Gyoza

Gyoza Assembly Line


A True "Pot Sticker"


Repost from April 12 with a few more pix - also this time I bagged the filling and snipped off one of the bottom corners and piped the filling onto the gyoza wrappers. I tried Wing Hing brand wrappers...they were really good! A little more chewy, but they were very easy to work with and didn't tear easily - probably the better choice if you haven't made a gyoza before. Must use Meiji Soft Tofu for silky smooth texture!

http://cookingfromthekor.blogspot.com/2010/04/by-requestgyoza-rice.html

Turkey Cutlets with Fontina and Orrechiette with Tomato & Basil

Scott's Plate

My Plate

This is a spin on a repost. I didn't have any parm, so I used fontina. It's really yummy and surprisingly tender...I'm always happily surprised that it doesn't dry out!

Heat a large pot of water for the pasta. Preheat the oven to 400F - wash baby tomatoes, put in an oven proof pan with two cloves of garlic (whole/peeled), olive oil, salt and pepper - roast for 15 minutes. Cook the pasta until al dente.

Prep the turkey cutlets (available at Trader Joe's). Salt & pepper and dust with Wondra Flour (all purpose is fine too). Heat a pan with olive oil and a little butter. Brown the cutlets on both sides. Add 1 C of white wine, let it reduce - I use Sauvignon Blanc. Cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Add the fontina cheese (grated), cover and cook on low until the cheese is melted.

Put the roasted tomatoes on the stove, discard the garlic and squish the tomatoes with a spoon to release the juices. Add in a ladle full of pasta cooking water. Add the pasta to the "sauce" and turn on the heat. The pasta will absorb the tomato juice. Turn off the heat, add a pinch of red chili pepper flakes and hand torn basil leaves.

I plate up for Scott with no greens. I like the taste and crunch of red leaf lettuce (slightly wilted) underneath it all. Also prevents me from eating a huge portion of pasta (an Achilles' heel for me).

Here's a link to the post back on April 22:

http://cookingfromthekor.blogspot.com/2010/04/turkey-wparmigiano-reggiano-silver.html

Deconstructed Nachos

Is it just me or does everyone hate soggy nachos? This was my solution this past Sunday - pairs well with football and a beer.

Didn't have any chips, but I did have corn tortillas. As the oil heated in a pot, I cut them into triangles with scissors and prepped a plate with a couple layers of paper towels. Took out a can of black beans (organic from TJ's), threw the contents in a pot and let that warm through. Grated some cheddar cheese (we like Tillamook Medium). I had bought fresh salsa and sour cream from Whole Foods a couple days earlier. Also had bought a big bag of shishito peppers (none of which had any heat on them, but the flavor was good) from Marukai...rinsed those and threw them in a hot cast iron skillet with a little oil and salt and let them get some color. Meanwhile I added about 6 tortilla triangles into the hot oil and fried those until they were golden brown - turned them over until they were golden on both sides, removed to the paper towel lined plate and sprinkled with salt. Repeat until all were cooked. The chips were still hot enough to melt the cheese...the hot beans helped too. A little labororious getting food to mouth, but this was interactive eating!

Brisket #2

I made brisket back on April 21...I used basically the same method, but because I don't follow recipes and I use what I have available, this one is slightly different. Here's a revised repost:

Day 1: I put a dry rub all over the 1 4# brisket I picked up from Costco. Dry rub of your choice - anything that is suggested for beef and bbq...I usually start with Pappy's and in this case, that's all I used.

Day 2: Preheat the oven to 400F. Remove meat from refrigerator, bring to room temp. Heat a pot - preferably one with a lid preferably a Dutch Oven preferably a Le Creuset (it does make a difference!!!) - add canola or olive oil to coat the bottom. When nice and hot, add in the brisket and sear well on both sides (be patient!!!)...even if it burns a little it will still taste GREAT later/tomorrow! Remove meat from pot. Add in liquids (I vary this based on what I have around - this time it was red wine, chicken broth and a dash of Lea & Perrin's worcestershire sauce - other times it'll be beef broth, white wine, sake, water, beer, etc.) and deglaze the pan - stir the liquid in the pot and scrape browned bits of meat into the braising liquid. Add in the meat fat side up, bring to a boil. Place in the oven and let it cook covered, checking every hour or so to make sure there is still enough liquid (should come 1/2 way up the meat, leaving the top of the exposed). Cook for 2-3 hours. Remove pot from oven, uncover and remove meat from pot to a plate...it should be VERY tender. Ladle the liquid through a strainer and into a bowl. Taste the liquid for seasoning...This will be the sauce/gravy that you add to the plate after the meat is sliced - I use the Dutch Oven to reheat the sauce. Everything can be held at this stage, so it is a great dish to serve when you're entertaining!

Yesterday Scott and I ate it with rice, braised carrots and spinach, and a salad.

The second photo is only of the middle section of the brisket. The boys ate the two ends for their dinner with rice and cucumbers and tomatoes.

Confused Beef Stew

In hindsight I probably should have picked up my copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and used her recipe for Beouf Bourguignon, but I didn't...so today you get what I did to make that bowl above, but next time I'm going with Julia!

