Malaysian Chicken Satay

Posted on 03. Wed, 2010 by admin in Appetizers/Dim Sum, Asian Recipes, GF-Adaptable, Malaysian, Poultry

A fantastic Malaysian chicken satay recipe from famed chef Zak Pelaccio of Fatty Crab and Fatty Cue.

Shojin Salad with Peanut Flavored Tofu Dressing

Posted on 03. Mon, 2010 by grace in Fast Asian Recipe, Healthy Asian, Japanese, Vegetable/Tofu

Shojin Salad with Peanut Flavored Tofu Dressing
By Mari Fujii, Author, The Enlightened Kitchen: Fresh Vegetable Dishes from the Temples of Japan

Serves 4
8 thin spears asparagus, woody ends removed
4 lettuce leaves, torn into bite-sized pieces
1 ½ cups tomatoes, dice cut in ½-inch pieces
Dressing
1 block tofu (silken, if available)
2 tablespoons peanut butter, unsweetened
2 tablespoons rice vinegar or any white vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons maple syrup
dash of black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1. Wrap the tofu in a paper towel, place a plate on top and refrigerate for about 30 minutes to remove excess moisture.
2. To make the dressing, blend the tofu, peanut butter, rice vinegar, olive oil, maple syrup, black pepper, salt, and lemon juice in [...]

Celebrating Holi

Posted on 03. Mon, 2010 by admin in Holi, Indian

The Indian celebration to usher in the springtime is Holi, the “Festival of Colors.” This year, the holiday is celebrated on March 1, 2010.
The photo above is for Saffron and Mango Cannoli (Pichkari) by my good friend, Monica Bhide who writes for The Washington Post and her own site at A Life of Spice. Monica is also a cookbook author of Modern Spice: Inspired Indian Flavors for the Contemporary Kitchen.
You can find Monica’s list of Holi recipes at “Bright Tastes And Colors Of India’s Spring: Holi” on NPR including:
Dahi Aloo Curry
Saffron Rice (Kesari Chawwal)
Saffron and Mango Cannoli (Pichkari)
Chef Seth’s Kanji

Braised Beef Short Ribs Adobo with Gnocchi

Posted on 02. Sun, 2010 by admin in Filipino, GF-Adaptable, Meat

Braised Beef Short Ribs Adobo Recipe
recipe from Divina Pe of Sense & Serendipity
Adobo is considered the national dish of the Philippines. While chicken and pork adobo is the most popular one, I find that adobo made with beef short ribs is even better.
Once you’ve added the vinegar, allow it to simmer without stirring at all (secret trick to Adobo!) Just be careful with the seasoning and the reduction of the sauce, as adobo can become too salty.
The recipe states removing the meat from the bone to be combined with the gnocchi, but you can leave them just the way it is and serve with pasta, steamed rice, buttered orzo or couscous. But the combination of gnocchi and the short ribs [...]

Basil’s Grandmother’s Chicken Curry

Posted on 02. Sat, 2010 by grace in Indian, Poultry

A few weeks ago, I found myself on the phone, frantically shuttling between calls to my aunt and my grandmother, trying to jolt their memories and nail down the ingredients we needed for my Singapore family’s take on chicken curry. As the calls got more confusing and the ingredient list grew more nebulous, my friend Basil, a Singaporean of Indian ethnicity, sat nearby, listening in with an increasingly incredulous look. “You’re sitting next to an Indian,” he finally said, “and you’re not asking him how he makes his curry?”A very good point. It turns out Basil, better known to his friends as the hard-to-miss, gregarious guy at any bar that he frequents, also knows how to cook. He [...]

