#onepotmeal Archives

Bowled Over, Udon Want to Miss My Newest Obsession (Udon)

By threejamigos | May 25, 2019 | Comments 0 Comment

Hang on to your hats, imagine Times Square, with all its neon signs and flashing lights dedicated solely to FOOD. Yep, that’s the only way I can describe the Dotonbori area of Osaka. Swarms of people, whose sole purpose is to find all things delicious to eat. A giant 3-D crab, or shrimp or potsticker over the door of a dining establishment making it easy to figure out their specialty. The delicious aromas swirling around, changing with every step as they walk by tempura houses, ramen joints, crab feasts and yakitori vendors.

Welcome to Crazy Town for food

Yep, we bit. Drawn by the people, hypnotized by the lights, we ate our way down the street. We tasted Takoyaki, octopus cakes, (not really cakes, I just couldn’t bring myself to call them balls). Think Ebelskiver with octopus bits. We munched on skewers of yakitori, sampled matcha and black sesame soft serve and found taiyakis, fish-shaped cakes filled with red beans.

Udon want to miss the noodles

Our last stop was the perfect cap for the evening. Walking back to our hotel we found a local shop in Namba with a trio of old cooks serving up delicious udon noodles. We decided what toppings we wanted on our noodles, slipped our yens (=TWO DOLLARS A BOWL) into the machine, and handed the tickets to the chef. Minutes later 3 hot steaming bowls of udon were placed in front of us.

Unlike ramen, the noodles are much thicker with a definite chew. The broth is flavorful but clear and light, fish-based, different than the rich, heavy broth that you find with ramen. Toppings are simple-fried tofu (abura-age), a raw egg that cooks in the steaming hot broth, a single tempura shrimp, or a clump of shredded seasoned beef and a sprinkling of green onion. We slurped our noodles and tipped the bowls to spoon out the last drops of broth. You’d think we hadn’t eaten all day. Ha!

Thus My Obsession with Udon Began…

As soon as I got home plus 12 hours of catch-up sleep, I pulled out my copy of Japanese Soul Cooking by Tadashi Ono. A gem of a book on homey Japanese comfort food. I flipped to the udon section and then I was off to the market to look for ingredients. I had purchased a delicious Dashi base in Tsujiki Market in Tokyo, perfect for my udon. To make your own Dashi here is a great primer from Just One Cookbook. OR, Kikkoman makes a soup base Hon Tsuyu that makes a pretty good dashi broth base.

Working down my list, next the udon noodles. Udon comes fresh, frozen, and (if you can’t find fresh or frozen udon) dried. Sigh, just not the same. I also found abura-age or fried tofu skin which is used to make Kitsune Udon. The fried tofu skins are flattened and seasoned with soy sauce and placed on top of the udon. Really delicious, and substantial enough for a satisfying vegetarian bowl of udon. It can be difficult to find abura-age though and in that case, Inari-age, seasoned deep-fried tofu pouches used to make Sushi Rice balls, is a convenient and easy substitute. No need to season, just plop them on top of the cooked noodles. Confused about tofu? Serious Eats’s Tofu primer is your ticket. The carnivore in me though, bought some thinly sliced beef (sukiyaki beef is perfect) to make Niku Udon, yummo.

Making udon is very approachable. It’s perfectly acceptable to start with a broth made from Dashi bags and pre-made noodles.

Travel to Eat

People travel to buy clothes and souvenirs, I buy food, Dashi, Furikake’, Soba Boro cookies…yep, travel driven by food.

Studying up, here’s the scoop, on udon.

I used Dashi packets to make the Tsuyu. This is your base, add soy sauce and mirin to flavor the Tsuyu.

Optimally, use Sanukiya noodles, most likely found in the frozen section of your favorite Asian market. The noodles are a bit firmer and hold up well. The pre-cooked noodles only take a couple of minutes to separate and heat in hot water, presto-dunzo. There are Korean versions of Udon noodles too, and they are very good.

Toppings for udon can be as simple as an egg, gently poached for the raw egg-squeamish, Abura-age, tempura, fishcake, or really ANYTHING you feel like putting on your noodles!

Kitsune Udon

Simple, satisfying, soulful, best describes a bowl of Udon, thick, slurpable, noodles, in a clear broth.

Course noodles, one bowl meal, One dish meals

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Kitsune, Udon

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Ingredients

Abura-age (Tofu)

1 package Abura-age or 4 Abura-age

For Simmering Abura-age:

3/4 cup dashi soup stock
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. mirin

For Soup:

5 cup dashi soup stock
3 Tbsp. mirin
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
Salt adjusting the amount of salt to your preference

Noods and Garnishes

4 packages pre-boiled udon noodles
Optional: 4 slices kamaboko fish cake for topping
green onions, sliced

Instructions

Heat dashi, mirin, sugar, and soy sauce in a medium pan and bring to a boil. Adjust the flavor with salt as you like.
Simmer aburaage in the soup on low heat until the liquid is almost gone. Set aside.
Boil water in a large pan and heat udon noodles as indicated in the package.
Drain the udon and divide into four bowls.
Pour the hot soup over udon noodles.
Top with seasoned aburaage and kamaboko slices.
Garnish with green onions

OR buy the more readily available Inari age or seasoned tofu pouches and just plop those straight into your bowl. Inari age is the fried tofu pouches used to make Inari Sushi

Or the carnivore delight…

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Niku Udon

Udon Noodles topped with stir fried seasoned beef and onions.

