Kaga's Kollection of Klingon Kuisine

[Kaga]

Greetings, my Klingon Brothers and Sisters! I am Kaga, Klingon Chef and aspiring Klingon Brewmaster. Food is my passion, and many glorious battles have I fought in the pursuit of Klingon culinary advancement! I have grown dismayed, however, with the availability of true Klingon recipes on this world's. K'tesh, is, of course, THE authority on recreating Klingon cuisine with Earth ingredients, but I feel he sometimes either sacrifices authenticity for the sake of catering to "civilized" human palates, or goes to the other extreme and proposes recipes that resemble Klingon dishes but are inedible by human standards. In my cooking, I propose to find a balance.

(The only other source for Klingon recipes geared towards this planet is the cookbook belonging to that petaQ, Neelix. Some of his recipes have merit, such as his replicas of gagh or racht, but others... a Heart of Targ recipe consisting of tomato bruschette? I ought to gut him like the Ha'DIbaH he is and show him how a real Klingon prepares Talaxian Stew...)

Keeping all of this in mind, I would like to share with you some of my own Klingon recipes. In turn, it would do me great honor if some of you would deign to share some of your own with the rest of us. So, without further ado, first up are my recipes for Slimy Tongue Balls and Gladst.

Slimy Tongue Balls

Slimy Tongue Balls are a perfect example of what I consider to be the key failing of K'tesh's otherwise exemplary cooking: he places presentation over realism. His recipe for Slimy Tongue Balls calls for steamed, peeled grapes. Grapes?!? There is nothing Klingon about sitting around eating steamed grapes! In my eyes, the recipe should be just what the name implies- meatballs made from animal tongue, covered in a slimy sauce. This is my own approximation of the original recipe on Qo'noS.

Ingredients

1 cow tongue
3 or 4 bay leaves
1 tsp cloves
1 bulb garlic
Bread crumbs (any variety of spiced flavors)
1 tbsp rubbed sage
1 tbsp ground thyme
1 tsp black pepper
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 drizzle of olive oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 small chili
5 raisins
6 pumpkin seeds

Directions

Fill a large pot with enough water to cover the cow tongue. Add the bay leaves, cloves and garlic and bring to a boil. Scrub the tongue well and place in the pot. Reduce the heat immediately and simmer uncovered 2-3 hours, or until tender. Remove from water and let rest until cool enough to handle. Peel skin from tongue and trim gristle and any small bones.

Put the meat through a meat grinder, and place in a mixing bowl with the bread crumbs, sage, thyme and pepper. Squeeze together by hand, making golf-ball sized meatballs.

Cook in a greased baking dish in the oven, turning each meatball for even cooking. Brown the outside and use a meat thermometer to make sure they are cooked to a safe internal temperature. Transfer the meatballs and the grease to a large, clear bowl, and refrigerate.

In a food processor, blend the tomato, olive oil, cinnamon, chili, raisins and pumpkin seeds to a smooth and slimy consistency. Pour it over the meatballs, and serve cold with beet stems for display. Klingons treat this meal as a finger food.

Gladst

K'tesh has this one right, but doesn't give instructions on how to prepare it. Mine are as follows.

Gladst

Ingredients

Seaweed leaves
sesame oil
rice vinegar
soy sauce

Directions

Soak the seaweed leaves in a mixture of the oil, vinegar and soy sauce for a few hours in the refrigerator before serving. Remove it, and shake it relatively dry so that it is wet but does not drip much, as gladst is intended to be a finger food, as is most Klingon fare.

More recipes will follow; feel free to contribute with recipes of your own!



[Edit -- changed thread title]

[ter'eS]

Very interesting! But what exactly do you mean by "seaweed leaves"?  Kombu? Wakame? Nori? Hijiki? Laver? Dulse? Do you start with dried, or soak/boil it first?

[Kaga]

Well, strictly speaking it can be left up to individual preference, but you should keep in mind the appearance of gladst in the DS9 episode 'Melora'.



