Let's Go Crazy! - Part 3: Tacos

Hola!

Alright, I'll admit it, tacos are already an excuse to go crazy. I've seen lamb, pulled pork, sashimi grade fish, steak, even ox tongue in tacos, but I've never really done them myself. But I've always wanted to have fun making some sort of over-the-top taco creation. I just didn't realize I was going to give myself the opportunity so randomly.

What began as an on-the-spot pick-up of frozen haddock at the grocery store somehow ended up as a foray into the decadent world of fried chicken. I'll explain: Kari and I have been on "fresh and light" kick for dinners lately and I bought the fish with the goal of making a light fish taco loaded with veggies. But then Thursday, April 3 happened. As mentioned in a recent post, I made some tasties for the "Capital SuccessFest" to help Ottawa's own Lefty McRighty with his legal woes against Voldemort. Well, attendance led to imbibance which led to hungoverness. And from said hungoverness came a powerful, POWERFUL craving for fried chicken, so fish tacos suddenly got conceptually usurped by Fried Chicken Tacos. Now, it took an extra day to implement, but I'd planted the seed and there was no way Kari was going to let me off the hook without deep fried goodness. So, Fried Chicken Tacos it was! I will declare that we showed a modicum of restraint in that we stuck with the "lots of veggies" idea by making a slaw, a variation of a pico de gallo, and refried beans.

Now, I've never made fried chicken before, generally avoiding deep frying as a "go-to" form of cooking, but it really isn't that hard (messy, yes, but not difficult); and there are few things in this world as delicious as fried chicken. I've watched enough food pr0n TV and read enough cookbooks to have learned a few tips on how to pull it off and there's always the Internet for tips.

Additionally, the sides/toppings (slaw, pico and beans) were all fairly straightforward and uncomplicated. So while this might look like a recipe concocted by a madman, and maybe it is, since I've never heard of putting fried chicken on a taco (although it's probably totally a thing in Mexico), it wasn't actually that hard to do.

So let's do this thang!

Fried Chicken Taco

There's all kinds of fun things going on here, with lots of crunchy elements from both the veggies and the chicken. Let's start with the main building block of the dish, the chicken:

Fried Chicken

Ingredients

Marinade

- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch, 3-inch long strips
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 1/4 cup taco sauce (such as Valentina Salsa Picante)

Coating

- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp chili powder

- Canola oil for frying

Directions

- In a large non-reactive bowl, mix buttermilk and taco sauce together.
- Place pieces of chicken in milk mixture and let sit for an hour or so.
- Fill a large, deep pan with about an inch-deep layer of oil. Heat on medium-high heat until ready to fry chicken (to test if oil is hot enough, let a drop of water fall into the oil; if it sizzles, it's ready to use)
- While oil is heating, mix flour and chili powder in a bowl or high-edged plate or some other container that won't make a mess as you hand-coat your chicken!
- To coat chicken, do the following for each piece: let excess liquid drip off, coat in flour mixture, shake off excess flour, soak in milk mixture again, let excess liquid drip off, coat in flour a second time and shake off excess. You *could* just coat the chicken once, but I find it way crunchier with two coats.
- Fry the chicken in batches. Don't crowd the pan, and cook until coating is golden and crispy, and chicken floats.
- Remove chicken from oil using a slotted spoon and dry on paper towels to remove all excess oil. You want your chicken crispy, not oily. Set aside in oven at 200 degrees to keep warm.



Isn't it a gorgeous sight?

Now we build up our supporting cast with a pair of tasty veggie toppings. First, the Pico de Gallo:

Pico de Gallo

This is your standard Pico de Gallo with a little bit of cucumber added in for extra flavour and freshness.

Ingredients

- 1 tomato, diced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, finely diced
- 1 small cucumber, finely diced
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 2 tbsp cilantro, finely chopped
- juice of 1/4 lime
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions

- Mix ingredients well and chill for an hour.



Healthy component #1

Moving along, now we have the Southwestern Slaw. Originally intended to be a side

Southwestern Slaw (recipe taken from Allrecipes.com) (I omitted the onion since there was already onion in the pico de gallo and beans)

Ingredients

Slaw

- 3 cups cabbage, shredded (we used napa cabbage, but any will do)
- 1 carrots, peeled and grated
- 1 red pepper, seeded and julienned
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
- 2 tsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Dressing

- 1/2 cup canola
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp lime juice
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions

- Mix all veggies in a large bowl.
- Whisk together dressing ingredients until sugar is dissolved
- Mix dressing with vegetables and set aside for at least an hour to let flavours blend.

