Dinner 2018

[ElsieD]

6 hours ago, Dejah said:

@Kim Shook Thank you for the birthday wish for hubby.
@Smokeydoke: Yup, 100% Chinese. The Chinese restaurant was a family biz (1972) that I took over in 1992 for 10 years even though I swore as a teenager working in it to NEVER be in the restaurant biz.
Loved it for the 10 years, retired, then went back teaching.
I DID learn a lot about cooking. Now, I do a variety of cooking, sometimes very traditional Chinese, sometimes Canadian Chinese, and often, exploring other cuisine.

Tonight, a simple oven baked low-carb coconut chicken, Lemon Parmesan Green Beans, and Shirataki Fettuccini noodles with Alfredo sauce and fresh green peppercorns.

                                                                                  

 

What kind of Shirataki noodles do you use?  We have tried a few different ones, one type is from T & T, an Asian store, another brand is, or was, Nupasta which we were eating until we found Zeroodles which we like the best.  They don't have that "funky" smell/taste and also come as "rice".  You can get them plain or with added oat bran for added fibre.

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, liuzhou said:

 

Tonight,  I made myself some chicken wraps/rolls.

 

They look delicious and I bet they were. Did you make your own wraps? They look different from what I might’ve expected meaning they don’t quite look like the egg roll wrappers I can buy here nor quite like the flour tortillas that I can buy.  I am just very curious. 

[liuzhou]

42 minutes ago, Anna N said:

They look delicious and I bet they were. Did you make your own wraps? They look different from what I might’ve expected meaning they don’t quite look like the egg roll wrappers I can buy here nor quite like the flour tortillas that I can buy.  I am just very curious.)

 

No. I didn't make the wrappers - they are store bought. Apologies if I may have inadvertently suggested otherwise.

 

I buy these wraps in the one supermarket which still has an in-house bakery. The local name  for them is 面皮 (miàn pí) which literally means 'wheat (flour) skins'.

Somewhat confusingly, the same name is sometimes used in Xi'an and environs for a type of wheat noodles, also known as 凉皮 (liáng pí). Apart from the name, they are unrelated.

It occurs to me that I haven't the faintest idea how they are used locally. I only ever use them as I have shown above. They are certainly not like egg roll wrappers nor tortillas. They are in two thin layers with an overall textural resemblance to thick wrapping paper (but tastier!).

I will make enquiries and get back to you on how they are used here.

Edited January 25, 2018 by liuzhou (log)

[scubadoo97]

Working on smoked chicken thighs for dinner with sautéed kale.   The kale is mingling with diced onions, garlic and chicken fat from the trimmings of the thighs.  

 

I like to to try to integrate the waste from the other ingredients to enhance the meal. Less waste and It all has a part in the play 

[Anna N]

Two dinners from a couple of lamb shoulder chops done in the Instant Pot.

 

Last night with carrots, potatoes, tomato and onion. 

 

 

Tonight I had the remains reheated in the Cuisinart Steam Oven with the addition of some caramelized onion and some baby bok choy. 

[robirdstx]

 

Tonkatsu, Broccoli and Rice

[Ann_T]

Thanks @lindag,

Thanks @Tropicalsenior

Thanks @scubadoo97

 

I still had some sour dough in the fridge so I made another pizza tonight.

 

And before leaving for work this morning I made dessert.   Actually I made two.  One for our neighbour and friend. 

 

Tiramisu.

[Duvel]

On ‎25‎/‎1‎/‎2018 at 3:51 PM, JoNorvelleWalker said:

 

I liked this very, very much though speaking hypothetically I'd have to be rather drunk to bring myself to actually taste this stuff.  (Kidney pie comes to mind from the UK.)

 

Not sure why these dishes bother me as I'm from Philadelphia, home of scrapple (cornmeal and pig offal...perhaps offal is a euphemism) and pepper pot (intestine stew).

 

I am not a psychiatrist, but I think there is a deep - and unfounded - aversion to all things offal in many people. You are not alone

Sure, kidney and tripe can taste very "distinct", but so do cheeses, fermented seafood and a plethora of other items. I admit I do mostly enjoy offal for its variety of textures, and there are items that I do not like at all tastewise. But given that having these food only on few occasions and usually in very special settings (see above, my MIL cooking callos for me or me making rabbit stew on a very relaxed day and enjoying liver, heart and kidneys on toast with a glass of wine while cooking) made me learn to enjoy them a lot. And seeing a neon sign announcing offal in the middle of a freezing Tokyo night, already imbibed with some Sake, makes for a very happy evening ...

