Orange Teriyaki Seafood Marinade

Orange Teriyaki Seafood Marinade

Combine in a ziplock bag:

1/3 cup orange juice

1/3 cup soy sauce, reduced sodium

1/4 cup mirin (or white wine with a little sugar added)

2 Tbsp. neutral oil

1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger (or 1 tsp. powdered ginger)

1 tsp. mustard powder

Marinate seafood about 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Thai pork salad

From the New York Times.

If you're feeling feisty, chop up the cucumbers a few days in advance and make quick pickles with rice wine vinegar, salt, and sugar.

Thai pork salad

serves 6

Create the marinade and dressing

Combine in a food processor:
5 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tbsp. peanut oil
6 tbsp. garlic olive oil
2 tbsp. fish sauce
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. sambal olek
juice of 4 limes (~6 tbsp.)
1 tsp. kosher salt

Add and puree until smooth:
3" fresh ginger, peeled and rough chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and rough chopped
2/3 cup cilantro, packed flat

Place 2 pork tenderloins in a gallon zip-lock bag. Add 1/3 cup of mixture as a marinade. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight (or at room temperature for 2 hours).

Save remaining marinade mixture for dressing the salad.


Cook & assemble salad
Broil pork for 20 minutes, turning the meat after 10 minutes.

Boil rice noodles for 5-7 minutes, until al dente.

Combine and let rest for 10 minutes:
1 head of Napa cabbage, shredded
half the remaining dressing

Add to salad and toss:
5 green onions, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
3 Persian cucumbers, sliced
1.5 cups cilantro leaves
1.5 cups mint leaves
1 cup basil leaves
all the remaining dressing
kosher salt, to taste

To plate, add rice noodles first. Top with dressed salad, then sliced pork.

Shopping list

2 pork tenderloins (1 package)

1 head Napa cabbage (or 8 cups pre-shredded)

green onions

red bell pepper

3 Persian cucumbers

2 jalapenos (or seranos, or Thai bird chilis)

4 limes

3" fresh ginger

2 bunches cilantro

1 bunch mint

1 bunch basil

Check the pantry

soy sauce
sambal olek
peanut oil
garlic olive oil
fish sauce
brown sugar

Five-spice chicken over noodles

Via Blue Apron. The original recipe calls for the chicken to be cooked first, then the same pan used to create the sauce. This makes a tedious sauce prep even longer, so here I've swapped that for cooking the collard greens in chicken stock. I also excised the mushrooms that were to be cooked along side the collard greens, but feel free to toss 3 oz. back in.

Five-spice chicken over noodles
serves 2

In a saute pan, cook for 8-10 minutes:
1/2 bunch collard greens, destemmed and sliced into ribbons
3/4 c. chicken stock

Add and cook 2-4 minutes more until softened: 
4 cloves garlic, minced
1" fresh ginger, minced
1 green onion, sliced
1 baby fennel bulb, diced small (discard stems and root end)

Add and cook 6-8 minutes, until liquid volume has reduced by half:
1.5 tbsp. hoisin sauce
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1.5 cups water

Meanwhile, prepare chicken and noodles.

Season two chicken breasts with 1 tsp. five spice powder each, plus salt and pepper. Cook ~4-6 minutes per side.

Boil 4 oz. linguine until al dente. After draining, toss with 1 tbsp. sesame oil.

Serve in bowls, with linguine on the bottom. Divide vegetables and broth between the bowls. Top with a sliced chicken breast.

Shopping list
collard greens, 1 bunch
fresh ginger, 1"
green onions
baby fennel bulb

Check the pantry
five spice powder
linguine
garlic
hoisin sauce
soy sauce
chicken broth

Sesame chicken

Via Budget Bytes.

Sesame Chicken
serves 4

Combine in a small bowl: 
2 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. water
1.5 tsp. (0.5 tbsp) sesame oil
4.5 tsp. (1.5 tbsp) brown sugar
4.5 tsp. (1.5 tbsp) rice vinegar
1 inch fresh ginger, grated or finely minced
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tbsp. sesame seeds

In a large bowl, whisk together: 
1 egg
2 tbsp cornstarch
a pinch of salt and pepper

Take 1 lb. of boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Trim any excess fat, then cut them into small 1 inch pieces. Toss the chicken in the egg and cornstarch mixture (a technique called "velveting").

Heat a large skillet with ~2 tbsp. of vegetable oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the chicken and all of the egg mixture. Cook the chicken for 7-10 minutes, until it's golden brown and cooked through. Stir occasionally to break up the chicken chunks (and avoid making an omelet).

Once the chicken is cooked through and golden brown, pour the sauce over top. Toss the chicken to coat it. Thanks to the cornstarch, the sauce will begin to thicken as soon as it hits the hot skillet. Once the chicken is coated and the sauce has thickened, turn off the heat.

Serve over rice.

Asian cucumber salad

I found this recipe in the New York Times "recipes for health" section, and decided to use it to take advantage of the amazing Persian cucumbers that are always available at my local produce market.  The original calls for sunflower or grapeseed oil, which I wasn't willing to buy for a single recipe - instead, I subbed in neutral-flavored peanut oil.  I also ditched the cilantro, again because the recipe only calls for a little and the rest of the bunch would just liquify in my refrigerator.

Asian cucumber salad
serves 4-6

Thinly slice using a mandolin:
6-8 small thin-skinned Persian cucumbers (about 2 pounds)

Place the sliced cucumbers in a colander and sprinkle liberally with kosher salt.  Let sit for 15 minutes.  Rinse off the salt, then blot with paper towels to remove excess water.

