RoccoDiSpirito.com

Grab the Good Life with Rocco DiSpirito

December 14, 2005 - WOR 12/14/05

WOR 12/14/05

***IMPORTANT***
Rocco's Cookware has RETURNED to QVC! Please go to:

ROCCO'S KITCHEN

Grab The Good Life everyone! We hav a grea show lined up for you: Today is all about YOU and your calls! Give us a call at 800-321-0710 and we will field any question you have!

Rocco: I want to get to Emails; I get hundreds a day and I never get a chance to answer all of them. So let's go straight to one from Lynn. "I just came back from the supermarket where I saw wild cohoe salmon, wild steelhead trout, and I wonder how you can you tell if they are really wild? Is there a State agency that regulates this?" Well Lynn, when something is "wild", it's hard to regulate it so there isn't an agency that regulates it. But I can tell you this – steelhead and cohoe are two species that have not been cultivated/farmed so I don't think you can get either of them that isn't wild. And also, develop a relationship with the fish monger that you trust and who is credible. Price has no bearing on whether it's wild or not. And finally the best way to know if it's wild is to taste it. Wild fish tend to be more lean/less fat than farmed fish, especially salmon. It also tends to have a slightly "gamy" or more unctuous flavor – the flavor will be more intense in wild salmon for example.

Let's go to an email from Vicky. "I was wondering what do you do with the pineapple and onion paste? Smear it on the salmon or mix it with the beans? The recipe doesn't say but I'm assuming it's like a glaze for the salmon". Now, I believe this is a recipe we made up on the air and it was pineapple juice and chopped onion and we turned that into a paste in a blender, and then I mixed it with soybeans. And then you smear it on the salmon or you can marinate the salmon in it for an hour and then throw it in a toaster oven for about 9 minutes and allow the glaze to burn almost. I would also throw in a little Miso paste for some saltiness.

Let's go to an email from Pamela in Brooklyn. "I find myself cooking with bits and pieces I pick up from your show. Now my questions: what's the best way to care for my Anolon pots – cleaning, storing and preserving?" Well, Anolon is a brand name for anodized aluminum cookware, some of the best that are out there, very high-quality and well-made. And the best way to take care of them is to wash with soap and water, wipe them dry and store them in a cool, dry place. There's nothing really that can happen to them – they don't rust or pit. Next: "Can you recommend the newest, hottest spot where I can send my boss and other frequent out-of-town visits who constantly ask me where the 'next best place' is? They want to be in the most exclusive places." Well okay Pamela, I've said it a thousand times on the show; it's not a new place but it is a 'special' place and when you get there and want to feel exclusive, you want to sit in a certain part of the restaurant – it's BALTHAZAR, it's on Spring and Crosby in Manhattan. And you want to ask for a booth on the left side of the restaurant. It's where all the celebs and the big tycoons sit. And if you can't get a booth on the left side of the restaurant, get the banquette facing the booths –that's the VIP section. So when you call them, be flexible with your time as the booths are likely held for frequent customers.

Now let's go to an email from Lee. "I was thumbing through a magazine one day and saw a recipe for mama's meatballs and also mama's marinara…I made mama's meatballs and the next day I made the marinara sauce…I loved it". If you want Mama's recipe, go to Roccodispirito.com and click on 'meatballs' right on the home page.

Ok – let's go to Alfreda from The Bronx.

Alfreda: Hi Rocco. I'm from the Wakefield area of the Bronx and my son came home with a bunch of leeks. I'm an experienced cook, I've cooked all my life (I'm 82), but I don't know what to do with a leek.

Rocco: Okay, they're a member of the onion family. So you clean them, and but them right where the stalk goes from white to green and throw the top away. Then you split the leeks right down the center to the root but don't cut them in half – you allow the root to keep them together, then let them sit in some cold water, shake them around every now and then allow the little particles of dirt and debris come out, and you repeat that process until the water is clear. Then you cut the leeks in slices of about ½", then you cook them in a little bit of butter, covered in a pan, and cook them until they're soft – about 15-20 minutes. And if you want to make a leek soup, get some canned chicken stock and some cream, about 3x the volume of the leeks, and then let simmer for 20-30 minutes but don't reduce it too much, then cool it a bit and blend it all in a blender. When that's done, put it through a strainer. You can add diced potatoes to it and white pepper.

Ok, let's go to Guy from New York.

Guy: Hi Rocco, I'm enjoying the show. In answer to the comment about male and female eggplants, my fiancé's aunt told us that on the bottom of the eggplants, some are indented and some are not. The one's that are NOT indented are the females and have virtually no seeds.

Rocco: So the males have the seeds and the females don't. There you go, mystery solved.