Healthy component #2

Refried Beans

Ingredients

- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small onion, finely minced
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 796 ml/28 oz. can black beans
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
- 1/2 cup beer (optional)
- juice of 1/4 lime

Directions

- Heat olive oil on medium-high heat and sauté garlic and onion for 3-4 minutes.
- Stir in black beans and stock and reduce heat to medium. Keep stirring and mash the beans with the flat of the spoon. You don't want to turn this into a smooth purée, but rather a more "rustic" texture.
- As the beans cook and absorb the stock, they can sometimes dry out a little. The beer is there in case that happens; stir it in to re-moisten your beans. It also makes it tastier!
- Once beans have cooked to your taste, stir in lime juice and remove from heat.

Healthy component #3 (well, maybe not with the beer)

To put it together, spread a schmear of refried beans on a flour tortilla (preferably heated for 5 minutes at a low temperature - 200-225 degrees Fahrenheit - but I went with cold because I always forget my tortillas and they become Mexican crackers), then add your fried chicken (1 or 2 pieces depending on tortilla size and appetite), then top with pico, slaw and, if you want, some kind of hot sauce or salsa. I like the Valentina Salsa Picante mentioned above, which is pretty much a straight-up taco sauce. If you're a big cilantro fan, you can always add a couple of sprigs to the taco, but there's already some in the slaw and the pico, so keep that in mind.

 

Grab taco with hands and snarf!

 

So much good!

So, after all that, how'd it turn out? Well, as one might expect, the star of the taco was indeed the fried chicken; I could have eaten the taco with just the chicken and taco sauce and been a happy camper. As I suspected, double-coating it made it super crunchy while keeping the chicken nice and moist, with the buttermilk/taco sauce combo providing a nice tangy quality.

That being said, having all those veggies did help the experience as I could feel my arteries NOT hardening after every bite... Nothing amongst the three of them really stood up and said WOW! to me, but they played their roles well: the pico giving a fresh pop, the slaw adding some acidity and crunch and the refried beans rounding out the taco with a rich earthiness.

So really, I think I've discovered an important lesson: fried chicken, whether it be served at home or in a local eatery, is pretty much as crazily delicious a food as there can be. But also likely to cut short your lifespan, so be responsible! Only YOU can prevent a life filled with fried chicken! (now, the quality of said fried-chicken-free life might be up for debate...)

Enjoy!

A Toast to my Hometown's Better (and Newer) Eateries - Union: Local 613



I sometimes think that I was born under the astrological sign of "Lucky-ass Foodie" (with it's cusp in Venus of somesuch silliness). It was just a random Tuesday (that I happened to have off work) when I got an email from Kari showing that there's a new restaurant in town with some pretty intriguing menu choices direction. At least their Web site made it seem that way.

That restaurant is Union 613 and we just happened to show up on opening night, July 17. Their "vision" is "an Ottawa take on Southern hospitality" with a lot of interesting-looking takes on some of my favourite food. If you can get Southern food right, you'll make me a happy man!




The paint's barely dry!

 

Now, there was talk of the place being mainly "communal seating", but Kari and I were given a booth to ourselves. Admittedly it was pretty late on a school night, so the place had died down somewhat. But there was still a good crowd and you could see the owners were still feeling some opening night pressure.

Luckily, our server didn't seem too affected. He was a really friendly guy who took very good care of us. I'll be damned if a month later I can remember his name.



The decor was pretty cool with a lot of old pipes and an oddly industrial-yet-homey aesthetic. The drink-in-mason-jars was a nice touch too... But what mattered most, as with all restaurants I eat in, was the food.



 Mason jar of beer = claaaaaaassy!



Well, as a kind of complimentary starter, they provide you with a small dish of Boiled Peanuts. Basically, imagine your standard peanut in the shell, boiled. They're tasty, but a little weird in texture.

As we snacked on the nuts, we perused the menu. It's one of those ever-changing menus, so don't let the Web site fool you. There's a good chance what they have listed on there might be different from one night to the next. That being said, I'm sure there'll be some items that stay on all the time, like their "Yard Bird" (more on that later). The menu's divided into Snacks, Appetizers, Mains and Sides, but how they served it was the Snacks and/or Appetizers first, then everything else at once on a giant platter (actually, a baking sheet lined with butcher paper, which was kind of awesome).

So, first off was our Snack, and I couldn't freaking believe one of the items that was on the menu. If you've ever owned a dog, you know that Pig Ears are a treat for your pooch. So why they're on the menu of a hip new resto? Beats me, but you can bet your arse I was trying them! They came with a homemade Thousand Island Dressing that was super-tasty (lots of relish or pickles in it) and were AMAZING! Basically they had the flavour profile of bacon, but with a bit more crackle and firmness in the bite, almost like a potato chip. They were devoured in less than 5 minutes...



Pig Ears! Not just for dogs any more!



