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What are you making for dinner tonite?

What are you making for dinner tonite?
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  • Post #2071 - September 3rd, 2022, 4:28 pm
    Post #2071 - September 3rd, 2022, 4:28 pm Post #2071 - September 3rd, 2022, 4:28 pm
    Details on the dal fry? Is it just cooked lentils garnished with the flavored ghee or is it actually fried ala refritos? That meal does look tasty and relatively simple. I guess the kebabs could be made ahead and kept on parchment in the fridge.
  • Post #2072 - September 4th, 2022, 8:32 am
    Post #2072 - September 4th, 2022, 8:32 am Post #2072 - September 4th, 2022, 8:32 am
    Image
    This was a hodgepodge of some lonely languishing foods looking to make a connection. Frozen pork chops brined overnight, soaked giant dry Polish limas, seasoned with homegrown green serranos, sumac, thyme and a peeled halved Chilean clementine. I browned the chops very lightly and cooked the whole business in an Instant Pot clone on slow cooker mode, 204F/8 hrs. Accompanied with converted rice cooked in a pressure cooker.
    Pluses: the bean texture was great, will definitely cook dried limas this way again. Chops were also nicely done. Next time I will add more oranges. I thought one would be good just as a flavoring, but the little cooked sections turned out to be pretty good eating.
    Minuses: Sumac apparently added a bitter note that I didn't recall from restaurant sumac-y dishes. Maybe it becomes bitter with long cooking? Or I overdid? And next time I will go back to cooking converted rice in a saucepan. The extra 10 minutes is well worth the more even texture.
  • Post #2073 - September 4th, 2022, 1:39 pm
    Post #2073 - September 4th, 2022, 1:39 pm Post #2073 - September 4th, 2022, 1:39 pm
    tjr wrote:Details on the dal fry? Is it just cooked lentils garnished with the flavored ghee or is it actually fried ala refritos? That meal does look tasty and relatively simple. I guess the kebabs could be made ahead and kept on parchment in the fridge.

    In searching recipes/methods, I came across both of these methods and all sorts of other combinations. As I posted above, I just did them pretty much as I would a standard pot of beans, and poured the tadka over at the end. Of course, there was also some ghee/sauteing of the aromatics at the beginning, too. Some methods called for cooking the dal first in pressure cooker but because dal cooks very fast, that seemed unnecessary. These turned great and I expect I'll make them again. In fact, I even enjoyed some of them for breakfast today . . .

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    Dal Fry & Eggs
    Garnished with cotija and chives.

    It's been kind of a legume-heavy weekend so far. By sheer coincidence, some friends asked us to bring a pot of beans to their cookout tonight . . .

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    Rancho Gordo Snowcap Beans
    Don't think I've ever cooked this variety before. Received them in my May 2022 Bean Club box.

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    Mise En Place & Moritaka AS Gyuto, 210mm
    Yellow onion, carrot, celery, minced garlic, leftover 'grill' sausage, salt, black pepper, overnight-soaked Snowcap beans, slitted jalapenos/serranos & bay leaves and avocado oil.

    Briefly rendered the sausage in a touch of the oil, then removed it. The beans are still cooking but I'll put the sausage back in at the very end, so it doesn't wash out. From here, it's a pretty standard build. Sweated the mirepoix, then added the beans, soaking water to cover by an inch and black pepper. Covered, boiled hard for ~12 minutes. After that, removed the lid, added the bay leaves, peppers and salt, vented the lid and simmer until the beans are tender. As of now, they've been simmering for about an hour and are not quite there.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2074 - September 5th, 2022, 6:09 pm
    Post #2074 - September 5th, 2022, 6:09 pm Post #2074 - September 5th, 2022, 6:09 pm
    I'd bet that my gardening skills are worse than most people's, which is why I've been so thrilled with our results this year. It seems more like random chance than the result of any skill or knowledge on our part. Even though our front yard faces south, a huge oak tree shades most of it, so we don't have very much space for planting. We're limited to a couple of raised beds, where we have some herbs, some greens and . . . tomatoes. To that end, I started the day with a cooking-related task; picking tomatoes from our garden . . .

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    Tomato Harvest - 22.0905
    We're getting baskets like this 2-3 times per week. I thought it was slowing down but needless to say, we're not quite there yet . . . and I'm certainly not complaining about it. A few splitters in here, which went directly into this salad . . .

