People in the U.S. pronounce this dish “bra-jhol”.  In Italian it is pronounced “brat-cho-lee”.  I first experienced one in New Orleans.  There is a sizable Italian descendant population there.  The French Market in the French Quarter was once dominated by Italian stands and produce sales.  Braciole is round steak, tenderized with a mallet, rolled into a Roulade and tied, stuffed with various items including Persillade (garlic and flat parsley chopped together), Italian deli meats, Provolone, breadcrumbs and some stuff it with raisins and pine nuts.

Braciole Ingredients:
1 lb. top or bottom round, cut into flat slices, each about 1/2-inch thick, 4 to 5 inches square
Prosciutto (thinly sliced)
Genoa Salame (thinly sliced)
Provolone (thinly sliced)
Breadcrumbs, 10 or 12 saltine crackers (chopped in a small food processor into a fine consistency)
Butcher’s String
Persillade, 5 or 6 cloves garlic, bunch of flat parsley (Place all in a small food processor and chop)

Other ingredients might include: Pine nuts and raisins (Not used in this recipe)

Thin Spaghetti for two.

Tomato Sauce:
Your favorite tomato sauce.  I use 2 TBSP tomato paste soaked in a dry red wine.  One 15 oz. can of tomato sauce.  I sauté a Trinity (chopped onion, celery, and green pepper) in olive oil, garlic, add the sauce, a bay leaf and thyme. 

Tenderize the steak slices with the spike textured side of the tenderizer and pound to ~1/4 inch.  Add salt and pepper, apply some bred crumbs, Persillade, then Prosciutto, Salame and Provolone.  Start with the narrow end and roll the meat.  Tie the roll with butcher string.  Dry the outer roll with paper towels before browning.

In a covered Dutch oven brown the Braciole all sides and remove.  Sauté the Trinity in oil, add the paste mixture, tomato sauce, herbs, a dash of leftover coffee from the morning, mix and return the Braciole.  Braise the Braciole in a 350° oven for 2 hours.  Serve over thin spaghetti.

Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 wine used in this dish.

12/5/21

Serves 2

4 cups of water
1 large scallion (cut the green part off and retain for the broth and chop the white part to add to the Ramen bowl)
1” fresh ginger sliced whole with skin on (remove before serving)
1” garlic clove sliced (remove before serving)
1 baby Bok choy with leaves
1 eggs hard boiled and peeled (to make a Ramen egg)
½ Lb. pork tenderloin
1 small piece of side pork (with plenty of fat)
4 shrimp peeled and de-veined (retain the skins)
4 shrimp shells (add to the broth and remove before serving)
4 small shiitake mushrooms (if dried re-hydrate over night)
1 carrot cut into matchsticks
1 piece of dried Kombu (sea weed or kelp)
Sake
Aji-Mirin (Sweet cooking rice seasoning liquid by Kikkoman)
Soy sauce
2 Packs Ramen noodles (discard the flavor packet, just use the noodles)
Sugar
Salt

Ramen Egg: The night before boil the egg and peel. In a plastic container add 3 TBSP soy sauce with 3 TBSP sugar and 2 cups water and mix. Drop the peeled egg into the mixture so that it is submerged and leave in the frig overnight to marinate.

In a covered pot add 4 cups of water the sea kelp and the shrimp shells and let soak for an hour or more.

Peel the carrot and cut into match sticks.  Place in a bowl and sprinkle with table salt.  This will wilt the carrots so they can become flexible.  When they are flexible rinse off the salt and set aside.

Pork Marinade: In a small sauce pan mix 3 TBSP soy sauce with 2 TBSP sugar, 1 TBSP Mirin and 1 TBSP Sake. Bring to slight boil, turn off heat and let cool. This will be used later to marinate the tenderloin before serving.

Ramen Pork Broth: Add the green top of one scallion and the pork fat. Bring the water to a boil. Just as the water begins to boil remove the Kombu and add the mushrooms. Reduce heat to a slow boil and add the pork tenderloin. When the pork is cooked remove from the broth and thinly slice the tenderloin. Place the sliced tenderloin in a shallow plate and pour the marinade over the top and let sit awhile. Add the baby bok choy and the shrimp to the broth. Add 3 TBSP of soy sauce, dash of Sake and a pinch of salt and gently stir. When the shrimp turns red remove and turn down the heat. Remove everything from the broth and prepare it for the bowl.

