Gaji Namul (Korean Spicy Eggplant)

This is an old one. I made this the last time I was in NZ. I just never quite got around to writing it up. Which is a shame. Because it was delicious! Luckily, I kept a list of everything I made while I was over there. So I can rectify this grave oversight now.

Gaji Namul

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 450g Asian eggplants
• 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. gochugaru (Korean chile flakes)
• 1 Tbsp. fish sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• pepper, to taste
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 mild red chile or bell pepper (optional), minced
• 1/2 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds

Directions

1. Halve eggplants lengthwise, then cut into pieces about 5cm (2") long.
2. Set up a steamer, bring water to a boil, add eggplants to steamer, cover, and cook for ~5 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
4. Combine the soy sauce, sugar, gochugaru, fish sauce, sesame oil, and pepper to taste and stir to combine.
5. Add the garlic, green onion, and chile/bell pepper (if using). Set aside.
6. Once eggplant is cool enough to handle, tear it into bite-sized pieces.
7. Pour the sauce over the eggplant and toss to combine.
8. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.
9. Stir once more before serving.
10. Serve with rice and other banchan (side dishes) of your choice.

粽子 (zòngzǐ) are sticky rice dumplings. They're the tetrahedral ones that you see wrapped in bamboo leaves and tied up with string. They are made with glutinous rice, can be savoury or sweet, and are traditionally eaten during 端午节 (duānwǔ jié) or Dragon Boat Festival, which occurs sometime between late May and mid-June each year.¹

Unlike "real" 粽子, this version is not wrapped into individual bamboo leaf packets before steaming or boiling. Instead, all of the ingredients are mixed together in a leaf-lined steamer basket. This gives you all of the same flavours without going to the effort of making individual dumplings.

I didn't have any dried bamboo leaves on hand and I did have a surplus of lettuce. So I just ended up using that to line my steamer basket. This did not, of course, impart any of the traditional bamboo flavour to the rice, but it worked just fine to prevent the rice from sticking to its cooking vessel. And we still got to enjoy all of the other flavours in the rice. So, all-in-all, I'd call this a success. Even if not necessarily a super traditional one.

Lazy Zongzi Rice

Slightly adapted from The Woks of Life

Ingredients

Rice

• 1 1/2 c. uncooked glutinous (sticky/sweet) rice
• 8-10 dried bamboo leaves
• 1/2 c. shelled raw peanuts (without skin)
• 3-5 Chinese sausages, sliced thin
• 3-4 green onions, chopped
• 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt

Pork Belly

• 450g pork belly², cut into 1cm dice
• 2 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. dark soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine (绍兴酒)
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. white peppercorns, ground

Directions

1. Place the rice in a large bowl with enough water to cover by at least 2-3cm. Cover and soak for at least 6 hours or as long as overnight.
2. Soak the bamboo leaves for at least 3 hours (or overnight).
3. Soak the peanuts for 1 hour, then boil for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, combine the pork belly, light soy, salt, dark soy, wine, sugar, and white pepper and mix well. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours.
5. Drain the rice and the peanuts.
6. Combine the rice, peanuts, Chinese sausages, green onions, soy sauce, and salt and mix well.
7. Line a steamer basket with some of the bamboo leaves.
8. Place a layer of rice over the leaves, followed by a layer of pork belly. Repeat once more.
9. Cover the last layer of pork belly with the remaining bamboo leaves.
10. Place the steamer basket into a pot/steamer over cold water.
11. Cover, bring to a boil, and steam for 60-90 minutes. Or, if pressure steaming, cook on high pressure for 45 minutes with a 10-minute natural release.
12. Keep warm until ready to serve. (Rice will harden when cooled.)

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¹ Meaning that I even managed to make this dish at a vaguely seasonally appropriate time! ^Back
2 The original recipe only called for 225g of pork belly, but I had extra, so I used it all and just scaled up the marinade accordingly. I liked these proportions, but feel free to use more or less as you see fit. ^Back

We still have a bunch of leftover beef stew to work or way through, so I didn't end up needing to cook a new main for dinner tonight. We were running low on vegetables though, so I decided to give this cauliflower gratin a go.

It was pretty good! The capers and chile flakes were a nice addition to the sauce. I don't think it's my favourite cauliflower dish, but it's a perfectly serviceable way to use up a head of cauliflower.

Cauliflower Gratin

Slightly adapted from Dish of the Day by Kate McMillan

Ingredients

• 1 head cauliflower, leaves trimmed
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
• 3 1/2 Tbsp. flour
• 1 1/2 c. whole (3.25%) milk
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 1 Tbsp. capers, minced
• 1 tsp. red chile flakes
• 1/3 c. panko

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F) and grease a casserole dish.
2. Place a steamer basket in a medium pot over 4-5cm of boiling water.
3. Add the cauliflower to the steamer, cover, and steam for ~15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, melt 1 Tbsp. of the butter over medium heat.
5. Remove from heat and whisk in flour.
6. Return to heat and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.
7. Slowly whisk in the milk and keep mixing until smooth.
8. Mix in salt and pepper.
9. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until sauce is thickened (10-15 minutes).
10. Once the cauliflower has finished steaming, remove from steamer and allow to cool slightly.
11. Cut into 8 wedges and place them in the prepared casserole dish.
12. Mix the capers and chile flakes into the sauce and pour it over the cauliflower.
13. Melt the remaining 1/2 Tbsp. of butter over medium heat.
14. Add the breadcrumbs and fry, stirring frequently, until golden (3-5 minutes).
15. Top the cauliflower with the fried breadcrumbs.
16. Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 20-30 minutes.
17. Allow to cool slightly before serving.

Wolfert talks up purslane a lot. She describes it as a "great-tasting weed" and advises seeking it out if at all possible.

Well, I had access to it, so I decided to give this recipe a try. I was pretty good. But I doubt I'll make it again, even so. It's not that I was unhappy with the results. It's just too much effort for too little reward.

The purslane I got was mostly stem. And this recipe only uses the leaves. Combine that with how much volume you use after cooking and how long it takes to pick all the leaves from the stems and... I don't feel like it's a winning combination even for a fairly tasty dish. It wasn't bad. But it would've had to have been phenomenal to make it worthwhile for me.

I'm still glad I tried it though. It meant I got to try a new vegetable and see what it was like. And it lets me check off another recipe in the book.

