Yes, spring is here in Portland, but hanging-on cloudy days have me clamoring for earth tones. I’ve always preferred muted earth tones and rich jewel tones, and even though I should be eating piles of sweet green pea tendrils and fennel bulbs, I don’t mind the bruise of burgundy from my cellar’s last beets.
My fat of choice these days is either butter or lard, depending; this succotash of corn, edamame, green peppers and beets called for warm bacon fat and a sprinkle of homemade Pinot Noir vinegar. Homemade vinegar (from the old French vinaigre, meaning “sour wine”) is as simple as leaving the cork off an old bottle and screening out the fruit flies. If I’m not crazy about something I’ve opened, I let it run its course and invite the aigre to the vin.
Here’s what to do: spoon some of the bacon fat from that big jar you keep by the stove into a hot cast iron skillet. Saute a bit of diced onion until glossy and fragrant. Toss in some diced peppers, cubed roasted beets, frozen corn and edamame. Favas would be nice, too, if you could stand to blanch and peel enough (I couldn’t). Add a pinch of salt and pepper, and a bit of fresh thyme. When everything’s warmed through and al dente, add another little blob of bacon fat and a few dribs of red wine vinegar (homemade or not) to dress it.
This melange of textures and varying levels of sweetness is, like its southern cousin, a perfect partner to a pork chop, say, or a warm wedge of buttered cornbread drizzled with wildflower honey. I ate mine with chicken andouille and a crispy grit cake topped with melted sharp cheddar.
Suffer-free succotash, perfect for any season.
This is a gorgeous dish! Sounds like a great recipe, however, it’s the vinegar I’m more interested in…really, just let the wine sit out and keep the fruit flies away? Nothing more? I have about 3/4 of a bottle of merlot in my fridge that I just can’t throw away, but don’t like it for drinking…is that doable?
Rose – You can use vinegar mother from the bottom of a bottle of apple cider vinegar to get things going, but I’ve had perfectly fine results by just leaving a bottle of red wine open on the counter. You can just drape a coffee filter over the top to keep flies out. Too little air won’t work, and too much won’t either. It’s like the wine bottle is a built-in vinegar factory!
What a gorgeous blend of ingredients and flavours. And nothing beats good bacon fat. It never occurred to me to make vinegar like that! Doh! (Thanks for the tip)
I love peeling fava beans! It’s one of my favourite things. This looks delicious.
I like your style! You had me with beets and bacon fat. I’m easy that way.
I don’t know why I always think of “suffering succotash” whenver I find a recipe, must remind me of my childhhood cartoons in more ways than one. It does look good!
Peter, Darling – It’s better to use sour wine for something than for nothing.
Alicia – I have to be in the mood for peeling the favas. I bought frozen ones that just went all mushy when I tried to peel.
Linda – You and me both, sister. Easy like Sunday morning.
Val – Don’t you mean, “thufferin’ thuccotash”?
Bacon fat is the ultimate fat – except for maybe duck fat.
I’ve been suffering from non-spring-like weather all spring, so those spring dishes elude me as well. This looks like a pretty dish that would have made me feel just right when the endless spring rains descended on me.
Do you really have a cellar?
Sort of – I have an unfinished basement that has steps that go outside. I want to make something more proper in the covered stairway, but usually just use the basement or my unheated laundry room.
That works! My great-aunt had a real old-fashioned cellar in Eureka, Nevada. Dug right into the side of a hill, with dirt floors, walls, and ceilings. I loved going down in there. It was filled with jars of weird things on shelves and big wooden crates filled with onions, apples, and potatoes.