A Life, Lived

Cashew Chicken Stir-Fry

I am late! I should have posted this on Sunday but it was Daring Cooks day, then yesterday was the day to post about Valentine's Day, and so on, and so on . . . LOL Such is the life of a busy blogger.

Last week was Candi's turn to select the recipe for the Sunday Slow Supper group to play with. She selected the category of stir fries and her recipe was a Thai treat that she was introduced to during her recent trip to Thailand. She was given a recipe in the cooking class and shared it (with modifications) with us.

Paul and I love stir fries - the intermingled flavours, crisp vegetables, and the speed with which they arrive at the table are all wonderful. The secret to stir fries is having EVERYTHING chopped, measured, and ready to go because they cook so quickly - just cooking for a minute or two longer then needed while you slice up an onion is the difference between a well prepared dish and, well, mush!

I followed the recipe as printed with one exception - we tend to like the sauce on the thick side so I thicken it. I thought it was easier to do while the dish cooks rather than removing all the veggies and thickening the sauce separately. The easiest way to do this is to mix the corn starch in with the chicken broth prior to pouring it in to the wok. The sauce was thickened by the time everything was crisp tender and perfectly cooked.

This was an excellent stir fry! Thanks Candi.

Cashew Chicken Stir-Fry

cooking oil
2 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 yellow onion, finely diced
4 boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size cubes or strips
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
3 Tbsp. oyster sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 yellow squash, diced
1 zucchini, diced
8 oz. jelly, oyster or shitake mushrooms, sliced
red-eye chili pepper to taste,seeded and finely chopped
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 tsp. corn starch(optional)
1/2 cup unsalted cashews

Heat 2 to 3 Tbsp. of vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add garlic and onions and stir-fry until browned. Sear chicken on both sides for about three minutes(I use the sides of the skillet).(The chicken should be almost fully cooked at this point, if need to, cook for longer). Add fish sauce, oyster sauce and sugar and mix for another minute. Add vegetables and stir-fry for a minute or two. Add the chicken broth, cover and simmer for three to four minutes until vegetables are tender and chicken is fully cooked.

If you wish to thicken the sauce, use a slotted spoon to transfer the chicken and vegetables to a plate, and add cornstarch to the sauce whisking for a minute or two until sauce is thickened. Transfer the chicken and vegetables back to the skillet to keep warm.

Serve the stir-fry over your favorite rice (I make white rice) and top with cashews.

Risotto al Granchio e Gamberi (Crab and Shrimp Risotto)

This week was my turn to select the recipe for the Sunday Slow Supper group to play with. My category was risotto and I selected a shrimp and crab risotto that is traditional to the Veneto region of Italy.

This recipe is from the Williams Sonoma cookbook 'Savoring Italy' by Miclehe Scicolone. I like the recipe because it is easily adaptable - you really can add whatever shellfish or seafood that you have on hand or prefer.

Not surprisingly, the Veneto is home to a wealth of rice and seafood dishes, from risotto alla marinara (with clams) to risotto di pesse (Venetian dialect for fish) to risotto ai frutti di mare (with mixed seafood) to the shrimp and crab risotto offered here. The Venetians are said to like their risotto allonda, that is, "with a wave." In other words, they prefer it loose and creamy and rather soupy, with the rice forming soft waves when pushed with a fork the signature plate for a region with a long seafaring tradition.

Scallops, squid or even a firm-fleshed fish fillet can be used in this risotto. Just be sure to cut the seafood into small pieces, about 1/2-inch dice. When peas are in season, you can add a handful during the last few minutes of cooking. Like most pasta, soups, rice and other dishes made with fish, this risotto is not served with cheese, which can overwhelm the delicate flavor of the seafood. A Pinot Grigio from either the Veneto or Friuli Venezia Giulia would complement the dish.

I made my own shellfish stock using the crab and shrimp shells. I also used some of the truffle salt that I brought back from Italy at the end. To serve I drizzled a bit of 12 year old balsamic on the risotto

This was very well-received by everyone last night!

Risotto al Granchio e Gamberi

Ingredients:
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
6 Tbs. olive oil
1/2 lb. shrimp, peeled, deveined and each cut into 4 or 5 pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
6 cups chicken or fish broth or water
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cups medium-grain rice such as arborio, vialone nano or carnaroli
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (about 1 cup)
1/2 lb. fresh-cooked crabmeat, picked over to remove any shell fragments

In a saucepan over medium heat, sauté the garlic and 2 Tbs. of the parsley in 2 Tbs. of the olive oil, stirring once or twice, until the garlic is fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the shrimp, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring, just until the shrimp are pink, about 2 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside. Add the broth to the saucepan and bring just barely to a simmer.

