Category: Cooking

Here's a quick recipe for grilling on a week night. Hawaii has its own style of Chinese food, dishes like "Cake Noodle", "oyster sauce chicken", and a big favorite "Cold Ginger Chicken", were a big part of my youth. We didn't have much money, so Chinese food was something special. As I grew older, and my income larger, I enjoyed meals from now defunct places like McCully Chop Suey (the first air conditioned Chinese restaurant in Honolulu!), Hee Hing, King Tsin, and our neighborhood Chinese restaurant Kwok's. And for special occasions like weddings, there were places like Oceania, a floating Chinese restaurant…. the first place I ever had duck, there's a really funny story, perhaps someday I'll do a post. Lau Yee Chai is still around…. though we considered it very "high maka maka" (snobby) in those days, I wonder what its like now?

Anyway, waaay back when we first moved to San Diego, I was feeling, well, kinda homesick, in a food related way. Having dinner with a friend, "Howard" who has long moved back to Oahu, he mentioned the Kwai Fei Chicken at a place called Golden City, which was then located on Convoy. I couldn't wait to try it out. Over the years, Golden City has moved, the Kwai Fei Chicken has been decent on most days, and I've even gotten the chance to introduce some of my favorite food bloggers to the dish; which may be off putting to some since it's a cold chicken dish where the chicken is an off white in color….looking very pale, and to some even perhaps close to raw?

At this point, I've pretty much taken more time typing this post than it took to get my hardwood charcoal going in the chimney, so I'll stop with the digression. The point of all this is….

 

Now the cold ginger chicken I make from a recipe on an old index card is chicken that is blanched in hot water with star anise until barely done, carry-over cooking will finish the job, It is then brushed with sesame oil, cooled and refrigerated overnight… and has been hit and miss for me as well. I'm pretty sure that the Kwai Fei Chicken at Golden City is rubbed with five spice and salt and steamed.

Well, it's a weeknight… and even when it's not, I really don't want to be doing the blanch chicken thing….I believe I'll try the steamed soon. So……. I bought some boneless chicken legs from Marukai. Even though the meat takes a bit of work, removing excess skin, trimming off sinew and fat, etc, etc….. the skin to meat ratio is great. If you're not on a diet. All of this can be done while the charcoal is getting lit….as can making the ginger-scallion mixture, all of which I did by hand. By the time the coals were ready, so was the chicken, which had been rubbed with sea salt, white pepper, and five-spice. Oh, and this was also done:

 

I didn't even use the food processor. I grated the garlic and ginger, mixed in the scallion and cilantro, added the hot (not smoking) peanut oil. By that time the coals were hot, I poured the coals out, arranged them in the typical two level grilling thingy, placed the grate on the grill to heat. Came back in….by this time the oil had cooled enough to taste…I then added sea salt and white pepper to taste…..with the understanding that the flavors will become stronger over time. I put the entire thing in the the fridge to cool (actually in the freezer for a couple of minutes, then the fridge). You could do the whole sauce thing the day before…..

When the chicken was nearly done, I brushed on a coating of sesame oil……

Not quite a work of art…….but it looked, and tasted quite good.

 

Cold Ginger Chicken Sauce – makes about a cup plus change
2 cloves garlic finely minced
3-4 Tb ginger finely minced
1/4 cup green onion finely minced
3 Tb cilantro finely minced
1 tsp sesame oil
salt and white pepper to taste
1/2 cup peanut oil

One item on my recipe card that I did not use was MSG. I don't keep any in the house. But just in case your sauce is missing a bit of umami……

Combine first five ingredients
Heat oil until hot, but not smoking
Remove oil from heat source and let sit for 30 seconds
Pour over the ginger mixture
When the mixture is cool enough add salt and pepper to taste
Refrigerate completely before using

Now I know all you folks are really observant…….and will notice that I'm not using a whole "cup plus" of this stuff…especially since the Missus still doesn't eat chicken. Remember that I threatened to use the sauce for Char Siu Lamb Chops on chicken? Well, I bought one of those jumbo packs of chicken and actually marinated some chicken that night.