Boil water in a separate pot for the noodles and cook 3 minutes.

Drain noodles, plate in a bowl with the noodles first, add all the ingredients on top of the noodles then with a ladle the hot broth over and serve.  We use chop sticks and an Asian soup spoon.

As of 12/4/21

This is from left over cooked duck that was smoked in apple wood on Thanksgiving.

Duck Stock:

1 Leftover duck carcass
1 carrot large chunks
1 celery stalk large chunks
½ yellow onion left whole
2 garlic cloves cut in half
1 bay leaf
1 tsp. dried thyme
Salt and pepper
1 cup dry white wine
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup water

Add everything to the pot and bring to boil.  Lower the fire to simmer and cook 1 hour.  Strain the stock and set the stock aside to cool.  Discard the veggies and bones.  If there is some meat on the bones that is useful separate that meat and add it with the other meat. 

Gumbo Ingredients:

Roux:
5 TBSP Olive Oil
5 TBSP flour

Trinity:
1 medium celery finely chopped
½ green bell pepper finely chopped
½ yellow onion finely chopped

Meat:
Leftover duck legs, thighs, and wings deskinned and deboned and broken into spoon size pieces.
1 – 6-inch stick Andouille sausage sliced ¼ inch

Other:
2 scallions finely chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
Salt and pepper
Small bay leaf
1 cup of cooked rice
2 or 3 cups of duck stock

1. Meat: Prepare the duck and remove the bones and knuckles.  Retain the useful meat.  In a separate non-stick fry pan pre-fry the sausage to remove oil.  Lightly brown on both sides. 
2. Roux: Add the oil to the pan and get the oil somewhat hot.  Add the flour a little at and time and blend into the oil.  The flour should bubble.  Reduce heat to medium low.  Keep stirring the roux every 30 seconds until it becomes a dark oak color.  If the roux burns you will need to toss it and start over.  I use a flat edge wooden spatula with a 7” handle to stir and scrape the bottom of the pot.
3. Trinity:  When the roux is the correct color add the Trinity.  Sauté the Trinity low and slow as not to burn the roux until the onions become fairly translucent (~5 minutes). 
4. Gravy:  Add the duck stock a bit at a time stirring to create a thick gravy.  The stock is heavenly.  Because I smoked the duck in half of its initial cooking process there is a hint of smoky flavor.  If you need more stock, you can always add a little chicken broth. 
5. Add the rest of the ingredient.  Bring to a slight boil, then simmer 50 minutes or so.
6. Serve on a small bed of rice.  Add a little Tabasco. 

Meat alternatives can be chicken, turkey and Kielbasa sausage. 

11/28/2021

Ingredients

 5 1/2- to 6-pound Peking duck, trimmed of excess fat—necks, gizzards and hearts reserved
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 medium carrots, coarsely chopped
2 celery ribs, coarsely chopped
1 small onion, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed but not peeled
1 small bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup dry white wine
5 navel oranges
1 cup orange juice
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter

