FOOD VENTURE: THE PURPLE PIG CHICAGO

THE PURPLE PIG CHICAGO CHEESE, SWINE AND WINE
500 North Michigan Ave.
Chicago, IL 60611
312-464-1-PIG (744)

* Mediterranean inspired dishes.
       -We like the food. I highly recommend the Pig's Ears with Crispy Kale and the Razor Clams with Oregano, Lemon and Olive Oil. For the dessert i liked the Bread Pudding with Marsala and citrus with caramel sauce. Yum!
     
* Small Plates - Tapas style so you can share...good for two per plate.

* Communal Tables - I didn't like the set up. Place is too small, i hope they will soon expand their floor area.

* Service - It took us more than an hour before we got seated. Wait staff were not friendly at all, it seems like they were just doing their job sans compassion.


*I will definitely be coming back when i'm in Chicago but this time i will make sure to come earlier.  And hope the wait staff will be friendly and accommodating next time.

Potato and Speck Croquette with Calabrian Chili Aioli

These were good.

Prosciutto Bread Balls

It was okay but will not order these again. I will try something else

Lingua Agrodolce

Wow...oh by the way Lingua means tongue Agrodolce is a type of sauce, agro (sour/acidic) often balsamic mixed with dolce (sweet) sugar.

Testa, in Italian means head...self explanatory right? ;)
It was surprisingly delicious...not fatty at all.

Milk Braised Pork Shoulder with Mashed Potatoes

Melts in your mouth goodness.

Pig's Tails Braised in Balsamic
I like this too.

Razor Clams with Oregano, Lemon and Olive Oil

One of our favorite dish. I will definitely order this again.

Scallop Spiedini with Chickpea Aioli

Yum!!!! but didn't get the idea of the bay leaf skewered in between the scallops.

Pig's ear with Crispy Kale, Pickled Cherry Peppers and Fried Egg

My no. 1 favorite I liked this so much i had to make this at home well my own version tho' ;)
Crispy Pig's Ears with Crispy Kale and Hot Peppers

I love their water vessel

Affogato

(Espresso over Toasted Cinnamon Soft Serve)

Bread Pudding with Marsala and Citrus

(Caramel Sauce and Whipped Cream)

My favorite among the desserts we ordered.

Panino con Nutella

(A Sweet Sandwich Filled with a Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, Marshmallow Cream & Bananas)

This was my least... this is so easy to make at home.

Sicilian Iris
(Ricotta and Chocolate Chip Filled Fried Brioche)

CRISPY PIG'S EARS, CRISPY KALE, PICKLED HOT PEPPERS WITH FRIED EGG

My take on a popular dish at THE PURPLE PIG CHICAGO. I liked it, okay who am i kidding...i love it,  i have to recreate it at home. I don't have their recipe. Totally  based this dish on taste which i like to do...i love to challenge myself. I'm happy to say that this is close enough  that's why i'm sharing.

"Simple yet sophisticated" is the best way to describe this dish. Well, that is if you're a pig lover like me ;)

THE ORIGINAL DISH BY THE PURPLE PIG CHICAGO: 

PIG'S EAR WITH CRISPY KALE, PICKLED CHERRY PEPPERS AND FRIED EGG

Another ingredient that i now love is fried kale. OMG why!! why!!! didn't i discover fried kale before! We love fried kale so much, it's sort of a staple now...so good! you guys must give it a try if you  haven't already.

Wash, cut and pat dry really well before frying, Believe you me...i learned my lesson. 

Frying will only take few minutes, sprinkle with a pinch of salt as soon as you take them out of the oil.

Pigs ear can be purchased at Asian stores but believe it or not our regular grocery stores are now selling offal. I actually bought these from Meijer.

Wash and boil/cook the pig ears w/ soy sauce, star anise (optional), garlic, salt and pepper until tender. Add water if needed.

Pat dry the cooked pig ears then slice thinly (julienne). Deep fry until brown and crispy. (FAIR WARNING....YOU MUST HAVE THE SPLATTER  SCREEN READY)

Assemble the dish. Arrange the fried kale, then the pickled peppers (i used pickled banana peppers). Top w/ crispy pig's ears .

Drizzle with reduced balsamic vinegar then top with OE eggs.
Yum!!!

GAI HOR BAI TOEY (Fried Marinated Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves)

Recipe adapted from Chef Surapol Sri-Aim

We love this dish but i make this only on special occasion or when i crave for some. Making this is time consuming but the good thing w/ this dish you can make a lot and freeze the rest.

