Sesame Crusted Seared Ahi Tuna with Soba Noodles

From growing up in Hawaii, I have a very deep love for all kinds of sashimi (raw sushi fish usually salmon and tuna). I often dream about making it at home and if I wasn't scared to death of making myself ill from eating raw fish, I would probably make this dream a reality almost EVERY DAY. Because I don't trust myself or the likes of raw fish that has been sitting on grocery store selves for questionable periods of time... I thought that the ultimate compromise might be in searing the fish. This way our bacterial friends die and we get to get to enjoy the butter delights of sashimi like fish. Sounds like a great compromise to me!


For Sesame Crusted Ahi Tuna:

                   2 Ahi Steaks cut 1 inch wide by about 3/4″ thick
                   2-3 Tablespoon of olive oil
                   2-3 Tablespoon of white sesame seeds*
                   2-3 Tablespoon of black sesame seeds*
                   1 teaspoon of kosher salt
                   1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
                   1/8 tsp red chilli flakes (optional)
                                 *You can use all  black or all white sesame seeds

Remove the Ahi from the refrigerator about 20-30 minutes before you intend to cook it. Using your hands, rub the outside of the Ahi with the olive oil to coat it evenly on all sides. Mix the seeds, salt and optional red chili flakes in a small mixing bowl. Toss in the olive-oil coated Ahi and to coat it evenly with the seed mixture. Heat a saute pan over high heat (See #2 below) until it is very hot. Add the Ahi. Sear for 1 minute and 30 seconds per side. Remove the Ahi and slice thinly to serve.

Shitake Mushroom Soba Noodles: 

                 1 lb shitake mushrooms, stemmed and chopped
                 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
                 1 tablespoon mirin (japanese cooking wine)
                 1 tablespoon soy sauce
                 1 lb buckwheat soba noodles
                 1 tablespoon gingeroot, minced
                 1 large carrot, diced
                 1/2 lb sugar snap peas, sliced
                 2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Put a medium pot of water to boil. Combine the sesame oil, mirin, and soy sauce with a whisk in a bowl. Lightly oil a pan on medium eat and saute mushrooms till browned on all sides. While the shiitakes are grilling, place the soba noodles in the boiling water and simmer for about 8 minutes. Drain and rinse the noodles and put them to the side. In a wok or skillet over medium-high heat, add a small amount of sesame oil. Add the ginger and saute. When the ginger releases its fragrance, add the carrots and cook for about one minute. Add the sliced snap peas and incorporate with the ginger and carrots. Once the peas are warmed through, remove from the heat and reserve warm. Add the soba noodles to the sauteed vegetables. Add a dash of extra soy sauce, if desired, and mix to thoroughly combine. Garnish with seared tuna and green onions sliced in long, thin, narrow strips. Enjoy!

Lemongrass Salmon with Bok Choy Stir Fry

Throwing a good dinner party is one of my favorite past times. As lovely as being a host can be, I also appreciate the evenings when I get to be a guest. Aside from the relaxing conversation and leisure this type of situation provides, it expands my culinary mind and enlightens me to flavor combinations I would not otherwise come up with. A few weeks ago a wonderful new group of friends cooked up the most amazing halibut I have ever had. Their secret? Lemongrass. They added lemongrass and cilantro with a bit of sweetness to a buttery rich fish and vola! Clearly something worth reenacting, so I dreamed up a dish with a similar flair- Lemongrass Salmon with shrimp poppers.

