Thursday, September 13, 2007

More Meat, More Meat!

"More meat! More meat!" runs the refrain of an old ballad about a demoness who eats goshawks, dogs and horses. Of course, good King Henry breaks the curse and by the early light o' dawn the demoness transforms into a beautiful girl -- a pure-hearted vegan maiden who bikes to the co-op on Saturdays in a vintage skirt that rides up over her tattooed calves.

The first version I heard was by a prolific folk-rock band called Steeleye Span, who put some electric meat on the gory old tune. Incidentally, yesterday found me with 10 lbs. of pork loin (hot, quick, & salty in the cast iron for a good sear & lots of juice).

2 comments:

Wilson's Wilsony Wilson said...

Aufmerksamkeit, Geliebte des Vogels!: This recipe requires dove meat. I suppose you could use a greasy fucking duck, but I highly suggest the smaller game fowl. That being said, if you have good aim and a great dog, use dove, pheasant or quail.

2 stalks lemongrass as long as your longest fingers, thinly sliced
2 green onions. Non country-folk call these "scallions".
minimum 4 garlic cloves(or as much as humanly consumable)
2 tablespoons peeled and chopped fresh ginger(be liberal with this, too)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro(again, you can't have too much)
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup coconut milk
8 skinless dove breasts
2 tablespoons dry white wine(I use chardonnay)
1 tomato, peeled and seeded, then diced(yellows are sweeter)
1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

Directions

To make the marinade,finely chop and combine the lemongrass, green onions, garlic, ginger and cilantro. Add the curry powder, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, cardamom, pepper, and coconut milk and process or puree if you have the hardware and feel the need. I personally think it's overdoing it, but whatever.

Place the dove breasts in a large lock-top plastic bag or tupperware bowl with a lid. Add the marinade to the bowl and seal, pressing out as much 0f the excess air as possible. If it's a bag, put the bag in a large, shallow dish or casserole pan and marinate in the refrigerator overnight to let the savory goodness seep in. Go to sleep. Dream of wild, gamey meat.

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Remove the dove breasts from the marinade and pat dry, saving the marinade. Lightly coat a large, nonstick, frying pan with cooking spray. Place the pan on the stove over medium-high heat until hot. Add the breasts and cook, turning once, until lightly browned on both sides, and immediately transfer the pan to the oven. Roast the dove breasts until fairly firm when pressed in the middle and slightly pink inside. Then, move the breasts to a cutting board and let cool a bit.

Meanwhile, place the pan over medium-high heat. Add the wine and deglaze the pan, using a wooden spoon, first for self-mortification on the rump(fun), then to scrape up any browned bits. Add the tomato and cook until tender. Add the marinade you saved and the stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat. Let cool, stand back and admire, but don't congratulate yourself yet. This is the important part. . . .

To serve, slice the breasts diagonally across the grain. It will fall apart in your mouth if it's cut in this fashion. Arrange in a decorative manner(I usually do a little fan arerangment) and top it off with the mint as a brilliant garnish.

Serve with copious amounts of Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay and prepare to get laid by everyone at the table. You might want to wear a helmet and be sure to hide that wooden spoon. . . . . .

Rosanna said...

Heavens. Dove breasts? In coconut milk? Please, hunter, fetch me some!