NUMB ER SEVEN T Y-FIVE JULY c AUGUS T ?

ll`
I L L U S T R A T E D
BBQ Pulled Chicken
Backyard Grilled
Pizza
Crisp, Chewy, and Eas
Grilling Pork Loin
Blueberry Buckle
Butter Cake, Crunchy Streusel
Tasting White
Wine Vinegars
Best Brands for Cooking, Salads
Illustrated Guide to
Essential Cookware
Rating Oven Mitts
Are High-Tech Designs Worth $60?

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2 Notes from Readers
Readers ask questi ons and sugest sol uti ons.
4 Quick Tips
Qui ck and eas ways to perform everday tasks, from
coring tomatoes and washi ng herbs to appl yi ng spi ce rubs
and husking com.
6 Grill-Roasted Pork Loin
Inexpensive and eas to fi nd, a bonel ess pork l oi n roast
seems nicel y sui ted to grill i ng. Why, then, i s it so often dry
and flavorless? BY ELI ZABETH GE RMAI N
8 Perfect Aioli
When maki ng thi s si mple French condiment, the key i s to
avoid a bi tter garl i c aftertaste.
BY SARAH WI LSON
9 Restaurant-Style Grilled
Pizza at Home
Bumt or bl and, most homemade veri ons of thi s restaurnt
classic can' t come cl ose. Coul d we make gri l l ed pi zza a
success for the backard cook ' BY MATTH EW CARD
12 Best Barbecued Pulled Chicken
Most reci pes stick wi th bonel ess breasts and bottled
sauce. How about a barbecue sandwich that rivals pul l ed
pork i n a frcti on of the ti me? BY SEAN LAWLE R
IS Simple Fruit Salsas
Mushy and bl and or j ust pl ai n wei rd, most frui t salsas miss
the mark. So how do you make a si mpl e one with cl ear,
refreshing favor? BY MATTHEW CARD
16 A Guide to Essential
Cookware
To outfit your ki tchen wi thout breaking the bank, i nvest i n
cookare uti sdurble and versatile. Here' s our master
l i st of what to buy and why. BY S EAN LAWLE R
18 Thai Chile Beef at Home
Thi s di sh ofers an exotic change of pace from Chi nese
stir-fries. But who has shrimp paste, tamari nd pul p,
gal angal , and pal m sugar, plus three hours to make di nner?
BY REBE CCA HAYS
20 Veggie Burgers Worth the
Trouble
Store- bought vegie burers border on i nedi bl e, but most
homemade rendi ti ons are a l ot of work. Coul d
we devel op a reci pe that was real ly worth the efort?
BY SARAH WI LS ON
22 Improving Blueberry Buckle
How can a si mpl e yellow cake batter support an enti re
quart of bl ueberries without turni ng heavy and sog?
Ti nk cookie dough. BY DAWN YANAG I HARA
24 Building a Better Blondie
Had a chewy, ful l -flavored blondi e lately? No?
Well , nei ther had we. BY MATTHEW CARD
26 Great Whites
Is whi te wi ne vi negar a generi c commodi t? Or does
brand matter? We di scovered the answers i n a bottl e of
nai l -pol i sh remover. BY JOLYON HELTERMAN
28 Mitt Parade
Oven mi tts once cost no more than the Sunday
newspaper, but today a high-tech pai r runs I0.We
braved trials by fire, water, and grease to uncover the
(ver) pai nful truth. BY JOLY ON HELTERMAN WI TH
GARTH CLI NGI NGS MI TH
30 Kitchen Notes
Test results, buyi ng tips, and advice related to stories past
and present, di rectly from the test kitchen.
BY DAWN YANAG I HARA
32 Equipment Corner
Reviews of new i tems, updates on past tests, and sources
for products used i n thi s issue.
BY GARTH CLI NGI NGS MI TH
CUCUNRThe fami l i ar garden (or American) cucumber has a thi ck, dark green ski n and i s
most often used i n sal ads and crudites. Mi l d, sweet Engli sh (or hothouse) cucumbers are cul ti
vated to produce thi nner ski ns and fewer seeds. Japanese cucumbers are l ong and sl ender: used
peel -on, they add crunch and flavor to rolled sushi . The smal l , thi n Medi terranean cucumber i s
fairly stright and i s juicy rther than water. Even smal l er are fresh comi chons, whi ch are al most
always seen in thei r pi ckl ed form. The most commonly used pi ckl i ng cucumber i s the Ki rby, easi ly
recogni zabl e for its squat, wart appearance. Lemon cucumbers, col ored and shaped l i ke thei r
namesake, are ver seedy yet del i cately flavored.
L`1`
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I l. l. f ! THATt;V
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|HO|I tOS
L1!1!.1
ON THE ROAD TO MOROCCO
M
any olour lamily vacations arc
bcst rcmcmbcrcd through a
glass darkly, ycars ancr thc lact,
whcn thc lamily album lails to
rcmindus olthc momcnts bcst lorgottcn. But
cvcryoncc in a whilc, onc olour lamily vaca
tions actually bcars lrui t-thc swcct varicty,
not an unripc tropical spccimcn. In March, wc
uung caution to thc wind and dccidcd to trck
through thc Sahara Dcscrt in Morocco, ncar
thcAlgcrianbordcr.Jhrccplancsand24hours
altcrlcavingBoston,wc cndcdupinthc strccts
olMarrakcch,trailingthcdonkcycartthathcld
ourluggagc through thc narrowstrccts olthc
oldcityonthcwaytoourriad, asmallhotclthat
wasonccaprivatc homc.
I am not onc to tour palaccsandothcrarchi
tcctural monumcnts-j ust givc mc somcthing
good andunusual ) tocat. Jhis, olcoursc,isno
mcan lcat whcn you arc travcling with young
childrcn and local guidcs who prclcr to stccr
thcir clicnts to thc most Europcan catcri cs .
Ycs, you can ordcr spaghctti Bologncsc and
pizzain a touristcalc lronting thc maj orplaza
in thc old city. ) But Marrakcch did cvcntually
comc through in thc lood dcpartmcnt. Ircsh
squcczcdlocalorangcs,yogurtlightlyswcctcncd
with rosc watcr, thc local uatbrcads, coconut
cookics,lambtagincwithlrcshalmonds,skcw
crsolground,spiccdlamb, andpastilla, a thick
pancakcstylc pastry hllcd with ground mcat,
spiccs,andnuts .
Jhc ncxtdaywc pilcdintotwo Land Rovcrs
and hcadcd southcast, through thc HighAtlas
anddowntowarduarzazatc. Bythcancrnoon,
wchadl cnthcpavcdroadbchindandwcrcon
atrackthatwoundaroundoldmud andwattlc
towns built into thc sidcs olblcak mountains,
with scrpcntinc rivcrvallcys, lush and grccn,
bclow. Locals takc thc bus to thccnd olthc
linc,whcrcthcyswitchtodonkcys . Jhcanimals
arc arrangcd in a stand much likc taxis . ) Jhc
dayisaconmscdmcmoryolhcrcclyhandsomc
Bcrbcr childrcn,goathcrdsand shcphcrds, and
donkcys httcd out with mctal
roolracks" thatlctthcmtrans-
porthugc loads ol loragc.
Jhcncxtday,atthc tail cndol
sunsct,wchnally madc our way
intothcdcscrtandtoourcamp
sitc . El Hussci n, thc sprightly
72 ycar ol d camcl dri vcr, was
waiting hc had walkcd thrcc
daysto mcctus) alongwithhis
lourcamcl s. As warm bloodcd
crcaturcsgo,bythcway,camcls
arcquitcintclligcnt. Jhcydrool
rathcr than spit, thcir lcgs lold
Christopher Kimball
thc local Bcrbcr dialcct spokcn
by thc cook, Husscin, and our
gui dc , Muhammcd, punctu
atcd by cxubcrant cxprcssions
clInshallah. " An hourpasscs,
thc sun is cbbing, and I scnsc
that I am sitting abovc a vast
pool oltimc, as ilthc days and
wccks havc ucd thc rcst olthc
worl d, swirlingtoastoponthis
at sun drcnchcd l andscapc
whcrc thcrc arc no shadows. I
was tol d that thc Bcrbcrs arc
up likc lawn chairs whcn thcy sit, thcy cnj oy a
good rub bchind thc cars, and thcir hugc lcct
sprcadoutl i kcycastdoughasthcyplopthcmon
thcsand. ) Jhcncxtmorning,ancrabrcaklastol
|Iatbrcad, orangcs, and collcc, wc sct out ovcr
thc duncs, mostly walki ng, with rcst pcriods
takcnoncamclback.
Jhc dcscrt is not just a sandbox. Jhc land
scapc varics wildly lrom thc classic duncs ol
Lawrence of Arabia to towcring bl ack moun
tains, parchcdwhitclakcbcds,scrub,thousands
olsmallwhitcandblucuowcrs which,owingto
myinaccuratctranslationolourguidc` sconvcr
sational Ircnch, I crroncously call Monkcy` s
nion") , andscasolrockandthorn. Iaron a
mountainsidc, wc scc dozcns olgoats grazing
and a goathcrd standi ng still in a dark djellaba
robc ) on top olaridgc. Jwoyoung boys cross
oui path in thc middlc olnowhcrc and stop
to chat. Wc comc across an abandoncd Bcrbcr
bcchivcovcnuscdtomakcbrcad. Jhcbrcadis
cookcdovcrcoals ontopola pcrloratcdmctal
shclf)
Jhat cvcning, I sit on thc top ol thc larg
cst dunc ncar our campsitc and watch thc sun
dissolvc into a lar hazc . n thc ncxt pcak, a
man is knccling and praying to Al l ah. A small
villagcisvisiblc ollto thc cast,towardAlgcri a.
I count I7 hand skctchcd trccs in and around
thc swirl olduncs. I can hcar thc murmur ol
still a nomadi c pcopl c . How
clscdocsoncl ivcinthistimclcsslandscapc`
And thcn, on thc third day, it happcns. Jhc
simplc,wcll prcparcdlood. Jhclooscrobcsand
hcaddrcsscs. Jhchoursolwalkingandstorytcll
i ng. Jhc lrontand back rhythm olthc camcl s.
Jhchot, swcctminttca. Jhcintcnscuavorola
cool, sliccdorangcaltcrlunch. Jhcrc is solittlc
hcrc that cach thing bccomcs important. Each
gcsturc,cach bitc ol lood, andcachsipolwatcr
mattcrs . Ahg, a datc, a handml olnuts . . . wc
lcarntocnjoythc small things .
Wc makc our way to Icz, a city morc cos
mopol i tan than Marrakcch. Wc spcnd a day
walking thc bazaar and discovcr livc snail s, a
camcl` shcad,brightlycolorcdvatsolsoap,dycd
silk,lruit,mint,hsh, livc poultry,lcathcrgoods,
brassandcoppcrpots,swccts,strcctlood,holc
i n thc wall bakcrics . . . thc scnscs arc ovcr
whcl mcd. Wc dcpart bclorc sunri s c, hclting
dullcl bagsthroughdark,narrowstrccts . Ilcavc
with thc tastc olpcrmmcdorangcs, rosc watcr,
mint, almonds, sallron, prcscrvcd lcmon, cin
namon, cumin, and coconut still livcly on thc
tcnguc . But it`s thc vast, unhltcrcd mcmory
olthc dcscrt that bcckons, as ilI wcrc lcaving
homclor a lorcignland. Jhc sunis rising, but,
in mymind` scyc, i tissinking, thcrcisa callto
praycr, mcn in hoodcd djcllabas lacc Mccca,
andthcrc ishnallytimc to considcrcvcrygrain
olsand.
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Box 7446, Red Oak, 5 I 591-0446.
J U L Y A U CU S T 20 0 5
``1` 1` 11/i11:
Battle of the Paring Knives
Whatisthcpurposcolacurvcdparing knilc`
MI CHAEL HASS
CE NT RAL CI TY, IOWA
r A variation on thc standard paring knilc, a
bird`s bcak," or tourncc, " paring knilc has a
2 to3 inchbladc andalorwardcurving,hookcd
tip. It is typically uscd lor pccling, cutting, and
rcmovingsurlacc blcmishcs lrom roundcd lruits
and vcgctablcs andlor carvingtournccd scvcn
sidcd,lootballshapcd) vcgctablcsaswcllasintri
catcgarnishcs.
Aninlormalpolltakcninthctcstkitchcnindi
catcdthatmost olourtcstcooksdo notowna
bird`s bcak paringknilc. Most olthosc who do
said thcy usc itrarcly and own it only bccausc it
camc as part ola sct. Still, wc wondcrcd ilthis
knilcollcrsanyadvantagcs.
Wc timcd lour tcst kitchcn stallcrs as thcy
pcclcdpcarlonions,pcclcdandsliccdapplcs,and
tournccdpotatocsusingourtopratcdIorschncr
Victorinox) paring knilc aswcll asa Iorschncr
bird`sbcakparingknilc. Wcalsoaskcdtcstcrsto
ratcthctwoknivcs. Icclingonionswasatossup,
andtcstcrs prclcrrcd a traditional paring
knilc whcn pccling applcs. Whcn
itcamc to thctourncctcst,
howcvcr, most did
prclcr thc bird`s
bcakknilc.
Does your paring knife
need a beak?
ur conclusion` Dcspitc having a slight advan
tagcovcratraditionalparingknilcwhcnitcomcs
to tournccing, thc bird`s bcak knilc lailcd to
gcncratc much support lrom thc kitchcn stal
Evcryonclcltthatarcgularparingknilcwasmorc
than adcquatc cvcn lor this dclicatc and rarcly
callcdlor)task.
1O MaVC O: MaVC O!
InyourMay/)unc2OO3issuc, ancrtastingvari
ous tomato pastcs, you sclcctcd Amorc as thc
winncr. Isitcorrcct to assumc thatbccauscitis
doublc conccntratcd, thc amount uscd in rcci
pcscanbchalvcd`
TODD CARLSON
ARL I NGTON, T EXAS
r Whcn you usc ultraconccntratcd liquid laun
drydctcrgcntinplaccolthcrcgularvaricty,ittakcs
lcssproducttowashthcsamcamountolclothing.
'!1111 U` S A NDR A WU:
Inloratcly,thcsamcprinciplcdocsn`tapplyto
tomato pastc. Bascd on our cxpcricncc, ^orc-
brandtubctomatopastc,though labclcd doublc
conccntratcd," is not twicc as potcnt as rcgular
canncdtomatopastc. Inthctastingyoumcntion,
conductcdlorourWccknightIastaBologncscrcc
ipc May/)unc 2OO3) , wc uscdthcsamcamount
olcachbrandoltomatopastc.
Wc rcvisitcd thc issuc by conductinga couplc
olvisualtcstswithAmorcandoncolthc canncd
brands,Hunt`s,tosccilthcAmorcwasdricr and
thusmorcconccntratcd) . Sidc bysidcspoonmls
olAmorc and Hunt`s wcrc both thick and still,
cachoncstickingtothcspooncvcnwhcnturncd
upsidc down. Jhc Anorc was slightly thickcr
and a morcvibrantrcd than thc mutcd, darkcr
Hunt`s, which also had a lcw liquidy pockcts.
Mcxt wc placcd nvc lcvcl ! tablcspoon samplcs
olcachbrandonshcctsolsinglcplypapcrtowcl
and lct thcm sit lor an hour. Mcithcr t|c tubcd
nortlccanncdsamplccxudcdmuchliquid-only
pcrhapsamillimctcrcouldbcdctcctcdcxtcnding
bcyondthcbordcrsolthcpastyblobs.
Whilcwcdon`trccommcndusinghallasmuch
Amorcwhcntomatopastciscallcdlorinarccipc,
wc still rccommcnd Amorc ovcr thc othcr
six brandswc tcstcd i ncluding Hunt`s) lor
itsncshcr,mllcrtomato uavor. And bccausc
it`s packagcdina tubc,Amorclacksthctinny
ahcrtastcthatplagucsmanycanncdtomatopastcs.
)ustignorc thc doublc conccntratcd" labcling
anduscthcamountcallcdlorinthcrccipc.
Cheese with an Ashy Disposition
I `vc oncn sccn ashcovcrcd goat chccsc bchind
thc chccsc countcr at my local gourmct supcr
markct. Whatisthcsourccolthcash? Isitcdiblc,
orshoulditbcscrapcdoh
TODD VANADILOK
CHICAGO, ILL.
Jhc light laycr olash that covcrs somc goat
chccscs bothagcdandlrcsh)isindccdcdiblcand
shouldnotbcscrapcdoll Jhcashismadclrom
burntvcgctalgrowth suchaswhitcpinc,j unipcr
wood,cggplant, bcll pcppcrs,vinc cuttings, and
lcavcs) that is poundcd until it achicvcs a nnc,
powdcryconsistcncy.
According to Ihsan Gurdal, chccscmakcr and
owncr olIormaggio Kitchcn, a nnc loods pur
vcyor with storcs in Boston and Cambridgc,
Mass. , thc Ircnchdcvclopcdt|ismcthodolcov
cring goat chccsc, and thc Spaniards lollowcd
shortly t|crcancr. Jhc ash, said Gurdal , is uscd
lor acsthctic purposcs rathcr than to uavor thc
C O O K
'
s I L L U S T R A T ED
Z
AS H - COVERE D G OAT CHE E S E
Sooted for human consumpti on?
chccsc. Similar togoatchccscscovcrcdinspiccs
suchascurry powdcrorcaycnncpcppcr, thcash
docsn` t dclay or spccd up rind dcvclopmcnt or
actasabarricragainstmold.
Iamous Ircnch ash covcrcd goat chccscs
includc thc cyl i ndrical Sai nt Maurc and thc
diskshapcd Scllcssur Chcr ofthc Loirc Vallcy.
Domcstically, thcrc is Humboldt Iog, an agcd,
ashcovcrcdgoatchccsc dcnncd byanadditional
hnc laycr olash dividing thc top and bottom
hcmisphcrcsolthcchccsc.
Nick Don't Slash
Whcn chccking to scc il a cut ol mcat is sul-
ncicntly cookcd, you havc suggcstcd thc nick
andpcck"mcthod. nthcothcrhand,youalso
call lorlctting mcat rcst ahcrcookingtoprcvcnt
thclossolj uiccthatvilloccurilit`scutintoright
away. Docsn`tthc nickandpcckmcthodncgatc
ordiminish t|c potcntial bcncntolallowing thc
mcattorcst`
JONAT HAN LOONI N
STAMFOR D, CONN.
Jhc most accuratc mcthod oltcsting mcat
lor doncncssistochcckitsintcrna tcmpcraturc
usinganinstantrcadthcrmomctcr. Wcncook
ing a particularly t|:in piccc olmcat, howcvcr,
it`s dilhculttouscathcrmomctcr,so nickingthc
mcat with a paring knilc is our rccommcndcd
altcrnativc.
Curious as to whcthcr this mcthod rcsults in
any signincant moisturc loss, wc prcparcd two
samplcs cach ol !'+ inch thi ck pan lricd strip
stcaks cookcdtomcdium rarc, or ! 3Odcgrccs) ,
pan scarcd ovcn roastcd pork tcndcrl oi ns
cookcd tomcdium, or !4O dcgrccs) , andpan
roastcd chickcn brcasts cookcd until wcll donc,
or ! oO dcgrccs) . Wc uscd both mcthods-thcr
momctcrand paring knilc-to tcstlor doncncss
andmcasurcdthcamountolliquidcxpcllcdahcr
cach samplc had rcstcd lor about ! O minutcs.
Bothstrip stcakscxudcdcqualamountsolliquid
2 tcaspoons) , whilcthcporktcndcrloinchcckcd
usingthcnick andpcckmcthodlost'+tcaspoon
morcj uiccs,andthc nickcdchickcnbrcastlost/+
tcaspoonmorc.
Why thc dillcrcncc` Bccausc thc pork and
thc chickcn wcrc morc mlly cookcd than thc
mcdium rarc stcaks, it was ncccssary to makc
a rclativcly dccp cut to dctcrminc doncncss. In
thcsccascs,thcn,thcrcis morcmoisturcloss,so
wcrccommcndthc thcrmomctcrmcthod. Savc
nicking and pccking lor nsh and thinncr cuts ol
mcatwhcrcashallowslashwillworkjustnnc.
Storing Celer
What`sthc bcstwaytostorccclcry`I ncvcrman
agctonnishawholcbunchbclorcitgocsbad.
CAROL PAl
P I TIS B URGH. PA.
Jo answcryourqucstion,wctooknvcbunchcs
olcclcry with thc outcrmost stalks rcmovcd) ,
cachwrappcdinadillcrcntway, andstorcdthcm
inthcrcnigcrator.Wcplaccdoncbunchinapapcr
bag,wrappcdanothcrinaluminumloil,wrappcd
anothcr in plastic wrap, rcturncd anothcr to its
originalpcrloratcd plastic slccvc, and placcd thc
last onc upright in a containcr holding about 2
inchcs olwatcr.
Atthccndoloncwcck,thccclcryinthcpapcr
bagwasstillgrccnbutslightlylimp,thccclcryin
thc original plasticpackagingwas slightly morc
bcndablc and ladcd in color, and thc bunch in
thc watcr cvcn morcdricdout-thcsc mcthods
all allowcd too much moisturc to cscapc, thc
cclcry bccamc limp as it dchydratcd. Jhc plas
tic andloilwrappcd cclcry, howcvcr, rcmaincd
amazingly grccnand hrm. Givcn anothcrwcck,
WHAT |5 |T!
I came across severl of these utensils one day while
diging around in my grndmother's old silverare set.
Is it a spoon or a fork?
] ESS ICA BACHAR
CLYD E. N.C.
With its fork-l i ke edges, thi s ol d-fashi oned
i ce cream spoon di gs i nto even the i ci est
ice cream.
onlythcloilwrappcdcclcrywasstillmostlygrccn
andcrisp.
Why did t|cloilworksowcll whilct|cplastic
wrapcvcntuallylailcd`Cclcrycontinucstorcspirc
ancri tis harvcstcd andproduccssmall amounts
olthc ripcning hormonc ethylene. Jhis gas acti
vatcscnzymcsthatbrcakdownandsoncnthcccll
walls in cclcry, crcating moisturc loss. Ethylcnc
casilygctstrappcdwhcncclcryiswrappcdtightly
i n plastic, causing thc vcgctablc to go limp and
spoillastcrthanwhcnwrappcdinaluminumloil,
whichisnotgastight. "
Inapinch,youcanalwaysrcvivcwaywardccl
crystalks bycuttingollaboutaninchnomboth
cnds and submcrgingthc stalks in a bowlolicc
watcr lor 3O minutcs . But to prolonglrcshncss,
wcrccommcndwrappingcclcryinloi l .
Alternative Milks
Can lactosclrcc or nonrclrigcratcd boxcd milk
bcsubstitutcdlorrcgularmilkinrccipcs`
KATHY SCHOE NE
NORTH ANDOV E R. MASS.
Initially, scvcral mcmbcrs olthc tcst kitchcn
stallmadc laccs at thc prospcct olcookingwith
thcsc untraditional milks, but ultimatcly thcy
admittcd to bcing curious about t|c potcntial
rcsults. Wc pittcd Hood wholc milk our local
rcgular" brand) againstwholc milkvcrsions ol
LactaidandIarmalatinthrccapplications. sconcs,
aycllowlaycrcakc,andabcchamclsaucc.
After scrtching our heads trying to guess what
your monogrammed utensil was used for. we walked a
few blocks from our ofices to see antique dealer and
appriser Toby Lngerman of the Antique Company in
Brookline, Mass., for a consultation.
According to Lngerman, this utensil-with a 3-inch
handle and a shallow head, or bowl, about 2 inches
long and I 'inches across its widest point-is a spoon
produced in the early 1900s for the sole purpose of
eating ice cream. Lngerman speculates that ice cream
may have been icier or harder than most of the com
mercial varieties that exist today and so the spoon's
forked edges could have been useful for diging into
the ic confections.
We were slightly wary of those sharp-looking edges
before trying the spoon. but it ended up being just
about as dangerous as a fork. The spoon did a good job
of cutting through a scoop of hard, fresh-from-the
freezer ice cream, but we wouldn't recommend using
it with looser or softer desserts like granita, sorbet,
or gelato. Its bowl isn't deep enough to capture the
melted, dribbly bits.
J U L Y c 1 U C U S T 20 0 5

GOT M I LK?
Can ei ther of these mi l k substitutes compete
with the real thi ng?
Straight lrom thc carton, Lactaid tcnds to
havc a slightly swcctcr |lavor than rcgular milk.
Jhis is bccausc olthc addcd lactasc, an cnzymc
that brcaks down lactosc thc sugar lound in
milk)intotwoswcctcrtastingsimplcsugarsthat
l actoscintolcrant individuals can casily digcst.
Motsurprisingly,thcsconcsandycllowcakcmadc
withLactaidtastcdswcctcrthan thosc madcwith
rcgular milk, and somc tastcrs prclcrrcd thcm.
n thc othcr hand, thc bcchamcl madc with
Lactaid was boocd lor having an odd |lavor"
that onc tastcr dcscribcd as kind olrank" and
scvcralothcrssimplyloundtooswcct. "
Iarmalat, a shcll stablc boxcd milk that can
bc kcpt lor up to si x months unopcncd and
unrclrigcratcdbccauscoltrcatmcntwithaspccial
ultrahigh hcat pastcurization proccss, lacks thc
lrcshtastcolrcgular milk andhasauavorpronlc
closcrtothatolcookcdmilk. Moncthclcss,tastcrs
lound that sconcs and cakc madc with Iarmalat
wcrcvcry similarinU avortothoscmadcwithrcg
ular wholc milk. A lcw pcoplc noticcd a slightly
ollU avor in thc bcchamcl madc with Iarmalat,
calling it mnky," musty," and tangy. " Most
tastcrs, howcvcr, thought thc bcchamcl madc
with Iarmalatwasjusth nc.
Jo sum up, swcct bakcd goods madc withlac
tosclrccor boxcd milkarc just asgoodas-and
somc think cvcn bcttcr than-thosc madc with
lrcsh milk. In savory applications, boxcd milk is
K illrcsh milk isn`t availablc, but avoid using
lactosclrccmilkunlcssaswcct saltyrcsultisyour
intcndcdgoal .
Juicers on the Web
Iollowing publication olthc 'What Is It` ` itcm
i nthc)anuary/Icbruary2OO5issuc,manyrcad
crs wrotc in to praisc thc virtucs olthcir own
Wcar- Lvcr juiccrs, which scvcral pcoplc dubbcd
asbcingthcirlavoritcjuiccr.Althoughthisrtcmis
nolongcrbcingmanulacturcd,a scarchrcvcalcd
thatitisavailablclor salc onscvcralWcbauction
sitcs,cBayamongthcm.
SEND US YOUR QUESONS We wi l l provide a compl i
mentar one-year subscri pti on for each l etter we pri nt. Send your
i nqui r, name, address, and dayti me tel ephone number to Notes
from Reader, Cook' s I l l ustrted, P.O. Box 47058, Brookline,
MA 02447,or to notesfromreaders@bcpress. com.
Picking More Tan
One Pepper
Runni ng out to the store each
ti me you need a ti ny chi l e
pepper can be a pai n. Susan
Pieron of Doyl estown, P. , buys
lare bags of peppers and stores
them in the freezer. When she
needs a chopped or mi nced
pepper for a reci pe, she takes
it straight from the freezer to a
cutti ng board.
Reachi ng Beyond
Your Grsp
To grsp lighteight items that are
just out of reach, Jennifer Hellwig
of Brdenton, Fla., sidesteps her
stepstool in favor of another kitchen
tool-a pair OItongs. They're g!
for grbbing things like bags of pasta,
cereal boxes, or spices from the top
shelves of the cupboard or pantry .
COMPI LED BY ERI KA BRUCE E
Seedless jalapeno Rings
To make neat rings of jalapenos without the seeds or spicy ribs when garishing
nachos and the like, Nate Cobb of Jamaica Plain, Mass., employs a vegetable peeler.
I .
Z.
I . Cut of the stem end of the jalapeno with a knife, then insert the peeler down into
the chile. Using a circular motion, core the pepper and pull out the ribs and seeds.
Z. Shake any remaining seeds out of the chile, then slice it into rings.
Homemade Ice Pcks
Katheri ne Connel l of Skowhegan, Mai ne, got ti red of fi l l i ng and empti ng i ce
cube trays when stocki ng up on the ice she uses to chi l l beverages when havi ng a
part. Now she makes her own ice packs with zi pper-l ock bags-and they keep
thi ngs cool a l ot l onger than i ce cubes do.
I . Fi l l quart- or gal l on-sized zi pper-l ock
bags to withi n i nches of the top
I .
with water. (That way the bags
won' t burst when the water
expands as i t freezes. )
Z. Place the bags i n the freezer,
l etti ng them l i e flat so they can be
stacked, thereby making the most
economi cal use of freezer space.
Send Us Your 1Q We will provide a complimentar oneyear subscription for each tip we print. Send your tip, name, and address to
Quick T
1
ps, Cook's Illustrated, P.O. Box 470589, Brookline, NA02447, or to quicktlps@bcpress com.
C O O K
'
S I L L U S T R A T E D

