Episode 7 (part 2): Greek-American Chop Suey

One of the things that took us a few weeks to figure out when we moved to Maine: What the heck is American Chop Suey? We kept seeing it in the listings for Lions Club and church dinners, on the specials placards outside local taverns and eateries around South Portland. Lacking the will or the funds to go, we did not find out from those venues.

The mystery was solved earlier this week when Hot Librarian was given a remaindered copy of Cooking Down East by Marjorie Standish. Based on the (rather unappetizing looking) recipe on page 74, it's pretty much what people in the other 49 states call "Hamburger Casserole".

There's another dish I want to tell you about. Kima, is a dish that is found, in various pronunciations and spellings and recipes, in Greece, India, and just about every country in between. There are a number of dishes that extend and vary over a similar geographical extent, from the Balkans to Northern India--and if some enterprising food scholar were to collect representative recipes from each country and publish them in a single volume, I would buy it in an instant. Unlike some such recipes (e.g. moussaka/musaqqa, which has meat and bechamel in Greece, but is vegetarian and dairy-free in the Levant), kima remains relatively constant. It is basically ground or minced meat, beef, lamb or a combination of the two, browned and simmered with spices.

Kima has also played a role in the food culture of a major American city, Cincinnati. Chili-mac, the beloved fast food concoction of chili served over spaghetti, is basically a traditional Balkan way of serving kima (called by Greeks makaronadhes me kima). The flavors of a decent Cincinnati chili, with spices like cinnamon, cloves and allspice that are popular in the Balkans, bear a much closer resemblance to kima than to a Texan chili con carne. Until recently, I thought this could be attributed to a Greek restauranteur. But this article has convinced me that the first chili-mac purveyor was a Macedonian by the name of Karadjieff. (Note to any Greek nationalists who are tempted to rant that "Macedonia is Greek": There's an independent country called Macedonia where the majority of the people speak a Slavic language called Macedonian. Get over it, please.)

Perhaps it was the disappointment of not getting Chinese lunch today, or just a matter of making do with the ingredients ready to hand at home on a day when the supermarkets are closed, but I decided make my own rendition of American Chop Suey, not with the Standish recipe, but with kima. I'll call it, Greek-American Chop Suey: It's not Greek, it's definitely not Chinese, and I'm not sure it would be a hit at the Lions Club. But that may be what makes it American.

The following is less a recipe than a recounting of what I did. I would likely do it again completely differently, as I said, based on what's in the house and my whims.

Greek-American Chop Suey

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Chop an onion and mince a large clove of garlic (or two small=medium ones)
3. Warm a pan over medium heat and add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
4. Saute onions until just beginning to brown. Add garlic and saute another minute. Add ground beef and break into pieces.
5. Season with salt to taste, 1/4-1/2 tsp of cracked black pepper, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp allspice, 1/2 tsp cumin and a generous amount of crumbled Greek oregano. Stir to mix spices evenly into the mixture. Cook, stirring occasionally, until all the meat is browned.
6. Add 1 cup of tomato puree. Bring to simmer, reduce heat to a gentle simmer.
7. Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Boil 1.5 cups of dry elbow macaroni to al dente. Strain.
8. Add cooked macaroni to simmering kima mixture and mix together thoroughly.
9. Transfer mixture to casserole dish. Top generously with grated parmesan cheese and crumbled feta. Put in preheated oven.
10. Bake until browned a bit on top (about 30 minutes).

I took pictures, but I'm not posting them. To be honest, it doesn't look very appetizing. But it's easy, tastes good and is filling and warming on a winter night.