Now that picture isn't very high quality, and my experience with seaweed isn't such that I can spot-identify the variety just by looking at it, but it doesn't look like hijiki (too bad, as hijiki's my personal favorite when it comes to seaweed; but no worries, I use reconstituted hijiki "noodles" as the basis for one of my gagh recipes, which I'll post here soon). I use dulce, though perhaps laver would work.

The seaweed should have been cooked before you prepare it as gladst; I follow the directions on the side, by putting it and enough water to cover it in a pot on low heat for about 15 minutes. Follow whatever directions come with your own brand of seaweed, and then soak it in the oil/sauce mixture.

Next up will be Finova Beans and Tknag Hooves!

[ShinRa]

I'm just waiting for you to attempt Gagh, my friend 

[Kaga]

When it comes to gagh, there ARE recipes calling for live mealworms or super meal worms in sauce that I've seen. I wouldn't be opposed to trying them, but as mealworms clearly aren't serpent-worms, and I can think of no other decent Earth substitutes for them, I think I'll go with K'tesh's solution to the problem and substitute noodles. Pity the fact that I have to explain to my guests why their gagh is dead, though. 

That said, my recipes for gagh look a lot better than the one K'tesh advocates. Look for them at the bottom of this post.

Finova Beans

We don't know much about Finova Beans, other than they are deadly if not prepared correctly. I've decided not to incorporate that feature into this recipe. I chose Anasazi beans because they taste quite unique compared to other beans, and because of their unusual purple-red color. Feels Klingon enough to me, even if they're not poisonous.

Ingredients

2 cups dried Anasazi beans
1 cup leftover meat juice
1 tsp. dried Mexican or Greek oregano
1 tsp. cilantro
1 small onion, chopped
Generous dash of Bloodwine

Directions

Soak the beans in water overnight, the drain them. Warm the left over meat juice in the bottom of a pot, along with the onion, oregano and cilantro. Add a dash of Bloodwine. Stir. When the mixture has simmered for three or four minuts, add the beans and enough water to cover, adding some extra to make up for evaporation. Bring to a boil; then lower the heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Add salt to taste and continue cooking until the beans are as tender as you like them probably another 30 minutes or so. When done, check the seasonings. Drain the beans of the broth (the broth can be added to a stew, or just discarded), and serve hot.

Tknag Hooves

K'tesh fails to mention this recipe at all, and so I have perhaps overcompensated a bit by providing not one, not two, not even three, but SIX different methods of preparing them. The most "Klingon" of them is probably the first one, but we all know how Klingon Houses fight over which recipe is best, so feel free to adopt whichever one is your favorite for your own house.

Recipe 1

Ingredients

4-8 Pigs feet
Tknag blood or broth, or water to cover
Salt
Dash (or more than a dash) of Bloodwine

Directions

Put pigs feet in cold water, scrape and clean well. Place in pot and cover with salted water. Boil until meat is tender. Serve warm with grapok sauce.

Recipe 2

Ingredients

4 pigs feet, split in half lengthwise
2 medium onions, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon black pepper
3 teaspoon crushed red pepper
barbecue sauce
water

Directions

As always the key to great cooking is to be prepared and to use quality ingredients.

Okay, so where do you buy pigs feet? Often times you will have to ask the grocery store butcher for the pigs feet because they're usually frozen and sometime stored in the back of the store.

Begin by giving the pigs feet a good washing. For presentation purposes remove any unsightly hair that you observe. Yes pigs grow hair on the toes and feet just like humans. A disposable razor will remove the hair.

Place all the ingredients in a large boiling pot and cover with water. Bring water to a boil over medium-high heat and then reduce heat to a simmer. Cover pot with lid and allow pigs feet to cook until tender, about 3 hours. While your meat is cooking stir constantly and skim away any foam that develops.

Recipe 3   

Ingredients

8 each pigs' feet
2 quarts water
 cups white vinegar
2 large onion, chopped
2 each green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon black pepper, freshly ground
3 cups barbecue sauce

Directions

Wash the pigs' feet well. Place them in a large pot and pour in the water.

