Rippin' Another Blog: SesameTuna & Pea Shoot Salad

The Lowdown:

First of all, I'm just going to say how amazed I am with google translator. Kristy decided (I'm not sure how) that our next Rippin' Another Blog session was going to be from Mattias Jeppsson's Min ugn ar min TV.

The first thing you may notice is that it makes absolutely no sense. That is unless you speak Swedish(?). I think it's Swedish at least. Actually, it was kind of fun. It was like shopping in a specialty food store where you have no idea what any of the ingredients are, or what they are used for. There were pictures and there was jibberish. That is all.

Luckily for all of us, google translator is mind-blowingly amazing. In approximately three seconds I had already understood the recipe. Understood as in I read the English translation. Interesting choice Kristy, interesting choice.

I'm not much of a salad kind of guy. I generally find them boring and dull. I understand their importance for healthy eating and all that jazz. Still, I just can't get over how bland they can be. That is of course, unless you lie and call something that isn't a salad, a salad. This recipe is really just a glorified, albeit delicious, tuna recipe. I simply added red cabbage, a few more pea shoots, and put salad in the name to make myself feel good about my life decisions. In all honesty, who doesn't love a salad that really isn't a salad?

What's even better about this "salad," is the fact that I went to the grocery store, cooked the tuna, made the dressing, and plated the meal in under thirty minutes. The only thing keeping this meal from being uber healthy is the ridiculous amounts of heavy metals in the fish. Heavy metal as in mercury, not Metallica or Slayer. Healthy, quick, easy, and done.

The Playlist:

1 Ahi tuna steak
1/2 Lime, juiced
1/2 cup Olive oil
1 tbsp Sesame seeds
1 package Pea Shoots
Red Cabbage, to garnish
Cilantro, to garnish
Sea salt & Pepper, to taste

The Skinny:

1.  In seasoned cast iron pan: heat on medium-high until pan is hot.
2. Seer tuna on each side for 20-30 seconds.
3. Sprinkle sesame seeds onto tuna and slice.
4. Mix the olive oil, salt, pepper, and lime juice.
5. Place tuna on a bed of cabbage and pea shoots. Add cilantro and dressing.

Stay Rad -h
Featured on: Premeditated Leftovers, 33 Shades of Green, Chef in Training, Food Renegade, Foodie Friday,  

Nopale Bison Tacos

The Lowdown:

Okay, let's just say this was an experiement to try to cook, write, and photograph a blog session in an hour an a half. That's not what I intended initially - not even by a long shot. Regardless, here I am trying to get myself out of a jam again. I don't even like jam. Marmalade and jelly can get added to that list as well. Okay, any fruit related toast spread is not in my good books. Jam; however, is at the top of this list because I'm stuck in one right now (what a stupid saying anyway, which further makes me dislike jam at the moment). Like any good get-out-of-a-jam artist, I have a few go-to options. Actually, to be fair, everyone has the same one. TACOS. They are loved by adults, children, and anyone who is a hybrid mixture of the two (like myself). In fact, they are so easy to create that I'm making them as we... speak?

I guess I should consider myself lucky that while in this time management mishap I was fortunate enough to have everything on hand. Nopales on hand... WTF? To be fair, the only reason I have cactus paddles (nopales) on hand is because there is a grocery store in town that is open 24 hours a day. Splendid! I can now shop at 1:30am. No more children, whom were clearly raised by neglegent parents, running around with their miniature shopping carts acting like they are in a destruction derby and not a grocery market. I know that was me 25 years ago... Okay, maybe even 20 years ago, but still! I digressed. The point is, I can calmly hunt and gather now. No distractions. No kids. Nobody rushing to get last minute items for dinner. No kids. No kids. Did I say no kids? Yes, this whole paragraph was, in fact, to reiterate why I had napoles on hand at a time like this.

I should also be thanking Girlichef for her idea. I would thank her for the recipe, but to be honest, there was just too much writing. No time to read. Cook, eat, go. If you were reading two posts ago, you'll remember that showering isn't the best idea when you are cooking. However, considering my time restraints, I will be performing this daunting task again. Not to mention, trying to look decent, having a beer, and getting dressed. Err, I'm not sure if it will be in that order.

Now, for my busy night... at music bingo? Seriously, I'm in this much of a rush to get to music bingo? Well, maybe it's the $5 martinis. Maybe it's the corny 80's and 90's music. Maybe it's just getting out of the house on a monday. Either way, here's to a successful rush job on dinner. Tacos, you've once again saved me.

