Monthly Archives: May 2011

Japanese-Indian Fusion BBQ?

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I’m lucky to have a lot of friends with very good taste in food.  I proposed a BBQ for this weekend since I didn’t have plans to go anywhere.  I bought some chicken drumsticks at like $1 a pound and a small rack of pork ribs at the local Chinese supermarket, along with some mushrooms and corn.  My friends Mee, Chris, and Brian provided half of a frozen seedless watermelon, veggie and steak kebabs made with a friend’s family’s home grown beef (!) and rice.

Who needs a yard to have a BBQ? A carport and a couple of Weber grills will do just fine.

I’m also lucky that I have guy friends well versed in the art of setting fires and cooking on a grill effectively.  I usually just throw the coals on, light them, let them sit for a bit then plop stuff on and it usually turns out fine.  Apparently there’s technique to BBQ.  Guess I just get lucky most of the time.

Getting lucky with some chicken legs

This time I marinated each of the meats overnight in a sake mixture.  They each had different seasonings.  The chicken seasoning was sake, fresh grated ginger, tumeric, garam masala, korean chili powder, and a little curry powder afterward because I didn’t put enough seasoning in to begin with.

The combo of tumeric and chili powder give grilled chicken a nice orange color

 

The pork was marinated in sake, brown sugar, and rosemary and then basted on the grill with more sake/brown sugar mixture but with hoisin sauce, pepper, and garlic powder added.  This made the ribs nice and sticky and sweet and kept them moist.

Brown sugar sake pork ribs

For dessert, Brian had bought a whole melon a week ago and I told him he should just freeze the unused portion for drinks later.  Turns out you should probably remove the rind before you freeze it, but it does make an excellent sorbet.  Recipe below!  Thanks to Mee for helping come up with the idea. :D

Tangy Watermelon Sorbet

Serves 6

  • 1/2 large seedless watermelon, rind removed, and frozen thoroughly
  • 4 ripe strawberries
  • 4 limes
  • 1/4 Grand Marnier or other citrus liqueur
  • 1-2 cups water

Place strawberries in blender or food processor.  Add cut up chunks of frozen watermelon, juice of 4 limes, citrus liqueur, and water.   Blend until sorbet consistency.  Serve before it melts!  No sugar needed.

 

In the end, we had so much food that I sent them home with some drumsticks…because apparently most of my friends go out of town for 3 day weekends.  Their loss, though, because we had a relaxing time with BBQ in the carport, some beer, and watermelon sorbet.  Thanks, Mee, Brian, and Chris, for helping me indulge my BBQ craving!

Turn the grill upside down after grilling and you have chicken flavored stalagmites?!

 

Riso Carbonara

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If you can make fettucini carbonara, spaghetti carbonara…why not rice? The essence of carbonara is the pancetta/bacon, cheese, salt & pepper, and raw egg thrown in at the last minute to cook ever so briefly, not the pasta itself.

I felt like spaghetti was not a good substitute for fettucini when it comes to carbonara, so I decided to do rice.  Wehani rice (whole grain, red/brown rice, how fiberful).  Wehani rice is nice because it has a chewy texture, reddish color, and a moist, flavorful center.

The end result was a slightly sophisticated dish, like an elevated version of what my mom ingloriously used to call “Tuna Glop” (rice/cheese/milk/tuna/mushrooms/onions or something like that).  I know, that sounds awful, but don’t let it turn you off.  Some of the ingredients I used are a little rare, but you could substitute as you see fit.  In the honor of the romance of Italy, I’d say this is probably the love child of risotto and carbonara.

To be honest, I was a little wary of cooking with squash blossoms because of my parents’ reports that they “taste funky” and are best “battered with egg and deep fried”.  With the ham and onions and everything in a creamy sauce, though, they taste awesome.  Thanks to Anthony Bourdain’s episode on Rome for spiking my curiosity on this one, because it’s really awesome.  The squash blossoms are super tender with a slight but not overpowering squashy flavor and an absolutely gorgeous color to add to any dish!  Fettucini alfredo with squash blossoms?  Yes pleaseeeee.  I intend to eat many squash blossoms now before their season runs out!