Course Soup

Cuisine Asian

Keyword japanese, Noodle, soup, Udon

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 15

Servings 4 servings

Author Adapted from Japanese Soul Food

Ingredients

Niku Ingredients

1/4 cup sake
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 pound sukiyaki beef or thinly sliced flank steak, ribeye
1/4 yellow onion, thinly sliced optional

Soup

6 cups udon tsuyu*

4 bricks fresh or frozen udon noodles can substitute dried Sanuki Udon
1-2 green onion thinly sliced
Shichimi togarashi

Udon Tsuyu

6 cups dashi
1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup Usukuchi soy sauce light soy sauce
1/2 - 1 teaspoon salt or to taste

Instructions

Tsuyu

Prepare broth and keep warm.

Beef

Combine sake, sugar and soy sauce in a bowl and stir well. Add beef and mix together, coating meat well. Marinade beef for 10 minutes.
Preheat dry non-stick skillet or well seasoned wok/iron skillet. If including onion, saute onion slices just until soft before adding the beef. Add beef and marinade to skillet. Spread beef in skillet to cook evenly. Cook over high heat until beef has lost its pinkness and most of liquid has evaporated, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Udon Noodles

Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add each packet of noodles. gently spread noodles out. When water comes back to a boil, the noodles are done. Drain well and divide among bowls.
Pour hot broth over noodles. Divide beef among bowls, garnish with green onions and shichimi togarashi. Serve immediately.

Two Pho-One Deal (Pho Ga Noodle Soup & Chicken Noodle Salad)

By threejamigos | April 15, 2019 | Comments 0 Comment

Last week I posted a teaser on Instagram and FB of a really quick version of Pho Ga, Vietnamese chicken rice noodle soup. “In less than an hour, you will be sitting down to a steaming hot, delicious bowl of noodles. Recipe post tonight!”

Sorry, stuff happens and I am a procrastinator by nature. Tonight is NOW, finally (my humble opinion, worth the wait).

I found the recipe for the quick and easy Pho in the Los Angeles Times. I LOVE that paper. When I lived in LA I religiously read the Wednesday Food Section (sometimes the front page but never the sports page-my dislike for the Dodgers never waned). Some of my favorite recipes and stalwarts in my repertoire are from the LA Times. I’m adding not only this Pho Ga Soup but a little gem that was tagged onto the end, a delicious chicken noodle salad, Phở Gà Trộn, made from the same ingredients, soooo good. I almost like it more than the Pho Ga. You can find the recipe and notes for Pho Ga Tron HERE. Both recipes are from Andrea Nguyen, Asian cookbook author extraordinaire.

Back to the Pho Ga. Aside from going out to your favorite hole in the wall for pho, making pho at home is a weekend project. Making it after a long commute, on a weekday, ridiculous! But a couple of shortcuts and whaddya know…nothing better than a delicious bowl of noodles after a horrendous commute.

Shhhh…The secret is to start with pre-made broth. If you have homemade-grrrrreat, if not, low sodium canned or boxed broth works well. Toasted coriander seeds, green onions, and ginger are added to the broth along with chicken, cilantro stems and salt. While the broth simmers for about 20 minutes, prep your noodles and garnishes. Boom, you have just doctored stock into a perfectly respectable, delicious, chicken soup for pho. For garnishes, I usually have cilantro, mint, green onions or Thai basil and limes on the table. Don’t forget to put out the Siracha and Hoisin Sauce!

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Quick Chicken Pho (phở gà nhanh)

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine Asian

Keyword Pho Ga

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Ingredients

3⁄4 inch piece ginger
2 medium-large green onions
1 bunch cilantro sprigs
1 1⁄2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1 whole clove
3 1⁄2 to 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
2 6- to 8-ounce boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh reserve one for noodle salad
1⁄2 teaspoon fine sea salt
5 ounces dried narrow flat rice noodles such as banh pho, rice stick or pad Thai noodles
2 to 3 teaspoons fish sauce
1⁄2 teaspoon organic sugar or 1 teaspoon maple syrup (optional)
Pepper optional
1/4 thinly sliced red onion optional for broth
2-3 dried shiitake mushrooms optional for broth

Garnishes

sliced green onions
chopped cilantro
Thai basil leaves leave on stem
fresh mint leave on stem
bean sprouts
lime wedges

