Kenji's [url]Black Bean burgers--simple and delicious. Link: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2014 ... ecipe.html

Made this on Sunday

This weekend was pho and a vietnamese cabbage, carrot and apple salad.

Then I made a barramundi and cucumber curry strongly flavored with tamarind. I suck at using tamarind however. Instructions like "1/2 c thick tamarind water" are tough to work with. Eventually a good dose of sugar balanced it into something very tasty.

Finally, I sous vide some cheap chicken breasts and made fish fragrant cold chicken for one meal and bang bang chicken (both from Dunlop's book with minor mods) for another night.

This week is chicken tinga sandwiches with jalapeno slaw.

Went to Burhop's in Glenview to get some softshell crab. Obviously, I don't go to Burhops very often and it is no longer there. Wound up at Whole foods. Any suggestions for the Northern suburbs where they might be less than $7.00 each?

lougord99 wrote:Went to Burhop's in Glenview to get some softshell crab. Obviously, I don't go to Burhops very often and it is no longer there. Wound up at Whole foods. Any suggestions for the Northern suburbs where they might be less than $7.00 each?

If your world view considers Des Plaines to be part of the Northern Suburbs, then I suggest GNR Boston Fish Market.

Boston Fish Market
1225 Forest Ave
Des Plaines, IL 60018
(847) 803-2100

botd wrote:This weekend was pho and a vietnamese cabbage, carrot and apple salad.

Then I made a barramundi and cucumber curry strongly flavored with tamarind. I suck at using tamarind however. Instructions like "1/2 c thick tamarind water" are tough to work with. Eventually a good dose of sugar balanced it into something very tasty.

Finally, I sous vide some cheap chicken breasts and made fish fragrant cold chicken for one meal and bang bang chicken (both from Dunlop's book with minor mods) for another night.

This week is chicken tinga sandwiches with jalapeno slaw.

doing serious work, nice

a martha stewart recipe for campanile with corn, bacon, scallion, arugula. puree some fresh corn with chicken stock as body of sauce, rest of ingredients sautéed, green ingredients thrown in at end. nice, and very quick.

Turned some leftover roast chicken into a pretty damn good chicken pastry. It's not the most photogenic dish (and i know the carrots and celery aren't canonical) but was stupid easy and multiples were had by all, will make again for sure. Glad the cold weather is back.

I roasted some eggplant and zucchini, sauteed bulk italian sausage and onion, threw it in a casserole with arrabiata sauce, and some goat cheese and mozzarella. I like making something like this that I can take for a few days for lunches at work. Turned out pretty good. Didn't go crazy with the cheese, so it's not too heavy. I bought some terrific apples at the Ravenswood farmers' market a few weeks ago that I'll have with it, hoping to pick up some more tomorrow.

I have added "one pan farro" to my rotation (thanks to Smitten Kitchen)

The only difference from what I do to the recipe linked below is that I sauté about 4oz of bulk italian sausage in the pan, then toss in the onion and garlic to caramelize a little bit first and I don't add any olive oil as it cooks. It's a really easy, really tasty weeknight meal.

https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/07/one- ... -tomatoes/

leek wrote:I have added "one pan farro" to my rotation (thanks to Smitten Kitchen)

The only difference from what I do to the recipe linked below is that I sauté about 4oz of bulk italian sausage in the pan, then toss in the onion and garlic to caramelize a little bit first and I don't add any olive oil as it cooks. It's a really easy, really tasty weeknight meal.

https://smittenkitchen.com/2013/07/one- ... -tomatoes/

Make this one all the time, it's the best! Highly recommend using canned cherry tomatoes from Italy in the winter (with juice).

This is one of my "goto" preparations when we want something simple, quick, but refined. I watched Chef Ripert prepare this on his cable TV show "Avec Eric" and thought - hey! I can do that. I can usually whip this out in under an hour.

http://www.aveceric.com/all-recipes/bar ... er-sauce-1

I've attached a photo of my results.

Cheers,

-mm

I'm trying to eat keto which gives me an excuse to eat lots of fat. Just no starchy carbs. I made salisbury steak with mushroom and onion gravy and cauliflower with cheese sauce as a side. Both really good. The cauliflower recipe was designed to be a take on mac and cheese and I really did not miss the mac. I have enough for lunch a couple of days this week.

I recently made two delicious things I might not have done otherwise - cheesy creamy things beyond mac & cheese

Pasta w cauliflower and blue cheese
I get the NY Times Cooking newsletter and it's prompted me to make a lot of new things - this was lovely. I might add some toasted walnuts or breadcrumbs for texture next time, and I did 1/2 blue cheese and 1/2 parm, because that's what I had. I definitely would decrease pasta and increase cauliflower.

