Tea Encrusted Salmon

I've been wanting to cook with tea for the longest time, but until now, I had never come up with a good idea. This recipe has chopped tea leaves in the breading, which adds a subtle flavor to the fish. It's served with a simple salad consisting of collard greens and mushrooms

-=Tea Encrusted Salmon=-

1 Salmon Filet (~6 oz)

1 egg

1 Tbsp milk

1/8 cup Italian bread crumbs

3 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

2-4 Tbsp tea leaves finely chopped

sesame oil

4-5 collard green leaves

2-4 mushrooms

Salt

Beat the egg and add the milk, mixing until smooth. Combine the bread crumbs, cheese, cumin, garlic, and tea leaves in a small bowl. I used Silver Needle white tea, although any green or white tea will work. Coat the salmon in the egg and then coat with the tea leaf mixture. In a small pan, melt 1 Tbsp butter on high. Sear the salmon on both sides, and add a bit of sesame oil. Then, turn the heat down to medium low, and cook until done. Remove from pan, and slice. Turn the heat back up to high, and toss in the collard greens and mushrooms. Season lightly with salt, cooking for about a minute. Place a bed of white rice on a plate, and add a dash of sushi vinegar and some sesame seeds. Lay the salmon on the rice, with the salad on the side. Done!

Greco-Italian Stir-Fry

Cooking for yourself, there's often the dilemma of quantity. Sometimes, making just enough for one portion is difficult, since you can't really go out and buy a quarter head of cabbage. Besides, the less you make at a time, the more often you have to cook, the more time you spend cleaning things, etc etc, and sometimes you find yourself not having time to cook at all, staring at a slab of raw meat in the fridge that is completely useless to you at this point in time. So leftovers are pretty much a constant, and this often holds true even when you're not just cooking for one. This recipe was born thanks to a large bowl of leftover Greek salad from dinner the day before. Welcome to the Mediterranean, folks, as we'll be spending the next couple posts here. You are now free to roam about the cabin.

-=Greco-Italian Stir-Fry=-

8-12 shrimp, peeled

6 asparagus spears

4 tbsp butter

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp dill weed

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

Garlic salt

=Greek Salad=

1 roma tomato, cubed

1/2 green pepper, chopped

1/4 red onion, chopped

1/4 white onion, chopped

1/4 cup feta cheese

1/4 cup sliced olives

1/4 cucumber, chopped

Melt the butter in a medium-large wok and start cooking the shrimp. Add the dill weed, lemon juice, and garlic salt to taste. Stir gently to coat shrimp evenly. Trim and cut the asparagus into thirds (peeling is optional, depending on whether you find asparagus too fiber-y). Add to the wok and cook for a few minutes until tender. Next add the tomato, pepper, onions, olives, and cucumber, cooking until tender but not mushy. Finally, add the cheese and mustard and mix thoroughly, allowing the cheese to melt around the rest of the ingredients. Serve!

When it gets chilly outside....

.....it's the season for making some chili inside. There's probably over 9000 different recipes for chili out there, and everybody has their own secret recipe they swear by. This recipe is not-so-secret (as soon as I post this anyways), relatively simple, and doesn't take all that long, but is still very satisfying. It's a hearty pork-based chili, mildly spicy as written (but you're free to add as much heat as you like)

-="Oinker" Chili=-

3/4 lb pork sausage

1/4 lb bacon

6 tomatoes

20 oz pinto beans

6 oz black beans

1/2 large white onion

1/2 large red onion

12 oz brown button mushrooms

butter

olive oil

2 tbsp dark red chili powder

1 tbsp cayenne pepper

crushed red pepper flakes

salt

pepper

Start off by chopping 4 of the tomatoes into cubes and dicing the other two. In a large pot, start cooking the chopped tomatoes in 2 tbsp butter on medium heat, stirring occasionally. In a separate skillet, cook the sausage with some olive oil on high. Liberally add the red pepper flakes (I used about 4 tbsp) as the meat cooks, making sure to stir often to break up the sausage into small pieces. Add salt and pepper to taste. When the tomatoes are tender, add the beans to the pot, followed by the sausage once it is cooked about 75% through. Turn the heat down to a low simmer. For the remaining duration of this recipe, make sure to keep stirring the pot once in a while to prevent the bottom from burning. Back to the skillet now. Chop the onions and sautee until translucent, then add them to the pot. Chop the bacon, cooking in the skillet until done, but not crispy, and, surprise surprise, add it to the pot. Lastly, quarter the mushrooms and cook in 4 tbsp butter, then mix it in with the rest of the chili. Add the chili powders, along with any fresh chilies you may want to add. Continue simmering for another 10-15 minutes, and you're done.

