Getting rid of leftovers...

I never said I made a healthy dinner ... LOL

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With the holidays over I did notice one thing.. there was a LOT of food in our apartment... people would bring things over.. or we'd order pizza or something. So that big Wegman's trip almost went to waste. Granted some things are freezer friendly (chicken, steak, fish, seafood (what I call it when it's not fish.. so things like scallops and shrimp), frozen veggies.. duh.., shredded cheese, etc.) so.. I figured.. okay.. I don't have anything planned for tonight.. so dangit I'm going to get rid of it all.. So I go in there and start looking.. I must have looked like a mad woman because hubby hit the deck.. (quietly asked if I needed help but just ran to the living room to hide in a game so he wouldn't get yelled at if he got in my way.. I guess I was pretty determined)..

This is what a plantain looks like when it's out of it's husk thingie.. (so the before and after.. )

Anywho.. I noticed a couple things I HAD to make or it would grow sentient and start to crawl out.. okay.. checking.. Broccoli.. Everyone.. please.. if I can have a moment of silence for the broccoli? ............. R.I.P. Broccoli.. that's why it was on sale.. /sigh.. went bad too fast.. I HATE wasting food.. I'm so sorry.. off it goes into the trash.. okay brussels sprouts.. (sorry Chaki...) still hanging in.. resilient mofo's.. okay that's going today.. got my veggie.. Oooooh plantains are maturing quickly.. one is almost turning black.. ooooh that's going to taste good.. better stuffed with something but I have no patience today.. I'm doing tostones dangit.. er.. hmm.. I managed to clear everything else beforehand so it's all like breads and stuff and the lettuce is hanging in just nicely :D Good girl! Go me!

This is what the plantain looks like when you chop off the sides.

I figured I can make chicken.. I have boned chicken and boneless chicken.. both frozen.. oh I'm too lazy.. ooooh I have some panko breadcrumbs. Alright.. fry fest it is.. Anyway.. doing 3 different dishes all with different cooking times is going to be a pain in the arse.. soooo happy hubby is here for backup.. and away from me so I don't burn myself.. .. .. as much... (only 4 burns.. small ones.. from jumping oil... must get better fry shield.. Anyway.. plantains are going to be worst so I'm doing that first while I boil water to boil the solidly frozen 4 pieces of chicken (these are thighs.. so the drum stick and the thigh portion that I separated, bagged in 2 portions and froze when I bought it in the family pack).

Food of the gods I tell you.. Plantains cut in thick pieces to be fried for the first time.

If you notice the color on the outside of the plantain these are maturing so the inside of the plantain is actually much sweeter and softer (not like bananas though.. those are uber sweet and squishy at this stage..).. if they go black they are difficult to fry crispy.. but still uber delicious :) By the time I take them out of the outer husk thing.. not sure what that outside thing is called.. checking. hang on.. they are calling it layers while the inside is the shoot? Bah.. outside hard thing.. soft inside thingie.. that works for me.. anyway.. by the time I took out the outside thing.. I cut it along one side with a butter knife (this should be sharp enough) and split open with your fingers. The more mature they are the harder it is to get them off in one clean shot.. I guess since it's softer it tends to stick more to the inside lining. With unripe plantains I can actually peel it off in one shot like a pro.. today.. I used force.. LOL It broke in a lot of stages and I just had to scrape off what was still hanging on to dear life. And for the love of God don't eat the outside stuff.. that's there to protect the inside.. oy.. I don't even want to think about how bitter it would be to eat it..

Second stage already done - they are drying.. can you tell hubby's been watching a lot of Alton?

I'm not sure if I bored you with the details on how you make these .. you know.. if you want to know I'll tell ya.. I think I already did.. twice fried.. squish between.. yeah something about how I'm writing this is totally giving me deja vu.. Anyway.. at this point I'm already frying BOTH the plantains AND the chicken.. and of course I think I sense disaster.. oh.. I started steaming the brussels sprouts.. That's easy.. turn on steamer.. walk away..

Fried chicken - Panko bread crumbs. A little oiler than usual though..

