Sasha's Kitchen: Dan Dan Noodles

These Sichuan style noodles were a pleasant addition to my weekly menu a couple weeks ago.  The recipe made plenty of noodles, and they were quite flavorful.  My husband and I adapted the recipe to use ground beef rather than pork, and added some Sriracha sauce for a bit of heat.  This was quite easy to make using udon noodles.  It's probably not an ethnic Chinese dish the way it was made, but it certainly has the flavors and inspiration of Sichuan cuisine behind it.

Dan Dan Noodles (adapted from Serious Eats)
12 oz Shanghai style noodles or udon
2 T canola oil
1 lb ground beef
2 T chopped fresh ginger
3/4 cup low sodium chicken stock
Sriracha, to taste
2 T red wine vinegar
2 T soy sauce
4 tsp tahini
1 tsp Sichuan peppercorns, ground
pinch of sugar
4 T chopped peanuts
1 bunch of scallions, thinly sliced

Bring a large pot of water to boil and add the noodles.  Cook until tender, drain and set aside. In a large 12 inch skillet or wok, heat oil over medium heat until smoking.  Add beef and a pinch of salt and pepper and cook until partially cooked but still half pink.  Add ginger and continue cooking until beef is cooked through.  Stir in the chicken stock, siriracha sauce, red wine vinegar, soy sauce, tahini and peppercorns.  Season with a little sugar and boil and simmer about 7-10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add the noodles to the skillet and toss well in the sauce.  Serve with peanuts and scallions.

Sasha's Kitchen: Dan Dan Noodles

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Style Sesame Chicken Wings

I found this recipe online and it made for a delicious batch of chicken wings.  I actually made it a second time over the weekend and used chicken drumsticks and breasts (bone in) and it was equally delicious.  It's a perfect combination of sweet, garlicky, sesame oil and chile for just a bit of smoky heat, for a yummy asian inspired chicken wings. This is also a quite easy meal to make with chicken as well - and perfect for game day!  Happy Valentines's Day to all my readers here on A Kitchen In Brooklyn

Asian Style Chicken Wings (from this recipe)
4 pounds chicken wings
1 T toasted sesame oil
2 T smoked paprika
1 tsp kosher salt
4-6 turns freshly ground black pepper
cilantro for garnish (optional)
2 T toasted sesame seeds
2 lime wedges for garnish (optional)
3 T peanut oil (I used canola oil instead)
4 fresh cloves garlic, diced
2 T sriracha hot sauce
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

Preheat the oven to 400. Place the wings under cold water and pat dry.  Drizzle the wings with toasted sesame oil and toss so coated evenly.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and paprika and roast for 30 minutes until the skin is crisp and the meat is tender.

While the wings are cooking, place a small sauce pan over medium heat and add the canola oil and garlic.  Once the garlic starts to sizzle, add the sriracha sauce, honey and soy sauce.  Bring to a simmer an cook 2-3 minutes to allow the flavors to meld together.  Turn off the heat.

Once the wings are done, place in a large mixing bowl and pour the glaze over them.  Toss to coat well.  Place on a large platter and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds as a garnish.  You can also garnish with lime and/or cilantro.

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Style Sesame Chicken Wings

Sasha's Kitchen: Vegetarian Pad Thai

I made this delicious pad thai dish last week and for the first time in my efforts, I finally got pad thai right.  I love a good tofu pad thai, but in the past, things never really came out the way I had hoped.  However, this dish, which I consulted a variety of recipes for before coming up with my own, was a huge success.  My husband loved it as well and it yielded plenty of leftovers that were quickly gobbled up. Tamarind paste is an essential ingredient for any pad thai sauce.  I love the tangy flavor of tamarind in a variety of dishes, and it lends a nice flavor to the pad thai sauce here.  I got mine in Curry Town at Foods of India.

Sasha's Vegetarian Pad Thai
12 oz (one package) dried flat rice noodles (pad thai noodles)
3 T tamarind paste
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 T Sriracha (spicy chile sauce)
1 bunch scallions
2 small onions
1 package (15 oz) extra firm tofu
1/2 cup canola oil
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
 5 large eggs
1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts (chopped)

Soak the noodles in boiling hot water until softened, about 25 to 30 minutes.  Make sure they are done before you combine them in with the dish.

To make the sauce, combine the brown sugar with the tamarind paste, sriracha and soy sauce and stir over medium heat until the sugar dissolves.  Set aside.

Cut the tofu into 1 inch cubes.  Cut the scallions and onions.  Saute the onions in a tablespoon of canola oil on low heat until browned, about seven to eight minutes.  Set aside.  Lightly scramble the eggs with a 1/2 tsp of sea salt and cook the eggs in a wok until cooked through.  Break up into chunks and set aside. Stir fry the scallions, cooked onions and garlic for about a minute in a bit of canola oil.  In a wok, add about 6 T of the canola oil and fry the tofu cubes on all sides until browned.  Combine the tofu, egg, noodles and onion mixture.  Add the noodles and sauce and combine well.  Finally, mix in the chopped peanuts and serve.

