Ginger Crusted Salmon

Ginger Crusted Salmon

One of my favorite preparations of salmon I have ever eaten has been at the Yard House.  They serve a ginger crusted salmon on  a bed of wasabi mashed potatoes with a peanut ginger sauce that is to die for.  Much to my surprise I found the recipe online and in print (link)! You mean I can make this myself now?  I added the recipe to my bucket list of things I wish to make.  I bought some beautiful salmon at my favorite market – and thought it was the perfect opportunity to make it myself.  It was not quite what the Yard House serves, because it was missing the deep fried strips of carrot on top for presentation, but it was still very good.  I doubled the sauce, because I thought it would go nicely with a satay later in the week.  This recipe takes a little prep work to get it perfected, but I was rather happy with the results.  I will make it again for a special dinner.

Yard House Ginger Crusted Salmon (at home)

adapted from Yard House recipe published in Miami New Times

by Executive Chef Carlito Jocson Serves 2

http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/shortorder/2009/06/yard_house_recipe_for_ginger_c.php (link)

Ingredients:

• 2 (6 oz) fillet of salmon
• 1/4 cup finely minced ginger (I used a microplane to grate it)
• 1/4 cup green onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 1 1/2 cups julienne carrots and snow peas (cut in matchsticks)
• 1 Tbsp butter
• salt and pepper to taste

Make ahead of time:

• 1/2 cup Sesame Peanut Vinaigrette (recipe below)
• Wasabi Mashed Potatoes (recipe below)

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

In a small metal bowl, combine the grated ginger and sliced green onions.  Heat the olive oil in a small skillet.  Use caution to pour the hot oil over the ginger and green onions in the metal bowl.

Add 1 Tbsp of olive oil to a large skillet and heat to medium high heat.  Sear the salmon on each side until golden brown.  Transfer the salmon to a baking dish and top with the ginger mixture.  Bake in the oven for 7 minutes or until the fish is cooked through.

Steam the snow peas and carrots in two separate pans for about 3-10 minutes depending how tender you like them.  Drain any water, add some butter to each and season with salt and pepper if desired.  Tip: I bought a small bag of carrot slaw mix in the grocery store, so I did not have to spend hours slicing carrots.

To serve: Drizzle the plate with 1 Tbsp of the Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette.  Put a dollop of Wasabi mashed potatoes on the center of the plate.  Top with steamed julienne carrots and snow peas.  Top with the baked ginger crusted fish and drizzle about 1/4 cup more of the Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette over each servings.  Top with fried strips of carrot if you desire (I did not this time). Serve and have a party in your Mouth.

Wasabi Mashed Potatoes

• 2 lbs Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• water to cover the potatoes
• 1/4 cup Wasabi Paste (I found some in a tube by S&B) See bottom of post for source)
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• salt to taste

Instructions:

Prepare the potatoes: Bring the potato chunks, salted cold water to cover to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for about 12-15 minutes.  Test with a fork for tenderness.  Drain.  Mash the potatoes with the wasabi paste, heavy cream and butter.  Season with salt to taste.  These potatoes have quite the punch- my children opted for regular potatoes, but hubby and I enjoyed them.  If you are unsure how spicy they will be add less wasabi- you can always add more.

Sesame- Peanut Vinaigrette (doubled)

Yields about 2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup smooth peanut butter (I used Jif)
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 cup seasoned rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped ginger
• 2 Tbsp minced ginger
• 1/4 sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions:

Combine all the ingredients in your food processor or blender.  Process until smooth.  Refrigerate until needed.  I like this sauce so much I make extra and serve as a sauce with a beef or chicken satay later in the week.

Ingredients resource:

For the Wasabi paste:

http://www.sb-worldwide.com/products/paste.html (43 grams was the size of my tube and I used)

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Chinese Beef Broccoli

Chinese Beef Broccoli

I have blogged for several years now and often get inspiration from other food bloggers.  One blog that I am particularly fond of is that of Jaden Hair – Steamy Kitchen.  Her posts are interesting and pictures are stunning.  She has published two cookbooks now, and I emailed her once regarding some questions I had about publishing a cookbook and she was friendly and helpful.  As for my cookbook aspirations, I have made cookbooks for friends, but none of them with elaborate pictures and often with errors in the recipes (oops!). Anyway, my dream of publishing a cookbook is on hold for now. I digress. Jaden’s first cookbook is beautiful and informative.   One recipe that I had been wanting to make for some time was her Chinese Beef Broccoli.  I doubled the recipe because I wanted leftovers, and it is a good thing I did, because there was one serving left.  My children, who occasionally like to be picky, gave this dish a thumbs up.  I used flat iron steak for the meat and it was an excellent choice – the meat was tender and delicious.  Here is my (doubled in volume) adaptation of Jaden’s Beef Broccoli.  It rivals that of PF Chang’s Beef and Broccoli dish in flavor.  I look forward to adding this to my regular rotation.  You do not have to use a wok for this wonderful dish, I used my large cast iron skillet and it came out beautifully!