 

 And made Char Siu Chicken Sandwiches (on yet another weeknight – you gotta love the long days!)….which actually tasted pretty good!

So what does this have to do with the cold ginger chicken sauce? Well, the Missus loves the sauce on rice…. but geeez, rice and a sandwich? Maybe for FOY (friend of yoso) "AZ", but I can't do it. So I grilled some potato slices…..real easy…microwave first, slice, brush with canola oil, salt, and grill. The potatoes are already cooked, and pretty darn hot (be careful handling), so grilling will create a nice crust. And dipped into some of this sauce………. 'nuff said. It had the Missus seal of approval.

 
Don't let my over-long post scare you….. this is real easy stuff….even on a week night!

Happy 4th everyone! It's been a while since I've last had the grill out. Probably February or so…..I guess I'm getting a late start this year, but that's the great thing about San Diego, you can grill year round.

I've been enjoying Alan Wong's The Blue Tomato, which operated much like Thomas Keller's cookbook, giving us insight as to how dishes are developed and put together. Browsing through the book, one of the recipes caught my attention…. first, it was quite easy, second it sounded like something I'd like to eat.…. Char Siu Lamb Chops. It's a riff on the classic Chinese BBQ Pork recipe and made on the grill. I've made Char Siu, so this wasn't much of a leap…and as a bonus, less messy than making it in the oven. This recipe uses ginger, garlic, and kecap manis. Sherry is used instead of Shaoxing wine. It was quite good. I made adjustments to taste, and since I used the very potent five-spice from QingDao I cut back a bit on that as well.

I simply mixed everything together and marinated overnight.

 

Of course I wasn't making 3 pounds of the stuff so that factored into everything as well. I also hedged my bets and made some simple Greek style lamb chops as well.

 

The most difficult part of the whole process was grilling the chops. Because of the sugar, you had to watch and move to ensure they didn't burn……..two level grilling is a must.

 

Char Siu Lamb Chops

Makes 1 – 1 1/2 pound of Lamb Loin Chops

1 Cup Hoisin Sauce
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup Honey
3 Tb Sherry
1 Tsp ginger juice (grate ginger then squeeze pulp)
2 cloves garlic grated
2 Tb soy sauce
2 Tb kecap manis
1 Tb Chinese Five Spice

– Mix ingredients together. Set aside 1/4 cup of marinade for basting.
– Marinate lamb chops in the fridge overnight.
– Bring to room temperature before grilling

I served the chops with some grilled shiitake mushrooms and bok choy which I basted with a mixture of soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, sambal olek, chili oil(the stuff I make at home), and sesame oil. I gotta work on my bok choy grilling technique… the leaves tend to burn too quickly. And no, I'm not soaking them in water as they turn out mushy…..

 

The lamb chops tasted good, but much of the gamey flavors were muted. The Missus thinks the marinade will work great for chicken; so maybe I'll do that next time. The Greek style chops tasted very good and were super tender…..

It was a nice way to start up grilling again.

While driving back from the market this morning I came across this in the middle of the intersection of Balboa and Clairemont Drive….. looks like a boat decided to fall off its trailer. I'm glad no one was hurt.

 

 

Take a look at this and you can see why they call orzo "risoni" (big rice). It does look like rice doesn't it? It's actually a pasta made in the shape of rice…… and I'd never really had any desire to make something that, well…. looks like rice. But one day I was puttering in the kitchen with the television on….. there's some "food show"….. I'm not really into "Food TV" anymore, but will have it on as white noise….. minus a few shows I just can't stand. Anyway, a subliminal "Orzo Salad" recipe just stayed with me. I think the original had raspberries or something like that. This version was just the thing on a summer day……

 

This ended up being pretty good, the Missus really enjoyed it.