Sasha's Kitchen: Vegetarian Pad Thai

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian-Style Shirataki Noodles with Chiles and Cashews

My husband is a type 1 juvenile onset diabetic, so I try to cook with minimal sugar when I am making savory meals (as opposed to baked goods).  I've really been enjoying Top Chef Sam Talbot's cookbook, The Sweet Life, which caters to those needs and has some delicious and fun recipes.  One thing I've been doing more of lately is using agave nectar in savory meals instead of sugar where I can.  This recipe uses shirataki noodles, a light tofu based noodle that looks a bit like lo mein noodles.  They're healthy - no carbs, gluten free, vegan, sugar free you name it - plain good for you! From there you can go and make a whole slew of creative dishes.  For my first time using shirataki noodles I made a recipe from Talbot's cookbook for Asian-style shirataki noodles with chile and cashews.  I used one jalapeno instead of two to make a little less spicy.  Be careful with those jalapenos.  Wash your hands and don't touch your lips, face or eyes before doing so - it can burn!

Shirataki Noodles with Cashews and Chiles (adapted from Sam Talbot's The Sweet Life)
2 packages (16 oz total) shirataki noodles (no need to cook)
3 T toasted sesame oil
1 large red onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 T finely chopped fresh ginger
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
2 T sesame seeds, toasted in a skillet
2 T rice vinegar
2 T agave nectar
1 tsp sambal oelek chile paste
1 cup low sodium chicken stock
1/4 cup cashews, whole or chopped
1/3 cup hand torn cilantro
2 T low sodium soy sauce

Rinse the noodles in cold water and drain well.  Mix with two tablespoons of the sesame oil to keep them from sticking together.  In a large skillet heat the  remaining two tablespoons of sesame oil over medium high heat.  Add the onion, garlic, ginger, jalapeno and sesame seeds and cook until the onions are translucent and the mixture is aromatic, about three minutes.  Add the vinegar, agave nectar and chile paste and mix well.  Add the broth, cashews, cilantro and soy sauce and cook another two minutes to mix the flavors.  Pour the sauce / broth over the noodles and let rest a few minutes before serving.

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian-Style Shirataki Noodles with Chiles and Cashews

Sasha's Kitchen: Chinese Style Cashew Chicken

I love Chinese food but only really good, quality Chinese food made with quality ingredients and good meats, which is quite hard to come by, to say the least. Recently, I received a package of all kinds of delicious nuts from ShopRite, everything from cashews to almonds to a variety of mixed nuts. I made a great salad that incorporated some of the cashews, but decided to save the rest to make a Chinese style sesame chicken. A good sauce for most Chinese dishes, will include some amount of hoisin sauce in the mixture. I came up with my own recipe for the cashew chicken sauce here which was relatively easy, and tasted authentic and delicious. This dish was a huge winner with my husband and is one that we will surely make again and again.

Sasha's Chinese Style Cashew Chicken
1 package chicken breasts (I used Empire Kosher, my favorite type of chicken)
2 T canola oil
3 cloves of garlic, diced
7 scallions, diced
2 T rice vinegar
4 T hoisin sauce
2/3 cup of cashews
1 T soy sauce
1/4 cup water
1 tsp honey (I used delicious homemade honey from a family friend in Danville, PA, Jan, who make his own honey from his own bees!)

Chop up the chicken breasts into small pieces. Coat with the cornstarch and saute in the canola oil until the chicken is about two thirds complete. Add the scallions, cashews and the garlic next. While the chicken is cooking, mix the hoisin sauce, water, rice vinegar, honey and soy sauce, and add the mixture to the chicken. Continue to cook until the sauce thickens a bit (the water will evaporate) and the chicken is fully cooked. Serve with rice and either steamed snow peas or sugar snap peas.

Sasha's Kitchen: Chinese Style Cashew Chicken

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews

This delicious salad recipe is loosely based on a salad recipe from Tyler Florence's  cookbook, Tyler Florence's Family Meal. The main change I made was instead of using friend asian noodles in the salad, or friend wontons, I went with cashews. I had just received some fabulous nuts to try from ShopRite as part of the Potluck Blog Panel that I am involved with, and I was eager to try them in some Asian-inspired cuisine.  I was careful to only use half of them, because I am saving the other half to make Chinese cashew chicken the following week. At any rate, this sweet potato salad is a winner, and the cashews are a perfect addition and replacement for the friend wontons. The dressing - a creamy sesame/carrot/ginger dressing, which is an interesting take on the traditional carrot/ginger dressing, is absolutely delicious.

Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews
3 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into one inch cubes
4 cups lightly packed arugula
two handfulls of cashews
1/2 of a hothouse cucumber, finely sliced
1 cup pitted and halved dates
2 T fresh cilantro, diced
juice of one lemon

Dressing:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 T low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup grated carrots
2 tsp grated ginger
2 T rice vinegar
2 T mirin

Place the sweet potatoes in a saucepan with lightly salted water, and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes over medium heat until just tender (they should still have a tiny bit of crunch; remember, you are not trying to make mashed potatoes!)

Combine all of the ingredients for the dressing in a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.

Combine the arugula, dates, and cilantro (I used much less than the recipe called for) in a large mixing bowl. Some alfalfa bean spouts might be in order as well for the next time I make this - just an idea. Add the lemon juice and a tiny bit of salt and pepper and toss well. Combine the potatoes with the dressing and mix everything together. Yum!

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Sweet Potato Salad with Cashews

Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Asian Pan-seared Halibut

I'm staying at my Mom's house for the next three months while Jenn is up in Jersey City until we can get out of our lease. The only other person at my Mom's during the week is my Grandma and we decided to make Halibut this past Wednesday night. It was very easy and tasted fantastic!

Ingredients (serves 3):
3 halibut fillets
1/2 a bunch of scallions, chopped
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp of soy sauce
2 tbsp of white wine (we used a Reisling)
a nice coating of sesame seeds on one side of the fish

First we marinated the fish in all the other ingredients for about 15 minutes. Then I got some olive oil hot in a pan and added the fish, keeping the marinade aside while the fish seared. I only ever flip any meat or fish once I flipped it and gave it a few seconds to sear the other side (toasting the sesame seeds). Then I added the marinade and let that cook as well since it was on the raw fish. I covered it for a minute or so as well to help ensure it would be tender. I'd say no more than 2-3 minutes on each side for a 1 inch thick fillet. It came out perfectly flaky and delicious and was a pretty healthy meal in the end.

We served it with some chopped, stir fried bok choy. Same ingredients without the sesame seeds and added some turkey broth maybe half a cup at the end. Please keep in mind any measurements in my recipes are probably not completely accurate as I guesstimate.

Eric's Kitchen in NJ: Asian Pan-seared Halibut

Michelle's Kitchen in Toronto - Spicy Shitake, Bamboo Shoot and Cucumber Stir fry

I was rummaging around in my fridge for a low-fat snack and noticed the shitake mushrooms I had bought in Chinatown and some leftover ingredients from the great Dan Dan Noodles recipe I made from Fuchsia Dunlop's "Land of Plenty". I decided creating a new veggie dish was in order! I know most of you have never had cucumbers cooked, but when I lived in China, this was one of the ways they might be prepared so I decided to experiment. I also didn't wash the mushrooms. I simply brushed them off with a damp paper towel after removing the stems.

Spicy Shitake, Bamboo Shoot and Cucumber Stir fry

1 tsp vegetable oil (not olive)
2 tsp Tianjin pickled vegetable (I put three in the end because I like things spicier)
2 cups cleaned and chopped shitake mushrooms; stems removed
1 cup slivered bamboo shoots (I used canned)
1 cup English cucumber, cut into batonets
1-2 tsp chili garlic sauce (I used Lee Kum Kee)
1 cup chicken broth
salt to taste

Heat the oil in the pan/wok. Add the Tianjin vegetable and stir fry for 20-30 seconds. Add the mushrooms and a little salt to draw out the moisture. Add the chili garlic sauce, bamboo shoots and cucumber. Stir fry until the mushrooms are cooked; about 4-5 minutes. Add the stock and allow to reduce on medium heat. Add salt if needed (I didn't as the broth was salty enough).

Serves 4 (with rice or noodles)

Even when cooked, cucumbers stay crunchy and add a great textural element to this dish, but you could leave them out if you prefer and only use the mushrooms and bamboo shoots.

Michelle's Kitchen in Toronto - Spicy Shitake, Bamboo Shoot and Cucumber Stir fry

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Marinated Tofu Stir Fry

I wasn't initially going to post this recipe because it's pretty simple and didn't think it would photograph too well but it tasted amazing (I have less pictures than normal). This was only my second time cooking tofu but it was so much better than the first. Initially I was just going to bread and saute the tofu but recalled the first time I made it, it was pretty dry and I wasn't a huge fan. I knew I needed some sort of sauce to go with my dish so I looked up some stir-fry sauce recipes and cobbled together things that I actually had in the kitchen and decided to marinate the tofu in the same sauce.