Slightly Healthy Riso Carbonara

  • 1 cup wehani brown rice, cooked according to package directions (1 cup rice, 2 cups water, bring to a boil, simmer for 40 minutes or so)
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 12 slices Canadian bacon or other salty pork product (pancetta, bacon, ham), cut into strips
  • 1 bunch maitake mushrooms, chopped roughly (flavor is somewhere in between standard US store mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms in terms of pungency, you could substitute crimini)
  • Salt, red pepper (I used Korean red pepper), and a dash of garlic powder to taste
  • 1/3 red onion, finely diced
  • 12 leaves fresh basil
  • a few sprigs fresh parsley (minced up with the basil)
  • 10 squash blossoms, sliced up into rings
  • 1 cup fresh shelled green peas
  • 1/3 cup skim milk
  • 3 wedges Laughing Cow cheese (swiss or french onion flavor), or 1/4 cup of grated Parmesan if you’ve got it.  Just some cheese, preferably of a white zingy variety.
  • 1 whole raw egg

Cook the rice, as stated above.  Set it aside and let it cool.

Melt the butter in a big frying pan.  On high heat, add the mushrooms, onions, and ham along with the salt, red pepper, and garlic powder.  Stir frequently until browned.  Turn down the heat to medium low. (I use the Korean red pepper because it’s slightly but not too spicy and comes in nice big flakes which add good color to dishes. For salt, I usually pick kosher or sea salt.)

Add the squash blossoms, basil, and parsley and stir in.

Add the peas.  Stir them in well and let them cook a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the sauteed mixture to the rice and mix it all up.  Bring the heat up to low and mix it throughly so it gets a little warmed.

Add the milk, egg, and cheese and mix it all in quite well.

Serve with fresh ground pepper on top.

 

Happy Birthday, Princess J

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My best friend’s birthday was this week.  We threw a birthday potluck picnic for her.  I learned that whipped cream is probably not a good choice for frosting unless you’re going to eat the cake immediately.  As we drove to the park, I frantically kept scooping up the frosting as it melted, flowing down the sides of the cake and taking the strawberries with it, threatening to douse my lap in sweet fluffiness…

Recipes used:

  • Heavenly White Cake I added a couple tablespoons of sour cream to this.  I think the cake was a little too sweet, personally, but it held together really well and didn’t give me any problems when I cut the layers in half.  I was terrified it wouldn’t rise because I added stuff to the egg whites before beating them because I hadn’t read through the recipe entirely.  Luckily it still worked out, so you know this is a pretty foolproof recipe!
  • Pastry Cream This was my first time essentially making cream puff filling.  This stuff was amazing…I added a little orange liqueur and because I only had non-fat milk, I used a mixture of non-fat milk and sour cream to give it the necessary richness.  It worked out well, actually.
  • Frosting: whipped cream, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and powdered sugar.  Only use this as frosting if you intend to eat it immediately or freeze it and eat it as soon as it comes out of the freezer.
  • Tip for working with strawberries on a cake: to get them to stick well, slice them and then dry them between some paper towels.  Though if you use the whipped cream frosting, that forethought won’t be worth it…

At least it tasted awesome!

Spicy Nectarine Salsa

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I’m not sure how I came across this one, but I did a while back.  I was reminded of it because my friend Mee and her boyfriend had some mango papaya salad with fish the other day and nectarines are just beginning to start to come into season in the US.  Thanks for reminding me, guys!

Originally, I just kind of threw it together and it turned out to be even more amazing on my tastebuds in real life than in my head.  I remember eating this on the lofted patio of my cousin’s amazing mountain-y home last memorial day while sipping some sangria, then going off to soak in the hot tub.  The slight floweriness and tang of nectarines works so well with the bright cilantro and spicy habanero peppers.  It’s great on fish, as you’ll see below.

Kestrel’s Nectarine Salsa

Makes 3 servings as a topping for fish.  Feel free to double, triple, or even quadruple.

  • 1 nectarine, somewhat firm, just starting to ripen up and get soft (too firm will be too sour, too soft will be too mushy). Make sure it smells good!
  • 1 habanero pepper, minced (more if you’re a masochist, or substitute jalapenos or anaheims if you’re a wimp.  Here I used serranos because they were cheaper, but they weren’t as spicy as I’d like.)
  • 1/4 of a red onion, finely diced
  • 5 sprigs cilantro, minced
  • fresh juice of 1 lime

Combine all of the ingredients, prepared as listed above, in a bowl.  Let it sit for at least 10 minutes and stir so that the flavors have a chance to mingle.  For the best flavor, let it sit an hour or two, but make sure you use it within 2 days (keep refrigerated).