Corn Husking Made Easi er

Huski ng corn i s no one' s
favorite j ob, but i t' s one that
Sharon Gudi ti s of Kal i spel l , Mont. ,
has made much easi er.
I .
Z.
I . With the husk sti l l attached, cut
off both ends of an ear of corn (a
serrated kni fe works best).
Z. Rol l the ear on the counter, and
the husk comes right of. Fi nish by
removi ng any remai ni ng threads
of si l k.
Smoothie Pps
Instead of letting any of the smoothie
left behind in the blender melt and
go to waste, Mara Skrypiczajko of
Nelson, British Columbia, freezes it
in Popsicle molds (or 3-ounce waxed
paper cups). She lets the "pops" freeze
partay before placing a Popsicle stick
in the middle, then freezes them till
fn and someone want a quick snack.

w
Z
>
C
O

Z
1
C
Z
C



Handy Garbage Disposal
To keep her work area clean and save
herelf a few trips to the garbage can.
Kte Takahashi of San Diego. Calif ..
puts a supermarket plastic bag in one
half of her sink when preparing rcipes.
Wen she is fnished putting scrps in
te bag, she seals it to eliminate odor,
then tosses it into the garbage can.
Yogur with the Fruit on Top
Ann Frenni ngkossuth, of Al l ston,
Mass . . found an attractive way to
sere yogurt with the fruit on top
i nstead of hidden at the bottom.
| . Open the yogur contai ner and
fl i p it upsi de down i n a seri ng
bowl . Punch a smal l hol e i n the
bottom wi th a pari ng kni fe to
release the vacuum.
Z. Uft the contai ner strai ght of.
leavi ng the yogurt and frui t behi nd.
Shaker for Spice Rubs
Todd H. Di ttrich of Fort Thomas, Ky . found a cl ever use for empt store
bought spice jars.
Z.
I . Gently pry the perorted l i d of the jar. refi l l with your favorite homemade
spi ce rub. and snap the l i d back i n pl ace.
Z.The spi ces can now be appl i ed more evenly on the meat.
Disposable Basting Brush
Easi er Herb Washi ng
Leslie Mackenzie of Santa Clara.
Calif.. uses a salad spinner to wash
herbs. Once the herbs are clean. she
simply lifts the basket with the herbs
out of the dirt water. discards the
water. fits the basket back into its
base. and spins the herbs dry.
While barbecuing chicken on a recent camping trip. Uz Moromisato of Los Angeles. Calif .. found herelf without a brush to neatly
apply the sauce. Relying on ingenuit. she made good use of the corn husks at her disposal.
Z.
I . Gather a fistful of husks and tie them together at one end with an additional husk.
Z.To make the brush bristles. fry the loose husks at the opposite end. Tie the middle with another husk to secure.
J. Dip the cor husk brush into your sauce and apply to the food; when finished. you can just toss out the brush.
Quicker Tomato
Coring
A. Dawn Jacobson of
Val l ejo. Cal if. , found
another use for the l arge
star tip she gets out j ust
once a year when usi ng a
pastry bag to make spri t
cooki es: cori ng tomatoes.
She pi erces the tomato
at the stem scar with the
poi nted end of the ti p,
gives i t a twi st, and uses
the ti p to cut out and
remove the core.
B. Tanya Seifert of Howel l .
Mi ch . . empl oys a si mi l ar
techni que wi th an appl e
corer. whi ch she i nserts
hal fay i nto the tomato.
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5

Mixing Naturl Panut Buter

Doris Lncaster of Lkenheath, Sufolk.
UK. found a way to reincorporte the
layer of oil that separtes from naturl
peanut butter. Use only one wire
beater attchment on your handheld
mixer; carefully mix on low until the
peanut butter is homogenous.
Grill-Roasted Pork Loin
Inexpensi ve and easy to fi nd, a bonel ess pork l oi n roast seems ni cel y s ui ted to gri l l i ng.
Why, then, i s i t so often d ry and fl avorl ess?
T
hc allordabl c and widcly
availablc pork loin roast is
a popular cut to gril l . Jhc
obvious problcm, howcvcr,
is that today`s lcancr pork drics out
considcrably whcn cookcd with this
dryhcatmcthod. Salsaisthcculinary
scoundrcl`ssolution,butI wantcdto
invcstigatcthchcartolthcmattcrand
produccanaromaticroastwithadccp
brown crust and succulcnt, smokc
Uavorcdmcat.
What is a loinroast`Jwomusclcs
runalongthcbackolapig. Jhclargcr,
longcr musclc issimply rclcrrcdto as
thc loin and thc smallcr,shortcronc,
thctcndcrloin,whichis morc tcndcr
andlcssuavorml .
BY ELI ZA BETH GERMA I N E
Butchcrs typically cut and mcr
chandiscaloinroastinthrccscctions.
Closcst to thc shouldcr is thc bladc
cnd (blade rclcrs to thc shouldcr
bladc) . Movingdownthcbackolthc
pigyou nnd thc ccntcrcut, which is
thc most cxpcnsivc-comparablc to
a bcclpri D d bonc-i n.
Jhcthirdandlastscctioniscallcdthc
sirloin. Hcrc thc loin musclc tapcrs
oll and rcsts abovc thc tcndcrloin.
Brining ensures a juicy roast, while a generous dose of coarse-ground
pepper helps create a flavorful crust.
Whcn thc sirloin scction is cut into roasts or
chops, part olthc tcndcrloin is includcd. Jhc
tcndcrloinmusclccanbcpurchascdscparatclyas
a bonclcss roast, but it should not bc conmscd
with thc largcr loin roast, thc roast that is thc
subjcctolthisarticlc.
I wondcrcd i lonc olthcsc thrcc roasts-thc
bladccnd,thcccntcrcut,orthcsirloin-wasbct
tcrsuitcdtogrillingthanthcothcrs,soI bought
allthrcccutsandputthcmtothctcst.Jhcsirloin
roast was quickly climinatcd. Its two rclativcly
largcmusclcscookcd atvastlydillcrcntspccds. I
thought thcccntcr-cutroast,withits onc attrac
tivclargcmusclc,wouldbcthclavoritc,buttast
crslounditsmcatpalc,dry,andbland, cspccially
whcn comparcd with thc mcat lrom thc bladc
roast, which was richcr in uavor and rclativcly
moist. Containingsmallpartsolvariousshouldcr
musclcsthatarcrcddcrandmorcnbrousthanthc
ccntcrcut, thc bladc roastwas lavorably likcncd
to thc dark mcat olchickcn. Jhc latty pockcts
thatscparatcthc dillcrcntmusclcs addcd moist
ncssanduavor.Itwasthchands-downwinncr.
Grilling It Right
Iirst I tricd to grill a bladc roast dircctly ovcr
a hot nrc, but thc outsidc scorchcd bclorc thc
insidc was cookcd through. Jhc rcsult was t|c
samcwhcnItricdtogrillthcmcatdircctlyovcra
modcratc nrc. I quickly movcdontogrill-roasting,
anindirccthcatapproachinwhichacovcrcdgrill
crcatcsanovcn-likccnvironmcnt. Ibankcdthclit
coalsononcsidc olthc kcttlc,lcavingthc oucr
sidc cmpty, thcn placcd t|c loin roast ovcr thc
cmpty sidc, covcrcd thc grill , and lch uc roast
tocook. owitlackcdacrispcrust,andtlcsidc
closcsttothccoalscookcdlastcr.
I tricdagain,thistimcscaringallsidcsdircctly
ovcruc hotcoalsbclorc movingthcroasttouc
coal lrccsidcolt|c grill. Jhcn, hallay urough
cooking,Iuippcditsouatbot|longsidcsoluc
loin spcnt timc closc to t|c coals. Iortyminutcs
intocooking,thccrustwaswcllbrowncdandthc
mcatwasdonc.
I was wcll onmyway to succcss, but my tast
crs kcpt complaining about dry mcat, a com
monproblcmwiutoday`slcan pork. Inuc tcst
C O O K
'
s I L L U S T R A T E D
o
kitchcn,wc nnd uat lcan pork roasts and chops
should display a hintolpinkwhcnsliccd. Annal
intcrnal tcmpcraturc ol ! 5O dcgrccs is idcal .
Bccausc thc tcmpcraturc continucsto climbas a
roastrcsts,I lounditbcsttotakct|c mcatollthc
grill whcn ithit dcgrccs. This stcp hclpcdto
allcviatc thcdryncss-butnotcnough.
Adding Moisture and Enhancing Flavor
I tricd thc tcst kitchcn` s lavoritc approach to
improvingtcxturc. brining. Surccnough, brincd
roastsproduccdravcrcvicws.Jhcmcatwasjuicy,
moist,andcvcnmorcuavorml .
Ip until now, I had bccn simply scasoning
thc outsidc olthc roast wiu pcppcr uc brinc
contributcd cnough salt) , but pcrhaps I could
up uc antc a bit. Kccpinguingssimplc, I tricd
usinga coarscrgrind tocrcatc a pcppcr crust. I
also dcvclopcd two spicc rub variations ont|ns
thcmc. ) Iinally,I hadlounducgrill roastcdpork
loin I wasscarchinglor. A dccp brown, pcppcry
crustpcrlcctly balanccducswcct,j uicymcat.
G RI LL-ROASTE D PORK LOI N F OR
CHARCOAL GRI LL
S E RVES 4 TO 6
Ilonly cnhanccd" pork is availablc it will bc
statcd on thc l abcl ) , do not brinc thc roast.
Instcad, simply add 2 tablcspoons koshcrsalt to
t|c blackpcppcrscasoning.
Wiu minorrccipc adjustmcnts, a roast largcr
uan thc onc callcd lor can bc cookcd usingthc
samcmcuod. Iorcachadditionalpoundolmcat
ovcr 3 pounds do not usc a roast largcruan o
pounds) , incrcasc thc salt in uc brinc by v4 cup
and thc watcr by I quart, also incrcasc thc oil
and pcppcr by I tcaspoon cach il using a spicc
rub, incrcasc uc rccipc by onc-tlird) . Bccausc
uc cooking timc dcpcndsmorc on thc diamctcr
olthc loin uan its lcngu, uc cooking timclor
alargcrroastwillnotincrcasc signincantly.Acr
rotating thc roast in stcp 5, bcgin chccking thc
intcrnaltcmpcraturccr3Ominutcsolcooking.
% cup tabl e salt
bonel ess bl ade-end pork l oi n roast, 2 11 to 3
pounds, ti ed with kitchen twi ne at 1 11- i nch
i nterval s (see i l l ustrati on on page 7)
2 tabl espoons ol ive oi l
tabl espoon coarsely ground bl ack pepper
or I reci pe spi ce rub (reci pes fol l ow)
S H O P P l N C . Pork Loi n Roasts
BLADE-END ROAST
Our top choice, this cut is
moist and flavorful.
CENTE R- CUT ROAST
Our second choice, this mild
cut can dry out on the grill.
I. Dissolvc salt in 3 quartswatcrin largc con
taincr, submcrgc roast, covcrwithplastic wrap,
andrclrigcratcuntil mllyscasoncd,3 to4 hours.
Rinscroastundcrcoldwatcranddrythoroughly
withpapcrtowcls.
2. Rub roastwith oil,sprinklc with pcppcror
spiccrub andprcssinto mcat. Lctroaststand at
room tcmpcraturc ! hour.
3. Mcanwhilc, soaktwo 3 inch wood chunks
in watcr to covcr lor ! hour, drain. About 25
minutcs bclorc grilling,opcn bottom grillvcnts.
\singlargcchimncystartcr,ignitcabout 5quarts
charcoal,or about Oindividual briqucttcs, and
burnuntilmllyignitcd,about! 5 minutcs. Empty
coals into grill , build modincd twolcvcl nrc by
arranging coals to covcr onc hallolgrill, piling
thcmabout3briqucttcshigh. Ilaccsoakcdwood
chunks on coal s. Iosition grill gratc ovcr coals,
covcr grill , and hcatuntilhot,about5 minutcs,
scrapcgrillgratcclcanwithgrillbrush.
4. Grill pork dircctlyovcr nrc until browncd,
about2minutcs,usingtongs,rotatconc quartcr
turn and rcpcat until all sidcs arcwcll browncd,
about8minutcstotal . Movclointocool sidc ol
grill,positioningroastparallclwithandascloscas
possiblctonrc.pcngrilllidvcntshallay,covcr
grill so vcnts arc oppositc nrc and draw smokc
through grill . Intcrnal grill tcmpcraturc should
bcabout425dcgrccs. ) Cook2O minutcs.
5. Rcmovccovcr,usingtongs,rotatcroast!8O
TECMM1ME I
TYING PORK LOIN
No fancy knots needed-j ust use doubl e knots to
secure pi eces of kitchen twi ne at 111- i nch i nter
val s. For i nformati on on buyi ng twi ne, see page 31.
SI RLOI N ROAST
With to kinds of muscle,
this cut cooks unevenly.
TEND ERLOI N ROAST
Don't be fooled by to
tenderloins tied together.
dcgrccssosidclacingnrcnowlaccsaway. Rcplacc
covcr and continuc cooking until instantrcad
thcrmomctcrinscrtcdintothickcst part olroast
rcgistcrs !4O dcgrccs, ! Oto 3O minutcs longcr,
dcpcndingonthickncss.
o. Jranslcrroasttocuttingboard,tcntlooscly
withloilandlctrcstI 5 minutcs. Intcrnaltcmpcr
aturc shouldriscto I 5O dcgrccs. Rcmovctwinc,
cutroastinto'/inchthicksliccsandscrvc.
G RI LL- ROASTED PORK LOI N F OR GAS G RI LL
! . IollowrccipclorGrill RoastcdIorkLoinlor
Charcoal Grill throughstcp 2. Soak2 cups wood
chipsinwatcrtocovcrlor3Ominutcs,drai n. Ilacc
chipsinsmalldisposablcaluminumpan.
2 . About 2O minutcs bclorc grilling, placc
woodchip pan on primary burncr burncr that
willrcmainonduringcooking) , positioncooking
gratc. Ignitcgrill,turnallburncrstohigh,covcr,
and hcat until vcry hot, about I 5 minutcs. Il
chipsignitc,uscwatcrnllcdspraybottlctocxtin
guish. ) Scrapcgratcclcanwithgrillbrush.
3 . Continuc with rccipc lrom stcp 4, kccping
lid down cxccpt as nccdcd to chcck progrcss ol
pork.
C HI Ll-MUSTARD S P I CE RU B
MAKES ABOUT 2 TABLESPOONS
2 teaspoons chi l i powder
2 teaspoons powdered mustard
teaspoon ground cumi n
' h teaspoon cayenne
Combincallingrcdicntsinsmallbowl .
SWEET AN D SAVORY S P I CE RUB
MAKES ABOUT 2 TABLESPOONS
tabl espoon cumi n seeds
I ' / teaspoons cori ander seeds
teaspoon fennel seeds
' h teaspoon ground ci nnamon
1 /4 teaspoon ground al l spi ce
Combinc cumin, coriandcr, and lcnncl in small
skillct, toast ovcr mcdium hcat until lragrant,
about 2 minutcs, shaking skillct occasional ly.
Cooltoroomtcmpcraturc,grindcoarsc.Jranslcr
tosmallbowl ,stirincinnamonandallspicc.
J U L Y c A U GU S T 20 0 5
/
7T5711! T(!1T!T17.
Remote Meat Thermometers
The only way to ensure a wel l - cooked roast is through
constant temperture moni tori ng, but repeatedly
l ifting the l i d of the gri l l wreaks havoc on cooki ng
ti mes. Coul d a remote them1ometer-whi ch trns
mi ts the temperture from a probe i nserted i n the
food to a cordl ess consol e-solve this probl em? To
fi nd out, we rounded up four model s.
What separated the best from the worst were
the trnsmissi on rnge and the tempertur-setting
opti ons. Some model s transmi tted up to 200 feet,
whi l e the shortest range was a mere 30 feet. Our
favori te model s cl early i ndi cated when we had
moved out of transmi ssi on range (soundi ng a series
of warni ng beeps) ; the others si mpl y ceased flash
i ng a di spl ay l i ght-a bi t too subtl e.
More i mportnt i s that some model s ar restricted
to factory-detem1i ned temperture settings. For
i nstnce, if you want to pul l of a turkey at 165
degrees (whi ch we recommend) usi ng the Weber
Barbecue Beeper Digital Themometer, the best you
can do i s set i t to " Beef-Medi um" ( 160 degrees)
or " Beef-Wel l Done" ( 170 degrees) . I t can' t be set
to 165. We ure you not to use the "Turkey" setting
(progrmmed at a parchi ngly dr 1 80 degres) .
In the end, we l i ked the Tayl or thermometer
best. The provi ded temperature gui del i nes can be
overri dden to set any temperature, the range i s
ampl e (up to I SO feet) , and the di ppabl e pager i s
smal l enough not to hi nder an i mpromptu game of
catch. -Garth Cl i ngi ngsmi th
FAVO RITE THERMOMETER
TAYLOR Wi rel ess Oven
Thermometer with Remote
Pger $34. 99
m
w
A decent range, and there' s a cl ear
i ndi cati on when you move out of i t.
Pl us, you can set i t to any temperture.
BETTER FOR BARBECUE
MAVERICK Remote Smoker
Thermometer $39. 99

