The Week USA – August 31, 2019

LEISURE^27

Food & Drink

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“You can’t blame Portland chefs for looking back,”

said Michael Russell in the Portland Oregonian.

Fifteen years ago, they were setting trends that

changed how the whole country ate, and the

nation’s food media watched their every move.

“But now that every city in America has a scratch-

everything restaurant with pickles on the shelves

and a high-end tasting menu in the back,” Portland

seems to be doing less innovating than refi ning

what it’s already done well. Below, three examples.

Ned Ludd “With its rustic-glam décor, wood-fi red

menu, and ‘American Craft Kitchen’ tagline,” this

decade-old joint might be dismissed as the epitome of Portlandia-esque preciousness.

“The only problem? The food is as strong as it’s been in recent memory, from the

vibrant pickles at the start to the smoke-kissed chocolate-chip cookie skillet at dessert.”

3925 N.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., (503) 288-6900

Jacqueline Three years after taking over a space formerly occupied by St. Jack, this

bright, homey Clinton spot has become Portland’s most interesting seafood restaurant

and one of its best date-night destinations. Regulars are drawn in by happy hour’s $1

oysters, while later arrivals are rewarded with such thoughtful dishes as whole fried

sea bass in a cashew salsa mocha. 2039 S.E. Clinton St., (503) 327-8637

Beast The fi xed-price restaurant that used to be the fi rst stop after the airport for out-

of-town high rollers recently added a Tuesday-night special for the rest of us: a $65

tip- included dinner often prepared by star chef Naomi Pomeroy herself, who makes, as

it turns out, a “remarkably good” chicken cordon bleu. And the communal tables and

use of thrift-store china haven’t changed. 5425 N.E. 30th Ave., (503) 841-6968

Visitors to Mexico City are often surprised

by the size of the city’s wholesale fish mar-

ket, the second-largest in the world, says

Danny Mena in Made in Mexico (Rizzoli).

But my hometown “has a phenomenal

seafood culture for a landlocked city,” a

culture that brings together all the country’s

regional cuisines and absorbs elements of

others from around the globe.

The dish below is meant to be served

with tortillas—homemade, if you’re will-

ing, from fresh masa or masa harina. But

I could say the same about nearly any

Mexican recipe I’d share, because “almost

all Mexican food is intended to be eaten as

a taco,” with the tortilla serving as a sort of

edible spoon. The recipe below comes from

a popular restaurant, Puntarena, that com-

bines high-end ceviches and fish tacos with

Japanese-, Spanish-, and Italian-inspired

dishes. The word “carnitas” refers to pork

that has been slow-cooked in lard, so carni-

tas de atún is “not carnitas at all”—except

that the brined ahi tuna “looks a little

like pork carnitas and has the same soul-

satisfying effect in a taco.”

This is one of the recipes I turn to for a

holiday or special-event meal. And yes,

you can serve it on a plate and eat it with

a fork, but without the tortilla, “you’d be

losing part of the soul of Mexican cuisine.”

Your new fish taco: Brined ahi tuna, served warm from the pan

Recipe of the week

Carnitas de atún

½ cup kosher salt

2 tbsp sugar

1 bay leaf

1 whole clove

1 whole allspice berry

2 lbs ahi tuna

½ medium red onion, finely chopped

3 medium tomatillos, diced

1 serrano chile, finely chopped

2 sprigs fresh cilantro, finely chopped

3 mint leaves, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

Juice of 2 limes (about ¼ cup)

1 tbsp soy sauce

¼ cup vegetable oil

½ tsp kosher salt or to taste

Corn tortillas, hot, for serving

To make the brine, puré e the salt, sugar,

bay leaf, clove, allspice, and 1 cup of water

in a blender until smooth. Add 3 cups of

water and puré e until the salt and sugar

dissolve. Pour the brine over the tuna in

a glass bowl, cover, and refrigerate for

4 hours.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix the

onion, tomatillos, chile, cilantro, mint, olive

oil, lime juice, and soy sauce, and refriger-

ate for 4 hours.

When ready to cook, remove the tuna from

the brine and pat dry. Heat the vegetable

oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-

high heat. Add the tuna and cook until

the fish is browned well on both sides and

cooked through, with no red left in the cen-

ter, 6 to 10 minutes total, depending on the

thickness of the tuna.

Working quickly so the fish stays hot, chop

the tuna roughly and combine it with the

vegetable mixture. Salt to taste and serve

with hot corn tortillas. Serves 6.

Tuna that wants to be carnitas

Revisiting Portland: Less buzz, same great taste

Jason French, chef-owner of Ned Ludd

A versatile home bar only begins with

several bottles of hard liquor, said Jim

Vorel in PasteMagazine.com. Below

are three liqueurs you should con-

sider. With these on hand, “you’ll be

able to not only make plenty of classic

cocktails but also create entirely new

combinations.”

Amaro Averna With so many ama-

ros to try, Averna is “a great place to

start.” It’s “on the richer end of the

amaro spectrum,” but has a com-

plex fruit and spice profi le with “a

gentle herbal bitterness.”

Luxardo Maraschino LiqueurNot

a sweet fruit syrup, this cocktail

staple is “more a refl ection of the

entire cherry,” with herbal fl avors

and crushed cherry pits adding a

bitter-almond note.

St-GermainElderfl ower liqueur can

spruce up so many cocktails that

it’s sometimes called “bartender’s

ketchup.” It can go in “everything

from a G&T to a scotch and soda.”

Liqueurs: Three essentials