The Louisville Chef

I think summer is the perfect time to bring out the garden fresh food and the easy to prepare side dishes to accompany the grill.

I’m a big fan of potato salad, but not the overwhelmingly sweet and gooey kind. I like to add fresh herbs, to give a blast of intense summer goodness. 

Ingredients:

1 lb of Fingerling Potatoes
3 Green Onions, sliced in half and chopped
2 Tbsp Pickle Relish
2 Tbsp fresh Dill, loosely chopped 
2 Tbsp Cider Vinegar
2 tsp Celery Salt
1 tsp Powdered Mustard
1/2 cup Mayonnaise
Black Pepper

Preparation:

Cut the potatoes into equal sizes. There is no need to peel them. Drop into a large pan of boiling salted water and cook for approx. 10 minutes, or until they slide off the knife easily when tested. Drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking and rinse away any starch.

Transfer to a large mixing bowl. (Here’s a handy tip. Always use a larger mixing bowl than you think you’ll need as this gives you room to work and there is less chance of mashing the potatoes. Using a silicone spatula, add all the ingredients and gently fold them together.

Put into the refrigerator and allow to cool. Serve slightly chilled with entree of your choice.

I don’t think much can surpass a well prepared piece of fish. The key is to avoid adding too much. Let the fish be the star.

This is very good with fresh Pacific halibut, but would also work with hake, cod or even salmon. The key is to have a very fresh fish. Since there are not many ingredients, each one needs to be flawless.

Ingredients:

1 – 1 1/2 lbs Pacific Halibut Filets, about 1 1/2 – 2 inch thick are perfect.
3 Tbsp Butter
1/2 cup White Wine
2 Tbsp Shallots, thinly sliced
2 whole Cloves
5 Black Peppercorns
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice

Preparation:

Add the white wine, shallots, cloves and black peppercorns to a small saucepan and gently simmer them for 10 minutes. Strain and set aside. Salt both sides of your halibut filets.

Heat your sauté pan over medium high heat. Try to use one that’s slightly larger than you need, so you don’t crowd the filets. Once the pan is up to temperature, add 2 Tbsp of butter and after it has melted and just started to turn golden, add your halibut filets. Cook for about 3 – 4 minutes, flip and then cook for an additional 3-4 minutes. Timing depends on thickness.

Remove the halibut to a heated plate and pour the reserved strained liquid and lemon juice directly into the sauté pan and reduce. Finish the sauce with an additional 1 Tbsp of butter and spoon over the filets and serve immediately.

I think this is one of my favorite Italian dishes. When I need a pasta fix, this is my go to recipe. There are so many versions of this dish, but I personally like my version because it is basic, rich, very good, but not overwhelming.

Cacio e Pepe translates as “cheese and pepper” and hails from Rome. In its most pure form it is made with only pasta, Romano cheese and black pepper. I’ve adjusted my version to include Parmesan and butter.

I previously posted a vegan version of this classic dish, but wanted to pass along my original version as well. Traditionally this dish is served with a long thin pasta, but I have had it with penne and rigatoni and it’s also very good with these pasta shapes.

Ingredients:

1 lb Spaghetti, Rigatoni or Penne.
4 Tbsp Butter, softened
3/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, finely grated
3/4 cup Romano Cheese, finely grated
1/2 to 1 Tbsp Black Pepper, freshly ground
1/4 tsp Sea Salt. Adjust as desired.
Pasta Water

Preparation:

Remove your butter from the refrigerator and grate your cheese. You do not want the ingredients to be too cold, or they will not create a smooth sauce.

Start the water for the pasta, salt the water and once you put the pasta in the pot, combine all remaining ingredients into a bowl and create a paste.

About half way through cooking the pasta, take a Pyrex measuring cup and dip out about 3/4 cup of the boiling pasta water and set it aside. You don’t want it to be too hot, or it tends to make the sauce lumpy.

Cook the pasta very al dente, so it needs an additional 2 minutes of cooking. You will finish it in the pan. Drain the pasta, add it back to the original pan on low heat and add the paste and reserved pasta water a bit at a time, stirring until it is all absorbed and the sauce is very creamy. You don’t want it to be watery, so don’t feel that you need to use all of the water.

Serve immediately with additional cheese as desired.

Here is the link to the vegan version: http://www.thepasadenachef.com/2016/06/cacio-e-pepe-perfect-roman-simplicity.html

I had this dish on my last trip and it reminded me of just how good this dish can be and how easy it is to prepare. A specialty of Naples, this is a typical example of Italian uncooked or “crudo” sauces. It’s a perfect example of how very simple, flawless ingredients can create something incredible.

Ideally, it is best in the height of summer when the tomatoes are bursting, but it’s not too hard to find good quality cherry tomatoes in the colder months, and summer is almost here, so why not give it a try? Its very good and best of all it’s delicious and healthy.

