Michelle's Kitchen in Toronto : Valentine's Special - Steak with Scallion and Barbeque Sauce

This weekend, I was having a major craving for red meat so I thought to myself: "What could be more perfect for Valentine's Day than a romantic steak dinner for two?" And so, the experiment began! I started with a top quality organic Ontario strip loin steak from my favorite organic butcher here in Toronto; Sanagan's Meat Locker in Kensington Market where everything is always organic and local. To my mind, a good quality steak is key to making it perfectly. I used the whites of the scallions that were left over from my great Fish Fragrant Eggplant experiment that I previously posted, however you could use the whole scallion, a sweet onion or a shallot if you prefer. I bought a steak that was about 8-12 oz and I found that I only needed half for myself along with a green salad, however you could certainly double the recipe if this is not enough for you and your guest. This is a nice recipe for those of us who do not have a barbecue, or live in sub-zero climates as all you require is a pan and an oven!

Steak with Scallion and Barbeque Sauce

For the steak:
1 8-12 oz strip loin steak
2 tbsp barbeque sauce (I used Gourmet Original Diana Sauce; my favorite!)
1 tbsp pomegranate barbeque sauce (I used President's Choice amazing Memories of Damascus sauce but you could omit this and add more Diana sauce)
1/2 - 1 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp olive oil
salt to taste


Rub the steak with the sauces and coriander powder. Ideally, allow to marinate for 30 minutes to an hour. Preheat your oven to 375F. Heat your pan with the oil so it's smoking hot. Just before you add the steak to the pan, sprinkle with salt to taste. Sear the outside until the steak has nice colour, but only flip once. Take steak from the pan and put in the oven on a foil-covered sheet pan, keeping the heat on in the pan as you will be making your sauce while the steak cooks. I cooked it another 8 minutes in the oven to get it to rare but you could try cooking it 10 minutes to medium rare or 12 minutes to medium-well.


For the sauce:
4 stems scallion whites (see my blurb about ingredients above)
1/4 cup red wine (I used Pelee Island Winery Merlot Reserve)
1/2 - 1 c chicken broth
2 tbsp barbeque sauce (again, I used Diana Sauce)
salt to taste


In the heated steak pan, add the scallions and cook until the rawness has just gone out of them but not burning them, about 30 seconds. Add the wine and allow the alcohol to burn off; scraping all the good steak flavour bits off the bottom of the pan while you do it. The alcohol is usually gone about 30 seconds to a minute after you start smelling the wine in the pan. To this, add the barbeque sauce and stir. Add the chicken broth and allow sauce to cook down to whatever consistency you want it. Adjust salt in the last minute or two of cooking as the broth has quite a bit of salt as well and you may not need more.

I added a nice green salad to my plate as well as my glass of Pelee Island Winery Merlot Reserve that I not only cooked with, but drank as well.


Gourmet Original Diana Sauce


Memories of Damascus Sauce


Pelee Island Winery Merlot Reserve

Michelle's Kitchen in Toronto : Valentine's Special - Steak with Scallion and Barbeque Sauce

Molly D's Kitchen in Seattle: Congee

One of my favorite comfort foods is rice porridge with Chinese flavors. When I was a kid in Honolulu we called it jook (the “oo” is pronounced as in “book”), which from what I can tell from my limited research is a Korean or alternative Cantonese name. Now that I’m on the mainland it seems the more common name is congee, so that’s what I’m calling it here.

My parents never made congee when I was little, so I only ate it in restaurants, often with dim sum. Muddling through Seattle’s dreary winter, I recently decided to make congee a more regular part of my repertoire. It’s warm and filling, cheap and easy to make, and can accommodate a wide variety of ingredients and toppings.

My congee is adapted from this recipe. (The blog is worth a read, too.)

Here is the absolute base recipe:

Congee

1 c. short-grain rice

8 to 10 c. water

Wash rice and put it in a large pot with 2 cups water. Place over high heat until water boils, then add another 4 cups water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for about 1½ hours, stirring occasionally and adding water as necessary (about 2 to 4 cups more).

Serves 6-8

Of course, you won’t want to eat it like that; it’s extremely bland, and congee can be much more interesting. This is what I did to make the bowl pictured above:

Congee

1 c. short-grain rice

2 c. chicken broth

6 to 8 c. water

4 or 5 shiitake mushrooms

handful dried shrimp

Wash rice and put it in a large pot with stock. Place over high heat until stock boils, then add about 4 cups water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Soak 4 or 5 dried shiitake mushrooms in hot water until softened. Remove stems and thinly slice. After congee has been simmering for half an hour, add mushrooms and shrimp to pot along with a pinch of salt.

Simmer for another hour, stirring occasionally and adding water as necessary (about 2 to 4 cups more).

Serves 6-8

I topped this bowl with:

• Fried tofu cubes
• Slices of lap cheong
• Fried carrot slices
• Sesame oil
• Dark soy sauce
• Sliced green onion
• Crispy fried shallots

(So many of these were fried because I was already frying the tofu.)

But honestly, you can mix in or top with anything you like. Any or all of the liquid can be veggie or meat broth. In the step when I added the mushrooms and shrimp, you could also put in ginger, garlic, bits of meat, or anything else you want to simmer with the rice and flavor the whole congee.

Other toppings might include:

• Flavorful sauces like black vinegar, chili paste, or soy sauce
• Meats and veggies like char siu, blanched broccoli, or raw tofu
• Garnishes like crispy noodles, pork floss, or bits of onion

You could even use non-Chinese ingredients based on what you have in the fridge and pantry, I just wouldn’t suggest combining preserved soybeans with leftover chicken mole, you know?

Molly D's Kitchen in Seattle: Congee