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    Tomato, Burrata & Basil Salad
    Many tomatoes were left behind but still, we managed to work several into this salad, along with some of our homegrown basil and the end of our stash or WI burrata. Dressed this with evoo, a couple of vinegars, salt and black pepper.

    The rest of dinner was a rare occurrence for us, meat and potatoes . . .

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    Golden Globe Potatoes & Moritaka AS Gyuto, 210mm
    We received these spuds (very similar to yukon golds) in our CSA box and as long as we had them, I figured I'd make some mashed potatoes.

    Knife Nerd Note: In breaking these down, it was made clear to me, once again, just how impressive this knife is. I mean, these are potatoes but the extraordinary grind on this blade just pushed the slices away like they weren't even there. 100% food release. Not one piece stuck to the blade. What a gem!

    Thawed (overnight) the second half of a ribless roast from Coscto that I bought last month and decided to cook it on the Weber . . .

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    Grilling
    Trussed, lightly oiled and rubbed with salt, black pepper and a wee bit of my BBQ rub.

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    Finishing Up
    Even with a small and fading fire, this went fast and reached 130F internal in just under an hour. :shock:

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    Plated Up
    Smoke-Grilled ribless roast, mashed potatoes (with a crater of some run-off from the roast) and tomato salad.

    Happy Monday, Happy Labor Day! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2075 - September 6th, 2022, 6:18 pm
    Post #2075 - September 6th, 2022, 6:18 pm Post #2075 - September 6th, 2022, 6:18 pm
    Kicking off the work week with a 'meatless' stir-fry . . .

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    Mise En Place & Konosuke Fujiyama FM Blue #2 gyuto, 240mm
    Shaoxing wine, avocado oil, oyster sauce, white pepper, hot soy bean paste, shoyu, scallions, minced garlic, 4x gelatinous chicken stock, red jalapeno, minced ginger, corn starch (for slurry), silken tofu, broccoli florets and fermented black beans.

    Chicken stock certainly disqualifies this from being vegetarian or even truly meatless but still, it was nice to go with something so veg-forward.

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    Broccoli & Tofu Stir-Fry
    Really like the way this one came together. I think by most stir-fry standards, the broccoli appears a little soft but it still had a perfect amount of crunch.

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    Plated Up
    With spicy-sweet cucumber salad and leftover/reheated jasmine rice.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2076 - September 7th, 2022, 6:24 pm
    Post #2076 - September 7th, 2022, 6:24 pm Post #2076 - September 7th, 2022, 6:24 pm
    Started out with the weekly slaw, which rides again . . .

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    Green Cabbage, Red Cabbage, Carrot & Konosuke Fujiyama FM Blue #2 gyuto, 240mm

    After that, it was back to the grill . . .

    I actually bought some boneless/skinless chicken thighs with the intention of cooking them inside -- possibly in a stir-fry -- but decided to cook them outside because it was a beautiful night. Dabbed them with a bit of light olive oil and seasoned them with salt, black pepper, oregano, granulated garlic, onion powder and Hungarian sweet paprika.

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    Charcoal-Grilled Boneless/Skinless Chicken Thighs
    Was a very hot fire and these cooked fast, ~15 minutes, indirect/covered.

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    Plated Up
    With a blob of the weekly slaw and nice little dish of some spicy-sweet cucumber salad. :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2077 - September 9th, 2022, 6:42 pm
    Post #2077 - September 9th, 2022, 6:42 pm Post #2077 - September 9th, 2022, 6:42 pm
    Grilled up some more pork shoulder chops . . .

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    Grilling
    Finishing up after marking over the fire and cooking indirect/covered for a couple of minutes at the end.

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    Plated Up
    Charcoal-grilled pork chop with a blob of the weekly slaw, even more homegrown tomato & basil salad and some multi-cultural corn 'off' the cob with elotes-type dressing and homemade chile oil. This one, I'll definitely be doing a few more times before corn goes away for the season.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2078 - September 10th, 2022, 11:20 pm
    Post #2078 - September 10th, 2022, 11:20 pm Post #2078 - September 10th, 2022, 11:20 pm
    To me, meatloaf is really a cold weather dish but I was making dinner for a friend who claims to love it. So, even though it had only been just over 6 months since the last time I made it -- and it's still plenty warm out -- I decided to make it for him. Prep started with the slicing of a couple pounds of creminis . . .