In a large saucepan or risotto pan over medium heat, warm 3 Tbs. of the oil. Add the onion and sauté until tender and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice and cook, stirring, until the kernels are hot and coated with oil, about 2 minutes. Add the wine and continue to cook, stirring often, until the liquid is absorbed.

Add the broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly and making sure the liquid has been absorbed before adding more. When the rice is about half cooked, stir in the tomatoes, salt and pepper. The risotto is done when the rice grains are creamy on the outside and firm yet tender to the bite, 20 to 25 minutes total. Rice varies, so you may not need all of the broth or you may need more. If more liquid is required, use hot water.

Stir in the shrimp and crabmeat and cook, stirring, just until heated through, about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Remove the risotto from the heat. Stir in the remaining 1 Tbs. each oil and parsley. Spoon the risotto into warmed soup bowls and serve immediately.

Serves 6 to 8

NOTE: Risotto is one of the few things that isn't great as leftovers (unless you're transforming it into rice balls and a plain risotto works far better for that). If you're just serving a small number of people you may wish to half the recipe.

Squash, Pepper, Chard, and Corn Stew

The Sunday Slow Supper cooking group moved on to stews this week . . . the recipe was selected by Shannon who is one of the slowtravel moderators. Shannon is loads of fun and has a huge depth of knowledge about beer, wine, food, Venice, Spain . . . the list goes on and one. Recently she has started to lead tours in Spain and Italy - you can find more about those over at Grape Hops. 

Confession - My name is Jerry and I am a carnivore.

When I first looked at this recipe I wrinkled my nose in disgust. Oh my. A vegetarian stew? This was enough to cause me to run for the hills to escape the horror that would surly appear on my plate. There is a reason we humans have canine teeth and it isn't to gnaw on a hard piece of squash.

Nonetheless, I threw my anti-vegetarianism feelings to the wind and made the stew last night for dinner. This is how the group works - someone selects a recipe and you make it - although you can modify it a bit to suit your taste.

Of course you know what happened . . .

We LOVED it.

I followed the recipe as printed but did add some zucchini that I had in the fridge. I also added some extra chili poweder as we were near the end of the bottle and I wasnted to finish it off.

Yes folks, this was delicious comfort food. Be sure to serve it with bread because you'll want to sop up every delicious drop!

Shannon writes:

I got this recipe from the San Francisco Chronicle around 1993. It's adapted from a recipe in "The Savory Way" by Deborah Madison. The original recipe calls for hominy instead of corn, but I'm not a hominy lover; if you like it, use a 29oz. can of hominy in place of the corn. You can also put black beans in this stew.

This is my go-to stew when I want something comforting but also, healthy; it makes me feel healthy just eating it, and it is delicious too. Serve with corn tortillas and a green salad with avocado if you'd like.

We discovered that the stew paired brilliantly with an unoaked Chardonnay from Daniel Lenko winery. MMMM

Enjoy!

Squash, Pepper, Chard, and Corn Stew

1 medium onion, diced
3 – 5 garlic cloves, chopped
¾ pound banana squash (we used a butternut squash - I don't even know what the heck a banana squash was and was afraid to google it), peeled and cut into pieces about ½ inch wide
2 – 3 T olive oil
1 t. Greek oregano
1 green pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 T. flour
2 T. chile powder
½ t. cumin
1 c. dry white wine
2 c. broth of choice
3 – 4 c. tomatoes, diced
½ bunch chard, blanched and cut into ribbons with the tougher stems cut away
1 ½ c. frozen corn
¾ c. sour cream or yogurt to taste
Chopped cilantro and green onions for garnish

Very lightly sauté the onion, garlic and squash in oil in a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot, then add oregano, red and green peppers, flour, chile powder and cumin. Stir together and cook for a minute or two longer.

Add wine, broth, and tomatoes, then cover and simmer for 30-45 minutes. Add chard and corn, then cook for a further 15-20 minutes.

Taste for seasoning. If stew is too liquid, pour off liquid into a small saucepan and boil down until reduced and richly flavored.

