Chef Dave Pasternack’s south bay oysters on THE Dish
Dave Pasternack has been dubbed "the fish whisperer" by The New York Times, and Anthony Bourdain has called him "a pathological fisherman."
Those are very handy monikers for the chef/partner of one of New York City's most celebrated seafood institutions, ESCA, as well as the newly opened Italian seafood trattoria, Barchetta, which is located in the Chelsea area of New York City.
Pasternack joined "CBS This Morning: Saturday" to serve up his ultimate meal: south bay oysters with cocktail sauce.
Dave's ultimate meal: One dozen great south bay oysters with cocktail sauce
Cocktail sauce
1/2 cup of ketchup
3 tablespoons grated fresh horseradish
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 fresh chile, minced
Braised greens
(from Dave Pasternack - these greens prove once again that everything goes better with bacon. Hey, sometime you need a side order of pork to get your iron intake.)
Serves 4
6 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch lardoons
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
4 bunches assorted greens (broccoli rabe, escarole, swiss chard, kale), rinsed, spun dry and stemmed
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons high-quality extra-virgin olive oil, to finish
Instructions
1. In a straight-sided sauté pan with a tight-fitting lid, cook the pancetta over a medium flame until browned, about 4 minutes.
2. Spoon all but 2 tablespoons of fat out of the pan, then add the 1/4 cup olive oil and garlic to the pancetta.
3. Cook until the garlic is softened, about 3 minutes. Add the greens and use tongs to toss, coating them with the olive oil and shrinking their volume significantly. Season with the salt and some freshly ground pepper.
4. Add about 1/4 cup water to the pan, then cover. Cook the greens until tender, about 20 minutes. Stir frequently and add a bit more water as necessary-there should always be about 1/2 inch liquid in the bottom of the pan.
5. As the greens become tender, remove the lid and let the liquid evaporate so the greens are moist but not wet. With a slotted spoon, transfer the cooked greens to a serving bowl and toss with the 2 tablespoons high-quality extra-virgin olive oil. Serve immediately.
Linguine with clams, pancetta and red pepper flakes
Serves 4
1 pound dried linguine
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus high-quality extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
6 ounces pancetta, cut into thin strips
8 mild dried red chiles (such as italian finger hots), whole
2 3/4 pounds clams (mahogany or littlenecks, about 48 total), scrubbed clean
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 cup clam stock or lobster stock (recipe follows) or pasta cooking water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to finish
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more to finish
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
Instructions
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the linguine and cook for 1 minutes less than the box directions (al dente-the pasta should still have bit to it).
2. Drain in a colander, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid if not using the clam stock. Toss the pasta in the colander with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and set aside.
3. Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a 6-quart pot or dutch oven with a lid over medium-high flame. Add the garlic and pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic begins to take on color, about 4 minutes.
4. Add the chiles and the clams, cover the pot, and cook until the clams begin to open, about 2 1/2 minutes. Then add the wine and the clam or lobster stock, or reserved pasta water (it should bubble when it hits the pan), and replace the lid.
5. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes more, checking to see when all of the clams have opened (discard any that don't). Add the pasta and season with the 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper. Add the red pepper flakes. Add the parsley, toss gently to combine, and cook for an additional minute or so to thoroughly reheat the linguine.
6. Divide among four bowls, being sure to distribute the clams equally. Drizzle each bowl with a high-quality extra-virgin olive oil, a sprinkling of crunchy sea salt, and some freshly ground black pepper.
Clam stock or lobster stock
Makes 1 quart
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 shallots, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 sprig thyme
4 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
3 parsley stems
1 2/3 cup dry white wine
4 pounds or chowder clams or 4 lobster bodies
Instructions
1. Over a medium-low flame, heat the olive oil in a 4-quart pot.
2. Add the shallots and cook slowly until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the thyme, peppercorns, bay leaf, parsley stems, and white wine. Raise the flame to high, bring to a boil, and cook until the liquid reduces by half, about 7 minutes.
3. Add the clams and enough water to completely cover them, about 1 quart. Bring to a boil, reduce the flame to medium, and cover. Simmer until all the clams have opened, about 6 minutes. (discard any clams that don't open.)
4. Strain the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve and discard the solids. Let the stock cool to room temperature before refrigerating. Clam or lobster stock can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, or frozen.
Ribeye for two with anchovy sauce
One-in ribeye steak between 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick, charred rare
4 italian salted anchovies, soaked and rinsed
2 branches oregano, picked
1 clove crushed garlic
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
1. Use a mortar and pestle to crush the anchovies with the oregano and garlic and make a paste.
2. Whisk in the vinegar, olive oil and lots of black pepper.
3. Spoon sauce over grilled steak.
Flourless chocolate cake with tequila cream
8oz butter
12oz chocolate
1/2 grapefruit, zested
2 earl grey tea bags
1c sugar, divided
1/2c water
5 eggs
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees and grease and line a 10 inch round cake pan.
2. In a small sauce pot, combine 3/4 cup sugar, zest, tea bags, salt and water. Heat until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat and allow to steep.
3. In a second sauce pot, combine butter and chocolate. Over low heat, melt together.
4. While chocolate is melting, whip eggs and remaining 1/4 cup sugar and vanilla until quadrupled in size.
5. Strain syrup into chocolate mixture (taking care to remove all zest).
6. On low speed, pour chocolate mixture into eggs. Mix until just combined.
Pour into prepared cake tin. Place cake into a water bath and bake 25min or
Until a cake tester comes out relatively clean, with some crumbs.
Remove from water bath, and chill completely, preferably overnight. To serve,
Cut with a warm, sharp knife. Place on plate and allow to come to room
Temperature before serving. Garnish with tequila cream and peppercorns.
Tequila cream
1 quart heavy cream
Zest of one grapefruit
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 teaspoon tequila, preferably añejo
1/4 cup sugar
Pinch salt
Instructions
1. Steep cream with grapefruit, vanilla and tequila for 1 hour.
2. Strain into mixing bowl.
3. Add sugar and salt and whip to soft peaks