Thai Chili Sauce

From the shesimmers blog: http://shesimmers.com/2011/03/thai-three-flavored-sauce-newbie.html

• 40 g red chilies (about 20 bird’s eye chilies or 3 large red jalapeño peppers), finely chopped
• 40 g peeled garlic (about 10 large cloves), finely chopped
• 40 g peeled shallots (2 large), finely chopped
• 20 g finely chopped cilantro roots or stems (about 1/2 cup, packed)
  (The above ingredients can be pulsed to a coarse paste in a food processor.)
• 150 g palm sugar, chopped (about 1 cup, packed)
• 4 fluid ounces water (1/2 cup)
• 70 g brown sugar (1/3 cup, packed)
  2.5 fluid ounces fish sauce (1/3 cup)
• 2.5 fluid ounces tamarind pulp (1/3 cup)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

 

1. In a medium saucepan, fry the garlic-shallot-cilantro-chili paste in the vegetable oil over medium-high heat just until fragrant.
2. Add the remaining ingredients to the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower the heat to maintain a simmer.
3. Reduce the sauce down to about 1 1/2 cups; remove from heat. The sauce will thicken up slightly upon cooling.
4. Store the cooled sauce in a glass jar and refrigerate or freeze.

Weeknight Pork Chops

• thin-cut bone-in pork chops
• oyster sauce
• soy sauce
• garlic powder
• pepper
• agave syrup or brown sugar

Mix the sauce together in a small bowl.  The taste should be salty with just a hint of sweetness.

Add oil to a flat-bottomed pan and heat on medium.

Brush half of the the sauce on one side of the pork chops, then sprinkle pepper over the chops evenly.

Place the seasoned side down on the pan and allow to cook.  Once the chop is a light brown color, turn up the heat to create a sear.

Turn the chops over and brush on the remaining sauce.  Continue to cook until they are done.

 

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Tasty served warm or room temp, this is a great alternative to sandwiches for a picnic.  I made these for the summer concert in the park series.  The main flavors come from the garlic and oyster sauce.  The water chestnuts and pine nuts add a crunch.  This can be an appetizer if served without the rice.

Chicken Filling

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, minced
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1 can whole water chestnuts, drained and coarsely chopped
• 1 small zucchini, chopped
• 3 green onions, chopped
• oyster sauce to taste
• fish sauce to taste
• 3 tablespoons pine nuts
• cilantro, chopped

1. Heat pan and add a few swirls of oil.  Add garlic and cook till fragrant, but not browned.
2. Add chicken, oyster sauce and fish sauce until chicken is no longer pink on outside
3. Add zucchini and continue to cook till zucchini is tender
4. Add pine nuts, water chestnuts till warmed through
5. Take off heat and add green onions and cilantro

Serve with steamed white rice rolled in butter lettuce leaves

Mahi Mahi Salad with Ginger Soy Dressing

Made this for me and my dad

Mahi Mahi Basting Sauce:

• Sesame Oil
• Agave Syrup
• Rice Vinegar
• Garlic Powder
• Soy Sauce

Combine ingredients in a small bowl.  Baste first side of the fish, then place fish basted side down in a skillet over med-high heat.  Baste the top side. Turn after 5 minutes and once first side is browned.  Continue cooking and basting till completely cooked (about 10 minutes)

Dressing:

• Sesame Oil
• Grated Ginger
• Lime Juice
• Mustard
• Agave Syrup
• Soy Sauce
• Pepper

Easy Citrus Ginger Soy Salmon

This salmon really is simply seasoned and topped with a simple vinaigrette.  Great with a green salad

INGREDIENTS

• 2 salmon fillets
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp rice vinegar
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• splash orange juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 tsp fresh grated ginger
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp orange zest

INSTRUCTIONS

• To make the vinaigrette, whisk all ingredients except the salmon fillets in a small bowl
• Season salmon with more salt and pepper
• Heat a small fry pan with oil and place salmon in flesh side down.  Cook for a few minutes till nicely browned
• Flip fish over and spoon a bit of the vinaigrette over the fish before placing the pan in a 375 degree oven.
• Baste halfway through cooking with the vinaigrette
• Once the salmon is cooked, remove from the oven and spoon over remaining vinaigrette over the salmon

Vietnamese Lemongrass Beef Noodle Soup

After just one bite, B determined this to be a keeper!

