Dinner 2015 (Part 1)

[huiray]

Wow..  Nice  but when I cook..I would only use 1-2 or 3    ?    Seems overwhelming to me

 

Well, keep in mind that personal tastes come into play; also the relative flavors being blended (the Angelica sinensis, for example, would have a very pronounced taste and smell); also the proportions being used - the bowl of BKT shown in the post represented maybe a third to a quarter of the actual pot of stuff, where I had used a very meaty rack of baby back ribs -- about 2 1/2 lbs -- sliced up.  The total volume of the simmering mixture was maybe 7-8 quarts.  In fact, I used less cloves and star anise than I might have used on other past occasions.  This version of BKT is also supposed to be a rich, deeply flavored and intense dish** -- at least in my preference.  I have made much simpler versions where I use just cloves, star anise and cinnamon in light quantities; or made the Teochew version which is much, MUCH lighter on the herbal stuff and much more peppery and lighter in nature, with no dark soy sauce or oyster sauce being added as well.  OTOH the true Klang version (which I don't particularly care for) reduces the heavily herbal & spicy broth to a thick sauce, almost...eh, I like my soup to drink, and having just a "sauce" is not as satisfying for me. (I have never shown a true Klang version here on eG)  Insofar as spicing is concerned, in fact removing the cassia pieces from the mix when leaving the leftovers on the stovetop is not a bad idea because it is the cassia, not the cloves or star anise, that tends to "over-permeate" the BKT when left in for a long time and also imparts a distinct "woody" taste to it in that case.

 

But of course if one is sensitive to the flavor/taste/aroma of cloves and star anise then by all means use the appropriate amount suitable for one's preference.

 

For myself, in a general sense (there may be exceptions in specific cases) if I were to use just 1-2 cloves in a dish I were cooking I might as well not use any cloves at all.  :-)

 

** and why this goes so well with rice, lots of it.  Some folks in Western cuisine traditions who might eat stuff with at most a couple spoonfuls of rice (whether Thai or Indian curries or any other spiced/flavored stuff) and who frequently eat a plate of curry (or this BKT) alone by themselves might, indeed, think that the dish is overwhelming, or really hot, or super spicy etc - but that would be at least in part because they were eating such dishes under circumstances they were not designed for.^¶¶  The corollary would be that if one were going for an "authentic" (I don't like that word) spicy dish but intended not to accompany it with the "normal" amount of rice or carbohydrate etc then it might be a good idea to scale back the spicing or chillies or whatnot used in the dish - which, of course, renders it not exactly "authentic" or at least not really "traditional" and which some folks might find upsetting.  ;-) :-)

 

^¶¶ Or by not having other accompaniments that were meant to ameliorate or act-in-symbiosis-with whatever one was eating

Edited March 13, 2015 by huiray (log)

[mgaretz]

St. Louis Ribs served with steamed yellow squash and salad.

 

 

[scubadoo97]

Mgaretz every thing off your smoker looks so darn good

[Fernet-Bronco]

Dang, those ribs look fine.

[liamsaunt]

kimchi rice

[Anna N]

Thank you for the compliment on the bangers and not mash, Patrick.

Noodle bowl with leftover duck breast and a "Ramen" egg.

[ninagluck]

Pasta arrabiata with squid

[MSRadell]

 

made these huge patty melts for me and the ladies.. some really nice rye bread, i covered in mayo and cooked on the griddle.. The burgers were just large balls, flattened on the grill, steamed over onions.  

 

three squares of cheese and bacon.  sriracha as a condiment and the last of the yuca with mojo.. 

 

I think i make my favorite burger these days..  and i am super critical of myself.  

 

 

to drink, Six Point started delivery the Abigale.  

 

 

Those look wonderful, I always really enjoy a good patty melt! Just wondering, what do you steam the burgers instead of cooking them directly on the flattop so they get a good caramelized surface? I always think the caramelized surface of burgers always adds a lot of flavor and steamed burgers always make me think of White Castle burgers which I hate!