Instructions

Peel then slice the ginger into 4 or 5 coins. Smack with the flat side of a knife or meat mallet and set aside. Thinly slice the green parts of the green onion to yield 2 to 3 tablespoons, and set aside to use as a garnish. Cut the leftover sections into 2- to 3-inch lengths, bruise, then add to the ginger.
Coarsely chop the leafy tops of the cilantro to yield 2 tablespoons; set aside to use as a garnish. Set the remaining cilantro sprigs aside.
In a 3- to 4-quart pot, toast the coriander seeds and clove over medium heat until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the ginger and bruised green onion sections. Stir until aromatic, about 30 seconds.
Remove the pot from heat for about 15 seconds to briefly cool, then pour in the broth. Add the water, cilantro sprigs, chicken, and salt. (optional, add mushrooms and red onions) Bring to a boil over high heat, then immediately then lower the heat to gently simmer for 20-25 minutes.
While the broth simmers, soak the rice noodles in hot water until pliable and opaque. Drain, rinse, and set aside. Test your noodles, they should be soft and pliable but still have a slight bite.
After 10-12 minutes of simmering, the chicken should be firm and cooked through (press on it and it should slightly yield). Transfer the chicken to a bowl, flush with cold water to stop the cooking, then drain. Set the chicken aside until cool enough to handle, then shred into bite-size pieces. You will only need 1 chicken breast for the soup. Reserve second one for noodle salad. If you don't plan on making the salad, use only 1 piece of chicken.
When the broth is done simmering, strain it through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium pot. Discard the solids. You should have about 4 cups broth. Season with fish sauce and sugar, if needed, to create a strong savory-sweet note. If using red onion you may not need sugar.
Bring the strained broth to a boil over high heat. Put the noodles in a noodle strainer or mesh sieve and dunk in the hot broth to heat and soften, 5 to 60 seconds. Lift the noodles from the pot and divide between the 2 bowls.
Reduce the heat to keep the broth hot while you arrange the chicken on top of the noodles and garnish with the chopped green onion, cilantro, and a sprinkling of pepper. Taste for seasoning. Return the broth to a boil and ladle into the bowls.
Extra broth can be refrigerated or frozen. You will need 1/2 cup of broth for the noodle salad.

Notes

Each serving: Calories 457; Protein 33 grams; Carbohydrates 70 grams; Fiber 2 grams; Fat 6 grams; Saturated fat 1 gram; Cholesterol 72 mg; Sugar 2 grams; Sodium 1,363 mg

Gettin’ Jjigae with Anthony Bourdain (Korean Army Stew)

By threejamigos | June 22, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

Ok. Are you looking at the pic above and thinking WHAAAT? Hot dogs? Spam? Kimchi? VanCamps BAKED Beans? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? It’s like Mom pulling things out of the fridge and the pantry to make dinner… in the 1960s. But stay with me, these are actually the building blocks for Anthony Bourdain’s version of Budae Jjigae or Army Stew. A crazy concoction created during the Korean War when food was scarce and the US Army PX was ground zero for processed foods like SPAM and hot dogs-cheap, available protein. Combined with familiar Korean ingredients, a not so healthy but totally delicious, comforting stew was born.

Anthony Bourdain’s mischevious side was in overdrive when he decided to make this dish for Anderson Cooper. He thoroughly enjoyed watching Anderson squirm as he popped open the can of SPAM, container of kimchi, hot dogs, rice cakes, plopped them in a pan and added a generous dollop of Gochujang or Korean pepper paste on top. Anchovy stock is poured over this bed of deliciousness and set to simmer for 30 minutes. A pack of INSTANT RAMEN is added at the very end. Ten minutes later Bourdain was doing a happy dance while slurping his noodles. So was an amazed Anderson. Catch the episode here, watch it, smile and remember his wicked sense of humor, his intellect and his ability to never take himself too seriously. Then go make your family a pot of Budae Jjigae to fill your tummy, warm your soul and comfort your heart.

This dish is like that bad boy you were always crazy about in high school, knew you should stay away from but just couldn’t. My favorite line in the clip is when he says to Anderson, “it seems so wrong but taste so right, like true love”. Budae Jjigae is right up my alley, processed meats, fermented vegetables, ground meats and instant ramen noodles, yum. I grew up on baloney sandwiches on white bread, Fizzies as the fruit in my lunch, Spaghetti out of a can, thanks to Chef Boyardee, and Friday night Swanson’s TV dinners. In college, I survived on instant ramen and Banquet frozen fried chicken. Those were the days.

Just before serving, place a slice of American cheese right on top so it melts and oozes all over your ramen. That literally takes it over the top. Thank you, David Chang, for that addition.

Tips for your Budae Jjigae

Use Korean instant ramen, my favorite brand, Shin Ramen. If you don’t make Budae Jjigae, at least try the instant noodles. Use the seasoning packet and up your ramen game with an egg cracked into your bowl of noodles (the soup will cook it) and topped with a Kraft single (uh-huh you all know what I am talking about, real cheese food). You end up with a pretty fine bowl of totally unhealthy but ridiculously yummy noodles. To appease your conscious add some veggies, corn, peas, kimchi or shredded lettuce.

