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April, 2009:

Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry

Apr 29th, 2009
by dave.
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Chicken and Veggie Stir fry

In the same mold as last week’s recipe, I ended up making this with all of the leftover vegetables. Ended up a little more flavorful (added some oyster sauce among other things) than the veggie stir fry, but I still think it could use a little more taste in the sauce (I really do think I have a bad habit of using too much meat and vegetables and never balancing out the sauce well enough).

The cashews really complemented the dish, adding a nice crunch to some of the bites. I’ve never really cooked with cashews (or any other sort of nut for the record) but I think I’ll definitely end up trying using them more soon!

Probably will be posting sometime this weekend, got a lot of backed up posts that need to make it on some way or another :)

Chicken and Veggie Stir Fry

Serves 4
Time : 45 minutes

Ingredients:
- 1 red bell pepper
- 2 tbsp chicken broth
- 2 tsp Shao Hsing rice wine
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp oyster sauce
- Dash of white pepper
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced
- 1 pound chicken thighs
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 2-3 cloves minced garlic
- 2-3 pieces ginger, sliced
- 4 scallions, sliced
- ½ cup cashews, unsalted

Method:
1. Prepare the vegetables. Peel and slice carrot. Remove strings from snap peas, slice zucchini. Combine broth, rice wine, oyster sauce, ½ tsp salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
2. Bring 1-2 quarts of water to boil over high heat, add the remaining ½ tsp salt. Add sugar snaps, boil another 30 seconds. Add carrots, boil another 30 seconds. Add zucchini, boil 30 more seconds. Drain vegetables in a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water.
3. Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil, garlic, and ginger, let sizzle. Add the chicken in, stir fry until about halfway cooked through. Add the scallions and tofu, toss well for a few seconds. Add the vegetables, stir fry for another minute. Add in the sauce mixture, stir fry for another minute or so. Throw in the cashews and give a quick toss
4. Serve over rice.

Shrimp, tofu, and mixed veggie stir fry

Apr 22nd, 2009
by dave.
1 comment

Tofu, shrimp, veggie, stir fry

Short post today…been at a workshop all week and as good and interesting as it’s been, it’s been mentally draining. It’s also north of town, in an area where I don’t frequent too often, so I’ve been spending a little time exploring (and eating at New Jang Su BBQ, yum!).

Anyway, this is something I whipped up a couple weeks ago. I had this at a friend’s birthday pot luck and really REALLY liked it (and it’s healthy!) and figured I’d try to make it. So, being terrible at “figuring out” what goes into a dish, I went for my trusty cookbooks and sure enough, found a recipe in Grace Young’s Breath of a Wok. I can’t put into words how much this book (and a couple others) but it’s really helped me understand some of the techniques that’re used as well as to appreciate all of the different ingredients and tastes a dish may have. And some of the dishes are extremely simple too, just the way I like it!

One thing I really liked about this dish in particular was the use of lotus roots. Sometimes I’d end up getting them in one of the Chinese clay pot dishes, but that’s usually something I can’t manage at home (well, especially lacking a clay pot). And after finding them at Russo’s (among many other uncommon ingredients), I set off to my task, and it turned out alright!

Shrimp, tofu, and mixed vegetable stir fry

Serves 4 with rice
Time : 45 minutes

Ingredients:
- 1 large lotus root (4-6 oz)
- 2 tbsp veggie broth
- 2 tsp Shao Hsing rice wine
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
- Dash of white pepper
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tsp Ketjap Manis, dark sweet soy sauce
- 1 cup sugar snap peas
- 1 carrot, thinly sliced
- 1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined
- 1 container fried tofu, ends up being about 10-12 pieces
- 1 zucchini, sliced
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 2-3 cloves minced garlic
- 2-3 pieces ginger, sliced
- 4 scallions, sliced

Method:
1. Prepare the vegetables. Peel and slice lotus root and carrot. Remove strings from snap peas, slice zucchini. Peel and devein shrimp, slice tofu. Combine broth, rice wine, sugar, soy sauce, ½ tsp salt, and pepper in a small bowl.
2. Bring 1-2 quarts of water to boil over high heat, add the remaining ½ tsp salt. Add lotus root, boil for 30 seconds. Add sugar snaps, boil another 30 seconds. Add carrots, boil another 30 seconds. Add zucchini, boil 30 more seconds. Drain vegetables in a colander and rinse thoroughly under cold water.
3. Heat a wok over high heat. Add oil, garlic, and ginger, let sizzle. Add the shrimp in, stir fry until about halfway cooked through. Add the scallions and tofu, toss well for a few seconds. Add the vegetables, stir fry for another minute. Add in the sauce mixture, stir fry for another minute or so.
4. Serve over rice.