The Playlist:

3 Morita chilis

2 Pasilla chilis

1 Chipotle chili

1 Red onion, chopped

5 cloves Garlic

2 Tomatoes

1 tsp Cumin, ground

2 cups Water

Salt & Pepper, to taste

2 lbs Meat (I used bison), cubed

2 tbsp Olive oil

1/2 cup Navy beans, dried

1 Lime, peals only

1 tbsp Red wine vinegar

Water

3 Nopales (cactus paddles), de-thorned & cut into 1 inch squares

Water

Cilantro, to taste

The Skinny:

1. Combined all the first layer of ingredients into a blender and blend until the mixture is smooth. Set aside and allow the flavours to mingle (sort of like speed dating I suppose).
2. In large sauce pan: heat oil then add meat and brown on all sides. Add enough water to fully cover the meat, then add navy beans, lime peals, and red wine vinegar. Simmer on medium-low for an hour (or until beans soften and water is reduced to near-dry).
3. In small pot: bring enough water to submerge nopales to a boil, then add nopales and boil for 2-3 minutes. Remove napoles from the water and set aside.
4. In large sauce pan: add tomato mixture to the meat, cover, and simmer for 20-40 minutes. Add napoles and cilantro, then remove from heat.
5. Serve with warm tortillas, or as tacos in this case.

Stay Rad -h

Featured on: Chef in Training, Premeditated Leftovers, 33 Shades of Green, Food Renegade, Lady Behind the Curtain, A Little Nosh,

Thank-ya Solyanka

The Lowdown:

There were two reasons that I wanted to start wasting my time with this blog. One was to prove Kristy wrong. If you get to know me, you'll soon understand that this is a common theme in my life. I once ate an entire pack of expired bacon just because my lovely girlfriend said I couldn't. Well, I did... and paid dearly (Kristy can tell you all about it as it effected her birthday). But the point is that I did it! Proving a point is much more important than the consequences that follow. 

Secondly, it was an excellent way to expand my repertoire. Obviously it expanded my repertoire of recipes and cooking techniques (not to mention useless dishes and place settings... ugh). But an unforeseen result of this blog is the expansion of my musical repertoire. Often while I'm writing these posts I'll throw on youtube and search for a song, any song, that happens to come to mind. Then, I'll listen to the recommended songs on the sidebar. Often, I'll put these in the posts. I'm sure you've noticed.

To continue on with that tradition, Wyclef Jean - Knockin on Heaven's Door, is a great place to start. It suits the theme of this post, as it is a remake of Bob Dylan's classic hit. Likewise, on our schedule, this week's post is a remake of another blogger's recipe. Yes, I've actually started following the schedule.

Being that summer has seemed to have forgotten about Victoria, I was craving a cold weather favourite. For me, this is usually soup. Then I remembered a soup that my Nan once made a while back. Dill pickles in soup? I'd thought she'd surely become senile (I'm still not fully convinced that she isn't). But as it turned out, I loved it. Who'd know that tomatoes, dill pickles, and onion would make a delicious soup (other than the hundreds of millions of people who have enjoyed solyanka before me).

If any of you are interested in other Eastern European dishes, or the original post that this came from, you can find it at russianchef.blogspot.ca. If any of you are interested in another amazing remake, check out Wyclef Jean - Wish You Were Here. This is, in my opinion, is an amazing remake of one of Pink Floyd's greatest songs. Most of the time you hear a cover, it sounds as if the artist is just trying to make easy money off of another artist's hit. However, Wyclef's covers seem as if they are paying homage to great artists that have since been forgotten by the majority of today's people, while adding his spin on modern issues. I hope I can pay the same sort of homage to solyanka. Enjoy.

The Playlist:

500g Meat (I used leftover turkey, but any mixture of meat is good).
6-8 Tomatoes, chopped*
2 cups Pickles, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 Lemon, juiced*
1 tbsp Honey (sugar if you don't have honey)*
2 Bay leaves*
2 tbsp Parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cup Canola oil
750ml Water
Salt & Pepper, to taste

OPTIONAL - Vegetarian:
1 Carrot, chopped
1/4 head Cabbage, chopped
1 Potato, cubed

*A can of tomato sauce can be used in place of these ingredients.

The Skinny:

1. In sauce pan: stew tomatoes with bay leaves, parsley, lemon juice, sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook on a low simmer for 20 minutes (I mashed mine). Alternatively, you could used a can of tomato sauce to save time.
2. In frying pan: brown onions, garlic, and meat in oil.
3. In large pot: bring water to a boil.
4. While water is heating, combine onions, meat, pickles, and tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Put mixture into boiling water, cover, and remove from heat. Allow to set for 10 minutes.
6. Serve warm.

