5 
FAVORITE CHILIES
ALEPPO, URFA, AND PAPRIKA
My visits to Turkey and Spain opened up whole worlds of flavor to me, contained in the flesh of Aleppo, Urfa, and paprika chili peppers. Before my travels, I used widely available chilies, such as the jalapeño and habañero, which are just plain hot. But Mediterranean cuisine is not hot-spicy like Thai or Mexican food; the chilies used there do not overwhelm the taste of food, but rather heighten it. In my travels in this region, I discovered the varied and individually unique flavors of exotic chilies: bitter, leathery, earthy, chocolate, smoky, and sweet. I wandered the markets and ate in the restaurants, adding new chilies to my palette and slowly learning how to use them—just like other herbs and spices—to layer, tone, or brighten dishes.
Chilies contain natural oils, just as nuts do. Make sure the chilies you use are shiny. Shininess indicates that a chili has been dried properly and will be fresh and flavorful.
Like toasting nuts, toasting chilies releases their natural oils and perfume. You can lightly toast a whole dried chili by holding it with a pair of tongs a few inches over a gas flame for about a minute, until it steams and becomes more pliable, but being careful not to set it on fire. Store toasted peppers in an airtight container or in the freezer.
ALEPPO CHILIES
Once you begin using these beautiful, coarsely ground chili flakes from northern Syria, you’ll toss out your bottle of dried red pepper flakes meant for sprinkling on slices of cheese pizza. You can substitute Aleppo chilies to greatly enhance any recipe calling for dried red pepper flakes.
Aleppo chilies are used more for flavor than for heat; their flavor is deliciously deep with a cuminlike earthiness and a hint of sweetness. Chilies are celebrated in Aleppo—a city with a varied and plentiful gastronomy—but the food there is not typically spicy.
Aleppo chilies are especially oily and when fresh should look bright red and almost wet. You can substitute Aleppo chili pepper in recipes calling for paprika, but use slightly less Aleppo pepper, because it is hotter. And remember that paprika does have a unique flavor that may be important to certain dishes such as goulash. It’s also fun to substitute Aleppo chilies for black pepper. It can be dangerous, though, if you love black pepper and use lots, so season with a cautious hand.
I sprinkle Aleppo chilies on green salads, feta cheese, tuna salad, cheese pizza, quesadillas, soup, and potato salad. I recommend storing the chilies in your freezer, since freezing them keeps their oils from drying out. I always have a small bag of Aleppo chilies in my freezer as well as a little shakerful on my table.
Aleppo chilies are available at www.kalustyans.com. Maras chilies, which are nearly identical but come from Turkey, are available at www.formaggiokitchen.com.
URFA CHILIES
My friend Ihsan Gurdhal introduced me to Urfa chilies. Ihsan is from Istanbul and owns one of my favorite stores in town: Formaggio Kitchen, in Cambridge, Massachusetts (see Ihsan’s Doggy Eggs on page 218). To me, Formaggio Kitchen is like a toy store; I poke through fresh produce and wander the aisles when I need fun, new ingredients, and inspiration. Ihsan and his wife Valerie travel in search of great cheeses, olive oils, dried pastas, condiments, olives, and charcuterie. They are famous for their cheese-ripening room in the basement of Formaggio. I always leave Formaggio with lots more than I came for.
Ihsan is my local Turkish expert. He regales me with wonderful stories about his grandmother and her culinary experiences in the Ottoman palace she grew up in. One day I was in Formaggio when Ihsan had just received a shipment of Urfa chilies from Turkey. He told me to take them to try. From that day on, I was hooked.
Urfa chilies are dark red or purple-black and come from southeastern Turkey, near Syria, from the town of Urfa or Sanli Urfa, and they are very exciting to work with. In fact, they may be my favorite chili pepper. They are simultaneously bitter like coffee or chocolate and sweet like molasses, and they lend a wonderful, deep, smoky aroma to sauces. Like the Aleppo chili, the Urfa chili’s heat is moderate but meaningful. And like the Aleppo, the Urfa has a high oil content and when fresh should look shiny and not at all dull. Urfa peppers are ground even more coarsely than Aleppo chilies. They freeze well and will keep in an airtight container for months.
When picked, Urfa peppers are dark purple in color, which deepens as they dry in the sun. After the chilies lay in the sun all day, the farmers wrap them up and leave them to sweat overnight. The chilies are then unwrapped and returned to the sun the next day. Over the course of a week, this process concentrates the chilies’ color to near-black, and they develop their rich, earthy flavor and smoky aroma.
I sprinkle Urfa chili pepper on ceviche, Fried Haloumi Cheese (page 10), tomato sauces, scrambled eggs, eggplant, hot chocolate, and even on caramel popcorn (see Rosemary’s Spicy Caramel Popcorn, page 170). They are also the perfect substitution for recipes calling for our native Ancho chilies.
Urfa chilies are available at www.kalustyans.com and at www.formaggiokitchen.com.
PAPRIKA
Paprika chilies are unlike Urfa and Aleppo in that they are sweeter and warmer and have more caramel and bell-pepper flavors. Paprika complements many foods without dominating them and lends a rich color to dishes.
Paprika chilies vary in color from red to dark red to brown, depending on the type of plant, the climate, and the amount of red pigment in the pepper skin. They also vary in strength of heat and flavor styles—from bittersweet to smoky, semisweet to delicate, sweet to hot—and it can become complicated to choose. The heat of the chili depends on how much capsaicin (a compound found in the pepper’s connecting tissues, placenta, and seeds) is left before processing. The mildest and sweetest paprika is made only with the flesh of the pepper; all traces of seed, stem, and connecting tissues are removed. The result is a silky paprika with no bitterness or aftertaste. Paprika chilies are always harvested ripe and resemble miniature sweet bell peppers. They are ground finer than Aleppo and Urfa chilies, but can be stored in the same way.
Spaniards use both sweet paprika and smoked paprika, but even sweet paprika is somewhat smoky. Spanish paprika is smokier and usually not as finely ground as Hungarian paprika, which has a delicate, sweet, and silky texture. It famously lends its flavor to goulash, the Hungarian veal or beef stew made with paprika and sour cream. The peppers grow all over the world, but paprika harvesting is a big industry with strict regulations in Spain, Hungary, and Israel.