 

Lemongrass Salmon

                      2 Salmon fillets

                      1 1/2 tablespoons chopped lemongrass

                      1 1/2 teaspoons packed light brown sugar

                      1/4 teaspoon salt

                      2 tablespoons chopped shallot

                      1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce

                      2 Tablespoons oil
                      1 lemon
                      3 Tablespoons butter
                      1 bunch chopped fresh cilantro
                    *6 raw shrimp cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Run your finger along the flesh side of the salmon filets to check for any bones. Remove them with tweezers. Set aside.  In an electric food processor, grind the lemongrass, brown sugar, and salt to a minced texture. Add the shallot, fish sauce,  and oil. Run the machine, pausing to scrape down the sides, to arrive at a coarse paste. Taste it and adjust the flavors to create a heady paste that’s a little saltier than you’re comfortable with. You can also "water it down a little" with a bit of water and/or oil. Which I recommend.  Rub a baking pan with oil. Place the salmon in the tray (as well as the chopped shrimp if you choose to add them), skin down and evenly spread the marinade over the top of the fish. Squeeze the juice of one lemon over the mixture, as well as a bit of fresh cilantro.  *Optionally also poor 3 tablespoons of melted butter over top. Bake uncovered til the salmon is no longer deep pink on the inside (approximately 25 minutes).

 

 
Bok Choy Stir Fry 
                     1 onion chopped
                     2 carrots chopped
                     1 container bamboo shoots
                     1 container water chestnuts
                     1 red bell pepper chopped
                     1 bunch brocolini (or broccoli)
                     4 heads Bok Choy
                     3-4 shitake mushrooms*

       Sauce:
                    2 Tablespoons oyster sauce
                    2 Tablespoons soy sauce
                    2 Tablespoons fish sauce (or 1 Tbs soysauce and 1Tbs sugar)
                    2 Tablespoons sweet Thai chili sauce
                    2 Tablespoons brown sugar
                   2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

                   5 cloves garlic, minced

Heat stir frying pan to medium high heat. Mix the sauce ingredients (oyster, soy, fish, thai chili sauces, and brown sugar, lime, garlic) thoroughly in bowl and set aside. Oil the pan and saute the onions till tender. Add the carrots and mushrooms, saute for 2 minutes. Then add the rest of the veggies (bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, broccoli, bell pepper and boy choy) as well as the sauce. Continue to stir together until veggies have reached the desired level of softness.

  Serve stir fry with Lemongrass Salmon and fresh steamed rice! Enjoy :)

Seafood Cioppino

I'm back at it! Believe it or not I have been cooking. As we can all relate, life is busy! Working a 9 to 5 on top of socializing and athletics doesn't leave much time for food blogging. However, it would be short of a crime to not share some of the recipes I've come across lately. As per usual, I am challenging myself to cook food I love to eat but have never created in my own kitchen. Last week this pursuit had me cooking up Seafood Cioppino-- a beautiful mussel and fish stew featured at many high end restaurants. It is the legacy of San Francisco's Italian and Portuguese immigrants—many of them fishermen—have lived on these surprisingly easy to make North Beach favorite, with fresh parsley this stew is both hearty and fresh.  

Cioppino

                          1 medium onion, quartered
                          3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
                          3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
                          2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
                          1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
                          1/8 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes
                          1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes in juice
                          1 1/2 cups water
                          1 cup full-bodied red wine such as Zinfandel or Syrah
                          1 8 ounce can of tomato paste
                          1 (8-ounce) bottle clam juice
                          1/2 to 1 pound skinless fillets of thick white-fleshed fish cut into 1- inch  .   chunks (I used halibut; hake or pollack can also be used)
                          1/2 to 1 pound fresh mussels
                          1 bunch fresh parsley chopped

Heat olive oil in a 5- to 6-quart heavy pot over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then stir in chopped  onion, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, red-pepper flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.  | Cook, covered, over medium heat, stirring once or twice, until vegetables begin to soften (about 4 minutes).   | Add tomatoes with their juice, water, wine, clam juice, tomato paste and boil covered for 20 minutes.  | Stir in seafood and 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh parsley and cook, uncovered, until fish is just cooked through and mussels open wide. This should take 4 to 6 minutes (discard any that remain unopened mussels after 6 minutes). Discard bay leaves.