The range (adverti sed at I 00 feet,
30 feet i n testi ng) l i mi ts i ts useful
ness, but a second probe measures
ambi ent gri l l temperature.
RUNS TOO HOT
WEBER Barbecue Beeper
Digital ThermometerS 34. 9 5
Great range, but i t' s not obvi ous
when you ' ve l eft i t. Preset tem
perature al erts are l i mi ti ng.
ALL TALK
BROOKSONE Gri l l Al ert
Tal ki ng Remote Thermometer
$75 . 00
Same probl ems as the Weber. For
the extra $40, a computeri zed voi ce
says, "Your entree i s ready. " Creepy. "
Perfect A1oli
When maki ng th i s French cond i ment, the key i s to avoi d a bi tter garl i c aftertaste.
T
hctcrmai"oli isdcrivcdlromthcIrcnch
wordsail, mcaninggarlic,"andoli, which
isIrovcnalloroil . "Aoliisancmulsion
sauccthatbytraditionisthcccntcrpiccc
ola simplc suppcr scrvcd with cookcdvcgctablcs
andpotatocs andstcamcdh sh. Consistingolonly
a lcw ingrcdicnts-livc oil, garlic, cgg yolk, and
lcmonjuicc-olicanbc dclighmlly smoothand
simplcwhcnmadcpropcrly.Whcnit`smadcbadly,
howcvcr, thc ovcrwhclming imprcssion is onc ol
garlic.bittcr,sharp,andlonglasting.
Ancr making multiplc batchcs, I was morc
than lamiliarwiththiscommoncomplaint.Aoli
traditionally makcs usc olraw minccd garlic i t
is lrom garlic that it proudly gcts i ts dcnning
uavor) , butimpcrlcctlyminccdgarlicruincdthc
tcxturc and lcn ovcrsizcd picccs that cxplodcd
inthcmouthlikcgarlicbombs. I nccdcda nncr
minccand a morc rcliablc systcm lor producing
it. Jhc answcr turncd out to bc a good garlic
prcss or a rasp stylc zcstcr/gratcr. I also discov
crcd that i t is important to rcmovc thc bittcr
grccngcrm ilthcrc isonc) that runs down thc
ccntcrolthcclovc.
Nowthcsauccwas smooth and thc garlicwcll
distributcd, | | olt|c raw garlic still
sccmcd ovcrwhcl mi ng. Why not, I thought,
cook it nrst` I roastcd, toastcd, and simmcrcd
clovcsinoil,buttastcrscriticizcdcvcrybatchlor
bcing bland. I tricd cooknghallolthcgarlicand
lcavingthc rcst raw, but this didn`twork cit|cr.
Iorccdbacktotradition,Itricdlarlcssgarlicthan
mostrccipcssuggcst.Asinglcminccdclovcgavc
ucaioliplcasanthcatwithoutthc shockvaluc.
Most rccipcs usc lcmon j uicc to cut through
uc cloying richncss olthc oil andcggyolk, but
uclcmoncanaddsournotcs,too. I addcda bit
olsugarto ollsctthcbittcrncssandlounduatI
nowhadaclcan,bright,and balanccdsaucc.
Jhc biggcst IndIn Oy volumc in aoli is
ucoil . lthcdillcrcntoilstcstcd,Iwasshockcd
to hnd thatrcgular not cxtravirgin) purc olivc
oil was thc tastcrs` lavoritc. It gavc thc saucc
body and a slightly lruity uavor that compl c
mcntcd thc lcmon and _mC. Ixtravirgin olivc
Getti ng the Garl i c Ri ght
for a smooth aiol i , it i s essential
to mi nce the garl i c very
fi nely, al most to a
paste. We rely on a
garl ic press or rasp grater.
3 B Y S ARA H W I LS ON E
Garl i ck a'iol i perks up bl anched green beans and boi l ed
new potatoes.
oil, usuallyprclcrrcdinrawsauccs bccausc olits
strongcr, lruiticr uavor, impartcd too much ol
its own distinct charactcr and was rulcd out as
ovcrpowcring.Vcgctablcoil,tomygrcatsurprisc,
waslikcdloritspurcclcan uavor, butthcsauccs
madcwithitlackcdboththcdcpthandcharactcr
onccxpcctslromaoli . Supplcmcntcdwit|somc
cxtravirgin olivcoil,howcvcr, vcgctablc oilwas
j ustasgoodasrcgularolivcoil .
I locuscd ncxt on thc mixing mct|od. In thc
blcndcr, thc cmulsion bccamc so thick it scizcd
thc bladcs. Wiskingbyhandworkcd bcautimlly,
butancrlourminutcs,myarmwasvcrytircd. Jhc
loodproccssor,whichpullcdt|csaucctogct|crin
j ust3Oscconds,wasmytopchoicc.
A'OLI
MAKES ABOUT /CUP
Iscthissauccasacondimcntlormcats,nsh, and
vcgctablcs or sprcad it on sandwichcs. Ilncccs
sary, rcmovc thc grccn gcrm or stcm) in thc
garlicbclorcprcssingorgratingit,thcgcrmwill
givc thc aoli a bittcr, hot uavor. Ilyou do not
havc rcgularolivc oil,usc a blcnd olcqual parts
cxtravirgin olivc oil and vcgctablc oil. Ground
whitc pcppcr isprclcrrcd bccausc it`snotasvis
i blci nthcnnishcdaioliasblackpcppcr,butcithcr
C O O K
'
S I L L U S T R A T E D
C
can bcuscd. Jhc aoli will kccp rclrigcratcdinan
airtightcontaincrlorupto3 days.
medi um garl i c cl ove, peel ed
2 l arge egg yol ks
tabl espoon pl us I teaspoon j uice
from I l emon
'/e teaspoon sugar
'/ teaspoon tabl e salt
Ground pepper, preferably white
V cup ol ive oi l
I . Ircss garlic through garlic prcss or gratc
vcry nncly on raspstylc gratcr. Mcasurc out !
tcaspoongarlic,discardrcmaininggarlic.
2 . In lood proccssor, combinc garli c, yolks,
lcmonj uicc,sugar, salt,andpcppcrtotastcuntil
combincd,about I O scconds.Wiumachincrun
ning,graduallyaddoilinslowstcadystrcam pro
ccssshouldtakc about 3O scconds) , scrapcdown
sidcs olbowl with rubbcrspatula and proccss 5
sccondslongcr.Adj ustscasoningwith additional
saltandpcppcrandscrvc.
ROSE MARY- THYME A' OLI
Scrvc this robust aoli with roastcd and grillcd
mcatsorgrillcdvcgctablcs.
Iol l ow rcci pc lor Aol i , addi ng ! tcaspoon
choppcdlrcshroscmaryand! tcaspoonchoppcd
lrcsht|ymctoloodproccssoralongwithgarlic.
SAFFRON A' OLI
Iowdcrcd sallron scc pagc 3O) rclcascs its U a
vor morc quickly than salnon thrcads . Ilusing
powdcrcdsalnon,stironly '/I tcaspoonintouc
h nishcdaoli ,allowittostandloratlcast2Omin
utcs, thcnstiragainbclorcscrving. Salnonaoliis
aniccaccompanimcnttohshandshcllh sh.
In small bowl , combi nc vs tcaspoon sallron
thrcads,crumblcd,and! tcaspoon boilingwatcr,
lctstccp !O minutcs. Iollow rccipc lorAoli, add
ing sallron to lood proccssor along wit| garlic,
translcr h nishcd aioli to bowl, covcrwit|plastic
wrap,andrcnigcratcatlcast2 hourstoallowsal
lronUavortobloom. Stirbclorcscrving.
COOK' 5Egives you free recipes online. For our Basil
Dill Aoli rcipe, visit ww .cooksillustrted.com and key in code
705| . Tis rcipe will be available until August J | , 2005.
KC>LJUrJlI-`L\C |rlCG lZZJ JI Olc
Bu rnt or bl and, most homemade versi ons of t hi s restau rant cl assi c can' t come c l ose.
Cou l d we make gri l l ed pi zza a success for the backy ard cook?
M
y hrst grillcd pizza sct
thc bar impossibly high
lor thosc that lollowcd.
My wilc was a graduatc
studcnt in Irovidcncc, R. I . , and, dcspitc
bcingU at brokc,wc hadourhcartsscton
dinncr at ^ Iorno, thc rcstaurant lamcd
lor itsrustic Italian cooking. Ancrpinch
ing our pcnnics lor wccks,wc madc rcs
crvations and cvcn splurgcd on a taxi to
takc usthcrc. Wc ordcrcdthcirtradcmark
grillcd pizza lor our nrst coursc, but it
wasn`t much to look at whcn it arrivcd
vagucly shapcd and stingily toppcdwith a
scattcring olchccsc, tomatocs, and hcrbs.
I wondcrcd ilwc had j ust thrown away
S ! 5 . Butthcnrstbitcdispcllcdmydoubts.
Jhclightlycharrcd,crackcrthincrustwas
packcdwithuavor,andthctoppingswcrc
pcrlcctly balanccd. Sincc thcn, I havchad
grillcdpizzainmanyrcstaurantsandback
yards, but nonc has mcasurcd up. What
wasP Iornodoingsorightthatcvcryonc
clscwasdoingsowrong`
I `vcmadchundrcdsolovcn bakcdpiz
zas and considcr myscl la prctty ski l l cd
pizzaiola, but my nrst attcmpt at grillcd
pizzawasa nightmarc. Jhc crustburncd
lasttothcgrillinthcmiddlcbutrcmaincd
B Y MA T TH EW CA R D E
wasabrcczctowork with andshapc,morc
clastic and rip rcsistant than most olthc
bakcdpizzadoughs Ihadtricd.
livc oil adds uavor and richncss to a
lcan dough. In this casc, a tablcspoon was
noticcablc, but twicc that bcttcr yct. Jhc
dough sccmcdsmoothcr, supplcr, and lcss
sticky. But thcn I noticcd somcthing clsc.
Jhc dough with thc highcr amount oloil
sccmcdi mpcrviousto stickingto thc grill .
Within 3Oscconds ovcr thc nrc, thc crust
casily rclcascd. thcr rccipcs slickcd thc
dough with oil bclorc grillingto thc samc
cllcct, but I lound this mcthod causcd
|larcupsasoildrippcdontothc hotcoals.
Bcttcrto bakc thc protcctivc oil rightinto
thcdough.
rawaroundthc ri m, and saucc and chccsc
drippcdontothccoals,causingarmsingc
ing uarcups. And whatwascdiblc didn` t
tastc vcry good. Abj cct lailurc taught mc
Grilled pizza i s al l about perfect choreogrphy and a light hand with
potently flavored toppings.
MowthatI hadthctcxturcolthcdough
right, I rcalizcdthatthcuavorwasstilltoo
mccklorgrilling,thctoppingsandthcchar
nomthchotnrcovcrpowcrcd it. I`dsccna
rccipcortwoinwhichwholcwhcat,ryc,or
buckwhcat |lourwas addcd to thc dough,
an idca I thought promising. Jhc smallcst
additiontranslatcdintoasurprisingamount
oluavor. I scttlcdona scant tablcspoonol
wholcwhcatuour, any morc madc ittastc
likc an Indianchapati. Alittlcsugarmrthcr
improvcd uavor and also hclpcd to color
thc blond crust. Cookcd lcss than bakcd
pizza, grillcd pizza tcndstobc a tadpalc. )
Jhclast touchwast oincrcasc thc amount
ol salt. Jo compcnsatc lor thc skimpicr
glossoltopping,I wantcdthiscrustto bc an important lcsson. Grillcd pizza is not
bakcd pizza-lcavc all prcconccptions bchind.
Jhc dcmandsplaccdonboththcpizzaandthc
cookarc lardillcrcnt,larmorcchallcnging.
Crust
I wantcd to makc a simplc tomato and chccsc
pizza,and I kncwthatgrillcdpizzawasnothing
without a grcat tasting crust-it`s much morc
t|anjustavchiclclor toppings. Jhc dough has
to bc managcablc, too. Jhc batch I had madc
lor my trial run clung tcnaciously to cvcrything
ittouchcd.
Doughlorgrillcdpizzahastobcslackcnough
to bc strctchcd thin-thinncr than bakcd pizza,
sot|atitcancookthroughquicklyonthcgrill
yctstrongcnoughnottorip.Highprotcinbrcad
Uourgcncrally makcsastrongcrdoughthan all -
purposcuour,anda hcadto hcadtcstprovcdit.
Aslor t|c ratio olwatcrto U our, thcwcttcrthc
dough,thccasicritwastostrctchandthccrispicr
thccrust,butatacost. Jhcdoughwasintractably
sticky. I backcdollonthcwatcra littlc at a timc
untilt|cdough,t|oughstillprcttywct,couldbc
workcdwithoutclingingtoonrmlytomy hands
orthccountcrtop.
Kncadingdcvclopsglutcnindough,thclongcr
itis kncadcd,t|cstrongcrthcdough. I thought
slowlykncadcddoughmadc in astanding mixcr
wouldbct|cbcstbctlorgrilling,but,tomysur
prisc, oncc grillcd it was indistinguishablc lrom
doughmadcin a loodproccssorin a lraction ol
thcti mc.Icxpcrimcntcdwithdillcrcntproccssing
timcsandscttlcd on ! l/ minutcs-ti mccnough
lor thcdough to bccomcsmooth andsupplc. It
J U L Y 7 A U G U S T 20 0 5
'
morchighlyscasoncdthan abakcdcrust.
Fire
Ior t|c sakc oltcsting, I had bccn lollowing mc
grilling mcmod colIcctivcly cmbraccd by mostol
mc rccipcs I had rcscarchcd. Jhc crust is cookcd
ononcsidcovcramcdiumhot,twolcvclnrcuntil
crisp,ucnU ippcd,toppcd,andh nishcdonuccool
sidc olthc hrc. Jhismcmod workcd, butI lound
it limitcd t|c numbcr olpizzas I could top and
cooktooncatatimc,lcavingmcstrandcdgrillsidc
whilc cvcrybody clsc tuckcd into hot pizza (likc
pancakcs,grillcdpizzasarcbcstcatcnASAI).
I tricd a singlclcvcl hotnrcbutsoon rcalizcd
t|atthiswas toonskyan approach. Surc, I could
cook all lour crusts at oncc, but it took m my
rusty linccookskillsto kccp mcmnom burning.
Troubl eshooti ng Gri l l ed Pi zza
Here ar thre prblems we encountered when making grilled piza-and the steps we now tke to avoid them.
M I SSHAPE N B U RNT S OGGY
HL P Crust is amoeba shaped.
bLU M Stretching the dough
by hand may be traditional. but roll
ing it out with a rolling pin keeps it
much more symmetrical. Rolling also
presses out air pockets and reduces
bubbling when the dough is grilled.
LP Crust bums in center.
LU M The dough stretches
easily and can get very thin at the
center. Using a piza peel or baking
sheet to slide the piza onto the grill
keeps the weight of the dough from
overstretching the center.
LbP Crust is sog.
bLU M Mounds of sliced toma
toes (or sauce) and cheese make for
a mushy mess. Modest amounts of
cheese and diced tomatoes (salted
to drw of moisture) add favor
without weighing down the piza.
Lowcring thc tcmpcraturc olthc nrc madc thc
tcchniquc salcr, but thc tcxturc olthc crust was
now morc dcnsc and lcss crackcry. Acr trying
scvcral dillcrcnt arrangcmcnts olcoals, I hd
that a singlclcvcl , mcdiumhot nrc sprcad ovcr
thrccquartcrsolthcgmbottomgavcmccnough
hcatandrcalcstatctocooktwopizzasatonccand
asalcty zonc ontowhich ! could slidc any crusts
thatwcrcatriskolburning-ararcbutrcalthrcat.
Andinstcadolhnishingthcnrsttwopizzasimmc
diatcly, I optcd to grill thc othcrtwo crusts-thc
hallbakcdcrustshcldwcll-andthcntopandnn
ishthcpizzastwoatatimc. Covcringthctoppcd
pizzaswiththc grilllidlor a lcw minutcs trappcd
cnough hcat to makc thc toppings sizzlc,and,in
a mattcr olminutcs, ! had lourhotpizzasrcady
toscrvc.
Toppings
Irom my nrst sorry attcmpt at grillcd pizza, I
kncwthatastandardpairingoltomatosauccand
mozzarcllawouldn`twork, thcsauccwould sim
ply soak through thc thin crust, and thc chccsc
wouldoozcollintothcnrc.Jhctoppingshadto
bc dricrand morcpotcntlyuavorcdso a smallcr
amountcould bcuscd. Sliccdhcsp, mcatyplum
tomatocswcrc thc casicstsubstitution lor saucc,
S T E P BY S T E P : GRI LLE D PI ZZA U
butthcy,too,turncdthccrustsoggy.Sccdcdand
coarsclychoppcdtomatocslarcdbcttcrbutwcrc
still too wct. I nnallytricdsalting thc choppcd
tomatocstodrawohcxccssjuiccs,andthcrcsults
wcrcthcbcstyct.Isctthctomatocsinacolandcr
andallowcdthcmtodrainlor30minutcsbclorc
blottingthcmwithpapcrtowcls. Jhc tomatocs
wcrc hrmcr, dricr, and, most important, morc
|lavorml .
Aslorchccsc,m bodicd,sonchccscslikclon
tina, Montasio, Bcl Iacsc, smokcd mozzarclla,
and Jalcggio all provcd bcttcr than plain moz
zarclla, with lontina nnding thc most lans. Jo
roundout its ripc, carthyHavor,tastcrssuggcstcd
ahardgratingchccsc. IccorinoandAsiagocamc
onalittlcstrong,butnuttyIarmcsanaddcdj ust
thcrightnotc. Mixingitwiththclontinasimpli
ncdthcj oboltoppingthc pizzas and madc thc
stickylontinacasicrtoworkwith.
)ust about any hcrb tastcd good, but a scat
tcringoltornbasillcavcsaddcdthcclassictouch
and uavor. It might bc grillcd, but it was still
pizza,ancrall .
Control
Mypizzas wcrc nnallytastingalmost as good as
what I rcmcmbcrcd, but thcy wcrc hightm to
look at. misshapcn, char splotchcd, and bloatcd
with largc bubblcs. P Iorno` s amorphous pics
wcrc rustic, minc wcrc monstrous. Shaping thc
dough outsidc by tHc grill, with cvcrything clsc
going on, was simply too much. I brought it
back into thc kitchcn and shapcd thc rounds
all at oncc, hnding that I could sandwich thcm
bctvccnuourdustcdshcctsolparchmcntpapcr,
stackthcmlikctortillas,and shuttlc thcmoutto
thcgrill .
But thcrc was still thc mad bubbling. Whcn
I tricd prcssing thc dough |lat with my hands
ancrstrctchingit,thingsdidimprovc,butnotby
much. I rcvisitcdthc rccipcs I hadcollcctcdand
sawthatsomccmploycdarollingpintoshapcthc
crust-a tcchniquc 1 dI5IkC WDCn baking pizza
bccauscitmakcsthcdoughtoouat,lcvclingthc
pul|outcrcorona. But thatwasbaking,thiswas
grilling. Kolling thcdoughcllcctivclylorccdout
thc largcr bubblcs and madc thc dough morc
unilorm. Jhc crust bubblcd whcn grillcd, but
only cnough to lightly puckcr thc surlacc-just
thc right amount lor an idcally crisp yct chcwy
tcxturc.owIhadallthcuavorolthcrcstaurant
pizza in my own backyard, with a managcablc
mcthodandwit|:outthcstillpricctag.
G RILLE D TOMATO AND C HE E S E PIZZAS
FOR CHARCOAL G RILL
MAKES F OUR V I MLH PI ZZAS
Jhc pizzas cook vcry quickly on thc grill , so
bclorc you bcgin grilling thcm, bc surc to havc
all thc cquipmcnt and ingrcdicnts you nccd at
hand. Equipmcntincludcsapizzapccl orarim
lcssbakingshcct) , apairoltongs, aparingknilc,
a largc cutting board, and a pastrybrush,ingrc
dicnts includc all thc toppings and a small bowl
oluourlordusting. Jimingandcoordinationarc
crucial , ilyou arc unsurc olyour skill lcvcl, try
cooking thc hrst two pizzas onc at a timc, thcn
workuptocookingthc hnal twointandcm.
Jhc pizzas arc bcst scrvcd hot oll thc grill
butcan bckcptwarm lor 20 to 30minutcsona
wirc rackina200dcgrccovcn. Hardwoodchar
coal and charcoal briqucttcs work cqually wcll .
Whichcvcryouusc,itis importantthatthccoals
bc sprcad in an cvcn laycr ovcr thrcc quartcrs
olthc grill bottom, coals placcd anyhighcrwill
scorchthccrust.
I. Shape dough into 4 smooth. tight balls. Z.With pin. roll each dough ball on parchment paper to form 9- inch round. J. Stack dough rounds. separted by parchment. 4. Arrange
lit coals in even layer over three-quarter of grill. 5. Invert dough round onto floured peel. remove parchment. and slide onto grill. Cook 2 dough rounds at once. 6. Using tongs. lift
up dough round and peek to make sure it's not scorching. If it' s cooking too fast. slide piza to cool part of grill. 7.Trnsfer dough round to cutting board. browned side up. Brush
dough round with garlic oil and top with cheese mixture and tomatoes. 8. Retum piza to grill and cover grill to help cheese melt.
C O O K
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S I L L U S T R A T E D
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2
:
Dcuh
2 tabl espoons extra-vi rgi n ol ive oi l
cup (8ounces) water, room temperature
2 cups ( I I ounces) bread fl our, pl us more for
work surface
I tabl espoon whol e wheat fl our (opti onal )
2 teaspoons sugar
I 'I teaspoons tabl e sal t
teaspoon i nstant yeast
7cyyin
I 'l pounds pl um tomatoes ( 5 to 6 medi um) .
cored, seeded, and cut i nto 'l- i nch di ce
3f teaspoon tabl e salt
6 ounces fonti na cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
I 'l ounces Parmesan cheese, fi nely grated
(about 3f4 Cup)
reci pe Spi cy Garl i c Oi l (reci pe fol l ows)
1
1 cup chopped fresh basi l l eaves
Coarse salt
! . ICR1ME CR\S1 Combincoilandwatcrin
liquidmcasuringcup.Inloodproccssornncdwith
plasticdoughbladcormctalbladc,proccssbrcad
U our, wholc whcat U our, sugar, salt, and ycast
untilcombincd, about 5 scconds. With machinc
ruming,slowlyaddliquidthroughlccdhbc,con
tinuc to proccssuntil dough lorms tacky, clastic
ballthatclcarssidcsolworkbowl,about ! min
utcs. Ildoughballdocsnotlorm,addmorcuour
!tablcspoonatatimcandproccssuntildoughball
lorms. Spray mcdium bowl lightly with nonstick
cooking spray or rub lightly with oil. Jranslcr
doughtobowlandprcssdowntouattcnsurlacc,
covcrtightlywithplasticvrapandsctindrah-ncc
spotuntildoublcdinvolumc, ! to2 hours.
2. Whcndoughhasdoublcd,prcssdowngcn
tlytodcatc,turndoughoutontoworksurlacc
anddividcinto4 cqual-sizcdpicccs.Withcuppcd
palm,lormcachpicccintosmooth,tightball .Sct
doughballs onwcll-uourcdworksurlacc. Ircss
doughroundswithhandto uattcn, covcrlooscly
withplasticwrapandlctrcstabout! 5 minutcs.
3. ICR1M1CIIUGMcanwhilc,tosstoma-
tocsand tablc salt in mcdium bowl, translcrto
colandcr and drain 3O minutcs wipc out and
rcscrvcbowl ) . Shakccolandcrtodrainollcxccss
liquid,translcrtomatocstonowcmptybowland
sct asidc. Combinc chccscs in sccond mcdium
bowlandsctasidc.
4. Gcntly strctch dough rounds into disks
about': inchthickand5 tooinchcsi ndiamctcr.
Workingoncpicccatatimcandkccpingthcrcst
covcrcd, roll out cach diskto '/s inch thickncss,
to !O inchcsindiamctcr,onwclluourcdshcct
olparchmcntpapcr,dustingwithadditionaluour
asnccdcdtoprcvcnt stickng. Ildough shrinks
whcn rollcd out, covcrwithplasticwrap and lct
rcstuntilrclaxcd,! O to! 5 minutcs. )Dustsurlacc
olrollcd doughwith uourandsctasidc. Rcpcat
with rcmaining dough, stacking shccts olrollcd
doughontop olcachothcr withparchmcntin
bctwccn)andcovcringstackwit|plasticwrap,sct
asidcuntilgrillisrcady.
5 . 1C GRLL Ignitc o quarts ! largc chim
ncy) hardwood charcoal or briqucttcs in chim
ncy startcr and burn until mlly ignitcd, ! 5 to
2O minutcs. Empty coals into grill and sprcad
into cvcn laycrovcr thrcc-quartcrs olgrill, lcav-
ingonc quadrant lrccolcoals. Iosition cooking
gratc ovcr coals and hcat until grill is mcdium
hot, about 5 minutcs you can hold your hand
5 inchcsabovcgrillgratclor 4 scconds) , scrapc
gratc clcanwithgrillbrush.
o. Lightly uour pizza pccl, invcrt ! dough
roundontopccl, gcntly strctchingi tas nccdcd
torctainshapc do notstrctchdough toothin,
thin spotswill burn quickly ) . Iccl olland dis
card parchmcnt, carcmlly slidc round onto hot
sidc olgril l . Immcdiatcly rcpcat with anothcr
dough round. Cook until tops arc covcrcd
wi thbubblcs picrcclargcrbubbl cswi thparing
knilc ) andbottomsarcgrillmarkcdandcharrcd
i n spots, ! to 2 minutcs, whilc rounds cook,
chcckundcrsidcsandslidctocoolarcaolgrilli l
browningtooquickly.Jranslcrcruststocutting
boardbrowncdsidcsup. Rcpcatwith2 rcmain
i ngdoughrounds.
7. Brush 2 crusts gcncrouslywth Spicy Garlic
il, top cach cvcnly wit| onc-quartcr olchccsc
mixturcandonc-quartcroltomatocs. Rcturnpiz-
zastogrillandcovcrgrilIwithlid,cookuntilbot
tomsarcwcllbrowncdandchccscismcltcd,2 to
4 minutcs,chcckingbottomsncqucntlytoprcvcnt
burning. Jranslcrpizzas to cutting board, rcpcat
withrcmaining2 crusts.Sprinklcpizzaswit|basil
andcoarscsalttotastc,cutintowcdgcsandscrvc
immcdiatcly.
G R I LLE D TOMATO AND CHE E S E PI ZZAS
F OR GAS GRI LL
! . IollowrccipclorGrillcdJomatoandChccsc
IizzaslorCharcoal Grillthroughstcp4.
2 . Light all burncrs and turn to high hcat,
covcrgrill,andhcatgrilluntilhot,about! 5 min
utcs,scrapccookinggratcclcanwithgrill brush.
3 . Continuc with rccipc lrom stcp o, cooking
pizzaswith lid down in both stcps o and7 and
incrcasingcookingtimcsinstcpsoand7by ! to
2 minutcs,ilnccdcd.
S P I CY GARLI C OI L
MAKES E NOUGH F OR 4 PI ZZAS
4 medi um garl i c cl oves, mi nced or pressed
through garl i c press ( 4 teaspoons)
'l teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/ cup extra-vi rgi n ol ive oi l
Cook all i ngrcdi cnts i n small sauccpan ovcr
mcdium hcat, stirring occasionally, unti l garlic
bcgins to sizzl c, 2 to 3 minutcs. Jranslcr to
smallbowl .
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
! !
J ust Give Me the Dough
Many cui si nes ofer up some take on gri l l ed flatbread.
It can be eaten al most pl ai n . merel y sl i cked with
our Spi c Garl i c Oi l . or dressed with any number of
si mpl e toppi ngs other than tomatoes and cheese.
Flatbread can sere as a qui ck appetizer or a l ight
accompani ment to a meal -once it's been cooked
the coals shoul d sti l l be hot enough to gri l l meat or
fi sh. For the best flavor and texture. gri l l ed fatbread
shoul d be sered as soon as possi bl e. Spri nkl e with
coarse sal t before seri ng.
G RI LLED F LATBREAD
MAKES FOUR 9 1 NCH F LATBREADS
reci pe Gri l l ed Pizza Crust prepared
through step 6
reci pe Spi cy Garl i c Oi l
toppi ng (see Toppi ng Choi ces) , optional
Coarse sal t
Brush gri l l ed si des of 2 crusts generously with
garl i c oi l ; top each evenly wi th one-quarter of
toppi ng. if usi ng. Return fl atbreads to gri l l ; cook
uncovered unti l bottoms are wel l browned and
toppi ngs are heated through. I to 3 mi nutes.
Transfer fl atbreads to cutti ng board; repeat with
remai ni ng 2 crusts. Spri nkl e fl atbreads with sal t to
taste; cut i nto pi eces and sere i mmediately.
1Olll M LMOl Lb b
2 ounces Prmesan. fnely grted (about I cup)
1/2 cup coarel y chopped mixed herbs. such as
thyme. parl ey. basi l . marjorm. and oregano
3 tabl espoons sesame seeds mixed with I table
spoon chopped fresh thyme leaves; spri nkl e fat
breads l ightly with l emon j ui ce before sering
'/ cup coarely chopped fresh oregano leaves
and 6 ounces crumbl ed fet
2 tabl espoons chopped anchovi es mixed with
6 tabl espoons chopped bl ack or green ol ives
'/ cup prepared tapenade or pesto
For a great appeti zer or accompani ment to
di nner, ski p the tomatoes and si mpl y gri l l the
dough to make fl atbread.
Best Barbecued Pulled Chicken
Most reci pes sti ck wi th bonel ess breasts and bottl ed sauce . How about
a barbecue sandwi ch that ri val s pu l l ed pork i n a fracti on of the ti me?
T
he pulled chicken sandwich i s a
lesser staple of Dixieland barbe
cue shacks, where the ribs and
pulled pork usually take center
stage. But fom a business standpoint, it's a
very practical choice for the pitmaster, who
no doubt has plenty of extra barbecued
chicken on hand. The tender, smoky meat
is simply pulled of the bone in moist, sof
shreds, tossed with tangy, sweet sauce, and
piled high on sof white bread with pickle
chips and coleslaw. To me, this is the ulti
mate example of taking lefovers to another
level. I'll sometimes try it at home, but not
being a pitmaster ( and a Yankee to boot) ,
my lefover chicken i s more ofen merely
boneless and bland, and a bottle of barbe
cue sauce ofers little help. Ifl wanted some
great pulled chicken barbecue, I' d have to
start from scratch.
Most of the recipes I researched were
B Y SEA N LAWLER F
two good-sized chunks of hickory or mes
quite, the legs cooked gently but thoroughly
in about an hour and absorbed plenty of
smoke flavor along the way.
Pul l ing My Legs
Whole chicken legs ( thighs and drumsticks
attached) have great favor, they are dirt
cheap ( especially when purchased in giant
supermarket "fily packs") , and the dark
meat is nearly impossible to overcook. On
the downside, they are riddled with con
nective tissue, blood vessels, and interior
veins of fat, none of which are appetizing.
And while the breast is basically one big
muscle, tl1e leg is made up of a dozen or so
smaller muscles, with fbers running every
which way. Also, pulling and shredding
breast meat is a snap; handling leg meat
is a chore.
no more than footnotes to recipes for bar
becued chicken that treated pulled chicken
sandwiches as mere leftovers . The few
exceptions were pale, "quick and easy" imi
tations of the ideal, instructing me to grill
a few boneless chicken breasts and then
toss them with sauce. This approach was
A smok gri l l . a tang sauce. and a qui ck shredd i ng techni que turn meat
chi cken l egs i nto cl assi c barbecue fare.
I discovered a partial solution to this
problem when I accidentally overcooked
the chicken one afernoon. The internal
temperature had shot up to around !85
degrees ! 5 degrees past "done" for legs) ,
but the meat was still moist. In addition,
more of the connective tissue had dis-
solved, so the meat now fel l off the bone
i n l arge pieces with only a gentle tug. so inferior to the real thing-no smoke or
fall -apart texture, just pasty bottled sauce-that it
reminded me of the crimes committed every day
by Northerners in the nane of Southern corn
bread. I wanted, at the very least, to take the
pulled chicken sandwich seriously. And, like most
Northerners, I didn't have m day.
Choosing Chicken
Tasters loved the smoky favor of a whole chicken,
which spent about an hour on the gri l l , but
there were two problems. First, coordinating the
doneness between breasts and legs seemed like
overkill for pulled chicken. Also, there was some
thing heartbreaking about taking a whole grill
roasted chicken with crisp, mahogany skin and
chopping it down into a sandwich. Using parts
would solve both problems: It would give me
more control over cooking, and I would avoid
having to deconstruct the perfect barbecued bird.
I tried grilling both whole leg quarters and
bone-in breasts; the latter tended to dry out, so I
went with the legs. These quarters, when cooked
over direct heat, didn't develop much smoky
favor in only 3Ominutes, so I turned to indirect
heat and a "low and slow" grill temperature.
During this longer cooking time, the meat turned
deliciously smoky and was moist and tender as
wel l . ( Unlike breast meat, dark leg meat can cook
for more than an hour without drying out . ) I
tested various setups for the charcoal and fnally
settled on two piles of coals on either side of the
grill, witl1 the legs in the middle and a drip pan
underneath. ( Putting all of tl1e coals on one side
of the grill produced uneven heat, cooking the
legs closest to the coals too quickly. )
More fat had rendered out as well , making the
chicken less greasy.
Always impatient, I wanted a shortcut to the
shredding work once the meat was of the bone,
so I tried pulsing the meat in the food processor.
This raised a few eyebrows in the test kitchen.
"I prefer to chew my own food," quipped one
colleague when I placed a bowl of the sauced,
machine- chopped chicken in font of her. It may
have looked like cat food, but tasters liked the
flavor, and this "processed" chicken was able to
absorb more sauce tl1an the hand-pulled. While
Without any direct heat to sear the meat,
A eg Up
there was no need to flip the legs during -- ------------
cooking. In fact, there were advantages to Chi cken l egs are our top
keeping tl1e legs ski n side up for tl1e dura- choi ce for thi s reci pe. They
tion: The rendered fat fom the skin basted
the meat, keeping it juicy and preventing
it fom turning dry and leathery fom the
heat and smoke. With two moderate piles
of charcoal ( about 4Obriquettes each) and
C O O K
'
S I L L U S T R A T E D
l Z
are i nexpensi ve, nearly
i mpossi bl e to overcook,
and have a ri ch, meat
flavor that stands up to
smoke and barbecue sauce.
packing up the lefovers fom this test, I tossed
together the hand-pulled and machine-processed
batches of chicken. Right away, I noticed that the
combination of the two textures looked better
than either of the two alone-it looked, in fact,
just like pulled pork. In addition to the favor
boost, the chopped chicken helped to bind the
mixture and made it stiffer, so it piled nicely on
the bun instead of sliding off onto the plate.
The next day, with this 50/50 mi xture i n
mind, I began separating the chicken into two
piles as I pulled it off the bones. The intact larger
pieces were set aside for hand shredding, while
the smaller, crustier bits went into the food pro
cessor for a few quick pulses. Not only did this
result in the perfect texture, but it also saved me
some preparation time.
Sizing Up the Sauce
I experimented with different types of barbecue
sauce, including thin vinegar- and mustard- based
"Carolina-style" sauces-the traditional comple
ments for the rich, fll favor of pulled pork.
Tasters, however, found these sauces too over
powering for relatively lean, mild chicken. They
much preferred Cook)s existing recipe for quick
barbecue sauce, which has a base of ketchup and
juice fom pureed onions and can be made in less
than 30 minutes. I made just a few adj ustments to
the consistency, as the existing sauce was too thick
to properly coat the fner shreds of chicken.
My last problem was that the pulled chicken
had cooled to room temperature once all the
shredding work was done. When I tossed the
pulled chicken back into the pan with the sauce
to heat it up, the meat also sofened nicely in the
steam generated by the sauce. At last, I had bar
becued pulled chicken that was bun-worthy. Not
bad for a Northerner!
BARBE CUE D PU LLE D CH I CKE N FOR
CHARCOAL G RI LL
S E RVES 6 TO 8
Chicken leg quarters consist of drumsticks attached
to thighs; ofen also attached are backbone sec
tions that must be trimmed away. Supermarkets
may also sell chicken legs, which are chicken
leg quarters with the backbone sections already
removed; they require less trimming and may
weigh less than leg quarters. When trimming the
fat from the chicken legs, try to leave the excess
skin intact, as it will keep the meat moist on the
grill. For equipment, you will need two 3- inch
wood chunks (we like hickory or mesquite) and a
1 6 by 1 2-inch disposable aluminum roasting pan
to catch the fat as the chicken cooks.
If you would like to hold the dish once the
chicken and sauce are combined and heated
through, transfer the mixture to a 1 3 by 9- inch
glass baking dish, cover with foil, and place in a
250- degree oven for up to an hour. Serve the
Adj usti ng the Texture
Shreddi ng pul l ed chi cken with forks yi el ds attrctive stri ps (l eft) , but the meat doesn' t hol d together very wel l on a bun.
Pul si ng the chicken i n a food processor produces soft shreds that soak up lots of sauce but are vi sual l y unappeal i ng (center) .
For best resul ts, use an even mix of shredded and pul sed chi cken ( right) .
S HR E DDE D P ULS E D HALF S H RE DDE D/ HALF PULS E D
pulled chicken with hamburger rolls or sandwich
bread, pickles, and coleslaw.
Chirkrn
8 bone- i n, ski n- on chi cken leg quarters (about
7 pounds total ) , tri mmed of backbone (see
i l l ustrati ons on page 1 4) and excess fat
Tabl e sal t and ground bl ack pepper
Saurr
I l arge oni on, peel ed and quartered
1/4 cup water
I 1h cups ketchup
1 11 cups appl e ci der
3 tabl espoons Worcestershi re sauce
3 tabl espoons Di jon mustard
1/4 cup molasses
1h teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tabl espoons appl e ci der vi negar
tabl espoon vegetabl e oi l
2 medi um garl i c cl oves, mi nced or pressed
through garl i c press (2 teaspoons)
1 11 tabl espoons chi l i powder
11 teaspoon cayenne
Hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
I . ICR1MECMICKENSoak two 3- inch wood
chunks in cold water to cover for 1 hour; drai n.
2. Using large chimney starter, ignite about
4': quarts charcoal , or about 80 i ndividual bri
quettes, and burn until flly ignited, about 1 5
minutes. Empty coals into grill; divide coals in
half, creating piles on opposite sides of grill . Place
1 6 by 1 2- inch disposable aluminum roasting pan
in center, between coal piles. Nestle one soaked
wood chunk on top of one pile ( reserve remain
ing wood chunk) . Position cooking grate over
coals, cover grill , and heat until hot, about 5
minutes; scrape grate clean with grill brush.
3. Meanwhile, sprinkle both sides of chicken
legs with salt and pepper. Place chicken legs skin
side up in single l ayer on center of grill over
roasting pan. Cover and cook 30 minutes ( inter
nal grill temperature should register about 325
degrees afer 30 minutes) .
4. Working quickly t o prevent excess heat loss,
remove cover, and, using tongs, rotate each leg so
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
I
that side facing inward now faces coals; do not fip
chicken pieces . Add second wood chunk to either
pile of coals; cover and cook until instant-read
thermometer inserted into thickest part of thighs
registers about 1 8 5 degrees, 30 to 40 minutes
longer ( internal grill temperature should register
about 3 1 0 degrees ) . Transfer chicken to cutting
board; let rest until cool enough to handle.
5 . ICR 1ME SA\CE While chicken is cook
ing or cooling, process onion and water in food
7T5711! T(!| T!T17.
Rethi nki ng Roasti ng Racks
Our reci pe cal l s for barbecui ng ei ght chi cken l egs,
the maxi mum number that can fit comfortably on
our gri l l grate. Coul d we use some sort of rck to
hol d more than ei ght chi cken l egs and make barbe
cued pul l ed chi cken for a crowd?
Our first thought was a rib rck. It work by ti l t
i ng a rck of ri bs on its si de and "fi l i ng" it i nto one of
four sl ots. We hoped that sl i di ng three legs i nto each
slot woul d do the same for our chi cken. But the legs
were awful ly crmped, and the cooki ng ti me for the
mi ddl e four legs laged behi nd that of the legs "on
the ai sl es. " Two legs in each sl ot worked better, but
that put us back where we started-cooking just
ei ght legs in total .
Then an i ngeni ous test cook pondered the use
of our favorite roasting rck, the Norpro Nonstick
Roasting Rck ( $9. 75) . With si x "sl ots, " i t i s the per
fect tool for this j ob. Two legs i n each slot means al l
1 2 fi t (and fi ni sh cooking) at once-pl ent to feed a
hungr crowd. - Garth Cl i ngi ngsmith
Thi s roasti ng rack can be put to work on the
gri l l duri ng the roasti ng "of season. "
proccssornttcdwithstccl bladc until purccdand
mixturc rcscmblcs slush, about 3O scconds. Iass
mixturc through nnc mcsh straincr into liquid
mcasuring cup, prcssing on solids with rubbcr
spatula, you should havc /4 cup straincd onion
purcc. Discardsolidsinstraincr.
T E C HN I QU E I TRIMMING L E G QUARTE RS
6 . Whisk onion purcc, kctchup, applc cidcr,
Worccstcrshirc, mustard, molasscs, pcppcr, and
3 tablcspoons cidcrvincgar togcthcrin mcdium
bowl . Hcat oil i n largc nonrcactivc sauccpan
ovcr mcdium hcat until shimmcring, add gar
lic, chili powdcr, and caycnnc and cook until
lragrant, about 3Oscconds. Stirinkctchupmix
turc, incrcasc hcat to mcdiumhigh, bring to
boil , rcducc hcat to mcdium low, and simmcr,
uncovcrcd,untiluavorsmcldandsauccisslightly
thickcncd, about ! 5 minutcs. You should havc
scant4cupssaucc.Jranslcrabout2 cupssauccto
scrvingbowl ,lcavcrcmainingsaucc insauccpan.
I . Careful ly grasp leg and bend back- Z. Usi ng a sharp boni ng knife, cut J. Tri m away any l are pockets of
bone secti on to pop j oi nt. backbone secti on from l eg. fat.
7. Rcmovcanddiscardskin lromchickcnlcgs.
\sing nngcrs, pull mcat oll boncs, scparating
largcrpicccs which should lal l ollboncs casily)
homsmallcr,dricrpicccsintotwocqualpilcs.
8. Ilaccsmallcrchickcnpicccsinloodproccs
sor and pulsc until just coarsclychoppcd, thrcc
to lour ! sccond pulscs, stirring chickcn with
rubbcrspatulaancrcachpulsc. Jranslcrchickcn
to sauccinsauccpan. Isingnngcrsortwo lorks,
pull largcr chickcn picccs into long shrcds and
add to sauccpan. Stir in rcmaining tablcspoon
cidcrvincgar, covcr sauccpan and hcat chickcn
ovcr mcdiuml ow hcat, stirri ng occasionally,
until hcatcd through, about ! O minutcs. Add
hot saucc to tastc and scrvc, passing rcmaining
barbccucsauccscparatcly.
BARBE C UE D PU LLE D CHICKE N FOR GAS G RILL
I . Soak 2 cups wood chips in watcr to covcr
lor3Ominutcs,drai n. Ilaccchipsinsmalldispos
ablc aluminum pan, sct pan on primary burncr
burncrthatwillrcmain onduringbarbccuing) ,
positioncookinggratc. Ignitcgrill,turnallburn
crs to high, covcr, and hcat until vcry hot and
chips arc smoking, about !5 minutcs. Ilchips
ignitc,uscwatcr nllcdspraybottlctocxtinguish. )
Scrapc gratc clcan with grill brush. Jurn ollall
burncrscxccptprimaryburncr.
2. Iollowstcp3olrccipclorBarbccucdIullcd
Chickcn lor Charcoal Grill, placing chickcn lcgs
skin sidc up in singlc laycron cool sidc olgrill.
Irocccd as dircctcd, omittingwood chunks and
cxtcndingcookingtimcin stcp 3 to 35minutcs
andcookingtimcinstcp4to45minutcs.
T e s T 1 N G e Q L 1 P M e N T : What' s the Hottest Charcoal ?
Conventi onal wi sdom di ctates that hardwood (or " l ump") charcoal fames up fast and furi ous,
whi l e charcoal bri quettes bum l ow and slow. For that reason , most of the outdoor-cooking gui des
in our l i brry (i ncl udi ng our own) recommend bri quettes for barbecue (cooki ng ri bs and briskets)
and hardwood for qui ck, di rect-heat gri l l i ng (cooking burger, steaks, and chops) . Two dozen gri l l
i ng gurus coul dn' t be wrong, right? We headed to the test ki tchen' s back al l ey to fi nd out.

