AFRICAN CH OCO L ATE TEX AS NACH OS NEW YO RK CHEESECAKE

S a v o r a Wo r l d o f Authentic Cuisine
PLUS
ia na
A Louis
BAYOU
h
Brunc

S HAN G H AI
Dining

vors of
The Fla
MAD R ID

AMERICAN
BEAUTY Why turkey is the
most soulful bird—plus
four fine ways to cook it
PA G E 6 0

NUMBER 97
NOVEMBER 2006 $5.00 ( CANADA $6.00)
 NO. 97 P. 7

SAVE UR
the centerpiece
60 A writer remembers life on
her family’s Colorado turkey
farm, where raising the birds was
both a means of livelihood and, for
her wild-living uncle, Ernest, a path
to redemption.
By R ita William s

brunch on the bayou

66 In an era of industrial corn
sweeteners and global com-
petiton, cane sugar is still king at the
sweets-laden table of a long-surviving
Louisiana sugar plantation.
By Vi ctoria Abb ot t R i ccardi

old-school madrid
78 Abuzz with construction and
avant-garde cuisine, the Span-
ish capital is at a crossroads, but the
polished elegance and timeless cuisine
of old Madrid are alive and well.
By Anya von Bremzen

coming home to cafe

annie
90 On the 25th anniversary of the
restaurant that helped rein-
vent Southwestern food, a returning
visitor fi nds the place flourishing.
By M a rg o Tru e
78
LEFT TO RIGHT: JOE PATRONITE; ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

66
F E AT U R E S
C OV E R
A brined and roasted turkey—the other national bird.
shanghai surprise
48
P ho togr a ph by Ja m e s O se l a n d
China’s most cosmopoli-
CUSTOMER SERVICE: Have a question? A problem? Here’s how to contact us. For sub- tan city is experiencing a
scription-related queries, call our toll-free number (877/717-8925) or write to P.O. Box
420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. From outside the U.S., call 386/447-2592. Occasion- food renaissance, thanks in part to
ally, we make portions of our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that
offer products and services we think may be of interest to you. If you do not want to receive
Jereme Leung, whose cooking offers
these offers, please advise us at 877/717-8925. Send all editorial questions, complaints, a modern take on classic Shanghai-
and suggestions to 304 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010. You may also reach our
editorial department via fax at 212/219-4696 or e-mail us at [email protected]. nese fare.
By Grace Youn g
P. 1 0 S AV E U R NO. 97

CONTENTS

39 46 101
DEPARTMENTS

18 44 rice wine; a turkey hotline; how to poach eggs;

first Chinese-style green beans facilitate a source A venerable San Francisco shop has Gramma’s tart-sweet applesauce; and more.
new understanding of food. a wok for every need.
B y Ja m e s O s e l a n d B y Sa r a h D i G r e g or io 106
the pantry How to find our favorite
21 46 products and materials from this issue.
saveur fare Japanese food comics; classic How New York cheesecake came B y L i z P e a r s on
Maine’s unpancake; a nouvelle culinary tradition into being.
in France; Agenda; and more. B y A rt h u r S c h wa rt z 112
saveur moment The pampered life of
24 101 a cornivorous kitty.
book review A cookbook from a god- in the saveur kitchen Chinese P ho t o g r a ph by B e t t m a n n/C or bi s
mother of home-baked desserts.
B y Ta m a si n Day-L e w i s R E C I P E S & M E T H O D S

30 FA R E
Ployes with Cretons (Buckwheat Crêpes with Pork
Hollandaise Sauce) ..................................................................68
Mirliton Casserole .........................................................................70
list Ten items of enduring quality—and Pâté)..............................................................................................23 Broiled Grapefruit ..........................................................................71
great beauty—to spruce up your holiday

LEFT TO RIGHT: ENRIC ROVIRA; ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI; JAMES OSELAND

Thanksgiving Twofer Pie ......................................................26 Couchon d’Oreille (Pigs’ Ears) .................................................75
table. CLASSIC
Sausages and Gravy with Stone-Ground Grits..................76
By K at e Fox Lindy’s Cheesecake ................................................................ 46 MADRID
Gambas al Ajillo (Sizzling Shrimp with Garlic and
33
SHANGHAI
Bingzhen Huangjiu Ji (Chilled Drunken Chicken with Parsley) ........................................................................................80

kitchenwise A couple who love to Rice Wine Granita) ................................................................... 50 Albóndigas en Salsa (Tapas-Style Meatballs) ...................... 81
Croquetas de Jamón con Gambas (Ham and Shrimp
cook learn to think small. Xunlong Yuzi Yanxun Dan (Tea-Smoked Eggs with
Caviar) ............................................................................................51 Croquettes) ................................................................................ 82
By G e orgi a Fr e e dm a n Cocido Madrileño de Casa Lhardy (Madrid-Style Boiled
Hushi Suanla Geng (Shanghai-Style Hot and Sour
Dinner) ......................................................................................... 87
36
Soup)............................................................................................. 58
Flan (Creamy Caramel Custard) ............................................88
TURKEY
cellar Moulin-à-vent is a Beaujolais wine Brined and Roasted Turkey ..................................................... 62 CAFE ANNIE
robust enough to accompany meaty fare. Collard Greens with Smoked Turkey Wings....................... 62 Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef ..............................92
By Joh n Wi n t h rop H a e g e r Turkey Tetrazzini ......................................................................... 63 Rabbit Enchiladas with Red Mole .......................................... 95
Panes con Pavo (Salvadoran Turkey Sandwich).............. 64 Coffee-Crusted Beef Tenderloin............................................ 96

39 LOUISIANA KITCHEN

lives At a remote African cacao plantation, Eggs Hussarde (Poached Eggs with Tasso and Neiman Marcus Cookies ..........................................................103

Claudio Corallo makes distinctive chocolate. F O R A N I N D E X O F R E C I P E S A N D M E T H O D S B Y C A T E G O R Y, S E E P A G E 1 0 4 .

B y G . Y. D rya n s k y
P. 1 2 NO. 97

Editor-in-Chief
James Oseland

Executive Editor
Kathleen Brennan (Acting)

Managing Editor
Lily Binns

Art Director
David Weaver

Food Editor
Todd Coleman

Senior Editor
Caroline Campion

Photogr aphy Editor

Larry Nighswander

Associate Art Director

Jaclyn Rymuza

Dir ec tor, Sav eur K itch en

Liz Pearson

Tr av e l a n d R e s e a r c h E d i t o r
Kate Fox

Assistant Editor
Georgia Freedman

Copy Chief
Judith Sonntag

Copy Editors
Carol Barnette, David McAninch

Assistants
Yolanda Avecilla, Ashley Berman, Bryan Kozlowski,
Daniel Stone (Kitchen); Lucy Hayes, Amy McDaniel,
Jebediah Reed, Jennifer Salerno

Consulting Editors
Jeffrey Alford, Lidia Bastianich, Rick Bayless, Tom Chino,
Sally Clarke, Darrell Corti, Marion Cunningham, Naomi
Duguid, Christopher Hirsheimer, Madhur Jaffrey, Peggy
Knickerbocker, Jeremy Lee, Stanley Lobel, Sheila Lukins,
Deborah Madison, Bruce Neyers, Judy Rodgers, Chris
Schlesinger, Frank Stitt, Alice Waters, Grace Young

Production Director
Sandi Levins

Advertising Design Director

Suzanne Oberholtzer

Advertising Artists
Monica Alberta, Wendy Crenner, John Digsby,
Shannon Mendis
Publication Agreement Number: 
Canada return mail: - Walker Road, Windsor, Ontario NA J
P. 1 4 NO. 97

Publisher
Russell Cherami, 212/219-4636
New York A d v e r t i s i n g S a l e s
212/219-7400
Wi n e a n d S p i r i t s D i r e c to r / N o rt h e a s t
John Horan, 212/219-7481
T r a v e l D i r e c t o r / S o u t h e a s t Te x a s
Rick Johnson, 212/219-7413
D i r e c t o r, N e w Bu s i n e s s / M i d w e s t
Erich Berger, 407/571-4925

Sales Managers
DETROIT: Focus Media & Marketing
Ken Stubblefield, 313/670-0553
Rick Pankratz, 248/318-5750
NORTHWEST: Publicitas San Francisco
Carolyn Ware, 415/624-2400
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: MediaCentric
Steve Thompson, 415/435-4678
HAWAII: Ken Leandro, 805/745-7157
CANADA: Impact Media Group Inc.
Allan J. Bedard, 416/679-9600, ext. 224
Harry de Haas, 416/679-9600, ext. 222

Th e M a r k e t
Suzan Erikson (Manager), 407/571-4700
A d v e r t i s i n g Tr a f f i c M a n a g e r
Courtney Janka
S a l e s A s s i s ta n t
Padmini Multani

Marketing
Leslie Brecken (Executive Director)
Tanya M. Tarek (Sales Development Manager)
Marcia Caton (Marketing Manager)
Nancy Painter (Marketing Consultant)
Marketing Liaison
Donna Kohn Snow
Research Director
Heather M. Idema

President
Terry Snow

Bruce Miller (Vice President, Consumer Marketing)

Vicki Weston (Single Copy Sales Director)
Dean Psarakis (Business Director, Consumer Marketing)
Leigh Bingham (Subscription Director, Consumer Marketing)
Peter Winn (Planning and Development Director,
Consumer Marketing)
Martin S. Walker (Advertising Consultant)
Lisa Earlywine (Director of Production Operations)
Jay Evans (Director of New Media Technologies)
Mike Stea (Director of Network and Computer Operations)
Nancy Coalter (Controller)
Dinah Peterson (Credit Manager)
Sheri Bass (Director of Human Resources)
Dean Turcol (Director of Communications)
P. 18 S AV E U R NO. 97

FIRST

Green Beans and Gratitude

How a lesson in Chinese cooking transformed an American palate

ack in , when I was 17 years dishes, from steamed rock cod slathered with
B old, my experience of food generally
consisted of one of three things: my
julienned ginger and scallions to eggs scram-
bled with tomatoes.
dad’s Frenchified Sunday-night suppers, my “Shanghai Surprise” (see page 48), an ar-
mom’s open-a-carton-or-can variety of cook- ticle this month by new s av eur consulting
ing, or my own investigations into the joys of editor Grace Young about that city’s dy-
junk food. Then I met Tang. namic food scene, got me to thinking about
An exchange student from Taiwan, Tang Tang. She returned to Taiwan in 1982, and
was a few years older than me and wore black over the next two decades I lost contact
cat-eye glasses that made her look as if she’d with her. But whether or not she was aware
walked out of some 1950s Truff aut fi lm. She of it, the time I spent in her humble home
rented a small room in San Francisco’s Rich-
mond District, not far from where I lived,
and studied painting at a local art college,
which was where I met her. Though Tang
was born and raised in Taipei, her parents
came originally from Shanghai, and they’d
taught their daughter the fundamentals of
that city’s celebrated fare.
Once Tang found out that I was interested
in her food, she invited me over regularly to
eat. I’d watch, mesmerized, as she turned
out dazzling three-course meals with a bat-
terie de cuisine that was made up of little
more than a Tef lon skillet, two dented alu-
minum saucepans, and a plastic spatula.
Then we’d sit down on the floor and feast
on her beautiful cooking—Shanghainese
classics like red-cooked pork and stir-fries
spiked with slivers of salted vegetables that
were as different from any food I knew as
water is from air.
At the time, most of what Tang cooked
seemed complicated; I never imagined Stir-fried green beans à la Tang are a crisp and
that I’d be able to prepare it myself. One succulent treat.
day, though, she concocted a dish that she
thought I could master easily. “I’m making opened my eyes to the world of cooking.
green beans,” she said. “You can cook this For that I’ll be forever grateful.
one yourself, no problem.” A short while lat- There’s another reason I’m grateful this
JAMES OSELAND

er, the dish—a crisp stir-fry of green beans month: I recently became the editor-in-
that we’d bought earlier that day in China- chief of this magazine, and the issue that
town—was finished. Its simplicity blew me you now hold marks my first handiwork. I
away. I duplicated it at home to great suc- hope you’ll enjoy reading it (and cooking
cess, and in the months to come I learned to from it) as much as I did helping to create
make a number of other basic Tang-inspired it. —J A ME S O SEL A ND , Editor-in-Chief
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 2 1

FARE
E x plorers a nd E x per i menters f rom t he World of Food , plu s B o ok Re v ie w, Agend a , a nd More

AG E N DA

N O V E M B E R

1
RÜEBLIMÄRT
Aarau, Switzerland
Aargau, in north-central Switzer-
land, could be called the canton
of carrots. On the fi rst Wednes-
day of November, stalls offering
all manner of carrot-related food
line the main drag of Aarau,
the capital of this flat,
fertile region. Visi-
tors can get their
fill of carrot bread,
carrot soup, carrot
marmalade, and the
canton’s famous
carrot cake while
stocking up on
other local fall
vegetables. Information:
62/824 7624.

N O V E M B E R

3–4
GREENWOOD COUNTY
CATTLEMEN’S DAY
CELEBRATION Flour Powers
LEFT: CEPHAS PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY; RIGHT: COURTESY VIZ MEDIA

Eureka, Kansas
Mark the end of grazing season at A Japanese comic book brings some kapow! to the culinary arts
this 80-year-old festival, where
visitors still gather for classic eet k a zu m a a zu m a, Responding to soaring interest in tional comics, but behind the
breakfast grub at the Lions Club’s
Saturday-morning pancake feed
and then attend a parade and a
M protagonist of Yakitate!!
Japan, one of that coun-
Japanese anime and manga (com-
ics) in the United States, publishers
make-believe lies a meticulous
attention to detail. The series cre-
beef barbecue cook-off. Capping try’s most popular comic book se- are introducing English-language ator, Takashi Hashiguchi, is said
it all is the Cattlemen’s Ball, on ries. In the opening panels, young editions of this Japanese niche phe- to have consulted a Kyoto baker
Saturday night, when members of Kazuma prepares to leave his fam- nomenon—food manga. to perfect the look of the artfully
the local 4H club serve brisket and ily’s rice farm to study baking in “It’s defi nitely not a serious, depicted breads, and the comic
homemade pies and cakes. Infor-
mation: 620/583-0129.
Tokyo, where he auditions for a job introspective look into the world even includes recipes.
at a prestigious bakery. Struggling of baking,” says Kit Fox, a manga Intrigued? You’re in luck: Yaki-
N O V E M B E R to further the cause of good bread editor at Viz Media, the company tate!! Japan, Vol. 2, will be re-
in a country of rice lovers, Kazuma releasing the English-language leased on our shores this month.
3–12
WURSTFEST
deploys his secret weapons: Hands edition. Indeed, Yakitate!! Japan —Emily Kaiser
New Braunfels, Texas
of the Sun, his preternaturally (the title is a pun on the phrase
This year the mayor of Braunfels, warm palms, which create breads “freshly baked bread”) has all * The strips are written to be read
Germany, will visit that town’s of superlative flavor and crumb. the wham-bam action of tradi- right to left, top to bottom.
 P. 2 2 S AV E U R NO. 97

FA R E
sister city in Texas for the 46th
annual Wurstfest. The German-
Texan celebration features 50
kinds of sausage, plus kartoffel
puffers (potato pancakes), ko-
Maine’s Buckwheat Treats
Part pancake, part crêpe, part flat bread—100 percent Acadian
laches (rolls filled with sausage),
schnitzels, and strudels of all kinds. t’s not t h at you can’t
After the ritual “biting of the sau-
sage” at the opening ceremony,
locals dance in
I get pancakes in northern
Maine’s St. John Val-
lederhosen and ley, but why would you want to?
dirndls as the Here, in the traditionally French-
Spassmeister speaking region of Acadia, odds
(fun master) are that those griddle cakes you
animates the
see locals eating aren’t flapjacks
crowd. Infor-
mation: 800/ but ployes. Long a part of Acadi-
221-4369. an food culture, ployes (the name
rhymes with “boys”), beloved on
N O V E M B E R both sides of the Maine–Canada
4–5
SOIL ASSOCIATION ORGANIC
border, are easy to make but hard
to categorize. Thought to have
FOOD FESTIVAL evolved from the buckwheat-based
Glasgow, Scotland galettes of northern France, the
Organic haggis, anyone? This festi- ploye is part pancake, part crêpe,
val, the first of its kind in Scotland,
part flat bread. Like crêpes, they
which accounts for more than half
of the UK’s organically managed lend themselves to both sweet and
land, will be held in Glasgow’s re- savory toppings. Royden Paradis,
cently restored Old Fruitmarket. a cook at a Maine logging camp
Sample organic foodstuffs, from for 36 years, recalls making tow-
cereal, beer, and butter to venison,
ering stacks of them nearly every
chocolate, and artisanal cheese.
Leading Scottish chefs will conduct day. “We’d set out plates of them,
talks, and a tasting program will fea- and the men would eat them with
ture products from nearby farms. maple syrup, beans, soup, gravy,
Information: 44/131 666 2474. cretons [a traditional Acadian pork
pâté]—just about anything.”
N O V E M B E R
THIS PAGE, FROM LEFT: COURTESY STEVE RICHTER; COURTESY JIM MAJKA; ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

Ployes are made from a mixture

4–11
SWEET POTATO FESTIVAL
of white flour and flour derived
from silverskin buckwheat, a vari-
Vardaman, Mississippi ety that grows well in cool, north-
Everyone from Vardaman comes
ern climates. The buckwheat is
home for the Sweet Potato Fes-
tival. At the end of harvesttime, harvested in early September and flipped, they tend to be smooth on ern Maine’s food culture, that is
the town’s population swells from then milled into a flour that im- one side and cratered like a lunar largely due to the efforts of one
1,006 to nearly 20,000, padded parts a distinctive, yellowish tint to landscape on the other. farming family, the Bouchards of
by visitors who sell, bake, eat, food. Since traditional ployes aren’t If ployes remain a part of north- Fort Kent, who sowed opportu-
decorate, and generally venerate
nity when most of their potato-
the hometown tuber. A tasting
booth offers plates of sweet po- farming colleagues were harvest-
tato creations, from bonbons to ing nothing but trouble. In the
sausage balls. Bring a truck if you early 1980s, as potato prices were
have one—15,000 pounds of pota- falling sharply, Rita and Alban
toes will be for sale. Information:
Bouchard, seeking to diversify,
662/682-7559.
converted 75 of their 350 acres to
N O V E M B E R the resilient buckwheat.
In 1983, the Bouchards decided
11
LA FOIRE AUX HARENGS DE
Making a giant ploye at the Ployes
LIEUREY
Lieurey, France Festival, held in annually in Fort
Legend has it that during the Hun- Kent, Maine, left. Above, ployes
dred Years’ War a shipment of with cretons.
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 23

FA R E
the Bouchards are selling the mix
FOOD FOR THOUGHT in some of New England’s larg-
est grocery chains and all over the
country, via the Internet. They have
also been instrumental in organiz-
ing the annual Ployes Festival, held
in August, which culminates in the
making of a supersize ploye (this
year’s was 12 feet in diameter).
“By providing an authentic
“I’m about as lonesome as a ployes mix that’s easy for people
biscuit without some gravy.” to obtain and make,” says Rita
-VIRGINIA HAMILTON, “MIZ HATTIE GETS Bouchard, “we feel like we’re help-
SOME COMPANY”, HER STORIES: AFRICAN-
ing people hold on to a little part
AMERICAN FOLKTALES, FAIRY TALES, AND
TRUE TALES of their culture.” Call it a buck-
wheat-driven Acadian cultural
to package their own ployes mix as revival, but, s’ il vous plaît, don’t
a way of embracing their Acadian call it a pancake. (For a source
roots and supplementing their in- for ployes mix, see The Pantry,
come. Twenty-three years later, page 106.) —Roger Doiron
R EC I P E

Ployes with Cretons

(Buckwheat Crêpes with Pork Pâté)
SERVES 6

Resist the urge to substitute regular buckwheat flour for silverskin

buckwheat flour—the color, flavor, and texture will be entirely different.

1 lb. rendered lard

1 lb. leaf lard, membrane removed and discarded, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 lbs. ground pork
1⁄4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1⁄8 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cup silverskin buckwheat flour (light buckwheat flour; see page 106)
1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder au revoir, escoffier

1. Heat lards in a medium cast-iron pot over medium heat, about 25 minutes.
A growing culinary movement in France puts the
(The leaf lard will render during this time.) Reduce heat to low; carefully add on-
emphasis on liberté
ions and garlic; cook until softened, 4–5 minutes. Add pork, cinnamon, nutmeg,

ILLUSTRATIONS FROM LEFT: SCOTT MENCHIN; PAUL COX

h e l a nguage pol ice at l’Académie Française must be
T
and salt and pepper; break up with a wooden spoon. Stir in 1 cup water. Gently
simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, for 6 hours. Let cool slightly. Blend pork piqued. In a tongue already riddled with terms borrowed from
mixture in a food processor in batches until smooth. Adjust seasonings. Transfer English—from le football to le weekend—a new anglicism has
the cretons to small containers; refrigerate or freeze until ready to use. (If freez- found its way into daily parlance, and it doesn’t appear likely to go
ing, cover the surface with wax paper before sealing the container.) away. Le fooding—that’s food and feeling mushed together—is a term
coined in 1999 by journalist Alexandre Cammas to denote what he
2. Beat together 1 1/2 tsp. salt, flours, baking powder, and 2 cups water in a bowl.
saw as a new approach to cuisine in France. Today Le Fooding is a full-
Let batter rest for 5 minutes. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high
heat. Working in batches, pour about 3 tbsp. batter into middle of skillet; swirl fledged movement with numerous adherents across the country.
around to form a 6” circle. Cook until bubbles, or “eyes”, form on the surface of Le Fooding is most easily defined by what it’s against—namely, the
the ployes and surface is cooked, about 1 minute. Wait 30 seconds more (if you rigid categorization that has long typified France’s cooking, especially
move them too early they’ll stick). Run a spatula underneath to release. Stack since the publication of the two holy books of French cuisine: Auguste
ployes on a plate as they’re done. (Stir batter in between batches to remix.) Escoffier’s Le guide culinaire (1903) and Prosper Montagné’s Larousse
Allow cretons to warm slightly, then spread onto warm ployes. gastronomique (1938). Cammas has pointed out that the word gastro-
nomic is derived from the Greek word for regulate, administrate, and
 P. 2 4 S AV E U R NO. 97

FA R E
herring destined for the citi- standardize. “Feeling,” Cammas manuel Rubin started a nonprofit
zens and soldiers of Orléans was explains, “is completely opposed FOOD FOR THOUGHT organization called Le Bureau du
stopped in Lieurey by a snow-
to regulation and administration.” Fooding, which holds events all
storm. The locals had no choice,
of course, but to eat all the fish. Cammas believes there is a over France, including Le Grand
Each year, on the feast day of place for formal restaurants serv- Fooding d’Été, a giant summer
Saint Martin, Lieurey relives that ing classic French cuisine—the picnic. The Paris picnic took place
day of good fortune. The streets kinds of establishments favored by this past summer not far from the
teem with stalls selling pickled
the Michelin Guide—but thinks place de la Bastille—a site not
and grilled herring, and restau-
rants add herring dishes to their that young and daring chefs de- unfamiliar with citizens’ upset-
menus. At midday, step up for the serve stars as well. “In France, we ting the old order—and attracted
herring-eating contest—the record have the know-how, we have the some three thousand people, who
stands at two and a half pounds. heritage, but we lack the freedom. enjoyed dishes like potato salad
Information: 33/23 257 9038. “I came from a family that
That’s what Le Fooding is for.” considered gravy a beverage.” mixed with coffee vinaigrette and
N O V E M B E R Not surprisingly, Le Fooding -ERMA BOMBECK, A MARRIAGE MADE IN
crumbled cocoa pods and “pro-
defies labels. Is it nouvelle cuisine? vençal” yakisoba noodles with
30
Birthday:
Yes. Fusion? Indeed. Experimen-
HEAVEN: OR TOO TIRED FOR AN AFFAIR
something called “Bull-Dog Tyu-
tal? That too. Traditional country ingredients and good intentions. no” sauce. Vive la révolution! (For
NILS GUSTAF DALÉN
cooking? Could be. Everything To spread their message, Cam- information, see The Pa ntry,
1869, Stenstorp, Sweden
One evening in 1913, after noticing goes, as long as it’s made with good mas and fellow journalist Em- page 106.) —Catherine Bolgar
his wife struggling to keep their
wood-burning stove lit, the Nobel
Prize–winning
physicist Nils
BOOK REVIEW
Gustaf Dalén
was inspired to
design an easy-
to-control, fuel-
efficient stove.
Cakey, Fudgy, Chewy
FROM LEFT: © MARY EVANS PICTURE LIBRARY/ALAMY; MICHAEL KRAUS; ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI; ILLUSTRATION: SCOTT MENCHIN

