{"id":3678,"date":"2012-02-01T09:16:55","date_gmt":"2012-02-01T17:16:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/?p=3678"},"modified":"2012-02-01T09:33:37","modified_gmt":"2012-02-01T17:33:37","slug":"stein-diego","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/2012\/02\/01\/stein-diego\/","title":{"rendered":"Plates & Pints: Stein Diego"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

This article appears on pages 6 and 8 of the February 2011\u00a0issue<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

STEIN DIEGO<\/strong> —\u00a0Underground supper club provides innovative methods for cooking with beer<\/p>\n

They don’t have a web presence, they don’t Tweet and few people even know they exist. But, given their masterful use of craft beer as a key ingredient in forward-thinking cuisine, it’s time for Stein Diego to get a mention in this column.<\/p>\n

The casual yet serious group of recreational gastronomes won\u2019t share their identities due to an overflow of interest in a club that, due to capacity issues, has been closed for some time. It consists of members drawn from all corners of the local craft beer scene, from brewers to brewing company staffers, ingredient suppliers, bar employees, chefs and even media. Since 2010, the supper club has been meeting every few months for multi-course beer-pairing banquets where each member contributes one or several dishes built around a central theme.<\/p>\n

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Lo mai gai. Photo: Kristina Blake, see more at secretsofthebelly.blogspot.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Last month, they tackled brunch, and like Super Bowl-bound defensive players stuffing the opposition, they brought it big time.<\/p>\n

One dish, a take on the Cantonese, lo mai gai<\/em>, was inspired by dim sum brunches on Convoy Street. Prepared with four extremely different beers to create one cohesive dish, the flavors of each individual brew still came through on their own.<\/p>\n

Traditional lo mai gai<\/em> is a combination of chicken and rice wrapped in a lotus leaf and steamed. The Stein Diego version swapped chicken for succulent pork belly that was for braised three hours in a spicy-sweet, double IPA marinade.<\/p>\n

A combination of glutinous white rice (and black for texture) was used to hold the dish together. The white rice was cooked in a mixture of water and wheat beer, while the black got a dose of Aecht Schlenkerla doppelbock. This smoked beer was also used, along with soy sauce and sriracha, to plump up dried shiitake mushrooms. The 30-minute soak produced some of the meatiest tasting mushrooms I\u2019ve had in some time.<\/p>\n

Homemade Chinese-style sausages with ground shrimp, home-made chorizo and a blend of brown sugar, soy, sake and AleSmith Wee Heavy were added a flavorful punch, along with a sunny-side-up quail egg garnish.<\/p>\n

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Beer chicken with beer waffles and baked corn. Photo: Kristina Blake, see more at secretsofthebelly.blogspot.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another dish used Ballast Point Navigator Doppelbock for a savory version of chicken and waffles. Its creator took his mother\u2019s Pennsylvania-Dutch recipe as a base and added the beer to a giblet-infused gravy. It was also used in the buttermilk waffle batter.<\/p>\n

Chicken was then grilled, revealing the most impressive cooking-with-beer-trick of the night. The bird was mounted on the center of an angel food cake pan, surrounded by beer. The juices from the chicken to drip into the pan and mix with the beer, which was later incorporated into the gravy.<\/p>\n