Yields about 6 dinner sized portions

INGREDIENTS

• 3 pounds bone-in or boneless beef short ribs.  If using boneless, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 2 medium onions, diced
• 4 small stalks of lemongrass, minced (I chop mine into little rounds, pound in the mortar and pestle, then finish in the food processor)
• 2 inch knob of ginger, split and smashed
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• 2 star anise pods
• dried chilis to taste
• 3 TBSP tomato paste
• 6 cups beef broth
• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
• 4 inches of daikon radish, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks
• 2 TBSP fish sauce to taste
• Baby bok choy, about 1 1/2 bunches per person
• Thai basil for garnish
• 3 pounds fresh rice noodles

INSTRUCTIONS

• Brown the beef on all sides in batches (about 8 minutes per batch).  Once browned, remove beef from the pot
• Add  the onions and cook for about 10 minutes until golden brown, but still soft
• Add the garlic, cook for a few seconds, the add the lemongrass, chili and ginger.  Sauté to let the flavors bloom
• Add the tomato paste and salute till incorporated in he mixture
• Re-introduce the beef and any rendered juices
• Add the beef broth.  Be sure to fully cover the beef well.
• Bring to a simmer.
• Cover the top with foil, place the lid on and place in a 325 degree oven for 1 1/2 hours till meat is tender
• Remove from the oven.  If used bone-in beef, remove the beef from the bone, then cut into bit-sized chunks
• Add the carrot and daikon and simmer over the stove until the veggies are soft and release their sweetness
• In the meantime, boil some water and boil the bok choy.  Place in individual bowls.  Using the same water, cook the rice noodles, just till softened and heated through (they are already cooked).  Place the noodles over the bok choy
• Ladle the soup over the noodles and garnish with basil

Vietnamese Grilled Pork Chops with Green Onion Oil

For Father’s Day Dinner, we took out one of our Vietnamese cookbooks that B gave me as a gift last year to make pork chops seasoned with lemongrass, one of our favorite ingredients.  I love the smell-citrusy, earthy and slightly sweet.  We ate the chops with white rice garnished with green onion oil and served with a side of green leaf lettuce, raw cucumber and seasoned fish sauce.

VIETNAMESE PORK CHOPS

INGREDIENTS

3 pork loin chops about 1 inch thick

2 TBSP oyster sauce

2 TBSP fish sauce

2 tsp honey

2 tsp sugar

2 small stalks of lemongrass, finely minced

2 cloves garlic

4 green onions cut into 1/4 inch pieces

5 TBSP oil

INSTRUCTIONS

Combine all ingredients together in a bowl and let sit over night before grilling

GREEN ONION OIL

In an 8 inch fry pan, heat 1/3 cup oil with about 4 green onions, cut into thin rounds on medium heat.  Heat gently to allow the onions to infuse into the oil for a few minutes.  Leftovers can be kept for a later time.

Beef & Tomato

This ingredient combination doesn’t seem to scream Asian entree….I don’t even know if his is remotely authentic to any region of China.  But I think I was introduced to this dish by my college roommate who was from Taiwan.  We weren’t that close, so I never tried his version, but I was pretty happy with the results of mine, inspired by the lone tomato sitting on my counter, left over from the weekend’s BBQ.

I decided to try roasting the tomatoes first to caramelize them.  This is not a traditional cooking method in Chinese cuisine.  Although they were good, I didn’t really get that caramelized flavor I was conjuring up in my head.  I wanted them to be concentrated and slightly charred.  The processed was hastened a bit since B came home earlier than expected.  Next time, I’ll try roasting them longer, then put them under the broiler.

I like flank steak for stir frying.  It’s tender and flavorful and does well when quick-cooked.  Ginger is a key ingredient which compliments beef so well.

BEEF & TOMATO

Ingredients

6 oz flank steak, cut into thin strips against the grain

2 large tomatoes, cut into thick wedges

1 onion thinly sliced

6 slices of fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic

Enough Soy sauce to marinate meat and to taste

2 TBSP Ketchup

splash of rice wine vinegar

2 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp cornstarch

1/3 c beef broth

oil for stir-frying

black pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Roast tomatoes with a little bit of oil, cut side up in a 350 degree oven for about 1 1/2 hours till the juices are reduced and tomatoes are slightly charred.  May want to try the broiler at the end to brown the tomatoes.

Take the sliced beef and coat with enough soy sauce and oil to coat. Add the corn starch.  Toss together and let sit.

Once the the tomatoes are done, heat a wok on medium high heat and add oil (about 1 tablespoon)

Once oil is heated, add ginger and stir fry until fragrant. Add minced garlic and allow to cook until fragrant.  Before the garlic burns, add the sliced onions.  Cook for a few minutes before adding a bit of salt.  Cook until softened, adding beef broth if the wok gets a little dry before the onions are done.

Add the tomatoes to the onions along with the ketchup, brown sugar.  Add soy sauce and pepper to taste.  Add a bit of beef broth to create a sauce.  Allow the sauce to simmer.  Then pour the sauce out of the wok.

In the same work, increase the heat to high and add the beef and stir fry until the beef is almost fully cooked.  Then re-introduce the sauce.  Bring to a simmer to allow the sauce to thicken.  Add vinegar.  Season with pepper and  soy sauce to taste.

Serve with white rice

French Macarons and Korean BBQ

Macorons are the most ambitious dessert I have ever attempted. My friend, A, took a class and offered to teach us We made a little party out of the evening, with the girls beating, folding and whisking and the boys watching football.