u
0
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=
550
450
=
1
350
1
250
-
.
o
O
! 50
E

50
BARBE CU E D PULLE D C HI CKE N F OR A CROWD
Jhistcchniqucworkswcl l onacharcoalgrillbut
notsowcllonagasgril l . Ilyourgas grillislargc
and can accommodatc morc than 8 lcgs, lollow
thc rccipc at lclt, adding as many lcgs as will
comlortablyntinasinglclaycr.Youmaynccdto
incrcascthccookingtimc.
IollowrccipclorBarbccucdIulcdChickcnlor
CharcoalGrill,ignitingoquartscharcoalbriqucttcs,
using !2 chickcn lcgs, and slotting thcm into V
shapcd roasting rack sct on top olcooking gratc
ovcrdisposablcroastingpan sccpagc ! 3) . Incrcasc
cooking timc in stcp 3 to 45 minutcs and cook
ingtimc instcp 4 to 45 to 55 minutcs. Instcp 6,
rcmovconly! cupolsauccnomsauccpan.Instcp
8, proccss chickcninloodproccssorin2 batchcs.
HlLL M
(
cover off
)
^
`

^
We fi l l ed 6-quart chi mneys with ei ther hardwood charcoal or bri quettes. J ust before l ighti ng
the match, we outfitted the cooki ng grte with seven thenmocoupl es-wi re probes that feed tem
perture data to an attached consol e-and set about recordi ng heat level s at five- mi nute i nteral s.
We ran the tests a dozen ti mes and then analyzed our data.
The resul ts were starl i ng. I n every test, the bri quettes burned as hot, or hotter, than the
hardwood. I n the gri l l i ng tests, the fi res produce nearly i denti cal heat for about 30 mi nutes
enough ti me for most qui ck gri l l i ng task. From there on, the hardwood coal s qui ckly turn i nto
pi l es of ash, whi l e the bri quettes slowly l ost heat.
0 20 40 0 80 ! 00 ! 20 ! 40 ! 0 80 200 220 240 20
Ti me ( mi nutes)
we' ve always contested, sl ow-cooki ng a por shoul der for ei ght hour woul d be a high
mai ntenance affai r wi th hardwood. Our bri quettes took nearly three hour to fal l bel ow the 250
degree mark; i n that ti me we' d have to refuel the hardwood fire ti ce. Te slow, steady descent
of the bri quettes i s perect for thi s j ob.
So what about our ol d assumpti ons? Hardwood i s, i n fact, the hotter- burni ng charcoal , at
least when compari ng charcoal pound for pound. But most outdoor cooks measure out charcoal
by vol ume (fi l l i ng a chi mney) , and a 6- quart chi mneyful of bri quettes weighs more than ti ce as
much as the same vol ume of hardwood.
And bri quettes are cheaper: Fi l l i ng a chi mney with l u mp charcoal costs about $2 compared
with j ust $ 1 . 37 for bri quettes. -Garth Cl i ngi ngsmith

u
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C O O K
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s I L L U S T R A T E D

550
450
350
250
! 50
50
bPHbL LU M
(
cover on)

K
^ `
^
^ `
` `
^ `
l `
`
0 20 40 0 80 ! 00 ! 20 ! 40 ! 0 ! 80 200 220 240 20
Ti me ( mi nutes)
-Bri quettes -Lump Hardwood
Z
C


j
lr|lC IrUlL Jl>J>
Mushy and bl and or j ust pl ai n wei rd, most fru i t sal sas mi ss the mark. So how do
y ou make a si mpl e one wi th cl ear, refreshi ng fl avor?
S
alsa with crisp, swcct lruit ollsct by thc
tart, spicy kick ollimc and chilc is my
lavoritc answcr to thc sultry hcat ol
summcr. Butthcbowlml olmushylruit
awashinwatcryslurrythatrcstaurantsoncnscrvc
with grillcd mcat or nsh docsn`t comc closc to
my idcal Acr a, how hard can it bc to throw
togcthcrthistropicalvcrsionolrclish`
My scarch startcd on thc Intcrnct, whcrc I
loundthousandsolnuitsalsas,cachalittlcwildcr
than thc l ast. CurrySpiccd Citrus ` Balsamic
Bcrry` Holiday Cranbcrry` Dcspitc thcirdillcr
cnccs, cach includcd a basic trinity. lruit, acid,
and onion. Whcn tcstcd, many olthcsc rccipcs
wcrcunbalanccd,ovcrlyharsh,ortoosaccharinc.
Andmostswampcdthclruitwithdissonantlcvcls
olcompcting uavors . Jhc challcngc was clcar.
Iickanuit,lctitsuavordominatc,andsupportit
withaj udicioussclcctionoluavorings.
Jhc nrst stcp was to dctcrminc which lruits
workcd bcstas a loundation. Mango,pincapplc,
ncctarinc, and, surprisingly cnough, mclon, all
rcadily absorbcd othcr uavors without rcnounc
ingthcirown. Vcryripc lruitwascrucial to thc
salsa`suavor and tcxturc,tastclcss,crunchylruit
madclor tastclcss,crunchysalsa. urtcstcooks
prclcrrcdatiny,tidydicc,aslargcrpicccscrcatcd
anunappcalingsaladlikc consistcncy.
Jhc sccond kcy ingrcdicnt was an acid, but
vincgars tastcd harsh. Jhat is onc rcason most
rccipcs call lor limc juicc, but a light hand was
dccmcdbcstinthisdcpartmcnt. nctablcspoon
orlcsspcrcupollruit-dcpcndingonthclruit
wasallthatwasnccdcdtoboostcachlruit`sown
tartncssandtoncdownitsswcctncss.
Jhc last itcm in thc trinity, onion, appcarcd
in most rccipcs, buttastcrslound that its harsh
uavorquicklydominatcd. Jhc morc rcnncd ua
vor and dclicatc tcxturc ol shallots provcd a
bcttcrmatch. I nrst sliccdthc shallotscrosswisc
into thin rings lor visual and tcxtural contrast,
but this madc lor too much shallot pcr bitc. I
switchcdtoa nnc minccso that itwouldvanish
intothcsalsa`sothcringrcdicntsasitsoncncdin
thclimcandsalt .Aslorgarlic,slivcrcd,minccd,
or cvcnwhcnpoundcdto a pastc, ittastcdout
olplacc.
Jhings wcrc going wcll, but pcrhaps thc ua
vors wcrc still a bit onc dimcnsional . Adding a
sccond, complcmcntary vcgctablc or lruit with
a contrasting uavor and tcxturc was thc simplc
B Y MATTHEW C A R D E
solution. Mango rcccivcd a boost lrom crunchy
rcd bcll pcppcr, ncctarinc tastcd swcctcr mixcd
withahandlulolcrunchyrawcornkcrncls . thcr
ingrcdicntswcrccasilyaddcdtothc mix,includ
ing most any lrcsh hcrb, a handhl oltoastcd
sccds,andpinchcsolsugarorspicc.
As I madc batch ancr batch olsalsa,I noticcd
that thcy improvcd in uavor and consistcncy il
allowcd to sit lor hallan hour 1 5 minutcs in
a pinch) . Jhc salt and acid sccmcd to cook"
and mcllowthc ingrcdicnts, much as thcydo in
ccvichc. Clcan tastingand quick to makc, thcsc
rccipcsmakcthcpcrlcctsummcrcondimcnt.
MANGO AND SWE ET PE PPE R SALSA
WI TH TOASTED PE PI TAS
MAKES ABOUT 3 CUPS
Pepitas, or pumpkin sccds, arc avail ablc in most
supcrmarkcts andnaturalloodsstorcs. Jhissalsa
pairs wcllwithpork,chickcn,ornrmwhitc nsh.
Scc pagc 30 lortips onprcparingthcmango.
l arge ri pe mango, peel ed, fl esh cut from pi t
i nto 114- i nch di ce ( 1 % to 2 cups)
' / l arge red bel l pepper, cored, seeded, and cut
i nto 1 14- i nch di ce (about 11 cup)
smal l shal l ot, mi nced (about 2 tabl espoons)
2-3 tabl espoons j ui ce from I to 2 1 i mes
2 tabl espoons chopped fresh ci l antro l eaves
Tabl e sal t
Cayenne
114 cup unsal ted pepi tas, toasted i n smal l
ski l l et over medi um heat unti l l i ghtl y
browned, 3 to 5 mi nutes
Inmcdium bowl , toss togcthcrmango, rcd bcll
pcppcr, shallot, 2 tablcspoons limc juicc, cilan
tro,'tcaspoonsalt,and tcaspooncaycnnc,lct
stand at room tcmpcraturc to blcnd uavors, 1 5
to 3 0 minutcs. Adj ustscasoningwith additional
limc juicc, salt, and caycnnc, stir in pcpitas and
scrvc.
PI NEAPPLE AN D CUCU MB E R SALSA
WI TH MI NT
MAKES ABOUT 3 CUPS
Jhis salsa can bc madc spicicr by mincing and
addingthcchilc` ssccdsandribs . It`saniccmatch
with lamb,tuna,orsalmon.
J U L Y c A U C U S T 20 0 5

11 l arge pi neappl e, peel ed, cored, and cut
i nto 114- i nch di ce (about 2 cups)
11 medi um cucumber, peel ed, seeded, and cut
i nto 114- i nch di ce (about I cup)
smal l shal l ot, mi nced (about 2 tabl espoons)
medi um serrano chi l e, seeds and ri bs removed,
then mi nced (about 2 teaspoons)
2 tabl espoons chopped fresh mi nt l eaves
'/ teaspoon very fi nely grated gi nger
1 -2 tabl espoons j ui ce from I l i me
Tabl e salt
Sugar
In mcdi um bowl , toss togcthcr pi ncappl c,
cucumbcr, shallot, chil c, mint, gingcr, 1 tablc
spoonlimcjuicc, and ' tcaspoonsalt,lctstand
at room tcmpcraturc to blcnd uavors, 1 5 to 30
minutcs. Adj ust scasoning with additional limc
j uicc and salt, and add sugar as nccdcd ilpinc
applcis tart,scrvc.
S PI CY NECTARI NE AND CORN SALSA
MAKES ABOUT 3 C UPS
It` s a good idca to wcar rubbcr glovcs whcn
workingwith spicyhabancro chilcs. Jhis salsais
cxccllcntwithpork,chickcn,shrimp,orscallops.
3 medi um ri pe nectari nes, pi tted and cut
i nto 114- i nch di ce (about 2 11 cups)
ear fresh corn, husks and si l k removed, and
kernel s cut from cob (about /cup)
1 1 smal l shal l ot, mi nced (about I tabl espoon)
smal l habanero chi l e, seeds and ri bs removed,
then mi nced (about | teaspoon)
1 -2 tabl espoons j ui ce from I l i me
Tabl e salt
Sugar
2 tabl espoons chopped fresh chives
Inmcdiumbowl , toss togcthcr ncctarincs, com,
shallot, chi l c, I tablcspoon l i mc juicc, and vz
tcaspoon salt, lct stand at room tcmpcraturc to
blcnduavors,1 5 to 30 minutcs. Adjustscasoning
with additional limcj uiccandsalt, andaddsugar
ilncctarincs arctart,stirinchivcsandscrvc.
COOK' 5 E gives you free recipes onl i ne. For our
Honeydew Peach Sal sa reci pe, visit ww .cooksi l l ustrted.com
and key i n code 7052. Tis recipe will be avai l abl e until Agus
31, 2005.
/ Guide to Essential Cookware
To outfi t you r ki tchen wi thout breaki ng the ban k, i nvest i n cookware that i s d u rab l e an d
versati l e. Here' s ou r master l i st of what to buy and why. O1 ` c/` ./V. z '
I n any cl uttered ki tchen (ours i ncl uded) , there are pots and pans that gather dust and others
that rarel y get put away. After a decade of careful testi ng, we' ve i denti fi ed the true mu l ti taskers,
the " must- have" pots and pans that we reach for ti me and agai n. We thi nk ever cook shoul d
own these ei ght pi eces of cookare.
| MT 0T57 O | 0 O7M WO 0 | O5.
:onstructi ng " Cl ad" Cookare
'w pans on the maret today ar made from a
:ingle material . Manufacturer are constntly i nventing
ALTERNATE NAME S : F ryp a n . Ome l e t Pan
1ew wyto bond materials together to tke advantage of thei r _
Jifernt prperties. "Clad" cookare comes in to vrieties.
' Ful ly clad" pieces have a complete cor of conductive material
:al umi num or copper) that extends up the sides of the pan. I n
| "disk-bottom" pan, the core i s a conductive di sk of al umi num
1dded to the botom exterior of the pan. Our tests have shown
:at disk-bottom pans ofen peron just as wel l as fully clad
Jans: With some exceptions. the thickness of the cor is mor
mportnt than whether or not it cover the sides of the pan.
ALTERNATE NAME S : F rypa n . Ome l e t Pa n
What We Use It For: Thi s is the pan we reach for
when pan-seari ng steak. chops, and cutl ets and when
pan- roasti ng chi cken part. The trdi ti onal (that i s, not
nonsti ck) fi ni sh devel ops fond-the crust, brown bi ts
that col l ect on the pan bottom and are degl azed to
make pan sauces.
Why We Uke lt.Te nared, shal l ow si des encour
age the rpi d evaporti on of moisture. so pan sauces
reduce qui ckly and foods sear rther than steam.
TEST KI TCHEN TI PS:
Consi der weight careful ly. The pan shoul d be
heav enough to retai n heat, but i t al so needs to
be easily maneuverabl e (even when l oaded wi th
3 pounds of chi cken parts) .
Look for a comfortabl e handl e that can safely
go under the broi l er.
A 1 2- i nch di ameter ( measured across the
top) i s the best choi ce to accommodate four
large chops or a whol e, cut- up chi cken.
And the Wi nner I s . . .
* ALL- CLD Stai nl ess 1 2- l nch Frpan, $ 1 25
* BEST BUY: WOLFGANG PUCK Bi stro 1 2-
l nch Open Omel et Pn, $30
What We Use I t For: Thi s i s our favorite pan for sear
i ng del i cate i tems that have a tendency to sti ck or break
apart, such as fi sh fi l l ets. We al so favor i t for sti r-fri es,
pancakes. omel ets, and other egg di shes.
Why We Uke I t: The nonsti ck fi ni sh means no fond
for pan sauces, but the foods themsel ves sti l l get ni cel y
browned provi ded the pan i s l are enough to avoi d
overcrowdi ng. The nared si des al l ow for the qui ck
redi stri buti on of food by j erki ng and sl i di ng the pan
over the burner. Easy cl eanup, of course.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
Nonsti ck bondi ng technol og has i mproved by
l eaps and bounds, meani ng that i t' s worth i nvesti ng in a
nonsti ck ski l l et wi th a thi ck base that di stri butes
heat evenly.
A 1 2- i nch nonsti ck ski l l et can handl e a batch of fi sh
fi l l ets or a sti r-fr servi ng four. Smal l er
nonsti ck ski l l ets ( 8 or I 0 i nches) are a
good choi ce for omel ets and snacks l i ke
quesadi l l as or gri l l ed-cheese sandwi ches.
And the Wi nner I s . . .
* ALL- CLD Stai nl ess Nonsti ck 1 2- l nch Frpan, $ 1 25
* BEST BUY: WOLFGANG PUCK Bistro 1 2- l nch
Nonsti ck Omel et Pn, $35
Tradi ti onal versus Nonsti ck
There are advantages to both tradi ti onal and nonsti ck
pans. The l atter are easy to cl ean and requi re ver l i ttl e
cooki ng fat. whi l e trdi ti onal surfaces excel at devel op
i ngfond. those crust. stuck- on bi ts of food that add
deep navor and col or to pan sauces. I n the test kitchen,
we reach for a nonsti ck pan when cooki ng del i cate
foods that are prone to sti cki ng, such as eggs, seafood,
and sti r-fri es. For seari ng steaks, chops, or chi cken or
maki ng any other reci pe that favors browni ng over
frequent sti rri ng, we prefer a tradi ti onal pan , preferabl y
one wi th a l i ght-col ored i nteri or fi ni sh that makes i t
easy to watch for si gns of burnt dri ppi ngs.
L \ \ N

