Dinner 2016 (Part 3)

[liuzhou]

Kept things simple this evening. Pan fried chicken breast with boiled new potatoes and a simple lettuce, tomato and scallion salad. Chicken was brined for four hours then cooked by the 1-10-10 method. Spuds were in butter and salad had a mild vinaigrette dressing.

 

[jvalentino]

Rainy and cold but felt like Spring. Made broiler kabobs w chicken, red pepper, onion lemon and oregano. Simple and tasty...even w fluorescent lighting.

 

Edited April 12, 2016 by jvalentino (log)

[rotuts]

@jvalentino   

 

nice separating the components into their own skewers !

[Shelby]

Salad with SV steaks.  Homemade ranch dressing on the salad....also dipped a few fries in it....   Why don't I make homemade ranch more often?  So much better than the store stuff.

 

 

[Anna N]

@Shelby

That salad looks SO GOOD.   I think I can identify most of the ingredients but would love to get your input and your recipe for the dressing.  

 

[ElsieD]

Shelby, I agree with Anna N.  More info on the salad, please.

[Shelby]

22 minutes ago, Anna N said:

@Shelby

That salad looks SO GOOD.   I think I can identify most of the ingredients but would love to get your input and your recipe for the dressing.  

 

Thanks Anna!  It's nothing fancy.  I had a head of iceberg lettuce that was going south so I used that mixed with some lettuce from the greenhouse.  Your micro greens would be lovely in there, too.  A few green onions, some capers (love those things), some of my canned tomatoes that I patted dry and chopped up (couldn't face the tasteless store bought ones on my counter).  Eggs from the IP.  Homemade croutons from a loaf of French bread that I made and we didn't eat fast enough.  Forgot I put some broccoli in there, too.  And (don't look Rotuts) a few black olive slices from the dreaded can.

 

Ranch is as follows:

 

I made a batch of immersion blender mayo so that helped the flavor of the dressing I'm sure.

 

I put the following in a mason jar:

 

1/4 C. mayo

1/4 C. sour cream

1/4 C. buttermilk

1/2 t. or so of:

chives

dill

garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

 

Put the lid on the jar, shake well to mix and throw it in the fridge for at least 30 mins.

Edited April 12, 2016 by Shelby (log)

[jvalentino]

2 hours ago, rotuts said:

@jvalentino   

 

nice separating the components into their own skewers !

 

Thanks! I can't recall where I saw that a few years ago, maybe ATK? I really like the way everything cooks this way.

[BonVivant]

Steamed silken tofu with leftover clams from the other day. An easy dinner and nothing gone to waste.

 

 

[liamsaunt]

This week's fish share was sand dabs.  I did them in an egg batter and served them with yakisoba noodles and some of the last dregs of vegetables in the crisper drawer (I've been clearing out the fridge in advance of an upcoming vacation, so pickings are slim).  We were also given some Faroe Island salmon which is going to be dinner this evening.

 

[HungryChris]

Pepper and hot sausage pizza.

HC

[Ann_T]

HungryChris,  great looking pizza.  Just the way I love the rim..

[ElainaA]

Pork chop with sweet peppers and vinegar, broccolini sautéed with garlic and fried potatoes. I love broccolini - I grew it last year and found that there was approximately 15 minutes between when it was ready to harvest and when it burst into bloom. Maybe it was just the weather but I opted to not try again. Our local supermarket has started to carry it regularly. I feel compelled to buy it so they don't discontinue it.

 

 

edited to add: Someday I will remember to wipe the edge of the plate before I take a picture. 

Edited April 13, 2016 by ElainaA (log)

[sartoric]

Chimichurri steak salad.

 

[HungryChris]

3 minutes ago, sartoric said:

Chimichurri steak salad.

That looks fantastic!

[scubadoo97]

A Tampa stable from simpler times.  Black beans and rice with Cuban bread

 

[btbyrd]

Spring is here:

Slagel Family Farm lamb loin chops with ramp chimichurri over sautéed morel mushrooms; baby white and purple (balsamic glazed) carrots; asparagus with 63C egg yolk and Maldon salt.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

14 hours ago, ElainaA said:

Pork chop with sweet peppers and vinegar, broccolini sautéed with garlic and fried potatoes. I love broccolini - I grew it last year and found that there was approximately 15 minutes between when it was ready to harvest and when it burst into bloom. Maybe it was just the weather but I opted to not try again. Our local supermarket has started to carry it regularly. I feel compelled to buy it so they don't discontinue it.

