I've said it before, Spain, but specially the northern area of the Basque Country has been dominating the "Best Restaurant of the Year" and gaining worldwide fame in recent years due to their spectacular flavors and innovative food presentation which have turned the culinary world on its head. The Basque Chefs doing their "own thing" have shown us how imagination coupled with first rate ingredients and a unique view of life can transport you to another world.... truly what great food is all about.
Among the cities in this colorful region of the world is San Sebastian (where my ancestors came from), an area where even though a part of Spain, they speak their own language and don't consider themselves "Spaniards" and would like to have their own country (they already have the flag, national celebrations, their own heroes and a definite separatist viewpoint) among other things, they've taken food to amazing heights and are now experiencing a new culinary tourism that has shown the world's "foodies and gourmands" more "OMG" moments than anywhere else on the globe, no small feat as you can imagine.
So let's revisit this area, shall we? I'll show you some iconic dishes from the Basque Country that will bring amazing flavors to your table and just give you a glimpse of the possibilities that are found here, maybe you too will want to visit and become one more follower of a culinary vision that is here to stay and is finally getting the recognition it deserves.
If you've read my other blog (belinadventures), you've read about this area before, so consider a continuation of those posts with additional recipes and tips to produce great food from this long hidden corner of the world.
From "Fogon de Trifon" in Madrid comes this iconic dish from Spain and while this particular restaurant is not up north, this recipe is more than worth visiting.... Estofado de Rabo de Toro (Ox Tail Stew).... a flavorful, complex dish full of tender, fall of the bone meat that will more than satisfy.... You can try Osso Buco style, short ribs or even Beef, Pork or Veal Shanks for this as well....
3 1/2 lbs oxtails'
Some Saffron threads
3 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 small leeks, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced
4 to 5 cloves garlic
1 to 2 bottles Spanish red wine, such as Cencibel
1/2 cup olive oil
1(3-inch) slice of fat from quality cured ham like Iberico, Serrano or prosciutto di Parma, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup Ancho chile paste (you will need about 6-8 dried ancho chiles)
1/2 demi-glace, optional or quality beef broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Finely chopped parsley, for garnish
For the marinade: In a large pan, place the oxtails in a single layer, standing upright. Press a couple of saffron threads into the top of each tail. Put the chopped vegetables into a mesh bag and place in the middle of the meat and pour in 1 bottle of Spanish red wine, or more if needed; the red wine should just cover all the ingredients. Leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Take the Ancho chiles, de-stem and de-seed, then toast them in a dry pan, they will get soft and slightly change color. Put them in a pan with hot water and simmer them at least 30 min so they will become soft enough to put in a blender and turn them into a paste (you can use some of the soaking liquid to help), then run through a sieve to insure no skin pieces are left. Set aside.
For the stew: Remove the oxtails and set aside. Strain the vegetables from the marinade and reserve both the liquid and the strained vegetables.
In a Dutch oven or deep, heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the fat, if using, and render down, 2 to 3 minutes, this will be used as flavoring. Add the reserved strained vegetables and saute until lightly caramelized, about 10 minutes. Add the bell peppers and continue to slowly caramelize all the ingredients together for some minutes longer. Add the tails one by one, standing them upright and moving aside the caramelized vegetables underneath, so that the tails have direct contact with the bottom of the pan. When the underside of the tails has turned a gray color, 2 to 3 minutes, turn them over and repeat on the other side for an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Add in the reserved marinade. The liquid should just barely cover the bull's tails or oxtails. If needed, top up the liquid with water. Add the Ancho paste and demi-glace, if using.
Cook over slow, low heat until the meat from the tails is falling off the bone but still succulent and moist, about 4 hours. Check and correct the seasoning of the stew with salt and pepper. If you have a pressure cooker, this is perfect for this and will cut down the cooking time considerably to about 45 minutes.
Serve the stew immediately, garnished with finely chopped parsley, accompanied by roasted potatoes and crusty bread. This stew can also be made a day ahead and reheated to serve the following day, this is a great "recalentado" or "reheatable" dish.
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Here's an easy dish that give major points for flavor and color. Merluza en Salsa Verde (Hake in Green Sauce), direct from Basque Country and another of the iconic dishes of the region.
2 1/2 lbs Ha
ke fillets, skin on (Skate, Cod, Haddock, Sea Pike)Salt, as desired
1/2-3/4 cup olive oil
8-10 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped (more or less if you like)
1-2 tblsp flour
1/2 cup clam broth or natural clam juice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley (more or less if you like)
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy skillet. Add the garlic but don't allow to color just sweat, about 1-2 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over and mix thoroughly, 1 to 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of water, the clam broth or juice, wine, parsley and salt, to taste. Decrease the heat to medium and cook the sauce, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is slightly thick or just barely coats the back of a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. You can add more cold water to loosen up the sauce if you like.
Carefully clean, rinse and pat dry the hake. Sprinkle the fillets lightly with salt and add them to the pan, skin-side up, in a single layer. Cook the hake fillets in the sauce for 2 minutes, swirling the pan constantly and sliding the pan on and off the fire until the hake fillets give off some of their gelatin and emulsify with the rest of the sauce. Turn the hake fillets once and cook until the fish is opaque but not overcooked, another 2 to 3 minutes on the other side. The sauce should be very light green and slightly thick but still loose and light. Serve immediately.