 

And serve HOT! Preferably with a toasted bread and a nice bottle of wine :)

Puff Pastry Tart with Three Cheeses

It has been about a month since my last blog post... I promise that I've done lots of cooking and eating in the past month. I just haven't found the time to blog about it. It seems that life is finally starting to get into a rhythm since my move up to Whistler. Soooo.... I've been trying to push my culinary comfort zone and make things I've never made before. The last post was a white wine linguine with mussels which was a lot of first for me. I have never made a white wine sauce nor have I cooked mussels. And let me tell you that I am so happy I challenged myself- the pasta dish was one of the best things I've ever made! So in this adventure I experimented with puff pastry dough (also referred to as philo dough). It is the flaky multi-layered dough that is often used in spanikopita and flaky desserts like apple turnovers.

My brother accidentally defrosted a package of the dough (it typically comes frozen in most grocery stores) and thus, it needed to be used pronto! So I got my foodgawker on and found many people used philo dough to substitute convention wheat crust. Naturally my mind went to savory tarts and pizza and I dreamed up a tart with all my favorite things: mushrooms, carmelized onions, spinach,  zucchini, pesto, cherry tomatoes, chicken AND cheese: feta, parmesan and goat cheese. The great thing is that the tart can be as simple or as complex as you'd like it. I'll give you some ideas as we go :)

Ingredients:

      1 package of philo dough

      olive oil

      1 container pesto

      an assortment of veggies*: mushrooms, carmelized onions, spinach,  zucchini,  tomatoes

      1 chicken breast*

      AND cheese*: feta, parmesan and goat cheese

*other possible ingredients: prosciutto, bacon, olives, artichoke hearts, asparagus, bell peppers, mozzarella, cheddar

Directions:

Thaw the package of pastry (philo) dough according to the package's directions. (Some require thawing over night). Select which ingredients you would like on your tart. It can be as simple as spinach, mushroom and goat cheese OR as complex as mine:  mushrooms, carmelized onions, spinach,  zucchini, pesto, cherry tomatoes, chicken AND cheese: feta, parmesan and goat cheese. The tart comes out best if you pre-cook the majority of the ingredients. For example, if you are using onions, mushrooms, spinach or zucchini, you should saute them in olive oil before putting them into the tart. You should also cook and raw meat like chicken or bacon.

Once you've sauted and pre-cooked all your ingredients. It is time for the fun part! Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix the veggies you've chosen with olive oil and pesto- to your desired taste. Set the mixture aside. Roll out puff pastry dough onto lightly floured surface. Brush puff pastry dough with olive oil (or melted butter). You can do this with a pastry/bbq brush or I used my hands. It is best if you separate the dough and brush multiple layers. Place brushed layers flatly in a baking pan- I used a 9 x 13. Layer the dough in such a way that it creates a crust around the pan.

After placing the last piece of dough, brush it with oil as well. Gently spread your vegetable pesto mixture over the tart. Next crumble in the cheese you chose (feta, goat cheese and Parmesan are what I used) as well as what meat you'd like ( I went with chicken). After doing so, put the tart in the oven! Cook for 20-30 minutes til the crust is browned and cheese melted. 

Let it cool a little bit then... enjoy!!

     Other puff pastry ideas including how to make sweet tarts can be found at:      http://foodgawker.com/?s=puff+pastry

Linguine with Steamed Mussels in a White Wine Sauce

Like most people, I love seafood but am less than confident cooking it at home. However, I've come to learn that the only way to gain this kind of confidence is by diving in head first--even if it means failing a couple of times. Fortunately for me, I have recently moved in with my younger brother who just finished culinary school so we took on this project together.

We chose to make something with mussels because our mom had some frozen ones that were in need of some love and attention. Then we decided to make a restaurant favorite: linguine with mussels. At times steamed mussels in a white wine sauce/broth stands alone or is served as an appetizer. It is the Italian version of the famous French steamed mussels dish, Moules Marinière. For its complexity of flavor and its inherent sophistication, it is supposed to be a realitively easy thing to make. I can now attest to the fact that it is indeed easy to make and might possibly be one of the best things I've ever made. 