Purslane Salad

Slighlty adapted from The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert

Ingredients

• 4 c. stemmed purslane leaves, rinsed well
• 4 large cloves garlic
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 c. chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
• 3/4 tsp. sweet paprika
• 1/2 tsp. cumin seeds, ground
• 1/8 tsp. ground cayenne
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1 preserved lemon
• 12 midway olives, rinsed and pitted

Directions

1. Set up a steamer and steam the purslane leaves, covered, for 12 minutes.
2. Remove from heat, uncover, and allow to cool.
3. Once cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess moisture and set aside.
4. With a mortar and pestle, molcajete, or similar, pound the garlic and salt to a paste.
5. Add the chopped herbs to the garlic paste and pound them to a paste as well.
6. Heat 2 Tbsp. of the oil over medium-low heat.
7. Add the herb paste and cook for 1-2 minutes.
8. Add the purslane and sauté slowly until most of the moisture is gone (~5 minutes).
9. Empty the pan onto a chopping board and finely chop the salad.
10. Mix in the paprika, cumin, and cayenne.
11. Place in a serving dish and allow to cool.
12. Remove and discard the pulp from the preserved lemon.
13. Thoroughly rinse the rind and cut it into thin slivers.
14. Mix the lemon juice and the remaining 1 Tbsp. of olive oil into the salad just before serving.
15. Adjust salt and lemon juice to taste.
16. Garnish with olives and preserved lemon rind.

Couscous with Seven Vegetables

Wolfert gives a lot of variations for this seven-vegetable couscous. The "default" is the Fes version, but she also offers a Marrakech rendition as well as "mountain-style" and "with lamb's head". I haven't had a chance to try the mountain-style couscous with seven vegetables yet and I'm not planning on making the lamb's head version¹ at all, but I've now tried the other two, so I figured it was time for a write-up!

I am not completely confident that I managed to do the Marrakech version as I was supposed to. The Fes version involves separately cooking pumpkin with raisins and then adding them to the couscous afterward. Since I wasn't using pumpkin in the Marrakech version, I omitted the raisins as well, but I now wonder if I should have included them. (The couscous was still delicious either way. I'm just not sure if what I made was what the author intended.)

It's been a while since I made the Fes version, so I'm mostly going to be transcribing the recipe out of the book for that one without much in the way of additional notes or personal commentary. The Marrakech version is fresh in my mind though, so that one should be a little more fleshed out. As for the mountain-style and lamb's head variants, those I can't offer any insights on at all. But I'll include them anyway in case there is any interest. I can always come back and update this post if and when I get around to making the mountain-style recipe.

Couscous with Seven Vegetables in the Fes Manner

Slightly adapted from The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert

Ingredients

• 1 c. dried chickpeas
• 2-3 cracked lamb shanks
• 4 chicken wings + 2 backs
• 1 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 Tbsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 2 Tbsp. saffron water²
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 onions, quartered
• 2 (7-8cm) cinnamon sticks (preferably cassia)
• small bundle of cilantro & parsley, tied together
• 4-5 very ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
• 3.5L water
• 200g carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm sticks
• 200g turnips, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks
• 450g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 450g instant couscous³
• 200g pumpkin, peeled and seeded and cut into chunks
• ~1/4 c. dark raisins
• 200g zucchini, trimmed and quartered
• 1 small cabbage, halved
• 1 Tbsp. ghee (optional)
• red pepper sauce (or harissa and extra broth)

Directions

1. Place the chickpeas in a bowl and add enough water to cover them by several cm. Soak overnight.
2. The next day, drain the chickpeas. Peel if desired⁴.
3. Place the drained chickpeas in a pot and add enough water to cover them by several cm. Bring to a boil and cook for 20 minutes. Drain and set aside.
4. Place the lamb, chicken, salt, pepper, saffron water, turmeric, onions, cinnamon sticks, herbs, tomatoes, and half the butter in a very large pot and cook, covered, over low heat for 10 minutes.
5. Add the water⁵ and bring to a boil.
6. Reduce heat and cook, partially covered, for 3 hours. Remove the chicken wings and backs after ~90 minutes of cooking.
7. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
8. Skim and discard fat from the surface of the broth.
9. Cut the meat into chunks. Discard any fat, gristle, or bones. Return the meat to the broth.
10. Bring broth to a boil and add the carrots, turnips, sweet potatoes, and chickpeas. Cook for 30 minutes.
11. Prepare the couscous through to the end of the second steaming (third steaming if using hand-rolled/non-instant couscous).⁶
12. Soak the raisins in water for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
13. Label a bit of the lamb broth into a separate pan and add the pumpkin and raisins to it. Cover, bring to a boil, and cook until the pumpkin is tender. Drain and set aside.
14. Steam the couscous once more (just 10 minutes this time).
15. Add the zucchini and cabbage to the broth and bring back to a boil. Cook until the vegetables are tender.
16. Strain the broth, reserving the meat and vegetables.
17. Correct the seasoning of the strained broth and return to a boil. Cook down to a volume of ~8 cups.
18. Dump the couscous into a serving platter and toss with the remaining 4 Tbsp. of butter.
19. Toss with the ghee (if using).
20. Use a fork and/or a whisk to break up any clumps and ensure the grains are all light and separate.
21. Gradually add up to 1 1/3 c. of the lamb broth to the couscous. (Hand-rolled couscous may be able to take up to 1 2/3 c. of broth.) You may find that you do not need all the broth.
22. Toss the grains again, making sure to break up any lumps. Let stand for 10 minutes.
23. Make a well in the centre of the couscous.
24. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the meat and vegetables to the well.
25. Add the drained raisins and pumpkin on top.
26. Serve with red pepper sauce and any remaining broth.

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Variations

Couscous with Seven Vegetables in the Marrakech Manner

Ingredients

• 1 c. skinned split fava beans⁷
• 2-3 cracked lamb shanks⁸
• 1 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 Tbsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 2 Tbsp. saffron water
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 onions, quartered
• 2 (7-8cm) cinnamon sticks (preferably cassia)
• small bundle of cilantro & parsley, tied together
• 4-5 very ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
• 3.5L water
• 200g carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm sticks
• 450g sweet potatoes⁹, peeled and cut into chunks
• 450g instant couscous
• 1/4 c. raisins (optional)
• 2 bell peppers, cored and sliced
• 200g zucchini, trimmed and quartered
• 1 Tbsp. ghee (optional)
• red pepper sauce (or harissa and extra broth)

You may also optionally include pumpkin, turnips, hot peppers, and/or cabbage.