Ingredients: (serves 4 portions)
1 package of extra firm tofu (drained weight, 14 oz.)
1 cup (dry) of white rice
1/2 vidalia onion, sliced
1/2 red pepper, sliced
3 shiitake mushrooms
1 bunch of broccoli, chopped
1 small can of water chestnuts, drained & sliced
1 cup of chicken broth
1 cup panko crumbs
whole wheat flour
3 egg whites
sesame and vegetable oil

Sauce/Marinade: (most the measurements are guesstimates)
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 bunch of scallions
1 tbsp black sesame seeds
1 hot pepper, minced
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 -2 tbsp white wine (I used Kris's Pinot Grigio)
1-2 tbsp sesame oil

To start, I prepped all my veggies, then tried to dry out the tofu as much as possible so it would soak up as much marinade as possible. I put the tofu on top of a couple of pieces of paper towels and another on top, in between two sturdy paper plates and then stacked a few cans of Progresso's Soup on top to help drain it out over the course of an hour or so. I changed out the paper towels once or twice.

Then I sliced the tofu into 16 pieces and marinated 8 at a time for about an hour each (I had a lot of time yesterday). In the future I might add the chicken broth to the marinade so that I could marinate all the pieces at once. I then dredged the tofu in whole wheat flour and egg whites and coated them with the Panko crumbs. Panko crumbs are light and fluffy and therefore it takes a lot more volume to coat things than normal bread crumbs.

I started my rice and I got two pans nice and hot with some sesame and vegatable oils and started my broccoli in the large pan and some of the tofu in the other. The tofu, I turned often and had to add a little more oil pretty often to get them nicely browned on each side. I suppose you could deep fry them also but I don't have a fryer and don't want one as I would probably deep fry way too many things... The key with the tofu was nicely browning each side to seal in the moisture from the marinade.

After the broccoli had been in the pan for a few minutes I added my other veggies and some minced garlic and cracked black pepper along with enough oil to cook everything as the pan was pretty full! Once I was almost done with the tofu after a few rounds in the small pan, and the veggies were softened and cooked, I added my sauce/marinade and 1 cup of chicken broth and brought it to a boil, adding just a couple of pinches of whole wheat flour to give the sauce a little more thickness. I let this boil down for a few minutes while dealt with my rice and finished off the tofu.

I served the tofu over the rice and then topped it all off with the veggies and sauce. In the end the tofu was nice and moist and crunchy took on all the flavor of the marinade and the sauce made a fantastic topping with the rice and veggies as well.

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Marinated Tofu Stir Fry

Matt's Kitchen In D.C. - Durian Cheesecake

First of all, what is a durian? It is an imposing-looking tropical fruit native to Southeast Asia, where it has been crowned the "King of Fruits," and rightfully so. Certainly there is no other fruit like it anywhere - it is capable of inspiring both passionate devotion and utter revulsion. The fruit announces its presence with a strong and pungent odor that is simultaneously fruity sweet and rotten and oniony. This smell alone is enough to turn away many, and is strong enough that in some Southeast Asian countries, durian have been banned from public transportation and hotel rooms. So why even bother with this ugly and noxious smelling fruit? Once cut open, the durian yields soft fleshy insides that have an almost indescribeable but exquisite flavor - a smooth, refreshing and delicious tropical custard, but with a hint of an underlying strong flavor, that some have likened to onions, and others to almonds. Certainly, durian tastes like no other fruit on the planet. And I should point out that it is an acquired taste - while one person may become a devotee for life, a second person may be turned off at their first taste. It is, however, the sort of thing that everyone should try once - if you like it, the rewards are quite great. That being said, the mere smell alone may be enough to deter some people, and there is nothing that can really be done about that.

Durian can be bought at Asian groceries either as a whole fruit or in frozen portions. Buying a whole fruit can be expensive and, I have been told, it is extremely difficult to know if your fruit is properly ripened. An over-ripe durian may be much more offensive than a properly ripened one and can make a very bad first impression. For the purposes of this recipe, it may be best to go with frozen, which should not have ripeness issues.

The following is a cheesecake recipe that features durian prominently. This is admittedly not a particularly complex or refined cheesecake recipe - the goal was to come up with a simple, no-bake recipe that allowed the deliciousness of the fruit to take center stage. However, ultimately it produces a very decent cheesecake, made even tastier with addition of the durian. Additionally, I took the shortcut of using pre-made pie shells which is because I ran short of time and did not want to be wrestling with crusts - however, if you want to make your own crust, there are hundreds of cheesecake recipes online that will instruct on making a crust and, if desired, using a springform pan to make an actual cake, rather than a pie. This recipe will make two pie-size cheesecakes, or one 8-inch cake. If you are serving to people who are unfamilar with durian, my suggestion is to make a pie which will yield smaller slices - you can just halve this recipe for a single pie.

