March 19, 2010
Last night I took advantage of another nice evening and grilled up some fish, at Yuki’s request. I decided to make some brochettes with Moroccan spiced cod. Any firm-fleshed fish would work for this recipe, cod just happened to be the cheapest and freshest as it just came in yesterday morning.
I cut up the fish into chunks large enough to skewer for the grill. Then I mixed up a marinade that consisted of 4 chopped garlic cloves, 1/2 teaspoon of paprika, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne, about 4 tablespoons of olive oil, the juice from one lemon, and a few tablespoons of chopped cilantro. I tossed the fish into the marinade and let it sit in the fridge, covered, for about 3 hours occasionally turning.
When it came time to grill I took the fish out to rest for about a half hour to come to room temperature. During that time I chopped an onion and a red pepper as well as thinly slicing , about 1/4 of an inch thick, a chinese eggplant (the regular eggplants weren’t as fresh) and two small zucchini. I also let my bamboo skewers soak in water for an hour.
After all of the vegetables were cut I skewered the fish with the red pepper and onion chunks. Then I drizzled the eggplant and zucchini slices with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. I put the skewers on the bottom rack and the slices on the top rack. Everything was cooked at medium heat. That way the vegetables would cook at about the same rate as the fish. If the heat were too high the fish would cook much faster and the veggies would be too raw.
I made a sauce to drizzle on top of everything after grilling. The sauce consisted of 2 tablespoons of tahini, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the juice of 1/2 lemon, 1/2 teaspoon of paprika, and 2 tablespoons of chopped cilantro. I served with white rice and garnished with some cilantro sprigs.
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Home Cooking | Tagged: bamboo, cayenne, cilantro, cumin, eggplant, garlic, grill, lemon, olive oil, onion, paprika, red pepper, salt, soy sauce, tahini, white rice, zucchini | 
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Posted by deirinberg
March 18, 2010
Grilling season is here people! Nothing could make me happier. Well, I guess that’s not entirely true, but it does bring a smile to my belly. To kick off the year’s grilling I picked up a beautiful 1.5 pound skirt steak, easily one of the best cuts of any carcass.
To start off I marinated the skirt in a mix of 5 tablespoons of soy sauce, 3 tablespoons of sake, 2 tablespoons of mirin, 5 chopped garlic cloves, an inch of chopped ginger, 1 teaspoon of cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric, black pepper, and some whole sprigs of rosemary. The steak was too long for my biggest dish, so I cut it in half and marinated covered in the fridge for about 4 hours, turning every hour or so.
I skewered some cherry tomatoes, cut the yellow pepper that I had left in my fridge, and cleaned some green onions. Stanley’s had real thick green onions that were just screaming to be grilled. when you leave the thicker outer layer on and then grill them as is, the inside becomes real soft and sweet. You can just put the whole thing in your mouth and squeeze out the innards with your teeth as you pull the onion out. So delicious!
While everything was on the grill I sautéed some cannellini beans with garlic and spinach. I started with some olive oil and chopped garlic. A few minutes later I added the left-over marinade from the steak and let that boil for a couple of minutes. Then I tossed in a drained can of beans. Once they were heated through I added a bunch of spinach. I stirred it all around until the spinach had just wilted and most of the liquid had evaporated. Then I took it off the heat and covered it until the grill was ready.
Once the grill was ready I let the steak rest for about 8 minutes while I plated everything else. Then I sliced the steak with the grains, put them on the plates, and we ate. I also served some white rice.
Leave a Comment » | Home Cooking | Tagged: garlic, stanley's, grill, ginger, soy sauce, white rice, mirin, sake, green onions, spinach, rosemary, cherry tomatoes, yellow pepper, turmeric, cayenne, black pepper, cannellini beans | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 17, 2010
Roasting chicken on top of vegetables is one of the easiest ways to prepare a healthy, well balanced meal. You can add whatever veggies you want, season or marinade the chicken with just about anything, and there’s few dishes to clean since everything is roasted in the same pan.
Last night I marinated some whole leg parts in a sauce that consisted of a couple spoonfuls of mustard (any kind of mustard works, my favorite is Boetje’s, a Dutch stone-ground style), a few tablespoons of soy sauce, some chopped garlic, some finely chopped fresh rosemary, black pepper, and a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Mix that all together and then coat the chicken skin with it.
