We’ve supped with Starks, lunched with Lannisters, dessert-ed with the dead, now it’s time to join the Targaryen table for the final courses of our #Thronesgiving feast. Last week we paid homage to Cersei and Tyrion with recipes for late summer salad and wine-drenched duck breasts. This week we hail the King and Queen of Dragons with some artichoke dragon eggs and dragoncello pork loin inspired by Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow!
Click here to skip to the recipe for Jon Snow’s Seared Pork w/Beer Gravy.
Click here to skip to the recipe for Daenerys Targaryen’s Dragon Eggs.
Fire and Blood
The meeting of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen was certainly long awaited this past season of Game of Thrones. Though their journeys took them through different corners of the world, George R.R. Martin sets Jon and Dany up so that they share more than just a bloodline.
Incest jokes aside, Jon and Dany go through enough that they are the only ones who can understand what the other has been through. Both never knew their real parents. Both faced betrayal from the people closest to them. The only loves they knew died before them. And they both rose up to rule not out of desire, but a need to protect the innocent.
Daenerys and Aegon Targaryen are not just bound by blood, but by fate and mind. In their interactions, they speak to others as equals, united by a common purpose. However, we see them change roles between the heart and the head, supporting the other where one may lack in a situation.
In the books, we see Rhaegar and other Targaryens state that the Dragon must have three heads. In the show, we understand why in Dany and Jon’s conversations. Now, who the third head is may not be entirely clear at the moment. But hopefully Game of Thrones’ final season will answer that question.
Sing For Your Supper
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Crouching Direwolf, Hidden Dragon.
For Jon’s dish, I wanted to create something that encompassed his lineage and history. Born in the South to a Stark and a Targaryen, raised in the frigid North, his entire existence is a song of ice and fire. So I decided on cooking up a pork tenderloin, as pork is common to both north Westerosi (Medieval England) and Valyerian (Ancient Rome) cuisine.
I then marinated the pork in some dragoncello sauce, an Italian herb sauce made with fresh tarragon, garlic, and several types of vinegar. Traditionally used to season boiled meats or fish, I thought it would add a nice spicy kick and flavor base for this dish.
Since I understand that timing the main course of a feast is crucial, I included instructions on how to cook this dish in the oven and with a sous-vide machine. I highly suggest using the latter if your meal has many oven-dependent dishes.
After searing the slab of meat on cast iron, I tossed in some fresh leeks to catch the browned bits. I then deglazed the whole lot with a combination of the marinade and some spiced ale I found from Trader Joe’s. Leeks and beer are both more common in northern cooking and thus representative of Jon Snow’s upbringing.
I personally like ale since it has a more medieval flavor, but if you are going for a more northern taste, use some dark black lager.
Mother of Dragons
After last Thronesgiving’s Daenerys Targaryen-inspired garam masala lamb rib throne, I thought I tapped myself out of good ideas. How could I possibly top it in both visual appeal and flavor? I was in luck that I then found a recipe for Cariofi alla Romana, Roman-style artichokes, in my copy of The Complete Italian Cookbook by Carlo Bernasconi and Christian Teubner. This traditional recipe involves stuffing artichokes with breadcrumbs and herbs, then braising them in stock or white wine.
Not only was I happy that I could do a take on an Italian recipe and be true to the Targaryen Valeryian origins. But I was thrilled that artichokes took naturally like dragon eggs. I’m not satisfied by mere appearance, though. That’s why I chose to use the artichoke as a casing and serving dish for soft-boiled eggs. Think of it as an Italian take on the scotch egg.
Of course, I then needed to add some more ingredients characteristic to Daenerys’s experience. So with that in mind, I also added smoked sundried tomatoes for her dragons, lemon zest to remind her of Pentos, garam masala for Mereen, and at last dragoncello sauce to tie this recipe in with Jon Snow’s.
The beauty of this recipe is that a single batch can feed up to 12 people, depending on whether you choose to feature it as an entree or a side dish. This dish is just like a dragon, though, it that whether large or small, you can never forget it.
So there it is, the last of my six final #Thronesgiving recipes. If you are looking for more mouth-watering ways to bid farewell to Westeros, check out my Fandom Foodies Game of Thrones recipe link-up here.
A Taste of House Targaryen
Daenerys's Dragon Eggs
Equipment: Stovetop, stockpot with smaller lid, small saucepan with lid, blender, large baking dish, kitchen twine, oven, zester.