This is great to serve with a nice light white fish (cod, tilapia) in the summertime, or just to eat with chips while sitting outside.  Here I served it with a fresh fillet of cod that I just lightly coated with rice flour and a dusting of curry powder (mostly for color) and pan fried (I used butter, but you could use olive oil) for no more than 10 minutes total.  It’s a super quick recipe that seems quite fancy!  The key is getting quality ingredients and keeping it simple.


It’s quite healthy, but the flavors in this are so stunning that you won’t notice.

 

Naan grilled cheese

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I bought some garlic naan at Trader Joe’s last week.  It’s certainly not authentic naan, but it’s nice and fluffy and has a very garlicky flavor.  Marco, who apparently wants to see my thighs turn into the Hindenburg, gave me some brie as a thank you for helping him in his job search.

What does this all mean?  Grilled cheeeese!

Ah, this sandwich was sexy. Fluffy garlicky bread, melty brie, fresh basil.  Adding anything besides a little sea salt and fresh ground pepper would make it harder to appreciate, I think.  For an extra crispy sandwich, grill it with a little melted butter or bacon fat spread on each side.  You can get all of the ingredients for this in Trader Joe’s, but I’m sure you could pick up stuff elsewhere over multiple locations and make the same sandwich.

Président now makes a brie log, bless their hearts.  So if you just want to gnaw on a stick of brie, you damn well can. Or, it’d probably be perfect size for slicing onto a baguette or crackers.  While Président may not have the most character of the bries out there, it’s still got that brie-y goodness and intense meltability.

I recommend you try this garlicky wonder someday.  Your socks may be knocked off.

Comfort Food: Mashed Potatoes & Egg

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I don’t know when exactly I discovered that mashed potatoes topped with a fried egg were one of my favorite comfort foods.  It was probably the mornings on the weekend when there’d be some leftover mashed potatoes my mom made for dinner in the fridge and not a whole lot else that was appealing.

In this recipe, I’ve stepped it up a notch.  The mashed potatoes are a little classier…but still pretty simple to make.   They’d be nice for a simple brunch or a breakfast in bed with some fresh OJ and fruit.  You could probably bake the egg on top of the mashed potatoes in little ceramic ramekins garnished with a bit of grated parmesan if you wanted to be even fancier, though I can’t really give you advice on that because I don’t have enough patience to wait for the oven to preheat.

Sorry that I don’t have exact measurements today, but it’s been a long and technically challenging week and a half.

Mushroom Mashed Potatoes & Egg

This recipe will make enough for probably 3 breakfast servings, hence the 3 eggs.  You can always just make 1 serving and have the mashed potatoes left over though.

  • About 4-5 large crimini (brown) mushrooms, chopped roughly (into about 1/3″ sized pieces)
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, peeled & chopped
  • 1/2 yellow onion, diced
  • a few sprigs of fresh thyme, stems removed so it’s just the leaves
  • sea salt & fresh ground pepper
  • a tsp or two of olive or vegetable oil
  • 4 medium sized yukon gold potatoes
  • 2/3 cup skim milk
  • 2 wedges Laughing Cow French Onion cheese
  • vegetable oil
  • 3 duck or 3 jumbo chicken eggs (I used duck eggs, they’re larger.)

Wash & stab the potatoes several times with a sharp knife.  Microwave for 2 minutes on each side, or until they’re soft and easy to stab with a fork.  Leave to cool.

In a pan, add the olive or vegetable and bring the heat up to medium.  If you’re using a not non-stick pan, use more oil.  Once the pan is heated and the oil moves around easily, add the onions, garlic, salt & pepper.  Once the onions start becoming translucent, add the mushrooms and thyme.  Stir frequently, keep cooking until mushrooms are somewhat wilted.

By now, the onions should be somewhat browned.  Turn off the heat and set aside.


In a large bowl, add potatoes.