For the veggies I chopped up three stalks of celery, one carrot, three yukon gold potatoes, one onion, and the leftover chard stems from the Ethiopian stewed chard that I made a few nights ago. I threw them all into my roasting pan and tossed them with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
On top of the veggies I layed down some rosemary sprigs and then the chicken. I let it all roast in a 375 degree oven for about an hour and 15 minutes, or until the skin was nice and crisp with the meat cooked and juicy.
My favorite thing about roasting chicken on top of veggies is that the chicken fat that cooks off helps cook the veggies. So you’re basically cooking with chicken fat. It’s not at all unhealthy either as I leave most of the juice in the pan when I serve. Only a little of the chicken fat makes its way into my belly. As we know, a little chicken fat never hurt anyone.
Leave a Comment » | Home Cooking | Tagged: black pepper, boetje's, carrot, celery, chard, chicken fat, dutch stone ground mustard, ethiopian, garlic, olive oil, onion, yukon gold potatoes | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 16, 2010
I’m on the tail end of a bad cold and Yuki is in the midst of battling one too. In light of that, last night’s Meatless Monday was all about getting healthy. There isn’t much more healthy than quinoa, except for maybe the hemp seed. I also wanted to keep it really simple.
I first sautéed a bunch of chopped green onions in some vegetable oil for a few minutes, then added three chopped garlic cloves. A couple minutes later I tossed in a diced carrot and a diced yellow pepper. I didn’t want the veggies to get soft, just slightly cooked so shortly after they were sweating I added a cup of rinsed red quinoa. When you saute quinoa for a few minutes it brings out some of the nuttiness in its flavor. After that I poured in a cup of vegetable stock, a drained can of chickpeas, a drained can of sweet corn (I can’t wait for corn season!), about a half cup of peas, salt, pepper, garam masala, and a dash of turmeric. I brought that to a simmer and covered over low heat for about 10-15 minutes.
Once everything was cooked and most of the liquid had evaporated I took it off the heat and let it sit for a few more minutes. Then I fluffed the quinoa and served. A salad of green leaf lettuce and tomatoes with a shiitake vinaigrette on the side along with some toasted pita. Our immune systems got a nice boost last night.
1 Comment | Home Cooking | Tagged: garlic, tomato, chickpeas, carrot, peas, garam masala, green onion, meatless monday, vegetable stock, pita, yellow pepper, green leaf lettuce, turmeric, hemp, red quinoa, sweet corn, shiitake vinaigrette | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 15, 2010
Yes, I do bake (get baked) on occasion. When I do, it’s usually nothing special. I don’t have enough baking experience to really screw around with the basics so I stick to recipes pretty closely. I did, however, alter the basic chocolate chip cookie this weekend. The results were fantastic! What I did was added some kinako.
Kinako is flour made from toasted soybeans. It’s extremely fine and has a subtle nutty taste, like a mild peanut. When baking with it you can replace some of the all-purpose flour in a recipe and end up with delicious results.
I started by mixing a half cup of room temperature butter with a quarter cup of cane sugar and a half cup of brown sugar until light and fluffy. Well, as light and fluffy as butter and sugar can get. My mixing bowl isn’t that large, so I always have to tape some newspaper together and build a wall around it to keep the sugar from flying everywhere. Yuki laughs at me, but not just because of that.
In a small bowl I scrambled an egg with a half teaspoon of vanilla extract and then beat that into the butter and sugar mixture. Then, in another bowl, I sifted together one cup of all-purpose flour, a half cup of kinako, a half teaspoon of baking soda, and a quarter teaspoon of salt. Once that was sifted it got mixed into the butter, sugar, and now egg mixture. After I had a thoroughly mixed together dough I mixed in a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips.
I put big blobs of the dough on a greased baking sheet and baked at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes. It was really hard to let them cool though, I just wanted to dive headfirst into those things!
The additions of kinako really does add a peanuty flavor. It’s not quite as strong as the peanut, so it doesn’t overpower the vanilla or chocolate. If cooked properly, it’ll be just as soft in the middle as a good chocolate chip cookie should be. The only problem is that now Yuki wants me to make them every week! I’m going to get fat!
1 Comment | Home Cooking | Tagged: all-purpose flour, baking soda, brown sugar, butter, cane sugar, egg, kinako, peanut, salt, semi-sweet chocolate chips, soybeans, vanilla | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 12, 2010
Last night I made some delicious Lamb Kofta with the leftover berbere spice from the Doro Wat. I thought I’d stick with a Middle Eastern theme by serving it with some homemade Baba Ghanoush, roasted red pepper and yellow string beans, and an Israeli Couscous and Tomato soup. Of course, it wouldn’t be complete without some pita.
