I was hungry when I got off the plane and ready to eat. The crowds waiting in line at Red Iguana had other ideas. I took the crowds as a good sign and waited.
The first sign that my patience would be rewarded was the salsa. It was rich in peppers without being overwhelmingly hot.
This is my mole negro, which was outstanding. The taste started with savory and some fruity sweetness. About a minute later, the heat kicked in, never enough to make me sweat but more than enough to get my attention. Mole should be complex and this was an outstanding example.
My flan was also delicious. The richness of the custard matched with a bit of carmelization. It was sweet without being overly so.
I made candied ginger a few years ago. It's not something I would do every day but I had a lot of fun doing it. I recently acquired a pressure cooker and it inspired an interesting idea to me: why not make candied ginger in the pressure cooker? It should be very soft and flavorful. Here is the result. I peeled two large ginger roots, cut them into small cubes, and put them in the pressure cooker with heavily sugared water. The traditional method first boils the ginger in plain water to soften it and then again in sugar water to candy it. The resulting candy was very tender but still with the characteristic ginger texture. It was also sweet without being overpowering. The traditional method leaves a lot of sugar crystallized around the ginger. The pressure cooker gives a much more subtle result. The ginger stays moist even after it cools but you can dry it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. That inspired me to dip it in chocolate. While I was in the b...




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