Again at this point I realize I'm waaaaaaaaay over my head.. I mean I did the Holly and committed to it but I did the mistake of doing too much fried.. I should have gone with instinct and stewed the chicken or something.. the oil temperatures were totally different. Different pans for each.. both on electric stoves.. I HATE ELECTRIC STOVES.. and both going on at different times and had to be babysat.. Hubby came in and helped after a couple expletives in Spanish were strewn about the kitchen (Yes dear.. cursing in Spanish is still cursing.. LOL)..

These came out well except first batch that was a little greasy but overall I enjoyed this.. which is good.. because we have a lot of leftovers LOL

The problem was because I was overwhelmed .. I mean nothing burned.. far from it.. I lowered the temperature which is a Huuuuuuuuuge no no in frying.. that makes the food totally soak up the oil.. The biggest problem was the chicken. Right now as I'm typing this I feel the oil sitting on my stomach.. (sorry.. ). If I kept it at the temperature I would have been fine.. but I panicked and lowered it so I can concentrate on the plantains.. by the time hubby took over the damage was done and it soaked up a lot of oil. Didn't realize it until we ate it all.

These Brussels sprouts (didn't know brussels in this word had a s in it.. stupid wiki.. now I have to type it correctly..) came out perfect :D

Meanwhile the only semi nutritious thing was the sprouts.. and even then I slathered it in butter and mozzarella cheese :) mwahahhahahahahha .. ehem.. that was awesome! Oh! Forgot to add that the tostones I cook always has a dipping sauce (wait for it I can almost hear Holly heaving.. wait.. and Tricia too..) I make a dip that's made with mayonnaise (I only use Miracle whip.. sorry Tricia..) and ketchup with a clove or 2 of garlic. Even people squeamish about it taste it together and wonder wtf.. I can eat it with or without but hubby really likes it too (and he's not a mayo person) so I make it all the time. It's friggin' easy too.

FOOD DIARY - Chicken Teriyaki Rolls

Hubby made me Chicken Teriyaki Rolls on Friday after Thanksgiving :)

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This was our second attempt. Came out a little better (the rice) but we are still missing "something".. no wonder traditional Japanese sushi apprentices take 5 years just doing rice before they are allowed to make anything else..

Hubby mixing in the vinegar into the rice.. we got a bowl for this.. last time it was a clump disaster.. this time did a bit better.. still not right though but just like last time.. a yummy experiment!

Because I much prefer the rice outside he obliged and did it for me :)

We used a Teriyaki mix instead of doing that from scratch. Still it came out really good! I even ate the extra chicken that we didn't shove in the rolls! At the end we had more rice than one roll but not enough for two so hubby made one big one with the nori on the OUTSIDE... he was getting tired. Awwww

This is what it looked like doing the last of the rolls. One giant roll :)

He hates cutting the sushi though.. doesn't slide well.. he thinks he didn't use enough water on the knife.. since these knives are ridiculously sharp.. I don't use those..

My plate on the left and his on the right. This is our uber coffee table in the living room and our brand spaking new plates :D Note something I didn't notice until much later.. check out the reflection at the top of the glass table.. Go Ninja Warrior LOL

Sambar & Roti

... is a very traditional Southern Indian dish. Roti, is the staple bread of the region, so I was taught by my ex-mother-in-law. Sambar and roti was a part of nearly every meal she served. I am quite partial to it myself. If I don't have it for a long time I start to crave it. There are few ingredients involved and all of them can be changed to suit individual tastes.


Channa Dal is pretty much just yellow split peas. They have a very mild flavor. Toor Dal is a bit darker yellow and has a more nutty flavor. You can make Sambar with either one. This particular day I used the Toor Dal. Because I had them and because I could. lol That is to say, I had no particular reason to use one or the other. It just happened to be Toor Dal today. Please note that it says you should soak the Toor Dal for several hours before cooking. I find that this is not necessary if you use a good heavy pot and a tight lid.