I like to use a good paprika to lend rich color to chicken marinades and beef stews. It’s fun to play with Spanish smoked paprika to make pan-fried or broiled steaks taste like they were grilled over charcoal and sweet red pepper sauces taste pleasantly woody and smoky.
For Hungarian-style paprika, try the különleges at www.penzeys.com. For Spanish-style paprika, try the sun-dried paprika in bittersweet or hot or the el ray smoked paprika (very smoky) at www.thespanishtable.com.
RECIPES WITH THREE FAVORITE CHILIES: ALEPPO, URFA, AND PAPRIKA
SMOKY EGGPLANT PURÉE WİTH PİNE NUTS AND URFA PEPPER
CHİCKEN AND WALNUT PÂTÉ WİTH SMOKY PAPRİKA
WHİPPED FETA WİTH SWEET AND HOT PEPPERS
STEAMED MUSSELS WİTH LEEKS AND SMOKY PAPRİKA
HARİSSA: NORTH AFRİCAN CHİLİ PASTE
MUHAMMARA: RED PEPPER AND WALNUT PURÉE
SALT COD FRİTTERS WİTH RED WİNE AND SWEET PEPPERS
VEAL TAGİNE WİTH MOROCCAN SPİCES AND ALMOND COUSCOUS
LAMB STEAK WİTH TURKİSH SPİCES AND MOUSSAKA
ROSEMARY’S SPİCY CARAMEL POPCORN
Smoky Eggplant Purée with Pine Nuts and Urfa Pepper
This eggplant preparation is heavenly: I love the combination of creamy, smoky, peppery, and nutty flavors. It’s similar to the traditional Ottoman-style dish served in Turkey called “sultan’s delight”–featuring creamy, smoky eggplant but minus the pine nuts—which is served with bits of stewed lamb.
Turkey contains many cuisines; Ottoman cuisine is the elaborate, refined cooking of Istanbul and the palaces. During the Ottoman Empire, the sultans hired extraordinary chefs, each specializing in one particular dish. Ottoman chefs concocted imaginative and sometimes bizarre-sounding recipes, including kebobs, minuscule ravioli, the priest fainted (stuffed eggplant), ladies’ thighs (battered and fried meatballs with rice), and young girl’s dream (2 scoops of chocolate ice cream with a banana sticking out of the middle). The feasts were served up on hand-hammered silver dishes, still used in the palaces today.
I was inspired to create this recipe after having tasted a similar dish in Cupia, a restaurant in the suburbs of Athens. The chefs at Cupia charred their eggplants over a wood fire and wrapped them in foil to steam until they collapsed. Then they removed the foil tableside, scraping the creamy white eggplant flesh into a bowl and mashing it with thick, garlicky mayonnaise and toasted pine nuts. The finished product, served with fresh pita right out of the wood-fired oven, was to die for.
My version is a cross between sultan’s delight and the outstanding dish I sampled in Greece. I use yogurt instead of heavy mayonnaise, and I boil the eggplant to make preparation easier. I also use a little smoked salt to impart a wood-smoke flavor to the eggplant. You can find smoked salt at www.salttraders.com.
Smoky eggplant puree is a perfect side dish to the Grilled Skirt Steak on page 26 and is wonderful as a mezze with bread or greens. It’s also great served with Braised Beef Short Ribs (page 66) and Spoon Lamb (page 22).
Always choose fresh, healthy eggplants that are firm and shiny. The light purple-skinned variety, or “neon” eggplant, works very well in this recipe, as the flesh is white and creamy, but they are hard to find. Chinese eggplant, which are long and thin and have a light purple color like the neon variety, are delicious too, but they yield less meat and so take more work to prepare. Regular dark-skinned “black bell” eggplants are also fine for this recipe.
MAKES ABOUT 2½ CUPS TO SERVE 4 TO 6 
2 eggplants (about 2 pounds), peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
1 tablespoon salt plus more to taste
¼ cup whole-milk plain yogurt, preferably Greek style
1 teaspoon smoked salt
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic (about 1 large clove)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ½ lemon)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup toasted pine nuts (page 91)
2 teaspoons Urfa chilies plus a pinch for garnish
Pepper to taste
1. Bring a large saucepan (big enough to hold the chunks of peeled eggplant) of water to a boil, and cook the eggplant in the boiling water with the tablespoon of salt. Lower the heat to medium and continue on a brisk simmer. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the eggplant is soft and translucent. Check by squeezing the eggplant with a pair of tongs. Drain well in a colander.
2. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, purée the eggplant with the yogurt, smoked salt, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil.
3. Place the eggplant mixture in a medium mixing bowl and stir in the pine nuts and Urfa chilies. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Serve at room temperature or warm in small serving bowls, sprinkled with a pinch of Urfa chilies to show them off.
Chicken and Walnut Pâté with Smoky Paprika
I call this creamy chicken salad recipe pâté because it is similar in consistency to rillettes, which is a type of French pâté. Rillettes are made by cooking rabbit, duck, or pork slowly in a lot of fat until very tender; the meat is then shredded and mixed with enough cooking fat to form a paste, which is served on sliced bread. In this recipe, I use nuts, bread, and chicken poaching liquid to bind the chicken meat, for a creamy consistency without all the fat. Using nuts as a thickening agent is a sophisticated, heart-smart, healthful Arabic cooking technique (see also Turkish Tarator Sauce on page 353 and Garlic and Almond Soup on page 338).
This pâté recipe is a twist on Circassian chicken, a classic Ottoman dish. The Russians forced the Circassians out of their homeland in the North Caucasus Mountains in the 1860s, and 90 percent of these people fled to Turkey. Circassian women—renowned for their beauty and their cooking—were captured by or traded to the sultans and became part of the harem and cooking staff in the Turkish palaces.
The first time I prepared Circassian chicken was in 1999, when I was chef at the Casablanca restaurant in Harvard Square. Clifford Wright, the author of A Mediterranean Feast (a book that took him ten years to write and is my favorite reference on Mediterranean cooking), came into the kitchen and said, “No, it must be creamier.” He helped me understand the proper texture. And then when I first met my friend Hamza Zeytinoglu, of Circassian descent and hailing from Istanbul, he literally jumped for joy after I mentioned that I offered Circassian chicken on my menu at the Casablanca. Hamza came into the restaurant to try the dish and said, “No, it must be spicier.”