8 oz. thawed durian flesh
8 oz. cream cheese
16 tsp. sugar
8 oz. whipping cream
1 pkg. unflavored gelatin
1/4 cup water
*2 ready-bake pie crusts (follow directions)

Beat the sugar and cream cheese together with electric beaters until fluffy. Puree the durian flesh, then beat into the cream cheese and sugar mixture. Heat the water in a small bowl until boiling or near boiling, then add gelatin grains and stir until dissolved. Stir into the durian mixture. In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream until you have soft peaks, don't overdo it. Gently fold the whipped cream into the durian mixture until blended. Pour the mixture into the crusts and spread to the edges. Refrigerate at least four hours or until the mixture sets firmly.

Some of my test-tasters were of the opinion that the flavor improves slightly over time, so don't hesitate to make it a day or two ahead. Also, feel free to decorate/garnish it however you like - but keep in mind that some flavors may not mesh well with durian. I found one recipe that adds a fudge layer on top of the durian layer. This might taste delicious, or it might not. But I would consider giving it a try on my second go-round of making this recipe, which I will most certainly be doing.

Matt's Kitchen In D.C. - Durian Cheesecake

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Asian Style Chilean Sea Bass

This is one of my favorite dishes to make and Jenn says that if I were ever on a cooking show and they asked what my 'signature dish' was, this would be it. I tend to agree with her and this was probably the best it's ever come out. I usually use some kind of Sea Bass or Red Snapper and this time around the only Bass they had at our local A&P happened to be Chilean Sea Bass. It's definitely not cheap but if you're willing to spend the money I'd say it's the way to go! This dish is based off of a family recipe from my Chinese side with a few minor tweaks. Mainly the spiciness and the lime juice.

Ingredients:
(for 2, all my amounts are very much approximated)
1 lb. Chilean Sea Bass
1-2 tbsp, freshly minced ginger
1 tbsp, minced garlic or 1-2 cloves
1/4 cup white wine (I used St. Urbans Hof Riesling)
1/4 soy sauce
1/8th of a large sweet onion, finely minced
1 lime's worth of juice
1/4 cup chopped scallions
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 a small hot pepper, minced
A couple cranks on the pepper mill

I start by chopping up all my ingredients for the sauce. I don't have a food processor and chop things pretty quickly but a food processor might not be a bad way to go about this if you have one. Basically you need enough sauce to go with your fish when you serve it and it should taste and smell pretty good by itself so I go by taste when making it. We used a pretty sweet Riesling and I added a little more sugar than usual and both seemed to work out very well. I also usually put in some hot red pepper flakes and decided to buy some actual hot peppers instead. They weren't labeled at the store and I bought three, thinking, how hot could they be? I started mincing the first one and ate a small slice and was dumbfounded by how hot it was so I scraped out the seeds (which tend to add a lot of heat) and only used half of it and in the end it really wasn't too hot.

You want to bake this in the oven for roughly 20-25 minutes at about 425 degrees. You also want to make sure it's tightly covered. You can create a foil pouch or just cover a baking pan with foil. Mine was the same size I would make brownies in (I don't bake much). I tend to be able to tell when it's done by the smell when I open the oven door but you may have to check on it. You can tell I took a nibble to check it in my photo... It was good.

In the end I served it over some Jasmine rice (1/2 cup uncooked) with some snap peas that I just sauteed in some olive oil, garlic and cracked black pepper. I cooked them covered for probably 5 minutes on medium heat until they were just soft enough to eat without being mushy. The fish ended up being very good and kind of buttery which I found funny since there was no actual butter in the recipe. Also check out Sasha's Asian-infused sea bass with a papaya marinade!

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Asian Style Chilean Sea Bass

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Shrimp & Mushroom Dumplings

Another dumpling recipe for the food blog! While these look just like my last recipe from the outside, they are filled with Shrimp and Shiitake mushrooms and so they taste pretty different. Sasha recommended trying to make my own wrappers this time but after looking at a few recipes online and trying to find the ingredients with no success I settled on using the same old wrappers I've always used. They came out great in the end and I definitely recommend this recipe for the filling at least!

Ingredients:
1 package of gyoza style dumpling wrappers
1.5 lbs. raw shrimp, cleaned and cut into thirds or fourths depending on the size
1-1.5 cups shredded red cabbage
4 large shiitake mushrooms, chopped
2 bunches of scallions, chopped
1-2 tbsp soy sauce
chili and sesame oil
1 tbsp or 1 clove minced garlic
chopped fresh ginger and or water chestnuts are also a great addition

These are pretty simple to make but require a great deal of time. If your wrappers are frozen make sure to thaw them thoroughly ahead of time. Then I chop up everything and put it in a large mixing bowl and give myself some surface area to wrap the filling. For the filling this time I decided I really wanted the shrimp to be the main ingredient so I made sure the pieces weren't too small and bought some decent sized shrimp. I made the mistake once of using salad shrimp. I will never do that again. Also make sure you add a little soy sauce to the filling mixture as it really brings out the flavor.

