a hoppin’ John experiment

This recipe for Hoppin’ John from America’s Test Kitchen’s Light and Healthy  cookbook was loaded with salt. I decided to try and cut it down by using water instead of low-sodium canned broth, and to cut down on the fat and carbs by using turkey ham and bacon instead of pork.

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 (1 pound) boneless turkey ham steaks, 3/4 inch thick
6 slices turkey bacon, crisp and crumbled
2 celery ribs, minced
1 onion, minced (about 1 cup)
4-8 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried
4 cups low sodium chicken broth (substitute 4 cups water plus 2 chicken bouillon cubes)
1 (16 oz) bag frozen black-eyed peas (instead of 2)
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups long grain white rice, rinsed
3 scallions, sliced thin

I don’t have a Dutch oven so I used my Calphalon Everyday pan to heat up the oil. Then I fried the turkey ham steaks 3 minutes on each side. Meanwhile, I crisped the turkey bacon in the microwave.

After removing the steaks to cool, I added the celery and onion to the oil in the pan and fried them until they were tender, about 4-6 minutes. Then I added 6 minced garlic cloves (add more or less to taste) and the fresh thyme and cooked them until they were fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then instead of the broth, I added 4 cups water and two chicken bouillon cubes for flavor, 1 bag (instead of two) frozen blackeyed peas, and the bay leaves. I let the mixture cook for 20 minutes on medium heat. When it came to a simmer, I reduced the heat to low. While the broth mixture was cooking, the ham had cooled enough. I sliced it into 1/2 inch cubes and set it aside.

After 20 minutes, I added the white rice. Now, the original method says to spread a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil on top of the pan  resting it on top of the rice-broth mixture, then cover. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring and changing the foil twice during cooking. Then I was to remove it from the heat and let it rest, covered, for 10 minutes.

Unfortunately, this did not work for me. After 20 minutes the rice was still slightly raw rather than just cooked. Either it was the pan, which doesn’t have the high sides of a Dutch oven, or it was the foil which didn’t completely seal all the edges. What I did to salvage the dish was to let it steam-cook on low heat for an additional 10 minutes instead of letting it rest.

Then I tossed in the turkey ham cubes, the scallion, and the crumbled bacon. This version of Hoppin’ John was lightly salted but not very flavorful. The turkey ham was hearty and just like pork, but the turkey bacon is a sad substitute for the real thing. My instinct, from years of cooking rice, is that it is best left undisturbed during the steaming process, and that once sealed, with the foil and the cover, it shouldn’t be opened until the cooking time is up. I will have to try this recipe again to test this theory. Or try it next time in the rice cooker. Like my foray into baking meringues and pavlovas, Hoppin’ John is a work in progress!

Related articles

• J-5′s version of Hoppin’ John! (gicrockpot.wordpress.com)

 

Meeting Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen

How does she do it? That’s what I wanted to know! Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen talked about her successful food blog at the Apple Store on 14th Street in Manhattan. In her slide show she showed us a picture of her New York kitchen. It is actually smaller than the Teeny Tiny Kitchen. And she puts out a food blog from that tiny kitchen. Now, that’s awesome. So what’s her secret? There isn’t any. She talked about blogging, commenting, cooking, parenting, and writing a cookbook, but all comes down to good writing. Like Dianne Jacob in Will Write for Food she recommends Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird. I read it about 5 years ago the summer I started writing my dissertation proposal. I thought it lyrical and wise, a book about life and writing about life. That’s just what food blogging is all about too.

Review: America’s Test Kitchen: Light and Healthy 2011

  Everything from appetizers to desserts–lightened up, as promised, by the cooks at America’s Test Kitchen. I wanted to sample a recipe from each chapter but ended up sampling most of them. The recipes were “light” if you define  light as low in fat, carbs,  and calories, as most of us do.”Healthy” though, was debatable. I was really concerned by the high sodium content of some dishes, particularly those that called for canned soup. I was under the impression that healthy meant “less processed the better.”

