RESEP MASAKAN ORIENTAL

We’ve posted about this before, but there’s a great, southern tradition of eating beans and greens on New Year’s Day to ensure good fortune in the coming year.  Apparently, by eating “poor” the first day of the year, you align certain cosmic forces in your favor, which results in prosperity and good luck the rest of the year. Sounds crazy, right? I know, you’re way too sophisticated to believe in such lame supernatural shenanigans. Hey wait a minute…don’t you watch all those ghost hunter shows on cable TV? Busted! Hey, did you hear that noise? Anyway, whether you believe in this kind of culinary clairvoyance or not, this Brazilian feijoada is one of the world’s great stews. The traditional good luck bean is the black-eyed pea, but here we’re celebrating the delicious, and very nutritious, black bean. I tried to be clear in the video that this is just my version, and not some attempt at true feijoada authenticity, whatever that is. As long as you have black beans, and LOTS of smoked, s

I want to wish all of you a very Happy New Year! May 2010 bring you an embarrassment of culinary riches. 2009 was a great year for the blog, and with your help and support, this new year promises to be even more exciting. Thanks! And, enjoy! Don't Drink and Drive!

Photo (c) Flickr user nImAdestiny . I gave up on New Year’s resolutions a long time ago. Let’s face it, if you haven’t learned French by now, it’s not happening. Sure, that new elliptical machine would be a great way to get in shape, but what's more likely is you becoming the proud owner of a $1,200 coat rack that can read your pulse rate. The only people that actually keep New Year’s resolutions are the ones that don’t need to make them. However, I do like to set a few food related goals for the upcoming year. I’m not sure when, but I will do a quinoa recipe in 2012. I’m going to make Italian sausage. I’m planning on filming a “how to turn corned beef into pastrami” video, which I’ve done for About.com, but not on Food Wishes. I want to show you how to make perfect hash brown potatoes. Anyway, those are a few of my New Year’s foodie resolutions – what about you? Do you have any culinary accomplishments you want to achieve in 2012? If so, please share, and we can all have a toast t

I love the New Year's day tradition of eating beans and greens to bring luck and prosperity. This video was posted a few years back, and features black-eyed peas, and not one, but three kinds of pork. How can that not bring good fortune? This is a very old tradition, and I don't mean colonial America old , I mean really, really old. There are records of black-eyed peas being eaten for good luck on New Year's Day all the way back to ancient Ba bylonia. It must have worked, because look at all the good fortune that has befallen the middle east since then. Okay, maybe that's not the best example. This video recipe is my variation on something called "Hoppin' John," which is black-eyed peas, rice, and pork stewed together, usually served with some kind of greens and cornbread. Speaking of which, I highly suggest clicking on my cornbread recipe video and doing this thing right. I want to wish you all a Happy New Year! May your 2011 be filled with much happine

I know I just posted an Italian alternative to the New Years' beans and greens, eaten to bring prosperity in 2009, but I figured I'd better do a more traditional version. I am the American food expert on About.com after all, and it would have been bad form not to post a real black-eyed peas recipe today. This is a very old tradition, and I don't mean like pre-civil war American south old, I mean really, really old. There are records of black-eyed peas being eaten for good luck on New Year's Day all the way back to ancient Ba bylonia. For you kids out there, that's way before even cell phones were invented! This video recipe you are about to visually consume is a variation on something called "Hoppin' John," which is black-eyed peas, rice, and pork stewed together, usually served with some kind of greens and cornbread. For your convenience, and my pageviews, I suggest also clicking on my cornbread recipe video and doing this thing right. I want to w

I can't believe I haven't posted a video recipe for cream of mushroom soup! It's such a classic cool weather staple, and quite simple to make – as long as you have a few hours to spare. The secret to this deep rich potage is a long slow caramelization, the key to unlocking the mushroom's magic. Oh, and by the way, I mean that literally. Mushrooms are by far the most mysterious and magical things we eat. Scientists still don't really understand how and why they grow like they do. While every other food you eat gets its energy from the sun, Agaricus bisporus, the common button mushroom, does not. Some believe mushrooms are powered by the moon, which I find fascinating to contemp late. This is a very minimalist formula, and meant to transform the browned bits of fungus into pure earthy essence of mushroom. You can use whatever exotic mushrooms you can get a hold of, but it works quite well with the ubiquitous white button mushroom. Enjoy! Ingredients: 1/4 cup unsalte