Chinese Beef and Broccoli

adapted from Jaden Hair of steamykitchen.com

Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs flat iron steak, thinly sliced into 1/8″ thick strips (or use top sirloin, flank steak)
• 3 lbs broccoli, cut into smaller pieces
• 2 Tbsp canola or peanut oil
• 2 Tbsp minced garlic, or increase if you like lots of garlic

Beef Marinade:

• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp canola oil
• freshly ground black pepper to season the beef

Stir Fry Sauce:

• 6 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 4 tsp dry cooking sherry
• 4 tsp balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

In a bowl, combine the ingredients for the beef marinade and add the sliced steak to the bowl.  Toss to coat.  Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes.  I actually packaged mine in a zip-lock bag and threw it in the fridge because I realized I didn’t have the oyster sauce for the stir fry sauce, and because I had JUST gotten home from the store, did not want to go back so we had stir fry the next day and it turned out great anyway!

Bring about one inch of water to a boil in your cast iron skillet (or wok) and cook the broccoli florets, covered with a lid to trap steam, for 3-5 minutes over high heat. I like mine a little more cooked, so went with 5 minutes.  Drain immediately and reserve the broccoli in a separate bowl.  While the broccoli cooks, prepare the stir fry sauce.

Dry the skillet with a paper towel and heat over high heat until very hot.  Add the oil and make sure it coats the bottom of the skillet evenly. Add the garlic and cook it for 30 seconds.  Add the strips of meat and cook for about 30 seconds on each side.  Remove to a platter as you finish the batches.

Add the broccoli and beef back to the skillet and add the stir fry sauce.  Toss the broccoli and meat to coat with the sauce and serve with steamed rice (Jasmine is my favorite).

I highly recommend Jaden’s book, but her blog is also wonderful. So zip over to http://steamykitchen.com/ I know you won’t regret it!

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Crab Wontons

The past month has been crazy! In one week I had a close friend die of cancer; another friend die suddenly of a heart attack, have sung in concerts, my son started little league in addition to all the other stuff that my family is already involved in.  Yes, I now have something going on every single day of the week until mid May.  The cloud of dust is settling again though and life is beginning to look normal, despite the busy schedule.

After all that, I needed comfort food.  Fried Comfort Food!

My husband and I went to a popular Chinese Restaurant and ordered Crab Wontons from their appetizer menu.  Theirs came to a beautiful 4 point star shape.  I wanted to make these myself so I could have them any time.  Mine were not the star shaped wontons, I opted for the easy fold over and make a triangle – the taste was the same.  I used a store bought Sweet and Sour Dipping sauce, but will try a homemade sauce next time.  The dipping sauce  was not as impressive.  Although it is called Spicy Crab Wontons, I did not find it overly spicy.  I didn’t make the whole batch, as it was just hubby and I, but for a party, do make the complete batch.  I reserved the filling to make it again in the following days, but did not get around to it.  I added more crab meat, less cream cheese (only because I did not have a pound of it), and added 2 green onions, chopped for color (only the green part)

I found this recipe in the book: The Chesapeake Bay Crabbiest Cookbook by Whitey Schmidt.  It is a cookbook that I picked up on a trip to Baltimore, MD. You can find the original recipe on page 96. Here is my adaptation:

Spicy Crab Wontons

adapted from The Chesapeake Bay Crabbiest Cookbook (pg 96)

Serves 4-6 (or more if appetizer portion)

Ingredients:

• 16 oz crab meat (I used a quality canned crab meat found in the refrigerated section)
• 8 oz cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp hot pepper sauce
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp white pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced (green part only)
• 1 (8 oz) package wonton wrappers (in refrigerated section)
• peanut oil for frying

Instructions:

In a medium bowl, combine the first 11 ingredients and mix thoroughly to combine.

Place a wonton wrapper on a clean surface, place 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp crab filling into the center.  Moisten the edges of the wonton with water and fold the wonton in half diagonally, lining up the opposite corners.  Gently press along the edge to seal.  Cover the ready wontons with a damp paper towel to prevent them from drying out until you have finished making your wontons.

Heat peanut oil in a stainless skillet over medium high heat.  Fry the wontons in batches, being sure not to crowd them turning them over from time to time until they are golden (about 1 minute total).  Remove to a wire rack and finish frying the wontons in batches.  Serve with your favorite Asian dipping sauce.

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Chicken Curry

Lately, my husband and I have been eating curry at every opportunity.  A recent trip to a Thai Restaurant rekindled that craving.  Some days of the week are crazy and hectic for us.  Getting dinner in our bellies and out the door for various activities is sometimes a challenge.  On those days I like to use short cuts.  It is not beneath me to buy prepared sauces when it is needed.  I don’t want to tangle with complicated seasonings and sauces to get dinner on in a rush.

