MH wrote:

"Bob Pastorio" wrote in message
...

MH wrote:

This is a great recipe, not much fat or simple carbs and a ton of
flavor. And it's easy to make.
From Jacques Pepin's Techniques

I'm reading the recipe from his book called "La Methode." You've
shortened the cooking time.

No, I didn't. It reads the way I wrote it in the book I took it from. I
typed what he wrote.

Interesting, then, how he changed the recipe over time and in
different editions.

In "La Methode," he calls for the onion to be sautéed for a few
seconds before adding the other ingredients. And then, after adding
the remaining ingredients, he says to *bring it to a boil* and then
simmer for 10 minutes. By not bringing it to a boil, 5 to 8 minutes of
cooking time is cut out.

I can't imagine that Jacques Pepin said in any of his books that
demi-glace is "beef stock that has been reduced by simmering at a low
temperature for a few hours." That's a reduction, not demi-glace.
Demi-glace is a reduction of Sauce Espagnole and beef stock together
and is a world different than merely reduced stock.

I know what a demi-glace is, but since this isn't a cooking ng, I didn't
want to bore anyone.

Understand. But you also have to know that substituting a simple stock
for demi rather significantly changes the dish. I'd rather tell the
whole story and let diners choose how they wanted to make it.

The instruction about adding beef stock instead of demi-glace isn't in
the version of the recipe I see and it surprises me. Demi-glace is a
very rich, intensely-flavored sauce. Beef stock isn't. Adding less of
the less-rich addition seems to defeat the notion of creating intense
flavor.

I was trying to make it an "easy" recipe. Since this is asd and not a
cooking ng, I wanted to give people some alternatives to a labor-intensive
recipe that most would never want to try.

There's no way for you to know this, but I'm a chef and food writer. I
appreciate the intent to make it easy, but I think it's a disservice
to simplify it to the point that the depth of flavor is minimized and
the full appeal is diluted. A better substitution would have been some
sort of gravy or other sauce. The stock-for-demi substitution weakens
the dish.

Or change it more and essentially create a different dish.

Man, you're crabby.

Nah. Not crabby. Just rather fussy about good food. Trying to keep it
accurate and in the spirit of the original. Save the namecalling for
somebody else.

But thanks for offering a chance for people to try an enjoyable dish.

Pastorio