[Paul Bacino]

Killer Deal @ WF Monk fish for `14$

Braised Kale/ RG Alubia Blanco San Juan Iturbude GTO beans/ pickled veg/ Monk fish butter basted in a cajun season

 

 

 

 

 

 

[huiray]

Pork spare ribs – marinated w/ and steamed w/ taucheo (this one), long hot green chillies, ginger, garlic, peanut oil.

 

Asparagus & maitake mushroom in chicken stock.

Baby bok choy hearts (raw).

White rice.

 

 

[Shelby]

Nina, your pasta looks wonderful.  I wish my husband liked squid!

 

A few meals we've had:

 

Brats and fries.  I mangled my bun a bit.

 

 

Bit of a chef salad with pheasant strips.

 

 

 

Pizza and salad for Pi day.

 

 

 

[Okanagancook]

Shelby, your pizza is me kinda pie!  Did you use a stone and baked with the broiler on to get the nice golden top?  And nice touch with broccoli....looks like it's raw?  Even better.

[Shelby]

Shelby, your pizza is me kinda pie!  Did you use a stone and baked with the broiler on to get the nice golden top?  And nice touch with broccoli....looks like it's raw?  Even better.

I have a gas stove.  When I know I'm making pizza for dinner, I turn it on at least 3 hours a head of time.  I have my pizza stone in there already and I set the temp. at 525 degrees.  When I'm ready, I slide my pizza in and it bakes for about 10 mins. or so to get done that way

 

Yes, I'm one of the few here that likes raw broccoli  Sounds like you do, too!

[huiray]

A late night meal.

 

Fried rice – peanut oil, sliced scallions & chopped coriander leaves, sliced de-stringed celery (LOTS), three eggs scrambled in situ, 2-day-old white rice, salt.  Accompanied by Lingham's Hot Sauce.

 

[MSRadell]

Yes, I'm one of the few here that likes raw broccoli  Sounds like you do, too!

 

My wife and I also like it raw! Even if it's cooked we still like it crunchy.

[ninagluck]

Pea pancake, poached egg, bottarga and some white balsamic pearls

[liamsaunt]

image.jpg

Noodle bowl with leftover duck breast and a "Ramen" egg.

 

That looks great.  How long did you cook the egg for?  Is it marinated in soy?  I think I made something like this from a Japanese noodle cookbook a while back but yours looks better than mine.  

 

A recent dinner:

 

Cod and clam chowder

 

 

and mutant popovers

 

 

I am excited because my fish CSA starts up again tomorrow after a one month plus hiatus thanks to the awful weather here in the Boston area.  This chowder was made with the last of my CSA cod from the freezer.  We get two pounds a week from the CSA so sometimes we have to freeze part of the delivery since I only cook for two Monday-Thursday.

[Anna N]

That looks great.  How long did you cook the egg for?  Is it marinated in soy?  I think I made something like this from a Japanese noodle cookbook a while back but yours looks better than mine.  

 

A recent dinner:

 

Cod and clam chowder

 

cod and clam chowder.jpg

 

and mutant popovers

 

popovers.jpg

 

I am excited because my fish CSA starts up again tomorrow after a one month plus hiatus thanks to the awful weather here in the Boston area.  This chowder was made with the last of my CSA cod from the freezer.  We get two pounds a week from the CSA so sometimes we have to freeze part of the delivery since I only cook for two Monday-Thursday.

These eggs were another attempt at perfection that missed. This time the eggs were put into a cast iron pot with boiling water and the lid was put on. I left them for 20 minutes then put them in an ice bath. I peeled them and they were marinated in a soy-based mixture. I would still like the yolk a little more solid.

[Dejah]

huiray and I are from entirely different Chinese roots, I think. His dishes are much more intense and wider range than mine. I guess my roots are Toisan and Cantonese - quite simple. Even with my herbal soups, such as one with angelica, almonds, lotus nuts, etc, my ingredients are limited to 4 -5.