Featured on: Chef in Training, 33 Shades of Green, Premeditated Leftovers, Spain in Iowa, Food Renegades, This Chick Cooks, Lady Behind the Curtain, What's Cooking Love,  

Stay Rad -h

Leek Crisps w/ Lemongrass Chili Reduction

The Lowdown:

What do you do when you've been playing video games all day instead of cooking dinner for your guests? Well, if this is a problem for you, then I have the answer. I'm not going to lie, it happens more often than I'd like to admit. The answer is simple. Pray. Or on the other hand, you could rip through your kitchen and see what you have. When push comes to shove -- improvise. By improvise I mean to make something up that nobody has heard of so it sounds exotic.

I've been thinking that leeks are the perfect shape to be used as a cracker for a while now. Okay, that too is a lie. It happened earlier in the day. Anyway, it was go time and I had no plan or no idea if I had the ingredients for my  non-existent plan. While hunting and foraging in my fridge I notice I had leeks and a mango that was bought for something else that didn't materialize. Perfect! The sweet and pine-like flavour of the mango would help tame the onionesque flavour of the leek.

As for the sauce, well that was another story. I really wanted to incorporate lemongrass, which meant that ginger was a perfect secondary flavour. With those two things simmering in the frying pan I decided that spice would go well with this -- thus, a chili pepper. Now that all these ingredients were already started I may as well stick with the South East Asian theme. Really, I had no choice. It seemed like my only option remaining, considering people were coming over in 30 minutes. One day I will plan ahead. One day. Not today. Not tomorrow. Although it is ironic that I'm planning on not planning.

I fed these to two very picky people (ugh the worst!), both of which didn't know what a leek was. Therefore, I feel like they were a good sample (guinea pig I mean) to test this creation out on. Fortunately for me they loved them. Unfortunately for me, they ate them all while I was preparing the main course. I guess you have to choose your battles, and hungry women are not the battles I'll be choosing anytime soon.

The Playlist:

(Printable Recipe)

1 Leek, stalk only sliced into 1/4 inch circular disks.

1 Mango, cubed (1 inch).

1/8 cup Cabbage, julienne.

1/8 cup flour.

1 cup chicken stock.

Pepper to taste.

Lemongrass Chili Reduction

1 Chili pepper, minced.

3 inches Lemongrass, soft inner part minced.

2 tsp Ginger, minced.

1 tsp Chili powder (Thai if you can find it).

1 tsp Corriander, ground.

2 tsp sugar (or honey).

2 tbsp Olive oil.

3 tbsp Rice wine vinegar.
3 tbsp Red wine vinegar.

5 tbsp Chicken stock.

2 tbsp Fish sauce. 

The Skinny:

1.  Place the leek disks into a shallow bowl and cover with chicken stock. Allow to sit, as the chicken stock will mellow out the leek's onion flavour.
2. On medium heat add oil, chili pepper, lemongrass, and ginger. Stir constantly until lemongrass becomes fragrant (about 5 minutes). Then add the remainder of the reduction's ingredients except for the chicken stock. Cover and allow to simmer on low for 20 - 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Put flour and pepper into a shallow bowl (or bag) and coat the leek disks. Heat oil in a large pan on medium heat. Add the leeks and cover the pan. Fry the leeks for 2-3 minutes per side.
4. While leeks are cooking remove the lid from the reduction. Add the chicken stock and turn onto high heat. Reduce the liquid by the desired amount. If you are pressed for time add 1/4 tsp of corn starch to form a paste (although its not quite as good this way).
5. Place a piece of mango on each leek disk and drizzle lemongrass chili reduction. Garnish with the cabbage.
6. The left over reduction (or a new batch) goes well as a dressing for a cabbage, sesame seed, and dried cranberry coleslaw.

Featured in: 33 Shades of Green, Mandy's Recipe Box, Chef in Training

Leek & Cabbage Soup

The Lowdown:

While at the grocery store, I saw leeks. Normally I just walk right past these, because it's just something I do. But today, well, today was different. They seemed abnormally un-walk-past-able. So, as you may have concluded, I grabbed one. Apparently being hung-over turns you into a senior, because I also grabbed cabbage too. Now that I think about it, I was also complaining about my back pain, sore knees, and rap music. I may have even used the word, "dangfangled."