 

 

edited to add: Someday I will remember to wipe the edge of the plate before I take a picture. 

 

I too am fond of broccolini, it is perhaps my favorite vegetable.  Favorite green vegetable, anyway.  I have not found blooms a defect taste wise.

[huiray]

A riff on a dish with thoughts of Nasi Ulam in my mind.

 

Indian-type mint, Vietnamese-type mint, Vietnamese coriander, Thai basil, green onions, flowering rapini.

 

Har Mai being soaked, kaffir lime leaves.

 

"Fresh" grated coconut (from a frozen pack), chopped green onions, thinly sliced kaffir lime leaves, chopped har mai.

 

The grated coconut was dry-toasted in a hot pan (--> kerisik). The chopped har mai was toasted in a hot pan w/ a little bit of rice bran oil. Both were then recombined and tossed/mixed w/ day-old cooked basmati rice. 

 

With the scallions and kaffir lime leaves plonked on top.

 

Back into the still-warm pan w/ all the other herbs chopped up. Mixed in thoroughly.

 

Plated, garnished w/ more mint & basil.

 

Eating.

 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

Five-way Cincinnatti Chili, but I cook the beans in with the cassia spiced beef chili, and they are usually prepared separately in the authentic dish. Spaghetti topped with chili and beans, finely chopped white onion, and colby jack cheese. This was popped into the microwave a few seconds per plate after plating everything on preheated plates, because I needs my pasta served piping hot with melted cheese!

 

A simple salad alongside, and we had a very satisfying dinner.

[Anna N]

@Shelby

 

 Thank you so much for the salad and dressing recipe.

[Anna N]

 

 I drew inspiration from Shelby.   Chopped salad to use up what was in the refrigerator.   Frozen peas, grated carrots, one rather sad scallion, cucumber, some tomatoes that were turning soft on my counter and the last little bit of sous vide chuckeye.  The dressing is a creamy garlic which I basically winged. 

[sartoric]

Im also using what's in the fridge.

Nachos with spicy chicken and beans, plus guacamole and dollops of sour cream.

 

[liuzhou]

I've just got back from a two trip to Guangzhou (aka Canton - home of Cantonese cuisine).  I had to deal with some government bureaucracy, for once not my host country's but my home country's. The nearest British consulate is in Guangzhou, so there I went.

 

Anyway my favourite eating companion kindly accompanied me and we hooked up with one of her oldest friends (from kindergarten days) and her husband for dinner at their invitation.

 

We went to a Cantonese restaurant which also had a strong influence from Macau and hence Portugal. The four of us ate:

 

Cantonese Roast Chicken

 

This was incredibly good. Possible the best roast chicken I've ever eaten and I've been through a few. The depth of flavor. The perfectly crisp skin which remained crisp as the dish cooled. It was served with a slightly sweet chili sauce/dip, which matched it perfectly.

 

Braised Eggplant with Goose Liver

 

This was also a winner. It was ordered at my suggestion because I'm a sucker for goose liver every time and had never had this combination. The eggplant just melted in the mouth and the liver matched it perfectly. I'm off to market tomorrow to hunt down a goose!

 

Steamed Luffa with Garlic

 

Again, this was my request. It is a dish I always enjoy and often cook.

 

Grilled Oysters

 

Huge but delicious oysters grilled again with garlic and topped with green onions. Each oyster was tender but huge. Did I mention they were huge?

 

Clams in a Butter Sauce with Peppers and Olives

 

This was one dish which, in my opinion, didn't work. There was nothing wrong with it per se, but it clashed with everything else we were eating. I am guessing this came from the Macau / Portuguese side of the menu, as did the final dish.

 

Grilled Oysters with Cheese

 

Again, although there was nothing wrong with them, I felt they didn't fit with the rest of the meal.

 

But we had a lovely time with some lovely people and a few beers for the boys.

.

[Anna N]

@liuzhou

 

 That chicken is astonishing.  I can easily see its appeal. Made me want to ditch all my dinner plans and find myself a chicken.  But of course I could never aspire to anything that looked like that!   I can hear the crackling of that skin just staring at the photograph.