Mash em all up until they’re nice and fluffy.  Do not remove the skins– not only do they have potassium, but they also add a nice texture.
Add the milk to the potatoes.  Mash em up some more and mix it in well.
Unwrap and add your laughing cow wedges.  Mash and mix them in until there are no big chunks left.  At this point, your potatoes should still be fluffy.  Don’t mash them until they start becoming a starchy paste.
Add the sauteed onion/mushroom mixture.
Add a little more salt and pepper, maybe some hot paprika or cayenne, to taste.  Mix it all up nice and well.
Now your mashed potato mixture is done!  Hooray!  You can start on the egg(s) now.
Add the oil to the pan on medium heat.  Crack the egg into it.  Cook until the bottom becomes white, but the whole thing is not cooked through.  You can cook it however you’d like, honestly, but I prefer mine fried.  For this, you’ll want a runny yolk; (runny yolks are sexier and more dangerous!)  but you don’t want runny whites…because that’s just kind of gross.
Once the bottom was white, flip and turn off the heat.  Let it sit for a minute, max.  If the yolk starts becoming a lighter yellow in color– AHHH it’s almost overdone!  Pull it off!  Optimally, it should remain it’s nice dark color under the white cloak of the eggwhite. :)
Portion the mashed potatoes out onto plates.  Add an egg on top.

Grapefruit Goat Chese Salad

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This salad isn’t for sissies.  It’s pretty rich.  Ripened goat cheese, avocado, grapefruit, arugula, butter lettuce, and green onions in a white balsamic lemongrass vinagrette.  I’d use less avocado & cheese than I did, though, because it was a bit overwhelmingly rich.

The white balsamic vinegar lets the colors of the salad show through rather than dying it for you.  (White balsamic is a little more subdued in flavor than regular balsamic, so it works well in fruity vinagrettes. )

Featuring Cypress Grove Bermuda Triangle goat cheese.  It lacks the goaty funk that a lot of goat cheeses have and has a texture like brie and a zingy flavor a bit like blue cheese.   It pairs very, very well with fresh ruby red grapefruit.

I highly recommend you try out Cypress Grove’s cheeses– their goat milk comes from local dairies in Humboldt County, where the goats roam free and so do the hippies (though, not necessarily in the same pastures).  How do I know?  When I was a wee one, I grew up for a couple of years on a farm that raised goats whose milk contributed to their products, running in the pastures with them. I can assure you, they’re very happy.

Another great cheese they make is called Humboldt Fog.  They’re a little pricey, but I can assure you they’re worth the splurge; definitely perfect for a cheese platter for the holidays or a picnic or dinner party.

For the vinagrette:

  • 2 parts olive oil
  • 7 parts white balsamic vinegar
  • 1 part ground or finely grated lemongrass
  • kosher salt
  • fresh ground black pepper

For a simpler version of this salad, substitute good ol’ domestic blue cheese for the cheese, and in the vinaigrette substitute lemon or lime zest and apple cider or rice vinegar.

Japanese Taco Salad

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Today I wanted to do a price point challenge.  I had $11 in my wallet and was craving fish tacos.  With what I bought from Trader Joe’s to make this dish (spices, oil, and flour excluded), it only cost about $11 total to get enough ingredients for at *least* 4 servings (admittedly I did get my soba from 99 Ranch, the Asian supermarket, so it might cost more at TJ’s).  ($9 for fish & veg, $2 for a bottle of 2 buck chuck (excluded from costing here >.> , and $2 for soba noodles)

For the soba noodle “taco salad”:

  • soba noodles cooked & rinsed & drained as per directions on package
  • white sweet onion diced finely
  • shredded cabbage
  • jalapeño peppers, finely diced (how many probably depends on how spicy they are)
  • cherry tomatoes, cut into four pieces each
  • fresh cilantro, chopped  (mine was from my garden!  whee Spring!)
  • 1 freshly squeezed lime
  • dash sesame oil (not used a lot in Japanese cooking, but whatever, it’s identity crisis fusion)
  • toasted sesame seeds
  • salt

For the fish:

  • Trader Joe’s frozen Mahi Mahi chunks (defrosted)
  • lime juice
  • sea salt
  • dash of Ponzu
  • brown sugar (or substitute Mirin for more Japanese flavor)

Marinaded briefly, then dried and then coated with:

  • rice flour
  • hot chili flakes

Fried in

  • vegetable oil

until golden, dried on paper towels and served on top of the salad.

To make this more Japanese, top with Kewpie brand or slightly sweetened U.S. mayo (ala Oaxaca fish tacos) and sub green onions for white onions.  Some furikake or shredded nori would be a fancypants garnish.

You could substitute regular white flour or cornstarch for the rice flour in a pinch, or go super fancy and make the fish tempura style.
Eaten together, this recipe was awesome for a hot day.  I’m not normally a fan of mahi mahi, but it does in a pinch if it’s the cheapest fish you can get.