So this recipe was perfected by the palates of both Cliff and Hamza. It’s fun to play with any of the chilies in this chapter, altering the spiciness according to your preference.
Traditionally, cilantro is a main ingredient in Circassian chicken, but I like to use scallions instead, because I think the cilantro distracts from the beautiful flavor combination of smoky chilies and walnuts.
This recipe freezes very well.
Serve the pâté with a dry muscat from Portugal to make a perfect aperitif as a mezze course with homemade crackers (see recipe for Crick-Cracks, page 176).
MAKES 5 CUPS TO SERVE AT LEAST 10
1 whole free-range chicken (about 3 pounds)
1 cup dry white wine (if you are drinking the Portuguese Muscat, use that)
1 small carrot, cut in half
½ onion, peeled and cut in half
10 black peppercorns
4 whole allspice berries
2 bay leaves
Ice cubes
¼ pound French bread, most of the crust removed (about ½ baguette)
2 cups walnut pieces or halves
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic (about 6 cloves)
½ cup walnut oil
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup sour cream
6 scallions, bottoms trimmed and finely chopped
1 teaspoon Aleppo chilies
1½ teaspoons smoked paprika
Crick-Cracks (page 176) or your favorite crackers
Condiments (pickled hot peppers, additional Aleppo chilies, whole radishes, romaine leaves)
1. Place the chicken in a large pot, add the wine and enough water to cover it. Add the carrot, onion, peppercorns, allspice, and bay leaves and bring them to a gentle boil over high heat. Turn the heat down to medium-low so that the pot just simmers; the chicken will be tough if the water boils too hard. Cover partially with a lid and poach for about 30 minutes. The leg should pull off the chicken easily when you tug at it with a pair of tongs.
2. Remove the chicken and place it on a baking sheet to cool. Continue cooking the liquid on low heat, simmering, until it reduces by half, 30 to 40 more minutes.
3. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a small, deep bowl.
4. Fill a medium mixing bowl with ice and add some cold water to create an ice bath. Set the bowl of broth in the bowl of ice and drop 2 ice cubes into the broth. This will help the fat rise to the top quicker and the liquid to cool so that it can be skimmed.
5. After the broth is cool, skim the fat off using a ladle or spoon in a circular motion. Discard the fat.
6. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the chicken skin and pull the meat off of the bones, using your fingers. Discard the bones.
7. Shred the meat so that it forms thin strands, like broken fettuccine. You can do this with your hands or pull the meat toward you in little pieces with a fork. The last alternative is to chop the meat coarsely with a knife, which is the quickest technique but doesn’t allow for an extremely creamy rillete texture. Place the shredded chicken in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.
8. Soak the bread in a little more than ½ cup of the chicken broth for a few minutes, until soft. Stir the bread to coat it with the broth and allow it to soak evenly.
9. Using a food processor fitted with a metal blade, puree the walnuts with the garlic until they are ground to a paste.
10. Squeeze the bread dry with your hands and add it to the walnut paste in the food processor. Purée until the paste becomes homogeneous and creamy, stopping once to scrape the bowl. You will have a thick paste that forms a ball.
11. Scrape the mixture into a medium mixing bowl and whisk in about 1½ cups of the broth mixture to make a mayonnaise consistency.
12. Whisk in the walnut oil and season with salt and pepper.
13. Stir in the shredded chicken, sour cream, scallions, Aleppo chilies, and paprika. Add more broth to make the pâté creamier or more Aleppo chilies to make it spicier.
14. I like to serve this pâté in a crock or Luminarc jar—the French glass jar that has a flip-top lid with a rubber gasket—with a wooden spreader. Serve with crackers and condiments.
Whipped Feta with Sweet and Hot Peppers
At Oleana, we serve this addictive staple as a bread condiment, under the prêt à manger section of our menu. We dish it up in a little crock and sprinkle it with a pinch each of Aleppo and Urfa chilies and paprika to really show the peppers off.
This untraditional recipe is my interpretation of a typical hot pepper and feta spread eaten as a mezze in Greece. It’s important to use a good creamy feta, such as a sheep’s milk French feta, so that it will whip up very smoothly. For salads and more crumbly applications, Greek-style or cow’s milk feta is fine. See page 349 for an explanation of different kinds of feta.
Serve this dish with manaaeesh (page 240) or with celery sticks, raw fennel sticks, or spears of endive as a salad course or snack.
MAKES 2 CUPS TO SERVE 4 TO 6
1 pound sheep’s or goat’s milk French feta, drained and broken into rough ½-inch pieces or crumbled
2 medium red bell peppers, roasted, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped (see page 97) and drained of excess juice
2 teaspoons Aleppo chilies plus a pinch for garnish
1 teaspoon Urfa chilies plus a pinch for garnish
¼ teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika plus a pinch for garnish
1 teaspoon lemon juice
¼ cup olive oil
1. Place all the ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and combine them so that the sweet and hot peppers coat the cheese.
2. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, purée the mixture for about 2 minutes, until very smooth and creamy. The mixture will be quite loose, but it will set when it’s chilled in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before serving.
3. Place the mixture in a crock and sprinkle it with a pinch of all three of the chilies to garnish and show them off.
Steamed Mussels with Leeks and Smoky Paprika
This dish has such Spanish flair that you’ll think you’ve died and gone to Spain. It’s fabulous with one of the first spring crops: wild leeks or ramps, which are more tender than regular leeks. Ramps taste much like scallions—only sweeter and feistier—and you can use them just like scallions or regular leeks. Look for ramps at local farmers’ markets in the spring or at specialty shops that carry seasonal produce.
Focusing on the sweet flavors of the paprika, ramps, and mussels, this dish is simple but it also has some rich, smoky, buttery depth. To make an impression, use a special butter in this recipe, such as Plugra (available at Whole Foods Market or online at www.kellerscreamery.com) or any sweet, salty cultured butter. Cultured butter is made with natural bacteria which enhances its flavor and helps to bring out the sea in the mussels and the forest in the ramps. You can find cultured butter online at www.vtbutterandcheeseco.com.
