Clay pot cooking – Page 5 – Experiments in my New World Kitchen and Garden

Cooking with Clay No. 13: A Cazuela from Rancho de la Virgen in Oaxaca

I wrote about this pot when I had just returned from a trip to Oaxaca last year. The potters come from Rancho de la Virgen, near the city of Pinotepa Nacional, not too far from the border of Guerrero.

This pot in particular has become a favorite. I don't know exactly why, but I've declared it my quelites pot. Quelites can be described as edible greens but mostly they refer to lamb's quarters. Technically, purslane and spinach would be quelites as well. I use this pot for everything from swiss chard to dandelion greens.

My way with greens:
Normally I use chard as it's always available, cheap and delicious.
I start the pan on low and let it heat through, about five minutes. Then I add olive oil (most Mexicans would disagree but I love it, especially with vegetables), chopped white onions, a clove or two of garlic and a minced serranos, seeds included. I saute these until soft. If I have a good but not great tomato, I'll chop that up and add it as well. (Great tomatoes are for salad in my house.) Don't forget the salt.

Once the base (is this a type of sofrito?) is cooked, I add the very roughly chopped, wet greens. They always start out high and seems too big for the pot but as they cook down, they fit just right. Chard cooks quickly and takes just minutes. Kale takes a little longer. I like some texture and dislike when they've cooked to a slimy mess.
It's not traditional, but this mass tastes great stuffed into an excellent corn tortilla. It you're feeling a little needy, add some fresh mozerella or Oaxacan cheese but it's really not needed.

The pot is very light (especially in comparison to chamba or the great pots we import from Los Reyes Metzontla) which means it's more fragile but it heats up faster. Rancho de la Virgen is known for it's well-made pots, made without kilns. This is a coastal style of pottery and I'm just itching to get some more.

Cooking With Clay No. 12 Postscript

Leftover risotto made the perfect bed for some leftover quelites.

Quelites were made with onion, garlic, manzano chile, chopped tomato and some olive oil.My Italian friends would not be happy ("Che schifo!") but I loved the spicy greens with the mild, creamy risotto.

Cooking With Clay No. 12: Italian Risotto Pot

Years ago I bought this pot and was erroneously told it was a bean pot from France. It turns out it's a risotto pot from Italy. It's also used for beans but clearly it's a great vehicle for risotto. The design in very clever. There's a huge opening on the top to encourage evaporation and there are rounded sides to help your wooden spoon continually bath the rice in caldo.

Shrimp were on sale at our local Whole Foods. It says they were farmed and I've heard it's pretty rough on the environment but I meekly assumed that Whole Foods would make sure it was a sustainable operation. Was I foolish? I really love my shrimp and want desperately to believe there's a green way for me to get my fill.

I peeled raw shrimp and made a stock out of the shells and tails with celery and onion. I sauteed the raw shrimp with butter, Olive oil and garlic.

I followed Marcella Hazan's basic risotto recipe and made good use of my slave labor, who stirred and fussed for the 25 minutes it took to make the delicious grain.

Once the risotto was cooked, we added more butter and grated parma cheese.

We took Marcella's advice (always a wise thing to do) and spread the risotto over the plate to allow it to cool a wee but and then scooped the shrimp on top. It smelled grand but looked a little anemic so we added a touch of thyme. I would have used parsley if we'd had it but this was actually perfect.

I was nuts for it. And I think I'll incorporate more risotto into my life. It wasn't as hard as I'd thought and it turns out I have the perfect clay pot for it. And I'm thinking it might be fun to team up risotto with some more Mexican or indigenous ingredients.

You can get a pot like this, or one very similar, at BRAM cookware.

Cooking With Clay No. 11: The Red Clay of San Marcos Tlapazola, Oaxaca

In the big market at Oaxaca, in the clay cookware area, you will find a stand featuring beautiful red clay cookware. It comes from a village called San Marcos Tlapazola, or more commonly, San Marcos. I think I first encountered it in Half Moon Bay, California, believe it or not. I loved the clay comales and bought 6 of them, not knowing if I'd ever see them again.

I've looked for the pieces over the years and finally found my way to San Marcos with my pals Gabriel and Yunuen. It was very hot and dusty and when we arrived in town, there was barely a soul. In the center, we found a young woman selling a particularly nasty gruel made from the flowers of the cacao plant. I guess you could get used to it and call it a treat but it wasn't my favorite thing.

This seemed to amuse Gabriel!

We later made our ways to the clay makers and it was incredible. The women live in a large compound and everything seemed dedicated to their red clay.

It was one of the many times that I cursed having to fly and not having a car or truck to bring back my treasures. Each woman had her own showroom and they were all very distinct. I was only interested in cookware and there was plenty.

We of course had to ask about beans and they of course grew them, in this case Negro Delgados. I love Mexico.

I already had comales so I bought a cazuela and a beanpot and the señora threw in a few extra pieces. It was going to be a difficult trip home but worth it.

After we left, Gabriel went into the local mini-mart and asked if they had mezcal. What a question! The merchant poured his into an empty Sprite bottle and we left, only now the sleepy town was wide awake and we were being gestured into door after door to try their hootch! Gabriel bought several different kinds, and it's really amazing how different they all taste and yet they're all mezcal.