I picked up some Kikkoman Thai Red Curry Sauce and Vigo Saffron Yellow Rice Mix to help me get dinner on.

I cooked zucchini and mushrooms as my sides and kept them warm in the oven.  I cooked the rice mix according to package directions.  I cut up 3 chicken breast halves, seasoned them with salt, and browned them in a little olive oil over medium high heat.  After the chicken was fully cooked I poured the Thai Curry sauce over the chicken and heated the sauce through.  It made a simple, tasty dinner before rushing off.

Sweet and Spicy Macadamia Chicken

A long time friend recently posted on Facebook that she had made a Sweet and Spicy Cashew Chicken for dinner.  I and several others begged her for the recipe and she sent it to me.   Now she does not say what she is having but says it is yummy.  I think she is tired of sending her friends her best recipes.  I am glad however that she shared this one with me, because it was an instant favorite.  I made a few changes – changed the nut to Macadamia from Cashew (only because I had them on hand) and added baby bok choy because they sounded like they would be a nice addition to this recipe- It was.  My daughters thought it would also taste good with Shrimp and I agree it would, but it would need less cooking time.  I would start cooking the shrimp with the garlic and when they are pink remove them from the wok, cook the other ingredients and then add them back in once the sauce comes to a boil.

She shared with me the original source of the recipe and you can find it here.  Thank you Doris! This recipe is a keeper.

Sweet and Spicy Macadamia Chicken

adapted from Best of Bridge Sweet and Spicy Cashew Chicken

Book Reference – The Best of the Best – Vol. 1 (Page: 200), Grand Slam (Page: 148)

Serves 6

Ingredients:
Sauce

• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 4 tsp. soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 3-4 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup chicken broth

Stir Fry Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes (shrimp would be really nice in this dish as well)
• 1/4 cup oil (peanut oil if no one has a peanut allergy)
• 2-3 Tbsp. minced fresh ginger
• 1 Tbsp. minced garlic
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 2 red peppers, cut in strips (I used one red and one yellow)
• 2 carrots, thinly sliced into matchsticks (they could be coins, but my family likes softer carrots)
• 2 cups snow peas
• 3 baby bok choy, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups cashews
• sprinkling of sesame seeds, toasted

Instructions:
Combine all the sauce ingredients and set aside for later use.

In a bowl, combine cornstarch, sugar and salt. Add chicken cubes and toss to coat.

Heat wok or frying pan to highest heat. Add oil (I used Peanut oil). Heat to hot, not smoking. Add chicken, ginger, garlic and onion. Stir until chicken is opaque (about 1 minute). Add peppers and carrots. Stir 2-3 minutes. Add snow peas, bok choy and sauce. Cook until sauce comes to a boil. Add cashews and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve immediately over hot cooked rice.

Serves 6.

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Thai Chicken Soup

I was looking through the most recent issue of the Food Network Magazine (November 2010) and saw a recipe for Thai Chicken Soup that sounded good.  They have the recipe on their website (link).

I made it tonight and it was very good.  I would make a few changes next time though to increase the flavor – I would cook the chicken with the onions and curry sauce and then remove them from the soup and add the meat at the end for more flavor.  I would also increase the green curry paste by at least 1 tablespoon.  The addition of fresh ginger would also be good. (The recipe below reflects the changes I would make.)

Thai Chicken Soup

Serves 4-6

adapted from Food Network Magazine (Nov. 2010)

Ingredients

• 1 Tbps vegetable oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp green curry paste
• 1 Tbsp fresh ginger grated
• 2-3 small skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1 pound), very thinly sliced crosswise
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 15-ounce can coconut milk
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce, plus more to taste
• 2 red bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 4 ounces thin rice noodles, broken into pieces
• 1 Tbsp fresh lime juice, plus more to taste
• 1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro

Directions
Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, occasionally stirring, until softened and lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and curry paste, and ginger and cook, stirring, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the chicken breast slices and cook in the curry sauce, until cooked through about 3 minutes.  Remove the chicken and set aside to add back into the soup just before serving.  Add the chicken broth, coconut milk and fish sauce; cover and bring to a boil.

Add the bell peppers and noodles and simmer, uncovered, until the noodles are al dente, about 3 minutes. Add the seasoned chicken and heat through, about 1-2 more minutes. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro. Add more fish sauce and lime juice, if desired.

SERVES: 4

Recipe Notes
I made this October 2010 after seeing it in the Thanksgiving edition of the Food Network Magazine (Nov 2010) and we liked it a lot.  Good soup.  Break the rice noodles into smaller pieces so it is easier to serve (and eat).  With the changes I made, I think it will be even more flavorful.  I served this with some reheated crusty French Bread.

