Well this is a little awkward... I misplaced this picture, and thus didn't upload it. And now I can't remember anything about the meal. It certainly seems to be pretty unremarkable. I've got microwaved, canned peas and carrots, which I personally like a lot — it's an extremely simple side-dish. But it just doesn't look that good in a picture. Also, I recognize the shell-shaped pasta, which I know comes out of a package. So I was obviously going for a minimal effort kinda meal. I rarely use that kinda stuff, because I consider cooking a hobby, and not a chore. But in this case I think I ended up looking at it as a chore, heheh. Oh well.
Man oh, man, does this look like a piece of turd, or what? It's such a fantastic bit of grub; I mean it's just about the most optimal dinner you could ask for: you got your protein (salmon), your veggies (spinach) and your starch (puff pastry) all there. Yet it looks crummy. It's a damn tragedy.
But it's damn good eats, mind you.
But it's damn good eats, mind you.
This soup/stew is from a book called "Hot Sour Salty Sweet: A Culinary Journey Through Southeast Asia," but I have no genuine idea as to how authentic it is. However, I do have some distinct ideas about what it should taste like — as well as what it should look like. :) I was quite happy with how my initial attempts tasted, but not at all happy about the way they looked. (First attempt. Second attempt.) So this time, I figured it would be a kinda third-time's-the-charm kinda deal. I figured I'd get everything right, this time around: I applied the knowledge I'd gained from my two previous attempt, and voilà — er, yeah, no, it didn't turn out perfect after all. I forgot the goddamn kaffir lime leaves! I can't believe I forgot those. Argh.
Well, I'm sure fourth time will be ever so charming... I'll post a proper recipe (providing it turns out perfect, of course).
My second attempt at this Swiss potato pancake, and although this one was better than the first, I'm far from happy with it. First time around, it was really soggy. This time, it considerably less soggy, but it was nowhere near as crisp as it should have been. I just kept the lid on the pan for too long. To be honest, I'm thinking I shouldn't use a lid at all.
Also, sautéing the sausages (apple-chicken) and carrots as well as the rösti made the whole meal feel kinda greasy.
Also, sautéing the sausages (apple-chicken) and carrots as well as the rösti made the whole meal feel kinda greasy.
This was an odd trip. It all started out by me wanting to make rösti (this Swiss potato pancake thing), and I was looking around for some suitable protein and veggies to go with it... But then I just lost track of it all, because I came across this recipe for a Cornish game hen — which I promptly threw out the window, deciding that I could come up with something much better, myself...
Now, I ain't Heston Blumenthal, so this sort of blatant self-confidence doesn't always work out too good for me... It goes in cycles: when I screw something up, I humbly admit defeat and return to the well. But when I do get things right, I get excited, and try to expand and experiment, and generally do things that I'm not all that confident about. On this occasion, the success I had with my Crispy Thai Fish Cakes turbo-charged my self-confidence right into the field of abject, blinkered arrogance.
This sort of exuberance normally leads to — well, if not disaster, I'd at least call it questionable results... But I do learn from my mistakes, so I figure it's worth it. In this instance, though, it wasn't a disaster at all. It was actually pretty damn nice...
What I did was, I stuffed some Cornish rock game hens with a mirepoix (finely chopped carrots, celery and onions on a 1:1:2 ratio), and rubbed them with salt and pepper. Then I rigged a charcoal grill for indirect heat, with some apple-wood smoke boxes and a drip pan with apple cider (between the coals, to ensure moistness). While they cooked, I basted them (well, brushed them) with some melted butter infused with garlic and rosemary. For starch and veggies, I added some potato wedges and zucchini (tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper). They all came out great. I am absolutely, positively stoked. My culinary ego is flying so high right now, if Bobby Flay were to challenge me to a throw-down, I'd dismiss him with a snicker and demand to face Ferran Adrià in the Iron Chef arena, with one arm tied behind my back. Hehehe...
