Q). I lived in Naples, Italy for
three years. When I was there I had a dish called la Genovese. I was
told that it was normally made with beef but this was made with chicken
and onions. The onions were served with pasta and the chicken was saved
for the second course. I have looked everywhere for this recipe. Can you
help me?
Lisa V., Via e-mail
A). This is a great story and a true
Neapolitan mystery, invented before the tomato reached Italy. Because
the rich had their own chefs, it has evolved over the years from a meat
and onion sauce to just an onion sauce, then back to a meat and onion
sauce. The chicken recipe you mentioned must be an adaptation. This dish
takes 3 to 4 hours to prepare and sounds like braised beef with a puree
of onions, which after cooking down for hours develop a reddish-amber
color. Here, try this one –
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La Genovese
2 1/2 lb. pork shoulder or chuck roast (rub with salt)
4 lb yellow or white onions, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
2 stalks of celery, finely chopped
6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
3 T. olive oil
1 glass dry white wine
1 t. tomato paste
1/4 lb. pancetta, finely chopped
1/4 lb. mortadella, finely chopped
Heat a large pot over medium heat and add the oil, carrots, celery and
garlic. Once the vegetables start turning soft, add the onions. Cook
until the onions start to soften up. In a separate pan,
brown the pork shoulder, pancetta & mortadella in some olive oil, then add to the
original pot and reduce the
heat. Dissolve the tomato concentrate in half a glass of water and add
to the pot. Reduce heat to low or until the liquid in the pan simmers
then cover the pot and let cook for an hour, stirring occasionally.
After one hour, add the wine, cover again, and let cook another hour. If
during these first two |
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hours the contents of the pan should start
sticking, add a little water to keep the onions moist. After this second
hour of cooking, uncover the pot, slightly increase the heat and let
cook, stirring from time to time. Check the meat, it will probably need
more time to be done but you never know. When the meat is ready, keep
checking from time to time, remove and set aside. The sauce should now
really just simmer so that it slowly concentrates while at the same time
cooking the onions further. After another hour, during which you'll have
stirred the sauce from time to time, check the color and the consistency
of the sauce. The color should now be amber-reddish and the onions
should practically melt in your mouth. If your sauce is not there yet
keep on simmering. The entire cooking time might take between 3 1/2 and
5 hours, faster if you use chicken. Use the sauce for short pasta like
penne, and serve the meat, sliced thinly, with a little bit of sauce and
a salad or, better yet, some greens. |
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Here’s a great salad tip: Being that celery
is harvested locally and is very sweet and tender, try making a salad of
a whole head of celery, a little radicchio and some big chunks of
iceberg lettuce – making the celery the predominant vegetable. For the
dressing, just drizzle everything with some good extra-virgin olive oil,
strong red wine vinegar, salt and pepper and you will be surprised how
good it is! Q). Out of
curiosity, I planted a couple of sunchoke tubers a few years ago. They
grew and bloomed – the flowers are not especially showy but the plants
don’t seem to be fussy about soil or care – they do want sun. When the
foliage starts to die back just pull them up, save a few tubers for
the next crop and enjoy. I love the |
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taste but didn’t realize how nutritious they
are. Thanks for that info.
Be Well!
Ani
Via e-mailResponse:
Easy to grow and easy to eat – you’ve
got it! Thanks Ani!
Q). John: With Dungeness crab
plentiful, I remember an Italian dish I really liked when I lived in
North Beach above New Joe's Restaurant. I tried to re-create it at my
house but, alas, to no tasty avail. I would be indebted to you forever
for your recipe for Crab Au Gratin. Thank you so very much. And, Happy
New Year and Many More.
James Broz
Via e-mail |
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A). Here’s the recipe I remember
making at Cerrito’s on the Wharf in the 60’s. This was a classic, always
served with rice that was colored with a yellow food coloring called egg
shade. Start by making a simple white sauce – 1/2 oil (or butter) and
1/2 flour. Slightly brown in a non-stick pan and then slowly add some
milk. Using a whisk, let it come to a low boil and season with white
pepper, nutmeg and cayenne pepper. Next sauté some sliced button
mushrooms and finish with some dry sherry, allowing all of the wine to
cook off. Fold in fresh picked crab, mushrooms and white sauce. Check
the seasoning and put into a casserole dish. Cover with some fresh made
bread crumbs that have been moistened with some oil and put into a
350-degrees oven for 30 to 45 minutes until bubbling and brown. Serve
with rice. |
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Dear Chef, Reading
about your delight in the gift of two large Pismo clams prompts me to
write about my family's history with those giant clams. My great-great
grandfather was John Michael Price, who left Bristol, England in 1825 at
age 15 on a whaler, and sailed round the Horn and to the Pacific Islands
on two separate voyages, one of which was written about and became the
basis for Melville's "Moby Dick". But Price jumped ship along the coast
of Mexico and traveled north, ending up on the Central Coast. He became
a vaquero, taught by local Indians working on the Spanish / Mexican
ranchos and in the 1840’s, he purchased 8,800 acres of the land known as
the Pismu Rancho. There he married and raised a family of 13 children, |
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became Alcalde, Judge and Supervisor of San
Luis Obispo County. We have his original drawings for a planned city he
called Pismo Beach. He loved having barbeques on the beach and had the
servants and children gather the giant clams, using pitchforks to throw
them on the wagon to take to the tri-gabled adobe where their Chinese
cook prepared them for the feast, also included roasted beef, lamb,
enchiladas, beans, rice, wine, barrels of brandy, fresh figs and pears
from his orchard. Neighbors and family made for the large party
atmosphere. Los Californianos, an historical group of Spanish / Mexican
descendents of the Californios 1769 - 1850, published a cookbook in the
1980s which included a recipe called "Phony Abalone" from one of my
cousins |
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who had lived on the ranch. It is made
from chicken breast soaked 24 hours in clam juice and garlic, and
reminds us that true Abalone and the giant clams were already long gone.
In November each year we attend the annual Ice Cream Social at the ranch
during which the local Chumash tribe prepares their delicious fried
bread and also conduct some tribal events, including dancing. Perhaps
someday they will even have a giant clambake! Wouldn't that be nice?!
Ramona Reitz
Pacific Grove, CA
Via e-mailChef Response:
What a sweet story – thank you so much for sharing. |
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