I tried to make sure each dumpling had about the equivalent of a whole shrimp as well as a decent amount of everything else. I placed this on the wrappers and you need to wet the edge of the wrapper with a little water and then just fold it up and press the edges firmly together. Try to make sure that they are nicely sealed as they don't cook as properly if they aren't.

When cooking these I use a combination of sesame oil and chili oil to handle the heat well and to give some kick. I'd put maybe a tablespoon of each in a large frying pan and let it get nice and hot before adding the dumplings. I fit as many in the pan as possible just because I'm usually making a large amount of these which is fine since they freeze well and can be reheated in an oven or toaster oven after thawing. It's good to leave them in the pan, uncovered until they are nicely browned on the bottom. You don't want to be eating raw shrimp but I also wouldn't recommend pre-cooking the shrimp as they might get overdone.

After they are browned on the bottom I turn them to brown on the side as well and pour a little water in the pan (maybe 1-2 tbsp) and immediately cover it, letting them steam until the water is mostly absorbed. Again this helps ensure that the shrimp cooks fully and usually helps tighten the wrappers. In the end you get a nice crunchy and slightly spicy shrimp dumpling. I usually end up serving it with some bottled dumpling sauce but making your own is pretty easy and usually just involves some rice wine vinegar, garlic, ginger, scallions and soy sauce. Pretty much what we used during our Mongolian Hot Pot as a dipping sauce.

Also see Sasha's Lamb Dumplings and Molly's Pork Hash.

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Shrimp & Mushroom Dumplings

Sasha's Kitchen: Green Tea Tiramisu

Tiramisu has long been one of my husband's favorite desserts.  I enjoy it as well.  However, all too often, I am turned off to restaurant tiramisu desserts that are simply drenched and cloaked in the taste of alcohol.  I like a little bit of a Kahlua, Grand Marnier or  similar liqueur flavor to my tiramisu as well, but I don't want the final tiramisu simply to taste like it was drowned in alcohol.  In my mind, a bit of subtleness is key here to achieve the consistency and flavor.  I decided to do a bit of a twist on a traditional tiramisu tonight and use my leftover matcha powder from the green tea ice cream I made last weekend, in creating an Japanese-inspired green tea tiramisu.  I had a similar tiramisu dessert in the past at the Manhattan sushi restaurant, Geisha, and it was fabulous.  Today, however, I created my own green tea teamisu!

To create the tiramisu, I did a bit of research.  I looked at a lot of traditional tiramisu recipes, as well as at a green tea tiramisu recipe from Nobu, and another recipe I encountered in my research here.  In the end, I adapted all of these recipes and wrote my own inspired recipe for green tea tiramisu, using a relatively small and mild flavored alcohol so that the end result was that the mascarpone dessert would be lovely and pillowy, and would have green tea as the primary flavor (rather than coffee or alcohol).  This dessert was lovely - it has a beautiful natural green color (I elected not to  use food coloring to make it bright green) from the matcha, and is light, airy and fluffy.  Don't let it float away though - the recipe is actually not too hard to make, and is a wonderful, light treat.

Sasha's Green Tea Tiramisu
6 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
16 oz mascarpone cheese
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 package ladyfinger cookies
2 cups green tea
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 T tiramisu liqueur or Kahlua
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
4 tsp matcha green tea powder, plus extra for sprinkling on top (I bought mine locally at Park Slope Tea N Coffee N Spice)

To prepare the green tea tiramisu (or should I be calling it "Teamisu):

Beat the egg yolks and sugar in the top of a double boiler, or in a small bowl placed in a pot of simmering water.  Continue beating for about five minutes until pale yellow in color.  Next, beat the mascarpone until smooth and beat in the matcha powder.  Use a handheld mixer, or my favorite kitchen tool - you guessed it - a KitchenAid artisan stand mixer.  Mix the egg mixture into the mascarpone mixture.  Transfer to a bowl.

In the basin of your mixer (or using a handheld mixer) beat the heavy whipping cream with the cream of tartar, using the whisk attachment.  Beat on high until the cream is pillowy and has formed stiff peaks.  Add the vanilla and liqueur.

Using a spatula, fold the mascarpone mixture into the whipped cream mixture. Layer the tiramisu and the ladyfinger cookies in a cake dish, like you would with a typical tiramisu.  I suggest using a three inch deep cake pan.  Make sure to quickly dip each cookie in freshly brewed green tea (rather than the typical coffee) so that the cookies don't fall apart and layer the cookies with the tiramisu.  Sprinkle some excess matcha powder on top, and allow to chill for at least four hours before eating.  I was extremely happy with the end result of this experimental kitchen project.

