I love these ribs. They’re one of the the first cookbook recipes I ever tried, and still one of my favorites. In fact, I just made them last night!
I like making these because they don’t require hours on the grill. They’re gooey, sweet and absolutely delicious!
¾ cup soy sauce 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
5 lbs. pork ribs
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 whole star anise
2 cinnamon sticks (3”)
1/2 cup honey
4 cups chicken broth
Mix the soy sauce and the hoisin in a bowl, and set aside. These are the marinade ingredients.
If the ribs are large, cut them into individual pieces. If smaller, cluster 2 or 3 ribs together. Place them in a large pot. Cover them with water and bring it to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Drain.
Place the ribs on a baking sheet lined with non-stick aluminum foil or with a rack and coat them with the marinade. Let them sit for 10 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bake the ribs on the baking sheet for 30 minutes.
While the ribs are baking, start the sauce in a large non-stick pan or pot that will hold all the ribs: combine the lemon zest and juice, star anise, cinnamon sticks, honey and chicken broth. Bring it to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer.
When the ribs have finished baking, add them to the sauce pot and simmer (covered) for at least 15 minutes or until the rib meat is tender.
Turn the heat on high, uncover the pot and cook until the sauce is reduced to a glaze that coats the ribs. Be sure to reduce the heat as the sauce thickens or the sugars in the honey will burn! When the ribs are sticky and gooey, they’re ready.
Substituting grapefruit for the lemon works really well, too!
Here in Southern New England, the most popular brand of chicken salad you can buy is called Willow Tree. They’ve made it for over 50 years, and people crave it like crack. And it’s good: moist and “mayonnaisey”.
But I’ve never been a fan of “secret” ingredients, and Willow Tree is full of ’em, so my task was to make something that was as good as Willow Tree, with known ingredients. I got close…real close! As always, I use pastured chicken and organic veggies when possible. And since I use chicken breasts only, I found that boiling the breasts in stock instead of water keeps the meat more flavorful.
Another option: I like to roast a whole chicken, devouring the dark meat, then using the breast meat for the chicken salad. I use the carcass and scraps for chicken stock. Nothing goes to waste!
1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 pints salt-free chicken stock (I use home-made)
1/2 cup mayonnaise (I live on Hellman’s)
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
2 tablespoons finely chopped Vidalia onion
1 teaspoon light brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
Heat the chicken stock in a large pot. Bring it to a boil and add the chicken breasts. Bring it to a boil again, then simmer uncovered for about 7 minutes.
Turn the heat off, cover the pot with a lid, and let the breasts sit in the pot for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, remove the breasts to a cutting board and allow them to cool. Save the chicken stock for another use, like soup. (See below.)
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, celery, onion, brown sugar, granulated garlic, salt and pepper. Mix them thoroughly to combine.
When the chicken has cooled, shred the breast meat into bite-sized pieces and then transfer it into the bowl with the mayonnaise mixture. Mix thoroughly and chill before serving.
I love my chicken salad on a Martin’s Long Roll.
BONUS: I don’t waste the chicken stock left over in the pot. I chop some carrots, celery and onion and throw them in there. I reserve some of the chicken breast meat–just a bit–and throw it in there, too. I add a little salt and pepper, and a pinch of dried Bouquet Garni. I bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the veggies are al dente. Pasta or potatoes optional. Makes an awesome chicken soup!
If you want to freeze the soup, I would leave the potatoes or pasta out, adding them only when I’m reheating the frozen soup. That keeps them from getting mushy.
Some of my favorite recipes happen when I’ve got a few leftover ingredients in the fridge that I really want to use up. The challenge is to make them work together.
Burgers are easy solutions to this dilemma, because, let’s face it: just about anything can go on a burger!
My thoughts behind this recipe went to a combination of things: a little garlic bread, a little Caprese salad, and, of course, a burger.
I had some burrata in the fridge. If you thought you couldn’t improve on mozzarella cheese, get yourself some burrata. The outer shell of the burrata is mozzarella, while the inside generally contains stracciatella and cream. It can be made from milk, or if it’s really decadent: Italian buffalo milk.
I use burrata instead of mozzarella when I make my Caprese salads…a combination of the cheese, fresh basil, and ripe tomatoes, drizzle with a high-quality balsamic vinegar.