If you can find it, use Vienna Sausages (those old enough know EXACTLY what I am talking about, mini hot dogs in a flip top can) in place of hot dogs.

Rice cakes (tokbokki) come either tubular or disc shape, either will work. You can find them at Korean markets, along with kimchi, Gochujang and pepper flakes.

In place of anchovy stock you can use Japanese dashi or broth.

Have plenty of beer on hand to wash it all down and to toast the life of Mr. Bourdain.

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Gettin’ JJigae with Anthony Bourdain (Korean Army Stew)

Ingredients

1 dried shiitake mushroom
4 large dried anchovies heads and guts removed, wrapped in cheesecloth
One 3 × 5-inch sheet dried edible kelp or konmbu Use Japanese dashi in place of anchovy stock
½ teaspoon sea salt
12 ounces SPAM cut into ½-inch- thick slices
1½ cups Napa cabbage kimchi tongbaechu drain
8 ounces sliced Korean rice cakes
1 white onion peeled and thinly sliced
2 scallions white and light green parts, thinly sliced
5 garlic cloves peeled and crushed
3 hot dogs thinly sliced
6-8 ounces ground pork
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons gochujang Korean fermented chili paste
3 tablespoons medium/fine gochugaru ground Korean red pepper he uses a dash only I used about a teaspoon, he did not come close to 3 T in the video...trust me start small
3 tablespoons cheongju Korean rice wineor Chinese rice wine of Sake
3 tablespoons canned baked beans
1 package ramen noodles preferably the Korean brand Shin, seasoning packet discarded

Instructions

To make the anchovy broth, combine the mushroom, anchovies, kelp, 4 cups water, and the salt in a medium, heavy-bottom pot, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes. Remove from the heat, strain and discard the solids, and set the broth aside.
Place the SPAM, kimchi, rice cakes, onion, scallions, garlic, hot dogs, and pork in small separate piles in a large shallow pot.
Add the soy sauce, gochujang, gochugaru, and cheongju to the pot, then slowly pour in the reserved anchovy kelp broth. Add the baked beans and 1½ cups water. Bring the contents to a steady simmer over high heat, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
Cook for about 10 minutes, then add the ramen noodles. Ladle the broth over the noodles to help them break apart. Continue to cook for 2 or 3 minutes, until the noodles are cooked through but still chewy.

Soup with Silken Tofu & Chicken Dumplings (A Thai-rrific, Easy Soup)

By threejamigos | April 10, 2018 | Comments 0 Comment

This month’s Food52 Cooking Club selection is Simple Thai Food by Leela Punyaratabandhu, a book I have had sitting on my shelf for quite awhile. The only recipe I have tried from the book is the Shrimp Pad Thai which was pretty darn tasty. But thanks to Food52 I am discovering it is a gem of a book. Each month the club features a different cookbook. A variety of old and new cookbooks, of which shockingly (lol), I own quite a few. Yes, confessions of a cookbook junkie.

Food52ers post photos and comments on recipes they try from the month’s selection. It’s a great way to find out which recipes are winners and which may need a bit of tweaking. It has definitely pushed me to actually try more recipes from the gazillions of cookbooks I have sitting on my shelf. Raindrops on roses and a cookbook treasure trove, Dumplings that are meatballs for soup simmering on the stove..these are a few of my favorite things…..lalala.

Yep, singing led to this delicious soup from Simple Thai Food, Clear Soup with Silken Tofu and Chicken Dumplings

It is quick, easy and DELICIOUS with just a teeny weeny caveat…hope you like cilantro!

Break It Down

The soup comes together in a snap. I used a commercial chicken stock to start with but you could use homemade stock. The chicken dumplings, really meatballs, start with ground chicken to which just a few ingredients are added, cilantro, fish sauce, garlic, pepper and an egg white for texture. Dump it in your food processor and blend until mixture is sticky and smooth. These dumplings are light with a fine grain texture not as chunky as meatballs, think city versus country rustic.

The stock is seasoned with onions and soy sauce and brought to a gentle boil. I used a small ice cream scoop to shape and drop my dumplings into the broth to cook. Add cubed soft tofu once it is heated through, literally a few minutes later, you have a delicious, flavor-packed bowl of soup. Finish with a garnish of cilantro and green onions.

This would be perfect as a light lunch or as a starter for dinner. The following day I took some liberties and added shredded Napa Cabbage and carrots and poured it over udon noodles for a satisfying, tasty noodle soup. Yumminess in a bowl.

