Pasta Milano

One of my go-to dishes at Macaroni Grill was this. To be quite honest, I don't remember how it tastes, only that it was cream based, with mushrooms, bowties, and chicken. For whatever reason, I remembered it having asiago cheese. How fortuitous that asiago was on sale ^^. Through the magic of google, I found this recipe.

Ingredients (serves 4)
500g bowtie pasta, cooked and drained
6 slices bacon, chopped
2 chicken chicken breasts, butterfly-cut
1 heaping tsp minced garlic
thyme
sage
1 lb mushrooms, sliced
500mL half and half
1 tsp chicken boullion
150g asiago cheese, finely grated
1 tbs cornstarch
4 tbs sundried tomatoes, chopped.

Method:
Fry bacon, drain and put into a large bowl.
Fry the chicken. When it is almost done, add in garlic, thyme and sage.
Remove from heat, let rest a few minutes, then slice and add to bacon.
Sautee the mushrooms until they release their moisture. Add the contents of the pan, including the mushroom juice into the meat bowl.
Turn the heat to medium/medium-high and heat up the cream.
Whisk in cheese and boullion and mix until the boullion has dissolved, and the cheese has mostly melted.
Stir in the cornstarch dissolved in 2 tbs of water.
Add in the meat, mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes and heat through.
To serve, toss with pasta.


Comments:
I only later remembered that it was called Pasta Milano and went a-hunting for the recipe. It's just as well, because the first recipe I found didn't even call for cheese.

This really needs something tangy, like capers or sundried tomatoes, or even just lemon juice to offset the bitter aftertaste of the cheese.

It is not necessary to make this totally smooth (I don't even know if it's possible, because I didn't have a whisk.


Verdict:
I like it, but I don't think it's quite on the mark.

Japanese Hamburg Steak (ハンバーグ)

I saw on Nicole's blog that she had made these, and whilst planning for this week's meals, I realised that we had some bread that was in danger of molding, and beef that could potentially get freezer burn. Perfect.

The reason for not using her recipe eludes me, but I found a recipe for this here.

A bit of background:
This is a pretty popular dish in Japan, especially in bentos. You'll also find it in Western restaurants. It's remniscient of Salisbury steak, or a meatloaf. The sauce makes all the difference.


Ingredients (Makes 6 patties):
2 cups ground beef (probably about 1lb)
1 egg
0.25 cup milk
4 slices whole wheat bread
1 small onion, finely chopped
Maggi seasoning
Ground pepper
Ketchup
Worcestershire sauce


Method:
Sautee onions in a fry pan. Set aside.
Toast the bread and break into pieces to fit into a dry mill (I have a Bamix hand blender) and process in batches to get crumbs.
In a large bowl, mix together milk, eggs, Maggi and pepper.
Mix in beef, bread and onions with your hands and thoroughly incorporate everything.
Flatten the mixture to the bottom of the bowl and make 6 equal sections.
Take a section, roll it into ball and pass it back and forth between your hands to force out air pockets.
Make a patty with an indent in the centre and set on a plate.
Repeat with the other five sections.
Heat up a fry pan and brown the patties (You'll probably have to do it in batches).
Put in a layer of hot water, cover, and steam on medium-low for about 10 minutes to thoroughly cook.
Repeat as necessary to cook all the patties.
To make the sauce, put in equal parts ketchup and worcestershire sauce into the pan, mix and heat.
Serve with rice.


Comments:
For those new to cooking, the egg helps to hold the meat together, and the bread keeps it moist.
I just have to say that while I had no problems handling the meat, I didn't like trying to wash the grease off my hand after. The fat had actually solidified under my nails, and it was a pain washing it all away.


Verdict:
Good! There's lunch for the next day.

Linguine Carbonara

We had breakfast for dinner the other night (oh, so good!), and had sausage, bacon and eggs leftover. Not sure what to do with the sausage, but bacon and eggs calls for carbonara! I haven't had this since SE Asia last year (I know, weird place to have it). Carbonara from a jar is just disgusting (I had it in Sydney), so here's to hoping that I've got better luck making it from scratch!

Original recipe here.

Ingredients (4 servings):
500-600g linguine
2 cups frozen peas
8 slices of bacon, chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
4 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork.
1 brick (~100-200g) freshly, finely grated parmesan
4 tbs olive oil
freshly cracked pepper

Method:
Fry the bacon pieces until cooked, then lightly sautee with garlic.
Drain the oil, and set the bacon aside.
Cook the pasta.
Add in peas during the last bit of cooking.
Drain the pasta and DO NOT rinse with cold water.
Return the pasta to the pot and toss with bacon, and some olive oil to prevent the pasta from clumping. Use more oil as necessary.
Mix the cheese into the bowl with the eggs, and then the mixture to the pot.
Toss the pasta until thoroughly mixed, and the cheese has melted.
Serve with pepper.


