July 2006 Archives

Hey vegetarians out there--shake what your mama gave you! The imitation meat thang can be overrated. It's important to remember that you're a vegetarian because you like vegetables. So, here we've gone and stolen some tricks from the carnivorous Frenchies and applied it to yams, cauliflower and cashews. Savoir Faire indeed.

"Au Gratin" with garnish
2 purple yams
1 bulb ginger
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbs. rosemary
2 Tbs. ground black pepper
1 Tbs. salt
1 cup raw cashews
2 Tbs. soy sauce
2 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs. ginger powder
1 Tbs. dry mustard

Cauliflower "Gravy"
2 heads cauliflower
2 Tbs. fresh ginger, sliced
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 Tsp. Sriracha sauce
1 Tbs. basil, chopped

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Skin the yams, and slice width-wise into thin chips. Skin your ginger with a spoon, and slice into thin strips, reserving 2 Tbs. for later. Toss the yams in a large bowl with olive oil, rosemary, salt and pepper.

2. Then place yams in a casserole dish in layers with the ginger, add the excess olive oil and bake until yams are tender (about 30 minutes). Place another pan filled with water in the oven to keep the yams from drying out.

3. In a skillet, toast the cashews on medium heat until they begin to brown. Toss often to avoid burning. When they start to color, turn flame on high and add 1 Tbs. soy sauce and 1 Tbs. vinegar. When the liquid is nearly gone, repeat and add ginger and mustard before removing.

4. Steam the cauliflower until semi-soft, remove and strain. In a food processor, blend the cauliflower and ginger in shifts, adding splashes of coconut milk and veggie broth until the mixture is smooth.

5. When blended, put in medium sauce pan, add soy sauce and Sriracha, and simmer for 10 minutes on medium heat. Once gravy is nice and hot, remove from heat, add basil and set aside for at least 10 minutes for the flavors to marry.

Beverage: Westmalle Trappist Dubel
Soundtrack: Yo La Tengo's And then nothing turned itself inside out.

In grade school, Andrew Mueller and I were inseparable slackers who smoked things out of coke cans in his backyard, and dabbled in vegetarianism together. After high-school we parted ways, but every once in a while we bump into each other and bond over increasingly strange, but endearing, things: tequila, botany, pickled eggplants stuffed with goat cheese balls.

The last time we hung out, a couple months ago, he pulled this hot sauce out of the side door of his fridge and made me slather it on a stale cracker. My mind--along with a few million taste buds--were blown.

Matouk's Hot Calypso Sauce is best filed under the "tropical habanero" category. The first ingredient, naturally, reads "pickled Scotch Bonnet peppers." The staying flavor, however, is more of a fruity mustard. Strong vinegar with spices and a hint of papaya flavor make it that rarest of rare hot sauces, with such a tantalizing flavor that you actually end up eating far more of the stuff than you should.

The Scotch Bonnet being the hottest variety of habenero, the proverbial fire level on this baby is high, but the lime tartness and banana sweetness temper it. Matouk's makes those weak African simmer sauces that white people are so fond of look like Pace "picante." As a hot sauce, this stuff works on nebulous levels. As a marinade, it's infectious. You can douse veggies in it, then char grill them--the sweetness stays, the heat burns off. Or simmer the shit out of some black beans with a couple Tbs. of it dumped in at the beginning. Or even plate a piece of seared tuna with trails of Matouk's and Sriracha crisscrossing for both taste and decoration.

If you don't have an Andrew Mueller in your life, who scours weird Trinidad food stores, your best bet is online.

**posted by Evan**

Nothing says summer like watermelon. And personally we'd rather be eating it then lubing it up with baby oil, throwing it into a swimming pool and trying to bring it ashore. So, when Hot Knives threw a bit of a backyard BBQ last week we prepared our waz melz two ways: a crisp, fresh herb-laden jicama and watermelon salad, and a vodka watermelon. Here's a recipe for the former, the latter you can figure out on your own (pictured above).