b I L L U S T R A T E D
!
ALTE RNATE NAME : F ry p a n
What We Use I t For: Cast i ron is just the thi ng for
seari ng or bl ackeni ng food qui ckly over very hi gh heat.
When we' re afer a real l y dark, even crust on steaks.
chops, or even cornbread, there' s nothi ng better.
Why We Uke It: In our l i neup of wi nni ng pans, thi s i s
the pl aceki cker. We may not use i t every day, but i t' s
al most essenti al to have on hand when the right reci pe
comes al ong. Why? For the si mpl e reason that no other
metal i n the cookare arena retai ns heat as wel l as cast
i ron. With i ts slow response ti me and tremendous heft,
thi s pan i s the wrong choi ce for del i cate saute work,
but i t' s di rt cheap and wi l l outl ast any other pan.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
Thi s pan ' s ti ny. scorchi ng- hot handl e tel l s you
somethi ng: I t' s not desi gned to be moved around whi l e
i n use. So heavi er i s better, wi thi n reason .
Look for a pouri ng l i p for easi er di sposal of used oi l .
A 1 2- i nch ski l l et i s the best al l - purpose size.
And the Wi nner Is . . .
* LODGE 1 2- l nch Ski l l et, $20
What We Use I t For: A good choi ce for pan-frying.
Also good for di shes in whi ch you vant to brown meat
and vegetabl es and then add l i qui d, such as smothered
chops, fricassees, and meat pasta sauces.
Why We Uke I t: Wi th i ts high. stri ght si des, thi s pan
has a greater capaci t for l i qui d than a ski l l et and a sl i ghtly
wi der cooki ng surface. Does wel l in the oven. too.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
Handl es shoul d be l ong. comfortabl e. an d oven safe.
and they shoul d stay cool on the stovetop-some
phenol i c (heat- resi stant pl asti c) handl es are oven
worthy only to about 3 50 degrees.
A 3- quart pan, I 0 to I I i nches i n di ameter, i s best.
And the Wi nner Is . . .
* ALL- CLD Stinless 3-Quart Coverd Saute Pn. $ 1 95
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What We Use It For: Ri ce, sauces, vegetabl es, gravy,
pastr cream, and poached frui t, to l i st j ust a few.
Why We Uke It: J ust the ri ght size and shape for a
thousand and one common kitchen tasks. A true work
horse: It's easy to maneuver and stays out of your way
on a crowded cooktop.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
A comfortabl e, stay-cool handl e i s a must, and the
handl e shoul d al so be l ong enough for two- handed
carri ng when the pan i s ful l .
Lrer saucepans shoul d be abl e to handl e some
saute work, so good heat conducti on i s a must.
+ Every kitchen shoul d be equi pped wi th a large
saucepan wi th a capacit of 3 to 4 quarts.
Consi der a nonsti ck fi ni sh when choosi ng smal l er
saucepans, whi ch are useful for cooki ng oatmeal and
reheati ng leftovers.
And the Wi nner I s . . .
* ALL- CLD 3- Quart Stai nl ess Saucepan, $ 1 b0
* BEST BUY: SITRAM Profiserie 3 . 3 - Quart Sauce
Pn, $50
What We Use It For: Does anythi ng a saucepan can
do-and does a few thi ngs better. A good choi ce for
sauces, risotto, pastr cream, or anythi ng el se that
requi res constant attenti on and frequent sti rri ng.
Why We Uke It: A sauci er' s wi de mouth and rounded,
flared si des easil y accommodate whi sks and spatul as and
el i mi nate ti ght comers where food can sti ck and burn .
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
We l i ke the wi der, shal l ower pans i n thi s categor
for easy access and vi si bi l it. A sauci er shoul d be wei ght
enough to di stri bute heat evenly yet sti l l be maneuver
abl e. Its bottom shoul d be wide enough to cover the
bumer and prevent excess heat from wafti ng up the si des.
Al so l ook for a stay-cool handl e that' s l ong enough
to keep hands cl ear of heat duri ng constant sti rri ng.
Avoi d "di sk- bottor" sauci ers, whi ch are prone to
burni ng.
And the Wi nner I s . . .
* ALL- CLD Stai nl ess 3- Quart Sauci er, $ 1 45
What about a Stockpot?
J ust about the only thi ng we don' t use our Dutch
oven for i s boi l i ng water for pasta, corn on the
cob, or the occasi onal l obster. Our favorite
enamel ed cast- i ron pot i s a bit sl ow in bri ngi ng
water to a boi l and si mpl y too heavy to carry over
to the si nk and drai n . For these tasks, we empl oy
an i nexpensive stockpot, the sort you can fi nd at
your local hardware store for about $ 3 0. When
i t comes to actual ly maki ng stock, whi ch ofen
i nvol ves browni ng meat and sweati ng vegetabl es,
we reach for the Dutch oven i nstead.
ALTE RNATE NAME S : French Oven, Casserol e
What We Use I t For: Our choi ce for soups and stocks,
a Dutch oven i s also ideal for fri ng, stewi ng, and bri si ng.
Why We Uke It: Bui l t for both oven and stovetop
use, a Dutch oven i s general ly wider and shal l ower than
a conventi onal stockpot. Thi s makes i t accessi bl e (that
is, easy to reach and see i nto) and provi des a wi der sur
face area for browni ng (at l east a 2: I ratio of di ameter
to hei ght i s i deal ) . I ts tremendous heft transl ates i nto
pl ent of heat retenti on , whi ch i s perfect for keepi ng
fryi ng oi l hot or mai ntai ni ng a very low si mmer.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
Loopi ng handl es shoul d be extremely sturdy and
wi de enough to grab wi th thi ck oven mi tts.
Uds shoul d be tight fitti ng and heavy enough not to
cl atter when the pot contents are si mmeri ng bel ow.
We fi nd the most useful sizes to be 6 to 8 quarts.
And the Wi nner I s . .
* LE CREUSET 7 '!.-Quart Round French Oven, $ 2 1 5
!T7A | OT. The Bi g Fou r
KLP>| NL WN
ALTERNATE NAME : Roaster
What We Use It For: i ts name suggests, thi s pan
i s for roasti ng, especi al ly poul try and other large cuts
of meat. It can al so be used to degl aze dri ppi ngs for
gravi es and sauces on the stovetop.
Why We Uke I t: Thi s pan ' s l ow si des and open desi gn
provi de roasts wi th maxi mum exposure to the oven' s
hot ai r for even browni ng. ( Hi gh-si ded covered roast
ers cook faster and hotter but cause meat to steam and
i nhi bi t browni ng. ) Degl azi ng i s the key to great sauces
and gravi es, so i f it's not fameproof, foret it.
TEST KI TCHE N TI PS :
A roaster shoul d be heavy enough to handl e large
bi rds and roasts wi thout buckl i ng but not so heavy as to
be backbreaki ng.
Look for handl es that are sturdy, upri ght (not
perpendi cul ar to the si des) , and l arge enough to
accommodate thi ck oven mi tts.
A l i ght-col ored i nteri or fi ni sh makes i t easi er to
spot burni ng dri ppi ngs.
Oval - shaped model s may not accommodate
roasti ng racks.
Measure your oven before shoppi ng for a roasting
pan; i t shoul d fi t with about 2 i nches of cl earance on
al l si des. Most of the l arge roasters we tested were
between 1 6 and 1 8 i nches l ong and woul d hol d a tur
key wei ghi ng up to 25 pounds.
And the Wi nner I s . . .
* CALPHALON Contemporary Stai nl ess Steel
Roasti ng Pn, $ 1 00
COPPER conducts heat extremely wel l , but it is also expensive and heavy, tarni shes easi ly, and is reactive, l each
i ng i nto many foods to produce of col ors and favors. For thi s reason, i t i s al most always l i ned with ti n or stai nl ess
steel . Not worh the expense.
ALUMI NUM i s second to copper i n conductivit among the metal s used for cookare, but i t i s al so l i ght and
i nexpensive and retai ns heat wel l , provi ded i t i s of sufi ci ent thi ckness. But al umi num i s al so reactive, and the soft
metal dents and scratches easily. To compensate for these drwbacks, manufacturer have devel oped anodized
al umi num cookare, in whi ch the pans undero el ectrolytic processi ng that makes the outer surace both harder
and l ess reactive. The dark color of anodi zed al umi num can make i t tri ck to moni tor the devel opment of ]en4
for pan sauces. Unless anodized, best used i n combi nation with other metals.
CAS I RON heats up slowly but retai ns heat ver wel l . Cast i ron i s i nexpensive and lasts a l ifeti me (or severl ' ) ,
but i t i s ver heav, i s mi l dly reactive, and must b e seasoned before use. Enamel ed cast i ron i s nonreactive and
need not be seasoned, but the exteri or can chi p and scrtch . Useful i n l i mited appl ications.
SAI NLESS SEEL i s a poor heat conductor. I nexpensive cookare made enti rely of thi n-gauge stai nl ess steel
i s prone to hot spots and warpi ng over hi gh heat. Stai nl ess steel is, however, nonreactive, durbl e, and attractive,
maki ng i t an excel l ent choi ce for coati ng, or "claddi ng, " al umi num or copper. Great with other metals.
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
I /
Thai Chile Beef at Home
Thi s di sh offers an exoti c change of pace from Chi nese sti r-fri es. But who has shri mp paste,
tamari nd pu l p, gal angal , and pal m sugar, p l us three hou rs to make d i nner?
B
ascd on a sophisticatcd com
bination ollour uavors-spicy,
swcct, sour, and sal ty-Jhai
chilc bcclpromiscsto bcvastly
morcintcrcstingthan mostcvcrydaystir
lrics. According to my rccipc rcscarch,
thissimplctranslormationwouldbcbuilt
on aloundationolj ustlouringrcdicnts.
chilcs,sugar,limcjuicc, andnshsaucc.
B Y REB ECCA H AY S E
I sct out with high hopcs, rounding
up and tcsti ng cookbook rccipcs and
cvcnordcringJhaichilcbccllromthrcc
ncighborhoodrcstaurants.Jhcnctrcsult
ol all this tasting and tcsting, howcvcr,
was disappointmcnt-with onc notablc
cxccption. nc authcnti c"Jhai rccipc
produccdawondcrmldish. Itcontaincd
no vcgctablcs rcstaurants lrcqucntly
add vcgctablcs to rcducc thc cost pcr
scrving) , and thc mcatwassauccd in a
thick, complcx,wcl l balanccdchilcj am.
Jhc problcm` Iorstartcrs, thc ingrcdi
cntlist,whichcontaincd dricd prawns,
shrimp pastc, tamarind pulp, galangal,
andpalmsugar.Andthcnthcrcwasthc
thrcc hour prcp timc, which i nvolvcd
dccp lrying many ol thc i ngrcdi cnts
scparatcly. Whilc I had tastcd thc ulti
matcJhaichilc bccl, I had to wondcr
howI could possibly rc crcatc it lor an
Amcricanhomc kitchcn.
Peanuts. fresh mi nt. and fresh ci l antro give thi s stir-fry a last- mi nute
bl ast of flavor.
An Exceptional Cut
I startcdwiththckcy ingrcdicnt. tIc bccl I stir
lricd lour casy to nnd cuts nlct, sirloin stcak,
stripstcak,andbladc stcak) andcomparcdthcm
withourusualchoicc,uankstcak.
Jhc Uank stcak larcd wcll, as cxpcctcd. Mild
hlct,thcchoiccinscvcralrccipcs,couldnotstand
up to thc asscrtivc Jhai |lavors. Sirloin and strip
stcaks both larcd poorly bccausc stirlricd mcats
tcndtocndupthoroughlycookcd,makingthcsc
cutschcwy and dry. Jhc chcapcst cut olall, thc
bladcstcak,wasthcsurpriscwinncrolthctasting.
Gcncrally, bcclwith thc biggcst uavor is tough,
but bladc stcak is an cxccption. Cut lrom thc
chuck-thc lorcquartcrolthcanimal-thisincx
pcnsrvc, wcll marblcd cut dclivcrcd morc than
cnoughuavortostanduptoitsspicycompctition
yctwasmorc tcndcrthan Uankstcakwhcn thor
oughlycookcd.
Ti s the Seasoning
Hcrc in thc tcst kitchcn, wc marinatc bccllor
Chincsc stirlrics in soy saucc, a practicc that
scasonsandtcndcrizcsthc mcat. Iorthisrccipc,
saltysoysaucc would bc rcplaccdwith thc salty,
lcrmcntcd nsh saucc that is traditional in Jhai
chilc bccl. Jhc nsh saucc simulatcd thc briny
Uavorsolthcdricdshrimpandshrimppastclistcd
in thc original rccipc, but somcthing was miss
ing. I dugdccpcrintoalcwJhaicookbooksand
discovcrcd that whitc pcppcr is a kcy ingrcdi
cnt-and lor good rcason. It isdccply spicy and
pcnctrati ng, with a somcwhat gamcy uavor. I
addcdasmidgcn a littlc gocs alongway) tothc
marinadc, alongwithcitrusycoriandcr. Jhiswas
a hugc hitwit|tastcrsandsubstantiallyboostcd
thc complcxity and sophistication olthc dish,
cvcnthoughthc mcatwasmarinatcd lor a mcrc
I 5 minutcs. Whitc pcppcr has such a distinct
uavort|atit`sworthpurchasingsomcj ustlorthis
rccipc. Sccpagc30 lormorcinlormation. )
C O O K
'
s I L L U S T R A T E D
C
I alsoaddcdsomcolthcswcctclcmcntinthis
dishtothc marinadc asastratcgy lor dcvcloping
cxtra caramclization on thc bccl Ialm sugar is
thc traditional swcctcr uscd n Jhai cooking,
but I lound light brown sugar to bc a pcrlcct
substitutc. A mcrc tcasoon was just thc right
amount,anymorccauscdscorching.
Too Hot to Handle
Jiny,narrowJhai birdchilcsarcthcclassicchoicc
lor thisrccipc,butI ` mnot abouttohuntdown
cxotic pcppcrs lor a Wcdncsdaynight stirny. A
tastc tcst suggcstcd that modcratcly hotscrranos
or mi l dcr j al apcos arc thc bcst stand i ns.
Insanclyhothabancrochilcs,tastingoltropical
lruit,wcrcadmircdbysomcbutpanncdbymost,
wholoundthchcatlcvclpunishing. )
Atcr scttling on thc chilcs, a ncw problcm
cmcrgcd. wildinconsistcncyinhcatlcvcls. Lsing
a constant numbcr olj alapcos, somc stirlrics
wcrc uaming hot, whilc othcrs didn`t cvcn scnd
upsparks sccSizingIpChilc Hcat,"pagc I ) .
Icamcupwithastraightlorwardsolutionthatcan
bc uscd inany rccipc callinglor chilcs. Jhc trick
isto usc not onc buttwo sourccsolhcat, onc ol
which is casily controllcd unlikc lrcsh chilcs) .
I tcstcd caycnnc andhotrcdcpcr uakcs, and
bot|produccdlikcablcrcsults,butthcwinncrwas
Asianchiligarlicpastc,whichprovidcdacomplcx
mixoluavors-spicy,toasty,andgarlicky.
The Best Cut for Thai Chi l e Beef
B LAD E STEAK
We tested five cuts of beef-bl ade steak, fi l et, stri p
steak, si rl oi n steak, and fl ank steak-for thi s stir
fry. Blade steak was the clear wi nner, fl ank steak the
runner- up. Tasters l i ked blade steak for its generous
fat marbl i ng, whi ch gi ves thi s cut its tenderness and
its "ver beef flavor. " At j ust $ 3 . 69 per pound, bl ade
steak was al so the cheapest opti on tested. One mi nor
i nconveni ence: The l i ne of gri stl e runni ng down the
center shoul d be removed (see page 1 9) .
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STE P - BY- STE P 1 TRI MMI NG B LADE STEAK F OR S TI R- F RY
Jhc last stcp in a stirlryis to dcglazc thc hot
panwith saucc ingrcdicnts . Ancr many trials, I
rcalizcd thc importancc olrcintroducing cvcry
mcmbcrolthcJhaiquartctatthisstagc.Adding
nsh saucc and brown sugar to thc marinadc
boostcd uavor, butthcinclusion olbothin thc
sauccrcallypunchcdupthcnnishcddish. Iorthc
sourcomponcnt,bothriccvincgarandtamarind
pastclarcdbcttcrthanlimcj uicc-lcssacidityand
morcswcctncssbroughtmccloscrtomygoalol
balanccdU avors. I scttlcdonriccvincgarbccausc
lusuallykccpitinmypantry.
Jhc only rcmaining considcrations wcrc thc
lrcsh,rawingrcdicnts addcdj ust bclorc scrving.
Jhai basil is traditional , contributing lrcshncss
andaddingacoolingcountcrpointto thc chil cs.
\nlortunatcly, this hcrb canbc hard to nnd it
was oncn out olstock at a largc Asian supcr
markcthcrci nBoston) , soI madcasubstitution
thatI`vc uscd succcssmllyin othcrrccipcs. ncsh
mintand cilantro. \scd intandcm, thcycarrya
complcxitysimilartothatolJhaibasi l . Jhcswcct
basilthat`srcadilyavailablcinmostsupcrmarkcts
isnotagood substitutc, Jhaibasilistangicrand
spicicr. Ialsoaddcdchoppcdpcanutslorcrunch.
A ncsh squirt ollimc j uicc atthctablcwasthc
nnaltouch.
I . Halve each steak l engthwise.
l eavi ng gristl e on one hal f.
Z. Cut away gri stl e from hal f to
whi ch it is sti l l attached.
J. Sl i ce meat on angl e i nto '/i nch
thi ck stri ps.
STI R- F RI E D THAI - STYLE BE E F WITH
CHI LES AND S HALLOTS
S E RVES 4 WI TH RI CE
l lyou cannotnndbladc stcaks, usc uank stcak,
bccausc uank stcak rcquircs lcss trimming, you
willnccd only about I /+ pounds. Jocuta uank
stcak into thc propcr sizcd sliccs lor stir lrying,
nrst cut uc stcak with thc grain into ': inch
strips,thcncutthcstripsagainstthcgraininto'+
inchthicksliccs.Whitcpcppcrlcndsthisstirlrya
uniquc uavor, blackpcppcrisnot a good substi
tutc. Scrvc thcstirlrywith stcamcdj asmincricc.
C | T1CT.
Si zi ng Up Chi l e Heat
Brr]andMarinadr
'I teaspoon ground cori ander
1/a teaspoon ground whi te pepper
teaspoon l ight brown sugar
tabl espoon fish sauce
2 pounds bl ade steaks, tri mmed and cut i nto
'/ i nch-thi ck stri ps (see i l l ustrati ons, above)
Stir-!r
2 tabl espoons fi sh sauce
2 tabl espoons ri ce vi negar
2 tabl espoons water
tabl espoon l ight brown sugar
I tabl espoon Asi an chi l i -garl i c paste
3 medi um garl i c cl oves, mi nced or pressed through
garl i c press ( I tabl espoon)
3 tabl espoons vegetabl e oi l
3 serrano or j al apeno chi l es, hal ved, seeds and ri bs
removed, chi l es cut crosswi se 1/a i nch thi ck
3 medi um shal l ots, tri mmed of ends, peel ed,
quartered l engthwi se, and l ayers separated
11 cup fresh mi nt l eaves, l arge l eaves torn i nto
bi te- sized pi eces
11 cup fresh ci l antro l eaves
'/ cup roughl y chopped roasted unsal ted peanuts
Ume wedges for servi ng
I n the test kitchen, we' ve noti ced that some jal apenos are seari ngly hot, whi l e
others are mi l d as bel l peppers. We trcked down a number of theori es to
expl ai n thi s great variati on-and size kept poppi ng up. Accordi ng to thi s theor,
a smal l chi l e wi l l be hotter than a larger one.
But when we arrnged a tasting of jal apenos of vari ous si zes, there seemed
to be no correlation between si ze and heat. To investigate the matter further.
we sent five si mi larly sized jal apenos to the lab. requesti ng l evel s of capsai ci n and
CH I LE ROU LETE
Do small chiles pack
more punch?
di hydrocapsai ci n (the compounds responsi bl e for the majori t of the percepti on of " heat" ) . Sure enough, some
chi l es were nearly I 0 ti mes hotter than others-even though they al l l ooked al i ke.
One burni ng question remai ned: Are there any vi sual i ndi cators of pungency? No. says Dani se Coon of the
Chi l e Pepper I nsti tute. who expl ai ned that capsai ci n producti on i s ti ed to the envi ronment. Chi l es grown i n sunny.
arid weather undero a l ot of stress, and stressed chi l es produce more capsai ci n than chi l es grown in temperate
cl i mates. (Hot. dr New Mexi co i s known for produci ng ver hot chi l es. )
Unti l someone comes up with a procedure for di agnosi ng stressed-out chi l es, then, the only surefre way to
judge the heat l evel of a chi l e i s to taste i t. I f you want more control over the heat when you' re cooki ng wi th chi l es.
start wi th an eas-to-measure heat source such as cayenne. red pepper fl akes. or chi l i -garl i c paste, then layer on
modest amounts of fresh chi l es, removi ng the ri bs and seeds i f you want l ess heat. -R. H.
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
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I . ICR1MEBEEIA MAE Combinc
coriandcr, whitc pcppcr, brown sugar, and nsh
sauccinlargc bowl . Add bccl, tosswcll to com
binc,marinatc I 5 minutcs.
2. ICR 1ME S1IRIRY In small bowl , stir
togcthcr nshsaucc, vincgar,watcr,brownsugar,
and chili garlic pastc until sugar dissolvcs, sct
asidc. !n small bowl , mix garlic with I tcaspoon
oil, sct asidc. Hcat 2 tcaspoons oil in I 2inch
nonstickskillctovcrhighhcatuntilsmoking,add
oncthird olbcclto skillct in cvcn laycr. Cook,
without stirring, until wcll browncd, about 2
minutcs, thcn stir and continuc cooking until
bcclisbrowncdaroundcdgcsandnolongcrpink
inthcccntcr,about30 scconds . Jranslcrbcclto
mcdium bowl . Rcpcat with additional oil and
rcmainingmcatin2 morcbatchcs.
3. Altcr translcrring l ast batch ol bcclto
bowl , rcducc hcat to mcdium, add rcmaining
2 tcaspoons oil to now cmpty skillct and swirl
to coat. Add chilcs and shallots and cook, stir
ring lrcqucntly, until bcginning to soncn, 3 to
4 minutcs . Iush chilc shallot mixturc to sidcs
olskillct to clcar ccntcr, add garlic to clcaring
and cook, mashing mixturc with spoon, until
lragrant,about I 5 scconds. Stirtocombincgarlic
withchilc shallotmixturc.Addnshsauccmixturc
to skillct, incrcasc hcat to high and cook until
slightly rcduccd and thickcncd, about 30 scc
onds. Rcturn bcclandanyaccumulatcdjuiccsto
skillct,tosswclltocombincandcoatwithsaucc,
stir in hall olmint and cilantro, scrvc immcdi
atcly,sprinkling individual scrvingswithportion
olpcanutsandrcmaining hcrbs,andpassinglimc
wcdgcsscparatcly.
Asi an Chi l i - Garl i c Pste
Made wi th a mi x of dri ed red
c hi l es, garl i c, vi negar, sal t, and
someti mes s ugar, thi s com
pl ex condi ment i s moderatel y
spi cy and sl i ghtl y aci di c. Once
opened, j ars of chi l i -garl i c
paste ( al so cal l ed s|cc|c)
can be refri gerated for several
months.
Veggie Burgers Worth the Trouble
Store- bought veggi e bu rgers border on i ned i bl e, bu t most homemade rend i ti ons are
a l ot of work. Cou l d we devel op a reci pe that was real l y worth the effort?
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hcn a vc