Ingredients:
Dragoncello Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped tarragon
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Dragon Eggs:
- 3 artichokes
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup smoked sundried tomatoes, chopped
- Juice and zest of two lemons
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
Instructions:
- Place the eggs in the saucepan and cover with water. Let sit for 15 minutes to come to room temperature. Add the bread crumbs, sundried tomatoes, garam masala, 1/2 tablespoon of lemon zest to a mixing bowl and stir. Set aside.
- Fill the stockpot with water and bring to a boil on the stovetop. Then pour in the lemon juice. Slice the artichokes in half and lower them into the boiling water with a slotted spoon. Weigh down the artichokes using the slightly smaller lid, threading a wooden spoon through the handle if necessary to keep them submerged. Cook for 10 minutes, then remove with a pair of tongs to cool on a cutting board.
- Bring the eggs to a boil over high heat cook 2 minutes. Continually swirl the eggs around the pan with a wooden or slotted spoon. Drain the water using the lid as a colander. Run cold water over the eggs and drain, then repeat 3 or 4 times until cool. Cover the saucepan and gently shake to crack the shells. Carefully remove the eggs from their shells.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Gently pull the softest inner petals from the artichoke halves, chop them, then add to the bowl of bread crumbs. Scoop out the fuzzy portion of the artichoke and discard.
- Puree all of the ingredients for the dragoncello sauce in the blender then pour half into the bowl of breadcrumbs. Mix with a spatula until thoroughly moistened, then divide into six portions.
- Carefully fill the artichoke halves with stuffing, pressing up the inner walls to make a depression large enough for your eggs.
- Place an egg into three of the artichoke halves. Gently cover them with their respective halves and tie closed with kitchen twine.
- Place the tied artichokes into the baking dish seam-side-down and pour in the stock. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan and flipping the artichokes with a pair of tongs half-way through.
- Remove the artichokes from the baking dish with a pair of tongs. Cut the string, then run chef’s knife through the seam to cut in half.
- Thin the remaining dragoncello sauce with stock to taste, drizzle over the artichoke halves, and garnish with lemon zest or red pepper flakes before serving.
Note:
Slice the finished artichokes into quarters after baking to serve up to 12 people.
King of the Seven Kingdoms
Jon's Seared Pork w/Beer Gravy
Equipment: Blender, ziplock bag, stovetop, heavy skillet, and tongs. If roasted: Oven, baking sheet, aluminum foil. If sous-vide: Sous-vide circulation machine, stockpot, chip clip.
Ingredients:
Dragoncello Sauce:
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped tarragon
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Pork & Gravy
- 1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin
- 1 leek, sliced into half-moons
- 3/4 cup spiced ale or black lager
- 1/8 cup dehydrated potato flakes
Instructions:
At least 3 hours before cooking:
- Puree all of the ingredients for the dragoncello sauce in the blender.
- Place the pork in a ziplock bag and pour in the dragoncello sauce, seal the bag, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
If using the sous-vide machine:
- Set your machine up according to the manufacturer’s instructions to cook at 135°F.
- When the water comes up to temperature, slowly lower the bag of marinated pork into the water. Allow the water to push the air out of the top of the bag and seal at the top. Clip the bag to the side of the pot and let cook at least 1, but no more than 4 hours.
- Heat the skillet over a medium-high flame on the stovetop. Remove the pork loin from the bag, lightly dry with paper towels, and season all over with kosher salt. Sear the pork for 30 seconds on each side and place on a cutting board under aluminum foil to rest and keep warm.
If using an oven:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line the baking sheet with aluminum foil and a coat of cooking spray.
- Heat the skillet over a medium-high flame on the stovetop. Remove the pork loin from the bag, lightly dry with paper towels, and season all over with kosher salt.
- Sear the pork until browned on both sides, about 3-4 minutes on each side. Transfer the meat to the baking sheet and roast in the oven for 10-12 minutes.
Make the gravy:
- Add the leeks to the still hot pan with a drizzle of cooking oil and a pinch of kosher salt. Cook about 2-3 minutes, then stir in the potato flakes.
- Pour the beer into the bag of marinade, swish around, then pour out to deglaze the skillet. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes, scraping the browned bits off the bottom the pan, and add kosher salt to taste.
- Turn off the heat and cover with a lid or foil to keep warm.
Serve your house:
- Allow the pork to rest at least 5 minutes before slicing into 1/2″-thick medallions.
- Divide the pork between serving plates and drown them in a generous portion of gravy before serving.