Before I made the kofta, I roasted two eggplants on the burner for the baba ghanoush. Once the skin was nice and charred I set them in a bowl, covered them with plastic, and let them sit for an hour.
So, to make the kofta I mixed in the berbere spice (there was about 1.5 tablespoons left), 1 teaspoon of turmeric, salt, pepper, 6 grated garlic cloves, half an onion grated, 1 jalapeno seeded and diced, 1 slice of bread crumbed, 1 beaten egg, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, some chopped cilantro, and the juice from a half lemon into 1 pound of ground lamb. Once mixed I let it rest for a half hour covered in the fridge.
After the meat was rested, I wet my hands and formed 8 patties. They were set aside until time to cook.
Then I started on the couscous. I sautéed half an onion in some olive oil for about 10 minutes, then I added three grated garlic cloves. A few minutes later I threw in a diced carrot. That cooked for about 6-7 minutes, then I added a 14oz can of diced tomatoes and two cups of chicken stock. Once that was all mixed together I grated three more garlic cloves and tossed them in along with some salt, pepper, and about a tablespoon of cumin and a teaspoon of cayenne. I let that simmer for about 10 minutes covered over med-low heat.
After that I turned on the broiler and drizzled olive oil on the red pepper slices and yellow string beans. I seasoned them and threw them under the broiler. I left them there for about 10-15 minutes, during which time I finished the baba ghanoush.
I peeled the skin off the eggplants and mashed them up real good with a fork. I added 2 cloves of grated garlic, about 8 tablespoons of tahini, the juice from 1 lemon, and about a half teaspoon of cumin.
Then I heated some oil in a pan and cooked the kofta. I left them on for about 6 minutes each side, that gave them a nice crust, but kept them juicy. I also added about a cup of Israeli couscous to the tomato soup at this point to let it cook while the kofta was going.
Once everything was done I added a handful of chopped cilantro to the soup and plated it all up. The leftovers made a fantastic pita sandwich for lunch today!
1 Comment | Home Cooking | Tagged: baba ghanoush, berbere, bread crumbs, carrot, cayenne, chicken stock, cilantro, cumin, doro wat, egg, eggplant, garlic, ground lamb, israeli couscous, jalapeno, lemon juice, middle eastern, olive oil, onion, pita, roasted red pepper, tahini, tomato paste, tomato soup, turmeric, yellow string bean | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 10, 2010
I was flipping through a Jewish cookbook that I have trying to find recipes for Passover when I came across a recipe for Doro Wat, the national dish of Ethiopia. At first, I was surprised to see this. As I thought about it though, there has been a Jewish community in Ethiopia for thousands of years, untouched by the Romans or Crusaders. This allowed a more traditional interpretation of the Torah to exist, along with strict dietary Kashrut laws. I’m not saying that Doro Wat was created by the Jewish community, I don’t think anyone knows where its origins are, but it is consistent with a style of cooking prevalent throughout the Jewish diaspora during the Sabbath. Since it’s not permitted to do any work, cooking included, during the Sabbath, food is simmered on low heat for long periods of time. That way, when families get home from synagogue, a warm and filling meal is ready to go without further cooking.
I felt compelled to give it a whirl since Yuki and I both thoroughly enjoyed the two Ethiopian food experiences we’ve had. The recipe calls for a mix of spices, but I prefered to make a berbere to use instead. To make the berbere I mixed the following spices together all at a 1/2 teaspoon measurement: chili powder, paprika, ground ginger, cinnamon, ground cardamom seeds, ground cloves, and dried basil. Like any spice mix, you can make much more and store in a tight container for a few months.
To make the Doro Wat I first sautéed a diced large onion in some vegetable oil until it was soft but not burned, about 7 or 8 minutes. Then I grated in 6 garlic cloves and a 1/2 inch of fresh ginger and let those cook for a couple of minutes. After that, I added one cup of chicken stock and one 14 oz can of diced tomatoes and brought to a boil. I let it boil for about 10 minutes to reduce some of the liquid. Next, I salted and peppered to taste.
I was making 4 servings, so I picked up 8 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs. You can get a whole bird and break it down, purchase 4 complete leg sections, whatever you want to make 4 portions. Just make sure to use skin-on, bone-in chicken. The skin and bones will add depth to the dish. So, just before putting the thighs in the sauce I mixed in 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric and 1 teaspoon of the berbere that I made. Once the chicken was added I covered it with the sauce, turned the heat down, and let it simmer for an hour covered.