Watermelon Salad
2 medium sized jicamas
2 juiced limes
1/2 cup grapefruit soda
2 Tbs. honey
4 Persian cucumbers
1/2 medium sized, seedless watermelon in chunks
2 cups chopped mint
2 cups chopped cilantro

Skin the jicama and shred them with a cheese grater. Mix the shreds in a bowl with limejuice, grapefruit soda and honey. Skin and slice the cucumbers and watermelon. Add all ingredients together in a large bowl and toss.

Beverage: PranQster Golden Ale
Soundtrack: Gong's Angel's Egg

In preparation for the L.A. Tofu Festival on August 12-13, Hot Knives is doing nothing but tofu recipes for a couple weeks. We don't want to be the only Angelenos overdosing on soy, so if you have a recipe you'd like to share with us, we have 2 tickets to the Tofu Fest with your name on 'em.

Share Here...

The first five tofu freakz to share their recipe here will win 2 FREE tickets to the Tofu Festival in Little Tokyo on August 12-13.

Include your name and an email address so we can track you down.

If you love that crispy, crunchy fried tofu that most restaurants finesse nowadays, there's no excuse for settling with the sludgy, watery mess that an un-fried tofu stir-fry can become. Here's a technique you can use for almost any recipe that calls for fried tofu, from kung pao tofu, to mock fried chicken.

Fried Tofu
1 block extra firm tofu
1 phonebook
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chickpea flour
1-2 cups canola oil

1. Remove the brick of tofu from packaging, being careful not to let it crumble (always use extra firm). Set it on a cutting board draped with paper towels and place another layer of towels on top of the tofu. Then squarely place a phone book, or an object of equal weight and shape, on top of the tofu. Let sit for about 10 minutes and flip the tofu over. This will drain all that gooey water that prevents the tofu from soaking up the flavors you want it to.

2. In a deep dish or flat-bottomed bowl, break the egg and scramble thoroughly. Set aside. Combine the flours on a large plate and season (Salt and pepper may do the trick for some recipes, for others add a touch of cayenne pepper or curry powder). Slice your drained tofu into the desired size pieces for the particular recipe. Then, place a couple pieces at a time in the egg, roll them around until thoroughly covered, and repeat with flour mixture. Pat off excess flour.

3. Heat the oil in a large wok on high. After about 5 minutes the oil will be hot enough to begin frying. Place one round of pieces in the wok and flip after a couple minutes or once the first side seems to brown slightly. Remove when both sides seem to be firm and crunchy, and let sit on paper towels to remove excess oil.

If you're looking to avoid the gallon of canola oil that it takes to crunchify your curd, press the shite out of it and replace the tofu water with flavor water. Here's a trusty standard that works for numerous srit-fry and scrample recipes.

Soy Juice
1 block extra firm tofu
2 limes
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 Tbs. seasoned rice wine vinegar
2 Tbs. ground cumin
2 Tbs. ground pepper
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 cup cilantro, leaves only
1 gallon size Ziploc bag
1 drinking straw
1 phonebook

1. Press your tofu with a phonebook (per above instructions)

2. Zest and juice the limes. In a bowl, whisk together the lime juice, soy sauce, olive oil and rice wine vinegar. Add spices and whisk again.

3. Now slice the tofu lengthwise about 1/4 inch thick, taking care not to break each piece. Place two pieces of tofu, long edges touching, on the bottom of your Ziploc bag, the zipper facing the ceiling. Cover the face of the tofu with garlic slices, and then some cilantro leaves. Build the tofu brick back up bit by bit, alternating tofu, garlic, cilantro. Once your flavor cube is erect, carefully dump the marinade into the bag. Zip shut, leaving one corner open just enough to fit your straw into. Suck out all the excess air. All of it. Place the phonebook on top of the bag for 30 minutes, or overnight in your fridge. Carefully turn at least once so that the tofu marinates evenly.

4. Sear tofu slices on a high flame in a lightly oiled skillet 2-3 minutes on each side. Add splashes of marinade and cook off before serving.