The other ingredients I used today are:
onion
garlic
whole dried red chili peppers
cummin seeds
mustard seeds
baby spinach


So, I put one cup of Toor Dal in a 2 qt. pot and covered with water until the water was approximately one inch above the Dal.
Turn the heat to medium and cook until the pot starts to sing. Watch it and make sure you turn the heat down to low and slant the lid a little before the thing boils over. This stuff dries like cement if it does boil over. Once it stops boiling and foaming you can close it back up and let it simmer for an hour or so.

Most of the true Indian recipes I've seen for this dish say to cook the Dal in a pressure cooker, but my MIL never did. I've always used a heavy bottomed pot with a tight fitting lid and that's always been good enough.


Once you have your split peas/Dal on the heat you can start prepping your other items:
Heat a non-stick saute pan and heat 2 or 3 tablespoons of cooking oil. The original recipe would actually use ghee, but to make it a tad healthier I use a couple T of canola oil and add about a tsp of butter for flavor.
When the oil is heated put in the chopped onion, saute until nearly translucent. Put in the minced garlic and the red peppers. As soon as the garlic begins to turn golden add the mustard and cummin seeds. Keep a lid handy because the seeds will pop. As soon as the seeds begin to sizzle and pop, remove the pan from the heat and cover.


Close up of whole mustard seed and whole cummin seed.


Once the Dal stops boiling and foaming you can close it back up and let it simmer for an hour or so. This is the time when I usually pull the red peppers out of the sauted onions and put them in with the Dal.


Once the Dal has nearly dissolved you can add the other ingredients. First add the sauted onions and garlic...


... then chop the spinach roughly...


...and stir it into the Dal.


Now you have delicious, mellow, tasty Indian Sambar. Lets make the roti now. The Sambar will taste better after it sits a while.

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Lets start with the flour. For roti you have to use whole durum wheat. Its sort of creamy yellow in color and has a different texture than regular white flour. You can make a passable variation with regular whole wheat flour but it just isn't the same.
I've been known to use several types of flour for making flat breads which I and my son just call roti. A particular favorite is made with whole grain rye flour mixed with the whole wheat flour. Really, it's good.


Left to right: Hodgson's Mill brand whole wheat flour, Nirav brand whole grain durum wheat flour, Pillsbury's all-purpose unbleached white flour.

Mix 3 cups of durum wheat flour and 1 cup of all-purpose white flour with 1/2 tsp. salt. To this add, 1 to 1 1/2 cups warm water, 2 T ghee or oil. I find that if I use 1/2 cup of buttermilk or yogurt for the liquid I get a softer roti. I like the flavor better, too. But you can use just plain water and it will be fine.


Knead the dough a few times until all the flour and liquid are incorporated. Let the dough sit 10-15 minutes to rest. Then pinch the dough off and roll into approximately golf ball sized balls. Roll out to about 1/8 inch thickness.


Heat a non-stick, flat bottomed pan, or a nice heavy cast iron pan to medium high heat. Place one roti in the pan and press lightly with rubber spatula. After about 20 seconds flip the roti and continue pressing lightly. You may have to turn a time or two more to get the proper doneness. Your roti should puff up somewhat when it's done. It may not puff up as much as the one shown here, but it should show some bubbles and lightness.
This one was terrific! I always get such a sense of accomplishment when one blows up like this one did. I usually get about one third of them in a batch of 13-15 rotis to do this. Its really exciting. Okay... I know... I lead a very boring life, but this is... LOL

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Along with these two items I also made a couple of other dishes. Which I will describe briefly:


Spicy Potatoes
Diced white potatoes
half the sauted onion/garlic mixture described above
tumeric about half a tsp.
garum masala about one tsp.

In the pan I sauted the onions in I cooked the potatoes until tender. To the potatoes I added half the onion mixture and then the tumeric and garum masala. Once the spices had cooked for about a minute I took it off the heat.



I did use a few spoons of this potato mixture to make a couple filled roti (paratha) for Thomas. They were a pain in the patoot and I would only ever do them for him EVER again. This was my first try at it, and I didn't have fun, altho I have to say they were quite tasty.


