Last week, Japanese researchers reported some
”
good news
”
for cooks.
Scientists think they have found a way to produce onions that
won’t make you cry.
Last week, Japanese researchers reported some “good news” for cooks.
Scientists think they have found a way to produce onions that won’t make you cry.
Ordinary onions release an eye irritant when they’re chopped or crushed.
This causes some people to cry more than others, even when using the “tearless” onions which really aren’t.
When I heard the news about a truly tearless onion, I didn’t shout, “It’s about time.” Instead, I wondered why some people want to make the cooking process as bland as a beige suit.
Why would we want an experience as flat as bad baking powder biscuits, as innocuous as processed American cheese slices? Who wants that?
One well-known onion expert from the State University of New York at Albany says ferreting out the irritating enzyme could change the taste of the onion. Eric Block believes the eye irritant also produces a burning sensation on the tongue, which contributes to the onion’s flavor.
“Some of us kind of enjoy that experience,” Block said. “You can mess with the onion, you can change it, you can maybe make it tear-free. Is that a better onion? Some people might say it’s inferior to the palate.”
I agree. Why change an ingredient that melds so well with so many cultural cooking techniques, that can be soft and sweet or sharp and tangy?
Why alter the only kitchen ingredient that can help weekday cooks let out some pent-up frustration without having to explain themselves?
Onions are supposed to make you cry. When they release that irritant, they’re letting out their inner tough guy: “Go ahead, eat me. But first I’ll make you pay!”
Who wants to mess with that?
• Winter warmth: Pick out a good-looking acorn squash and pop this recipe into the oven. This will warm your table, especially next to some roasted chicken and a green salad. This is from Belle Vie Gardens & Nursery in San Martin.
Baked Acorn Squash
1 acorn squash
1 tsp. honey (optional)
1 clove garlic
2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 T. unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Split squash lengthwise and remove the seeds. In a small pan (or microwave), warm the butter, honey and thyme.
Score flesh slightly and drizzle with half of the warm butter mixture. Cover with foil and bake 50 minutes (or until a fork pierces easily).
Remove foil, drizzle with remainder of butter mixture and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, or until squash is lightly browned.
• Dutch soup: This soup recipe comes from “The Comfort Food Cookbook,” by Johanna Burkhard. Her family came to the United States in the 1950s, and she says she was raised on this soup. It’s very hearty and the only pea soup recipe I’ve ever made that I liked.
Old-Fashioned Pea Soup with Smoked Ham
2 T. butter
1 medium leek, white and light green part, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 large stalk celery, including leaves, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp. pepper
8 cups chicken stock
2 cups chopped smoked ham
1 1/2 cups dried yellow or green split peas, rinsed and picked over
Salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
In a Dutch oven or stockpot, melt butter over medium heat. Add leek, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, marjoram, bay leaf and pepper; cook, stirring often, for 8 minutes until softened.
Stir in stock, ham and split peas. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 1 1/2 hours or until split peas are tender.
Remove bay leaf; adjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in parsley. Soup thickens as it cools; thin with additional stock or water to desired consistency.
• RSVP: This is a reply to Jenna Gelfman, who lost this recipe and needs it for a family party.
It first ran in December 2001 and was in the top 10 recipes in Cooking Light’s 10th anniversary issue.
Pennsylvania Pot Roast
Cooking spray
1 (1-1/2-pound) beef eye of round roast
3/4 cup beef broth
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup canned crushed tomatoes with added puree, undrained
1/4 cup diced carrot
1/4 cup diced celery
1/4 cup diced turnip
2 T. chopped fresh parsley
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
4 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
Cooked small red potatoes (optional)
Place a large saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat until hot. Add roast, browning on all sides. Add broth and next 9 ingredients (broth through bay leaf) to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 3 hours or until tender.
Slice roast; place on a serving platter. Set aside; keep warm. Increase heat to medium; cook broth mixture, uncovered, 10 minutes or until reduced to 1-2/3 cups. Discard peppercorns and bay leaf. Serve sauce with roast.
Serve with red potatoes, if desired.
Tip of the Week:
Make a quick avocado dressing: combine half an avocado with 1 cup vinaigrette dressing in a blender and process until smooth.
Notes from Jenny’s Kitchen
• Freeze leftover soups and stews in small, empty margarine containers. You can reheat them easily or, if you decide not to, can throw them away without much guilt.
• Decadent but wonderful: fry two strips of bacon until crisp; drain all but 1 T. of the fat. Sauté spinach leaves just until wilted, season with salt and pepper, and top with crumbled bacon.
• Check squash before buying. They should not have blemishes or spots that are soft.
• Don’t buy nectarines that are hard or overly green. They should be fragrant and brightly colored, and should give slightly to palm pressure.
• Make a list of 15 meals your family likes to eat. Divide the list into three weeks of dinner ideas (two days off per week). Take one list to the grocery store with you each week and shop accordingly.
• End notes: “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.”
~ Albert Camus
Jenny Midtgaard Derry is the Executive Director of the Santa Clara County Farm Bureau. Write to her c/o The Dispatch, P.O. Box 22365, Gilroy, 95021. E-mail: [email protected].