1. Prepare the duck.  Rinse and dry.  Cut out the wishbone from the neck opening.  Leave the duck on a rack in a pan in the frig over night to dry and drain.
2. Chop one orange, small onion, 1 carrot and 1 celery stalk (mirepoix).  Salt the cavity of the duck.  Fill the cavity with fresh rosemary and the mirepoix.
3. Cut a 22-inch length of cooking string.  Fold the tail into the cavity and tie the sting across the back of the legs over the tail to close the cavity.  With the remain two ends of the string bring over the wing elbow, flip the duck over, pull the neck skin on the belly and tie the string to hold the skin and the wings in place.  Take a sausage poker and poke holes in the skin of the duck top, sides, and bottom.  Sprinkle kosher salt over the duck with pepper and leave the duck at room temp.  The salt will begin to remove water from the duck. Paint olive oil on the skin of the duck.
4. In a large roasting pan cover the bottom and sides with aluminum foil.  This keeps the pan clean when placed in the smoker.  Add the rest of the mirepoix to the bottom of the pan and pour in one cup of dry white wine.  Add the rack and place the duck on the rack.  Get the smoker hot to 300°.  Add the apple wood in a smoker box and place on coals.  Put the duck in the smoker for 1 hour.
5. Preheat oven to 375.  After an hour on the smoker, place in the oven and cook ~30 minutes per pound.  A 7 Lb. duck will take around 3.5 hours to cook, this includes the time spent in the smoker.  Before removing, check the crispiness of the skin and the internal temps of the breast and the leg.  The duck will cook at different rates.  The legs will take longer.  Internal temp of thigh should be at least 160° and the breast will be 155°.  Test the leg by moving it back and forth to see if starts to separate at the joint. 
6. While duck is in the oven make the gravy and the Bigarade Sauce. 
7. Gravy – In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Add the hearts, gizzards, wing ends and neck and season with salt and pepper. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring, until richly browned, 10 minutes. Add the carrots, celery, onion, garlic, 1 small bay leaf and thyme and cook, stirring, until softened, 5 minutes. Then gradually stir in the chicken stock and wine. Bring to a boil, stirring, then reduce the heat to moderately low and simmer for 1 hour. Strain the sauce into a bowl, pressing on the solids.  Add oil to the pan and stir in the flour, then add the sauce until you get a thick gravy.  Turn off heat and cover.
8. Bigarade Sauce – In a medium saucepan, boil the sugar and vinegar over moderately high heat until the syrup is a pale caramel color, 4 minutes. Gradually add the 1 cup of orange juice and bring to a boil. Add the Grand Marnier and remove from the heat. Swirl in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time.  Remove from heat and pour in a glass measuring cup.
9. In a separate small bowl add the Bigarade Sauce.  Pour the gravy in a gravy boat.  This gives a chance to pour gravy on any stuffing while also allowing to dip the duck into the Bigarade without blending the two together. 
10. Cut the breast and serve with the crispy skin.  The rest of the duck can be cut up and served separately. 
11. After eating save the duck carcass and the left over duck so it can be used in a duck gumbo at a later date.

As of 11/26/21

1 TBSP vegetable oil
2 deboned chicken thighs (~1 lb.), skin fried cut into 1-inch chunks*
1 TBSP Garlic, run through a small grater
1 TBSP fresh Galanga or Ginger, run through a small grater
1 red bell pepper, diced
¼ red onion, thinly diced
1 small shallot, thinly diced
3 scallions, chopped
1 cup cubed eggplant, salted and sweat, then rinsed**
1 green Serrano pepper chopped
2 tablespoons red curry paste
1 (13.5-ounce) can chicken broth
1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
1/2 (8-ounce) package vermicelli rice noodles
1 tsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar or Shoaxing Wine
¼ cup chopped fresh Thai basil leaves
Cilantro for garnish
2 slices of lime
S&P

*Boneless Chicken Thigh – trim the skin.  Slice the meat above the bone on the back side.  With poultry shears cut the knuckles.  Remove the final small piece of bone.  I use a sharp curved boning knife. 

** Eggplant salted and sweat, then rinsed.  Each year I grow Eggplant.  Cut several slices.  Add salt to both surfaces to sweat the eggplant to remove the bitterness. Then rinse in cold water to remove the salt.

Salt and pepper chicken.  Brown in veg oil.  Then fry the chicken skin side up for 3 minutes then skin side down for three minutes.  This releases fat from the skin.  Remove the skin.  Cut chicken into cubes.

Add onion, shallot, red bell pepper, garlic and galanga (or ginger).  Sauté ~2 minutes on medium low.   Add a dash of Shoaxing Wine to deglaze the pan.  Add the red curry and stir in and cook another 2 minutes.  Add the can of coconut milk.  Use that can to fill it with chicken broth and add that. 

Add the chicken, eggplant, Serrano pepper and scallions.  Bring it a nice gentle boil.  Reduce about 15 minutes. 

Meanwhile boil the noodles separately 12 minutes.  I once tried cooking the noodles in the soup, but the soup got too thick from the starch and the flavor was reduced from the boiling. 

Add the noodles, Thai basil, soy sauce, Shoaxing Wine, fish sauce to the pot. Stir.  Cook covered another 5 to 10 minutes on gentle boil.  Serve in a bowl with slices of lime and cilantro.

11/7/21