Category Archives: Cool Cooking Techniques

Dressed-For-Success Polenta with Herbed Oil

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A beautiful looking polenta that couldn't be easier to make.
A beautiful looking polenta that couldn’t be easier to make.

With gobs of butter and a veritable snowstorm of grated Parmigano.

That’s usually how I make and like my soft polenta.

But this recipe for “Polenta with Herbed Oil” offered another variation, one stripped of all that cheese, trading it instead for a copious amount of dried herbs found easily in my pantry that are steeped in a mixture of warmed butter and olive oil. In the process, it brought to the forefront more of that wonderful toasty corn taste.

This easy recipe is from “Cured” (Ten Speed Press), of which I received a review copy.

It was written by Steve McHugh, chef-owner of Cured in San Antonio, and Landrace in San Antonio; with assistance from Paula Forbes, a cookbook author, and former editor of Eater and Epicurious.

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ABsteak Makes A Splashy Opening in San Francisco’s Union Square

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Thinly sliced Australian Wagyu brisket awaiting the grill at ABsteak.
Thinly sliced Australian Wagyu brisket awaiting the grill at ABsteak.

Upscale Korean steakhouse ABsteak opened in San Francisco’s Union Square last week with flash and panache, along with plenty of fire, but no smoke, well, thanks to its custom grill-tops that vacuum it all away.

It’s the 28th restaurant worldwide for Seoul-born Chef Akira Back, and only his second one in California (the first being in Los Angeles). In the next two years, he plans to open another 10 around the globe.

Quite the accomplishment for Black who was once a professional snowboarder.

I had a chance to check out the glitzy 6,500-square foot subterranean restaurant, when I was invited in as a guest earlier this week.

The logo'd wall that greets you when you descend the stairs to the restaurant.
The logo’d wall that greets you when you descend the stairs to the restaurant.
A private dining room.
A private dining room.
The centerpiece glass wine display.
The centerpiece glass wine display.

Take the stairs or elevator down one level to find the entrance to the restaurant that’s filled with intriguing details. Look up to find a dramatic ceiling with curving and angular steel supports that change as you walk from the bar-lounge, past the showstopping 200-bottle circular glass wine display and into the dining room. Viewed together, they are supposed to evoke the bones, blood vessels and vertebrae inside a cow.

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Discover What’s Sure To Be Your New Favorite Cornbread — Made with Masa Harina

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Ditch the cornmeal for masa harina instead for this outstanding cornbread.
Ditch the cornmeal for masa harina instead for this outstanding cornbread.

When a craving for cornbread hit one day, Los Angeles recipe developer Jess Damuck didn’t run to the store upon realizing she was out of cornmeal. Nope, instead she reached for masa harina instead.

And in the process created the very best version of cornbread.

Moist, fluffy yet somehow crumbly, “Masa Harina Cornbread” exudes deep corn taste like there’s no tomorrow.

The recipe is from her new cookbook, “Health Nut” (Abrams), of which I received a review copy.

Don’t let the title scare you, as this isn’t a rigid cookbook filled with good-for-you recipes that aren’t necessarily the most satisfying. Instead, Damuck, a former culinary producer for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, has assembled more than 100 recipes that make use of real butter, real cheese, and whatever type of milk you prefer.

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Learn How to Make Franklin Barbecue’s Smoked Chicken

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A magnificent smoked chicken from the master of smoking.
A magnificent smoked chicken from the master of smoking.

I’ve yet to make the life-changing pilgrimage to Austin to endure the hours-long line for the much-lauded fare at Franklin Barbecue.

But at least now, I can say that I’ve made owner Aaron Franklin’s “Smoked Chicken” at home — and swooned over the results.

It’s actually an easy recipe that results in some of the juiciest chicken around, kissed by smoke and infused subtly with tangy, sweet, peppery, and piquant notes. In short, it’s outstanding.

It’s from his book, “Franklin Smoke” (Ten Speed Press, 2023), of which I received a review copy.

A James Beard Foundation “Best Chef” Award winner who has garnered every major barbecue honor around, Franklin wrote the book with New York-based James Beard Award-winning writer Jordan MacKay.

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