What Einstein Kept Under His Hat: Secrets of Science in the Kitchen (30 page)
Read What Einstein Kept Under His Hat: Secrets of Science in the Kitchen Online
Authors: Robert L. Wolke
Another kind of cultured mussel becoming more available in the United States is the greenshell,
Perna canaliculus
from New Zealand and
Perna viridisis
from Southeast Asia. The genus
Perna
has only one muscle, the adductor muscle, holding its shells together, while the genus
Mytilus
has two.
The greenshells, which measure three or four inches long, are edged with a startling emerald-green color, but the meat is the usual cream or orange color. (Male mussels are usually cream-colored; female mussels are more likely to be orange.) Because greenshell mussels are shipped frozen, you can find them year-round.
Even the blue mussels from Maine are now available year-round, because mussel beds in slightly different locations spawn at slightly different times, and the clever farmers can select the nonspawners for harvesting throughout the summer. You may now eat mussels in all months except those that have
q
’s in their names.
| | Hot Wok Mussels | |
I
t doesn’t get much easier than this. Chuck the mussels into a hot wok and shovel them around until they open and plump in their own juices. Period. They are perfect when dipped into a velvety sauce such as Smoky Garlic Mayonnaise. Serve these mussels as an appetizer or light supper, with crusty peasant bread for sopping up the flavorful juices.
2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and beards removed
Kosher or coarse sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 or 2 lemons, halved
Smoky Garlic Mayonnaise (p. 384)
1.
Heat a large wok over high heat for about 2 minutes, or until very hot. Test the heat by flicking a few drops of water into the wok. If the drops bead and dance across the surface, the pan is ready.
2.
Discard any mussels that do not close when tapped. Add the remaining mussels to the hot wok all at once. Using a wok shovel or a large wooden or stainless-steel spoon, toss and turn the mussels for 4 or 5 minutes, or until they open and release their juices. Shovel and mix vigorously, so that all the mussels are exposed to the same amount of time on the bottom of the pile. The more noise you make with the shells clattering against the metal, the better. That appetizing sound is dear to the heart of every shellfish lover.
3.
When all the mussels have opened and plumped—discard any that failed to open—sprinkle them with salt and pepper and divide them and their juices between 2 large bowls or 4 smaller bowls. Tuck a lemon half into each bowl, so that each person can squeeze juice over the mussels to taste. Spoon Smoky Garlic Mayonnaise into ramekins for dipping.
MAKES 4 APPETIZER SERVINGS OR 2 MAIN-COURSE SERVINGS
| | WELL, SHAVE ME WITH A CLAM! | |
Are razor clams good to eat? And why are they called that?
....
Y
es, they’re quite good to eat, breaded and fried, or made into fritters. They’re harder to find here in the States than in many European countries.
They didn’t get their name because their shells are sharp (which they are), but because the shells are shaped like an old-fashioned, curved-handled straight razor: two long, curved shells hinged together along the outer curve and with open ends through which the clam can poke out and do everything clams need to do.
Folklore has it that Native American men used to shave with the sharpened shells of a different species of clam, the quahog (
Mercenaria mercenaria
). The smooth, pearly lining (the
nacre
) of these clamshells often has beautiful purple patches, which were carved into tubular beads and used as wampum (money) in trade with Dutch and English settlers.
(The information in the preceding paragraph has nothing to do with razor clams and I provide it at no additional charge.)
In the United States, the common East Coast razor clam (
Ensis directus
) can be found up to 10 inches long. The Pacific Coast razor clam (
Siliqua patula
) is shorter and stubbier. Both kinds spend their lives in the sand or sandy mud around the low-tide zone of shallow bays, standing vertically with their foot pointing downward and their—well, other end (they have no head) pointing upward. Both ends protrude from the open-ended, tubular shell, so razor clams don’t keep very well and must be cooked alive and fresh.
