Rose pepper picking season

If you search the Internet you’ll find several recipes using what is being called rose pepper (rose peppercorn, Brazilian pepper, poivre rose, baie rose, poivre de Bourbon, Florida holly, “aroeira” among others). In fact, it’s not a pepper (which usually belong to the genus Piper, with over 2,000 known species) but rather a small tree of the species Schinus terebinthifolius. Although some sites on the net attribute its origin to Madagascar, it’s in fact native of Paraguay, northern Argentina and specially southern Brazil, where it has been used mainly for ornamental purposes.

The seeds of Schinus add a very mild pepper-like taste to food, and thus have been used in several dishes as a substitute to the usually spicer true peppers. Winter, which has just arrived here, is the time for rose pepper picking and, it’s so abundant you can find a tree in almost every garden.

Young (aroun 3 years old) rose pepper tree

Almost ripe rose peppercorns

Brazilian pepper, which is quite common in French cuisine, was introduced in the US by the end of the XIXth century in Florida, where it found excellent growth conditions and has been prohibited, as it has been displacing native species. It’s actually found all over the world, constituting a very successful invader. Let it invade your kitchen too, as it may add an interisting flavor to your recipe.

Lamb spine with potatoes

In almost every country you can find dishes popular amongst the lower social classes which are based on ingredients the dominant elite refuses to eat.  One of these, found in Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil, is a stew prepared with lamb vertebral column (spine) and potatoes.  You won’t find the main ingredient (lamb spine) for sale in any butcher shop around, rather, you must have a farmer as friend.  As I’ve told you before (see Sunday lunch) the father of my daughter in law, Francisco, is a typical Brazilian “gaucho“, growing cattle and sheep on his farm.  He is the one responsible for putting such fine and rare ingredient on my hands.

Lamb vertebral column (spine) with the tail

The first step is separating the vertebrae one by one.  The final result reminds the traditional ox tail preparation.

Separated vertebrae of a lamb spine

Then, sauté some diced onions, garlic and fresh red pepper with olive oil (the original recipe asks for pork fat) in a cast iron pan.

Sautéing the first ingredients

Add the lamb spine, diced tomatoes, olives, parsley and salt to taste.  Pour in half a bottle of red wine (I used a Cabernet Sauvignon) and let the fire do the rest.  Let it simmer for about 1,5 h. Check the water, don’t let it dry. Add some potatoes (I cut them in large slices) and let them cook until tender.

Additional ingredients added. What do you think of my cast iron stove?

Lamb spine with potatoes, olives and parsley

This is another strong winter dish, full of fat and energy to keep men working in the cold pampas of Rio Grande do Sul.

On a cast iron stove

One of my pleasures during the winter (and it’s winter here) is to cook on a cast iron stove we have in the kitchen.  My wife usually lights it up as soon as she wakes up, as it’s used both for cooking as well as for heating (yes, we have air conditioning too, but sorry, I can’t cook on it).  It’s very nice for cooking old recipes using not so tender ingredients, demanding long cooking times, and a cast iron pan.

Cast iron stove in my kitchen

Last weekend I prepared some beef ribs with manioc roots (the largest source of carbohydrates for human food in the world – yes, more than rice).  The best thing about this dish is the sauce, of course.  Small diced onions, garlic, tomatoes, red pepper, half a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, black pepper corns, salt to taste. Let the meat cook slowly for a couple of hours (be careful not to let the water dry out) and then add the manioc.  Cook for an additional hour and after sprinkling some fresh parsley on top you’re ready to go.  If possible eat the sauce with some Italian bread.

Beef ribs with manioc

Another Chinese inspired meal

As a marine biologist I know that a prawn is a prawn, and not a shrimp. Prawns and shrimps, although quite similar, belong to distinct biological groups, separated by many characteristics, including differences in gill structure and the way the female carry their eggs.  Is this of any culinary or gastronomic relevance? As far as I know the answer is no.  Thus, I will continue calling my Farfantepenaeus paulensis (São Paulo or pink shrimp) a shrimp, even though I know it’s a prawn.  And the reason is simple, it sounds better.

In the Rio Grande region (southern Brazil) the shrimp fishing season lasts only a couple of months, from February until April (or May in some good years).  This year Vanderlei (a fisherman friend who surprised me with those wonderful tuna) gave me around 20 kg (around 44 lb) as a present, and I’ve bought another 20 kg of shrimp, which were then frozen (without the head but with the shells) for future use.

And the future has just arrived. I peeled (not all the 40 kg, of course) and seasoned them with minced garlic and ginger, fresh red pepper, sesame seed oil and soy sauce.  After about 1/2 h in the fridge they were fried in a wok with 2 table spoons of soybean oil, diced onions and red and yellow bell peppers.  Add some oyster sauce and they are ready to be served over white rice.

Shrimps, Chinese style

Grilling Gold in Uruguay

I’ve already posted a few lines on this wonderful Uruguayan invention, the “parrilla” (See “Parrillada in Uruguay“), a traditional system for preparing the not less marvelous Uruguayan beef. But, there is much more.

One of the activities I enjoy is fishing, what I usually do at Cassino Beach (GPS 32”.162283 Lat. S, 52.110901 Long. W), the largest beach in the world, extending for over 200 km, from the Patos Lagoon estuary to the Chuy River, at the Brazilian border with Uruguay. This time I decided to try my luck with freshwater fishes, and thus headed to the city of Salto (GPS 31.389126 Lat. S, 57.958374 Long. W), right beside the Uruguay River, which separates Uruguay and Argentina. The reason is the existence of the “Salto Grande” dam, an hydroelectric plant shared by these 2 countries, as it has created an excellent environment for fishing “dourados” (in Portuguese) or “dorados” (in Spanish).

Salto Grande dam at the Uruguay River (border between Uruguay and Argentina), during low water

“Dourado”, wich means “golden”, is also known as the “tiger of the river” or “tiger-fish” due to its voracious appetite. Its scientific name is Salminus brasiliensis (but also known as Salminus maxillosus or Salminus affinis), which means “little salmon from Brazil”. In fact, it belongs to a quite different fish group, being much more related to the piranhas than to salmons and trouts, although they play a similar biological role in the environment (same niche). It’s very appreciated in sport fishing due to its bravery and resistance, as well as its size (it may reach up to 20 kg).

Enough of information, lets fish. Well, after spending a whole morning on a small boat on the Uruguay River, just beside the Salto Grande dam, one 4 kg fellow decided to bite my hooks. Wonderful catch.

No, I'm not lying. And here is the proof (note the beautiful golden color = dourado)

What to do with it? As we were in Uruguay, grill in a “parrilla”, of course. And so it was. We (our friends Renan and Leila, my wife and I) brushed the fish with some olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper only, lighted a good wooden fire in a “parrilla”, and put the fish to grill over the charcoal for a few of minutes. Impossible to have a fresher dinner.

Grilling the golden tiger in a "parrilla"

The taste was mild and clean, and was matched with a demi-sec Spanish cava.

Although we were fishing in fresh water the price was rather salty, as the fish alone costed US$ 160,00 (the cost for renting the boat and the fishing gear for me and my friend). There was also the cava, salad, wood…..well, you can add this up, if you care to know the total amount spent. But I bet you won’t get it right, as I can’t even imagine the price of the adventure, the taste and specially of the good memories.