Insane in the Brine

Filet Mignon Tartare topped with garlic-dill-cucumber-salt cured yolks (see my last post for deets), Persian-style pickles ("Khiar Shoor" recipe in my first cookbook), served with crackers and homemade Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce (both the Dijon and Worcestershire recipes are in my newest cookbook). The cookbooks are linked in bio. I was kicking myself for finishing my homemade sourdough baguettes the day before I made this (I have some upcoming posts with that too), but the loaded crackers were still ridiculously good.

"Garlic dill" cured egg yolks 🍳🧄🥒 If you have the newest Insane in the Brine cookbook (link in bio), you may have seen the "cured-cumber" recipe to make a salt cured kosher-dill style cucumber. I won't call it a pickle properly speaking; it's a kind of quick hack for something very like a pickle within a day or so. Super tasty and crunchy. I kept the curing leftovers from my summer batch (salt, dill, black pepper, garlic, coriander, mustard seed plus all that liquid pulled from the cucumbers) for months now in my fridge. I always planned to dehydrate this mash then grind into a "dill pickle" salt but months have gone by and it was just sitting in my fridge 😆, believe it or not all that stuff was still good (smelled good, no mold, had a good taste test) and then a new insane idea popped into my head. Garlic dill cured egg yolks. I'll show the finished product when ready... but here you can see the original cucumbers curing last summer, the leftover salt mix, and the yolks now being cured (the tops of the yolks were covered with salt after the photo was taken, in case you try this at home). The eggs will sit in this salt sealed in the fridge for almost a week. There's many good uses for cured egg yolks in case you're new to this one. Excited to try these out :)

Wild foraged Georgia muscadine "cheong" (sugar maceration syrup). Georgia is great for wild muscadines in September and once we moved further out into the countryside I have much more access. I used some for this syrup, going by equal weight of the fruit and (in this instance) white sugar. Normally, a couple months is sufficient to pull out the liquid (and then strain well). For certain traditional preparations in Korea it's 100 days. However, like so many of my projects, this went for months longer than I planned because, you know, life and being busy and stuff. At a certain point I could tell it got boozy but I just let it ride. At this point (5 months in), I have something almost brandy-like. Though it's still clearly more sweet than alcoholic. It's a fantastic cocktail mixer but also great just added to sparkling water for a soda. So many other uses. So, give this a try and experiment away. Try lemons, peaches, combinations with herbs, you name it. Anything juicy that can be broken down will work. So, for example, ginger will make a delicious syrup, but be sure to shred it first because whole ginger roots will not break down like berries, at least not on a fun timetable.

Pasta Puttanesca with the oily salt-cured olives. My method for making your own delicious, oily, wrinkly, slaru black olives in just a month (give or take) is detailed in my newest cookbook, linked in bio.

Cheesesteak on homemade hoagie. It ain't a Philly people, I learned the hard way on other social media 😬😅. Shows what we know in Georgia. But it is the actual sandwich I wanted and it was absolutely delicious. •Ribeye cut thin, brined all day in @lawrysseasoning and Maggi Sauce. •Homemade hoagie pan toasted on buttered side •Green pepper, onion and jalapeno pan fried with Lawry's then 2 slices provolone melted on top Hadn't made one of these since my college days, next time I'll wait less than 25 years to make again ⏳😆😬

Summer 2022 organically grown blackberry & blueberry wine, finally bottled. 14.44% ABV should get a nice buzz going, but these will age at least six more months. Whether you're growing your own or buying berries, making quality wine is within your grasp! Full details on my own process, recipe equipment and tips is just one of the many offerings of my newest ferment & pickle influenced cookbook, linked in bio! Check out some of the projects in my books here :) #insaneinthebrinecookbook

Green Bean Kimchi Hot, crunchy, and delicious A full Vidalia onion blended into that most scrumptious of pastes. Swipe to see it plated and also starting off in fermentation in an e-Jen. This is a couple months in and flavor is just 💥 You got this. Moreover, you need this. Recipe link in bio! (Also with instructions for making in mason jar if e-Jen isn't an option for you.)

Happy (belated) New Year! I had the incredibly good fortune of spending 10 nights with my family in Costa Rica over the winter break and returned just before the new year. Between decompressing and fighting a bad cold since returning, I just hadn't been motivated to post. The trip was largely organized to pursue my children's deep love of animals, many of whose favorites are native to Costa Rica. I can't even begin to express the level of biological diversity and fecundity we experienced, not to mention all the fantastic and hospitable people we met, the wonderful nourishing food, and so much more. I have just so much to thank my partner for making this a reality and I am just so lucky; you may or may not have picked up on how private I am about my family (with reasons ppl) but otherwise over the years and especially now I would have loved to share some glimpses of these folks I love so much. The purpose.of this trip wasn't ferment focused but the first several photos are of an incredible sugarcane, coffee and cocoa (cacao) tour we did with @northfieldscafe and it was honestly one of the best tours of my life. There was a lot of detail given to their processes of cultivation, fermentation, and preparation (including of the sugar cane liquor cacique). There are so many of these tours in Costa Rica and I bet they're all very good but I have to recommend this one with 5 plus plus plus stars, our guide just being so knowledgeable, personable, and passionate. Between this and some of the sauces and meals I experienced, there is no doubt it'll have manifestations in some future recipes I post. The remaining photos are just a pinch of the insane number of animals and beautiful things I saw and all I can say is if you're considering visiting this incredible country, do it!

Kraut or kimchi latkes anyone?? Do you have some seriously sour kraut or kimchi? Try it in a latke! Recipe link in bio now!