As in all clams, the “foot” isn’t meant for walking; it’s for digging. By extending its foot (sometimes called its digger) down into the mud, then thickening it at the bottom and trying to retract it up into the shell, the clam hauls itself downward in a perfect application of Newton’s Third Law: For every upward pull there’s a downward push (not Sir Isaac’s exact words).
But just try to grab one and pull it out! The little devils can dig down faster than you can follow, and they can hold on so tightly that even if you do grab one, you may well break its fragile shell in the struggle to pull it from the mud. That’s why you will find razor clams only very rarely at your local fishmonger’s. It’s a shame, because they are so good to eat.
On the other hand, my respects go out to any delicious species that has outwitted our attempts to decimate its population.
| | Ultimate Oven Paella | |
P
aella might seem difficult to make, but it is really just a series of easy steps. This step-by-step method is for beginners. Later, you can experiment to your heart’s content, because paella is not so much a dish as it is a rice-based concoction of local seafood and/or poultry and/or rabbit, depending on what part of Spain you’re making it in. But more than anything, paella is all about the saffron-flavored rice.
Do all the advance cooking in a large, preferably black cast-iron skillet rather than in the paella pan. The skillet’s idiosyncrasies will be familiar to you and therefore the pan more reliable. Also, the skillet fits better than an unwieldy paella pan on a stove-top burner. About a half hour before your guests arrive, turn on the oven, assemble the dish in the paella pan, and allow it to bake until the rice is cooked.
This recipe is designed for a 14- to 16-inch paella pan. Bob and I bought ours in Valencia, the home of seafood paella. Why that size? Because it was the biggest we could fit into our suitcase.
24 small clams
12 mussels
1
1
/
4
pounds medium shrimp
5 to 6 cups chicken broth
A good pinch of saffron threads
1
/
2
pound chorizo sausage
6 to 8 chicken drumsticks, skin on
Salt and freshly ground pepper
About
1
/
3
cup olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 sweet red pepper, finely chopped
1 sweet yellow pepper, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1
/
2
teaspoon paprika, preferably smoked sweet Spanish paprika (
pimentón
)
1 cup ripe cherry tomatoes, pierced with a knife
1 cup frozen peas, defrosted
2
1
/
2
cups Spanish short-grain rice, preferrably the
bomba
variety
Lemon wedges for garnish
Smoky Garlic Mayonnaise (p. 384) for serving
ADVANCE PREPARATION:
1.
Discard any clams that do not close when tapped. Scrub the remainder under running water. Discard any mussels that do not close when tapped. Scrub the remainder under running water. Place them together in a bowl and refrigerate. Peel the shrimp, reserving the shells, then devein (remove the black vein down the back). Place in another bowl and refrigerate.
2.
To enhance the flavor of the broth, place the reserved shrimp shells in a sauté pan with a little olive oil. Cook over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes, or until they turn red. Add 1
1
/
2
cups of the chicken broth to the pan and let it simmer quietly for about 5 minutes. Strain the broth into a glass measure. Discard the shells.
3.
Crush enough of the saffron between 2 spoons or with your fingers to yield
1
/
2
teaspoon crushed. Add it, along with a few whole saffron threads, to the hot broth to steep. Add enough additional chicken broth to make 5 cups. Place 1 cup additional plain broth off to the side. You may or may not need some of it.
4.
Cut the chorizo into 4-inch lengths and simmer in water for 15 minutes. Let cool and slice into
1
/
4
-inch-thick slices. Set aside.
5.
Rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry. Sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Place a heavy cast-iron skillet or paella pan over high heat and add the olive oil. It should just film the bottom of the pan. When hot, add the chicken and brown for about 15 minutes on all sides. The chicken should be barely over half cooked. Transfer the chicken to a plate, leaving the oil behind in the pan, and set aside.
6.
Add the onion and sweet peppers to the oil remaining in the pan and sauté over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened but not browned. Add the garlic and paprika and cook for another 2 minutes, but do not let the garlic brown. Add the cherry tomatoes and cook for 2 minutes longer. Set the vegetables (this is called the
sofrito
) aside to cool.
