Tabla de contenidos para Summer 2019 en SAVEUR

EVERY SPRING, THE SUGAR SNAP PEAS AT MAGIC SEED farm in Twin Falls, Idaho, burst from the dirt like an alarm clock, signaling the upcoming summer bounty. For owner Rod Lamborn, these snap peas are a living tribute to his father, Dr. Calvin Lamborn, the man who invented them. You’d be forgiven for thinking that sugar snap peas have occurred naturally forever. But this specific breed was invented by Dr. Lamborn in 1979, after years of trying to create a commercially viable snow pea with a smoother, straighter pod. Rod grew up here, witness to his father’s obsession and the excitement he felt whenever he successfully engineered a new variety. “My dad was fascinated by these plants,” Rod remembers. His father developed hundreds of unique varieties of sugar snap peas…

MAKES ABOUT 1 QUART Active: 1 hr. Total: 5 hr. Thai-Thanh makes this sorbet using fresh black currants, but strawberries or raspberries can also be used. Red beets provide a bit of stabilizing starch to the watery fruit and an earthy depth. 2 medium red beets, peeled and cut in 1-inch cubes (330 g)⅔ cup (160 g) raw cane sugar2 cups ripe strawberries, hulled (300 g)¼ cup plus 1 Tbsp. heavy cream 1 In a small pot, add the beets and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to a boil over high heat, then adjust to maintain a simmer. Cook until tender, 15–18 minutes. 2 Make the syrup: In a small pot over medium heat, whisk 1 cup (240 grams) cold water and the sugar. Bring to a…

FEW CARIBBEAN DISHES ARE AS well-traveled, or as beloved, as Jamaican jerk, a humble meal of bone-in chicken or pork parts doused in a blend of spices and hot peppers, and cooked slowly over smoldering pimento wood branches. Peppered across the island, roadside jerk stands entice passersby with wafts of fragrant smoke rising from makeshift grills encased in sheets of tin siding. Supple, juicy, and crispy in spots where the meat has been charred by the fire, jerk is an integral part of Jamaica’s economy too, with restaurants like the perpetually busy Scotchies or the relaxed Pepper’s Jerk Center serving tourists and locals year-round. It’s typically eaten with your hands alongside fried cornmeal “festivals” (dumplings), scorching-hot Scotch bonnet pepper sauce, and cold beer. Although jerk comes across as a leisurely…

A COMMON MISCONCEPTION about jerk is that it refers to the blend of herbs and spices the meat is marinated in, but it’s the low-and-slow smoking method that the name actually refers to. Nonetheless, the marinade—a fragrant mixture of Jamaican Scotch bonnet peppers, ginger, garlic, herbs, and spices—is a necessary component. While exact recipes vary among home cooks, some adding more chiles, others leaning more heavily toward fresh ginger and herbs, it’s always a combination of ingredients that reflects the island’s history. “Jerk is about balancing all those flavors and ingredients,” says Jamaica-born chef Andre Fowles of Miss Lily’s, a restaurant with locations in New York City, Dubai, and Negril, Jamaica. The recipe can be broken down into three basic components, which work together to create a dynamic, harmonious sauce.…

VILLA ROMANA IS AN extra-virgin oil pressed from an previously unknown and likely ancient olive variety that grows exclusively on the shores of Lake Garda, in the northern Italian region of Lombardy. Sergio Cozzaglio, who discovered the olives on trees amid the 2,000-year-old ruins of a Roman nobleman’s lakefront villa, rummaged around in his office and pulled out a single half-liter bottle, labeled with only an extra-large Post-it note. But he wasn’t sure whether he was going to let me taste it. “This is the special reserve, from this fall’s harvest,” Cozzaglio announced. “But I’m not satisfied with it.” He was standing in the storefront of La Zadruga, the olive-oil company he runs with his wife and partner, Ilaria Galetta, in the tranquil lakefront village of Toscolano-Maderno, a 90-minute drive…

