirloom plants, be they beans, or types of ancient wheat or tomatoes (among many other foods). Rancho Gordo has some wonderful varieties of beans, and they have recipes and suggestions for their use. On immediate search, I found nothing of Asturian Fabe beans, which makes sense, as Rancho Gordo is in the American southwest and generally discovering some of the many beans that were found in the southwest. I read about each of the heirloom types of beans they had to offer, and with the last beans on the page, I found what I would use: Royal Corona Beans. This is the description:

"Enormous, thick-skinned runner beans with a surprisingly creamy interior. One of our all-time best sellers, it's a versatile giant that works in all kinds of cuisines. A true pantry staple."

The "creamy interior" part of that quote is what cinched the deal, for me. That is how the Asturian Fabes were described. And they were not kidding or exaggerating when they described them as "giant." 

My Royal Corona Beans: left, dried; right, soaked, prior to cooking

As soon as I received the beans, I set ⅓ of the bag to soak in lots of water overnight, intending to make this soup the following day.

And next morning I ended up in the hospital, and was there through the next day. I was fretting over the beans in the soaking water. Would they be okay after soaking for an extra two days? My husband said that my health was more important than beans!

Once I was home and all was well, I set the beans to cook the next day, along with the rest of the ingredients and the dish came out so good that my husband and I were truly impressed. The beans were just as described. They were lovely, creamy and flavorful. I am planning to try them cooked and soaked in a vinaigrette as a side dish, with the next ⅓ of the package! The extra days of soaking (in the fridge) did them no harm at all.

My Fabada Asturiana

My Fabada Asturiana

Serves 4 to 6

⅓ pound dried Royal Corona or Cannellini beans
1 or 2 ham hocks
¼ pound chunk slab bacon
1 onion, chopped
6 cloves fresh garlic
1½ to 2 teaspoons smoked paprika (Pimenton de la Vera)
¼ to ½ teaspoon saffron threads
¼ pound air dried Spanish chorizo

The night before making the soup, sort through and set the beans to soak with water to cover by at least 2 or 3 inches.  

The following afternoon, drain the beans and discard soaking water. Place the beans in a pot and once again cover with water by at least an inch or so. Add in the ham hock(s) with the chunk of slab bacon, the onion, garlic, smoked paprika and saffron. Bring to boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 2 hours. The beans should be tender, but not falling apart.

Add in the chorizo, all in one piece, and cook for another half hour. Remove the meats from the pot to a plate to cool. Slice the chorizo into pieces and return to the pot. Remove meat from the ham hock, discarding the skin, fat and bones. Put the ham meat back into the pot. If your slab bacon is very meaty, cut up the meat and add back into the pot. Otherwise, just cube the piece of bacon and add that to the pot. Reheat and serve, preferably with a nice piece of crusty bread.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Paella - Make it as You Want It

Saffron I bought in Spain

I love Paella. If anyone does not know what Paella (pronounced pah-A-ya) is, I will explain as best I can. The simplest answer: Paella is a rice dish from Spain.  The rice is usually flavored with paprika and/or smoked paprika and saffron. It is often made over an open fire. This rice dish usually includes some vegetables; onion and garlic always, and then it gets tricky, depending on whose recipe you see. The dish also includes some kind of meat; most often it will contain seafood and/or fish, but it can include chicken, ham, rabbit, pork, chorizo. 

I learned to make paella from two best friends from Guatemala, who have relatives living in Spain. When they made it at my house one time, I copied down all they did and had made the recipe that way ever since. It made enough to feed an army, and it contained every kind of meat or seafood they could find: chicken, pork, ham, chorizo, clams, mussels, octopus, fish. (Beef is the ONE meat that is never in any paella I have heard of). It had onion, garlic, green beans, peas, carrot, olives and capers. It was absolutely wonderfully flavored, and I have loved it, always.

That said, when once I was in Barcelona, I asked a taxi driver to take us to a restaurant that did not cater to a tourist crowd, but instead a place he or his family would go for a good meal. They had paella on the menu, so I ordered it. While I expected something different from the "paella" I knew, this one was relatively tasteless. The sole "meat" included in the dish was gigantic rings of squid. The rice had no particular color and no particular flavor. Obviously it was lacking anything like saffron or paprika. It was an entire disappointment, to my mentality at the time. I have not traveled anywhere else in Spain, and that was the one day I was there, so I cannot remotely judge all of Spain by that one dish. I am absolutely certain there are marvelous paella dishes to be had. And as it happens, paella was originally made by shepherds out in fields, and used whatever meat or other thing might be available at the time, therefore rabbit paella was common, and in other areas of Spain, paella is made with whatever is common in the area, thus Squid Paella is normal in Barcelona, a coastal city.

