Miela Tahril

“Spatchcock” refers to the method of cutting open a whole chicken, so that it sits flat in a pan, or on a grill. However, it wasn’t always the highly amusing verb it is today. Originally, it was a highly amusing noun used to describe a small, young chicken. Since these tender birds were usually butterflied to cook faster and more evenly over the coals, “spatchcock” became the culinary term for this technique. So, if you use a small, young chicken like I did, then you’re actually spatchcocking...

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I love a crème brulee as much as the next portly chef, but when you consider the custard base is egg yolk-thickened, sweetened heavy cream, it’s not something you should be eating more than occasionally. But, why waste such a great technique when it can be applied to other things, like fresh fruit?In the spirit of full disclosure, I chose figs here because I received a generous sampling from the California Fig Advisory Board, and decided this would be a wonderful way to enjoy them. As I mention...

Just a quick note to let you know we're up in beautiful Dunsmuir, California celebrating my father-in-law Al's 70th birthday. We'll be back at it Monday, so pardon any delays in responding to comments and emails. I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and as always, enj...

When I need a fast and easy sauce for grilled steaks, I love to use this sort of mayonnaise-based condiment. As I explain in the video, the basic formula is mayo + salt + spice + acid + herb. I don’t think I’ve ever made the exact same one twice, which is not surprising when you realize how many combinations are possible. I’m not calling this aioli because it doesn’t contain any garlic, but you can if you want to, since nowadays any flavored mayonnaise is called an aioli. That reminds me, this would...

I know I say this a lot, but I can’t believe I haven’t done this recipe yet! There are few things as easy and amazing as homemade breakfast sausage, and this is my favorite formula. The key here is to get some properly ground fresh pork from a real live butcher. The ground pork in the meat case at the supermarket is not going to be coarse enough, not to mention the fact that the meat they used was probably chosen based on it’s inability to be sold in any other form.Tell the butcher you want a couple...

I try to stay as seasonal as possible when choosing which food wishes to film, so I’m pushing it a little bit here with these goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms. They’re generally thought of as more of a springtime thing, but are available into fall. In fact, if I’m remembering my past zucchini growing experiences correctly, the hearty vines seemed to produce blossoms right up until the first frost.You can substitute cream cheese for the goat if you’re one of them fromage wusses, but the tang...

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When my friends at Hungry Nation were over here filming my “Fresh Five” secret ingredients, they also forced me, under threat of severe physical injury, to do an interview called a “Meet & Eat.” I spend most of my free time thinking of ways to avoid going on camera, so I’m really never comfortable (or very good) doing these things, but since they did such a great job on the production, and took the time to put this together for me, I feel the least I can do is show it off here. I’ve also included...

This unusual basil, peach, black pepper, Parmesan cobbler recipe started out as an innocent experiment making individual-sized cobblers, but somehow spun out of control into weird and wonderful new directions. I was thinking about a cheese Danish, so I grated some Parmigiano-Reggiano into the batter. I was thinking about Gougères, so I added some freshly ground black pepper as well. I was thinking about a peach and basil sorbet I had one time, and decided that some of the sweet aromatic herb seemed...

These incredibly tasty mini peach cobblers feature ingredients that will shock and amaze.Get ready to experience the magic of last minute, mayonnaise-based steak sauc...

It’s not easy to pry gumbo-making secrets from a cook in New Orleans, but you should have better luck if you slip them some truth serum, in the form of several well-made sazeracs. This particular gumbo, featuring duck, andouille sausage, smoked pork hock, gulf shrimp, and langoustine, was inspired by my recent trip to New Orleans, where I sampled a half-dozen varieties.One rye whiskey-induced tip was to cook the famous Cajun roux in some duck fat instead of the more common and mundane vegetable...

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This quick and dirty video recipe for grilled romaine hearts was shot on location at Tanimura & Antle, a family-owned lettuce farm we toured as part of the Get to Know a California Farmer field trip Michele and I just returned from in Carmel, CA. The event was to introduce their website and, as the name implies, help us get to know a farmer, and that's what we did. We got a fascinating look into how lettuce gets from their farm to your table. Brian Antle, the farm’s Harvest Manager, ran the...

Hello from beautiful Carmel-by-the-Sea, California! Michele and I are here to tour a couple family farms as guests of knowacaliforniafarmer.com. Hopefully, I’ll have some photos and more info to share when I return to San Francisco on Sunday evening, but in the meantime I wanted to post this experimental chicken satay burger video.I’ve been thinking about how to do a chicken burger using some of the same flavors found in Thai-style chicken satay, and this was my first attempt. I thought it was pretty...

They say every man has his price, but not every man gets to see that exact value calculated in public on a blog. The market has spoken, and apparently I'm worth exactly $550. Hey, at least that's more than I was appraised for by that carnival gypsy. Take that, Madame Corsi! Thank you to everyone who bid, and also to those of you who made individual donations to #AFundForJennie at Bloggers Without Borders! Stay tuned as we'll identify the winner, and make plans for the shoot soon. Thank you a...

This simple, basil-spiked “green” hummus is a great summer twist on everyone’s favorite spread. While making your own hummus is quite simple, as you’ll see, I completely understand why people don’t. Those big, ready-to-serve tubs at the grocery store are tempting when you’re party shopping and short on time.But, if you do have an extra 10 minutes, and access to some fresh, sweet basil, this version will provide a great change of pace from the standard wake-me-up-when-it’s-over hummus recipes. I...

I was reading some comments under this peach gelee video on YouTube, and was shocked by the number of “omg! the sugar!!” type remarks. People, this is a candy, not a dessert. Candy is supposed to be an extraordinarily indulgent bite, enjoyed in small amounts only on certain very rare and special occasions. Unfortunately, candy has lost its specialness, and somehow turned into a casual snack. We've gone from enjoying it at a couple sacred yearly festivals, to eating several handfuls a day. Let’s...

Feeling a little melancholy this holiday? That’s okay, you’re not alone. Sure, this weekend is supposed to acknowledge and celebrate the labor movement in America, but what it does even better is remind everyone that summer is gone. Wow, that was fast. It seems like only yesterday I was phoning in a Memorial Day post. But, before you get too down, remember, we are now entering prime cooking and eating season. From now until Christmas (only 112 shopping days left!), the kitchen replaces the beach,...

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I feel kind of bad posting a recipe that leaves out what is arguably the most important ingredient, and such is the case with this gazpacho. This garden salad masquerading as a cold soup was originally a way for field hands to stretch their resources by crumbling up stale bread into a mixture of crushed tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers.Sorry, panzanella, but I’ve never been a big fan of the whole wet bread thing. Even versions I’ve had where the crumbs where completely pureed in, weren’t as pleasing...