Add the vinegar, onions, green peppers, red pepper, salt, and black pepper.

Heat to boiling over medium heat. Reduce the heat to simmering and cook, covered, until just about tender, about 2 1/2 hours.

Skim the surface and stir the pigs' feet occasionally during cooking.

Preheat the oven to 350 degree F. Remove the pigs' feet from the broth with a slotted spoon.

Arrange them side by side in 2 baking pans large enough to hold them in a single layer.

Spoon the barbecue sauce over them and bake 15 minutes.

Reduce the heat to 300 degree F. and continue cooking until tender, about 35 minutes.

Recipe 4

Ingredients

6 to 8 pigs feet
4 limes
Sliced jalapeno peppers
2 cucumbers
1 lg. onion
Salt

Directions

Boil pigs feet; drain. Boil until tender. Let sit. In large bowl, squeeze lime juice into 3 cups warm water. Peel cucumbers and onion; slice thin. Add to lime and water. Add jalapeno peppers and salt to taste. Drain figs feet; add to lime water and other ingredients. Let marinate for about an hour. Do not let pigs feet cook until they fall apart, only until tender.

Recipe 5

Ingredients

3 lbs. pigs feet, chopped in 1/2 lengthwise
2 tbsp. salt
1 tsp. paprika
1 lg. onion, with skins
1 tsp. pepper
2 cloves garlic

Directions

Singe pigs feet by holding with fork over gas flame. Scrub and wash. Boil in large pot for a few minutes. Pour off water. Add fresh water, just enough to cover, bring to boiling and skim if necessary. Simmer slowly. Add garlic, onion, salt, pepper and paprika. Cook about 4 to 5 hours or until bones and meat are falling apart. Divide meat in equal portions into dishes with gelatin and let stand overnight in a cold place to set.

Recipe 6

Ingredients

3 lbs. pig feet, split
4 qts. water
5 cloves garlic, whole
3 lg. onion, only cut off the root leave the clean peel on
1 tbsp. salt, more if you like
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. paprika

Directions

Singe feet and wash well. Put all the ingredients in 1 pot and cook slowly for 6-7 hours. Meat should fall off the bones easily and liquid should be less than 1/2 of what you started. Place the meat in soup bowl and strain the broth over to almost fill the dishes. Place in refrigerator until cold.

Gagh

And my recipes for Gagh, which as I mentioned above do not call for living worms, which is disappointing I know. However, if you're looking for more realism in your dish, something more resembling what's been seen on TNG and DS9, you've come to the right place. The last of these recipes is the recipe for Gagh from the Star Trek Cookbook, and is probably the least realistic of the following, though still tasty... by human standards.

Recipe 1

Ingredients

1 pound Chinese longbeans
1 tablespoon garlic, chopped or ground
1 tablespoon ginger, chopped or ground
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
Black or red food dye
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
Pepper to taste, optional
2 tablespoons vegetable or peanut oil for stir-frying, or as needed

Directions

Wash the longbeans, drain thoroughly, and trim the tops and bottoms. Heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat.

Add the longbeans and stir-fry until they start to shrivel or "pucker" and turn brown (5 - 7 minutes). Remove the long beans and drain in a colander or on paper towels. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the wok on high heat. Stir-fry the food dye soy sauce, ginger, garlic and other seasonings for less than a minute and then add the beans. Stir-fry briefly, make sure the color is right, and then chill to room temperature. Klingons eat this as a finger food. Serves 4.

Recipe 2

Ingredients

Hijiki Seaweed or Chinese Seaweed Noodles
3 tbsps soy sauce
2 tbsps sugar
2 tbsps mirin
3/4 cup water

Put dried hijiki or seaweed noodles in a bowl. Wash them and soak in water for 10-15 minutes. Drain hijiki over a colander.

Heat vegetable oin in a frying pan and sauté seaweed with the other ingredients, simmering until the liquid is almost gone. Cool to room temperature and serve as a finger food.

Recipe 3

Ingredients

2 cups mung bean sprouts
1 stalk green onion, cut to approximately the same length as the bean sprouts
1/2 tsp garlic, minced or crushed
1/2 tsp ginger, minced or crushed
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp oyster sauce
white pepper
Red or black food dye
Directions

Heat up a frying pan with 1 tbsp of vegetable oil. Medium heat.

Stir fry the mung bean sprouts, garlic and ginger to flavor the oil.

Add light soy sauce, oyster sauce and pepper and stir-fry to taste. When the mung bean sprouts are almost cooked (they become slightly translucent), add in the green onions and food dye. Stir fry just a little bit more, then allow it to cool to room temperature before serving as a finger food. Serves 2.

Recipe 4

Ingredients

1-pound package thick Japanese udon noodles (whole wheat is best), or Chinese or Thai rice noodles
4 ounces prepared sesame salad dressing or Chinese chicken salad dressing or tahini
¼ cup soy sauce or light soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark brown Karo syrup, if you find it necessary for color

Directions

Prepare the noodles per the package instructions, replacing one-half the water with the soy sauce. Chill. Then stir through quarter-cup soy sauce and sesame salad dressing. Add Karo syrup and stir through to satisfy your own sense of color and taste, and there you have it: gagh! Serve at room temperature as a finger food.

[ShinRa]

I presume there would be regional and family/house variations?

[Kaga]

Certainly, feel free to customize each recipe to your House or personal tastes! And if you come up with one of your own, post it here!

Next: Heart of Targ!

[ShinRa]

I can only presume our esteemed chef is busy cooking up new culinary triumphs

Nah, I like this thread...who can honestly say they don't like a good bit of food? this lowly Bek spends most of his time eating ships rations

[Kaga]

Ayuh, even all the Bloodwine and Grapok Sauce in the Galaxy can't disguise the taste of ship's rations!

I promised you Heart of Targ, and here it is! I've also included some recipes for Grapok Sauce to go with it. Also, I'm on the lookout for some Bregit Lung recipes... anyone have one to share?

Heart of Targ

Targs are hard to find on Earth, especially in the 21st century, but a pig's heart can be substituted in a pinch. For the best flavor, stew it in pig's blood, but chicken stock can substitute for some or all of the blood in a pinch. Add liberal quantities of Bloodwine to the pot as well; any Klingon Chef will tell you that Bloodwine is the most important and versatile ingredient in any Klingon Kitchen!

Ingredients

1 pig heart
3 cups pig's blood OR 2 cups cold chicken stock and 1 cup pig’s blood OR 3 cups cold chicken stock
1 cup Bloodwine
1 carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1/2 red onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 bay leaf
1/2 onion, julienned

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a pot and simmer together on the stove for 2 1/2 hours. Remove heart from broth and let cool (the broth makes an excellent base for gagh stew). Serve at room temperature, but store in your refrigerator.

Grapok Sauce

Grapok Sauce presented a challenge as it has only been mentioned once or twice, and not described other than that it goes well with Bregit Lung or Gagh as a condiment. That said, we know it is brown, and here are an array of brown sauces that, like Grapok Sauce, should go well with pretty much anything. Choose your favorite and stick with that!

Recipe 1

Ingredients

1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
1 oz. butter (1/4 stick)
4 oz. diced beef bone marrow*
1/4 Tsp. cracked black peppercorn
1 sprig fresh thyme
1/2 cup red wine (Use a good table wine)
1 cup Demi-Glace

*If bone marrow is unavailable, you may substitute butter instead.

Directions

Melt butter in a sauce pan and sauté shallots for approx. 2 minutes (until transparent). Add red wine and reduce for approx. 2-3 minutes (to an essence). Add thyme and peppercorns and reduce further for approx. 2-3 minutes (until almost no liquid remains).

Add Demi-Glace and simmer for approx. 5-6 minutes (until sauce begins to thicken).

In a separate pan, simmer diced bone marrow in water for 3-4 minutes. Drain water and add diced marrow to sauce and simmer for approx. 2 minutes. Serve over tournedo, beef tenderloin steaks, or rump steaks.

Serve over gagh, racht, bregit lung, or pretty much anything.

Recipe 2

Ingredients

10 tomatoes, chopped
1 cup brown sugar
1 onion, chopped
1 lemon, sliced
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon allspice
1 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce (Tabasco)

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a dutch oven. Bring to a boil and lower heat.

Cook uncovered for an hour - stirring occasionally. Strain through a fine mesh strainer, and serve over gagh, racht, bregit lung or pretty much anything.

Recipe 3

Ingredients

4 pounds veal bones (shin, neck, tail, etc. I have the butcher cut them into 3-inch pieces)
1 pound chicken bones (neck, wings, back, etc.)
1 large carrot, cubed (1 cup)
1 leek, diced (1 cup)
1 rib of celery, diced (3/4 cup)
3 cloves garlic, crushed with skin on
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup dry white wine
1 3/4 gallons water
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon crushed thyme (fresh is preferable)
1 teaspoon crushed tarragon leaves (a piece of fresh tarragon is preferable)
2 cups sugar

Directions

Place the chicken bones in a large heavy pot and cook on high heat until the pieces are browned and have rendered some fat (about 6 minutes). Add the veal bones and the carrot, leek, celery and garlic. Keep cooking for about 10 minutes, stirring with a large spoon until the bones and vegetables start to brown.

Add the flour and tomato paste to the pot and mix well. Add all other remaining ingredients, and bring to a boil, stirring to dilute the flour. Simmer the sauce slowly, uncovered, for about 3 hours. Skim the foam which comes up to the top every 15 or 20 minutes.

Mix the sugar and with one cup water in a heavy saucepan and cook on medium heat until it turns into caramel. Reduce the beat and keep the caramel cooking. The mixture will soon turn black, smoke, and finally decompose and become solid. Remove from the heat and add (slowly because it splashes and you may burn yourself) about 1 1/2 cups of water. Place back on the heat, bring to a boil, simmer 2 to 3 minutes and strain the liquid into a bowl. Cool and pour into a bottle. If the syrup is too thick (it should have the consistency of a light maple syrup), add some cold water. Add two teaspoons of this solution to the sauce, dispose of the rest.

Strain the sauce through a fine sieve. Refrigerate for up to 10 days. Serve over gagh, racht, bregit lung or pretty much anything.

Recipe 4

Ingredients

4 medium-size ripe tomatoes (1-3/4 lb. total), cored
1 head garlic, sliced in half crosswise
2 Tbs. plus 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/2 oz. (1/4 cup) blanched almonds
1-1/4 oz. (1/4 cup) peeled hazelnuts
1 dried ancho chile, cored, seeded, slit, and opened so it lies fairly flat
1 tsp. kosher salt or sea salt; more to taste
2 to 3 Tbs. red-wine vinegar
Dash of Bloodwine
1 slice stale white bread, torn, if needed

Directions

Heat the oven to 375°F. Put the tomatoes and one half of the garlic head in a baking pan. Drizzle about 1 Tbs. of the olive oil into the cored tomato wells and on top of the garlic half. Roast until the tomatoes and garlic are well caramelized but not burnt, about 90 minutes. From the remaining half head of garlic, coarsely chop 1 Tbs. garlic and put it in a food processor.

While the tomatoes roast, heat about 1 Tbs. of the olive oil in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Toast the almonds and hazelnuts in the pan, shaking the pan or stirring so they don't burn, until golden brown, 5 to 6 minutes. Cool the nuts on a paper towel and then put them in the food processor.

If using a dried chile, sear it in the same small pan over medium-high heat (keep it flat with a spatula or a fork) until a smoke wisp appears, about 10 seconds per side. Soak it in 1 cup hot tap water until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain and put the chile in the food processor.

