The Essential James Beard Cookbook (55 page)

VARIATIONS

WINTER SQUASH WITH BLACK WALNUTS:
Omit the spices. Add ½ cup coarsely chopped black walnuts to the purée. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

WINTER SQUASH WITH PECANS AND GINGER:
Beat the steamed squash with the butter and add ½ cup chopped pecans, ¼ cup finely chopped candied ginger, and
¹
⁄
₃
cup dry sherry. Put in a deep 9-inch baking dish, dot with butter, and bake in a preheated 350°F oven until the butter is melted and the squash is hot.

WINTER SQUASH WITH PEANUTS:
Use ½ cup coarsely chopped salted peanuts instead of black walnuts.

PURÉED WINTER SQUASH WITH RAW ZUCCHINI:
Omit the spices. Mix ½ cup shredded raw zucchini into the hot purée for a lovely color, flavor, and texture contrast. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

SAUTÉED ZUCCHINI WITH WALNUTS

MAKES 6 SERVINGS

This is excellent with roast lamb or with poultry.

6 medium-small zucchini, trimmed and cut into ¼-inch rounds

Kosher salt

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, unpeeled

Freshly ground black pepper

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Put the zucchini in a colander, sprinkle with salt to draw out the water, and leave for an hour to drain. Rinse the slices and dry them.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter and all of the oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. When foaming, add the zucchini and garlic clove and sauté, shaking the pan constantly, until the slices are tender but still crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. (The unpeeled garlic clove gives a little touch of flavor; discard it after cooking.) While cooking, taste a slice to see if it needs additional salt. If so, salt while tossing and give the slices a few grinds of pepper.

Add ¾ cup of the walnuts to the zucchini, shake the pan to blend them together, and heat the nuts through. Transfer to a heated serving dish, add the remaining tablespoon of butter and ¼ cup walnuts, and garnish with the chopped parsley.

RICE, GRAINS, AND BEANS

Old-Fashioned Boiled Rice

Steamed Converted Rice

Aromatic Rice with Peas

Rice with Pine Nuts

Risotto

Risotto al Frutti di Mare

Paella

Barley with Mushrooms

Bulghur Pilaf

Tabbouleh

Cornmeal Mush (Polenta)

Kasha

Lentil Salad

Breton Beans

Nevada Chili Beans

White Beans with Cognac

OLD-FASHIONED BOILED RICE

MAKES 4½ CUPS RICE; 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

Bring
4 quarts of water
and
2 tablespoons of kosher salt
to a rapid boil in a large pot. Throw in
1½
cups of long-grain rice
in small handfuls, making sure that the water continues to boil throughout. Boil the rice rapidly for 15 minutes, uncovered, then drain in a large sieve. Do not overcook. This will give you fluffy rice with well-separated grains, slightly firm to the bite.

If the rice seems a little moist and not fluffy after draining, return it to the pan and dry it out over very low heat for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring it occasionally with a fork to fluff it up. Always stir cooked rice with a fork, or toss it with two forks. Using a spoon bruises the grains and makes them sticky.

This method also works well with the Italian short-grain rice.

Editor: This method takes a lot of guesswork out of cooking rice.

STEAMED CONVERTED RICE

MAKES 3 CUPS; 4 SERVINGS

For converted rice, I prefer to steam it covered. When you steam rice, remember that it will expand to three times its original volume (1 cup raw rice makes 3 cups cooked). [
Editor: Converted rice has been parcooked and dehydrated, which removes some of its starch to ensure fluffy, separate grains. This method works well for regular, nonconverted rice, too.
]

2½ cups water

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 or 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil (optional)

1 cup converted rice

Put the water, salt, and 1 tablespoon of the butter, if desired (this is not necessary if you are going to add butter or oil to the cooked rice), in a pan and bring it to a rapid boil. Add the rice, and when the water returns to the boil, cover the pan tightly, turn down the heat, and cook the rice over very low heat, without lifting the lid, for 20 to 25 minutes until the water is completely absorbed. You may, for richer rice, substitute chicken stock for the water. The simplest addition is butter or oil. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter or oil to the rice. Toss with a fork until the grains are well coated.

VARIATIONS

HERBED RICE:
With the oil or butter add 2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley and 1 to 2 tablespoons finely cut fresh chives. Other herbs that might be added with the parsley and chives are chopped fresh tarragon and chervil.

RICE WITH PINE NUTS:
After adding the butter or oil, toss the rice with ½ cup pine nuts, which give a pleasant crunchiness.

PUNGENT PARSLIED RICE:
Add to the cooked rice 6 to 8 chopped shallots that have been lightly sautéed in 2 tablespoons olive oil or butter until just limp and golden, and 2 to 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley.

SAFFRON RICE:
Add ¼ teaspoon crushed saffron threads to the rice with the water.

AROMATIC RICE WITH PEAS

MAKES 4 TO 6 SERVINGS

The whole spices in this dish are for flavoring only and are not to be eaten.

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 stick of cinnamon, about 1½ inches long

3 bay leaves

4 whole cardamom pods

5 whole cloves

1 cup peas, either freshly shelled or thawed frozen

1½ cups long-grain rice

2¾ cups
Chicken Stock

¾ teaspoon kosher salt (use 1¼ teaspoons if the broth is unsalted)

Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed medium pot over medium heat. When hot, add the cinnamon, bay leaves, cardamom pods, and cloves. Stir the spices for 5 seconds. Now add the peas. Stir and fry for a minute. Add the rice, and turn the heat to low. Stir and fry the rice for about 3 minutes. Now add the stock and salt. Bring to a boil. Cover with a tight-fitting lid, turn the heat to very, very low, and cook, undisturbed, for 25 minutes. Turn off the heat. Let the rice rest, covered and in a warm spot, for 10 minutes. Mix the rice and peas gently with a fork, and serve.

RICE WITH PINE NUTS

MAKES 12 SERVINGS FOR A BUFFET

Editor: For 9 cups of cooked rice, start with 3 cups of raw rice and 6 cups of water.

2 cups finely chopped yellow onion

2 cups pine nuts

1½ teaspoons sweet paprika

½ teaspoon Tabasco

1 cup olive oil

9 cups hot cooked rice

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 drained canned pimientos, chopped, for garnish

Finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Sauté the onion, pine nuts, paprika, and Tabasco in olive oil for 6 to 8 minutes. Toss with the hot rice, using two forks. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with the chopped pimientos and parsley.

RISOTTO

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

I like to use a heavy skillet of plain or enameled cast iron or copper and stainless steel for risotto—the Italian rice dish in which the grains, though firm, become creamy like a pudding. A pan that will distribute heat and hold it well aids the bubbling activity and gradual absorption of liquid that a risotto requires.

The next important thing is to have good stock or broth. If making seafood risotto, clam juice may be used, but it is best to use homemade chicken, beef, veal, or fish stock if possible. These stocks keep well in the freezer. There are so many variations of risotto that it is always a pleasure to have the wherewithal on hand to make it at the last minute. I am particularly partial to chicken and fish stock for risottos because I like to use seafood and various meats and vegetables that blend well with those flavors.

The simplest risotto is made with rice, butter or oil, onion, stock, and Parmesan cheese.

6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter

1 small yellow onion, peeled and very finely chopped

1½ cups short-grain Italian rice, such as Arborio

3 to 4 cups
Chicken Stock
or
Beef Stock
, heated

½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy skillet; add the onion and cook over medium heat, stirring, until light golden. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and, when it has melted, add the rice. Stir the rice around in the butter with a fork until the grains have become coated and almost translucent.