Cocina de la Abuela—Grandma’s Kitchen

Savory chunks of lamb's liver and heart cooked in a sauce with wine. Simple and delicious.

La cocina de la abuela is a cuisine of aprovechamiento, of knowing how to take advantage of all food. How to turn leftovers into a tasty meal—today’s fried fish go into tomorrow’s fish soup. How to use all the parts of a butchered animal. How to feed a family with little means. To describe la cocina de la abuela we use words such as reconfortante, comfort food; de cuchara, spoon food; humilde, humble; casera or de hogar, home cooking; económico, thrifty; frugal. 

 I qualify as an abuela. So, last week, when presented with a bagful of lamb viscera—we had roasted one lamb and butchered another for the freezer—it seemed appropriate to cook like an abuela. 

While cooking with wine might seem unlikely in granny's kitchen, I can assure you that, in former times, a jug of wine was more likely to hand than fresh drinking water that had to be carried from a spring. In the pueblo kitchens where I cooked alongside various abuelas, that wine was usually a dry white wine from Montilla (Córdoba), somewhat in the style of fino Sherry. 

Potatoes, usually fried, were the thrifty abuela's addition to any meal. They extended a small quantity of meat to feed a large family. 

I started with two livers, two hearts, and four kidneys. I lost abuela points for frugality because I pitched out the lungs (pulmones). I remember eating them in a tapas bar years ago and did not much care for their texture. I never found the sweetbreads (mollejas). The tripe had been discarded when the animals were slaughtered. And, I never saw the heads, so no brains or tongue. 

Organ meats are highly perishable, best consumed very fresh. So, a day after the lamb-roasting party, I cooked off all the casquería, offal or “variety meats” in a day! 

Lamb kidneys in Sherry sauce go nicely with mashed potatoes.

Patatas fritas! Fries to go with the saucy liver and heart dish. 

Sliced liver, dusted with flour and fried in olive oil, still pink in the center. This is my preferred way to cook liver. I didn't even bother with onions, but served the liver accompanied by zeilouk, a spicy Moroccan dish of eggplant with onions. 

Lamb’s Liver and Heart in Granny’s Sauce

Asadurilla en Salsa de la Abuelita

Heart is a muscle, more like lean meat than it is like visceral liver. It can be sliced and quickly grilled or else cooked slowly until tender. Abuela probably would cook both the firm heart and delicate liver (and lungs, if using) all together. However, I added the tender liver to cook only a few minutes at the very end. 

Serves 6 (or, with potatoes, more).

2 pounds lamb hearts and liver

¼ tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped onion

¾ cup chopped red bell pepper

2 cloves chopped garlic

1 grated tomato

1/3 cup white wine

¾ cup meat or chicken stock

Salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

1 bay leaf

Sprig of thyme

Chopped parsley

Soak the hearts and livers separately in ice water to remove all traces of blood. Drain.

Cut the hearts and liver into bite-size pieces, discarding any hard bits and membrane. Keep the two meats separate. Pat dry.

Heat half the oil in a heavy skillet on medium-high. Fry the pieces of liver until lightly browned on all sides and skim them out. Brown the pieces of heart and remove to a separate plate.

Add the remaining oil. Sauté the onion, red pepper, and garlic until they are soft, 5 minutes, moderating the heat so they don’t brown. Add the tomato pulp, raise heat and cook until the liquid evaporates. Add the wine and cook off the alcohol. Add the stock. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed. Return the pieces of heart to the pan. Add the bay leaf and thyme. Simmer, covered, until the hearts are tender, 15 minutes. Add the pieces of liver and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve garnished with chopped parsley.

Lamb Kidneys with Sherry

Riñones al Jerez

Serves 4.

8 ounces clean lamb kidneys

Milk to soak the kidneys

2 teaspoons flour + more for dredging

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup finely chopped onions or shallots

1 ounce chopped bacon

4 ounces sliced mushrooms

2 cloves minced garlic

¼ cup dry Sherry

¾ cup meat or chicken stock

¼ cup peas

Pimentón (paprika)

Chopped parsley

Cut the kidneys in quarters, removing the kernel of fat in each. Place the kidneys in a small bowl and cover them with milk. Let them soak, covered and refrigerated, at least 1 hour. Drain them well and discard the milk. Dust the kidneys with flour that has been mixed with salt and pepper. 