Next was time to order our Mains and Sides. Since we were sharing, Kari and I had to figure it all out together. There were a couple of sides we each insisted on getting (her the Cheddar and Roasted Garlic Grits, me the Lobster Macaroni Salad). We also figured we should get the Cornbread, because, well, Cornbread is kind of super-awesome goodness! And it came with Bourbon Brown Butter!As for the Mains, we decided we needed to try the "Yard Bird" (which is a Southern/Soul Food term for chicken, in this case, Fried Chicken) which comes with their in-house Pepper Vinegar. We weren't sure what else to try but they had a nightly pork special (Tenderloin cut in medallions with Tomato Gravy, I believe, but don't quote me on that) so we gave that a shot.

So how was it all? Well, there were some highlights and some disappointments. The Macaroni Salad was oddly disappointing in that it tasted EXACTLY like the Macaroni Salad we'd get with a bucket of KFC back in 1983, but with chunks of lobster in it (which itself was succulent). If that's what the chef was aiming for, he got it spot on. I personally was hoping for something more unique. The "Pork du jour" was slightly disappointing in that it had a bit of an overcharred quality on the outside (the inside, however, was moist and perfect) and it was WAY overpriced (20$ for three small-sized pieces). The Tomato Gravy that topped it was really good though. The Grits were good, but not my favourite. I found them a bit heavy. Kari, on the other hand, was in love, so it was a good choice. The Yard Bird was EXCELLENT! Moist and flavourful on the inside, crunchy and sizzling on the outside and not drowning in its own seasoning. Basically the way Fried Chicken should be. It came with the Pepper Vinegar, which was basically a better tasting ode to traditional Tabasco Sauce. The combination was pure Soul Food heaven. But what I enjoyed the most by far (well, after the Pig Ears) was the Corn Bread. The Bourbon Brown Butter on top helped it achieve a kind of decadent pudding-like quality. It was rich and delicious and buttery and just pure tastebuds-a-dancin' perfection!

 

 


Where to begin!?!? Clockwise from top left: Lobster Macaroni Salad, Cheddar and Roasted Garlic Grits, Cornbread with Bourbon Brown Butter, Pepper Vinegar, Yard Bird, Pork du jour with Tomato Gravy




Union's Pepper Vinegar, a homemade version of Tabasco Sauce


And that was that! The bill was fairly reasonable (just a little bit over 100 dollars for two people, including the food, two drinks each and tip), the food really good and the atmosphere a perfect combination of trendy and welcoming, with a very cool decor. I foresaw good things after this first visit and the subsequent reviews I've read seem to agree. All things considered, the quality of our meal and lack of major boo-boos for opening night demonstrated to me that they have a good thing going at Union 613.

Now I just need to try their lunch!


UPDATE: We went back last night (August 24) and indulged in some Bourbon Lemonade (probably the reason my head hurts today), Devilled Eggs (WITH BACON! GENIUS!) and Chicken Liver Mousse (totally like Grandmaman used to make, but with grilled peaches on the side!). Kari had Beef Brisket for her main and I had their Crawfish Boil (!!!!!). I got about halfway through before tossing in the towel and getting the rest to go... I foresee making a crawfish stock in the future. We also indulged in their Corn Bread (missing the Bourbon Brown Butter, major bummer) and Coleslaw, which was excellent (dill in slaw? Who knew?). The plating was more traditional, with everything coming on its own plate. Whether the "baking sheet" presentation is still around on request, I don't know. I hope so!
 Cheers!

A Toast To My Hometown's Better Eateries - Jean Albert

Hey everybody!

It's time to let you know about another sources of tastiness in Ottawa. So, let's into it. I present to you Jean Albert  (no Web site available).

Jean Albert (pronounced like it's an English name - I thought it was French) is Ottawa's only soul food restaurant (so far as I can tell). It's run by a couple in their late-20s/early 30s, Jennifer and LeRoy Walden,  and the recipes are from LeRoy's grandmother from back in the heart of Georgia. This is the real deal. Ribs, Catfish, Fried Chicken (including Chicken n' Waffles!), Pulled Pork, Mac n' Cheese, so on and so forth. In case you hadn't noticed, southern food and soul food have been creeping their way back into the collective foodie consciousness in recent years and it's no secret that I've developed a bit of an obsession with this kind of cooking. Well, there's a fix for that craving, and it's just a few blocks away from my apartment!

Now, Kari and I decided on a cool March night to FINALLY give this place a try, only 6 months after learning of its existence. We were greeted with lots of enthusiasm from Jennifer, our server (and co-owner). After much salesmanship, we were convinced to order the speciality spiked drinks, I had the tequila-spiked lemonade while Kari had the rum-spiked iced tea. Both were delicious and we had two rounds each. Dangerously addictive stuff!

