FOOD TRIVIA: Hooch

When Alaska was purchased in 1867, Congress prohibited the sale of alcohol in this new territory. The indigenous Tlingit Indians, living in a village named, "Hoochinoo, on Admiralty Island, Alaska, started making their own, illegal alcoholic drink made out of molasses, yeast and flour. They called this drink,"Hoochinoo". In the 1890 Alaska Gold Rush, gold miners shortened "Hoochinoo" to "Hooch" which became the word to describe any illegal or poor quality alcoholic drink.

COOKING TIP: Browning Meat

When browning meat, the surface should be blotted dry. Moisture makes the meat steam rather than sear, so you loose the rich, brown, seared crust.

THINGS I LIKE: Home Made Sausage

Ever since I was a kid, I have always enjoyed eating sausages. I would eat  breakfast links or patties with eggs in the morning for breakfast or breakfast patties on a toasted muffin or on a rye bread sandwich for lunch or just a tasty snack. Best of all, however, I love Italian sausages Italian link sausages with fried peppers and onions on an Italian or French bread ( my favorite sandwich) , Italian sausage meat stuffed mushrooms, Italian sausage meat incorporated into sauce for pasta, etc.I had always purchased Italian sausage from the supermarket to use in my cooking because I thought it would be hard to make. In investigating this I found that, with minor modifications, it really is easy to make or, if you want to take a little more time and invest in some equipment, it is a little more time consuming but still, relatively, easy to make.The recipe I follow ismy modification of one from "Bruce Aidell's Complete Sausage Book, Bruce Aideles and Denis Kelly,  Ten Speed Press, 2002 p.85

INGREDIENTS
3 pounds of store - bought ground pork*
1/2 C dry red wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp fennel seeds, toasted
1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp ground allspice
1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

PREPARATION
Place all ingredients in a bowl. Mix well using your hands. Shape into patties. sausage may be refrigerated for up, to three days or frozen for two months.

* The original, recipe calls for 3 pounds of pork butt plus 3/4 pounds of pork back fat. which you grind in a meat grinder using a 3/4 inch plate. Further, one could stuff the  sausage meat  into casings to make links.
Obviously. one needs a meat grinder and stuffing equipment  to do these things. I have both of these  but find that the store - bought ground pork meat, while I am sure, is certainly not as fully flavorful as the meat mixture recommended, provides a perfectly acceptable substitute and making patties rather than stuffing the meat into casings is simpler, faster and more accessible to the average home cook.

NOTE
The recipe above can be made with ground chicken or turkey, also, and can be modified with the addition of red pepper flakes, diced Mozzarella cheese, grated  Parmesan or Romano cheese. diced, oil packed dried tomatoes, other herbs or spices, eg. fresh or dried Basil or any other ingredient you feel will enhance the flavor of the sausage to suit your palate.

FOOD HISTORY: The Turkey

Turkeys, native to North and South America, belong to the genus, Meleagris. They evolved over 11 million years ago. The wild Turkey of North America is Meleagris galloparvis, while Meleagris ocellata is native to South America and is the ancestor of most contemporary turkeys. The Aztecs name for these birds was Xuehxolotl. These wild birds roamed  free all over ancient North and South America. The Aztec, Mayan and native American cultures used them in their lives and ceremonies. The Aztecs, who domesticated these birds between 10 BC and 10 AD,  used their meat and eggs for food and their feathers for arrows, headdresses and  necklaces and the Mayans used them in many ritual ceremonies. Native Americans also domesticated some  but  hunted the wild ones for food and hunting pleasure. In the 1550's the Spanish Conquistadors were introduced to this bird, new to them, and brought them back to Spain, where they swiftly became domesticated and used for food. From Spain, they made their way to several countries of Western Europe, including France, Italy and England. The bird from the New World  got it's name "Turkey" from the fact that the Europeans of that time had trade relations with the important  international trade center of Constantinople,Turkey where merchants sold goods from Africa and Asia to distributors in Europe. These imported products became known by the nationality of the distributor rather than by the place of their origin;  for example, rugs, even if made in Persia (Iran) but sold in Europe by a Turkish distributor, were called "Turkish" rugs. Thus, a popular edible  bird called  Guinea Hen, originating in Africa but  imported into Europe by Turkish distributors, were called  "Turkey Cocks". Later, their name was shortened just to "Turkey". Because the New World birds resembled these "Turkeys" they were given that name. Curiously, the name of the bird that the Europeans were calling "Turkey" are called "Hindi" in Turkish; short for "the bird from India". The Turks knew that these New World birds were not native to their country and believed that they may have come from  India, since Columbus thought the "New World" he discovered was, in fact, India. The name aside, until the Turkey became available, the European Aristocracy ate Peacock and Pheasant, both having stringy texture. To them, Turkey flesh was much preferred. In 1570, Turkey was served at the wedding feast of Charles IX of France and Turkey became very popular as the bird  to be served for banquets in France. While Europeans still eat turkey, they eat much less than North Americans.  This is due, in large measure, to the migration of the Pilgrims from England to America. Wild Turkeys were introduced, by the Native American Wampanoag tribe, to the Pilgrims when they arrived from England to America in the 1660's.These birds resembled the domesticated, large birds (Turkeys) that were being bred in England. Because of this, the New World birds were called "Turkeys", as well. The abundant population of wild Turkeys became a major food source for the Pilgrims in this new land. In 1621, to celebrate the first successful harvest of the Pilgrim colonies, a "feast" of Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Pilgrims and the Wampanaog tribe. While no direct evidence exists that Turkeys were part of the first Thanksgiving day celebration that took place in 1621, because these birds were a major food source for both the Native Americans and the Pilgrims, they may have been included that day. Thanksgiving Day became an official US holiday on Oct.13, 1863 by proclamation of the US president Abraham Lincoln. It is not clear when the Turkey became the symbol of Thanksgiving day in the US, but the two are now inseparable. In fact, the "official" nickname given by the American people to Thanksgiving is "Turkey Day".