gctarran

:rrcnd
was coming to vrsrt onc
wcckcnd,Ikncwthatmy
barbccuc mcnu nccdcd
a mcatlrcc ollcrrng, andvcggrc burgcrs
rmmcdratclycamctomrnd. Storcbought
vcggrcburgcrs arc tcrrrblc sccpagc 2 I ) ,
soI kncwI wouldhavctomakcmyown.
\nlortunatcly, homcmadc vcggrc bur
gcrsarcmuchmorcworkthanthcrrbcc}
brcthrcn. Jruthmlly,vcggrcburgcrs arc a
labor ollovc,sothcy'dbcttcrtastc grcat.
My hrststcpwas to makc a bunch ol
burgcrs, guidcd by a varrcty olvcgctar
rancookbooks.WhatI lcarncdahcrmak
rng a dozcn or so was prctty clcar. Mo
vcggrc burgcr was gorng to tastc lrkc a
hamburgcr-aloolrshgoal ,Idccrdcd. But
tastcrswantcdthcsc burgcrs to act"lrkc
hamburgcrs . Jhcy wantcd a patty wrth
a modrcum olchcw, a combrnatron ol
savory rngrcdrcnts thatdrdnottastc spc
crhcallyolanyoncthrng nobodywantcd
a blackbcanburgcr,"lor cxampl c) , and
thcabrlrtytogolromgrrlltobunwrthout
lallrngapart.
FromlP to Umami
BY S ARA H W I LS ON -
Manyvcggrc burgcrsstartwrth soy bascd
productstoboostthcprotcrncontcntand
achrcvc a mcaty tcxturc . It drdn` t takc
long, howcvcr, lor thc mcat substrtutcs
Lenti l s. bul gur, mushrooms, and cashews are key i ngredi ents i n a
gri l l -worthy veggi e burger.
I tcstcd to drsappornt, cvcn whcn uscd as only
onc olscvcral rngrcdrcnts. cxturcd vcgctablc
protcrn,or has thc appcarancc andtcxturc
olgroundbcclbutlrttlcuavorolrtsown. Itpro
duccdbland burgcrs. I alsotrrcdtcmpch, asoy
bcancakcmadcbylcrmcntrngcookcdsoybcans.
Athough tcmpch has a rrch, mcaty tcxturc, rts
souravor madc lor awl burgcrs. I a|so tricd
scrtan,awhcatglutcnproduct,rcsultrngrnovcrly
sohpattrcsthattastcrsdcscrrbcdasgummy"and
hshy. " MotqurtcwhatI hadrnmrnd.
Mcxtonmylrstwcrclcgumcs. Durrngmyhrst
round olrccrpc tcstrng, tastcrs had ratcd lcntrl
burgcrs bcst rn tcrms oluavor but not tcxturc,
thcy wcrc soggy and hard to grrll . Jo gct rrd ol
somc olthrs morsturc, I drarncdthccookcdlcn
trlsthoroughlyrna srcvcandthcnlardthcmout
onathrcklaycrolpapcrtowcls. P manyrccrpcs
lor vcggrc burgcrs parr lcgumcs wrth a grarn,
I dccrdcd to lollow surt. Rrcc was toosonand
pasty, whcrcas barlcywas too hard. Jhc grarns
olbulgurwhcat,howcvcr,wcrcsmallcnoughto
rncorporatc casrly rnto thc mrx andmarrrcdwcll
wrththclcntrlsrntcrmsoluavor.
Wrth a basc ollcntrls and bulgur, rt was trmc
toturntovcgctablcs. Sautccdonrons,garlrc, ccl
cry,and|ccksprovcdthcbcstchoiccs,dc|ivcring
dcptholuavorwrthoutbcrngovcrwhclmrng.
Solarsogood,buttastcrskcpttcllrngmcthat
thcburgcrsnccdcdsomcmcat. "Ccrtarnloods,
suchasmushrooms,nuts,andscawccd,arcrrchrn
thctastcscnsatroncallcdumami, whrch,though
roughly translatcd lrom thc )apancsc as dclr
crous, "actuallyrmpartsauavorthattastccxpcrts
rclcrto as mcaty. " Motrcadytotakc somconc
clsc` s word lor rt, I trrcd crcmrnr mushrooms
and cashcws and tound that thcy drd provrdc
t|cmcatyuavorcvcryonc had bccnlookrnglor.
C O O K
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S I L L U S T R A T E D
Z U
Scawccd provcd unncccssary. ) Bccausc
uncookcd mushrooms arc morc than 80
pcrccnt watcr, I had to bc surc to cook
thcmthoroughly.
From Sog to Toothsome
Iulsrng cvcrythrng togcthcr rn thc lood
proccssor madc lor a morc cohcsrvc and
cvcn tcxturcd mrx, but thc burgcrs strll
drdn` t hold togcthcr as wcll as I wantcd.
I trrcd varr ous brndcrs , rncludrng sour
crcam, chccsc, cgg, and mayonnarsc, and
hnallyscttl cdonthc lattcr. It provrdcdthc
ncccssary lat and brndrng qualrtrcs along
withgooduavor.
Josoakupcxccssmorsturc,I trrcdadd
rng uour and brcad crumbs. Ilour madc
thcburgcrstastcpasty. Ilarn brcadcrumbs
workcd rcasonably wcl l , but somc tast
crscomplaincdthatthcschcavy" burgcrs
rcmrndcd thcm olmcatloal Jhc solutron
wastorcduccthcamountolbrcadcrumbs
andto usc panko, )apancsc brcad crumbs
thatarccspccrallyuaky,light, andcrunchy.
Whrlc thcy drd not rcmarncrunchyrnthc
vcggrcburgcrmrxlorlong,thcydidabsorb
rcsrdual moi sturc and rcmaincd vrrtually
undctcctablcrntcrms oluavor.
Bccausct|1cingrcdrcntsrn thcscvcggrc
burgcrs arc alrcady cookcd, my goal was
toachrcvc a goldcn crustwhrlc just hcat
rngthcmthrough.Aclcan,wcll orlcdgrrll
andplcntyolhcatdrdthctrrck. Iarrcdwrthbuns
and all thc nxr n` s, thrs labor ollovc was much
apprccratcdnoton|ybymyvcgctarianlrrcndbut
bythcmcatcatcrsatmybarbccucaswcl l .
Getti ng the Texture Right
For a consi stent, cohesive texture that makes vegie
burers easi er to form and that' s si mi l ar to the texture
of hamburgers when cooked, pul se the burer i ngredi
ents i n a food processor.
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Secrets to Better Veggi e Burgers
Removing moi sture from i ngredi ents ensures fi nmer patti es.
I. Spread l enti l s beteen layer of Z. Once softened, drai n bul gur i n J. Saute mushrooms and vegetabl es
unti l carmel i zed and d r. paper towels and bl ot dr. sieve and press wi th spatul a.
ULTI MATE VEG G I E BU RG E RS
MAKES TWELVE 4 - I NCH BURGE RS
Canncdlcntilscan bcuscd,thoughsomcuavor
will bc sacrinccd. \sc a I 5 ouncc can, drain
thc lcntils in a mcsh straincr, and thoroughly
rinsc undcr cold running watcr bclorc sprcad
ing thcm on papcr towcls and drying thcm,
as dircctcd in stcp I bclow. Ilyou cannot nnd
panko,uscI cupolpl ai nbrcadcrumbs . Iortips
on lrcczinguncookcdpattics,sccpagc 3O.
V c u p dri ed brown l enti l s, ri nsed and pi cked over
2 11 teaspoons tabl e salt
/ cup bul gur wheat
2 tabl espoons vegetabl e oi l
2 medi um oni ons, chopped fi ne ( 2 cups)
l arge cel ery ri b, chopped fi ne (about 11 cup)
smal l l eek, whi te and l ight green parts only,
chopped fi ne (about 1 1 cup)
2 medi um garl i c cl oves, mi nced or pressed
through garl i c press (2 teaspoons)
pound cremi ni or whi te mushrooms, cl eaned
and sl i ced about '/ i nch thi ck (about 6 11 cups)
cup raw unsal ted cashews
11 cup mayonnai se
2 cups panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
Ground bl ack pepper
1 2 burger buns for seri ng
I . ring 3 cupswatcr, lcntils,and I tcaspoon
saltto boil in mcdium sauccpan ovcr high hcat,
rcducchcattomcdiuml owand simmcr, uncov
crcd, stirring occasionally, until lcntils arc just
bcginningtolallapart,about25minutcs. Drain
in nncmcshstraincr. Lincbakingshcctwith tri
plc laycrpapcr towcls and sprcad draincd lcntils
ovcr. Gcntlypatlcntilsdrywithadditionalpapcr
towcls,coollcntilstoroomtcmpcraturc.
2. Whilclcntilssimmcr, bring2 cupswatcrand
l2 tcaspoon salt to boil in small sauccpan. Stir
bulgurwhcatintoboilingwatcrandcovcrimmc
diatcly,lctstandollhcatuntilwatcrisabsorbcd,
I 5 to 2O minutcs. Drain in nncmcsh straincr,
uscrubbcrspatula to prcss outcxccssmoisturc.
Jranslcrbulgurtomcdiumbowlandsct asidc.
3 . Hcat I tablcspoon oil in I 2inch nonstick
skillct ovcr mcdium high hcat until shimmcring.
Add onions, cclcry, lcck, and garlic, cook, stir
ringoccasionally,untilvcgctablcsbcgintobrown,
about I O minutcs. Sprcad vcgctablc mixturc
on sccond baking shcct to cool, sct asidc. Add
rcmaining I tablcspoon oil to nowcmptyskil lct,
hcatovcrhighhcatuntilshimmcring. Addmush
roomsandcook,stirringoccasionally,untilgoldcn
brown, about I2 minutcs. Sprcadmushroomson
bakingshcctwithvcgctablcmixturc,cooltoroom
tcmpcraturc,about2O minutcs.
4. Iroccsscashcwsinloodproccssoruntilnncly
choppcd, about nhccn ! sccond pulscs do not
washloodproccssorbladcorbowl ) , stirintobowl
wit| bulgur alongwiu coolcd lcntils,vcgctablc
mushroom mixturc, and mayonnaisc. Jranslcr
hallolmixturctonowcmptyloodproccssorand
pulsc until coarscly choppcd, nltccn to twcnty
I sccond pulscs, mixturc should bc cohcsivc
but roughly tcxturcd scc photo on pagc 2O) .
Jranslcrproccsscd mixturct olargc bowl , rcpcat
withrcmainingunproccsscdmixturcandcombinc
wit|nrstbatch. Stirinpanko,I tcaspoonsalt,and
pcppcr to tastc. Linc baking shcct with papcr
towcl s. Dividcmixturcinto I 2 portions,about
cup cach, shaping cach into tightlypackcd patty,
4 inchcsindiamctcrand inch thick, sct pattics
on baking shcct, papcr towcls will absorb cxccss
moisturc. Iattics can bc covcrcd with pl astic
wrap andrcnigcratcdupto3 days. )
1CCCCKCN1MEGRII uildmcdiumhot
charcoal nrc or prchcatgas grill on high. Ising
tongs,wipcgratcwitl1wadol papcrtowclsdippcd
lightly in vcgctablc oil . Grill burgcrs, without
movingt|cm, until wcll browncd, about 5 min
utcs,uipburgcrsandcontinuccookinguntilwcll
browncdonsccondsidc,about5 minutcs. Scrvc.
1C CCCK CN 1ME S1CVE1C Hcat2 tablc
spoons vcgctablc oil in I 2inch nonstick skillct
ovcr mcdium high hcat until shimmcring, cook
burgcrs, 4 at a timc, until wcll browncd, about
4 minutcs pcr sidc, lowcring hcat to mcdium il
browningtoo quickly. Rcpcatwithadditional oil
and burgcrs. Scrvc. Cookcd burgcrs can bc kcpt
warmin2SOdegrccovcnlorupto 3O minutcs. )
J U L Y c t\ U C U S r 20 0 5
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Supermarket Veggi e Burgers
Choppi ng. si mmeri ng, dri ni ng, shapi ng. chi l l i ng-ar
homemade vegie burer really worh the efort?
Not if ther was somethi ng decent to be had at the
supenarket. we reasoned. So we tsted seven prd
ucts, al l ful ly cooked frozen patties that requi red just
to kitchen ski l l s: heating and pl oppi ng onto a bun.
Al l brands won high mark for conveni ence,
but that' s about i t. Vegi e- burer veterns and
first-ti mers al i ke agreed that the favors and tex
tures were dreadful across the board. Even more
perpl exi ng. hardly any of these burers tasted of
vegetabl es. The probl em is that most seemed to be
tring to repl i cate an al l - beef burer i n texture and
taste. but no combi nati on of soy protei n. wheat
gl uten, or smoke favor pul l ed that of convi nci ngly.
-Garth Cl i ngi ngsmi th
EORJl ME FRE55EDVEGETRlAN5ONj
rGARDENBURGER Ori gi nal Burer
Our "wi nner" boasted
strong mushroom
and gri n favors,
but the dehydrated
vegetabl e texture was
remi ni scent of "stuf
i ng mix. " The best of
the l ot, but that' s not
sayi ng much.
DON' JOJHER
qAMY' S Al l American Burer
Bulgur wheat. wal nut, and oats made thi s "way too
heal thy tasti ng. " A few taster noted its si mi larit to
falafel but were put of by overbundant spi ces.
qBOC Meatless Burer All American Classic
Ni ce crunchy crust, but taster l i kened the chew
i nteri or to a "ti re. " Soy fl our tops the i ngredi ent
l i st (after water) .
FRNKUN FARMS Origi nal Reci pe
Fresh Veggi burger
" Fresh Cornburger" may be more l i ke i t. The
favor was domi nated by corn and red bel l pepper.
and the starchy, "gl uti nous" texture was
of- putti ng.
qSMAI MENU Bi gger Burer
Feel s l i ke beef, tastes l i ke beef j erk. Oni on
powder pl us smoke flavor remi nded tasters of
" BBQ sauce" l aced wi th " kerosene. "
YES VEGGI E CUI SI NE Te Good Burer
Vegie Authenti c
Two sources of smoke flavor had some taster con
vi nced thi s was "summer sausage. " The ul tr-thi n
patt resembl ed "school cafeteria Sal i sbur steak. "
MORNI NGSAR FARMS Gri l l er Origi nal
Vegie burer or mul ti vi tami n? (You deci de. )
Crmmed wi th vi tami ns and mi nerl s, thi s brnd
sufered from di sti nctly " l iver" favor.
Improving Blueberry Buckle
How can a si mpl e y el l ow cake batter su pport an enti re quart of b l ueberri es
wi thout tu rni ng heavy and soggy ? Th i nk cooki e dough.
J
ust what is a blueberry buckle? It's
an American classic, in case you've
forgotten or never really knew: a
streusel - topped bl ueberry coffee
cake. To cal it a mere coffee cake, how-
ever, is to sell it short. The substance of
a blueberry buckle is the blueberry, not
the cake. This rustic confection starts
with blueberries held together in a but
tery cake batter and is then topped with
a crisp, sugary streusel . And the name?
The cake, burdened as it is with fruit and
topping, is said to buckle on the surface
as it bakes.
I collected a score of recipes and baked
off six. They were a ragtag collection of
cakes, runing the gamut fom dense and
greasy to lean and dry. Oh, and don't for
get bland. The problem? The overwhelm
ing berry-to-cake ratio threw things out
of whack. The moisture released from
the berries during baking ofen added a
disagreeable sogginess and density.
Buckle Down
I cobbled together a working recipe
made in the manner of a cake or cookie:
3 B Y D A W N Y A N A G I H A R A E

fll quart of moist berries plus a streusel

topping.
Sugar was a simple matter. Only a
modest amount was needed to sweeten
the cake and counter the tartness of the
berries: V cup. ( This was, afer all, a cof
fee cake, not dessert. )
Air incorporated into the batter by
creaming the butter and sugar provided
some leaveni ng. But the heavy batter
required the assistance of baking pow
der-1 1 teaspoons-for a nice lif and
texture.
The fnal addi ti ons were salt and
vanilla and a litte grated lemon zest to
freshen up the favors . The best oven
temperature was 35O degrees; the cake
baked through and tl1e streusel browned
perfectly in about 55 minutes.
Buckle Up
The butter and sugar were creamed, the
eggs beaten in, the four added, the blue
berries folded in. A melted butter varia-
A buckl e i s a yel l ow cake l oaded with berri es and crowned with cri sp and
crumbly streusel .
The streusel formula consisted of four,
sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt. One
half cup of four moistened with 4table
spoons butter topped the cake generously .
More four made the topping powdery
and dry, while more butter made it greasy
and insubstantial .
With m light brown sugar ( dark brown
tion had a less flsome rise, the result of lack of
aeration, which provides m.
Determining the amount ofblueberries seemed
paramount-recipes ranged fom 1 112 cups to as
many as 5cups. According to tasters, even 2 cups
weren' t enough, giving the cake, berries, and
streusel equai billing. Three cups? Better. Four?
Bingo. The blueberries were the headliner; the
cake and streusel were the supporting cast.
Next was the problem of the soggy cake. I
hunted for a solution, starting with the type of
flour. Buckles made with cake four (which is low
in protein) were structureless, pasty, and sodden.
1 all-purose four buckle was drier and cakier,
and its sturdier texture could contend with all the
fruit; this buckle was far superior.
Visit COOK'5Eat ww.cookusted.com and ke i n
code 7053 for our Blueoer Bucke wmGinger and Cardamom
rcipe and code 7054 for our Cram Cheese Wipped Cream
rcipe. Tese rcipes will ocavilable until August J| , 2005.
Dairy-milk or sour cream-ofen appears in
buckle recipes and is almost always used in regular
cakes and muffns. But a buckle has to be stiff
to hold up all those berries, and milk and sour
cream loosen up the mixture so much that the
berries sink during baking. Evidently, the batter
for a buckle should be more like a cookie dough:
You need structure and plenty of it to deal with a
The Buckl e Fami ly
made the streusel too dark ad bitter), the
streusel had an overly assertve molasses favor; with
Jgranulated sugar, it lacked character. The soluton
was a mof light brown ( 7cup) and graulated 2
tablespoons) . A hint of cinnaon lent fagrance
and warm favor. I had been using melted butter to
make the streusel, but when I attempted a sofened
butter version, I struck upon a superior streusel. It
was crisp and crumbly, not hard and pebbly.
Buckl e is one of many cl assi c Ameri can frui t desserts wi th a funny name. Here are some other cl ose relati ons.
BETY CRI S P COBBL E R
Fruit layered with buttered bread. Fruit sprinkled with streusel. Fruit topped with tender biscuits.
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Secrets to d Better Buckl e
small bowl and set aside.
2. ICR 1ME CAE Adjust
oven rack to lower- middle posi
tion; heat oven to 35Odegrees.
Spray 9- i nch round cake pan
with 2- inch sides with nonstick
cooki ng spray, l i ne bottom
with parchment or waxed paper
round, and spray parchment;
dust pan with fl our and knock
out excess.
SI FF BATER must be spread i nto CHUNK SREUSEL must be
3 . Whisk four and bak
ing powder in small bowl to
combine; set aside. In stand
ing mixer fi tted with tat beater,
pan with rubber spatul a. squeezed i nto pea- sized pi eces.
So there it was. A cake that was a cookie dough
in disguise, strong enough to support a fll quart
of blueberries. In fact, this buckle didn't really
buckle during baking; it could hold its own. Now
do we have to change its name?
BLUE BE RRY BUCKLE
MAKE S ONE 9 - I NCH CAKE , S E RVI NG 8 TO I U
The batter W be extremely thick and heavy, and
some efort W be required to spread it into the
prepared pan. This buckle is best made with fesh
blueberries, not fozen ones, which are too moist.
If you'd like to serve the buckle as dessert, consider
a vailla ice cream or whipped cream accompani
ment. Lefovers can be wrapped in plastic and
stored at room temperamre for up to 2 days.
Strrusrl
11 cup ( 2 11 ounces) unbl eached al l - purpose fl our
1 1 cup ( 3 11 ounces) packed l ight brown sugar
2 tabl espoons granul ated sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ci nnamon
Pi nch tabl e salt
4 tabl espoons ( 11 stick) unsalted butter, cut
i nto 8pi eces, sofened but sti l l cool
Cakr
I 'l cups ( 711 ounces) unbl eached al l - purpose four
I 'l teaspoons baki ng powder
I 0 tabl espoons ( 1 1/4 sti cks) unsalted butter,
softened but sti l l cool
/ cup (about 43/4 ounces) granul ated sugar
11 teaspoon tabl e salt
11 teaspoon grated zest from I l emon
I 11 teaspoons vani l l a extract
2 lare egs. room temperature
4 cups (about 20 ounces) fresh bl ueberri es,
pi cked over
I . ICR 1ME S18E\SEL In standing mixer
ftted with fl at beater, combine four, sugars, cin
namon, and salt on low speed until well combined
and no large brown sugar lumps remain, about 45
seconds. Add butter and mix on low until mixmre
resembles wet sand and no large butter pieces
remain, about 21 minutes. Transfer streusel to
cream butter, sugar, salt, and l emon zest at
medi um-high speed until light and fuff, about
3 minutes; using rubber spatul a, scrape down
bowl . Beat in vanilla until combined, about 3O
seconds. With mixer running at medium speed,
add eggs one at a time; beat until partially incor
porated, then scrape down bowl and continue to
beat until flly incorporated ( mixture will appear
broken) . With mixer running on low speed, grad
ually add four mixmre; beat until fl our is almost
flly incorporated, about 20 seconds. Disengage
bowl fom mixer; stir batter with rubber spatula,
scraping bottom and sides of bowl, until no four
pockets remain and batter is homogenous; bat
ter will be very heavy and thick. Using rubber
spatula, gently fold in blueberries until evenly
distri buted.
4. Transfer batter to prepared pan; using rubber
spantla in a pushing motion, spread batter evenly
to pan edges and smooth surface ( see photo,
above) . Squeeze portion of streusel in hand to
form large cohesive clump; break up clump with
fi ngers and sprinkle streusel evenly over batter ( see
photo, above) . Repeat with remaining streusel .
Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick or
wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes
out clean, about 55minutes. Cool on wire rack I 5
to 2 0 minutes ( cake W fall slightly as it cools) .
5 . Run paring knife around sides of cake to
loosen. Place upside- down plate ( do not use serv
ing platter) on top of cake pan; invert cake to
remove fom pan, Lif of cake pan, then peel off
and discard parchment. Invert cake onto serving
platter. Cool until just warm or to room tempera
mre, at least I hour. Cut into wedges and serve.
Pn Prep 1 0 1
Our buckl e reci pe cal l s for a mul tistep pan- prep
process-grease the pan, l ine with parchment, grease
the parchment, dust the pan and parchment with
four. Ae all of these steps really necessar? Yes. Te
moi sture i n the beres keeps the cake from formi ng
a thi ck crust i n the oven. a resul t, greasing the pan
i s not enough. Te parchment ofer added i nsurnce
that the cake wi l l release. Ad the four i s there to wi ck
up moi sture from the batter.
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
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T S T l N C Q U l P N N T .
Measuri ng Spoons
Een cooks who can' t be bothered to pul l out a
measuri ng spoon for stovetop reci pes know that
such caval i er i mpreci si on (read: eyebal l i ng) won' t
cut i t when baki ng. But whi ch brnd i s best?
After fi l l i ng ni ne spoons to l evel , then careful ly
weighi ng the contents, we concl uded that ever
brnd was sufi ci ently accurte. So preferences
came down to design. We measure dry i ngredi ents
by scoopi ng a heapi ng spoonful , then sweepi ng it
to l evel (a method we cal l "di p and sweep" ) . Easy
enough-unl ess the shape of the spoon hi nder
ei ther the di ppi ng or the sweepi ng. Fat spoons,
spoons with short handl es. overl y bul k spoons.
and spoons wi th ri sed handl es al l made thi s task
more difi cul t. When measuri ng out l i qui d ingredi
ents, shal l ow spoons posed a hi gher ri sk of spi l lage
than deep spoons.
Where di d we end up7 The sturdy Cui si pro
spoons feature an el ongated, oval shape that
proved opti mal for scoopi ng i ngredi ents from
narrow j ar. In addi ti on, the ends of the handl es
curl down, putti ng them l evel wi th the spoon' s
base and thereby al lowi ng a ful l measure to be set
down on the counter with no ti ppi ng and no mess.
Perfecti on i s i n the detai l s. -Garth Cl i ngi ngsmith
FAVORI TE S POONS
The oval shape of
Cui si pro Measuri ng
Spoons ( $ I 0. 95) makes for
TI NY OM I S S I ON
We l i ke the easy-to
read neon markings on
the Oxo Good Gri ps
Stai nl ess Steel Measuri ng
Spoons ( $ 9. 99) , but the set fai l s
I LL- ADJ USTE D
Adj ust-A-Spoons ( $ 5 . 99) are
too bul k to fit in many
contai ners, and the
adj ustabl e sl i de gets i n
the way of a cl ean sweep.
( D ON' T) G ET S HORTY
Even if we coul d get used
to the strange desi gn of
the Oggi Corporati on
Spoons ( $ 1 4. 99) , the
stubby handl es woul d
remai n a flaw.
BOWLE D OVE R
I t' s n o easy task to fi l l and then hol d
the el ongated, shal l ow
bowl s of Am co Spi ce
Spoons ( $ 9. 99) .
Building a Better Blondie
Had a chewy, fu l l - fl avored bl ondi e l atel y? No? Wel l , nei ther had we .
A
fashion editor once said that
style lies in the ability to walk
across a room without hav-
ing anyone notice you. What
speaks for fashion, I believe, also holds
true for food. Brownies, with their brash,
fll-fontal chocolate favor, are the plung
ing necklines of baking, whereas the more
subtle, butterscotch-favored blondies have
real styl e. Of course, subtle elegance in
baking is hard to come by, and that's why
blondies are ofen greasy, cakey, and bland.
Nobody said style was easy.
Despite these differences, brownies and
blondies are cut from similar cloth. Each
includes a simple list of ingredients: four,
eggs, butter, sugar ( light brown sugar
for blondies) , vanilla, and salt. Brownies
add melted chocolate, whereas blondies
include nuts and chocolate chips. I col
lected a slew of remarkably similar reci
pes, baked them, and quickly learned my
B Y M A T T Il E W C A R D F
Baking powder was the obvious answer. One
teaspoon provided the lif and also contributed
to the elusive chewiness I was afer.
Timing, as with so much in l i fe , appeared
to be crucial . I was baking the blondies at
35 0 degrees-no other temperature between
300 and 400 degrees worked as well . When I
removed them from the oven even a moment
too soon, they had the pale, sticky sweetness
and gummy texture of cookie dough. Removed
a few moments too late, the blondies dried out
and became boring. The usual signifi ers of an
adequately baked bar cookie-the cooked dough
pulls away from the sides of the pan, a tooth
pick comes out clean-d not apply to blondies.
Better indicators were color and texture: a light
golden brown top tlat looked shiny and cracked.
The chewy texntre, then, was as much about the
baking as the ingredients.
Odds and Ends
fi rst lesson about blondi es: Proportions
make all the difference. Cloyingly sweet,
bland, crumbly, greasy-all these ills were
readily apparent with only slight variations
Some of our tasters preferred whi te chi ps. whi l e others l i ked
semi sweet chi ps. Some of each was a happy compromi se.
Now that my blondies had the proper texture,
it was time to tweak their favor. My recipe was
largely i mproved by a stiff shot of vanilla. Most
recipes include a token teaspoon or two, but I
found that the favor improved with each tea
spoon I added; I stopped at 4 teaspoons. Most
recipes favor walnuts, although pecans are not
unusual . Tasters liked both and were ultimately
split in making a choice, so I 've lef it up to
you-the baker. Either way, everyone agreed that
browning the nuts before adding them to the
dough boosted favor. A simple thing, perhaps,
but blondies, as I was fnding, are a study in
subtlety. I also found that stovetop toasting ( in
a dry skillet) produced only faint coloring with
spotty singeing; a more thorough oven toasting
was the better approach.
in ingredients. I also discovered that producing
great chewy texture along with good flavor was
no mean feat; having one seemed to preclude
the other.
Blondies are prepared in two very distinct
styles. The frst calls for melted butter that i s
mixed with sugar and eggs before the dry ingre
dients are folded i n. The second requires cream
ing ( beating) butter and sugar until fuff and
then adding the eggs and dry ingredients. Tests
proved that the melted butter versions were, on
the whole, preferred for their dense, chew tex
ture ( the creamed versions were too cakey) . P
the baker, I gave this approach my vote as well ,
preferring its utter simplicity.
Bater Maters
Most blondie recipes have close to a I . I ratio
of light brown sugar to all-purpose four-much
more four than is typically included in brownie
recipes. The reason? Chocolate. Chocolate, like
four, contains starch, and it also acts as an emulsi
fer, helping to hold the batter together. When I
reduced the four in blondies to the proportions
common in brownie recipes ( closer to a 3: 1 ratio
of sugar to four) , the blondies turned into a greasy
puddl e. Additional testing simply lef me back
where I had started: equal parts sugar and four.
Mixing and matching sugars-adding portions
of dark brown sugar or granulated sugar to the
light brown sugar-d not improve the recipe.
Neither di d adding liquid sugars like molasses
or caramel-favored dark corn syrup. ( The lat
ter severely altered tle blondies' texture for the
worse. ) Light brown sugar, tle choice in most
recipes, worked best.
I had been using two sticks of butter ( melted
and briefy cooled) in my working recipe because
this amount helped to produce a pleasant chewy
texture. But it also made the blon-
dies greasy, a problem common to
many blondies recipes. I reduced
the butter a tablespoon at a time in
subsequent tests until I reached the
tipping point-12 tablespoons
below which favor and texture
were compromised. Blondies tend
to use fewer eggs than brownies,
and I soon found out why. More
tl1an two eggs put tle texnre into
the "rubbery" category.
0TC 1 T T C O! TA 0 | O1. Rai si ng the Bar
I had made some progress,
but my blondies were still squat
and dense, in dire need of a lif.
B ROWN I E BLON D I E
Chocol ate adds more than j ust fl avor to browni es. I t contai ns a fai r
amount of starch that al so hel ps browni es hol d thei r shape. Because
bl ondi es contai n j ust chi ps (no mel ted chocol ate) , thi s reci pe requi res
a l ot more fl our than a browni e reci pe.
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As with the choice of nuts, the test kitchen