Mountain-Style Couscous with Meat Confit and Seven Vegetables

Ingredients

• 1 c. dried chickpeas
• 450g lamb neck
• 450g shredded "express" meat confit
• 1 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 Tbsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 2 Tbsp. saffron water²
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 onions, quartered
• 2 (7-8cm) cinnamon sticks (preferably cassia)
• small bundle of cilantro & parsley, tied together
• 4-5 very ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter + 4 Tbsp. meat confit drippings, divided
• 3.5L water
• 200g carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm sticks
• 200g turnips, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks
• 450g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 450g instant couscous³
• 200g pumpkin, peeled and seeded and cut into chunks
• ~1/4 c. dark raisins
• 200g zucchini, trimmed and quartered
• 1 small cabbage, halved
• 1 Tbsp. ghee (optional)
• red pepper sauce (or harissa and extra broth)

Couscous with Lamb's Head and Seven Vegetables

Ingredients

• 1 c. dried chickpeas
• 2 lambs' heads
• 1 Tbsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 Tbsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 2 Tbsp. saffron water²
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 2 onions, quartered
• 2 (7-8cm) cinnamon sticks (preferably cassia)
• small bundle of cilantro & parsley, tied together
• 4-5 very ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
• 3.5L water
• 200g carrots, peeled and cut into 5cm sticks
• 200g turnips, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks
• 450g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 450g instant couscous³
• 200g pumpkin, peeled and seeded and cut into chunks
• ~1/4 c. dark raisins
• 200g zucchini, trimmed and quartered
• 1 small cabbage, halved
• 1 Tbsp. ghee (optional)
• red pepper sauce (or harissa and extra broth)

The lambs' heads will need to be soaked in water, halved, cleaned, and tied together before cooking. Wolfert does not specify how long they need to be soaked for or how to cut or clean them. Perhaps this is something that is normally done by the butcher?
Once the heads have been sorted out, you may proceed with the recipe as outlined above.

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¹ I'm not put off by the lamb's head itself, but I worry about prions... I'd honestly really love to try brains at some point, but I don't think I ever will because it's just not worth the risk. ^Back
2 I don't use saffron water in large enough quantities often enough for it to be worth it for me to keep it on hand in the fridge. I usually just mix it up as I need it. In this case I crushed a scant 1/8 tsp. of saffron threads and poured over 2 Tbsp. of boiling water. ^Back
3 The original recipe was for 680g of couscous, but I got mixed up and only did 450g. That said, I don't think I would've been able to handle more than ~500g in one go anyway, so it was just as well. Even with just 450g, this produced A LOT of couscous. I'd advise against making more than that in one go unless you a) have a very large steamer/couscousiere, b) have a very large platter and c) have a huge number of people to feed! Seriously, we fed 7 people out of this, sent leftovers to two different households, and still have a huge container of couscous sitting in the fridge the next day. Proceed with caution! ^Back
4 I never bother peeling my chickpeas. I don't mind the skins and I find peeling them annoying (despite Wolfert's clever tips). ^Back
5 I could only fit 3L of water into my pot. Given the reduced amount of liquid, I opted to cook my broth fully covered rather than partially covered. This seems to have worked out fine. ^Back
6 Wolfert notes that the dish can be prepared in advance up to this point. Warm everything back up 30-60 minutes before serving and continue with the recipe as directed. ^Back
7 The instructions for this variation said to omit the chickpeas and chicken, but to optionally include fava beans. It was unclear whether fresh or dried fava beans were intended. Looking at the recipe again, I think it was probably meant to be made with fresh fava beans, but I made it with dried, so that's what I've written instructions for here. That said, feel free to leave out the fava beans entirely and substitute some other vegetable instead. ^Back
8 Although the recipe calls for lamb shanks, we were already having a lot of lamb for dinner and we have a lot of beef in the freezer right now, so I opted to use two beef shank steaks in place of the lamb shanks to make the broth. ^Back
9 I was intending to use sweet potatoes for my couscous, but I was unsure of the quality of my remaining sweet potatoes and I had some lovely fresh potatoes out of my parents' garden, so I just used those instead. Different flavour, for sure, but still very nice. ^Back

Steamed Couscous

Learning how to steam couscous was a revelation. I'd only ever had it prepared according to package directions. It's fine this way. I still make instant couscous a lot of the time. It's quick, easy, and convenient and the results are pretty good. That said, if you want really nice couscous, you can't beat steaming!

These instructions are written for 450g of instant couscous. If you manage to find hand-rolled/non-instant couscous somewhere, it will need slighlty different handling. The instructions for hand-rolled couscous can be found below the instant instructions. I've also given instructions for several other types of couscous.

Wolfert advises that if you're dealing with more than 450g of couscous, you can scale up the water by 50% and add 5 minutes to each round of steaming. I would be seriously inclined to say that if you're planning on cooking more than half a kilo of couscous in one go... don't. Unless you're making dinner for a group of a dozen or more and/or couscous will be the only dish on offer, you probably don't actually need that much couscous.

Steamed Instant Couscous

Slightly adapted from The Food of Morocco by Paula Wolfert

Ingredients

• 450g instant couscous
• 4 c. water or 3 1/2 c. water + 1/2 c. milk, divided
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• butter and/or ghee (varies by recipe)
• up to 1 c. broth (varies by recipe)

Directions

1. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
2. Place couscous in a large wide and shallow pan or very large plate, cover with 2 c. of water and allow to sit for 1 minute.
3. After 1 minute, stir and pour off any remaining water.
4. Toss the grains gently to break up any lumps. Rake the grains with your fingers (or a whisk) to allow them to swell.
5. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
6. Set the lined steamer over the pot of boiling water, being sure that no steam is leaking out the sides.
7. Transfer the couscous to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
8. Use the cheesecloth to transfer the couscous to the pan/plate.
9. Spread the grains with a whisk and sprinkle with 1 c. of cold water (or 1/2 c. cold water + 1/2 c. milk).
10. Toss with salt and oil.
11. Stir and rake the grains to gently break up any lumps.
12. Allow to dry for 10 minutes.
13. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the couscous back to the lined steamer.
14. Steam, uncovered, for another 20 minutes.
15. Transfer back into the pan/plate and repeat the whisking and raking process, sprinkling in the last 1 c. of water.
16. Toss and stir to break up any lumps.
17. If necessary, at this point the couscous can be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
18. Whisk the grains again, breaking up any lumps with whisk and/or wet fingers.
19. Bring the water in the bottom of the steamer/couscousier to a boil.
20. Line the top of the steamer with cheesecloth and transfer the couscous back into the lined steamer.
21. Steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
22. Transfer the couscous to a wide serving dish and toss with butter and ghee (amounts will vary depending on the exact recipe you are making).
23. Gradually add up to 1 c. of broth to the couscous.
24. Toss one more time, again breaking up any lumps.
25. Let stand for 10 minutes, then add any desired toppings and garnishes.

