Marcus Samuelsson's Fall Gourmet Comfort Foods
Marcus Samuelsson is not only one of President Obama's favorite chefs - he's prepared two state dinners for Mr. Obama -- he's the winner of the second season of "Top Chef Masters."
Marcus is also only weeks away from opening his new Harlem restaurant, Red Rooster.
On "The Early Show" Wednesday, he cooked up some great gourmet comfort foods for fall, using the season's freshest ingredients, such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and apples.
For the main course, Marcus made Beer-Braised Short Ribs.
He explained that the key to this dish is preparing it low and slow -- as it is with all braising. A low temperature (300 degrees here) for a long cook time (at least three hours in the oven). Also, braising is a great thing for fall, since it works well for stews, lamb, beef, you name it.
One ingredient called for in the recipe, mirin, is basically a rice wine vinegar. It's pretty easy to find. But if you can't find it, any rice wine vinegar or sake will do. There's also an ingredient listed that is a combo of honey and soy sauce. That simply makes the soy sweeter and thicker, which the sauce needs in order to be served topping the ribs.
RECIPES
Latkes with Apple-Horseradish Sauce
Makes 18 pancakes
1 pound Idaho potatoes, peeled
1 pound Yukon gold potatoes, peeled
2 red onions, peeled
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon paprika
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup canola oil
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
2. Grate the potatoes and onions on the large holes of a box grater. Combine the grated potatoes and onions with the garlic, flour, cornstarch and paprika. Season with salt and pepper. Mix well.
3. Working in 3 batches, heat 1/4 cup oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Spoon 1/4 cup of the batter for each latka onto the hot skillet, using a spoon to push the batter down into an even layer if necessary, and cook until latkas are golden on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Add another 1/4 cup of oil and repeat for each batch. Transfer the latkes to a parchment lined baking sheet, place in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
Serve with Apple-Horseradish Sauce
Apple-Horseradish Sauce
Makes 1 1/2 cups
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and roughly chopped
1 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
Juice of 1 lime
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
1 scallion, finely chopped
1 3-inch piece of horseradish, grated
1/2 teaspoon wasabi
1. Combine the apples, ginger, lime juice, cider vinegar, and 1/2 cup water in a large saucepan. Cut a piece of parchment paper to the diameter of the saucepan and place it over the apples and ginger to submerge in the liquid. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the apples are tender, about 15 minutes. Strain and transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Stir in the scallions, horseradish and wasabi.
Beer-Braised Short Ribs
6 servings
3 tablespoons chili paste
4 pounds short ribs
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 cups beer, such as Brooklyn Lager
1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning meat
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 red onions, sliced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 3-inch piece of ginger, chopped
3 bay leaves
4 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup mirin/rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons equally mixed honey and soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 scallions, chopped
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1. Smear the chili paste over the short ribs. Arrange the ribs in a single layer in a baking dish. Mix together 1/4 cup of the soy sauce and 1/2 cup of the beer and pour over the ribs. Turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 300°F. Remove the ribs from the baking dish and pat dry. Season ribs with salt. Heat the sesame oil and olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add the ribs and brown on all sides. Remove to a separate dish. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and bay leaves and sauté until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the ribs back into the pot and pour in 3 cups of the beer, the remaining soy sauce, the chicken stock and the mirin/rice wine vinegar. Bring to a simmer, cover and place in the oven. Cook until meat is tender and falling off the bone, about 3 hours. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
3. Remove the ribs from the pot. Skim fat off the top and reserve 2 cups of the liquid. In a small saucepan combine the reserved cooking liquid, 1 teaspoon salt, the two tablespoons of soy sauce and honey mixture, honey and the remaining 1/2 cup of beer. Bring to a boil. Stir in the scallions and butter and serve over the short ribs.
For Marcus' recipe for Sweet Potato Doughnuts, go to Page 2.
Sweet Potato Doughnuts
Makes 20 doughnuts
6 tablespoons warm water
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 package active dry yeast (21/4 teaspoons)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 extra-large egg yolks
5 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom, preferably freshly ground
About 4 cups canola oil for deep-frying
1. Combine the water, granulated sugar, and yeast in a large bowl and set in a warm place until the yeast begins to bubble, 5 to 10 minutes.
2. Add the flour and salt to the yeast and mix with an electric mixer on low speed until well combined. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition until well incorporated.
3. Combine the milk and butter in a small saucepan and heat until butter is melted. With the mixer running, slowly pour the milk-butter mixture into the dough, beating until combined. Cover with a damp cloth and let sit, loosely covered with a sheet of plastic wrap, in a warm place until the dough doubles in size, about 40 minutes.
4. Punch the dough down and turn out onto a floured surface. Cut into 20 pieces, roll each one into a ball, and arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet. Set in a warm place and let rise for 20 minutes.
5. While the dough is rising, toss together the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom in a large shallow bowl. Set aside.
6. Heat the canola oil in a deep pot to 350°F. Working in batches, add the dough balls and fry, turning occasionally, until golden on all sides, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
7. Toss the doughnuts in the spices to coat. Serve warm.
Sweet Potato Cream
3/4 of a pound yams, peeled and cut into 1/2" cubes
1 cup coconut milk
1 cinnamon stick
1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsps sugar
1 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
For pastry cream:
1 cup whole milk
3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
1. For Pastry Cream: Bring milk to a simmer in a 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan. Whisk together yolks, sugar, and cornstarch in a bowl and gradually whisk in hot milk. Return mixture to pan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until mixture begins to boil. Simmer, stirring, until thickened and smooth, about 3 minutes.
2. Transfer the pastry cream to a clean bowl and stir in vanilla and butter. Cover surface with plastic wrap and cool to room temperature.
2. Place yams, coconut milk, cinnamon, vanilla bean, heavy cream, sugar, maple syrup, ginger powder, and cardamom powder in pot over medium-high heat, bring to a simmer and reduce heat. Let simmer for 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely to room temperature.
4. Take the cooled yam mixture, and puree it with a blender or Cuisinart until smooth.
5. Fold in 3 tablespoons of classic pastry cream. Make sure to fill the doughnuts with the cream
6. Punch hole into doughnut and fill with a pastry bag, turkey injector, or squirt bottle.