Fusionnnn POWERRR *ahem*

So for a while now, my girlfriend has been trying to get me to learn Spanish cooking, in order to make the ultimate Asian-Spanish fusion dish. One of the things I was recently introduced to is arroz con pollo, or literally, rice with chicken. What gives this dish so much flavor is the fact that the rice itself is cooked in chicken stock, rather than just water. With that idea as a base, I created this following dish. It's full of flavor, and absolutely delicious. Seriously, see the picture at the bottom of the post? I ended up eating half of it before remembering that I was supposed to take a photo for this blog.

-=Sesame Pork Fried Arroz=-

1.5 cups white rice

1.5 cups chicken stock

1 cup water

1 pork chop (4-6 oz)

1 cup chopped leek

sesame oil

vegetable oil

1 tbsp sesame seeds

garlic salt

orange liqueur 

2 tbsp tomato paste

In a medium pot, combine the rice, chicken stock, and water, and heat on HIGH. When the rice has begun to boil, turn the heat down to LOW, and simmer. In the meantime, cut the pork chop into small bite sized cubes. In a large wok, heat some vegetable oil to start cooking the pork. Drizzle some sesame oil over the pork, and add the garlic salt and sesame seeds, stirring to coat the pork evenly. Optional: When the pork is finished cooking, splash some liqueur over the pork. If on a gas stove, simply give the wok a strong shake to ignite the alcohol; otherwise, a grill lighter will do.

By now, the rice should be about done. It should have absorbed most of the liquid, but still soft and moist. Add the rice, leek, and tomato paste to the wok and stir.

Paneer Curry

I'm a pretty big fan of curry in all its forms (and there's a lot of em, from red curry, to green curry, Indian curry, and Thai curry, and so on), but one of my favorites involves Paneer, a type of Indian cheese. Unfortunately, it's not the sort of thing I tend to have on hand. Hell, I haven't the foggiest idea where to even buy paneer. In an attempt to imitate it, I came up with this alternative: fried mozzarella cubes. The soft, mild mozzarella cheese worked wonderfully in the following red curry recipe.

-=Red Curried Beef with Fried Mozzarella=-

First off, the fried Mozzarella--

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs

1 egg

Mozzarella, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Vegetable oil

In a small pot, heat up the oil. Combine the flour, water, bread crumbs, and eggs and stir until even. Coat the Mozzarella cubes in the mixture, and fry one at a time for 5-6 seconds each. Make sure to remove the cheese quickly, or else it will melt too much and fall apart completely. Once done set the Mozzarella aside. The fried cheese can also be served by itself with a bit of salt as an appetizer

Next up: Rice

1.5 cups Basmati Rice

2.5 cups water

In a medium pot, combine the water and rice, and heat, covered, on HIGH. When the water begins to boil, turn heat down to LOW, stir, and let sit, covered, for 10-15 minutes, until water is all absorbed. Rice should be soft and fluffy.

Finally: The curry

4-5 small Russet potatoes, cubed

2 large carrots, sliced

1 head broccoli, chopped

4-6 oz cooked steak, cubed

2-3 oz red curry paste

1 can (14 oz) coconut milk

1/2 cup milk

1 tbsp garlic powder

1-2 tbsp garlic salt

1 tbsp paprika

1 tbsp cinnamon

In a large wok or pan, heat the coconut milk and regular milk. Add the curry paste, garlic powder, garlic salt, paprika, and cinnamon, stirring until even. Add the potatoes and carrots, and simmer until potatoes are cooked through, about 10-15 minutes. When the potatoes are soft, add the steak, broccoli, and cheese, and cook for another 5 minutes. Serve over the rice when done.

Fishy Capers?