Hey, let's go to Mikey from Brooklyn.

Mikey: Hi Rocco. I have some thin-sliced chicken cutlets…

Rocco: Here's what you do. Get some provolone cheese, corn flour and broccoli rabe. Now make a 'sandwich' using two thin cutlets with 2 slices of the provolone cheese in the middle, then dip it in corn flour, then dip it in your egg batter, then back in the corn flour so you will get like a polenta crust. Then you just pan-fry it and then I serve it with quickly-sautéed broccoli rabe or escarole.

Mikey: I love it Rocco!! And you have to try Lucy's – she's on 18th Avenue between 69th and 70th in Brooklyn. Her pizza is out of this world. I also had chicken and roasted potatoes with onions and peppers – just great.

Rocco: Well thanks Mikey. We'll give it a try.

Okay, let's go to Maryann from Philly.

Maryann: Hi Rocco. I have an old family recipe that I make for Shabbat and it calls for baking soda.

Rocco: You don't need it – it's an old trick to tenderize meat, it actually breaks down the muscle tissue. If you're cooking the beef long, you don't really need to add the baking soda. Any cut of beef in a simmering broth or in the oven doesn't need more than an hour or two of cooking time.

Okay, let's go to Joe from Long Island.

Joe: Hi Rocco. I'm in Five Towns – Hewlett. Five Towns – Hewlett, Woodmere, Cedarhurst, Lawrence and Inwood. Now for Jovia, I have E. 62nd for that restaurant – exactly where is it?

Rocco: Yes, it's East 62nd between Park and Lexington. I love Jovia. It's a little bit fancy but you don't have to dress up.

Now Phyllis is on the line from New Jersey.

Phyllis: Hiya Rocco. I was asked to make manicotti and I'd like to make it in advance. Can I freeze the shells, the crepes, or making the whole manicotti and freezing them entirely stuffed?

Rocco: I'm all about making it and freezing it whole because when you defrost, you lose texture, the cells break down…crepes happen to freeze really well. Make the crepes a drop thicker so they're sturdier, you know use a little more flour, and make sure the ricotta is nice and dry, drain the water out of it, because when you freeze the cheese with the water in it, it will defrost and ruin the crepes. And then freeze it in the sauce and in the pan that you're going to cook it in. The rule for all this is "fast freeze---slow defrost".

Phyllis: Thank you so much. I have another question . I love pork but my pork chops are always dry. Why is that?

Rocco: Well, everyone's so concerned with fat, they are breeding pigs leaner and leaner. When you buy pork chops, buy whole loin chops, make sure the bone is still in them and don't get them trimmed too much. And the other thing is, people cook pork too much. You don't need to cook it well-done anymore. The trichinosis that used to be commonly found in pork has almost been eliminated, but if you cook the pork chops to 150 degrees and let them rest, they'll be okay. And serve them with something that has a little juice.

Phyllis: I'm going to use red cabbage…

Rocco: Great and maybe some polenta, something with a rich, hearty texture. And here's the other thing – if you like pork, cook a fresh ham. Get a 4-lb. fresh ham, have it rolled and tied, and cook it whole.

Phyllis: Thanks for your help Rocco.

Rocco: Let's go to Mary from Long Island.

Mary: Hi Rocco. My mother used to make calzone with scallions and fresh dough with a few potatoes and the scallions, capers and olives were cooked on top. But I have a problem with the dough – I bought semolina from Italy…

Rocco: No, you don't need semolina. For calzone dough, the best I've made is a basic pizza dough…

Mary: That sounds fine but how about a few potatoes in the dough?

Rocco: Yes, potatoes are great in the dough – that's a little trickier though. The potatoes don't leaven it the way you would leaven a pizza or calzone dough. Let me see if I can come up with a formula off the top of my head. All purpose flour will work fine, either bleached or unbleached. Use the chef potatoes – they're the big round, cheaper potatoes. And you are using yeast so if it doesn't grow enough with the potatoes in the dough, then try adding more yeast to help leaven it. I like using cake yeast, an ounce of cake yeast per pound of flour usually works. So try that and let me know how it works out. By the way, how hot is the potato when you put it in the dough?

Mary: I put it in the blender so it's really not that hot but you really have to work the dough.

Rocco: If you really work the dough, it won't rise as well.

Mary: Well that's what they did in Europe and they added some olive oil.

Rocco: Okay, I'm going to say work it less, use cake yeast, use chef potatoes, not baking potatoes, and don't put the potatoes in the blender. Put them in a mixer with a dough hook because the blender will work that protein in the flour so it will be too tough. And use an ounce of yeast to a pound of flour.

Mary: Thanks Rocco.