My new "Paellera"

Recently I acquired a real paella pan. Oh yes, there is a specific type of pan used to create this dish, called a "paellera" (pah-ay-YAIR-ah). A paella pan is very shallow. If you get a larger pan, the width grows, but the depth stays the same. This is to ensure that the rice gets cooked through properly. I can attest that it is far more difficult to cook all the rice through if it is made in a deep pot. It can take a couple of hours or more to cook through in a deep pot. I have done it. I had never heard of a paella pan when my friends made it at my house so long ago. So after all these years I have a paella pan. It is a 15-inch pan and will accommodate enough paella to feed 6 - 8 people. I just had to make paella.

Most paella that we know here will include some kind of shellfish, at least what we know here in the US. Most often seen in photos (as seen right) are the shining black mussels and/or clams standing up prettily from the rice. I love seafood, but unfortunately I developed an allergy, so I do not eat it anymore; I could, but why go through that hassle? My husband, on the other hand, WILL NOT eat seafood. He "hates

A Typical Paella, courtesy of Spain-Recipes.com

paella" because it contains seafood. Paella does not absolutely have to have seafood, so I decided to baptize my brand new paella pan with an all-meat paella.

I used a whole chicken and the addition of a small amount of ham, pork and chorizo. Other than this change, the only other thing I did differently from my friends' version was leaving out the carrots. In general, I pared down that humongous recipe to one more manageably sized, while keeping all the ingredients I loved. I could not find chorizo sausages in the grocery here, so I got a tube of chorizo meat; thus there are no pretty round slices in my dish. Here is my recipe, using my 15-inch paella pan:

Mixed Meat Paella

Serves 6 to 8

Mixed Meat Paella

olive oil, as needed
1 whole chicken
salt for sprinkling chicken and pork
½ pound pork loin, cut in small chunks
1 cup cubed ham
4 - 6 ounces chorizo, sliced
4 cloves garlic
3 teaspoons Kosher salt (slightly less if regular table salt)
1 teaspoon Spanish paprika
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (pimenton de la Vera), or use all Spanish Paprika
½ teaspoon saffron threads
1 onion, chopped
½ green pepper, cubed
1 can (14.5 ounce) diced tomatoes
1½ cups medium grain rice
1 small jar (4 ounces) diced pimiento
2 teaspoons nonpareil capers
12 green olives
¾ cup frozen green peas, thawed
¾ cup green beans, cut in 2-inch lengths
3 cups water or stock

Have handy a paella pan or a very large, shallow pan. It can be a shallow roaster or large, oven-safe skillet.

First cut the chicken. Cut thighs into 2 pieces each, drumsticks can stay whole, breasts should be cut into 3 - 4 pieces each. Remove wingtips. Freeze the wingtips and the back for making stock at some future date. Heat a large skillet and add some olive oil. Sprinkle salt over the chicken pieces and also the pork. Over medium to medium-high heat, brown the chicken pieces a few at a time without over crowding the pan. Make sure they are nicely golden brown, 10 minutes or so per batch. As they are browned, remove them to a plate. Once the chicken is browned, add in the pork and toss quickly to sear; remove to the plate. Set the skillet elsewhere to cool while continuing with the recipe.

In a mortar with pestle, smash the garlic with the salt and once soft and semi-liquefied, add the paprika and/or smoked paprika and the saffron threads. Continue to work these ingredients until well combined and homogeneous, adding a little olive oil if needed to make a paste.

Set the the paella pan (or other) onto the heat and add more olive oil. Add in the onion and green pepper and saute until just soft, about 5 minutes. Add in the can of tomatoes, juice and all and allow to cook down slightly. Add in the garlic mixture and stir well to incorporate. Add the rice and water or stock and stir. Add the peas and green beans, capers and olives and the jar of pimientos, with the liquid. Stir just to distribute the ingredients. Add the ham, chorizo and browned pork, distributing them evenly over the rice mixture. Set the pieces of browned chicken decoratively onto the rice. 

