Bear Cuisine

A Visit to the Northern Heartland

In the past if I  thought of culinary Minnesota,  my ideas were formed by Garrison Keillor's tales of Lutheran  Ladies toiling in church basements preparing jello molds or making endless variations of Tater Tot Hot Dish. I would have said that this was the place where the bland lead the bland.

Like most preconceived ideas, my images were far too limited. A recent visit to the Twin Cities and Duluth revealed that Minnesota has diverse and interesting foodways shaped by each wave of immigrants who farmed the land or worked in the state's logging or mining industries. In the nineteenth century there were influxes of Scandanavians and Germans. The British from Cornwall also came to work in the mines. Greeks, Italians and Mexicans have  come to live here. More recently the Hmong and Vietnamese have found a home here. And before any of these ethnic groups arrived , the Ojibway Indians called Minnesota their land.

The food scene in Minnesota, past and present, is much more interesting than I originally thought. The next few posts will be devoted my discoveries. In the interim, I'm offering a version of Tater Tot Hot Dish.It's easy to mock such a dish, but in reality I think it sounds like the perfect American comfort food. I wish I had known about it when Hallie and Rachel were tots themselves. They would have loved it and Kay and I would have loved it--albeit secretly--as well.

TATER TOT HOT DISH

(serves 6)

1. 1 pound ground beef
2. salt and pepper to taste
3. Pinch of Garlic Powder
4. 1 package (32 ounces) tater tots, thawed
5. 1 can cream of mushroom soup
6. 1 can cream of celery soup
7. 1 can (10.75 ounces) evaporated milk

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Crumble the hamburger into a 9x 13-inch baking pan. Sprinkle the meat with the garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cover the hamburger with tater tots.

In a bowl, stir together mushroom soup, celery soup and milk. Pour the soup mixture over the potatoes and hamburger and sprinkle with additional garlic powder.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes.

(from Allrecipes.com)

Miso Ramen

MISO RAMEN

This is another great recipe from Takashi Yagihashi. It looks complicated, but isn't--especially if you make the Miso Base ahead of time. This dish is usually associated with the colder months, but I like it anytime of year.

MISO RAMEN

( 4 servings)

Miso Base

1. 2 tablespoons sesame oil
2. 1/2 cup minced onion
3. 2 tablespoons grated ginger
4. 1/4 cup minced garlic
5. 1 cup ground pork (about 8 ounces)
6. 1/2 cup shiro miso (white miso)
7. 1/4 cup ada miso (red miso)
8. 1/4 cup ground sesame seeds
9. 5 tablespoons hoisin sauce
10. 1 tablespoon tobanjan (Chinese chili paste)
11. 3 tablespoons Japanese soy sauce

 Miso Ramen

1. 8 cups Ramen Chicken Stock (recipe to follow)
2. 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3. 8 cups bean sprouts
4. 2/3 cup garlic chives, cut into 1-inch lengths
5. 4 (7-ounce picese frozen ramen noodles
6. 1/2 cup drained canned sweet corn
7. 4 teaspoons ground sesame seeds
8. Pinch os sansho pepper (Japanese pepper seedpods)
9. 2 scallions, both white and green parts, thinly sliced on an angle

To make the miso base,combine the sesame oil, onion ginger and garlic in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring often, for 6 minutes, or until the ingredients are soft and frangrant. Mix in the ground pork and increase the heat to medium. Cook for an additional 6 to 7 minutes, or until the pork is completely cooked through.

Stir in both misos, the sesame seeds, hoisin sauce, tobanjan,and soy sauce, and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and set aside. Leftover miso base will keep refrigerated for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 2 months.

To make the ramen, combine the ramen chicken stock and 1 3/4 cup of the miso base in a pot set over high heat to make the miso broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover to keep warm. Place another large pot over high heat  filled with water and bring to a boil.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large, wide-bottomed pot over high. Add the bean sprouts and garlic chives and cook for 1 minute,stirring often. Add the miso broth and bring to a boil. Cook for 1 minute, then turn off the heat.

Add the ramen noodles to the boiling water and cook , following package instructions. Drain well and divide among 4 bowls. Top each with one-fourth of the broth and vegetables. Garnish each bowl with 2 tablespoons of the corn kernels, 1 teaspoon of the ground sesame seeds, the sansho pepper and one-fourth of the sliced scallions. Serve hot.

RAMEN CHICKEN STOCK

(makes 4 quarts)

1. 4 quarts water
2. 4 pounds chicken bones
3. 1 3/4 cups peeled and chopped carrots
4. 1 1/2 cups chopped celery
5. 1 cup chopped leek, white part only
6. 1/4 green cabbage
7. 1/2 head garlic, halved horizontally
8. 1 (1-inch) piece ginger, smashed
9. 1 piece kombu, wiped with a damp cloth
10. 1/2 cup sake

Combine the water and chicken bones in a large, 10-quart stockpot. Set it over high heat and bring the water to a boil. Skim the surface well to remove any impurities.