Who the hell has pectin in their cupboard--ready, in a pinch, to make some jam for breakfast? Not we. Here's a whisky-flamed jam heavy with onions and jalapeno peppers that requires nothing more than a pan and a fire. It's strong in booze, sugar and spice. And besides being a perfect topper for you biscuit people, it'll flame up for all you kitchen arsonists out there.

Whisky pan jam
2 cups cipollini onions, quartered
3 shallots, minced
1 cup whiskey
1⁄4 cup maple syrup
2 Tbs. ground black pepper
1 Tbs. smoked paprika
4 Tbs. corn starch
2 Tbs. vegan Butter

1. Toast the onions and shallots in small sauté pan until they begin to brown, about three to five minutes on medium heat.
2. Add whiskey and turn the flame to high. When the whiskey is bubbling with vim and vigor, turn the heat down to medium low and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced by more than half. Be very careful, as your reduction will catch on fire if your flame is too high. If it does, blow it out.
3. Add the maple syrup and spices.
4. Now in a bowl, mix the cornstarch with an equal amount of cold water and mix with your hands to make slurry. Whisk the jam while you add the slurry in a steady stream. Finish your jam with the butter. Serve on biscuits (we made Meagan's 'Sage, Rosemary and Thyme' Biskeez) or sliced wheat toast.

A cold one sounds good right about now, doesn't it? Yes it does, because summer was made for beer and it's hot as Hades this July. How ironic then, that this is the season of absolute treason when it comes to good beer, or as Allen Ginsburg once put it, "I've seen the best minds of our generation destroyed by thirst, taking Corona baths in the streets." Dudes, there's no excuse.

Summer is also the season that many breweries release a seasonal ale perfect for sweaty poolside chugging. Generally these beers are regarded as too light, too fruity or just plain boring in beer snob circles, which is a shame because they don't all suck. So to celebrate Independence Day we at Hot Knives threw a barbecue with only one mission in mind: to settle once and for all whether the proverbial summer brew should be considered a wuss beverage or an essential, seasonal fixture of beer culture.

Seasonal Contenders

Summer Solstice
(Anderson Valley)
Eyes: A surprisingly dark copper, like prehistoric sap. Little head.
Nose: Sweet syrup.
Tongue: The heaviest hints are of cane sugar and deliciously rich malt. No hops.
Brain: This beer is not working on levels. It's a simple and straightforward amber, sweeter than most and perfect for sustained sipping. The only thing deceptive is the color.
Overall: 3 out of 5

Summerfest
(Sierra Nevada)
Eyes: Uh-oh. Looks like Budweiser.
Nose: Light and hoppy. You can almost smell the bubbles.
Tongue: A decidedly boring, traditional lager taste with some mild hops.
Brain: Their iconic pale ale is far better than this. In fact, Summerfest optimizes what beer heads often hold against a summer beer: its extreme drinkability.
Overall: 2 out of 5

Solstice Wit Beer
(Berghoff)
Eyes: A mildly burnt-looking gold color. A strong foamy head with lots of carbonation.
Nose: Nice, if overpowering, floral notes of both orange and lemon.
Tongue: The first sip is a little shockingly citrusy, a tart malt taste your tongue never quite gets used to. The aftertaste is all water.
Brain: The fruit notes seem artificial, more like Fanta than beer, but this would be a good brew for people who like weird malt liquor or wine coolers.
Overall: 2 out of 5

#10 Summer Ale (Lagunitas)
Eyes: The perfect balance of gold and copper, with a medium head.
Nose: Mild, with hints of citrus and hay.
Tongue: The initial vanilla sugar taste rolls into a complex, hoppy bite.
Brain: This beer is refreshing and extremely drinkable without being too boring. The sweetness matches the hops well.
Overall: 4 out of 5

Year-round Challengers

Cinder Cone Red Ale
(Deschutes Brewery)
Eyes: Some beers pour better than others; this is one of them. The color of a red squirrel.
Nose: Woodsy with a hint of hops.
Tongue: Impossibly good, with a touch of roasted malts and a strong bitter burst.
Brain: Nothing about this beer implies a seasonal mandate per se, but it would make a thirst-quench pint anytime.
Overall: 5 out of 5

