On Demand
Cooking in a Small Kitchen with Melissa Clark
For Part III of our Food in the City series, we’ll be discussing the tricks of cooking in a small kitchen, with food writer Melissa Clark, a frequent contributor to the Wednesday food section of The New York Times and NYTimes.com.
Watch a video of Melissa cooking in a tiny kitchen here.
A Recipe from Melissa Clark
Garlicky Shrimp with Feta and Lemon
Time: 10 minutes
3/4 cup couscous
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon boiling water
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 pound extra-large shrimp, shelled and cleaned
1/3 cup feta, crumbled
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1-2 tablespoons capers, to taste
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (or dill, parsley or basil), plus additional for garnish
1. Place the couscous in a medium bowl. And add the boiling water. Cover with a clean dish towel and let sit until the couscous has absorbed all the water, 3 to 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper, stirring, and cook until garlic is fragrant and golden around the edges but not brown, about 1 minute. Stir in the shrimp and let cook until they begin to turn pink, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the feta, lemon juice, capers, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Continue stirring over the heat until the shrimp are opaque and the cheese begins to melt, about 2 minutes more. Add the cilantro and stir to combine.
3. Top the couscous with the shrimp, making sure to scrape all the sauce from the pan. Serve garnished with additional cilantro, if desired.
Yield: 2 to 3 servings
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What an interesting subject! I read in Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan's "Apt. Therapy" - he lived in a ridiculously small space in the west village - that he thinks the important thing about a kitchen is the triangle between fridge, sink, range. I grew up in a big house with a kitchen as big as my 1st (1 BR) Manhattan apt (incl its dysfunctional kitchen) - lots of counter space - to make messes in! It was half a mile to the fridge! Then I lived in the Alps with a galley kitchen and that's where i learned that a small kitchen makes an efficient cook.
PS I'm a big fan of the very untrendy wall full of pans and utensils in my current galley kitchen. Really helpful. Also an idea from Ikea was a drawer for spice jars lain on their sides.
Excited to hear Melissa Clark today, i LOVE her column in the Times! She approaches the mundane, daily task of cooking and eating creatively, guided rationally and adventurously, by what's on hand, and what she's in the mood for.
And based on the photos from Lenny's pancake-making tutorial (in what looks to be a small NYC kitchen), i am sure he is very interested in hearing what she has to say...
Using my dining room table to hold dishes of prepped food waiting to be cooked helps me minimize used counter space while cooking.
The key is having no clutter. I have only four pots & pans, 1 Large frying pan with steep sides (saute, frying, paellas, etc.) 1 large pressure cooker which I use with or without pressure (soups, beans, braising, pastas), 1 well seasoned egg pan, & 1 covered pot for veggies or plain rice. My counter is empty but for a cutting board and a blender (need it for Margaritas) and 1 small set of plates, glasses and flatware (for 4). With the above mentioned I can cook anything! for up to four people, which is maximum occupancy in my apartment. hope this helps,
Luis Damian Guell
If there's a window on your kitchen, use fire escape to temporarily store hot pots
I guess the author has never tried to make Hummas in a blender.
For some years, my late grandmother had no kitchen, just a tiny kitchenette with a 2-burner hotplate. By stacking and juggling pots, she once turned out a delicious multi-course meal for 13.
Melissa- is there a cookbook that features not only small NYC kitchens, but also what is available in NYC's local greenmarkets from season to season?
I love my electric kettle. Everyone in the rest of the world uses them, I do not know why they have not caught on more in the U.S.
I use my postage scale for baking.
I used to live in the East Village and had a shower in the kitchen. I used the shower as storage for dirty pots and pans when throwing a large party.
These days I use the bathtub for a standing coat rack when hosting a large party.
Another great way to save space: magnetic spice containers. I saved half a cabinet of space by sticking my spices to the side of my fridge.
Second use for the microwave...you can use it to store your bread
avanti has a counter top convection oven with 2 burners on top:
http://wize.com/toaster-ovens/p195931-avanti-tfl-15
forget the microwave a pressure cooker is an essential item in a big or small kitchen to increase efficiency & save time
Over 35 years ago, I lived in an old building in Woodside, Queens that had a tiny kitchen. It had a sink with a drain board, a stove, a small fridge. No counters, no drawers. No money. But there was enough space for a two drawer file cabinet that I just happened to have. Viola! Counter top and storage.