I had kaiser rolls in the freezer. I wanted to go one step further, so I slathered them with my garlic bread smear, and toasted them.
And my burgers are always grass-fed beef, seasoned with salt and pepper, and pan-seared before finishing them in the oven.
I started with the garlic bread spread first.
Pre-heat the oven to 350.
1 stick (4 oz.) unsalted butter, softened 1 large clove garlic, squeezed through a press 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1/2 teaspoon parsley
I combined these ingredients in a bowl, mixing well, then smeared them on my kaiser roll halves, toasting them in the oven.
I got a pan very hot on the stovetop (cast iron is always best) and added a little fat. I use bacon grease if I have it. Otherwise I go with a high smoke point oil like avocado oil.
I seasoned the burger with salt and pepper, and placed it in the hot pan, searing it on one side, then flipping it to the other. I just want to sear the meat. I don’t want to cook the burger in the pan or it will overcook when I place it in the oven to finish.
I cut the burrata in half (it gets a little messy), and placed half of it (cut-side-down) onto the burger.
I placed the pan in the oven to finish cooking the burger and to melt the cheese. (If your pan isn’t oven-proof, get a tray that is, and just move the burger onto it and into the oven.)
I cooked the burger until it was medium-rare and the cheese had melted.
I placed the burger on the toasted roll and added a nice slice of farm-fresh heirloom tomato.(Fresh basil is optional.) And I drizzled over the top with some good balsamic.
This is a story about something that is near and dear to my heart…and liver.
I’ve been making Krupnikas for over 40 years. (And no, I won’t be posting my secret recipe here.) It’s a honey-based liqueur that is popular in eastern Europe, especially in countries like Lithuania, where my parents were born. Though most of the Krupnikas that I’ve tasted is similar, no two recipes are exactly alike…and that’s where the arguments begin!
I have many friends that make Krupnikas. Some use a leaner approach (like me)…others go for the everything-in-one-basket approach. I’m not sure that more is necessarily better. Some friends claim that it isn’t real Krupnikas if you don’t use black pepper. But I’ve been to many pubs and restaurants in Lithuania and have never been served Krupnikas with black pepper in it. Other recipes include ginger, turmeric, and saffron. I don’t include any of these ingredients in my recipe.
If you Google “Krupnikas,” you’ll find many different recipes…some pretty good, some incredibly awful…(but none as good as mine!) I use grain alcohol…there’s no distilling involved. There were times in the last 40 years when grain alcohol was not readily available to me, and my Krupnikas production came to a screeching halt for a while. But these days, I find it easily. (Here in New England, it’s sold in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.) Desperate times without grain alcohol forced me to try vodka instead, but I never liked the final result.
There’s a version of Krupnikas that dates back to the early 1900’s in the coal region of northeastern and east central Pennsylvania, where Lithuanian immigrants created their own version, using moonshine as a base. They named it “Boilo,” and many people make this recipe every year during the Christmas holidays even today. But it’s more like a cousin of Krupnikas, if there can be such a thing.
Traditional Krupnikas uses a variety of unusual spices, none of which have their origins in Lithuania, so it’s interesting to hear how these exotic ingredients made their way via various trade routes to eastern Europe.
The story goes that Krupnikas was created by Benedictine monks in the 1500’s, and that it became popular in both Lithuania and Poland for celebrations like birthdays, weddings, and holidays. But when the Soviets shut down all Krupnikas production, the recipes went “underground,” passed down from generation to generation through closely guarded family recipes. That’s why everyone thinks their family recipe is the best!
One pot for honey, one pot for the various spices I use…to be combined later.
My own Krupnikas making story started with my uncle, who would make large batches of the stuff in his tiny Richmond Hill, Queens, NY, kitchen. Because I am the godfather of my cousin, his son, I received a bottle as a gift from my uncle every Christmas. By New Year’s, that bottle would be gone. It wasn’t long before I got very tired of waiting 51 weeks for another bottle and I asked my uncle if he would share his recipe with me. He never did that exactly, but he did let me sit in on a brewing session and take notes in a cramped corner of his kitchen.