If the mussels have beards on them, which wild mussels do, you will need to remove them. Pull the beard from the rounded end of the mussel toward the top, pointed end. Wild mussels also need to be scrubbed free of sand. In Boston, I buy Prince Edward Island mussels, which are farmed on poles. Since they don’t touch the bottom of the ocean, they are sand-free.
After you’ve eaten the mussels, make sure to soak up the sauce with grilled or lightly toasted crusty bread. Drink an Alsatian Sylvaner, which has a smoky spice, an earthiness, and a hint of vanilla from the oak barrels.
SERVES 4 AS A FIRST COURSE
2 tablespoons European-style or cultured butter, such as Plugra
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
¾ cup white wine, such as European chardonnay or Spanish alberino
16 ramps, root ends trimmed and washed well, or 2 leeks, white part only, root ends trimmed, and cut into ½-inch rounds
1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika
½ teaspoon Aleppo chilies
32 mussels (about 2 pounds), washed well
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (about ½ lemon)
Salt or sea salt to taste (see note below)
1. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with the olive oil. When the butter starts to brown, stir in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring until the garlic begins to release its aroma and becomes a little sticky.
2. Add the wine, ramps, paprika, and Aleppo chilies. Stir and continue to cook for 3 minutes until the wine reduces to ½ cup and the ramps start to soften and become limp.
3. Add the mussels to the pan and cover them with a tight-fitting lid or heavy baking sheet. Reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5 to 6 minutes, until the mussels open.
4. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter and the lemon juice and season with very little salt (the mussels should be salty, so you won’t need much).
5. Divide the mussels (8 per person) into 4 warm bowls (just out of the dishwasher or warmed for a minute in a 350°F oven). Divide the juices and leeks evenly among the bowls. Serve with fresh crusty bread, lightly grilled or freshly baked, to soak up the juices once the mussels are gone.
A Note on Sea Salt
I prefer to use sea salt with all fish because it brings out its natural mineral sea flavors. See the salt discussion on page 25.
Harissa: North African Chili Paste
Harissa is a North African condiment or chili paste that gives a little zip to a dish. It’s fun to use instead of cocktail sauce and is delicious whisked into broths or soups with as heavy a hand as you like. It’s often used in tagine (a stew or long braise) to give the sauce a dark red, rusty color and a little or a lot of heat. There are many different versions of harissa: they can be smooth, coarse, extra hot, or very garlicky.
An Algerian chef named Michel Anik, whom I worked with at 8 Holyoke in Harvard Square, taught me to use sun-dried tomatoes as a sweet concentrated tomato element, which gives the harissa a consistency similar to a thick ketchup or jam.
MAKES 2 CUPS
1 cup ground Urfa chilies
2 teaspoons chopped garlic (about 2 large cloves)
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in warm water for at least 1 hour
3 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon Moroccan Ras el Hannout (page 16)
¼ cup olive oil
Combine all the ingredients in a blender and purée them on high speed until smooth, for about 3 minutes. The harissa should be as smooth as a thick ketchup. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks.
Muhammara: Red Pepper and Walnut Purée
This recipe is inspired by the many Armenian shops in Watertown, Massachusetts, outside Boston, which is home to the second largest Armenian population in the United States. I frequently visit Arax, a store owned by a Syrian man named Jack Bassmajian. His wife Elizabeth makes a delicious muhammara—a thick, spicy sauce that I love to snack on as an alternative to hummus or other bread spreads. It’s also wonderful on grilled tuna.
Muhammara is simultaneously tart, spicy, sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, capturing every sensation on your palate. It is a deep rusty-red color; the word muhammara means “brick-colored” in Arabic. The warm, earthy chilies, sweet bell peppers, and bright pomegranate and citrus tones are truly flavors of the sun.
Pomegranate molasses is a syrupy reduction of pomegranate juice that has a unique, tart-sweet flavor and is a gorgeous, deep reddish-purple color. It’s as thick as maple syrup and has both sweet and sour flavors that combine the best of balsamic vinegar with tart fruit. I often use it to add tartness to long-braised beef. You can find pomegranate molasses at Middle Eastern markets or online at www.zingermans.com.
Muhammara, a classic mezze, is found all over the eastern Mediterranean with many variations, especially on the nut that is used in thickening it. This is another demonstration of the Arabic technique of thickening sauces with nuts and/or bread (see Turkish Tarator Sauce on page 353 and Garlic and Almond Soup on page 338).
My interpretation of muhammara is wrapped in thin slices of roasted eggplant and can be passed as an hors d’oeuvre or served without the eggplant with crusty French bread or Toasted Pita Bread Chips (see page 122). Muhammara tastes even better on the second day, so I encourage you to make it in advance. You should roast the eggplant, however, just before serving it.
MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS TO SERVE 8 AS HORS D’OEUVRES
1 whole eggplant, peeled
¾ cup olive oil plus 1 tablespoon for garnish
2 large red bell peppers, (about 1 pound total), roasted and peeled (see page 97)
4 whole scallions, root ends trimmed and finely chopped (reserve 1 tablespoon for garnish)
1 teaspoon chopped garlic (about 1 large clove)
1/3 cup walnut halves, lightly toasted (page 91)
1/3 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted (page 91) plus 1 tablespoon for garnish
½ cup finely ground toasted bread crumbs (see page 156)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (almost ½ lemon)
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
1 tablespoon Aleppo chilies plus ½ teaspoon for garnish
1 tablespoon Urfa chilies plus ½ teaspoon for garnish
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¾ teaspoon salt plus more to taste
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Slice the eggplant lengthwise as thinly as you can (no thicker than ¼ inch), into 8 slices. Discard the rounded ends or roast for another use.
3. Place the eggplant slices on a heavy baking sheet and brush them generously using ½ cup of the olive oil or more (give or take a couple of tablespoons, depending on the size of the eggplant) on both sides. The eggplant should absorb the oil and not look dry. Place the eggplant slices in the oven and roast them until soft, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
4. Remove as many seeds from the red peppers as you can and place them in a small mixing bowl. Add the scallions, garlic, walnuts, pine nuts, bread crumbs, lemon juice, pomegranate molasses, Aleppo and Urfa chilies, cumin, and the remaining ¼ cup of olive oil. Stir to combine.