Burmese Chicken Curry
Cook chicken pieces in a few T oil.
To this add:
2 T Madras style curry powder
2 T Paprika
1 T turmeric
1/2 tsp red chili powder
After about one minute add
One medium tomato, chopped



Once the tomato starts to wilt add one can coconut milk


Let this mixture simmer until it starts to turn red on the top. Then it's done. Garnish with french fried onions and garlic, lemon and fresh cilantro. (Bunny, you should know this one. I blogged about it a while back.)

Then I had this for supper:


It was delicious and Thomas and I enjoyed it emensely. I hope you guys will too, someday.

FOOD DIARY - Japanese & Pizza nights

Hubby's homemade pizza

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Remember that I'm totally not the baker in my family.. so hubby totally does this for me all the time :) We've tried a BUNCH of recipes for the crust. Quite frankly if the crust sucks.. I won't like it.. so imagine trying pizza over and over trying to get it right. Too much sauce, not enough sauce, there's no such thing as too much cheese.. LOL nvm.. Either way he finally settled on a recipe we got from a Jewish Baking book. Lemme run over to the Library to see which one. Okay it's called "Secrets of a Jewish Baker". Hands down it has the best pizza dough I've ever tasted out of a home recipe using a real oven. My favorite still is "mafia style" pizza but I don't have a brick oven that goes to 700-900°F.. Ever since hubby got that new stand mixer he's been very happy to bake again since everyone knows how tiring making your own dough can be over an extended period of time. The bigger the batch as well the more it takes from you. This recipe does 3 pizzas.

Leftovers from Tokyo Mandarin - Seafood Yaki Udon

Over the weekend we went with friends to eat at our favorite Japanese Food restaurant - Tokyo Mandarin (Chinese/Japanese food heaven). I wanted to try out something different this time but still have a slice of what I like normally.. I mean.. I was sooooooooo created for the Buffet it's not even funny.. Hubby laughs at how much I like "a taste" of something and I take a bite from his plate... of course proceeds to laugh at me as I go to a buffet and eat 1 thing off each container so I can try it all.. At least I don't get sick like he does so there! P.S. his sesame beef was fantabuloso...

Leftovers from Tokyo Mandarin - Chicken Tempura Rolls

As you can see from the menu - I tried something new and something old :) New was the Seafood Yaki Udon (and to think THIS was my leftovers.. the plate was HUGE!!).. It also came with my favorite salad (Tokyo salad which is tossed lettuce with carrots, cucumber and tomato (I take out the tomato) in a light orange ginger dressing that's actually pretty sweet and not hot at all! Other restaurants versions are much more "ginger".. (to quote Andrea's brother John.. "In an F' you Italy kind of way".. ). I ate my gyoza as well.. sorry... I had to.. and even ordered my favorite Chicken Tempura Rolls (believe it or not out of all the restaurants they have associated with this franchise.. the one I go to is the ONLY restaurant to offer this and also has the largest menu to pick from). I knew I was doggie bagging most of this so I just ordered it all.

FOOD DIARY -- International school food booth

This is just a section for people who write down what they are eating. Ramblings are very welcomed.



Yesterday was a ridiculously satisfying day because we went to Reina's friend school bazaar. International schools have amazing food booths because of the variety of ethnicities attending.
In my hometown of Vancouver, they now have these Nibbles and Bites fairs where various restaurants sell sample dishes. Food booths are like that except the food is made by parents. It will cost as much or even more (depending on your level of self-control) but the money goes towards buying playground equipment for kids and stuff. Donating money never tasted better!

What I had: 1 stick of Filipino barbequed pork, 1 bowl Korean barbeque beef bowl with kimchi, Filipino sticky rice with brown rice dessert, 2 vegetable samosas.

Hiroshi had the Italian plate combo: lasagna, ratatouillle with Italian sausage, foccacia with onion and tuna and a fig tart. He went back for a second place (substituted the retatouille for an extra slice of foccacia) and a paper cup of white wine.

And the kids, what can I say about them. Reina had some fried yakisoba noodles and popcorn. Rio had an All-American hot dog, cotton candy, Rice Krispy squares and some Filipino rice steamed pudding. (Kid's got a sweet tooth.) See how we all naturally gravitate towards different foods which makes cooking a meal for the family so tricky....