Linguine:

       1 lb pasta of your choice (*We used a locally made lemon pepper linguine- AMAZING)
       1 cup chopped mushrooms (We used Chanterelle and Morel)
       1-2 large tomatoes chopped
       2 large garlic cloves minced
       4 tbs butter
Boil the pasta according to package directions. Mix with olive oil when finished (so the noodles don't stick together and set aside. Saute the mushrooms and tomatoes with the garlic and butter and set aside. Move onto prepare the mussels and sauce! You will mix everything together at the end :)

Steamed Mussels and White Wine Sauce:

       1/3 cup olive oil

       4-5 shallots, chopped fine (one large white onion can work too)

       8 large garlic cloves, minced or crushed

       2.5 cups dry white wine (Pinto Grigio is great)
       1-2 pounds mussels   ***(We used frozen but I recommend using fresh)

       1-2 tsp Salt 

       1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley

       Optional: 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (for some "kick")

  

Add the olive oil, shallots, garlic, wine, and 1/4 cup parsley in a large, wide-bottomed soup pot and bring to a boil over medium heat.  If you want a bit of extra zing, add the red pepper flakes.  Add the mussels, cover, and cook for 3-5 minutes, shaking the pot periodically so that they cook evenly.

Remove the lid. If no mussels have opened, put the top back on, and continue boiling.  Check at 1-minute intervals until they open.  Once some of them open, remove them with a slotted spoon.  As more open, remove them so they don't overcook.  Discard any mussels that remain closed.  (More about how to cook mussels perfectly.) 

Add the cooked linguine, mushrooms, tomatoes and mussels back into the pot that has the white wine and shallots. Mix and serve with fresh bread and garnish with lemon wedges & parsley. Bon Appetito!

Poor Man's Pad Thai

Like most people, I love pad thai. Thus I have sought a means of making it at home that is quick and easy. This recipe is the simplest homemade pad thai you'll find and chances are you'll be able to make it without buying a bunch of exotic ingredients that you can't use for anything else (which I've found is a downside to cooking many Asian dishes- I mean how many uses do you have for fish sauce?).

Poor Man's Pad Thai

Ingredients:

       one package rice noodles (can substitute other kinds of noodles like fettuccine pasta)

       3 eggs

      *Optional Enhancers: carrots, onions, broccoli, purple/red cabbage, shrimp, chicken etc.

  sauce:

       2 Tbs soy sauce (or fish sauce if you have it)

       2 Tbs ketchup

       1/2 cup sugar

       1 Tbs minced garlic

       1/2 cup oil (peanut or vegetable are good)

       *Optional for spice: 1 tsp saracha (rooster sauce) or other spicy sauce or red pepper flakes

 garnish:

       peanuts

       mung bean sprouts

       cilantro

       sliced lime

 

Cook rice noodles in boiling water, drain, mix with a little oil (so they don't stick) and set aside. Scramble and fry eggs, chop into little pieces and set aside. Mix the "sauce" ingredients in a mixing bowl and set aside. In a large pan (or wok), with some oil and garlic, saute whatever else you want in your pad thai. I like my pad thai with some broccoli, cabbage, onions and carrot and sometimes chicken or shrimp. Once these ingredients are well cooked add half of the rice noodles, all the egg and sauce to the pan. Mix well on medium low heat and add more rice noodles as you deem necessary (more noodles= drier pad thai. I like mine a little "saucier") Enjoy!