When the tomatoes and garlic are caramelized, let them cool. Pinch off the tomato skins (discard them) and squeeze out the garlic pulp. Put the tomatoes and garlic pulp in the processor. Add the salt and start the processor, pouring in the remaining 1/3 cup olive oil in a slow, steady stream, as if making mayonnaise. Add the vinegar, pulse to incorporate, and taste; the sauce should have some zing, so add more if needed. Add salt to taste. Process the romesco until it comes together as a sauce but not so much as to lose its coarse, nutty texture. The sauce should be thick and creamy. If it seems too thick, add 1 or 2 Tbs. Bloodwine. If it's too thin, add bread, pulsing a few more times.

Recipe 5

Ingredients

Sauce Base

1/3 cup each: finely diced carrots, onions, and celery
3 tablespoons dice boiled ham (or diced lean bacon simmered for 10 minutes in water, rinsed and drained)
6 tablespoons clarified butter
Rendered fresh pork fat or cooking oil
4 tablespoons flour
6 cups boiling fresh brown stock or canned beef bouillon
2 tablespoons tomato paste
A medium herb bouquet: 3 parsley sprigs, 1/2 bay leaf, and 1/4 teaspoon thyme tied in cheesecloth.

Grapok Sauce

1/4 cup finely minced yellow onion
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vegetable oil or fat
1 cup dry white wine or 2/3 cup dry vermouth
3 to 4 tablespoons Dijon-type prepared mustard creamed with 2 or 3 tablespoons butter and 1/8 teaspoon sugar

Directions

First prepare the brown sauce. Use a heavy bottomed, 2-quart saucepan.  Cook the vegetables and ham or bacon slowly in the butter, fat or oil for 10 minutes.

Blend the flour into the vegetables and stir continually over moderately low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until the flour slowly turns a golden, nut brown. (This is called a Roux)

Remove from the heat.  With a wire whip, immediately blend in all the boiling liquid (stock) at once.  Beat in the tomato paste.  Add the herb bouquet. 

Simmer the sauce slowly, partially covered, for 2 hours or more, skimming off fat and scum as necessary.  Add more liquid if the sauce thickens too much.  You should end up with about 4 cups of sauce, thick enough to coat a spoon lightly.

Taste and correct the seasoning.   Strain the sauce, pressing the juice out of the vegetables.  Degrease it thoroughly.  The sauce is ready to use. 

If you will not be using the sauce immediately then clean the sides of the pan.   Float a film of stock over the top of the sauce to prevent a skin from forming.

Once the base is prepared, you can make the grapok sauce proper. Use a heavy bottomed, 6-cup saucepan or your meat cooking pan with its degreased juices.  Cook the onions slowly with butter and oil, or fat, for 10 to 15 minutes until they are tender and lightly browned.

Use a heavy bottomed, 6-cup saucepan or your meat cooking pan with its degreased juices.  Cook the onions slowly with butter and oil, or fat, for 10 to 15 minutes until they are tender and lightly browned.

Add the wine and boil it down rapidly until it has reduced to 3 to 4 tablespoons.

Add the brown sauce and simmer 10 minutes.  Correct seasoning.  Remove the sauce from the heat until just before serving, then continue with the recipe. 

Beat the mustard mixture into the sauce. Stir well, and serve over gagh, racht, bregit lung or pretty much anything. Keep refrigerated.

[Kaga]

How about a little Pipius Claw? K'tesh is correct in his identification of Pipius Claw as chicken feet with the middle toe cut off, and even mentions that with a little preparation it could be edible, but fails to provide a recipe. Forutnately for you, I've got several! I've also included a lobster claw version found on a Star Trek fansite recipe page for you Terrans who can't handle true Klingon food.