Vietnamese Iced Coffee Recipe

Posted on 02. Wed, 2010 by admin in Drinks, Fast Asian Recipe, GF-Adaptable, Sweets, Vietnamese

Vietnamese Iced Coffee (or Cafe Sua Da) is sweet, lush and almost like a dessert to me. It’s a sure pick-me-up and definitely my favorite Vietnamese drink. Here are step-by-step photos!
by Jaden Hair, Steamy Kitchen
Vietnamese Iced Coffee Recipe
You’ll need:
1) Medium coarse ground French Roast coffee: You can use any type of coffee really, many Vietnamese use Cafe Du Monde French Roast Chicory coffee, but as long as the coffee is medium coarse ground, you can use it. Fine ground coffee would fall right through the little holes of the coffee press.
2) Canned sweetened condensed milk: It’s the sweet, sticky, thick stuff – NOT evaporated milk! No substitutions here!
3) Vietnamese coffee press: You can find at any Asian market – usually [...]

Garlic Fried Rice (Sinangag)

Posted on 02. Tue, 2010 by grace in Fast Asian Recipe, Filipino, Rice/Noodles

Not to be confused with sinigang, or sour soup,  sinangag is a simple yet satisfying garlic fried rice. Often served as a breakfast staple, sinangag makes good use of day-old rice that is past its prime having lost its fresh-cooked stickiness. When marinated meat (tapa) is paired with sinangag and a sunny-side up egg (itlog), the trio is a classic breakfast combination that has morphed into tapsilog in Filipino vernacular. Longsilog replaces tapa with longaniza (sausage). Tocilog uses tocino (sweetened pork) and bangsilog, bangus (milkfish). Then there are the American flavors of baconsilog and cornedbeefsilog, inevitable additions to the Filipino-American breakfast.

Garlic Fried Rice (Sinangag)
By Andrea M. Aranas, Author, The Filipino-American Kitchen

Serves 4
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 small cloves garlic, chopped
4 [...]

Nobu’s Lobster Carpaccio

Posted on 02. Tue, 2010 by admin in Asian Recipes, Fast Asian Recipe, Fish, GF-Adaptable, Healthy Asian, Japanese, Seafood

photo and recipe adaptation from Jaden Hair
This is a fantastic recipe with a twist on carpaccio. You’ll have to get a live lobster for this recipe from Nobu Matsuhisa – frozen will just not do. The yuzu dressing recipe that’s drizzled on the lobster also makes a great salad dressing. Another great adaptation of this recipe is to use thinly sliced sushi-grade raw fish.

Nobu’s Lobster Carpaccio Recipe
adapted from Nobu West Cookbook
2 pound live lobster
1 tablespoon finely shredded ginger
1 tablespoon Yuzu Dressing (see below)
1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1. Put the lobster in the freezer for 20 minutes.
2. Bring a large pot of salted water large enough [...]

Pancit Guisado

Posted on 02. Mon, 2010 by grace in Fast Asian Recipe, Filipino, Rice/Noodles

The Chinese are largely responsible for the wide range of Filipino noodle dishes that are collectively termed pancit. A national staple offered in the most modest food stall to the refined dine-in establishment, pancit dishes are almost as essential as rice. Often distinguished by the type of noodle used, pancit bihon (rice stick noodles), pancit miki (thin, round egg noodles), pancit sotanghon (mung bean thread noodles), or pancit mami (flat, wide egg noodles) are among the many dishes that Filipinos have imbued with their own style and flavor. Guisado means “stewed”—a sort of catchall term for pancits that don’t fit into any of the classic categories. It’s an apt name for this pancit recipe since we’re using a combination of [...]

Duck Adobo with Pineapple and Dates

Posted on 02. Wed, 2010 by grace in Filipino, GF-Adaptable, Poultry

As every Filipino knows, words do not do justice in describing the alchemy of adobo. The magic of the Philippines’ national dish can only be captured in the permeating smell and unforgettable taste of food transformed by the slow simmering of garlic, soy, vinegar, bay leaf, and peppercorns. As the national dish, adobo is most often made with chicken and/or pork. But as a cooking technique, the five adobo ingredients can be applied to most any food, including vegetables. The classic preparation of Adobo Manok, or chicken adobo, is one of my favorite foods and a regularly scheduled dish on my weekday dinner repertoire. The simple unadorned stew is a quick and zesty standard, subject to regional variations, including the [...]