Document text
New Eckhardt book offers one-dish meals Linda Eckhardt has spent most of the past decade telling cooks to take it easy. First she proved that homemade bread didn't have to take all day, then she demonstrated that desserts could be as easy as pie, so long you used a store-bought crust. Two years ago, the former Ashland author showed us all how to entertain elegantly without killing ourselves. Now, with her latest book, she offers insight into a busy cook's best friend: meals made in a single pot. Just released by Doubleday, "Stylish One-Dish Dinners" ($25) is Eckhardt's answer to what's for supper on the cusp of the millennium. "This really came out of the tour for our last book," says Eckhardt, 60, who left Ashland for New Jersey a year ago to live near her daughter and co-author, Katherine West DeFoyd, 36. "What we kept hearing in cooking schools and other venues was that this sounds really interesting, but I would make the main dish. I wouldn't make anything else." Folks today are just too busy to even consider whipping up multi-course meals, Eckhardt concluded. "We all live our lives at warp speed now," says Eckhardt. "I'm the same way. I want comfort, I want to be able to sit down with people around the table and I don't have four hours to make dinner." The solution to the dilemma? One-dish dinners that knock your socks off, plus a menu of store-bought side dishes to finish the meals. That's exactly what fills the 230 pages of the glossy book. Eckhardt and DeFoyd offer 101 comprehensive menus that star entrees ranging from stir fries and skillet suppers to roasts, stews, soups and salads. "And don't forget the much-maligned microwave," Eckhardt says. "The microwave is still a completely valuable way to get dinner on the table without making a mess." The notion of one-dish dinners dates back farther than a pot of beanie-weenie, of course. But what's new about Eckhardt's concept is her idea of style. A pan of pork chops, for instance, is updated to become Beer-Braised Pork Chops with Onions, Apples, Cabbage and Currants. A sauteed chicken dish becomes Braised Chicken with Artichokes and Greek Olives. A basic tuna casserole becomes Linguine with Sauteed Tuna and Mixed Peppers. The book draws widely from several cultures, which Eckhardt says was one of her publishing goals. Asian stir-fries, for instance, are ideal one-dish meals. Ditto for Slavic foods such as a Ubekistan Lamb Stew with Cilantro, Dried Fruit and Pine Nuts. Best of all, these exotic flavors really do come from a single pot says Eckhardt, whose last book won a prestigious James Beard award. "One of the intellectual tasks we set is that each recipe had to be truly one-dish. There wouldn't be a whole sinkful of dishes when you're through. Additionally, each recipe is packaged with a suggested menu from appetizer to dessert and a recommendation for appropriate wines. There's also a mini-cooking lesson included with each selection that highlights basic techniques that range from how to deglaze a pan to the right way to roast red peppers. Eckhardt's life is much busier now than when she lived in Southern Oregon, but she says she's finally used to the faster pace. Living and working near her daughter and year-old twin grandbabies has been wonderful, despite the preconceived notions of people who meet the mother-daughter duo on tour. "They expect mothers and daughters to have conflict. They want us to fight," says Eckhardt. The closest they come is minor fussing over a dish such as the Beef and Tomato Stir-Fry with Whiskey and Black Bean Sauce below. Mother, Eckhardt says, is usually right. Beef and Tomato Stir-Fry |with Whiskey and Black Bean Sauce MARINADE: 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 tablespoon soy sauce 1 teaspoon whiskey 1 teaspoon cornstarch 2 teaspoons peanut oil MAIN DISH: 1 pound lean flank steak, cut into thin slices 1 tablespoon dried, salted black beans or 2 tablespoons Chinese black bean garlic sauce 2 cloves garlic, crushed 3 tablespoons water 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon peanut oil 1 green onion with top, minced 6 medium plum tomatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds, cored and quartered 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar 1/2 cup chicken broth 1 tablespoon oyster sauce 4 cups cooked white rice In a medium bowl, combine the marinade ingredients. Add the flank steak slices and rub the mixture into the meat with your fingers. Cover and set aside to marinate for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mash the black beans and garlic together, stir into the water and set aside. If you're using black bean sauce, skip the water and the garlic. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the green onion and stir-fry for about 30 seconds. Add the black bean garlic sauce and stir-fry for about 15 seconds. Add the meat and cook, stirring, until it begins to lose its pink color, about 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the meat to a bowl and set aside. Add an additional teaspoon of the oil to the wok and reheat, then add the tomatoes. Stir-fry a minute or two, just until they begin to lose their shape, sprinkling them with the sugar to hasten browning. Add the broth, cover and continue cooking until the tomatoes are thickened, about 2 minutes. Return the meat to the pan and add the oyster sauce. Stir-fry for 1 minute more, then serve with rice. Recipe from "Stylish One-Dish Dinners" by Linda West Eckhardt and Katherine West DeFoyd, (Doubleday 1999; $25.) JoNel Aleccia writes about food and family issues. Reach her at 776-4465 or by e-mail at [email protected] Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA