The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science

(Nandana) #1

SERVES 4


2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium cloves garlic, finely sliced
2 pounds curly spinach, washed, drained, and tough stems
removed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Fresh lemon juice


Heat the olive oil in a 12-inch sauté pan over high heat until
shimmering. Add the garlic and cook, stirring constantly,
until fragrant and just beginning to brown, about 1 minute.
Immediately add half of the spinach and cook, stirring and
tossing, until lightly wilted. Add the remaining spinach and
cook, using tongs to turn the spinach every 30 seconds or
so, until it is completely wilted and the excess liquid has
mostly evaporated, about 4 minutes. Season to taste with
salt, pepper, and lemon juice and serve.


PAN-ROASTED MUSHROOMS
When you first add mushrooms to a hot skillet, everything
seems to be going fine, but then disaster strikes. Your
mushrooms start leaking copious amounts of liquid into the
pan, steaming instead of sautéing. You begin to panic. Am I
ruining them? Are they going to be ready for dinner? Why
does this always have to happen to me?!?
Never fear! Unlike meat, which will overcook and get
tough if you let it steam in a skillet, mushrooms will stay
tender no matter how long they sit there. Once the water has
evaporated, they’ll start sizzling again, developing both

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