recipes of the day 04/29/04......tribute to the roux....

This recipe comes from one of my favorite sources for freshwater fish. Especially trout or even salmon. Salmon I really love this way. If you bring all the ingredients with you when you go ice fishing or camping , you can make these really easy. The biggest object would be enough peanut oil to put in a dutch oven to a depth of 3 to 4 inches. It is sooo goood

Deep fried Lemon Fish

Ingredients:
1 small onion, minced
1 Tbls. olive oil
1/4 cup of flour
cream (1/4 cup)
Fresh ground pepper to taste
2 eggs( beaten)
1 1/2 cups flaked cooked trout or salmon
1 Tbls. grated lemon peel, use a zester
3Tbls. flour
2 tsp. water
1/2 cup (plain) bread crumbs

Preparation:
In a cast iron ( or what have you) skillet pour in your olive oil and minced onion and cook until tender. Stir in the flour to make a roux and then add your cream, stir constantly until it becomes thick. Take away from the heat. It should be thick enough so as to make a ball. Take 1/2 of the beaten egg mixture and stir into the flour roux. Mix in the fish and the lemon zest. Let this get chilled for at least an hour. If your out camping put into your cooler. While the mixture is cooking, make an area which will be used to make the fish balls. Take the other 2 Tbls. of flour and sprinkle on a cookie sheet or a piece of waxed paper. When the fish mixture is cool, drop the mixture by a tablespoon on to the floured surface.. Roll them and shape them into balls.
Take the remaining egg mixture and mix with the 2 tsp. of water. Put the plain bread crumbs in to a seperate bowl. Now, dip the egg balls into the egg mixture and then into the plain bread crumbs. Do this till all the fish balls are coated. Heat the peanut oil till it reaches 375 degrees. Slowly add the fish balls to the hot oil, cook only 3 or 4 at a time. When they have reached a golden color take out and drain. Keep them warm till the whole batch is finish.

This recipe sounds complicated but it is not. You will surely enjoy this even if your out there ice fishing (don't think you'll be doing any of that in baton rouge.....or orlando for that matter ). It only takes a little while to prepare.

 

good general use piquante recipe:

Alligator Sauce Piquante

Alligator meat is a delicacy here in Louisiana. Years ago, alligator was plentiful but demand for alligator hide nearly drove them into extinction. Nutria (a relative of the beaver seen in the photo on the right) lacking their natural enemy, have grown in numbers and eat so much vegetation that coastal erosion has become a problem. Cajuns, always frugal with what nature provides, found that alligator meat was tasty --- especially the tail for grilling. Conservation and even alligator farming has brought this tasty meat back to our tables.

A sauce piquante (pronounced sos pee-kont) is a highly seasoned stew. Piquante means "to prick" and that's what the spices and flavors in this do.

Ingredient List

4 pounds alligator meat
1 tablespoon paprika
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 medium onions, chopped
1 1/2 bunches onion tops
1 green bell pepper
2 cups water
4 cloves garlic, minced
cayenne pepper
4 tablespoons finely sifted white flour
salt and black pepper
3 cans of cooked whole tomatoes (Rotel tomatoes)
1 8 ounce can of tomato sauce
4 bay leaves
1 stick of butter
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound andouille (fat, smoked sausage)

Boil alligator meat for 5 minutes to remove fat. Rinse meat in clean water. Brown meat in black iron pot. Remove meat and clean pot. Place flour and oil in black pot. Cook stirring constantly until as dark as chocolate. Add onions and bell pepper. Cook until dark brown and soft. Add tomato paste and cooked tomatoes and simmer for 30 minutes. Add garlic, meat, seasonings, and andouille and simmer 25 minutes. Add butter and cook for another 40 minutes. Serve over rice.

Any meat can be substituted in a sauce piquante.

snort's tad of history note: here is fannie merritt farmer's (1857-1915)piquante formula:

Sauce Piquante

To one cup Brown Sauce add one tablespoon vinegar, one-half small shallot finely chopped, one tablespoon each chopped capers and pickle, and a few grains of cayenne.

and here is the link to get to about a zillion more of ms. farmer's fish and meat sauces and gravy: http://www.bartleby.com/87/0018.html#20

 

here is a good gravy (close roux family relative) and steak recipe....