5. Using a food processor fitted with a metal blade, purée the ingredients until smooth. Season to taste with salt.
6. Lay each eggplant slice down and place a heaping tablespoon of the pepper mixture at one end of the eggplant.
7. Roll up the eggplant, making a little bundle or roulade. Cut the roulade in half, making bite-size pieces. Serve at room temperature garnished with some toasted pine nuts or walnuts, chopped scallions, a drizzle of olive oil, and a squeeze of lemon. Sprinkle with more Aleppo and/or Urfa chilies if you like things spicier.
BREAD CRUMBS
A simple ingredient like bread crumbs can make a difference. I prefer to make my own or use a Japanese brand called Panko: the superhero of bread crumbs. Panko bread crumbs are made with flour, sugar, soybean and palm oils, yeast, and salt. A special baking method creates bread with little or no crust and a porous structure that results in a tender, yet crisp, texture. These bread crumbs are larger, flakier, and lighter than other brands, which is why I like them. I find that the seasonings in some Italian-style supermarket-brand bread crumbs overwhelm a dish and change its taste. Panko crumbs are unseasoned, so they remain neutral in recipes. You can find Panko bread crumbs at most Asian markets, and you can buy them online from specialty Asian food sites. For ½ cup of finely ground crumbs, start with 1 cup of Panko.
The next best thing is to make your own bread crumbs by toasting ½-inch slices of European-style bread (French baguettes work particularly well). Brush both sides of the bread slices with olive oil and then toast them for about 12 minutes in a 350°F oven, until golden and crisp. When they have cooled, grind them in a food processor fitted with a metal blade, until fine. You will need about 6 slices of French baguette to yield ½ cup of fine bread crumbs.
The last alternative, which is actually very good, is to find a good plain wheat cracker (not seasoned with cheddar cheese or herbs) or plain zwieback toast and grind them in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. One cup of coarsely crushed crackers or zwieback toasts will yield ½ cup of finely ground crumbs.
Salt Cod Fritters with Red Wine and Sweet Peppers
This recipe was created by my friend Rafael Maya—a fabulous cook I worked with at the Casablanca restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Raffi, as I call him, is from Colombia and cooks Mediterranean food with a gentle Latin hand. At the Casablanca, he was in charge of lunch service 6 days a week, and he made me these bunuelos (fritters) for breakfast when I came in every morning, serving them up piping hot with a lemon wedge. Raffi’s fritters gave me great comfort and helped me get through the long days.
Raffi’s fritters are cozy little pillows of fluffy salt cod and potato. He seasons them lightly with a sofrito—a basic seasoning for many recipes—using fresh chopped tomatoes, garlic, and scallions. I like my fritters with more zip, so Raffi altered his sofrito for me, adding chilies.
I like to serve Raffi’s fritters with a red wine and red pepper stew, inspired by marmitako, which is a classic Basque fish stew. In this recipe, I use all of my favorite chilies, making a dish that is complicated, rich, earthy, and spicy. This warming stew is best in the winter, but the fritters are outstanding on their own in the summer, served with a little Lemon Aioli (page 50) or simply a lemon wedge. For a summer stew variation, substitute peeled and diced eggplant, chickpeas, or summer squash in place of the butternut or red kuri squash.
Salt cod is cured cod, and almost every culture throughout Europe eats it. The salt not only preserves the fish, but it also changes the texture, making it denser than regular cod. Salt cod is also richer in flavor because the salt draws out the water during the curing process. Salt cod needs to be soaked in cold water for 2 or 3 days (with the water changed two or three times each day) to draw out the salt. Some salt cod products are pre-soaked and will be so labeled. You can remove any cartilage, bone, or skin after soaking.
Salt cod is available in many Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese specialty markets, and you can also special-order it from your local fishmonger. You can find salt cod (also called bacalao) from www.thespanishtable.com; click on deli. You can make the braised vegetables and sauce up to 3 days ahead.
Serve this dish with medium-bodied Portuguese red wine from the Dao region.
MAKES 12 FRİTTERS TO SERVE 4 AS A MAİN COURSE OR 6 AS A FİRST COURSE
For the Fritters
1 pound salt cod, soaked at least 2 days in cold water and rinsed well
4 cups milk
1 bay leaf
1 pound russet or baking potatoes (about 2), peeled and quartered
3 egg yolks
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 teaspoon chopped garlic (about 1 large clove)
½ onion, finely chopped (about ¾ cup)
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped (see page 104)
1 teaspoon Aleppo chilies
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 scallions, root ends removed and finely chopped
2 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
4 cups canola oil or vegetable oil for frying
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, leaves only
For the Sauce
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ onion, peeled and roughly chopped
½ teaspoon fennel seed
2 teaspoons garlic (about 2 cloves), peeled and halved lengthwise
2 tablespoons Urfa chilies
2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika
1 cup medium-bodied red wine, such as a rioja or pinot noir
2 cups fresh plum tomatoes, quartered
2 cups fish fumet (page 161) or water
Salt and pepper to taste
1 large leek, root end trimmed and all dark green leaves trimmed
1 roasted red bell pepper (see page 97)
½ cup butternut or red kuri squash, peeled and diced into ½-inch cubes
To Make the Fritters
1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring the salt cod to a boil with the milk and bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the salt cod for about 15 minutes, until tender and flaky. Drain, reserving ½ cup of the milk. Discard the bay leaf.
2. Meanwhile, in another medium saucepan, cover the potatoes with cold water and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender when squeezed with a pair of tongs or pierced with a fork. Drain well, by letting them sit in a colander for 5 minutes and allowing some steam to escape.
3. When they have stopped steaming, place the potatoes in a medium mixing bowl and mash them with a potato masher or whisk, removing large lumps and creating a rough purée.
4. Break up the salt cod into small pieces. Using your fingers, search for and remove small bones; this is a quick and easy process, and sometimes there aren’t any bones at all. Using a rubber spatula, stir the salt cod into the potatoes, breaking it up more to incorporate it as much as possible. Stir in the egg yolks and the reserved ½ cup of salt cod milk. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Make the sofrito by sautéing the garlic, onion, tomatoes, and Aleppo chilies in 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat, stirring for 10 to 12 minutes, until the onions soften and the mixture becomes a thick sauce or paste.