Comments:
There's supposed to be onions in this, but I forgot to pick it up when I got the cheese.
When I made this, I didn't realise that we had used the same amount of pasta, but I had halved the other ingredients. The end result was a bit dry and bland.
The egg is cooked by the heat of the pasta. If you don't feel good about eating egg that's barely cooked, you could turn on the stove again, but I imagine it would stick... like lots.
There is a HUGE price difference between parmesan from the deli and parmesan from the dairy area. We used the dairy stuff, and it was fine.
I had an epiphany partway through the meal that I'd forgotten to toss with olive oil. The stuff was quickly clumping and it was dry. I was almost done, so it didn't matter, but the portions for lunch the next day were remedied, and survived.



Verdict:
I liked it, despite the little mishaps.

Oyako-don (親子丼)

Before work in Japan got super hectic and I started eating at Wendy's on a far-too-regular basis, rice bowls were the way to go. When we did a foods section, oyako-don would come up as one of the easier items to make. It has taken 3 years, but here is my attempt. I shamelessly took the recipe from Nicole here. She's got the pretty pictures.


Some background: 'oyako' roughly translates to 'mother and child' interpret that how you wish =P


Ingredients (for 2):
Cooked rice
500g chicken thighs
4 eggs, beaten in a bowl
1 onion, sliced

Sauce: Mix the following together in a bowl and set aside
1.5 cups water with fish sauce mixed in
3 tbs mirin
3 tbs soy sauce


Method:
Debone and deskin the chicken. Then cut into bite-sized pieces.
In a fry pan, stir-fry the chicken until partially cooked.
Add in the onions and stir fry together until the chicken is mostly cooked.
Add in the sauce and cook until the chicken is done.
Pour in the egg, cover, turn off the heat and let sit for 2 minutes until the egg sets.
Serve over rice.


Comments:
The onions released some moisture as they cooked, so the end result was a lot more watery and watered down than I would've liked. I would use only 1 cup of water. Oh, and the water and fish sauce is my cheating version of dashi.

Preparing the chicken took bloody ages. I'm debating whether or not I should bite the bullet and buy skinless boneless.

Will was kinda put off by the fact that the egg would be half-cooked, so I let it boil a bit. The water was very aerated, which caused the egg to break apart and look kinda puke-y. A simmer would've worked better.


Verdict:
Yum!

Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐)

We've been in the habit of buying mapo tofu from a restaurant at the Village, and I thought it probably isn't really worth it, so here goes. It's also the last day before I go back to work tomorrow. I am going to miss these restful days of Spring Break. (Seriously, here's to hoping that the new schedule gets passed.)

Ingredients:
2 blocks tofu, cut into cubes
ground pork (probably about 0.5lbs)
1 cup frozen green peas
minced garlic
ginger paste
sesame oil
3 green onions, chopped
salt
soy sauce
black bean paste
chili sauce
ground Szechuan pepper (flower pepper)



Method:
Marinate the pork in a tablespoon of cornstarch and some soy sauce.
Boil a pot of water. Add tofu and peas and heat through. Drain and set aside.
Stir-fry the pork until no longer pink. Add garlic and ginger and stir-fry until very fragrant.
Add beans and mash with meat to mix well.
Add chili sauce, tofu, peas and onions. Mix.
In a small bowl, mix cornstarch with water and soy sauce. Add to pan and cook until thickened.
Stir in some sesame oil to taste.
Transfer to serving bowl and top with ground Szechuan pepper and green onions.
Serve over rice.


Comments:
We did not drain the tofu very well, so the end result was a bit liquidy.

Will likes it with peas, so in they go. You, of course, don't have to.

The Szechuan pepper has a rather distinct taste. Not sure if I really like it, but it did impart that numbing sensation.



Verdict:
Not quite like in the restaurants, but good.

Red Oil Wontons (红油抄手)

These have got to be my favourite item in a Taiwanese or Shanghai restaurant. More so than the coveted siu loong bao (Will's Demon Baos) or the deep fried bun with condensed milk.