While the chicken was simmering I hard-boiled 4 eggs, one per portion. The egg is what really sets this dish apart from other chicken stews, so make sure every plate gets one. When the chicken only had about 10 minutes left I peeled the eggs, pricked them all over with a fork making sure not to break them, and then added them to the stew.
To serve with the Doro Wat I made another traditional Ethiopian dish of stewed greens. Typically collard greens are used, but Stanley’s had some beautiful chard, so I used that instead. It’s a real simple recipe. Fry a diced red onion in some olive oil for a few minutes, then add a couple of crushed garlic cloves and 1/2 inch grated ginger. After that, add 2 green chilis that have been seeded and sliced. Add about 1/3 cup of water and let come to a boil for a couple of minutes. Then, add one red pepper that’s been seeded and sliced as well as 1 pound of whatever green you use (collard, chard, kale, cabbage, etc.) thinly sliced. Season with salt and pepper, mix it all up and cook over a med-low heat for about 25 minutes partially covered. That’s all there is too it.
As much as I wanted to make some Injera, I have absolutely no idea where to find teff, the grain used to make it. I found a bunch of recipes, but no teff. So, I just made some basmati rice.
I have to say, this is one of the best tasting dishes I’ve ever made! The sauce is so friggin delicious, I am definitely keeping it in my regular rotation. It would be equally good with lamb instead of chicken. I would even give shrimp a try in this sauce.
3 Comments | Home Cooking | Tagged: basmati rice, berbere, cabbage, cardamom, chard, chicken stock, chicken thighs, chili powder, cinnamon, cloves, collard, crusaders, dried basil, ethiopia, garlic, ginger, green chili, ground ginger, hard-boiled eggs, injera, jewish, kale, kashrut, olive oil, onion, paprika, passover, pepper, red onion, red pepper, romans, sabbath, salt, stanley's, stewed greens, synagogue, teff, tomatoes, torah, turmeric, vegetable oil | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 9, 2010
I’ve been mulling this recipe over in my head since my trip to Merida. I wanted to somehow make a Japanese flavored Chiles Rellenos. Last night, for Meatless Monday, I gave it a shot. Not sure it’s exactly the way I had originally planned, but it turned out pretty good.
First thing I did was roast the poblano peppers on the open flame of my stove-top till the skin was completely charred. Then I let them steam themselves in a bowl covered with plastic-wrap for about a half hour.
While that was going on I made the filling. I sautéed some green onions and garlic in a little vegetable oil for about 5 minutes. Then I added one teaspoon of mirin, two teaspoons of sake, and three teaspoons of soy sauce. I also threw in some chili powder. Once that was all mixed together I dumped in some diced tofu and let it simmer for a few minutes and absorb some of the flavors.
Next, I peeled the skin off the poblanos and made a slit down one side to remove the seeds. Once the poblanos were all cleaned out I stuffed them with the tofu and set them aside.
The sauce was very simple to make. I first sautéed a half onion, diced, in some vegetable oil for a few minutes until soft but not burned. Then I added some grated garlic and let that cook for a couple of minutes. A couple tablespoons of red wine, a couple tablespoons of soy sauce, a can of diced tomatoes, and a few dashed of chili powder then let it simmer till it thickens up a bit. Just before serving I turned the heat off the sauce and added a little sesame oil and some chopped cilantro.
For the veggies, I just doused some yellow string beans and maitake mushrooms in some olive oil, salt, and pepper and threw then under the broiler for about 10 minutes. For the last few minutes I also put the peppers under to heat them back up.
I served everything with white rice, slices of avocado, cilantro garnish and a simple salad. The salad was green leaf lettuce and cherry tomatoes with a shiitake-sesame vinaigrette. It all turned out better than I expected.
Leave a Comment » | Home Cooking | Tagged: garlic, japanese, olive oil, soy sauce, white rice, mirin, sake, green onions, onion, red wine, tofu, shiitake, meatless monday, avocado, cilantro, poblano, chili powder, sesame oil, vegetable oil, cherry tomatoes, vinaigrette, merida, diced tomatoes, yellow string beans, maitake, green leaf lettuce | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 7, 2010
I must have driven my mom nuts with my quest to find the ultimate Queso Fundido in Merida. I was first turned on to the dish from a Rick Bayless ”Mexico: One Plate at a Time” episode. He was on scene in Merida at a restaurant I couldn’t find and they served him this big dish of Dutch cheese stuffed with chorizo and drowned in a spicy tomato sauce. Somehow I got the name of the dish screwed up. I had first thought it was called Queso Relleno, then, for whatever reason I thought it was Queso Fundido. Credit that to me mis-browsing Bayless’s website. In season 4 he featured Queso Fundido, in season 5 it was the Queso Relleno that I was really after.