The handsome
cast-iron stove
he ultimately
With a wholesome new tome, a doyenne of American baking comes into her own
invented burned peat and oil and BY TA M AS I N DAY- L E W I S
radiated heat evenly from an insu-
lated firebox; the product soon ap- a k ing is the he a rt and hearthstone fers instructions for treats she likes to bake for friends
peared in homes across northern
Europe. Today the iconic ranges
derived from Dalén’s design are
B of Dorie Greenspan’s life. A long career of
making crusts, tarts, and crumbles along-
and family and describes with genuine relish the in-
toxicating scent of a particular cake or cookie.
manufactured in Britain by Aga, side luminaries like Julia Child (Greenspan wrote the Influenced by purists like Hermé, Greenspan
and many models still use Dalén’s best-selling Baking with Julia) and French pastry chef
original heating system, though Pierre Hermé, her longtime friend and collaborator,
they no longer burn peat.
has given the noted baking authority ample fodder
N O V E M B E R for filling the 500-plus pages of her new book, Bak-
ing: From My Home to Yours. After a lifetime of work-
30
Anniversary:
ing with top-notch professionals as a writer, teacher,
and recipe interpreter, Greenspan could, in a sense,
PUBLICATION OF THE JOY
regard this book as her coming-out party.
OF COOKING
1931, St. Louis, Missouri Although the secrets she’s gleaned from earlier col-
It was the height of the Depres- laborations are among the book’s most tempting of-
sion when Irma S. Rombauer self- ferings, Baking is at its best
published 3,000 copies of The when Greenspan delivers
Joy of Cooking: A Compilation
on the folksy premise con-
of Reliable Recipes with a Casual
Culinary Chat. Readers instantly veyed by the book’s title.
responded to Rombauer’s clear, Throughout, the author of-
well-organized recipes and to her
no-nonsense charm. In the years, Ta m a s i n Da y-L e w i s
and many editions, since then, Joy
has written for Vogue and
has certainly evolved—the first
edition included a recipe titled Vanity Fair. She also hosts
“Shrimp Wiggle”—but its original her own cooking show in
spirit lives on. the United Kingdom.
 A D V E R T I S E M E N T
S AV E U R ’ S G U I D E T O E V E N T S , P R O M O T I O N S , A N D P R O D U C T S P. 26 NO. 97
HOBNOBBING WITH S AV E U R
CELEBRITY CHEFS
FA R E

has been instrumental in banishing Crisco, cookbook: in addition to the sidebars, each
margarine, and other noxious oils and emol- chapter has an introduction containing useful
lients from many American kitchens. I, too, tips for both the novice and the experienced
White Elephant, the chic landmark
am a passionate home baker who tries to avoid baker. In the section on cakes, Greenspan
hotel on Nantucket’s harbor, is commercial goods made with questionable in- admonishes, “When it’s time to test for done-
playing host this fall to some of the gredients; so, what a relief, indeed a pleasure, ness, don’t even think about using a measly
country’s most popular chefs from it was to read these magic words in one of toothpick.... Grab a slender paring knife.” In
New York, Boston, and Washington,
Greenspan’s many sidebars: “Butter is my first the section on cookies, she cautions, “Always
D.C., giving guests the opportunity
to dine exceptionally well, hobnob
choice for biscuits and scones because it is de- start with a cool baking sheet—pull one that’s
with the experts, learn a culinary licious”—a refreshingly blunt declaration. just out of the oven, and your dough will ooze
thing or two, and get their holiday Herein lies the goodness, if you will, of this and melt before it bakes.” For the most part,
shopping done early! Please visit
WhiteElephantHotel.com or call R E C I P E
800-445/6574 for a schedule of
October and November events. Thanksgiving Twofer Pie
MAKES ONE 9” PIE
POUR ON THE FRESH
This two-for-one pie bakes our two favorites (sorry, mincemeat) into one delicious combo. This recipe is
FLAVOR
an adaptation of one in Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin, 2006).
The fresh-pressed taste of STAR
Extra Virgin is released from sun-
FOR A 9 ” SINGLE CRUST: 1⁄2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
ripened olives within 24 hours of
harvest, yielding a rich and robust 1 1⁄2 cups all-purpose flour 1⁄2 tsp. ground cinnamon
flavor. Pour it on. Get fresh ideas 2 tbsp. sugar 1⁄4 tsp. ground ginger

on how to use STAR Extra Virgin at 3⁄4 tsp. salt 1⁄4 tsp. salt
starfinefoods.com/freshrecipes.html. 1 1⁄4 sticks (10 tbsp.) very cold (frozen is fine)
unsalted butter, cut into tbsp.-size pieces FOR THE PECAN FILLING:
2 1⁄2 tbsp. very cold (frozen is even better) 1⁄2 cup light or dark corn syrup
vegetable shortening, cut into 2 pieces 1⁄4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
FOR THE PUMPKIN FILLING: 1 egg
1 cup canned unsweetened pumpkin purée 1 egg yolk
M A Î T R E D’

2⁄3 cup heavy cream 1⁄2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1⁄2 cup packed light brown sugar 1⁄4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 egg 1⁄8 tsp. salt
WIN A LUXURY CRUISE
1 egg yolk 11⁄2 cups (about 7 oz.) pecan halves or pieces
2 tsp. dark rum

1. For the crust: Put flour, sugar, and salt into a food processor; pulse to combine. Drop in butter and shorten-
Enter for a chance to win a ing; pulse to cut into flour. What you’re aiming for is to have some pieces the size of fat green peas and others
legendary transatlantic crossing * the size of barley. Pulsing, gradually add about 3 tbsp. ice water—add a little water and pulse once, add some
aboard Cunard Line’s Queen Mary 2. more water, pulse again; keep going that way. Then use a few long pulses to get water into flour. If, after a
Return to the Golden Age of dozen or so pulses, the dough doesn’t look evenly moistened, pulse in up to 1 tbsp. more ice water, to get a
Ocean Travel and experience the dough that will stick together when pinched. Shape dough into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate 1 hour.
unforgettable thrill of a transatlantic
crossing. Time is limited, so enter 2. For the pumpkin filling: Pulse all ingredients together in a food processor. Leave filling in bowl.
at www.HowWillYouCross.com from
now through November 11, 2006. 3. For the pecan filling: In a bowl, whisk together all ingredients except pecans until smooth.
For more information about Cunard,
contact your travel professional or 4. Preheat oven to 450°. Roll dough out to a 12” circle on a floured counter, turning dough over fre-
call 1-800/7-CUNARD. quently; keep counter floured. Slide dough into the fridge for about 20 minutes to rest and firm up. Fit
*No purchase necessary to enter this dough into a buttered 9” pie plate; cut excess dough to a 1 ⁄4”– 1 ⁄2 ” overhang. Fold dough under itself,
sweepstakes. Open to legal U.S. residents 18 so that it hangs over the edge just a tad, and flute or pinch the crust to make a decorative edge.
and older. Ends November 11, 2006. Void where
prohibited. For complete rules and regulations,
5. To assemble: Give the pumpkin filling one last quick pulse, then remove bowl, rap it on counter to
visit HowWillYouCross.com. Ship’s registry:
Great Britain. ©2006 Cunard. debubble batter, and pour filling into crust. Top pumpkin filling evenly with pecans, then pour over
pecan filling. Poke down any pecans that float to the top and aren’t covered with filling. Bake pie for 10
minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300° and bake for another 35–40 minutes, or until it is evenly
puffed and a slender knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer pie to a cooling rack and
let it stand until it is just warm or until it reaches room temperature.
P. 2 8 S AV E U R NO. 97

FA R E
Greenspan’s tips and recipes produce exactly Unremittingly wholesome though it may
the results she tells the reader to expect. That be—after all, it is a cookbook about des-
should give confidence to the cook who hasn’t serts, not fusion cuisine—Baking: From My
yet graduated from the beginner slopes. Home to Yours is undeniably authoritative
Greenspan’s instructions are concise and well and thorough, and I have no doubt that I’ll
edited, which makes up for the sometimes ram- keep it on my shelf and bake with Greenspan
bling recipe headnotes and for certain sections for years to come.
that I considered to be a little overstuffed with
recipes. Whether the reader really needs more Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie
than a dozen recipes for brownies is a matter Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin, $40).
of personal predilection, I suppose. I prefer her
approach in the sections on cheesecakes and
sablés, in which the author suggests variations
in extensive sidebars instead of devoting entire Southern Comfort
recipes to closely related items. The Lee brothers, Matt and Ted, hail from
While Greenspan’s recipes are mostly win- Charleston, South Carolina, but weren’t born
ning, I was greeted with less than enthusiastic there—a nitpicky distinction that only an old-
responses to certain entries when I prepared guard snob might still make. Thankfully, most
residents of the Holy City no longer give a toot
them for family and friends (though, truthfully, whether your great-granddaddy raised cotton
in the realm of baking, dissent often arises from or sold carpetbags. In The Lee Bros. Southern
individual taste and not from flaws inherent in Cookbook: Stories and Recipes for Southern-
the product). I made the French lemon cream ers and Would-Be Southerners (W. W. Norton
tart that Greenspan credits to Hermé and got & Company, $35), the duo intersperse reci-
pes with homey anecdotes about Lowcountry
disparate reactions. An American friend loved home cooking—the lard-and-bacon-fat-laden
its creaminess and felt it had a comfortingly bounty that’s served in both pillared houses
familiar texture; a British friend, accustomed and unpainted shacks but is rarely well ex-
to a more classic tarte au citron, said he missed ecuted in fancy-pants restaurants. (Until re-
the traditional sharp, gel-like custard. cently, proper Charlestonians ate out only oc-
casionally, and it was generally taken on faith
The recipe titled “Rick Katz’s Brownies for that grandmothers would pass on their home
Julia” elicited similarly mixed reactions; despite recipes. But the Lee brothers have recognized
my misgivings about the two cups of sugar the that customs are changing.) In 1994, the
recipe called for, I did just as I was told. Once brothers—homesick after moving to Manhat-
again my American friend approved, saying tan—launched a quirky Southern-foods mail-
order catalogue from their apartment; it has
they were just how his mother used to make since grown into a journalism career and sat-
them, though he quibbled over their being ellite-radio show. In this, their first book, the
“cakey”, not “fudgy” as the recipe promised. Lees wax nostalgic for old-time preparations
My 17-year-old daughter, a brownie connois- that Lowcountry natives relish: innards-stud-
seur, refused to eat hers, complaining that she ded chicken bog and she-crab soup, as well as
Junior League hostess favorites like tomato
could taste only the sugar, not the chocolate. aspic. They also acknowledge the region’s
Such moments of unevenness should not evolving ethnic landscape with dishes like
imply that Greenspan’s skill at recipe writing cheese-grits chiles rellenos and detour beyond
is less than consummate. Still, younger read- Dixie altogether with recipes for peach sake
ers might tire of her down-home voice. The and Harlem meat loaf. Nevertheless, whether
you were born in the pluff mud or not, you’ll
pages are sugared with cute monikers like find that this cookbook playfully renders the
“cocoa-nana bread”, “corniest corn muffins”, region’s best foods. Granted, the Lees take a
and “chunky peanut butter and oatmeal choc- few liberties with classic preparations—add-
olate chipsters”; and, reading the recipe ing Spanish pimentón
preambles, I developed a case of adjec- (smoked paprika) to
a baked red rice pilau,
tive fatigue: in addition to the aforemen- for instance, and ga-
tioned “fudgy”, I came across “gooey”, ram masala to Coun-
JAMES OSELAND

“chewy”, “syrupy”, “craggy”, “bumpy”, try Captain chicken

“chunky”, “tangy”, and “crunchy”, curry—but only a hide-
among other descriptives. This is all of a bound traditionalist
would take exception to
piece with the slightly dated page design these embellishments.
and the earnest title. —Shane Mitchell
But these are merely matters of style.
 P. 30 S AV E U R NO. 97

FA R E

T H E S AV E U R L I S T

10 Tabletop Goods
Handsome pieces like these make setting the table a pleasure

rou nd t his t ime of year, a lot of magazines start parad- that in mind, we assigned ourselves the task of compiling this small assort-
A ing out compendia of hot, hip items for embellishing holiday
tables. While we love the idea—and the practice—of setting
ment of pieces representing a range of prices and categories. We browsed
catalogues, rummaged through stores, and rooted around our own kitchen
an appealing spread, truly worthy tableware has less to do with the wow! shelves to come up with a selection of serving goods that are smart, timeless,
factor than it does with craftsmanship, utility, and good looks. With and, well, very s av eur . (See The Pa n try, page 106, for sources.)

1 l MOROCCAN TEA GLASSES 3 l DALE LARSON BOWL $115– designer Christina Kim and chef host will tell you, is directly propor-
$7–$12 each. In Morocco, meals $600 each. Oregon-based artist Alice Waters created this line of tional to the probability that it will
often end with sweet mint tea Dale Larson fashions each of dinnerware—including a din- end up in shards. The Nora glass
served in small, ornate glasses—a his remarkable vessels from lo- ner plate, a dessert plate, a side is a winner for its elegant form, to
traditional North African gesture cal wood, much of it native to bowl, and a “café” bowl—for use be sure, and its price means never
of hospitality. These intricately the Pacific coast. His pieces, like in Waters’s famous Chez Panisse having to say you’re sorry.
decorated tea glasses, which come the Big Leaf Maple bowl, subtly restaurant in Berkeley. Almost
in a variety of sizes and patterns, evoke the sylvan beauty of the any food looks stunning when 8 l RAVENSCROFT TRUMPET DE-
evoke the grace of the ritual and Pacific Northwest. They remind placed on these pleasing, ginger- CANTER $44. When we first came
are also ideal for serving just us of big trees—and big salads. colored pieces. across this shapely, lead-free-crys-
about any other beverage. tal decanter at a local housewares
4 l CHEZ PANISSE DINNERWARE 5 l JOHN DERIAN PLATTER $185. store, it was being displayed as a
2 l SIMON PEARCE BROOKFIELD $146 / four-piece set. Under the Sometimes practicality simply vase, which is fine—really. But
BAKEWARE $90 . This sturdy bak- auspices of Heath Ceramics, a must surrender to beauty. For the vessel seemed to call out for
ing dish, which takes its cue from Sausalito, California company the refi ned découpage items in wine; sure enough, the uniform,
18th-century American stone- started by Edith Heath in 1948, his History of Plants line, de- gently tapered spout and heavy
ware, is a recent addition to the signer John Derian drew on his bottom delivered a clean pour.
Vermont company’s collection of extensive collection of meticu-
glass and pottery. We adore it be- lous 19th-century nature illus- 9 l WMF NORTICA FLATWARE
cause it’s practical (it can go safely trations. Th is felt-bottomed plat- $40 / five-piece set. Finding flatware
from oven to table to freezer) and ter isn’t washable, but we didn’t with just the right heft proved chal-
because it’s so darned pretty. really want to put cooked food lenging; so many utensils either sit
on it anyhow (though it makes in the hand like free weights or feel
a fine holder for fruit or bread). insubstantial. The stainless-steel
Just call it eye candy. Nortica utensils, however, meet
the requirement, and their combi-
6 l FISHS EDDY GREEN BAND nation polished and brushed finish
OVAL PLATTER $18. Leave it to is gorgeously unfussy.
the folks at Fishs Eddy, the vin-
tage-minded New York–based ta- 10 l VAGABOND VINTAGE FUR-
bleware purveyor, to resurrect this NISHINGS NAPKINS $80 / six-piece
pattern, which evokes the heyday set. While cloth napkins make
of the roadside diner. Unabashed- some people think of daintily dab-
ly utilitarian, the platter is made bing dames at Age of Innocence–era
ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

of industrial-strength china, and parties, they can be wonderfully

its clean, classic shape makes us practical, besides adding a little
think at once of comfort. more texture to a table setting.
The 26-inch-square, machine-
7 l CRATE & BARREL NORA WINE- washable cotton napkins in this
GLASSES $7.95 each. The cost of set have the cozy feel of well-worn
1 a wineglass, as any seasoned dinner linen. —Kate Fox
NO. 9 6 S AV E U R P. 31

FA R E

6
4

7 8

10
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 33

KITCHENWISE

Small Wonder
This diminutive kitchen has everything a cook could want
BY G EO R G I A F R E E D M A N P H OTO G RA P H S BY A N D R É BA RA N OWS K I

r e at ing at tr ac t i v e living environments has long been a repurposing second-hand furniture, and restoring a dilapidated Victorian
C passion for Jenny Rogers, an interior designer, and her partner,
Clove Galilee, an actress and choreographer. She and Galilee
house in Oakland, California, that had once belonged to the writer Jack
London. The profits from their work on the Oakland home gave them the
have remodeled every home they’ve lived in together, even when they means to move from the Bay Area to New York City to pursue their careers.
were just renting. “We really love beautiful places,” says Rogers. “We thought it was fitting that the house enabled us to be full-time artists,”
The couple’s interest in decorating has led them to such strenuous Rogers explains, “because Jack London wrote his first book in it.”
do-it-yourself endeavors as stripping paint off mahogany wainscoting, Five years ago, when the couple started the process of looking for an
P. 3 4 S AV E U R NO. 97

KITCHENWISE
Great Divide (page 33,
right). Rogers (right
in photo) and Galilee’s
favorite thing about
their kitchen is that
an additional cook can
stand on the other
side of the counter
and help prepare food
without crowding the
space—impossible when
the original, full-size
wall was there. They’ve
also developed a habit
of transferring some of
their prep work to the
large dining table, which
they use as an extra
countertop.
1. Little Gems Rogers
and Galilee hadn’t in-
tended to go upmarket
1 2 3 for their appliances, but
they found that only lux-
apartment in Manhattan, they knew frequently and even bake fairly often. ury brands made items
they’d need to adapt to less space than small enough for their
Still, they have modified their tech-
space. They’ve relished
they were accustomed to. The 500- niques to make them suit the small the surprise benefits
square-foot, two-room downtown stu- space, placing cutting boards on the of these purchases, how-
dio into which they ultimately moved, stove for more counter room, for in- ever, particularly the
however, was even smaller than they’d stance, and prepping ingredients on quality of the pie crusts
anticipated. They soon went about the large table in the living room that emerge from their
p rofessio na l - q ua lity
gutting the entire space. Not only was rather than in the kitchen. Verona oven.
it tiny, notes Rogers, whose interior- To fit everything they need into the 2. Daily Bread With only
design company is called Uncommon one small cabinet that serves as their a tiny cabinet and a nar-
Abode, but “it was basically a falling- pantry, they shop for ingredients that row refrigerator, Rogers
down shell”. They began the renovation come in small packages. And to keep and Galilee have trained
themselves to shop for
of the kitchen by knocking out most of their narrow refrigerator uncluttered, smaller quantities of
the wall that separated that area from they buy produce daily—as they like staples, condiments,
the apartment’s main room. Though to do anyway. They also save space and produce.
they’d planned to do the demolition by restricting their appliances to 3. Beautiful Bargain
themselves, they soon discovered that just the basics (including a blender, After completing the
4 kitchen construction
they were no match for the ten-inch- a half-size food processor, and a rice and purchasing appli-
thick concrete walls, and they hired ple chose a framed map of the South cooker) and making do with only ances, Rogers and Gali-
professional construction workers to do Pacific to introduce a splash of color a few pots and pans. Nevertheless, lee realized they didn’t
the job. They then framed the resulting into the kitchen itself. they’ve had to tailor their menus stra- have the wherewithal
opening and the kitchen’s entryway with The first meal that Galilee and tegically when they entertain. While for a new fl oor, so they
improvised, staining a
salvaged timber to lend a subtle raw ele- Rogers prepared in their new home they enjoy cooking full dinners for sheet of birch-veneer
ment to the overall clean, modern look was a Thanksgiving dinner for four. small groups, they limit the offerings plywood a deep chest-
they were trying to achieve. Galilee managed to make quiches at larger parties to hors d’oeuvres or nut brown.
Size constraints dictated their choice and roast a small turkey in their 24- simple snacks that they can make in 4. Color Choice When
of appliances, but the challenge of mak- inch Verona oven by cooking in care- batches. “I guess we could try cook- choosing colors for
their kitchen, Gali-
ing a small kitchen appear spacious in- fully timed shifts. Over time, though, ing for a dinner party for 20,” Galilee
lee and Rogers opted
spired them in other ways. They chose Rogers and Galilee have learned that deadpans, “but that might get com- to keep everything
frosted-glass cabinets to add depth and they don’t have to relinquish any of plicated.” (For more information, see as light and bright as
covered what remained of the original their cooking habits; they entertain The Pa n try, page 106.) possible. As a result,
room’s dividing wall with Plexiglas to most of the color in the
Would you like to share your own kitchen design ideas with other S AV E U R readers? Send kitchen comes from ob-
suggest greater space. The outer walls
us photos of your kitchen, both overall and in detail, along with your name, address, jects they own (includ-
of the kitchen were painted in a variety and a few lines telling us what’s special about it. Please note that unused submissions ing an oil painting of a
of light blues, intended to evoke grada- cannot be acknowledged or returned. Our address: Kitchenwise, SAVEUR , 304 Park sunset)—and from the
tions of light and shadow, and the cou- Avenue South, 8th Floor, New York, NY 10010. foods they cook.
 P. 36 S AV E U R NO. 97

CELL AR

Night for Day Tasting Notes

Moulin-à-vent is an earthy, gutsy cru beaujolais
BY J O H N W I N T H R O P H A EG E R Here are 12 of the best moulin-à-vent wines that we’ve recently tasted; all
are remarkable for their characteristic sultriness. See TH E PANTRY, page
106, for sources.
os t be au jol a is is a defi ned by a lightweight, low-
M fruity bistro wine pro-
duced and consumed in
tannin, fruit-forward profile,
but the best wines of Moulin-à-
DOMAINE DE LA ROCHELLE 2000 ($30). A scent of figs, medjool dates,
slightly raisined fruit, and dried leaves; cocoa-dusted fruit on the palate;
thirst-quenching volume, always Vent herald the variety’s gutsier strong minerality and some unresolved tannin. Pinotlike six years after the
the best when young, and often persona. There, thin, granitic vintage, evoking gevrey-chambertin.
served cool. But so-called cru beau- midslope sites have checked DOMAINE DIOCHON CUVÉE VIEILLES VIGNES 2004 ($19). Soft floral-
jolais (the wines produced in ten gamay’s natural tendency to herbal aromas buttressed with minerality, followed by intense flavors. Pep-
small, specially designated areas in throw a large crop, thus increas- pery spice overlays fresh cherries. A mature wine with fine-grained tannins.
the northern part of the Beaujolais ing both weight and intensity; DOMAINE DU GRANIT 2004 ($20). Cocoa-dusted berry aromas, plus
region) is quite a different beast. veins of manganese in the ap- roses and violets, followed by pure strawberry in the mouth. Oaky sweet-
And of those crus, moulin-à-vent is pellation’s subsoil have, accord- ness that’s counterbalanced by just a hint of weediness; lingering.
as different from classic beaujolais ing to local wisdom, reinforced DOMAINE DU VISSOUX PIERRE-MARIE CHERMETTE ROCHEGRÈS
as night is from day. In lieu of the its underlying richness; the best 2004 ($23). Ripe, red berry fruit overlaid with dill and fennel-frond aro-
freshly crushed strawberries and grapes achieve full ripeness in mas; then very intense red fruit and white pepper on the palate. An attrac-
raspberries that are characteristic the vineyard, leaving no need tive, mouth-filling wine that finishes weightier than it begins.
of beaujolais, moulin-à-vent mur- for chaptalization (the adding GEORGES DUBOEUF DOMAINE DES ROSIERS 2004 ($14). An earthy,
murs darker red fruits, like cassis of sugar to help fermentation); herbaceous nose reminiscent of bay laurel; then, black and red raspberries;
and cherries. Its hue is not rosy and, often, aging in small oak rich, ferric, and tannic in the mouth; herbaceous again on the finish.
but deep garnet or even purple. barrels has polished the fruit’s GÉRARD CHARVET LA RÉSERVE D’AMÉLIE 2004 ($18). Strawberry
Earthy, peppery, and spicy high- primary edge. Classic beaujolais and raspberry aromas with mint and tarragon; slender and sinewy in the
lights occur frequently; mineral- is the perfect complement to ro- mouth, with great persistence and minerality.
ity is omnipresent; and the best bustly fl avored foods like char- JOSEPH DROUHIN 2005 ($20). Strawberry-cherry and cotton candy
wines display a nice balance of cuterie and strong cheese; mou- flavors, supported by good midpalate weight. Classic young beaujolais with
respectable midpalate weight and lin-à-vent (and some of its cru hints of the length and seriousness that mark moulin-à-vent.
elegant concentration. Moulin- cousins), however, is best paired LOUIS JADOT CHÂTEAU DES JACQUES CLOS DE LA ROCHE 2003
à-vent can age nicely, like—well, with direct, hearty fare like pot- ($30). Cocoa powder, barrel-derived vanilla, and very ripe fruit aromas; a
almost like—a good red burgundy. au-feu and grilled beef. sweet, plummy attack before roasted nuts; minerality and grip at the end.
Impressive for its overall size, tightly knit structure, and good concentration.
Anomalous in one further re-
spect, moulin-à-vent is the LOUIS JADOT CHÂTEAU DES JACQUES CLOS DE ROCHEGRÈS 2003
only one of Beaujolais’s crus ($30). Aromas of black cherry and rose petal; then black-red fruits, cloves,
and an undertone of minerality; pleasantly barrel-marked with sweet va-
named not for a village but for nilla; some tenacity and good length.
a landmark: a hillside wind-
mill dating from the 15th MOMMESSIN LES CANNELIERS 2003 ($17). A spice-driven nose that
combines ripe strawberry, rose water, and resin; then a sweet, fruit-
century. driven, almost plummy palate. Finishes intense and concentrated, with
Like classic beaujo- pronounced tannins. A good value.
lais and the other crus,
MOMMESSIN RÉSERVE DU DOMAINE DE CHAMP DE COUR 2003
moulin-à-vent is made ($27). Primarily floral aromas with hints of roasted nuts and some barrel
MICHAEL KRAUS

entirely from gamay. marking; then fleshy and mouth-coating flavors of freshly crushed red
An offspring of pinot berries and considerable spice.
noir that Philip the Bold POTEL-AVIRON 2004 ($20). Aromas of ripe, briary fruit; cherry-rasp-
banished (unsuccess- berry flavors and gum-camphor overtones in a dry, mineral-rich package
fully) from Burgundy in that finishes with nice structure and good grip. A handsome wine. —J.W.H.
1395, gamay is broadly
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 39