Mixed Meat Paella Served

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Let the paella come to a boil and reduce heat so that a low but visible boil takes place for about 15 minutes. Cover the pan with foil and set in the oven for 15 minutes. Turn oven off and allow the paella to set in the hot oven for another 15 minutes, to allow the rice to completely absorb the liquids. Enjoy!

From cutting the chicken to out of the oven I made this Paella in 1½ hours, total. If your grocery has already cut up whole chicken, all you have to do is make a few pieces smaller. Much prep work can be accomplished while other things are cooking. While chicken is browning you can make the garlic/paprika/saffron mixture and set aside. Slice the green beans and thaw the peas. The whole trick is being organized. Have everything in place and ready and this is a wonderful dinner or party fare.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Empanadas to Pair with Malbec

April 12th is the date of the upcoming Winefest Rennaisance Wine-tasting event for the benefit of the Boys and Girls Club of Aberdeen. I will be hosting a wine rating and food pairing in one area, in order to try and help people better pinpoint what they like or dislike in a wine, and to see what a correct food pairing can do with the flavor of the wine. Many people like wine, but know little about it. Many will blacklist a whole grape varietal on the basis of tasting a wine made from one vintner's interpretation. Others will believe a Riesling is synonymous with "Piesporter" - one very tiny area - knowing nothing of the grape and its possibilities. I try to rectify these misapprehensions wherever I go.

For this wine tasting event, I will have six different wines, from all over the world. I have fairly well made decisions on the foods to pair with each of these wines.

1. Prosecco from Italy will pair with Smoked Salmon Mousse atop a Savory Hazelnut Blue Cheese Wafer
2. Sancerre (Sauvignon Blanc) from France will pair with Individual Chicken Artichoke Cheese Balls atop baguette slice
3. Conundrum White blend from California will pair with Chicken and Raisin Samosas
4. Pinot Noir from California will pair with Chicken, Pear and Onion Tartlets with Chevre Cream
5. Malbec from Argentina will pair with Smoky Beef & Currant Empanadas
6. Port from Portugal will be paired with a dark chocolate, still undecided in form. 

I had recently made the Chicken, Pear and Onion Tartlets, (see my blog of February 24, 2014) to pair with a Chenin Blanc. In this case these same flavors will pair as well with a Pinot Noir, so I have that recipe already, with the flavors well paired in my mind. The two wines causing more angst over the pairing were the Conundrum and the Malbec. I decided to try the empanadas first. A little while back (blog of January 7, 2014) I made empanadas with leftover Barbecued Pork, and using puff pastry as the dough. While these tasted wonderful, there was too much pastry dough-to-meat-ratio. At the time I filed that concept for later. Yesterday I finally got around to checking out other possibilities.

Smoky Beef and Currant Empanadas

The particular Argentinian Malbec's flavor profile is "smoky, rich with black fruits, cocoa, hints of tobacco and leather. . . fat, layered and boldly rich." I read in many places how Malbecs go exceedingly well with sausage and richly spiced foods. At first I thought of creating my own sausage, but as usual, my ideas morph continually over a period of days as my mind cogitates. What I ended up deciding on was using my own "Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub" with an extra dose of Smoked Paprika to really pick up on the smoky aspect as well as the cocoa flavor. I added currants to the flavors to bring in a subtle sweet fruitiness. I first thought of using pork, changed to pork and beef, and then, finally just beef. 

October 22, 2019 Update:  These were originally paired with a Malbec wine, and there was nothing at all wrong with that pairing. I converted some people to Malbec on that basis. However, at another wine tasting, with the same empanadas, meant to pair with a Malbec, again that pairing was very good. But!

In the course of the tasting, I happened to try these empanadas with a Predator 'Old Vine' Zinfandel. This wine has a slightly smoky note and it was the absolutely most fabulous pairing for these empanadas, ever.

Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub 

Makes 1⅓ cups rub mix
 
¾ cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon paprika, preferably Spanish
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1½ teaspoons smoked paprika (Pimienta de la Vera)
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ teaspoons ground coriander seed
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder, or more to taste
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon chipotle powder, optional
¾ teaspoon ground cumin
 
Mix all ingredients until thoroughly blended. If storing, use an airtight container and keep in a cool, dry place away from heat or light.