SERVES 8 Active: 30 min. • Total: 1 hr. 15 min. Ask a local Ojibwe tribe member how they most like to eat wild rice, and half of them will say, “With maple sugar and dried berries.” In this riff on the sweet bowl—which can be eaten at breakfast or for dessert—the rice is served in a moat of spiced milk and the juice of grated carrots. Storage carrots (the kind sold in plastic bags) will not yield much juice or flavor, so use fresh whenever possible. 2 medium carrots (6 oz.), finely grated1½ cups whole milk½ cup heavy cream2 Tbsp. unsalted butter2 Tbsp. sugar½ tsp. ground turmeric¼ tsp. ground cardamom¼ tsp. ground cinnamon1 tsp. kosher salt, plus more as neededFreshly ground black pepper½ cup (3 oz.) sliced, dried apricots½…

SERVES 4 Total: 15 min. Hua jun, or “slippery mushrooms,” are foraged in the forests of Sichuan’s Bamboo Sea, but in cities and in the U.S., similar nameko or beech mushrooms are close substitutes. This dish combines the mushrooms with a local xiao mi chiles (see below), as well as some potato starch, which gives the dish a silky texture. 1 tsp. potato starch2 Tbsp. vegetable oil4–5 dried xiao mi chiles, or substitute Thai or arbol, cut into ¼-inch pieces3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced (1 Tbsp.)1 Tbsp. pickled ginger, thinly sliced, plus 1 Tbsp. of the pickling liquid4–5 small, pickled red chiles, coarsely chopped (1 Tbsp.), plus 1 Tbsp. of the pickling liquid2 large scallions, pale-green and white parts only, cut into 1-inch pieces1 small green bell pepper (4…

MY SUMMER MORNINGS ALL START the same way: with a walk in our backyard garden. So far, it’s just a few raised beds—not much more than a tomato plant here and some herbs and chiles there—and yet harvesting as little as two or three ripe strawberries, a few English pea pods, or just enough sungold tomatoes to top a pizza is plenty to raise my spirits. Watching plants spring to life is a gift no matter the scale in which you do it. But for a grower supplying a town or state or country with food, it’s intense, high-pressure work. Our country’s farming families struggle in the face of falling prices, climate change, international competition, an immigrant labor crisis, and the outof-touch standards of mainstream grocery stores, which let much…

IT CAN BE EASY TO GET LOST IN the labyrinthine trails of Nopalito Farm and Hopyard in northeast San Diego County. Hop farms are strangely evocative of oceanic kelp forests: fields filled with gently waving, upward-reaching verdant plants that can tower so high, they blot out the sun. But unlike the unsustainable and sometimes-violent mechanized kelp-dredging process, hop harvests are done delicately and by hand on small farms to ensure their perennial return. The typical hop plant—a member of the hemp family—generally takes three years to fully mature, making growing hops a laborious process. Hops thrive in moderate climates that have lots of both sunshine and rain as well as distinct seasonal temperature fluctuations. The Yakima region of Washington State is by far the most prolific hop-growing province in the…

MAKES ABOUT 1 QUART Active: 45 min. Total: 5 hr. 45 min. At La Tropicale, Thai-Thanh infuses this sorbet with dried African hibiscus blossoms and young fresh ginger. Her simple, fruit-free formula is great for beginners: Because you can completely control the sugar content, each batch freezes into a very consistent texture. 1⅓ cups (300 g) raw cane sugar1 cup (40 g) dried hibiscus flowers2 Tbsp. (10 g) fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced 1 In a small pot over medium heat, whisk 3½ cups (800 grams) cold water, the sugar, and the hibiscus flowers. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Turn off the heat and stir in the ginger. Cover the pot and refrigerate until completely cooled, about 1 hour. 2 When you are ready…

AT ITS VERY BEST, VEGETABLE tempura is piping hot and airy crisp, without a hint of heaviness or oiliness. And at its worst, it is a questionable soggy fry-up strewn atop a bowl of rice. While there are plenty of examples of the latter to be found in subpar interpretations worldwide, techniques borrowed from the tempura temples of Tokyo can lead you to easy mastery of one of Japan’s best dishes. In the 16th century, when an early thick-battered version of tempura was introduced to Japan, likely by the Portuguese, oil was not yet being widely used in the country’s cooking. Since extraction methods at the time produced so little oil—usually sesame — it was extremely costly and reserved mostly for use at banquet meals. Once oil-extraction methods improved toward…

