This recipe was in the NYT today. Now, I’m a pretty accomplished cook, but for the life of me can’t figure out what they are talking about when they tell me to “strain the oranges”. It’s obvious that it doesn’t mean ‘strain’ them in the sense of forcing them through a sieve. Any clues, please?
4 large navel oranges
7 tablespoons orange blossom honey
9 ounces rice vinegar (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons)
1½ cups firmly packed brown sugar
4½ teaspoons coriander seeds
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
¼ heaping teaspoon whole white peppercorns
Fine salt to taste
1 stick cinnamon
1 whole clove.
Wash whole oranges, and pierce all over with fork. Soak in cold water for three days, changing the water every day.
Strain oranges and put them with remaining ingredients in heavy pan; simmer for 3 hours.
Remove pan from heat and let stand until oranges cool. Do not peel. Cut oranges into segments and serve as an accompaniment to red meats and poultry.
Looks like some kind of pickled or otherwise preserved whole oranges; pretty sure ‘strain’ here actually means ‘drain’ - i.e. separate the intact solids from the liquid.
The simplest answer is usually the right one. I envisioned twisting them or rolling them or putting them on a rack. Obviously, they meant to say “drain”.