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    Cremini Mushrooms & Konosuke Fujiyama FM Blue #2 gyuto, 240mm
    These got sauteed in avocado oil/butter, garlic, red wine and reduced beef stock. A few went into the meatloaf itself. Some went into the gravy. Some were served as a side dish.

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    Mise En Place & Myojin Riki Seisakusho SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Panko, spice plate (salt, black pepper, granulated garlic & onion), eggs, sauteed onions, milk, sauteed creminis and ground beef & pork.

    Made a panade with the milk, eggs, panko and seasonings. After giving it a few minutes to hydrate, I mixed it and everything else together, then created a free-form loaf. Baked it at 4505F convection for 10 minutes, then the rest of the way (~45 minutes) at 350F until it reached about 145F internal. It ultimately carried over to 159, which may have been a little much. Happily, I started out with some pretty fatty meat. That, plus the panade kept it pretty moist. After cooking, I let it rest, sliced it up and served with with garlic-roasted fingerling potatoes, corn on the cob, sauteed mushrooms and mushroom gravy . . .

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    Plated Up
    Our friends brought the salad, which featured homegrown tomatoes and pears, and some stellar Point Reyes Blue Cheese.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2079 - September 11th, 2022, 6:15 pm
    Post #2079 - September 11th, 2022, 6:15 pm Post #2079 - September 11th, 2022, 6:15 pm
    This one, Nanshan-inspired poached chicken, is hard to mess up. I say that because it's made with poached chicken that sits in its aromatic bath, (reabsorbing some of it), for hours after it's cooked. So, it's virtually impossible to overcook . . .

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    Poaching Mise En Place & Myojin Riki Seisakusho SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Chicken thighs, Chinese cooking wine, homegrown garlic, sliced/smashed ginger root and leek tops (freezer stock).

    This all goes into a pot of cold water and is brought to a boil. Once boiling, keep it going for 15 minutes. After that, kill the heat and let it sit for anywhere from 3 to 8 hours before removing the chicken pieces from the liquid. I also strained, skimmed and reduced the poaching liquid down to a quart, which I will use as a 'stock' sometime soon. As we discussed above, normally, I like my stocks completely neutral but this nectar is just too good to not put to use.

    While the chicken steeps, the sauce is made.

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    Sauce Mise En Place & Myojin Riki Seisakusho SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Homemade chile oil, salt/sugar/msg, toasted/freshly ground Sichuan peppercorns, soy sauce, 5-year-aged black vinegar, Chinese chile flakes, toasted sesame oil, sesame paste, Chinese celery ribs, minced garlic, minced ginger, Chinese celery leaves, scallion greens and cilantro leaves.

    Mixed these ingredients to make the sauce that eventually covered the chicken. Some of these, I had more than I needed, so I added them to taste . . .

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    Sauce
    From everything I've read and seen about this dish (and experienced eating it), the sauce is supposed to be broken, not emulsified. More often than not, because of the amount of mixing required to fully incorporate the thick sesame paste, I get that wrong and end up with a completely homogeneous (but still delicious) sauce. Today, I added the oils last and as you can kind of see in this picture, it went the other way. :)

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    Plated Up
    With yet another homegrown tomato salad (still not sick of them! :P) and some leftover/reheated jasmine rice.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2080 - September 12th, 2022, 2:07 pm
    Post #2080 - September 12th, 2022, 2:07 pm Post #2080 - September 12th, 2022, 2:07 pm
    I miss Snack Planet, my go-to for this dish.
    "In pursuit of joys untasted"
    from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata
  • Post #2081 - September 12th, 2022, 2:29 pm
    Post #2081 - September 12th, 2022, 2:29 pm Post #2081 - September 12th, 2022, 2:29 pm
    Jazzfood wrote:I miss Snack Planet, my go-to for this dish.