The drill went like this; rehydrate sun dried tomatoes in warm water, cook the orzo in salted boiling water, just as any pasta. While orzo is cooking, toast pine nuts in a dry pan to lightly brown. Remove to a plate to cool. Drain orzo in in  colander, before it is fully cooked. After the orzo briefly drains, pour the orzo out onto a cookie sheet adding some extra virgin olive and mix well. This will ensure that the pasta doesn't stick together. I actually chilled the orzo in the fridge since I wanted a chilled salad. After draining the sun dried tomatoes, I coarsely chopped them.

Putting the salad together was a snap; orzo, two hefty handfuls of baby arugula, pine nuts, sun dried tomatoes in a metal bowl. Mix. Add a chiffonade of basil and mint….. basically two parts basil to mint. I used the best grade of Extra Virgin Olive Oil we had in the house, Liquid Gold 24, which has an acidity of less than .24%, a wonderful oil we bought during our trip to Crete. And combined the whole shebang. A mild crumbled goat feta cheese topped everything off. I served it with sliced of lemon on the side….. I wanted a bit more acid…the Missus enjoyed it just the way it was.

 

 Love the flavors….. the pine nuts (not much, about 1/4 cup) looked very similar to the orzo and were nice flavor surprises. And of course pine nuts and basil is a great combination. The mint added a nice palate cleansing element as did the tart sun dried tomatoes. The peppery arugula added the bitter element to the dish. The fruity olive oil and mildly salty feta brought it all together….. I'm probably going to make this again soon. It's so easy…. just remember to use a good olive oil.

 
On this day, I served it with garlic shrimp and some bread…… a nice meal for a warm evening!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful long weekend!

The Missus has been on a over roasted vegetable tear since we've returned from vacation…. we've been roasting vegetables almost daily so She can get Her fix. Bless Her heart, when the Missus is obsessed with something, She can eat it every day for weeks, sometimes months. There's a broccoli dish that I'm almost embarrassed to mention that She eats several times a week!

I on the other hand, need to have a bit of variety. Sitting staring at a pound of oyster mushrooms, having a bit of time on my hands, I decided to make a balsamic glaze……. one of the easiest things in the world. There's really no reason for buying the stuff from the supermarket. In this case. all it took was 1 cup of Balsamic Vinegar, and since this wasn't great quality, even though it was from Modena, I added 2 teaspoons of white sugar and reduced. Depending on the Balsamic, you may not need any sugar at all since Balsamic has its share of sugar. This one took about 45 minutes to reduce to the consistency I desired; a bit thinner than corn syrup.

 

I first mixed 3/4 cup of Greek Extra Virgin Olive Oil with some Turkish Oregano, the last of my stash from Penzy's, 7 cloves of garlic finely minced, and some sea salt (use more then you think you'll need if you use good sea salt). I used this as sort of the marinade as I mixed it with the mushrooms and let sit for 20 minutes while I preheated my oven at 425 degrees.

 

I rubbed (don't use a paper towel, most of the oil will be soaked up) about 3 tablespoons of canola oil on a sheet pan a set it in the oven for a couple minutes to heat up. Placed the mushrooms in a single layer, slightly spaced, and let her rip for about 20-25 minutes. I opened and turned once so the mushrooms wouldn't brown too much or stick.

 

I removed the mushrooms from the oven, placed in a bowl, drizzled on some of the glaze, and gently mixed everything together………

Yes, another easy recipe. I still have some glaze left in the fridge. It's gotten a bit thick so I'll either microwave it or add a touch of water and warm it before using it again. Tightly covered and stored, this stuff can last for weeks……. I'm thinking, maybe a filet or some chicken perhaps?

Thanks for reading!

