Things I Love Thursdays.

Here it comes, this week's edition of "Things I Love Thursdays!"

On the radar this week are fellow recreational butchers, courtesy of the New York Times. Great article, even though it uses every conceivable butchery anecdote, leaving me to feel a bit like a can of potted meat.

Legendary food writer Jonathan Gold shared his words of wisdom and caution for us aspiring food writers at class on Tuesday. He is quite the inspiration-- had the class hanging on his every word! Just as candidly eloquent (if that makes sense) in person as he is in his columns. Too bad his event at LAPL is full for tonight. Any suggestions on how a lady might sneak in?

My new issue of Meat Paper magazine came in the mail this week! Such a lovely magazine. Gorgeous and full of flavor. In this issue, they set out to determine whether a T-Rex tasted like chicken. The diagram is priceless. Truly the best way to stay on top the trends in the meat world.

KCET (or your local PBS, I'd imagine) has been airing loads of episodes of Julia and Jacques cooking at home. I caught an episode this week about pork and watched Jacques break down an entire rack. His methods and instruction were so simple and straightforward I could imagine someone actually doing it at home for themselves. All the while, Julia towered over him making fabulous yummy sounds and smacking her lips. Now that's classic TV.


And because we really just like cook dinner at home, drink wine, and watch bad TV, I made an somewhat elaborate birthday dinner for the man that I have to share.

We love, love lamb, and these chops were pretty killer. They come with a silly story, too. I usually buy my lamb either from my favorite local butchers, Marconda's Meats or Huntington Meats at the Farmer's Market at 3rd and Fairfax or from Whole Foods, but the giant Ralph's near my house now carries quite a selection. I didn't give it a second glance when it first appeared, as grocery story lamb makes me think of the suspicious meats I remember as a child-- an oozing slab of a mystery cut shrink-wrapped with a little packet of mint-flavored jelly.
Not wanting to be too pretentious, I thought I'd check out Ralph's supply. I then ran into roadblock number two. All of the packages of chops were labeled "Wine and Mustard Marinade." Hm. I kept walking. That didn't seem right.
One more try. Aah. They weren't actually marinated, just topped with a poorly designed, misleading recipe card. So four pretty little lamb chops came home with me and did not get marinated in mustard.
Instead, they were quickly seared in my trusty cast iron and topped with the birthday boy's favorite mint sauce, a zippy seasoned-to-taste puree of fresh mint, olive oil, red wine vinegar, sugar, garlic, onion, salt and pepper.
Delicious. Sweet, spicy, savory and just special enough for a birthday.

Have a protein-packed day!

time to eat a cow or two

this lady is taking a break!
there will be much to say in a few weeks when she is home from buenos aires, but thinks it appropriate to take a bit of time to let things... marinate? cure? as she is a bit disillusioned with the foodie blog-o-sphere.
anyhoo, i guess there are a few things to look forward to:
1. firsthand south american beef experiences
2. a visit to a real estancia
3. improved blog picture quality!

koreans know their meats!

a real korean barbeque experience was something i always felt left out of during my vegetarian days. whenever we would go, my man's korean cousin had to talk the confused waitstaff into bringing me something that was meat-free. this usually was a plate of broccoli, onions, and garlic and a $40 bill. always a fun group dining event, but a huge let-down for my stomach and my wallet!

over the weekend, i was able to participate in a meat-filled barbeque at parks in koreatown. we got lots of heaping plates of good quality meat and i felt very satisfied with the experience, especially with my newfound meat knowledge.

here's our first cut of beef:


thinly sliced, nicely marbled kobe! i happily munched on this, savoring the flavor of the fattiness i have learned to enjoy.

and pork. super tasty with toasty onions and garlic!

an excellent meal for the carnivorous and those with food allergies/intolerances. they kindly switched out the grill between every cut of meat so i could feel comfortable and opt out of the marinated plates. and also, this was much better than my korean barbeque experience in seoul, perhaps a story for a different time or a different blog...