    Well, if it's any consolation, I guarantee you that theirs was infinitely better than mine. :lol:

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2082 - September 12th, 2022, 6:44 pm
    Post #2082 - September 12th, 2022, 6:44 pm Post #2082 - September 12th, 2022, 6:44 pm
    Amidst the seasonal onslaught of tomatoes from our garden, which we've mainly been eating fresh, we've been left with a pretty big surplus of the tomatoes we're getting every week in our CSA box. There are 4 baskets of tomatoes on the counter right now and as we all know, they don't last forever. With that in mind -- and a half-pound of ground beef/pork in the fridge -- a meaty tomato sauce seemed like a good way to go . . .

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    Mise En Place & Myojin Riki Seisakusho SG2 Gyuto, 240mm
    Evoo, red wine, ground beef & pork, minced onion, celery ribs & leaves, sliced garlic, dried oregano, red chile flakes, salt, black pepper, homegrown basil, carrot and CSA tomatoes.

    Went with what I imagine is pretty standard build. Rendered the meat in a bit of evoo, then added the mirepoix, garlic, oregano and chile flakes. Once that sweated and became fragrant, in went a splash of the red wine and the basil (whole, to perfume). Let that simmer for a couple of hours, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper along the way. If the tomatoes weren't so ripe, I would have attempted to skin them but they were way past that point, so we just had to live with some skins in this batch.

    Knife Nerd Digression:
    As for the knife, I bought it last fall and liked it but I didn't fall in love with it. When a used one recently hit the market (and some friends asked me about mine), I decided to refamiliarize myself with mine. I gave it a quick tune-up before putting it back in the rotation and I have to say that I've been enjoying it quite a bit. Perhaps more applicable to the current edge on it than the knife itself, it handles tomato skins exceedingly well. It's a bit heavier than I prefer and while I also generally prefer 210's, this knife is very well balanced (right at the pinch grip). Food release is not the best and it's more of a workhorse than an all-arounder but it handles the finer jobs well enough to get me through an entire meal prep without wishing I had deployed a second knife. Iirc, ootb sharpness was exceptional and since I'm a fairly n00b sharpener, the fact that it still occasionally sticks in my board is worth noting. This is some very nice steel, especially for stainless.

    I don't have a pantry full of pastas but I do have fusilli, which turned out to be a pretty good match for this relatively chunky sauce . . .

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    Plated Up
    Garnished with freshly grated parmigiano reggiano and chives. Flanked by a blob of the weekly slaw and a small bowl of spicy-sweet cucumber salad.

    And now, there are only 3 baskets of tomatoes on the counter. ;)

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2083 - September 13th, 2022, 6:34 am
    Post #2083 - September 13th, 2022, 6:34 am Post #2083 - September 13th, 2022, 6:34 am
    Leftover heirlooms from a gig this wkend so made a la checca- uncooked tom sauce I first came across in LA in the late 80's. Chopped, salted and oiled, it kinda emulsifies, then torn basil and burrata, adjust seasonings etc... Topped it w/leftover sliced roasted tenderloin from same. 30 mins start to fin.

    Image
    "In pursuit of joys untasted"
    from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata
  • Post #2084 - September 13th, 2022, 7:02 pm
    Post #2084 - September 13th, 2022, 7:02 pm Post #2084 - September 13th, 2022, 7:02 pm
    Jazzfood wrote:Leftover heirlooms from a gig this wkend so made a la checca- uncooked tom sauce I first came across in LA in the late 80's. Chopped, salted and oiled, it kinda emulsifies, then torn basil and burrata, adjust seasonings etc... Topped it w/leftover sliced roasted tenderloin from same. 30 mins start to fin.

    Nice! Looks delicious. :)

    We took a brief break from tomatoes today, mainly because our forager stopped by with some beautiful maitakes . . .

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    Maitaki Mise En Place & Shigeki Tanaka SG2 Damascus Habakiri Gyuto, 210mm
    Black pepper, salt, sliced garlic, foraged maitakes, white wine, unsalted butter and pork stock.

    Sauteed these using just light touches of the wine and stock . . .

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    Sauteed Maitakes
    Garnished with chives.

    As long as I was at it, I put a similar treatment on some broccoli that came in our CSA box today . . .

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    Sauteed Broccoli
    With minced garlic, salt, black pepper and a wee splash of shirodashi.

    And there were sausages . . .

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    Charcoal-Grilled Sausage Trio
    'Grill' sausages, hot Italian and beef & lamb cevaps.