The menu is quite loaded with choices for appetizers and mains. So, we decided to go whole hog with the appetizer and try the Pork Smothered Fries (pun utterly intended).

The pulled pork was very tender and tasty and not too overladen with sauce (a problem with some pulled pork), although I suspect the smokiness came from liquid, not actual smoking, but that's understandable in any conventional restaurant kitchen. However, I'm pretty sure the fries came from a bag. If I'm wrong, I humbly apologize!

As an in-betweener side, we got a small sampler of Sweet Water (Corn)Bread. This was very different from the only other cornbread I've had, which is Kari's. Hers uses corn kernels and is very fluffy. The Jean Albert version was sweeter and spongier, having more of a texture akin to a mix of a pancake and a polenta cake. I liked the difference. Here's what it looks like:



But if the only foray into cornbread you've had has been at Jean Albert, I humbly offer up a completely different version in this recipe:

Kari’ s Cornbread (adapted from an old Martha Stewart Web post)

- Preheat oven to 350. put 4 tbsp butter in 8" square baking pan or 9" skillet; place in oven until melted.

- In a bowl, combine 1 cup flour, 1 cup cornmeal, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt.

- Stir in one egg, 3/4 milk, and a can of corn until just combined.

- Spoon batter into prepared pan.

- Bake until golden. 30 minutes in pan, 20 minutes in skillet.

Next we ordered the exact same 3-piece plate of Fried Chicken each, with the same side orders of Candied Yams and Collard Greens. This was a bit funny because after discussing what we should get so that we can sample a wider variety of items, Kari vetoed me and said "Just get what you want". So I did, and it turns out we have identical wants re: soul food. I'll add that to the pile of reasons why that woman rocks all kinds of YEAH! Right, back to the food...

The Candied Yams and Collard Greens were served on the side in large ramekins

The Candied Yams has a very nice flavour, full of syrup and butter. Decadent, but what soul food isn't?

The Collard Greens were like nothing I've ever tasted, with a smoky flavouring (thanks to smoked ham hocks in the cooking pot, which the traditional way collards are done) mixed with the nutty bitterness of al dente greens was one of the most interesting flavour combos I've ever had.

I've only experimented with Collard Greens once and the version I made was anything but traditional. Essentially, I boiled them until they were almost nothing (about 15-20 minutes), sauteed them quickly in butter and garlic, and squeezed some lime juice over top. It was tasty, but not the same experience as collards done Southern-style. Of course, the traditional version would break a vegetarian's brain. At least mine could be served to herbivores.

On to the Fried Chicken! I've read a lot of negative reviews on various restaurant review site about the Fried Chicken being lacking in flavour, but I think the folks writing them are missing the point. Fried Chicken at Jean Albert comes with your choice of BBQ sauce for dipping (for 1.50$), or baked in (for 2.50$). THAT was the main "ka-pow" flavour element, the chicken is simply the vehicle. You want intensely flavoured fried chicken on its own? Go to KFC and ingest 3 days worth of sodium.

As you can tell, I really liked the less intense flavour in their chicken. Not too salty and very tender. I did find that the coating was lacking in crunch, but that's in comparison to my Mom's recipe. And no one's fried chicken is better than Mom's. (yours, mine, whomever's).

I got mine with the Whiskey BBQ sauce on the side. It was lovely and smokey with that distinctive whiskey tang that makes all food better, but a bit too mild for my taste. I likes it spicy! Still, really effing good BBQ sauce! Kari got hers with the Candy-coat Glaze baked on. That was reeeeeally sweet, a bit too much for taste.

We were too full about halfway through the chicken to finish, but it made one heck of a tasty cold lunch the next day!

More recently, I was at an event at Babyon nightclub called The Cook-Off, where I had the chance to try LeRoy's Chicken 'n' Waffles, albeit on a Stick. Imagine a carnival-style snack made with juicy fried chicken chunks and waffle batter. TASTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They also have an upstairs bar (I didn't see it, but I know it's there!) and serve breakfast and lunch as well as dinner.
One thing I REALLY liked about Jean Albert is that it appears to be a successful restaurant that doesn't take itself too seriously. It came across to me as being as much a labour of love as a business. I know that probably isn't the case behind the scenes, but it's the kind of food I'd like to prepare if I had my own place, and it shows there's a market for it. Not that I intend to offer competition to Jean Albert, my resto idea has always centered around a ski resort. So, Jennifer and LeRoy, your niche is safe! Well, safe from me at least...

So, do yourself a favour and get out there to enjoy some of the most comforting comfort food there is in this whitebread town! I also suggest, if you're having dinner, skipping lunch that day...