58 recipes. Page 2 of 3
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The prawns go shell-on onto a bed of hot coarse salt. The salt is there less to season than to spread the heat, and the prawns cook in their own moisture until the flesh is springy. Garlic butter and lemon juice go on only once they come off the heat.
Thin lemon slices layered with the crown daisy add a citrus lift to an otherwise plain soy brine. The leaves wilt and take on the soy color after 24 hours of chilling, which makes it a next-day option when a side dish is needed fast.
Finely grated yellow zest melts into warm butter and carries the lemon scent through the whole sauce. The grater stays shallow, since the white pith underneath adds bitterness. The small amount of cream is only warmed until bubbles show at the edge, because a hard boil splits it. Starchy pasta water, added a little at a time with the Parmesan, emulsifies everything into a sauce that coats the linguine smoothly, and the plates go out before it tightens. With little more than lemon, butter, cream and Parmesan, this southern Italian pasta comes together in about 20 minutes, an easy weeknight dinner.
The binder of mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, egg, and breadcrumbs is kept just strong enough to hold the crab together, so big lumps of meat still show in every bite. Lemon juice and parsley add freshness next to the sweet crabmeat. Every extra stir breaks down the crab, so the mixing stops with a few folds, the moment the mixture barely holds. Chilling the shaped patties for 30 minutes firms them up so they survive the flip. Fried in butter, they come out with a crisp shell and a warm, tender center.
Most of the toughness in chicken gizzards sits in the silver membrane, and peeling it off carefully is the main job of prep. The more thoroughly it comes off, the easier they are to chew after a fast sear. They come out browned and crisp outside, springy inside, with a little lemon squeezed over.
Five sliced garlic cloves cook slowly in butter over low heat, turning sweet and fragrant while staying pale. The large shrimp then get about 90 seconds a side, just until pink, so the centers stay tender. White wine lifts the garlic butter off the pan and reduces into a light sauce, and the lemon juice squeezed in at the end cuts through the butter while red pepper flakes leave a mild, lingering heat.
Baked whole in the oven rather than charred over a flame, the eggplant won't taste smoky; the soft flesh, tahini, yogurt and lemon carry the dip. Pressing the scooped flesh in a sieve removes the liquid that would otherwise pool once the yogurt is stirred in.
Dokdo shrimp are sweet enough that a splash of rice wine to take off any off odor is the only seasoning they get. They cook briefly on a bed of coarse salt under a lid, and the heads, pulled off, are stir-fried in butter as a second small dish.
Pounded thin, the pork loin cooks through in about the time the crumb coat needs to turn golden, and the loosely attached breadcrumbs puff away from the meat. That thinness is the main difference from a thick Japanese tonkatsu. No deep fryer is needed: a wide pan with oil reaching halfway up the cutlet works, as long as the pan is swirled so hot oil runs under the coating. Lemon wedges take the place of any sauce.
Sea bream fillets get nothing but coarse salt and pepper before they go in the pan. For a white fish, sea bream has a fair amount of fat, and that is enough to keep it from tasting plain. Minced garlic and sliced scallion go on top once it is cooked, with lemon alongside.
Butter mixed with rosemary, thyme, and garlic is pushed under the breast skin, where it melts during roasting and coats the leanest part of the bird. A lemon and the remaining herbs go into the cavity. The oven starts hot to color the skin, then drops lower to cook the meat through, and the drippings left in the pan become the base for a gravy. Letting the bird rest before carving keeps the juices in the meat rather than on the board.
Sweetfish, a summer river fish with a delicate fragrance, is grilled under a thin scatter of coarse salt and no other seasoning. Left in, the innards give a bitter edge; taken out, the fish turns much milder. The tail and fins, which scorch before the body, get a thicker coat of salt.
A single 1.5cm slab of firm graviera goes into the pan whole and comes out with a thin golden crust. Unlike breaded cheese sticks with egg and crumbs, it gets only a dusting of flour over a lightly wetted surface, and the excess is shaken off so it does not fall into the oil and burn. Leave it alone until one side turns golden, then flip it once with a wide spatula under the whole piece; if the cheese starts running at the edges, lower the heat. Lemon goes on after it reaches the plate.
With thin skin and soft flesh, a piece of beltfish flipped while still stuck to the pan tears apart. Waiting until the edges brown and the steak releases on its own, then sliding a wide spatula underneath, keeps each piece whole.
Potatoes, corn, smoked sausage, and shrimp all cook in one pot of salted, paprika-seasoned water, added in order of how long each needs. The potatoes get a head start, the corn and sausage follow, and the shrimp go in only for the last couple of minutes. Drained and tossed with melted butter and lemon juice, everything is tipped out onto a large platter or table for a crowd to eat with their hands.
Salted mackerel from a Korean market is already cured, which firms the flesh and means it needs no extra seasoning before it hits the pan. A quick rinse removes only the surface salt, whereas soaking washes out the seasoning and softens the flesh.
Chilled shrimp go to the table with a cocktail sauce of ketchup sharpened by horseradish and Worcestershire, served on the side for dipping. The ketchup brings sweetness, the horseradish a nose-tingling heat, and the Worcestershire a salty, savory taste that stands up to the mild shrimp. A quick poach in salted water with lemon, followed straight away by an ice bath, keeps the shrimp springy rather than rubbery. The moment they turn pink and curl slightly is the moment to lift them out; extra time in the hot water toughens them. Cooled shrimp need a thorough drain, since leftover water thins the sauce on the plate. Both components can be made ahead and held cold, which makes this an easy starter to plate at the last minute.
Autumn mackerel needs nothing but salt, and that is down to its fat. The fat under the skin melts out and does the frying itself. Grated radish mixed with soy sauce sits alongside. If a pan feels like a chore, an air fryer at 180°C for 15 minutes works too.
Sirloin gets a dark crust over high heat first, then a short basting with butter, crushed garlic, and rosemary once the heat drops to medium. Splitting the two stages keeps the butter and garlic from scorching in a pan hot enough to sear. Drying the sides as well as the faces helps the crust form evenly all around. Slice against the grain and finish with a squeeze of lemon.
Squid, shrimp, scallops and clams all cook at different speeds, so even on one grill each comes off on its own schedule. The clams are lifted out as soon as they open, juices and all. With nothing but olive oil, salt, pepper and lemon on them, any overcooked, rubbery piece gives itself away.
Sole fillets, dusted lightly with flour, fry in butter until golden; the butter left in the pan is then taken further until it browns and smells of toasted nuts. Lemon juice and parsley stirred into that brown butter make the sauce, its acidity cutting the richness. The window between brown and burnt is short, so the heat comes down the moment brown specks and a nutty aroma appear.
The mussels start with two tablespoons of white wine and a lid, steaming for about 2 minutes. Only the opened ones are set aside; butter and garlic melt into the liquid left in the pan, and the mussels go back in for 2 or 3 minutes of tossing. Half a lemon is squeezed over once the heat is off.
The coating on a proper Wiener schnitzel puffs up slightly away from the thin veal, light and golden rather than packed tight. Two habits make that happen: laying the breadcrumbs on without pressing them in, and frying in enough clarified butter for the cutlet to move freely.
Before cooking, Atka mackerel gets wiped down with water that has a little vinegar in it. Salt and pepper are its only seasoning, and after the flip the thickest part sits under a lid for a minute to cook through. Half a lemon goes on the plate, and it is served hot.