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    Plated Up
    With homemade sambal (end of last year's batch) and a duo of mustards.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2085 - September 15th, 2022, 6:44 pm
    Post #2085 - September 15th, 2022, 6:44 pm Post #2085 - September 15th, 2022, 6:44 pm
    Tonight, plenty of leftover/reheated veg -- and corn! -- to accompany some charcoal-grilled NY Strips from Costco. But before that, I was messing around with a new (to me) macro lens that I borrowed from a friend. Ended up using it for all these shots . . .

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    Shigeki Tanaka SG2 Damascus Habakiri Gyuto, 210mm
    Only some 5k under-cabinet fluorescent lighting here, so a pretty flat image.

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    Sambal Test Sample
    It's Day 15 of the ferment, so I drew this sample out of the vessel because I wanted to test the pH before possibly canning it. However, I forgot to bring home a pH meter or test strips from work, so it'll have to wait until tomorrow. Sensory testing went well, though. ;) It smells and tastes great, and the color is quite nice. This tight shot was a much better use for the macro lens.

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    Grilling
    The grates were hot, so it didn't take long mark these before moving them over to the indirect side to finish.

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    Charcoal-Grilled NY Strips
    It had been just about 4 months since the last time we grilled strip steaks.

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    Plated Up
    With some leftover/reheated maitakes and broccoli, and a freshly instant-potted bowl of chile-oiled esquites.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2086 - September 16th, 2022, 6:29 pm
    Post #2086 - September 16th, 2022, 6:29 pm Post #2086 - September 16th, 2022, 6:29 pm
    Grilled burger night again. Started by spending some more time with my friend's macro lens . . .

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    Burger Fixins' & Anryu Blue #2 Hammered Gyuto, 210mm
    'Merican cheese, homemade garlic dill pickles, sauteed onions and shredded lettuce. I'm still getting the hang of the macro lens but at least the Anryu effortlessly prepped the ingredients that needed cutting. ;)

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    Grilling - 2 + 2 + 3 + 2
    2 minutes direct, then flip. 2 more minutes direct, then 3 more minutes indirect/covered, then add the cheese and 2 more minutes indirect/covered.

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    Plated Up
    With a blob of the weekly slaw and some leftover/reheated beans.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2087 - September 17th, 2022, 6:31 am
    Post #2087 - September 17th, 2022, 6:31 am Post #2087 - September 17th, 2022, 6:31 am
    I had my SIL over for dinner and wanted to make something a little fancier. This got rave reviews and was super easy.
    Image4 duck breast halves defrosted, skin lightly scored and ready to go into the fridge uncovered for 20 hours to dry them out.
    ImageInto a zip lock bag with some thyme. I expelled the air and then put them into the Sous Vide at 130 for 2 hours.

    Took them out of the Sous Vide and patted them dry. Into a non-stick cold pan skin side down. Brought the temp up and cooked for 5-10 minutes to crisp the skin and render the fat ( fat was saved for later use ).
    ImageSliced the breast on the diagonal and served with roasted potatoes and roasted asparagus. Also made a reduced wine sauce to serve over the duck.
  • Post #2088 - September 17th, 2022, 6:19 pm
    Post #2088 - September 17th, 2022, 6:19 pm Post #2088 - September 17th, 2022, 6:19 pm
    lougord99 wrote:I had my SIL over for dinner and wanted to make something a little fancier. This got rave reviews and was super easy

    . . .

    Sliced the breast on the diagonal and served with roasted potatoes and roasted asparagus. Also made a reduced wine sauce to serve over the duck.

    Looks great, Lou. I think you've inspired me to dig some duck breasts out of the freezer.

    Tonight's dinner was a blast from the (not too distant) past . . . red curry chicken . . .

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    Mise En Place & Anryu Blue #2 Hammered Gyuto, 210mm
    Zucchini, shallots, (more, fresh) maitake mushrooms, chicken thigh meat, Maesri red curry paste, coconut milk, Thai birds eye chiles & keffir lime leaves, gapi, home grown Thai basil, aromatic chicken stock (leftover/reduced poaching liquid from last weekend's Nanshan-style chicken), bamboo shoots, avocado oil and fish sauce.