MAKES 1¼ CUPS Active: 10 min. Total: 15 min. Since tempura itself is not salted, it’s typically served with a dipping salt or flavored, salty broth. This version is especially dark from shoyu, a Japanese soy sauce, and its base is an umami-rich dashi. To serve, dab a little grated daikon on the tempura, then dip a corner of the crispy tempura into the liquid part of the broth. ¼ cup mirin1 cup (9 g) shaved katsuobushi (bonito flakes)¼ cup shoyu¼ cup freshly grated daikon (ideally on a Japanese grating plate, see “Tempura Tools,” p. 34), drained in a fine mesh sieve 1 In a small pot, add the mirin, 1 cup cold water, and the katsuobushi; stir to combine. Cook over high heat until bubbles begin to form around…

SERVES 8 Active: 1 hr. 30 min. Total: 3 hr. 45 min. (plus cooling) The overflow of bubbly, sweet juices is part of the fun of summer-fruit pie-making: Just be sure to bake this one atop a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet to get out in front of any mess. As with all fruit pies, creating an amply thick crust around the edges will help prevent the dough from overcrisping before the filling is sufficiently thickened. For the pie dough: Ice2½ cups all-purpose flour1 Tbsp. natural cane sugar, plus 2 tsp. more for garnish¼ tsp. kosher salt2 sticks (8 oz.) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes1 large egg, for brushing For filling and serving: 9 cups fresh sour cherries (about 3 lb.)¼ cup natural cane sugar¼ cup tapioca flour (tapioca…

For many, jerk cooked without the inclusion of pimento wood simply isn’t jerk. The pimento tree is native to Jamaica, and its hardwood branches, baylike leaves, and dark, wrinkled berries are all important elements in the dish’s history and evolution. Named by Spanish settlers in the 1500s after pimienta, meaning “pepper,” the tree’s peppercornlike berries are known outside the Caribbean as allspice, which features prominently in most jerk marinades. In Jamaica, jerk cooks will layer soaked strips of the hard, slow-burning wood—and occasionally the aromatic leaves—over their grill grates above burning coals before placing whole marinated pork shoulder or quartered chickens on top. The hot smoke gradually imparts the tree’s distinct, nutty smoke and oils into the meat as it cooks, adding another savory layer rooted in the Jamaican soil.…

On the Grill “Good jerk has slightly dry, dark, crusty edges from the heat,” Suzanne Rousseau says. This, along with the influence of pimento wood and leaf smoke, is the key to jerked meat that tastes like it does in Jamaica. Apply Jamaican Jerk Marinade (see recipe at left) to 1 whole, skin-on chicken butchered into quarters or one 3-pound boneless pork shoulder with a good amount of fat, and refrigerate for 1–2 days. Gather enough pimento branches and pimento leaves to form a base for the meat, with a few inches of buffer around the sides. Soak the branches and leaves in water for at least 20 minutes (this will help them release flavorful smoke instead of igniting). When ready to cook, on a gas or charcoal grill, build…

IN A MAZE OF GREEN, XIAO ZAI HUI’S VIVID RED HAIR IS A BEACON. HER EBULLIENT LAUGH IS A GUIDE THROUGH THE DENSE, VERTICAL FOLIAGE OF 40-FOOT BAMBOO STALKS. IT’S BEEN FOUR YEARS SINCE SHE BEGAN A LIFE OF HARVESTING BAMBOO HERE—ON A PLOT OF LAND HER HUSBAND’S FAMILY HAS OWNED FOR GENERATIONS—AND HER SKILLS ARE SHARP. SHE STOPS AND CROUCHES AT THE BASE OF A TOWERING BAMBOO STALK, SEARCHING BELOW THE SOIL FOR A SHOOT THAT’S YET TO BREAK THE SURFACE. Though the bamboo must be dug up from under the soil, Xiao begins by gazing upward. The key to finding the ripest, biggest shoots is identifying the plants with the leafiest tops. The bamboo she finds here in China’s Shunan Zhuhai National Park, in Sichuan province, will be…

