Guanciale is Italian cured pork cheek or jowl. It's traditionally used in classic pastas, like spaghetti all carbonara and bucatini all'amatriciana. Because it's largely fat, guanciale has a more seductive pork flavor and delicate texture than cured meat that comes from the belly (like pancetta, which is a common substitute, though the flavor isn't the same).
To make guanciale, you rub pork cheeks with some combination of salt, sugar, pepper, herbs and spices and then air dry them for several weeks. If you're feeling ambitious, try making your own. Otherwise, La Quercia, Buon Italia and Salumi Artisan Cured Meats are all good sources.
Reference: Guanciale, the magic Roman bacon (FX Cuisine)
Reference: How to prep pancetta (Cookthink)
Recipe: Fettuccine With Guanciale, Egg And Parmesan (Cookthink)
Onion slices are versatile. In quick-cooking dishes, they stay distinct enough from the other ingredients that they don't permeate every bite as diced onions would. In longer-cooking dishes, they have enough surface area to turn soft and brown, but their natural shape and length keeps them intact.
To make contoured half-round slices, first cut the onion in half through the root.
Next, slice away the both ends of each half and pull away the onion's skin. Since the ends hold the slices together, cutting them off frees the slices to fall into individual pieces.
Starting on one side of the onion with the knife at an angle, make slices as thick or thin as you like.
Rotate the knife around the contour of the onion, bring it closer to perpendicular to the cutting board as you go.
what you should know
An ancient, rugged predecessor of broccoli and brussels sprouts, kale loves the icy gloom of winter. Like many hardy greens, it sweetens when exposed to frost.
get it young Kale is a versatile, vitamin-rich antioxidant. Get them young and slender. If you bring home large, coarse kale, be prepared to cook it for a long time (like you would other bitter greens).
kaled over A few months ago, food writer Melissa Clark discovered that not all kales are created equal. ("If a chef dares to offer something as unappealing as, say, a raw kale salad, chances are it's fantastic." This epiphany led Clark to discover the glories of lacinato kale (aka, black kale, Tuscan kale and dinosaur kale).
clean greens Kale's ridges harbor all kinds of dirt and grime. You really have to go at them to get it all out. We prefer to wash and dry our greens before we prep them. But you might try chopping (or slicing) your kale and then washing and draining it. Whatever works.
hooked on kail In Scotland, kale (or kail) was for so long been a hardy staple that the word kail became another way of saying dinner. J.M. Barrie belonged to a group of Scottish writers known as the "Kail-yard school" because of their nostalgic depictions of rural Scotland (where kale fields were common).
what you need
At her Greens Restaurant in San Francisco, Annie Somerville does wonders with kale and other hardy greens. Our favorite of Somerville's books is her Everyday Greens.
We've been dying to try the duck leg stuffed with Tuscan kale in Thomas Keller's Bouchon, the follow-up to his French Laundry Cookbook.
Have you contemplated going vegan but been put off by the thought of getting by on seitan and tofu pups? Veganomicon be the book you've been waiting for.
what you do
Feeling a little worn? Make this invigorating Indian chicken, carrot and kale stew. Garam masala plays off the earthiness of the kale and carrot, and a touch of jalapeno points up all the flavors.
Broiling a steak? Pair it with a comforting, rich bowl of creamed kale. (You could also just skip the steak.)
For a heartier side dish to that steak, try mashing kale with potatoes. The Irish call this dish colcannon. The Dutch have a version called stamppot.
In this dish of chickpeas with merguez and kale, the beans act as a creamy canvas for the spicy lamb sausage and bitter leafy greens.
Get some satisfaction with this marinated beef and kale stew.
Pork, kale and cheese have a obvious affinity for each other. In this bacon and kale gratin, the greens ground what is an otherwise indulgent concoction.
Pork, kale and fish are the less obvious but equally delicious combination that's fuels hogwash's Seattle shellfish stew.
A reminder: if you'd like to wander through cookthink.com, we now have an index of all our recipes. And don't forget about our brand new Cookthinktank.
How to clean clams, mussels and other mollusks
How to clean clams, mussels and other mollusks
Cleaning your Shellfish:
Before mussels and clams are cooked, the shells must be scrubbed in cold water with a stiff brush to remove any barnacles and sand. Reduce the amount of interior sand by soaking them in cold water mixed with a few handfuls of cornmeal for 30 to 60 minutes.