    It'd been just over 5 months -- :shock: -- since I made this dish, which I used to make at least a couple of times a month. Yes, my family had kind of burnt out on it but I think the gap mainly lined up with the start of easy-outdoor-cooking season in April. Once that started, when I've been cooking inside, it's mainly been side dishes and things I haven't tried before. Fact is, I didn't really plan this, either. Miscommunication landed me with these boneless skinless thighs and I figured this would be a good use for them, especially with the amount of basil we have coming up in our garden right now.

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    Plated Up
    With spicy-sweet cucumber salad and some freshly Zojirushi'd Royal Umbrella jasmine rice (my favorite).

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2089 - September 19th, 2022, 6:32 pm
    Post #2089 - September 19th, 2022, 6:32 pm Post #2089 - September 19th, 2022, 6:32 pm
    Back to one tonight with charcoal-grilled chicken thighs, a stir-fried veg side dish and a blob of something weekly . . .

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    Cabbage Mise En Place & Myojin Riki Seisakusho SG2 Gyuto, 210mm
    5-year-aged black vinegar, soy sauce, minced garlic, red jalapeno, avocado oil and napa cabbage.

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    Stir-Fried Cabbage
    Just riffing on the hand-torn cabbage recipe, which we all really like. The jalapenos were about as hot as bell peppers, so they didn't add very much, other than a little sweetness. :(

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    Grilling
    Used a store-bought rub that contains quite a bit of turmeric. It looked a lot more orange in the jar but it really yellowed up after being heated.

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    Plated Up
    With a lil' dish of spicy-sweet cucumber salad.

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2090 - September 22nd, 2022, 6:22 pm
    Post #2090 - September 22nd, 2022, 6:22 pm Post #2090 - September 22nd, 2022, 6:22 pm
    A quick but satisfying dinner . . .

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    Plated Up
    Pan-seared chicken thighs (boneless/skinless) over sauteed onions, tomato salad (near-end of our homegrowns) and a blob of the weekly slaw.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2091 - September 23rd, 2022, 6:24 pm
    Post #2091 - September 23rd, 2022, 6:24 pm Post #2091 - September 23rd, 2022, 6:24 pm
    Once again going with our new-favorite Thai-style marinade, this time on a charcoal-grilled flank steak. Started this yesterday by assembling the marinade . . .

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    Marinade Mise En Place & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Fish sauce, Thai birds eye chiles, dried Thai chile powder, lime juice, lemongrass, minced garlic, palm sugar and lime zest.

    All this gets combined, along with a splash of veg oil, to create the marinade. In a zip-top bag, I poured the marinade over a bigboi flank steak (2.3#) and let it marinade overnight, flipping it over a few times along the way.

    Knife Nerd Digresssion:
    As few ingredients as there are here and as little of each one that's used, it was still a really nice battery of tasks for assessing a new knife. Shaving the hard/grainy palm sugar, mincing the leathery chiles, softening and slicing the dense/fibrous lemongrass and mincing the garlic all really put my new Sukenari to the test (as did prepping 10 pounds of cherry bombs and the rest of the sambal ingredients). The ootb edge is sensational and the profile (substantial flat area toward the heel, gentle upsweep toward the tip) is a really nice fit for my cutting style. I look forward to using it more and eventually, sharpening it, though with HAP 40, that could be a while.

    Back to dinner . . . after what ended up being about 20 hours marinating, it was time to grill the flank steak . . .

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    Grilling
    As expected, this one was quick. About 4 minutes in various positions over the coals and just another minute or 2 indirect/covered. With thin slabs like this, you really have to go by feel because they're just too thin to measure accurately with a thermometer.

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    Plated Up
    With spicy-sweet-glazed broiled eggplant and leftover/reheated portions of jasmine rice and sauteed cabbage.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2092 - September 25th, 2022, 6:19 pm
    Post #2092 - September 25th, 2022, 6:19 pm Post #2092 - September 25th, 2022, 6:19 pm
    With the threat of rain, I didn't feel like grilling, so I redirected a flatiron steak to a stir-fry . . .

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    Leysa Sweet Pimento Peppers & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Got these from Three Sisters Garden. I don't recall seeing them before but they kind of look like water drops. They're definitely sweeter than bells but also much firmer, which made them great for stir fry because they maintained quite a bit of crunch even after they were cooked.

