IronChef Onion (with pics)

[SamIAm]

I post on a cooking forum that has an IronChef game like the 2+2 game of olden times. (Somebody picks an ingredient, you get a month to make a meal focusing on that ingredient.) This time it was onion; that includes white, yellow, red, vidalia, scallion, shallots.

I thought EDF would get a kick out of my submission. I'm not much of an Iron Chef, but I can play Iron Cook; most of the recipes and methods below are stolen from other sources, with variations according to my personal taste (and to ingredients I happened to find in the pantry...)

Appetizer: Gravlaks with Onion Jalapeño Relish and Scallion Cilantro Cream

Gravlaks is Norwegian cured salmon. Normally it's buried in a salt cure for a few days. ("Lox" means salmon and "Grave" apparently means "to bury meat," just like in English.) The problem is that you get "hot spots", where there's too much of the salt mixture and the fish gets tough. Cook's Illustrated came up with a cure for this problem (pun intended), with an onion juice brine instead of salt burial. It's a lot faster than the dry cure, too.

4 Red Onions
1 C Kosher Salt
3/4 C Sugar
1 T White Pepper
1 bunch Dill
3lb Salmon Fillet

2 White onions
2 Jalapeños
1 Red Pepper
1/4 C Sugar
1/4 C Red Wine Vinegar

1 C Sour Cream
1 Scallion
1 T Cilantro

Skin and halve the onions so they'll fit in the food processor and take 'em for a spin.





Pour the slush onto cheesecloth and press out all the liquid. I had to stir the contents a few times to get out all the moisture. When you're done squeezing, you're left with a knob of onion pulp that looks eerily like a single pasty onion. Like the Ghost Of Onions Past.



You'll get a few cups of juice. This method is also a good way to make home-made Mace; you've got every bit of the cry-juice from those onions (except for the toxic cloud that escaped the food processor...)



I've got a great hippy butcher/fish-monger. She gets me fresh, organic, free-range, well-fed meat that comes from a good home and respectable parents. Get 2 salmon fillets. (I made enough for Saturday's app as well Sunday's brunch. You could probably halve this recipe.)



Make a slice just below the tail, grab the end with one hand, and pull the skin tight. With the other hand, slide a boning knife along the skin, slowly cutting the skin from the fish. (I don't have a boning knife; I used a carving knife.) If you're super bad-ass, you'll get the skin off in one piece.



Take the onion juice, salt, sugar, pepper, and 2/3 of the dill. Chop the dill coarsley, including stems. Mix it all together.

Everybody knows it's important to taste things as you cook, so make sure to give this a sip.



Bag the fish with the brine and press out all the air you can. I had to cut one of the fillets to get it to fit. Place another pan on top and weigh it down with cans. Refrigerate for 16 hours. (The cure method takes days.)



Afterwards, remove the fish and pat dry. Mince the rest of the dill and pack it into the flesh of the fish. Any salmon you're not going to eat now, wrap in parchment paper and bag. (Use new bags. These are briney.)



For the hot relish, finely chop the onions and sweat them in olive oil. Add the jalapeños and pepper, also finely chopped.



When everything's cooked through, add the sugar and vinegar and cook 5 minutes more. Move to a bowl to cool.



For a savory/cool cream to counter the sweet/hot relish, mince the entire scallion & the cilantro and mix with the cream.



Serve on Kavli, a Norwegian cracker. (I called it a "Norwegian cracker" when talking to a Norwegian friend, and he honestly didn't know what I meant. Then said "OH! You mean KAVLI!" I guess it's a crispbread.)




COCKTAIL: Gibson

3 T Gin
1 T Vermouth
3 Pearl Onions
Ice

Shake gin & vermouth with ice. Strain into martini glass and add onions. Serve with appetizer, because this is basically pure booze.




SIDE: Onion Rings

This is another trick from Cook's Illustrated. They have a method for onion rings that uses a potato chip & saltine breading, and they bake with a little oil instead of immersing in it; think pan frying instead of deep frying.

1/2 bag Potato Chips
1 bag Saltines (1/4 box)
1 Egg
1/2 C Buttermilk
1/2 C Flour
1/4 t Cayenne
2 Yellow Onions
3 T Vegetable Oil



Put the saltines in the food processor and show 'em who's boss. Remove to a pie pan and do the same to the potato chips.



Peel the onions and cut into 1cm discs. Separate those into rings, tossing out the tiny ones.



Mix the flour & cayenne in a container and beat the eggs & buttermilk in another pie pan. Dredge each ring in flour, then egg, then breading. If you're left handed, use your left hand for the dry steps (flour & bread) and your right hand for the wet step (egg) else you'll run out of breading when it's all caked all over your hands.





