saffron

Mary had a little lamb. I ate it with curry and rice.

/ Ren

Freshly-ground local, pastured lamb is seasoned with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper before being seared in blazing-hot grass-fed ghee with hulled cardamom, sweet cinnamon shards, mustard seeds, fresh ginger and green chilies, tomatoes and garlic.  The pan juices are combined with turmeric, sweet paprika and coconut milk and reduced until thick.

Short grain rice is simmered with 4x its own weight in homemade bone broth with golden fried onions, toasted cumin and coriander, fresh English peas and a pinch of saffron..

Lamb Curry with Rice and English Peas

Curry in a hurry!

Spanish Chicken and Rice with Roasted Vegetables, Butifarra, Morcilla and Chorizo

/ Ren

Pastured chicken pieces are roasted with winter vegetables then baked with stock-soaked bomba rice with saffron, garlic, fire-roasted tomatoes, piquillo peppers and butifarra, morcilla and chorizo sausages..

Spanish Chicken and Rice with Roasted Vegetables, Butifarra, Morcilla and Chorizo

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds chicken pieces
1 large carrot, oblique-cut
1 leek, split, rinsed and sliced
1-2 bulb onions, sliced
6 cloves whole, unpeeled garlic
1 tablespoon pastured butter
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 cup filtered water
3/4 cup fire-roasted tomatoes
3-4 piquillo peppers, chopped
1/3 cup parsley, chopped
1 cup bomba rice, rinsed
1 quart homemade chicken stock, divided
saffron threads, crushed
1/3 pound morcilla (blood sausage), sliced
1/3 pound butifarra (white garlic sausage), sliced
1/3 pound Spanish cooking chorizo, cubed
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Melt butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.  Stir in paprika, then add chicken and toss to coat.  Season with salt and pepper, add water then roast in a 375 degree oven for 20 minutes.  Remove from oven and add carrot, leek, onion and garlic and put back in the oven for another 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, begin cooking rice in chicken stock with saffron threads.

Remove pan from the oven and transfer chicken and garlic to a cutting board and allow to cool enough to be handled.  Transfer the vegetables and cooking liquid to a Dutch oven. Add in rice and stir to combine.

Briefly sauté the sausage then add to the pot with vegetables and rice.  Stir in fire-roasted tomatoes.

Peel and chop the garlic.  Pull the chicken meat from the bones and tear into chunks. Add to the pot with the vegetables and pour in 1 cup of chicken stock.  Cook uncovered until most of the stock has been absorbed, about 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven, and parsley and piquillo peppers and allow to stand 10 minutes.  Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if necessary and serve hot.

Conchiglie con Salsiccia di Pollo

/ Ren

Coarsely-ground pastured chicken, spinach, sweet onions, garlic and yellow tomatoes tossed with conchiglie pasta, cream, saffron, Grana Padano and fresh herbs..

Conchiglie con Salsiccia di Pollo

Serves 2

10-12 oz chicken meat (I use thigh meat), coarsely ground with 1 1/2 cups fresh spinach
2 tablespoons rendered chicken fat, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons fresh basil, chopped
2 sweet bulb onions, sliced
2 fresh yellow cluster tomatoes, cored and choped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz spelt conchiglie
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, soaked in water
1/3 cup fresh cream
1/3 cup grated Grana Padano
sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
fresh lemon

Grind chicken meat with fresh spinach and stir in 1 tablespoon cold rendered chicken fat.  Heat the other tablespoon of chicken fat in a heavy skillet over medium heat.  Pinch off pieces of chicken sausage and sauté until lightly browned and crispy on the outside.  Add garlic, tomatoes, onions and herbs and sauté, stirring continuously until the tomatoes release their moisture, about 2 minutes.  Season to taste with sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper.

Meanwhile, cook pasta al denté in 1 1/2 quarts salted boiling water, about 8 minutes.  Drain, then return to burner over medium-low heat.  Stir in cream and saffron, then slowly stir in grated cheese until sauce is thick and creamy.

Toss sausage mixture with pasta and sauce, brighten with a squeeze of lemon and serve immediately.

Lechon Asado (Cuban Roast Pork)

/ Ren

Mojo-marinated, slow-roasted pork shoulder with sour orange juice, cumin, oregano and fresh peppers, served with black beans and saffron rice..

Lechon Asado (Cuban Roast Pork)

Lechón Asado (Cuban Roast Pork)

For the Mojo (Cuban Marinade, Three Guys from Miami)

8-10 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon oregano
1 cup sour orange juice, or 1/2 cup orange juice plus 1/4 cup each fresh lemon and lime juice

Use a large mortar and pestle to mash all the ingredients (except orange juice) into a paste.  Transfer paste to a bowl and combine with the orange juice.  Allow to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

For the Pork

Marinate the pork in the mojo for 4 hours (refrigerated).  Remove the pork from the marinade and pat dry.  Heat some fat in a Dutch oven set over medium heat, then brown the pork well on all sides.  Transfer the pork to a plate and pour off all but a tablespoon or two of fat from the Dutch oven.

Toast a tablespoon of whole cumin seeds in the Dutch oven, then add a cup of chopped red onion, 3 minced garlic cloves and 1/3 cup of Cubanelle, bell and/or jalapeño  peppers and sauté until softened and fragrant.

Nestle the pork shoulder (fat side up) in the vegetables, then pour in 1 cup of chicken stock and the marinade.  Add some wedges of lemon and lime and a palm-full of chopped fresh oregano. Cover and cook in a 200 degree oven until fork tender, about 3-4 hours depending on the size of the roast.

Remove from the oven, uncover and let stand 20 minutes.

For the Rice

Cook long-grain aged basmati in chicken stock until tender, adding water-soaked saffron during the last few minutes of cooking.  Season to taste with salt & pepper and garnished with chopped parsley.

For the Beans

Soak black beans overnight in filtered water before preparing in the usual fashion.  Stir in some of the vegetables from the Dutch oven during the last 15 minutes of cooking.

To Serve

Spoon rice onto a serving plate then top with beans.  Use 2 forks to pull the pork into chunks and place alongside the rice and beans.  Spoon some of the vegetables and pan juices over the pork and serve immediately.

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This post is part of the Food Renegade’s Fight Back Fridays!

Roasted Chicken Posole Soup

/ Ren

Achiote roasted chicken, homemade chicken stock, posole corn, yellow onions, fresh chile peppers, smoked chile powder, lime and vermicelli.

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Roasted Chicken Posole Soup

Soak 1 1/2 cups dried posole overnight in cool, filtered water.  Drain and put into a Dutch oven with 1 quart homemade chicken stock.  Cover and simmer 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Add 1 yellow onion, chopped, 1 clove garlic, minced, 1 large jalapeño, chopped, and a cup of mild red, yellow and orange peppers cut into varying shapes and sizes.

Add leftover roast chicken (skin removed) cut into large chunks 1 teaspoon smoked chile powder and 1 tablespoon toasted cumin seed and simmer until posole is tender, about 1 hour.  Add additional chicken stock as needed.

Add crumbled saffron and cooked and drained vermicelli and simmer another 5 minutes.

Ladle into bowls and serve with fresh lime and/or wedges of avocado.