Ratatouille Strudel

Question

We often have strudel for a vegetarian lunch option. Today's strudel was Ratatouille Strudel. What is strudel and what are the nutritional facts?

Answer

Strudel isn't a single dish, it is a family of dishes.

I think that the origin is actually from the Otoman empire, the Austrohungarians appropriated the dish when they shared a border (but don't have a source handy). It is still very popular on the Balkans. (Older fiction translations there don't say anything about "meat pies", they always talk of "meat strudels").

A strudel is defined by its dough. It is like laminated pastry without the laminating. The dough is made from a very simple recipe, often only just flour and water. It has no leavening at all. It is rolled out like pizza dough, but much longer, until the whole sheet is transparent (maybe 1/3 mm thick). You may hear that this is phylo dough, but in the West, I've only seen phylo sheets which were thicker than that, and they were dried.

The sheet is then filled with anything you want to have in it. In Germany, sweet kinds made with apple or cherries are most popular. On the Balkans, you have the sweet ones too, but it is more popular with pumpkin, almost never cherry. There are also savoury kinds there, especially with spinach or with a mixture of eggs and feta. But as you see with your Ratatouille, you can put practically any filling in it.

A thickish strip of filling is put on the sheet of dough, and it is rolled like a very large crepe (a sheet can reach 80 cm in diameter). The filled dough sheets can be laid in a rectangular pan parallel to each other, but it is more traditional to form a spiral from the first one and place it in the middle of a round pan, then add to the spiral with the second one, etc. Therefore the word "strudel", which means "maelstrom". It is baked, and it is cut along the radii of the spiral for serving.

I can't give you any nutritional information on strudel, because there isn't that much dough in it. The majority of calories will come from the filling, and I have no idea what was in yours. It won't be possible to define it even for the ratatouille itself, because there are lots of variations for that, too.

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Advice on meat cuts for German rouladen

Question

I've been trying to figure out the best cut of beef to use for a German rouladen recipe. From the butcher and Google searches I've seen advice ranging from slicing flank steak (how would that work?) to pounding out a top round steak. (The final slice needs to be about 1/4 of an inch thick and 3+ by 6+ inches long and wide.)

Could someone suggest a cut of meat and a process for arriving at right kind of slice? (I would like to avoid pounding/tenderizing if possible.)

Answer

The meat for rouladen is cut from the upper part of the hind legs of the cow, or Oberschale.

You definitely don't pound rouladen; pounded meat tends to re-contract somewhat under heat, and this unacceptable in this case. I don't know how to cut it that way at home. In Germany, the butcher sells the meat pre-cut to the correct size. I guess that he "peels" it from the cut with a sharp knife. As far as I remember, it isn't cut across the grain like steaks. And it has to be very thin, from memory I would say that 1/7 inch thickness is normal. On this site, you can see some close-ups of the raw meat, maybe the butcher can recognize how to cut it from that. (Don't worry about the text, the recipe is far from traditional. I only gave it as a good illustration of the raw cuts).

Also, rouladen are supposed to be tender. If possible, get veal. If not, young bull's meat is better than the normal beef used for steaks.

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Where does the shape of pretzels come from?

Question

I wonder where the shape of pretzels originated.

My guesses:

1. The holes make it easy to put them on a stick or rope and store them in a place (under the roof?) where mice would not get it.
2. Originally the pretzel was a long thin stick, but it was impractical to transport. The pretzel shape provided stability to carry it around. It could be broken into smaller stick-like pieces and eaten.
3. It resembles some symbol.
4. Just for fun, because the kids liked it.

Answer

According to the Wikipedia article, the following is a likely story (or something similar to it, anyway) but may not be exactly right:

The very beginning of this youtube video of Alton Brown's Good Eats explains it rather well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZR_evWiDbY

Essentially, it was created by a monk as a reward for children who did their daily prayers. The shape looks somewhat like a person folding their arms across their chest, which is an older way to pray.

There is also the possibility that the loops make it practical to hang on sticks, more for display than for keeping the food safe.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretzel

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What can I cook for Indian guests without trying to mimic Indian cuisine?

Question

I am raised in Belgium, with the Belgian cuisine related to the French and (to a much lesser extent) the German. I'm having Indian friends over for dinner and I don't know what to cook for them.

Last time I had an Indian friend, I tried to cook something authentic, the way my grandma would have prepared it: lots of veggies, with very little spices and not too salty. It was not a hit. Indian people are used to very spicy food (compared to Europeans).

I don't want to try to mimic the Indian cuisine in front of Indian people. That won't work. But I still want to prepare something that they will like, based on our local culture. Can you give me any suggestions?

Answer

If Belgian food is anything like the Dutch food my Oma made, your best bet is to limit it to the dessert course and strike out in a different direction. Even there, throwing in an extra pinch of salt and a little fresh ginger or cardamom powder may help liven it up for your friends.

One area where you'll both be happy: Mediterranean/Middle-Eastern fare. If you pick a recipe with plenty of aromatic herbs and spices, and maybe yogurt, it'll have the rich flavors your friends are used to. However, they won't be the same dishes they have at home, so they can't compare unfavorably to their mom or auntie's cooking. Flatbreads, kebabs, braised lamb, goat, yogurt sauces... these will be familiar elements, but by using Mediterranean or Middle-Eastern versions, you'll give them a taste of the exotic too.

Using South or Central American cuisine will have similar results; dishes rich in pungent chilis, cumin, and coriander will combine elements of comfort food with something new. Indian chapatis and naan (flatbreads) are very similar to homemade tortillas. It goes without saying that beef is to be avoided. Depending on what part of Indian your guests are from, coconut milk and tamarind paste may be other familiar elements to play with.

Portugal also has a fine tradition of spicy foods, including the Vin d'alho which Indian adapted into the now-familiar vindaloo.

If you don't feel comfortable with these cuisines, you might do Indian, but with a fusion twist. I found that Saag Paneer with blocks of feta instead of paneer is absolutely divine. Halloumi cheese might work well too. In fact, I'd say it's better than the original dish.

A word on dietary restrictions: Presumably you know your friends' dietary needs, but if they're bringing new acquaintances it is wise to give some thought to dietary restrictions. Many Indians are Hindus, who do not eat beef, and another major fraction are Muslim. Muslims follow a dietary law called halal, which is very similar to kosher law, and likewise excludes pork and animal blood. It also excludes alcohol... which means a spicy tamarind-port pork marinade isn't viable. A sizable part of the Indian population is also vegetarian, so any meal should include a vegetarian entree.

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