I took my notes home from my uncle’s house and tried to decipher what I wrote. Since there was no such thing as the internet back then (what we call “the dark ages,” kids), I drove all over New York City in search of some of the more exotic spices used in making my uncle’s Krupnikas recipe. I became a regular at several Asian and Indian stores, where, at first, they looked at this tall, geeky white dude somewhat suspiciously as I brought my spices to the counter for purchase.
Over the decades, through trial and error, I changed my uncle’s original recipe to the one that I proudly call my own today. You can’t buy it in a store, but if you have tons of money and want to go into business with me, I’m sure we can work something out! Or become my best friend and you’ll get a bottle at the end of every year…and then you’ll be the one waiting 51 weeks for another!
Versions of Krupnikas are available in liquor stores: Old Krupnik is a Polish liqueur, and the German brand Barenjager is another. And many whiskies, like Dewar’s and Jack Daniels, now have honey-flavored spirits as well.
Though quite different from my own recipe, there are two authentic Lithuanian-style Krupnikas liqueurs made in the United States by acquaintances of mine.
Based out of Durham, North Carolina, the Brothers Vilgalys Spirits Company (www.brothersvilgalys.com) has a pepperier version that uses local North Carolina wildflower honey. President of the company, Rim Vilgalys, the son of my good childhood friend from New York, has done what I never got around to do: make this fabulous elixir available to the public. You’ll find it at ABC stores throughout the state of North Carolina.
The second brand, made by a childhood friend, is made and sold in the New York area and goes by the name of KAS Krupnikas. (www.kasspirits.com)
Both are pretty darn good. But are they as good as mine? I think you already know my answer to that question!
It’s so easy to make your own mustard. And really good mustard. Mustard that hasn’t been sitting on the store shelf for a year. Mustard with real flavor.
Once the mustard is made, you’re supposed to wait a few weeks before using, letting its heat mellow a bit. But I enjoy it right from the start. Feel the burn!
The great thing about this recipe is that you make it with your favorite beer, so use what you drink and you’ll have a mustard like no one else. I used Samuel Adams Boston Ale for this recipe.
1/4 cup yellow mustard seeds
1/4 cup brown mustard seeds
3/4 cup Sam Adams Boston Ale
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. brown sugar, firmly packed
2 garlc cloves, smashed
1 bay leaf
2 tsp. sea salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Put the yellow and brown mustard seeds in a bowl and pour in 1/2 cup of the beer. Push the mustard seeds down to submerge them in the beer. (I lay a sheet of plastic wrap down on top to keep them submerged.) Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Combine the remaining 1/4 cup of beer, the vinegar, honey, brown sugar, garlic, bay leaf, salt and pepper in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the honey and the sugar. Boil for 1 minute, the immediately remove the pan from the heat and let it cool to room temperature.
Toss the garlic and the bay leaf in the trash and pour the liquid into a blender.
Pour off any remaining beer left in the bowl with the mustard seeds. Add 3/4’s of the plumped mustard seeds to the blender and blend to break the seeds. Add the remaining 1/4 of the mustard seeds and pulse just once to mix. You want the mustard thick, with some whole seeds remaining.
Put the mustard in an airtight container in the fridge for at least 3 days and up to a week, depending on how mellow you want it and how much waiting you can tolerate! After about 3 weeks, the mustard will be at its peak…but it will keep in the fridge for several months. (I can’t imagine it will last that long.)
My daughter and I love any foods that are heavy on the garlic, so this is a special treat we make when diets don’t matter! It’s buttery, it’s garlicky, it’s carby, and it’s absolutely delicious!
I use 2 kinds of garlic in my garlic bread: fresh and granulated. I think it adds a richer flavor than either one alone. And passing the fresh garlic through a press ensures that it will cook quickly and not leave you with that raw garlic taste in your mouth.
Although I love French baguettes, they’re too thin and crisp for garlic bread. I buy that long, soft, Italian loaf you can find in just about any supermarket bakery. When it bakes, the outside edges have a crisp bite to them, while the inside of the loaf stays soft…exactly what you want! The Italian loaf is big, so not only do I cut it lengthwise, I then cut each piece in half. This will make enough for us to enjoy one evening, and still store some in the freezer for a future craving.
