Category Archives: sauce

Eastern North Carolina BBQ

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: February 2, 2012

Pulled pork sandwich, from Ruhlman's Twenty. Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman

With these last few posts on cooking for groups, it occurred to me that I should post one of my go-to, fabulously easy, always-gets-raves main course that serves a lot of people. East Carolina barbecue, called pulled pork here up north. When I arrived at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, from Cleveland, Ohio, in the 1980s I knew the word barbecue to be a verb. You did it on a grill. As a noun, it meant a gathering to eat food cooked on a grill—it was something you had, something you invited neighbors to. But on the drive back from a place called Jugtown (to get there we’d gone through a town called Whynot, with a church named after the town; loved that), we stopped at what looked ...

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Also posted in american regional cuisine, Books, Main Courses, Recipes, Sandwiches | Tagged carolina sauce, pulled pork, sandwiches, twenty | 55 Comments

Turkey Stock For Gravy: Start Soon

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: November 15, 2011

Mise en place for turkey stock/gravy. Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman

In preparation for Thanksgiving, America's biggest home-cooking day, I'll be addressing a few of the most common issues and frequently asked questions about the basics: roasting turkey and making gravy. Friday, I'll be introducing an innovate and in my opinion the best possible way to roast a whole turkey (it involves a dual method and resulted last year in Donna's saying, "This is the best roasted turkey we've ever had.") But first things first: make turkey stock now so that you have it on hand to make gravy. I don't know where we got the idea that a roasting turkey results enough juices to make gravy. It doesn't. And you certainly want to have way too much gravy on Thanksgiving so that you have leftovers. ...

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Also posted in aromatics, Holiday, Recipes, stock, Technique, Tips | Tagged essential, holiday, recipe, stock, thanksgiving, turkey | Comments closed

Beer Vinegar/Food As Solace

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: August 9, 2011

Three years ago on this date, a Saturday, Donna, my mom, I, the kids, our dear friend Stu, and the dog spent the morning standing vigil as my father succumbed to the lung cancer. Mom had gone to the farmer's market and gotten corn and she and I stood at the kitchen island plowing through a dozen and a half ears, butter dripping off our chins. My dad, Rip, hadn't been conscious since very early in the morning, 3 am, Donna and I on the bedside, holding his hand. Realizing the end was truly near, he wanted our assurance that I had indeed returned his library books. I had. "We love you, Dad, we're going to be fine, don't worry, everything's going to be OK." By eleven a.m., he breathed sporadically. I hoped he could hear ears of corn being ...

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Also posted in Memories, Recipes, Seasonings and Spices, Writing | Tagged beer vinegar, dad, Jonathon Sawyer, Michael Symon, reflection | Comments closed

Friday Grilling: Easy Bearnaise Sauce

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: August 5, 2011

Photo by Donna/Video by James

One of the conundrum of grilling meat is that the process of cooking doesn’t start a sauce for you, as a roast chicken does, as pan roasting a pork loin does, as all braises do. What then to sauce the meat with? An emulsified butter sauce is the perfect answer. And there is no better emulsified butter sauce than the Béarnaise. This French classic was a childhood staple, a symbol for me of plenty, and also of the security my mom and dad gave me. I wrote about it for Parade Magazine many years ago. My mom made it the old fashioned way: a reduction of shallot, tarragon, tarragon vinegar, and egg yolks in a double boiler. She used the recipe from James Beard’s Menus For Entertaining. (It's also in ...

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Also posted in aromatics, grilling, outdoor cooking, Recipes | Tagged bearnaise sauce, derivative, grilled meats, summer, tarragon | Comments closed

Salted Caramel

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: June 29, 2011

Salt on Caramel = Heaven/Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman

Been so busy recently have scarcely had time to post. Just got back from taking James to camp :( My chief videographer and dessert innovator. I was in Boston talking salt on Simply Ming. I was in NYC working on confections with Bouchon Bakery head chef Sebastien Rouxel and putting together a pitch for a chef drama with some friends. I came home to find a great new ice cream book from Ohio's own Jeni Britton Bauer! Salt, sweets, ice cream, and an unused photo donna shot for the new book due out in fall: salted-caramel! Of course. Caramel is one of those awesome no brainer dessert sauces that more people ought to do at home. Takes 10 minutes tops, uses inexpensive ingredients, and ...

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Also posted in Desserts, Ratios, Recipes | Tagged columbus, ice cream, James Ruhlman, jenis splendid ice cream, ratio, recipe, salted caramel sauce | Comments closed

Eggs Benedict From Scratch

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: March 14, 2011

Eggs Benedict: a great way to start the morning after. Photo by Donna Turner Ruhlman

This eggs Benedict post has new recipes for Hollandaise sauce and sourdough English muffins but I have to begin with the angry comment on my Tomato Sauce post. A reader was clearly miffed that I would suggest that anyone who works make their own tomato sauce. Well, I do suggest this, but I hasten to add that it's not homemade or nothing. I've bought jarred tomato sauce when I knew I wouldn't have time to make it myself. It's more expensive, doesn't taste as good and isn't as much fun, but there are only so many hours in the day, and someday there's just no time. My second response to Angry Reader is that he should do this: ...

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Also posted in Bread, Breakfast, Brines, Challenege, Charcutepalooza, Charcuterie, From Scratch, Recipes | Tagged canadian bacon, complete eggs benedict recipe, english muffin recipe, english muffins, from scratch challenge, Hollandaise sauce, how to make eggs benedict from scratch, poached egg, ruhlman makes eggs benedict from scratch | Comments closed

Tomato Sauce

By Michael Ruhlman | Published: March 7, 2011

Tomato sauces captured by Donna Turner Ruhlman

A basic tomato sauce is easy and delicious on its own and an elegant cooking tool as well. Braise beef, pork or lamb in it, add it to ground meat for a pasta sauce, poach eggs in it. It's delicious plain. I returned from New York on Friday and saw a 24-ounce jar of a "celebrity chef" sauce on the counter. Donna said, "It's really good." Then added, "But it cost nine dollars." Make your own—50% more sauce, 50% of the cost, 100% more pleasure. The above photo shows the difference between a tomato sauce cooked raw, top, and a tomato sauce made by sauteing the tomatoes before pureeing and cooking them. Both work fine. The fresh sauce tastes fresh and raw, the sauce made with cooked tomatoes has more depth ...

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Also posted in Pasta, Technique | Tagged tomato sauce, tomato sauce from canned tomatoes, tomatoes | Comments closed

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