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These are a Few of My Favorite Things (Soup with Tofu and Chicken Dumplings)

Ingredients

2 medium cloves garlic peeled
2 tablespoons cilantro stems or 2 cilantro roots chopped
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/2 pound ground chicken dark or a mix of dark and light chicken, should not be too lean
2 teaspoons fish sauce such as 3 Crabs brand
4 1/2 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium store bought chicken broth
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon thin soy sauce
1 pound silken tofu packed in water drained and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 green onions cut into 1-inch pieces separate the white from the green parts
1/4 cup cilantro leaves for garnish

Instructions

1.In a mortar or a small chopper, make a fine paste out of the garlic, cilantro stems/roots,
2.Place the ground chicken into a mixing bowl and add prepared paste. Add 2 teaspoons of fish sauce. Mix until homogenous; set aside. You can use 1 teaspoon soy sauce in place of 1 of fish sauce if you desire.
3.In a large saucepan combine broth with soy sauce, 2 teaspoons fish sauce and white parts of green onions. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a gentle boil. Scoop chicken mixture into 1-inch balls and gently drop into simmering stock. Repeat until all the chicken mixture is gone. Cook until dumplings float to the surface about 1-2 minutes.
4. Gently add the tofu cubes to the broth; return to a simmer, then add the remaining green onions and remove from heat immediately. Adjust the seasoning as necessary with more fish sauce or soy sauce.
5. Ladle soup into a serving bowl. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Some freshly-ground white pepper on top is optional, but recommended.
6. Is this blasphemous? I don't know, but it is delicious, add a handful shredded Napa cabbage and carrots to broth, simmer additional 2-3 minutes until vegetables are soft. Top udon or ramen noodles with broth, dumplings and vegetables. Garnish with cilantro and green onions. You can use a firmer tofu instead if serving with noodles. Hmmm...

Good Morning Mr. Phoods (Cilantro Chutney Chicken Curry)

By threejamigos | October 21, 2017 | Comments 0 Comment

Good morning Mr. Phoods:

The dish you are about to take-on requires that you answer the following questions. Your answers will determine whether you should proceed with this post or not.

Do you like cilantro?

What does cilantro taste like to you?

If you answered NO and it tastes like soap exit NOW by clicking on MII consolation

If you answered yes and yumminess, I LOVE cilantro…your mission, should you decide to accept it, will be to run to the store for cilantro, boneless chicken, peanuts, garlic, and onions and make this dish. As usual, if you or any other MII fans (Made In India) should be caught while making this dish you will be required to….invite me over for dinner. If not, the secretary (again me) will disavow any knowledge of you.

Yes, Meera Sodha’s Cilantro Chutney Chicken from her book Made In India is that good. It inspired me to create this homage to one of my all-time favorite TV shows.

Start by making the chutney. It’s sweet from the brown sugar, aromatic from the cilantro and tangy from the lemon juice. The peanuts give it body. If you have extra after making the chicken, spread it on some naan or crackers. Delicious. the chutney can be made in a blender. If it seems too thick thin it with a bit of water.

This cilantro chicken curry is very user-friendly. Despite being a newbie at cooking Indian cuisine, this dish was not intimidating, it was in fact very “doable” and takes just minutes to prepare. Saute boneless chicken with onions and a paste made of peppers, garlic, and ginger. Add the cilantro chutney and simmer until the chicken is tender. Top with the reserved onions that have been caramelized to a deep rich toasty brown. This dish is absolutely delightful. Every bite is a flavor explosion. Served on top of fragrant basmati rice and garnished with cilantro leaves, its a great one pot meal perfect for a weekday dinner.

Quick, easy…Mission Possible…completed. Signing off.

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Good Morning Mr. Phoods (Cilantro Chutney Chicken Curry)

Ingredients

Cilanto Chutney Chicken Curry

2- inch piece of ginger peeled and roughly chopped
6 cloves of garlic roughly chopped
3/4 fresh green chili roughly chopped (seeded if you prefer less heat)
salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 onions finely sliced
1 3/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, chopped into 3/4 x 1-inch pieces
6 tablespoons cilantro chutney recipe follows

Cilantro Chutney

4 ounces cilantro
2 ounces peanuts unsalted and unroasted
4 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 to 3 small fresh green chilis roughly chopped (seeded if you prefer less heat)

Instructions

Chicken Curry

Throw the ginger, garlic, and green chili into a mortar and pestle, along with a pinch of salt, and bash up to a coarse paste.
Put the oil into a wide-bottomed, lidded frying pan on a medium heat. When it’s hot, add the onions and fry, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes, until they are starting to turn golden. Transfer half of the onions to a bowl and put to one side.
Add the ginger, garlic, and green chili paste and cook for around 3 minutes. Put the chicken pieces into the pan, sear them on all sides and add the chutney. Stir the chutney, pop the lid on, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Cook for around 15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and tender.
In the meantime, transfer the onions from the bowl into a small frying pan and continue to cook them on a medium heat for another 10 to 15 minutes, until they are dark brown, soft, and sweet, then take them off the heat.
Add 1/2 teaspoon of salt (or to taste) to the chicken little by little, until it tastes just right, then take it off the heat.
Scatter the caramelized onions over the top of the curry just before serving. Serve alongside some steaming hot basmati rice or a pile of hot, homemade chapatis.

