Beef in oyster sauce is is a traditional Chinese restaurant dish, as is beef and broccoli -- I had some broccoli left over, so I figured I'd combine the two. It worked out just fine.
Oyster beef is one of the easiest dishes I know how to make. And it's really tasty. On the best-bang-for-yer-buck scale, this thing is very near the top. Most supermarkets even have pre-sliced beef specifically meant for stir-frying.
Here's the recipe:
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. sirloin/round/stir-fry beef, sliced into thin 1/8" strips
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon corn starch
6 cloves garlic, minced
1" (2 tablespoons) ginger, minced
1 lb. mixed mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons of freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons of oyster sauce
4 scallions, chopped into 1" strips
2 red chilies, sliced thinly
METHOD
1. Mix the corn starch and soy sauce, and marinade the beef in it, for 1-2 hours.
2. Add oil to the pan, along with the garlic, ginger and beef. Stir-fry until the beef is browned. Use high heat -- this should take no more than 2 minutes. Remove from pan.
3. Add more oil, and stir-fry the mushrooms until tender. This should take no more than 4 minutes.
4. Bring the beef-garlic-ginger mixture back into the pan, along with the oyster sauce, scallions and pepper.
5. Plate with rice and steamed broccoli, garnished with strips of red chilies.
This is such a simple dish to prepare, yet it tastes fantastic. I've got no problem spending four hours creating a proper, authentic pork vindaloo -- but hey, you gotta admire things that can taste great with no effort.
EDIT: I should mention that I steamed the broccoli separately, over salted water, and stirred it in just before serving.
Oyster beef is one of the easiest dishes I know how to make. And it's really tasty. On the best-bang-for-yer-buck scale, this thing is very near the top. Most supermarkets even have pre-sliced beef specifically meant for stir-frying.
Here's the recipe:
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. sirloin/round/stir-fry beef, sliced into thin 1/8" strips
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon corn starch
6 cloves garlic, minced
1" (2 tablespoons) ginger, minced
1 lb. mixed mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons of freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons of oyster sauce
4 scallions, chopped into 1" strips
2 red chilies, sliced thinly
METHOD
1. Mix the corn starch and soy sauce, and marinade the beef in it, for 1-2 hours.
2. Add oil to the pan, along with the garlic, ginger and beef. Stir-fry until the beef is browned. Use high heat -- this should take no more than 2 minutes. Remove from pan.
3. Add more oil, and stir-fry the mushrooms until tender. This should take no more than 4 minutes.
4. Bring the beef-garlic-ginger mixture back into the pan, along with the oyster sauce, scallions and pepper.
5. Plate with rice and steamed broccoli, garnished with strips of red chilies.
This is such a simple dish to prepare, yet it tastes fantastic. I've got no problem spending four hours creating a proper, authentic pork vindaloo -- but hey, you gotta admire things that can taste great with no effort.
EDIT: I should mention that I steamed the broccoli separately, over salted water, and stirred it in just before serving.
This is the second time I've made this dish. The first time, I absolutely loved it: it's a Sri Lankan fish stew (from "Curry Cuisine,") and although I'm not sure that it specifically calls for salmon, it is absolutely excellent with salmon. What can I say -- I love salmon :). I said that this dish is definitely gonna see some repeat play, and I'm kinda proud that it took me four months to get back to this thing -- I feel a tad guilty about repeating myself a little too often. You gotta expand your culinary horizons, is the way I see it.
Now, I loved this dish the first time I made it, and I loved it this second time around (you can find the full recipe in the first link), but as always, I do have a couple of things I made a note of, that I'll do different the next time: a little more hotness (I have two chili powders: one mild, one very hot), and also a more stern vinegar. The rice vine vinegar is a little too sweet.
But nevermind about all that -- the really HUGE difference between this dish and the first one, was the bread: The first time I made it, I used Tawa Paratha, which is very flat --it's an unleavened bread. And this fish stew practically screams out for a Naan -- a thicker, leavened, spongier bread that can soak up the juices in the stew.
And boy oh boy, this was my night... I finally managed to do a really good naan. Yeah, the picture is completely out of focus, but trust me: this was a great naan. I say, sod you hoity-toity boulangères and your "Queen of Bread" brioche -- the sexiest bread in the world is definitely a naan. I've been struggling with naans for a really long time, but this time I feel like I finally make a significant step towards creating a truly great naan (I mean, without a Tandoor oven).