Tiramisu

Sasha's Kitchen: Green Tea Tiramisu

Sasha's Kitchen: Mongolian Hot Pot ("Chinese Fondue") Part Deux

Prior to writing this post, I have unfortunately not had the opportunity yet to dine at a restaurant where Mongolian Hot Pot (known as "Chinese Fondue") was served - certainly my loss.  However, after reading about Hot Pot from guest Bloggers Kelly and Eric, I decided that I had to give it a try myself.  Truthfully, Mongolian Hot Pot is meant to be served to a group of diners, such as at a dinner party.  However, since it was my first try, and I was recipe testing, I decided to prepare Hot Pot for two - myself and my husband, Brad.

The first step was purchasing a hot pot.  I didn't get one of the fancy traditional hot pots, but the model I purchased at Tarzian West Housewares in Brooklyn was perfectly acceptable for making Hot Pot.  I bought the Presto Kitchen Kettle Multi-Cooker/Steamer which can function as a Hot Pot, among other things.  Apparently it can also be used for a wide variety of other tasks, from braising to deep frying, so I will be sure to use it next time I prepare my deep-fried NOLA beignets.  Thus, I selected my hot pot, which is pictured below.  It came with an internal basket, but I plan on purchasing additional small metal baskets on my next excursion to Chinatown, to use for a dinner party so each participant can have their own basked to make their hot pot fondue.  Last night, however, we made do with one basked and made one hot pot concoction that we shared.

The next step was to prepare the broth in the hot pot.  Although some diners may just use a simple beef or chicken stock, that would not do the trick for me.  I think the broth is really the most important ingredient in hot pot because it gives all the other vegetables and meats their flavor, as you want them to "soak up" the savory broth.  I was extremely pleased with the broth recipe I concocted, so I am going to share it below.  I really wanted something with a chicken broth / coconut flavor with lots of thai and asian spices, and a just a bit of heat.  I accomplished that in a very satisfying way.

Sasha's Mongolian Hot Pot Broth

7.5 cups of low sodium chicken broth

1/2 cup white cooking wine

2/3 cup coconut milk (leftover from the coconut meringue buttercream cake I baked on Saturday)

1 tsp sesame oil

2 T rice vinegar

1 tsp diced garlic

1 1/2 tsp powdered ginger

1/4 tsp saffron

1/2 tsp dried lemongrass

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt and pepper to taste

I prepared the broth in the hot pot and allowed it to simmer, much the same way I would have prepared a broth if I did it on a pot on my oven.  Like I said above, I was quite pleased with the results.

The next step was to select the ingredients that would be cooked in the hot pot - and for this step, the sky's the limit.  The possibilities are endless but I settled on the following:

london broil

fresh scallops (cut into small pieces, perhaps I should use baby scallops next time instead)

onions

tofu

broccoli
udon noodles

Next time, I will probably include some red pepper as well!  I seasoned all of the ingredients differently, using various combinations of pepper, soy sauce, scallions, rice vinegar, and sesame oil.  The tofu, broccoli and scallops were actually my favorite because they really absorbed the tasty broth extremely well.  I cooked my hot pot at about 200 degrees (my husband wanted me to turn up the heat, but I preferred to keep it down, and allow the ingredients to cook a bit more slowly).

My results were delicious - I recommend serving with just a bit of the broth, and with a homemade sauce made of soy sauce, rice vinegar, a bit of sugar, ginger and a touch of sesame oil.  I plan to get those mini-baskets very soon, and have a hot pot dinner party in the near future using my broth recipe to cook up everything and anything that I'm in the mood for.

Click here to read Eric in Jersey City's Hot Pot Post; Click here to read Michelle in Toronto's Chinese Eggplant Cuisine.

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Sasha's Kitchen: Mongolian Hot Pot ("Chinese Fondue") Part Deux

Sasha's Kitchen: Tropical Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice

Tonight's post is going to be a bit on the short side because I am also simultaneously attempting to watch President Obama's State of the Union.  Tonight I prepared a large (two day) recipe of my secret (until now) fried rice.  Most everyone makes fried rice with shrimp - I don't like shrimp very much, and instead stuck with chicken.  In addition, my fried rice was a combination of the tropical and exotic (using sesame oil and pineapple), combined with the traditional use of the egg, onion and of course, long grain rice.

Here's what you will need to prepare my asian, but tropical inspired fried rice:

1 package empire chicken breasts, sliced into small pieces
2 cups long grain rice
1 20 oz can diced pineapple, drained
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ginger
4 eggs
1 tsp diced garlic
1 onion, diced
1 T rice vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
2 T fish sauce
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp sugar

First prepare the rice according to package instructions and set aside.   Scramble the egg, and saute the onion and garlic and combine.  Set this aside as well.  Saute the chicken (after cutting into small pieces) with the paprika, ginger and a bit of pepper.  Combine the rice, chicken, onion, egg and garlic in a large pot, such as a saute pan or dutch oven.