Whisk together in a large bowl:
3 tbsp. rice vinegar
3 tbsp. peanut oil
2 tbsp. dark sesame oil
1 tbsp. soy sauce
1 inch minced fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. cayenne
freshly ground pepper

Add 1 bunch of green onions, sliced thinly.  Toss the sauce mixture with the drained cucumbers, and salt to taste.  Let sit for at least 10 minutes before serving, stirring occasionally.

Mediterranean Bok Choy

I've changed a good number of things around, but the original inspiring recipe is from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

Mediterranean Bok Choy

serves 4

Chop:

3 medium heads baby bok choy

Separate chopped stems from leaves.

Saute for 3 minutes:

2 tbsp. olive oil

stems from chopped bok choy

Add and cook an additional 5 minutes:

greens from chopped bok choy

salt and pepper

1/3 c. beef stock

Finish with:

1/4-1/2 c. roughly chopped black olives

1 tbsp. red wine vinegar

Chicken & Mango Slaw

From the fine folks at Cook's Illustrated. This was the cover recipe that induced me to buy their summer recipes special two years ago.  Boy, am I ever glad I did!  Many of the stand-by recipes included on this blog have their origins in that slim volume.

If you’re planning to store this for leftovers, let the remaining combined slaw drain in a colander for 5-10 min. before putting in the fridge.  Otherwise the excess sauce will make the cabbage soggy by the next day.

Chicken & Mango Slaw  

serves 6

Bring to a boil in a large skillet:

1 c. water

1 tbsp. fish sauce

1 tsp. sambal oelek

Add 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cover, and simmer over medium low for 10-15 minutes.  Flip the chicken half way through.

Whisk together sauce:

5 tbsp. cream of coconut

5 tbsp. lime juice

1 tbsp. fish sauce

1 tsp. sambal oelek

Combine and toss:

1/2 head green or Napa cabbage, shredded using food processor disk

2 mangoes, sliced thin and bite sized

1/3 c. chopped cilantro

cooked chicken breasts, shredded

sauce

Recommended products:

Cream of coconut is a confusing product name.  It is NOT the same as "coconut cream" (or "coconut milk").  And in my grocery store, it's shelved in a completely different place: it's with the booze mixers, in a bottle more reminiscent of sunscreen than a food product.

Sambal oelek is an Asian chili garlic condiment.  It packs a very spicy punch, so use it sparingly.  Look for it in the Asian section of your grocery store.  I've always seen it in this exact packaging:

Beef & Broccoli

Raw oyster sauce has an off-putting odor.  Soldier through that part and you will be rewarded with an incredibly tasty dish that comes together in the time it takes to cook the rice.

Beef cuts suitable for stir fry are very tender.  I typically pick up top sirloin when it's on sale and use it in this dish.  However, because of its low fat content, sirloin is very easy to overcook.  As soon as the meat looks sealed, add the sauce.  And as soon as the sauce comes together, pull it off the heat!

Beef & Broccoli

serves 4

Whisk together sauce:

1/2 c. beef broth

1/3 c. oyster sauce (usually 1/2 jar)

1 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. sherry

1 tbsp. corn starch

Stir fry:

2-4 tbsp. peanut oil
3-4 medium heads of broccoli, chopped into florettes

1 package mushrooms, sliced

salt and pepper

When broccoli is mostly done, add:

1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. sherry
1 bunch green onion tops, chopped

After 30 seconds, add:
1-1.5 lb. beef, cut in bite-sized strips (pref. sirloin or blade steak)
salt and pepper

When beef is just browned, add sauce.  Reduce heat to medium and cook another ~3 minutes.

Serve over jasmine rice.

Recommended products:

Don't buy anything labeled "cooking sherry" that shows up on your grocery store shelves.  Cooking sherry has salt added to make it unpalatable for drinking, and this can throw off the flavor for recipes, too.  Instead, pick up a dirt cheap dry sherry at your local adult beverage market.  The bottle below retails for a whopping $4:

 

Shrimp and Rice Salad

From Cook's Illustrated.  Mango chutney is most likely sold in the "ethnic" aisle of your supermarket with the Indian foods, rather than with the rest of the jams and jellies.

Shrimp and Rice Salad

serves 6

Cook 1.5 cups of basmati rice.

Puree in blender until smooth:

1/2 c. mango chutney

2 tbsp. lime juice

1/3 c. olive oil

Saute briefly over medium heat until just cooked:

1 lb. medium shrimp, seasoned with salt and pepper

Toss together:

mango chutney mixture

cooked rice

cooked shrimp

1/3 c. chopped fresh mint

4 green onions, minced

1 c. frozen peas, thawed and salted

salt and pepper to taste

Korean Beef & Spinach

My mother collected this recipe back in the 1970s, from a fellow graduate student at Johns Hopkins University whose wife was Korean.  It can be made with fresh spinach instead of frozen, but frozen spinach actually packs a better nutritional wallop.

Beef cuts suitable for stir fry are very tender.  I typically pick up top sirloin when it's on sale and use it in this dish.  However, because of its low fat content, sirloin is very easy to overcook.  As soon as the meat looks sealed, add the spinach and sauce.  And as soon as they come up to temperature, pull it off the heat!

Korean Beef & Spinach

serves 4

Thaw 2 packages of frozen chopped spinach in the microwave, then drain in a colander.

Stir fry in 1 tbsp peanut oil for 1 minute:

1 bunch green onions, chopped

2 tbsp. sesame seeds

Add and stir fry until just cooked:
1-1.5 lb. beef (pref. sirloin or blade steak), cubed

Add and heat through:

thawed spinach

1/4 c. soy sauce

1 tsp. sesame oil

1 tsp. sambal oelek or sriracha (or to taste)

Serve over rice.