Good morning…With a stack of tortillas and some fresh toppings ready, today’s Alambre feature is a great way to change up your taco nights. It also makes a great dish for hosting.

TRY SOMETHING NEW 🤯

Alambre platter

Alambre is a Northern Mexican dish of grilled meat, bacon or chorizo, cheese, peppers, onions, and served with tortillas on the side. Think of it as a skillet dish or fajita platter with more elements.

Mexican-American style fajitas come out of this tradition, although the components are generally more separate until eating. But like fajitas, you assemble tacos as you go and sides of salsa, avocado, plus rice & beans are welcome.

Traditional vs. home styles

Alambre means “wire” in Spanish. Originally, the meat would be cooked on a wire skewer, over live charcoals, before getting shaved and tossed with the remaining ingredients. At home, you can embrace the one-pot nature of the dish and cook the meat right in the same cast iron or pan as the rest of the dish.

Satisfying flavors & textures

Alambres usually add a pork product, like bacon or chorizo. This adds saltiness, different meaty textures, and color variations.

• In Mexico, pork is the staple protein since it’s cheaper than beef or chicken cuts. By adding a portion of bacon or chorizo, you can stretch a smaller amount of expensive steak or chicken cuts in the dish.

The meat is then sauteed with chopped peppers and onions, which further add visual and textural contrast to each bite. It’s all brought together by a melty, unctuous layer of cheese.

Ready to cook? Follow the step-by-step Cook Well recipe here:

THROWBACK TIME 🍳

Cheap vs. expensive eggs

Eggs are one of the most confusing products to buy at the grocery store. In case you missed the video, here are the key takeaways:

1. Are expensive eggs more ethical and humane?

   Yes. There are differences in how chickens are treated, where you land on that is ultimately up to you. To ensure the highest standard of living look for Pasture Raised, Certified Humane eggs. Most other labels mean very little.

2. Are expensive eggs healthier for you?

   Maybe. There can be small macro and micronutrient differences between different egg types. Evaluate your entire diet and lifestyle with this in mind.

3. Do expensive eggs taste better?

   No. There may be very minor differences in taste, texture, and aroma. There is a clear difference in sight (color) which may matter a lot depending on what you making with them.

The video covered many nuances within each of these questions, so check out the full deep dive for yourself.

THE LEFTOVER SHELF 🥡

Hollandaise sauce & poached eggs

Eggs benedict style recipes highlight all dimensions of an egg.

• You get to eat a whole, poached egg and appreciate the white and yolks in an unadulterated form. And then hollandaise sauce showcases the rich unctuous texture of egg yolks and their emulsifying powers.

Speaking of which, eggs benedict is a technique-forward dish that’s worth learning how to make:

• Poaching eggs teaches you to keep water at just below a simmer, and to monitor the coagulation of the egg whites and yolks carefully.

• Forming the hollandaise sauce is a classic way to learn how to use egg yolks to start an oil-based emulsion.

While you can make a classic version with ham, check out our Eggs Royale recipe, which swaps in smoked salmon as the salty component:

Ready to cook? Follow the step-by-step Cook Well recipe here:

FOOD TRENDS EXPLAINED 🚀

Bone broth boom

What’s up with the bone broth hype?

Confusingly, bone broth is technically a stock:

• Stock is generally made from bones, resulting in a thicker, more gelatinous product.

• Broth is generally made with meat flesh or just vegetables for a thinner, cleaner-flavored liquid.

Why is the technicality important? While the two can be used interchangeably in recipes, many people consume bone broth (stock) for the collagen content, which comes primarily from animal bones and connective tissue.

• When collagen-rich bones stew in water for an extended period, the protein amino acids dissolve and reconfigure to form gelatin, which is said to help with gut & skin health.

You can make bone broth by simmering bone scraps until they soften. Save or ask the butcher for chicken, turkey, or beef stock bones. Well-made stock should jiggle like jello when cooled (this signifies you’ve extracted lots of gelatin).

It’ll liquefy when heated: use it as a base for ramen, cook with it, or just drink it straight.

READER Q&A 🧠

Storing leftover wine

Answer: Leaving leftover wine on the counter is out in 2024. Contrary to popular belief, opened wine oxidizes and quickly develops off flavor, especially if it’s not stored in the fridge.

Here are some best practices:

1. Re-cork it Properly: After opening a bottle of wine, it's important to re-cork it tightly to minimize its exposure to oxygen. Consider using a wine stopper & pump, which removes excess oxygen from the bottle and creates a vacuum seal.

2. Store Upright: Unlike unopened bottles of wine, which are typically stored on their sides to keep the cork moist, opened bottles of wine should be stored upright. This minimizes the surface area exposed to oxygen and slows down the oxidation process.

3. Refrigerate: Regardless of whether it's red, white, or rosé, you should refrigerate leftover wine. The cooler temperature in the fridge slows down the chemical reactions, including oxidation, which can spoil the wine.

4. Re-use within a Few Days: Even with these steps, an opened bottle of wine will only last a few days before it starts to lose its character. Try to consume leftover wine within 2-3 days. If you can't finish it, use it for cooking!

Remember, these steps will not prevent the wine from eventually turning into vinegar, but they will help preserve its character for a few more days.

WINNING READER SUBMISSION 🏆

Champion Chicken

This week’s dinner winner is Sam F., who made a seared chicken breast with garlic and parsley pan sauce. Nicely done, Sam!

If you want to compete with Sam, learn how to perfect chicken with pan sauce here. 

Reply with your best home-cooked food photos for a chance to win & be featured!

EXTRA HELPINGS 🍽️

A read: The perfect weekend in Mexico City

In a minute or less: Is square pizza better than round?

What we’re watching: 5 ingredient weeknight meals

Food science: Can food cause “physical” bodily reactions?

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