Hazan'd
I love Marcella Hazan, but her cookbooks have such a stern way about them. Does anybody else read her recipes picturing the face of their cranky high school French teacher, or the woman at the DMV counter who tells you exactly which forms you have failed to bring along?
This morning I was pondering what to do with some rapidly declining pork shoulder (already I would have been on thin ice with Ms. Hazan, I'm sure) and thought I might try her Stewed Pork with Porcini Mushrooms and Juniper, from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. By a small miracle I had all the ingredients...even juniper berries!...but no porcini mushrooms. Look, I get it. Porcinis are chock full of beautiful, woodsy flavors. But I am cheap, and those little packets are not. I should have ponied up at some point, but I didn't.
What does my pantry hold? Many, many kinds of (cheap!) Asian mushroom varieties. Good enough for me! Last week I already allowed Ms. Hazan's strong opinions on capers and anchovies to influence me into some expensive purchases that did result in an absolutely delicious panzanella, but today I was pressed for time (then why am I blogging?) and funds. I would not be swayed!
That's when I made the mistake of reading Marcella's porcini note.
"Dried morels, chanterelles, or shiitake, while they may be very good on their own terms, do not remotely recall the flavor of porcini, and are not a satisfactory substitute."
DO NOT REMOTELY RECALL, you idiot! How could you even THINK of such a substitution? C-! Your subjunctive tenses need improvement. You didn't fill out the Transfer of Title Fee Form and its accompanying form, Fee To Transfer the Title Item 11a. NO PORK SHOULDER FOR YOU! (Soup Nazi voice.)
Anybody got a good pork shoulder recipe?
This morning I was pondering what to do with some rapidly declining pork shoulder (already I would have been on thin ice with Ms. Hazan, I'm sure) and thought I might try her Stewed Pork with Porcini Mushrooms and Juniper, from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. By a small miracle I had all the ingredients...even juniper berries!...but no porcini mushrooms. Look, I get it. Porcinis are chock full of beautiful, woodsy flavors. But I am cheap, and those little packets are not. I should have ponied up at some point, but I didn't.
What does my pantry hold? Many, many kinds of (cheap!) Asian mushroom varieties. Good enough for me! Last week I already allowed Ms. Hazan's strong opinions on capers and anchovies to influence me into some expensive purchases that did result in an absolutely delicious panzanella, but today I was pressed for time (then why am I blogging?) and funds. I would not be swayed!
That's when I made the mistake of reading Marcella's porcini note.
"Dried morels, chanterelles, or shiitake, while they may be very good on their own terms, do not remotely recall the flavor of porcini, and are not a satisfactory substitute."
DO NOT REMOTELY RECALL, you idiot! How could you even THINK of such a substitution? C-! Your subjunctive tenses need improvement. You didn't fill out the Transfer of Title Fee Form and its accompanying form, Fee To Transfer the Title Item 11a. NO PORK SHOULDER FOR YOU! (Soup Nazi voice.)
Anybody got a good pork shoulder recipe?
posted by cindym at 8:09 AM
2 Comments:
I have one of her cookbooks! I picked up a copy of "More Classic Italian Cooking" at the swap meet when visiting my parents earlier this year. The book jacket's tattered, yellowing cover should have been tossed right away, but I couldn't bear to lose the cover. There's a photo of her wearing a lacy white sweater, pearly coral-colored lipstick and a thick swath of frosty sky blue eyeshadow on each eyelid. She's got a dark tan. Her head is tilted and she's laughing. Her left hand is resting casually on a huge log of cured meat the way you might put your arm over the shoulder of a good friend. She and that meat, they're sharing a laugh. Maybe that's why, when I read stuff like this, I can ignore the derisiveness and imagine instead a wide-eyed Marcella who clucks only because she wants to be helpful, "I don't know why people buy canned beets. Beets cooked at home are not merely simple to do and usually less expensive, but they are so infinitely good it seems to me those who deprive themselves of this joy must be doing it in secret expiation of some terrible sin. Or perhaps they're just lazy."
I hope you found a good recipe for that pork shoulder in the end! Even if you'd used your sub-par mushrooms, I'm sure the esteemed Ms. Hazan simply would've laughed and shaken her head before gamely having a taste.
Hmm, I can see how the photo would go a long way. She looks more stern on mine. But coral-colored lipstick is a definite plus in my opinion. :)
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