Cook with the rice vinegar, sesame oil, fish sauce, soy sauce, sugar until it has the desired fried rice consistency.  This was so good that it reminded me of the fried rice at a good Japanese restaurant such as Inatome in Long Island, a Japanese steakhouse with truly delicious fried rice.  My husband has loved their fried rice since he was a kid (even though all the women in his family won't eat there because the dining experience makes your hair and clothes reek like smoky meat).  Thus, I was attempting to make my own delicious fried rice, with a tropical taste (hence the pineapple).  Plus, no need to do the laundry immediately after dinner.  I was indeed quite successful - the dish was a success and will be served again tomorrow night.

This recipe makes plenty for a larger family, or for leftovers for a second night's dinner.  I garnished with cherry tomatoes to serve.  Now, back to the State of the Union.

Sasha's Kitchen: Tropical Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Hot Pot

This past weekend my girlfriend Jenn and I went to my Mom's house and she cooked 'Mongolian' Hot Pot which is one of my favorite meals. All you're really doing is cooking a bunch of meats, seafood and veggies in chicken broth but it's a great meal that is perfect for large groups of people and a fun experience.

The two keys items you need to make this happen are the 'hot pot' so that you can bring the broth to a boil (keep it covered to start), and a bunch of little baskets so that everyone can cook their food.


The actual meats and veggies used can certainly vary. This time around we used thinly sliced chicken, beef, lamb, small scallops, shrimp & fish. Normally we use monk fish or even red snapper but this time my Mom went to the Asian market and they had fish that was simply called 'hot pot fish'... It tasted similar to monk fish but wasn't. We also kept rice noodles, snow peas, mushrooms, Napa cabbage (bok choy also works great), spinach and vegetable dumplings on hand as well as lots of extra broth to keep the level high enough to cover people's baskets.


The other key item we make sure everyone has is dipping sauce. We had oyster sauce for the meats and a soy sauce based sauce that my Grandma makes really well. It's just soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic, ginger, scallions, cilantro, a little sugar and sesame oil.

Another good tip is to make sure each meat has a serving fork or spoon so that people don't end up with juice from the raw meats on their eating utensils and plates or bowls. Everyone just fills their baskets with whatever meats and seafood they want and lets the baskets rest on the edge of the hot pot. We usually just throw veggies and noodles in as needed and serve with bowls also so you can make soup as you go. You can also always just throw whatever is uneaten in at the end, let it cook and have soup as leftovers.

Hot Pot is also mentioned in Kelly's entry on the best Chicago Bites of 2009

Eric's Kitchen in Jersey City: Hot Pot

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Infused Blue Point Oysters On The Half Shell

Oysters make the perfect small plate, appetizer or snack.  They are actually very easy to prepare, if you live near the coast and have access to freshly caught oysters, because they really don't need very much garnishing to prepare.  My favorite oysters are the small, bite-sized ones, like Blue Point and Kumamoto.  Kumamoto oysters are actually a Japanese import that are widely cultivated in the Pacific Northwest.  Blue Point oysters, are a local Long Island catch, and thus, my choice for preparing this appetizer.  To learn more about oysters and different types of oysters, click here.  Don't forget that you will need a shucker as well.

For my small plate, I wanted to create a bite sized fresh ocean treat with an asian infused marinade or dressing.  Accordingly, here are the ingedients I used:

2 T olive oil

2 shallots, diced

2 cloves of garlic, diced
A bit of non-spicy chile, like anaheim chile (about 2 T)

1 tsp sugar

2 T soy sauce

1/2 tsp sesame oil

1 T champagne vinegar

2 T lime juice

1 T chopped cilantro

6 small oysters of the Blue Point variety (or use whatever your local catch is)

The cilantro, soy sauce, champagne vinegar and sesame oil in this dressing will give your oysters an asian infused feeling.  To prepare this recipe, heat the olive oil with the shallots, garlic and anaheim chile until soft for a couple of minutes.  Add the sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar and champagne vinegar over heat for about a minute.  Then add the lime juice and cilantro and allow to cool.  Then spoon the dressing over the Blue Point Oysters.  Perfect.   This is a simple eye catching appetizer or snack.  Just make sure that you only use a fresh local catch and prepare the same day that you purchase. 

I should mention that normally you shuck an oyster with a special oyster knife or shucker.  However, I just has my local fish guys at Ocean Fish Market in Park Slope shuck and half-shell the oysters for me, which was really much easier.

oysters

Sasha's Kitchen: Asian Infused Blue Point Oysters On The Half Shell