On the menu for dinner: grilled flank steak with Korean BBQ marinade. I asked my mom for her recipe, and she faxed me a page out of a cookbook published in both Korean and English…..back in 1976! The directions weren’t the most stellar, so B only used it as a guideline. The steaks were beautiful and B got lots of complements. I was very proud of him! He did all the prep and cooking himself since I was suffering from the worse bout of sciatica that morning. I wasn’t able to walk let alone make it to work on time that morning.

Note the publisihng date!

FLANK STEAK

INGREDIENTS

2 while flank steaks (about 3 pounds total)

1/2 c sugar

1 Korean pear, pureed

1 TBSP pepper

1/2 c soy sauce

6 TBSP sesame oil

3 TBSP sesame seeds

1/2 cup green onions, chopped

2 TBSP fresh ginger, minced

1 TBSP fresh garlic, minced

INSTRUCTIONS

Marinade for about 4 hours, turning occasionally.  Grill about 4 minutes on each side

Take remaining marinade and bring to a boil in a small saucepan.  Strain and serve over rice and meat.

Now for the macrons!  They are infamous tor being very particular and precise technique is key for them to rise, to have feet and to have their pillowy chewy texture.  A and V painstakingly followed everything to a tee, and every singe batch was a success.  I really can’t argue with the necessity to not use a spatula if its wooden handle is wet, but I’m really tempted to prove the macaron myths wrong.  I’ll have to save it for another day.

We ended up making 3 different batches which took about four and a half hours!  In my opinions, we had some great fillings:  PB&J and PB & Nutella.  We also made a batch of spiced macarons with dulce de leche and gingered mascarpone.

I’m thinking about revisiting the macaron effort for the holidays.  They would make great little stocking stuffers, but for now I’ve got a fridge full of macarons and condiments!

MACARONS with PB&J and PB&NUTELLA

Yields 2 dozen 2 inch macarons

INGREDIENTS

4 egg whites, room temperature

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 cups powdered sugar

2 cups of almond flour

1 pinch of salt

INSTRUCTIONS

Place dry ingredients EXCEPT granulated sugar in food processor to mix well

Beat eggs in a completely dry stand mixer bowl until white and foamy.  Then slowly add granulated sugar and continue to beat until stilff peak form (like refrigerated Crisco)

Using a flour sifter, add the dry ingredients to the egg whites in three batches, gently folding in between (don’t push down on the eggs).  Fold until a consistent ribbon of batter drips from the spatula

Add coloring at with the last batch of dry ingredients is adding (gel coloring is preferred)

**A trick A taught me is that you can’t overbeat the eggs, but you can certainly overfold which will result in flat macarons, so better to overbeat!

Pipe onto parchment paper and let set for 30 minutes at room temperature

Bake at 300 degrees for 15 minutes on the center rack

Allow to cool on pan for 10 minutes before removing the macarons

Carefully spread the fillings and assemble

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator

SPICED MACARONS with MASCARPONE and DULCE de LECHE

Add 1 tsp each of cinnamon and ground ginger along with a pinch each of ground cloves and ginger to the dry ingredients

Mascarpone Cream:

Combine 2/3 cups mascarpone cheese + 2 TBSP dulce de leche + 1 tsp fresh grated ginger + 1/2 tsp cinnamon and a pinch of salt till smooth

Lemongrass chicken

These books have been sitting on my nightstand for the past week. Really excited to get started and cook! I love the warm weather we’ve been having. Makes me want to entertain more and try out some new recipes!

The first recipe I tried from this collection is lemongrass chicken, a recipe by Australian chef, Luke Nguyen. Simple and quick if you have the ingredients on hand, Luke’s recipe calls for marinading the chicken for at least 4 hours, but how often do we really plan ahead that far in advanced for a dish that takes just minutes to cook? Since I intend to make this dish for weeknight dinners, I tried the dish without extensive marinading. I’m sure that a longer marinade time would enhance the flavor of the chicken, but I think that the bold favors of the ingredients in the sauce compensate for it. Here is my adaptation:

INGREDIENTS
2 chicken thighs cut up into sized pieces
1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp sugar
2 small stalks of lemongrass (from our garden:), finely minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 red onion, sliced
1/2 cup chicken broth
Few sprigs cilantro

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine the chicken, sugar, garlic and fish sauce in a small bowl. Season with black pepper. Set aside and prepare the other ingredients

2. Oil a wok and heat on medium high. Stir fry the lemongrass and chili flakes until fragrant and the cooked through. Be sure that there is enough oil to ensure that they don’t burn

3. Add the chicken and stir fry for a few minutes till chicken is cooked on the outside

4. Add chicken broth and cover the wok. Turn down heat And simmer until chicken is cooked through (1-2 minutes)

5. Remove lid and allow the sauce to reduce slightly. Add onions and cook to desired degree for cooking

6. Turn off heat and add cilantro if using

7. Turn onto a plate to serve with hot rice