Chutney recipe instructions:

To wash the cilantro, fill a bowl full of cold water and put the cilantro in it. Move the cilantro around in the water, then take it out and shake off the excess water.
Roughly chop the stems and leaves and put them in a blender. Add the peanuts, lemon juice, salt, sugar, turmeric, and 2 small chilis, and pulse them in the blender until the mixture has a smooth, almost pesto-like consistency. Add some water to help the mixture to blend if necessary. The result should be a smooth cilantro chutney which is equally sweet, fiery, and lemony. Add the remaining chili, or more lemon juice, salt, and sugar to balance it to your taste, then spoon it into your clean jar.

FALL Into One Pot Meals (Instant Pot Korean Beef Stew)

By threejamigos | September 25, 2017 | Comments 0 Comment

As summer winds down I head to the back of my closet to pull out my sweaters and jeans. I also start yearning for comfort foods like stews and hearty soups. Over the weekend we made the rounds to our favorite food marts. We find short ribs for a delicious hearty Korean stew called Khal Bi Jim and right next to the short ribs…oxtails!

Are you thinking what? Oxtails? Are they really swish, swish, in the back of the …yep, they are. Haven’t tried them? The meat is rich and flavorful. It has a bit more texture than short ribs and if you like chomping on bones, you’ll love oxtails. There is another reason to give this recipe a whirl…

INSTANT POT

I google oxtails, pressure cooker and the blog Korean Bapsang pops up with a recipe for Koriijim or braised oxtails. Bingo. Normally oxtails need quite a bit of time braising to get to the tender fall-off-the-bone stage (which is generally around 3 hours). This means starting pretty darn early in the day to have dinner on the table at a decent time. This time? Brown the oxtails, pour the marinade/sauce over the meat, top it with carrots, potatoes, and onions. Then, twist the lid on and set the cooking time to 45 MINUTES. Yep, not a typo-45 MINUTES. Whoa, less than half the time to cook this dish. WOOHOO.

The recipe calls for onions, mushrooms, and carrots. I like lots of vegetables so I added potatoes and extra carrots. I might even add squash or another root vegetable like parsnips next time. If you don’t have dried shiitakes you can use fresh mushrooms. The recipe calls for a Korean plum sauce, maesil cheong, a sweet-sour sauce often used as a sweetener. Not having any I used Chinese plum sauce, which may be totally off base but it’s what I have and it is sweet and a bit tart. You can skip it altogether and use sugar and honey, 1 tablespoon of each.

Classic Asian flavors-soy sauce, sesame, garlic, ginger, and onions in a hearty, down-home stew. Delicious. As the weather starts to cool try this dish. If you are really not thrilled with oxtails try this with bone-in short ribs cut into 2-3 inch pieces (ask your butcher) just as tasty. I love autumn.

FALL Into One Pot Meals (Korean Beef Stew)

Ingredients

Adapted from Korean Bapsang

3 to 4 pounds oxtail
1 medium onion cut into large chunks
2-3 carrots cut into large chunks
1 white potato cut into large chunks Yukon Golds for a less starchy, russets for starchy
3 to 4 dried shiitake mushrooms briefly soaked and quartered (use fresh mushrooms if not available)

Braising liquid

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup rice wine or mirin a sweet Japanese cooking wine
1/2 medium Asian pear or 1 bosc pear or apple, grated
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 inch ginger grated (about 1 teaspoon)
3 tablespoons honey or sugar
3 tablespoons maesil cheong or 1 more tablespoon honey or sugar
pepper to taste

Garnishes

1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 scallions roughly chopped (and some finely sliced for optional garnish)
sesame seeds-toasted

Instructions

Trim off excess fat. Rinse the oxtail pieces and let them sit in cold water for 10 to 20 minutes to draw out excess blood. Drain well, and pat dry with paper towels.
Press the “Saute” button on the Instant Pot. When the pot is hot, add 1 tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil. Sear the oxtail pieces in two batches, browning all sides. Or sear in separate pan and place in Instant Pot
Combine ingredients for braising liquid and pour the braising liquid over oxtails. Add the vegetables.
Close the lid tightly. Press the “Meat” function, and using the “+” button, increase the time to 45-48 minutes. 48 minutes for softer meat. When finished, the Instant Pot will automatically turn to the “Keep Warm” mode. Leave the pressure cooker alone for about 10 minutes before opening the lid.
Stir in the scallion and the sesame oil. Remove the meat and vegetables from the pressure cooker. Strain the cooking liquid into a bowl to skim off the fat. Pour sauce over the ribs.
Garnish with the optional scallions and sesame seeds. Serve with hot rice.