For me, this time between Christmas and New Years is the laziest week of the year. Many are off work, and those that aren't are probably doing a half-assed job anyway. Generally people are tired, distracted, and really not into any heavy thinking. This is exactly how I feel.  Anyway, to help make up for this just-phoned-it-in post, I will say that I have so many exciting things planned for the new year, including a video on how to do your own sous vide steaks at home (my first test pictured here), using absolutely no special equipment. Spoiler alert: it was awesome. Stay tuned!

Just in case you're looking for some extra special appetizers for your New Year's Eve party, I've put together a little collection of my favorites. These crowd-pleasers are so delicious, you may even get a kiss before midnight. Just click on the title, and away you go. Enjoy! Coquilles St-Jacques The kind of special occasion appetizer we used to enjoy before the dieticians and celebrity chefs ruined it for everybody. All-American Shrimp Cocktail There's something about dunking a jumbo shrimp in cocktail sauce that just feels like New Year's Eve Fancy Mixed Nuts Why the hell would anyone put out separate bowls of nuts, when you can go full mixed nuts? It's nuts.  Potato & Chorizo Mini Quiches Originally a Super Bowl snack idea, these mini-quiches will work just as well on that fancy hors d'oeuvres buffet. They can be fancied up in an infinite number of ways. Oyster Rockefeller Any appetizer with "Rockefeller" in the name has got to work here. By

As many of you hardcore foodies know, there’s a southern tradition of eating beans and greens on New Year’s Day to help bring good fortune in the coming year.  By eating “poor” the first day of the year, you supposedly ensure prosperity and good luck the rest of the year. I think I speak for all superstitious, Italian-Americas when I say, that totally makes sense. Whether you believe in such things or not, you should still try this year’s edible good luck charm, Utica Greens. This delicious Upstate New York vegetable casserole comes in many forms, but usually contains some combination of bitter greens, usually escarole, pancetta or prosciutto, hot fresh or pickled peppers, and bread crumbs. I’m adding some cranberry beans, so you all get rich in 2014, but that’s totally fine since the locals often add chunks of potatoes, and once you start doing things like that, all bets are off. Whether side dish or main course, this is a perfect winter vegetable magnet, and I hope you give it a tr

In honor of the presidential inauguration, the title of this recipe, "Pork and Beans and Greens - Good Luck Making This," has temporally changed to this more Washington-esqe one. As many of you foodies already know (it's on the entrance exam), a very traditional southern New Years meal is black-eyed peas, or some other type of bean, and greens. Eating this meager meal on New Years day is supposed to bring you great prosperity for the rest of the year. This video recipe is a lighter and easier Italian take on the classic, and is topped with some crusty, caramelized roast pork. Speaking of the south, you'll see me use a spice rub (a wet rub, aka "wub") on the pork before roasting for a sort of Italian barbecue effect. All in all, this is an odd recipe. The pork is not slow-roasted, but cooked at a higher heat for a crusty finish. The greens are not slowly braised, but just wilted. The black-eyed peas have been replaced with cannellini beans. And, I can't

Photo (c) David Blaine's Flickr Photostream I get lots of requests for Beef Wellington, especially around the holidays. In case you don't know, Beef Wellington is a whole tenderloin of beef, covered in foie gras pate, coated with a rich mushroom paste, wrapped in buttery puff pastry and baked to a golden brown. Sound good doesn't it? That's the problem. The idea of Beef Wellington is amazing, and the aforementioned list of ingredients is spectacular together, but I've always considered the actual dish more of a risky showpiece than anything else. I can sear a filet mignon steak, top it with mushrooms and foie gras, serve it on or near some perfectly baked puff pastry, et viola! That way I can control each component of the dish. When you take the same ingredients and try to perfectly cook them wrapped in puff pastry, you're adding significantly to the degree of difficulty. Having said that, I'll admit it really does make an impressive special occasion dinner

