The Perfect Dad Dish

posted June 10, 2007

by Amy Powell

http://cooking.cdkitchen.com/RealMealsInMinutes/520.html

We have always known that the key to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Thinking back to how our mothers cooked for our fathers, it might have been that very trick that we have to thank for bringing us to this earth today. This Father’s Day, perhaps all Dad really wants is the sort of big and hearty dish that's on a scale with the warmth and comfort we have in our hearts for him.

If you were my dad’s stomach back in the time when he and my mother were courting, the key to making that jump from stomach to heart might have been some sort of vegetarian curry, of the Indian variety, with perhaps a side of chai tea. Not really the sort of steak and potatoes dish that most men have in mind when they think of their favorite comfort meal, but hey, I always knew my dad was a little different. After spending a year of college living in India, researching religious practices of a small village sect, my father understandably developed a taste and subsequent nostalgia for simple, peasant-like Indian food.

My father’s favorite comfort food at the time of his marriage was not the norm by any means. But at the same time it was totally in-line with what most men prefer: hearty, rich, meal-like dishes. In a study published in 2003 by the University of Illinois on comfort food preferences across age and gender, it was shown that women tended to like snack-like comfort food while men decidedly veered in the direction of steaks and casseroles. A hearty peasant dish like what my father was accustomed to eating in India is just the sort of rich comfort food that lets a man, especially your father, know how much you care.

The second part of creating the perfect dad dish, I believe, relates to size. This is America and here bigger is better, particularly when it comes to food (I should note that I do run in certain circles of male foodies who might counter that they enjoy the miniscule tasting portions of five star restaurants. But even the biggest foodie can’t eat on so small a scale all the time). There is a reason that lumberjack breakfasts are a staple breakfast food at diners, and Hungry Man frozen dinners are approximately twice the size of an average frozen dinner. Men like their food BIG… plus "Hungry Woman" just wouldn’t have quite the same ring, now would it? Even my dad, despite the slight build of his 5 foot 8 inch frame, still lived up to his nickname, The Garbage Disposal, in his capacity to finish not just his own dish, but whatever was leftover on the kids’ plates.

The third key to creating the ideal male meal might lie in one of the oldest and probably truest rules of all: men are simple creatures. A random poll of male acquaintances and relatives confirmed this suspicion, that it really does not take much to figure them out, or to make them happy. So skip intricate preparation and pain-staking plating. Just make sure you are cooking a food he is going to like. I have seen my own father, for instance, find as much pleasure at home with a glass of red wine with a side of tortilla chips as he has in the plush seat of a fancy restaurant. Meat and potatoes, steak and pasta, chicken and rice, chances are it is the fact that you cared enough to cook that will mean more to any dad than how complicated the meal, or how long it took to prepare.

When cooking for your dad this year, keep it simple, make it big, and do something with the richness to match your affection for the man who brought you up in this world to enjoy the pleasures of life, even the simple ones.

Gaucho Pasta Recipe
http://www.cdkitchen.com/

Serves/Makes: 4
Ready in: < 30 minutes

* 1 pound Rigatoni pasta
* salt
* 1 pound Top round steak, thin cut
* pepper
* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1/2 large onion
* 1 green bell pepper
* 4 ounces crimini mushrooms
* 1 jar (15 oz size) diced tomatoes, drained
* 1 cup beef stock
* 2 tablespoons minced fresh oregano
* 1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
* 2 tablespoons heavy cream
* parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta once boiling and cook to al dente.

Meanwhile, trim steak and cut into cubes about 1 inch by inch. Season with salt and pepper.

Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Brown meat. Remove meat to paper towels to drain.

Meanwhile, chop onion and bell pepper into a small dice. Add to the oil in the pan and saute for about 3 minutes until both begin to soften. Slice mushrooms about 1/2 inch thick and add to saute pan. Saute for another 2-3 minutes until mushrooms begin to soften.

Add tomatoes, beef stock, oregano, and minced chipotle pepper. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for five minutes until liquid begins to reduce. Add beef back to sauce to reheat.

When reheated stir in heavy cream. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if necessary. Drain pasta and put back in the pasta pot on stove over medium heat. Add sauce to pasta pot. Stir to combine and coat pasta reducing sauce further if necessary.

To serve top each plate with a sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.