Spicy Pulled Pork InstantPot, InstantGratification

By threejamigos | March 23, 2017 | Comments 2 comments

I just received an InstantPot pressure cooker for my birthday! This is right up my alley since I am a KITCHEN GADGET FREAK. Not exaggerating, I love kitchen appliances. I am the “what was I thinking, forehead slap” owner of donut hole pans, a strawberry corer, spiralizer, brownie squares pan, sous vide thingy, Ebelskiver pan, bread machine, the list goes on and on…

When I was a kid I went to Woolworth’s with my mom (yes baby boomers, Woolworth’s, remember?) in anticipation of a slice of their delicious gooey cheese pizza. Instead, I found myself in front of a demonstration booth, entranced. A voice boomed “it slices, it dices, it does it all. This is going to revolutionize cooking and help you escape from the kitchen” I watched as he deftly created mountains of julienned squash, chopped onions, sliced carrots, even waffle-cut potatoes. How I convinced my mom to buy this new fangled tool I will never know. But we walked out of Woolworth’s, a slice of cheese pizza in one hand and a Slice-o-Matic with a bonus Chop-o-Matic in the other! These days if I go to the mall with my kids they know there will be the prerequisite stop at Sur La Table or Williams Sonoma to peruse because YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MANY Kitchen tools.

The Pressures Off with an Instant Pot

The Instant Pot is the latest, hippest iteration of a pressure cooker. There are blogs, Facebook pages, and books devoted to the Instapot. It is a slow cooker, saute pan, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one. For you tech geeks you can download the app and program it using your phone. Crazy huh.

A few weeks ago NYT Cooking published Melissa Clark’s recipe for Pressure Cooker Spicy Pork Shoulder along with a video of her using the Instant Pot. It’s easy and delicious and best of all cuts cooking time by at least half.

The overnight marinade adds to the bold flavor of the dish

The liberal use of Korean chili flakes and Kochuchang, a sweet chili pepper paste in the sauce adds an Asian flair. If you are a pulled pork fan you will absolutely love this version. Marinade the pork in a mixture of chili flakes, honey, salt, and garlic overnight and then brown it the next day. Then saute’ the pork in the Instapot (which surprisingly took less time than I imagined) until browned. Add a bit of water, twist and clamp the lid shut, set the timer for 70 minutes, and chill out for a couple of minutes before making the sauce. Easy peasy.

Fusion BBQ Sauce

The sauce is made with chili paste, ketchup, garlic, fish sauce, honey, and ginger. As delicious as this sauce is it packs a punch in heat and flavor. A little goes a long way so add the sauce in small increments to taste.

The first day we shredded the pork, mixed in bbq sauce and juice (from the Instant Pot), and broiled the pork to crisp the edges. We served it on a bed of rice with sliced cucumbers and carrots, a Porki Bowl (get it?).

The quiet nods and hmms as we ate confirmed we had a winner.

This makes a more than generous amount of pulled pork. Luckily the kids were home for spring break and made quick work of the pork. Beyond our rice bowls, we had it with scrambled eggs for breakfast and in Hawaiian sweet rolls with a cabbage slaw for lunch. So good! This is a definite keeper.

The maiden voyage of my Instant Pot was a resounding success. Can’t wait for another opportunity to use it.

InstantPot Spicy Pork Shoulder from NYT

Spicy Pulled Pork made in an Instant Pot

Course Main Course

Cuisine American, Fusion

Keyword Instant Pot, NYTcooking, Spicy Pork Shoulder

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 2

Ingredients

5 garlic cloves grated on a Microplane or minced
2 tablespoons brown sugar or honey
1 tablespoon Korean chile flakes gochugaru or other chile flakes (Maras, Aleppo or crushed red pepper)
1 tablespoon kosher salt more to taste
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
5 pounds boneless pork shoulder cut into two or three pieces

FOR THE SAUCE:

1 tablespoon peanut oil
4 garlic cloves grated on a Microplane
2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger root
⅓ cup gochujang Korean chile paste or other chile paste or sauce such as Sriracha
¼ cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 tablespoons mirin
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon Asian fish sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil

FOR THE SESAME PICKLED CUCUMBERS:

6 Persian cucumbers thinly sliced (or about 4 cups sliced cucumbers)
1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons brown sugar
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
2 teaspoons sesame seeds

Instructions

To prepare pork, combine garlic, brown sugar, chile flakes, salt and pepper. Rub marinade all over pork. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour to up to 24 hours.
Set electric pressure cooker to sauté (or use a large skillet). Add pork in batches and sear until browned all over, about 2 minutes per side. Add 3/4 cup water to pot (or to skillet to deglaze, then move to pot), cover, and set to cook for 90 minutes on high pressure. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot so it doesn't scorch or the pot will turn off.
While pork cooks, prepare sauce: In a small pot, warm peanut oil over medium heat. Add garlic and ginger, and sauté until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Set sauce aside. (It can be made up to 1 week ahead and stored in the refrigerator.)
Manually release steam. Let pork cool until you can handle it, then shred it into bite-size pieces. Pork can be made in advance.
While pork cools, strain liquid from bottom of pot. Pour off fat (or chill liquid, then scoop off solidified fat with a spoon). Reserve.