Stein Diego dishes utilize more than just beer. Fresh Cascade hops-infused butter was used to fry eggs for a Creole-inspired take on the classic Italian dish, Eggs in Purgatory. This gave the eggs a bitter zing that cut through the dish\u2019s spicy elements that included a traditional sauce piquant (pepper-infused, stewed tomato sauce), spiced crawfish tails and a fried risotto cake with shredded blackened chicken, Andouille sausage, crawfish fat and amber ale. The dish was topped with an intense, spicy reduction of Worcestershire sauce and homebrewed porter.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Eggs in purgatory, Creole style. Photo: Kristina Blake, see more at secretsofthebelly.blogspot.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Whether you’re looking to dazzle members of your own supper club or just experiment with beer as an ingredient for your own enjoyment, a couple of the components of Stein Diego\u2019s latest brunch-themed meal are included in print. For more recipes highlighted in this article, click the “Read more” button below.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Lo Mai Gai – Lotus Leaves Wraps stuffed with Sticky Beer Rice, with Chinese-Style Shrimp Sausage & Fried Quail Eggs\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Yield: 4 servings<\/span><\/span>
\n2 Tbsp canola oil
\n<\/span>1 medium onion, diced
\n<\/span>5 cloves garlic, diced
\n<\/span>Pork Belly (recipe in print)
\n<\/span>Glutinous Rices (recipe follows)
\n<\/span>1 Tbsp oyster sauce
\n<\/span>1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
\n<\/span>1 Tbsp soy sauce
\n<\/span>1 Tbsp sriracha
\n<\/span>salt and black pepper to taste
\n<\/span>4 lotus leaves, cut in half and moistened in a large bowl of hot water for 15 minutes
\n<\/span>Rehydrated Shiitake Mushrooms (recipe follows)
\n<\/span>Chinese-Style Shrimp Sausages (recipe in print), sliced \u00bd-inch thick on the bias
\n<\/span>4 quail eggs
\n<\/span>– Prepare a stove-top steamer.
\n<\/span>– Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Add the onion and garlic and stir-fry until golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the pork belly and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the rice, oyster sauce, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce and sriracha and fry hard for 5 minutes to bring everything together. Season with salt and pepper, remove from heat and set aside.
\n<\/span>– Place a handful of the rice mixture in the middle of a lotus leaf. Place a mushroom and the slicings from 1 sausage atop the rice. Repeat the process with the remaining lotus leaves. Wrap the leaves, folding the bottom sides up over rice, tightly pulling the sides around and folding them over like burritos.
\n<\/span>– Steam the stuffed leaves for about 15 minutes. While the leaves are steaming, cook the quail eggs sunny side up in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Remove the leaves from the steamer and the eggs from the skillet and keep warm.
\n<\/span>– To serve, place a bundle on a plate and open it. Tuck the leaf under the package and top with a quail egg. Serve immediately.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Glutinous Rice
\n<\/strong><\/span>1 cup glutinous rice
\n<\/span>3 cups water
\n<\/span>\u00bd cup wheat beer
\n<\/span>2 garlic clove, finely diced
\n<\/span>1 cup black rice
\n<\/span>1 cup smoked beer (preferably Aecht Schlenkerla doppelbock or Ballast Point Abandon ship)<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

– Combine the glutinous rice, water, wheat beer and garlic and cook in a rice cooker according to manufacturer\u2019s instructions, or simmer, covered, in a small pot over medium-low heat until tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
\n<\/span>– Combine the black rice, remaining water, garlic and the smoked beer in a small pot and cover. Cook over med low heat for about 25 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Rehydrated Shiitake Mushrooms
\n<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/span>4 dried shitake mushrooms
\n<\/span>\u00bd cup smoked beer
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp soy sauce
\n<\/span>1 tsp sriracha<\/span><\/p>\n

– Place the mushrooms in a small bowl. Combine the beer, soy sauce and sriracha in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil. Remove from heat and pour the mixture over the mushrooms. Let stand for 30 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and remove the stems.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCreole Eggs in Purgatory\u201d –\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/span>Hop Butter-Fried Eggs with Jambalaya Risotto Cakes, Crawfish, Sauce Piquant & Worcestershire Porter Reduction<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Yield: 12 servings
\n<\/span><\/span>8 cups chicken stock
\n<\/span>\u00bd cup tomato sauce
\n<\/span>\u00bc tsp Worcestershire sauce
\n<\/span>4 Tbsp olive oil
\n<\/span>2 cups andouille sausage, finely diced
\n<\/span>2 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp Creole seasoning
\n<\/span>salt to taste
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp crawfish fat
\n<\/span>\u00bd cup yellow onion, finely diced
\n<\/span>\u00bc cup red bell pepper, finely diced
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp celery, peeled and finely diced
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp garlic, minced
\n<\/span>1 cup amber ale
\n<\/span>3 cups Arborio rice
\n<\/span>4 cups Sauce Piquant (recipe follows)
\n<\/span>\u00bc cup Hop Butter (recipe in print)
\n<\/span>12 large eggs
\n<\/span>freshly cracked pepper to taste
\n<\/span>vegetable oil for frying
\n<\/span>Wondra flour
\n<\/span>\u00bd pound crawfish tail meat
\n<\/span>\u00bc cup Worcestershire Porter Reduction (recipe follows)<\/span><\/p>\n