Ingredients:

2 cups cherry tomatoes sliced in half

1 small bunch basil, torn into pieces

3 cloves of garlic, sliced

2 tsp dried chili

1 lb dried Pasta

Parmesan Cheese, or suitable substitute

1 Anchovy fillet, minced – Optional

1/2 lb full milk Mozzarella or Barrata, cut into smallish chunks – Optional

I wanted to build on the puttanesca sauce I posted previously  to show how a versatile sauce can be used to prepare multiple dishes.

I got the idea to poach some fish in the puttanesca sauce, as I found some really nice turbot at the market.

It can be hard to eat healthy food. I’ll be the first to admit it. There are so many unhealthy choices out there.  When I read the nutritional info on many processed and prepared foods, I am floored by the amount of sodium, fat and sugar.

I feel the key is to create dishes that are so packed with flavor, that it’s not a sacrifice to eat the right things. If you work from the basics and use fresh ingredients,  then you’re in better control of the final result.

Here’s a slam dunk. Korean Oven Roasted Broccoli. It’s great straight out of the oven and is handy as leftovers for a Brown Rice Bowl. http://www.thepasadenachef.com/2016/07/this-is-koreansichuan-fusion-dish-due.html

And to those with a sharp eye, there are no toasted sesame seeds in this batch. I ran out!

Ingredients:

8 cups of Broccoli, cut into larger bite sized pieces.
3 Tbsp Gochujang paste
3 Tbsp Rice Wine or Shaohsing
1 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil
1 tsp Chili Flakes
1 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Seeds

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 425F. Put all other ingredients, except the broccoli, into a bowl and mix well. Spoon this mixture over the broccoli and toss until well coated. Turn out onto a parchment lined baking sheet and into the oven for 30 minutes. Give it a stir half way through.

Note: Both Gochujang and Shaohsing wine are available at most any Asian market and in many cases in the Asian food section of local grocery stores. However, I will point out that the quality, selection and prices tend to be much better at local Asian markets.

I enjoy fish, but I don’t cook it at home often, due to the lingering smell. Until I created this recipe, it was either Seared Teriyaki Ahi or Poached Salmon.

Discovering walleye was a revelation. It’s firm and flaky, not fishy at all, either while cooking or afterwards. It reminds me of sole, so it seemed a classic preparation was in order. I guess you could say this is a sole meunière on steroids.

Next time, I promise to show the finished dish, but it was late and we were so hungry, we just dived in.

Ingredients:

4 good size Walleye filets, 8-10oz each
3 Tbsp Butter, one Tbsp set aside to finish the sauce.
Sea Salt
Freshly ground Black Pepper
1/2 tsp Smoked Paprika
1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 Lemon, squeezed
1/4 cup White Wine

Preparation:

Begin by removing the fish from the refrigerator and dusting both sides with your sea salt, black pepper and other spices. Let the fish rest for at least 10 minutes outside of the refrigerator. Cold fish doesn’t cook well.

Heat a large non stick sauté pan. Once it’s medium hot, add 2 Tbsp of butter. When the froth subsidies and the butter is just starting to turn amber, gently lay your fish, skin side down. Don’t move the fish too much as you want to create a nice crispy skin.

As the walleye is cooking, use a spoon and baste it with the butter. If the filets are not very thick, this may be enough to cook it through, but feel free to gently flip them over if need be. A slotted spatula is very handy here.

Once done, remove them to heated plates. This is important, as fish will cool quickly and you need a few minutes to make your sauce.

Add your lemon juice and wine to the sauté pan and bring the heat up to high and stir until the sauce starts to thicken and then add your remaining 1 Tbsp of butter and continue stirring until the sauce glistens. Spoon your sauce over the walleye and serve immediately. It is great with the oven roasted cauliflower rice.

Note: I have found excellent quality walleye at Costco. It is fresh, not farmed and comes from Canada. If walleye is not available, any flaky white fish will do, but you might have to contend with some fish odor afterwards.

I had been hearing a lot about cauliflower rice and wanted to give it a try. So, I bought a package and proceeded to following the instructions on the back and it turned out to be awful. Smelled like cabbage and was too soft and watery. Very unappetizing.

Not one to be put off by one bad recipe, I gave it some thought and stumbled across the idea of roasting it in the oven and voila, it was amazing.

As I have noticed with a lot of the vegetables in that family, like broccoli and Brussels sprouts, they need to be able to roast in the oven to release the compounds that make them smell unpleasant.

We probably have this three nights a week. You can also add all sorts of additional ingredients to make it even better. This is always a good sign.

Ingredients:

1 32oz package of Cauliflower Rice, fresh is better if you can find it.
3 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 tsp Sea Salt, or to taste.
Freshly ground Black Pepper
Chili Flakes to taste
Parchment Paper

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 425F, and while the oven is heating, pour the cauliflower rice into a large bowl and add the olive oil and toss to mix well and then add the sea salt, black pepper and chili flakes and toss again.

Turn it out onto a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, giving it a stir half way through. I find the parchment paper really helps to crisp up the rice and give it a nice nutty flavor.

Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Optional Ingredients:
Garlic
Lemon
Chili Paste
Fish Sauce
Green Onions
Chopped Pecans