Where my ladies at?

I've been busy but still cooking now and then. Here are some recent foodstuffs that I have made.

• Sweet and Sour Chicken Thighs with Carrots: I made this last night, and it's my favorite recipe that I've cooked recently. I made it using 1/4 c. water instead of 1/2 c. water, which made the flavor of the sauce sufficiently concentrated (tasty for spooning over rice or your accompaniment of choice). I also didn't use quite as many carrots, maybe only about 1/2-3/4 lb, and added about 1/2 tbsp. extra honey to sweeten it up more.
• Coconut Lime Rice Pudding: I remember Dinner made this a long time ago. I think I like rice puddings with coconut milk more than those with just milk and/or cream. This recipe could use a little more liquid for my taste, perhaps another cup of milk would do it. Or to give it more of an Indian twist, merge with this recipe. Note: Do not make with non-light coconut milk, it makes the recipe too heavy.
• Oven Roasted Spareribs with Peach Glaze: The sauce in this recipe is pretty good, although not quite as finger-lickingly scrum-dilly-licious as one would hope. I've been trying to perfect the oven-roasted spareribs technique. Right now, my general method has been to stick the ribs in 325 degree oven for 2 hours, covered, basting with the sauce in the last 30 minutes or so.
• Addendum: The last time I made this, I only had about 1/2 tsp chili powder left, so I added 1/4 tsp. garlic powder, which seemed to give the sauce more zing, although I might use a little less garlic next time as that powder stuff is quite potent. I also used apricot preserves, which were as tasty as the peach ones.
• Capellini with Salmon and Lemon-Dill-Vodka Sauce: Hmm, the first time I made this I thought it was totally fab, but the last time was less impressive. I think I slightly overcooked both the salmon and pasta, which probably ruined the texture of the dish. I used somewhat pricy vodka each time (Stoli and Ketel 1, respectively), but I read that it doesn't make a difference what brand you use for cooking, and it should probably make even less of a difference when you are cooking it for 45 minutes (as in this recipe). I will have to try it again sometime and report back on my findings!
• Chilled Tomato Soup with Citrus and Spice: Another recipe with vodka which I haven't made yet: I should make this before the weather gets too nippy ...
• Pork Stir-fry with Green Beans and Peanuts: Good stirfry with a pleasing texture. This could use a bit of cornstarch to get the sauce to cling to the food. Also, marinate the pork for a couple of hours if possible.

Hot Pot City

My boss and Jenn and I went out instead of going to his place, and after much cruising around since every place I knew was closed on Monday, we ended up at Coriya Hot Pot City. It's like a Korean/Japanese fondue, where there is a pot of boiling water in the center, and a foil covered ring around it. The burner heats it from below, so you can boil things or fry them on the ring. Then there is an all-you-can-eat bar of raw meat, fish, seafood, tofu, noodles, veggies, and other ingredients and a selection of sauces. There were also pre-made sushi and desserts. It was awesome! We all made several rounds of masterpieces with fried and boiled things. And since this kind of thing is usually pretty expensive, it was a steal at $13/person for all you can eat sushi! My favorite was the octopus and the mussels. Here is an illustration:

Honor the (veggie) cakes!

Make one of these and report back to me p.d.q.:
Chocolate Zucchini Cake
or
Sweet-Potato Layer Cake.

Also: Avocado is nature's butter.

Overstewed Green Beans

... if you like your green beans a bit mushy instead of crisp-tender. The recipe is vague on how long one should cook the beans, but I go for a minimum of 30 minutes at medium heat. That last 2 tbsp. of olive oil can probably be omitted if you're aiming for a lighter tasting dish.

Salmon burgers with mustard mayo

I got this recipe from the cookbook Weir Cooking in the City. It takes well under 30 minutes to make, perfect for the busy grad student :).

1/2 c. mayonaise
1 clove garlic, minced
3 tbsp. capers
2 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. lemon juice

1/2 c. olive oil
6 salmon fillets (about 4-6 oz each), skinned and boned
6 rolls, halved
6 slices tomatoes
3 leaves of Bibb lettuce, halved

Mix together the first five ingredients and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place the oil in a heavy nonstick skillet large enough to hold the salmon. Place the pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot and almost rippling, add the salmon and cook until golden and crispy on one side, 3-4 minutes. Turn the salmon and cook until golden and crispy on the other side, another 3-4 minutes.

Toast the rolls. Spread the mustard mayo on the rolls. Assemble each burger with a piece of salmon, a slice of tomato, and a piece of lettuce in a roll.

Think pink

This blog looks very promising. Let me know if you ladies make any of the recipes!

Pork and shrimp with caramel sauce

A variation on this earlier catfish recipe. This will require the following ingredients:

1 recipe caramel sauce (refer to the aforementioned catfish recipe)
2 shallots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 lb pork belly
1/2 lb shrimp, peeled if desired
black pepper

To prepare the dish, add shallots, garlic, and pork belly to the caramel sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook, covered, for about 40 minutes. Then add the shrimp and cook another 3-5 minutes until the shrimp is done. Sprinkle some black pepper on top, and serve with cooked jasmine rice.

Notes: Instead of pork belly, you could probably use chunks of ham or some other kind of pork cubes, although I haven't explored these options yet. Or you can vary the proportions of pork and shrimp to your liking. Or you can even dispense with the pork-shrimp altogether and use 2 lbs chicken wings instead (with the same cooking time as above), which is another yummy and also cheaper option.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are floating in space