In the kitchen: XO sauce and seasonal cucumbers
XO sauce. It’s the spicy seafood sauce that first originated in a Hong Kong hotel in the 1980s, and if you love it, you probably want to put it on everything. Food editor Amy Scattergood caught up with chef Sang Yoon, who’s been obsessed with the stuff for years; and, yes, he shares his recipe.
And while you may be able to find them year-round at the supermarket, even cucumbers have a season, and some of the best are just showing up at the farmers markets. We dug up some of our favorite recipes for you to enjoy.
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If you’re a fan of Beverly Hills Vietnamese institution Crustacean, perhaps you know about the new cookbook “An: To Eat.” Even if not, this is one cookbook you’ll want to add to your collection. We also chat with chef Eric Ripert about his new memoir, “32 Yolks.” It’s a highly personal look at the making of the chef. Finally, we leave you with one of our favorite recipes of the moment, chef Yotam Ottolenghi’s spicy Moroccan carrot salad.
Chef Sang Yoon’s XO sauce
XO sauce is an eclectic blend of ingredients named for a bottle of Cognac (the XO stands for “extra old”). Chef Sang Yoon has had a fascination -- perhaps more of an obsession -- with the condiment, and he’s spent years researching and trying to perfect his own version of the sauce. The recipe might come across as a little daunting -- it contains well over a dozen ingredients, a number of which can only be found at a Chinese market -- but try it once and you may find it’s one of those staples you’ll want to keep in the fridge at all times, whenever the need arises.
Cucumbers are in season. We have recipes
There’s so much more to cucumbers than the thick-skinned ones you find at the supermarkets. Take a trip to your local farmers market and select a bunch of small Persians, a large Armenian or two, or more varieties of cucumbers next time you’re looking for something different to use in the kitchen. We’ve compiled some of our favorite recipes, from more traditional salads and cold soups, to refreshing paletas, deep-fried and a liquid libation or two.
Recipes and stories from the An family kitchen
Helene An might be most famous for her Vietnamese restaurant Crustacean, but An and her daughters oversee five restaurants and a catering company. They can now add a cookbook to the mix. An and her daughter Jacqueline have released “An: To Eat,” which traces the family’s journey from Helene An’s aristocratic youth through the war in Vietnam and to San Francisco and Los Angeles. Beautifully photographed, the book weaves many of Crustacean’s recipes with the An family story. (Spoiler alert: You won’t find the recipe for the famous garlic noodles -- you’ll still have to go to the restaurant for those.)
An interview with chef Eric Ripert
One of the most respected chefs in the industry, Eric Ripert has helmed the kitchen at Le Bernardin in New York for the last 25 years. Of course, he’s also written numerous cookbooks and hosted an Emmy Award-winning cooking show, so it’s no surprise that he’s decided to write a memoir. From a tumultuous childhood to the influence of his mother’s cooking, it’s an engaging look into the life of this chef. Deputy Food Editor Jenn Harris interviews Ripert about his new book.
Have you tried Yotam Ottolenghi’s carrot salad recipe?
This salad looks deceptively simple. There are layers of flavor to be enjoyed in this recipe from British chef and cookbook author Yotam Ottolenghi. The recipe is adapted from his cookbook “Plenty,” and it’s one recipe we keep coming to again and again.
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