Eating Meats

The following dishes are different meat preparations that I have cooked for guests. All of them are suitable for a WLS diet and provide excellent levels of protein. They are relatively easy to prepare with most taking only minutes to cook. In all of the recipes I have added some personal touches that provide distinct flavors and tastes.


Sausages and grapes
Grilled sausage and sautéed grapes are a simple dish here in Umbria and is very popular in the area. The addition of the grapes adds a unique touch to this dish. In general I have found that the sausage preparation here includes a bit too much salt. The seasoning mix they use predominantly here is salt, pepper and garlic. Virtually every meat market has its own sausages stuffed into natural casings and ready to cook. You buy them by the link and often ten or more at a time.


The simplest preparation is to grill the sausages over a hot barbecue. They use a rack here that you put the sausages on and then lock together. All of the sausages are then cooked at one time over the coals. Using that technique, you get a great tasting sausage infused with the smoke of the barbecue, but more often than not, they can be overdone and dry. Ground meats are a bit of a digestive problem for me personally and the dryness of the sausages can make them difficult to eat. I have grilled these sausages a in a grill pan on top of the stove many more times than I have cooked over the coals. I have more control over the doneness when I use the grill pan.


The grapes are removed from the stems, washed and placed in a saute pan with a bit of olive oil. You can use either seedless or seeded grapes for this dish, but I prefer the large reddish globe type grapes with seeds. They have a nice rich flavor that is enhanced by the cooking. Add a sprinkle of salt and pepper and saute them over a medium to hot flame until they start to swell and some will pop open. Take them off the fire and keep them warm. Put the cooked sausages on a heated platter and spoon the grapes over the top.


I have modified this dish by including sautéed yellow and red bell pepper strips, and onion strips to the sausages. I add a bit of water to the pan with the peppers and onions and allow the sausage to steam for a few minutes. I then add a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste, some dried oregano, a bit of black pepper, an ounce of wine vinegar and a tablespoon of sugar. Continue to cook the mixture on top of the stove or put in a baking dish in a medium oven until the dish is warmed through. Makes a great sweet and sour sausage dish that also results in a moist sausage than is easier for me to eat.


Pork shoulder steak with mixed salt
This is a popular grilled pork dish using a shoulder cut pork chop. In Italy the pork is quite good and the shoulder cut is a very popular cut. They also use a center cut pork chop as well. The meat is salted with a salt mixture composed of a mixture of fine and coarse grained salt, paprika, black pepper, crushed and chopped fresh garlic and dried juniper berries. The fresh garlic dries in the salt and infuses the mixture with a great garlicky aroma. Do not over salt the meat. The meat is allowed to sit with the salt on both sides for 15 minutes and is then either grilled in a basket over coals or in the kitchen in a grill pan. Most people like a medium doneness and overcooking the meat tends to dry it out. Serve on a warm platter.


Chicken with lemon, Marsala and capers
Purchase chicken breasts or breast slices and pound each piece in a plastic bag or under plastic wrap with a flat meat mallet until about ½ inch thick. Lightly dust with a seasoned flour mixture, shake off the excess flour and fry quickly in hot oil (not olive oil) at 360-370 degrees F. I normally use sunflower oil. Cook until just barely browned and remove and keep warm in a slow oven (250 degrees F).


Make the lemon Marsala sauce by adding some water in the frying pan after cooking the meat. Cook down to deglaze, add ½ cup Marsala and the juice of 3 lemons. Add a bit of sugar if it too tart. Cook down to thicken. Add a tablespoon of pickled capers. Add a tablespoon of butter to the sauce just before serving and a ½ cup of chopped parsley. Put cooked chicken breast in the sauce for a couple of minutes to warm in the oven and then serve. The key to this dish is to not overcook the chicken. It takes about two minutes in the frying pan to get a nice color to the meat and then it is placed in a warm oven to complete the cooking. Serve with the sauce lightly on top of the meat. Please don’t drown the meat in the sauce.


Grilled chicken with peperone marmalatta and onions
Bone about 1 ½ chicken thighs per person to be served. Place the thighs in a bowl with a bit of olive oil, oregano, basil and ground black pepper. Marinate in the refrigerator up to overnight. Grill in a medium to hot pan and place the pieces in an oven proof dish when done. Saute an onion or two (depends upon how many you want to serve) until golden and caramelized. Add on top of the chicken. Place some sweet and sour pepper marmalatta over the onions. Cover the pan and keep in a low oven until ready to serve. Keep the chicken in a medium oven until done. Do not overcook, though it is difficult to over cook chicken thighs. Check for doneness and serve with the peppers and onions.


Sweet and spicy pepper marmalatta
1 yellow bell pepper, remove the stem, seeds and interior ribs and slice lengthwise into thin slices
1 red bell pepper, remove the stem, seeds and interior ribs and slice lengthwise into thin slices
2 large onions, peeled, cut into half and sliced into thin slices (should be approximately 2 cup)
3 cloves of fresh garlic, peeled and sliced thinly
Place vegetables in a deep saute pan and add ¼ cup olive oil
Add ½ teaspoon salt
Add ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (this can vary with your tolerance for the heat)
On medium heat, saute peppers and onions for approximately 20 minutes, stirring frequently
Add 2 cups of water and return to a simmer
Add ¾ cup of vinegar (wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or rice wine vinegar, not Balsamic)
Add 3/4 cup of sugar to the vegetables and continue to simmer.
Taste the mixture to determine the balance between the vinegar and the sugar
Add either as appropriate
Continue to cook the vegetables down until they are quite thick
Taste and adjust seasonings (it should be a balanced sweet and sour and not overpowered by either)
Place in ½ pint washed jars, seal and process in a water bath for 5-6 minutes
Remove and cool. Keeps for months
Or allow cool and place in a storage container in the refrigerator.