The effect of a tandoor oven isn't too hard to replicate -- a simple, charcoal-fueled Weber grill is perfect for any type of skewered stuff like chicken tikka or tandoori, seekh kebabs, sish kebabs etc. But naans are trickier. I broke a pizza stone on the Weber, trying to get it right, until I decided that a grill doesn't bring enough heat from the top, to do a naan properly. A naan is browned on both sides -- because, in a tandoor oven, it gets heats from "below" (ie., from the wall of the oven, where it is slapped against), as well as heat from the coals beneath -- "above." Well, there really is no other cooking implement that I know of, that can do this. But of the ones that are available to us in the west, the simple indoor oven -- with a solid pizza stone, it the closest we can get.
And I think I got really close in this case. I'll post a proper recipe when I test this recipe again (I generally don't post recipes here unless I'm certain I can stand behind them) I'll probably try incorporating some additional flavorings like garlic, onions, etc at that point, though. I feel much more confident now, fiddling around with bread dough, after having read up on that crazy/awesome Bread Baker's Apprentice book.
Now, I loved this dish the first time I made it, and I loved it this second time around (you can find the full recipe in the first link), but as always, I do have a couple of things I made a note of, that I'll do different the next time: a little more hotness (I have two chili powders: one mild, one very hot), and also a more stern vinegar. The rice vine vinegar is a little too sweet.
But nevermind about all that -- the really HUGE difference between this dish and the first one, was the bread: The first time I made it, I used Tawa Paratha, which is very flat --it's an unleavened bread. And this fish stew practically screams out for a Naan -- a thicker, leavened, spongier bread that can soak up the juices in the stew.
And boy oh boy, this was my night... I finally managed to do a really good naan. Yeah, the picture is completely out of focus, but trust me: this was a great naan. I say, sod you hoity-toity boulangères and your "Queen of Bread" brioche -- the sexiest bread in the world is definitely a naan. I've been struggling with naans for a really long time, but this time I feel like I finally make a significant step towards creating a truly great naan (I mean, without a Tandoor oven).
The effect of a tandoor oven isn't too hard to replicate -- a simple, charcoal-fueled Weber grill is perfect for any type of skewered stuff like chicken tikka or tandoori, seekh kebabs, sish kebabs etc. But naans are trickier. I broke a pizza stone on the Weber, trying to get it right, until I decided that a grill doesn't bring enough heat from the top, to do a naan properly. A naan is browned on both sides -- because, in a tandoor oven, it gets heats from "below" (ie., from the wall of the oven, where it is slapped against), as well as heat from the coals beneath -- "above." Well, there really is no other cooking implement that I know of, that can do this. But of the ones that are available to us in the west, the simple indoor oven -- with a solid pizza stone, it the closest we can get.
And I think I got really close in this case. I'll post a proper recipe when I test this recipe again (I generally don't post recipes here unless I'm certain I can stand behind them) I'll probably try incorporating some additional flavorings like garlic, onions, etc at that point, though. I feel much more confident now, fiddling around with bread dough, after having read up on that crazy/awesome Bread Baker's Apprentice book.
Another recipe from Best of America's Test Kitchen 2007, and this one was very good. I might have heard or seen the name "Stromboli" before, but I've never tasted it. And as critical as I am of my own cooking, I think this was a pretty damned good introduction to it.
The idea; the concept of it really pretty clever. A pizza, you place the toppings, well, on top of the dough -- nothing so unusual about that, though -- conceptually, it's just like an open-faced, grilled ham and cheese sandwich. A calzone, you do the same, but you fold the whole thing over -- again, nothing original there: the Cornish pasty and all of its derivatives do the same thing.
But I've never seen this method before -- rolling the whole thing up and baking it as a whole loaf. I love it. (Yeah, I know I've seen it with flank steaks and such, but never with a whole loaf of bread.)
This was really very excellent.
Oh, and here's a shot of the whole loaf. Doesn't look too fancy (and it did burst in one spot, towards the left there, but that just a learning experience -- don't lay down the cheese as your first "topping" -- use meat. That way, you don't end up with cheese bursting out like that), but I tell you -- that's good eats!
