Back in the kitchen

[jryoung]

For the last 19 months as my family and I have have been displaced from our home due to a house fire there has been a significant decrease in cooking/preserving around our house. Certainly we still have to eat, and still do an incredible amount of preserving, but our "facilities" in the house we are living just don't live up to our expectations.

When I was in Montana we cooked up a killer meal of elk heart, liver, backstrap and tenderloin on basic facilities and I think it triggered a bit of a spark. Now, back home the past two weekends I reminded myself that I can cook anywhere and it felt awesome to get creative again and make some killer food.

I'm already making plans for what to cook next weekend.

Last weekend, I roasted a whole leg of lamb and we made tomato jam with the rest of our tomatoes (sauteed beet greens are the 4th image).

This weekend, I pulled out 6 snow geese that were sleeping in the freezer. I rendered some pork fat and made goose leg/wing confit and with the breasts I made jerky.

Appetizer plate of goose confit, tomato jam, pickled watermelon rind (all made at home) and cheese, walnuts and crackers.

 

[Nemont]

Looks good. I love to use the legs and thighs for confit. I just did up a bunch of Pheasant legs and thighs. I have never used renedered pork fat though, will have to give that a try.

Sucks about the house fire, hope everything is looking up.

Nemont

 

[JCS]

I am not up on the term "confit" What is that?

 

[Nemont]

You slightly cure the meat and then completely submerge it in oil/fat and cook low and slow. It makes drier kinds of meat melt in your mouth.

It makes pheasant, duck and goose legs/thighs a real hit.

One recipe, there are thousands of variations but the basic method remains the same.

http://www.americanhunter.org/articles/duck-confit-recipe

 

[JCS]

Thanks, I didn't know there was a way to make duck/goose thighs edible. Now I know.

 

[JohnDeereGreen]

Confit is an old french technique of cooking meat in the rendered fat to preserve it. Can be good for up to six months. Thanks for the link Nemont! Great photos jryoung, looks delicious!

 

[jryoung]

Yep, it's a very old way to preserve, but the modern benefit is you can make outstanding tasting wings/legs. It even works with turkey, though size can make it a little challenging.

I used Hank Shaw's recipe here, but used rendered pork fat (as I had some back fat in the freezer) and added one star anise pod to each bag (I made three bags with 4-5 wings/legs in each). It was so friggen good my wife said "is it wrong to kill snow geese just for their legs?"

http://honest-food.net/wild-game/duck-goose-recipes/duck-leg-recipes/duck-or-goose-confit/

 

[jryoung]

Another comment with respect to "sous vide". I have a vacuum sealer and use that to seal up meat to cook. While I want one, and will get a fancy schmancy "immersion cooker" I just use a $50 Oster Roaster oven. I just add water to the pan insert and measure temperature independently. It hold temp pretty well once you get it set. I've done whole pig legs this way and they are outstanding, though I recommend double bagging them in vacuum seal bags.

http://www.amazon.com/Oster-CKSTRS23-22-Quart-Roaster-Stainless/dp/B00400QBJA

 

[tarheel]

Yep, it's a very old way to preserve, but the modern benefit is you can make outstanding tasting wings/legs. It even works with turkey, though size can make it a little challenging.

I used Hank Shaw's recipe here, but used rendered pork fat (as I had some back fat in the freezer) and added one star anise pod to each bag (I made three bags with 4-5 wings/legs in each). It was so friggen good my wife said "is it wrong to kill snow geese just for their legs?"

http://honest-food.net/wild-game/duck-goose-recipes/duck-leg-recipes/duck-or-goose-confit/

If you can find a source for it which isn't too expensive, duck fat is the way to go. My daughter has a number of friends in SW France and they are regularly sending her care packages of duck fat and cold pressed walnut oil and I provide her with wood duck legs/thighs. It's a real treat when she gets the confit urge.

 

[katqanna]

Thanks for the recipes, I will have to try this. Adding another preservation method to the pantry is always a good thing, especially one that is not contingent on electricity for storage (experienced power outages with big deep freezers before).

 

[L. I. Yankee]

Very upscale.....

 

[noharleyyet]

I beginning to think jryoung is the ultimate Renta-sauce Man.

Cool confit info & tasty looking eats.

 

[DRAFTSTUD]

I beginning to think jryoung is the ultimate Renta-sauce Man.

Cool confit info & tasty looking eats.

Lordy Ken, Makes my jokes seem sane! LOL John

 

[Ron Wright]

Tomato jam sounds interesting, I've never heard of that. Is it sweet?

 

[jryoung]

Tomato jam sounds interesting, I've never heard of that. Is it sweet?

In general yes, but we cut back on the sugar a bit so it is not overly sweet. In our second batch we added crushed red pepper flakes and sichuan pepper so it is sweet and spicy.

 

[kansasdad]

jryoung:
Using my best Oliver Twist accent: "Please sir, can I have some more?"

Good stuff there chef.

 

[jryoung]

jryoung:
Using my best Oliver Twist accent: "Please sir, can I have some more?"

Sardinianan Hare Stew

Wild boar chops

Fresh sardines really are delicious.

Not wild game or foraged, but.....caramel tart, honey chamomile vanilla sauce, creme fraische, smoked salt (alder).

Happy place, wild boar sausage (spicy italian).

Moose and eggs for breakfast with St. Agur cheese (the moldy kind).

Wild pig leg and a Big Green Egg go together like hookers and blow (so I'm told).

Moose burgers are good...I need to head north again.

 

[Dave N]

Dang! Makes my dinners look anemic...

 

[Outdoor Junkie]

JR,

What time is dinner? That is one hell of a spread of food....

 

[TheJason]

Looking at your culinary photography makes our dinners here seem very trailer parkish.

I'll pop the cork on the wine if you want to start this way....