 

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Asian Lettuce Wraps

On the theme of Asian food:  After making the Asian Onion Soup we had these delightful Asian Lettuce wraps and a side of garlic steamed rice.  This is another recipe that I discovered on allrecipes.com.  It was easy to eat.  I also made a dipping sauce that reviewers said worked nicely.  It added extra spice for the adults (and my 6 year old son who likes spicy foods)– don’t worry it is not overpowering.  Another change I made was that I added grated carrot to the meat mixture.  It added extra color and flavor to the dish. You could easily substitute pork or ground turkey for the ground beef.

You might be scratching your head at some of the ingredients wondering where to get them.  The answer lies with Target!   They have Asian ingredients like Sesame oil, pickled ginger etc.

Asian Lettuce Wraps - adapted from allrecipes.com

Serves 6-8

• 16 Boston, Bibb, or Romaine lettuce leaves
• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 Tablespoon cooking oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
• 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
• 2 teaspoons minced pickled ginger
• 1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
• Asian chile pepper sauce (optional) ( I used Chili Garlic Sauce)
• 1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped
• 1 large carrot, peeled and grated
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 2 teaspoons Asian (dark) sesame oil

To prepare the meat mixture: Begin with browning the ground beef and onions in oil in a large pot over high heat. When the meat has cooked, drain the fat.  Add remaining ingredients and cook for about 5 minutes longer.  While the meat is cooking prepare the sauce (extra on side if desired)

Extra Sauce:

• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 2 Tbsp rice vinegar,
• 1 Tbsp chile garlic sauce
• Green onions, thinly sliced (green part only)

To serve: Place large lettuce leaves on your plate and spoon some of the meat filling into the lettuce leaves.  Wrap and enjoy.

Notes:  This is a quick and easy dish that is ready in minutes once you have your ingredients assembled.

For the garlic rice: bring 2 cups of chicken broth to a boil.  Add garlic flakes to the broth.  Add 1 cup Jasmine rice.  Cover and reduce heat to low.  Cook for 15 minutes.  Turn heat off and leave covered another 15 minutes.  Serve with Asian Lettuce Wraps.

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Asian Onion Soup

I love the onion soup they serve at Benihana and after a search online to find a good copy cat of the recipe, I promptly made some for tonight’s dinner.  It turned out great and was really easy to prepare too!  My kids complained that there was not enough for seconds.  It tells me something when my kids want more.  I have a feeling I will be making this again in the near future.

Meemo’s Kitchen was the website where I found the recipe.  I did not make too many changes to it.

Asian Onion Soup – adapted from Meemo’s Kitchen

Serves 6

Soup Ingredients:

• 4 cups canned chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 celery stalk, cut into 4 inch stalks
• 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 teaspoon salt

Fried Onions:

• 1/2 onion, thinly sliced into rings and separated
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup vegetable oil, for frying

Additional ingredients for soup bowls:

• 6 medium mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced (green part only)

To make the soup: Pour the chicken broth and water in a large saucepan.  Add onion, celery, carrots, and salt.  Bring to a boil and then turn heat down to medium and allow to simmer for 15-30 minutes.  Remove the onions, celery, and carrots from the broth.

While the soup is cooking: prepare the french fried onion rings.  Dip the onion rings first in milk and then toss in flour to coat.  Bring a cup of oil to temperature over high heat and fry the onions until golden brown (in batches so you don’t crowd the pan).  Remove the fried onion rings with a slotted spoon and allow them to drain on paper towels.

To serve: Place slices of fried onion rings in bottom of bowl along with a few green onion slices and sliced mushrooms.  Pour broth over them with a ladle.  Enjoy!

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Lemon Chicken

One of the best sites for new recipes in my opinion is http://allrecipes.com. Today I made a wonderful Lemon Chicken Recipe (Lemon Chicken II on the site: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Lemon-Chicken-II/Detail.aspx)  I followed the recipe exactly and it turned out wonderfully!  My entire family loved it.

I did use peanut oil to fry the chicken because I had it on hand and it can go to a high temperature without burning.

Here is the recipe:

Lemon Chicken II
Serves 6

INGREDIENTS:
3 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast meat
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt

For the Breading:
2 eggs
2 cups vegetable oil
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
For the Sauce:
1/3 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 lemon, sliced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl combine the chicken, sherry, soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Mix together, cover and refrigerate. Let marinate for 15 to 20 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat together the eggs, 1/4 cup cornstarch and baking powder to form a batter. In a wok, heat 2 cups oil to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Coat chicken with batter and fry in wok until browned. Cut into bite size pieces and set aside.

In a medium bowl combine the sugar, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, broth, lemon juice and 1 teaspoon salt. Mix together and add lemon slices. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in wok and slowly stir in lemon sauce mixture. Cook, stirring, until sauce is clear. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Lemon-Chicken-II/Detail.aspx

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