JCC Tomo-spiced karkana ribenes - the foodies' thread

Oh for breakfast food, whilst a good English breakfast cannot be beaten I do have a fondness for a Taiwanese dish called dan bing. Dan bing is a thin crepe over which you add egg, spring onions, some sesame oil and cook up until the egg is omlette-like. You then roll it up, chop it up, and serve with the ubiquitous Chinese chili seeds sauce.

It's simple, delicious, and so hard to find outside Taiwan...

 

Let me know how it goes, and if you need advice! My explanation here was really vague, so you'll have to wing it, lol.

Mom made migas this past Sunday morning and included the tomato sauce this time. It's not a lot, but just enough to coat everything lightly and give it a good tomato flavor; the tortillas stayed pretty crisp this time. No cheese either - we busted open an avocado instead.

She also doesn't always use fresh spices, if she's not in the mood - a good quality garlic powder and freshly ground pepper (with generous salt, of course) at the very least will still make tasty migas.

 

I love Aragonese migas with fried chorizo and green grapes. Om nom nom.

 

Niiiiiice. That sounds like an awesome version.

 

Oh Christ, another Tunes.

 

Today's adventure: fish soup.

The secret to good fish soup is good fish stock. Every time you eat grilled fish, save the bones and heads in a box in the freezer. You should also save lemon skins, tomato peel, parsley stalks, celery leaves, and anything else that makes sense for stock. Once you have enough (the freezer box I use is approx 3 litres), just put everything in a pot, add salt, peppercorns, more herbs if you want to, cover with water and boil it down to about half the original volume. It looks absolutely disgusting (like boiling your garbage, really), but the result is worth it. Pour it through a sieve or cheesecloth and discard all the ingredients you used - unless you have cats, who will be delighted to eat them (mine even eat the lemon peel.)

You can use to stock on the spot or freeze it again to use when you need it.

To make the soup itself, I like to use leeks, carrots and potatoes, but you can also add celery root and/or fennel. I find that the soup is tastier with fatty fish (I normally use mackerel and swordfish, which is also easier because there are no bones and it's easy to cut in cubes) but what you choose is up to you.

Chop up all your veggies. Put a generous amount of olive oil in a pot and fry the leeks until golden. Add a big jar of fish stock, bring to a boil and add the other vegetables. Lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are half-done, add the fish and simmer for another 20 minutes or so.

Here's an important tip: there should be enough liquid in your pot to cover the vegetables when you throw them in, so add a little bit of water if there isn't enough stock. BUT: when you add the fish, don't add water straight away if it looks like there isn't enough. The fish will produce more liquid, so wait for 10 minutes before you add any extra water, otherwise your soup will be too watery.

Taste your soup about 5 minutes before it's done and add more salt and pepper if necessary. You can add lemon juice either before serving or put lemons on the table for people to help themselves.

I'm not giving quantities for this recipe, first because I honestly never bothered measuring anything when I make this soup, and second because it's never twice the same. I like my soup to be thick and chunky, but other people prefer it lighter. Just experiment!

Off to check on that fish stock now. The cats outside are meowing like mad, so it must be ready

 

I didn't discover my passion for food and for cooking until I moved out of my parents' home during college. I somehow got hooked on watching Hell's Kitchen, which led to Top Chef, which fueled my ever-expanding appreciation for fine dining. As for my own cooking, I began with very humble steps (ie. Foreman grill). I actually learned how to prepare some awesome meals with that nifty little device. I used it for pressing sandwiches to cooking all kinds of meats (I learned that if I apply a rub to my meats and wrapped them in tin foil, the Foreman grill locks in all that flavor).

Since then my tastes have evolved and so has my cooking. In my household, my wife and I both have our own signature dishes. She can whip up some amazing dishes with the slow cooker (and she has her own baking business). Her chili recipe is outstanding, along with her pasta-jambalaya, and she can make a delicious meat sauce. My own specialties include:


Cheeseburger Pizza (a spin on the recipe served at BJ Brewhouse--doesn't look like much but it's fantastic)


Pasta with homemade Pesto Alfredo and blackened chicken, and a simple (yet delicious) Chicken Parmesan (not shown) - Pairs wonderfully with a Frog's Leap Zinfandel or a nice Chianti


I've also changed my preparation for steak over the past few years and have arrived at a method that's delivered the best results:

Basically an evolved spin on the tinfoil Foreman grill preparation from my college days. I rub the steaks with sea salt (more than you'd think reasonable*), cajun seasoning, and garlic. Then I coat them with Heinz 57 and splash on some Worcestershire. Refrigerate overnight and then apply to the charcoal grill (preferably with some soaked hickory chips) until you reach a beautiful medium rare. Every bite is full of flavor. - Pairs nicely with the aforementioned Zin