I came up with this one when I remembered a small jar of capers and a large jar of manzanilla olives that was left over from house dinners. I decided to make a sauce based around these ingredients to go with my last piece of salmon, which is easily my favorite fish of all time.

-=Grilled Salmon w/ Sour Cream Caper Sauce=-

-=Over A Kale Rice Pilaf=-

1 Salmon Filet

1/4 cup Sour Cream

1/4 stick Butter

5-10 Capers

5 Manzanilla Olives

1 tsp Dill Weed

1 cup White Rice

2 cups chopped Kale

1/4 cup milk

Melt the butter in a small saucepot and finely dice the capers and olives. Cook the capers and olives in the butter, then add the sour cream and stir until smooth. Leave the pot on low heat and start cooking the salmon on medium in a pan with olive oil. In another pot, start cooking the rice with 1.5 cups water and some salt. Once the water boils, turn the heat down to a simmer and add the milk and kale, stirring until even. Cover and let steam. When the rice and salmon are cooked, serve the salmon on top of the rice and pour the sauce over it all.

Allez cuisine!

Ever had one of those lazy days where you just didn't feel like doing anything at all? That was me this past Saturday, the result of which was that I spent the better part of the day just watching the Food Network. This in turn caused me to produce the following three recipes that night in true Iron Chef style. The not-so-secret ingredient? Chuck Roast, a fairly cheap but highly versatile cut of beef. It may not be the best for steaks, but it is still delicious in so many different ways. These dishes were made from a single 3lb slab of the stuff.

-=Appetizer: Pan-Fried Beef With Sauteed Kale and Pancetta=-

8 oz Chuck Roast
2 oz Pancetta
1 bunch Kale
Honey
Red Wine Vinegar
Olive Oil
Garlic Salt
Pepper

Begin by cutting the beef into bite sized cubes, chopping the kale into small pieces and dicing the pancetta. Liberally coat a skillet with olive oil and heat on high. When the oil is hot, add the beef, stirring often to allow for even cooking. Add garlic salt and pepper to taste. Sear all sides of the meat quickly, then turn the heat down to medium and let it cook for a few minutes. In the meantime, combine 2 parts oil, 1 part vinegar, and 1 part honey to make a simple sauce. Stir until even and set aside. When the beef is mostly cooked through, add the kale and pancetta to the skillet and turn the heat back up to high. Stir often, and remove from heat once the kale is cooked, no more than a minute or two. Serve immediately, drizzling the sauce over the top.

-=1st Course: Mango Curried Beef with Mushroom Gravy and Almond Couscous=-

8 oz Chuck Roast

4 oz Mixed Mushrooms
1 Mango

Turmeric

Garlic Salt

Curry Powder

Chili Powder

Cinnamon

Fresh Parsley

Cream

Flour

Sherry

1 cup Couscous

Sliced Almonds

Heat approximately 2 cups of water in a large wok. Cut the beef into bite sized chunks and add it to the wok when the water is near boiling. Cook on medium-high for about 5 minutes, then turn it down to low. Strain the liquid, and return half of it to the wok, putting the rest in a separate saucepot. Heat the liquid on medium, then add the mushrooms, sherry, 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon, and approximately 1/4 - 1/3 cup flour to thicken the gravy. Turn the heat down to low and let it simmer, stirring occasionally. When the sauce has thickened, pour it over the beef and stir until even. Add 1/4 cup cream, some parsley, 1 Tbsp turmeric and 2 Tbsp curry powder, plus garlic salt and chili powder to taste. Cut the mango into cubes and stir it in. In a separate pot, boil the couscous in a little over 1 cup of water. Add the almonds and a splash of cream, stir, and remove from heat. Let stand for 10 minutes. Serve the curry over the couscous.

-=2nd Course: Roast Chuck Roast=-

2 lb Chuck Roast

1/4 lb Bacon

2 Carrots

1 Onion

Honey

Red wine vinegar

Place the roast in a baking dish and cover with the bacon. Slice the carrots and loosely chop the onions and place them around the roast. Add 1-2 cups water to the dish. Add a small drizzle of olive oil and a splash of red wine vinegar. Drizzle some honey over the bacon. Bake at 350 for about 1.5 hours