5 days Ago
Can we talk about flavor? Sometimes it’s simpler than we could ever imagine. I often feel this way about a tomato in August, a nectarine in the middle of summer, a pink grapefruit in winter. We’ve been at the most beautiful cabin in Glorieta celebrating my husband’s birthday.
The kitchen had so much natural light and beautiful surfaces, I couldn’t stop taking photos even though this recipe has only two ingredients. While combining brown butter and oyster sauce is nothing new, it is certainly notable and worthy of its own recipe. The story goes that in 1888, restaurateur Lee Kum Sheung forgot about a pot of oyster soup over the fire in southern China.
It reduced all the way down to the oyster sauce we know and love today. In Glorieta, we have been pretty much snacking most of the time on chips and salsa (and guac, of course), sparkling wine from Gruet and fresh fruit. But one night we pan-seared steaks, with sweet potatoes to go along on the side.
What could I make that would be so easy and full of flavor and require very little in terms of packing and number of ingredients? And here is how we got to this small but mighty recipe that’s not even a recipe. I like to think of it as a ratio: 1-to-1 brown butter and oyster sauce is all it takes. We smeared the concoction over roasted sweet potatoes and sprinkled them with chives.
It was out-of-this-world delightful. We also spread some over the tops of our steak for an impromptu steak sauce, and it worked really well. I would suggest keeping this baby in your pocket for a rainy day for noodles, chicken, vegetables, rice, etc.
Makes: 1⁄4 cup; total time: 10 minutes 3 tablespoons salted butter 3 tablespoons oyster sauce Preparation: In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the butter. Let the butter melt, foam and slowly cook until the solids float to the bottom of the pan and turn a golden brown. Let your nose guide you.
Your kitchen will smell like the most delicious bakery, and then you will know it’s done. You might be tempted to turn off the heat as soon as it starts turning a light golden brown. I would encourage you to take a deep breath and hold your ground.
Let it go a couple of shades darker. This is where the flavor lives. Turn off the heat and let this cool for around 5 minutes.
Whisk in the oyster sauce. It will look like caramel. Spread it over anything you want.
.