Put 3 T of oil in each of two sheet pans and put in a 450 degree oven. When the oil just starts to smoke, add onion rings and cook for 15 minutes, flipping halfway through. Move to a draining rack before serving.


MAIN DISH: Pork Chops with Red Onion Stuffing

I followed Alton Brown's stuffed pork chop plan, with the stuffing based on a red onion jam recipe from Cook's Illustrated. The market had a sharp English cheddar that was made with pickled onions, so I used that at the end.

2 C Cider Vinegar
1 C Salt
1 C Brown Sugar
1 T Peppercorns
1 T Mustard Powder
1 lb Ice
4 Pork Chops

1/3 C Dried Cherries
1/3 C Dried Cranberries
1/2 C Rum
1 T Olive Oil
2 Red Onions
1 T Orange Juice
3 T Red Wine Vinegar
1 T Fresh Thyme
1/3 C Toasted Pecans
4 oz Pickled Onion Cheddar Cheese



Heat the vinegar for 3 minutes in the microwave and add the salt, brown sugar, peppercorns, & mustard. Let sit for a few minutes for the flavors to mingle, then add the ice to cool it down.

Tell your guests it's iced bubble-tea and serve.



Or, get really nice pork chops from your hippy butcher. These are heritage breed, grass-fed pigs that live & eat better than any pig should. (To be fair, I expect these little piggies hardly ever have pork chops for dinner.)



Using a paring knife, cut a pocket into each chop. Minimize the size of the opening, but cut all the way in to the bone and angle forward and back, getting as much volume in there as possible; you'll need the room later.



Soak the chops, covered, in the fridge for a couple hours, turning halfway through.



For the stuffing, heat the rum in the microwave for a minute and mince the dried fruit. Soak for 5 minutes.



Dice the onions and carmelize over medium-high heat. Add the vinegar, orange juice, minced thyme, and fruit mixture. Cook for 15 more minutes, and remove. Before using, mix in the pecans.



When the chops are done brining, wash them off, pat them dry, and fill them FULL of stuffing. Really full. It'll help to get as much as you can in each, then come back around after they've settled and pack in some more.

Heat 2 t of oil on high heat till it's just smoking and sear the chops for 3 minutes. Flip them and sear the other side. Open a window, 'cause where there's searing, there's smoke.



Bake in a 450 degree oven till the internal temp is 135 degrees.



Remove them and let them rest, lightly covered with aluminum foil, for 15 minutes. The temp will rise another 10 degrees. Top with a few crumbs of the onion cheddar and serve.




DESSERT: Vidalia & Granny Smith Tarte Tatin

This is an idea from the Vidalia restaurant in DC.

1/2 C Almonds
1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Water
1 Granny Smith Apple
1/2 Vidalia Onion
3/4 C Flour
3 sticks Butter
6 Egg Whites
1 1/3 C Sugar

They called for almond flour. I didn't have any and the market didn't either. So, blanch almonds in boiling water for 3 minutes.



And pop-off each of the skins.



Toast the almonds to dry them out and pulverize them in your spice grinder. (I made extra. You'll only need 3/4 C.)



Carmelize the sugar & water and pour it into a pie pan. Brown the butter.



Slice the onion & apple and layer them in the caramel, all pretty like. (Below is the first layer. I managed a couple layers before running out of apple.)



Combine the egg whites with the sugar, and mix with the flours. Combine with the butter and pour over the fruit. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes, till the top is crispy & brown and the bottom is bubbling caramel goodness.



Let it cool for a bit and then flip.



Serve with ice cream, because everything's better with ice cream.

[kipin]

Impressive entry! It all looks pretty delicious.

How did the onion dessert come out?

[Evan]

I was with you until the onion pie thing.

[SamIAm]

[ QUOTE ]
How did the onion dessert come out?

[/ QUOTE ]
I was a little worried about the tart, but it turned out great. We served it at Sunday's brunch as well, and everybody liked it at both meals, even the pickier eaters on Sunday. The vidalia added a nice savory note to the otherwise sweet/rich dish. Even the bites w/o big hunks of onion had a little of the mellowed onion flavoring throughout. In retrospect, I probably didn't need the ice cream, since it was complicated enough on its own. (But everything's better with ice cream...)

[nation]

wow, dishes look great sam, i'm hungry now.

[0evg0]

Unbelievably awesome.

Makes me want to start cooking fancy again.

And eat.

Great job.

['Chair]

wow.

I really like the appetizer. The contrasting flavors of the relish and cream makes my mouth water. Its also a very aesthetically pleasing dish.

[7ontheline]

Very nice, OP. That sure seems like a hell of a lot of work for that appetizer though. Impressive.

[Kharnage]

Very nice, and as a Norwegian, your gravlaks looks very good.

[Senor Cardgage]

This is making me really hungry.

I wish the OOT Iron Chef threads would come back.