6. Stir the sofrito into the salt cod mixture and add the scallions. Cool for at least 15 minutes.
To Make the Sauce
1. In a large saucepan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter with 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat. When the butter starts to brown, stir in the onion and fennel seed and cook, stirring for about 5 minutes, until the onion starts to soften. Stir in the garlic, Urfa chilies, and paprika to coat the onion. Add the wine, tomatoes, and fish fumet and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the sauce for 35 minutes, until it has slightly thickened and becomes concentrated. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Allow the sauce to cool and purée it in a blender until smooth. Strain the sauce through a medium-fine sieve and into a bowl or large pitcher. Set aside. You should have about 8 cups of rich broth.
3. Split the leeks in half lengthwise and wash well, under cold water. Cut them into ½-inch slices and set aside. Remove the stem, ribs, and as many seeds as possible from the roasted pepper and cut into ½-inch pieces and set aside.
4. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, melt the remaining teaspoon of butter and tablespoon of olive oil. When the butter starts to brown, add the diced squash and stir to coat the squash with the oil and butter. Cook until the squash starts to brown on one of its sides, for about 6 minutes, and add the leeks. Season with salt and pepper and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, stirring until the leeks begin to soften. Stir in the red peppers and add the tomato broth. Bring to a boil and lower heat to low. Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes until squash is tender. Season with salt and pepper.
5. In a small mixing bowl, using a whisk, beat the eggs and cream together with salt and pepper for about 1½ minutes, until the eggs are broken and incorporated into the cream, and it is smooth and liquid again.
6. In a large saucepan, or a tabletop deep-fryer, heat the canola oil to 350°F (using a thermometer).
7. Pour the flour onto a large plate or tray. Divide the salt cod mixture into 12 balls and roll them in a little flour, just enough to lightly coat the potato. Shake off any excess flour. Flatten the balls a bit with the palm of your hand so that you have pillow shapes instead of round balls.
8. Drop each salt cod fritter into the cream mixture (4 to 5 at a time). Remove them one by one with a slotted spoon and carefully drop them into the hot oil. Fry for about 5 minutes, until golden brown. They will start to float on the top of the oil when they are almost done. Repeat with the remaining 4 to 5 fritters. Drain them on a paper towel and sprinkle them with salt to taste.
9. Ladle a little less than a cup of the pepper sauce into 4 large serving bowls. Top with 2 fritters, sprinkle each bowl with some parsley, and serve immediately. Offer yourself a glass of any leftover rioja or pinot noir used in making the sauce.
FISH FUMET
3 pounds cod bones or bones from any white fish, heads removed
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 ribs celery, roughly chopped
1 cup medium-bodied, non-oaky white wine, such as a dry Riesling
1. Chop the fish bones in 4-inch pieces so they fit easily in a large saucepot. Rinse the bones under cold water to remove any excess blood and drain them well.
2. In a large saucepot, heat the oil over medium-high heat and add the fish bones. Stir so that the fish bones are coated in the oil. Let them cook for 5 minutes, still stirring to draw more flavor out of the bones.
3. Add the onion, bay leaves, garlic, and celery. Add the wine and then cover the bones with 8 to 10 cups of water. Bring to a boil on high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
4. Strain the broth through a fine sieve into another large saucepot.
Veal Tagine with Moroccan Spices and Almond Couscous
Tagine means “stew” in North Africa, and on a cold winter night, this warm, hearty, exotic dish will transport you to Morocco. The chilies and saffron create earthy flavors that are perfectly balanced and brightened by the ginger and coriander.
There is an art to eating a tagine or couscous dish, adding liquid or rich broth to the stew and couscous, little by little, as it’s consumed. If you immediately pour all the broth over the couscous, it swells too quickly, absorbing everything at once, and you won’t be able to enjoy sauce with each bite of veal. Serve this dish with the broth in a little pitcher on the side, inviting your guests to add it to their couscous a little at a time. And if you like your food spicy, add extra harissa to the broth in the pitcher.
The long, slow cooking of tagine tenderizes less expensive cuts of veal, like the shoulder or shank. Long braises require twice as much salt as other cooking methods, which is why this recipe calls for so much salt.
This dish pairs well with dolcetto, from the Piedmonte region, which is a round wine, low in tannin and high in almond flavors and anise aromatics.
SERVES 4 TO 6
6 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
8 veal hind shanks, cut 1¾ inches thick or osso bucco style (see note, page 165)
1/3 cup salt
2 cups white wine
1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic (about 3 large cloves)
Pinch of saffron
1 teaspoon cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon whole coriander seed
4 cups chopped plum tomatoes (canned is okay)
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 cup harissa (see page 152)
Ice cubes
½ cup toasted whole blanched almonds (see page 91) plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped almonds for garnish
2 cups whole milk
1½ cups uncooked couscous
Salt and black pepper to taste
4 scallions, root ends trimmed and finely chopped
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Pat the veal shanks with paper towels to dry them. When the butter begins to brown, add 4 shanks to the pan and brown them on one side, for 4 to 5 minutes, creating a golden-brown crust. Season the meat generously with about a quarter of the 1/3 cup of salt. Turn the shanks over and brown the other side, seasoning with another quarter of the salt. Keep the heat high and turn on your fan, so your house won’t get smoky.
3. Place the meat in a large roasting pan. Pour ½ cup of the white wine into the sauté pan to remove any sugars stuck to it (this also cleans the pan for you). Then, pour the wine over the 4 shanks in the roasting pan and wipe the sauté pan clean.
4. Repeat the browning process with the 4 remaining shanks, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 1 tablespoon butter, and remaining salt. It’s important to brown the shanks a little at a time: if the pan gets too crowded, the shanks won’t brown well. When they’re finished browning, add the shanks to the others in the roasting pan.
5. Deglaze and wipe out the sauté pan again, as in step 3. Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of olive oil over medium-high heat, and stir in the onion and carrot. Cook them for 2 minutes, stirring, just to release some of their flavor.
6. Stir in the garlic and saffron and add another ½ cup of wine while the pan is still on the heat. Cook for about 2 minutes.