This spinach salad with black-eyed peas is a twist on one of my favorite American culinary traditions; the custom of serving beans and greens on New Year's Day. Supposedly eating "poor" on New Year’s Day brings much wealth and good luck throughout the year. The greens, usually braised with ham or sausage, represents paper money, and the beans, usually black-eyed peas, symbolize coins. Here, we’re presenting those ingredients in salad form, which is a great delivery system for our hot bacon dressing– the true star in this video. If one of your New Year’s resolutions is, “Eat more bacon,” then here’s another delicious way to work it into your diet. This peppery, sweet and tangy sauce is fast to make, and shines on other things besides wealth-generating spinach salads. Wouldn’t this be great in a warm potato and mushroom salad, as well as a sauce for a grilled chicken breast or pork chop? What about spooned over poached eggs, or slathered on sweet potato fries? Yes, yes, yes

If you act very quickly (sometime today would be great), you can own your very own copy of our first DVD for the unbelievably low price of $25! That's right, you can now purchase this future collectors item (for real, not like those Obama dinner plates) for the same price as before Christmas. How can we afford to not raise the price? We've cut out the middleman and passed the savings on to you! Click on the banner - we have operators standing by! Photo (c) Flickr user Cosmic Kitty

I've received a lot of great feedback from those who tried the " Method X " technique for cooking prime rib, and the verdict is in.... Guilty of medium-rare perfection on all counts! I'm sure glad you guys didn't screw it up and then try to blame me. To celebrate our success cooking such an expensive and intimidating hunk of beef, I bring you this short, two-part video of a slightly different method. Enjoy! Part 1 "Now that's a fire..." Part 2 "The water seems to make it worse..."

When you feel like splurging a l ittle – maybe for that exclusive New Year's Eve party you're putting together – San Francisco's famous Cioppino is a g reat choice. This spicy fish and shellfish stew is a big red bowl of yummy, and when paired with a loaf of crusty sourdough bread, it's downright otherworldly. There are as many versions for Cioppino as there are tourist traps on San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf (if you're visiting our city, you've been warned…do not waste your money on an expensive meal down there!). Some versions use red wine, some white. Some feature a thin broth, while others are so thick you could stand your spoon up in it. They usually all have some type of crab and shrimp, but any and all combinations of seafood are used. As I say in the video, this is not the Cioppino recipe; it's a Cioppino recipe. I've seriously never made it the same way twice, which is how a recipe like this should be treated. I want you to watch an

When I went to culinary school in the early Eighties, the chef instructors used “Green Beans Almondine” as a prime example for the kind of stodgy, clichéd, faux-fancy, vegetable side dishes that we were supposed to eradicate shortly after graduation.  This was the dawn of a new age of American cookery, and something so old-fashioned as green beans almondine had no place along side our newfangled raspberry vinaigrettes and cajun fish. There was only one problem with this prohibition...green beans and almonds tasted really good together, and made for a lovely side dish once in a while. Of course, fearing you’d be laughed out of the young, hot cooks club (hot from heat, not from hotness) you just didn’t dare make or serve such a dinosaur. Anyway, to make a long story short, I’ve finally done a green beans almondine video, but added roasted garlic and blue cheese to it, just in case any of my old classmates are watching.  I actually did this at Thanksgiving, sans nuts, and it got rave r

Yesterday's Pork Diablo recipe reminded me of this Stuffed and Rolled Pork Tenderloin recipe I posted over three years ago. This is one of my favorite recipes on the entire blog, and when I saw it only had 14 comments I realized that many of you might not have seen it yet. It's funny to see and hear how the videos have evolved. This is some very early work, and was shot with a tiny web cam. There's no music, the sound sucks, and the video rambles on for over 8 blurry minutes. That said, there is a certain charm to it, and I got a kick out of watching it today. Like I said, the recipe is a favorite, and one of my go-to special occasion choices. It looks very cool, is relatively easy to pull off, and scaled up would work nicely for a large table. To view the recipe, click here to go to the original post . Enjoy! Please Note: Updated internal temperature for this is 155 degrees F. (I like to go higher than 145 because of the stuffing). The video says  internal temperature

