MATTHEW LOPEZ RECIPE BOOK
“No one is born a great cook, one learns by doing.” -Julia Child
TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE 4-5 ................................................. PAN-FRIED LONDON BROIL STEAK PAGE 6-7 ................................................. SKILLET GARLIC BUTTER HERB STEAK PAGE 8-9 ................................................. HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN PAGE 10-11................................................. POACHED CHICKEN PAGE 12-13................................................ BAKED SALMON PAGE 14-15.............................................. Grilled Swordfish Salmoriglio
PAN-FRIED LONDON BROIL STEAK 1) Prep and salt the steak: Remove steak from refrigerator 2 hours before cooking to bring to room temperature (only do this with whole cuts of meat, never with ground meat.) Cut away any tough connective tissue on the surface of the steak. Use a meat pounder to even out the thickness of the steak if necessary. Lightly sprinkle with kosher salt on both sides.
HOW TO COOK LODON BROIL
INGREDIENTS 2 pounds top round cut of steak Kosher salt Dry mustard Pepper Butter, softened to room temperature
2) Rub steak with dry mustard, salt, pepper, butter: Heat a large, cast iron skillet to medium high heat. Pat the steaks dry with paper towels. Rub a little dry mustard into both sides of the steak. Sprinkle both sides again with salt, and with a little black pepper. Rub butter over both sides of the steak.
3) Brown steak on both sides on stovetop: Place the steak in the hot pan. Let cook for 2-3 minutes on each side (without moving), check before flipping to make sure it has nicely browned.
4) Finish steak on stovetop or in oven, depending on thickness: At this point, if you have a steak only an inch thick or less, you can take the skillet off the heat and just let the steak sit for several minutes in the skillet (tent the steak with aluminum foil). The cast iron pan will retain enough heat to cook the steak to medium rare. You can use a finger pressure method to test for doneness. You can also test for doneness by using a small sharp knife and cutting into the center to check the color. Or, if the steak is brown on both sides and it is weeping red juice, it’s done. If you have a steak thicker than an inch-thick, you can finish it off in the oven, at 350°F for 10 to 15 minutes or so. Use a meat thermometer to test the internal temperature of the steak. Pull it out of the oven at 130°F for medium rare (the steak will continue to rise in temperature for a few minutes after you pull it out). If you are using the oven method, when done, remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting into it. You want to cook the steak only to medium rare, as cooking it further will make it more tough. 5) Slice the steak thinly, across the grain.
SKILLET GARLIC BUTTER HERB STEAK INTRUCTIONS How to cook the perfect 1) In a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat, add olive oil and butter, potatoes, garlic, thyme, rosemary and oregano. Cook for about skillet steak 3 minutes, stir and cook and additional 3 minutes or until fork tender. Remove and set on a plate.
INGREDIENTS 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon butter 1 pound yukon gold potatoes sliced about 1/2 inch in thickness 3 garlic cloves minced 1 teaspoon thyme chopped 1 teaspoon rosemary chopped 1 teaspoon oregano chopped 2 lean New York Steak strip steaks with salt and pepper
2) Turn the skillet to high heat. Add the steaks. Cook on each side for 3 minutes or until outside is browned. Reduce heat to medium high. Cook the steaks to desired doneness. Mine took about 10 minutes flipping 3 times to get a medium well. 3) Right before the steaks are done, make the garlic butter compound. Mix the butter, garlic and fresh chopped herbs. Slather on top of steaks. Add the potatoes back to the pan and heat through and let the butter melt into the steaks. 4) Let the steak sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Season the steak generously on each side with salt and pepper. In a cast-iron skillet with 1 Tablespoon of oil over high heat add the steaks to the pan and sear each side 3 minutes or until brown. 5) Reduce heat to medium low. Cook the steak to desired doneness. Rare = 125 degrees, Medium Rare = 135 degrees, Medium = 145 degrees, Medium Well = 150 degrees and Well Done = 160 degrees. Some say to flip only once while cooking, I like to flip mine a few times. 6) Right before serving the steak slather the butter compound on top and let it melt into the tender steak. This gives it a nice finishing touch and adds such great flavor.
