This week is getting to be a drag....
After seeing Eric this weekend for one short night, this week has become so unbearably long! All I want to do is have some more fun and go on my Asia trip already! (Yes! I am going to Asia in a week and a half!)
As my trip is soon approaching, I have been trying my best to use up all the food I have in my apartment (not to mention, save some money and not buy any more food). I have been staring at my white truffle oil for a while and have been getting very upset with myself since I haven't been using it as frequently as I would have liked to. Well I changed that this week!!
After being upset that Eric and I couldn't go to Le Bernardin over the weekend for some delicious creations by Chef Eric Ripert, I decided to create my own Eric Ripert dish in my own home! Portobello 'Fries' with Truffle Aioli- Eric Ripert is a genius!
The recipe follows:
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THE FRIES
8 Portobello mushrooms
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3 cups fine bread crumbs
1 cups grated Pecorino Romano
1 tsp dried thyme
1.5 tsp salt
2 tsp ground fresh pepper
Canola oil for frying
THE AIOLI
2 egg yolks
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp minced garlic
1 cup canola oil
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tbl white truffle oil
fine sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
Combine the yolks, lemon juice and garlic in a blender. With the blender on medium speed, drizzle the canola oil and olive oil into the yolk mixture in a slow steady stream until the aïoli is emulsified and well blended. Season with the truffle oil, salt and pepper. Transfer the aïoli to a small bowl and set aside.
Trim the stems from the mushrooms, scrape out the gills, and gently wipe the mushroom caps with a damp cloth. Cut the mushroom caps into 1/2-inch-wide strips.
Combine the bread crumbs, cheese, pepper, salt and thyme in a shallow dish. Place the flour and eggs in separate shallow dishes. Toss the mushroom strips in the flour to coat evenly, then dip them into the eggs and roll them in the bread crumb mixture.
Heat about 1 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, place the breaded mushroom strips in the hot oil and cook on all sides until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a tray lined with paper towels. Serve hot with the aïoli.
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Delicious.
So I cut down this recipe a bit as I couldn't really eat 8 portobello mushrooms in a sitting, but boy, that would have been GREAT if I could! (Try doing one mushroom per serving/person)
The portobello fries were absolutely delicious- the crunchy exterior with the soft interior was perfect and the truffle aioli was insanely addicting!
I was at first a bit worried about the fact that I was frying these mushrooms and that they would turn out oily and greasy, but in fact it was just the opposite! Very light and airy, it was the perfect appetizer to the rest of my meal (ok I lie, I couldn't stop eating them and it turned out to be my main course). One thing I would suggest you look out for is the temperature of the oil (I lost some good pieces of 'fries' thanks to my oil being too hot/cold).
Nevertheless, I was the most excited about my aioli- I have never made aioli before and was very excited to be able to try this recipe out and make my own sauce! I definitely had some left over and plan to use them as a compliment to other appetizers (yum, I can't wait).
After making this recipe, I was pleasantly surprised to find out how easy this was and was even more impressed with myself! I remember thinking 'wow, did i really just make this?'. What a great recipe (and it's vegetarian friendly too!)
Thanks Chef Eric Ripert- I can't wait to try out Le Bernardin in the near future! If you can make something this simple taste this good, I can only imagine how amazing your dishes at Le Bernardin are!
Looking to impress yourself?- this is a must try!
Taste: 9.8
Difficulty: Moderate
Time: 30 minutes