Now, game hens are really interesting things. They're like miniature chickens, as far as size goes, but the similarities end there... Chickens have a single benefit over tofu: they have texture — but beyond that, it's pretty much the same deal: no taste (not that there's anything inherently wrong about that, though — you can add taste to it, no problem). But game hens have a taste of their own. I guess I just lucked out, because I think a mirepoix stuffing, a garlic and rosemary baste, and a steam of apple cider complemented it really well. The applewood smoke might have been a bit of an overkill, but I'm not sure about that, because I've probably eaten a thousand chickens for every game hen I've eaten, so I'm probably just unfamiliar with flavorful fowl, as sad as that sounds.
Well, good stuff.
Now, I ain't Heston Blumenthal, so this sort of blatant self-confidence doesn't always work out too good for me... It goes in cycles: when I screw something up, I humbly admit defeat and return to the well. But when I do get things right, I get excited, and try to expand and experiment, and generally do things that I'm not all that confident about. On this occasion, the success I had with my Crispy Thai Fish Cakes turbo-charged my self-confidence right into the field of abject, blinkered arrogance.
This sort of exuberance normally leads to — well, if not disaster, I'd at least call it questionable results... But I do learn from my mistakes, so I figure it's worth it. In this instance, though, it wasn't a disaster at all. It was actually pretty damn nice...
What I did was, I stuffed some Cornish rock game hens with a mirepoix (finely chopped carrots, celery and onions on a 1:1:2 ratio), and rubbed them with salt and pepper. Then I rigged a charcoal grill for indirect heat, with some apple-wood smoke boxes and a drip pan with apple cider (between the coals, to ensure moistness). While they cooked, I basted them (well, brushed them) with some melted butter infused with garlic and rosemary. For starch and veggies, I added some potato wedges and zucchini (tossed in olive oil, salt and pepper). They all came out great. I am absolutely, positively stoked. My culinary ego is flying so high right now, if Bobby Flay were to challenge me to a throw-down, I'd dismiss him with a snicker and demand to face Ferran Adrià in the Iron Chef arena, with one arm tied behind my back. Hehehe...
Now, game hens are really interesting things. They're like miniature chickens, as far as size goes, but the similarities end there... Chickens have a single benefit over tofu: they have texture — but beyond that, it's pretty much the same deal: no taste (not that there's anything inherently wrong about that, though — you can add taste to it, no problem). But game hens have a taste of their own. I guess I just lucked out, because I think a mirepoix stuffing, a garlic and rosemary baste, and a steam of apple cider complemented it really well. The applewood smoke might have been a bit of an overkill, but I'm not sure about that, because I've probably eaten a thousand chickens for every game hen I've eaten, so I'm probably just unfamiliar with flavorful fowl, as sad as that sounds.
Well, good stuff.
While I had fairly high hopes for this recipe, it far exceeded them. These cakes were truly excellent.
For the cakes:
1 lb boneless catfish cut into 1" pieces
1 tbsp fish sauce
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
2 tbsp fresh cilantro (coriander leaves), chopped
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
(Optional: fine, hard breadcrumbs for breading)
Peanut oil for deep frying
For the dipping sauce:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp water
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp fish sauce
Lettuce, apple slices, cilantro and mint leaves
1. Use a food processor to coarsely chop the fish.
2. Add everything else, and run the food processor again. Don't make it into forcemeat though; it should still be a little chunky.
3. Shape into 2" patties. They will swell up quite about during cooking, so if you want them flat, you'll have to make them very flat. (Optional: bread them in fine, hard breadcrumbs).
4. Deep fry at 375°F for about 3-5 minutes.
The food is assembled at the table: The cakes are placed in a lettuce leaf along with mint, sliced apples, cilantro and a dipping sauce, wrapped up and eaten. You get plenty of veggies, and even some fruit with your meal. Gotta love that.
I was a bit skeptical about exactly how crispy these cakes would (but they turned out just fine), so I decided to bread a couple of them with some fine, hard breadcrumbs, and that turned out to be a good idea. This made them even crispier, and also gave them a more pleasing color, in my opinion. I'll definitely do that next time around.
