What are we eating ? | Recipes with an exotic touch

Just before the weekend, all readers who cook ask themselves this eternal question: what are we going to eat? In order to inspire you, The Press suggests some suggestions for seasonal recipes that will make your mouth water.

Indulgence: roasted maple and coconut corn

“It’s a recipe that I found at the temple of Angkor Wat, in Cambodia,” explains grill master Steven Raichlen. I’m sure I’m the only tourist who spent most of his time in the coach parking lot where grills were set up to prepare meals for the drivers. I felt it was really authentic. Instead of butter, coconut milk is used as a fat. In Cambodia, we use date sugar as a sweetener, but since we are in Quebec, I chose to use maple syrup. »

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 10 to 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 4 cobs sweet corn, unpeeled
• 6 tbsp. tablespoons unsweetened coconut milk
• 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 tbsp. maple syrup
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

Preparation

• 1. Peel the cobs of corn as if they were a banana, taking care to leave the husks attached to the base. Tie the pods together with twine to form a handle.
• 2. In a small saucepan, gently heat the coconut milk, soy sauce and maple syrup, whisking together.
• 3. Prepare grill for direct cooking, preheat to high heat (450°F to 500°F).
• 4. Lightly brush the ears with the maple-coconut mixture. Grill 2 or 3 minutes on each side until well roasted. Place the cobs so that the husks protrude from the end of the grill so as not to burn them. You can also slip in a sheet of aluminum foil. Continue to baste the cobs regularly while cooking. Leave the grill on.
• 5. Place ears on parchment paper. Sprinkle the coconut flakes, patting them gently on the surface of the cobs.
• 6. Place the cobs back on the rack. Remove from the heat when the coconut flakes are lightly toasted.

This recipe is taken from the book Project Fireby Steven Raichlen, published in English earlier this year by Workman Publishing.

Published on lapresse.ca on August 22, 2018.

Quickly done well: lamb liver Albanian style from Philippe de Vienne

Ingredients

• 1 nice slice (1 lb) of lamb or veal liver
• 2 tbsp. flour
• 1 to 3 tbsp. tablespoon Aleppo pepper (to taste)
• 1 medium red onion
• 4 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, medium chopped
• 1 C. cumin seeds
• Salt to taste
• 1/4 cup fresh dill or mint
• Lemon wedges

Preparation

• 1. Rinse and pat dry the slice of liver. Cut into 1 cm strips.
• 2. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with flour and Aleppo pepper. Mix well.
• 3. Thinly slice the onion and arrange on a platter.
• 4. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Pour the olive oil and brown the garlic and cumin for a few moments. Add liver and cook until pink, about 2 minutes.
• 5. Salt and add the chopped herb of your choice. Mix and place over sliced ​​onions. Garnish with lemon wedges. Serve hot or lukewarm.

Source: recipe by chef Philippe de Vienne.

Published on lapresse.ca on May 17, 2018.

Call me boss! : Indian-style rabbit

For 6 to 8 people

Ingredients

• 1 rabbit of about 1.8 kg
• 30ml vegetable oil
• 2 chopped onions
• 1 crushed garlic clove
• 45ml chopped ginger
• 7ml cumin
• 7 ml ground turmeric
• 7 ml coriander powder
• 15ml garam masala
• Crushed chili or sambal oelek, to taste
• 400ml coconut milk
• 500ml fresh or canned tomatoes, peeled and diced
• 400ml plain yogurt

Preparation

• 1. Cut the rabbit into 10 pieces.
• 2. Salt the rabbit, brown the meat in a pan with olive oil. Remove, then set aside.
• 3. In the same skillet, brown the onions with the garlic and ginger, stirring constantly. Then add the spices — reserving 5 ml of garam masala for the end — and cook over low heat for 2 minutes. Pour the coconut milk, stir to spread the spices.
• 4. Add the tomatoes, then the yogurt. Return the rabbit to the pan with the sauce, bring gently to the boil and simmer covered for about 40 minutes.
• 5. Add the rest of the garam masala and continue cooking uncovered for 10 minutes, until the rabbit is completely cooked.
• 6. Serve with fragrant jasmine rice or basmati rice.

Chief’s advice

The recipe will produce more sauce than is needed. But it freezes very well: it can then be served with steamed shrimp, tofu or grilled chicken or a salmon steak.

Source: recipe by Richard Desjardins, professor at the Institut de tourisme et d’hôtellerie du Québec.

Published on lapresse.ca on October 31, 2018.

Guilty pleasure: Sacher torte

The Sacher torte is undoubtedly the most famous Viennese dessert. Invented for the restaurant of the Hotel Sacher, in the heart of the old town, it is now served all over the world. It is a very dark chocolate cake, the two layers of which are interspersed with a thin layer of apricot jam, very present in Austria. At the Sacher, this slightly dry cake is served with lots of whipped cream. I would have also spontaneously served it with sparkling Muscat, of the Nivole type, but François Chartier pointed out to me that for that, you have to put the apricot jam in the foreground, so either put a lot of it in the recipe or serve as a side dish.

For 8 to 10 people

Ingredients for the cake

• 180g dark chocolate
• 30g butter
• 7 egg whites
• 80g caster sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 40g sifted flour
• 20 g ground almonds
• 200g apricot jam

Ingredients for the syrup

• 150ml water
• 100g sugar
• 1 C. kirsch

Ingredients for the ganache

• 150g dark chocolate
• 150ml 35% cream

Ingredients for the whipped cream

• Whipped cream, with sugar and vanilla

Preparation of the cake

• 1. Melt butter and chocolate in a bain-marie.
• 2. Whisk the egg whites. Gradually add the sugar to make a meringue.
• 3. Mix egg yolks, flour and almonds.
• 4. Add chocolate mixture and melted butter.
• 5. Integrate the meringue with a spoon so as not to make it fall.
• 6. Pour into a greased 22cm cake tin.
• 7. Bake for 40 minutes at 350°F. Cool on a wire rack.

Syrup preparation

• 1. Bring the water and sugar mixture to a boil.
• 2. Cool. Add the kirsch.

Preparation of the ganache

• 1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces and put it in a heatproof bowl.
• 2. Heat the cream until it comes to a boil. Pour over the chocolate.
• 3. Leave to stand for a good 15 or 20 minutes until the chocolate is well melted. (Important: do not stir while waiting, do not whisk, otherwise the ganache will thicken too much).

Assembly of the cake

• 1. When the cake is cooked and cooled, slice it into two layers.
• 2. Pour half of the syrup on a first disc.
• 3. Spread the jam on this disk.
• 4. Place the second layer of cake on top. And pour the syrup on this second disc.
• 5. Store everything in the refrigerator for half an hour.
• 6. Glaze with the ganache.
• 7. Serve with whipped cream.

Published on lapresse.ca on June 5, 2010.