Pandan Leaves for those who aren't familiar with pandan, this can be used for both savory and sweet dishes. It's floral with a hint of citrus. I love the smell of pandan leaves.

Serves 8

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 lbs. Chicken legs, boneless, cut into chunks
2 T soy sauce
2 T Oyster sauce
2 T Knorr Seasoning *
2 T Catsup
1 T Sesame Oil
1 T Chinese wine/ White wine or Rice wine
2 T sugar
1 T Milk
1 T garlic minced
1/4 C cilantro roots (cilantro leaves and stalk are good)
1 T white pepper
8 to 10 pcs. Pandan leaves to wrap the chicken
Oil for frying
For sauce : soy sauce and chili sauce

 PROCEDURE:

Mix all ingredients except the chicken pieces and the pandan leaves. Pulse the ingredients in your food processor until ingredients are mixed and pureed.

Marinate chicken with sauce mixture for an hour or so in the refrigerator.

Wash pandan leaves. Start wrapping the chicken.

Steam the wrapped chicken for at least 30 minutes then deep fry for few minutes or until brown.

*The leaves aren't edible so discard the leaves before eating.

 Serve with sauce. My sauce is a mixture of soy sauce and chili sauce.

Pandan Leaves can be purchased at Asian stores. I wish i could buy fresh.

The following are steps on how to wrap the chicken.

These are now ready for the steamer.

I'm not sure what this gadget is called but it's very important to have this especially when you steam dishes a lot like me. ;)

If you know what this gadget is called...pls. let me know. And thank you ;) But for now i'll call it a plate lifter.

Fried Marinated Chicken Wrapped in Pandan Leaves.

CHICKEN BEAN CURD ROLL (DIM SUM STYLE)

Dim Sum, is what i call the Chinese version to the French's hors d'oeuvre and the Spanish tapas. These are dishes served bite sizes or small portions often served on small bamboo steamers or stainless steel steamers. The "bad" thing for this style of food, Chinese Dim sum are only served from 11:00 a.m. until 3 p.m. so if you crave for dim sum at night...too bad!

So...that's why i'm sharing with you this recipe. These can be kept in the fridge for 4 days. But really, they don't last the following day every time i make them.

Also, don't be deceived by how long this recipe is. It's easy believe me. The only issue that one might have a problem is... finding the dried bean curd sheets. These are available at your Asian stores but  i've been seeing celebrity chefs using  them, so i'm pretty sure it will soon be available at the Oriental aisle of  any grocery stores anytime soon.

This dish needs a steamer but you can use a wok or frying pan if you don't have a steamer.

Chicken Bean Curd Rolls served with soy sauce, chili oil dip.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. chicken leg quarters*
5 pcs. Shitake mushrooms (soaked in water to rehydrate)*
1 medium sweet onions (julienne)
1 small can bamboo shoots (thinly sliced)*
For Marinade:
2 T sesame oil
3 T oyster sauce
3 T soy sauce
1 T ShaoXing wine (Chinese wine or Dry sherry)
2 T cornstarch
1  C chicken stock or water (store bought chicken stock or broth will do)*
*For chicken stock:
Chicken bones
2 Stalks of celery (chopped)
1 small onion (chopped)
2 pcs. Carrots (chopped)
6 C water

Preparation:
Step 1:
 - Clean and debone chicken leg quarters. Cut to bite sizes. Set aside.
- Discard the skin or save them for later use, like crispy skin. Save the bones to make your stock.
- On a pot, add water, bones, chopped celery, chopped onions, and chopped carrots.
- Bring to a boil for an hour. Set aside and let it cool. If you have extra stock save them for other use like soup.

Step 2:
- Mix all the marinade ingredients. Pour half of the mixture into the chicken and let it marinate for 30 minutes inside the refrigerator. Half of the marinade will be used later.

Step 3:
- While the chicken stock is cooling and the chicken meat are marinating, start heating up your steamer.
- Drain the soaked mushroom, discard the stems and thinly slice the mushroom cups.
- Julienne the onions.
- If you are using fresh bamboo shoots like I did, thinly slice them. Using a little of the chicken stock, Cook/ boil them until tender. Skip this step if using canned bamboo shoots. They are already tender.