was split on the addition of chocolate chips. Half
of the tasters thought that chips muddied the
waters-one taster referred to this variation as a
"dirty blond"-while the rest preferred a bit of
culinary counterpoint. I also tested butterscotch
chips, a common addition, but one taste con
frmed my suspicion that any flavor they added
would be artifcial-no thanks. While buying the
butterscotch chips, I picked up a bag of white
chocolate chips as wel l . A bit to my surprise,
the white chips did indeed enrich the favor and
became a key component in the recipe that every
one in the test kitchen could agree on.
So here was my fnal batch of blondies: chewy
without being dense, sweet without being cloy
ing, and suffi ciently interesting with the addition
of nuts and white chocolate chips to hold one's
attention beyond just one bar. That's the kind of
culinary style I like.
BLONDI ES
MAKES 3 6
Be very carefl not to overbake the blondies; they
dry out easily and will turn hard. Start checking
the oven a couple of minutes before they will be
done. If you can't fnd our recommended brand
of white chocolate chips, coarsely chop a good
quality white chocolate bar.
cup (4 ounces) pecans or wal nuts
1 11 cups ( 711 ounces) unbl eached al l - purpose fl our
teaspoon baki ng powder
11 teaspoon sal t
| 2 tabl espoons | 11 sti cks) unsalted butter, mel ted
and cool ed
1 11 cups ( 1 0 11 ounces) packed l i ght brown sugar
2 large eggs, l ightly beaten
4 teaspoons vani l l a extract
6 ounces good -qual ity whi te chocol ate chi ps
| cup) or chopped bar, or 3 ounces each whi te
chocolate and semi sweet chocol ate chi ps
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat
oven to 350 degrees. Spread nuts on large rimmed
baking sheet and bake until deep golden brown,
10 to 1 5 minutes. Transfer nuts to cutting board
to cool; chop coarsely and set aside.
2. While nuts toast, cut 1 8-inch length foil
and fold lengthwise to 8-inch width. Fit foil into
length of 13 by 9- inch baking pan, pushing it
into corners and up sides of pan; allow excess to
overhang pan edges. Cut 1 4-inch length foil and
fi t into width of baking pan in same manner, per
pendicular to frst sheet ( if using extra-wide foil,
fold second sheet lengtl1wise to 1 2-inch width) .
Spray foil -lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.
3 . Whisk four, baking powder, and sal t
together in medium bowl ; set aside.
4. Whisk melted butter and brown sugar
together in medium bowl until combined. Add
7A 71 N G . Whi te Chocol ate Chi ps
Given the i mportant rol e of whi te chocol ate chi ps in our reci pe for bl ondi es, we wondered how much brand
matters. A tasti ng of si x brands i n three appl i cati ons-strai ght from the bag. mel ted. and baked i nto bl ondi es
was enough to convi nce us that careful chi p shoppi ng i s a must. Some brands were wax, some tasted artifi ci al ,
whi l e others stayed rock-hard even afer baki ng. To understand the di ferences. we di d some research.
Whi te chocol ate chi ps are made by suspendi ng dai ry sol i ds and sugar i n fat. At l east 20 percent of the
chi ps' weight must come from cocoa butter to qual i f as white "chocol ate, " accordi ng to U. S. Food and Drug
Admi ni strati on gui del i nes. Otherwise, the manufacturer can ' t use the word chece/atton the l abel . Coul d whi te
chi ps ( made wi th pal m kernel oi l ) measure up to the taste and mel tabi l i t of real whi te chocol ate?
Only one brand i n our l i neup. Essensi a. i ncl udes the word chocol ate i n i ts name. To our surpri se. Essensi a came
i n second, edged out by Gui ttard Choc-Au- li t Whi te Chi ps i n all three tri al s. Did our tasters have faul t palates?
Not necessarily. We found that the total amount of fat-no matter what the source-i s more i mportant than the
amount of cocoa butter. The higher the fat percentage. the better the chi ps' texture and mel tabi l i t. Chi ps with
l ess fat remai ned unappetizingl y crunchy, even fresh out of a hot oven. -Garth Cl i ngi ngsmi th
TOF CH | F
GUITARD Choc-Au- Lit White Chi ps
$ 2. 79 for 1 2 ounces
Thi s high-fat brand mel ted "si l k smooth" and had the
"compl exi t of hi gh-qual i t real chocol ate" -not bad for
an i mpostor.
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D | STANTTH | KD
VAN HOUTEN White Baki ng Chi ps
$ 2. 69 for 1 2 ounces
The "past" texture of these chi ps was bad enough;
the pl asti ck of flavor and l i ngering artifi ci al aftertaste
were wore.
TOO TOOTHS OML
GHI RRDEW Cl assic White Premi um
Baking Chi ps $ 2. 3 9 for I I ounces
The "vegetal " flavor of these chi ps wasn ' t appreci ated,
but the real probl em was thei r gummy texture. "These
sti ck to my teeth ' compl ai ned one taster.
eggs and vanilla and mix wel l . Using rubber spat
ula, fold dry ingredients into egg mixture until
just combined; do not overmix. Fold in choco
late and nuts and turn batter into prepared pan,
smoothing top with rubber spatul a.
5. Bake until top is shiny, cracked, and light
golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes; do not overbake.
Cool on wire rack to room temperature. Remove
bars fom pan by lifing foil overhang and transfer to
cutting board. Cut into 2-inch squares and serve.
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
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TOO MUC HVAN | LLA
ESSENSIA Real White Chocol ate Chips
$ 2. 79 for 1 2 ounces
The only genui ne "chocolate" chi p i n our l i neup mel ted
qui ckly but was gri ny I t was downgrded for an over
whel mi ngly "perfumey" vani l l a favor.
KOCKS OL| D
MRS. FI ELDS Premi um White Chi ps
$ 2. 5 9 for 1 2 ounces
The favor was OK. but the ver l ow percentage of
fat i n these chi ps made them al most i mperi ous to
mel ti ng-even i n a sti l l -warm bl ondi e.
FAKL F LAVOK
NESL
E
Tol l House Premi er White Morsels
$ 2. 3 9 for 1 2 ounces
The only chi p to l i st "naturl and artifi ci al flavor" i n
i ts i ngredi ent l i st tasted " ki d- cereal sweet" and "com
pl etely artifi ci al . "
CONGO BARS
Sweetened coconut is not a suitable substitute
here because it will burn.
Aer toasting nuts in step 1 of recipe for bCndcs,
toast I cups unsweetened, shedded coconut Cn
rimmed baking sheet, stirring 2 or 3 times, uu
light golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Follow recipe for
Blondies, adding coconut with chocolate in step +.
Great Whites
I s whi te wi ne vi n egar a gen eri c commod i t? Or does b rand matter?
We d i scovered the answers i n a bottl e of nai l - pol i sh remover.
W
hitc wi nc vi ncgar has ncvcr
cnj oycd thc cachct olits rcd
hucd brcthrcn-at lcast in this
country.Balsamicvincgarandrcd
wincvincgar,asthccondimcntaislc`strucstars,arc
thc oncs mostoncn thrust into thc spotlight lor
dramatic turns in rich pan rcductions, bold salad
drcssings,andothcrmll Uavorcdlarc.Notsowith
whitc winc vincgar, which Amcrican cooks tcnd
to rclcgatc to backstagc tasks . quictly punching
up picklc brinc, brightcning buttcrbascd sauccs,
providingunobtrusivc anduntintcd)loundation
lordclicatccitrusvinaigrcttcs.
l coursc,that`swhcnwcuscitatall .According
to thcVincgar Institutc, an industrytradc group,
Amcricans buy a much highcr pcrccntagc ol
dismlcdwhitcvincgar( 46 pcrccnt) thananyothcr
varicty, including cidcr vincgar (22 pcrccnt), rcd
wncvincgar( 1 2 pcrccnt) , balsamic ( 1 0 pcrccnt) ,
and ricc vincgar ( 5 pcrccnt) . Whitc winc vincgar`
Lumpcd togcthcr with malt vincgar and obscurc
huit vincgars datc vincgar, anyonc` ) as thcr
Vincgars," a catcgory comprising just 5 pcrccnt
oltotal salcs. By contrast, cvcry scllrcspccting
Ircnch cookkccps vinaire de vin blanc on hand
torwhiskingupaclassicvinaigrcttc. )
Docs brand cvcn mattcr` r docs whitc winc
vincgarhavcmorcincommonwithdistillcdwhitc
vincgar madc by distilling grain rathcr than lcr
mcntinggrapcs) , which tradcsonstraightlorward
strcngth, not |lavorpronlc subtlcty` Jo h nd out,
l purchascd 1 0 national supcrmarkct whitc winc
vincgars,which tastcrs samplcd straight sucking
thcliquidthroughsugarcubcs, atrickcxpcrtsusc
to minimizcalatclatiguc) ,whiskcdintoasimplc
vinaigrcttc with mild canola oil ) , and rcduccd
in abcurrcblanc. Jhcyalsotastcd I0 batchcsol
pic|lcdgrccnbcans,j arrcdloramonthtogivcour
acidiccontcndcrstimctoworkthcirmagic.
3 B Y J O L Y O N H E L T E R M A N E
out,I nrst nccdcda bcttcrgrasp on thc basics ol
vincgarmaking.
P vincgar is t|c product oldoublc lcrmcnta
tion.Inthcnrstround,ycasttranslormsasugaryor
starchysubstancc applcs,grains,grapcs) intoalco
hol cidcr,malt,winc) . Inthcsccond,thc bactcria
Acetobacter aceti translormthc alcohol intoacctic
acid,andvincgar cidcrvincgar,maltvincgar,winc
vincgar)is born. Nowadays,ycastandAcetobacter
arc stratcgicallyintroduccd, but oncc upon atimc
thcorganismsarrivcd naurally hom thc air. Jhc
word vinear comcs lrom t|c Ircnch vin aire,
which translatcs as sour winc"-riginally, winc
spoilcd accidcntally via this proccss. ) Ancr thc
sccond lcrmcntation, thc liquid`s acidiplcvcl has
rcachcd 1 0 to 12 pcrccnt,abittooharshlorcon
sumption. So thc vincgar is dilutcd with watcr
almostbyhalt Europcanwincvincgarsarc lcgally
obligatcdtohavc6 pcrccntacidityorhighcr,inthc
InitcdStatcs,thcminimumisjust4 pcrccnt.
Whitc winc vincgar manulacturcrs today
Tasti ng Upscal e
Whi te Wi ne Vi negars
The whi te wi ne vi negars in our
l i neup al l sel l for l ess than $ 5 . So
what do you get if you spend $ I 0
to $30 for a hi gh- end bottl e? For
that ki nd of cash. you ' l l usual ly get
three thi ngs that you won' t get
wi th the supermarket brnds: l on
ger agi ng (a few years rther than a
few months) , si ngl e varietals (just
Chardonnay or Champagne grpes
rther than a bl end of wine stocks) .
and breathtaki ng packagi ng. But
how do they taste?
Test-ki tchen stafers sampl ed five
high-end brnds pl ai n and whi sked
This Chardonnay
vinegar makes
great vinaigrette,
but i s it worh
$ 30?
Fermented Wisdom in a beurre bl anc, tasting our top
Acrwccks oldiligcnt puckcring, onc thingwas three supermarket brnds as wel l . In the pl ai n tast-
clcar. Jhc vincgars dillcrcd dramatically. Somc i n g. the pricey vi negars were noticeabl y more mel l ow
wcrcquitcaggrcssivcintastc,somcboastcdUoral and compl ex. (Our panel i sts. it tums out, have ver
orhuitynotcs,othcrshadlcrmcntcd,maltyquali expensive tastes: The $30 Gegenbauer Bruerei
tics. Jhcnotionolwhitcwincvincgarasabrand Chardonnay Vi negar won them over with its deep-
lcss,lacclcsscommoditywasdulyputtorcst. aged, "grpey" sweetness. ) But in the beurre bl anc.
gcncrally handlc only thc sccond lcrmcntation
nrsthand, purchasi ng prcmadc winc stock"
winc blcnds olslightly lcsscrqualip than drink
ing winc) hom local vincyards. Which varictals`
All kinds. Manulacturcrs maintain uavorpronlc
consistcncyhom batch to batch by adjustingthc
proportions olwinc stockoldillcringcharactcrs,
just thc way a wincmakcr would. Somc stocks
may bc choscn lor color, somc lor lruitincss,
othcrs lor dcpth. Singlcvarictal whitc winc vin
cgars arc spccialty itcms t|at tcnd to bc morc
cxpcnsivc and lcss standardi zcd, scc Jasting
IpscalcWhitcWincVincgars, "bclow. )
Clue Snifing
Back to thc rcsults, I hrst zcrocd in on acid lcv
cls, which rangcd |rom 5 pcrccnt to 7. 5 pcrccnt.
Anyhopcsthatsuchanobviousclucwouldbring
ordcr tot|c procccdingswcrcquicklydashcd. In
cvcrytcst,thchighacidandlowacidbrandswcrc
cvcnlydistributcdhomthctopolthcrankstothc
bottom. Evcninthc bcurrc blanc tasting,whcrc l
cxpcctcdhighcraciditytobcan advantagc tocut
t|roughtwo mllsticksolbuttcr), itwasclcarthat
acidityhadlittlc bcaringontastcrprclcrcncc.
Likcwisc, attcmpts to divinc a pattcrn bascdon
nation origin provcd a dcadcnd. !t wasn`t until
I took a closcr look at tastcrs` commcnts that I
loundmynrstimportantcluc. Inthcplaintasting,
thc losing vincgars wcrc indictcd consistcntly lor
artincialhuitUavorsandharsh,chcmicalohnotcs.
Whatcaughtmycyc, howcvcr, wcrc thc rcpcatcd
rclcrcnccstonailpolishrcmovcr. " Ethylacctatc,
thc solvcntthatgivcs nailpolishrcmovcritschar
actcristic smcll, is oncn uscd in conlcctioncry to
manulacturcarmcialhuitavors. )
Inthc tcst kitchcn, whcn onc tastcr comcs up
with a quirky association, chanccs arc it`s just a
uukc. Whcn scvcral tastcrs indcpcndcntly makc
thc samc association,it`sworth invcstigating. SoI
concoctcd anothcr cxpcrimcnt. Iouring hclpings
olcacholourvincgars,Ipcrsuadcd1 0 tcstkitchcn
stallcrs to takc awhihhom a bottlc olnailpolish
rcmovcr,thcnindicatcthcsamplcs
t|atmostrcscmblcditinsmcllor
I n the Tasti ng Room
Lcss clcar was how t o intcrprct thc tcsting such mel low compl exi t proved a handi cap. as the

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as thc winningvincgars lrom onc tasting cndcd ri chness. Save the pri cey stuf for vi naigrettes. -j . H.
nai l - pol i sh remover? Ou r tasters
upinthclowcr ranks olthc ncxtonc.Jo hgurci t
sniffed out the truth.
C O O K
'
S I L L U S T R A T E D
Z
taste-if at all . Sure enough, several brands set of
tasters' makesh ethyl acetate alarms.
Were some manufacntrers adding ethyl acetate
to their vinegars to ramp up the fuity notes? Not
quite. According to Sylvain Norton, a vinegar
industry expert, a white wine vinegar's favor pro
file can be adjusted through wine-stock blending
alone. But vinegar makers have another trick up
their sleeves: adj usting fermentation times. "If
you stop fermentation before all the alcohol gets
converted to acetic acid, you end up with a more
pungent solvent-y favor." Why? The excess alco
hol reacts with the newly formed acetic acid to
create a new compound: ethyl acetate. Vinegar
makers weren't adding it to their brews; they were
letting it occur naturally.
The Rw and the Cooked
It was time to call in the experts. I poured the
samples into vials labeled 1 through I U and sent
them of to a Boston-area laboratory. A week later,
the results came back. Sure enough, ethyl acetate
levels varied markedly-from trace amounts ( less
than 10 milligrams per liter) to a whopping 7 1 3
milligrams per liter!
Suddenly, the pieces were falling into place. The
four vinegars with the highest concentrations of
ethyl acetate-Carapelli ( 71 3 milligrams), Colavita
(260) , Laurent du Clos ( 1 9 1 ) , and Monari
Federzoni ( 1 23 )-made up the lower ranks of
the plain and vinaigrette tastings. Tasters liked the
bright, fuity notes of these samples but decried
their artifcial of-tastes. The top-ranked vinegars in
these two rounds-Acetaia Bellei ( 72) , Spectrum
Nantrals ( trace) , and Maille (trace )-had low con
centrations of ethyl acetate and were generally
described as fermented, "malty," and rich.
For the cooked applications, the results were
almost the reverse: The vinegars with more ethyl
acetate carried the day i n the pickle and beurre
blanc tasting. And it didn' t take much research
to fgure out why. Both recipes call for bringing
te vinegar to a boil-at which point ethyl acetate
would evaporate, leaving behind only the bright,
clean notes that tasters liked in these vinegars. By
contrast, the malty, fermented, darker notes of the
vinegars with less ethyl acetate-which had proved
such an advantage in the uncooked tests-lacked
the brighmess to cut the richness of the beurre
blanc or to complement the pickle brine.
Given the fact that most Americans don't keep
even one brand of white wine vinegar in the pan
try, a bipartite recommendation may be overkill .
Otherwi se, we' d probably go with the fruity
Colavita for cooking and the malty Maille-or
even a high-end gourmet brand-for vinaigrettes.
But for a white wine vinegar that works well in
every application, we recommend either Acetaia
Bellei or Four Monks: two well-made brands that
contain only moderate amounts of ethyl acetate
but enough fuity brighmess to stand up convinc
ingly to even the most buttery beurre blanc.
TATING WHITE WINE VINEGA
Twent Cee/`sLuvattdstaf member tasted I 0 brnds of whi te wi ne vi negar four ways: stright up (sucked
through sugar cubes to mi ni mize palate fatigue) . tossed with canol a oil on l ettuce leaves, cooked in a si mpl e
beurre bl anc sauce, and i n a bri ne for green- bean pi ckl es. Taster rted each sampl e for aci dit, harhness, and
compl exit. Brnds are l i sted bel ow i n order of preference. Aci di t level s are based on package i nformati on. Ethyl
acetate l evel s, given in mi l l igrms per l i ter, were determi ned by i ndependent lab tests.
BES ALL- PURPOSE
ACEAIA BELLEI Aceto di Vino Bianco
"Oro"
$ 2. 49 for 1
7
ounces
Aci dity: 6% Ethyl acetate: 7
2 mg/1
Tasters were i mpressed by thi s I tal i an
vi negar' s floral , frui t notes and "overtones
of tart appl es. " The moderate ethyl acetate
l evel s hel ped i t mai ntai n "an el egant bal ane"
in al l appl i cations.
FOUR MONKS White Wi ne Vinegar
$ 1 . 89 for 1 2. 7 ounces
Acidity: 5% Ethyl acetate:
1 1 9 mg/1
Thi s l ow-aci d Ameri can brnd was many
tasters' favorite. The "extremel y sweet and
gentl e" vi negar won high marks for "mel l ow
but i nteresti ng herbaceous flavors" and "tart
sour-appl e" notes.
BES FOR COOKI NG
COLVITAAged White Wi ne Vinegar
$ 2. 99 for 1 6. 9 ounces
Aci di t: 6
% Ethyl acetate:
260 mg/1
Ni ce and smooth, with the perfect level of
tangi ness, " wrote one panel i st. Several tast
ers noti ced a "subtl e sweetness" and frui t
perfume i n thi s I tal i an brand. The second
hi ghest concentrti on of ethyl acetate both
ered some tasters in the vi naigrette.
BES FOR VI NAI GRETES
MAILLE Vinaigre de Yin Blanc
$ 2. 99 for 8.
5
ounces
Aci di t: 7% Ethyl acetate: trace
Won fans for its "deep, l i ngeri ng, caramel
ized" notes and compl ex, "mal t" flavors,
but thi s French vi negar was i ntense. " I t bums
my throat, l i ke Marsal a, " sai d one taster.
Others noted " bal sam i cky" flavors.
SPECRUM NATURL Organi c White
Wine Vi negar
$4. 69 for 1 6. 9 ounces
Aci dity: 6% Ethyl acetate: trace
Thi s I tal i an vi negar had the most diverse
flavor profi l e i n the l i neup. The "darl,
fermented-tasti ng, richness" and frui t over
tones were enri ched by favors of "carmel , "
"oaki ness, " and "nutt, earthy mushrooms. "
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
Z .
LAURENT DU CLOS White Wi ne Vinegar
$ 3 . 99 for 1 6. 9 ounces
Aci di t: 6
% Ethyl acetate:
1 9 1 mg/1
Thi s frui t French contender was the
green- bean-pi ckl e champ, but the ethyl
acetate l evel s sapped its charms i n the
vi naigrette. " Pl easant" overl l , but with a
"run- of- the- mi l l " flavor profi l e.
MONARI FEDERONI 1 9 1 2 White
Wi ne Vinegar
$ 3 . 29 for 1 6. 9 ounces
Aci di t: 7% Ethyl acetate:
1 2 3 mg/1
The "astri ngent, " " box wi ne" notes in thi s
I tal i an brand turned of some tasters,
but others l i ked the "cri sp, cl ean taste. "
The aci di t was a tad on the strong si de:
"I taste a l ot of wi ne here, but i t' s fairly
harsh-makes my eyes bl i nk. "
NOT RECOM M E ND E D
CRPEW White Wi ne Vinegar
$ 3 . 1 9 for 1 7 ounces
Acidity: 7.
5% Ethyl acetate: 7 1 3 mg/1
Thi s I tal i an vi negar was the most aci di c
of the bunch and had al most three ti mes
the ethyl acetate of any other brand
tested. " I s this nai l - pol i sh remover? "
compl ai ned one panel i st. Tasters
detected strong, artifi ci al frui t notes.
MAITRE JACQUES White French Wi ne
Vinegar
$ 3 . 1 9 for 1 6. 9 ounces
Acidity: 6% Ethyl acetate:
trace
Sweet fruiti ness was marred by "must
wi ne" favors and an overpowering harsh
ness that two tasters l i kened to "gaso
l i ne." Thi s vi negar has a " bi tterness that
bi tes back, " said one panel i st.
REGI NA White Wi ne Vinegar
$ 2. 99 for 1 2 ounces
Aci di t: 5% Ethyl acetate:
24 mg/1
The " bl and" flavor profi l e of thi s Amerlcan
brnd tracked with i ts low aci di t. " Uke
di sti l l ed whi te vi negar with a spoonful of
frui t extract," said one taster.
I
Mitt JrJGC
Oven mi tts once cost no more than the S u n day newspaper, bu t today a h i gh - tech pai r
ru ns $ 60. We brved tri al s by fi re, water, a n d grease to u ncover th e (ver) pai nfu l truth .
B Y J O L Y O N H E L T E R M A N W I T H G A R T H C L I N G I N G S M I T H
A
s exacting as I get when shopping for
skillets ( flly clad, stainless steel, 2. 6-
millimeter-thick sides) , such rigor has
consistently escaped my oven- mitt
buying decisions ( fzzy, blue) . And given the $5
price tags, I 've been content t o let kitchen decor,
not performance, be my guiding light.
Lately, however, oven mitts have turned decid
edly more ambitious. Competing with basic terry
and cotton are mitts sporting fancy materials and
features: leather, "treated" cotton, rubber, silicone,
Nom ex (a freproof material used to make race-car
drver gear), and Kevlar ( an even stronger synthetic,
found in body armor and military helmets) . There
are flameproof suede gloves meant for welders, and
the "melt"-resistant "Ove" Glove ( as seen on TV! ) .
These space-age products don't come cheap: The
prciest sells for $30-and that's per mit.
Te ' Ouch' Factor
Bells and whistles aside, an oven mH has two core
requirements: enough heat resistance to keep hands
fom burning and enough pliability to keep cooks
fom inadvertently smashing food (or dropping
pans) . Because impressive dexterity is of zero impor
tance if you can't pick up the hot pan in the first
place, inital testing focused on heat protection.
We frst measured the amount of time testers
were able to lif and hold a Dutch oven flled with
boiling water before the heat became unbearble.
The silicone mitts were the winners, maxing out
at an impressive 90 seconds; the Nomex/Kevlar
mitts lasted a minute. Most of the rest clocked i n
at around 45 seconds, the leather model losing
with a still - respectable 22. ( How much longer
does a Dutch oven need to be held in midair,
anyay? )
|t| we' d have to brave the oven's high
temperatures to separate the best mitt fom the
wOC!. !merely recording how long it took
a pan-laden test cook to start trembling nervously
an objective enough measure of heat protection?
I decided to outft the interior of each mitt witl a
thermocouple-a wire probe that feeds tempera
ture data to an attached console-with the probe
strategically positioned at the point of contact.
Testers would take turns holding a pan of lasa
gna ( heated in a 400- degree oven) for as long as
possibl e. Meanwhile, I would stand nearby-in a
purely observational role-duly recording tem
perature readings from the console.
The sleek-lined LamsonSharp leather glove
was the frst contestant. I barely had time to
get my clipboard situated comfortably when the
tester emitted a piercing " Owww! " and slammed
the bubbling batch oflasagna back onto the oven
rack. Luckily, I kept my cool long enough to j ot
down the data: The LamsonSharp had risen to
1 09. 9 degrees in j ust four seconds.
The rest of the mitts fared better, screan1s of
pain were rare, and we were making clear prog
ress. First, we had quantified tl1e "ouch" factor:
Like clockwork, testers faltered at 1 1 0 degrees.
What's more, we had established a pecking order
based on the number of seconds the mitts kept our
hands below that threshold of pai n: heavy silicone
(90 seconds) ; heavy quilted cotton ( 65 ); padded
NomexjKevlar and thin quilted cotton ( 40) ; rub
ber, treated cotton, and quilted terry ( 30) ; non
padded Nomex/Kevlar (the "Ove" Glove) ( 20) ;
suede ( 1 5) ; and leatl1er ( 4) .
Until now, we had been carefl to keep the
mitts dry, as per manufacturer warnings . But such
a caveat seemed a cop- out for a product meant for
settings in which insidious liquids lurk at every
turn. So we soaked each mitt for fve seconds
i n room- temperature water, then repeated the
Dutch Oven Lif Test. The waterproof silicones
and rubbers again kept their cool beyond a min
ute, but the rest faltered much sooner.
Manipulating Data
/ testers braved the heat-resistance trials, disdain
abounded for the Orka mitts, made fom heav sili
cone. ( "I can't even tell the pan handles are there! "
complained one panelist. ) The thick silicone-so
efective for protecting hands-was also inhibiting
dexterity. So I devised three new experiments.
First, 12 Cooes stafers, using each pair of mitts,
took turns transferring a baking sheet h of cook
ies and an empty skillet fom the oven to a cool
ing rack. Aerward, we headed outside to a hot
charcoal grll, where we flipped 24 rounds of egg
plant with medium-sized tongs. Testers rated each
design on how well it negotiated the dun sides of
the baking pan, the sknny skillet handle, and tle
precision movement of the tongs.
Our tests taught us several lessons. First, there's
an inverse relationship between heat protection
and dexterity. The very attributes that gave some
of our mitts such impressive heat resistance ( bulky
padding, stiff synthetic material ) had us chas
ing eggplant rounds around the grill grate-and
smashing cookies. By contrast, the highest marks
C O O K
'
s I L L U S T R A T E D
Z 8
for dexterity went to the leather, the two suedes,
and the "Ove" Glove-three of the worst in terms
of heat protection. For a satisfactory mitt overall,
then, we'd have to choose fom above-average but
not top-rated performers in both arenas.
During the eggplant trials, we also developed
clear mitt-length preferences. The mitt lengths
ranged from 8 I inches to 1 7 inches. The 1 7-
i nchers provi ded more - than- adequate heat
protection-even afer several minutes over a hot
grill-but smaller testers found this size awkward
( there was a tendency for sleeves or elbows to
bump the gloves forward) . We found 1 5 inches
( 1 2 inches, for smaller testers) to be the ideal
length for indoors and outdoors.
Damage Control ?
A constant complaint about oven mitts is how to
keep them clean-especially when they're used
outdoors. So I grabbed a bottle of barbecue sauce
and a skillet fll of steak grease and returned to
my mitts. I spooned a heaping tablespoon of each
substance onto the mitts, let them sit overnight,
and then washed each according to manufacturer
instructions. While most cleaned up beautiflly,
the leather glove bled dye everywhere and the
suedes and the terry were sullied beyond repair.
A common mishap is setting fre to an oven mitt
wilie trying to juggle pans on the stovetop. So we
re-created the situation. Armed with safet goggles,
fire extinguisher, and galvanized meta bucket, we
subjected each mitt to a fve-second fame test over
a gas burner turned to high. The terry, cotton, and
treated cotton models suffered gaping holes. The
rubber glove burned at the seam. The suedes and
the leather gave of smelly fmes but remained
unlarmed. The silicone and NomexjKevlar mod
els survived without a blemish.
Aer weeks of testing, then, had we found the
perfect mitt? The padded Nomex/Kevlar model,
made by Kool-Tek, came pretty close. In addition
to providing good heat protection and excellent
dexterity, it washed easily and refsed to burn.
The Kool- Tek's only downfall is price-a hef
$24. 95 per mitt. Aer so many years making do
with $5 mitts, could I bring myself to plunk down
that kind of cash for what's really just a souped-up
potl0lder? Skeptics can give our runner-up a try:
For eight bucks, the Parvin quilted-cotton mitt
handled most tasks well ; just keep it out of fre
and water. But this is one cheapo- mitt veteran
who has seen the light.
RATI NG OVEN MITTS
Ou r kitchen tests fel l i nto the fol l owi ng three categori es:
RTI NGS
GOOD: ***
FAI R: **
HET PROTECI ON: Mi tts were rated good, fair, or poor based on how wel l they
mai ntai ned a comfortabl e temperature duri ng tests, whi ch i ncl uded hooki ng the
mi tt up to a thermocoupl e and pi cki ng up a hot pan of l asagna ( near right) . " Pi n
POOR: *
Threshol d" i ndi cates the number of seconds before the mi tt i nteri or rose to an
unbearbl e temperature ( I I 0 degrees) .
DEXERIT: Mi tts were rated good, fai r, or poor based on ease of mani pul ati on whi l e transferri ng pans
to and from the oven and the stovetop and whi l e usi ng tongs duri ng gri l l i ng.
DURBI UT: Mi tts were rted good, fair, or poor based on how they resisted stai ni ng and/ or structurl
damage after bei ng soi l ed wi th barbecue sauce and grease: underoi ng five rounds of cl eani ng: and bei ng
scorched over a gas fame for five seconds (far right) .
( HI G HLY RECOMME NDE D
Kooi -Tek Protective Apparel
MATER| ALS. Nomex, Kevlar,
trated coton
PR| CE . $ 21 . 95, 1 2"
$24. 95, 1 5"
HEAT PROTECT| ON. ***
DEXTER| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. ***
PA| NTHRES HOLD. 40 seconds
TESTERS' COMME NTS . Everthing we want in a mitt
except maybe the price. Mostly Nomex (heat resistant to
J degrees) with a "rcing stripe" of Kevlar (heat resistant to l, degrees), the
Kooi-Tek won fans for its natural grip, easy dexterit, and stay-cool comfort.
Pri n Flameguard Oven Mi tt
MATER| ALS. Trated coton exterior
with coton padding
PR| CE. $8.40, 1 7'' pair
HEAT PROTECT| ON. ***
DEXTER| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. **
PA| NTHRESHOLD. 40seconds
TESTE RS' COMMENTS. Almost as many fans as
the winner-especially for its comfortable dexterit
and "j ust the right amount of padding" -but some found
the length "a bit cumbersome. " Don't set this one on fire.
MATER| AL. Synthetic rbber
PR| CE . $ 1 4. 95, I I " pair
$ 1 9. 95, 1 5 '/l" pair
HEAT PROTECT| ON. **
DEXTE R| TY. **
DURA| L| TY. **
PA| NTHRE S HOL D. 30 seconds
TESTE RS' COMME NTS . The "weird fatness" was annoying,
and tester with small hands disliked the Z to J inches of useless
space at the top. The stlized shape made one tester feel like "a gingerbread man"
(and not in a good way).
Ri t Qui lted Oven Mi tt
MATER| ALS . Pdded cotton, with
ten interior
PR| CE . $ 1 3. 95, 1 2"
HEAT PROTECT| ON. ***
DEXTER| TY. *
DURA| L| TY. **
PA| NTHRE S HOL D. 65 seconds
TESTE RS' COMME NTS . The bulk padding that
made for awesome heat protection also made the
task of maneuvering pans "a major pain.
( NOT RECOMME NDE D
Orka Oven Mi tt
MATER| AL. Sil icone
PR| CE . $ 1 9. 99, I I "
$29. 99, 1 7''
HEAT PROTECT| O N . ***
DEXTE R| TY. *
DURA| L| TY. ***
PA| NTHRES HOL D. 90 seconds
Kitchen Supply Mi tt Gl ove
MATER| ALS.
cotton interior
PR| CE . $ 1 3. 95, 1 2"
HEAT PROTECT| ON . **
DEXTER| TY. **
DURA| L| TY. *
PA| NTHRESHOL D. 30 seconds
MATE R| ALS.
cotton interior
PR| CE . $ 1 2. 95, 1 3 " pair
HEAT PROTECT| ON. *
DEXTE R| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. **
PA|N THRESHOL D . 1 5 seconds
Uncoln El ectric Wel der' s Gl oves
MATE R| ALS.
interior
PR| CE . $ 1 4. 95, 1 2" pair
HEAT PROTECT| ON. *
DEXTE R| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. **
PA| NTHRES HOL D. 1 5 seconds
Te "Ove" Gl ove Hot Surface Handl er
MATE R| ALS. Woven Kev1ar/Nomexwith cotton/
polyester interior
PR| CE . $ 1 9. 99, 1 0"
HEAT PROTECT| O N . *
DEXTER| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. ***
PA| NTHRES HOL D. 20 seconds
LmsonSharp Oven Mi tt
MATER| AL. lather
PR| CE . $23. 95, 1 7''
HEAT PROTECT| ON . *
DEXTE R| TY. ***
DURA| L| TY. **
PA| NTHRE S HOL D. 4 seconds
J U L Y c A U G U S T 20 0 5
Z '
TESTERS' COMME NTS. The heat
protection champ. but testers
hated almost everthing else about
it. The rised grip on the mitt
portion was too bulk, and the
interior quickly got sweat. " Falling'
Falling' " warned one tester. who
couldn' t feel the edges of the
cookie sheet.
TESTE RS' COMME NTS. Overly
insulated finger compartments
sapped this design of dexterit.
During the washing test, the steak
grease stained permanently and
some of the padding came out.
TESTE RS' COMME NTS. Nice
looking, comfortable. and easy to
manipulate, but these gloves got
ver hot-and quickly. The pair we
tested has yet to recover from the
barbecue-sauce test.
TESTERS' COM MENTS. "Welders
must be tougher than | am," sid
one tester once the heat made it
through the suede exterior. The
delayed penetration gave testers a
false sense of comfort-then rudely
disturbed it.
TESTERS' COMME NTS. Everone
was eager to try the famous mitt
from the Jad, but no one trusted
it. " It looks like a child' s snow
glove, said one stafer. And it
worked about as well. This Kevlar /
Nom ex mitt lacked the layer of
padding that pushed our winner
to the top.
TESTERS' COMMENTS . The best
looking mitt of the bunch was
the worst when it came to heat
protection. Although in the past
we've liked LamsonSharp leather
potholders, they have a to-ply
design-unlike the one-ply gloves.
1 | I '1 I
|rccz|ngVcgg| curgcrs
ur Lltimatc Vcggic 8urgcrs pagc
2 ! ) arcpcrlcctcandidatcslorncczing
bclorc grilling) , or so wc thought.
With ncczing and dcnosting, how
cvcr, thcpattrcsincrcascinmoisturc
contcnt, it is thcrclorc ncccssary to
addmorcbrcadcrumbsbclorcnccz
ing. Iorcachburgcrtobcnozcn,add
Itcaspoonpankoor1 tcaspoonplarn
brcad crumbs tothc mixturc bclorc
shaping. Jhaw lrozcn pattics ovcr
night in thc rchigcrator on a mplc
laycrolpapcrtowclscovcrcdlooscly
wrth plastic wrap. 8clorc cooking,
patthcpatticsdrywithpapcrtowcls
and rcshapc to makc surc thcy arc
tightlypackcdandcohcsivc.
FcQQcr| n| ackandWh|tc
In Ircnch cuisinc, black pcppcr is
prclcrrcdovcrwhitc,whichisuscd
only whcn thc purity ola dish` s
appcarancc would bc taintcd by
Uccks olblack. In manyAsian cui
sincs,howcvcr,thcdistinctivcuavor
olwhitc pcppcr i s prclcrrcd ovcr
thcpincy, slightlyrcsinousnotcs ol
black. Wc sidcwiththcIrcnch lor
our Aoli rccipc pagc 8 ) but takc
thc Asian approach with StirIricd
Jhai Stylc ccl with Chi l cs and
Shallots pagc 1 9) .
Jhc pcppcr bcrricsuscdt omakc
whitcpcppcr arc thc samc as thsc
B Y D A W N Y A N A G I H A R A E
uscdtomakc blackpcppcr,butthcy
arc harvcstcd at a ripcr stagc. Jhc
hulls arc thcn rcmovcd, and with
thcmgocsthchcatthatischaractcr
isticolblackpcppcr.
Whilc lrcshly groundwhitc pcp
pcrismorcnagrantthanprcground,
wcuscwhitcpcppcrsoinlrcqucntly
in thc tcst kitchcn that wc can` t
j usti}purchasing a pcppcr mill lor
thc solc purposc olgrinding it, nor
can wc bc bothcrcd cmptying and
thcn rcnllingt|c blackpcppcrmill.
Instcad,wcoptlorprcgroundwhitc
pcppcr,rcplcnishingthcstockwhcn
thcpcppcrloscsitsnagrancc. Hcrc`s
ashoppingtip.Iurchascwhitcpcp
pcrlrom anAsianmarkct ilthcrc` s
oncncarby,you`llpayj ustalraction
olthcsupcrmarkctpricc.
5|z| ngUQ5affron
Sallron is availablc in two lorms
thrcads and powdcr. Convcntional
wisdom says that dccp, dark rcd
thrcads arc bcttcr than ycllow or
orangcthrcads. Wchcldasmalltast
ing ol broths inmscd with ditlcr
cntsalnonsanplcs,andthct|rcads
with considcrablc spots olycllow
and orangc did i n lact yicld thc
wcakcstcolorcd and uattcst tasting
broths. Jhc rcddcst thrcadsyicldcd
intcnsclyU avorml,hcady, pcrmmcd
broths-somuchsothatlcssardcnt
sallron lans would havc bccn hap
picrwithalittlc lcsssalnon.
Convcntional wisdom also cau
tions against thc usc olpowdcrcd
sallron. Somcsourccssaythatinlc
rior thrcads arcuscdtoproduccthc
powdcr and that coloring agcnts
may bc addcd. Whilc this may bc
truc, wc lound powdcrcd sallron
purchascd lrom a rcputablc sourcc
to bc j ust as uavorml and nagrant
as cvcn thc highcst quality thrcads.
What` s morc, powdcrcd sallron
ollcrsalcwadvantagcsovcrthrcads.
Iirst, a smallcramount can bcuscd
about onc third to onc hallthc
volumc mcasurcmcnt olthrcads ) ,
. .
POWD E RE D SAF F RON
SAF F RON TH READS
KM1 F TCHM1M RE MOVI NG MANGO ME AT
Our Mango and Sweet Pepper Sal sa wi th Toasted Pepi tas (page I S) requi res a di ced mango. What is the best way to remove the
meat from a mango. with its hul ki ng pi t conceal ed wi thi n? Here' s the techn i que we often use i n the test ki tchen .
I . Sl i ce of stem end from mango. Peel mango. usi ng cut end as starti ng poi nt. Z. Stand peel ed mango on i ts cut end. Sl i ce al ong
one fat si de to remove meat. Tum mango around and remove meat from other fl at si de. J. Cutti ng around the pi t, remove
remai ni ng meat.
C O O K
'
S I L L U S T R A T E D