7. Remove the sauté pan from the heat and add the vegetable aromatics (onion, carrot, saffron, and garlic) to the roasting pan with the shanks. Add the remaining ½ cup wine, the cinnamon, coriander, tomatoes, ginger, and harissa to the roasting pan. If the liquid does not reach ½ or ¾ up the shanks, add extra water to adjust the level and cover with a tight-fitting lid or wrap twice with foil. You need to cover the pan tightly, so the liquid won’t evaporate too quickly.
8. Place the roasting pan in the oven and cook the shanks for 2 to 2½ hours, or until the meat pulls apart from the bone and tears easily with a fork.
9. Remove the shanks from the liquid in the roasting pan and place them onto a platter to let them rest. Cover them with foil.
10. In a small saucepan over medium heat, or in a microwave, melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter in ¾ cup of water.
11. Strain the liquid from the roasting pan through a fine sieve, into a medium mixing bowl or large pitcher, to remove the vegetables.
12. Place 8 ice cubes into the broth and stir. This will help cool the broth down quicker so that you can remove any fat that comes to the surface. Allow to cool for 1 hour in the refrigerator. If the broth seems too thick and more like a sauce, add 1 cup of water.
13. Meanwhile, in a blender, puree the toasted whole almonds with the milk for a minute, until the milk is smooth and the almonds are very fine, about 3 minutes. Strain the milk through a fine sieve into a small saucepan, to remove any little bits of almond. You should have milk that is infused with almond flavor but no almond bits. Heat the saucepan of almond milk over low heat; when it begins to simmer, remove it from the heat.
14. In a medium mixing bowl, stir the hot water and melted butter into the couscous until the couscous is coated. Let the couscous stand uncovered for 10 minutes.
15. Using a rubber spatula or large spoon, stir in 1½ cups of the hot almond milk into the couscous and let it stand uncovered for another 10 minutes. Stir again to fluff the couscous, seasoning with salt and pepper. The couscous should be tender—like tiny steamed dumplings with no crunch—but not sticky or lumpy. If the couscous is still a little dry, stir in another ¼ to ½ cup hot water. Once you’ve attained the desired consistency, you can use your hands or a fork to run through the couscous, breaking up any lumps.
16. About 30 minutes before serving, skim off any fat that has risen to the top of the broth, using a large spoon or ladle, in a circular motion. Pour the broth into a braising pan that can fit on a stove burner or in a large, deep-sided sauté pan big enough to hold the shanks, and bring it to a simmer on medium-high heat. Add the veal shanks to the broth and simmer for about 14 minutes, until tender and coated with broth.
17. Pack the couscous into large demitasse cups (big enough to hold ½ cup) or small ramekins. Heat them in the microwave for 2 minutes, until hot and steamed a final time. If no microwave is available, you can warm the ramekins up by placing them in a roasting pan filled with water (so that the water reaches halfway up the ramekins) and then heating them for 10 minutes in a 300°F oven.
18. Froth the remaining almond milk in the blender on high speed for 30 seconds or use a handheld emulsion blender. You should have a foamy milk, almost as light as one for cappuccino.
19. Place 2 veal shanks next to each other on each dinner plate, setting them to one side.
20. Turn out the couscous by turning the ramekin upside down onto the plate and then lifting it away. Spoon 2 tablespoons of frothed almond milk over the couscous, and sprinkle the couscous with some chopped almonds. Sprinkle the shanks with the chopped scallions. Pour the remaining broth into a gravy boat or small pitcher to pass around the table.
Veal Shoulder Variation
In place of the shanks, use 2 shoulder cuts, weighing about 2½ pounds each, making sure that they’re boned, tied, and patted dry with paper towels. Follow the recipe as for cooking the veal shanks, but in step 2, brown two additional sides of meat, and eliminate 1 tablespoon of butter and 2 tablespoons of oil. The veal shoulders will take about 3 hours to cook. To serve, untie the shoulders by cutting the strings with a paring knife or scissors and slice the veal ½-inch thick. You can leave the meat in large slices or cut it into cubes.
Lamb Steak with Turkish Spices and Moussaka
This dish has become a signature at Oleana, and I think it’s because it just tastes so Turkish. Plus, the recipe lets you enjoy the pleasure of eating lamb two different ways.
Moussaka is traditionally served as a heavy entrée, but I created this version as a side dish or light meal. I wanted the focus to be on the moussaka flavors—sweet cinnamon and spicy chilies—rather than heaviness.
Lamb top is a small roast cut from the top part of a leg of lamb. At Oleana, we trim the top and grind the trimmings to make our own ground lamb. You can have the butcher do this for you, or you can buy ground lamb separately.
This recipe is best when the lamb is marinated overnight. The marinade is all about the combination of peppers—sweet ones and hot ones—with Turkish signature spices like dried mint and oregano. Also, see page 100 for help with some grilling techniques; the smoky grilled flavors mixed with the spices make this dish unique, and roasting won’t have the same effect.
Serve this with a full-bodied, tannic wine like an Amarone, or Nebbiolo from Barbaresco. If these wines seem too heavy in the summer, try a medium-bodied red, such as a Rhone blend.
SERVES 4 AS A MAİN COURSE
For the Lamb
1 lamb top (about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons Aleppo chilies
2 tablespoons red pepper paste (see Resources, page 358) or 1 roasted red pepper, seeded, and finely chopped (see page 97)
¼ cup tomato paste
½ cup canola oil
1 tablespoon chopped garlic (about 3 cloves)
1 tablespoon Turkish Baharat Spice Mix (page 232)
For the Moussaka
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon plus ½ cup olive oil
¾ pound ground lamb
Salt and pepper to taste
½ onion, peeled and finely chopped(about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon chopped garlic (about 1 large clove)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup golden raisins
1 cup peeled and seeded, finely chopped plum tomatoes (or drained chopped canned tomatoes)
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley, leaves only
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint, leaves only
2 small russet potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
1 large eggplant, peeled and sliced lengthwise into ¼-inch slices, about 8 slices
2 tablespoons flour
1¼ cups milk, scalded
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ cup yogurt plus additional for garnish (see page 331)
¾ cup grated kasseri cheese
1 tablespoon dried mint for garnish
To Make the Lamb
1. Cut the lamb top into four 6- to 8-ounce miniroasts or steaks.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the Aleppo chilies, red pepper paste, ¼ cup of tomato paste, oil, 1 tablespoon garlic, and the baharat. Add the lamb steaks and stir to coat the meat. Chill overnight or let stand at room temperature for at least an hour. If chilled overnight, pull out 1 hour before grilling and let the meat and marinade come to room temperature.