LIVES

Chocolate in the Rough

On an African island, a maverick chocolatier is developing a unique bean-to-bar operation
BY G. Y. D RYA N S KY P H OTO G RA P H S BY E N R I C R OV I RA

s I’m dr i v i ng out
A to visit Claudio Co-
rallo and his cacao
plantation on Príncipe—one of
the two tiny equatorial islands
off the coast of Gabon that
together make up the Demo-
cratic Republic of São Tomé
and Príncipe, the smallest
country in Africa—my jeep is
forced to make a sudden stop.
The driver points to something
moving up ahead: a long, black
cobra, seemingly unperturbed
by our presence, is noncha-
lantly crossing the road. It’s
hard to believe that only a few
miles away, within this wild
and tropical landscape, an Ital-
ian is creating some of the best
and most complex chocolate in
the world.
Although many chocolat-
iers buy bulk chocolate from a
handful of processing compa-
nies that acquire their beans Above left, amelonado forastero cacao pods; right, Claudio Corallo at the drying machine at Terreiro Velho.
on the commodity markets,
Corallo is one of only a few who are raising rare beans the land in Africa”. In 1974, at the age of 23, with a de-
themselves. He then shepherds them in his own, particu- gree in tropical agronomy from the Istituto Agronomico
lar way through the entire complicated process of mak- per l’Oltremare, he took a job with the government of
ing an edible chocolate, one that has a floral and earthy Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo), do-
quality unlike that of any other. ing an agricultual census. “It came to me that the job
was senseless,” he now says. “What good was there in
De spite t he gr ay in his trimmed mustache, Corallo measuring these tiny farms, which didn’t do anything
looks remarkably young and unworn for a man in his to improve their primitive nature?” After a year he quit,
mid-50s who has survived malaria and two other parasitic but he decided to stay in Africa to work for a buyer,
diseases during his 32-year tenure in Africa. “Blame it processor, and exporter of coffee beans. “I took a dislike
all on Tarzan,” he jokes. Growing up in a well-to-do to the speculative world of the coffee business,” he says,
family in Florence, the son of a machine manufacturer “but I became fascinated by the enormous diff erences
and a classics professor, Corallo saw many of the Johnny in flavor between the different varieties.” Around that
Weissmuller fi lms about that legendary jungle man and
fell under their spell. He found himself hankering, Cor- G. Y. Drya nsk y, a Paris-based journalist and novelist, is
allo explains, “for the exotic life of doing something with the senior European correspondent for Condé Nast Traveler.
NO. 97 P. 4 1

LIVES
time, Corallo met Bettina Baptista Martins,
the daughter of the Portuguese ambassador
to Zaire. She was ten years younger than
Corallo, but in 1980, to the consternation of
the ambassador, Corallo married her.
Soon afterward, Corallo bought two all-
but-abandoned coffee bean plantations in the
middle of the Zaire jungle. His first trip to
survey them entailed a flight on an old DC-3
propeller plane followed by a three-day truck
ride and a six-day trek, with porters, through
60 miles of jungle. Corallo soon took advan-
tage of a short airstrip closer to the plantation,
but the danger and expense of flying forced
him to travel most of the time via the Lomela
River, following the same route that his coffee
beans took, by laboriously slow-moving barge.
When he needed to purchase supplies in the
capital city of Kinshasa, he would make the
trip in a small outboard-motor boat.
The beginnings of the civil war that would
drive the dictator President Mobutu Sese
Seko from power in 1997 manifested them-
selves in 1993, when Corallo’s plantations
were looted. Corallo had moved his wife
and two sons to Kinshasa by then, but that
seemed unsafe as well, so the family decided
to emigrate to the tiny island nation of São
Tomé and Príncipe, a former Portuguese
colony. There the government rented him a
rundown, 260-acre cacao plantation on Prín-
cipe called Terreiro Velho.
The Corallos stayed in a cabin on the
beach at the edge of the plantation while
Claudio began resuscitating Terreiro Velho.
The property, running from the crystal wa-
ters of the Gulf of Guinea to dense jungle,
had been abandoned when São Tomé and
Príncipe gained its independence in 1975.
Corallo was able to stop the decay of the or-
nate colonial house and also gave a new lease
on life to the cacao trees—rare descendants
of the original cultivars that the Portuguese
brought over from the lower Amazon region
to Africa starting in 1822—that were strug-
gling for space amid the brush. He has also
significantly raised the standard of living for
the farmhands, who had been treated harshly
under the previous owners.
Corallo’s primary goal has been to get the
cacao trees at Terreiro Velho to produce ex-
traordinary chocolate. There are three major
types of cacao trees: forastero, criollo, and a
cross between the two known as trinitario.
Corallo’s are all of a variety called amelo-
nado forastero. Criollo, which high-end bulk
P. 4 2 S AV E U R NO. 97

LIVES
suppliers rely on, has a reputa-
tion for refi nement. Forastero is
known for yielding the greatest
number of pods, but the beans are
considered less refi ned in fl avor.
Still, says Corallo, “there is good
forastero and bad forastero, just
as there is good and bad criollo”.
He hands me a raw cacao bean to
taste; surprisingly, it has the fl a-
vor of an olive. “You see,” he says,
“normally, raw cacao beans taste
awful; they’re inedible. But not
from my trees. They are descended
from the trees that were planted
before the emphasis changed
from quality to quantity.” Workers at a cacao plantation in the south of São Tomé.

Ev e r y prof e s s ion a l chocolate maker invented; he scoffs at chocolate makers who

handles differently the process of transform- boast of “sun-dried beans”. “It sounds nice,”
ing bean to confection. Always, the first step he says, “but sun-drying is chancy. It changes
is fermentation. Most chocolate makers fer- with the weather, and when you get rain it
ment their beans for two to seven days and definitely changes for the worse.” The dried
no longer, to prevent malolactic fermenta- beans are then roasted; Corallo modified a
tion from spoiling the taste. (The conversion small roasting machine and conducted test
of malic acid into lactic acid softens wine but after test until he was satisfied that he had
gives a repugnant taste to cacao.) Corallo, perfected the process.
however, is able to ferment his beans for When it comes time to mill the roasted beans,
nine to 17 days without the occurrence of Corallo grinds his into granules far coarser
any malolactic fermentation, thanks to care- than the paste-like substance other chocolate
ful temperature control and specially shaped makers usually end up with. “When you mill
bins, which he helped design. “The longer very fine, you get rid of flaws by exposing the
fermentation brings out much more of the chocolate to more air,” he says, “but you also
good flavors while the bad are diminished,” lose aroma and flavor.” Corallo also eschews
he says. After fermentation, the beans are conching, the time-honored kneading tech-
dried. For that Corallo uses machines he nique intended to create smoother chocolate by
altering its crystalline structure. For Corallo,
conching is another way of chasing out flavor.
The result of this nonconformist approach is a
chocolate that is dense and dark, with a vegetal
aliveness—qualities that have not gone unno-
ticed among buyers of fine chocolate.

A f ter selling his beans to a few European

chocolate shops that roast their own beans,
Corallo recently began setting up distribution
of his own finished chocolate. With the help of
a partner in Seattle, he will soon be selling his
MAP BY OLIVER WILLIAMS

chocolates to U.S. consumers via the Internet.

While attending a chocolate fair in Paris
three years ago, Corallo came upon a shop sell-
ing “Claudio Corallo” chocolate. “I never heard
of these people,” he says, miffed at the theft of
his name. But it was proof that his reputation
for producing exceptional chocolate had finally
made its way out of the jungle.
 P. 4 4 S AV E U R NO. 97

SOURCE

Wok Love
Tane Chan is a passionate purveyor of the
ancient cooking vessel
BY SA RA H D I G R EG O R I O

t ’s e a s y e nough to find a wok these

I days, but a wok matchmaker? That is what
Tane Chan is. The owner of the Wok Shop,
a tiny store in San Francisco’s Chinatown, Chan
has spent more than 30 years pairing people of
all nationalities and cooking abilities with the
perfect wok.
Woks are popular, says Chan, because
of their versatility: you can use them for
stir-frying, braising, steaming, and deep-
frying. But no single wok is suitable for
everyone. Woks come in different sizes,
shapes, and materials, and there are vari-
ous handle options as well. To determine
which combination to recommend, she
observes customers as they walk around
her store and asks them questions. “I size
each person up,” she says. “For instance, I
ask if they want to cook real Chinese style,
and if they say yes but they’re worried about
burning their hands, that’s a giveaway. They
need a wok with Western [i.e., wooden] han-
dles.” For home cooks with electric stoves, a good
choice is a flat-bottomed enameled-iron wok with
two heat-resistant plastic handles (left, foreground).
Because it sits directly on the heat source, the bottom of
the pan will get hotter than that of a round-bottomed wok,
high heat being essential for proper stir-frying. If you have a gas
stove and are looking for a more traditional vessel, Chan might
suggest a round-bottomed wok in cast iron (left, rear), a superior
heat conductor.
Chan opened the Wok Shop after Richard Nixon’s historic
visit to China in 1972. Suddenly, everyone was interested in
Chinese food. But even in San Francisco, with its large Chinese
population, there was no store that offered a comprehensive se-
lection of woks, nor was there one that could cater to English
MICHAEL KRAUS

speakers. Chan decided to fi ll that void. A self-described “wok-

a-holic”, she can still be found at her shop seven days a week
and spends hours answering e-mails from online customers. “A
wok is forever,” she declares, “so it’s important to find the right
one.” Chan’s woks cost from $9.95 to $125, plus shipping. To
order, call 888/780-7171 or visit www.wokshop.com.
 P. 46 S AV E U R NO. 97

CL ASSIC

Cream of New York

Cheesecake is the Big Apple’s other coveted slice
R E C I P E

Lindy’s Cheesecake
MAKES ONE 9” CAKE

This recipe is an adaptation of one in Arthur Schwartz’s

BY A RT H U R S C H WA RTZ
New York City Food by Arthur Schwartz (Stewart, Tabori
& Chang, 2004).
he story of New York cheese- cheesecakes made from fresh-curd va-
T cake, like that of so many beloved
American foods, is a narrative of
rieties of cheese like cottage and farm-
ers’. Making do with the ingredients at
FOR THE CRUST:
1 2” piece vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
immigrant tradition, disputed pedigree, hand in their adopted country, those 1 cup flour
and local pride. The city’s signature dessert home cooks incorporated cream cheese 1/4 cup sugar

owes its existence in large part to Phila- into their cakes. 1 tsp. lemon zest
delphia cream cheese, which, in turn, can How this Americanized cheesecake 8 tbsp. butter, cut into 1/4” cubes
1/4 tsp. salt
trace its provenance to the small upstate was introduced into the public realm,
1 egg yolk
New York town of Chester. There, cream and into New York City mythology, has
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
cheese as we know it—imitating the mel- long been the subject of debate. Arnold
low flavor and soft texture of French neuf- Reuben, of the legendary Manhattan FOR THE FILLING:
châtel—was created, in 1872. The cheese delicatessen that bears his name, liked 2 1/2 lbs. cream cheese, softened
was soon picked up by a New York City to claim that he was the first to serve 1 1/4 cups sugar
dairy distributor and (in a nod to a place it, in the 1910s. 3 tbsp. flour
then esteemed for its fine food products) By the 1920s, Reuben’s was hardly 1 1/2 tsp. orange zest
1 1/2 tsp. lemon zest
called Philadelphia Brand. the only New York restaurant offering 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
The end of the 19th century also cheesecake. Arnold Reuben’s main com- 5 eggs plus 2 egg yolks
brought a wave of Jewish immigrants petitor, deli man Leo Lindemann, lured 1/4 cup heavy cream
from Eastern Europe to New York City. away Reuben’s Swiss-born pastry chef,
With them came old recipes for rich Paul Heghi, to re-create the dessert at 1. For the crust: Preheat oven to 400°. Scrape vanilla seeds
his establishment, Lindy’s, into a medium bowl; discard pod. Add flour, sugar, and zest
where it became iconic. It and mix with your fingers to break up seeds. Add butter, salt,
was even immortalized in and yolk and work mixture with your fingers to form a rough
Guys and Dolls, the musical dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and
inspired by Damon Run- knead to combine. Form dough into 2 rounds and wrap each
yon’s 1931 short story col- in wax paper. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
lection of the same name. 2. Remove outer ring of a 9” springform pan. Grease bottom of
Among the notable pan with half the oil. Using floured hands, press 1 dough round
New York cheesecakes onto bottom of pan to cover it. Bake until light golden brown,
available today are those 10–12 minutes. Allow to cool slightly; refrigerate for 30 minutes.
from S&S Cheesecake, in Grease inside of outer ring with remaining oil; attach to bottom
the Bronx, and Junior’s, in of pan. Using floured hands, pull off pieces from remaining
dough; press them around sides of pan to cover. Press inside
Brooklyn. The memory of
edge of dough against bottom crust to seal. Set aside.
the original version once
served at Lindy’s still lin- 3. For the filling: Preheat oven to 500°. Beat cheese, sugar,
gers, though, and fortu- flour, zests, and vanilla in a large bowl with an electric mixer
ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

nately the recipe for it has until smooth. Add eggs and yolks, one at a time; beat after
survived. So, we can still each addition. Stir in cream. Pour filling into pan; smooth
top with a spatula. Bake on a baking sheet until deep golden
feast on the standard for
brown, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 200° and bake for 1
the dessert my American- hour more. Let cool (in the pan) on a rack. Cover and refriger-
born (but thoroughly Rus- ate overnight. Remove cake from pan. Let warm slightly at
sian) mother calls a meal room temperature for 1 hour. Cut cake into slices and serve.
unto itself.
P. 4 8 S AV E U R NO. 97

SHANGHAI

SHANGHAI
SURPRISE Che f Je re me L e ung
i s re d e f ining hi s a d o pt e d c it y’s
c ui s ine one di sh at a time
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 4 9
P. 50 S AV E U R NO. 97

SHANGHAI
R EC I P E

Bingzhen Huangjiu Ji
(Chilled Drunken Chicken with Rice Wine Granita)
SERVES 8 by G r a c e Yo u n g
This take on the Chinese classic dish called photog ra ph s b y B e n F i n k
drunken chicken marinates overnight in rice wine

I
and a liquor redolent of roses called meiguilu jiu.
It’s garnished with wolfberries, a red-orange,
raisin-like Chinese medicinal herb. For a source n , I accompa nied my parents of pork. Even Mama, who initially insisted
for hard-to-find Chinese ingredients, see T H E to Shanghai. It was my mother’s first that we just hadn’t gone to the right places,
PA N T RY , page 106. trip in over 30 years to the city that was eventually forced to concede that great
she had lived in as a girl. During Shanghai chefs were a thing of the past.
1 tbsp. vegetable oil that time—mostly because of the Commu-
10 scallions, cut into 3”–4” pieces nist takeover of China—much of the city’s In , I r et ur ned to Shanghai with
1 2” piece ginger, thinly sliced notorious old-world glamour disappeared. my now elderly parents, and our earlier dis-
3 tbsp. salt Despite this, my mother assumed that she appointment was replaced by a pleasant sur-
1 tbsp. sugar would still be able to indulge in her favor- prise: good food was back. After ten years
4 dried bay leaves ite childhood dishes, like crisp red-cooked of free-market reforms, Shanghai was once
2 star anise
spareribs and sweet-and-sour fish. Shanghai again a vibrant city, and this new dynamism
2 cinnamon sticks
5 tbsp. plus 1 cup shaoxing jiu (Chinese rice
had long been a renowned culinary destina- was apparent in the cuisine. For my mother,
wine; see page 101) tion, and we expected to eat well. the food was everything she had longed for.
4 boneless skin-on chicken thighs (about The food we encountered, though, proved We ate delicate soup dumplings with juicy
1 1/4 lbs.) to be as dispiriting as the drab, dilapidated crab filling and flaky turnip cakes so frag-
2 tsp. meiguilu jiu liquor city itself. It was, in fact, no different from the ile that they crumbled under the slightest
8 dried pitted wolfberries
1 large anaheim chile, stemmed, seeded,
and cut into 1” squares

1. Heat a large flat-bottomed wok over high heat

until hot. Add oil, half the scallions, and half the
ginger; stir-fry for 1 minute. Add 4 cups water;
bring to a boil. Add salt, sugar, bay leaves, star
anise, and cinnamon; return to a boil. Reduce heat
to medium; simmer for 3 minutes. Strain scal-
lion–ginger liquid through a fine sieve into a bowl
(discard solids); let cool to room temperature.

2. Meanwhile, wipe wok clean; add 3 cups wa-

ter; bring to a boil. Add remaining scallions and
ginger, 5 tbsp. rice wine, and chicken; return to
a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer,
covered, until chicken is just cooked through, 6–8
minutes. Drain chicken mixture in colander, cover
with ice cubes and let cool for about 10 minutes.
Transfer chicken to a wide dish; set aside.
Above left, chilled drunken chicken; right, Leung’s cooking notebooks. Facing page, tea-smoked eggs
3. Stir remaining rice wine and liquor into reserved
with caviar. Previous pages, from left, Leung at the Whampoa Club; tea service at the restaurant.
scallion–ginger liquid. Stir together 1/2 cup wine
mixture with 3/4 cup water in a bowl. Pour into an
ice cube tray; freeze. Pour remaining wine mixture unappetizing fare we’d been served in Guang- pressure of our chopsticks.
over chicken; cover and let chill for 24 hours. zhou, Beijing, Xian, and the other cities we Six years later, Shanghai is a financial pow-
visited on that trip—mainly tepid stir-fries, erhouse and a sprawling metropolis that roars
4. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add wolfber- made with old napa cabbage and fatty shreds with construction. With scores of boutiques,
ries and chiles; cook for 1 minute. Drain. Cut chick-
art galleries, and nightclubs, the city has re-
en into 11/2” x 2” pieces; divide along with chiles
between 8 martini glasses. Pulse rice wine ice
Gr ace You ng is a new s av eu r consult- established its reputation for trendsetting
cubes in a food processor for 10–15 seconds until ing editor living in New York City. Her lat- sophistication, which is also evident at the
slushy, to make a granita. Spoon about 2 tbsp. of est book is The Breath of a Wok (Simon & table. A growing appetite for foreign foods
granita into each glass; garnish with wolfberries. Schuster, 2004). This is her first article for has led to a restaurant boom; Italian, French,
the magazine. Spanish, Japanese, (continued on page 57)
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 5 1

SHANGHAI
R E C I P E

Xunlong Yuzi Yanxun Dan

(Tea-Smoked Eggs with Caviar)
SERVES 4

These smoky, creamy-in-the-center eggs are

topped with spoonfuls of caviar—a luxurious
combination of flavors and textures. When
preparing this dish, Jereme Leung uses Chinese
duck eggs that contain a red yolk; they’re
unavailable in the U.S. Regular duck eggs make
a fine substitute. For a source for hard-to-find
ingredients, see T H E PA N T RY, page 106.

4 duck eggs
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup black tea leaves

1 tbsp. long-grain rice

2 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. sugar
Pinch of five-spice powder
9 shiso leaves, 1 julienned
4 tsp. caviar, such as sevruga or osetra

1. Put the eggs into a small pot, cover with

water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add
salt, reduce heat to low, and simmer, covered,
for 1 minute. Remove the pot from the heat
and let sit, covered, to gently cook the eggs
for 2 minutes. Immediately transfer eggs to
a large bowl of ice water and let chill for 10
minutes. Drain. Gently crack and peel the eggs.
Pat the eggs dry.

2. Put the tea, rice, and 1/4 cup water into a

small bowl and let soak for 3 minutes. Drain
the tea mixture in a fine sieve, shaking out
any excess water. Line a large flat-bottomed
wok and its lid with heavy-duty aluminum foil,
pressing the foil against the bottom. Spread
the tea mixture in the bottom of the wok,
sprinkle the flour, sugar, and five-spice powder
over the top, and place a small metal heat-
proof rack over the mixture. Place the eggs on
rack spaced 2” apart.

3. Open your windows and turn on the exhaust

fan. Heat the wok over high heat until the tea
mixture begins to smoke, 2 1/2–3 minutes. Cover
tightly with the lid and continue to smoke until
eggs are tinged golden yellow, 5–6 minutes.
Remove from the heat and transfer eggs to a
clean work surface. (Cool and discard the tea
mixture.) Slice the eggs in half lengthwise and
place each half atop a whole shiso leaf on a
platter. Garnish the yolk of each egg with a
dollop of caviar and a little of the julienned
shiso leaf. Serve promptly.
P. 5 4 TH E SAVEU R TO U R O F NO. 97
SHANGHAI

S
hanghai is undergoing a gustatory revolution, with restaurants, bistros, 1221 1221 Yan’an Xilu (6213-6585).
A longtime favorite of locals and
and shops of every culinary stripe opening at a dizzying pace, from the foreigners alike, 1221 is renowned
haute dining in the French Concession to dim sum in the Old Town. That’s for its xiangsu ya (crispy fried duck
stuffed with taro), youtiao (fried
why, in creating this at-a-glance tour of the city, we decided to impose parameters. crullers), and eight-treasure tea (a
Namely, we decided not to stray from Chinese cuisine and to emphasize purvey- mix of dried fruits and flowers and
jasmine tea). For a first-time visitor
ors of traditional Shanghai foods and their modern-day incarnations. Shanghai’s
to Shanghai, it offers an ideal intro-
long-standing obsession with food is in evidence virtually everywhere: humble duction to the city’s food scene.
vendors offering xiaochi (snacks) crowd street corners and back alleys while serv-
BAO LUO 271 Fumin Lu (5403-
ers gracefully dispense tea in teahouses. It’s enough to overwhelm even the most 7239). Announced by an easy-to-
adventurous of epicures. Our best advice for the culinary-minded visitor? Follow miss sign out front, this restaurant
serving Shanghainese fare stays
your instinct and roam. This city, where “Have you eaten yet?” is the greeting of
open until six in the morning, so it’s
choice between strangers, won’t disappoint. —The Editors an ideal stop after a night of club-
bing. The roast eel is a highlight.

BAR ROUGE 18 Zhongshan Dong Yi

Lu (6339-1199; www.resto18.com). If
any nightspot captures the essence
of China’s new urban elite—and
evokes Shanghai’s prerevolution-
ary hedonism—it’s Bar Rouge. Com-
munist austerity is a dim memory
at this rooftop bar overlooking the
glass towers of the Pudong finan-
cial district. Lounge on teak beds,
enjoy mojitos, and watch bartend-
ers serve champagne as the sun
sets and the city lights flicker on. If
exclusivity isn’t your scene, give it a
try anyhow—it’s an essential Shang-
hai experience.

CRYSTAL JADE 123 Xingye Lu

(6385-8752); Hong Kong New
World Tower (6335-4188). As any
Chinese-food connoisseur will
tell you, Lanzhou-style noodles—
hand-pulled wheat noodles whose
origin is in that northern Chinese
city—are the ultimate comfort
food. The best place to sample
them in Shanghai is at this branch
of a popular dim sum minichain,
where watching the noodles being
made is an attraction in its own
right. The handmade taro cakes,
shrimp dumplings, and barbe-
cue pork buns are also a draw.