Pipius Claw

Recipe 1

Ingredients

1 lb. of chicken feet
4 Tbsp. dark soy sauce
2 Tbsp. rice wine
3 spring onions
4 cloves of garlic
4 pieces of star anise
4 slices of ginger
2 Tbsp. of black bean paste
3 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp. Bloodwine
2 tsp. sugar
Chiles to taste
2 Tbls soy sauce
Dash of sesame oil

Directions

First clean your (chicken) feet and clip their nails. Dry 'em too, then remove the middle claw. Deep fry the feet until golden brown- approximately 3 minutes at 375. Drain them well from the oil.

Prepare your looing sauce. Looing is a chinese method of stewing. You can save the liquid for weeks and stew just about any kind of meat (or eggs!) in it. It gets better as you use it more. To begin, smash four cloves of garlic, the ginger, and chop the spring onions into 2 inch lengths. Then combine them with, soy sauce, rice wine and star anise in a pot with three cups water and bring to a simmer.

Put the feet into the looing liquid and simmer with the top on for 45 minutes.

Prepare the glazing sauce. Mince the garlic and chiles. Heat 2 Tbls of oil in a wok to high heat. Add the remaining garlic and chiles, cook until fragrant (20-30 seconds). Add the black bean paste. Stir it so that it starts to get really really fragrant. Add the wine, sugar, soy, water and sesame oil, stir.

Add in all the feet, toss to cover with the sauce. Preheat your oven to 400° F.

Cook over medium-high heat, stirring/tossing frequently until the sauce is reduced almost completely. There should be almost no liquid left, everything should be on the feet. This should take maybe 10 minutes.

Extract the feet and put them on a rack over a baking pan. You may want to line the pan with tin foil, as there will be some drippage. Bake the feet for 15-20 minutes, or until dark red. Don't let them burn.

Extract and let cool to room temperature before serving. You now have yummy spicy pipius claw!

Recipe 2

Ingredients

1-1½ lb. chicken feet
3/4 cups sake
1/4 cups mirin
2 stars of star anise
2 tbsp. five spice powder
2 tbsp. garlic
3 slices ginger
3 tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. sriracha or chili-garlic paste
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar

Directions

Remove any trace of scaly yellow skin, and the nails (it’s easiest just to cut off the last joint of each toe). Then cut off the middle toe. In a large pot, cover the feet with about two quarts of water.  Bring to a boil, and then simmer until the water is reduced by half- 90 mins to 2 hours at a simmer.

Remove the feet to a smaller sauce pan, and save the broth (it makes an excellent base for gagh stew). Combine all ingredients and cover the feet with them. Bring to boil and simmer until liquid is reduced and chicken feet are glazed. Serve at room temperature.

Recipe 3

Ingredients

1 lb chicken feet
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
3 cups water
3 chives
3 cloves garlic, smashed
3 chilies, diced
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 wok boiling oil
6 pieces ginger
4 star anises
2 tablespoons black bean paste
1 dash Bloodwine
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

Directions

Rub the chicken's feet with the salt and chop off the nails and middle toes, ensuring there is no scaly skin. Wash thoroughly, blanch in boiling water for 1 minute and drain.

Brush with the dark soy sauce, then deep-fry in the boiling oil until golden brown and drain, keeping 1 tablespoon of oil for later use. Refresh under a cold running tap and drain.

Pour the water into a pressure cooker. Add the ginger, chives, star anises and chicken's feet and cook for 15 minutes.

Heat a wok with the 1 tablespoon of oil and saute the mashed garlic, black bean paste and diced chilies until fragrant.

Put in the chicken's feet and stir-fry thoroughly. Sizzle in the Bloodwine and add all the seasoning except the cornflour and water mixture. Adjust the flavor to taste.

Pour in the stock from the pressure cooker, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Then drain the chicken feet of the sauce, dry them, and serve to guests at room temperature as a finger food.