I expected the cakes to be quite potent in flavor and spiciness, but they were surprisingly subtle. In fact the accoutrements sort of overwhelmed the flavor of the cakes themselves. Especially the lettuce, which was fairly bitter. It was very good, but I enjoyed eating the cakes on their own even more. I could increase the flavor components of the cakes — maybe even double them — but I might also find an entirely different method of serving them.
The first thing that came to mind would be to use a yogurt or sour cream dipping sauce with lime juice (maybe zest also), chopped mint and perhaps some honey (and possibly, also some finely chopped apple) — and double the amount of cayenne pepper in the cakes. Hot cakes and a cooling sauce. It'd make for a great hors d'oeuvre.
For the cakes:
1 lb boneless catfish cut into 1" pieces
1 tbsp fish sauce
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
2 tbsp fresh cilantro (coriander leaves), chopped
2 tsp grated lemon zest
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
(Optional: fine, hard breadcrumbs for breading)
Peanut oil for deep frying
For the dipping sauce:
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp water
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp fish sauce
Lettuce, apple slices, cilantro and mint leaves
1. Use a food processor to coarsely chop the fish.
2. Add everything else, and run the food processor again. Don't make it into forcemeat though; it should still be a little chunky.
3. Shape into 2" patties. They will swell up quite about during cooking, so if you want them flat, you'll have to make them very flat. (Optional: bread them in fine, hard breadcrumbs).
4. Deep fry at 375°F for about 3-5 minutes.
I was a bit skeptical about exactly how crispy these cakes would (but they turned out just fine), so I decided to bread a couple of them with some fine, hard breadcrumbs, and that turned out to be a good idea. This made them even crispier, and also gave them a more pleasing color, in my opinion. I'll definitely do that next time around.
I expected the cakes to be quite potent in flavor and spiciness, but they were surprisingly subtle. In fact the accoutrements sort of overwhelmed the flavor of the cakes themselves. Especially the lettuce, which was fairly bitter. It was very good, but I enjoyed eating the cakes on their own even more. I could increase the flavor components of the cakes — maybe even double them — but I might also find an entirely different method of serving them.
The first thing that came to mind would be to use a yogurt or sour cream dipping sauce with lime juice (maybe zest also), chopped mint and perhaps some honey (and possibly, also some finely chopped apple) — and double the amount of cayenne pepper in the cakes. Hot cakes and a cooling sauce. It'd make for a great hors d'oeuvre.
Yup, there's three different types—or rather garlic prepared in three different ways—in this soup. Sadly, the weather just wasn't cold enough to truly enjoy it. This would be a killer soup for a cold winter day. However, if you're cooking for garlic-fiends, it's a killer any day.
This is yet another excellent America's Test Kitchen recipe. It uses minced garlic, sautéed; an entire bulb of garlic, simmered; and garlic chips, deep fried. Hey, garlic is good for you! Plus, there are an awful lot of vampires hopping around these days...
For the soup:
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- White and light green parts from a medium leek, chopped (don't forget to wash it)
- 6 cloves of minced garlic
- One whole bulb of garlic
- 5-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth/stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 lb. potatoes (use high and low starch taters for a varied texture—like russet and red)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme (less, if using dried)
- 1/4 fresh, minced chives for garnish
For the garlic chips:
- Olive oil for deep frying (in the smallest pot you have)
- Half a dozen cloves of garlic (or to you liking)
1. The soup starts by softening the finely chopped white and light green parts of a leek, in butter for about 5-8 minutes.
2. Then, add the minced garlic for 30 seconds, and a bunch of low-sodium chicken stock, a couple of bay leaves and a bit of salt—and an entire bulb of garlic with the top 1/3 cut off. If need be, add more stock to cover the bulb.
3. Cover partially and let simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until the garlic bulb is soft. Remove the garlic bulb, and using paper towels, squeeze out the contents and mash it into a pulp with a fork. Add it to the soup.
4. Add potatoes, cut into 1/2" cubes (for a more varied texture, you can use a mix of russet and red potatoes). Let simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
5. Bring olive oil to medium-high heat in a small pan and add thinly sliced garlic chips sliced lengthwise. This, you have to watch like a hawk, because I left them in too long and they got a tad too dark. They are supposed to have a bittersweet flavor, but the darker they get, the more bitter they get. I left them in too long.