Been meaning to try to make them for a long time, and Nicole emailed me three recipes a while back, and after a bit of googling, I found a very similar one to the easiest one here. (I was too lazy to post the email here. Linking is so much easier =PP)


Ingredients:
Wontons:
wonton wrappers
ground pork (probably about 0.5 lbs)
1 egg
sesame oil
salt
ground black pepper


Sauce:
chopped garlic
chopped green onions
peppercorn chili oil (red oil)
Chinese sweetened black vinegar
soy sauce
ground black pepper



Method:
Wontons:
Beat the egg with a fork. Mix with the seasonings. Add pork and mix well.
Put a small amount of pork in the centre of the wrapper and bunch the dough around it.
Boil a pot of water with some oil to prevent sticking.
Boil the wontons until they float, then leave for 2 minutes to ensure thorough cooking.
Drain and set into a bowl.


Sauce:
Mix everything together in the proportions that you like.
Pour over the wontons.


Comments:
I know, this was a horrible 'recipe'. But I was being really lazy and really based it on taste.

The amount of pork was way too much for just the two of us. We froze some for later.

I added in a bit of tahini (sesame paste) for texture. I don't think it contributed much to taste.

I also think I should've bought the chili oil with the ground chili bits, rather than the pure oil.


Verdict:
The wontons were overcooked, and the sauce, while good, was not quite right.

Bulgogi (불고기)

A while ago, Will's mom gave us a bottle of Sempio Bulgogi sauce. Eddie has since told me that it's good stuff. Seeing how I am still procrastinating about buckling down and lesson planning, more cooking (and therefore blogging) is in order. (Don't worry; I am ready for Tuesday, but not yet Monday.) The bottle came with a handy-dandy mini-booklet of recipes, making life easier. As usual, adjustments were made to what was on hand.

Bulgogi traditionally has been an open-flamed beef dish. It is now commonly stir-fried, and that's my route.

Ingredients (serves 2):
0.67 lbs thinly sliced beef (rib eye was on special at T&T)
1 onion, sliced (280g)
325g sliced mushrooms
1 red pepper, sliced (320g)
Bulgogi sauce

Method:
Place all the solids in a large bowl. Mix with enough sauce to coat everything. We used about a 1.5 cups)
Marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Heat a fry pan and cook until meat is done. It took us 3 batches.
Season with pepper as needed.
Serve with rice or noodles.


Comments:
To help things cook faster, we covered the pan to trap in the steam. This led to the entire thing being rather liquidy, after the mushrooms cooked. It would probably be better if the mushrooms were cooked separately first, then added back into the mixture after everything else was cooked, just to incorporate.

I would also marinate the meat separately. There was no way to make sure that the meat was really coated when it was in with all the veggies.

The onion and pepper also needed to be more thinly sliced. I'm not a huge fan of peppers, so I should've only put half of that pepper in. (The peppers were massive, and that was the smallest available. Sad.)
It needed zucchini. I LOVE zucchini.

A properly smokin' wok would've given it loads of flavour, but that can't be helped =P

Verdict:
Ok. It'd probably be a lot better with the above adjustments.

Okonomiyaki (お好み焼き)

Okonomiyaki's dear to my heart, as it was one of the funner lunch choices available during my stint in Japan (the frequent choices being Wendy's (regrettably cheap and the nearest shop), donburi, and whatever was on sale at Seiyuu).

Some background:
Okonomiyaki is a specialty of the Kansai region in Japan, which encompasses Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe. It is often described as a savoury pancake, or a Japanese pizza (a total misnomer). The basic ingredients are cabbage mixed into a batter, then fried with whatever other ingredients you like. The name actually means "as you like."


Ingredients (makes 4):

2 cups flour
1 cup water
fish sauce
0.5 lb thinly sliced pork
1 smallish head of cabbage, about 2lbs, coarsely shredded by the v-slicer french fry insert
3 green onions, chopped (sprigs? stalks? including the white part)
4 eggs

Okonomiyaki sauce
Japanese mayonnaise
Katsuobushi (bonito flakes, dried fish shavings)
Dried seaweed flakes


Method:
Mix flour with water to get a thick batter. Add more water as necessary.
Season with fish sauce or salt.
Let rest in the fridge for an hour (optional).
Fry the meat flat. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, mix a quarter of the cabbage, green onions and batter together.
Create a well in the centre of the mixture, then crack an egg in and mix together.






Heat a non-stick pan on medium heat.

Place a few strips of meat in the pan. Pour the batter on top and shape into a disc.
Cover and cook on medium until the bottom sets (~5 min).
Flip it, flatten it a bit, and cook until the centre sets (~5 more min).

Transfer to a plate and top with sauce, mayo, bonito and seaweed.