sccond,thcpowdcri s casicrt omca

surcanddocsnotnccdtobccrum
blcdbclorcusc,hnally,itrclcascsits
uavor much morc rapidly a boon
lorquickrccipcssuchasthcSallron
^oli on pagc 8 but not so impor
tant lor si mmcrcd dishcs such as
pacllaandbouillabaissc) .
I n concl usi on, whcn shopping
for rO OO for dark rcd
thrcadswithoutanyintcrspcrsionol
ycllow or orangc thrcads . r, to
savc moncy, choosc a good quality
powdcrcdsatlron. Sccpagc 32 lor
amail ordcrsourcc. )
FretcndFnko
Coarscr, uakicr, and uulncr than
standard brcad crumbs, )apancsc
brcad crumbs, callcd panko, givc
nicdloodsanunparallclcdcrispncss.
Jhcy arc availablc in Asian markcts
and in thc intcrnational scction ol
wcll stockcd supcrmarkcts, but in
thccvcntthatyoucamothndthcm,
thcrcisawaytomakcacloscapprox
imation lrom nrm, goodquality
sandwichbrcad. Hcrc'swhattodo.
Iitaloodproccssorwithamcdium
or coarsc shrcdding disk. Jrim thc
crustsohthcbrcadsliccs( 5 sliccsW
mcabout I cupolcrumbs)andcut
thcsliccsinhall. Dropastackolthrcc
orlourpicccs oras many asW nt
comlortably) into thclccdtubc. Iut
thc lccd tubc plungcr in placc and
turn on thc machinc, allowrng thc
wcight olthc plungcr to push thc
brcad through thc shrcdding disk
do not apply additional prcssurc
by pushing down on thc plungcr) .
Sprcad thc crumbs i n a thin, cvcn
laycron onc ortwo rmmcd baking
shcctsandlctthcmdryatroomtcm
pcraturcovcrnight.
Ilyou can` twait that long, you
canbcthccrumbsi na3OOdcgrcc
ovcn until dry to thc touch, about
8 minutcs, stir intcrmittcntly, but
do not allow thcm to brown. Jhc
crumbs tcnd to clump in thc ovcn,
whcnthc crumbsarc cool, brcakup
w
Z
>
C
O

O
"
Z
1
C
thc c|umps by rubbing thcm gcntly
bctwccn your hngcrs . ncc dricd,

thc homcmadc panko can bcstorcd

inanairtightcontarncrorzppcrlock
O |1G Y | T7T K | C T1. Ol ive Oi l
Extra-vi rgi n ol ive oi l i s often cal l ed for i n uncooked reci pes, such as vi naigrettes,
where i ts ri ch, assertive, frui t flavor can be ful l y appreci ated . An excepti on:
our Alol i ( page 8) , where we preferred the more restri ned and subtl e flavor
of extra-virgi n' s l esser cousi n , known pl ai nly as ol ive oi l . " Ol ive oi l " is produced
by combi ni ng a chemi cal l y refi ned and very neutrl ol ive oi l wi th vi rgi n or extra
vi rgi n ol ive oi l to boost i ts col or, aroma, and flavor. Ol ive oi l contai ns only some
of the ful l ness of flavor of vi ri n and extra-vi rgi n. I t i s al so l ess expensi ve. And
because heat tampers wi th the flavor of costly extra-vi rgi n ol i ve oi l , pl ai n ol ive oi l
i s a good candi date for use i n cooked appl i cati ons.
We gathered seven supermarket brands of pl ai n ol ive
oil in the test ki tchen and hel d a bl i nd tasti ng. One was a
standout. DaVi nci ( $ 1 0. 49 for 34 ounces) was l auded for
its resembl ance to extr-vi rgi n ol ive oi l . It was descri bed as
"frui t and herbaceous, " "grassy," "sl i ghtl y peppery, " and
"ni ce" overal l , wi th a "good col or. " I nci dental ly, DaVi nci
was the wi nner of our March/ Apri l 200 I tasti ng of super
market extra-vi ri n ol ive oi l s.
Col avit ( $4. 79 for 8. 5 ounces) and Fi l i ppo Serio ( $ 5 . 79
for 25. 5 ounces) tri l ed DaVi nci by a signifi cant mari n.
They were deemed perfectly acceptabl e but unremarkabl e;
Colavita had bol der flavor than the mi l d Fi l i ppo Seri o.
Tasters were tepi d when i t came to Star ( $ 5 . 29 for 1 7
ounces) and Ri enzi ( $ 5 . 99 for 3 4 ounces) , the next fi n
i shers. " Bl and , " " mi l d," a n d even " bori ng" were common
comments. Bri ngi ng up the rear were Carapel l i ( $6. 29 for
25 . 5 ounces) and Bertel l i ( $ I 0. 99 for 34 ounces) , both of
whi ch were l i kened to flavorl ess vegetabl e oi l .
DAVI NCI
The best "pl ai n"
ol ive oi l .
For a more detai l ed descri pti on of our ol ive oi l tasti ng resul ts, vi si t Cook' s
Exra at W. cooksi l l ustrated. com and key in code 705 5 . The resul ts wi l l be
avai l abl e unti l August 3 1 , 2005.
bag for two to three weeks at room
temperarure or for several months in
the feezer.
| t' aboutTw| nc
Arecipe calls for kitchen twine, but
the only twine you have is a skein
from the hardware store. Should
you use it? Probably not. Because
it's not intended for use with food,
it's probably not foodsafe. Still , we
thought we'd give it a try, press
ing into service some nylon twine
from the hardware store. Although
it didn't melt or burn, the Day- Gio
FI T TO BE Tl E D
We tied a pork roast with
dental floss and six ki nds of twi ne to
fi nd the best choi ce.
yellow colorant leached onto the
pork roast we had tied with it.
A common recommended alter
native to kitchen twine is unwaxed
dental foss, but it is so thin that
while being tied on to a piece of meat
it ofen cuts through it. Afer cook
ing, this whitish, almost translucent
flament is all but invisible and so
can be diffcult to remove. We also
found that dental foss is particularly
ill suited to grilling because it easily
singes and then breaks.
As for bona fde kitchen twine,
you can buy cotton or linen. We
found linen twine easier to tie, as
it holds a nice tight overhand
knot on its own. In addi
tion, it pulls away from the
cooked meat easily, taking a
minimum amount of seared
crust with it. That said, cot
ton twine worked nearly as
well as linen and is a more
economical choice. Look for
a midweight cotton twine ( of
the four weights we tested, we liked
1 6- ply best ) . See page 32 for a mail
order source.
REC I P E U P DATE : HLPLHb HLbM
Cheesecake Encounters of the Frozen Ki nd
Can you freeze cheesecake? To fi nd out, we made ou r New York-Stle
Cheesecake ( March/ Apri l 2002) . We suspected that the cake, with i ts dense
texture, woul d hol d up wel l to freezi ng and thawi ng but that the crust, made
with graham crckers, woul d l ose some cri spness. We were ri ght. Sog crust
notwi thstandi ng, a cheesecake that had spent three to four weeks in the freezer
was al most as good as fresh baked .
Here' s how to freeze leftover cheesecake: Return the remai ni ng cake to the
spri ngform pan i t was baked i n, with the sides i n pl ace for protecti on; wrdp the
pan tice in pl asti c wrp and then once in al umi num foi l . To serve, pul l the cake
from the freezer and let it defrost in the refrigerator 8 to 1 2 hours or overight.
About an hour before seri ng, l et the cake si t out at room temperature IO shake
of the last of the deep-freeze chi l l . To freeze a whol e cheesecake, wrap the
cool ed cake, sti l l in its spri ngform pan, then freeze and thaw as descri bed.
Creme BrOi ee, Fami l y Stl e
Can you make our Creme BrUi ee
( November/December 200 1 ) if you
don' t own ei ght i ndivi dual rameki ns?
After some trial and error, we figured
out how to make a fami ly-stl e versi on
of thi s dessert i n a 1 1/ - quart casserol e
or I I by 7 - i nch baki ng di sh (we l i ke the
model s wi th handl es, whi ch are eas to
remove from the water bath) . I nstead
For easy maneuverabi l i t, bake
creme bril ee in a casserol e
di sh with handl es.
of porti oni ng the custard i nto ei ght rameki ns, strai n i t i nto one of these l ar ge cas
serol es. The custard shoul d reach about to-thi rds of the way up the si des of the
pan and have a depth of I to 1 1/ i nches. The cooki ng ti me wi l l i ncrease by about
1 0 mi nutes, to 40 to 50 mi nutes. Before removi ng the custard from the oven,
make sure the temperature at the center has reached 1 70 to 1 7 J degrees.
Chi cken Teriyaki , Stovetop Stl e
Our Chi cken Teriyaki (Januar/Februar 2005) reci pe was devel oped to
work i n an i n-oven broi l er, but we recently fi gured out a way to make the reci pe
on the stovetop for those readers who have drwer-tpe broi l ers.
Whereas extra-cri sp ski n-a must for chi cken teriyaki -i s easi ly accompl i shed
i n an i n- oven broi l er, i t' s hard to get the same resul ts by si mpl y browni ng the
thi ghs in a ski l l et. By wei ghti ng the thi ghs as they cooked, we were abl e to ensure
maxi mum contact of ski n wi th ski l l et, whi ch in turn ensured that the fat rendered
and the ski n turned brown and cri sp. To weight the chi cken we used o Dutch
oven fi l l ed wi th 28- ounce cans of tomatoes.
With thi s new stovetop method, we cut two steps from the process of prepar
i ng the chi cken thighs for cooking: boni ng them and sl ashi ng the ski n. Keepi ng
the bone i n hel ped the thi ghs to fi t compactly i nsi de the ski l l et, whi l e wei ghting
them hel ped enough wi th renderi ng the fat to make sl ashi ng unnecessar.
Cauti onar note: Thi s approach has the potenti al to produce a lot of smoke,
so make sure to turn on your overhead oven fan and/ or open a wi ndow.
-Compi l ed by Ni na West
COOK'5Egives you free reci pes onl i ne. Go to ww . cooksi l l ustrted. com and key
in code 7056 for Stovetop Chi cken Teriyaki and code 7057 for Fami ly-Stl e Creme Brul ee.
These reci pes wi l l be avai l abl e unti l August J | ,2005 .
I F YOU HAVE A QUESTI ON about a recently publ i shed reci pe, l et us know.
Send your i nqui r, name, address, and dayti me tel ephone number to Reci pe
Update, Cook' s I l l ustrted, P. O. Box 470589, Brookl i ne, MA 02447, or write
to reci peupdate@bcpress. com.
J U L Y b i U C U S T 2 0 0 5
l
I l I 1 ' 'K I K
DO YOU REALLY N E E D TH I S ?
Burger Press
We have no qualms about patting
out four patties by hand. But 1 2?
Perhaps we'll take some help. And
the best help came from the Fox
Run Crafsmen' s Hamburger Press
( $5) , which forms fawlessly shaped
beef patties. The press proved espe
cially usefl for constructing veggie
burgers ( page 2 1 ), whose texture
makes them a bit harder to shape
than ground beef. The burger press
cut burger-shaping time by 50 per
cent, and we found that it helped the
cooking process, too: Flatter patties
touch more of the pan, yielding bet
ter browning and a crispier crust.
M E ET TH E PRESS
Can a burger shaper outdo the
freehand method?
E QU I P ME NT U PDATE
Roasting Pn
During our 1 999 rating of roast
ing pans, we decided that the up
right handles, roomy i nterior, and
sturdiness of All - Cl ad' s Stainless
Steel Roti ( $275) j ustifed its hefy
price. Since then, however, we've
noticed that our top-rated pan has
a tendency to warp slightly on the
stovetop while browning roasts or
de glazing fond. ( The Roti lacks the
clad construction-an aluminum
core sandwiched between layers of
steel-that makes other All - Clad
cookware so rel i abl e . ) So when
we saw that Calphalon's flly clad
Contemporary Stainless Roasti ng
Pan features a similar design-and
for a mere $1 00-we brought it in
for the challenge.
To our delight, the Calphalon did
not warp on the stovetop, and its
lighter weight made it more respon
sive to burner adj ustments than the
All -Clad pan. This new Calphalon
roasting pan has everythi ng we
want, including a reasonable price.
B Y G A R T H C L I N G I N G S M I T J E
E Q U I PM E NT U PDATE
Chef' s Knife
Our 2002 rating of chef's knives
divided the test kitchen into two
camps: those who like lighter, mod
ern knives and those who prefer
heavier, more traditional models. For
the latter group, the 8- inch Wusthof
Grand Prix ChePs Knife has become
the test-kitchen standard. When
we found out the Grand Prix was
being phased out to make way for
its second-generation model, the
Grand Prix !I ( $79. 99) , we were
anxious to see how it compared.
The handle of the new knife is
bulkier ( and thus awkward for small
handed cooks) , and that added bulk
throws the center of balance closer
to the handl e, which makes the
"rock and chop" technique most
test cooks use feel somewhat less
natural than it does witl tle "boun
cier" design of the original .
Despi te mi sgivings about the
tweaked design, tl1e Grand Prix II
gets our stamp of approval. It earned
high marks for its sharp blade and
excellent performance in tests.
DO YOU RE AL LY N E E D TH I S ?
Thermometer Whi sk
Making custard takes three hands:
one for the pan, one for the
whisk, and another for the ther
mometer-essenti al for keepi ng
custard bel ow egg- curdl i ng tem
peratures . Wi l l i ams - Sonoma' s
Thermometer Whisk ( $25 ) i s de
signed to make custard construc
tion a two-handed task. The tines
on this hi gh-tech whisk transmit
temperatures ( from -40 degrees to
400 degrees) to the digital display at
the end of the handl e. Intrigued, we
gave one a whirl in the test kitchen.
The ni cel y contoured whi sk
worked wel l and the temperature
registered quicky. So far, so good.
TH E RM OM ETE R WH I S K
Ingenious tool with flawed calibration.
While double-checking the ther
mometer's accuracy, however, we
discovered that tl1e calibration was
off by seven degrees, registering
boiling water at 2 1 9 degrees! To
make sure we hadn't simply tested
a defective model, we purchased a
second one and repeated the test.
Once again, the calibration was off
by seven degrees. Under normal
circumstances, such egregious accu
racy issues would guarantee a nega
tive verdict, but we' re so sold on the
gadget's ingenuity that we're willing
to do the subtraction-until a more
accurate model comes along.
E Q U I PM E NT TE STI N G
Nonsti ck- Fri endly Tongs
Tongs are one of the most versa
tile tools i n the kitchen, but the
bare- metal business ends have in
ficted quite a few battle wounds
on our nonstick cookware over the
years. In an effort to preserve the
test kitchen's trusty feet of skillets,
we introduced three types of non
stick-fiendly tongs ( nylon, silicone
coated, and wood) to a pristine pan
to see which ones got along best.
BE ST TONGS FOR NONSTI CK
These nylon Oxo tongs keep nonstick
coatings out of harm' s way.
None of the models damaged the
nonstick coati ng-despite deliber
ate attempts to scratch tl1e pans. So
preferences came down to ease of
manipulation. We had a hard time
adjusting to the stiff wooden tongs,
which one tester likened to "over
sized, blunt chopsticks. " The tongs
witl1 tl1e silicone coating were broad,
flat, and straight edged, making the
grip diffcult to gauge-and preci
sion work a chore. Nylon i s sleek
enough to mi mi c the movement
of traditional metal tongs. The 1 2-
inch Oxo Good Grips Tongs witl
Nylon Heads ( $8. 95 ) can be locked
shut and have a span ample enough
to grab a l arge roast with ease .
C O O K
'
s I L L U S T R A T E D
Z
Sources
These mai l -order sources are for i tems
recommended i n thi s i ssue. Prices were
current at press ti me and do not i ncl ude
shi ppi ng and handl i ng. Contact compa
ni es to confi rm pri ces and avai l abi l it.
page 7: REMOTE THERMOMEER
Tayl or Wireless Oven Termometer
with Remote Pger: $ 34. 99, model
# 1 4 74. Amaon. com.
page 1 3 : ROASI NG RCK
Norpro Nonstick Roasting Rack
( 1 3 " x I 0" ) : $ 9. 75 , item# 1 03 249,
Cooking.com (800-663- 88 1 0;
w .cooking. com) .
page 2 3 : MEASURI NG SPOONS
Cuisipro Stai nl ess Steel Oval Measuring
Spoons (Set of 5) : $ 1 0. 95 , item
# 1 3 75 5 6, Cooking. com.
page 29: OVEN MIT
Kooi -TekOven Mitt ( 1 2" ) : $ 2 1 . 95 ,
item# 1 1 456 1 ; ( I 5 " ) : $ 24. 95 , item
# 1 1 4568, Cooking. com.
Pri n Flameguard Oven Mitt ( 1 7" ) :
$ 8. 40 (for 2) , item CFG2- 1 7, Prin Mfg.
(800-648-0770; w . parinmfg.com) .
page 30: SAFFRON
Powdered Safron: $ 2 1 . 95 , item
#S303R, Vanilla, Safrn Impor
(41 5- 648- 8990; w . safron.com) .
page 3 1 : COOKI NG TI NE
Cotton Cooking Twi ne ( 1 6- ply) :
$ 1 0. 99 (for I pound) , item #522 1 ,
Fnte's Kitchen Wrs Shop (800-443-
2683; w .fantes.com) .
Unen Kitchen Twine ( 300' ) : $ 5 . 99,
item# 1 762, Fnte' s KitchenWrs Shop.
page 3 2 : BURGER PRESS
Fox Run Craftsmen Hamburger Press:
$ 5 . 00, item FR5434, Golda's Kitchen
(866-465- 3299; w .goldaskitchen.com) .
page 3 2 : ROASI NG PAN
Calphal on Contemporary Stainless
Steel Roasting Pn: $ I 00. 00,
(ww .calphalon. com) .
page 3 2 : CHEF' S KNI FE
Wisthof-Trident Grand Prix I I 8"
Chef' s Knife: $79. 99, item #387 1 2,
ACook's Wres (800-9 1 5-9788;
w . cookswares.com) .
page 3 2 : THERMOMEER WHI SK
Thermometer Whisk: $ 25 . 00, item
# 1 7- 6441 380, Wil l iams-Sonoma (877-
8 1 2- 6235; ww .williams-sonoma.com) .
page 3 2 : NON!I CKTONGS
Oxo Good Grips Nonstick Lcking
Tongs ( 1 2" ) : $ 8. 9 5 , item #2 1 2624,
Cooking.com
KI ' I
July c August Z!!
Appetizer
Gri l l ed Fl atbread | I
Mai n Di shes
Barbecued Pul l ed Chi cken
for a Crowd 1 4
for Charcoal Gri l l I 3
for Gas Gri l l 1 4
Gri l l - Roasted Pork Loi n
for Charcoal Gri l l
for Gas Gri l l 1
Gri l l ed Tomato and Cheese Pizzas
for Charcoal Gri l l I
for Gas Gri l l I |
Sti r- Fri ed Thai - Stl e Beef wi th Chi l es
and Shal l ots 1 9
Ul ti mate Veggi e Burgers 2 1
Condi ments and Seasoni ngs
Alol i 8
Rosemary-Thyme 8
Saffron 8
Frui t Sal sas
Mango and Sweet Pepper Sal sa
wi th Toasted Pepi tas 1 5
Pi neappl e and Cucumber Sal sa
wi th Mi nt 1 5
Spi cy Nectari ne and Com Sal sa I 5
|LhLhl LL hLPbJLL |Lh|.
Chi l i - Mustard Spi ce Rub 1
Sweet and Savory Spi ce Rub 1
|Lh Lhl LLLL |l ZPb .
Spi cy Garl i c Oi l I I
Dessers
Bl ondi es 2 5
Congo Bars 2 5
Bl ueberry Buckl e 2 3
Joi n the Coo/sWeb Si te and Get I nstant Access to | ZYear of Reci pes,
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Frui t Salsas , | J
Barbecued Pulled Chi cken, | J
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