This recipe makes enough for 1 garlic bread, 1 cheesy garlic bread, and also the bread you’ll be putting in the freezer for another time.
The delicious final product…but I digress…
2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter
2 large cloves garlic, squeezed through a press
1 teaspoon granulated garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon parsley
grated mozzarella cheese…a few ounces
In a bowl, let the butter soften to room temperature. Once it’s soft, squeeze the fresh garlic cloves through a garlic press and add them to the butter. Then add the granulated garlic, salt, oregano and parsley. Using a fork, mix the ingredients really well until you have a beautiful garlic and herb butter. (Once it’s mixed, I find it’s easier to spread with a spatula.)
Spread the garlic butter evenly on all 4 pieces of bread you’ve cut. Use it all up! Going thin on the butter serves no purpose here!
Place one of the loaves on a baking sheet. Add the grated mozzarella to one of the other loaves, and place it on the baking sheet as well.
Regular garlic bread on the left, cheesy garlic bread on the right…ready to go into the oven.
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
With the other two pieces of bread, I simply put them together…with cheese inside or not…
…and wrap them in aluminum foil. I place that in a freezer bag and keep it frozen until we have another craving. When it’s time to cook, I pre-heat the oven to 350, and bake the loaf in the foil for about 25 minutes. I take it out of the foil at the very end and bake another 5 minutes to get it to crisp up.
Ready to be devoured!
With the oven at 400, I bake my garlic bread and cheesy garlic bread for about 10 minutes, or until the edges of the bread start to turn a golden brown and the cheese on the cheesy side starts to melt.
I cut each piece in half so my daughter and I share in the 2 breads. There’s never any leftovers!
Some people don’t like cooking with veal because of the way the animals are treated, and I completely understand because I’m one of those. But…I’m fortunate that I can buy my veal from a nearby dairy farm, Sweet & Salty Farm in Little Compton, RI, where the animals are grass-fed and raised humanely. That makes for happier animals and incredibly flavorful meat…and no guilt about using it.
If you can’t get humanely raised veal, pork and beef work, too.
I also buy veal bones from Sweet & Salty Farm, roasting them on a sheet pan in a 400-degree oven for 30 minutes, then placing them in a large pot of water. I take some chopped carrots, onions, and celery, toss them in a little olive oil, and place them on a sheet pan, roasting them in the oven until they’ve caramelized, then add them to the pot with the veal bones. The secret to a great veal bone broth is to boil the bones and veggies for as long a time as possible. Restaurants will do this for days, replacing the water in the pot as needed. At home, I’ll start the broth in the morning and finish it by evening, straining out the veggies and bones at the very end of the cooking time.
The subtle flavor of veal can get lost with heavy seasonings, so I keep it simple. The addition of veal bone broth amplifies the flavor and keeps the meatballs from drying out.
1 lb. ground veal
1 cup toasted breadcrumbs (I use Udi’s bread to make it gluten-free)
2 teaspoons parsley
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
1 egg
extra virgin olive oil
1 lb. pasta, cooked firmer than al dente
2 cups veal bone broth or beef stock
salt and pepper for seasoning
2 tablespoons half-and-half
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup of frozen organic peas
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Make the meatballs: In a bowl, combine the veal, breadcrumbs, parsley, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, garlic, onion and egg, mixing the ingredients thoroughly. Don’t over-mix.
Form the meatballs one by one, about golf ball size, and place them in an ovenproof pan. I line the pan with non-stick aluminum foil for easy clean up. Cook the meatballs for about 10 minutes. Don’t overcook them! (Even if you’re using pork, 10 minutes is OK because you will be cooking them longer. )
In a saucepan, heat the veal bone broth or beef broth. Once the meatballs have cooked in the oven, transfer them to the pot of broth and cover it with a lid, keeping the heat on low. If the broth doesn’t cover the meatballs, turn them every once in a while to keep them moist on all sides. Simmer the meatballs in the broth for about 30 minutes, then transfer them to a large sauté pan.
Turn the saucepan with the veal broth on high and reduce it to about 1/2 cup. Season it with salt and pepper.
In a large pot, cook the pasta to a bit firmer than al dente in well-salted water. Drain it and set it aside.
In the large sauté pan with the meatballs, add the butter and the half-and-half. Add the reduced veal broth, the pasta, and the peas.