Debearding the Mussel
Wild mussels (mussels are also farmed) require an additional cleaning step -- debearding. Protruding between mussels' shells is a small bristle or beard, by which the mussel attaches itself to rocks or pilings. Shortly before cooking, remove the beard by tightly grasping the hairs near their base and giving a sharp tug. The beard should snap off along with a tiny bit of mussel flesh.
what you should know
"Clam" is a generic name for a dozen or so different bivalved sea creatures who dig themselves into the sand.
Clams fall into two general categories. Hard-shell clams, such as littlenecks and quahogs, are often served raw. Soft-shell longnecks and steamers have a more delicate shell and are served cooked.
scrub & soak Clams don't have a beard (like mussels do), but they do need to be cleaned and soaked before cooking. Scrub them with a stiff brush and then add some cornmeal to the water in which you soak them.
cold storage Clams should be eaten as soon as possible after they've come out of the sand. If you do need to store them, keep them in a refrigerator, in a bowl covered with a damp towel.
open & shut If a clam opens before you cook it, tap on the shell. If it closes again, it's fine. If not, toss it. When exposed to heat, clams relax the muscles that hold their shells together. So be sure to toss any clams that don't open naturally with cooking.
what you need
Though you can use a good paring knife to open those stubborn mollusks, the work is easier with a clam knife.
Want to learn how to properly shuck a raw clam? Pick up the new set of books by Norman Weinstein called Mastering Knife Skills.
Before cooking, clams need a good scrubbing with a stiff brush.
For a go-to guide on cooking seafood, try Ralph Brennan's New Orleans Seafood Cookbook.
what you do
For an elegant appetizer, take a page from James Peterson and bake your clams with a bit of breading and some bacon.
Steamed clams and mussels go well with a mint kefir dipping sauce. (Use the leftovers for a unique stew of braised lamb with clams.)
In the mood for comfort food? Try clam chowder or miso soup with clams.
Clams also make a delicious pizza topping -- Kristin's favorite way to eat clams -- and give a briny flavor to starchy pastas.
Featured: Clams and salmon meet in a savory herb broth in this week's Root Source Challenge featured recipe. Congratulations to Michelle of Je Mange La Ville!
Find more clam recipes at Cookthink.com. And if you haven't yet signed up for a free account at Cookthink, do it now!
Wild mussels (mussels are also farmed) require an additional cleaning step -- debearding. Protruding between a mussel's shells is a small bristle or beard, by which the mussel attaches itself to rocks or pilings. Shortly before cooking, remove the beard by tightly grasping the hairs near their base and giving a sharp tug. The beard should snap off along with a tiny bit of mussel flesh.
Reference: How to clean mussels, clams and other mollusks (Sunday Dinners)
Recipe: Steamed Clams And Mussels With Mint Kefir (Sunday Dinners)
What is the difference between a shrimp and a prawn?
What is the difference between a shrimp and a prawn?
In some culinary circles, the word "prawn" is used to describe a large shrimp. In other circles, "shrimp" is used exclusively to describe both shrimp and prawns. And to further complicate matters, in other circles, "prawn" is used exclusively to describe both shrimp and prawns.
So is there a difference between the two?
Yes, there is a difference. Technically, shrimp and prawns are separate species, with mildly different gill structures and tastes.
The saltwater crustacean known as a shrimp is found in warm water (like the Gulf of Mexico) or cold water (like the Atlantic). Much of the shrimp we eat is pond-raised. In general, the colder the water, the smaller the shrimp.
Marketed according to size, shrimp are named based on the rough number of them that make up a pound. "Miniature" shrimp are so small that it take roughly 100 to make a pound, while just 10 "colossal" shrimp make a pound.
A prawn is a different kind of crustacean that resembles a miniature lobster and has sweet, succulent meat. The French langoustine, Spanish langostino and Caribbean lobsterette are all prawns, as is the Italian scampi (which shouldn't be confused with the dish known in the United States as "shrimp scampi"). Freshwater prawns like the Hawaiian blue prawn look like a shrimp-and-lobster love child, with thinner bodies and longer legs than shrimp.
Since in most recipes one can be substituted for the other, at Cookthink, we prefer to say "shrimp" when referring to shrimp and prawns. Using our synoynm feature, you can search for shrimp or prawns and we'll know what you're talking about.
Recipe: For recipes using shrimp and praws, take a look at the "related recipes" box on the left