To sum up here are what I thought were the Cons

• Wordy; lengthy explanations of their process but  not enough pictures of each recipe
• Good: nutrition information told me how much fat, carbs, and calories were in each dish and its variation so I could become more aware of healthy eating habits.
• Bad/unhealthy: high salt content of some recipes, e.g. Vietnamese Rice Noodle Soup with Beef

And now, the Pros

• Helpful: “Notes from the Test Kitchen,” e.g.  forming a press-in tart crust
• No-brainer: “Notes from the Test Kitchen,” how to prevent wooden skewers from burning–cover them with foil! Now, why didn’t I think of that?
• Best Test Kitchen Makeover: Chicken and Dumplings p.49
• Awesome: “Notes from the Test Kitchen” on testing meat for doneness (table, p. 91)

Though I was disappointed in the amount of salt in a supposedly “healthy” cookbook, there were more pros than cons. America’s Test Kitchen recipes have been thoroughly tested and I haven’t been disappointed yet. This cookbook gets my thumbs up!

flank steak lettuce wraps

flank steak lettuce wrap with two salsas

Tonight’s menu was supposed to feature Horseradish Crusted Beef Tenderloin from the Light and Healthy cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen. Unfortunately, after visiting two supermarkets, I could not find beef tenderloin. So I went for another Test Kitchen recipe instead, Steak Tacos. I made one low-carb adjustment to it and that was I served it with iceberg lettuce instead of tortillas, and I served the steak “wraps” with two kinds of salsa, one spicy and one not. I grilled the steak two strips at a time in the Foreman Grill for just 3 minutes to get them at medium; they turned out quite tender and juicy. For salsa accompaniments I recommend the pineapple-green apple salsa and an avocado-tomato salsa. Either one (or both) can be spicy.

INGREDIENTS
Herb Paste
1/2    cup packed fresh cilantro leaves
3    medium garlic cloves , roughly chopped
3    medium scallions , roughly chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1    medium jalapeño chile , stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped (keep the seeds if more heat is desired)
1/2    teaspoon ground cumin
1/4    cup vegetable oil

Steak
1    tablespoon fresh lime juice
1    flank steak (1 1/2 to 1 3/4 pounds), trimmed of excess fat and cut lengthwise (with grain) into 4 equal pieces (see note)

Note: Cut the steak in half lengthwise with the grain. Then cut each half again lengthwise following the grain.

1    tablespoon kosher salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
1/2    teaspoon sugar
1/2    teaspoon ground black pepper
2    tablespoons vegetable oil

Tacos (serve with lettuce or with the following)
12    (6-inch) corn tortillas , warmed
Fresh cilantro leaves
Minced white or red onion
Lime wedges

INSTRUCTIONS
1. FOR THE HERB PASTE: Pulse cilantro, garlic, scallions, jalapeño, and cumin in food processor until finely chopped, ten to twelve 1-second pulses, scraping down sides as necessary. Add oil and process until mixture is smooth and resembles pesto, about 15 seconds, scraping down sides of workbowl as necessary. Transfer 2 tablespoons herb paste to medium bowl; whisk in lime juice and set aside.
2. FOR THE STEAK: Using dinner fork, poke each piece of steak 10 to 12 times on each side. Place in large baking dish; rub all sides of steak pieces evenly with salt and then coat with remaining herb paste. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 1 hour.
3. Scrape herb paste off steak and sprinkle all sides of pieces evenly with sugar and pepper. Heat oil in 12-inch heavy- bottomed nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until smoking. Place steak in skillet and cook until well browned, about 3 minutes. Flip steak and sear until second side is well browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Using tongs, stand each piece on a cut side and cook, turning as necessary, until all cut sides are well browned and internal temperature registers 125 to 130 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, 2 to 7 minutes. Transfer steak to cutting board and let rest 5 minutes.
4. FOR THE TACOS: Using sharp chef’s knife or carving knife, slice steak pieces across grain into 1/8-inch-thick pieces. Transfer sliced steak to bowl with herb paste-lime juice mixture and toss to coat. Season with salt. Spoon small amount of sliced steak into center of each warm tortilla and serve immediately, passing toppings separately.