Marinating
Posted on March 1, 2008. Filed Under Articles
Farad Jon Be A Magyar Konyhaba. By now we can see spring is just around the corner. The warmer weather will soon be with us. This has been quite a winter with more snow and cold than I can remember. It hasn’t all been bad as Chef Vilmos and I have spent many hours in a warm kitchen during these cold months. The end result of course is more recipes and more information to pass along to you the faithful readers of the HK.
This past month I had the pleasure of cooking a Hungarian Buffet for a party of 10 people. Back in November at my ACF Chef’s charity dinner for Chef and Child I was part of a live chef auction. My package was dinner for 10 that included appetizers, main courses and dessert. I made stuffed cabbage, kolbasz & sauerkraut, Hungarian Gulyas with tarhonya, chicken paprikas and nokedli. For dessert I prepared a chocolate torte and a raspberry sauce for the plate garnished with fresh blackberries. I wound up feeding 15 people and there were still leftovers for the next day. A good time was had by all!
Since there isn’t a Hungarian butcher shop in New Hampshire I traveled to Fairfield, Connecticut to get my supplies. If you live in the Fairfield area and want a great place to get Hungarian meats, specialty foods and cooking spices the place to go to is Fairfield Meat Emporium 849 Kings Highway East.
203-696-2322, FairfieldMeat@aol.com. They have a great selection and are reasonably priced. As I find other Hungarian butchers in your neighborhoods, I’ll pass along the information so you can enjoy their fine products.
Last month we learned about marinades and basic facts. This month we will get complex with more about marinating with more great recipes you can enjoy. Here is the trivia question of the month…What is the most popular vegetable to be marinated? The answer awaits you at the end.
I need to correct an item I mentioned in last months column about salt and a potato. The reason a potato can correct something over salted is because of the strong nature of salt which will seek out the bland potato and attempt to transfer as much salt as it can into the potato. When a high salted product and high bland product are put together nature will attempt to balance the high with the low hence the potato will absorb salt. The potato does not put bland flavor into a recipe but draws salt out.
Looking at the basic components of a marinade which are acid, oil, salt and seasonings we can put together flavor combinations that can marinate any type of meat, fish or vegetables. The ACID and salt working together break down the tough fibers of what you are marinating. The OIL is a vehicle that carries flavor and provides moisture to the product. Base oils like olive, canola and infused flavored oils give your marinades depth and more flavors. While marinades do break down fiber and tenderize their main purpose is to provide flavor. When selecting meat you want to marinate and cook select NATURALLY TENDER meats which are those that have less connective tissue. Meat is a muscle or combination of muscles held together by connective tissue and fibers. A Filet Mignon has less connective tissue than a rump roast. The more any muscle is used it develops connective tissue. Filet mignon is located in the back under the spine of a cow while a rump roast is high on the rear leg of the animal. The roast being more active muscle will take more time to break down because it contains more connective tissue.
YOGURT, PAPAYA, CITRUS and KIWI are natural meat tenderizers due to the enzymes they contain. Add ¼ CUP PER POUND OF MEAT for 3 HOURS IN REFRIGERATION to get the best results. You can also add SOUR CREAM or BUTTERMILK to the products listed above which also will give flavor and tenderize the meat.
Foods with OPEN TEXTURED FLESH like fish and seafood need less time to soak in any marinade. When marinating any seafood the size determines the amount of time but DO NOT MARINATE MORE THAN 45 MINUTES or else your product will turn tough and rubbery. A CHICKEN BREAST needs 1 HOUR or less while parts like WINGS and THIGHS can marinate for 2 HOURS or less. The sturdier the meat, the more time it needs to marinate. NO MEAT PRODUCT SHOULD BE MARINATED LONGER THAN 24 HOURS or then end result will be sawdust. You can over marinate a meat that when it cooks it will dry up, fall apart or disintegrate.
To get the best out of the food and avoid toughness USE EQUAL PARTS OF ACID TO OIL MAKING ½ CUP OF MARINADE PER POUND OF MEAT. The extra oil seals in moisture and flavor making for a tasty entrée. For seafood marinades add NO MORE THAN 2 TABLESPOONS OF ACID TO ¼ CUP OF OIL. The more seafood sets in acid the tougher it gets which is normally not good because the product will get tougher as it cooks. If you want the strong flavor of an acidic product like citrus in your seafood add it at the end of cooking. The flavor will be there without a tough product.
SEVICHE or SEBICHE is a Latin American dish that soaks the raw seafood in a strong, acidic marinade which turns it opaque in color and firm in its texture giving the appearance of a cooked product. This meal is the exception when we marinate. When attempting to prepare this meal it is very important to USE THE FRESHEST SEAFOOD.
Marinating is a precooking process but in the case of SEVICHE it is the entire process which makes this meal unique.
Another example of marinating food without cooking deals with vegetables. COLE SLAW is shredded cabbage in a cream or oil and vinegar based marinade. The cabbage breaks down and becomes tender while picking up flavor during the process. Large pieces of vegetables can be marinated then chopped up and put into a salad or served by themselves on a bed of lettuce. Vegetables are marinated to give them extra flavor. Tomatoes marinated in red wine vinaigrette are tastier than a plain ripe tomato.
You have now completed Marinating Food 201. There is so much more information I want to share with you so next month we will continue with this topic. Enjoy the recipes and remember to be creative in the kitchen.
Trivia Answer… CABBAGE is the most popular vegetable marinated in the world. Cole Slaw, Kimchee and in Whole Head are just a few ways it’s enjoyed.
Have a fantastic month. Jo etvagyat, Chef Bela
Print This Post
Comments
2 Responses to “Marinating”
Leave a Reply
Chef Bela: I read your articles monthly in the William Penn magazine. Do you have a recipe for what is called, Langos? Mom used to bake these around the holidays. She had a “Turos Langos” made with dried cottage cheese, and a “Kaposztas Langos,” made with cabbage. I wish I could be more specific, but that is all that I remember about it, and know that both varieties were delicious. They were each in the shape of a square measuring about 6″ to 8″ on a side with the bottom dough folded over to crate a four-flap appearance. Koszonom szepen a valaszt.
Hi Rich! I think I may have what you are looking for. I bought a cookbook when I was in Hungary and there are recipes for Langolo turos palacsinta (Crepes flambe with cottage cheese) and Kaposztas palacsinta (Crepes filled with cabbage). If this is what you want, send me an email and I can send you a scan of the recipes