Fred Eric's new restaurant is Airstream, 9601 Santa Monica Blvd in Beverly Hills. Fred '62, his 24 hour diner, is located at 1850 N Vermont Ave in Los Feliz and Vida restaurant is at 1930 Hillhurst Ave in Los Angeles.
Corn-No-Dog-Kitty Custard
1/8 pound chopped onions
1/4 pound corn off the cob
1 stick butter
2 quarts heavy cream
8 egg yolks
Salt and white pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Saute onions in butter over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add corn and saute for another 4 minutes. Whisk in the cream and cook for 30 minutes over low heat, stirring frequently. Place in blender or food processor and blend to a puree. Add one yolk slowly, to temper. Add remaining yolks and process, just to combine. Bake in a large pan, placed in a water bath for about 40 minutes, until the custard is set.
Mark Bittman is the author of "How to Cook Everything" published by MacMillan and the new "The Minimalist Cooks at Home" published by Broadway Books.
Lemongrass Ginger Soup with Chicken
2 cups skinless, boneless chicken, cubed
6 cups good chicken stock
3 lemongrass stalks
4 nickel-sized slices fresh ginger
3 to 4 small hot chiles, minced, optional
2 tablespoons nam pla (fish sauce) or to taste
6 to 8 ounces roughly chopped oyster mushrooms (or button or shitakes)
2 tsp minced lime leaves or lime zest
Juice of 1 limes
1/4 cup minced cilantro leaves
1. Heat the stock over medium heat. Trim two of the lemongrass stalks of their toughest outer layers, then bruise them with the back of a knife; cut them into sections nnd add them with the back of a knife; cut them into sections and add them to the stock with the ginger and about 1/4th of the minced chiles. Simmer for about 15 minutes, longer if you have the time.
2. Peel all of the hard layers off the remaining stalks of lemongrass and mince its tender inner core.
3. Remove the lemongrass and ginger. Add the chicken and sautee until cooked through, about 5-10 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the nam pla and the chopped mushrooms. Taste the broth and add more chiles if you like, as well as some salt if necessary. In the bottom of each of four warmed bowls, sprinkle a little chile, lime leaves or zest, lime juice, cilantro, and minced lemongrass.
4. Ladle the soup into bowls and add a teaspoon of nam pla to each bowl. Serve piping hot.
Zarela Martinez is the author of "Zarela's Veracruz: Cooking and Culture in Mexico's Tropical Melting Pot" by Houghton Mifflin. Find out more at: www.zarela.com
Pesacado en Chile Limon
Fish w/ Fresh Lime and Chile Dressing
You can pan fry, broil or grill the fish and omit the butter in this recipe.
Fresh Lime and Chile Dressing (below)
3 pound fish, such as red snappe, grouper, sea bass, or Pacific rockfish, scaled and cleaned
1 1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tsp butter, cut into several pieces
Make the chile-lime sauce and keep it warm.
Rinse the fish, inside and out, under cold running water, being sure to remove all traces of blood and gills. Blot thoroughly dry, inside and out. Lightly sprinkle the cavity and skin with the salt.
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until rippling. Add the fish and cook, turning several times with two spatulas or a fish turner, until light golden and nearly firm to the touch, about 10 minutes.
Holding the fish in place and with a spatula, carefully drain off most of the fat from the pan. Pour the chile-lime sauce over the fish and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the butter and swirl the pan so it melts into the sauce. Serve at once with the sauce spooned over.
Chile Limon Dressing
6 - 8 medium tomatillos, husks removed (about 8 ounces), rinsed
2 tsp salt, or to taste
2 jalapeno or serrano chiles, stemmed and seeded
4 garlic cloves
1/2 small white onion, coarsely chopped
8 cilantro sprigs
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4- 1/2 cup cold water
Place the tomatillos in a small saucepan with a pinch of salt. Cover with water, bring to a boil, and cook over medium heat until they change color, about 5 minutes. Drain and let cool to room temperature.
If you are using a blender, simply process all he ingredients together, very slowly adding enough water to thin the sauce to a slightly soupy consistency. If making the sauce by hand, first coarsely chop the chiles and garlic, then pound them to a rough paste with about 2 tsp salt, using a mortar and pestle. Add the other ingredients and grind to form a chunky sauce; thin with water as necessary.
Carol Guber is the author of "Carol Guber's Type 2 Diabetes Life Plan: Take Charge, Take Care and Feel Better Than Ever" published by Broadway Books.