West Coast Trip! San Francisco, Monterey, Sonoma, and more!

Apr 15th, 2009
by dave.
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Monterey

So I’ve never been to San Francisco (or even California for that matter) up until last weekend. I know, pretty lame, especially considering all the great things there are to do in the area, considering I have friends out there, AND considering I have family out there too. But I eventually got in gear and spent a nice long weekend out in Sunny California, with a few small hitches.

Note: I originally typed out all the issues I had with the flights and whatnot, but it took up 3 large paragraphs…so I’m condensing it into something a little smaller. In a nutshell, all 4 of my flights had some sort of delay, the two longest had some extreme turbulence (Boston to Houston was horrific), and my iPhone decided that it’d stop letting me make or receive phone calls.

The trip itself was one of the best trips I’ve had in recent memory. The weather was great, sunny and low 60′s, albeit a little windy, but that was loads better than the low 50′s and rain that Boston was getting. The three days I spent ended up being in Monterey (and the 17 mile drive), SF itself, and lower Sonoma for some wine country experience.

On the way to Monterey, my buddy and I stopped at a place in Moss Landing (think a small road lined with some warehouses and a pier) for what another buddy raved as “the best Cioppino you’ll ever have.” Naturally, I was curious (well, I’d also never had Cioppino before). So, 2 hours later, I rolled myself out of Phil’s, stuffed completely silly. The Cioppino was gigantic, with crab, shrimp, clams, mussels, whitefish, bay scallops, and squid in a tasty tomato broth. Add a fried appetizer plate of bay scallops, oysters, shrimp, and squid and well, I almost ended up napping the rest of the way down to Monterey! Pebble Beach was amazing too. Had a picture I found on the net of the 18th at Pebble Beach and I doubt I need it anymore, after snapping about 30 pictures of the scenic 18th. The staff was very good about it too, as long as I didn’t bother the golfers that were on the course. Rounding out the day trip was a stop to Carmel by the Sea.

Phil's Fish Market
Phil’s Fish Market
Phil's Fish Market
Phil’s Cioppino
Monterey
Monterey coastline
Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach Golf Course
Pebble Beach
Pebble Beach 18th
Carmel
Carmel by the Sea
Curry House, Cupertino
Menchi Katsu – Curry House Cupertino

Day 2 was spent in San Francisco proper, hitting Chinatown, Pier 39 and the Fisherman’s Wharf, Golden Gate Park, Japantown, and finally ending up in the Marina District. Some great photo opportunities including a loud and smelly group of seals at Pier 39 and some windsurfing and parasailing in the Bay. One thing of note were the abundance of small, hole in the wall, Dim Sum takeout stores where the store literally comprised of a kitchen and a counter with about a dozen steamers on it. Ended up visiting 4 of these places, sampling some various dumplings and other goodies (unflattering gluttonous pictures not posted). Boston doesn’t have much in the way of these types of “fast food” stores, with most of the Dim Sum being sit-down establishments (not a bad thing mind you, but this was definitely a different experience!). Met up with my cousin and his wife in the Marina district after all of the days affairs and had dinner at a quaint French / Italian restaurant that I can’t quite remember the name to.

Chinatown, SF
Chinatown
Chinatown, SF
One of many Takeout Dim Sum places in Chinatown – my favorite one
Pier 39, SF
Pier 39 – That’s a lot of seals!
Golden Gate Park, SF
Golden Gate Park

Wrapping up the trip on the third day, I ended up at the Marin Headlands for most of the morning, taking about 200 photos during the short time there! Then it was off to wine country, this time just hitting downtown Sonoma and a couple wineries in the South. Lunch at El Dorado Kitchen (I ended up with the Salmon special, and still can’t figure out everything in it after asking the waiter 3 times!), followed by stops at Castle, Gloria Ferrer, and Roche wineries (And my first barrel tasting!). Quick dinner at my cousin’s place (I got to roast the potatoes, hope they didn’t mind them burnt!), a glass of bourbon, and an episode of the Office to finish the night.