Inspired by an Irish Stew being made on the Food Network, I went to the store to pick up stew meat and barley (the same barley I used in the lentil soup - in the bins at Whole Foods). Because I'm all about using what I already have, I decide to make it a confused stew...I start by marinating the meat overnight in red wine just because I had wine in the fridge waiting to be cooked with...If I were to do it again with barley, I think I'd probably use a Guinness or two. Same method would apply - season meat and soak in alcohol.

The next day heat a large pot (Dutch Oven - enameled cast iron is preferred), add in oil to coat the bottom of the pot, drain off the marinade into a bowl (you will need it later as part of the stewing liquid), dry meat and coat the with flour and brown in the pot. Remove meat. Add in onion (1 diced), garlic (1 clove chopped fine) and carrots (2 chopped) cook for 5 minutes. Add the meat back into the pot along with broth (I only had chicken broth - beef would have been better), the reserved wine, a pinch of herbes de provence and a bay leaf...bring to a boil, then reduce heat and let it go for an hour and a half. Add in a handful of barley and mushrooms (1 pint halved). Cook for another 1/2 hour or as needed to get the meat very tender.

I boiled whole baby potatoes in salted water. Drained off the water and cut them in 1/2. Added a little butter and seasoning.

Served the stew right on top with a bottle of 2007 EII Cabernet Sauvignon.

Karaage - Japanese Fried Chicken

In a bowl I make a marinade using 1/2 C shoyu (soy sauce), 1/4 sugar (more to taste, my family doesn't like it very sweet), 1/4 sake and grate in some ginger (you can add in garlic or mirin if you like...a store bought teriyaki sauce may work too). Add in boneless, bite-sized pieces of chicken (I prefer thigh or leg meat with the skin on), stir to combine and refrigerate overnight.

Remove from the fridge about 20 minutes before you want to cook. Drain off the excess marinade and add in some cornstarch and/or rice flour right into the bowl (I just sprinkle it in...probably 1/2 cup total) - stir to coat all the pieces. The chicken will be very sticky and gooey.

Heat a pot with canola oil and prepare a sheet pan with a rack. When the oil is hot add in a few pieces of chicken. They may stick to the bottom of the pot. Gently scrape them off the bottom of the pot and continue cooking until dark brown. Remove to the rack lined sheet pan and let cool.

This can easily be a gluten free recipe...just make sure to use a gluten free tamari instead of soy sauce.

Schat's Bakery - Cheese Bread

One week ago Emiko had a post about Todd's Cheese Bread to rival "The Original Cheeze Bread" from Schat's Bakery. Well as luck would have it a friend went up to Mammoth this past weekend and this is what they brought back for us!

Cast iron skillet fried in butter! My kids were in heaven!

Spinach "Chips"

When they were little, it was a struggle to get my kids to eat their greens, so I came up with this crunchy spinach. I had had spinach lasagna at Vincenti and Angelini Osteria and both were served with fried spinach leaves as a garnish...delicious, but I didn't want my toddlers eating fried spinach so I used my griddle pan.

I lay the leaves out flat in a single layer on a lightly oiled griddle (olive oil wiped on the surface with paper towel) on medium/high heat and sprinkle with a little kosher salt. Turn over when they start to dry out and then let them get crispy.

My kids still request it!

Mac n Cheese #2

Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter a casserole dish (I use a good old fashioned Pyrex).

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a big pinch of salt. Cook macaroni for 3 minutes LESS than directed on the package. Drain well in a colander and stir in a little butter to keep the pasta from sticking together.

In the same pot, make a BECHAMEL (can also be used in a Lasagne Bolognese - "recipe" for a future date). Melt 1/2 stick of butter, whisk in 5 T Flour. Pour in 5 C whole milk (I only had 2% milk so I enriched with 1 C of 1/2 and 1/2) all at once and whisk constantly until it starts to boil and thicken. Remove pan from heat, add seasonings (salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, nutmeg - any and all to taste).

Adding in 5 cups of grated cheese of choice (any combination of gruyere, cheddar, swiss, emmantaler, fontina, pecorino romano, parmigiano reggiano, gouda, mozzarella, etc.) turns the bechamel into a CHEESE SAUCE (can be used just like this to get your family to eat veggies - broccoli and cauliflower come to mind). Add in the pasta, stir to combine. Pour into the prepared casserole dish. Top with plain bread crumbs (store bought is fine - Progresso, Pioneer...I used panko.). Dot with butter. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. Patience will be rewarded!

Repost from an earlier post with a few minor changes -

http://cookingfromthekor.blogspot.com/2010/03/mac-n-cheese.html

Lentil Soup

It was a cold and rainy night...I picked up some organic lentils and organic barley from Whole Foods and set out to make a large pot of lentil soup. The rest I wing from what's in the fridge.

Start with olive oil in my Le Creuset. Dice a couple carrots, one celery rib, 1/2 an onion and a package of mushrooms. Soak and clean the lentils while the vegetables saute until the onions are transluscent. Add in 1/2 a container of fresh tomatoes (those little ones) and 1/2 C of tomato puree (alternative is using a can of diced tomatoes or canned whole tomatoes chopped). Cook for about 5 minutes then add in chicken broth, barley and the lentils (I used the entire 1 lb. bag and 2 boxes of chicken broth). Stir well and let it go. If you want to add in a meat, ham or sausage or chicken or turkey would be great. I added in diced turkey breast from the other night.

Served with shaved parm and a loaf of bread.