Cast Iron Skillet Big Flavors

CAST IRON SKILLET
BIG FLAVORS

CAST IRON SKILLET

BIG FLAVORS

90 Recipes for the Best Pan in Your Kitchen

Sharon Kramis & Julie Kramis Hearne

Copyright © 2011 by Sharon Kramis and Julie Kramis Hearne

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form, or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published by Sasquatch Books
17 16 15 14 13 12 11            9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Cover and interior photographs: Alex Hayden
Cover recipe: Lemon Chicken Sofrito, page 79
Cover and interior design and composition: Kate Basart/Union Pageworks

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN-13: 978-1-57061-740-9
ISBN-10: 1-57061-740-6

SASQUATCH BOOKS
119 South Main Street, Suite 400 | Seattle, WA 98104 | 206.467.4300
www.sasquatchbooks.com
|
[email protected]

For everyone who shares our passion for cast iron, we hope this book will continue to inspire you to explore more great recipes and big flavors in the cast iron skillet
.
—S. K. and J. K. H.

contents

acknowledgments

introduction
from the authors and the skillet

your cast iron pan
care for cast iron and why we continue to love it!

pantry staples
our favorite things

breakfast anytime
sometimes you just crave breakfast for dinner

small bites
savory and sweet

main dishes
pan-searing, browning, braising, roasting, and stir-frying bring big flavors to the table

on the side
complementary accompaniments to mix and match with any main dish

baking in the skillet
the skillet bakes like a hearth oven for flatbreads, cakes, cobblers, and crisps

resources

index

acknowledgments

Thank you to my wonderful daughter, Julie, who let me join her on the culinary journey along the spice trail. A special thanks to my husband, Larry, for accepting without ever knowing what was going to be for dinner. To Barbara Hinck, taster, friend, and computer wizard. To Anthony’s Homeport Restaurants for their continued commitment to the best of the Northwest. To our sons Joe and Tom, who still love to drop in for a family dinner.

—
S. K.

To my coauthor, mom, and friend! You have taught me not only how to cook, but how things should taste. To my husband, Harker, and my three boys, Reilly, Konrad, and Andrew, who never know what’s for dinner but through this book have gained a more adventurous palate. Thanks, boys, for your patience and open minds.

—
J. K. H.

We would like to thank our editors—Gary Luke, Rachelle Longé, and Kristi Hein—and everyone at Sasquatch Books for continuing on the cast iron skillet journey with us.

We would also like to thank Alex Hayden, our food photographer, who works magic with the camera, and Christy Nordstrom, our food stylist, who knows how to make food look delicious and natural with her finishing touches.

—
S. K. and J. K. H.

A NOTE TO OUR READERS

We wanted to write
Cast Iron Skillet Big Flavors
because, thanks to the culinary influences we describe in this book, we’ve been spicing up our recipes. What we cooked five years ago, we may choose to spice up today. The availability of world spices, condiments, and sauces has made it easier to cook outside our comfort zone. We have traveled to new countries and returned home to re-create these flavors in our own kitchens.

Our skillets still remain our favorite pans in the kitchen. They can take the place of a tava (or tawa) or a wok. We find that not only do we use one skillet, but sometimes we use two or three at a time. We can cook our main dish in one and a side dish in another. As we began our journey of exploring big flavors, we soon realized the depth of knowledge that is available from cookbook authors who have lived and explored these cuisines deeply and translated them. We are just beginning our exploration, and we’d like you to share our journey in exploring new flavors and new dishes.

Today’s cooks lead very busy lives, and we need recipes that are not too time-consuming, with lots of good flavors. To that end, we offer recipes that are both simplified and flexible, using spice blends and sauces that you can either create from scratch when time allows, or buy when time is short.

We hope you will enjoy this book as much as you did the first.

introduction

WE STILL BELIEVE THE CAST IRON SKILLET IS THE BEST PAN IN YOUR KITCHEN. IN
our home it currently lives on top of the stove or in the oven. Yes, it is heavy and a little hard to clean at times, but worth the trouble. There are many things that you can cook and bake in the skillet that you can’t do in any other pan. The cast iron skillet is unique for its ability to provide dry, even heat. Its porous surface prevents excess moisture in the pan. The benefit is that you get even browning and beautiful crusting. We like that you can go from searing on the stove top to finishing in the oven in the same pan.
Since our last book, we have found that we are adding much more spice to our cooking. Our kitchen is a melting pot of different flavors. Our pantries are filled with condiments from around the world. Today sriracha sauce (Thai hot sauce) is becoming as popular as ketchup in many homes. The influence of new world cuisines in our grocery stores and restaurants has made a huge impact on the way we are cooking today. We may crave pho instead of chicken noodle soup or an Indian curry instead of a beef stew. In the 1960s, French cooking was very influential, using lots of butter and cream. Julia Child started our passion for cooking. In the 1980s, Asian influences inspired us through travel and eating out. Today the Food Network brings us a new cuisine every half hour. Now these influences are inspiring us to lean more toward cooking with chilies, spice blends, and Asian sauces and condiments. We are no longer afraid of world flavors. We are inspired to explore new recipes. We can use our skillet for stir-frying and baking. We want to use these flavors in our own kitchens and cook new recipes with big flavors for our family and friends. We hope you will find this the beginning of your spice trail and fill your pantry with new flavors.