Sichuan is known as “the Land Of plenty” for its fertile soil and agricultural diversity. SERVES 4 Total: 15 min. You cai is the Mandarin name for a leafy, lightly bitter mustard green more widely known by its Cantonese name: you choy. Stir-fry it quickly in a smoking-hot wok so it retains some of its crunch. The purple variety is pictured here, but green you cai is easier to come by in U.S. markets. Choose thinner-stemmed greens, and peel any thick stems before cooking. 8 oz. you cai (you choy), trimmed and rinsed (6 cups)2 Tbsp. vegetable oil6–8 dried chao tian jiao (facing heaven) chiles, or substitute Thai or arbol, cut into ½-inch pieces5 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced (2 Tbsp.)5 whole red Sichuan peppercorns½ tsp. kosher salt, plus more…

SERVES 6 Active: 20 min. • Total: 1 hr. 25 min. Bamboo mushrooms—an earthy Chinese delicacy that grows at the root of bamboo stalks—are most enjoyed in Sichuan’s simple chicken soup. Harvested at their mature stage, with the lacy veil attached, dried and packaged bamboo mushrooms are commonly available at Chinese markets. Once cooked, they become soft and gelatinous, absorbing the flavors of the broth. 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil1 whole chicken, cut through the bone into 2- to 3-inch piecesOne 1-inch piece fresh ginger (½ oz.), peeled and thinly sliced8 green Sichuan peppercorns1 oz. (about 4 cups) dried bamboo mushrooms1 large fresh bamboo shoot, peeled, halved lengthwise, and thinly slicedKosher saltThinly sliced scallions, for serving 1 In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the oil. Once hot, add the…

TASTES, TRADITIONS, AND TECHNIQUES INSPIRING US RIGHT NOW 1 Turn Up the Heat Harness summer Scotch bonnets into a DIY pepper condiment USING UP A CHILE GLUTcan be tricky. While whimsicallooking Scotch bonnets have a flavorful fruitiness, they also pack a capsaicin punch that can easily overwhelm a dish. A fresh, Caribbean-style pepper sauce, tempered with sweet tropical fruit, is a great way to make the most of them. —Kat Craddock Caribbean-Style Scotch Bonnet Pepper Sauce MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS In a blender, add 6 stemmed Scotch bonnet chiles, 2 cups chopped fresh mango, 6 chopped garlic cloves, 1 cup chopped red onion, 1 Tbsp. honey, 2 tsp. allspice berries, and 1 tsp. mustard powder. Pulse to break down the ingredients slightly, then add ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp. coconut…

THE SLENDER, YELLOW-GREEN kapitsiriwi pepper is named after a blowpipe dart. Then there’s dzaka inapa, resembling a jaguar’s tooth, and kawathsidalipe, extremely hot and shaped like a clay pot. Spanning from orange to green to yellow to purple, 80 distinct pepper varieties are cultivated by the Baniwa, a people who have lived in small settlements in northwestern Brazil’s Içana River basin for thousands of years. “As far back as I can remember, there were always peppers around,” says Alfredo Brazâo, a Baniwa man who eats these indigenous chiles with every meal. Arable land is sparse here, so many Baniwa families plant their gardens on hills in the jungle to avoid flooding, even if doing so requires a bit of a journey. Brazâo and I hike for more than an hour from…

“If you fry and serve vegetable tempura as you go, everyone can enjoy hot, crispy bites as they come out of the oil—even the cook.” SERVES 4 Total: 1 hr. 45 min. This recipe is for classic tempura and kakiage, a fritterlike dish with a slightly thinner batter. Never chill tempura batter or its components—it will cool down the frying oil and disturb the process. Skim out errant pieces of batter as you fry, and cook the vegetables in the order indicated; leftover sugars in the oil can cause burning. For the batters: 1 large egg, at room temperature1⅓ cups (5⅛ oz.) cake flour, sifted For the vegetables: 16 medium shishito peppers (4 oz.), stems trimmed2 small eggplants (7 oz. total)40 thin green beans (6 oz.), trimmed½ small kabocha squash…