Clockwise from top left: chopsticks at Shanghai Yuyuan Trading City Goods Company; making xiaolong bao at Nan- GU YUAN TEA HOUSE 1315 Fuxing
Xiang Steamed Bun Restaurant; a shopwindow in Xintiandi; Gu Yuan Tea House. Previous page, Shanghai-style Lu (6445-4625). As wine is to the
stir-fried rice cakes at the Whampoa Club. French, tea is a lifeblood in China,
 NO. 97 T H E S A V E USRA TVOEUU
R RO F P. 55
SHANGHAI
the object of time-honored tradi- the former two redoubts of old- But when Shanghai residents WANG BAOHE 603 Fuzhou Lu
tions and refined rituals. Nowhere time atmosphere, Meilongzhen, want truly indigenous fare, they (6322-3673). As any Marylander will
in Shanghai is this heritage more one of Shanghai’s longest- head to restaurants like the one in tell you, there’s something primal
apparent than at the Gu Yuan established restaurants, is a ven- the Shanghai Classical Hotel that about eating crabs—the hammer-
teahouse, where a visitor can erable shrine where it’s tough serve ben bang (literally, local) ing and scraping and finger suck-
lounge beside a sculpture garden to get a table and, once you’re cuisine, which emphasizes super- ing—that elevates a mere meal to a
in private tearooms adorned with seated, very hard to leave. Ma- fresh seafood. feast. It’s no different in Shanghai,
antique Chinese scrolls while sip- hogany graces the dining room, where the star of the show is a va-
ping an earthy infusion of pu-erh and on the menu spicy Sichuan SHANGHAI NO. 1 FOOD STORE riety called hairy crab. If you must
tea, aged for as long as 30 years. flavors meet traditional Shang- 720 Nanjing Donglu (6322-2777). limit yourself to a single crab meal
hainese classics. The eggplant To shop where the locals shop is in Shanghai, then try Wang Baohe,
HUANGHE LU, WUJIANG LU, dishes are exceptional, as are the invigorating in any foreign city, the 200-plus-year-old grandfather
YUNNAN NANLU Near Renmin deep-fried eel, lobster in pepper and it’s especially so in Shang- of Shanghai crab houses.
Square. “Don’t look back” could sauce, and Sichuan duck. hai. There’s no better place to
be the mantra of Shanghai’s ur- start than this stalwart super- XIN JISHI 41 Tianping Lu (6282-
ban planners, who have put their NANXIANG MANTOU DIAN Yuyu- market. Birds’ nests, shark fins, 9260; www.xinjishi.com). The
city at the vanguard of China’s gal- an Bazaar, 85 Yuyuan Lu (6355- dried scallops, Chinese sausage, original location of this restaurant
loping modernization. Fostered by 4206). Mention xiaolong bao—thin- roasted chestnuts , candies , chain, commonly known as Jesse,
a skyrocketing population and a skinned dumplings filled with juicy cakes, pastries, liquors—they’re is crowded and relatively out of
booming economy, skyscrapers— the way, in west Shanghai, but a
more than 2,000 of them at last lot of locals would travel twice as
count—have largely replaced the far for Jesse’s ti pang (red-cooked
low-rise streetscape that charac- pork shank), a city favorite.
terized the city in the 1930s. And
yet, vestiges of old Shanghai can XINTIANDI Bordered by Huangpi
be found: these three age-old back Nanlu, Taicang Lu, Zizhong Lu, and
streets, just off Renmin Square, Madang Lu (www.xintiandi.com).
are fi lled with noisy hawkers by This pedestrians-only zone is a
day and prowled by revelers at perfect embodiment of Shanghai’s
night—and, no surprise, they are present-day character: an exuber-
veritable midways of fine eats. ant, incongruous mix of old and
new. Once designated part of the
LAN TING RESTAURANT 107 city’s French settlement and a
Songshan Lu, between Taicang Lu stone’s throw from the site of the
and Xing’an Lu (5306-9650). That First Congress of the Chinese Com-
Lan Ting, a thoroughly unprepos- munist Party of China, this assem-
sessing establishment, sits within blage of open spaces and narrow
easy walking distance from Xinti- pork and piping-hot soup—to a all here, as are fresh seasonal alleys is now an affluent shopping
andi, Shanghai’s lively pedestrian group of Shanghai denizens, and fruits like longan, litchi, and star enclave, where upscale boutiques
mall of posh boutiques and hand- you’re likely to hear the kind of fruit, as well as pickled and dried and stylish bistros coexist with
somely restored stone houses, spirited argument most people fruits and vegetables. restored shikumen (traditional
might seem ironic to a first-time expect from sports fanatics. Find- Shanghainese stone houses).
visitor. But the restaurant’s loyal ing this signature Shanghai food is SHANGHAI YUYUAN TRADING
clientele, accustomed to Shang- easy; finding the best can entail an CITY GOODS COMPANY 31 Yuyuan YONGFOO ELITE 200 Yongfu Lu
hai’s contrasts, knows that Lan odyssey. We like this celebrated lit- Laolu (6355-5340; www.zhong (5466-2727; www.yongfooelite
Ting isn’t about ambience or even tle dumpling shop, next to Yuyuan hua-xsp.com.cn). You’ll be hard- .com). This elegant, aptly named
service. It’s about the juicy braised Garden in the Old Town, where the pressed to walk empty-handed club, located in a building that
chicken and the restaurant’s other dumplings are divine. out of this cookware supply store once served as the British con-
shining examples of Shanghainese near Nan Xiang. Located amid a sulate, proudly reproduces the
cooking. SHANGHAI CLASSICAL HOTEL sea of souvenir shops, the store is opulence and international flavor
MAP BY OLIVER WILLIAMS

242 Fuyou Lu (6311-1777). In a a kitchenware enthusiast’s dream, of early-20th-century Shanghai.

MEILONGZHEN 1081 Nanjing city with such deep international stocked from floor to ceiling with, Decorated with antiques (some
Xilu, Lane 22 (6253-5353). New roots—French pastries and Rus- among other things, traditional 600 years old), the restaurant
York City has Rao’s, Los Ange- sian borscht have been on menus Chinese knives and scissors and serves fine updated Shanghai-
les has Musso and Frank, and here for decades—the notion of myriad chopsticks—of bamboo, nese cuisine for lunch, afternoon
Shanghai has Meilongzhen. Like “local” cuisine can be nebulous. wood, silver, and more. tea, and dinner.
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 53

T H E SAV EU R T O U R O F

SHANGHAI
A F O O D - F O C U S E D G U I D E T O C H I N A’ S M O S T D E L I C I O U S C I T Y
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 5 7

SHANGHAI
(continued from page 50) Th ai, and Indian number of Shanghai restaurants, Leung found cook is making Shanghainese food at all marks
cuisines have all taken root. Shanghainese that this dish almost never lived up to its repu- a departure from tradition. The Chinese have
fare is also thriving, and one of the most ex- tation. “The chicken was either too cold or too always been purists when it comes to regional
citing developments is the emergence of a new dry, served in an unattractive clay pot, and diners cuisine—it’s almost unthinkable that a chef
generation of chefs, who are giving classic lo- had to struggle with the bones,” he says. Instead, from one province could be capable of prepar-
cal dishes deliciously modern twists. Leung chose to poach boneless thighs and re- ing another region’s food. Such a feat is pos-
One of the most celebrated of these young frigerate them in a rice-wine marinade (some of sible in Shanghai, in part because it is arguably
innovators is Jereme Leung, a Hong Kong which he sets aside and freezes). Once ordered, China’s most cosmopolitan city, with a large
native, whose Whampoa Club has become a the meat is cut into bite-size pieces, placed in a population of foreigners and nonlocal Chinese.
popular destination for affluent young Chinese martini glass, and dramatically topped with a Like the city, Shanghainese cooking has always
and for gourmands from Taiwan, Singapore, dollop of the granita-like frozen marinade. been more open to outside influences than oth-
and Hong Kong. The restaurant is located Then there is his take on tea-smoked eggs, a er regional cuisines; in Mandarin, the food of
at Th ree on the Bund, a neoclassical-style classic preparation that had all but disappeared Shanghai is described as hai pai, meaning that
building overlooking the Huangpu River, from local menus. In Leung’s version, duck eggs it draws not just on local ways but also on in-
with spectacular views of Pudong, Shanghai’s are boiled just to the point at which the whites gredients and techniques from other provinces
business district. Built in 1916, the elegant are firm but the yolks slightly runny. Their shells and from the West.

One a f ter noon at the Whampoa Club,

over a lunch that included a satiny carrot
broth enriched with chicken, duck, and pigs’
feet and garnished with green and white as-
paragus, and which ended with an elaborate
tea service, Leung explained to me how he
wound up in Shanghai. At the age of 13, he
joined the staff of a Hong Kong restaurant
and quickly worked his way up the ranks. De-
spite his diligence, though, he found it hard to
get the senior chefs to share their knowledge.
“I would purposely arrive at the kitchen by
four in the morning, knowing the chefs ar-
rived at five, so that they couldn’t keep any
secrets from me,” Leung recalls.
During his teenage years, Leung learned
what he calls the four cornerstones of Chinese
cooking: making dim sum, barbecuing and
roasting, mastering the wok, and cutting and
carving vegetables. At the age of 19, after a
stint in the army, he returned to the kitchen
From left, a trio of cheongsam-clad hostesses at the Whampoa Club; an Art Déco–esque bas as a dim sum chef in Hong Kong’s Oriental
relief in the restaurant’s elegant foyer. Pearl restaurant. He eventually went on to
serve as an executive chef at five-star hotels in
structure was renovated in 2003 by the Amer- removed, the eggs are quickly smoked with tea Hong Kong, Jakarta, and Kuala Lumpur. It
ican architect Michael Graves and houses leaves, sugar, raw rice, and a hint of five-spice was while working at the Four Seasons Hotel
several other dining establishments, includ- powder before being halved and topped with a in Singapore in 2002 that he was approached
ing Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s namesake dollop of caviar. Traditionally, they are sprin- by several investors looking to open a Chinese
restaurant. With its Art Déco–esque interior, kled with salt, but Leung decided that caviar restaurant on Shanghai’s historic waterfront.
the Whampoa Club evokes the Shanghai of could impart saltiness and also add richness Although the investors gave him carte blanche
my mother’s past. and visual appeal. Other time-honored dishes to focus on the foods of any region in China,
Though Leung’s cooking also evokes the have been given subtler tweaks. Sichuan-style Leung felt it would be disrespectful to choose
past, his style is unapologetically contempo- hot and sour soup, for example, is traditionally anything other than Shanghainese.
rary. Take, for instance, his reductive version made with hot bean paste, but the Shanghai- He faced constraints, however. Shanghai
of drunken chicken, a Shanghai staple in which nese generally prepare it with white pepper in- is located in an area known as “the land of
a whole steamed or poached bird is cut into stead; Leung’s rendition includes both. In ways fish and rice”—a reference to the region’s fa-
small pieces, marinated in shaoxing jiu (a va- large and small, he has given Shanghai cooking mously fertile soil and close proximity to the
riety of Chinese rice wine) and chicken broth, a contemporary sheen. Yangtze River. While Shanghainese cuisine
and served virtually unadorned. In visiting a The mere fact that this 35-year-old Cantonese emphasizes those assets, it tends to subject
P. 5 8 S AV E U R NO. 97

SHANGHAI
them to rich, sweet fl avors and the liberal Leung knew, one first has to master those be-
use of soy sauce, sugar, and oil—in contrast fore earning the right to alter them. So, with
to the lighter, Cantonese cuisine Leung grew
up eating. “I thought the Shanghainese
the help of the Shanghai Culinary Institute,
Leung found five local chefs to teach him tra-
THE GUIDE
dishes were tasty, but the food was not very ditional recipes. Twice a week for six months, SHANGHAI
healthy,” says Leung. the chefs took turns educating Leung in tech- Country code: 86 Area code: 21
Leung decided that he would create more- niques and preparations. Exchange rate: 8 yuan = $1
restrained versions of the classics. But, as In 2004, the Whampoa Club opened and Dinner with drinks, tax, and tip:
R EC I P E
Moderate $25–$60 Expensive Over $60

Hushi Suanla Geng For travel to Shanghai, we recommend Asiana

(Shanghai-Style Hot and Sour Soup) Airlines, which offers comfortable and afford-
SERVES 4 able f lights to the city several times a week
This rendition of hot and sour soup gets from New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles,
its sourness from chinkiang vinegar, a rice San Francisco, and Seattle.
vinegar reminiscent of balsamic. For a source
for hard-to-find Chinese ingredients, see THE WHERE TO STAY
PANTRY, page 106.

OLD HOUSE INN 16 Lane 351, Hua Shan Lu

1 tbsp. vegetable oil (6248-6118; www.oldhouse.cn). Rates: $91 double.
1/4 cup hot bean sauce
This small, centrally located hotel is a charming
4 cups chicken stock
alternative to Shanghai’s more conventional hotels.
1 tbsp. shaoxing jiu (Chinese rice wine; see
The 12 rooms are decorated with reproduction fur-
page 101)
1/4 tsp. sugar niture that evokes the Shanghai of the 1930s, and
1/8 tsp. freshly ground white pepper the hotel houses an adorable café called Future Per-
Pinch of salt fect (moderate), which serves excellent salads.
16 large peeled deveined shrimp, 12
butterflied (tails left on), 4 finely chopped PORTMAN RITZ-CARLTON 1376 Nan-
1/4 lb. silken tofu, julienned
jing Xilu (6279-8888; www.ritzcarlton.com).
1/2 cup drained canned bamboo shoots,
Hushi suanla geng (Shanghai-style hot and Rates: $299 double. Located on one of central
julienned
1/2 oz. dried wood ear mushrooms (about 2 sour soup) at the Whampoa Club. Shanghai’s swankiest streets, this is perhaps the
medium or 1 large), soaked in water for city’s premier hotel, with extraordinarily atten-
1 hour, rinsed and julienned quickly established itself as one of the city’s tive service and plush rooms. The hotel offers a
6 small dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked finest restaurants. With his à la carte menu, tour of the local wet markets; it culminates in
in water for 30 minutes, julienned Leung follows the Chinese custom of serving a master class with chef Ho Wing of the Ritz’s
2 large scallops, julienned food family style. Leung changes the menus own Summer Pavilion restaurant (expensive).
2 tbsp. cornstarch monthly, according to what ingredients are
2–3 tbsp. chinkiang vinegar
available. One morning, Leung and I visited a ST. REGIS 889 Dong fang Lu (5050-4567;
2 scallions, finely chopped
nearby market and found extraordinary young www.stregis.com). Rates: $319 double. This is one
Chinese broccoli and fresh lily bulbs, which in- of the most luxurious hotels in Pudong, Shang-
1. Heat a large flat-bottomed wok over high
spired him to prepare a stir-fry, adding colorful hai’s gleaming financial district, on the east bank
heat until hot. Add oil, then bean sauce, and
cook until fragrant, about 5 seconds. Add stock,
peppers to the mix. He seasoned it lightly with of the Huangpu River. It has superbly appointed
wine, sugar, pepper, and salt; bring to a boil. Add shaoxing jiu and ginger and served it in minia- rooms and 24-hour personal butler service.
butterflied shrimp and simmer until just cooked ture bamboo steamers.
through, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, Leung insists that his food is not fusion—it WHERE TO EAT
transfer shrimp to a plate and set aside. Stir in is firmly founded on Chinese principles. Still,
chopped shrimp, tofu, bamboo shoots, mush- he observed as we shared the bright stir-fry, WHAMPOA CLUB 3 Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu
rooms, and scallops; bring to a boil. Reduce “Shanghai has always been the center of change (6321-3737; www.threeonthebund.com). Expen-
heat to low; simmer, covered, for 3 minutes. and revolution.” Leung, it seems fair to say, sive. Indulge in chef Jereme Leung’s innovative
2. Stir cornstarch together with 3 tbsp. water in
wouldn’t have it any other way. take on Shanghainese cuisine with his lunch
a bowl. Uncover wok, return soup to a boil, stir in or dinner tasting menu. The general-seating
cornstarch mixture, and cook, stirring constant- Th e Pa n t r y, page 106: Sources for shaoxing area boasts a spectacular view of the Pudong
ly, until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from jiu, meiguilu jiu, dried wolfberries, duck eggs, five- district; guests can also luxuriate in private din-
heat, stir in vinegar, and ladle soup into 4 bowls. spice powder, shiso leaves, caviar, hot bean sauce, ing rooms. The wine list contains an intriguing
Garnish with butterflied shrimp and scallions. dried wood ear mushrooms, dried shiitake mush- selection of Chinese distilled spirits.
rooms, and chinkiang vinegar.
P. 6 0 S AV E U R NO. 97

TURKEY
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 61

By R it a Wi l l i ams
Photographs by André Baranowski and James Oseland

the
CENTERPIECE
the turkeys raised on a colorado
farm didn’t just taste good; they
offered a hard-won lesson in humility

F
o r m o s t A mer ic a n s , t he I n a r e gion fa mous for its vast
word turkey might bring to cattle ranches, we had a very small farm.
mind an image of the golden In a valley valued for its Hereford cattle,
roasted centerpiece of a traditional we produced poultry. And in a state
Thanksgiving table surrounded by where both the land and its people were
an attractive couple, blizzard white, my
their well-behaved chil- aunt and I were a fam-
dren, assorted grand- ily of color. Though
parents, aunts, uncles, I found his middle-
and cousins, and, from of-the-night visits via
a discreet distance, the bus unnerving, Ernest,
adoring but vigilant with his penchant for
family dog. My associa- velvet-fringed sombre-
tions with the word tur- ros, was the most col-
key are quite different. orful of all.
It was the ’50s, and I was fascinated by
RIGHT: COURTESY RITA WILLIAMS; FACING PAGE: JAMES OSELAND

I w a s l iv i n g out i n this tall man whose

t he countr y, a ways skin was the color of
from Steamboat Springs, Colorado, the Bronze turkeys he insisted we raise.
with my aunt, Daisy. Her brother, “Them broad-breast whites ain’t got a
Ernest, was heading to the pen— bit of taste,” he would say. Ernest once
and not the turkey pen, either. He worked as a chef in Denver, and he in-
was heading to the Colorado State troduced me to the word cuisine. When
Penitentiary. he wanted to make a point, you could

Uncle Ernest, above, in the 1930s. Facing page, brined and roasted turkey.
P. 62 S AV E U R NO. 97

TURKEY
M E T H O D see his eyes squinting through the blue smoke from the Pall Mall at the
corner of his mouth as he rasped, “You dig?” Maybe it was the way of
Brined and Roasted Turkey the West, or maybe it was the tradition of the South, where my aunt
Brining turkeys has become de rigueur in many American households. How
and uncle were from, but I can’t recall Ernest’s ever telling me a single
does it work? Soaking the bird in a salty brine causes it to absorb some of the personal thing about himself. Daisy and her taciturn brother, born in
seasoned liquid, which breaks down the proteins and seals in flavor and mois- the early 1900s, spoke to each other in a code I never did decipher. In
ture. Toast 2 tbsp. dried sage in a skillet over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. fact, I knew more about him from the casual rumors that made their
Put sage into a large pot with 2 cups kosher salt, 1 cup sugar, and 2 quarts water. way to me from school friends.
Bring to a boil, remove from heat, and stir in 6 quarts water; let cool completely. According to one, he had been hired on to muck out sheds at a poul-
Put brine and a 10–12-lb. natural turkey (giblets and neck removed) into a brin- try farm when an 18-wheeler arrived to transport a rafter of turkeys to
ing bag (see page 106); seal and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Preheat the Denver stockyard. Ernest introduced himself as the farm’s owner
oven to 325°. Remove turkey from brine; pat dry. Lift up skin at neck of bird; and rode with the driver to the Mile High City, where he sold the birds
cut and pull out wishbone (make a wish and discard, if you like). Place turkey and pocketed the dough for himself. He then hightailed it to the dog
on a roasting rack nestled in a roasting pan, breast side up, and tuck wings
track, only to lose every penny. Whether or not this tale is true, I do
under the body. Brush turkey all over with 8 tbsp. melted butter; sprinkle with
know that Ernest did do time for rustling livestock.
pepper to taste. Tie legs together with butcher’s twine. Roast turkey, basting
every 30 minutes, until deep golden brown and a thermometer inserted in the
One summer when my uncle happened to be staying with us, a woman
thickest part of the thigh (not touching bone) registers 165° degrees, 21/2–3 from Steamboat Springs came out to our place. Noticing Ernest’s enor-
hours. (Some people cook their turkey to 175° or above. We like to cook ours to mous turkeys, she asked him, “Why don’t you present something at the
a lower temperature to preserve the succulence of the breast, as it continues to
cook once the bird is removed from the oven. ) Let turkey rest for 20 minutes R i ta Wil l i a ms is the author of If the Creek Don’t Rise: My Life
before carving (see page 102 for instructions). Serves 8–10. Out West with the Last Black Widow of the Civil War (Harcourt,
2006). This is her first article for s av eu r .
R EC I P E

Collard Greens with Smoked Turkey Wings

SERVES 8–10

The lexicon of African-American foodways of the South was created, says

food historian Tracy N. Poe, through the combining of the foodstuffs
and methods of African and Anglo-American cuisines. Collard greens
boiled with cured meat products, whether turkey wings and necks or
pork feet and hocks, is a direct offspring of that merging. This recipe
is an adaptation of one in Sylvia’s Family Soul Food Cookbook by Sylvia
Woods (William Morrow, 1999).

2 smoked turkey wings (about 21/2 lbs.)

3 lbs. collard greens (about 3 bunches), stemmed and chopped
into 1” pieces
1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

White distilled vinegar
Tabasco sauce
Corn bread

1. Put turkey wings and 6 cups water into a large tall pot and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Add collard
greens, oil, sugar, pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste and stir well.
Return to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer,
covered, until greens are tender, about 21/2 hours.

2. Remove turkey wings from pot, pull meat and skin from bones, and chop
into small pieces (discard bones). Return meat and skin to the pot of collard
greens and season with salt, pepper, vinegar, and Tabasco to taste. Scoop
collard greens and their liquid into bowls and serve with corn bread on the
side to soak up the “pot likker”, if you like.
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 63

TURKEY

A Guide to Buying Turkey

CONVENTIONAL This perennial favorite—typically NATURAL Our favorite turkeys (often described as HERITAGE This category of turkeys comprises
a Broad-Breasted White variety—boasts an “minimally processed”) are those that haven’t been a host of old-time varieties, like Narragansett
ultraplump breast that has usually (but not always) treated with artificial colors or flavor-enhancing and Bourbon Red, which were staples of the pre–
been injected with butter, water, and salt; it will be ingredients. (Higher-priced “organic” turkeys are World War II American turkey industry. These
labeled “self-basted” if it contains these ingredi- bred according to strict rules established by the breeds mature slowly; thus, their fl esh can be
ents. Though the fl esh tastes USDA.) Like their conventional pleasantly flavorful and moist—or
appealing when spruced up counterparts, natural turkeys unpleasantly gamy and chewy.
with gravy and cranberry are usually a Broad-Breasted It’s worth doing your re-
sauce, it can be bland on its White variety. Though you’ll search before buying: at an
own. The price is the real pay more (they run around average price of $6 to $10
selling point: convention- $2.50 per pound), most per pound, they’re by far
al turkeys go for about have a clean, pure turkey the most costly turkeys
$1 to $2 per pound. flavor and moist flesh. available. —Todd Coleman

Routt County Fair?” That moment changed my uncle’s life. He took her prepared on our little farm high in the Colorado Rockies. After I left
advice and went on to win countless prizes. He tacked his ribbons onto a the farm, what a delight it was for me to come home for the holidays in
piece of plywood. And though he remained a gambler till the day he died, November and see the once downy poults, goslings, and chicks we had
I don’t think he ever stole anything again. picked up at the train station in April now in full feather.
Ernest’s devotion to raising perfect poults bordered on the obsessive, Ernest and Aunt Daisy carefully provided new straw bedding and
but I have never tasted juicer turkeys than the ones he brought up and grain for the birds each day. After being released from the pen in the

R EC I P E

Turkey Tetrazzini
SERVES 8

This isn’t tetrazzini as you know it. The original, ascribed to Auguste Escoffier
(“the king of chefs”), was a rich mixture of sherry-spiked cream, turkey,
and cheese, named in honor of Luisa Tetrazzini, a celebrated early-20th-
century opera singer. This home-style version is from our kitchen director,
Liz Pearson, whose family makes it with leftover Thanksgiving turkey.

2 tbsp. butter
7 cups chicken broth
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lb. dried spaghetti
RIGHT AND FACING PAGE: ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI; TOP: JAMES OSELAND

1 lb. skinless boneless roasted turkey, torn into large chunks

(about 3 cups)
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1 cup ketchup
1 7-oz. can mushrooms, drained
1/4 cup finely chopped drained pimentos

3 cups (about 1/2 lb.) grated cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350°. Butter an 11” x 13” casserole dish with 1 tbsp. butter.
Combine broth, peppers, onions, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste in a
large pot and bring to a boil. Add spaghetti in broken pieces, reduce heat
to medium, and boil gently, stirring often, until spaghetti is al dente, 12–14
minutes. Remove from heat, add remaining butter, turkey, peas, ketchup,
mushrooms, pimentos, and salt and pepper to taste and fold together.
Transfer spaghetti mixture to buttered dish and cover with grated cheese.
Bake until golden and bubbly, about 30 minutes. Set casserole aside to
let cool slightly, then serve.
P. 64 S AV E U R NO. 97

TURKEY
morning, they foraged much as they might have in the wild, albeit with
clipped wings. After breakfast, they turned their attention to grooming.
With their beaks, the turkeys preened and lofted each feather meticu-
lously. Despite the fact that Ernest and Daisy would lead the animals
to the butcher block come fall, my aunt and uncle lavished affection on
these creatures as they raised them. “All right, you little choo-choos!”
Daisy would call when she took them fresh feed in the afternoon. They
responded by loping up to her like puppies eager for their treats.
I grieved through the whole slaughter process, yet my uncle and aunt
thought nothing of it. “Happy birds taste best,” Ernest once declared,
as he tilted his sombrero back.

Th a nk sgi v ing pr ep always started with a shopping list. Because

we grew nearly everything we needed on the farm, we went to town
only once a month, for lard, flour, coffee, and beans. But for the
holidays, Ernest insisted that we replace our old spices. He even went
so far as to search the cupboards, to make sure Daisy hadn’t tried
to stash the old ones away. “Nothing but the finest, now,” he would
say, as he unpacked the bright red cans of pepper, thyme, rosemary,
and, most important, brand-new sage.
R EC I P E

Panes con Pavo

(Salvadoran Turkey Sandwich)
SERVES 6

Turkeys were “thoroughly domesticated by the Aztecs and other Mexican

and Central American races long before the arrival of Europeans”, according
to A. Hyatt Verrill in Foods America Gave the World (L. C. Page, 1937). Proof
positive: this gently spiced turkey sandwich, ubiquitous in El Salvador.
While Daisy rinsed her stone crock, Ernest brought out the
1 1/2 cups light beer special pie tin that he used expressly for toasting sage. “You take
2 tbsp. olive oil just a pinch and drop it in the hot pan and shake it back and forth
2 tsp. black peppercorns until it starts smokin’,” he explained. “Then put it in soaking water
2 tsp. sesame seeds
to season the meat. Just a dab, now—don’t overdo it.” After lightly
2 tsp. pepitas (dried pumpkin seeds; optional)
piercing the interior cavity of the turkey, being careful not to push
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. annatto seeds (optional; see page 106) through to the skin, he would immerse the entire bird in a heavy
5 cloves garlic crock of salted water, and it would soak all night in the back of the
2 dried bay leaves refrigerator, where it was the coldest.
2 large turkey drumsticks (about 4 lbs.) The next morning, I would stay in bed, tucked under my grand-
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste mother’s heavy quilt. My aunt and uncle’s banging of the kitchen irons
4 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped would announce the arrival of the holiday. From my bed in the back
2 small yellow onions, 1 chopped, 1 thinly sliced room, I could tell exactly what was cooking by the parade of smells
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
that wafted by. The first note was the smoke of the pine kindling as
6 6” crusty italian bread loaves, ends trimmed, split in half lengthwise
1 bunch watercress
it flared; then came the ruddiness of percolating coffee and roasting
chestnuts. It was always the freshly cut onions that would bring me
fully awake, though.
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Purée beer, oil, peppercorns, sesame seeds, pepitas,
oregano, annatto, garlic, bay leaves, and 1 cup water in a blender. Combine pu-
The day would pass in leisurely fashion. Once the savory aroma of
rée and turkey in a dutch oven; season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a sage filled the kitchen, Ernest would diligently baste the turkey every
boil on the stove, cover, and bake until turkey is very tender, about 2 hours. half hour. Daisy, an avid competitor, would insist that we play a game
ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

of Chinese checkers before our guests arrived.