Add the carrots, celery,cabbage, garlic,ginger, kombu and sake. Decrease the heat to low and simmer for 2 hours. Add more water as needed to keep the liquid at the same level.

Strain the stock through a fine-mesh sieve.

Store in the freezer until needed.

 

Asian Spaghetti

The other day I was looking in the freezer and the pantry as I was trying to decide what to cook for dinner.The freezer offered up a pound of hamburger and ground pork while the pantry revealed a package of spaghetti just waiting to be cooked. I remembered that Ming Tsai's latest cookbook, One-Pot Meals had a recipe that would use all three of these ingredients. Even though the kid wasn't around I know that this would have pleased her; she might even have asked for seconds.

The soy sauce adds a mysterious dimension to the sauce and gives it great depth of flavor. Ming says that this will feed four. I would say that it would satisfy six hungry people.

Asian Spaghetti

1. 1 pound spaghetti
2. Kosher salt
3. 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for coating the pasta
4. 2 large onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice
5. 2 tablespoons minced garlic
6. 1 pound ground beef
7. 1 pound ground pork
8. freshly ground black pepper
9. One 32-ounce dan roma tomatoes with their liquid
10. 1/4 cup soy sauce
11. 2 tablespoons tomato paste
12. 1/2 cup loosely packed Thai basil

 

Fill a large bowl with water and add ice cubes. In a large pot, cook the pasta in abundant boiling salted water until al dente, about 11 minutes, drain, and ad to the bowl. When the pasta is cold, drain, coat lightly with oil, and set aside.

Heat the pot over medium-high heat. Add the 1 tablespoon oil and when hot, add the onions and garlic. Saute, stirring, until the onions are translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the beef and the pork, season with salt and pepper, and saute, stirring to break up the meat, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their liquid, the soy sauce, tomato paste, and basil and bring to a simmer. Adjust the seasoning, if necessary, and simmer until the liquid is reduced by a quarter about 25 minutes. Add the reserved pasta to the pot and stir gently. transfer to a platter and serve.

Insta Pizza

A few days ago I was staring into the refrigerator and wondering what in the world I could cook for supper. I didn't want to go shopping and I didn't want to do very much work-- on anything, even cooking. You might know those sorts of days--the ones where it seems almost impossible to summon up will or motivation. Anyway, I started pulling stuff out of the fridge and here is what I found-- Fontina cheese, bits of leftover roast chicken, some leftover artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese, pepperoni, Mozzarella cheese. Finally, I stumbled upon tortillas and then I knew what we would have--pizzas.

I opened the pantry and found a can of wonderful tomatoes from Gustiamo and then we were set. The tortillas made a wonderful base for these beauties. With such disparate ingredients, I decided to make two different kinds of pizzas and both were delicious. My feeling of absolute brilliance was quite unwarranted, but my delight in making such good food so easily was real and the recollection, still  pleasurable. A serendipitous cure for the doldrums of late winter.

Before putting on the ingredients, I brushed each tortilla with a bit of olive oil. When you are finished with your creation, cook for approximately 12 minutes in a 400 degree oven. 

Tortilla Pizza with shredded Fontina cheese, roast chicken, artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, and Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese

Tortilla Pizza with Pomodori Pelati tomatoes*, mozzarella, pepperoni, kalamata olives and Parmigiana-Reggiano Cheese

*These  may be the best canned tomatoes I've ever tasted. As long as they are available, they will be a staple in my pantry.

Indian Taco

Every year at the State Fair we eagerly chow down on an Indian Taco. This is usually the only time we have one of these unless we get to one of the pueblo feast days in the summer or early fall. What makes this in an Indian Taco is the frybread. And hot frybread is  a real treat.

INDIAN TACO

FRYBREAD

• 3 cups flour
  
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
  
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 1/2 cup powdered milk
  
• Oil or shortening for frying
  

Mix all the dry ingredients together. Add warm water to the mixture until the consistency is pliable but not sticky. Kneed the dough until it begins to fight back; roll into 3-inch balls. Roll the balls of dough until they are thin, but without holes or tears. 

Heat the oil to 375 degrees. When the oil has reached the proper temperature, punch a hole in the center of the dough and place in the oil. Cook until golden brown, turning once during the cooking.

Now the bread is ready for the toppings to make it a taco.

INDIAN TACO

• 1 cup freshly cooked pinto beans
  
• 1/4 lb. cooked hamburger meat
  
• 1 cup red or green chile sauce
  
• 1 cup of shredded Monterey Jack cheese
  
• 2 diced tomatoes
  
• 2 cups diced lettuce
  
• chopped onions
  
• frybread
  

Take one frybread and layer the ingredients. Begin first with the beans, then the hamburger and add the chile sauce. Then add lettuce, onion and top with cheese.

You can easily make this vegetarian by leaving out the hamburger. If you do, increase the pinto beans to 2 cups.

One taco can serve 2 people.