Cotija cheese (sometimes referred to as cojito) is a Mexican cheese named after its place of origin in Cotija, Michoacán.
An aged cow-milk cheese, cotija is a firm, dry, salty and crumbly cheese that is sold in blocks or grated like parmesan. It is also available in a more moist, less salty variation that tastes a bit like feta.
Cotija is crumbled over salads, beans, tacos, salads and other dishes and has a sharp flavor. When heated, it softens but does not melt.
what you should know
Used to be that skirt steak was regarded as a second-rate cut of beef, good only when you couldn't afford the good stuff.
Then came the fajitas craze of the 1980s. As that sizzling mainstay of Tex-Mex went mainstream, the price of skirt steak rose, as did home cooks' appreciation of it. And what's not to like? A long, consistently flat cut from the belly, skirt steak's streaks of fat keep it juicy and give it a mouthfillingly meaty flavor that's missing in leaner cuts of beef.
sizzling While fajitas (and carne asada tacos) still account for most of the skirt steak sold in the U.S., it has also become one of the most popular grilling steaks.
thin and flash Left too long over heat, skirt steak gets tough, so it's best to cook it fast over high heat--about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. If you get a thicker cut, pound it down first or butterfly it, and then marinate it for half an hour or so before flash cooking on one side.
what you need
In Amy Sedaris' I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, her Gypsy Skirt Steak recipe begins: "Steal some skirt steak." (Buy the book for the humor, not the recipes.)
Lordly Hugh Fearnley- Whittingstall treats the subject of his meat much more seriously in his River Cottage Meat Book and River Cottage Cookbook.
But for clear and sober advice on meat and how to cook it, we generally defer to two solid books: Andrew Schloss' and David Joachim's Mastering the Grill and Bruce Aidells' and Denis Kelly's Complete Meat Cookbook.
what you do
If you have a large steel drum you're able heat until it's scorching hot, try to cook skirt steak fajitas the traditional way. Otherwise, a pan or grill will do.
We love Steamy Kitchen's grilled skirt steak. The marinade is an oil and vinegar mix. You could also go with a chimichurri or lime-soy marinade.
This skirt steak with caramelized shallots is an indoors recipe that could easily be adapted for the outside.
With any leftover skirt steak, make tacos or wraps by contrasting the tender, rich meat with crispy, fresh radishes and salty, soft cotija cheese.
Featured recipe: For this Montreal steak sandwich, the skirt steak is dusted in Montreal Steak Spice and then pan-fried with onions and mushrooms. The recipe comes from ketherian Food Journal. It's the featured recipe for this week's Root Source Challenge.
Crisp, earthy radishes grow underground before being dug up by their (also edible) leaves.
Raw, this root vegetable is pungent and peppery. To temper radishes, simply sauté, steam or braise them.
Dainty fairweather radishes like the Cherry Belle or French Breakfast come in shades of pink, red, purple and white. (Some even come inside-out: white-skinned and pink-hearted.)
Common is Eastern Europe, the black radish has rough, dark skin, bright, white flesh and a bite almost as sharp as horseradish. Another cool-weather radish, daikon, is carrot-shaped and parsnip-colored, but tastes like a summer radish.
Skip the O.J. and load up on radishes -- a great source of vitamin C.
what you should know
Crisp, earthy radishes grow underground before being dug up by their (also edible) leaves.
Raw, this root vegetable is pungent and peppery. To temper radishes, simply sauté, steam or braise them.
spring and summer Dainty fairweather radishes like the Cherry Belle or French Breakfast come in shades of pink, red, purple and white. (Some even come inside-out: white-skinned and pink-hearted.)
fall and winter Common is Eastern Europe, the black radish has rough, dark skin, bright, white flesh and a bite almost as sharp as horseradish. Another cool-weather radish, daikon, is carrot-shaped and parsnip-colored, but tastes like a summer radish.
morning cup Skip the O.J. and load up on radishes -- a great source of vitamin C.
divine Radishes were so prized in ancient Greece that worshipers left tiny gold models of the root as offerings to Apollo.
root vs. beer While true radish-lovers may have been lured to this 19th-century radish feast by the roots themselves, we suspect that most people were there for the beer.
what you need
Jane Grigson will provide you with answers to all your lingering questions about radishes (and any other salad ingredient) in her Vegetable Book.
What can a radish teach you about life and living it? Find out in this enlightening book by a Zen monk.
Have you noticed a crop of radish earrings? You can thank Harry Potter for that.
what you do
Give radishes an Italian twist by wrapping them in prosciutto.
A pickled radish salad is mighty refreshing alongside a rich, meaty skirt steak.
Creamy avocado balances the peppery bite of the radish in this colorful salad.
Glazed red pearl onions and pink-and-white radishes make a nice companion for a roasted bird.
Juicy beef, crisp romaine, crumbly cheese and crunchy radishes -- it's the perfect taco.
Roast veal next to radishes for a hearty dinner of tender meat and juicy vegetables.
Featured: The classic French combination of radishes and butter may strike you as odd, but after a bite you'll see why its balance of crunchy, sharp, salty and buttery flavors works so well.
Find more radish recipes at Cookthink.com. And if you haven't yet signed up for a free account at Cookthink, do it now!
Feta cheese is the most famous Greek invention since democracy. Traditionally made from sheep's (or goat's) milk, commercial producers now also use cow's milk to make the bright white, rindless cheese. Feta is cured and stored in a salty whey brine and has a distinct tangy taste and crumbly texture.
Feta is made by draining curdled milk in molds or cloth bags. It is then cut into slices, salted, and these days, packed in whey brine-filled barrels or plastic tubs, although the best feta is salted and aged rather than drowned in brine. The flavor and level of moisture in the cheese depends on the cheesemaker.
Feta-like cheese is now made in many parts of the world. In Europe the cheese is produced from Bulgaria to Denmark and France. But authentic Greek feta is now protected in Europe with an AOC designation of origin label, like Champagne or Bordeaux. Real feta must contain at least 70 percent sheep's milk and be made using traditional methods and in just seven regions of Greece. Feta cheese sold in the U.S. does not have to comply with these rules.