I used to eat a lot of peanut butter sandwiches back then. Life is much kinder now, kitchen-wise! I can identify, Melissa, and best of luck on new book.
i have a ceiling fan that helps for ventilation
Please aks your guest how to clean wooden cutting board.
Thanks
what do you think of non stick pans...are they safe. I hate cleaning up after scrambled eggs!
I couldn't live without my food processor! I need it for pesto and other sauces (like peanut sauce for noodles). Also, it's great for cutting butter into flour for pie/tart/quiche dough. And I've also found that it works better than my blender for making fruit smoothies. I get tons of use out of it.
Melissa guest spoke as if a plastic cutting board is more sanitary than a wooden one. This seems obvious... but it is proven wrong!
Plastic retains germs and wood doesn't!
Strange but true.
I was excited to look for the book you recommended by Page and Dornenburg but didn't find it, even on their own website-- They have "What to drink with what" but not "What to eat with what"(?) which I think was mentioned. Anyone know what it was?
The Lopate Show responds: The book that Leonard mentioned is called "The Flavor Bible."
Plexi/plastic cutting boards cannot be adequatedly disinfected. It's been shown that the micro cuts in the board don't allow adequate cleaning. And, wooden cutting boards have been shown to have some "natural" bacteriocidal activity, presumably from the oils in the wood. So, although 25 years ago the recommendation was to switch to plexi cutting boards, within the past 10 years the evidence contradicts that.
If you have a window in your kitchen, use a square fan, put it on the windowsill and put it on reverse. It sucks all the air out. No more fire alarms going off or the whole apt smelling of dinner :)
Melissa spoke as if a plastic cutting board is more sanitary than a wooden one. This seems obvious... but it is proven wrong!
Plastic retains germs and wood doesn't!
Strange but true.
avanti has a counter top convection oven with 2 burners on top:
http://wize.com/toaster-ovens/p195931-avanti-tfl-15
I had to write in because I just walked in the door and heard information I believe to be incorrect because of hearing a different author interviewed on the show. On pp. 118-119 of Organic Housekeeping, Ellen Sandbeck cites a study that proves wooden cutting boards kill way more germs, naturally, than plastic or glass, no matter how hot you get them. I googled this info and got these two relevant links, too.
http://www.chefknivestogo.com/woodvsplascu.html
http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/5-2-2006-95011.asp
what is the herb book mentionedon this show?
The Lopate Show responds: The book that Leonard mentioned is "The Flavor Bible" by Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg
about cookware:
sloped sided pans are called skillets or fry pans depending on the mfgr,and are measured in inches
straight sided pans are called saute pans and come with a lid and are measured in quart sizes; 2 qt, 3qt, 6qt,
straight sided sauce pans w/lids are measured in qt, sizes from 1qt, 2 qt 3qt, 4qt - larger straight sided pots are called stock pots also w/lids and measured in qt sizes 4qt, 6qt, 8qt, 16qt.
www.cookwithaloha.com
We do 80 plus for Thanksgiving from our 6x6 triangle - keys to success - accept what the kitchen is and is not - prep is key - that's also the secret to the effortless production of food in commercial restaurants - always remember that if you can't laugh it isn't worth it - you gear your food for the space - we have largest oven for a residential stove - but I know that my top burners are not going to crank out the BTUs necessary to make black bean pancakes -
For Janet, comment 23, I'm pretty sure the book they meant was The Flavor Bible by the same authors. Check it out.
about blenders vs, food processors:
most average blenders are not powerful enough to do the same tasks as a food processor does...however, if you invest in a very powerful blender such as the Vita-Mix Professional you can make hummus, basil and other pestos, pureeing cooked soup vegetables for a smooth "creamy" soup texture easily.
Not to mention blended cocktails...my recipe for a cocktail is included in the recipe book included with the Professional series blender.
www.cookwith.aloha.com
this recipe rocks! was inspired to make it tonight and it was quick, easy, cheap, and very delicious. exactly what a small kitchen recipe should be.
I have a very powerful window fan which I installed at the top of my window to suck out hot air in the summer as well as cooking fumes all year round. If I burn something in the kitchen, the smoke is gone in seconds.
http://www.hammacher.com/publish/60161.asp
Great Recipie
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