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet on medium-high. Fry the kidneys quickly, turning them to lightly brown both sides. They do not need to cook through. Remove and reserve them.

Add the onions to the oil and sauté on medium 2 minutes. Add the bacon, mushrooms, and garlic. Drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. Sauté until mushrooms are browned, 4-5 minutes. Add the Sherry and cook off the alcohol. Stir in 2 teaspoons of flour. Add the stock and cook, stirring, until sauce is thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Return the kidneys to the pan and simmer them on medium-low until they are cooked through, 5 minutes. Add the peas. 

Serve the kidneys and sauce sprinkled with pimentón and parsley.

More recipes with offal:

Lamb Kidney Kebabs 

Lamb's Liver with Onion Sauce (Encebollado) 

Sweetbreads and Mushrooms in Sherry Sauce 

Sauteed Chicken Livers 

Tongue with Tomato-Sherry Sauce

Braised Pork Cheeks 

Slow-Cooked Pig's Feet

Andalusian Tripe Stew with Chickpeas

 

This cookbook explores the fascinating story of the deep and lasting influences that Islamic culture has left on modern Spanish cooking. 

Author and Spanish cooking expert Janet Mendel tells the story of the Moorish influence on Spanish cooking through 120 recipes and photographs for modern-day dishes, from salads and vegetables to fish, poultry and meat to sweets and pastries, that trace their heritage to foods served in medieval times.  (Hippocrene Books)    

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WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS, HAVE A PARTY

 These springtime lemons are of a variety (Real) that produces enormous fruits with thick skin and pith and juice that is not very acidic, though not quite sweet. Known in Málaga as cascarúo, they are traditionally sold by street vendors, peeled, quartered, and sprinkled with salt, to be eaten out of hand. They also can be chopped up into a gazpacho in place of tomatoes.

This tangy mix of lemons and radishes can be served as a salad or relish.

I picked the few remaining lemons on my tree, which is now in full, fragrant blossom. I cut up a large lemon to put into a kind of salad called mojete, adding radishes from the garden, and served it as a relish to accompany lamb roasted on a fire pit for my son Ben’s birthday bash. Tangy and crunchy, the lemon salad was perfect with pieces of succulent lamb stuffed in pita pockets. 

A whole lamb roasted on a fire pit with relishes to go with. From right to left, Mourad's spicy cilantro sauce with harissa; the mojete of lemons and radish; cucumber-yogurt tzatziki; Nick's chili oil; harissa; and garlicky slaw with pomegranate. Not pictured, zeilouk, a cumin-y Moroccan eggplant salad, and hummus plus pita pockets. 

Lemon Dunking Salad

Mojete de Limones Cascarúos

If using a cascarúo lemon, leave some of the white pith. It is not bitter. If substituting ordinary lemons, which are considerably more acidic than the cascarúos, add a teaspoon of honey or sugar to tame the tang. Serve the salad on lettuce accompanied by bread for dunking or as a relish to accompany roast meat or fish.

 

Serves 4 as a starter or 10 as relish

Cascarúo lemon

1-2 large lemons

6-8 small radishes

½ carrot

2 tablespoons chopped scallions

Chopped parsley

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

Lettuce (optional)

Bread to accompany

 

Garden radishes

Peel the lemon, slice it, and remove any seeds. Chop the lemon and place in a bowl with juice. Quarter and slice the radishes and add to the lemon. Cut the carrot in slivers and add to the lemon with the scallions and parsley. Stir in the oil and salt. Mix well. Allow the salad to stand 30 minutes before serving. If serving as individual salads, place lettuce on plates and divide salad between them. 

To make gazpacho with lemons, called zoque de limón, use this recipe for Peasant Gazpacho with No Tomatoes. Substitute chopped lemons for the cucumbers and add a teaspoon of pimentón (paprika).

