It Took A Community For The Good Fork

Sohui Kim and Ben Schneider, co-owners of The Good Fork in Red Hook, join us to talk about their new cookbook, The Good Fork Cookbook. Kim, the chef at The Good Fork, combines Korean and American styles in her dishes. They'll also discuss how the restaurant was destroyed during Superstorm Sandy, and the local community's efforts to help them rebuild it.

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 Check out two recipes from The Good Fork Cookbook below!

Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Waffles

Serves 8

This was the second dish I knew I wanted for our brunch menu. We also do a Korean-style fried chicken that’s dusted in cornstarch, but this is a classic, straight-up Southern approach- and who can resist perfectly fried chicken, especially with a waffle, at breakfast? A really good buttermilk fried chicken takes time: My friend, former cook and now farmer Patty Gentry, told me years ago that a proper fried chicken takes three days: one to salt it, one to soak it in seasoned buttermilk to really infuse the flavors, and one to fry it. We condense it to two steps at The Good Fork. It takes less time, but I think the three-day method can give you rubbery meat if you over salt the bird. I serve this with some freshly macerated berries and dust the plate with a little bit of powdered sugar. Even on the fried chicken it’s good; trust me!

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CHICKEN:

8 chicken thighs, trimmed of extra fat

8 chicken drumsticks

1-2 cups buttermilk

2 tbsp kosher salt

1tbsp Tabasco sauce

2 quarts vegetable oil

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

½ tsp paprika

Generous pinch cayenne

FOR THE WAFFLES:

1 tbsp active dry yeast

½ cup lukewarm water

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

2 cups milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp sugar

2 tsp salt

2 large eggs, beaten

1 ½ tsp baking powder

Maple syrup, fresh berries, and powdered sugar for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. The night before you plan to fry the chicken, mix the buttermilk, salt, and Tabasco in a large nonreactive bowl or container, then add the chicken. It should be nearly submerged. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Make the waffles: in a large bowl, mix the yeast with the water and let it stand while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Turn off the heat and add the milk. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt.
3. By now, the yeast should have produced a few bubbles. (If not, the water might have been too hot or the yeast was not active, and you’ll need to start with fresh yeast.) Add the milk mixture and flour mixture to the bowl with the yeast, and whisk just to combine- you want a few lumps. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it stand at room temperature for 2 hours, or until it has grown in size and is very bubbly. (You can refrigerate the batter overnight before continuing on to the next step; just let it come back to room temperature before using.)
4. Make the chicken: in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat until the temperature reaches 350°F (175°C) to 370°F (190°C) – you will want to keep within that range as you fry the chicken. Set a wire rack in a baking sheet or line it with paper towels.
5. Meanwhile, in a colander over the sink, drain the chicken. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, pepper, cayenne, and paprika. Toss each piece of chicken in the seasoned flour and let it dry on a wire rack or a plate for 10 minutes. Keep the extra flour mixture.
6. When the oil is hot enough and the chicken has rested, dredge the chicken pieces again in the remaining flour mixture and tap gently to shake off any excess.
7. Cook the thighs in batches so they do not crowd the pan, until they are dark golden brown, about 10 minutes. Then cook the drumsticks in batches until they are dark golden brown, about 9 minutes. Remove the chicken with tongs or a slotted spoon and drain it on the wire rack. Let the chicken rest for at least 5 minutes before serving, or keep it in the oven on warm while you make the waffles.
8. Once the waffle batter has risen, whisk in the eggs and baking powder. Cook the batter in a waffle iron according to the maker’s instructions.
9. Serve the chicken on top of the waffles, garnished with maple syrup and fresh berries, and a generous dusting of powdered sugar.

Pork Shoyu Ramen
Serves 8

When our neighborhood was struggling after Hurricane Sandy, I decided to put ramen on the menu to get people down to Red Hook. Ramen wasn’t as easy to find back then, but diners were already crazed for it, and it was a cold winter. What happened instead was that it lured the locals, who were looking for something different in the ‘hood. Now we call our weekly Wednesday ramen night “community night.” It takes some time to make the broth—it’s a two-day project—but it is well worth it.

*TIP You can use any ramen noodles, dried or fresh, but this would also work with somen noodles or even regular dried pasta in a pinch. We get our fresh ramen from Sun Noodle.

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE BROTH:

1 pig trotter

2 tbsp canola or grapeseed oil

1 small onion, skin on and quartered

1 medium carrot, cut into large chunks

1 (2-inch) piece fresh ginger

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 head garlic, cloves peeled and bundled in cheesecloth

1 bunch scallions

1 pound chicken wings

½ rack spareribs (4-5 ribs)

1 handful dried shiitake mushrooms

2 tsp kosher salt

FOR THE ROAST PORK BUTT:

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp kosher salt

1 pork butt (3-4 lbs)

FOR THE MENMA (BAMBOO SHOOTS):

8 ounces canned bamboo shoots, drained

3 tbsp soy sauce

¼ cup mirin

 2 tbsp sake

1 tbsp plus 1 tsp sugar

FOR THE TARE (SEASONING):

⅓ cup soy sauce

¼ cup mirin

¼ cup sake

FOR THE FINISHED DISH:

4 large eggs

1 pound (455g) fresh ramen or Chinese wheat noodles

8 heads baby bok choy, blanched

½ bunch scallions, sliced on the bias

DIRECTIONS

1. The day before you plan to serve the ramen, blanch the trotter: place the trotter in a large pot with water to cover, bring it to a boil, then turn off the heat and pour off the water.
2. Meanwhile, in a 10- to 12-quart stockpot, heat the oil over medium-low heat and cook the onion, carrot, and ginger until the onion is translucent. Add the tomato paste and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the bundles garlic and the scallions, then the blanched trotter, wings, spareribs, and mushrooms, along with 8 quarts (7.5L) water and the salt. Cover and bring to a boil. Adjust the heat to cook at a brisk simmer, loosely covered, for 6 hours.
3. Cool, then strain out the solids and remove the garlic from the cheesecloth. In a blender, puree the garlic with a little broth, then add this back to the rest of the broth for extra body and flavor. Cool and refrigerate the broth.
4. Make the pork butt: preheat the oven to 300°F.
5. Mix the sugar and salt, and rub it all over the meat. Roast for 3 hours, or until the internal temperature is between 180-190°F and the cartilage and fat has melted. Let cool and refrigerate until ready to serve.
6. Make the menma: In a small saucepan, combine the bamboo shoots, soy sauce, mirin, sake, and sugar. Bring them to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, or until the sauce is thick and syrupy. Set aside.
7. Cook the eggs by bringing a pot of water to a boil and preparing a pot or bowl of ice-cold water on the side. Gently lower the eggs in the boiling water, reduce the heat to a low simmer, and cook for 7 minutes. Remove from pot and shock in ice-cold water bath. Remove from ice bath; peel the eggs, cut them in half, and set them aside.
8. Cook the noodles: briefly blanch fresh noodles in a large pot of boiling water and set them aside, or cook dried pasta according to package directions.
9. To compose the ramen, add 1 ½ cups hot broth to each bowl. Add the noodles, bok choy, scallions, and menma, top with a soft-boiled egg half and slice of pork butt. Serve immediately.