A Broad Reference

I've been craving 2 things lately: silken tofu and rice cakes. We normally go to this place called the Pyung Chang Tofu House but since I've started buying groceries at this really inexpensive place in Oakland's Little Korea called Koreana Plaza I'm inspired to make my own. I used 2 different recipes Tteokbokki and Soon Tofu Jigae for inspiration but in the end what I made was kind of a combo thing so I include my recipe below.

Ingredients:
1 onion or leek (white stalk) chopped
1lb ground chicken
3 Cups water
3 pieces kelp
3 shiitake mushrooms sliced
2 Tbs red pepper paste
2 Tbs honey or sugar
1 Tbs garlic black bean paste
1 pack rice cakes (~20 tubular) soaked
2 fish cake (flat rectangular kind) cut into squares
1 tub silken tofu
1 Tbs fish sauce
2 Tbs cilantro chopped

Instructions:
Sauté the onion till glassey, and the mushroom till tender.
Quickly sauté chicken and stir to break into small pieces.
Add water, kelp, red pepper paste, honey and garlic bean paste and bring to a boil.
Simmer rice cakes ~ 15 minutes till just soft but still chewy. The center should not be tough.
Add in the fish cakes and tofu (whole), try to keep the tofu chunks large, stirring will break tofu into smaller pieces.
Reduce to low heat and simmer for 5 minutes until tofu is heated through. Sprinkle with cilantro before serving.

Posted by Misty at 06:02 PM | Permalink

There's a little Vietnamese place down the street from my Aunt's. We go there for lunch, and split everything we order. I love their grated apple salad. I guess it makes sense to use the local fruit rather than trying to ship in green papaya from far away. They serve it with thin slices of grilled beef. The dressing is very simple and oil free so I like it for a low calorie option. They use Fuji apples for sweet but I like to mix in Granny Smith as well for a tart contrast. Standard salady mix of shredded cabbage and carrots, with a sprinkle of bean sprouts. A little bit of cilantro, lime wedges and some toasted peanuts. It's so satisfying. They were happy to share the recipe, the waiter laughed and said everyone in Vietnam could make it. So now you can too.

Ingredients:
6oz flank steak grilled and sliced

2 Apples (Fuji & Granny Smith) grated
1/4 Cabbage shredded
1 carrot grated
1 Cup bean sprouts
6 sprigs of cilantro
1/4 Cup peanuts
lime wedges

1/2 Cup rice wine vinegar
1/4 Cup fish sauce
2-3 Tbs palm sugar
1-3 tsp hot chilli peppers sliced
up to 1/2 cup water

Preparation:

Mix together vinegar and fish sauce, add sugar and chillies dilute with water to taste.

Layer vegetables together top with beef and nuts. Pour over 3 Tbs of dressing.

Posted by Misty at 06:42 PM | Permalink

Dim sum would not be complete for me without Feng Jiao (romantic translation Phoenix talons) aka chicken feet. Another binary selection food, that people either love or hate. Sometimes it's the texture, maybe it's the idea of it, but everyone has an opinion which they are happy to share with you. In general people appreciate it if you refrain from calling their food disgusting, a sensitive quirk perhaps, but I've found that many folk feel no need to edit their feelings of disgust when it comes to chicken feet.

When I was a kid, I came across my Mum chowing down on a bucket of something strange, brown and wrinkly. I was definitely put off by the way it looked. When I asked her what she was eating, she replied "Nothing you'd like"... but she was so evidently enjoying herself. I thought I'd give it a try- Wow flavour explosion, super chewy yet succulent chicken with sweet, salty and spicy hot notes and an evocative hint of mysterious ginger, cinnamon and anise. When Gwynie wandered into the kitchen to find out what we were eating with such relish, I told her it was "Nothing you'd like"... Lol that didn't dissuade her one bit.

So it's safe to say, thanks to Mum, we're fans of the chicken feet. There are a bunch of different methods of cooking chicken feet. One involves deep frying followed by braising/steaming, and I have to point out that deep frying always improves an item- for example twinkies. Altho this method produces a very intact foot, which is considered more appealing, given that most of us can't indulge in those kind of calories very often, that's slightly limiting.

In Taipei I used to pass by a restaurant called Elastic. It served teas and soups made of connective tissue plus special herbs and spices that are supposed to help your joints. At fraction of the price, holistic and tasting infinitely better than that Glucosamine chondroitin, MSM, Sam-E, CoE Q10 etc. I'm definitely sold on the idea, and I try to make stocks from cheaper parts (pig feet/hocks, pork and beef neck bones). The stock has a richer, glossy, more proteiny feel to it and I get to count it as my cartilage supplement, so it works out all round. Hence chicken feet/carcass make a great start to a stock, and then you can dress up the feet and eat them too!