2. Purée tomatoes, chopped onions, peppers, and 1 cup water in blender. Trans- “How did you learn to cook?” I ventured shyly to Ernest, as he lifted
fer turkey to a plate (leave sauce in pot); let cool. Add purée to pot; boil over
the golden turkey out of the roaster.
medium-high heat, stirring often, until thickened, about 45 minutes. Discard
skin and bones from turkey; tear meat into thick pieces. Stir turkey into sauce,
“It ain’t the cookin’ that’s the point,” he said. “It’s the whole
reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pep- deal. Raisin’ him right from the start. You dig?” I did.
per. Divide stew between loaves; garnish with sliced onions and watercress.
Th e Pa n t r y, page 106: Sources for a brining bag and annatto seeds.
P. 6 6 S AV E U R NO. 9 5

LOUISIANA
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 67

Brunch on the
Bayou
by Victoria At one of Louisiana’s last remaining sugarcane farms, a family
Abbott Riccardi cook prepares a hearty feast to celebrate the harvest
photographs by
Chris Granger

I
t is a cool, br ight fa ll mor ning in St.
Martinville, Louisiana, and Dottie Broussard, our
beloved family cook (whom I secretly call the Sugar
Queen), bustles about the kitchen at the St. John
sugar farm, halving grapefruit, simmering syrup, and
punching down sweet dough, all in preparation for
one of her famous Creole brunches. Friedrichs Burke (nicknamed Gin-
Every weekend at this time of ger); and several other relatives who
year, this cherished home overflows live nearby. In all, there will be 15 of
with my extended family, a group us at Dottie’s brunch.
of more than 200 cousins from Although I was born in Boston,
my father’s side. The house sleeps I’ve long felt a kinship with this
only 16—it looks bigger on the part of Louisiana, especially dur-
outside—so family members must ing the fall, when purple martins
take turns and reserve their stays migrating south from Canada
FACING PAGE: ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

months in advance. Th is weekend swoop through the fields of apple

is for the House Committee, which green sugarcane and the sour,
gathers several times a year to plan sappy smell of bagasse (crushed,
renovations of the 1828 Greek fermenting cane pulp) permeates
Revival–style mansion. Among the the air, indicating that the grind-
guests are Anne King Levert and her ing season is in full swing. This
husband, John B. Levert Jr., both in
their 70s; my father’s fi rst cousin Dottie Broussard welcomes Eric and
Jane Cunningham Legier and her Charlie into the kitchen, right. Facing
husband, Dave; Mary Virginia Gore page, eggs hussarde.
P. 6 8 S AV E U R NO. 97

LOUISIANA
race against time begins with sugar before a lethal freeze hits harvest, as generations before us rich land to grow rice and corn.
the first cold snap in Octo- in early January. The raw, pale have done, with a glorious feast. After a wealthy Louisianan
ber, when the sucrose rises in brown sugar produced at the named Etienne de Boré success-
the sugarcane stalks and mills, factory has been the lifeblood St. M a rtin v ill e lies 18 miles fully granulated sugar, in 1795,
like the one at St. John, hiss, of my extended family for more south of Lafayette along the cane fields and sugarhouses be-
screech, and clang 24 hours a than 118 years. And in a mat- Bayou Teche, a narrow, swampy gan springing up along the vari-
day to transform the cane into ter of hours we will celebrate its waterway fi lled with mud turtles ous waterways, including the
and alligators and lined with Bayou Teche.
R EC I P E
cypress, sycamore, and magno- As the sugar industry prospered,
Eggs Hussarde lia trees. The fertile, black earth so did the planter families around
(Poached Eggs with Tasso and Hollandaise Sauce) along this 100-mile navigable St. Martinville. Many owned lav-
SERVES 4 stretch of water provided Ameri- ish mansions next to their acres
can Indians with an abundance of sugarcane, along with mills for
According to American Cooking: Creole and Acadian (Time-Life Books,
1971), eggs hussarde may have been named after 15th-century Hungarian
of resources: timber for heat, processing the sugar. One such
mercenary soldiers called hussars, who often wore tomato red uniforms.
This dish is traditionally made with two sauces, hollandaise and marchand In a matter of hours, we will celebrate
de vin. The latter is typically based on veal stock, but Broussard uses a
red-wine reduction that she calls divinity sauce instead. the harvest, as generations before us
have done, with a glorious feast
11 tbsp. butter, melted
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup dry red wine

2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

2 egg yolks
Pinch of cayenne
White distilled vinegar
8 eggs
4 english muffins, split and lightly toasted
24 1/4”-thick slices tasso (Cajun-style smoked pork, about 1 lb.; see
page 106)
2 medium tomatoes, cored and cut into 8 thick slices

1. Heat 1 tbsp. butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots,
garlic, and salt and pepper; cook for 1 minute. Add wine, bring to a boil,
reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until reduced by half, about 10 min-
utes. Remove from heat; strain through a sieve. Set divinity sauce aside.

2. Pour water into a medium saucepan to a depth of 2”. Bring to a gentle

simmer over medium-low heat. Whisk lemon juice, yolks, and 2 tbsp. water
together in a heatproof bowl until frothy. Nestle bowl over simmering water Above left, moonshine made with St. John sugar; right, Dottie pouring
and cook, whisking constantly, until pale yellow and thickened, 2–3 minutes. unprocessed sugar out of a mason jar. Facing page, a farmer drives
Remove bowl from heat and slowly drizzle in remaining butter in a thin cane to the mill under a canopy of oak trees.
stream, whisking constantly, to form a thick hollandaise sauce. Whisk in
cayenne and salt. Cover to keep sauce warm.
shelter, and trade and wildlife sugar baron was Alexandre Eti-
3. Fill a large tall pot with at least 6” of poaching liquid (for every 4 cups for food and pelts. The Acadi- enne DeClouet, a Civil War hero
of water, add 1/2 cup vinegar and 1/2 tsp. salt). Bring to a boil; reduce heat ans began arriving in 1765, after and Whig candidate for governor
to medium-high to maintain a very gentle boil. Quickly crack each egg into the British forces expelled them in 1849, who was known for his
the pot while holding your hands about 3” above the water. Poach eggs, from their homeland in what is annual spending sprees in Paris.
without stirring, until yolks are set but still runny in the middle, 4 1/2 –5 today known as the Canadian After years of borrowing heavily
minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer eggs to a paper towel–lined plate;
Maritime Provinces. Immigrants from his broker, John Baptiste Le-
trim off trailing egg whites, if you like. (For more information on poaching
from Málaga, Spain, settled in
eggs, see page 102.) Set oven rack 4” from the broiler; preheat. Put muffin
halves on a baking sheet, cut side up. Arrange 3 slices of tasso on each, the region, along with French Victoria Abbott R iccardi
drizzle tasso with divinity sauce, and top each with a tomato slice. Broil until aristocrats escaping the French is the author of Untangling My
tomatoes are bubbly, 3–4 minutes. Divide muffin halves between plates, top Revolution and Creole families Chopsticks: A Culinary Sojourn
each with a poached egg, and spoon hollandaise over the top. from Mobile and New Orleans. in Kyoto (Broadway, 2003). She
Those settlers used the sediment- lives in Newton, Massachusetts.
NO. 9 5 S AV E U R P. 69

LOUISIANA
P. 70 S AV E U R NO. 97

LOUISIANA
R EC I P E vert, DeClouet was forced to pay 1930. Although various family competition from producers of
off his $80,000 loan in the form members have managed St. John corn sweeteners, St. John is one
Mirliton Casserole
of property. In 1888, Levert—a over the years and a hundred of only 12 sugar mills left. “The
SERVES 6–8
businessman, sugar planter, and or so still hold shares, Levert’s challenge is to see the factory
Mirlitons, also called vegetable philanthropist, as well as the great-grandson 63-year-old Law- survive,” Boo recently said to
pears in Louisiana, are more great-grandfather of my cousin rence Constant Levert III, fondly me. “It was questionable whether
commonly know as chayote. A Jane—became the happy recipi- called Boo, now oversees the ag-
type of pale green squash, they
ent of St. John. ricultural part of the operation
have a clean, crisp texture and
Over the next few decades, with the help of his 40-year-old
taste like a cross between a
zucchini and a cucumber.
Levert’s sugar business thrived son, Charlie.
while his family grew. He and In the mid-19th century, the
his wife, Marie Stephanie Du- state of Louisiana boasted more
7 mirlitons
puy, had 12 children, eight of than 1,500 sugar mills. Today,
13 tbsp. butter, melted
2 ribs celery, chopped
whom survived their parents and largely owing to increased global
1 medium yellow onion, chopped received equal shares of the fam- competition, inf lation, more-
1/2 green bell pepper, cored, ily holdings when Levert died, in violent hurricane seasons, and
seeded, and chopped
1 lb. peeled deveined rock “The challenge is to see the factory survive,”
shrimp
Salt and freshly ground black says Boo. “It’s the heart and soul of the area,
pepper, to taste
1 1/2 cups fresh white bread and I think the community appreciates it”
crumbs

1. Pour water into a medium pot to it would survive when I moved

a depth of 2” and bring to a boil.
here [to manage the property],
Peel, pit, and cut mirlitons into 1”
and it’s still questionable. But
chunks. (Some people are allergic
to the flesh, so you may want to
this factory is the heart and soul
wear gloves.) Add mirlitons, reduce of the area, and I think the com-
heat to medium-low, and simmer, munity appreciates it.”
covered, until mirlitons are very
tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Drain well Wh i l e t ruc k s heaped with
and mash roughly with a potato cut cane rumble past the kitchen
masher. Place mashed mirlitons door on their way to the mill,
in a colander in the sink to let all Dottie presses cinnamon sug-
excess water drain.
ar–coated dough balls into a
2. Preheat oven to 375°. Butter tube pan for her famous monkey
an 8” x 8” baking dish with 1 tbsp. bread—a sticky, raisin-dotted
butter and set aside. Heat 6 tbsp. ring glistening with dark cara-
butter in a medium pot over me- mel. “It’s an old family recipe,”
dium heat. Add the celery, onions, she says, stepping over to the
and peppers and cook, stirring
stove to lower the heat under a
occasionally, until softened and
pot of simmering mirlitons (a
golden brown, about 20 minutes.
Add the rock shrimp and cook,
squashlike fruit also known as
stirring, until just pink, about 30 chayote). “But I don’t write any-
seconds. Remove the pot from thing down. I cook out of my BOTTOM LEFT: ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

heat. Stir in mirlitons and season head; that’s how they taught us
with salt and pepper. Transfer way back. I learned it all from my
mirliton mixture to buttered dish. mom. She lived to be 102.”
Toss remaining butter with the Born Doris Batiste, Dottie
bread crumbs in a bowl. Sprinkle
has been cooking at St. John
the casserole with the bread
crumbs. Bake until golden brown
and bubbly, 35–40 minutes. Set Mirliton casserole, left. Above,
the casserole aside to let cool Dave Legier. Facing page, from left,
slightly, then serve. Charlie Levert holding freshly cut
cane; broiled grapefruit halves.
NO. 97

for over 30 years. In addition

to her brunches, she prepares
Friday- and Saturday-night
suppers, which frequently consist
of gumbo and fried chicken. She
plans all the menus, shops for

all the food, and presides over

the cozy kitchen, to which she
is able to walk from her home
down the road. When Dottie “re-
tired” at 65, the family gave her
a sapphire and diamond heart-
pendant necklace. That was seven
years ago. Dottie’s sister Gebena
(Jenny) also cooked at St. John,
for 52 years, and not only on
weekends (continued on page 75)

M E T H O D

Broiled Grapefruit
This classic brunch item tastes the
best when prepared with sweet
red grapefruit, preferably ruby red.
Set an oven rack 4” from broiler;
preheat. Halve 2 stemmed pitted
maraschino cherries. Halve 2 red
grapefruits; trim the ends so that
they sit flat when upright; transfer
to a baking sheet, cut side up. Run
a knife around edges and between
sections of grapefruit to loosen.
Sprinkle each with 1–2 tbsp. light
muscavado sugar (see page 106);
place 1 cherry half, rounded side
up, in the middle of each grapefruit.
Broil until bubbling with caramel-
ized sugar, 5–6 minutes. Serves 4.
P. 7 2 S AV E U R NO. 97

LOUISIANA

the art of
Making
Sugar
M
aking sugar can be a bitter business. I learned this when Boo

Levert, a shareholder of the St. John sugar mill in St. Mar-

tinville, Louisiana, took me on a tour of the operation. “The

sugar industry is facing tremendous hardships,” said Boo, raising his voice

above the din of the cane-filled trucks pulling in to the gravel parking lot

outside the factory. “Costs have skyrocketed—labor, fuel, fertilizers, and

insurance—and yet we’re still getting the same price from the market.”

A metallic scraping sound ripped conveyor belts to fuel the burners

through the air as Boo and I headed that produce the steam that
into the mill—a tangle of machinery, powers the mill. As we made our
pipes, and stacks spewing clouds of way toward the clarification tanks,
steam. Blasts of water rinsed the where the muddy juice is strained,
chopped cane—called billets—before heated, and filtered, beige flecks
three sets of rotary knives slashed of bagasse (crushed, fermenting
apart the pieces. The shredded bits cane pulp) swirled through the air
then passed under a series of huge like snow.
metal rollers, which pressed out In a good year, St. John processes
the juice. The spent cane zipped up a million tons of sugarcane, which
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 7 3

LOUISIANA

Clockwise from left: Boo and the

author in front of a mountain of raw
sugar; a sugar-covered mill work-
er; raw cane; harvested stalks at
yields approximately 100,000 the juice. To boil down the juice, exists in which perfect grade dawn; cane burning; newly forned
tons of sugar. Around the turn Boo’s grandfather used massive A crystals—about a millimeter crystals held up to the light.
of the century, the entire state kettles heated with burning logs, square—can be produced. If the
of Louisiana produced a mere instead of the sleek, silver boilers sugar boiler repressurizes the blackstrap molasses (later to be
302,000 tons of sugar, mainly for and evaporators that towered vacuum pans too soon, immature sold as cattle feed), leaving behind
lack of sophisticated technology. over me as we entered a steamy crystals are the result; if he pulls a thick layer of sugar clinging to the
Until the I940s, St. John made section of the mill that smelled like them too late, irregular-size grains machine’s walls. The sugar was soft
sugar the old-fashioned way, gingerbread. form and the entire batch must be and light tan and had a tantalizing
without combines, by hiring Sugar crystals develop, I learned, melted down and crystallized again. sparkle. Still warm, it crunched slightly
hundreds of local farmhands during when syrup boils at a low temperature Boo opened a boiler spigot and and tasted of minerals and pralines.
each grinding season to hand- and then evaporates in a partial dripped a gob of honey brown Most of it stays piled in a warehouse
cut the stalks with machetelike vacuum. Tanklike evaporators reduce sludge, called massecuite, onto a before being sold to refiners, such as
knives. In the previous century, the cane juice to heavy syrup. small rectangle of glass. He held it Domino, which process it into white
horses and mules—replaced by Then highly trained men called up to the light, revealing a jumble of sugar. A small portion of it heads to
today’s mechanized shredders and sugar boilers transfer it to vacuum perfectly formed crystals suspended the kitchen at St. John to sweeten
rollers—turned the millstones that pans to let the crystals grow. An in molasses. The massecuite traveled the family’s coffee, brunch treats, and
crushed the cane and extracted extremely small window of timed to a centrifuge, which spun off desserts. —V.A.R.
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 7 5

LOUISIANA
(continued from page 71) but also John’s sugar, which Dottie admits onions, celery, and sweet peppers. R EC I P E
during the week, for the workers is “smooth, smooth, smooth”. Next come eggs hussarde, an old
who boarded at the farm. Their Creole favorite composed of toasted Couchon d’Oreille
(Pigs’ Ears)
father was an overseer in the cane At on e o’cl ock, Evelyn an- english muffin halves heaped with MAKES 12
fields, their mother managed the nounces that brunch is served. smoky tasso (Cajun-style smoked
Everyone finds a seat at the enor- pork), poached eggs, hollandaise These crisp confections are given
a quick twist with a fork while
mous dining room table, where sauce, and a red-wine reduction.
they’re frying, which causes them
on every plate sits half a broiled Soon, the mirlitons arrive in a casse-
to look like—yes—pigs’ ears.
pink grapefruit sweetened with role dish with onions, celery, green
a layer of St. John sugar. Then peppers, and rock shrimp, under
1 1/2 cups flour
Dottie’s dishes begin to appear, a golden cap of bread crumbs. 1/2 tsp. salt
starting with a platter of buttery Roasted plantains follow, along
Vegetable oil
grits and spicy pork sausages with the warm baby biscuits, one 3 cups light muscovado sugar
served in a juicy mix of sautéed of which I split in half, coat with (see page 106)
1 tbsp. butter
When Dottie and Evelyn emerge from 1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

the kitchen with the monkey bread and 1. Whisk together flour and salt
pigs’ ears, everyone begins to clap in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup plus 1
tbsp. water and stir with a wood-
en spoon to form a slightly sticky
linen service, and their great- dough. Turn dough out onto a
great-uncle tended the gardens floured surface and knead gently
and the pecan and fig trees into a ball. Divide dough into 12
equal pieces and roll each into a
around the property.
ball; cover with a clean towel.
As Dottie’s niece Evelyn stamps
out baby biscuits with the lid of 2. Pour oil into a large pot to a
a mustard jar, I watch as Dottie depth of 2”. Heat over medium-
makes her prized sweet, crisp, fried high heat until a deep-fry ther-
pastry called pigs’ ears (couchon mometer reads 375°. Working on
d’oreille), topped with chewy cara- a floured surface, roll each dough
ball out into a thin 51/2” circle and
mel and toasted pecans.
set aside, covered with a towel.
“The trick is to roll the dough
Carefully drop dough circles one
very thin, so that when it’s cooked at a time into oil and, when each
it’s like a potato chip,” says Dottie, bobs to the surface and opens
flattening a ball of dough into a disk up completely, place a fork in
with a rolling pin. She slips it into the center and twist to form the
a pot of shimmering oil and then “pig’s ear”. (The trick is to hold
places a carving fork in the center the fork in place for 10 seconds,
and gives a sharp twist. A ridged, then let go.) Continue frying,
turning once, until light golden
spiraled round bobs to the surface
brown, about 21/2 minutes. Trans-
looking, well, much like a pig’s ear.
fer to a rack to let cool.
In the front hall, Boo’s wife,
Linda, catches up with her sister- 3. Put sugar and 1/2 cup water
in-law, Winnie, and another cous- into a large saucepan and heat
in, Elisabeth Perino, who has just over medium heat until the syrup
arrived with her two girls, Mad- reaches 240° on a candy ther-
eleine and Adele. Several male mometer (the soft ball stage),
10–12 minutes. Remove from heat,
cousins sit on the white-painted
add butter, and stir syrup until
porch sipping Charlie’s latest slightly thickened, 2–3 minutes.
batch of barrel-aged moonshine, a Working quickly, drizzle syrup
whiskeylike spirit made from St. evenly over the pigs’ ears, allow-
ing it to fill the crevices. Sprinkle
Dottie with a platter of pigs’ ears, with pecans while syrup is still
right. Above, the menu. Facing hot; let cool.
page, brunch is served.
P. 7 6 S AV E U R NO. 97

LOUISIANA
butter, and heap with some of Dot- plate. Then come the pigs’ ears; Da-
tie’s whole fig preserves. na’s husband, Charlie, snatches one
When Dottie and Evelyn emerge from the serving platter and takes a
from the kitchen with the monkey bite, nodding with delight.
bread and pigs’ ears, everyone be- A screechy belch coming from the
gins to clap. The Sugar Queen direction of the nearby sugar mill
has outdone herself. Boo’s grand- intrudes upon the lively brunch.
son, baby Eric, coos as the pas- Baby Eric’s eyes widen with fright.
tries make their way around the “That’s just the exhaust from the
table. Eric’s mother, Dana, plucks boilers popping off,” says my cousin
off several knobs of the sugar- Dave nonchalantly.
shellacked monkey bread and drops “I tell you,” adds John, “you walk
them with a clink onto her dessert in the front of that place and you
R EC I P E

Sausages and Gravy with Stone-Ground Grits

SERVES 4

When making her version of this dish, Dottie Broussard poaches

the sausages in a little water, boiling it down until it evaporates. The
sausages then “scorch” in the pot in their own fat, creating browned bits
that stick to the bottom, the base for a dark, rich gravy.

FOR THE GRITS:

2 cups (about 3/4 lb.) old-fashioned white stone-ground grits
(see page 106)
Salt
1/4 cup butter

Freshly ground black pepper

Tabasco sauce

FOR THE SAUSAGES AND GRAV Y:

8 fresh pork sausages (about 2 lbs.), pricked all over with a fork Dottie Broussard’s sausage and gravy with stone-ground grits—a classic
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
Louisiana combination.
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

can’t believe you can eat what comes giving up on the cane.”
out the back end!” Everyone laughs, Before everyone disperses, Gin-
especially Boo. As the piles of food ger rises from her seat and an-
1. For the grits: Bring 10 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Stir in the
grits and 1 tbsp. salt and return to a boil while stirring constantly. Reduce
dwindle on people’s plates, several nounces, “Time for a picture.” We
heat to medium-low to maintain a gentle simmer and cook, stirring oc- people get up to stretch their legs. all follow her out to the front of the
casionally, until grits are softened and very thick, about 1 hour. Stir in I take my coffee over to an empty house and arrange ourselves on the
butter and season with salt, pepper, and Tabasco to taste. Cover grits chair next to Charlie, who tells me porch steps. As I look out at the
and keep warm. he has to leave soon to get back to field of rustling green cane, I think
the fields. about something Boo once told me:
2. Meanwhile, make the sausages and gravy. Arrange the sausages in a
“Were you ever tempted to find that sugarcane is extremely adapt-
single layer in the bottom of a large wide pot and cover with 1/2 cup water.
Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until water has evaporated
another line of work?” I ask. He able, capable of weathering both
and sausages have begun to brown in their own fat, about 15 minutes. smiles and looks up at the ceiling. droughts and floods.
Continue browning the sausages, turning occasionally, until deep golden “When I got out of school, I “Other crops are less hardy, but
brown on all sides, about 25 minutes more. wanted to get away from here for sugarcane survives,” he assured me
a while,” he says. “Then I went to then.
3. Transfer the sausages to a plate with tongs. Add celery, onions, pep- other places and realized I want- If the past is any indicator of the
pers, and salt and pepper to the pot and cook, stirring and scraping up the
ed to come back. My dad always future, I tell myself, then so will
browned bits, until deep golden brown, about 15 minutes. Return sausages
to pot along with 2 cups water, reduce heat to medium, and simmer until
said, ‘You won’t make a lot of St. John.
vegetables are soft and liquid has reduced to a slightly thickened gravy, money in this business, but you
16–18 minutes. Divide the sausages (with their gravy) and grits between can make a good living.’ And Th e Pa n t ry, page 106: Sources
4 plates. Serve with Tabasco on the side. he’s right. I’ve learned a lot from for Cajun-style smoked pork, musco-
him—like working hard and not vado sugar, and stone-ground grits.
P. 7 8 NO. 97

Old-School M
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 79

The Spanish
capital’s
classic
dishes are
worth
seeking
out—and
savoring
by Anya von Bremzen
photographs by
Joe Patronite

A DR I D
P. 8 0 S AV E U R NO. 97

MADRID

A
t a swank Madrid restaurant recently, I was sampling gin and
tonics rendered into pearl-like orbs with the aid of calcium
chloride and a gazpacho sorbet flash-frozen in liquid nitrogen.
The food was magical, but somehow it made me crave chick-
peas and pigs’ feet. Chronicling Spain’s gastronomic revolution, as I’ve
done for a decade now, has been an exhilarating ride on the wild side; yet
during my last trip to Madrid I was overcome by an urge to say basta to

Above left, Royal Guard soldiers; right, patrons at La Casa del Abuelo. Right, tapas-style meatballs with a potato
tortilla at Casa Lhardy. Previous pages, from left, Casa Lhardy; sizzling shrimp with garlic and parsley.

conceptual cooking and to revisit Only a few years ago, Madrid and his relentless march toward
the classics. Perhaps I’d simply still felt like a frenetic, oversize vil- modernization, the streets are a
OD’d on metaphysical bonbons lage—a place where fast-talking jumble of traffic and scaffold-
dished out by Ferran Adrià (the locals packed dark-tiled bars and ing. Old-order vermouth on tap
reigning prince of new Spanish little old ladies gleefully fanned is giving way to new-wave moji-
cooking) wannabes. Or maybe it themselves in the stands at a tos; Madrileños have gone loco
was the sight of the Tryp Reina gory corrida. But that Madrid is for sushi. His grand construction
Victoria hotel, once a famous to- vanishing faster than a ración of projects nearing completion, Ga-
rero hangout, gutted and reborn ibérico ham at a tapas bar. Thanks llardón is close to transforming
as the Hard Rock Hotel. to Mayor Alberto Ruiz Gallardón Madrid into a brash global capital.
Faced with that prospect, I de-
M E T H O D cided to turn back the clock by
basking in the burnished atmo-
Gambas al Ajillo sphere and simple, dignified cook-
(Sizzling Shrimp with Garlic and Parsley)
ing of the city’s stalwart tabernas
This recipe from La Casa del Abuelo involves simmering shrimp in garlic- and (taverns), marisquerias (seafood
chile-laced olive oil in cazuelas (earthenware dishes) atop flaming burners. For places), and casas de comidas. The
a source for hard-to-find Spanish ingredients and equipment, see page 106. Pile
term for the last eludes precise
together 1/3 packed cup flat-leaf parsley leaves and 8 large cloves garlic; sprinkle
definition but generally refers to
with salt; coarsely chop. Peel and devein 1 1 /2 lbs. medium shrimp. Divide 2 cups
Spanish extra-virgin olive oil between four 6” cazuelas; heat them over medium
heat. Divide garlic mixture, 4 bay leaves, and 4 dried chiles, such as guindilla or A n ya von Br e m z en is a New
chiles de árbol, between the cazuelas and cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic York–based freelance writer and
is fragrant and sizzling, 2–3 minutes. Divide shrimp between the cazuelas and contributing editor at Travel and
stir until shrimp is just cooked, 2–3 minutes. Season with salt to taste. Serve with Leisure. Her latest cookbook is
chunks of bread to dip into the luscious, garlicky oil. Serves 4. The New Spanish Table (Work-
man Publishing, 2006).
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 81

MADRID

R EC I P E

Albóndigas en Salsa
(Tapas-Style Meatballs)
SERVES 4

These saucy meatballs from Casa Alberto

figure in a wide range of dishes that make
up the constellation of little snacks served in
tapas bars all over Madrid. Pick them up and
pop them into your mouth with toothpicks. In
the past, the discarded picks were tallied up
so that the bar owner could compile the bill at
the end of meal.