At any rate, I asked a couple of Meridaians (is that a word?) where they go for Queso Fundido. A waiter at one restaurant mentioned a place that my mom and step-dad have been to. Then, when we were at Mayapan, there was a small group of college students touring archeological sites and their local guide was from Merida. So, I asked him and he said, “go to El Fogoncito“. So, that’s where we headed.
Turns out that there are two El Fogoncito’s in Merida, so we went to the one closest to my mom’s house. Much to our disappointment it was located in a brand new modern mall. The atmosphere was so generic we could have been at a TGI Friday’s (turns out that it’s also a major food worldwide food chain, no surprise). No culture whatsoever. But, they do have Queso Fundido con chorizo.
I was a little worried because it was priced about half of what everyone elses entrees were. Was this a meal or an appetizer? When it showed up it was a small earthenware dish filled with melted cheese, chunks of chorizo, and a couple of flour tortillas. It was definitely not a main dish. It was, however, absolutely delicious! I mean, let’s be honest here, it was melted cheese and chorizo. I scarfed that thing down like it was nothing. Since it was an appetizer I was still hungry afterwords.
Seeing that they served Tacos al Pastor, I really had no choice but to order a couple. Not quite as good as the one I ate at the San Benito Market, but still pretty good. These were served more traditionally with onions, jalapeno, cilantro, and a slice of pineapple.
With plenty of room in my belly for dessert I also had to order the flan. This one was clearly not as good as the flan I had in Cozumel’s Sabores. You could definitely taste the love put into that homemade flan that this one lacked as this one was more mass-produced. The texture was a little more jelloey than flan should be and I’m not a big fan of the maraschino cherry on top (save that for lame cocktails), but overall it wasn’t that bad.
I didn’t get the dish I was after, but that was no one’s fault but my own. I guess I’ll have to bother the hell out of my mom about it again next time I’m in Merida. Sorry mom.
2 Comments | Restaurant | Tagged: chorizo, cilantro, cozumel, dutch cheese, el fogoncito, flan, jalapenos, maraschino cherry, mayapan, merida, mexico, onions, pineapple, queso fundido, queso relleno, rick bayless, san benito market, spicy tomato sauce, tacos al pastor, tgi friday's, tortillas | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
March 5, 2010
While we were in Merida we spent an afternoon walking through an ancient cave in the Yucatan called Lol Tun. In the Pre-Columbian days there were an estimated 800 people living in it. It really is an impressive site with the highlight possibly being the 15,000 year old reverse hand-print paintings on the cave walls. At any rate, we filled up on lunch prior to walking through the cave.
I’m not sure what this place is called, but it was directly across the street from Lol Tun, so we gave it a shot. While we were sitting there waiting for our food, out of nowhere, something that felt like mud hit my arm, WTF! I wipe it off and look around. I didn’t see anything at all. Then I look up and see two little geckos hanging out on the wooden ceiling beams. A few seconds later another muddy item hits my arm. Little bastards! They both shit on my arm! I ought to grill them up and eat them for that! If they had shat on my food instead of my arm I would have eaten them instead.
I ordered the Salubtes. Hand-made tortillas piled with shredded turkey, tomato, lettuce and chopped onion. They were pretty damn good. About the right size too because I wasn’t starving and I had to try some of Yuki’s dish.
She ordered the Pollo Pibil. Chicken marinated in achiote (annatto), sour orange juice, peppercorns, garlic, cumin, salt, and then wrapped in banana leaves and baked. Although, instead of wrapping it in banana leaves and baking it they grilled it with the marinade and served it with rice, french fries, and a small salad with avocado. It truly was outstanding! As soon as I can fire up the grill in Spring you can better believe I’m going to try my hand at this marinade.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: achiote, annotto, avocado, banana leaves, chicken, cumin, french fries, garlic, gecko, lettuce, lol tun, marinade, merida, onion, peppercorns, pollo pibil, pre-columbian, rice, salad, salbutes, salt, sour orange, spring, tomato, tortillas, turkey, yucatan | Permalink
Posted by deirinberg