Gently mix the ingredients in the pan until the peas have warmed through and the sauce clings to the pasta. Serve immediately.
I never use ground turkey, because I think it’s nasty and flavorless. But ground chicken has a richer flavor, and doesn’t seem to dry out as quickly. adding avocado to the mix gives each bite of this burger a creamy, fatty richness the ground chicken needs. Chicken and ABC (Avocado, Bacon and Cheese) is a winning combination. My Awesomesauce puts it over the top.
I cut the avocado in small cubes. I don’t make guacamole out of it. When the burger cooks, it melts into the meat, giving it that luscious fattiness I’m looking for. The egg and the breadcrumbs bind it all together.
1 lb. ground chicken 1/4 cup breadcrumbs 1 ripe avocado, sliced into small cubes 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper pinch granulated garlic 1 raw egg slices of bacon, cooked
Awesomesauce (recipe below)
Combine the chicken, breadcrumbs, chopped avocado, salt and pepper, garlic and egg in a bowl and mix them thoroughly but carefully so that you don’t squash the cubes of avocado.
Get a sheet pan covered in non-stick foil. Using a 1/2 cup measuring scoop, spoon out the burger meat onto the sheet pan, then gently press down on it with your hand to form patties. Place the sheet pan in the freezer for the burgers to firm up a bit.
Firming up the burgers in the freezer. The little meatball in the middle is a leftover…and a nice extra bite for the chef to enjoy!
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Heat a little avocado oil (or bacon fat!) in an oven-proof pan, and place the burger patties in it when it’s hot. Let the burgers sear on one side, then flip them. (Make sure they sear well, or they’ll fall apart when you try to flip them.) Add the cheese and place the pan in the oven to finish cooking and melt the cheese. Remember: it’s chicken…so you don’t want to undercook your burgers!
When they’re ready to serve, place the patties on a bun, add a couple of slices of bacon and slather with my Awesomesauce:
With the ever-increasing popularity of bourbon, a new article comes out every few months explaining what rules need to be followed in order to have a whiskey classified as “bourbon.” But there are also differences in whiskies. I try to explain all of it as best I can in this blog.
There seems to be a lot of confusion about the spelling of whiskey and/or whisky, but the use of the letter “e” (or the lack thereof) is not random. Here’s the best explanation I’ve found…
The spelling whisky (plural whiskies) is generally used for those distilled in Scotland , Wales , Canada , and Japan. Whiskey (with an e; plural whiskeys) is used for the spirits distilled in Ireland and in the United States. The BATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) in 1968 specified “whisky” as the official U.S. spelling, but allowed labeling as “whiskey” in deference to tradition. Most U.S. producers still use the “whiskey” spelling, though as you can see, Maker’s Mark chooses not to.
International law reserves the term “Scotch whisky” to those whiskies produced in Scotland. Scottish law specifies that the whisky must be aged for a minimum of three years, in oak casks. Whiskies produced in other countries in the Scotch style must use another name. Similar conventions exist for “Irish whiskey,” “Canadian whisky,” and “Bourbon whiskey.” In North America, as well as in Continental Europe, the abbreviated term “Scotch” is usually used for “Scotch Whisky.” In England, Scotland, and Wales, the term “whisky” almost always refers to “Scotch Whisky”, and the term “Scotch” is rarely used by itself.
So what is bourbon?
Bourbon is a type of whiskey.
According to federal law, bourbon must be at least 51% corn, distilled at less than 160 proof, and aged for at least two years in new, charred oak barrels. (There are some other requirements, but those are the main ones.) Bourbon also must be made within the United States. In other words, a foreign product that meets all the other requirements still cannot be sold in the U.S. as bourbon.
Contrary to popular belief, there has never been a legal requirement that bourbon be made in Kentucky, which is why most Kentucky producers call their product “Kentucky Bourbon.”
Still confused? My advice is to sit back with your favorite glass of whisky, whiskey or bourbon…and just enjoy. Cheers!