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Variations

Steamed Hand-Rolled Couscous

Ingredients

• 450g hand-rolled couscous
• 3 1/2 c. water (or 3 c. water + 1/2 c. milk), divided
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. olive oil
• butter and/or ghee
• up to 1 1/2 c. broth

Directions

1. Place the couscous in a fine mesh strainer and quickly moisten under running water.
2. Dump into a wide and shallow pan/plate, spread/smooth out the grains, and allow to rest/swell for 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in 1/2 c. of the water and allow to sit for 5 more minutes.
4. Meanwhile, fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
5. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
6. Set the lined steamer over the pot of boiling water, being sure that no steam is leaking out the sides.
7. Transfer the couscous to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
8. Use the cheesecloth to transfer the couscous to the pan/plate.
9. Spread the grains with a whisk and sprinkle with 1 c. of cold water (or 1/2 c. cold water + 1/2 c. milk).
10. Toss with salt and oil.
11. Stir and rake the grains to gently break up any lumps.
12. Allow to dry for 10 minutes.
13. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the couscous back to the lined steamer.
14. Steam, uncovered, for another 20 minutes.
15. Transfer back into the pan/plate and repeat the whisking and raking process, sprinkling in the last 1 c. of water.
16. Toss and stir to break up any lumps.
17. Repeat the steaming process once more: steaming for 20 minutes, tossing with 1 c. of water, and then resting for 10 minutes.
18. If necessary, at this point the couscous can be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
19. Whisk the grains again, breaking up any lumps with whisk and/or wet fingers.
20. Bring the water in the bottom of the steamer/couscousier to a boil.
21. Line the top of the steamer with cheesecloth and transfer the couscous back into the lined steamer.
22. Steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
23. Transfer the couscous to a wide serving dish and toss with butter and ghee (amounts will vary depending on the exact recipe you are making).
24. Gradually add up to 1 1/2 c. of broth to the couscous.
25. Toss one more time, again breaking up any lumps.
26. Let stand for 10 minutes, then add any desired toppings and garnishes.

Steamed Cracked Barley

These instructions are for coarse cracked barley or scotch barley.

Ingredients

• 4 c. (680g) cracked/scotch barley
• 8 c. water, divided
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2-3 Tbsp. ghee

Directions

1. Pour 6 c. of water over the cracked parley, stir, then drain off the excess water. Let sit for 30 minutes.
2. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
3. Butter the inside of a steamer (or the top of a couscousier).
4. Squeeze the barley to extract all excess water.
5. Add the barley to the top of the steamer slowly, rubbing the grains between your palms as you transfer it.
6. Steam, covered, for 20 minutes.
7. Dump the barley out into a wide pan/plate and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
8. Toss with the butter.
9. Very slowly add 2 c. of water. It should take 3-4 minutes to add all the water and you will need to toss and rake the grains the entire time to help keep them separate and allow them to swell.
10. Toss again, then allow to dry for 10-15 minutes.
11. Steam, covered, for 20 more minutes.
12. Dump the grains back into the pan/plate and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
13. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes. Rake and toss occasionally during this time to stop them from becoming lumpy. Do not add any water this time.
14. Transfer the barley back into the steamer and steam, covered, for 10 more minutes.
15. Dump the barley into a serving dish and toss with ghee.

Steamed Barley Grits

These instructions are for fine cracked barley, barley grits, or barley couscous.

Ingredients

• 450g barley grits¹
• 1 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. unsalted butter or olive oil
• 3/4 c. salted water²
• ghee (varies by recipe)

Directions

1. Dampen the barley grits with ~1 c. of water. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
2. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
3. Line a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with cheesecloth.
4. Transfer the barley grits to the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
5. Dump the grains into a wide and shallow pan and break up any lumps with a fork or whisk.
6. Toss with the butter or olive oil.
7. Very slowly add the salted water. It should take 2-3 minutes to add it and you will need to rake and toss the grains constantly.
8. Allow to dry for 5-10 minutes.
9. Place the cheesecloth back in the steamer and transfer the grits back into the lined steamer. Steam, uncovered, for 10 more minutes.
10. Transfer the grits back to the pan/plate and break up any lumps.
11. Allow to sit for 15 minutes, raking and tossing occasionally to prevent lumps. Do not add any more water.
12. If necessary, the grits may be covered with a damp cloth and held for several hours before the final steaming.
13. About 30 minutes before serving, transfer the grits back into the lined steamer and steam, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
14. Dump the grits into a serving dish and toss with ghee.
15. Add any toppings or garnish and pour over sauce or broth and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Steamed Corn Grits

These instructions are for corn couscous or coarse stone-ground corn grits.

Ingredients

• 680g corn grits
• 7 1/2 c. water, divided
• 3 Tbsp. argan oil or unsalted butter or olive oil, divided
• salt
• black pepper or white pepper
• up to 2 c. broth

Directions

1. Fill a deep pot (or the bottom of a couscousier) with water and bring to a boil.
2. Lightly grease the inside of a steamer (or the top of a couscousier) with a neutral oil.
3. Moisten the grits with 1/2 c. of the water and toss until fully absorbed.
4. Add another 1/2 c. of water an allow to sit for 10 minutes.
5. Slowly add another 1/2 c. of water, spread the grits out, and allow to sit for ~5 minutes.
6. Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. of the argan oil (or melted butter or olive oil) and toss and rub the grains to coat evenly.
7. Transfer grits to steamer and steam, covered, for 45 minutes.
8. Dump the grits into a wide and shallow pan and whisk to break up any lumps.
9. While tossing with the whisk, add 1 c. of lukewarm water.
10. Allow to sit for 5 minutes.
11. Toss with 1 more c. of water.
12. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
13. Allow to sit for 10 minutes.
14. Toss with another 1 c. of water.
15. Transfer grits back into steamer and steam, covered, for another 45 minutes.
16. Dump grits back into the pan/plate and repeat whisking and moistening procedure³ and toss with 1 more Tbsp. of the butter or oil.
17. Grits can be covered with a damp cloth and held this way for several hours if necessary.
18. Before serving, bring the water back to a boil and transfer the grits back into the steamer. Cover and steam for 20 minutes.
19. Dump the grits into a serving dish and toss with the remaining 1 Tbsp. of oil or butter.
20. Break up any lumps and toss with the broth.
21. Top and garnish as directed by recipe.

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¹ Wolfert doesn't specify how much barley this recipe is for. I'm guessing that it's written for 450g of barley based on the fact that her master couscous recipe was also written for 1 lb. of grains. But that is just a guess as I haven't actually tried any of the barley recipes yet. ^Back
2 Wolfert also doesn't specify how much salt goes into the "salt water". I'd probably start with 1 tsp. and go from there. ^Back
3 Wolfert says to "repeat step 3" which, in her version of the recipe covers all three additions of water after the first steaming. Given that, I assume that you would add another 3 c. of water here. That seems like an awful lot of water. But I guess corn is pretty absorbent (cf. polenta). ^Back

This is a pretty standard sourdough, but made with a very high hydration starter. All of the liquid for the dough is in the starter. You let it ferment and then just add flour and salt. No additional liquid is added.