A Taste of the Mediterranean

Greek Salad, Tabouli, Hummus, Tzatziki, & Homemade Flatbread

I've been getting nostalgic for the days when I was backpacking Europe. This nostalgia often leads me to my photo library whose photo's take me a back to the sights, smells and (most importantly) the tastes of Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, etc. While many of my culinary adventures involved enjoying other chef's sinful creations, I did get one opportunity to dabble. For two weeks of my visit, I lived and worked on an organic farm in Tuscany. Everything about 13th century estate was splendid except for the fact that I was farming in May and very few things were ripe and ready. I desperately wanted to make a meal for everyone centered around things that grew right outside our door so I took the fresh mint, tomato, and yogurt to create a Mediterranean themed meal of Greek Salad, Tabouli, Hummus, Tzatziki and my homemade Flat bread. Making the whole meal with take some time so feel free to use one or two of the recipes alone (I recommend the hummus and flat bread). 

Greek Salad

    Greek Cucumber and Tomato Salad:
                   3-4 Large Ripe Tomatoes
                   1 Medium Red or Sweet White Onion
                    1 Cucumber 
                    1/4 Cup Olive Oil
                    1/2 fresh lemon
                    2-3 Tbs of Red Wine Vinegar (Balsamic or Apple are okay too)
                    Coarse Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper to taste
                    Crumbled Feta Cheese to taste (1/2 cup-1cup is typically good)


Dice the tomato, onion, and cucumber. Combine in a bowl with the olive oil, the juice of the lemon and the vinegar. Mix thoroughly then add salt, pepper, and feta & try it till you like it!
   *Options/Modifications: Add bell pepper and/or olives. Add more lemon juice and/or olive oil. Add a tablespoon or two of sugar to cut the acidity. Add herbs such as oregano, garlic, or basil.

Tabouli
              Tabouli is a middle eastern "salad" made out of grains and vegetables:
                     1 cup Fine Cracked Wheat or Bulgur
                     1 cup fresh Parsley
                      1/2 cup fresh Mint
                     1/2 cup chopped Yellow Onion
                      2 Tomatoes
                      1 Cucumber
                      1/4 cup Olive Oil
                     1 lemon 
                      1+ tsp salt

Prepare the cracked wheat or bulgur according to package OR in a large mixing bowl, pour 1 cup of water over the cracked wheat and let it soak til the wheat is tender (about 20 minutes). 
When the grain is prepared, add the parsley, mint, yellow onion, tomatoes and cucumber all diced finely (the onion, tomato and cucumber can be chunky if preferred). Combine the oil, lemon juice and salt in a separate bowl. Then add it to the wheat mixture and mix well. Refrigerate the salad til it is chilled.

Hummus & Tzatziki

              Simple Hummus:
                 2 15oz cans Garbanzo Beans
                  1/2- 1 cup olive oil
                  juice from 1 lemon
                  2-3 garlic cloves
                  salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor till smooth and desired taste. Keep the juice from the garbanzo beans and add to the mixture to make creamier.
               *Options/Modifications: Add more garlic, olive oil and/or lemon juice. Add fresh basil, olives or roasted red peppers. Add paprika or cumin.

            Tzatziki a yogurt sauce: 
                   2 cups yogurt
                   3 Tbs olive oil
                   1 tsp vinegar or 1/2 lemon juiced
                   2 cloves of minced garlic

                   1/2 tsp salt
                   1/4 tsp pepper
                   1/8- 1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped
                      Optional: 1 cucumber pealed, seeded and diced

Combine olive oil, vinegar OR lemon, garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Mix until well combined.  Add the olive oil mixture to the yogurt and mix well. Finally, add the cucumber and chopped fresh mint. Chill for at least two hours before serving.

Flatbread
                   2 cups  flour
                   2 tsp sugar
                   2-4 tsp salt
                   2 Tbs baking powder
                   1/2 cup olive oil
                   2 cup luke warm water


Combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Slowly mix in the olive oil and water till the mixture is moist but not too wet- it should look like pizza or bread dough. Then take golf ball sized balls of dough and roll them out flat (about 1/4 inch thick) on a floured surface. Lightly oil a frying pan and cook flat bread on medium heat flipping it every minute or so until the dough browns and lightly bubbles. Eat them hot! (Keep them warm in the oven)


 

Enjoy! Or as they say in Greece "Kalí óreksi!"