INSIDE THE KITCHEN: STEAMED BLACK MUSSELS IN SAKE

Summer is in full force here in Southern California.   This is absolutely the best time of year in my opinion. The sun is shining, the sky is blue, and the weather outside is asking you to steam some mussels.  

Mussels that are bathed in butter, sake, and soy married with the garlic and bacon creates an absolutely amazing sensation in your mouth.  The sweetness, the saltiness, will make you want to toast some bread and soak up some of those juices.  You wont want this dish to end.

RECIPE:

1#  Black Mussels, scrubbed, debearded

4ea  Bacon Strips, rough chop

1/4ea  White Onion, brunoise

4ea  Garlic Cloves, minced

1/2C  Sake

3T  Soy

4T  Butter, unsalted

2T  Chinese Leeks, cut into 1/2" batons

First things first...wash the mussels under cold water.  Scrub them with a brush on both sides.  Next you are going to debeard the mussel.  This is a process that removes the byssus which is a long tough filament that may adhere to the the mussel.  It actually looks like a little beard...Once you locate the beard...

...grab a hold of it with your fingertips or a kitchen towel...

...Pull it straight out...

Yes...it can be a long sucker.

Almost out, just pull it towards the top of the mussel and you are left with...

THIS

In a large saute pan, heat the bacon, 1T of Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and garlic over medium heat. Do not use to much oil because the fate of the bacon will coat the bottom of the pan and that is the flavor you want.

Cook until the bacon is cooked thru and the garlic is golden brown...4 minutes.

Add the washed/debearded mussels and saute for 30 seconds so you coat the shells with the flavor of the garlic-bacon.

Deglaze the pan with sake and using a wooden spoon scrape the bottom of the pan releasing all the good bits from the bottom.

Reduce the sake by half and add the soy.

Cover the pan with a fitted lid and steam the mussels until all shells have opened.

Add the butter, the Chinese leeks, and serve.

Make sure each bite gets a piece of bacon, garlic, Chinese leeks and a mussel.  I just want to ensure maximum flavor.

 

INSIDE MY KITCHEN: BLACK PEPPER DUNGENESS CRAB

So I decided to take a field trip to a local Korean market that everyone raves about here in Los Angeles.  I have been working in the industry for 9 years and I have not seen or heard of some of the ingredients this market has.  I was taken back in "awe."  Asian herbs, weird fruits, 10+ varieties of live fish including Dungeness crabs and abalone...If you all havent had abalone,  I highly recommend that you do.

The minute I laid eyes on the live crab, my dinner thoughts had begun.  What better way to serve crab than crushed black pepper?!

This is a very popular dish in Singapore.  The simple peppery fragrance brings out the buttery richness of the  Dungeness crab.  The majority of the time I always put a Japanese twist on most the meals I create.  Traditionally this dish is made with Chinese yellow wine but, I used sake instead.

Serve with a side of Garlic Noodles and you have yourself a complete meal.

RECIPE:

2# Live Dungeness Crab

6qts  Water

1oz  Black Pepper, coarsely crushed

1/4C  Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1stick  Butter, unsalted

2/3C  Garlic, minced

3T Soy Sauce

1/2C  Sake, Rice Wine

1bu  Chinese Leeks, cut into 1/2" batons for garnish

Bring a large stock pot with 6quarts of water to a boil.  Salt the water with three pinches.  When the water starts boiling add the live crab and cover.  Steam for 8 minutes.  Remove from the water and let the crab cool down so it is manageable to handle.

In a large saute pan add the olive oil, garlic and coarse ground peppercorns.  Saute until fragrant over medium heat for 1 minute.  Add the sake, soy and butter and reduce by a quarter. Remove from the heat and set aside. 

  Now that the crab has cooled down, start breaking off the legs one by one.  Make sure you keep the body of the crab.  There is money meat in there. 

Now you are going to crack the claws and boyd to make the dish easier to eat.  Otherwise you may be stuck at the table with shell crackers for hours...I am going to give you a faster way to crack the crab.

Holding the leg in one hand, reverse your chefs knife so you are using the blunt side to crack the crab.  This way you do not dull your blade.  Raise the knife up (dull side down) and give the one side about 3 hard hits...

...same thing with the other side...

 Rotate the leg and continue to crack the shell with three more hits...

 ...and then flip it to the other side...3 more hits...this is definitely a great way to relieve some stress...

After you have repeated this process with the remaining claws and legs...you are left with a pile of goodness...are you hungry yet...go ahead and snack...

With the top of the body facing up, give it a good whack and break the shell.

Remove the top half and discard...you are now left with the eggs...very high in cholesterol but so very very delicious.  Serve over a bed of rice if you so desire and I promise you will not be disappointed.

Using the sharp side of your knife cut the bottom half of the body in half...great meat hides in the hips of that baby.

Cut the Chinese leeks into 1/2" batons...

  

Reheat the sauce in the pan...Place the cracked crab into a large mixing bowl and top with sauce and leeks.  Toss, using two hands.

So fragrant...give it one more toss so the sauce gets into the cracked shell and lathers the meat with sex.

You are now left with this...