FINISH THE DISH:
1.
About 35 minutes before serving, place a rack in the lowest position in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2.
Place the
sofrito
in a 16-inch paella pan, spreading it out. Distribute the rice over the vegetables and stir to coat with the oil in the pan.
3.
Bring the 5 cups broth to a boil in a saucepan. Place the paella pan on the stovetop over medium-high heat. Pour the boiling broth over the rice and vegetables. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, without stirring, for 10 minutes.
4.
Turn off the heat. Add the sausage slices, pushing them into the rice. Add the shrimp. Add the clams and mussels, hinge side down.
5.
If there is room, add the chicken pieces. If not, place the drumsticks in a shallow baking dish and bake them on the top oven shelf while the paella is on the bottom shelf.
6.
Carefully place the paella in the oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Check the dish. If the rice seems too dry, add some of the reserved broth. Do
not
stir the rice. When done, the mollusks will be open, the shrimp will be pink, and the rice should have a bit of a bite. If necessary, bake for 3 minutes longer.
7.
Remove the paella from the oven. Scatter the defrosted peas over the surface. Cover the paella with a tea towel or foil and allow it to rest for 5 minutes. As it stands, the remaining liquid will be absorbed and the rice will become tender. This is a very important step.
8.
Garnish with lemon wedges. Place the paella in its pan in the center of the table and allow guests to help themselves. Pass the chicken legs, if you didn’t fit them in the paella pan, and pass the garlic mayonnaise.
MAKES 6 TO 8 SERVINGS
| | ALL THOSE WHO LOVE | |
A seafood place told me that according to an FDA regulation all sea scallops are treated with a chemical dip to prolong shelf life. I’m surprised that the FDA would mandate a process that has no impact on safety but only keeps the scallops fresher longer. What’s the scoop? Is there such a regulation? And maybe you could enlighten me about “diver,” “dry,” and “processed” scallops while you’re at it.
....
F
irst of all, don’t go back to the “seafood place” that told you the FDA requires them to soak their scallops. That’s baloney. But before I tell you why, let’s see what all those scallopian adjectives mean.
A scallop is a lump of white seafood shaped like a marshmallow, right? Wrong. We might as well say that a cow is a steak. “Scallop” is the name of a remarkable critter that we almost never see whole. Fishermen shuck most of them at sea as soon as they’re dredged from the bottom, throwing away all but that big, pale muscle that ends up in our markets. That’s the scallop’s adductor muscle, which it uses to close its hinged pair of shells that are shaped like Shell Oil signs. Other bivalve (two-shell) mollusks, including clams, oysters, cockles, and most mussels, have pairs of adductor muscles, but scallops have only that single, huge Schwarzeneggish one.
Americans generally disdain the rest of the animal, but it is all edible (except for the shells, of course). Try it raw on the half shell if you ever get the chance. A whole, raw scallop is sweeter than a clam and without the oyster’s sulfurous tang. But be sure it’s absolutely fresh—no more than a day or so out of clean, certified waters. Scallops spoil quickly—even faster than most other kinds of shellfish—because their shells don’t fit together tightly. Most other bivalves can be shipped around the country tightly “clammed up,” still alive and fresh. But scallops die soon after being taken out of the water, and, gaping as they do, they’re an open invitation to spoilage bacteria.
The two major species of scallops sold in the United States are loosely referred to as
sea scallops
and
bay scallops
. American sea scallops (mostly
Placopecten magellanicus
) are the bigger ones, averaging about 20 to 30 meats per pound. They’re about an inch or more high and taken from shells that may be 8 to 12 inches across. Bay scallops (
Argopecten irradians
) are smaller in both muscle (less than an inch high) and shell (2 to 3 inches); they average about 60 to 90 per pound and are found closer to shore. The really tiny scallops you occasionally see in the market, at more than about 70 per pound, are calico scallops (
Argopecten gibbus
). Many fishmongers ignore the niceties of biology and geography, applying the names
sea
or
bay
based on size—or whim—alone.