We've seen this as both Dry Cooked Mushroom and Twice Cooked Mushroom on menus in China. It's sort of both. It's also one of those "non-recipes", that will kind of list the process rather than exact quantities……

This one is for "KenB" who asked for a recipe in the comments of last night's post. Ken has given us so many great recommendations, that I thought it only right that I do something right away. Anyway, this is what the first couple of efforts looked like:

 

We were given a box of Cordyceps Mushrooms as a gift in China. The ones we've seen at places like T S Emporium in LA are priced in the $30 + per pound range! I really didn't want to mess these up.

 

I basically took about a cup and a half of those mushrooms and soaked them in warm water for about 30 minutes. After that time, I removed and drained the mushrooms, but saved the soaking liquid. I sliced the rehydrated mushroom lengthwise, and patted them dry. I also rehydrated some dried Lily Buds and sliced some Chinese Celery.

I then heated my wok until smoking and added about a cup and a half of canola oil until it shimmered. I then did a quick fry of the mushrooms until the edges were crisp.

 

I removed the mushrooms to a paper towel lined plate, and drained all but 1-2 Tb of the oil, which had a nice fragrance. I waited until the oil hit smoking, then scalded a couple of dried red chilies that had been de-seeded. From here it was basically a stir-fry, starting with a dash of Shaoxing wine and white pepper, with the following added for flavoring:

1-2 Tb Premium Dark Soy Sauce
1 Tb Premium Light Soy Sauce
1-2 Tsp White Sugar
Mushroom soaking liquid to taste

It turned out great, savory and slightly sweet, but I just can't bring myself to part with nearly forty bucks to keep making this. So what to do when my mushrooms were gone? (I actually have enough for one last batch). I decided to try this out with King Mushrooms:

 

I julienned the mushrooms lengthwise into matchsticks. I also replaced the lily buds with mung bean sprouts which would bring more crunch and a nice flavor to the dish.

These rest was basically the same process, except I added some Mushroom Dark Soy Sauce for additional flavor. The water from the bean sprouts renders out during the stir-fry process which keeps the dish moist.

 

It was different, but also delicious……. and very easy……you really don't need a recipe for this.

So there you go. Sort of like that eye test….which looks better?

Number 1?

 
Or number 2?

 

 

I was surprised to receive a couple of emails regarding the Num Jim Jaew from Siam Nara, asking me for a recipe. The funny thing is; I've made this a couple times, and actually took photos when I made this after our return from Laos, where it's called Jeow Mak Keua. For some reason I just never got around to making it.

This was something I actually made at the Tamarind Cooking School, and came out looking like this:

 

You can tell this one was quite spicy, lots of chilies. And of course the "kitchen" where this was made wasn't quite the same as home.

 

This recipe is based on what I m ade there….. it's very easy. I've even made t his using roasted garlic  which adds a heavenly sweetness to the Jeow…. if you decide to do that, make sure to use a neutral, or no oil at all on the garlic.

 Jeow Mak Keua – Lao Eggplant Dip:

 

3 Small-Medium Japanese Eggplant
4-8 Thai Bird Chilies
4-5 Cloves of Garlic Skin on
1/2 Cup Chopped Cilantro Leaves
1-2 Stalks Green Onion – Green parts only sliced thin
1/2 Tsp Salt
Fish Sauce

– Prick eggplant and chilies with a knife or skewer.
– Grill eggplant, chili, and garlic, until the skin is blackened.  I usually grill right over hot charcoal which adds a layer of smokiness to the dish, but you can do the same over a gas flame or under the broiler.
– Peel Garlic, and slice eggplant lengthwise keeping the stem portion on and intact… it should look sort of like a flower.
– Pound the garlic, chili, and salt together in a mortar to make a paste.
– Then pound each eggplant in the mortar, by holding the stem of the eggplant and pounding it until all the flesh is removed. You can then pull the skin off the eggplant out by the stem. Conversely, you can just peel the eggplant.
– Add the cilantro and green onions and pound into a thick paste.
– Taste and add fish sauce to taste.

There is another recipe in which you boil the eggplant and chilies first until soft, peel and squeeze the excess moisture out of the eggplant, pound in a mortar to a paste and stir-fry.