Amaranth Greens
You may know that amaranth is one of those super grains, like quinoa, but did you know that it's easy to grow and as the plant matures, you can use...
The Rancho Gordo Blog
A Brisket in the Oven
When I asked Steve at Prather Ranch Meat Co for a piece of meat to braise, he immediately led me to a brisket. I wasn't thrilled with the idea. I've...
Rain in Napa
Here in Napa, June through October are normally very dry. This year was pretty average except for a funny little rain last week. Last night we had sheets and sheets...
New York Times on 'Beans: A History' and a Podcast
The New York Times has a brief review of Ken Albala's Beans: A History. I've started the book, but then got sidetracked. This review reminds me I need to put...
A Good Marinade
I found myself with what is probably the most boring piece of meat imaginable: boneless, skinless chicken breasts. What to do? I pounded several cloves of garlic with salt and...
Shrimp Cocktail: Leftovers
Inspired by Christopher Ann's recipe, I made shrimp cocktails this last week. I didn't bother with the catsup (as I didn't have any) and I really loaded up on the...
Daniel Patterson on Heirloom Vegetables
San Francisco's wonderful writing chef, Daniel Patterson of Coi, has written a great article on heirloom varieties for San Francisco magazine (Ocotber 2007). I'm flattered to be mentioned and of...
A Clay Comal
A comal is an essential piece of Mexican cookware. It's basically a griddle or flat pan used to make tortillas, toast spices and roast chiles. Now mostly made of steel,...
Shrimp Cocktail, Mexican Style
You may not know this about me, but I'm a complete and total freak for shrimp. I just love them to the point of guilt. My pal Christopher Ann shared...
Chiilaca Chiles in Action
Previously I wrote about chilacas and now Catalan Farms (my neighbors at the Ferry Plaza Farmer Market) have a big harvest of them. You can also find them in Latino...
Rancho Gordo Hominy Stew for the Slow Cooker
Inspired by some of the slow cooker recipes in Rick Bayless' Everyday Mexican, I started playing around with some ingredients and came up with this really super stew. It's very...