To Make the Moussaka
1. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan over high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. When the butter begins to brown, add the ground lamb and season with salt and pepper. Let the lamb brown on high heat, stirring and breaking it up with a spoon, for about 5 minutes. Add the onion, 1 teaspoon garlic, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, cinnamon, and raisins.
2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until the onions begin to soften. The lamb may release lots of natural juices while cooking; this is fine, because the mixture will thicken as it cooks.
3. Add the tomatoes and increase the heat to medium. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until the mixture is almost dry and becomes fluffy. The tomato water and juices will evaporate and the mixture will become a little glazy from the natural sugars of the raisins. Remove from the heat and set aside. Once it has cooled, stir in the parsley and fresh mint. Season again with salt and pepper.
4. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
5. Place the potatoes in a small saucepan and cover them with cold water. Boil over high heat until they are tender when squeezed with a pair of tongs or poked with a fork, about 15 minutes. Drain them in a colander for about 5 minutes, allowing some steam to evaporate.
6. Mash the potatoes with a fork, and season with salt and pepper.
7. Place the eggplant slices on a heavy baking sheet and brush them generously with the remaining ½ cup of olive oil or more (depending on the size of the eggplant) on both sides. The eggplant should absorb the oil and not look dry. Place the eggplant slices in the oven and roast them until soft, for 10 to 12 minutes. Set aside to cool.
8. Make a roux by melting the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a small saucepan on medium-low heat. When the butter starts to become bubbly, but before it browns, whisk in flour and cook for just a few minutes.
9. Whisk in the milk and cook for 5 minutes, or until the milk has thickened and the sauce is bubbly. Whisk in the nutmeg, ½ cup yogurt, and the cheese, and season with salt and pepper. You now have a Mornay sauce, Turkish-style.
10. If you want the sauce to be super-smooth with the ultimate coating consistency, blend it in a blender for 30 seconds or use a handheld emulsion blender to give it a little gloss
11. Prepare a charcoal grill (see Grilling Tips, page 100).
12. Meanwhile, spoon a tablespoon of the Mornay sauce into the bottom of a small soufflé dish or ramekin that can hold ¾ to 1 cup. Place 2 slices of eggplant criss-crossing in the bottom of the soufflé dish, so that the long ends hang over the side. Scoop ½ to ¾ cup of the lamb filling into the soufflé dish and fold the eggplant over so that the lamb filling is bundled up by the eggplant. Pack on 2 to 4 tablespoons of potato purée and smear with the back of a spoon so that the surface is even and the moussaka is compact. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until bubbly.
13. Grill the lamb to medium rare (5 to 8 minutes on each side) and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
14. Invert each hot moussaka onto a dinner plate and remove the ramekin. Spoon on another tablespoon of yogurt sauce and sprinkle the top with dried mint.
15. Slice each lamb steak into 4 pieces and arrange them to the side of the moussaka. Serve immediately.
Rosemary’s Spicy Caramel Popcorn
I am lucky to have Rosemary Jason working with me in the kitchen at Oleana. A woman of all trades, Rosemary bakes, cooks, tests recipes—and brings in popcorn that no one can stop eating.
I love the salty and sweet or slightly spicy flavor combinations found in such favorites as almond ice cream, caramels made with sea salt, and chocolate-covered pretzels. Rosemary’s popcorn recipe falls into the same category, and it is dangerously delicious.
Rosemary has perfected her popcorn recipe after trying out different flavor combinations and using Oleana’s kitchen staff as her willing taste testers. The winning combination of caramel with Aleppo chilies is the hands-down favorite, and the runner-up is the lemon zest and star anise variation (see below). Star anise is an Asian pod spice with a sweet clove-fennel flavor.
Rosemary likes to use yellow popcorn because it pops up bigger and fluffier than white.
SERVES 4
1/3 cup yellow popcorn
½ cup lightly toasted and salted pecan pieces (see page 91)
1½ cups granulated sugar
1½ tablespoons salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ teaspoon baking soda
2½ teaspoons Aleppo chilies
1. Line a 10– to 15-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Prepare your popcorn. Pour the popcorn kernels into a small to medium brown paper lunch bag and roll the top of the bag down three or four turns. Microwave the popcorn for 2 minutes and 30 seconds on high (or use the microwave’s “popcorn” setting). The popcorn is done when you can count to three between pops. There will be a few unpopped kernels, and popping time may vary depending on the brand of popcorn you use and your microwave. If you prefer, you can also use air-popped or stovetop-popped popcorn.
3. Pour the popcorn into a large mixing bowl and set aside. Remove any unpopped kernels and stir in the pecans.
4. Pour ½ cup of water into a deep 4-quart saucepan. Sprinkle the sugar and salt over the water and add the butter. Cook this caramel over medium-high heat without stirring until the bubbles start to turn light golden-amber on top and the edges start to turn golden amber, 8 to 10 minutes. The caramel will be a little darker under the bubbles. The caramel can overcook very quickly, which will make it dark and bitter, so it’s important to pull it off the heat immediately and proceed to the next step.
5. Using a heatproof spatula, stir in the baking soda and Aleppo chilies. The baking soda will aerate the caramel and cause it to bubble furiously; be careful when stirring it in.
6. Immediately pour the caramel over the popcorn and nuts. Don’t bother scraping the pot. Quickly toss the popcorn, nut, and caramel mixture with the spatula until the popcorn and nuts are well-coated.
7. Spread the popcorn out in a flat, even layer on the parchment-lined baking sheet and let it cool for 30 minutes. Break it apart and serve. The popcorn will keep up to 2 weeks in an airtight container or ziplock bag.
Variation
Instead of using Aleppo chilies, substitute 1 teaspoon of finely grated lemon zest and 1 whole star anise pod, finely ground in your spice grinder. Try substituting Urfa pepper for Aleppo, too.