1 1/2 lbs. coarsely ground beef

1 1/2 lbs. coarsely ground pork
1/2 cup fresh white bread crumbs
1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley

4 eggs, lightly beaten

8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. flour
1 cup Spanish olive oil (see page 106)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 large leek, white part only, chopped
1 dried bay leaf
21/2 cups beef broth
1 1/2 cups white wine

1. For the meatballs: Mix together the beef,

pork, bread crumbs, parsley, eggs, 4 cloves
garlic, and salt and pepper in a large bowl.
Let chill for 1 hour. Put 1 cup flour into a bowl.
Using wet hands, form meat mixture into 20
even-size meatballs. Roll each in flour; shake
off excess; transfer to sheet pan.

2. Heat half the oil in a large skillet over me-

dium-high heat. Brown half the meatballs in the
skillet, 10–12 minutes. Transfer meatballs to a
plate. Wipe out skillet and repeat with remain-
ing oil and meatballs, leaving oil and caramel-
ized bits in skillet.

3. For the sauce: Heat skillet (with reserved oil)

over medium-low heat. Add remaining garlic,
onions, leeks, and bay leaf and cook until soft-
ened, 12–15 minutes. Add remaining flour; cook
for 2 minutes. Whisk in broth and wine, raise
heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil while
whisking constantly. Reduce heat to medium-
low; simmer until thickened, 12–14 minutes. Let
cool; discard bay leaf. Purée sauce in blender
in batches. Return sauce to skillet along with
meatballs; bring to a boil over medium-high
heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer un-
til thickened and meatballs are cooked, 16–18
minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Divide
between four 6”–7” cazuelas (see page 106).
 P. 82 S AV E U R NO. 97

MADRID
R EC I P E establishments that do most of ported their own version of nou-
their business at lunch, have no velle cuisine; Catalan disciples of
Croquetas de Jamón written menus, function like a cross Ferran Adrià followed. A melting
con Gambas between a restaurant and a private pot, yes—but Madrid cooking
(Ham and Shrimp Croquettes)
MAKES 20
dining club, and serve homey, mar- retains its own, slightly rugged
ket-driven cuisine. In short order, I identity, defined by a handful of
De la Riva breads its croquetas plotted a Madrid eating adventure specialties: callos (a tripe stew),
generously, which prevents them
that would involve zero foam. croquetas, roast lamb, a profu-
from bursting open when frying.
sion of egg dishes, and, above all,
Until , when Spain’s King cocido, an orgy of boiled meats,
3 tbsp. butter Philip II moved his court to this vegetables, and chickpeas.
1 1/4 cups flour
former site of a Moorish fortress, Dreaming of a perfect cocido,
31/4 cups milk, hot
Madrid had little serious cooking I cross the Puerta del Sol with its
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 sprig flat-leaf parsley
to speak of. Over time, the city iconic Tio Pepe sign suspended
1/3 lb. sliced serrano ham,

chopped (see page 106)

1/3 lb. medium shrimp, peeled,

deveined, and finely chopped

Salt, to taste
Spanish olive oil (see page 106)
3 cups dried fine bread crumbs
3 eggs, lightly beaten

1. Heat butter in a saucepan over

medium heat. Add 1/4 cup flour;
cook until just golden, about 3
minutes. Whisk in milk, onions, and
parsley; bring to a boil over medi-
um-high heat. Reduce heat to me-
dium; simmer, stirring frequently,
until thick, 18–20 minutes. Strain
sauce through a fine sieve. Return experienced a vast influx of mi- Above left, ham and shrimp cro-
to saucepan with ham and shrimp; grants from all over the country, quettes; right, plaza Mayor. Facing
bring to a boil over medium-high and today its cuisine represents page, a waitress at Casa Lhardy.
heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; an amalgam of regional styles. By
simmer until thick, 12–14 minutes. some accounts, one major force above the traffic. My grail: Casa
Season with salt. Chill overnight.
sprang from the central region of Lhardy, the grandest surviving
2. Pour olive oil into a large pot to a La Mancha, which surrounds Ma- monument to staid Madrid din-
depth of 2”. Heat until a thermom- drid: La Manchans, also known ing. The place is entered through
eter registers 375°. Put remaining as manchegos, ran taverns where its ground-f loor deli–cum–
flour, bread crumbs, and eggs into coarse valdepeñas wines were tapas bar, a marbled cubbyhole
3 separate wide shallow dishes. complemented by folksy regional squeezed behind a vintage façade
Using flour-dusted hands, form 2 dishes like migas (fried bread bits) of Cuban mahogany. Inside, pa-
tbsp. chilled ham mixture into a and gallina en pepitoria (hen in an trician señoras in dowdy blazers
3”-long oval; dredge in flour, roll in
almond sauce). From Andalusia, help themselves to beef consom-
eggs, then coat with bread crumbs.
in the south, came frituras (fried mé from ornate silver samovars in
Shake off excess. Repeat to create
another coating of eggs and bread
“stuffs”) and gazpacho. Later, a Madrid ritual that dates to the
crumbs (but not flour). Transfer to Galicians from the north popu- early 19th century. I ascend the
a plate. Repeat process to make 20 larized marisquerias, captivating tatty staircase to the main dining
LEFT: ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

croquettes in all. Fry croquetas un- Madrid’s residents with pristine room and find myself inside a ba-
til golden, about 1 1/2 minutes. Drain shellfish from the chilly Atlan- roque painting—a plush cham-
on paper towels. tic. Then, in the early 1980s, the ber illuminated by Isabelline pe-
Basques, also from the north, ex- riod chandeliers, with red velvet

I ascend Lhardy’s staircase to the main dining room

and find myself inside a baroque painting
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 83

MADRID
chairs, dark varnished wallpaper,
and a carved cupboard filled with
ornate silver bowls.
Founded in 1839 by Emilio
Lhardy, a chef of Swiss origin who
had previously cooked in France,
Lhardy soon became the most im-
portant restaurant in Madrid, pa-
tronized by monarchs, ministers,
and celebrated artistes. Political
coups were plotted in its private
salons, particularly the Japanese
Room, still resplendent in its
faded Second Empire chinoiserie.
Lhardy’s kitchen—credited with
introducing Parisian haute cui-
sine to the Spanish capital—con-
tinues to turn out such relics as
veal orloff and tournedos rossini.
What virtually everyone orders,
though, is the cocido, miraculous
for its improbable combination of
excess and restraint.
First comes the noodle soup—
light yet so densely flavorful it feels
almost solid. Next, jacketed waiters
ceremoniously pile one’s plate with
carrots, potatoes, cabbage, and the
traditional meats: blood sausage,
chorizo, a chicken breast, fresh
pork sausages, ham, beef shin, and
a homemade sausage called a relle-
no. But a good cocido madrileño is
ultimately all about the chickpeas;
cocido specialists are sometimes
called garbanceros. Lhardy’s gar-
banzos—a pedigreed variety from
Fuentesaúco, to the northwest—
are supernally creamy and seem-
ingly as weightless as popcorn.

Despite a ll the liquid nitrogen

and calcium chloride being used
today in Spain’s kitchens, cocina
popular isn’t going the way of the
dodo. Inspired by the country’s
newfound pride in its ingredients
and cuisine, many old-school res-
taurants are dishing out food that’s
cleaner, purer, and more vital
than ever before. Such reformed
traditional cooking flourishes in
Madrid’s casas de comidas, and to
go to the right casa de comidas is to
feel like a true Madrid insider.
“We don’t advertise; our
P. 84 S AV E U R NO. 97

MADRID
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 85

MADRID

Perfect BITES
clientele is mainly friends of
the house and their friends,”
says Juan José López Baemar,
the owner of the stupendous La As Madrid’s historic heart falls prey to the tourist hordes, some old tapas
Tasquita de Enfrente, an olive’s bars are relaxing their standards, while others are being edged out by
toss from the florid masonry of Cuban-themed cocktail joints. Hence, choreographing the perfect series
the Gran Via boulevard. “Ma- of nibbles in the most appealing atmosphere can be a challenge. I start my
drid has always been a ciudad own dance one evening near the plaza Santa Ana at La Casa del Abuelo
(calle de la Victoria 12; 521-2319), a century-old haunt specializing
familiar [a familiar, informal
in shrimp served a la gabardina (battered) or al ajillo (in garlic sauce).
city],” López explains, “and ca-
Nearby is Las Bravas (calle Álvarez Gato 3; 532-2620), dedicated to
sas de comidas are all about hu- patatas bravas, a classic tapa of fried potatoes drizzled with a smooth,
man contact.” Neither classic nor sharp, smoky, tomatoey sauce. The sauce is also served on potato
cutting-edge, Tasquita’s precise tortillas, chicken wings, even pigs’ ears—surprisingly delicious with an
cooking epitomizes the culinary inexpensive glass of crisp, cool rueda white. Up next is La Venencia (calle
ethos of modern Madrid. López de Echegaray 7; 429-7313), one of the last truly authentic bars left on the
brings out fat little anchovies on popular calle de Echegaray. Packed with old sherry barrels, the place is so
a smear of tomato jam ringed by woodsy and smoky it’s like the inside of a frayed leather briefcase. Match
an aromatic puddle of olive oil, a fino, oloroso, or palo cortado sherry with traditional Andalusian bites:
followed by an amazingly plush stupendous fried marcona almonds, green olives that snap in your mouth,
and tangy dry-cured tuna roe, all served with pointy crackers called picos.
revuelto (scramble) of eggs, blood
Hungry for something meaty, I continue on to Casa Alberto (calle las
sausage, and pumpkin. Fried eggs
Huertas 18; 429-0706). Dating to 1827 and housed in a building where
with sautéed angulas (baby eels) Cervantes once lived, it boasts a breathtaking interior that features a
give way to delicate white beans beautiful, oak-trimmed onyx counter and elaborate antique taps that still
called verdinas, simmered in a dispense vermouth and soda. I try the plump meatballs and a cazuelita
broth bolstered by langoustine of oxtail stew, then move on to Casa Labra (calle Tetuán 12; 531-0081).
heads and served with sea ur- Located off the Puerta del Sol, Labra is renowned among Madrileños as
chins—an urbane riff on a soul- the place where Spain’s Socialist Party was founded, in 1879. I order one
ful northern stew of white beans of the bar’s fried salt cod specialties—croquetas and tejadas (nuggets of
and clams. “My cooking is tra- the fish enrobed in a crisp, doughy batter)—get a glass of cheap red wine,
ditional,” López declares, “but I and join the crowds on the pavement outside. The streets around Casa
Labra might be a mess of construction, but some rituals live on. —A.V.B.
constantly update it with better
ingredients and techniques.”
Another day, I search out De la sics—ham and shrimp croquetas,
Riva, a 74-year-old casa de comidas potato tortillas, saucy meatballs,
in the area around the Santiago roasted sea bream, salt cod in toma-
Bernabéu soccer stadium. Weekday to sauce, stews of braised oxtail or
lunch hours, De la Riva is colonized pigs’ feet. For dessert, Moran offers
by chain-smoking men playing the most sumptuous flan in town.
mus, a popular Spanish card game. While casas de comidas are the
On weekends, when large families current rage among local cogno-
descend on the plain whitewashed scenti, traditionally Madrid has al-
room, the feeding frenzy can recall ways been a city of taverns, so much
that of a Hong Kong dim sum em- so that a 17th-century refrain went,
porium on a Sunday morning. “You “Madrid ciudad bravilla…tenìa tres
don’t come here for comfort or am- cientas tavernas y una sola librerìa
bience—just eat and beat it,” quips [Madrid, a brave little city, 300
proprietor José Moran Harpeaja. taverns and only one bookstore].”
His menu is a litany of Madrid clas- Many of the capital’s early drink-
ing and eating dens were clustered
The façade of the opulent Casa Lhardy, left, a temple of traditional Ma- around calle Cava Baja, just south
drid dining and home to the perfect boiled dinner. Above, Angel Gonzalez of the plaza Mayor. Madrid’s
Hernandez, manager of Casa Lucio and El Lando. restaurant row for more than three

The owner brings out fat little anchovies on a smear of

tomato jam ringed by an aromatic puddle of olive oil
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 87

MADRID
centuries, the narrow street con- simmered again for five hours with R EC I P E
tinues to buzz with busy establish- chorizo, jamón, and blood sausage.
ments. The most famous among The final layering of flavors comes Cocido Madrileño de Casa Lhardy
(Madrid-Style Boiled Dinner)
them is Casa Lucio. To an outsider, from a refrito of sautéed onions,
SERVES 8
Lucio might look undistinguished, garlic, tomatoes, and pimentón,
but to Madrileños it is the most Spain’s dusky smoked paprika. For a source for hard-to-find ingredients, see T H E PA N T RY, page 106.
blue-chip taberna of them all. On “The trick is letting the tripe rest
my last visit to Lucio, I went with overnight so that the cooking liq- FOR THE RELLENO: 21/2 cups dried chickpeas
1/3 lb. ground veal (about 1 lb.), soaked
a Spanish TV starlet whose sultry uid seeps deep into the meat and
3/4 cup chunky fresh white overnight and drained
looks helped us land a prime table. thickens the sauce,” Gonzalez tells
bread crumbs 1 large bone-in chicken breast
Dining at separate tables around me. The result? A stew so refined 1/2 tbsp. chopped flat-leaf half (about 1 lb.)
us were the Duchess of Badajoz, that it seems almost like an abstrac- parsley 1/2 lb. chunk serrano ham
the king’s sister; novelist Mario tion of tripe. And then there is the 1 tsp. salt 1 small green cabbage, cored
Vargas Llosa; and a gentleman ru- smashed-eggs dish served at Lucio. 3 slices bacon, finely chopped and finely sliced
mored to be Spain’s richest man. Batons of yellow Galician potatoes 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 1/3 -lb. chunk fresh pork belly
Everyone was eating huevos estrel- are cooked in good olive oil un- 1 egg, lightly beaten 6 5”-long breakfast sausages
2 Spanish chorizo sausages
lados, “smashed eggs”, a legendary til they’re crisp but still creamy
FOR THE COCIDO: 2 morcilla sausages (Spanish
Lucio specialty of fried eggs bro- inside; fresh farm eggs are gently 1 lb. boneless beef shin blood sausages)
ken up over french fries. fried. While letting the spuds soak 1 large carrot, peeled 5 small yukon gold potatoes
Reservations at Lucio are hard up the rich, improbably bright or- 1 smoked ham hock 1 cup (about 1/4 lb.) fideos (thin
to come by, and the celebrity circus ange yolk, I wonder why anyone 1 veal knuckle bone dried Spanish noodles)
can be grating. But there is an al- needs deconstructive cuisine when Salt, to taste 2 cups warm tomato sauce
ternative, called El Lando—Lucio’s simply prepared potatoes and eggs
casual offshoot. “To be seen, you go can taste so amazing. 1. For the relleno: Mix together veal, bread crumbs, parsley, salt, bacon, garlic,
to Lucio; to be left alone, you come and egg in a bowl. Tightly roll up in cheesecloth, and twist both ends to form a
here,” says manager Angel Gonza- You wou l dn’t think that a 21/2”-wide log. Tie ends with butchers’ twine and wrap with plastic; let chill.
lez Hernandez, who proceeds to tripe-crazy town like this would 2. For the cocido: Fill a large pot with 4 1/2 quarts water. Add beef, carrot, hock,
wax rhapsodic about Woody Allen. be the place to find great seafood. knuckle, and salt and bring to a boil; skim off scum. Reduce heat to medium-low
Allen was apparently so impressed Well, think again. Madrid hap- and simmer, partially covered, until beef and hock are tender, about 2 hours.
with El Lando’s food that he asked pens to be one of the world’s larg- Chill beef, carrot, and hock. Strain broth and return to pot with knuckle; bring to
for a giant doggie bag to take back est dry ports, snagging the best a boil. Wrap chickpeas in cheesecloth and tie with twine; add to broth. Reduce
to America. Tables here are set fish before it’s shipped to the rest heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 2 hours. Add relleno and
with house starters: tomato-rubbed of the country. A lot of it ends up chicken; simmer until chicken is cooked, 15–20 minutes. Chill chicken. Continue
cooking until chickpeas are very tender and relleno is cooked, about 15 minutes
bread, an impeccable salad of sliced at O’Pazo, an exclusive, Galician-
more. Chill chickpeas and relleno. Strain broth (discard knuckle); return to pot.
tomatoes, and plates of ibérico ham style seafood mecca hidden away
handpicked by Gonzalez from a on a residential street and popu- 3. Meanwhile, fill a large pot with 4 quarts water. Add ham, cabbage, and salt;
producer in Ávila, about 50 miles lated with regulars, mostly men at bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 2 hours.
northwest of the city. lunch, who think nothing of drop- Add belly and sausages; simmer, covered, until ham is very tender and belly is
One of El Lando’s great tri- ping a hundred dollars on a few just tender, 45–50 minutes. Chill ham, belly, and sausages. Transfer cabbage to
umphs is callos, Madrid’s em- stunning cigalas (langoustines). a bowl and keep warm. Reserve cabbage broth in pot.
blematic tripe stew. In a days-long The 73-year-old owner, Don Eva- 4. Put potatoes into a saucepan; cover with salted water; bring to a boil. Re-
process, tripe from a butcher who’s risto García, a tall, upright gran- duce heat; simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain; keep warm. Bring
been supplying the restaurant for dee in a dark suit and pink tie, reserved chickpea broth to a boil, add fideos, reduce heat to medium-low,
over 20 years is first cooked with circles the room. García came to and simmer until tender, 18–20 minutes. Season noodle soup with salt.
veal, then rinsed in vinegar and Madrid from León, in northwest-
5. To serve: Bring cabbage broth to a boil. Reheat cooked meats and vegetables
ern Spain, as a boy and supported
in broth. Slice relleno, beef, carrot, chicken, and belly. Shred hock and ham; cut
Facing page, clockwise from upper himself by hauling fish on his back chorizo and morcilla into chunks. Put chickpeas on a platter; top with chicken,
left: a tile sign, outside a tapas bar, to rich families. carrots, relleno, beef, and half the hock and ham. Put cabbage on a second plat-
for Madrid’s famous corrida; the “Nobody would let me into the ter; top with belly, breakfast sausages, and remaining hock and ham. Garnish
Metropolis Building on Grand Vía; elevator, because of the fish smell,” with potatoes, chorizo, and morcilla. Serve soup with tomato sauce (to stir in) on
Madrid-style boiled dinner at Casa he recalls. Today, García is Spain’s the side. Spoon some cabbage broth over meat and vegetables to moisten.
Lhardy; local legs. preeminent seafood supplier and

I wonder why anyone needs deconstructive cuisine when simply

prepared potatoes and eggs can taste so amazing
P. 8 8 S AV E U R NO. 97

MADRID
counts the royal palace among his creet note on the menu: “Don’t ask
clients. “The secret is choosing,” for lemon if you want to appreciate
García says, sniffing conspiratori- the taste of our seafood.” And what
ally and pointing to his nose. seafood! I dig into a pile of fear-
There’s a majestic austerity to a somely pricey percebes (Galician
meal at O’Pazo: ingredients dis- goose barnacles) that squirt sweet,
tilled to their essence, unencum- primal juices all over my skirt when
bered by garnishes. The restaurant’s I break them apart. Next, I move on
philosophy is summed up in a dis- to camarones dotted with crunchy
R EC I P E

Flan
(Creamy Caramel Custard)
SERVES 8

The secret to making this smooth flan from the casa de comidas De la
Riva is to bake the custard until it’s completely set around the edges
but not in the middle (it should be a little wiggly), as it will gently finish
cooking while it cools. If the flan is baked until the center is set, it
won’t be as creamy.

FOR THE CARAMEL : FOR THE CUSTARD:

1 cup sugar 3/4 cup sugar

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice 31/4 cups milk

2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 2” strip lemon zest
6 eggs

1. For the caramel: Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to
350°. Set a kettle of water on to boil. Combine 1 cup sugar and the lemon
juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stir-
ring with a fork, just until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Stop stirring
and let the sugar gradually caramelize until deep golden brown, about 4
minutes more. Remove from heat and carefully divide caramel between
eight 3 1/4”-wide flan molds (6 oz. each; see page 106) or ramekins to form
a layer in the bottom of each. Set the molds aside.

2. For the custard: Put 6 tbsp. sugar, milk, vanilla, and zest into a small Flan from De la Riva. Facing page, Don Evaristo García, owner of O’Pazo.
pot. Bring just to a boil over medium-high heat, then remove from the
heat. Discard the lemon zest. Whisk together the remaining sugar and
specks of coarse salt, then luminous crisp churros into puddinglike
eggs in a large bowl. Slowly pour the milk mixture into the egg mixture,
clams bobbing in a parsley-flecked hot chocolate at Chocolatería San
whisking constantly, until well combined.
sauce so uncorrupted it seems a Ginés. Eat the definitive gallina
3. Arrange the molds in a deep baking dish and pour the milk–egg mixture crime to dunk bread into it. Last en pepitoria at Casa Ciriaco, one
evenly into them. Put the baking dish into the oven and pour in enough comes a whole grilled turbot with of Madrid’s most stately tabernas.
hot water from the kettle that it comes halfway up sides of the molds. taut, glistening flesh, washed down My cell phone rings. It’s a friend
Bake until flans are set around the edges but still slightly wiggly in the with the vivacious house albariño. inviting me to a new restaurant
center when the sides are tapped with a spoon, about 30 minutes. Let run by a rising-star chef. On my
flans rest in water bath for 5 minutes, then remove and transfer to the
A f ter lu nch I make a mental next visit, perhaps.
refrigerator to let chill completely.
checklist of old Madrid eating ritu-
4. To serve: Carefully run a sharp knife around edges of each mold. Dip als I’ve yet to indulge in on this trip. The Pa n try, page 106: Sources
the bottoms of each mold briefly into a bowl of hot water to warm them Savor a slab of turrón at Casa Mira, for cazuelas, Spanish olive oils,
ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI

slightly. Invert the flans onto small plates, knock on the bottoms for good a specialist for more than 150 years dried guindilla chiles, serrano
luck, and lift the molds off to reveal the flans. in that honey-and-almond confec- ham, blood sausages, chorizo,
tion from Spain’s southeast. Dip Spanish noodles, and fl an molds.

A discreet note on O’Pazo’s menu reads, “Don’t ask for lemon if you
want to appreciate the taste of our seafood”
NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 89

MADRID

partridge since 1917. The waiters will as an alternative energy source. The
THE GUIDE likely tell you that Ciriaco is housed
in a building from which an anarchist
place is especially lively in the wee
hours, when it fills with revelers
MADRID assassin threw a bomb at King Alfonso from the nearby nightclubs.
Country code: 34 Area code: 91 Exchange rate: 1 euro = $1.30 XIII and his bride, Victoria Eugenia,
on their wedding day in 1906. (Alfonso DE LA RIVA Cochabamba 13 (458
Dinner with drinks, tax, and tip: survived, but many were killed.) 8954). Moderate. Th is classic casa
Expensive Over $100 Moderate $50–$100 Inexpensive Under $50 de comidas has a simple décor and a
CASA LHARDY carrera de San market-inspired menu that changes
Jerónimo 8 (522 2207). Moderate. daily. The best time to come is for a
WHERE TO STAY The dining rooms are stunningly at- A grand exemplar of old Madrid, weekend lunch—but because it’s so
mospheric, but the cooking, centered this place has one of the most famous popular, reserve well in advance.
HOTEL URBAN carrera de San on roast suckling lamb and pig, has cocidos (boiled dinners) in town. Don’t
Jerónimo 34 (787 7770; www seen better days. Still, for a first-time even think of ordering anything else, EL LANDO plaza Gabriel Miró 8
.derbyhotels.com). Rates: $270–295 visitor, Botin makes for an essential and end your meal with the baked (366 7681). Expensive. Lucio’s more
double. A short walk from the Ritz, Madrid experience, and the appetizers, alaska, another house specialty. The casual offshoot has a menu similar
this new boutique hotel espouses a such as crisp morcilla (blood sausage), tapas bar downstairs is a great place to to its cousin’s—minus the attitude—
different aesthetic, with 97 brazenly are perfectly fine. have a sherry and a cup of consommé and a warm, traditional atmosphere.
modern rooms, a splashy atrium lobby and to stock up on traditional Spanish Try the callos (tripe) and the baby
decorated with sculptures from Papua CAFÉ GÍJON paseo de Recoletos 21 delicacies like partridge in escabeche. lamb chops.
New Guinea, and a trendy restaurant, (521 5425). Dating to 1888, this
Europa Decó, that serves terrific is Madrid’s premier literary cafe, CASA LUCIO cava Baja 35 (365 O’PAZO calle Reina Mercedes 20 (553
contemporary cuisine. The Urban’s renowned for having hosted tertulias 3252). Expensive. This classic 2333). Expensive. Seafood lovers from
Glass Bar is crowded with the children Castilian mesón is patronized by the all over Spain consider O’Pazo a mecca.
of the people who room at the Ritz. city’s elite, including the royal family. The luminous fish and shellfish are sold
The specialties include roast suckling mostly by weight and unadorned, just
pig and lamb, incredible ibérico ham, as they should be. The experience
THE RITZ HOTEL MADRID and huevos estrellados (fried eggs can be costly, especially if you
plaza de la Lealtad 5 (701 6767; broken up over french fries). Book order delicacies like percebes (goose
www.ritz.es). Rates: $615 double. This way in advance, or eat at the front- barnacles) and cigalas (langoustines),
167-room grande dame has hosted room tapas bar, which is known for but is worth every cent.
heads of state and celebrities for over its ham and its oysters.
a century; it’s the best place to savor LA TASQUITA DE ENFRENTE
Madrid’s old-world charms. Though CASA MIRA carrera de San Jerónimo calle Ballesta 6 (532 5449). Moderate.
recently renovated, the guest rooms 30 (429 8895). Th is diminutive shop This lunch spot is more like a private
have lost none of their classic appeal. has been in the same family for over eating club, frequented by famous
Even if you don’t stay here, come for 150 years. Its specialty is turrón, writers and politicians. There’s no
tea in the stained-glass-domed lobby the addictive honey-and-almond menu; the owner just recites the daily
or for drinks in the garden bar. nougat from Alicante, sold here in specials, which might include an
many varieties. Try the luscious elegant salad, amazing wild sea bass,
WHERE TO EAT (informal discussion sessions) with turrón de yema (egg yolk nougat) or a fragrant sauté of porcini.
the city’s most illustrious writers and the crumbly polvorones (butter
ANTIGUA PASTELERÍA DEL and intellectuals, including Federico cookies).
POZO calle del Pozo 8 (522 3894). García Lorca and Antonio Machado.
This delightful bakery, built in the The food is not extraordinary, but CHOCOLATERÍA SAN
1830s, specializes in roscones (ring the place is great for lingering over a GINÉS pasadizo de San
cakes) and hojaldre, a puff pastry and morning café con leche delivered by Ginés 5 (365 6546).
MAP BY OLIVER WILLIAMS

filled with pastry cream or cabello de gracious waiters. Appointed in marble

ángel (candied squash). and perpetually mobbed,
CASA CIRIACO calle Mayor 84 (548 this ancient café has the
BOTIN calle de Cuchilleros 17 (366 0620). Moderate. This staunchly tradi- best churros in town,
4217). Moderate. Dating to 1725 and tional taberna has been famous for its traditionally eaten dipped
beloved by Hemingway, this is by some gallina en pepitoria (hen stewed in an in hot chocolate so rich
accounts the world’s oldest restaurant. almond sauce) and its meaty braised and thick it could qualify
P. 90 S AV E U R NO. 97