The recipe for garlicky cabbage with caraway, croutons, and pomegranate can be found in my newest cookbook, Flavors of al-Andalus (see below for where to order), or see the blog post here. The slaw goes great with grilled foods. 

Here's a bonus recipe for lemons, from my book, Cooking from the Heart of Spain, Food of La Mancha (2006, WilliamMorrow, NY):

Lemon Salad with Shrimp

Moje de Limones

In Alcázar de San Juan, a town right in the middle of La Mancha, this salad is served as a lunchtime dish on fiesta days. It’s served in a big bowl with lots of bread for dipping into the tangy juices, a sort of dunking salad. The traditional lemon salad does not contain shrimp—that was my idea. 

Serves 4.

3 medium lemons

½ cup chopped scallion

½ cup pitted black olives, halved

¼ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

¼ pound peeled small shrimp

Lettuce or other salad greens for serving

Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro for garnish

Slice off both ends of the lemons. Set a lemon on end on a cutting board. With a sharp knife, slice down, removing both peel and pith in one cut. Turn the lemon and continue peeling it in this manner. Slice the lemon crosswise and discard any seeds. Chop the lemon. Repeat with the remaining 2 lemons. Put the chopped lemon in a bowl. Add the scallion, olives, salt, and eggs to the lemon. Stir in the oil. Let the salad stand for 1 hour.

Cook the shrimp in boiling salted water for 1 minute. Drain and rinse in cold water.

Line salad plates with lettuce leaves or other greens. Spoon the lemon mixture on top. Scatter the shrimp over the lemon. Garnish with cilantro and serve. 

More recipes with lemons:

Chef Dani García's Lemon Salad 

Lemon-Marinated Fried Fresh Anchovies 

Lemon-Roasted Chicken

Chicken Tagine with Fresh Lemons and Olives

Lemon Ice Cream in Lemon Shells 

Lemon Tonic Ice

Lemon Sangría with Botanicals

Herbal Lemonade

Me and the birthday boy, with lamb ready to serve to guests.  (For more about roasting the lamb, see last year's birthday post here.)

 

This cookbook explores the fascinating story of the deep and lasting influences that Islamic culture has left on modern Spanish cooking. 

Author and Spanish cooking expert Janet Mendel tells the story of the Moorish influence on Spanish cooking through 120 recipes and photographs for modern-day dishes, from salads and vegetables to fish, poultry and meat to sweets and pastries, that trace their heritage to foods served in medieval times.  (Hippocrene Books)    

 Order on IndiePubs (USA) 

Use PROMO CODE HIPPOCRENE40 for 40% off on all Hippocrene titles at IndiePubs online bookstore.

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Order on amazon.co.uk (UK)

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BRISKET IN MY BASKET

 

Pot-roasted brisket with vegetables.

I finally got my brisket, a cut of beef that is not readily available from Spanish butchers. I stumbled onto a specialty butcher and, yes! He pulled a whole brisket from his cold locker. I’m not sure why the supermarket butchers don’t sell it—perhaps it is a cut used for grinding into burger mix. The brisket, called pecho, or breast, is a boneless slab, about 3 inches thick, depending on the size of the animal. It needs long, slow cooking to make a tender pot roast. 

I bought half a whole brisket. Weighing about 3 pounds, it was cut from ternera, a word that means “veal,” but in Spain is actually young beef. A young animal lacks layers of fat which keep it juicy. My brisket pot-roasted in a slow oven for about 2 ½ hours and was wonderfully tender, but not juicy as I remember brisket in America. Next time I have a hankering for pot roast, perhaps I will special-order a brisket cut from a beefy retinto steer. (See this post for more about the retinto breed of cattle. )

My pot roast started out as a Passover dinner (not an authentic seder, as we had no matzah), had a second-coming at Easter, and finished as filling for tacos. 

For my brisket I borrowed from Sephardic recipes which often include a sweet ingredient, such as sweet wine, date syrup, or brown sugar. Here’s my version. If you’ve got a bigger piece of meat, increase the quantities and cooking time.

The slow-cooked meat is very tender, but, lacking fat, is not juicy. The savory pan juices add moisture.