Recipe 4

Ingredients

4 2-pound live, fully clawed lobsters
¾ cup (1½ stick) of butter, melted
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock (made form instant packages or bouillon cubes
¼ cup all-purpose sifted flour
1 cup crackling dry white wine (Frascati or Verdicchio)
2 cups bread crumbs or unflavored stuffing mix
1 cup grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups minced celery leaves
sea salt to taste
½ teaspoon dry mustard
freshly ground black peppercorns to taste
1 or 2 drops of McLihenny's Tabasco sauce or Louisiana-style hot sauce
cayenne pepper or pakrika to taste

Directions

First, kill all the lobsters. Do this by plunging their wriggling, squirming, snapping bodies deep into heavily salted boiling water in a stew pot, you should add two handfuls of salt to the water. Even better, if you live near an ocean, fill your pot with seawater and boil it straight-seaweed and all. Keep the lobsters on a high boil for at least 15 minutes. Now they're done. Remove them, uncurl them, snap off the claws, but leave the heads on and the eyes open.

While the lobsters are still hot, split them into halves, scoop out the soft white meat, and cut it into small bite-sized chunks. In a saucepan, mix ½ cup melted butter with flour until the two become soft and smooth and thoroughly blended, and then add the lobster meat. To the lobster meat, butter, and flour, add the cream and stock and blend. Heat this mixture over low heat for about 15 minutes of cooking time, add all of the spices, seasonings, and half of the cheese. Now preheat the broiler, and add to the lobster meat your wine, remaining ¼ cup melted butter, and stuffing or bread crumbs. Cook this mixture for another 5 minutes.

Because you will cook the lobster meat in the shells, rinse the shells until they are clean. Place them in a boiling pan and fill them with the lobster meat. Top with the remaining cheddar cheese. Broil 5 to 7 minutes until they are brown, and just before serving, arrange the lobster claws, upright and pried open, in the shells. You can sprinkle cayenne pepper or another dose of paprika over the finished dish, and garnish with arugula around the claws. If you have to, you can prop the claws up with bits of lobster shell, because pipius claw is all in the presentation. You can also add more bread crumbs or stuffing to the mixture to help support the claws upright. Serves four to six.

[Pok]

Hi. First of all, I love these recipes! It was actually this thread that got me to join here!
Anyway, I have a couple of Klingon recipes. This first one is called "Kiros Kai Faki", it's from the Official Star Trek Cookbook. I like to pretend the pig's feet are T'Knag hooves.

Kiros Kai Faki

2 1/2 lb Fresh pigs feet
Salt
1 lb Yellow split peas
1 Onion -- chopped
2 qt Water
Butter
 
    The night before you plan to make this soup, soak the
   feet or hocks in brine (1 tablespoon of salt per quart
   of water). They should be completely covered. Put the
   split peas to soak in plain cool water. There should
   be about 2 inches of water over the peas--they will
   swell quite a bit. The meat should be put in the
   refrigeratior overnight; the peas may be, too, but it
   is less important.
    In the morning, take the meat out of the brine, put
   it in a 8 qt. pot, add the peas, onion and 2 quarts of
   fresh water. Bring to a boil. Skim off any foam that
   comes to the top, then reduce the heat and simmer for
   about 6 or more hours, stirring occasionally so the
   peas do not stick to the bottom of the pot. The meat
   should be fallng off the bones, and the soup should be
   quite thick and fairly smooth.
    Take the meat and bones out of the soup and cool
   slightly. Take the meat off the bones and cut into
   smaller pieces. Put the meat back into the soup and
   reheat if necessary. Serve with a small pat of butter
   in the center of each bowl.

[Pok]

Also, did you ever come up with a Bregit Lung recipe? I'd really like to see that!

[Kehlan]

Lung is actually not lung at all, but a lizard like creature.  alot of people forget to translate the word and assume its the breathing apparatus of an animal, but that type of lung is classed as inedible... athough, having said that, when I was in Vienna last year, we found a restaurant that claimed to be serving a heart and lung dish... no, I didnt taste it!

[qoSagh]

I have eaten Haggis which includes heart and lung, although here in the U.S. they can no longer include Lungs in the dish.

[Kehlan]

I'm from a scottish family, I have never seen lung included in haggis.  It may have been in the recipe back in olden days but not for years.