The idea; the concept of it really pretty clever. A pizza, you place the toppings, well, on top of the dough -- nothing so unusual about that, though -- conceptually, it's just like an open-faced, grilled ham and cheese sandwich. A calzone, you do the same, but you fold the whole thing over -- again, nothing original there: the Cornish pasty and all of its derivatives do the same thing.
But I've never seen this method before -- rolling the whole thing up and baking it as a whole loaf. I love it. (Yeah, I know I've seen it with flank steaks and such, but never with a whole loaf of bread.)
This was really very excellent.
Oh, and here's a shot of the whole loaf. Doesn't look too fancy (and it did burst in one spot, towards the left there, but that just a learning experience -- don't lay down the cheese as your first "topping" -- use meat. That way, you don't end up with cheese bursting out like that), but I tell you -- that's good eats!
This is one of the simplest chicken recipes I know and easily, the best bang-for-the-buck recipe. You could use a whole chicken, cut in half, but chicken thighs makes it even easier.
All you do is, place the chicken pieces in a greased pan and broil for 30 minutes, turning every ten minutes or so. At the last turn, brush both sides with a mixture of melted butter, soy sauce, ground pepper and minced garlic.
Brush with the garlic mixture as you plate it (I like to slice some of the garlic up, and add that to it, for any garlic fiends -- you gotta cook for the crowd, baby) and sprinkle some parsley over it. And yeah, the garlic really does matter. Very simple stuff, and very tasty.
All you do is, place the chicken pieces in a greased pan and broil for 30 minutes, turning every ten minutes or so. At the last turn, brush both sides with a mixture of melted butter, soy sauce, ground pepper and minced garlic.
Brush with the garlic mixture as you plate it (I like to slice some of the garlic up, and add that to it, for any garlic fiends -- you gotta cook for the crowd, baby) and sprinkle some parsley over it. And yeah, the garlic really does matter. Very simple stuff, and very tasty.
An oldie, but goodie. I don't know what kinda knuckle-dragging neanderthal came up with the idea that "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche," but someone needs to beat the stupid out of that idiot. Quiche isn't fancy food. It isn't sophisticated. And it isn't pretentious. Yeah, I know there were a lot of pretentious and annoying people eating quiche at one point -- and they didn't know any better, about quiche, than the knuckle-draggers.
Quiche is simple, salt-of-the-earth, easy to make, good grub.
Quiche is simple, salt-of-the-earth, easy to make, good grub.
This was really quite awesome. A six-rib pork roast, rubbed just with salt and pepper and left overnight, then baked at 350°F for 2 hours (20 minutes for each pound) -- with taters, carrots and pearl onions thrown in halfway through. Pan drippings were used for a really decadent gravy (not pictured -- damnit, I shoulda taken a shot of a plated thing, but I guess there were too many people around so I felt like I had to suppress my nerd needs).
Not the best of pictures, but very tasty. Roasts are insanely easy.
Not the best of pictures, but very tasty. Roasts are insanely easy.
Yeah, it's a mess... And strangely enough, it's from The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2007 -- these guys are normally dead on, but not in this case. They actually suggested flipping the salmon fillet with a pair of tongs! I used two big, lubricated spatulas, and it still fell apart -- the damned thing woulda turned into salmon mousse if I'd tried it with a pair of tongs.
This is one of the situations where a salmon steak would have worked much better -- skin off, debone and wrap some butcher's twine around it. Much better structural integrity than a fillet.
The taste was okay, but nothing noteworthy.
This is one of the situations where a salmon steak would have worked much better -- skin off, debone and wrap some butcher's twine around it. Much better structural integrity than a fillet.
The taste was okay, but nothing noteworthy.
I love the whole idea behind Cook's Illustrated's America's Test Kitchen concept: They'll cook a dish a dozen times, so that you only have to do it once -- and get it right the first time. This ain't Iron Chef, so the recipes are a tad pedestrian, but that's fine by me; you can always find inspiration for something a little more exotic, elsewhere.
One gripe I do have with this book is that they don't give you any information about the history of the dishes. This dish is just "Spaghetti with breadcrumbs and fried egg." Where did they get the idea for this? Is this a traditional Italian dish? Is there a name for it?
