All posts tagged: French cuisine

duck confit

Making Duck Confit at Home in Gascon Style: Ultimate Slow Food, A Tradition to Preserve

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Yes, I repeat. Duck Confit is the easiest yet the most misunderstood food in the world. Let me explain why in this post and show to how to tackle the most sublime epicurean delight, which some might consider ‘too classic’. But as a devoted listener of A Taste of the Past, I have deep appreciation for traditional foods. This post inevitably made me dig into the album of the best moments in my life. It was supposed to be written before the duck season in February, or even earlier. Despite its delay, I thought I’d post it after tucking away my second batch of duck confit this week at the winery, in the deepest corner of the fridge, not to be tempted and open it up any time soon. It will sit there for at least one month to further develop the true confit flavours. If I can make duck confit with a small convection oven, so can you! Neither slow cooker nor sous- vide is required. Imagine numerous dishes I can make with this …

pumpkin tortellini

Pumpkin Leek Tortellini with Duck Ragu

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Finally comes the duck story… And I’m afraid yet delighted that you’ll hear more duck stories this winter. How come? Well, I’m spreading the duck spirits around me and so many people are eager to eat more of the delicacy. Leading up to the last day of my sejour at the winery, I was thinking hard everyday about the duck: how and when to cook it.  Sensing the accumulated anticipation of almost two months, I decided to get the task over and done with. Originally, it was destined for Duck a l’Orange, but I incorporated a Chinese Peking Duck method by adding more herbs and oriental spices such as star anise and cinnamon, and also by drying out the skin for crispiness. The warm aromas had the effect of stimulating a holiday mood as well. After resting in the fridge overnight, rubbed with salt and spices, it was ready for the oven the next morning. Despite some unexpected events, I managed to cook it for as long as 2.5 hours. The tough parts, the wings …

Top 3 Most Delicious Brussels Sprouts Recipes

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Mr.O says, “I like the way you cook Brussels sprouts. Why is there no bitterness?” Hahaha, it’s unusual for a Turkish guy to admit that my food is better than his mum’s. He didn’t like Brussels sprouts like any others but I love them, probably because I’ve never had bad experiences. So he complimented my Brussels sprouts miso soup a lot. These days I’m trying to make Mr.O eat while food is warm instead of taking photos before eating. So I’m not taking as many photos of what we eat on a daily basis. However, the bigger reason is that he is losing friends or being ridiculed for eating food, weird food as his Turkish friends call it. Three two and a half years on, we still eat a different food every day. Ok, today let me try this new way of attracting audience. Why are many articles titled as The 10 Most delicious…. The 5 best ways to…etc. But in fact, they are not the best and I think it’s somewhat misleading. I’m not …

Special Lunch by the Chef and Spanish Priorat Wine

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Finally, she kept her promise of reciprocation. Dolores the chef came to my soiree and shared her passion and experiences with me. It was such a delightful session that I’d been waiting to meet her again ever since. The life in Istanbul is unimaginable for most of the people who have never set foot in this world. It’s big; it’s chaotic; it’s frustrating; it’s addictive. Compared to the size of the city, I feel the city is the smallest when I long for exciting food experiences. It’ll be even worse when the bans on alcohol and social activities become more serious. I feel bad talking about food when people are going about, angry after the disappointing election results. But let’s forget about the politics for a second. Foodies living in Istanbul have a dilemma. Where should we go to eat? Hmm….after some searching and thinking, ok, they come to this: let’s cook at home. Yes, we foodies cook better than any restaurants in Istanbul, believe or not, and even better, it costs far less for …

Secrets of Best Beef Bourguignon / Mastering French Cuisine

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Let’s forward time and now I’m back from my gastronomic trip to the Jura and Burgundy. I grumbled about the beef bourguignon we had in Beaune all through the drive back home. I will mention the restaurant and the food in another post when I review my spontaneous visit to Burgundy during my Jura tour. I should have gone to the same place as the last time to eat but as it’s my character, I always want to try something new. The “maybe…” seems to be a problem. I expected the melt-in-the-mouth tenderness and dark, intensely flavoured silky sauce in the beef bourguignon I ate, just like the last time in a more tradition brasserie. So Cyrille suggested I make the real beef bourguignon. You see? By then, my cooking skills had been proved and I was even asked to make a traditional French dish for a French! Isn’t it something I should definitely feel proud of? It’s about experience and confidence. The number one secret of best beef Bourguignon is the choice of wine, …

Confit de Carnard / Quick Easy Fondant au Chocolat

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The days of blue sky, as in the photo, seem to have ended in this part. The trees have lost their charming colours and now have more naked colours of brown. As I’m having my last week in Jura, I’m already being nostalgic, looking at all the photos from my crazy 3 week-long adventure of the Jura mountains and Jura wines. I have the last mission to complish, which is to visit the froggy lakes that were featured in Triplets of Belleville and eat frog legs, which will be the last supper to celebrate the end of my gastronomic holiday.