Osso Bucco
Osso bucco is a braised dish that can use beef or veal shanks or lamb shanks as the primary ingredient. It is cooked in the oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. There are many versions of this dish and all have certain similarities. Cutting the meat across the bone provides a great deal of bone marrow which melts into the dish and adds a great deal of flavor and texture to the dish. My version follows.


2-3 pounds of veal or beef shanks (sliced across the bone)
1 bottle of red table wine (Chianti, Sangiovese, Merlot)
1 large red or yellow bell peppers cut into 1” squares
2 onions roughly chopped
3-4 good tomatoes chopped into 1/8th
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
Olive oil
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 quart of broth (beef, chicken, bouillon)
Dried oregano
Salt and pepper
In a large oven-proof dish put some olive oil, the chopped peppers, garlic, onions, oregano and tomatoes as a bed for the meat. Dust the shank slices in seasoned flour and brown in hot oil in a saute pan. Put the meat on top of the vegetables and then spoon some of the vegetable mixture over the top of the meat. Pour in the can of tomato sauce and then the broth. The liquid should just barely come up the side of the meat. Add 1 cup of good red wine and cover the pan with aluminum foil. Place in a medium oven 350 degrees F. Cook for at least two hours before you begin checking for doneness. It will probably take about three hours to cook. Be sure to cover it well after checking. The meat should remain cohesive but will be tender and can be cut with a fork.


Serve the shank slices with some of the pan juices and vegetables that have been reduced slightly to thicken. Check for seasonings and add salt and pepper as needed. Serve with a mostarda or more traditionally with gremolata. Gremolata is made with parsley, a couple cloves of garlic and the peeled yellow skin of a lemon. Chop them well together until they are finely minced and serve in a bowl on the side. The gremolata is used as a spicy condiment on top of the meat.


Grilled marinated leg of lamb
For this dish I get a boned leg of lamb from the butcher or bone my own. A single boned leg will feed about four or five people. The meat will be of varying thicknesses and you should pound the thicker areas to thin them a bit. These thicker areas also allow for a variety of doneness for the meat with the thicker portions being a bit rarer. I put the boned leg of lamb into a plastic bag or pan. On top of the lamb pour about ½ cup of good quality olive oil, a tablespoon of dried oregano and three to four chopped cloves of garlic. I do not salt the meat until I cook it. Put the meat in the refrigerator overnight and turn it a couple of times.

Before cooking bring the meat up to room temperature. Grill the meat in a grill pan over fairly high heat to get a nice sear on the outside. I use a heavy steel weight I had made by a local metal worker to hold the meat down in the pan and this allows a uniform grilling. You can use an aluminum foil covered brick. Cook the meat on one side for about 5 minutes then turn and put the weight back on for another 4.5 minutes. Put the meat in a 350 degrees F oven for about 20 minutes to complete the cooking. Check for doneness. Allow the meat to rest under an aluminum foil tent on a cutting board to 10 minutes. Slice into thin slices across the grain and serve on a warmed platter.


I will often serve the meat with a chutney or mostarda accompaniment. Here are a couple of starting recipes. This is a great area to explore culinarily speaking.


Apple mostarda
Mostarda can be made with just the mustard seeds and the sugar syrup, but I prefer to add some vinegar to make the preserves sweet and sour.


Two cups of water
1 cup of sugar
Four or five Granny Smith apples or the same amount of grated firm pears
Three tablespoons of yellow mustard seeds
3-4 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar (optional)


Directions
Bring water and sugar to a rolling boil and boil for 10 minutes
Add grated apples and return to a boil.
Toast mustard seeds in a dry frying pan until they start to pop
Grind in a mortar or spice mill to a coarse texture
Add to apples and sugar
Taste and add 3-4 tablespoons vinegar (This is my preferred option)
Simmer for 30 minutes to thicken
Pack in sterilized jars, seal and process for 5 minutes in boiling water
Remove from the water bath to a rack
Allow to cool.


Dried Apricot and Onion Chutney
One pound of dried apricots, chopped into medium dice
Rind of ½ a lemon and the lemon juice
2 cups of water
1 cup sugar
Vinegar
Salt
1 onion, chopped


Directions
Boil water and sugar together to dissolve
Add the lemon rind and juice
When boiling, add apricots and return to a boil
Simmer mixture for 30 minutes
Add 3-4 Tablespoons of vinegar
Add a pinch of salt
Add the chopped onion and continue cooking for another 30 minutes
Mixture will thicken as the apricots hydrate
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly
Puree the mixture with an immersion blender to a coarse consistency
Return to boil
Taste and correct seasonings (add vinegar, sugar)
Fill ½ pint bottles and lid
Process in boiling water for 5-6 minutes
Can be made with fresh apricots.
Use 3-4 cups fresh with the stones removed.
Simmer for 30 minutes to cook the apricots. They will start to fall apart.