Oh yeah -- and this was delicious. Vegetarian. I thought about adding bacon, but decided against it at the last moment -- and I didn't miss it at all (I feel like a traitor for saying such a thing). Now, anchovies -- that might make this dish truly awesome, though...
Start off by getting the pasta water boiling. While waiting for that, make the breadcrumbs from plain, white bread: pulse ten times in a food processor, toss in oil, salt and pepper. Spread on a tray and bake for 8-10 min @ 350°F until browned. Sauté garlic, chili pepper flakes and salt in olive oil in a skillet, until the garlic is straw-colored. Clean the skilled, and keep it on low heat (to fry the eggs) . Get the pasta going. Grate half a cup of Parmesan, and chop up half a cup of parsley. When the pasta gets close to al dente, start frying your eggs. Drain the pasta of all but half a cup of the pasta water, add the garlic mixture and some oil and mix well (make sure you do this before adding the cheese, or else it will clump up). Then add the Parmesan and parsley, salt and pepper to taste, and mix again. Plate, topped with breadcrumbs and egg.
One gripe I do have with this book is that they don't give you any information about the history of the dishes. This dish is just "Spaghetti with breadcrumbs and fried egg." Where did they get the idea for this? Is this a traditional Italian dish? Is there a name for it?
Oh yeah -- and this was delicious. Vegetarian. I thought about adding bacon, but decided against it at the last moment -- and I didn't miss it at all (I feel like a traitor for saying such a thing). Now, anchovies -- that might make this dish truly awesome, though...
Start off by getting the pasta water boiling. While waiting for that, make the breadcrumbs from plain, white bread: pulse ten times in a food processor, toss in oil, salt and pepper. Spread on a tray and bake for 8-10 min @ 350°F until browned. Sauté garlic, chili pepper flakes and salt in olive oil in a skillet, until the garlic is straw-colored. Clean the skilled, and keep it on low heat (to fry the eggs) . Get the pasta going. Grate half a cup of Parmesan, and chop up half a cup of parsley. When the pasta gets close to al dente, start frying your eggs. Drain the pasta of all but half a cup of the pasta water, add the garlic mixture and some oil and mix well (make sure you do this before adding the cheese, or else it will clump up). Then add the Parmesan and parsley, salt and pepper to taste, and mix again. Plate, topped with breadcrumbs and egg.
Not being a master chef, I generally follow recipes, but occasionally I just come up with things. This was a fish pie au gratin kinda deal, with scalloped potatoes and carrots. I layered thinly sliced potatoes and carrots in a baking pan along with some chopped scallions and parsley. Then, the fish, with more scallions and parsley, carrots, and finally, potatoes. Then I poured a Béchamel sauce with smoked Gouda over it, and topped it with a mixture of breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan.
It was very good, but I think I'd be better off just dicing the potatoes and carrots (and whatever else I'd like to use), instead of slicing them -- basically, this would be more sensible as a plain fish pie au gratin, without the mucking about with the scalloped bit. Oh, and I shouldn't have mixed the breadcrumbs and cheese together for the topping -- putting the crumbs on first, and then drizzling the cheese on top is probably a lot more sensible.
I know secret about au gratin dishes like this: you've always gotta use the biggest pan you have, so that you get more of that crispy topping. Don't use a deep pan -- use a wide one.
It was very good, but I think I'd be better off just dicing the potatoes and carrots (and whatever else I'd like to use), instead of slicing them -- basically, this would be more sensible as a plain fish pie au gratin, without the mucking about with the scalloped bit. Oh, and I shouldn't have mixed the breadcrumbs and cheese together for the topping -- putting the crumbs on first, and then drizzling the cheese on top is probably a lot more sensible.
I know secret about au gratin dishes like this: you've always gotta use the biggest pan you have, so that you get more of that crispy topping. Don't use a deep pan -- use a wide one.
This is a North Indian red kidney bean chili. (Another recipe from Betty Crocker's Home Indian Cooking.) This was an eye-opener to me: As much as I love Indian food, this can't hold a candle to a traditional American chili. (Ironically, the last time I tried making a regular American style chili, I added some mild, sweet curry powder to just add a little "something" to the mix... Well, it ended up tasting like a curry rather than a chili. Oh well.)
Mind you, I would never say that this is bad. But I definitely prefer the American chili.
Mind you, I would never say that this is bad. But I definitely prefer the American chili.
