Dinner at El Barzon

So we had dinner at El Barzon the other night, and my lingering thought is this place is Detroit's best-kept secret.


El Barzon, on Junction, just south of Michigan Ave., is owned by Norberto and Silvia Garita. Norberto spent eight years at Il Posto in Southfield, perfecting pastas and other Italian specialties. Silvia focuses on the traditional recipes of their native Puebla, Mexico. The couple has been in the States for 30 years, much of that time working at restaurants in New York.


The secret to El Barzon is everything is made from scratch, and the Garitas' source many ingredients locally. The simple, unassuming atmosphere is casual and comforting. Come as you are, feel free to bring the family, and relax.

On our menu:

-Housemade tortilla chips with spicy, fire-roasted red and creamy, cilantro infused green salsa. Best chips and salsa in town. Pair with a Mexican beer.

-Perfectly cooked crisp calamari with zucchini strips and tomato sauce. The zucchini strips are a thoughtful touch, and the sauce is spiked with herbs, olive oil and a touch of garlic. So flavorful.

-Veal chop stuffed with prosciutto and cheese, topped with a truffle sauce; potato gratin and sauteed spinach. A decadent, gorgeous dish. Truly memorable.

-Squid ink linguine with shrimp, crab and red sauce. Sweet and savory all at once.

The veal and linguine were specials, but the regular menu is vast and tempting. The portions are generous -- we ate half of everything and brought the rest home -- and the prices modest. For more on El Barzon, see Nicole Ray's piece in the fall issue of edibleWOW (the story's not online, sorry).

If you haven't been to El Barzon yet, I encourage you to go. Soon. Let's not keep this secret to ourselves any longer.

Paella Risotto with Shrimp, Scallops and Crab

I love paella. And risotto. So, then comes the next logical step: combining them into a single luscious dish.

I took a few liberties with this paella risotto, using a recipe from Bon Appetit as inspiration and adapting it to my taste. Traditionally, paella incorporates mussels and/or clams. But I decided to go with shrimp, crab and scallops -- ingredients one often finds in risotto. I wanted to preserve the Spanish sensibility of paella, so I included traditional ingredients such as chorizo, saffron and smoked paprika. And I included some anchovies, tomato paste and orange zest to add depth.

The result is a smoky, sultry, creamy dish. The lightness of the seafood and zest balances the heft of the sausage and rice. The saffron perfumes the dish and the anchovy and tomato pastes and paprika create a complex backdrop. Give it a try!

Paella Risotto

1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 pound chorizo, casings removed
1 cup thinly sliced shallots
3 garlic cloves, minced

32 oz. fish stock
1 teaspoon saffron threads
1 bay leaf

2 cups arborio rice

1 tablespoon anchovy paste
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 cup dry white wine
3 sprigs fresh thyme

1/2 pound uncooked medium peeled and deveined shrimp
1/2 pound scallops, sliced in half if large
1/2 pound crab meat, picked over
5 oz frozen peas

1 tablespoon orange zest

Heat oil in large, heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add sausage and cook for a couple of minutes, breaking up with a spatula. Add shallots, garlic, kosher salt, black pepper and crushed red pepper to taste, and continue to saute for a total of five to seven minutes.

Meantime, combine fish stock, bay leaf and saffron in a small saucepan over medium until simmering, reduce heat to low and keep warm.

Add arborio rice to the sausage mixture and stir for two minutes. Stir in anchovy and tomato pastes and paprika.

Add wine, stirring constantly for about three minutes until wine evaporates. Stir in thyme. Add warm fish stock by ladlefuls, allow to reduce and continue to stir until rice is tender and liquid is creamy, about 20-25 minutes.

Mix shrimp, scallops, crab and peas into risotto and combine gently until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle zest on dish and serve.

Sushi Bowl

Do you, like me, crave sushi at home? Perhaps you spend your free time creating elaborate home-crafted hand-rolls, but I prefer to make deconstructed sushi.

Pretty quick and easy. First, saute three scallions in a splash of canola and sesame oil, add a tablespoon each of minced garlic and ginger and cook until soft. Set aside to cool. Then, in a small bowl, add 1/8 cup of low-sodium soy sauce, a teaspoon each of minced ginger and wasabi paste and stir until well combined. 

In a larger bowl, mix 1.5 cups of cold cooked brown rice with 6-8 ounces of good quality crab meat, a diced ripe avocado, a small diced cucumber and the scallion mixture. Then drizzle the soy sauce mixture on top and gently fold until well combined. Instant California roll.

For a cool, refreshing summer dish, consider making deconstructed sushi, and feel free to combine your favorite flavors to make the dish your own. Granted, it's not the prettiest meal, but it sure is tasty.