Fred Bread

Slightly adapted from Sourdough Companion

Ingredients

Starter/Preferment

• 2g ripe/active starter (100% hydration)
• 483g water
• 268g hard (strong/high grade/bread) whole wheat flour

Dough

• starter/preferment (from above)
• 430g hard (strong/high grade/bread) whole wheat flour
• 12g coarse sea salt

Directions

1. Mix starter into water in a large bowl.
2. Add flour and thoroughly combine.
3. Cover and let sit at room temperature for 24-36 hours. (I cut mine a bit short because I was worried about overfermenting it, but I probably should've let it go at least 24.)
4. Add 430g more flour to the starter mixture and mix well.
5. Cover and let stand for 30-60 minutes.
6. Add the salt and knead it in.
7. Let stand at room temperature for 4-6 hours, stretching every hour or two.
8. Divide into two equal portions, round each portion, cover, and let rest for 20-30 minutes.
9. Shape each portion into a loaf and place each in a floured banneton.
10. Cover the bannetons and transfer to fridge for 12-18 hours.
11. Preheat oven to 250°C (475°F), grease a baking sheet, and sprinkle it with cornmeal.
12. Pour some boiling wter into a roasting pan and place it on the bottom rack of the preheated oven.
13. Turn the risen loaves out onto the prepared baking sheet and spritz the crusts with a little water.
14. Slash the loaves as desired.
15. Bake on middle rack (above roasting pan) at 250°C (475°F) for 15 minutes.
16. Remove roasting pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 200°C (400°F).
17. Bake loaves for another 10 minutes at 200°C (400°F). Check for doness. Add a little more time if needed.
18. Turn off oven and leave loaves inside for another 10 minutes.
19. Remove from oven and transfer to wire rack to cool.

I've never been a big fan of steamed buns. I always felt like buns really needed to be baked to be any good. Steaming them just seemed sad. But TF really likes steamed buns, so I figured I'd give this recipe a try. And it turns out that homemade steamed buns are actually really good! I loved these! I felt like they needed some sort of sauce since the filling didn't have much umph, but the buns themselves were really, really delicious.

Steamed Vegetable Buns

Slightly adapted from Woks of Life

Ingredients

Filling

• 450g baby bok choy
• 8 fresh shiitake mushrooms¹
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 115g 五香豆腐干 (five-spice dried tofu)
• 1 tsp. light (regular) soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/8 tsp. white peppercorns, ground
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt²

Dough

• 3/4 c. warm water
• 1 tsp. instant yeast
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 4 tsp. oil, divided
• 280g all-purpose flour
• 20g cornstarch (cornflour)
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda

Directions

Filling

1. Prepare an ice bath.
2. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add half the bok choy. Cook for 10 seconds, then quickly transfer the bok choy to the ice bath. Repeat the blanching process with the remaining bok choy.
3. Once the bok choy has cooled completely, drain it, squeezing out as much water as possible.
4. Finely chop the bok choy. (A food processor is helpful for this. I don't have one, so I did it by hand.)
5. Finely chop the mushrooms.
6. Heat a wok over medium heat.
7. Drizzle the oil into the wok.
8. Add the chopped mushrooms to the wok and stir-fry for 3-4 minutes.
9. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
10. Finely chop the tofu and set it aside.
11. Return the the chopped bok choy and pour off any liquid that has accumulated. (This will prevent soggy buns!)
12. Add the mushrooms and tofu the the bok choy.
13. Add the soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, white pepper, and salt and mix to combine.
14. Cover and chill while dough is being prepared.

Dough

1. Stir the yeast and sugar into the warm water and set aside for 10 minutes.
2. Stir in 1 Tbsp. oil.
3. In a separte bowl, combine the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda and mix to combine.
4. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients.
5. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet, working from the centre outward.
6. Once the flour has been mostly incorporated, turn the dough out onto your work surface and begin kneading.
7. Knead for at least 10 minutes. The dough should be very smooth and supple. If it is lumpy, uneven, or tears, keep going!
8. Shape into a ball and place in a bowl.
9. Brush the top of the dough ball with the remaining 1 tsp. of oil. Cover and let at room temperature for ~1 hour.

Assembly

1. Once fully risen, turn out and knead for a few minutes to deflate and remove gas pockets.
2. Divide dough into 30g portions³.
3. Round each piece of dough and cover with plastic wrap to stop it from drying out.
4. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it out into a flat disc ~8cm in diameter, thinner on the edges and thicker in the middle.
5. Place a spoonful of filling in the centre of the disc.
6. Holding the bun in the palm of one hand, being pleating the edges. Once you've worked all the way around, keep the last pleat pinched and work your way around again. Twist and close until the bun is almost completely closed. There should still be a small open hole at the top, but it should be mostly closed and neatly pleated.
7. Place each bun on a square of parchmentpaper (5-6cm squares work well).
8. Place place the buns (on their parchment squares) into a steamer. Be careful not to crowd them.
9. Cover and let rise for ~20 minutes.
10. Make sure there is sufficient water in the bottom of your steamer and bring to a boil over high heat.
11. Once water is boiling, reduce heat to medium. Steam for 10 minutes.
12. Turn off heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Do not remove lid during this time!
13. Remove cooked buns from steamer and get the next batch ready to go. Each batch much start with cold water.
14. Serve hot.
15. To reheat, microwave for one minute or steam for 6-8 minutes.

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¹ I didn't have any fresh shiitakes so I just rehydrated a few dried ones. My dried mushrooms were quite large, so I only used six. ^Back
2 I'd be tempted to leave out the salt and add in a teaspoon of dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, or hoisin sauce next time. The filling was good, but I feel like it really needed something to give it a bit more presence. Of course, adding one of those dark sauces would probably have a negative impact on the aesthetics. They blanched bok choy is lovely and vibrant in this version. But I think I'd be willing to sacrifice some aesthetic value in the pursuit of better flavour. Just something to keep in mind if you're after something very pretty. ^Back
3 The original recipe called for making 14 equal portions. This worked out to ~40g of dough per bun. I did this, but when I made a second batch the next day, I found 30g portions much easier to handle. So I would actually recommend making more smaller buns (18-19) vs. a smaller number of larger ones. ^Back

Steaming is a very popular method of cooking in southern China. This is originally a Cantonese dish. The steaming gives the chicken a silky texture and produces a thin, flavourful sauce.