Cucmber Salad

Prepare cucumbers: In a small bowl, combine all ingredients except sesame seeds, and let sit, tossing one or twice, for at least 20 minutes. Stir in sesame seeds.
To serve, heat broiler. Toss pork with sauce and 1 to 2 tablespoons cooking liquid — just enough so pork is evenly coated but not wet or runny. Spread mixture on a rimmed baking sheet, and broil until crisp on top, 2 to 3 minutes a little char is fine. Think burnt ends or tips, those are yummy.
Make a porki bowl! Top steamed rice with generous portion of pork and cucumbers. . Or make sliders with an Asian slaw

Addendum: St. Patrick’s Day, a week later was the perfect time to use the Instant Pot. Literally threw corned beef, pickling spices, an onion, and some garlic in the pot. An hour and a half later I had a platter of tender melt in your mouth corned beef with cabbage, potatoes and carrots (ok I slightly mis-timed the vegys so a bit on soft side) on the table. It’s a good thing.

Dad’s Fried Rice With a Little Tweak

By threejamigos | January 25, 2017 | Comments 1 comment

Having recently posted a fried rice recipe (Kim Chee Fried Rice-Koreatown), this comes a bit sooner than expected, but a couple of things prompted this post. The rain is back with a vengeance so I have been holed up at home with Sammy. The perfect time to scrounge around the fridge and use whatever we have for dinner.

I found leftover rice, onions, eggs, a bell pepper, and some Chinese sausage…yum, all the fixins for fried rice. It’s easy, delish, down-home food. To top it off, my brother’s family spent the holidays in Hawaii and brought me back SPAM per my request. I know you’re thinking-we have SPAM here, duh. Yes, but Hawaii is the Spam capital of the world. We have regular, lite, and less salt, but head to any supermarket on the Islands and you will find a dizzying array of SPAM.

Welcome to Spam-a-lot

There’s Tocino SPAM, Portuguese Sausage SPAM, Garlic SPAM, Teriyaki SPAM, Black Pepper SPAM, Jalapeno SPAM, and the list’s keep going. Who knew? My niece grabbed a can of Tocino (Filipino) Spam which just happens to be my favorite. It’s sweet and salty and perfect for fried rice. Fire up that wok, baby.

So this is a rift on my Dad’s Fried Rice. He would always use Chinese BBQ Pork but sweet Chinese sausage and SPAM (yes!) are a good stand-in. The beauty of fried rice is you can put whatever you like in and make it your own. The foundation of course starts with rice, preferably day-old rice (drier), aromatics such as minced ginger, onions, scallions, seasonings-salt, soy sauce, oyster sauce, white pepper, eggs, and some sort of protein bbq pork, spam, bacon, shrimp, your choice. My Dad always added peas and shredded lettuce in his for color and probably to sneak some vegetables in. Bell peppers, leeks, diced carrots are also great additions.

Go crazy and make your own signature fried rice, the sky’s (and what’s in your fridge) the limit.

Dad’s Fried Rice Gets an Island Makeover

A delicious island version of fried rice, chinese sausage and Spam, proteins contributing flavor and texture!

Course dinner, lunch, One dish meals, Side Dish

Cuisine Asian-American

Keyword downhome, fried rice, homemade, lop cheung, rice, spam

Prep Time 20

Ingredients

2-3 cups cooked day old rice long grain preferred, but short grain will work
1 T vegetable oil
1/2 onion finely chopped
1/4 cup diced red or green bell pepper*
1/2 cup diced carrot*
2-3 slices fresh ginger minced, 1 clove garlic minced (optional)
1/2 cup diced Chinese bbq pork or SPAM
1 Chinese sausage lop cheung and 2 slices of spam, diced
2 eggs slightly scrambled
1/2 cup green peas
1-2 green onions coarsely minced
1/2 cup shredded lettuce iceberg or romaine

Seasonings

1 T soy sauce
1 T oyster sauce
1/4 t sugar
1/4 tsp salt
white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil optional

Instructions

Heat a large saute' pan or wok and add the 1 T of oil to pan. Add onions, bell pepper (and any raw vegetable you like such as diced carrots or bell peppers) to the pan.
Saute' until vegetables are soft approximately 5 minutes. Add Chinese sausage and SPAM and continue to saute until sausage is heated through and SPAM is brown and with crispy edges.. Remove from pan to bowl and reserve.
To the same pan add 1 T oil. When shimmering add ginger and garlic (optional) and saute' until fragrant (15-30 seconds)
Add rice to pan, breaking up the clumps as you stir fry the rice and ginger. When the rice is coated with the oil, move rice to the perimeter of pan creating a well in the center. Pour eggs into center of pan and scramble. As soon as the egg is slightly set mix into rice, do not overcook the egg.
Toss vegetable mixture back into the pan along with the peas. Stir to incorporate and heat through.
Season with soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil is using, and pepper. Taste, use salt if necessary.
Just before removing from pan add shredded lettuce and green onions
Garnish with green onions or cilantro if desired.
Serve immediately.