Garlic Butter Compound: 1/4 cup softened butter 3 garlic cloves minced 1 teaspoon thyme chopped 1 teaspoon rosemary chopped 1 teaspoon oregano chopped
HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN INTRUCTIONS
How to cook easy honey gralic chicken
1) In a medium saucepan over medium high heat, combine honey, garlic and soy sauce. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/4 cup water. Stir mixture into the saucepan until thickened, about 1-2 minutes; set aside. 2) Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. 3) In a large bowl, combine flour, thyme, oregano, paprika and cayenne pepper. 4) Season chicken with salt and pepper, to taste. Working one at a time, dredge chicken in flour mixture, dip into eggs, then dredge in flour mixture again, pressing to coat. 5) Working in batches, add chicken to the skillet, 2 or 3 at a time, and cook until evenly golden and crispy, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. 6) Serve immediately with honey garlic sauce.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon dried thyme 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut crosswise in half Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 2 large eggs, beaten 1/2 cup honey, or more, to taste 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 tablespoons soy sauce 1 tablespoon cornstarch
POACHED CHICKEN How to cook poached chicken INGREDIENTS 2 boneless chicken breasts 1 teaspoon peppercorn 1 clove garlic 2 large onion slices 1 sprig each of fresh herbs such as thyme rosemary and parsley 1 bay leaf chicken broth
INTRUCTIONS
1) Place chicken, herbs, peppercorn, garlic, onion and bay leaf in a shallow pan. 2) Pour in enough broth to cover chicken about 1/2 way. 3) Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. 4) Turn off heat, cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes. 5) Slice or shred chicken and reserve broth for use in recipes or to serve with chicken.
How to Poach Chicken Breasts Poaching chicken breasts is a very simple process. You’ll simply put chicken into a shallow pan with aromatics (garlic, onions, herbs) and cook for about 20 minutes total. It doesn’t really matter how many chicken breasts you use, you’ll just want to make sure that you add enough broth to fill your pan about halfway up the chicken breasts (about 1/2”). Once these chicken breasts have finished cooking you can remove them from the pan and either chop, slice or dice them or even shred them! Perfect for so many recipes, quick Chicken Salads, quesadillas or any kind of chicken casserole! Don’t discard the little bit of broth in the bottom of the pan, it’s absolutely loaded with flavor! If you don’t need it right away, it’s worth freezing (just put it into a small Ziplock bag and toss it in the freezer). Add it to any sauce or recipe right from frozen!
BAKED SALMON How to cook Baked Salmon
INTRUCTIONS 1) Set oven rack to the center position. Preheat oven to 375ยบF (191ยบC). 2) Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and lightly grease with vegetable oil or cooking spray. 3) Place salmon on the sheet, skin side down (if still intact).
INGREDIENTS 1 1/2 pound salmon fillet, (681g) 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, (30g) melted
4) Brush half of the melted butter over the salmon fillet. Season salmon with salt and pepper. Drizzle the rest of the butter over the salmon.
1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
5) Sprinkle the minced garlic evenly over the salmon. Place lemon wedges around the sides of the salmon.
1 tablespoon minced garlic, (10g)
6) Bake salmon until the thickest part reaches an internal temperature of 125ยบ (52ยบC), about 12 minutes. 7) Change the oven setting to broil on high. Broil the salmon until the surface is a light golden color and garlic just begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes.
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
8 lemon wedges 1 teaspoon chopped parsley 1 teaspoon chopped dill
8) Carefully remove the skin from the salmon and transfer fish to a serving platter. 9) Garnish with parsley and dill, serve with roasted lemon wedges.
Grilled Swordfish Salmoriglio INTRUCTIONS How to cook
1) If you purchased one large two-pound swordfish steak, cut in half to have two equal pieces about 1 ½ inches thick. Place in a gallon zip lock bag. In a small bowl mix lemon zest, garlic, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper.
2) Mix and add only half of this liquid to the bag with the swordfish. Seal the bag and let sit for one hour at room temperature. 3) While the swordfish sits for the hour, add the lemon juice (about ¼ cup of lemon juice) and parsley to the reserved half of the liquid and set aside to serve with the cooked fish. Heat outdoor grill to high on one side and cool on the other. 4) Remove the swordfish from the bag and brush off any garlic or zest and place the two pieces on the hot side of the oiled grill. Brush some of the liquid from the bag over the fish as it cooks.
Grilled Swordfish Salmoriglio
INGREDIENTS 2 pounds fresh swordfish 2 lemons, zest and juice divided 1 tablespoon fresh garlic, minced
5) Cook two minutes and turn each piece one quarter turn to get cross hatch marks. Cook two more minutes then flip. After two more minutes turn one quarter turn and cook two minutes. (Total of eight minutes so far.)
½ cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
6) Take a sheet of foil and fold four times and place on the cool side of the grill. The foil once folded, should be big enough to hold the swordfish.
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
7) After the eight minutes of searing both sides, move the swordfish to the foil and close the cover. Try to keep a consistent temperature of 350 degrees F. in your grill. 8) From here you will cook for 1-6 more minutes based on how thick your steaks are. Our 1 ½ inch swordfish steaks cooked for exactly six more minutes for a grand total of 14 minutes. If your steaks are thinner, this last cook time on the foil will be less. You are looking for an internal temperature of 145 degrees F. Do not overcook.
1 teaspoon dry oregano
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ¼ cup fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped fine 4 tablespoons cold butter
9) As soon as they come off, place the four tablespoons of cold butter over the top to melt in as you serve . To serve, cut each piece in half to yield four servings and serve with the sauce made earlier on the side or over each portion.
"People who love to eat are always the best people." - JULIA CHILD