HUNGRY GERALD

HG loves sole. But, like most romantics, HG is often disappointed. The filets at Whole Foods are usually cut too thin to be cooked. They lose firmness and turn to mush. However, HG is nothing if not persistent. Spotted some very fresh looking sole at Whole Foods a day ago. Filets looked reasonably thick. Had earnest discussion with young woman behind fish counter. Pick me a pound of the thickest, said HG (Firmly but courteously). Efficient woman held each filet up for HG’s approval. Bought six beauties. They were dusted with flour and sauteed in very hot grapeseed oil. No more than a minute or so a side. Served with cold soba noodles flavored with Vietnamese fish sauce, stir fried bok choy (with a dab of oyster sauce), bean sprouts (sesame oil and soy sauce). Cooked sole in two batches. Went straight from pan to plate. Very good. Of course, it wasn’t Dover Sole, that princely and pricey fish served at J. Sheekey and other great London seafood restaurants. The Dover Sole at Le Dome in Paris swims in lemony butter and is served with delectable potato puffs. Priced for Russian oligarchs. HG is watching out for Petrale Sole, that excellent fish from California’s Pacific waters. It appears sporadically at Whole Foods. Paragons of Petrale are served at the venerable Tadich Grill in San Francisco.

HG knew that good times with a Middle Eastern bent were beckoning when HG saw BSK fill a container with preserved lemons from the Whole Foods olive counter. This was confirmed when BSK began to browse through the two best books on Moroccan and Middle Eastern food: Couscous and Other Good Food From Morocco by Paula Wolfert and Arabesque — A Taste of Morocco, Turkey & Lebanon by Claudia Roden. And, so it came to pass that Middle Eastern flavors provided great joy when two friends joined HG and BSK for dinner. The meal started with Baba Ganoush (the famous pureed eggplant dip) and Moroccan carrot salad. Then came the main: A tagine of chicken with preserved lemons and olives. Sides were Israeli couscous cooked with onions, garlic, stock and spices plus a melange of vegetables (turnips, chickpeas, onions, etc.) swimming in a savory broth. Harissa (fiery pepper paste). Warmed pita. Pinot Noir. And finally Zinfandel with dark chocolate almond bark for dessert. A much more triumphant meal than any HG and BSK encountered during their visits to the Moroccan cities of Tangier, Casablanca, Rabat, Fez, Tetuoan, Meknes and Marrakesh. To be fair to those wonderful cities, insiders confided to HG that the great meals of Morocco are to be found in private homes as restaurant dining is not really part of the culture.

Fresh fish has always been expensive but now that our ocean fisheries have been nearly decimated, prices are getting a bit nutty. Good, wild caught, fresh and unfrozen salmon, tuna, swordfish and halibut hover around $29 a pound. HG feels that paying that much for a simple piece of fish is a bit self indulgent. Therefore, HG is opting for moderately priced, farm raised fish like tilapia and catfish. Older fish farms were ecological disasters — pumping filth into the environment and shipping out muddy tasting, chemically processed product. Some modern farms have really cleaned up their act and become more environmentally sound with the result that the fish are healthier and quite palatable. Make sure to seek out fish from these type of farms (Whole Foods has very strict guidelines for their farmed fish purveyors — so buying through them is a good bet).

Here’s a very good way of cooking them. Coat the fish in a mixture of Hellman’s mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Roll the fish in Louisiana Fish Fry or Zatarain’s Fish Fry or panko (crushed fine). Fry in a mixture of grapeseed oil and brown butter. After taking the fish out of the pan, melt a bit more butter with lemon juice, capers and a few drops of Tabasco. Pour this flavorful sauce over the crispy fish.

During HG’s college days at the City College West Harlem campus, HG enjoyed very cheap and very good fried catfish sandwiches. The breaded catfish was fried in lard (like cast iron pans, a staple of Harlem fry cooks), doused in a blazing hot pepper sauce and served between two slices of Wonder or Silvercup bread. It was accompanied by cole slaw or potato salad. HG’s version of fried fish is just a little bit fancier.

HG was shopping at Whole Foods a few days ago when hunger pangs struck. Big time. Since HG was at the fish counter he rummaged about the adjacent soup bar. HG inspected the New England Clam Chowder. Thought the amount of potatoes overwhelmed the clams. Lobster Bisque. Too much cream. Cioppino. Tired fish in tomato soup. Shrimp and Crab Etouffee. Hmm…This looks promising. Green. Herbaceous. Lots of shredded crab and chunks of shrimp. Evidence of a blond roux and creole spice. Worth a try. HG was blown away. Just a big, tasty portion of N’Awlins right there in the wholly homogenized Whole Foods. If you fancy making some etouffee at home check Paula Deen’s recipe. Buttery Southern soul.

Had some great New York strip steaks last night (bought the meat at Whole Foods). BSK does the steak in her own original way. Cast iron pan, of course. Thin layer of kosher salt. BSK turns the heat to high. Heats the pan for a few minutes so its hot enough to create a good, crusty sear. On go the steaks, a minute on each side. Then, innovative BSK begins turning the steaks every forty seconds or so. When BSK thinks they’re ready a small cut is made in order to be sure. The end result is a steak that is dark, reddish pink throughout. Not bloody, but, rare and juicy. Bovine heaven. Good companion to a big red wine from the State of Washington. Last night’s choice was The Velvet Devil. Yum.

Of course, the most soulful sole is Dover sole. But, this should only be eaten — at a great price — in London (even though HG once had some splendid Dover sole at Legal Seafoods in Boston). Folks in the northeast can enjoy firm fleshed Atlantic Flounder filets. In Vancouver, HG developed a taste for sauteed brill, a sole-like Pacific flatfish. But, the closest thing to authentic Dover sole is Petrale sole from the waters off northern California. HG first had Petrale sole at the venerable Tadich Grill in San Francisco’s financial district. HG preceded the beautifully cooked fish with a few sloe gin fizzes, a delightful house specialty.

Petrale sole makes an occasional appearance at the Whole Foods fish counter. When that happens, HG pounces upon it. A quick dusting in flour. Swift saute. A generous topping of melted butter, capers and lemon juice. Finny perfection.

HG doesn’t want to sound like a press agent for Whole Foods a.k.a. Whole Paycheck but the pricey grocer does deliver with some quality items. Namely the chicken, feta and spinach sausages. They are healthy and good. HG/BSK will enjoy them tonight over a mixed green salad. Accompaniment will be fast fried Santa Fe Farmers Market shishito peppers. Preceding will be sliced turnips and radishes (also from SF Farmers Market), feta cheese, olives and eggplant caviar (check out the David Lebovitz recipe on the Internet).

HG loves (not neccesarily in order): Italian food, HG’s brilliant son-in-law, Profesore MR; HG’s beautiful and accomplished (half Italian and bilingual) granddaughters, Ms.A and Ms. S. Add to the list of HG’s Italian loves: Fra’ Mani and O Gelato.

Based in Berkeley, California, Fra’ Mani makes superb, handcrafted Italian cured meats, sausages and salami. HG tasted Fra’ Mani’s Salume Rossa yesterday. This is a cooked salami with origins in Bologna that tastes a bit like a cross between mortadella and cured salami with all of the virtues of both.

I also discovered that Whole Foods (in Santa Fe) stocks O Gelato products and happily purchased the mind-blowing O Gelato Salted Butter Caramel. OG is a tiny, Mom and Pop operation in Sante Fe, with one little shop in a mall. But, to gelato lovers its products are worshiped with religious fervor. Glad that a big operation like Whole Foods has discovered this very local company and is giving it a showcase.