This is a story about my Mom’s dad, my grandfather. Born in Lithuania, he came here during WWII. He was a short man, barely 5’5″ tall, but he was the strongest man I ever knew. As a kid, I watched him crush walnuts, and even hazelnuts, in his bare hands. He would go out into the water at Rockaway Beach, and the waves would hit him head-on, but never knock him down. He had little or no formal education, but he could fix or build anything, from concrete driveways to dog houses. And no matter what chore he took on, he wore a white shirt and tie with a vest while he did it. He never became a US citizen because he had a hard time with the English language, but he maintained his legal alien status, and spoke enough English to work in the kitchens of several high-end restaurants in Queens, NY.
My grandfather, Vaclovas Lukosevicius. A helluva name and a helluva guy. Now I know where I got my receding hairline!
I smoked my first cigarette with him when I was 12, and we had a good talk about it after my face returned to a lighter shade of blue-green. We would walk to his favorite bar on Jamaica Avenue in Richmond Hill, the Triangle Hofbrau (it’s still there) and they let me sit at the bar, snacking on pretzels with a 7-Up while he enjoyed a beer. My Mom was an only child, so I was the only grandson, and nobody made me feel more special than he did.
One of my grandfather’s passions was horseradish…homegrown, homemade horseradish.
It’s been almost 50 years since I watched my grandfather dig the long, dirty, gnarled horseradish roots out of his garden with a sharp spade, lunging at the ground with all of his strength to cut through the thick fibers of the plant.
After harvesting a large piece, he would wash the dirt from it and then peel it, leaving behind a beautifully smooth white root.
He had a large bowl set under a grater, and he would hand grate the horseradish root with incredible speed. But no matter how fast he went, the potent vapors released by the root would make their way to his eyes, and he was forced to stop several times to wipe the tears away with his old handkerchief and regain his composure before returning to grate the root again.
Onions were child’s play compared to horseradish, and I understood why he did all the preparation just outside of the kitchen door of his Queens, NY home.
Once grated, he would add some water, vinegar, and salt, and his prepared horseradish was complete. He’d store it in tightly sealed glass jars in the fridge, and when it was time to sample the goods, he would carefully open a jar, poke his knife in, and spread the prepared horseradish over beef, beets, twice-smoked bacon, or anything else he desired. I’d watch his face slowly turn red, small beads of perspiration developing on his forehead, and he’d turn and smile at me and tell me in Lithuanian: “Labai skanu!” (Very tasty!)
At the age of 10, I couldn’t figure out what he saw in horseradish, but it didn’t take long before I was hooked myself, as it was a staple at every family dinner table.
Opting for the stuff that came in a jar in the supermarket, I never made my own prepared horseradish until almost 50 years later.
I’ve had a huge horseradish plant growing in my garden for years, and I just never got around to doing anything with it. But the other night, as I was preparing my cocktail sauce recipe and I realized that I was out of prepared horseradish, it became clear that the time of reckoning had arrived. It was time, in the finest tradition of my grandfather, to make my own prepared horseradish.
Freshly harvested horseradish roots
I went out to the yard with a sharp shovel and lunged at the horseradish plant, splitting a few roots off of the main crown. I pulled them out of the ground, detached the long leaves, and headed back to the kitchen. Today’s kitchen technology gave me a distinct advantage over my grandfather, and after washing and peeling the root, I chopped it into smaller pieces and tossed them into a food processor. No hand grating necessary! The processor pulverized the root in no time, and I added water, vinegar and salt as my grandfather did, being very careful not to stick my face too close to the opening of the processor where the vapors were their most powerful. A small taste on my tongue just about had my eyeballs shoot out of my head, and I muttered silently to myself: “Labai skanu!”
My grandfather would be proud.
Horseradish is a member of the Brassicaceae family, which includes mustard, cabbage, wasabi, and broccoli. The horseradish root itself hardly has any aroma. But when you crush it, enzymes from the broken plant cells produce mustard oil, which irritates the mucous membranes of the sinuses and eyes. To keep the horseradish from losing its pungency and freshness, vinegar must be added immediately.
Prepared Horseradish
6 oz. fresh horseradish root, peeled 6 tablespoons water 3 tablespoons white vinegar 3 pinches of salt
Chop the horseradish root into small pieces and add water, vinegar and salt. Process until proper consistency is reached. Careful! Use proper ventilation or the vapors will blow your eyeballs and sinuses out!
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