PranQster Golden Ale
(North Coast Brewing Co.)
Eyes: Very reflective, almost like staring at gold bars.
Nose: A slight spice with wafts of wheat.
Tongue: The booziness is up front, followed by a great floral note and a breeze of fresh Belgian-style richness.
Brain: This Cali imitation of an abbey-style beer is impeccable, an obvious choice for a summer session of beer drinking.
Overall: 5 out of 5

India Pale Ale (Lagunitas)
Eyes: Nothing special. Minimum head and crisp, clean look.
Nose: Nice and berry-laden hop sniff.
Tongue: A sickly sweet, perfectly pungent IPA taste. Familiar and well-honed.
Brain: This trusty IPA is another great beer that doesn't necessarily scream "summer."
Overall: 3 out of 5

Festive Ale (Rogue)
Eyes: Nice fizz, nice clouds.
Nose: Like bread dough, sticky sweet.
Tongue: Pretty predictable. It drinks like most Belgian triples.
Brain: This is no Prankster.
Overall: 3 out of 5

13 Weizen Doppelbock
(Avery Brewing Co.)
Eyes: A light nutty brown, nearly milk-chocolate in color.
Nose: A rising spice kinda like baked fruit bread.
Tongue: An initial booze clobber you expect from Avery, with a more subtle nudge toward German bock tradition that must have taken restraint from these malt freaks.
Brain: By being a bock, the association here is with fall not summer, but by the time we got to this brew the hose was out, the sun was down and the smell of fireworks made this sweet sipper a Born on the Fourth of July fave.
Overall: 4 out of 5

We'd like to think that when Marlon Brando was getting ready to emerge on the set of Apocalypse Now he started gorging himself on something that was regionally specific. He wanted something that would keep him cool and satiated in the jungle, something that would soothe and excite his sizable abdomen when Francis Ford Coppola pumped him full of drugs after butchering cows and freaking out in front of Playboy Bunnies. "I don't need to read the script," he thought, "I just need another goddamn sandwich."

This is our take on the most old school of Franco-Asian fusion: Bahn Mi, the fresh and awesome Vietnamese baguette sandwich. Make one of these and terminate...terminate with extreme prejudice (serves eight).

The Sandwich
1 brick firm tofu
1/3 cup chickpea flour
1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 cups canola oil
1 Tbs. sea salt
1 Tbs. garlic powder
3 medium carrots
1 large shallot, minced
3 Tbs. grapeseed oil
3 Tbs. seasoned rice wine vinegar
3 Tbs. minced lemongrass (or 2 Tbs. lemongrass paste)
1 lime
1 small bulb ginger, skinned and minced
2 Tbs. ground black pepper
2 baguettes
4 cups cilantro leaves
4 jalapenos, thinly sliced
2 cups mung bean sprouts

Sriracha & Basil Mayo
1/2 cup mayonnaise (or sub veganaise)
3 Tbs. Sriracha hot sauce
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 basil leaves, chiffonated

Slice the tofu width-wise, leaving thin rectangles. Mix the two flours together and coat the tofu thoroughly. In a shallow pan heat canola oil on high and fry tofu, flipping to crisp both sides. Season with a pinch of salt and garlic powder when removed from heat. Wait until cool then slice into thin strips.

Skin the carrots and cut them in half lengthwise so you can slice them into thin, long strips like the tofu. Set them aside. Mince the shallot and steep in oil, vinegar and lemongrass. Zest the lime, juice it, and add both to the mixture. Skin the ginger, mince it and add with black pepper. Whisk. Drench the carrots with dressing and let sit.

Slice each baguette length-wise, being careful not to sever both halves. Pick all the leaves off your cilantro, and slice the jalapenos. Slather one face with Sriracha mayo. Pile on tofu, carrots, sliced jalapenos, mung bean sprouts, a drizzle of vinaigrette, and cilantro in that order (use more cilantro than you think is necessary). Slice and serve. "Smells like...Victory."

Beverage: Stone's Ruination IPA
Soundtrack: D Yellow Swans' Psychic Secession