I chose to add a bit of baby Shanghai bok choy to give this dish some veg. I also opted to use tempeh instead of chicken. In all honesty, I think chicken probably would've been better, but it was still good with the tempeh, just not as good as I think it could have been.

To make up for not having the chicken, I swapped out the vegetable oil for schmaltz and added a bit of sweet paprika, garlic powder, and onion powder. I also traded out the salt for bouillon powder. Additionally, I used way more sausages then the original recipe called for (but only about half as much tempeh).

The recipe calls for using a pie plate for the steaming. This worked okay, but my pie plate was very, very full. I think I'd probably try to steam it in a large glass bowl next time. (Or just make a half batch so that the pie plate isn't quite so overstuffed.)

Steamed Chicken with Chinese Sausage

Adapted from Woks of Life

Ingredients

• 10 dried shiitake (black Chinese) mushrooms
• 450g skinless, boneless chicken thighs (or tempeh), cut into chunks
• 1/3 c. water (or mushroom soaking water)
• 1 Tbsp. oil (or schmaltz)
• 1/4 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. Shaoxing wine (绍兴酒)
• 1 Tbsp. (vegetarian) oyster sauce
• 1/4 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. chicken or vegetable bouillon powder
• 1/4 tsp. white peppercorns, ground
• 1/2 tsp. grated ginger (or 1 tsp. ginger paste)
• 1 scallion, chopped, white and green parts separated
• 1/4 tsp. sweet or smoked paprika (optional)
• 1/4 tsp. garlic powder (optional)
• 1/2 tsp. onion powder (optional)
• 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce¹ (optional)
• 1 Tbsp. tapioca starch (or cornstarch/cornflour)
• 2-10 Chinese sausages², thinly sliced on bias
• 6-8 baby Shanghai bok choy, rinsed and chopped (optional)

Directions

1. Soak the mushrooms in hot water for at least two hours.
2. Drain, rinse, and thinly slice the mushrooms.
3. Combine chicken, sliced mushrooms, water, oil (or schmaltz), sesame oil, Shaoxing wine, oyster sauce, sugar, bouillion powder, white pepper, ginger, and the white parts of the scallion and stir to combine.
4. Also add paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and soy sauce (if using).
5. Cover and chill for at least two hours or as long as overnight.
6. Add the tapioca starch (or cornstarch) and mix well.
7. Add water to your steamer/wok and bring to a rolling boil.
8. Transfer the chicken mixture to a pie plate or large heat-proof bowl.
9. Place the sliced sausages on top.
10. Place the bok choy on top of this (if using).
11. Place the bowl/pie plate in the steamer and steam over medium heat for 10 minutes.
12. Turn off the heat and leave the steamer to sit, covered, for another 2-3 minutes.
13. Sprinkle with the green parts of the scallion and serve over rice.

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¹ The original recipe didn't call for any soy sauce and I didn't use any. That said, upon tasting it, I felt like I probably would have benefitted from a small amount of soy sauce in the marinade. I'll try it this way next time and see how it comes out. ^Back
2 I know this is a huge range. The original recipe calls for 1-2 links but notes that sausage sizes can vary greatly. My sausages were extremely small. I also really like sausages. And I had less tempeh (my stand-in for chicken) than the recipe called for, so I figured I'd make it up with extra sausages. I liked my sausage-heavy version. I realize that this may not be true to the original recipe, but it was delicious! Go for more sausages if that's your jam or less if you'd like something a little more traditional. ^Back

Icelandic Thunder Bread (no molasses)

I tried another version of Icelandic thunder bread a few weeks back. I liked it, but I felt like the combination of brown sugar/molasses and whole grain flour made it taste more like a giant bran muffin than bread. It's honestly a nice option if you're looking for a lower fat alternative to the standard bran muffin!

I wanted something that let the rye shine a little more though. This recipe doesn't call for any brown sugar or molasses and uses a higher proportion of rye flour in the batter, so I was hoping it might provide a better rye flavour. That said, there's a lot more sugar in this recipe than the first one I tried. It's not a bad loaf, but it is very sweet. I think I'd probably halve the sugar if I was making it again. I've adjusted the recipe below to reflect this.

Icelandic Thunder Bread

Slightly adapted from The Travel Bunny

Ingredients

• 320g whole rye flour
• 85g all-purpose flour
• 100g sugar
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 450mL milk

Directions

1. Combine flours, and sugar.
2. Sift in baking powder.
3. Add sugar and thoroughly mix.
4. Pour in milk and mix until just comgined.
5. Pour batter into greased and floured casserole dish.
6. Cover casserole dish and place on trivet inside slow cooker/InstantPot with enough water to come about halfway up the side of the dish.
7. Set slow cooker to high and allow bread to steam for 4 hours.
8. Carefully remove casserole dish from slow cooker/InstantPot, uncover, and allow to cool for 10-20 minutes.
9. Turn bread out onto wire rack to cool.

This is a bit of an unusual bread recipe. It's technically a "quick bread" as it's leavened with baking powder rather than yeast, but rather than spending a quick 30-60 minutes in the oven as most quick breads do, it gets steamed for several hours. Apparently the traditional way to bake this bread is by place in a pot and burying it near a geothermal spring to slowly steam its way to perfection. Given that geothermal springs aren't exactly commonplace here, I decided to steam mine in the InstantPot. This seems to have worked very well except for the part where I assumed that just having a lid on the casserole dish inside the pot would be enough and didn't bother trying to seal it. This resulted in a rather large amount of water finding its way into the baking dish so that the bread became quite wet around the edges. A quick blast in the dry heat of the oven seems to have dried it out without any ill effects though, so no major harm done!

There are a wide variety of recipes for Icelandic thunder bread floating around the internet. They all involve rye flour and baking powder. Interestingly, baking powder isn't always the only leavener; I came across one recipe that called for baking powder and yeast. Most just stick with a chemical leavener (like baking powder and/or baking soda) though. All the ones that I looked at also involved at least some amount of refined wheat flour. They also all call for a relatively high proportion of sweetener, but what that sweetener is varies from recipe to recipe. Some recipes call for granulated sugar, some use brown sugar; some add molasses, some don't. There's also usually some sort of dairy involved: usually milk, but sometimes buttermilk. There doesn't generally appear to be any fat added -- no oil or butter. So, quite a bit of variation overall, but the recipes still have enough in common that they're recognizable as thunder bread. They're a relatively sweet, steamed, chemically leavened, rye bread.

