Daring cooks go satay...

The January 2010 DC challenge was hosted by Cuppy of Cuppyliciousand she chose a delicious Thai-inspired recipe for Pork Satay from the book 1000 Recipes by Martha Day. Being vegetarian I adapted it for a paneer-satay which I served as appetiser and some tofu-satay which got brown bagged into a sammich! Yumm ..

Satay (or sate) is very often served as “street fare” all over the world, and you dip your cool little meat/veggie skewer into any variety of dipping sauces

The required part of this challenge is to marinate to add awesome flavor to the paneer/tofu . I made the marinade from scratch as follows:

Satay Marinade

1/2 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 T ginger root, chopped (optional) (2 cm cubed)
2 T lemon juice (1 oz or 30 mls)
1 T soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp ground coriander (5 mls)
1 tsp ground cumin (5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric (2-2.5 mls)
2 T vegetable oil (or peanut or olive oil) (30 mls)

Chop the onions, garlic and ginger really fine then mix it all together in a medium to large bowl.

Make about 1 inch strips of the paneer and tofu and marinate for 2-4 hours turning it around occasionally . I grilled them in my panini press and they turned out to be quite scrumptious ! I cannot believe I forgot the sauces/dips but in my defense the satay were amazing by themselves . Nevertheless, for posterity's sake Im pasting the sauce recipe here ..

Peanut Sauce

3/4 cup coconut milk (6 oz or 180 mls)
4 Tbsp peanut butter (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 Tbsp soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp brown sugar (5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground cumin (2.5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground coriander (2.5 mls)
1-2 dried red chilies, chopped (keep the seeds for heat)

1. Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add soy sauce and lemon, mix well.
2. Over low heat, combine coconut milk, peanut butter and your soy-lemon-seasoning mix. Mix well, stir often.
3. All you’re doing is melting the peanut butter, so make your peanut sauce after you’ve made everything else in your meal, or make ahead of time and reheat.

Pepper Dip (optional)

4 Tbsp soy sauce (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp brown sugar (5 mls)
1-2 dried red chilies, chopped (keep the seeds for heat)
1 finely chopped green onion (scallion)

Mix well. Serve chilled or room temperature.

Tamarind Dip (optional)

4 Tbsp tamarind paste (helpful link below) (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 finely chopped green onion (scallion)
1 tsp brown or white sugar, or to taste (about 5 mls)

Mix well. Serve chilled or room temperature.

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Vegetable en Croute daringly..

The 2009 Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Simone of Junglefrog Cooking. Simone chose Salmon en Croute (or alternative recipes for Beef Wellington or Vegetable en Croute) from Good Food Online.

I made my own puff pastry and filled with tofu sauteed in butter, spinach , mushroom , onion and cheese...and it was yummmmy...next time I need some more seasoning though..

As Im on road I just scheduled this to be on date..so without much ado..enjoy the beauties...

A day well spent...

A mid-week holiday brings in lot of joy but also endless possibilities on what can and should be accomplished..The 'Veterans Day' holiday this mid-week had one thing on top of my list though..make 'Sushi' , for DaringCooks!!

The November 2009 Daring Cooks challenge was brought to you by Audax of Audax Artifex and Rose of The Bite Me Kitchen. They chose sushi as the challenge.

Sushi (寿司 or 鮨 or 鮓) is much appreciated for its delicate taste and exquisite appearance. Sushi actually means vinegar-ed rice, which is the essential ingredient in every sushi recipe. Sushi is simple and cheap to make at home, needs no special equipment and is an excellent way to use left overs. Although sushi in various forms has been around for fourteen centuries, the modern version was invented in Japan in the 1800’s where a 'hand-formed' sliced fresh fish and vinegared rice ball was eaten as a snack food. Nowadays, sushi is made with various seafood, meats and vegetables, raw and cooked.

The challenge is in four parts:-

Part 1: Making proper sushi rice – you will wash, rinse, drain, soak, cook, dress, and cool short grain rice until each grain is sticky enough to hold toppings or bind ingredients. Then you will use the cooked rice to form three types of sushi:

Part 2: Dragon /Caterpillar sushi roll – an avocado covered inside-out rice roll with a tasty surprise filling.

Excellent videos on making Dragon Rolls
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQZGRohVNFQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fo55iBN9FQs&feature=related

>> Fillings : cucumber + carrots + avocado

Part 3: Decorative sushi – a nori-coated rice roll which reveals a decorative pattern when cut
>> Fillings : avocado, green beans, asparagus

Part 4: Nigiri sushi – hand-shaped rice rolls with toppings

>> Toppings : Sweet potato, pineapple, asparagus.

God know what I was thinking , but when adding that wasabi strip/spot for the topping I went a bit overboard and boy, it hit me!! real bad !! all the way from my nose to my head and spreading through my ears!! I could not have it again..though DH did..and though he was shaking like 'Kramer' he finished all of them :)

Also, any other suggestions for sushi rice, Ive got half the packet left..

Vietnamese Pho

The October 2009 Daring Cooks’ challenge was brought to us by Jaden of the blog Steamy Kitchen. The recipes are from her new cookbook, The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook.