Pot-Roasted Beef Brisket

Pecho de Ternera Asado 

Add vegetables to the pan with the meat, as desired. Remove them when tender. Once cooked, carrots can be seasoned and served alongside, room temperature or reheated. The cooking juices from the meat can be served straight from the pan or sieved; blended, or thickened with cornstarch or flour for gravy.

3 pounds beef brisket

1 teaspoon coarse salt

½ teaspoon black peppercorns

3 cloves garlic 

1 teaspoon pimentón de la Vera (smoked paprika)

3 tablespoons olive oil + additional for greasing the pan

1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar

1 red onion, sliced

1 medium tomato, peeled and chopped

¼ cup sweet wine, such as PX Sherry

1 cup chicken or beef stock, heated

1-2 bay leaves

4-6 pitted dates

Carrots, peeled

Potatoes, peeled

Chopped fresh parsley to serve

Place the piece of meat on a work surface. In a mortar crush the coarse salt with peppercorns, garlic, and pimentón. Stir in the oil and vinegar. Spread this mixture over the surface of the meat and allow it to come to room temperature.

Ready for the oven.

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Lightly oil a roasting pan, Dutch oven, or large cast iron skillet. Spread the sliced onion and chopped tomatoes in the pan and place the meat on top. Pour in the wine and hot meat stock. Add the bay leaves, dates and whole carrots. Cover the meat with a sheet of baking parchment that has been dampened and slightly crumpled, to facilitate fitting it around the meat. Cover the pan with foil and seal the edges. Place the pan in the oven for 20 minutes. 

Lower temperature to 300ºF. 

Continue roasting 40 minutes more. Remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil and parchment. If carrots are done, remove them. Add potatoes. Turn the meat over and baste with some of the pan juices. Add additional stock if pan seems dry. Cover again with parchment and foil and return the pan to the oven. Roast until the meat is fork-tender, about 1 ½ hours more, basting once or twice. 

Remove the brisket to a cutting board and allow to rest 10 minutes. Slice it fairly thinly. Discard bay leaves from the pan. The pan juices can be sieved, if desired. 

To serve, reheat the sliced meat in the pan juices. Serve with carrots and potatoes. Sprinkle with parsley. 

Pot-Roasted Spiced Carrots

Zanahorias Asadas con Especias

Add spices and olive oil to cooked carrots.

Here’s how to season those carrots that roasted with the meat. Add the spices and dressing and serve them room temperature or reheat, if desired.

Roasted Carrots

Dry ginger

Ground cumin

Raisins

Pine nuts

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Sherry vinegar

Harissa (Moroccan chile paste), optional

Pomegranate molasses (optional)

Chopped mint

Pot-roast whole, peeled carrots with the brisket. Remove them when tender. Cut them on the diagonal into 1 ½ -inch pieces. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with ginger, cumin, raisins, pine nuts. Add oil, salt, pepper, and vinegar. Add a little chile paste or pomegranate molasses, if desired. Serve room temperature sprinkled with mint.

More recipes for brisket/pot roast:

Pot-Roasted Beef Flank

Beef Pot Roast with Herbs

Sephardic Cocido with Brisket (Adafina)

Maragato Cocido with Brisket

Beef Stew with Artichokes

Larded Pork Pot Roast

Not Mom's Pot Roast (tuna)

 

This cookbook explores the fascinating story of the deep and lasting influences that Islamic culture has left on modern Spanish cooking. 

Author and Spanish cooking expert Janet Mendel tells the story of the Moorish influence on Spanish cooking through 120 recipes and photographs for modern-day dishes, from salads and vegetables to fish, poultry and meat to sweets and pastries, that trace their heritage to foods served in medieval times.  (Hippocrene Books)    

 Order on IndiePubs (USA) 

Use PROMO CODE HIPPOCRENE40 for 40% off on all Hippocrene titles at IndiePubs online bookstore.

***

Order on amazon (USA)

Order on amazon.es  (Spain)

Order on amazon.co.uk (UK)

Order on amazon.com.au (Australia)

(If you order on Amazon, please give my book a review!)

***

Order from Kitchen Arts & Letters

Order on ark.no (Norway)