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Here's something that will blow your mind-straight from the Basque Country... might be a little hard to get the main ingredient, "kokotxas" (pronounced cocot shaz) and they are the muscle underneath the jaw on Cod Fish, jowls (yes, really, I told you they are something....), but I will definitely look for something similar, probably with the Koreans who have the most variety of fish, and try to come up with another version of this..... In Merida, it was easy to find the cheeks available at our local Walmart, can you believe it? So we'd have the very best Fish Tacos anywhere, but for these the skin is what's needed. Kokotxas de Bacalao (Cod Jowl Muscle?).-
This will make 2 servings....
2 kokotxas, with skin (you can use the cheeks)
4 Yellow potatoes, small, peeled and cut into slices
milk
Salt Cod, about 2 pieces, small
8-10 garlic cloves, cut in half across with skin still on
Olive oil
Pil Pil Sauce (see below)
Spanish Cider Vinegar
Acacia Honey
The salt cod is soaked in water at least 48 hours, change the water about 2-3 times during this time to remove the salt. Be sure the cod is in small pieces so more area is exposed to water and it gets rinsed better. Keep in refrigerator all the time. Once done, shred finely, insuring all bones are removed. Pat dry. After the cod is ready, cook in milk for 8 minutes ONLY (time it).
The garlic is placed in a pan over low heat, coated with a little olive oil, until they are well roasted and very tender. In a bit of water, over low heat, the kokotxas are poached gently, the garlic is also added to this liquid so that a cod broth is the result. The kokotxas contain gelatin which will be leached into the broth and will be needed to thicken up the broth. If you do not obtain enough gelatin you could always add some cornstarch to induce thickening but natural is always best. Remove the cod from the liquid as soon as it is poached/blanched, just a couple of minutes. You will need the liquid later.
The potatoes are cooked in milk, just to cover, until they are done and tender, cool some. Once the potatoes and the salt cod are ready, run the potatoes through a fine sieve so you have a very smooth puree. Insure the salt cod is also very well shredded in fine pieces and then add the cod to the potatoes and make a smooth puree with both. Reserve.
The Pil Pil sauce is made adding cider vinegar (preferably Spanish Cider Vinegar), Acacia Honey and some of the Cod Broth that has thickened together into an emulsified sauce. Add the olive oil last and whip to emulsify and bring together, this will also thicken the sauce.
Now comes the hard part, take the kokotxas and place them skin side down and very gently remove the skin from the rest of the meat, you need to maintain this piece whole as it will serve as a complete covering to the "brandade" of potato and cod. Once you have the skin ready, place a large "quenelle" (the cod/potato mix spooned from one spoon to another to obtain an elongated egg shape) on the plate and cover gently with the cod muscle skin. Now top off with the Pil Pil Sauce. Serve.
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How about a wild take on Bacon and Eggs? Here's the Basque version called "Bocado de Huevo Frito con Patatas" (Fried Egg Bites with Potatoes), but you'll see what a fun dish this is....
Bacon
3 inch square piece of lardo for each serving
1 egg yolk per serving
Potatoes, mashed fine
olive oil
The potatoes are cooked and mashed, run though a very fine sieve so that no lumps are present. Then this paste is spread out with an offset spatula onto sheets (with plastic wrap, parchment or maybe silicone - you can also cover with another sheet and use a rolling pin) to a super thin film so that they can dry and become dehydrated and be able to be used as a covering for the "packet". Dry in a very low oven until dry, about 6 hours. Like a potato skin...
The bacon is cooked over charcoal so it can be kissed by the flavor yet not burned. Chop in small pieces. Place some bacon on top of the lardo square and top with an egg yolk, insure the yolk remains whole. These packets should be bite-sized since you will only get the full effect if this is done. Now fold over the lardo to encase the bacon and yolk into a small little square packet.
Now cut the potato skin that has dried some into squares large enough to wrap the packet you've made, it should cover well and be careful with the yolk. Put some oil in a pan and fry the packets, folded size down, so they turn a light gold color. After this, grill the packets over charcoal to add even more flavor but very lightly and gingerly.
Serve, popping each packet into your mouth and concentrate on each of the levels of flavor in this dish.
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The most iconic dish in all Spain has to be the Tortilla de Patata (Potato Tortilla), but you know the Basque have their own way of doing even this.... At the Asador Sagatoki in Alava comes the winning "Best Tortilla de Patatas in Spain" title from their Chef Senen Gonzalez so you know this has to be good....
Potatoes, peeled and cut in small squares
olive oil
eggs
Onions, cut in slices
The potatoes are done "confit" style or cooked in oil, over low heat so they don't fry but cook gently until done. Once done, remove and drain from the oil and place in a basket which you will then place over charcoal to allow some caramelization to occur and get additional flavor from those little hard, golden edges this will give the potatoes. Allow to cook some.
The onions are done in the same manner as the potatoes, being cooked "confit" style to give them a wonderful flavor. Remove once done and allow to cook some so they don't cook the eggs before their time.
You will need 1 egg for each 100 grams of potatoes which you will mix lightly so it comes together. Add the confited onions to the mix, at room temperature and place in a pan with a little oil on it and allow to cook over medium heat so it "gels"..... do not cook until dry as it should have some "give" to it. Cook one side then turn and cook the other, this should be creamy in the center and not take on any color.
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Amazing flavors and
tastes, dishes prepared in their own style using imagination and amazing plating techniques that are now being recognized the world over. I hope that you will have the chance to one day sample some of the gastronomy from this wonderful region, it's certainly worth the trip and the memories will stay with you forever.....Best to all.....
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