Coming Home to Cafe Annie

After 25 years, a Houston institution beckons with flavors that
are as thrilling as ever

{ by m a rg o tru e photogr aphs by pen n y de los santos

}

F ourteen y e a r s ago, I did something that changed my life. I was working at my first
magazine job, as a copy editor for Houston Metropolitan magazine, when I got an invitation
to a lunch at Cafe Annie, arguably the best restaurant in town. Being fairly new to Texas, I didn’t
know that the restaurant’s chef, Robert Del Grande, had helped pioneer Southwestern cuisine in
the early ’80s or how white-hot that culinary movement had been and still was. I wasn’t aware
that national food critics were raving about this chile-spiked hybrid of French techniques and
Mexican and local ingredients, or that restaurants all over the country were beginning to liven up
their menus with things like cilantro-flavored crab cakes and chipotle beurre blanc, or even that
“Betty Crocker” had released a Southwestern cookbook.
Facing page, a waiter at Café
That day at Cafe Annie, all I knew was that the food— Annie, a restaurant famed
for its smart, spicy cuisine.
cream biscuits with spicy shrimp filling, short ribs in smoky
NO. 9 5 S AV E U R P. 91

CAFE ANNIE
P. 92 S AV E U R NO. 97

CAFE ANNIE

chile sauce, and buttery almond cake, all paired with wines that know how to hold a knife correctly. I learned how to plate food, grill
lifted the f lavors into some sort of fifth dimension—was like steaks, and “mince” (chop a food so finely that your wrist aches,
nothing I’d ever eaten before. It was skillful yet wild, as thrilling as I soon figured out). I discovered how dishes are created, and I
as Thoroughbreds hurtling around a racetrack. Out of complete saw how Mimi Del Grande, Robert’s wife, took care of her staff
naïveté, I called the restaurant the next day and asked if I could and customers as if they were family. I began to understand what
work as an unpaid apprentice. it took to give a restaurant real personality, even soul. My time
Amazingly, the restaurant let me in, and for nearly six months I at Cafe Annie set me on a course as a food writer. Two years later
went there once a week, starting out at rock bottom—I didn’t even I moved to New York, but I never lost my taste for the energetic
flavors of Southwestern food.
R EC I P E
Not long after I left, though, the cuisine started to change, dis-
Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef sipating as it spread to the rest of the country. Most of the Texas
SERVES 8 chefs who pioneered it moved on, broadening their repertoires. In
the meantime, mainstream establishments like Chipotle Grill co-
To order hard-to-find Mexican ingredients, see T H E PA N T RY, page 106.
opted the Southwestern label. Now the fast-food behemoths have,
too—McDonald’s being the most recent, with its “Fiesta Salad”.
9 dried guajillo chiles, 1 canned chipotle chile in adobo
There have been murmurs about the demise of Southwestern cuisine.
stemmed and seeded 2 tbsp. peanut oil, plus more
Could something so appealing really vanish?
1 1/2 cups chicken broth for frying
1/8 tsp. toasted cumin seeds 2 tbsp. chopped cilantro, plus
This year marks Cafe Annie’s 25th anniversary, and, feeling slightly
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped 16 sprigs anxious about the state of Southwestern food, I went to Texas to wish

{ }
1 small bay leaf 2 tsp. fresh lime juice
Salt, to taste 1 tsp. walnut oil I REALIZED THAT GREAT FOOD
1 tbsp. olive oil 2 avocados, peeled and cubed
1 lb. skirt steak, finely chopped 1 serrano chile, finely chopped
DOESN’T DEPEND ON A TREND, EVEN
1/4 lb. Mexican chorizo, casing 16 6” corn tortillas, each cut THOUGH IT MAY RIDE THAT WAVE
removed, finely crumbled into 4 long triangles
2 slices bacon 2 cups grated monterey jack the restaurant well. I ended up hearing a story of revolution and evolu-
1/2 lb. dried black beans, rinsed cheese
tion and realized, all over again, that great food doesn’t depend on a
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped 1 1/3 cups crème fraîche
1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese
trend, even though it might ride that wave for a while.
1 medium white onion,
roughly chopped 4–6 jalapeños, thinly sliced
1 dried ancho chile, stemmed In Houston 25 years ago, “fine dining” usually meant French. Robert
and seeded was working, for fun, in the kitchen of Cafe Annie, a recently opened
bistro, owned by Mimi’s sister and brother-in-law, Candice and Lonnie
1. Toast guajillo chiles on a baking sheet in a 350° oven for 5 minutes. Soak in
Schiller. His time there was supposed to represent a break after graduate
warm water until soft, about 30 minutes. Drain. Purée chiles, broth, cumin, 2 school (he’d just finished a Ph.D. in biochemistry, at the University of Cali-
cloves garlic, bay leaf, and salt. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. fornia, Riverside). But he was a natural in the kitchen, and within six months
Brown steak and chorizo in 2 batches, about 5 minutes each. Drain. Return to he was running the place. Within another two he got caught up in the
skillet with purée; simmer on medium-low until thick, about 15 minutes. Chill. culinary revolution sweeping America. Nouvelle cuisine had overturned
the canon of classical cooking in
2. Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until just crisp, 6–7 minutes. Trans-
France, and French-trained chefs in Facing page, black bean nachos
fer to a pot; reserve fat. Add remaining garlic, black beans, half the tomatoes
the United States also began to rein- with red chile beef are a pi-
and onions, ancho and chipotle chiles, and 5 cups water; bring to a boil. Simmer
over medium-low heat, partially covered, until soft, about 21/2 hours. Let cool.
vent their food, using American in- quant—and beloved—appetizer
Purée beans. Heat 2 tbsp. peanut oil and reserved bacon fat in a skillet over gredients. “We didn’t have to do sole at Cafe Annie.
medium-high heat. Fry bean purée until thick, 8–10 minutes. Season with salt. meunière anymore, and we could use
our local produce,” Robert remembered, as we sat in Cafe Annie’s warmly
3. Mix remaining onions, remaining tomatoes, chopped cilantro, lime juice, wal- lit, mahogany-paneled dining room, eating a terrine of smoky huitlacoche
nut oil, avocados, serrano chiles, and salt to make an avocado relish. Pour pea- (Mexican corn fungus) and silky foie gras.
nut oil into a pot to a depth of 2”; heat to 350° on a deep-fry thermometer. Fry The menu at Cafe Annie changed in increments. Because he was a
tortillas until crisp, about 1 minute. Drain on paper towels; sprinkle with salt.
fan of mesquite-smoked Texas barbecue, Robert started to mesquite-
4. Preheat broiler. Heat beef and beans. Divide chips between baking grill legs of lamb. “We didn’t call it fusion back then. We said we were
sheets; top each chip with beans, beef, and monterey jack; broil briefly to serving French cuisine with a twist.” His herb man started offering him
melt. Top each nacho with avocado relish, crème fraîche, cotija, jalapeño,
and cilantro sprigs. M a rg o Tru e is the food editor for Sunset. Her last article for
s av eu r was “Wine for the Family”, in the October 2006 issue.
NO. 9 5 S AV E U R P. 93

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NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 95

CAFE ANNIE

R EC I P E Mexican favorites like fresh hoja santa, an herb with an anise-like

taste, and the cooks in the kitchen, most of whom were Mexican,
Rabbit Enchiladas with Red Mole would bring in chiles and tortillas for staff meals. One of the heroes of
SERVES 6 nouvelle cuisine, Paul Bocuse, visited Cafe Annie and wolfed down the
To order hard-to-find Mexican ingredients, see T H E PA N T RY, page 106. staff lunch of brain tacos with black beans and scrambled eggs.
About then, Robert unwittingly made what he calls “the crossroads
14 tbsp. peanut oil dish”. Cafe Annie was serving roasted leg and loin of rabbit in mustard
1 whole rabbit (about 3 lbs.), quartered and patted dry sauce, a classic French preparation. “The front ends were piling up, so
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste I made enchiladas. I had no idea what I was doing.” They were such a
2 cloves garlic, halved hit with the staff that he decided to serve the rest. The waiters headed
2 small white onions, chopped bravely out into the dining room to sell the stylishly plated rabbit en-
1/4 cup almonds, roughly chopped
chiladas, born of French technique. After an hour and a half, not one
1/4 cup pecans, roughly chopped
had been served. Worse, the customers were laughing at what sounded
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped
like lowbrow Mexican food. “I told the waiters, ‘If they laugh, they get
4 guajillo chiles, stemmed, seeded, torn into large pieces
it for free.’ The enchiladas started flying out of the kitchen. And guess
2 ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded, torn into large pieces
2 pasilla chiles, stemmed, seeded, torn into large pieces
what started piling up: the back ends. So, we started putting those in
1/4 cup raisins the enchiladas, too.” Cafe Annie had crossed over, and it wasn’t long
1/4 tsp. dried oregano before the rest of the menu followed.
1/4 tsp. fennel seeds Then came another pivotal moment. In 1984, Robert’s friend Amy
6 whole allspice Ferguson, the chef at Charley’s 517 in Houston, invited him to a pot-
14 thick 5”–6” white corn tortillas (2 quartered; 12 whole)

{ “INSTEAD OF PUTTING IN THREE

}
1 large ripe tomato, cored and quartered
1/4 cup roughly chopped unsweetened chocolate (about 1 oz.)

2 cups grated monterey jack cheese CHILES,” SAYS DEL GRANDE, “WE’D
1/2 cup crème fraîche
1/2 cup finely crumbled cotija cheese
PUT IN TEN AND MAKE IT SCREAM”
6 sprigs cilantro
luck dinner in Dallas. The host was Anne Lindsay Greer, a cooking
teacher and consultant for the Loews Anatole Hotel there. Greer had
1. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in a large deep skillet over medium heat. Brown rabbit in been noticing that certain chefs seemed to be singing the same South-
batches, 4–5 minutes per batch. Combine rabbit and 5 cups water in the skillet;
western tune, and she thought they should meet—and, together, get
season with salt and pepper. Simmer, covered, until cooked, about 35 minutes.
Transfer rabbit to a plate; reserve 4 cups broth.
their cooking out beyond Texas. Robert brought ancho chile jam. At
Greer’s house, he met the two other chefs who would be the most ac-
2. Heat 1/4 cup oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add garlic and half tive in defining Texas-style Southwestern food: Dean Fearing, who
the onions; cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes. Add nuts and pumpkin went on to become the legendary chef at the Mansion on Turtle Creek,
seeds and cook for 2–3 minutes. Add chiles; cook for 2–3 minutes. Add raisins, in Dallas, and Stephan Pyles (who has also just opened a dazzling
oregano, fennel seeds, allspice, quartered tortillas, and tomatoes; cook until new Dallas restaurant named after
softened, 2–3 minutes. Add reserved broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to me- himself, focused mainly on Latin Facing page, clockwise from top
dium-low and simmer, covered, until slightly thickened, about 40 minutes. Let
America), of Routh Street Cafe left: chanterelle mushrooms;
cool. Purée chile mixture in a blender until smooth. Transfer along with choco-
and Star Canyon. All six of the Robert Del Grande; rabbit enchi-
late to a medium pot; bring mole to a simmer over medium heat. Add rabbit
and salt, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until thickened, 40 minutes.
chefs invited to the dinner—the ladas with red mole sauce; well-
Using a slotted spoon, transfer rabbit to a plate. Shred meat and discard bones. others were Avner Samuel, then worn skillets in the kitchen.
Toss rabbit and 1 cup mole in a bowl; reserve remaining mole. the chef at the Mansion, and Kevin
Hopkins, from the Loews Anatole—were between the ages of 28 and
3. Preheat oven to 350°. Heat remaining oil in a medium skillet over medium- 32 and ready to make a name for themselves.
high heat. Fry remaining tortillas until soft, 4–5 seconds. Transfer tortillas to a The group continued to meet, and Greer made sure they received pub-
paper towel–lined plate. Working with 1 tortilla at a time, spread about 1 tbsp.
licity, inviting writers like Ellen Brown of USA Today and Michael Bauer
mole over top, add a little rabbit, and roll up. Arrange in a 10” x 14” baking dish;
of the Dallas Times Herald, apparently the first person to use the term
cover with 3/4 cup mole; sprinkle with remaining onions and monterey jack.
Loosely cover with foil; bake until bubbly, 35–40 minutes.
“new Southwestern cuisine”. Not everything from those days was culinary
gold. “Instead of using three or four chiles and have a dish be delicate,
4. Divide enchiladas between 6 plates. Reheat remaining mole, spoon a we’d put in ten, make it scream,” Robert remembers. Writer Alison Cook
little over each, and garnish with crème fraîche, cotija, cilantro, and avo- composed a hilarious diatribe for Texas Monthly on the subversion of “real
cado relish used in the black bean nachos (see page 92), if you like. Texas food”, citing “mesquite abusers and cilantro junkies”.
But the fireworks were unstoppable. Within a year, Greer’s chefs
P. 96 S AV E U R NO. 97

CAFE ANNIE

were all over the place: at an American Institute of Wine and Food What inspires Robert the most? “A simple process leading to a complex
dinner in Dallas for Julia Child; at fund-raisers on both coasts; at effect,” he says. That’s why he loves making redfish wrapped in a banana
dinners for visiting celebrity chefs at the Loews Anatole. A number leaf, from the current menu. “All of it cooks together; you open it and it’s
of remarkable talents in California were cooking Southwestern, too: good to go.” He assembles a package of onions, halved shrimp, a few tar-
John Sedlar, at Manhattan Beach’s St. Estèphe; Mary Sue Milliken ragon leaves, a jalapeño, and a redfish filet, dabs on some garlic butter, folds
and Susan Feniger, of Los Angeles’s Border Grill and City Cafe; and it up, and pops it into the steamer. Half an hour later, it’s ready: a buttery
Mark Miller, at Fourth Street Grill in Berkeley (and, later, at Santa Fe’s morsel of fish, with the intertwined flavors of serrano and tarragon.
Coyote Cafe). By the early ’90s, dozens of articles had been written Next up: black bean nachos with red chile beef. These are from Bar An-
on this “outlaw” cuisine, with its appealingly rule-breaking ways. Cafe nie, the restaurant-within-a-restaurant arranged around Cafe Annie’s bar,
Annie was repeatedly named one of the best restaurants in the country created two years ago. Its prices are lower, and its menu consists of a list of
instant addictions: jumbo Gulf shrimp cocktail, fried chicken salad, hand-

{ DEL GRANDE HAS STAYED THE TRUEST

TO THE STYLE HE BEGAN WITH, ONE
ROOTED IN MEXICO
by Gourmet and the Zagat guides. In partnership with the Schillers,
} made onion rings. Robert constructs a platterful of nachos, each chip
supporting a mound of refried black beans, spicy beef, shreds of buttery
cheese, avocado relish, a drizzle of crème fraîche, and grated parmigiano-
like cotija cheese, topped with a thin slice of jalapeño.
After 25 years at Cafe Annie, Robert is comfortable with his food in a
way few chefs seem to be, and he feels the satisfactions of going deeper in
Mimi and Robert spun off a chain of upscale fast-food places called rather than farther out. That said, his menu is looser than it once was. Along
Cafe Express; Rio Ranch, a big, handsome restaurant serving Texas with mainstays like crab tostadas, there are dishes free of identifiably South-
comfort food; and Taco Milagro, an elegant version of a taco stand. western ingredients, and others that
Cafe Annie, though, has always been the heart of the operation. And blend in other cultures—yellowfin Facing page, coffee-crusted
of the original Southwestern chefs, Robert has stayed the truest to the tuna with bok choy and preserved beef tenderloin, a dish that Del
style he began with, one rooted in Mexico. What keeps him there, lemons, for instance. To me, eating Grande invented by accident.
when a world of cuisines could be explored? here again is like being with an old
friend who happens to have acquired some great new clothes.
Robert bends ov er a slice of black bean terrine, spooning on salsa “In the beginning, we were trying to do something we could call ‘South-
with the concentration of a man at a microscope. We’re in Cafe Annie’s western’,” says Robert. “Now I never think about it. You know, you don’t
kitchen, and he’s cooking his way through several of his signature dishes have to have signs on the wall saying there’s no place like home. You know
in a sort of edible illustration of what he’s thought about over the years. you’re home.”
The place looks exactly as I remembered it, with the narrow line of stoves
and grills arranged behind the pickup windows. A stack of saucepans sits Th e Pa n t r y, page 106: Contact information for Cafe Annie, plus
near the stoves, so banged up and pitted that they’re beautiful. sources for dried chiles, chorizo, and cotija.
It’s been a rough few years for Robert. Business shrank after 9/11—
it has since rebounded—and he was diagnosed with prostate cancer M E T H O D
four years ago. Luckily, he is now cancer-free, and although his hair
is grayer, it’s still boyishly tousled. If anything, his tribulations have Coffee-Crusted Beef Tenderloin
made him more thoughtful. “I think I have more aesthetic wisdom When Del Grande invented this dish, its simplicity shocked him. Something that
now, more subtlety,” he says. “Sometimes I get criticized for not being tasted this good, he thought, surely must be harder to make. Toast 4 stemmed
as innovative as I once was, but does food really have to be strange? Or seeded guajillo chiles and 2 stemmed seeded ancho chiles (see page 106) in a
can we find something new, wrapped in the spirit of the restaurant?” skillet over medium heat for 4–5 minutes; soak in warm water until soft, about
Robert slices through the midnight black crust of a coffee-crusted 30 minutes. Purée chiles, 1 cup soaking liquid, 4 chopped cloves garlic, 2 chipo-
tle chiles in adobo, and 1/2 chopped small white onion in a blender until smooth.
beef tenderloin—a dish he devised totally by chance sometime in the
Heat 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
mid-1990s. Early one Christmas morning, he accidentally spilled Add purée, reduce heat, and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes. Add 2
ground coffee all over the cutting board he was about to use for fi xing tbsp. light brown sugar, 2 tbsp. red wine vinegar, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper;
beef filets for dinner. He thought back on a conversation he’d once had simmer until thickened, 12–14 minutes more; let sauce cool. Preheat oven to
with a friend about the meaty quality of coffee. In a second he was roll- 400°. Tie a 2-lb. piece of beef tenderloin with butcher’s twine at 1/2” intervals.
ing the filets in the coffee. The ground beans formed a rich, unctuous Rub with 2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, 11/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, and 1/2 tsp. pepper;
crust—and the beef became his most copied entrée. Right now, appar- brush all over with 2 tbsp. sauce (save remainder for another use). Combine
3 tbsp. very finely ground coffee, 1 tbsp. cocoa powder, and 1/8 tsp. ground cin-
ently, it’s big in Seattle. “That’s why we have to keep changing it,” he namon; roll beef in mixture to coat. Place beef on a rack in a roasting pan; let sit
says. He’s added different spices to the coffee over the years, from sage for 30 minutes. Roast for 10 minutes; reduce temperature to 225° and continue
to cinnamon, and constantly invents new accompaniments. Today he’s roasting until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part reads 125°, about 50
serving it with wild mushrooms and a sauce of roasted onion, pasilla minutes. Let rest for 15 minutes. Remove twine and slice. Serves 6.
chiles, espresso, and cream.
NO. 9 5 S AV E U R P. 97

CAFE ANNIE
 S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G S E C T I O N

Tea for
Two Hundred
Million
Americans turn on to the time-honored
taste of specialty teas.

W
e’ve been in this adding subtle layers of taste and
business since 1995 complexity. There’s a tea for every
and there’s been a mood and moment, and finding the
definite surge in perfect brew can be a lifelong quest.
interest in specialty teas in the past While they may appreciate the
five years and especially in the past extra dose of antioxidants in an
two,” says Linda Villano, owner of aromatic cup of fine Formosa Pi
Serendipitea, a loose tea blender and Lo Chun, culinary enthusiasts seem
wholesaler in New York. Research to be most interested in the wide quickly and, when lifted out, the of techno-savvy are also hallmarks at
pointing to tea’s health benefits, said variety of tastes and its use as a packaging absorbs any remaining Mint Brook Meadow Teas, an Ohio
to be similar to those ascribed to cooking ingredient. water, preventing drips and ‘tea bag company that grows mint and sells
red wine, are a major reason for the Are you ready for a restaurant mess,’” says Ozlem Ozsirin, CEO of blended and herbal teas.
uptick,Villano says. with a tea sommelier? Sympatea USA. “And because the “We’re in a community of
“There are the health benefits, of “There are a few restaurants that packaging is air-tight, it preserves Amish and Mennonite families,”
course,” agrees Jonathan Sims, co- have people who describe themselves the flavor and quality of the tea for a explains co-owner Dan Tropea.
owner of the Tea Embassy in Austin, as tea sommeliers,” Linda Villano says. very long time, up to three years.” “The community has always
TX. “But there’s also an element of
discovery. Each culture —Russia,
Turkey, Morocco, China, Japan—
Blending and the addition of herbs or fruits makes tea
has its own way of preparing and
serving tea.”
at least as facile as wine, with each step or ingredient
Exploring tea is like exploring adding subtle layers of taste and complexity.
wine, Sims notes.There are different
tastes from different varieties grown “The variety of tastes is so wide, they This makes it easy for restaurants, grown mint for its own use and
in one location, and different tastes help guide diners in the selection cafes, even convenience stores, to processed it the traditional way,
from the same variety grown in of teas to complement their food stock and sell high-quality tea. hanging it to dry. I discovered
different locations. Blending and selections. We work with chefs on The folks at Ekaterina’s Imperial there was a big market for the
the addition of herbs or fruits food pairings, suggesting different teas Porcelain & Tea tackled the same high-quality mint we grow.”
makes tea at least as facile as wine, for their menu selections. We even problem from a different angle. The company has moved beyond
with each step or ingredient custom-blend teas to accompany Originally an importer of handmade supplying mint to other tea makers,
specific dishes.” Russian Lomonosov porcelain importing Black Sea teas grown
Reaching well beyond the teapots and samovars, Ekaterina’s got on traditional organic farms and
familiar box of generic tea bags, enough interest from restaurants that creating its own blends.
specialty suppliers are broadening they began working with a maker of Since Mint Brook Meadow farms
the range and availability of fine commercial tea brewing equipment organically without herbicides, the
tea. Sympatea USA has come up and came up with a programmable fields have to be weeded by hand.
with an ingenious solution to the brewer that can be adjusted to brew It’s just that kind of respect for
difficulties of brewing: a spoon any kind of loose tea. tradition, whether found in the
that serves as both packaging and “Green tea is brewed at a lower fields at Mint Brook Meadow, in
infuser. The “spoon” is a mini- temperature than black tea,”Bougaeu handmade Lomonosov teapots
tea basket that comes individually says. “Our machine has buttons on or in the careful selection and
wrapped in airtight foil to protect the front, like a microwave, so the blending of leaves at the Tea
the subtle flavor and aroma servers don’t need to know about Embassy, Serendipitea and
of the tea. each of the teas. They just push the Sympatea, that gives tea—and tea
“When the package button for the type of tea and the culture—its richness and rewards
is st ir red in hot machine does the rest.” its devotees with transcendent
water, the tea brews A respect for tradition and a touch tastes and experiences.
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 101

I N T H E S AV E U R

KITCHEN
Te c h n i q u e s a n d D i s c o v e r i e s f r o m O u r F a v o r i t e R o o m i n t h e H o u s e » E d i t e d b y To d d C o l e m a n

consulting editor and expert in Chinese cooking, walked

me through the recipe for chef Jereme Leung’s version of
that dish (see page 50), she offered a few cautionary words.
“Buy your rice wine at a Chinese liquor store,” she said.
“The kind available at Asian supermarkets tends to be
harsh and unpleasant. It’s always best to cook with a wine
you’d actually want to drink.”
One sip of supermarket rice wine proved Grace’s point
and prompted me to wonder why I hadn’t accorded rice
wine the same reverence I do European ingredients like
balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil. I asked Grace
to take me down to Mark’s Wine & Spirits, a 70-year-old
shop in Manhattan’s Chinatown, for a much needed rice
wine tutorial.
Peter Woo, a longtime employee, now semiretired, wel-
comed us into the store. Leading us among the shelves and
pointing out some out of his favorite brands—including
Wuliangye, from a producer in Sichuan that boasts 600-
year-old cellars, and Kweichow Moutai, from Guizhou,
a favorite among Chinese diplomats—Woo told us that
what we call rice wine isn’t really wine at all, and it’s not
made exclusively from rice. It’s actually a liquor, he said,
distilled from different combinations of fermented rice,
sorghum, millet, wheat, and corn.
When it came time to taste, Woo said we would be try-
ing shaoxing jiu, a well-known variety named for the city
in the eastern province of Zhejiang where it’s produced.
Also called yellow wine because of its color, shaoxing jiu is
brewed from spring water, rice, glutinous rice, yeast, and
often millet and is then aged in earthenware jars for some-
times as long 20 years. While all the varieties we tasted
bore a resemblance to sherry, they also displayed a sur-

Rice Wine 101

These Chinese spirits are good enough to guzzle
prising complexity and range (see tasting notes, below). A
delightful discovery, and long overdue. —Todd Coleman

Aged to Perfection We sampled these varieties of shao-

xing jiu, produced by Pagoda, a reputable vintner. EIGHT-
e a r s ag o I learned to avoid supermarket-
JAMES OSELAND (4)

YEAR-OLD: Creamy and smoky; tinged with caramel. TEN-

Y variety wine labeled “cooking”, as it’s typically

laden with salt and of very poor quality. But
YEAR-OLD: Round and drinkable, with a mellow disposition.
20-YEAR-OLD: Dark and heavy; reminiscent of soy sauce. —T.C.
I’d never exercised the same discretion with Chinese rice
wine, a key ingredient in many Chinese dishes, including Clockwise from upper left: Grace Young at Mark’s Wine &
drunken chicken (poached chicken soaked overnight in Spirits; a bottle of 20-year-old shaoxing; various shaoxings;
rice wine), a Shanghai classic. As Grace Young, a s av eur Mark’s Wine & Spirits, in New York City.
 P. 1 02 S AV E U R NO. 97

KITCHEN

Perfect
Poaching
Several years ago, when I was
a private chef, I was asked one
morning to poach eggs for breakfast.
No problem, I thought. But when
I dropped the first egg into the
simmering water, the yolk and white
spread out into an amorphous mess.
1 2 3
Same thing on the next try. My eyes
widened in panic. What was going
wrong? Later, I called my friend Ted
MacLeod, an expert brunch cook.
“The secret to poaching eggs,” Ted
told me, “is in the amount of vinegar
you use. The right amount coaxes
them into firmness.” I tried his
method—a half cup of white distilled
vinegar and a half teaspoon of salt
in four cups of water—and, sure
enough, my poached eggs came
out beautifully. Months afterward,
though, I ran into another problem.
4 5 6 I was using a skillet to poach eggs
TOP: JAMES OSELAND (6); HAND MODEL: STEPHANIE TEEKARAM; FAR RIGHT: ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI; ILLUSTRATION: PHILIPPE DEKEMETER

and noticed that when I dropped the

HOW TO CARVE A TURKEY eggs into the water they flattened
into dispiriting disks. Thinking that
1 l Steadying the turkey with a carving fork, remove the leg at its joint with a sharp knife; separate the drumstick
the outcome might have something
from the thigh. 2 l Slice the thigh into strips parallel to the bone; slice the drumstick while holding it upright.
to do with the water’s depth, I
3 l Remove the wing at its joint (you may have to dig a little). 4 l Make a long horizontal cut at the bottom of the
switched to a tall pot, and—voilà!—the
breast (this will allow the breast meat to fall away easily when sliced). 5 l Using an even, downward stroking mo-
eggs gracefully trailed down into the
tion, cut the breast into slices. 6 l Repeat with the turkey’s other side; arrange slices neatly on a serving platter.
boiling water, forming themselves

between November 1 and December 29 each year.