Just before serving, stir in sour cream or yogurt. Serve sprinkled with cilantro and green onions.

Smoked Paprika Roasted Chicken

For the past two years a group of cooks who hang out on the slow travel community message board have been cooking together on Sundays. We've baked treats from Gina dePalma's wonderful baking cookbook Doce Italiano, churned ice cream from the Perfect Scoopby David Lebovitz, tossed salads, ladled soups, and served up tasty small bites. For our next foray into the kitchen we've decided to focus on supper dishes. We have identified a number of categories and each week one of the group selects a recipe for the rest of us to make.

The thing I like about this is that it essentially forces you to try something that you might otherwise not even attempt - we all have our 'comfort zone' as cooks and we tend to not stray from it. Over the past few years I've tried so many different recipes that I'd likely not had given a second glance to had they not been the 'recipe of the week'. In most cases I've LOVED them.

Sadly, I don't think anyone loved the blue cheese ice cream, but I digress.

However, for forcing me to expand my food comfort zone  . . . I raise a glass of the wonderful 2007 Pinot I picked up at Malivoire yesterday! They say the 2007 reds are the best vintage ever for Niagara and the ones we tried yesterday were BRILLIANT!

Anyway. This week's recipe was selected by Amy who is one of the moderators. You can catch Amy's blog, Destination Anywhere. Amy modified the recipe from the one she found at Simply Recipes (one of my favourite food blogs). The category was Roast and the recipe was for smoked paprika roast chicken.

We enjoyed this roast chicken last night for dinner. We used a chicken we had bought in the US in the morning for $ 0.79/lb. For some odd reason a similar sized chicken here in Canada was about $ 20 yet the American bird only $ 4.89. Since this was a 6 lb bird it did take more than the time given in the recipe.

We used smoked paprika (Pimenton de la Vera) imported from Spain. The brand was La Chinata. We have two tins - one hot and one sweet (it isn't sweet at all, just not spicy hot IMHO). This stuff is amazing . . . the color is a gorgeous deep red that spreads through any dish. It has an beguiling smoky aroma that comes from the slow oak smoking process that is guaranteed to add a fascinating depth to any dish you add it to.

Happily a local grocery chain was bought out by a chain from Quebec. Soon after the transition all sorts of wonderful things started to appear on the shelves. The pimeton de la vera being one of them.

I noticed when we were across the border that both of the main grocery stored had smoked paprika in the spice section. I believe it was McCormick brand. (The McCormick website had an interesting recipe for smoked paprika roasted salmon that I printed off to try).

Because we had both sweet and hot I used a tablespoon of each - I'm glad that I didn't use 2 tablespoons of the hot because the heat would have overwhelmed the other flavours.

We had a 'naked' lemon (lemon that has been zested to an inch of its life) that was withering in the fridge so I quartered it and stuffed it in the cavity as well.

This was a great chicken! I've done a whole chicken on the BBQ many times but I don't think I've roasted an actual chicken in the oven since my university residence days (now that is a tale that I shall not go into here). I know that I shall be making this again (and using the rub for grilled chicken when I dare venture outside to fire up the BBQ again).

We served the chicken with some leftover mashed potatoes (after a day across the border and wine tasting in Niagara I was happy to bring out leftovers) and amazing ginger roasted parsnips.

Smoked Paprika Roasted Chicken

2 Tbsp smoked paprika (plus a bit more for inside the chicken)
2 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp softened butter
2 teaspoons garlic salt (or 1 teaspoon salt plus 1 teaspoon garlic powder)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 whole 4-5 pound roasting chicken
1 onion, quartered

Preheat oven to 325°F. Rinse the chicken off. Pat dry thoroughly with paper towels (otherwise the paste won't stick).

Mix together the paprika, honey, lemon juice, butter, garlic salt, and pepper. Spread it over the entire surface of the chicken, then place chicken on a shallow baking pan. Sprinkle a bit of paprika into the cavity, and place the cut onion in the cavity.

Bake at 325°F for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes or more. You may need to adjust the time depending on how big your chicken is. The chicken is done when the juices run clear (not pink) when a knife tip is inserted into both the chicken breast and thigh, about 165-170°F for the breast and 180-185°F for the thigh. I like to cover the breast with foil for part of the time so it doesn't dry out.

Let chicken rest for 5 minutes, then carve and serve.