Easy Peasy Season-y
One of my favorite things about my blog is the opportunity to try items I would probably never try otherwise. I received an email from Urban Accents, a company out of Chicago that specializes in gourmet spices, herbs and assorted seasonings. They asked if I’d like to try some of their products and of course, I said yes.
A few days later, I received a nice box of goodies that included dryglazes, lemon and orange pepper and saffron rice. The first thing I noticed was the packaging is very modern and clean, not something you would see in a grocery store. The second thing was the ingredients… all natural herbs and spices. I have this thing about eating food that has ingredients I can’t pronounce with more than 15 letters. Monosodiumslimslam. OK, I made that word up, but you get the drift. The seasonings were also not loaded with salt, which it seems most prepared seasonings are. So no worries of having a case of hot-dog fingers from the excessive sodium! Whew!
I liked the idea of the dryglazes. All you do is coat the meat with olive oil and then sprinkle on the dry rub and place in the fridge. In half an hour, the rub becomes a luscious glaze. All I did then was simply grill the chicken. It was so moist and tasty you would have thought it marinated for hours. Perfect for those evenings you don’t have much time to cook, and are contemplating boring grilled chicken for the third time this week. Both the Puebla Mole and Vermont Grill were flavorful and will definitely be used again.
Here is Broiled Salmon with Sonoma Pepper. I marinated the salmon in orange juice for 30 minutes, sprinkled with salt and Sonoma Pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and broiled for 7-8 minutes. Great citrus flavor from the orange and lemon zest.
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Winey Chicken
While flipping through this month’s Gourmet Magazine, this particular recipe caught my eye. Its the Alsatian version of Coq Au Vin, which is one of my favorite braised dishes. Instead of the usual red wine, this recipe calls for a Riesling from the Alsace region of France, and is finished off with a small amount of cream or creme fraiche. This recipe was incredibly quick and had very little prep. It does have a shockingly large amount of leeks, which made me a little dubious of the outcome. When the leeks cooked, however, they lent a delicious flavor to the sauce. Just make sure you have some crusty French Bread to sop up the amazing sauce. Wonderful!
Who You Callin’ Chicken?
I was in the mood for some comfort food, and decided to make a whole roasted chicken. The Purdue All Natural Roasters were on sale too, so that made my decision even easier. I always keep it very simple… stuffed with aromatics and roasted on a bed of veggies. The veggies under the chicken make a wonderfully flavored pan sauce after the chicken is cooked. I would like to have brined it, as I always do my turkeys, but this was a spur of the moment roasting. Well, as spur of the moment roasting can be! Even without the brining, it was quite tasty!
One thing however, neither my husband nor I care for the dark meat. The pooches love it though, and were very happy to eat it! Next time, I think I’ll try roasting whole chicken breasts with the rib bones and see how that goes. I served it with mashed potatoes and sauteed asparagus.
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Wok This Way!
Yeah, I know, cheesy title! I really did use my wok, though. :) This is an easy recipe, because it uses basic ingredients, things I usually have on hand, other than a few extra veggies. Its also very quick cooking. Start your rice when you start chopping veggies. By the time you’re finished stir-frying, the rice is cooked and ready to go. You’re eating in 20 minutes!
I have to tell you… I’m uber excited about my weekend because its the South Beach Wine and Food Festival… and yours truly is going to the Grand Tasting!!!! The Forge, Touch, and Blue Door in the Delano (where my hubby proposed) are among some of the amazing South Florida restaurants who will be offering samples of their wares. There will also be many chefs including Bobby Flay and Tyler Florence from the Food Network that will be there for seminars and book signings. I am just beside myself with excitement! Thank goodness I have my own personal paparazzi with me (isn’t it great to marry a photographer?) so I’ll have photos to post next week.
I would love to go to all the events, especially the Interactive Cooking Lunch with Ming Tsai (big sigh…) but everything sold out quickly. I have been a huge fan of his for many years. When I was in Culinary School, we had to write about who we looked up to in the industry. I chose him because at the time, he had a show called East meets West. What a coincidence, that’s what I am… Japanese and American… get it? Anyway, in writing this story, I decided to send Ming an email and ask a few questions. Honestly, I never expected to hear back from him. One day… maybe a month after I had written him the email, I came home to a message on my voice mail. It was MING TSAI! Not his assistant, not the assistant to his assistant, but the real deal. He left me a very long message thanking me for the email and answering my questions. Embarrassing confession: I kept that voice mail for at least 2 years, and played it back often. I’m such a dork, I know.
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Saucy
I don’t usually make sauces as they tend to add excess calories to whatever they are covering. However… today I had an open bottle of red wine and wanted to use it up before it turned on me. Even more, I have brand new appliances (just delivered today!) and needed to break in my beautiful, shiny new stove. My old stove was uneven, and I basically gave up sautéing at home because of it. We’re in the process of updating the entire kitchen in the next month or so, and I’m beside myself with excitement! Stay tuned for before and after pics!
Anyway, I made sautéed chicken with a red wine pan sauce. Its quite simple, but you need to make sure all your ingredients are ready, as it cooks quickly. Always keep in mind that your sauce will only be as good as the wine… so if you have a bad wine, expect a bad sauce!
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Meat on a Stick
You just can’t go wrong with meat on a stick. Its not exactly the classiest thing to eat, but when made with a Thai flair, its delish! I’ve made a few different Chicken Satay recipes, but this is the combination of several, and I’m quite happy with the outcome.
I didn’t plan very well, and only had a little bit of fresh ginger left, so I put it all in the marinade. Although the sauce called for it, I was planning to skip it when I remembered I had some candied ginger left from Thanksgiving. So I added a chunk of it to the dipping sauce as it simmered… and it worked, you could taste the ginger! *Insert best Borat voice* Great Success! :)
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Chicken Teriyaki
Now this is what I like to call a 30 minute meal… Perhaps even a 20 minute meal. Grilled chicken teriyaki, served with steamed jasmine rice and shelled edamame. Its a great healthy dinner that takes up maybe 5 minutes of your time to prepare. This is the dinner I make when I’m too tired to cook, and have no desire to go out to eat. I probably make this two or three times a month.
Pao, Right in the Kisser
My sister in law, Raluca, gave me a beautiful red Le Creuset Wok the last time she and her husband were here for a visit. I was giddy with happiness at this gift, as I had been wanting it for a long time. Then, sadly, I made one mediocre stirfry after the next. It took several uses to both get it perfectly seasoned and figure out the perfect temperature and recipe. I have now officially mastered my wok!
This Kung Pao recipe is adapted from about 4 other recipes I have come across online. The last couple times I’ve made it, its gotten better and better, resulting in a glossy dark sauce with a nice kick of heat. I searched high and low for the dried red chili peppers that you see in many Chinese dishes and finally found them at, of course, Whole Foods. You can always use crushed red pepper, but I just like the heat and the look of the red chili peppers.
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Artichoke Chicken Roulade
This is one of my most favorite chicken recipes. Its so decadent and delicious…. made with goat cheese, artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes. So quick to prepare, but when served looks very gourmet!
Uber Schnitzel
When I married Stephan who is from Germany, I finally perfected the art of schnitzel. Although it seems awfully simple, it took several tries before I was truly happy with it. Instead of just beating the bejesus out of the meat, I butterfly it first, then beat it into submission. :p
Schnitzel is a very popular German entree, but is traditionally made with pork. Since we don’t eat pork, I make my schnitzel with chicken breast. If I must say so myself, my schnitzel is the schizna!
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