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    Mise En Place & Sukenari HAP40 Gyuto, 210mm
    Chinese cooking wine, avocado oil, marinated flatiron steak (soy, dark soy, oyster sauce, corn starch, white pepper, avocado oil), more corn starch (for sauce slurry), dark soy sauce, soy sauce, leysa sweet peppers, dried shiitake powder, sliced garlic, slivered jalapenos, scallions, onions, fresh shiitake mushrooms and white pepper.

    Image
    Stir-Fried Flatiron Steak, Peppers & Shiitakes
    Garnished with scallion tops.

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    Plated Up
    With brown jasmine rice and some leftover/reheated stir-fried cabbage (hit heavily with LGM spicy chile crisp).

    Happy Sunday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2093 - September 27th, 2022, 6:35 pm
    Post #2093 - September 27th, 2022, 6:35 pm Post #2093 - September 27th, 2022, 6:35 pm
    Wasn't sure I was going to cook tonight but got home with enough time to squeeze out a dinner. Started with some side-dishery . . .

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    Okra Mise En Place & Takeda Classic Sasanoha Gyuto, 240mm
    Evoo, tomato corner (paste, CSA stragglers, canned/diced), salt, carrot, scallion bottoms, scallion tops, sliced garlic, red & green jalapenos, onion, okra, dried oregano and black pepper.

    Got this going in a small dutch oven. Once it reached the tipping point and I could gauge its ETA, I fired up the grill for some pork shoulder chops . . .

    Image
    Grilling
    Just a few minutes directly over the fire, then shingled/indirect/covered for another ~6 minutes.

    Image
    Plated Up
    With 'stewed' okra and a blob of the weekly slaw. A funny thing happened between when I grilled and when I plated it up . . . it got dark out. :(
    I did what I could to bring the shot back but with so little natural light available, there's only so much one can do. I may have to break out some seasonal lighting (not Christmas lights :lol:) in the future.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2094 - October 1st, 2022, 10:55 pm
    Post #2094 - October 1st, 2022, 10:55 pm Post #2094 - October 1st, 2022, 10:55 pm
    After making the muskrat, aioli and onion ravioli for the Small Household Food Exchange (still room for more participants who might be brave enough to try muskrat ravioli), I had leftover pasta dough. So I made a few more ravioli with some goat cheese and garlic. Paired with a tomato sauce moetchandon made from the peck of Roma tomatoes I got from Henry at the Evanston Farmers' Market, and topped with freshly shredded Parmigiano Reggiano and a basil leaf from the backyard garden ... Image
  • Post #2095 - October 2nd, 2022, 7:01 pm
    Post #2095 - October 2nd, 2022, 7:01 pm Post #2095 - October 2nd, 2022, 7:01 pm
    There's a fungus among us! :lol: We centered our dinner around a recent drop-off by our forager . . .

    Image
    Maitake Mise En Place & Nigara SG2 Tsuchime Gyuto, 210mm
    White wine, unsalted butter, shallots, maitakes, salt, 2x chicken stock and black pepper.

    Image
    Press-Sauteed Maitakes & Shallots
    Once I got the butter hot, I placed the maitake pieces, then topped them with a second pan, which I occasionally pressed down on them to help brown them, etc. During the cook, I sprinkled in a few shallots and drizzled in small amounts of the wine and the stock in, as well. These turned out really well but with specimens like these, the main thing is don't ruin them.

    While the mushrooms were going, I fired up the grill . . .

    Image
    Flatiron Steak Grilling
    We'd planned on just grilling this sensational flatiron steak from Zier's (Dave always has amazing stuff but you don't know for sure how good a steak will be until you cook/eat it) but we had some last minute additions for dinner, so we pulled some vacuum-sealed kielbasas out of the fridge and threw them on while the grilled steak rested . . .

    Image
    Kielbasa Grilling
    With 'grill' sausages apparently done for the season at Fresh Farms, these are a very close approximation (perhaps identical in every way except size).

    Image
    Plated Up & Sukenari HAP40 Sujihiki, 270mm
    With some leftover/reheated stewed okra.

    Knife Nerd Digression: I have to say that I don't recall ever having as much fun slicing a flatiron as I did with this blade. It glided through it effortlessly. Yes, I'm late to the party but all of a sudden, I'm a huge fan of these HAP40 blades Sukenari is turning out. Amazing cutters.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2096 - October 3rd, 2022, 6:19 pm
    Post #2096 - October 3rd, 2022, 6:19 pm Post #2096 - October 3rd, 2022, 6:19 pm
    Just another manic mapo Monday . . .