After browsing a few different recipes, I decided to go with the one I found on Spruce Eats as I liked the sound of all the brown sugar and molasses in their version. The smell and flavour is wonderful. It had a certain familiarity to it that I couldn't put my finger on at first. Then I realized... bran muffins! The flavour is very similar to bran muffins. The crust is chewier and the crumb is a little drier and less tender, but the flavour it definitely there. There is, of course, no wheat bran in this bread, but the whole rye flour means there's a fair bit of rye bran. That combined with the molasses is enough to tick the "bran muffin" box in my brain. This isn't necessarily a bad thing -- I quite like it honestly -- but it is a bit different than I was expecting. The molasses completely drown out any rye flavour. I think it'd be interesting to try one of the recipes that uses granulated sugar and no molasses next time to see how it compares. I'm hoping the rye will have more presence in those versions. As a side-note though, this does make a really nice low-fat alternative to bran muffins. Most bran muffins are just chock-full of oil! Often as much as half a cup of oil for a small batch of a dozen muffins. This bread hits a lot of the same notes for me without any of the added fat. (It's not fat-free; there's still some fat in the flours and the milk, but it's definitely much leaner than your typical bran muffin.) Neat!

Icelandic Thunder Bread

Slightly adapted from The Spruce Eats

Ingredients

• 330g whole rye flour
• 220g all-purpose flour
• 15g (~1 rounded Tbsp.) baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 1 c. milk, scalded and cooled
• 1 Tbsp. molasses

Directions

1. Find a baking dish that will fit inside your InstantPot or slow cooker and grease it well.
2. Combine flours and sift in baking soda.
3. Add salt and brown sugar and mix well.
4. Dissolve molasses in cooled milk and add this mixture to the dry ingredients.
5. Stir to combine. Dough should be fairly wet, if it's not add a little water to loosen it up (1/4-1/2 c.)
6. Turn the dough out and knead it for a few minutes. It should become a little less sticky as you work it. If it reaches a point where it starts getting stickier or seems to be developing a slimy texture, stop working the dough immediately.
7. Place the dough into the prepared baking dish and cover. If you don't have a lid to fit the dish, cover it with foil. Make sure the edges are well-sealed in either case.
8. Put a trivet in the bottom of the InstantPot/slow cooker and add a few cups of hot water. (How much you need will depend on the size of your InstantPot/slow cooker and the size of your baking dish. The water should come about halfway up the side of the baking dish once it's lowered into the InstantPot/slow cooker.
9. Place the lid on the InstantPot/slow cooker and set to slow cook on "high" for four hours.
10. Remove the baking dish from the InstantPot/slow cooker at the end of the four hour cooking period and check on your bread. If any water has gotten into the baking dish, you may need to dry it out in the oven for a few minutes.
11. Once the bread is fully baked and dry, turn it out onto a wire rack to cool.
12. Once cool, slice thin and enjoy with smoked fish, paté, and/or cream cheese for a savoury option or nut butters, jams, and/or butter for a less traditional but equally delicious sweet option.

Whole Wheat French Bread

I've been nervously eyeing and subsequently avoiding the French bread recipe for nearly a year now. It takes only four ingredients: flour, water, salt, and yeast. It's "simple". But the simplicity of the ingredient list also makes it less forgiving than other breads. It requires thorough kneading. It must have a long, slow rise. Several, in fact. It must be baked with steam. And it should be shaped to maximize surface area and crust. You can't just drop it in a loaf pan and trust the pan to support it and give it the right shape. There are so many little details that have to be just so to get a good end result. And I didn't feel entirely comfortable diving into something like that.

I finally took the plunge though. And, all-in-all, it came out okay. I think it could've done with a little more kneading. And the room ended up being a bit too warm for the slow rise prescribed by the recipe. I did at least manage to get the steam and the crust right. And, while I'm sure there's still plenty of room for improvement, I'm pretty happy with my first attempt. It was tasty and crusty and lovely.

I forgot to snap a photo of my first French loaves, so here's a photo of one I did much, much later.

French Bread

From the Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book

Ingredients

• 2 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1/2 c. warm water
• 600g hard (strong/bread/high grade) whole wheat flour
• 225g soft (plain/pastry/standard) whole wheat flour¹
• 2 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 1/2 c. cold water²
• at least 1/2 c. additional water, for kneading

Directions

1. Add the yeast to the warm water and set aside for 10 minutes.
2. Combine flour(s) and salt and mix well.
3. Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in the yeast mixture and the cold water.
4. Working from the centre outward, gradually mix the flour into the liquids.
5. Turn the dough out onto your work surface and begin kneading. Wet your hands as you go, gradually incorporating more water into the dough. You want to work in at least an additional 1/2 c. of (cold) water.
6. If you are a very efficient kneader 20 minutes might be enough. Personally I would recommend at least 40 minutes of kneading (if you're doing it by hand). The dough will be relatively stiff when you start kneading it, but should be soft and silky by the time you finish.
7. Shape the dough into a ball and place in a covered bowl to rise. It is very important to let this dough rise in a COOL place! Do not try to warm it up or speed it up. The temperature should be 20°C (68°F) or less. Absolutely do not let the dough warm above 21°C (70°F)!
8. The first rise should take 2-3 hours. (Slower is better.) When it's done a hole made by a wet finger should stay, not fill in, not sink back. If it immediately begins to fill in, it needs more time to rise. If it sighs and sinks back, it's a sign that it's slightly overproofed³.
9. Knock the dough back. Press out as much gas as possible and maybe knead it a few strokes.
10. Shape it into a ball again and put it back in its covered bowl to rise again. The second rise should take ~2 hours at 20°C (68°F). Check when the rise is done as before, with a wet finger pressed ~1cm into the dough.
11. After the second rise, the dough is ready to shape. If you will be making batards, divide the dough into two equal portions. For baguettes, four equal portions⁴.
12. Shape each portion into a smooth ball, pulling the gluten taut across the surface. Cover lightly and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes. (20 if the dough seems at all sticky.)
13. Working with one ball of dough at a time, press into an oblong ~2/3 as long as you'd like the final loaf to be.
14. Grab each of the short ends and fold them in to meet in the middle. Press or roll to return the dough to the same thickness as the original oblong (~2.5cm/1" for a batard).
15. Fold the dough in half lengthwise and seal the edges.
16. Roll the dough back and forth, applying gentle pressure, to slowly work it out to the desired length.
17. Repeat with remaining balls of dough⁵.
18. Once the loaves are shaped, I like to transfer them to a cornmeal dusted baking sheet⁶ for their final rise.
19. Set in a cool place to rise, UNCOVERED. Unlike most breads, French bread does not want a humid environment for its final rise.
20. Place an empty pan (one that you don't mind potentially warping or rusting) on the bottom rack of the oven. Set the second rack above the empty pan.
21. Preheat oven to 230°C (450°F).
22. Spritz risen loaves generously with water.
23. Slash the loaves. Be sure to cut long, nearly horizontal slashes. Do not cut down into the loaf⁷.
24. Quickly and carefully pour 1-2 c. of boiling water into the empty pan in the bottom of them oven.
25. Place the bread (on its cornmeal dusted pan) on the top rack above the pan of boiling water.
26. Bake in a hot, steamy oven for 10-20 minutes.
27. Once the crust begins to colour, remove the pan of water and reduce heat to 180°C (350°F) and continue baking for another 10-20 minutes. (More time for batards, less time for baguettes.)