6. Take the soup off the heat and add the cream.
7. Buzz the soup with a stick blender, according to desired thickness/chunkiness.
8. Serve garnished with garlic chips and chopped chives.
Dagnabbit, I keep writing "garlish" every time I try to write "garnish." I'm all garlicked out here. (Clue ridiculously hammy Klaus Kinski: "Listen to them: the children of the night—what music they make!") (Oh yeah, that's the ticket: I wanna be the Alton Brown of food blogging, heheh.)
This is yet another excellent America's Test Kitchen recipe. It uses minced garlic, sautéed; an entire bulb of garlic, simmered; and garlic chips, deep fried. Hey, garlic is good for you! Plus, there are an awful lot of vampires hopping around these days...
For the soup:
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- White and light green parts from a medium leek, chopped (don't forget to wash it)
- 6 cloves of minced garlic
- One whole bulb of garlic
- 5-6 cups low-sodium chicken broth/stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 lb. potatoes (use high and low starch taters for a varied texture—like russet and red)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme (less, if using dried)
- 1/4 fresh, minced chives for garnish
For the garlic chips:
- Olive oil for deep frying (in the smallest pot you have)
- Half a dozen cloves of garlic (or to you liking)
1. The soup starts by softening the finely chopped white and light green parts of a leek, in butter for about 5-8 minutes.
2. Then, add the minced garlic for 30 seconds, and a bunch of low-sodium chicken stock, a couple of bay leaves and a bit of salt—and an entire bulb of garlic with the top 1/3 cut off. If need be, add more stock to cover the bulb.
3. Cover partially and let simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until the garlic bulb is soft. Remove the garlic bulb, and using paper towels, squeeze out the contents and mash it into a pulp with a fork. Add it to the soup.
4. Add potatoes, cut into 1/2" cubes (for a more varied texture, you can use a mix of russet and red potatoes). Let simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
5. Bring olive oil to medium-high heat in a small pan and add thinly sliced garlic chips sliced lengthwise. This, you have to watch like a hawk, because I left them in too long and they got a tad too dark. They are supposed to have a bittersweet flavor, but the darker they get, the more bitter they get. I left them in too long.
6. Take the soup off the heat and add the cream.
7. Buzz the soup with a stick blender, according to desired thickness/chunkiness.
8. Serve garnished with garlic chips and chopped chives.
Dagnabbit, I keep writing "garlish" every time I try to write "garnish." I'm all garlicked out here. (Clue ridiculously hammy Klaus Kinski: "Listen to them: the children of the night—what music they make!") (Oh yeah, that's the ticket: I wanna be the Alton Brown of food blogging, heheh.)
The blackening is from America's Test Kitchen, and I did it once before, for a blackened tilapia. It was good, but I didn't get the grill as hot as it should have been, so the blackening was very subdued. This time around, I blackened the shrimp by cooking them on the chimney for just a minute per side, and then I spread the coals out and finished the shrimp over that lower heat.
I got great blackening, so this is definitely the way to go. But I put more of the blackening on these shrimp, than I did on the fish, and that, combined with a proper, dark blackening from the extreme heat created a sensation of extreme saltiness. So I've gotta remember to go lighter on the blackening.
Sides were saffron rice with scallions, and a salad of very thinly sliced (go gadget mandolin!) apple and English cucumber tossed in aged balsamic vinegar and lemon juice, and some black pepper. Very nice now that the weather is getting warmer.
I got great blackening, so this is definitely the way to go. But I put more of the blackening on these shrimp, than I did on the fish, and that, combined with a proper, dark blackening from the extreme heat created a sensation of extreme saltiness. So I've gotta remember to go lighter on the blackening.
Sides were saffron rice with scallions, and a salad of very thinly sliced (go gadget mandolin!) apple and English cucumber tossed in aged balsamic vinegar and lemon juice, and some black pepper. Very nice now that the weather is getting warmer.