– Combine the stock, tomato sauce and Worcestershire sauce in a pot over medium-low heat and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.
\n<\/span>– Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the andouille and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the andouille using a slotted spoon and set aside. Season the chicken with 1 teaspoon of the Creole seasoning and salt and add to the pot. Cook until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside. Add the crawfish fat, onion, bell pepper and celery to the pot, season with 1 teaspoon of the Creole seasoning and salt and cook until soft and tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the ale, bring it to a boil and cook until reduced by two-thirds. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Use a ladle to add 1 cup of liquid to the mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Repeat the process until the rice is cooked through, 25 to 30 minutes, being careful not to overcook the rice. If more liquid is required, add additional stock, being sure to warm it before adding it to the rice. Chop up the chicken into small pieces and fold it, along with the sausage, into the risotto. Transfer the risotto to a greased 13 by 9 inch baking dish, making sure it\u2019s layered evenly. Let cool to room temperature, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
\n<\/span>– Remove the dish from the refrigerator, uncover and use a 3-inch ring mold to cut out 12 round risotto cakes. Set aside and let the cakes return to room temperature.
\n<\/span>– Warm the sauce in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.
\n<\/span>– Preheat oven to 200<\/span><\/span>\u00b0<\/span><\/span> F. Place 2 oven-safe plates in the oven. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Crack the eggs into the skillet, season with salt and pepper, and fry until the whites are fully cooked, being careful not to overcook the yolk, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the eggs to one of the plates in the oven and keep warm. Dredge the cakes in flour and place in the skillet, adding extra butter if necessary. Fry until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes on each side. Remove from the skillet and place on the remaining plate in the oven to keep warm.
\n<\/span><\/span>– Heat the remaining oil in a saut\u00e9 pan over medium-high heat. Season the crawfish tails with the remaining Creole seasoning and add to the pan. Saut\u00e9 for 1 minute. Remove from the pan, drain on a plate lined with paper towels and season with salt.
\n<\/span>– To serve, spoon a ladleful of the sauce on the center of a bowl. Lay a risotto cake atop the sauce. Top the cake with a fried egg and spoon the reduction atop the egg. Arrange several crawfish tails around the cakes and serve immediately.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sauce Piquant
\n<\/span><\/span><\/span>2 Tbsp olive oil
\n<\/span>\u00bd cup yellow onion, diced
\n<\/span>\u00bc cup red bell pepper, seeded and diced
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp jalape\u00f1o pepper, seeded and diced
\n<\/span>salt to taste
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp garlic, minced
\n<\/span>2 tsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
\n<\/span>1 tsp dried oregano, ground
\n<\/span>2 bay leaves
\n<\/span>2 cups Roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
\n<\/span>2 cups chicken stock
\n<\/span>\u00bc tsp haba\u00f1ero or ghost pepper-based hot sauce
\n<\/span>\u00bc tsp freshly ground pepper
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp unsalted butter<\/span><\/p>\n

– Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper and jalape\u00f1o, season with salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes. Add the garlic, thyme, oregano and bay leaves and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, stock, hot sauce and pepper and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl of a blender or food processor and pulse until smooth. Return the mixture to the saucepan. Reduce heat to low and stir in the butter. Serve or keep warm on low heat.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPennsylvania Dutch Beer Chicken & Waffles\u201d –\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/span>Beer Chicken with Beer Waffles (recipes in print) & Baked Corn (below)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Baked Corn
\n<\/span><\/span><\/span>2 cups corn kernels
\n<\/span>1 cup milk
\n<\/span>2 eggs
\n<\/span>3 Tbsp raw sugar
\n<\/span>2 Tbsp unsalted butter
\n<\/span>1\u00bd Tbsp all-purpose flour
\n<\/span>1 tsp salt
\n<\/span>dash pepper<\/span><\/p>\n

Preheat oven to 375<\/span><\/span>\u00b0<\/span><\/span> F.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Combine the corn and milk in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the kernels are coarsely chopped. Add the remaining ingredients and pulse until fully incorporated. Transfer the mixture to 6 greased 3-inch oven-safe ramekins. Transfer to the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article appears on pages 6 and 8 of the February 2011\u00a0issue.\u00a0 STEIN DIEGO —\u00a0Underground supper club provides innovative methods for cooking with beer They don’t have a web presence, they don’t Tweet and few people even know they exist. But, given their masterful use of craft beer as a key ingredient in forward-thinking cuisine, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[590],"class_list":{"0":"post-3678","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-san-diego-beer-beverage-news","7":"tag-stein-diego","8":"entry","9":"has-post-thumbnail"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","wps_subtitle":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pdtr4y-Xk","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3678\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/archives.csusm.edu\/westcoastersd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}