*Originally, I used to not salt meats until they were approaching the desired temperature so as to not suck all the moisture out of them. However, I've found that this recipe actually provides a steak that is still quite juicy and especially flavorful


But I'm known among all our friends and this half of the neighborhood for my stuffed burgers (which somehow got dubbed "Man Burgers"):

This recipe evolved over a few months a couple years back, when some friends and I would get together every week to grill out in my backyard. In short, buy as much ground beef as you can afford, because each patty can range from 1-2 pounds . We typically use 93/7 (don't worry--they're still incredibly juicy). I mix several pounds of meat together in a large bowl with a couple eggs, some seasoned breadcrumbs, various seasonings (most consistently: cajun, garlic powder, sea salt, McCormick Onion, etc). Then I'll add sauteed portobello mushrooms and onions (which I've either cooked immediately before mixing the meat or had someone else sauteing while I began mixing), chunks of smoked gouda or sharp cheddar, and Heinz 57. Resume mixing until you've reached desired consistency and begin shaping patties.


Apply to grill. Half of my grill is charcoal and the other half is propane. For the burgers I'll use the propane half for a more even cook (though if I'm not in a hurry I'll use the charcoal half for that superior flavor). Sometimes I throw whole portobello mushroom caps on the charcoal side, though (previously rubbed with olive oil and garlic), only long enough to smoke them (ie. on the top layer of the grill, farthest from the flame).

Cook to a medium to medium well (you can also melt a second type of cheese atop the patties) and...




As you can see, they can be quite big (especially if you're of the mind to stack one of the smoked Portobello caps on top), so the preparation of side dishes are unnecessary


A nice twist was the addition of fresh guacamole, made with ingredients grown in my neighbor's incredible garden.

We typically pair the burgers with various beers

 

Ok that pizza and those burgers look divine

Currently prepping some pork in a thai-ish marinade (garlic, coconut milk, lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, turmeric, ginger, red pepper flakes) and making some coconut brown rice for tomorrow. Can't wait to have that all with some stir-fried veggies, mmmm

 

I need to use fish or oyster sauce more...

 

We just had Spanish cheese on olive bread and a delicious gewurztraminer.

I promise I also cook elaborate dishes. I wouldn't mind posting my personal recipe book in here, for your delight.

 

Although no especially exotic I would have to kill anyone who disagreed that the pork wonton in spicy sauce from Taiwanese dumpling restaurant chain Din Tai Fung is the tastiest thing ever made. Had them last night. Still happy.

 

Okay. It all looked and sounded amazing, but those burgers... Just wow. Question: we don't have McCormick onion in my country, what can I use as a substitute?

Please do that

Is that your personal definition of "the pursuit of happiness"?

I forgot to mention in the fish soup recipe yesterday that you can also use clam shells, shrimp shells, the tiny crab legs (those that don't really have any meat in them) or anything seafood for the stock. Unfortunately, I'm allergic to most types of seafood, so I can't do it, but I'm told it tastes great.

I'm experimenting with migas right now, combining @ThreadSketch's tips about spices with instructions I googled. The result is fabulous. It's first-rate comfort food

 

This may sound elitist, and that's not the intent, but McCormick is basically the lowest quality spice-/flavor-packet stuff locally (other than supermarket-brand things). Coming from someone who uses a basic and only slightly modified version of the original 1955 Philly Cream Cheese Cheesecake recipe for the last 35 years and just updates ingredients with better quality, organic ingredients it should be completely non-difficult to find something locally.

The McCormick spices come in four kinds of onion: onion power, onion salt, chopped onions (dried), and minced onions (dried). Some people with a recipe above substitute an onion soup mix in the burger patty mix (rather than all of the other spices too, usually) -- typically, in the US, with Lipton Onion Soup Mix (again, one of the lowest quality versions because it's super cheap and easy). So, options for you would be to find a global (or local Greek) spice company you trust and subbing the items 1:1, finding an organic version and increasing the quality 1:1 or replacing with a soup mix like you may have locally (Osem as a brand tend to be more global than Lipton, being an Israeli kosher food company owned by Nestle -- I don't recommend anything kosher, other than salt, as taste ends up being a bit off sometimes -- but fine in a pinch).

And, while I don't recall specifically Heinz availability globally for their specific Heinz 57 sauce, Heinz describes it (on the Wiki) as "ketchup spiced with mustard seed" so you can experiment locally without the sauce being available.