This led to standing in my kitchen confused about my purchases, wondering how I could utilize them. I do love leek and potato soup. One problem, I don't have potatoes. I did have a cabbage soup at an Italian/French restaurant over the winter holidays that I loved. One thing about restaurants is they are secretive about their recipes. No problem! How hard could it possibly be to make leeks and cabbage taste good together? I could just cheat and look up a recipe. Yah, that didn't help. The only recipes available were leek and potato soups. Foiled again! As previously stated, "how hard could this possibly be?" Step 1: grow some balls and just do it! Step 2: laugh, because step one is kinda funny. Step 3: stop laughing, because my girlfriend thinks I'm crazy for laughing in the kitchen alone. Step 4: take an anti-gas pill because you're about to consume cabbage.

This is my attempt at adding ingredients that I don't normally use, while trying to be healthy. May I also add, soup saves hang-overs. PS. if you're wondering, this is the same hang-over as the one previously described in the Falafel w/ Cilantro Yogurt post. In retrospect, the soup actually went wonderfully with the aforementioned recipe. However, it did not restore me to normal health.

The Playlist:

(Printable Recipe)

5 cups Chicken broth (or 9 cups water w/ 3 tbsp chicken bullion powder).
4 cups Water (skip this step if you used the 9 cups of water).

1 Leak, coursely chopped.

4 cups Green cabbage, coursely chopped

3 tbsp Dry white wine

2 tsp Pepper, ground

Salt to taste

The Skinny:

1. Put all of the ingrendients into a large enough pot.
2. Turn onto high heat and bring to a boil.
3. Cover and boil for 25-30 minutes.
4. Optional: use an immersion blender to create desired texture (I appreciated the larger pieces of cabbage and leek, so I only blended the largest pieces).

 

Cookbook Challenge: Falafel w/ Cilantro Yogurt

The Lowdown:

This week, Kristy and I decided that we would randomly open a cookbook and cook something from that page. For one, I've always enjoyed random encounters. Yes, that is definitely open for interpretation. Secondly, I decided that drinking a two-six of double chocolate vodka while playing Mario Kart till 3 a.m. last night was a great idea. Needless to say, I'm a shadow of a man right now. Albeit, a very handsome shadow. Where does all this tie in? Oh right, I'm extremely lethargic and unable to think for myself. Therefore, why not let a cookbook tell you what to do. Thirdly, it's shopping day and I can pick up some of those odd ingredients that I don't normally have on hand.

My page, luckily enough for me, was tucked away in the meatless main courses section of the book.  Nothing a hung-over stomach can't handle.  The other options given to me by Fairchild's (2006) The Bon Appetit Cookbook pp. 258-259 were: Wild-mushroom Bread Pudding, Sweet Potatoes Topped w/ Vegetarian Black Bean Chili, and Oven-roasted Winter Vegetables w/ Rigatoni. As you can see, my options made it very simple to choose. Bread pudding? No thanks. Spicy chili? Ya, that's gunna happen. Not. Oven roasting took an entire hour. Its 6 p.m. and this is going to be my first meal, so I just couldn't wait that long. Like I said, my selection was an easy decision. Just in case anyone is wondering, I did not cheat! However, I can't speak for my counterpart. The page I got, was the page I stuck with.

This Middle Eastern meal is supposed to be quick, easy, and healthy. I did find that after refrigerating the falafel "mixture" over night they were much tastier and easier to form into patties.

The Playlist:

 (Printable Recipe: Cilantro Yogurt)

1 cup Plain yogurt (Greek preferably)

1/2 cup Cilantro, chopped

1/4 cup Onion, finely chopped

2 cloves Garlic, minced

1 tbsp Lemon juice

1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper

(Printable Recipe: Falafel)

2 14oz cans Garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained

1/2 cup Cilantro,  finely chopped

1/2 - 1 tsp Cayenne pepper

4 cloves Garlic, minced

3/4 cup Onion, finely chopped

3 tbsp Flour

2 tsp cumin

1 Egg

1 cup Flour

1/4 cup Olive oil (for frying)

OPTIONAL:

Pita bread

Tomatoes, chopped

Lettuce, chopped

Olives, chopped

Artichoke hearts, chopped

The Skinny:

1. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combined and mix yogurt, cilantro, onion, garlic, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper.
2. Refrigerate until needed (1 - 2 hours is recommended to allow the flavours to circulate).
3. Put the garbanzo beans, onion, cilantro, 3 tbsp flour, egg, cayenne pepper, garlic, and cumin into a large mixing bowl and mash until almost smooth.
4. Heat oil in a pan on medium-high heat (throw a piece of onion in to test heat. If it sizzles that's good).
5. Form small hamburger sized patties of the falafel mixture (1/2 to 3/4 of an inch thick).
6. Coat each patty with the remaining flour (1 cup).
7. Fry the patties on each side for 6-8 minutes.
8. Serve in a pita w/ the yogurt and any of the optional ingredients (or on its own).

H