THINGS I LIKE: Peameal (Canadian) Bacon

In a previous post (1/31/14), I wrote about the difference between American style Canadian bacon and the real Canadian bacon (Peameal bacon) and reviewed  the history of Peameal bacon. I have made Peameal bacon many times and it IS very different from what we, in the US, know as Canadian bacon. I find that it is easy to make, much more versatile in usage and, to my taste, significantly more  flavorful than it's American version. The first recipe, below, the one that I follow, uses a dry cure. However, many Peameal bacon aficionados use a wet cure with additional flavoring ingredients so I have included a second recipe using such a cure. It is an adaption from Michael Rhulman's blog: michael@ruhlman.com.

                                   PEAMEAL BACON ( DRY CURE METHOD)

ingredients
1 pork loin
1 1/2 tbsp. Morton's Tender Quick salt/ lb of meat
1 tsp sugar

PREPARATION

Mix salt/sugar and rub into meat. Seal in a zip Lock bag and refrigerate for five days. after curing period, rinse, pat dry and roll in yellow cornmeal. to use, slice, fry and serve with eggs, fry and use for eggs Benedict, fry and eat on a sandwich prepare as a roasted pork loin or use in any why that strikes your culinary fancy.

 RHULMAN'S WET CURE PEAMEAL BACON METHOD

ingredients

 2 - 4 lb pork loin

2 qts water

5 Tbsp Morton's Kosher salt

2 Tbsp sodium nitrate (DC Curing salt)*

1/2 C sugar 5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 Bay leaves

1 large bunch Sage (optional)

7-8 Thyme sprigs (optional)

1 lemon, halved (optional)

PREPARATION

Combine brine ingredients in a pot, bring to a simmer and remove from heat. Allow to cool and refrigerate until cold. Submerge pork loin in the pot of brine or place brine and meat in a large plastic Zip Lock bag. Refrigerate for 72 hours, then remove from brine, rinse, pat dry and refrigerate, uncovered, for 4 - 24 hours. Roll in yellow cornmeal and use as described above.

DC Curing Salt

Butcher and Packer Supply Co.

Madison Heights, MI 48071

248-538-1250



FOOD HISTORY: Oreo Cookies

Oreo cookies, which were introduced by Nabisco in 1912, are one of the most beloved and recognizable cookies in the world. Hydrox cookies, consisting of two ornate chocolate cookies filled with a layer of sweet creme, were introduced by the Sunshine Biscuit Company, earlier, in 1908. The Sunshine Company, of Elmhurst,IL is now owned by The Keebler Company and their Elves. These cookies were an immediate success which caused their competition, Nabisco, to introduce a similar cookie. Nabisco is an abbreviation for the National Biscuit company, formed in 1898, by the amalgamation of several biscuit companies. Nabisco is the company that brought Animal Crackers to the market in 1902. Oreo's were introduced, in 1912, as part of a "trio" of new cookies which included, in addition to the Oreo, "Mother Goose" and "Veronese" biscuits; single layer cookies with creme toppings. While these two cookies fell by the wayside, Oreo's endured and surpassed Hydrox cookies in popularity. How the Advertising Department came up with the name Oreo is not fully known, but the name, officially, became the Oreo Biscuit in 1913. This was changed to the Oreo Sandwich in 1921, Oreo Cream Sandwich in 1948 and the Oreo Chocolate Sandwich cookie in 1975. The original biscuit (cookie) was slightly larger but, otherwise, identical to today's version. Size varied over the years with today's cookie being between the largest and smallest versions. In 1922, Oreos sold for $0.32/lb.( How times have changed!!!) Over 491 billion Oreo's have been sold since  1912.

FOOD TRIVIA: Coffee in Europe

Coffee was introduced into Europe in 1683 when the Turkish army left sacks of coffee behind when they retreated from the gates of Vienna.