I had no real empanada dough recipe, so I looked online and found an Argentinian woman's site with recipes for real Argentinian Empanadas and the dough. I am not using the filling recipe in any way, shape or form, but the dough recipe intrigued me. Not a yeast dough, yet kneaded for 10 minutes to build the gluten. I know my way around yeast doughs, but had rarely seen a dough where kneading was so important without yeast. The closest thing to this idea is when making pasta or noodle dough. I had to try it out. The woman's recipe was in Spanish (see her site here), but as I spoke Spanish very fluently for a good 10 years, I had no difficulty with that part. Her measurements were in grams and milliliters, so I weighed and measured it to cups and ounces.

Empanada Dough

Enough for about 40 or more (4 - 5 inch) rounds

3¼ cups all-purpose flour (use an extra 1/4 cup aside if needed)
½ teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons butter, cut in small pieces
1 egg
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons milk
⅔ cup lukewarm water

Left, sealed edge; Right, folding and crimping

In a large bowl, or in the bowl of a heavy duty stand mixer, place the flour and salt. Add in the butter pieces and with a pastry blender or whisk attachment, cut in the butter. Switch to a dough hook (or use a spoon if by hand) and mix in the egg, starting from the center, as when making noodle dough. Add in the oil and milk and continue to mix. Begin adding the warm water. When the dough comes together, if kneading by hand, turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes. If using a stand mixer, allow the dough hook to knead the dough for 10 minutes. Once kneaded, set the dough aside in a bowl, lightly covered, and set in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours.

When ready to work with the dough, I found the dough to be very elastic, which made it easy stretching it over the filling without holes. Roll the dough thinly. Being so elastic, after cutting 5-inch rounds, they shrunk back to about 3-inches. After cutting out all the circles, I rolled each one individually to about 5 inches before filling. Exact roundness is unnecessary. Moisten all around the edge of the dough, place a rounded tablespoon of filling in the center, then stretch the one side over to completely enclose the filling, pressing very firmly to seal. 

After sealing, begin folding and crimping the edges, again pressing very firmly, creating an almost braided appearance. I had never done this before, so it wasn't until about my 30th empanada (out of 38) that the folding process began to be remotely even. The empanadas can be baked or fried. I prefer baking. Brush the tops well with one beaten egg. Prick the tops with a knife in 3 or 4 places. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for approximately 15 minutes, until golden and glossy.

Smoky Beef & Currant Empanada Filling

Enough for about 38 empanadas

Smoky Beef & Currant Empanadas, out of oven

2 tablespoons bacon fat or other oil
1½ pounds sirloin, cut into very tiny cubes
1 teaspoon salt
2 - 3 cloves garlic, minced or through a garlic press
¾ cup currants
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon bacon fat or other oil
1 large onion, chopped finely
1 can (8-ounces dry weight) mushroom stems and pieces, minced
2 tablespoons Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub, above
1 tablespoon Smoked Paprika (Pimenton de la Vera)
½ teaspoon salt

Dry the meat well on paper toweling. Heat a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the first 2 tablespoons of bacon fat and then the meat. The meat will begin to leach out a lot of liquid. Generally this is to be avoided, but I wanted enough of the liquid to soften the currants later. Sprinkle on the first teaspoon of salt and cook the meat until there is just a little bit of liquid left. Add in the garlic and toss well, then the currants, cooking until the liquid has evaporated. Remove the mixture to a bowl. 

Add the tablespoon of bacon fat to the pan with the onions and cook, stirring frequently until the onions begin to look golden, but not browned. Add the finely chopped mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the mushrooms and onions start to brown. Return the meat mixture to the pan, along with the Sweet Smoky Cocoa Rub, smoked paprika and the 1/2 teaspoon salt. Toss well to combine. Remove from heat and allow to cool to at least lukewarm.

Fill the empanada wrappers with this mixture; seal, crimp, brush with egg wash, prick with a knife and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 15 to 20 minutes.

These empanadas came out far better than I even hoped. The flavors are spectacular, and I can easily (in my mind) taste the flavors with a Malbec wine. The use of bacon fat to fry the meat and onions was to incorporate more of the smoke and sausage idea. All the flavors married perfectly. My crimping may be pitiful, but the flavors were precisely right.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

It's Pheasant Hunting Season; time for delightful recipes

Our friend Rich came to visit for the opening of pheasant hunting season. His first day out was unsuccessful, but on day two he did get one young bird. I have had the experience of killing and cleaning both chickens and turkeys in my life, but never a pheasant. I was informed that one does not need to pluck feathers from a pheasant as the skin is so easy to just rip off with the feathers still attached. I came outside to watch Rich skin and clean the bird and then came the time to think what to do with it.