So what is Vietnamese Pho? Well, it’s like the most insanely delicious noodle soup popular in Vietnam. The broth is simmered for hours and hours . Other accompaniments include ribbons of rice noodles, fresh herbs like cilantro or basil, a wedge of lime or lemon, fresh bean sprouts and fresh sliced chilies if desired. I think I had a version of it in a vietnamese restaurant on a recent trip to Vegas and really liked the clean and pure taste of the Pho.

What makes Pho so different than any other type of noodle soup is the spices that go into the simmering broth. Warm spices like coriander, star anise, cloves, cinnamon, fresh ginger transform an ordinary broth into a very authentic Vietnamese Pho.

I did make the long version i.e making home made stock albeit the vegetarian version including onion , celery and carrot in olive oil with the spices mentioned above.

Sauteed small pieces of tofu and mushrooms in a little oil and added to the broth. Served with rice noodles,coriander,lime and chilli sauce. A warmth-inducing evening meal !

I didn't try the wantons as we are getting a bit too frequent on desserts around our part of the world.. keeping for a later day..

Sometimes I'm confused..

Sometimes I'm confused by what I think is really obvious. But what I think is really obvious obviously isn't obvious...

So yesterday I thought that it was one of the challenge reveal dates, but thought it was the Daring Bakers which I havn't tried in the busy and frantic days that Ive had the past weeks..

I didnt check if it was Daring kitchen which had Indian Dosa this time which in fact I'd tried immediately after the challenge was revealed...and had a nice picture all taken and uploaded too...

One of my feeds actually brought me out of the fog today and late, but not never..here it is..Lovely Dosa...this is how it was packaged and eaten around my place and I cannot forget the numbers of lovely dosas we used to devour during those early evening , after college..with friends..on our 2 wheels...aah...

Neways...Debyi from The Healthy Vegan Kitchen hosted the event this time around and I would like to try an alternative recipe some time, I made this lovely dosa with the recipe handed over by my ma-in-law - the traditional south indian dosa recipe :

1 cup rice

1/3 cup urad dal

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

Soak 5-6 hours and grind with little water. Let ferment overnight. Add some more water and salt to make batter consistency when ready to make dosa.

Filling :

5-6 potatoes

1 medium onion

1 tsp chat masala

1 tsp oil

Boil the potatoes, peel and mash them. Heat the oil, saute onions and mix potatoes and chat masala in it.

Heat the pan/tawa and spray some oil and some drops of water and wipe it off the hot pan. Spread the batter into a pancake. Take the filling and spread it layered over the dosa. Once the cooked side is crispy fold the dosa like a wrap and cut into pieces Serve with chutney and/or sambar.

Thank you Debyi for bringing this amazing and ubiqiutous Indian Dosa to the DaringKitchen !!

DaringCooks August - Spanish rice

This time around at Daring Cooks Olga from Olga's Recipes chose a delicious Spanish recipe, Rice with mushrooms, potatoes(instead of fish) and artichokes by José Andrés, one of the most important Spanish Chefs at the moment...

Rice with mushrooms, potatoes and artichokes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Equipment:

• 1 Chopping Board
• 1 knife
• 1 medium saucepan
• 1 Paella pan (30 cm/11" is enough for 4 people. If not available, you may use a simple pan that size)
• 1 Saucepan

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 4 Artichokes (you can use jarred or freezed if fresh are not available)
• 12 Mushrooms (button or Portobello)
• 1 or 2 Bay leaves (optional but highly recommended)
• 1 glass of white wine
• 2 big potatoes
• "Sofregit" (see recipe below)
• 300 gr (2 cups) Short grain rice (Spanish types Calasparra or Montsant are preferred, but you can choose any other short grain. This kind of rice absorbs flavor very well) – about 75 gr per person ( ½ cup per person) .I used Arborio rice since I couldn't find any other type.
• Water (use 1 ½ cup of liquid per ½ cup of rice)
• Saffron threads (if you can't find it or afford to buy it, you can substitute it for turmeric or yellow coloring powder)
• Allioli (olive oil and garlic sauce, similar to mayonnaise sauce) - optional

Directions:

1. Cut the potatoes in little strips.
2. Add 1 or 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and put the potatoes in the pan.
3. Cut artichokes in eights.
4. Clean the mushrooms and cut them in fourths.
5. Add a bay leaf to the cuttlefish and add also the artichokes and the mushrooms.
6. Sauté until we get a golden color in the artichokes.
7. Put a touch of white wine so all the solids in the bottom of the get mixed, getting a more flavorful dish.
8. Add a couple or three tablespoons of sofregit and mix to make sure everything gets impregnated with the sofregit.
9. Add all the liquid and bring it to boil.
10. Add all the rice. Let boil for about 5 minutes in heavy heat.
11. Add some saffron thread to enrich the dish with its flavor and color. Stir a little bit so the rice and the other ingredients get the entire flavor. If you're using turmeric or yellow coloring, use only 1/4 teaspoon.
12. Turn to low heat and boil for another 8 minutes (or until rice is a little softer than "al dente")
13. Put the pan away from heat and let the rice stand a couple of minutes.