    Image
    Mise En Place & Nigara SG2 Tsuchime Gyuto, 210mm
    Soft tofu, coarsely ground pork, corn starch (for slurry), leeks, 2x chicken stock, broad bean paste, toasted/ground Sichuan peppercorns, fermented black beans, granulated sugar, soy sauce, dried, heaven-facing chiles (halved & seeded), minced garlic and peanut oil.

    Image
    Mapo Tofu w/Ground Pork
    Garnished with some increasingly precious scallions. 8)

    Image
    Plated Up
    With some leftover/reheated brown jasmine rice.

    I think I've finally dialed this one in. Intensely savory, spicy, numbing, funky and unctuous. This take really hit the spot.

    Happy Monday! :)

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2097 - October 4th, 2022, 6:47 pm
    Post #2097 - October 4th, 2022, 6:47 pm Post #2097 - October 4th, 2022, 6:47 pm
    Perhaps a wee bit repetitive but I wanted to get RID of the remainder of the coarsely ground pork I bought yesterday, so pad ka prao . . .

    Image
    Mise En Place & Nigara SG2 Tsuchime Gyuto, 210mm
    Oyster 'flavored' sauce, Thai basil leaves, fish sauce, garlic, sweet soy, Golden Mountain, Thai birds eye chiles, soy sauce, avocado oil, shallots and coarsely ground pork.

    After I snapped the pic, I took one taste of the new-to-me Megachef oyster flavored sauce and immediately benched it in favor of some Lee Kum Kee. I was hopeful because the Megachef is Thai but Lee Kum Kee is the first and last word when it comes to oyster sauce. I should have known better but I didn't see the "flavored" descriptor until it was too late. Happily, I made the realization before I started cooking. Later, as I started to cook, I remembered I had some green beans on hand, so I prepped them quickly and managed to get them in there.

    Image
    Mortar Mash - Garlic, Chiles & Shallots
    It's always so satisfying mashing stuff up in the mortar. Between the knife work and the mortar, dinner prep is like a therapy session. :lol:

    Image
    Pad Ka Prao
    This one comes together so easily and is incredibly satisfying.

    Image
    Plated Up
    With a frizzled egg, jasmine rice and some leftover spicy-sweet cucumber salad.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2098 - October 5th, 2022, 6:31 am
    Post #2098 - October 5th, 2022, 6:31 am Post #2098 - October 5th, 2022, 6:31 am
    Not worth the effort to me, but here is 'Souped Up Recipes' home made oyster sauce: https://soupeduprecipes.com/homemade-oy ... ce-recipe/
  • Post #2099 - October 5th, 2022, 2:56 pm
    Post #2099 - October 5th, 2022, 2:56 pm Post #2099 - October 5th, 2022, 2:56 pm
    lougord99 wrote:Not worth the effort to me, but here is 'Souped Up Recipes' home made oyster sauce: https://soupeduprecipes.com/homemade-oy ... ce-recipe/

    Yeah, I saw that video when Mandy posted it. I'll probably try it once someday but I'm under no illusion that it'll even come to Lee Kum Kee. I agree that it'd be a lot of effort but I'm sure I'd learn some things from doing it, which would be the main reason to attempt it.

    =R=
    Same planet, different world
  • Post #2100 - October 5th, 2022, 3:47 pm
    Post #2100 - October 5th, 2022, 3:47 pm Post #2100 - October 5th, 2022, 3:47 pm
    Image

    Reading Inspector Montolbano is a guilty pleasure of mine. Like eating cold egg foo yung over the sink by the light of the open fridge door. Anyway this is his favorite pasta- the one his housekeeper Adelina makes, leaving it in the oven for him to swoon over @ the table he lays most nights on the veranda of his Sicilian beach house when he gets home from fighting crime and politicians. It's mentioned many times throughout the 25 books and I was curious, so researched a few recipes of which this is an amalgamation of.

    Pasta 'ncasciata- ragu, mortedella, caciocavallo, fried melanzane, hard boiled egg and rigatoni al forno. Alora.
    "In pursuit of joys untasted"
    from Giuseppe Verdi's La Traviata

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