Marin Headlands
Marin Headlands
Marin Headlands
More from the Marin Headlands
Sonoma
Downtown Sonoma
El Dorado Kitchen, Sonoma
Salmon Special, El Dorado Kitchen
Castle Winery
Castle Winery
Gloria Ferrer Winery
Gloria Ferrer Winery
Roche Winery
Roche Winery
Roche Winery
Roche Winery Barrel Tasting

Honestly, I can’t wait to go back. Wish I spent more time there on the first trip, but hey, I can’t complain too much about it. Now to get those bottles of wine…

You can find the whole set of photos here.

Minced Chicken with Thai Basil over Rice (Pad Kra Pow)

Apr 8th, 2009
by dave.
3 comments

Pad Kra Pow

Short writeup today. Just got back from California a couple days ago and haven’t had much chance to breath since. More on that soon.

Anyway, I’ve always been interested in a lot of the quick and simple ethnic foods and this recipe was no exception. Normally, I’ve had this made with ground chicken or ground pork, but since I had some chicken thighs to use, I figured minced (to the best of my limited ability) would be enough.

The dish itself is known for having an intense set of flavors, with fish sauce mixed with sugar and basil providing most of the punch. Ended up being not as flavorful as I’ve had, but I attribute that more to needing a little more sauce and perhaps me not getting the proportions entirely correct.

Recipe compiled from numerous sources and from word of mouth. Original I worked with is at Serious Eats. I somewhat doubled the recipe to use all of the chicken I had.

Minced Chicken with Thai Basil over Rice (Pad Kra Pow)

Serves 4
Time 30 minutes

Ingredients:
- 3 tbsp canola oil
- 4-5 red bird’s eye chilies
- 1 large shallot, minced
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ red bell pepper (or a small one), chopped
- ½ yellow onion, chopped
- 1/3 lb green beans, ends removed
- 1 – 1.5lb pound ground chicken
- 6 tbsp fish sauce
- 6 tsp sugar
- A handful of thai basil leaves
- Fried eggs (optional)

Method:
1. Heat oil in wok under high heat. Add chilies, shallots, and garlic and stir fry until golden and fragrant, 30-45 seconds.
2. Add green beans, bell pepper, and onion, stir fry for about 5 minutes
3. Add ground chicken, stir fry for another 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
4. Add fish sauce and sugar, mix well, adjust as needed for your tastes.
5. Reduce heat to medium and add basil leaves. Stir fry until leaves are wilted.
6. Serve with rice. Add a fried egg on top (optional)

Super Fusion Cuisine (Brookline, MA)

Apr 1st, 2009
by dave.
1 comment

super_fusion

Nestled about a 2-3 minute walk from Washington Square, Brookline is Super Fusion Cuisine, a small (very small!) sushi restaurant run by a former chef from Fugakyu, one of the more popular sushi restaurants in town. In the past year, there have been many, many sushi restaurant openings in the Coolidge Corner / Washington Square area and I was afraid it was starting to become oversaturated. But I sure hope Super Fusion sticks around!

There are 4-5 very small tables (2 person tables) snugly piled into one corner of the restaurant while the sushi bar could probably house another 3-4 people. The rest of the restaurant is occupied by the kitchen and sushi bar. The roommate and I ended up there about a month ago and ended up with the last table (3 more parties showed up in the next 5 minutes and had to wait in the cold!). Unfortunately, every time someone came in or left the restaurant, a swift frigid breeze swept through the restaurant, making it extremely uncomfortable. However, after a few cups of tea, the food arrived…and I was pleasantly surprised!

I applaud the chefs for not using a ton of rice on the maki, as sometimes I’ve seen more rice than fish. Also, the special rolls on the menu were very creative, combining many different tastes that I haven’t experienced together before. And the bill came out pretty reasonably too (for sushi anyway), which resulted in a pleasant dinner, despite the gusts of cold air. Super Fusion also delivers, which is a plus for this densely populated area.