I recognise that the idea of chicken feet can be initially disconcerting. But I urge you to put aside these preconceived notions and give it a try. Maybe sample a tiny bit at dim sum, or use stock made with chicken feet. Well whatever your preference, I include my recipe below. If you don't want to see the process, read no further.

Ingredients:
Stock
1lb Chicken feet + carcass/bones
1 stick cinnamon
5 star anise
1 thumb ginger
1 Tbs soup chi
6 cups water

Start out by trimming the feet. They're pretty clean when they come packaged, but I like to cut off the nails, which come loose as they cook. Boil the water and all the ingredients. Reduce to a simmer, and cook till the chicken feet are tender (just beyond al dente) 60 minutes. Remove the feet, strain and reserve the broth, discarding the carcass/bones.

Braising sauce
1 Cup chicken stock
3 Tbs soy sauce
1 Tbs rice wine
1 Tbs grated ginger
1 Tbs black bean sauce
1 Tbs brown sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
Siracha to taste...

Mix ingredients together.
Heat sauce and then toss feet till coated and shiny.
Simmer on low till the stock is all evaporated, 20-30 minutes.
Feet should be meltingly tender.
Garnish with pepper slices and cilantro.
Serve over rice.

Posted by Misty at 06:30 PM | Permalink

For some strange reason I've been tasked with making salad dressing over the holidays. My default vinaigrette is a meld of salty, sour, sweet and spicy. It should be light enough that you can taste the individual vegetables in the salad, but add a little sparkle that makes you want to keep munching away on your 5-9 serving... I put whatever is at hand in a small jar which I use to mix it all together by shaking. But despite my casual approach to the creation of what seems very simple everyone keeps asking for a recipe. Keep in mind this is all approximate and should be adjusted to your preference.

Ingredients:
1 lemon- juice & zest
OR
1/4 Cup balsamic vinegar

3 Tbs Fish sauce
1 Tbs mustard
1 Tbs sugar/honey
1/3 Cup olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

Optional: adjust to taste
white vinegar or rice vinegar for a neutral acid
ginger grated
shallots/green onion/pickled garlic chopped
cilantro finely chopped
Siracha/hot pepper
sesame oil

Posted by Misty at 07:13 AM | Permalink

Gwynie made this for Christmas. It was so good I thought I'd give it a write up. It's more like French toast than a quiche, with a great contrasting texture of succulent mushrooms and crispy bread. Most of the steps can be done in advance, so it would be a great dish for say a dinner party where you'd rather spend time with your guests. Gourmet magazine talks about using parchment lined ramekins, but I prefer to do it in one large dish. If I were going to serve it in smaller volumes, I'd just use large muffin tins with cupcake papers, and prolly bake for only 10-15 minutes. Alternatively prebake and then broil as discussed below.

Herbed Sausage & Wild Mushroom bread pudding
Ingredients
4 Cups (1/2-inch) fresh bread cubes (Acme herb foccacia- missing 4 slices...)
1 large onion coarsely chopped OR
1/2 Cup shallot finely chopped
1/2 lb sausage meat
2 Tbs butter unsalted
1 1/2 lbs mixed fresh mushrooms (crimini, chantrelle and shitake)
1/2 Cup flat-leaf parsley finely chopped
1/2 bunch sage coarsely chopped
2 Cups half-and-half
4 large eggs
1/2 Cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Gwynie started eating the herb slab before making the bread cubes... I think a whole herb slab would have been too much? Bake bread cubes in 1 layer in a large shallow baking pan until golden-brown, about 10 minutes. This can be done ahead and stored in a air tight container.

Tear or cut mushrooms lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces. Sauté shallot or onion in butter until glassy ~3 minutes. Add mushrooms, sausage, salt & pepper and cook until dry ~15 minutes. Add parsley, sage and cook, stirring ~2 minutes. Remove from heat. Sometimes I feel that a cycle of heating and cooling helps to boost flavours, if you want that then this step can be done ahead and stored in the fridge.

Whisk together half-and-half, eggs, cheese, salt & pepper in a large bowl. Stir in sausage, mushrooms and bread cubes until coated well and let stand 10 minutes for bread to absorb egg mixture. Mix again before placing in a shallow casserole dish, sprinkle top with more cheese.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, remove and allow to rest for 20 minutes. The egg continues to cook while waiting, making for a very tender chew. Gwynie likes hers served hot, and if you want more crunch, heat under broiler ~5 minutes for the top to crisp up. You can also bake in a large dish and then when serving individual portions toast under broiler for more of an edge effect.

Posted by Misty at 10:20 AM | Permalink