Smothered Steak with Spicy Gravy
Submitted by Lloyd Rushing of Texas City, Texas USA

2 to 3 pounds round steak, trimmed of fat
1 1/2 to 2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons salt (depending on how much steak is being cooked)
1/2 teaspoons black pepper
1 1/3 cups buttermilk

Cut steak into serving pieces. Place buttermilk in a shallow bowl and set aside.
Mix flour, garlic powder, and black pepper in a paper bag. Put one steak at a time in the bag and coat with flour, dip into the buttermilk, draining off the excess and then coat with flour again.
In a deep skillet, fry the steak until brown in about 1/2-inch of cooking oil. Set steak aside until gravy is made.

Gravy:
10 tablespoons drippings from frying steak
10 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 (10-ounce) can RoTel brand tomatoes (tomatoes and chilies)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup chopped green onions

Heat oil and add flour, salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Stir constantly until flour is browned. Add onions and RoTel tomatoes, stirring constantly; then add 1 1/2 cups water and bring to a boil, stirring continuously. As gravy thickens, continue to thin with water until it is as thin as you like it. Then, place steak in gravy, cover, and place in 350*F (175*C) oven for 45-50 minutes. Steak will be very tender and you will have plenty of delicious gravy for biscuits, rolls, or mashed potatoes.

 

here is another gravy recipe for smothered chicken, pork or beef that has a real interesting way to combine the water or stock and flour prior to putting it on the heat (may not be for everybody but it's still interesting):

Smothered Fried Chicken/Pork Chop/Beef Steak/Beef -or-
Chicken Liver

1. Fry your meat as usual and drain when done. Pour off as
much of the grease as possible, try to leave in as many of
the little "crumb thingys" as possible.
2. Put the skillet back on the stove (on about medium/low -
medium heat...so the other stuff in the skillet won't burn).
3. Get a jar (about 16 oz) with a lid and fill about 3/4 of
the jar with water and about 2 TBSP of flour and a couple
dashes of black pepper.
4. Put the lid on and shake like crazy. (My grandmama taught
me this trick for lump-free gravy every time)
NOTE: When making gravy for either of these livers, I add a
beef bullion cube & use hot water (from the faucet) along
with flour. I make up my "gravy jar" when I start to cook
my meat, so the bullion will be dissolved when I'm ready to
used. (You could also use the amount of beef granules that
equal one cube.)
5. When all the lumps are gone, pour into the skillet and
stir real good with a spoon (I prefer wooden), as the gravy
heats up it'll start to bubble...continue to stir. If you
like, you can add some sliced onions.
6. If it's too thick, add a little more water in small
increments, always stirring.
7. If not quite thick enough, repeat step 5, except with not
quite as much water & flour.
8. Once your gravy is the consistency of your liking, put your
meat back in, cover & turn the stove on low & let simmer.

Good Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

you could easily substitute some cornish hens for this one......

Smothered Quail
Yield: 6 Servings

Ingredients

6 quail; cleaned
1 salt to taste
1 black pepper to taste
5 tb butter
3 tb flour; all-purpose
2 1/2 c chicken broth; boiling
1 ts worcestershire sauce
1 juice from 1/2 a lemon

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Sprinkle each quail inside and out with salt and pepper.

Heat the butter in a skillet, preferably of black cast iron, and when
it is quite hot, add the quail. Brown the birds on all sides, turning
occasionally to brown evenly, about 5 minutes.

Transfer the quail to a platter. Sprinkle the fat in the skillet with
flour. Cook, stirring, until the flour takes on a hazelnut color. Add
the broth, stirring rapidly with a wire whisk until the sauce is
thickened and smooth. Add the Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice.
Return the quail to the skillet and turn them in the sauce. Cover
with a tight-fitting lid. Place in the oven and bake 45 minutes or
longer, or until the quail are thoroughly tender.