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¹ I opted to use 825g of hard whole wheat flour instead of the mix of hard and soft. ^Back
2 If you use a machine to do your kneading, be sure to use ice water here, otherwise the dough will get too warm. ^Back
3 If your dough ends up over proofed, continue with the recipe as written but try to cool it down a bit for subsequent rises and do your best to catch it before it hits this point on the next rise. ^Back
4 Other shapes are also possible. I'm just sticking with a couple classics for simplicity. Feel free to experiment. Shapes that maximize crust/surface area tend to work best for French bread. ^Back
5 Batards and baguettes use the same shaping. Baguettes simply use half as much dough for a loaf of the same length so they end up much skinnier. ^Back
6 Cornmeal on its own is sufficient. I usually grease the pans first however as I find the grease helps hold the cornmeal in place and ensure a thin, even layer. ^Back
7 A vertical slash will cause the dough to fall open and spread sideways during baking. A (nearly) horizontal cut will encourage it to spring upward rather than outward. ^Back

This bread did come out with a mild, but detectable sourdough tang. The loaves were a little smaller and flatter than I would've liked though. The recipe calls for only 525g of flour (plus 175mL rye sour) rather than the usual 900g of flour called for in the rest of the 2-loaf Laurel's Kitchen recipes that I've made so far. I'd be inclined to increase the amount of flour and water next time to produce the usual amount of dough.

Whole Wheat Sourdough

Adapted from Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book

Ingredients

Starter

• 175mL sourdough starter or rye sour
• 225g whole wheat flour
• 175mL water

Dough

• 2 tsp. active dry yeast
• 120mL warm water
• 500g whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 250mL water

Directions

1. Combine all starter ingredients (sourdough starter, flour, and water), cover, and set aside at room temperature for 12-18 hours.
2. The next day, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Set aside for 10 minutes.
3. Combine the flour and salt and mix well.
4. Make a well in the centre of the flour and pour in the starter mixture as well as the additional 250mL of water.
5. Mix the flour into the liquid working from the centre outward.
6. Once mixture comes together into a loose dough, turn it out and begin kneading¹. Knead for 20-40 minutes².
7. If, after 10 minutes of kneading, dough seems too loose, add a little more flour. (Be very sparing with the flour!) If dough is too tight, add more water. Knead a few more strokes and continue to adjust as necessary.
8. Once dough is supple and elastic and gluten is well-developed (usually ~40 minutes for me), form into a ball and place dough in a bowl to rise at room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap, a shower cap, or a damp cloth. Check proof after ~1 hour: Poke a damp finger ~1cm into the dough. If the hole fills in fairly rapidly, the dough is still under-proved and needs to rise for a bit longer. If the hole stays or only fills in a tiny amount/very slowly, it's ready to be knocked back. (If the dough sighs and/or sinks back around the hole, it's over-proved and should've been knocked back a bit earlier.)
9. Knock the dough back. (Sometimes I like to knead it a little bit at this point to help press out the bubbles and move the yeast around.)
10. Set to rise again³.
11. Knock dough back again, pressing out as many bubbles as possible.
12. Divide into two equal portions and shape each one into a ball, stretching and smoothing the gluten across the top. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow gluten to relax.
13. Shape into loaves as desired. (I prefer to bake mine in loaf tins. The recipe recommends making hearth loaves.)
14. Set to rise one final time. This time you're looking for a fingerprint that does fill in, but only slowly.
15. Steam at 450°F (230°C) for 10-15 minutes⁴.
16. Reduce heat to 325°F (160°C) and continue baking for ~40 minutes.

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¹ I actually find it easiest to turn the dough out before all the flour has been completely incorporated. It will be wet and sticky. It likely won't hold together very well. But if you turn it out and start working it, it will take up the rest of the flour as you do and gradually get less sticky and crumbly. I strongly advise against adding any more flour until the dough has had at least 10 minutes of kneading. And, even then, do so with extreme caution. Don't be afraid of dough that's a little wet and loose. In my experience that's probably going to be better than dough that's too tight and dry. ^Back
2 Exact timing will depend on your technique and speed. Aim for 600-1000 strokes. It's nearly impossible to overwork dough when kneading by hand, so err on the side of more rather than less. If kneading by machine, you may need much less time. Check gluten development after 10 minutes. ^Back
3 The recipe advises that the second rise should take about half as long as the first, but mine always seems to take about the same amount of time. Start checking around the 30-45 minute mark, but don't be alarmed if it takes an hour or more. ^Back
4 Steaming can be done a bunch of different ways. I prefer either baking the bread in a covered dish with a few tablespoons of water poured over the top crust before the lid is added or placing a pan of hot water on the rack directly below the baking bread (no lid for this method). ^Back

Steamed Black Mushrooms

In theory I was going to serve these mushrooms along-side poached pea sprouts. In practice I wasn't able to get everything done in time and ended up serving them along-side some leftover broccoli soup and a slice of garlic toast. They came out quite tasty nonetheless!

Steamed Black Mushrooms
Slightly adapted from Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking
40 dried black mushrooms (~1 1/2" in diameter)
4 scallions, cut into 2" lengths
3 Tbsp. peanut oil (I accidentally put 5 Tbsp.)
1"-thick slice ginger, unpeeled and lightly smashed
1 c. chicken stock
2 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine
1 1/2 Tbsp. dark soy sauce
2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt

1. Cover the mushrooms with hot water and soak for 30 minutes.
2. Drain. Rinse thoroughly. Then squeeze out the excess water. (Whoops! I forgot to rinse mine!)
3. Remove and discard the stems.
4. Place mushroom caps in a steam-proof dish.
5. Combine scallions, oil, ginger, stock, wine, soy sauce, sugar, and salt.
6. Pour the broth mixture over the mushrooms and toss well.
7. Place dish in a steamer.
8. Cover and steam for 30 minutes.

The recipe recommends discarding the scallions and ginger once the mushrooms come out of the steamer. I, however, found the steamed scallions to be delicious and enjoyed eating them with the mushrooms.