Step 4:
- Now that everything are sliced and prepared, start soaking your bean curd in lukewarm water for few seconds. When it starts to soften, gingerly take the sheets out and lay them on a chopping board.
- Using a pair of scissors cut the bean curd sheets into 3- crosswise.
- Assemble your chicken roll by putting a piece of chicken, 2 pieces of mushrooms, 2 pieces of bamboo shoots, and some slices of the onions on the middle bottom part of the bean curd sheets. Roll and tuck and fold in both sides like you would a burrito.
- Place them on a deep dessert plate or on a pie plate seam side down.
- Repeat process until you have used all bean curd sheets.

Step 5:
Place plates in the steamer.
Pour the remaining marinade on to the plates and add little of the chicken.
Steam for an hour and half or until tender.
Keep adding chicken stock if necessary.

Serve with soy sauce and chili oil dip if you want.
Serve with steamed white rice.

This how it looks  inside ;)

Dried Bean Curd Sheets. These are also used for a Filipino dishes, check this out...  KiKiam . 

Dried Shitake mushrooms. Soak these in water to rehydrate.

Fresh Bamboo Shoots.

Position the meat, mushrooms, onions and bamboo shoots in the middle lower part of the sheet.

Roll and fold the sides inside like you would a borrito.

place them on a small plate or pie plate, seam side down.

LARB MOO (SPICY PORK SALAD)

Recipe adapted from Chef Surapol Sri-Aim's recipe. I had the privilege to attend a Thai cooking demonstration with Chef Surapol years ago....1990! Oh boy...that's a long time ;) It was an up close and personal demonstration because there were only 10 of us.  My pamphlet had lots of notes and some sketches/drawings which made me wonder why in the world did i drew those things.  If only we had smart phones or digital cameras back then, i'd definitely have photos of his plating to go w/ the recipe. But my handwritten notes and the memories would suffice, i still remember how good his dishes were.

I thought i lost that pamphlet, i found it tucked in between pages of another cookbook. Now that i found it, i will be making all the recipes. Also, making all his Thai recipes will for surely transport me back to  Bangkok. Had good memories back then as well.

Larb Moo (Spicy Pork Salad) sometimes called Laab Moo

Ingredients:

Serves 2

1/2 lb Pork Shoulder, minced (no fat) I used center cut boneless pork loin
2 T spring onions, chopped
5 sprigs of Cilantro
5 sprigs of Mint
5 sprigs of Thai basil
1 T Thai Chili powder (substitute with chili powder)*
2 medium sized shallots (substitute it with sweet onions)
2 T roasted sweet rice powder (i roasted/toasted my own rice powder)
1 1/2 T fish sauce
1 1/2 T sugar
2 T fresh lime juice

Mince pork then pan fry until cooked.

Season with fish sauce, lime juice, chili powder and sugar.
Mix shallots, spring onions, cilantro, mint and basil leaves and the roasted rice powder together with the pork mixture.
Serve with green leaf lettuce or in my case i sometimes eat this w/ steamed white rice.

*PLEASE DON'T SUBSTITUE THE CHILI WITH SRIRACHA OTHERWISE IT'LL COMPROMISE THE TASTE. SRIRACHA HAS GARLIC WHICH IS NOT AN INGREDIENT FOR LARB.

***The guys used to have this as pulutan (A Filipino term for appetizer usually served w/ alcoholic beverages)  with chilled San Miguel Beer ;)

I used center cut boneless pork loin. 

Roughly chopped and minced in my good old processor.

Hey it still serves its purpose.

Fresh minced pork. I prefer grinding my own meat. But you could certainly buy ground meat if you don't have a grinder or a processor. Or minced it by hand, why not, i used to do it.

 I love the smell and the nutty taste of roasted rice. Fresh is always better. Making toasted rice powder is a cinch. Not only will you be able to control the exact amount of what you will need, you will save money as well. Of course you can buy this at Asian stores but you have to buy a box or a pack of rice powder only to use a couple of tablespoons. And will end up throwing the rest away since you won't use it often.

Pre-heat your pan to medium low heat. Then add your rice, stir and shake often to achieve even toasting. Cook for at least 15 minutes making sure it wont burn.

I grind mine in a mortar 

Grind them until pulverized. I love texture so i didn't really grind them to the powder stage.

Herbs used. I'd like to say that these are imperative to get the authentic taste.

Served with leaf lettuce, herbs and slices of lime.

Larb Moo craving...fixed!!!  ;)