Bird Call
True-life tales of turkeys in trouble
We couldn’t resist asking her for some war stories.

Do people tend to lose their minds around the holidays?

Absolutely! One lady was bragging that she kept her
turkey in a snowbank, but it dawned on her that it
had snowed again the night before and she had no
clue where her turkey was. She hung up on us.

Have you ever rerouted calls to 911?

Well, one guy was cutting his turkey with a chain
saw, but no one was injured. And another guy lined
the bottom of his grill with cat litter to keep it clean.
His wife called and said, “What do you know about into appealing orbs. Still, to this
cat litter?” I said, “Not a whole lot.” day, my first few poaching attempts
sometimes don’t turn out right.
Do callers still surprise you? Another friend, Ashley Berman,
Oh, yes! One caller thawed a turkey in their bathtub, a recipe tester, offered consoling
advice: “It’s just like when you’re
and her kids took a bubble bath with it. Some people
making pancakes,” she said. “The
ary Clingman, a “turkey talker” on the scrub their turkeys with scouring powder.
M Butterball Turkey Talk-Line (1-800/BUT-
TERBALL) for 22 years and its director for Can you save a turkey after that kind of trauma?
first few always flop.” Now, those
are words to put a perfectionist’s
mind at ease! (For more on poaching
the past five, says it receives more than 100,000 calls A lot of rinsing is involved. —Liz Pearson eggs, see recipe on page 68.) —T. C.
 NO. 97 S AV E U R P. 1 03

KITCHEN

The Sweetest Revenge

How much would you pay for a cookie?
he a rt icl e in t his issue about the origins of New York cheesecake (see page
T 46) got me thinking about dessert recipes and some of the unusual stories attached to
them. My favorite is that of the Neiman Marcus cookie, which goes something like
this. A woman was having lunch with her daughter at the Neiman Marcus department store in
Dallas, Texas. The mother ordered a cookie for dessert, and she liked it so much that she asked
for the recipe. The waiter politely informed her that it would cost “two fifty”. She happily agreed
to pay, instructing the waiter to add the fee to her store account. Later, she discovered on her
monthly bill that the restaurant had charged
her $250, not $2.50. She called Neiman Mar- R EC I P E

cus to complain, but the store refused to re-

Neiman Marcus Cookies
duce the bill. Infuriated, she decided to mail
MAKES ABOUT 4 1 / 2 DOZEN
the recipe to everyone she knew, asking them
to mail it to all their acquaintances—and on To carry on the tradition of righting Neiman
and on. Marcus’s imagined wrong, you may wish
to copy this recipe and mail it to all your
A stirring narrative of revenge, to be sure;
friends and family.
also an untrue one. The story has been ap-
plied to a long line of dessert recipes since the
1940s—via chain letters, newspaper reports, 16 tbsp
tbsp. (2 sticks) butter
1 cup sugar
and, most recently, the Internet. The Waldorf-
1 cup packed light brown sugar
Astoria’s red velvet cake, for instance, was in- 1 tsp.
tsp vanilla extract
famously known as the $100 cake. Over the 2 eggs
years the dollar amounts have reflected infla- 21/2 cups oatmeal
oatmeal, processed in blender to
tion, but the basic tale of just deserts remains afi
finene powder
a constant. —Georgia Freedman 2 cups fl flour
our
1 tsp.
tsp baking powder

chocolate

ed

ectric mixer,
er in a large
. Add vanilla
about 30 sec-
wder, baking
bined, about
walnuts, and
lls and place
ke until light
0–12 minutes.
cool.
ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI
 P. 1 04 S AV E U R NO. 97

KITCHEN
RECIPES & METHODS
Tart and Sweet BY CATEGORY
Gramma Fox’s applesauce is a practical and delicious treat BREAKFAST DISHES
Thanksgiving, when she serves it as a condi- Broiled Grapefruit ..............................................71
ment with roast turkey (see recipe, page 62). Poached Eggs with Tasso
When my grandmother Jean Reitnauer Fox
and Hollandaise Sauce ................................ 68
was young, eppelsaes (as it’s called in Penn-
sylvania German) usually showed up as a des- APPETIZERS AND HORS D’OEUVRES
sert, but it eventually joined the ranks of the
Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef ........... 90
M E T H O D Buckwheat Crêpes with Pork Pâté ......................23

Jean Fox’s Eppelsaes Ham and Shrimp Croquettes .............................82

“What I’m looking for in an apple is something Tea-Smoked Eggs with Caviar ............................51
tart, and also something with color—I want the ap-
plesauce to have a pink color from the skin. I usu- SOUPS
ally use three kinds. But the most important thing Shanghai-Style Hot and Sour Soup ....................58
is that at least one is tart. Mcintoshes serve that
purpose. So let’s say 4 rome, 4 mcintosh, and 4
MAIN DISHES
gala. First, I wash the apples, because I’m going to
use the skins. Next I cut them into eighths. Then Meat and Poultry
I remove the seeds and cut away the stem and a
Black Bean Nachos with Red Chile Beef ............92
little bit of the core—not a whole lot, because the
pectin is in there and you want that for thickening. Brined and Roasted Turkey ................................62
I put the apples in a heavy saucepan and add a
Chilled Drunken Chicken
little water to cover the bottom, put a lid on it, and
turn the heat on high to get it steaming and then with Rice Wine Granita ...............................50
turn it back to between, oh, medium and medium-
Coffee-Crusted Beef Tenderloin ........................ 96
high. I stir it occasionally, until it’s puffy and soft,
maybe 45 minutes. Then I put them into the food Madrid-Style Boiled Dinner ...............................87
mill [Fox uses a cone-shaped sieve and a wooden
Rabbit Enchiladas with Red Mole ......................95
pestle] and push them through. The skin will stay
behind. Now I taste it. I’m looking for sweet and Salvadoran Turkey Sandwich............................. 64
tart—a combination of the two. If it isn’t quite tart
Sausages and Gravy with Stone-Ground Grits ...76
enough, I add lemon juice, about a tablespoon.
Then I add a little sugar, about 2 to 3 teaspoons. Tapas-Style Meatballs .........................................81
When it’s time to serve it, I sprinkle a little cinna-
mon on top. It makes about 6 cups.”
Turkey Tetrazzini ...............................................63
Seafood
Top, pressing steamed apples through a cone- traditional sweet-and-sour sides, like pickled Sizzling Shrimp with Garlic and Parsley............ 80
shaped sieve; above, Jean Fox’s eppelsaes, a red beets and cabbage, that we have with most
Pennsylvania German version of applesauce. meals. Wholesome and inexpensive to make, VEGETABLES AND SIDE DISHES
eppelsaes marks the epitome of thrift and prac- Collard Greens with Smoked
On m y Pen ns y lva ni a Ger m a n family’s ticality, for which the Pennsylvania Germans
Turkey Wings ..............................................62
table, my grandmother’s homemade tart-sweet are legendary, and the technique hasn’t budged
(not vice versa) applesauce is a staple through- in generations. When dessert time comes, I al- Jean Fox’s Eppelsaes ..........................................104
out autumn, but it’s the most prominent at ways go back for more. —Kate Fox Mirliton Casserole ..............................................70

In the S ave ur Lib rar y DESSERTS

ANDRÉ BARANOWSKI (2)

Creamy Caramel Custard .................................. 88

BIRDS OF A FEATHER: SAVING RARE days, but this book’s authors remind us that it
TURKEYS FROM EXTINCTION by Carolyn J. hasn’t always been so. With breed profiles and Lindy’s Cheesecake ............................................ 46
Christman and Robert O. Hawes (The American explanations of such topics as conservation- Neiman Marcus Cookies ..................................103
Livestock Breeds Conservancy, 1999). Vacuum- friendly breeding techniques and color genet-
wrapped self-basters may be the norm these ics, it may inspire you to start talking turkey. Pigs’ Ears ............................................................75
Thanksgiving Twofer Pie ................................... 26
 FREE INFORMATION
These SAVEUR advertisers invite you to request additional information about their products and services. Simply
fill out and return the attached card. For faster service, fax toll-free to 888-847-6035 or visit www.saveur.com/freeinfo

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P. 1 0 6 S AV E U R NO. 97

THE PANTRY
.com) for the Vagabond Vintage Furnish- rice wine granita and the Shanghai-style
ings napkins. hot and sour soup. It also sells meiguilu
jiu liquor ($29.00 for a 750-ml bottle; also
Kitchenwise known as mei kuei lu chiew; it cannot be
A Guide to Resources Jenny Rogers and Clove Galilee’s New York shipped to all locations, so call for details)
In producing the stories for this issue, City kitchen contains the following items: and dried wolfberries ($7.90 for a 12-ounce
we discovered food products and Miele dishwasher (800/843-7231; www package) for making the chilled drunken
kitchenware too good to keep to ourselves. .miele.com), Verona gas oven and stovetop chicken with rice wine granita, as well as
Please feel free to raid our pantry! (www.veronaappliances.com), Liebherr re- dried wood ear mushrooms ($3.00 for a
frigerator (866/543-2437; www.liebherr 1-ounce package), dried shiitake mush-
BY L I Z P E A R S O N -appliances.com), and IKEA cabinets and rooms ($3.25 for a 1-ounce package), hot
faucet (800/434-4532; w w w.ikea.com). bean sauce ($3.90 for a 16-ounce jar), and
Fare The kitchen was designed by Rogers and chinkiang vinegar ($4.95 for a 21-ounce
The Bouchard Family Farm (800/239-3237; her interior-design company, Uncommon bottle) for making the Shanghai-style hot
www.ployes.com) in Maine sells silverskin Abode (212/529-8696; www.uncommon and sour soup. Buy five-spice powder
buckwheat flour ($15.00 for a 3-pound bag; abode.com). ($2.50 for a 1-ounce jar) and shiso leaves
ask for “Acadian light buckwheat flour”) ($1.98 for a dozen) from Adriana’s Caravan
for making the buckwheat crêpes with pork Cellar (above) to make the smoked duck eggs with
pâté, as well as its own ployes mix ($12.00 For the moulin-à-vent wines listed in our caviar as well. You’ll also need duck eggs
for a 11/2-pound bag), to which you just add tasting notes, contact the following: Veri- ($6.80 for ten) for the smoked duck eggs
water. To learn more about the Le Fooding tas Imports (877/205-3803) for Domaine with caviar. Order them from D’Artagnan
movement and its events, visit the French- de la Rochelle; Kermit Lynch (510/524- (800/327-8246), and order caviar ($60.00
only website www.lefooding.com. 1524) for Domaine Diochon Cuvée Vieilles for a 30-gram jar) from Sterling Caviar
Vi g ne s; L ou i s / Dre s sner S e le c t ion s (800/525-0333; www.sterlingcaviar.com).
List (212/334-8191) for Domaine du Gra-
To set your table like ours, contact Im- nit; Weygandt-Metzler (610/486-0700) Turkey
ports from Marrakesh (212/675-9700) for for Domaine du Vissoux Rochegrès; Sur La Table (800/243-0852; www.surla
the Moroccan tea glasses, Simon Pearce W. J. Deutsch & Sons Ltd. (914/251- table.com) sells excellent single-use brining
(877/452-7763; w w w.simonpearce.com) 9463) for Georges DuBoeuf Domaine des bags ($7.95 each) for making the brined
for the Brookfield Bakeware large dish, the Rosiers; Wine Traditions (703/333-2853) and roasted turkey. To make the Salva-
Real Mother Goose gallery (800/968-1070; for Gérard Charvet La Réserve d’Amélie; doran turkey sandwich, buy the annatto
www.therealmothergoose.com) for Dale Dreyfus, Ashby & Co. (212/818-0770) for seeds ($2.55 for a 4-ounce package) you’ll
Larson’s wooden bowls, Heath Ceramics Joseph Drouhin; Kobrand (212/490-9300) need from Kitchen/Market (888/468-
(415/332-3732; www.heathceramics.com) for Louis Jadot Clos de la Roche and Louis 4433; www.kitchenmarket.com).
for the Chez Panisse dinnerware, John Jadot Clos de Rochegrès; Boisset Vins &
Derian Company (212/677-3917; w w w Spiritueux (415/289-4500) for Mommessin Louisiana Bayou
.johnderian.com) for the History of Plants Les Canneliers and Mommessin Réserve Cajun Grocer (888/272-9347; www.cajun
platter, Fishs Eddy (212/420-9020; www du Domaine de Champ de Cour; and grocer.com) sells Cajun-style smoked
.fishseddy.com) for the oval Green Band Frederick Wildman and Sons (800/733- pork ($5.75 per pound; ask for “tasso”) for
platter, Crate & Barrel (800/967-6696; 9463) for Potel-Aviron. the poached eggs with tasso and hollan-
w w w.crateandbarrel.com) for the Nora daise sauce. Order light muscovado sugar
wineglasses, K itchenDirect (800/375- Shanghai ($5.50 for a 1-pound bag) to make the
3128; w w w.kitchendirect.com) for the Adriana’s Caravan (800/316-0820; www broiled grapefruit and the pigs’ ears from
Ravenscroft trumpet decanter, W MF .adrianascaravan.com) carries Chinese New York City’s SoHo location of Dean &
USA (800/999-6347; www.wmf-usa.com) rice wine ($4.50 for a 25.4-ounce bottle; DeLuca (212/431-1691), which also carries
for the Nortica f latware, and John Derian ask for Pagoda brand “shaoxing jiu”) for stone-ground grits ($3.50 for a 12-ounce
Dry Goods (212/677-8408; www.johnderian making the chilled drunken chicken with package) for making the sausages and gravy
with stone-ground grits.
S AV E U R (ISSN 1075-7864) Issue: No. 97, November 2006. S AV E U R is published nine times per year (January/February,
March, April, May, June/July, August/September, October, November, and December) by World Publications, LLC, 460 N.
Orlando Ave., Suite 200, Winter Park, FL 32789. Copyright 2006, all rights reserved. The contents of this publication may Madrid
not be reproduced in whole or in part without consent of the copyright owner. Periodicals postage paid at Winter Park, Fla., To buy both Spanish extra-virgin olive oil
and additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTIONS: U.S., $29.95 for one year, $49.95 for two years. Foreign surface mail to
Canada: $38.95 for one year; to other foreign destinations: $47.95. For subscription information, please call 877/717-8925. ($18.95 for a 25-ounce bottle) to make the
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to S AV E U R , P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. For faster service, please sizzling shrimp with garlic and parsley and
enclose your current subscription label. EDITORIAL: Send correspondence to Editorial Department, S AV E U R , 304 Park Avenue
South, New York, NY 10010; e-mail: [email protected]. We welcome all editorial submissions but assume no responsibility Spanish olive oil ($29.00 for a 3-liter can) to
for the loss or damage of unsolicited material. Retail sales discounts available; contact Circulation Department. The following make the tapas-style meatballs and the ham
are trademarks of S AV E U R and World Publications, and their use by others is strictly prohibited: I N T H E S AV E U R K I T C H E N ,
S AV E U R FA R E , S AV E U R M O M E N T . and shrimp croquettes, contact La Tienda
NO. 97 P. 107

(800/710-4304; www.latienda.com). It also

sells 6-inch cazuelas ($24.00 for a pack-
age of four) for making the sizzling shrimp
with garlic and parsley and the tapas-style
S AV E U R
meatballs, sliced serrano ham ($16.95
for an 8-ounce package) for making the
ham and shrimp croquettes, and chunks
of serrano ham ($38.00 for a 11/2 -pound
IN STORE!
piece), Spanish blood sausage (ask for SAVEUR magazine is available in these
“morcilla”) and Spanish chorizo ($39.75 and other fine retail establishments.
for a 4-pound package that contains both),
and thin dried Spanish noodles ($9.95 for A GOURMET’S PANTRY NICOLA’S SPECIALTY FOODS
Erwinna, PA • 610/294-9763 New York, NY
six 8.8-ounce packages; ask for “fideos”) www.agourmetspantry.com 212/753-9275
for making the Madrid-style boiled din- www.casanicola.com
BROADWAY PANHANDLER
ner. Kitchen/Market (888/468-4433; www New York, NY • 866/COOKWARE OLSSON’S FINE FOODS
.kitchenmarket.com) sells the dried guin- www.broadwaypanhandler.com Lawrenceville, NJ • 609/394-2798
[email protected]
dilla chiles ($5.95 for a 2-ounce package) BUON ITALIA
you’ll need to make the sizzling shrimp New York, NY • 212/633-9090 PAYSAGE
www.buonitalia.com Wilmington, NC • 216/397-8700
with garlic and parsley. To purchase flan www.paysage.com
molds ($2.25 for each 31/4 -inch mold) to EATS GOURMET MARKETPLACE
Albany, NY • 518/453-3287 PORCELLA
make the creamy caramel custard, contact www.eatsalbany.com URBAN MARKET
The Spanish Table (505/986-0243; www Bellevue, WA • 425/286-0080
ESPERANCE, LLC www.porcellaurbanmarket.com
.spanishtable.com). Charlevoix, MI • 231/237-9300
www.esperancewine.com PROVISIONS
Port Townsend, WA
Cafe Annie FOOD & CO. 360/385-4541
The next time you’re in Houston, stop by York, ME • 207/363-0900 www.provisionspt.com
www.foodnco.com
Cafe Annie for a memorable meal (1728 QUE SYRAH FINE WINES
Post Oak Boulevard, Houston, Texas; GRACE’S MARKETPLACE Chicago, IL • 773/871-8888
New York, NY • 212/737-0600 www.quesyrahwine.com
713/840 -1111; w w w.ca fe-a nnie.com). www.gracesmarketplace.com
Kitchen/Market (888/468-4433; w w w SALUMIERE CESARIO
GRAPE VINE MARKET Walla Walla, WA • 509/529-5620
.kitchenmarket.com) carries dried gua- Austin, TX • 512/323-5900 www.salumierecesario.com
jillo chiles ($3.20 for a 2-ounce pack- www.grapevinemarket.com
SEAN & GERRY’S
age), dried ancho chiles ($3.60 for a GREAT NEWS! FRESH MARKET
2-ounce package), and cotija cheese ($5.95 DISCOUNT COOKWARE Westboro, MA • 508/366-7766
AND COOKING SCHOOL www.seanandgerrys.com
for a 1-pound package) for making both San Diego, CA • 888/478-2433
the black bean nachos with red chile beef www.discountcooking.com TAYLOR’S MARKET
www.great-news.com Sacramento, CA • 916/443-6881
and the rabbit enchiladas with red mole. www.taylorsmarket.com
It also sells Mexican chorizo ($4.50 for a HERITAGE WINE COMPANY
Pasadena, CA • 800/630-9463 TED’S BUTCHER BLOCK
15-ounce package) for the black bean na- www.heritagewinecompany.com Charleston, SC • 843/577-0094
chos with red chile beef and dried pasilla www.tedsbutcherblock.com
IDEAL CHEESE SHOP
chiles for the rabbit enchiladas with red New York, NY • 800/382-0109 THE COOK BOOK STALL
mole ($4.55 for a 2-ounce package). www.idealcheese.com Philadelphia, PA
215/923-3170
KARL EHMER SPECIALTY FOODS [email protected]
Kitchen Ridgewood, NY
800/ITS-KARL (487-5275) THE GRAND ONION
To purchase an array of Chinese rice wines, www.karlehmer.com Plattsburgh, NY
stop by Mark’s Wine & Spirits in New York 518/566-6466
KETCHUM KITCHENS www.grandonion.com
City’s Chinatown (53 Mott Street, New Ketchum, ID • 800/992-4860
York City; 212/962-1982). When you’re www.ketchumkitchens.com THE SEAFOOD
RESTAURANT
not in that neck of the woods, fi nd Chinese MARKET SALAMANDER Padstow, Cornwall, England
rice wines at your local Asian liquor store or Middleburg, VA • 540/687-8011 1841 533466
www.market-salmander.com www.rickstein.com
contact Adriana’s Caravan (800/316-0820;
www.adrianascaravan.com) to order a high- NEW PRESTON KITCHEN GOODS YOUNG’S FINE WINES
New Preston, CT Manhasset, NY
quality rice wine ($4.50 for a 25.4-ounce 860/868-1264 516/627-1234
bottle; ask for Pagoda brand “shaoxing jiu”) www.newprestonkitchengoods.com [email protected]
for making the dishes in the Shanghai fea- For information on becoming a retail partner,
ture (see page 48).
please call Melissa at 888/259-6753 ext. 4933
 P. 1 0 8 S A V E U R N O. 9 7

Geerlings & Wade

Making Great Wines Affordable

G E E R L I N G S & WA D E
I n 1986, founders Huib Geerlings and
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they have transitioned to
Makes the perfect holiday gift. Together, they sought a way to
become America’s leading direct-to-consumer
share this philosophy—to educate the con-
winery, producing wines both in their Napa,
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sumer, demystify the experience and make the

1-800-782-WINE • www.geerwade.com California, winery and with international
enjoyment of fine wine easy and accessible.
partnerships that have developed over their
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Thus Geerlings & Wade was born. twenty year’s experience in the industry.
Next came the challenging task of making Today, Geerlings & Wade is America’s leading
truly great wines affordable. As insiders, Mr. direct marketer of fine wine and wine acces-
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Geerlings and Mr. Wade knew that much of sories with home and office delivery to 28
the fine wine available could be attributed not states and a devoted following of over 100,000
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to its merits, but to the numerous brokers, regular customers and members. Their never-
negotiators and middlemen that stood ending quest for exquisite yet inexpensive
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between the wine maker and the wine lover. wines leads them to vineyards around the
So, they devised a unique business strategy: world and thousands-upon-thousands of blind
go to the source, sift through every wine, select tasting and blending sessions.
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only those outstanding wines that offer the rare Fueled by the belief that wine is an indul-
combination of superior quality and exceptional gence to be enjoyed without intimidation,
WO R L D C L ASS W I N E S price, and team these special attributes with con- Geerlings & Wade revolutionized the wine
r

venient home or office delivery. industry again in 2002 by training a team of

We offer top labels and hot new wines
before anyone else! It has been a winning strategy. Through traveling Wine Consultants to provide in-home
the years, Geerlings & Wade has cultivated Wine Tasting Events to consumers. Since its
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Join our Club or browse our list.

exclusive relationships with hundreds of inception, The Traveling Vineyard has wel-
If you love great Pinot, call us soon.
800-847-4474 renowned wineries in France, Italy, Australia, comed over 1,500 Wine Consultants to its
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Chile and California. This strategy (along team, offering quality, value, exclusivity and
www.oregonpinotnoir.com • [email protected]
816 Nantucket, Eugene, OR 97404 with a legendary talent for discovering under- convenience to wine lovers nationwide!
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W

PA C I F I C W I N E C L U B

Clubs for all Palates and Budgets

Perfect Gifts · Tasting Room · Bottle Shop
Wines of Quality from Distinctive Producers

1.800.792.6410
www.pacificwineclub.com
P. 1 1 2 S AV E U R NO. 97

MOMENT

TIME 1:00 P.M., October 15, 1953

PL ACE New York, New York

This kitty’s as corny as New York in autumn.

P H O T O G R A P H B Y B E T T M A N N /CO R B I S