Red Currant Sauce--need some advice

[carnivore]

the GF & i ate at a nice restaurant for valentine's day, and i ordered Pork Bellissimo, which i'd never heard of before but was really good--what made it was the red currant sauce served over the top. So now i want to make this sauce, but not being familiar with it, i wanted to get some advice.
i don't have a recipe for the sauce, but most of the recipes i've found on the internet have involved red currant jelly, which to this point i've been unable to find in 3 different supermarkets. i figured it would be in the jelly section, but is there another section i should be looking in?
I've also been looking to buy the currants themselves, but i can't find those either :?
also, this is a recipe i've found which sounds fairly similar to what i tasted the other night:

Red Currant Sauce

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 10 oz jar red currant jelly
3/4 cup chili sauce
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/4 cup apple jelly
2 Tbsp dry white wine

what do you guys & gals think? does it sound like a good recipe? anyone have a tried and true recipe they'd be willing to share?
thanks,

[BubbaGourmet]

As a huge fan of juxtaposing sweet and spicy, I like the sound of this a lot. As far as finding currant jelly, both our local markets do have it in the jelly section. You might try the "gourmet" section where the mint jelly is.

[ironchef]

you may have to go to a specialty food store such as a williams sonoma.

[carnivore]

thanks guys,
i did find it at a local gourmet market. i guess i was thinking it would be more commonplace--then again i've never had a need for until now!

[ironchef]

Carnivore I changed your recipe a little bit (see below). I didn't think you had enough liquid to make it a sauce; the recipe sounded more like a glaze or a baste.

Originally Posted by carnivore

the GF & i ate at a nice restaurant for valentine's day, and i ordered Pork Bellissimo, which i'd never heard of before but was really good--what made it was the red currant sauce served over the top. So now i want to make this sauce, but not being familiar with it, i wanted to get some advice.
i don't have a recipe for the sauce, but most of the recipes i've found on the internet have involved red currant jelly, which to this point i've been unable to find in 3 different supermarkets. i figured it would be in the jelly section, but is there another section i should be looking in?
I've also been looking to buy the currants themselves, but i can't find those either :?
also, this is a recipe i've found which sounds fairly similar to what i tasted the other night:

Red Currant Sauce

1 Tbsp vegetable oil - 2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter
1/3 cup finely chopped onion - 2 Medium Shallots, finely chopped
1 10 oz jar red currant jelly
3/4 cup chili sauce - Omit first time you make this
2 Tbsp lemon juice - Omit
1/4 cup apple jelly - Omit
2 Tbsp dry white wine - Change to 2 cups Red Wine
1 cup Beef or Veal Stock

Saute shallots in butter until translucent. Add wine and stock, and reduce until approximately one cup. Whisk in HALF of the currant jelly, then add more depending on desired taste. Serve as is, or reduce until 3/4-1/2 cup if you want it thicker and more concentrated. If you reduce it further, don't add additional currant jelly until you are finished reducing it.



what do you guys & gals think? does it sound like a good recipe? anyone have a tried and true recipe they'd be willing to share?
thanks,

[/b]

[carnivore]

awesome--thanks for taking the time to do that ironchef. i'll probably give this a try after this weekend.

[balibar]

Carnivore, here's something I do quite frequently either with game or with beef: after you've removed the meat from the frying pan, pour out the excess fat, add a little water into the pan scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the juices. Then you add a good dollop of red currant jelly and lots of pepper. You'll get a great combintion of sweet and hot.
Red currant jelly is a staple here. For fresh red currants you'll probably have to wait until summer because it's a summer fruit. Should you decide to make the jelly yourself, I wish you luck and patience. It really takes a while to remove not only the stems but also the little black thing at the other end (don't know the name in english). You'll have to remove every single one of those. Believe me, I know: I do it every summer when I make my red or black currant liquor. It takes ages and your fingers get sore picking at those tiny things.

Another good recipe is to flabé the emat with cognac, remove the meat, add red currant jelly and orange peel. Reduce.

[carnivore]

thanks balibar! well now i've got a bunch of recipes to try--i just have to start trying them.
BTW--balibar, i'd be very interested in hearing how you make your currant liquor, if you'd be willing to share.

[balibar]

Sure, no problem. This is something that is commonly made in the area where my family comes from. I only hope you can get the right kind of liquour to start with. And patience because that's the secret ingredient that makes it good.

You'll need clear glass bottles. Red currants. Plain white sugar. And what we call "alccol pour fruit". It's a plain liquor that doesn't taste of anything or hardly and comes in a variety of degrees (in my family we use 35°).
If you can't find that, you can use any clear liquor that doesn't have much of a taste. Don't use tequila or gin, for instance. The liqour has to be good quality, of course.

Remove the tiny stems and what we call the "mouche" (the fly). The little black thing at the other end - I'd be glad for the name in english - carefully without crushing the fruit. Now is the time to call on grandkids and their small hands.

Fill the bottle up to its first third with fruit, add sugar up to half of the second third. Fill up with liquor.

Now the trick is to find a windowsill in a sunny (not [/i]toosunny - if you live in a place like Florida, don't go for full sun) spot - sunny as in New England sunny (I hope this is making sense). You will leave your bottles there for three months. Now you know what I meant by being patient. Every week, if possible, you will rotate the bottles slightly, so that all sides can be exposed to the sun.
Every second week or so , you will need to tip your bottles slowly upside down so the sugar comes to the top. Don't disturb the fruit too much.
The liquor is ready when it turns a bright dark red. You then keep it in a cool place. It'll keep for quite a while when unopened.

You can drink it straight. Add about half an inch to dry white wine to make a "Kirr" (he's the monk who supossedly invented the drink) or use it over ice-cream.

We'll finishing our last bottle from last year's crop just before lunch as Sunday apéritif is sacred.

[kyles]

Hi balibar and carnivore,

We call it top and tailing the berries in English, I don't know what we call the black little furry bit, I don't think there is a name for it!

When you make red currant jelly you can cheat big time. I boil the berries in water without topping and tailing, then use a jelly cloth to strain them! All that arduous work out the window! Of course this wouldn't work for your liquor, as you are not straining them at any time. Do you call the liquor "cassis"? One of my favourite beers is a blackcurrant one from Belgium also called Cassis, although the raspberry one Framboise is my all time favourite.

I make black currant cordial in summer, it's very messy, but a lot of fun.[/i]