 

Honestly, you can use whatever blend of seasoning you enjoy. My palette enjoys powerful flavors, which is why I lean towards bolder seasonings. I'm not sure what brands or types of spices you may have access to, though. Last year, a friend of mine visited from Canada and I made these burgers. He loved them but was disappointed when I gave him the recipe, because he said that he wouldn't be able to find anything similar to Heinz 57 up there.

 

I'm learning how to make certain preparations of chicken. New goal is to make some type of stuffed chicken.

 

Honestly, chicken is my kryptonite. I just never feel like I'm comfortable with it being cooked through even though I often end up having it come out fine. I'm definitely not up to stuffing it with something like a cordon bleu preparation or anything.

 

Stuffing chicken is not as hard or scary as it seems. Pounding the chicken breast into a thin cutlet will help with heat distribution and cooking thoroughly!

 

Trying chicken with taco meat stuffed into it tonight.

 

Thanks dp4m Ezio Skywalker. I'm not sure we have anything similar to the McCormick stuff in Greece (and definitely no Heinz 57). People here tend to use the fresh product whenever available, especially in households where there's a Greek grandmother type, so I guess I'll have to improvise The "hamburgers" we get are in MacDonald's or equivalent, and when I travelled to the US a few years ago, I found out that hamburgers can be really nice, and I'd like to get something that tastes like a proper American hamburger from time to time

We have of course a whole range of meat patties here, I'm listing them below:

Biftekia are meat patties the size of the palm of your hand. You either grill them and serve them with chips (French fries) and tzatziki or bake them in the oven with tomato sauce and potatoes. The ingredients are: minced meat (I put two-thirds beef, one-third pork), bread crumbs, onion, parsley (and whatever other herbs you like), salt and pepper. You don't put egg in these, you just throw the onion in the blender with a bit of water, together with the herbs, salt and pepper, and knead it into the meat.

Keftedakia are small, deep-fried meatballs. It's the same ingredients as biftekia, but with egg instead of water. You beat the egg in the blender, then add the onion etc and knead into the meat, then you roll the meatballs and coat them in flour before deep-frying. If you beat your egg properly, they'll become crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside.

Soutzoukakia are oblong patties made with minced meat, bread crumbs, garlic and cumin (no onion!). The recipe originates from Asia Minor and there's a heated debate about whether you should put egg or not. My family is not from Asia Minor, so I don't have a particular opinion on the matter You can grill them, or you can fry them lightly in a skillet so they form a crust, then add tomato sauce and finish cooking them (the version with tomato sauce is called soutzoukakia smyrneika - from Izmir.)

And then there's kebab. In Greece, kebab is minced meat (lamb or half-and-half lamb and beef) with ground onion, ground bell pepper, parsley, vinegar, olive oil, salt, cayenne pepper and paprika. You add a bit of water to achieve the right texture and you shape it into a sausage on a skewer to grill it. It comes with tzatziki, chopped onion, grilled tomato and pita bread. That's the basic recipe, because it also comes in a million varieties (Iskender kebab for instance is the sort with oregano, mint, ground coriander, ground cumin, garlic and pepper.)

One last word about tzatziki, since it's an important topping for all of the above: pre-packaged tzatziki is an abomination that should be banned by law. Making good tzatziki is the easiest thing in the world, so there's no justification for buying the ready-made sort. All you have to do it buy Greek yoghurt from the grocery (I saw FAGE Total yoghurt in supermarkets in the US, so no excuses there), grate a cucumber and let it sit in a sieve for an hour or so, so the extra water drips away, and grind a couple of garlic cloves. Mix the whole lot, add salt, pepper and a dash of olive oil, and voila. The impostors selling pseudo-tzatziki will be out of business real soon

I Are The Internets, stuffed chicken isn't my specialty at all, but when I bake a chicken in the oven with potatoes, I always put a whole lemon, or better, a whole bitter lemon inside after slitting the peel. I find it gives the meat a nice aroma.

 

Chyntuck -- this would be equivalent functionally, assuming there is an onion version, and I have functionally interpretted Greek since I obviously can't speak it.

http://www.arista.gr/site/products_details.php?id=92

 

Well, if you don't speak Greek, you're a fast learner It is indeed a spice company (we have plenty of those), but I was talking about the dried onion thing. I'll try the onion soup mix as you suggested. Powdered soup we have!

 

I mean, that's what Ezio is talking about -- so if there's an equivalent version there. Go for it.

 

i worked my first sunday brunch today and i can now make a perfect french omelette. ours come with goat cheese and smoked mushrooms and bacon.

 

Reservation plz.

 

Well now I'm too scared to make stuffed chicken.