Tuscan butter shrimp
A friend posted the salmon version of this on Facebook and it looked great - it's based on an Olive Garden recipe for chicken, but shrimp or salmon make it amazing. So delicious! I added a little white wine in with the tomatoes, used lactose-free 1/2 and 1/2 instead of cream, and used pesto instead of basil leaves. I also topped it with parsley.

Both of these took less time to put together than you might think, I did both on a week night.

In this past Sunday's Parade Magazine, there was a Jacques Pepin recipe that sounded tasty. Chicken and Rice with Cumin and Cilantro. Made it Sunday evening using skin-on, bone-in thighs instead of wings, half the cilantro stems and brown rice. I'd make it again.

Lemon Chicken Thighs from Bon Appetit. Simple, inexpensive, flavorful, delicious with orzo and steamed broccoli. No pictures, though next time making I will take a few. Far as what I might do different next time, nothing comes to mind, its a rare first time recipe that worked well right off the kick.

Oh, one thing, I'd serve the skin-on bone-in chicken thighs on a bed of punchy greens such as watercress/frisee/endive/arugula to take better advantage of the charred lemon, honey, olive oil, aleppo pepper, fond and pan juice vinaigrette.

Did a batch of sai ua last weekend, coarse grind, heavy on lime leaf and lemongrass, turned out pretty delicious. Gonna increase the amount of fat in the grind a bit next time.

AlekH wrote:Did a batch of sai ua last weekend, coarse grind, heavy on lime leaf and lemongrass, turned out pretty delicious. Gonna increase the amount of fat in the grind a bit next time.

Stunning!

Cathy2 wrote:

AlekH wrote:Did a batch of sai ua last weekend, coarse grind, heavy on lime leaf and lemongrass, turned out pretty delicious. Gonna increase the amount of fat in the grind a bit next time.

Stunning!

Wow - that looks incredible Alek...you better be bringing some to a Montrose Beach picnic this summer!

G Wiv wrote:

DanDanNoodleLTH1.jpg

looks great! do you have a go-to recipe for this?

I second the call for a recipe for Dan Dan Noodles! Wow!

Where do all of you find Dan Dan Noodles in a restaurant?


--Joy

Joy wrote:
Where do all of you find Dan Dan Noodles in a restaurant?


--Joy

GNR Katy’s in Westmont

Joy wrote: Where do all of you find Dan Dan Noodles in a restaurant?

Katy's!


Dan Dan Noodles @ Katy's Dumpling in Westmont

=R=

Katy's Dumpling
665 N Cass Ave
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 323-9393

Stephen wrote:looks great! do you have a go-to recipe for this?

Joy wrote:I second the call for a recipe for Dan Dan Noodles! Wow!

Re my Dan Dan noodle recipe. I've combined/tweaked elements of multiple recipes/cooks/techniques into my own spin. Also, I've come to realize there is nothing even close to a standard recipe.

The Dan Dan noodle pictured above was my best version to date, I will write up the recipe and post in Shopping and Cooking with a couple of pictures. Thanks for the interest.

Joy wrote: Where do all of you find Dan Dan Noodles in a restaurant?

Below is a picture of Dan Dan noodle from Min's Noodle House. Sesame paste dominates and its quite thick, very different from the dish of the same name Ronnie just posted which illustrates my comment of no standard recipe.

Min's is a tasty version, especially after liberal application of Min's excellent house chili oil. It goes without saying, though I will say it, I agree Katy's Westmont makes a delicious Dan Dan noodle



Min's Noodle House
3235 S. Halsted
Chicago, IL 60608
312-465-2999
http://www.minsnoodlehouse.com

AlekH wrote:Did a batch of sai ua last weekend

Nice, very nice indeed!

IMG_1063 by lougord99, on Flickr

Wings brined for 10 hours in GWiv's amped up buttermilk brine, smoked for 1 hour with pecan, and then finished on the smoker for 10 minutes with a butter/hot sauce wash.

I will be making pasta with fresh pesto sauce tonight and sliced home grown tomatoes drizzled with olive oil and seasoned. The basil and tomatoes are from the yard and I will also get some fresh chives in there too.

lougord99 wrote:Wings brined for 10 hours in GWiv's amped up buttermilk brine, smoked for 1 hour with pecan, and then finished on the smoker for 10 minutes with a butter/hot sauce wash.

Somehow missed this. You wings look terrific! Delicious! Tasty!