argentinean eats

my mission for the week is to do some further research on what we may be consuming on our argentinean adventure next week. i know that we should expect to survive off beef and wine (sounds great to me!), but i am interested in finding more information on how specifically the beef will be prepared.


to my relief, they seem to prefer a simple, fresh preparation to highlight the meat itself (i was afraid of finding countless recipes containing mixed nuts or something that would make me paranoid to consume anything).


honestly, i can't help thinking of that episode of no reservations (click for clip) where the meat was cooked like this--

(image source: christopherjlester.typepad.com)
which is frankly a bit intimidating!

but the meat is traditionally prepared (in reasonable portions!) on an asado -or grill- over charcoal, either seasoned with salt or a simple marinade and often served with a chimichuri sauce--

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup red-wine vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons minced red bell pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon hot red-pepper flakes
1 fresh bay leaf (optional), finely chopped
(recipe from www.epicurious.com)

oh, and chorizo is a big deal, too! wonder how it compares to my chorizo? might have to finish that off this week in anticipation...

recession-proof your meats

a relevent discussion for today may be how to maintain a realistic food budget and still eat good-quality products... here's my eating/cooking/shopping tips of the moment:

eat in! why go out for a steak dinner when you can make a great one at home? even if you buy the best cuts of meat you can find, i guarantee it will be cheaper than paying for a mid-quality restaurant steak. steak cooking is so easy with just a few tools. i usually just marinate it for a few hours in red wine (or 100% cranberry or cherry juice), olive oil, garlic and onions, then sear it in my fabulous cast iron skillet while the oven preheats to 400ish, transfer to a baking dish and cook until the internal temperature reaches about 135 on your trusty meat thermometer for medium rare. while your steak is in the oven, reduce your marinade juices with the meat juices in the skillet for a tasty sauce. don't forget to let your meat rest before slicing! you'll have a perfect steak every time with almost no effort. (and look here! slashfood finally confirms that my dad did teach me the best way to season cast iron.)

stock up on stocks! not the store-bought ones- make your own. much cheaper if you do it frequently, and so much tastier! i buy cheap hunks of meat and boil them to death with onions, garlic, lemon, and whatever fresh herbs i have around. then, i freeze the stock in small containers and use it in soups for weeks-- and you also have lots of low-fat cooked meat to shread on salads or fill sandwiches for days! my favorites are the turkey thighs from whole foods-- huge hunks or organic turkey for less than $3 a pound (or 99-cents a pound if the butcher mischarges you like he did me this week)= yummy food for days. one more plug for whole foods: they also sell additive-free bacon. no nitrates for this lady!

don't disregard "big box" or discount stores completely! costco's meat sells for about a third of the price of grocery store meat- and often is higher in quality. not for the faint of heart- unless you're feeding multitudes of people or shop with meat-loving friends- dividing and freezing that ten-pound pork loin will be necessary. fresh and easy also has decent meats for cheap if you have one in your area-- just make sure to read the labels carefully. their sell-by dates can be tricky, and not all of their meats are happy.

simply eat smaller portions of meat! in meal prep, i try to fill half of our plates with fresh fruits and veggies and cheap, healthy staples like brown rice or sweet potatoes. then, we can be satisfied with little bits of the good stuff without breaking the budget. remember, meat portions need only be about four ounces, or the size of your palm or a deck of cards.

that's all for now! happy (cheap) eating!

book of the week:

(image source: http://www.chroniclebooks.com/)
Okay, stick with me here.
This is actually a really great book. I would go so far to say it may be useful for all genders! Don't be fooled buy the cutesy design elements (I actually think they're pretty great, but I'm a sucker with anything with stitching), there is quite a bit of substance inside. Essentially divided up into three categories, beef, pork, and lamb (no poultry or fish!), each section explains the different cuts of meats with instruction on purchasing, cooking, and serving, with a separate chapter on marinades.
Just a happy surprise to add to your meat library.