Sofregit (a well cooked and fragrant sauce made of olive oil, tomatoes, garlic and onions, and may at times
different vegetables such as peppers or mushrooms)-

Cooking time: aprox. 1 hour
Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 5 big red ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
• 4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 cup of button or Portobello mushrooms, chopped (optional)
• 1 Bay leaf
• Salt
• Touch of ground cumin
• Touch of dried oregano

Directions:

1. Put all the ingredients together in a frying pan and sauté slowly until all vegetables are soft.
2. Taste and salt if necessary (maybe it's not!)

Allioli is the optional part of the recipe. You must choose one of the two recipes given, even though I highly recommend you to try traditional one. Allioli is served together with the rice and it gives a very nice taste

Allioli (Traditional recipe)
Cooking time: 20 min aprox.
Ingredients:

• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• Pinch of salt
• Fresh lemon juice (some drops)
• Extra-virgin olive oil (Spanish preferred but not essential)

Directions:

1. Place the garlic in a mortar along with the salt.
2. Using a pestle, smash the garlic cloves to a smooth paste. (The salt stops the garlic from slipping at the bottom of the mortar as you pound it down.)
3. Add the lemon juice to the garlic.
4. Drop by drop; pour the olive oil into the mortar slowly as you continue to crush the paste with your pestle.
5. Keep turning your pestle in a slow, continuous circular motion in the mortar. The drip needs to be slow and steady. Make sure the paste soaks up the olive oil as you go.
6. Keep adding the oil, drop by drop, until you have the consistency of a very thick mayonnaise. If your allioli gets too dense, add water to thin it out. This takes time—around 20 minutes of slow motion around the mortar—to create a dense, rich sauce.

José's tips for traditional recipe: It's hard to think that, when you start crushing the garlic, it will ever turn into something as dense and smooth as allioli. But don't give up. It's worth the extra time and effort to see the oil and garlic come together before your eyes. Just make sure you're adding the olive oil slowly, drop by drop. Keep moving the pestle around the mortar in a circular motion and keep dreaming of the thick, creamy sauce at the end of it all.

Olga's Tips:
(1) In Spain, rice is not stired as often as it is when cooking Italian risotto. You must stir it once or twice maximum. This tip is valid for all Spanish rice dishes like paella, arròs negre, arròs a banda…
(2) When cooking the alternative style you can change the cuttlefish or squid for diced potato - which I did.
(3) If you can't find cuttlefish or squid, or you're not able to eat them because of allergies, you can try to substitute them for chicken or vegetables at your choice.
(4) Sofregit can be done in advance. You can keep it in the fridge or even freeze it.
(5) To watch how Jose Andres cooks this dish click here.

I dont think it came out as it was supposed to , mainly because of the rice...also , it lacked spice and was quite bland..I had to add lot of pepper to give it a taste..the allioli did add some much-needed zing on it !

Exotic Gyoza

aka plain old Chinese dumplings/potstickers (gyoza in Japanese)..

This was the Daring cooks challenge for the month of June and my first Daring Kitchen entry ! You are given a challenge on 1st of the month by a member , along with the recipe and you need to keep it a top secret till the release date i.e 14th ! There is a forum for members though where we can share questions, suggestions and also post our trials ..I feel like I belong to those super secret clubs...unravelling mysteries....yeah...delicious culinary mysteries here ;)

Jen asked/ordered us to make Chinese dumplings, alright no biggie...but .....with home made wrappers..that was the real challenge...I have tried dumplings before , but with those wrappers available in super markets and Ive found it a real chore to shape,mould and stick those dry wrappers....but no worries now...I dont need no pre-made wrappers now !! The one in the recipe came out to be so perfect and so easy that I will never, ever get those store brought pale replacements anymore.....

Also, Ive only tried making steamed dumplings before as I try to stay away from deep-frying...but apparently there is a delicious compromise between steaming and deep -frying which makes these amazing pot-stickers ! I fell in love with that name itself..how obvious and how delicious :))

The recipe for 

dough:

1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour

1/2 cup (113g) warm water

flour for worksurface

dipping sauce:

2 parts soy sauce

1 part vinegar (red wine or black)

a few drops of sesame oil

chili garlic paste (optional)

minced ginger (optional)

minced garlic (optional)

minced green onion (optional)

sugar (optional)

Make the dough: In a large bowl mix flour with 1/4 cup of water and stir until water is absorbed. Continue adding water one teaspoon at a time and mixing thoroughly until dough pulls away from sides of bowl. We want a firm dough that is barely sticky to the touch.

To pan fry (potstickers): Place dumplings in a frying pan with 2-3 tbsp of vegetable oil. Heat on high and fry for a few minutes until bottoms are golden. Add 1/2 cup water and cover. Cook until the water has boiled away and then uncover and reduce heat to medium or medium low. Let the dumplings cook for another 2 minutes then remove from heat and serve.

The filling was upto our choice , and I made one with green onions, tofu, carrot , mushroom and another with potatoes which is like the samosa filling. Both turned out to be great and I declare my 1st daring cooks challenge to be a resounding sucess :)