By John Selick
I’ve spent most of the summer in my backyard, cooking on the grill; it’s one of my favorite ways to prepare food. Who doesn’t love being outside with that unmistakable smoky aroma of grilled food? As the weather starts to get cooler and the days get shorter, I’m looking forward to putting away the grill for the winter and dusting off my Dutch oven for heartier meals.
While I love my grill, I also love my Dutch oven and slow cooker. I use them occasionally throughout the year but they get the most use in winter for braises or stews.
A Dutch oven is a heavy-duty pot, often enamel-coated cast iron or sometimes just cast iron. With its tight-fitting lid, it’s designed to be used on a stovetop then transferred to the oven. It retains and distributes heat evenly, which is helpful in the beginning portion of the cooking process for searing meats and caramelizing vegetables.
I have a really nice Le Creuset Dutch oven. My wife gave it to me as a birthday gift years ago and I’ve gotten a lot of use out of it. It was expensive, but I must say, it’s worth every penny as it still looks great and it will probably be handed down to one of my children. I also have a “celebrity chef”- brand Dutch oven that I’ve been using before I met my wife, and that one works really well, too. It’s bigger than my Le Creuset and was much cheaper. It hasn’t held up quite as well as the Le Creuset; it looks like it has taken abuse over the years, but it still performs really well and some of the best meals I’ve ever made were prepared in it. (I’m not a paid spokesperson for either brand but I’m willing to listen to offers).
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I recently saw a Facebook post in a food group, asking everyone to name their least-favorite kitchen gadget, and several said it was their slow cooker. I was surprised by that, as I really like mine. There is nothing better than coming home and opening the door when the crockpot has been working all day.
I think many people have had substandard meals out of their slow cooker because they dump everything in and turn it on. But you have to develop flavor, and that is done by searing. Season the meat first and then brown it in a pan over high heat. When the meat is nicely browned, place it in the crockpot and then return your pan to the stove and add any vegetables that you want to use.
Cook the vegetables over medium heat to sweat them (draw moisture to the surface), or higher heat to caramelize them. When they are cooked nicely, add liquid like wine or stock. Water is fine, too, if that’s all you have. When it comes to a simmer and all the brown bits get off the pan, add it to the slow cooker and turn it on. At the end of the day, you’re going to have a tender and rich dish — but there’s more! You still have to thicken the sauce, and that works best by simmering it with a thickener like cornstarch or flour. I like to thicken the sauce by mixing leftover coffee and flour to make a slurry and then whisk it into the simmering sauce. Although you seasoned the meat in the beginning, taste the final product before serving to see if it needs more flavor.
I’m going to miss cooking outside in the gorgeous weather, but the comforting stews will make the winter a little more enjoyable.
John Selick is a Certified Executive Chef and president of the American Culinary Federation Cleveland Chapter.