Dried Shiitake Mushrooms

Rich and I collaborate well on food matters. We both have wonderful ideas, but vastly different ones, so it is especially fun to bounce ideas back and forth. His first idea was that he wanted to brine the bird. I have only brined once - a turkey. I was unimpressed. I did understand the reasoning behind brining a wild bird such as this, so we agreed on that, for both better flavor and tenderizing. He also wanted to subsequently soak it in buttermilk as an added insurance against too gamy a flavor. Once the bird was cleaned we set it to soak overnight in brine. Next morning (yesterday) he removed it from the brine, cleaned out the container and set the pheasant pieces back into the container with 2 cups of buttermilk. We left that to soak for a few hours.

Assembled casserole, before baking

Meantime, we started to work out the flavors we wanted. I had only eaten pheasant once in my life, at a restaurant over 20 years ago. I recall loving the dish, but was unsure if that was an accurate representation of the flavor of a wild bird. I told Rich that I knew juniper berries were supposed to be good with wild game, so we agreed to use a little of those. We both love the flavors of fresh thyme, so we decided to use that. Rich wanted rice with the casserole, and particularly to have wild rice be a part of it. 

What we ended up doing is cooking wild rice in one pot, brown rice in another and white rice in a third. I made ¾ cup (dry) of each variety of rice, with a teaspoon of olive oil, 1¼ teaspoon of salt and 1½ cups of water, cooking the brown and the wild rice for 50 minutes, and the white rice for 15. The wild rice did not soak up most of the water it cooked in, and I drained and saved that water to use for the sauce later. Rich dislikes the use of flour to thicken things and suggested using bread crumbs instead. We were looking for a creamy mushroom base for the sauce, but without using a canned mushroom soup (we are both purists on that score). I had some artisan style homemade bread on hand so I cut two thick slices and put into the food processor to make crumbs. We wanted mushrooms to be a part of it, so since my husband and I love dried shiitakes, we used those, which are delightfully chewy when reconstituted. I used 10 of them, soaked in boiling water for about 20 minutes. I saved the about 3 cups of water from the mushroom soaking to use as part of the liquid for the sauce. Rich also wanted to add chicken to the whole dish, as chicken is more fatty than pheasant and would lend some of the fattiness to the dish.

Rich, serving his pheasant creation

Okay, so now we had a working idea and had started prepping. Rich chopped an onion, a carrot and 2 stalks of celery, along with about 6 or 8 large cloves of garlic. I sautéed that mixture in a frying pan in olive oil until they were wilted, then removed that to a large roaster pan, spread over the bottom of the pan. Meanwhile, Rich blotted all the pheasant and chicken pieces dry with paper toweling, then sprinkled with salt and pepper and I followed with browning all the pheasant and chicken pieces, which were then removed to the roaster pan, in one layer. We removed the stems from the soaked mushrooms and sliced them, strewing them over the meats. I sprinkled in about a teaspoon of juniper berries, and then the bread crumbs. Over top of this I evenly sprinkled the wild rice, then the white rice and then the brown rice. Rich was interested in a smoky flavor element, so I sprinkled on 1 1/2 teaspoons of smoked paprika (Pimenton de la Vera).

Pheasant Chicken Casserole with Three Rices

Back in the frying pan, I added about 1½ tablespoons of fresh thyme leaves and a cup of dry white wine, cooking quickly over high heat, stirring up all the browned bits in the bottom, to reduce to less than a half cup, total. We added in the mushroom cooking water and the wild rice cooking water and cooked briskly to reduce to about 2 or 2½ cups of total liquid. To this we added 2 cups of heavy cream, off the heat. After tasting, we added another teaspoon of salt to the sauce. I poured this sauce over the whole casserole, covered the pot and baked it for 1½ hours at 325 degrees.

It may have taken a while to assemble, but I have only one word for the outcome. YUM! The casserole was unctuous from the cream and perfectly flavored. The smoked paprika was just enough to give that hint of smokiness without overwhelming. The pheasant was absolutely not gamy though it retained the flavor of a wild bird, and it was very tender. Both the pheasant and the chicken were juicy and perfect. It may have taken a while to assemble, but oh great heavens, it was good. 



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.