Back home, I couldn't wait to try out my pieces. They leaked the white "powder" or dust or whatever it is that you see in the photo and it seems to increase with time. They become less red and more brown. And they cook a little hot compared to other clay pots. I've burned things in them and that's a real rare thing from my experiments with clay cooking. I don't like them for beans but for chile sauces, moles and the like, they can't be beat. And the high heat makes the comal perfect for heating tortillas.

Before you ask, let me tell you that we aren't importing these pieces. The store in Half Moon Bay has closed and the only place I know to find them is in Oaxaca, easily in the mercado but I think a field trip to San Marcos is warranted if you love clay pot cooking.

Chamba Pots: Cooking with Clay No. 10

I recently moved and facing the reality of how many clay pots I own has been humbling. How is it possible I have so many? I'm going through my collection (see? I can justify things if they're a collection. It's not hoarding!) to see what stays and what goes down in the basement. A few less than stellar pieces will become pots for plants.

One of the easiest types of clay to love is Chamba. It's from Colombia and Chile with the better ones coming from Colombia.

Like all good clay pots, they change and improve with use and age. The bottoms and areas exposed to flame turn back to red. It's just as dramatic and I think it looks great, almost like an old whale's skin, having seen lots of action and adventure.

The photos show the soup pot, which is fine for beans but there are dozens of other styles and sizes like comales and cazuelas.

I have a lot of these pieces, and almost all have come from La Toque Blanche in Half Moon Bay. They are the experts and have the best selection that I've found.

Grinding Chiles with Clay

I've seen these clay bowls with lines before and I knew they were some kind of mortar. In Hidalgo and Oaxaca, they seem to be called molcajetes, just like their volcanic rock cousins. I've also seen them called chilmoleras, which makes more sense (chiles and molinar).

In Muñoz' Diccionario Enciclopedico de Gastronomia Mexicana, he suggests it's especially useful for the classic Yucatan dish chilmole.

The issue is what to use for the pestle! I have a wooden pestle from a Spanish mortar and pestle set that I'll try out.

Playing with Fire: Polenta and Beans from the Fireplace

It’s been freezing here in the Napa Valley and the fireplace has been very busy. My Inner Puritan can’t enjoy the fireplace without thinking I’m not worthy and I should at least find another use for the flames.

I’d made the Good Mother Stallard Beans the night before. I just added some garlic, onion, and olive oil to the bean and water and put the clay pot on top of the wood-burning stove. As the fire dwindled, I put the pot inside, resting on the embers.

Last night, as I was about to go to bed, I remembered polenta. I used three cups of water and 1 cup of polenta with a dab of butter. I whisked them together until somewhat combined and the placed the pot, with lid, in the embers.

The photo makes it look like a roaring blaze but the fire was on its way out.

In the morning, as I was drinking my piloncillo and canela sweetened coffee, it dawned on me that I had made the polenta. This is what I was greeted with:

The polenta had solidified into a cake and pulled away easily from the sides of the pot.

I think I could have added more liquid, reheated and made a warm, indulgent mush but I thought it would be more fun to heat the wedge and smother it with the Good Mother Stallards.

What a great breakfast! I added a wee touch of grated dry cheese (OK, a ton of it.)

Carnivores could add some bacon, pancetta or even leftover roast chicken but this was perfectly swell and I’d eat again in a heartbeat.

Beans Cooked in a HUGE Clay pot and a Caja China

Friends invited me over to a party to celebrate their new Caja China and the roasting of a whole pig. Rich did all kinds of research and dutifully prepared the pig according to the instructions and other comments on the internet. I decided the party deserved beans so I cooked them in a huge clay pot. I started 8 pounds at home and cooked them on the stovetop with onions, garlic, olive oil and salt. When they were just shy of being perfect, I shut off the gas and went to the party.

The beanpot on fire performed beautifully and everyone agreed they were swell beans. (Good Mother Stallard, for the record.) The Caja China however did quite perform up to par. Hours and hours went by and the pig still wasn’t done. I had to leave when the night came and my friends were still laughing and drinking and enjoying beans with no pork.

Clay Pots from Rancherita de la Virgen, Oaxaca

These pots were found in the Pinotepa Nacional mercado. These are the pots that Diana Kennedy features in her seminal book Oaxaca al Gusto for the dish El Cabio on page 137.

I should have bought the specific pot for that dish but I fell in love with a cazuela and an olla and could barely carry those back. It's amazing how little airline and airline security people care about hand carrying clay pots!

These pots were very light in weight. The real appeal is how they look and I assume they'll only look better over time. There's no glaze so there's no worry about lead.

The first thing I did when I got home was to cure them by filling them up with water and then adding some garlic cloves, chopped in half. I set them on a low flame and let the water evaoprate all day until they were nearly dry. I discarded the garlic, rinsed with water and the wiped with olive oil. Most Mexican chefs would rather use manteca, or lard, but for me the olive oil is more practical.

We aren't even considering importing these. I love them, as I do most of my clay pieces, but we've got too much on our plates right now. I think you should tour Oaxaca and find them at the mercado, too!

I Am an Infidel

How can I be faithful to my Poblano beanpot when Bram comes along and produces this gorgeous little number in Egypt? All the perfumes of Araby cannot hide the stench of my betrayal! I've been using it weekly since it arrived.

Just over two quarts, it's fine for a pound but perfect for half a pound of heirloom beans. It has a nice stable bottom and a much more finished look than our regular "rustic" pot. There's no glaze and of course no worries about lead. You can check out this gem here and you tell me if I'm wrong for being just a little smitten with this new pot. I promise to return to my old favorites, sooner or later.