Comments:
We couldn't find aonori, which is seaweed sprinkles, so we used larger flakes of nori instead. It still tastes good, but it has a tendency to stick to your utensil.

If you don't have okonomiyaki sauce, a sweet barbeque sauce would do. You could also make it with ketchup, worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and sugar.



Verdict:
Yum! Takes a bit of patience, though.

Mushroom Tamagoyaki

Tamagoyaki is a super popular dish in Japan. We ordered it almost every time we went to an izakaya. It's basically a sweet omlette, but with thin layers rolled up. It's fairly easy to make, and I decided to add mushroom because we love it around here.

I didn't have dashi (fish stock) on hand, so I cheated and used fish sauce with some water.

Ingredients (makes 2 rolls):
4 eggs
3 tbs water with a 2 splashes of fish sauce
2 tbs sugar
150g mushrooms, sliced


Method:

Sautee mushrooms and set aside.

Beat eggs in a bowl.

Add water, fish sauce and sugar and mix.

Heat a non-stick pan on medium.

Pour some egg in the pan and allow it to spread evenly.

If you are using a circular pan, spread some mushrooms along the diameter.

Fold the egg over and roll to cover the mushrooms.
Move the roll to the far side.

Pour some egg, lifting the previously cooked egg so a new layer will cook under it. Roll the egg towards you. Repeat as needed to make a smooth, egg roll.

To serve, cut thick cross sections.

Optional: Swirl some Japanese mayo on top. Soy sauce, and ground daikon also make great condiments.

Comments:

If you use a regular pan, be sure to oil the pan before each egg pour.

There's actually a special rectangular pan to make this. Makes it easier, and prettier.

I clearly don't know how to use blogger, so these pics'll hafta do.

Verdict:

A bit sweet, so you can cut down on the sugar.

Mama Grewal's Butter Chicken

One day during work, the tantalizing aroma of Indian cooking wafted up into my third-floor classroom, and after some chatting, I got this from the Home Ec department.

Here is the original recipe. Eddie and I did quite a few things differently.

For 2:
25 mL vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 skinless, boneless chicken thigh, diced
2 mL cumin
1 mL pepper
1 mL ground ginger
2 mL curry powder
125mL diced tomatoes with juice
50 mL milk

Sautee garlic, add chicken and brown slightly.
Stir in cumin, pepper, tumeric, ginger and curry powder.
Add tomatoes. Mix thoroughly. Cover and simmer 10-12 minutes.
Add milk and heat thoroughly. Serve.


Sounds simple, right? Here's what we did:

Ingredients (for 8-10):
olive oil
2kg boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced
3 tsp pre-chopped garlic
3 squirts of ginger paste
1tbs (probably) ground cumin (using mortar and pestle)
ground tumeric
curry powder
2 cans (800mL each) diced tomatoes
ketchup
sugar
cayenne powder
milk powder (we were out of milk)
flour

Method:
Start heating tomatoes in a large pot on medium heat.
In a pan, sautee 1 tsp garlic in olive oil. Add a third of the chicken and brown slightly.
Add in a squirt of ginger and some spices and sautee for a bit longer. Mix into the pot.
Repeat until all the chicken is done.
Cover the pot and simmer, stirring occasionnally.
When the chicken is cooked, taste and add ketchup, sugar, milk powder, and cayenne powder until desired flavour and colour is achieved.
Simmer on low, uncovered, until tomatoes fall apart. Stir occassionally.
When ready to eat, taste and adjust, and if the mixture is too soupy, add flour mixed in water to thicken. Heat through before serving.

Comments:
As you can see, we were not very rigorous with the recipe. It was pretty much all taste and adjust. We probably spent a good 5 minutes mixing and tasting and mixing and tasting.


There was a bitter finish to the sauce, which really bothered us while we were cooking (It wasn't as noticeable when served with rice and bread). It could have come from a number of factors:

• Possibility of burnt garlic (we weren't too careful about scraping off everything in the pan before browning the next batch of chicken.
• Cumin: we ground the cumin because we didn't want to chew on whole cumin seeds, so I probably could've used less. I also didn't measure out the cumin.
• In browning the chicken with the spices, we could've burnt the spices and not notice.

This was a lot simpler than my first recipe, which is not posted here.


Verdict:
Decent, but it didn't have the depth of flavour that I'm used to with Indian food. On a side note: Eddie makes a good sous-chef. Thanks for helping!

Turtleburgers--OMG

Saw this on a facebook post. Check it out
bacon-cheese-turtleburger