 

Tonight:

Chayote Soup with pork broth and ginger

 

Yeem Gok Gai (Salty chicken) rubbed  and marinated overnight with purchased spices/ salt and addition of turmeric, pan-fried tofu, Shanghai bak choy

 

 

 

 

[mmille24]

Short rib pastrami. Adapted from Chef Steps. 7 day brine. 4 hour smoke around 140-150F. 52 hours/144F SV. Came out a bit dry. Might try a different meat next time. Not sure what went wrong.

Edited March 16, 2015 by mmille24 (log)

[huiray]

huiray and I are from entirely different Chinese roots, I think. His dishes are much more intense and wider range than mine. I guess my roots are Toisan and Cantonese - quite simple. Even with my herbal soups, such as one with angelica, almonds, lotus nuts, etc, my ingredients are limited to 4 -5.

 

 

Are you basing this on things such as the bak kut teh I posted about a few days ago, or on the overall stuff that I post?

 

I do very light and simple things too.  It just depends on my mood, the dish I'm making, what cuisine I am drawing on, what variation I feel like, and so on and so forth.  It is a mistake to say that my dishes are all intense and complicated, if that is what you are implying.  This recent post about BKT is a version of BKT, as I explained at length (did you read my response to Paul Bacino?), that is meant to be intense and richly flavored. Yes, personal preferences also enter into it as I indicated. (I'm sure you would use less stuff if you were to make it)  In fact, if I had gone all the way I would have also added in shaved dried Chinese liquorice (甘草), sliced dried szechuan lovage (川芎), "luo han guo"/Momordica grosvenorii Swingle (羅漢果), dried Chinese jujubes, goji berries...all of which are also added into BKT in various versions including some full-on Klang versions...and all of which I left out. :-)

Edited March 16, 2015 by huiray (log)

[Okanagancook]

Sous vide pork leg (from What are you cooking sous vide today thread) topped with mushroom gravy, Modernist Cuisine polenta and steamed veggies.  Delicious pork.  The 2.5 lb roast was cooked at 135F for 4 hours and the final temp was 133F but we were hungry.  Luckily we liked it that rare and it was so juicy and tender.

[BKEats]

I made rice pudding this weekend with leftover rice from Chinese Food.. Really simple recipe, a couple of cups of rice, some milk, a shot of whiskey, sugar, vanilla, a couple of eggs and a little cream a squirt of lemon.  I also cooked down a can of condensed milk for dulce de leche. 

 

A frittata with peppers, avocado and mozzarella.  

 

 

fennel salad:

 

 

I made the most simple ricotta fritters.. A lb of ricotta, a cup of self rising flour, vanilla, a couple of eggs, some baking powder, salt and lemon.  Mix and fry.. 

 

Served with powdered sugar and lemon curd 

a couple of steaks with bernaise, fried potatoes and salad

 

 

Didn't spend much time plating this.. Served the steaks sliced on a slate slab.. And served yourself.. I am sure my wifes was more pretty. 

 

 

Saturday night, i made these fried porkchop sandwiches that I had put in a brine.. Bacon, cheese and fennel salad.  With the scraps, i made into skewers and grilled.. 

 

Just rubbed with my bbq rub and added lemon juice

[BKEats]

Those look wonderful, I always really enjoy a good patty melt! Just wondering, what do you steam the burgers instead of cooking them directly on the flattop so they get a good caramelized surface? I always think the caramelized surface of burgers always adds a lot of flavor and steamed burgers always make me think of White Castle burgers which I hate!

 

Hey MsRadell, I make burgers lots of different ways.. This however seems to be my favorite these days..  I grew up eating white mana burgers and white rose burgers and this is how they prepare their burgers.. Low heat, on a bed of onions with just fresh unseasoned beef.. It produces a beef and oniony mixture.. Not to mention I mayonnaise the rye bread before putting on the griddle,  which makes the bread super crispy.   I enjoy burgers in all it's forms, this is just one way I really like it..

 

Check out my err, friend's review of white mana 

 

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/4248-white-manna/?p=1974726

[BKEats]

Pork spare ribs – marinated w/ and steamed w/ taucheo (this one), long hot green chillies, ginger, garlic, peanut oil.

 

 

DSCN4228a_800.jpg

 

Yah, i want that right now.