That's right, I just flew in from New York, and boy, are my jokes tired. Wait, I think I've already used that one before...which I guess proves my point. Anyway, I've returned from Christmas break with the family, and looking forward to resuming normal production soon (for you newbies that's 2.5 videos every week!). Technically, we're not supposed to work until the New Year, but it's been too long without a video, and I'm starting to get the shakes, so I'm going to film something today. By the way, the photo shows a very successful experiment I did cooking a prime rib "sous vide" style in a cooler. Now that I think about it, the title should actually be, "New Bag in my Tricks." I got the idea here , and it worked beautifully! I don't think I'd be able to film, edit and post before New Year's Eve, but rest assumed this will be shared on the channel at some point. Stay tuned. I missed you all!

Eating beans and greens on New Year’s Day is an annual tradition that supposedly brings prosperity and good fortune. Does it work? Who knows, but what do you have to lose? I mean, even if there is nothing to this ancient superstition, at the very least you get to enjoy one of the world’s great comfort foods.  Here are some ideas that may, or may not, help get you into a higher tax bracket. Just click the recipe name, and you’ll see the original posts with ingredients. Enjoy! Italian-Style Beans and Greens So simple, so good, so comforting, and so a lot of other things. Italian soul food at its best. Utica Greens and Beans This delicious good luck charm hails from Utica, NY, and in addition to the obvious ingredients, also features pancetta or prosciutto. Black Eyed Peas with Pork & Greens They say the coloration on black eyed peas makes them look like coins, which adds to that whole prosperity in the New Year thing. Sure, if you squint, I guess. Very tasty nonetheless. Brazi

This New Year’s Eve splurge special is dedicated to all of you who’ve used the cost as the excuse for not doing a beef tenderloin, when the real reason is the intense fear of screwing up such an expensive cut of meat. The thought of paying all that money for such a luxury item, only to have it end up a dry, overcooked platter of corn-fed humiliation, is just too much to take. Well, I have some very good news. Using these very simple techniques, anyone can achieve a perfectly pink and juicy roast. One secret is the slow oven, which allows for a gentle roasting, and produces an even, rosy hue throughout the muscle. The other trick is roasting the beef on top of the pan sauce, which not only flavors the meat, but also humidifies the oven for a moist, aromatic cooking environment.  Of course, both of those are dependent on you being able to give this a serious sear before it goes in the oven, but I have complete confidence in you. This particular cut of beef is extremely tender, but very l

Help Wanted! As some of you already know, I'm putting together an American cookbook for Parragon Publishing. If you'd like to help, I'll be posting a series of photos from recipes being produced for the book, and I'd love to have some of you loyal readers testing them. Beneath the photo, you'll see a link to the written recipe on my American Food site, where the recipes are also being published. Since I'll be doing so many recipes, I'll also be posting a couple videos a week from the collection, but I really want to know if the instructions in the recipes work even without seeing them. Click here to try this Classic Dinner Rolls Recipe . Please report back! Thanks and enjoy!

Here are some old (some are very old) video recipes with ideas for tasty tidbits for your New Years Eve festivities. Click on the link and off you go. Enjoy! Calabrese Lollipops – Antipasto on a stick! Three Cheeses in Three Minutes Chicken Caesar Springrolls – The Ultimate Low-Carb Wrap Piquillo Peppers stuffed with Orange and Cumin Scented Goat Cheese Clifton Springs Chicken Wings - Oven-Fried with Sticky Ginger Garlic Glaze Bekri Meze – A Small Plate of Greek Food for Drunks: Prosciutto Wrapped Prawns – Sorry Pancetta, We’ve Met Someone Else Savory Chocolate Crustini with Maldon Sea Salt Crystals