MAKES 1 ⅓ CUPS Total: 15 min. Chef Andre Fowles of Miss Lily’s recommends using a food processor to coarsely combine the marinade so small bits of each ingredient remain visible. “You should be able to pick out each of those unique ingredients to get bursts of flavor,” he says. This recipe, adapted from Jamaican cookbook authors Michelle and Suzanne Rousseau, makes enough to generously coat one 3-pound piece of boneless pork shoulder or one whole chicken. 6 Scotch bonnet chiles, stemmed and seeded3 scallions, trimmed and coarsely chopped¼ cup fresh thyme leaves2 medium garlic cloves1 Tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. peeled, chopped fresh ginger1 Tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. allspice berries2 tsp. kosher salt1 tsp. coriander seeds¼ tsp. ground cinnamonPinch freshly grated nutmeg¾ cup vegetable oil1 Tbsp. dark Jamaican rum2 Tbsp.…

SERVES 4 Active: 30 min.• Total: 1 hr. Lamb shoulder is an under utilized cut for grilling. It’s inexpensive yet juicy, and when cut into small pieces, it can easily absorb flavor from spice rubs and marinades. Made without any acid, this marinade relies on bracing raw onion—it helps tenderize the meat quickly, and leaves a subtle sweetness after grilling. Pair the kebabs with your favorite summer-vegetable side. ¾ tsp. ground coriander¾ tsp. ground cumin¾ tsp. kosher salt½ tsp. ground cayenne1 lb. 6 oz. boneless lamb shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes½ large yellow onion (5 oz.), coarsely chopped¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil2 medium garlic cloves 1 In a small bowl, mix the coriander, cumin, salt, and cayenne. Season the lamb all over with the mixture, pressing to adhere. 2 In…

IF YOU’RE DRIVING THE WINDING ROADS OF ORCAS ISLAND in late summer, you can smell the ripening fruit all around. On one such morning last year, I stopped the car at my destination and met Audra Lawlor, owner of Girl Meets Dirt, who was surveying one orchard’s recent Italian plum harvest in tall rubber boots and a denim shirt. As we walked among the rows of trees with their full canopies spilling over onto the trail, Audra picked up a fallen plum from the ground and turned it over in her hand between us. “Before I got here, most of the fruit from these trees would have rotted on the ground,” she says. Lawlor and her team of five mighty women at Girl Meets Dirt harvested more than 2,500 pounds…

“IF IT WEREN’T FOR THE RICE, OJIBWE CULTURE WOULDN’T BE HERE WE’LL BE DONE TOO.” SERVES 6–8 AS A MAIN COURSE Active: 1 hr. 40 min. • Total: 2 hr. Wild rice in northern Minnesota is often cooked with venison, which is sometimes ground with pork fat to enrich the lean meat. But fatty ground beef and lamb are more widely available substitutes. Dried local sumac berries are used in the Ojibwe diet to add a citrusy tang, but you can buy the spice pre-ground. ¾ cup wild rice (see “Wild About This Rice,” p. 96)2¼ tsp. kosher salt, divided, plus more as needed½ cup green lentils (lentilsde puy), rinsed and drained1½ cups (8 oz.) sungold or cherry tomatoes2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided1 tsp. ground sumacPinch of sugar1 lb.…

SERVES 4 Total: 15 min. To remove the skin when preparing fresh bamboo, make a shallow cut lengthwise down the skin, then peel away and discard it. Cut off the in edible thicker end of the shoot. Never wash fresh bamboo with water, which can give it an unpleasant flavor. Instead, use a dry towel to brush away any dust or dirt. 1 tsp. potato starch2 Tbsp. lard or vegetable oil for stir-fryingOne 1-inch piece fresh ginger (½ oz.), peeled and thinly sliced3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced2 fresh bamboo shoots (1¾ lb.), peeled, halved lengthwise, and thinly sliced (2 cups)½ small red bell pepper (2 oz.), cut into 1-inch piecesKosher salt2 Tbsp. thinly sliced scallions, for serving 1 In a small bowl, add the potato starch and 1 tablespoon…