(and if you make the trip over to Japan, I'll share it with you)

[liamsaunt]

fish cakes made from the remaining sand dabs from my fish share and the leftover mashed potatoes from Monday night, with tartar sauce and a salad of marinated tomatoes and arugula.

 

[Paul Bacino]

BEEN WORKING WITH ZOODLES AGAIN!!

 

VEGGIE PIZZA on MAMA LUPES TORTILLA

 

First the morning prep:  Cut/salted/ placed on papertowels and pressed  (  this removes excess water )

 

 

In the evening -- added zoodle zucchini,carrots,broc stem, with blk kale garlic,onion hot pepper --  sauted in Butter and Evoo/ deglazed with champagne vinegar and sherry.. reduced

 

heated tortilla in pan, pre cook,  add parm chees first then veggies, and Italian seasoning, ready for sauce and broil

 

 

Dressed with sauce and cheese into broiler

 

 

 

Done--my wife loved it and so di I  ( Served w/Cade HM cab 2014--big wine , mountain fruit, very smooth  )

 

 

 

 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Paul Bacino (log)

[liuzhou]

Tonight a meal I've made, and probably posted, many times before. But with a very slight difference.

 

 

Pork with salt fermented black beans (豆豉 dòu chǐ), garlic, ginger, chilli, Sichuan peppercorns, Shaoxing wine, and soy sauce. With spinach.

Unusually, and non-traditionally, I wilted the spinach in with the pork. The reason for this is highly scientific. A full explanation is beyond the scope of this post, but can be abbreviated to "pure laziness".

 

 

P.S. The gold thing top left is a traditional Chinese compass used in 风水 fēng shuǐ and nothing at all to do with my dinner or my laziness, other than I was too lazy to move it out of shot. By the way, such compasses point to the south rather than north. Well they point both ways really,  but the southern direction is the one highlighted. Hey, they invented compasses, so they can point any darn way they please.

[shain]

A casserole of mallow, onion and sirene cheese, with zaatar and lemon zest.

Freekeh (green smoked wheat) cooked to risotto texture, with chickpeas and mushrooms, sage, garlic and smoked paprika.

[Tropicalsenior]

2 hours ago, Paul Bacino said:

-my wife loved it and so did I 

I also like using tortillas for pizza crust. They sell a big thick tortilla here with fresh basil in it. The one problem that I have had is getting them crispy enough. I'm going to use your method. Thank you very much for the idea. Yours look absolutely delicious.

[ElsieD]

I often use pita as a base for a pizza.  I bake it directly on an oven rack and this works quite well.

[suzilightning]

last night tried something different.  was at the grocery and saw a plant based burger called The Beyond Burger.  on sale so decided to try it.  not bad,  not bad at all.  ate it on a toasted English muffin with some relish, tomato and thinly shaved cheddar.  salad on the side.

it really felt meaty and didn't taste like sawdust......

[Anna N]

 

 Duck breast, lingonberry sauce, mashed potatoes (instant) with some caramelized onions folded in. 

[scubadoo97]

Steelhead with sautéed  kale,  onions and peppers 

 

[robirdstx]

Yellow seems to have become the theme for tonight’s dinner ~  

 

 

Chicken Enchiladas Verde, Zucchini & Yellow Bell Peppers and Corn

[Tropicalsenior]

12 hours ago, Paul Bacino said:

Done--my wife loved it and so did I

Thank you for the tip. I used your idea, well sort of. I crisped the bottom of the tortilla in a grill pan before I baked the pizza in the oven and it turned out perfect.

Made 2 tonight and they were the best ever. the one on the left is an Italian pizza with Italian sausage, mushrooms, anchovies and 4 cheeses. The one on the right is Mexican, more like a tostada, with refried beans, taco meat, olives, pepper strips, tomatoes and three kinds of cheese. I made that one for a Nicaraguan girl that is staying with us. She loves Mexican food.

Terrible picture but they sure tasted good. Nice crispy crust.

.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Thanks to Tiko Tuskadze, Supra -- Georgian dishes from two mornings ago, though remarkably the same as what's for tonight:

 

 

 

Ispanakhis Pkhali (p14):  Spinach, garlic, walnut paste, stir-fried green onion and cilantro.  Lots of Georgian spices.  Pomegranate to garnish.

 

 

 

 

 

Tabaka (p140):  flattened, spiced pan-fried poussin (or in this case Cornish game hen).  Prepared on DeLonghi griddle.

 

 

 

 

 

Served with steamed potatoes and green Tkemali.  Tkemali is sour plum sauce.  Mine was purchased but it was from Georgia.  I confess I like red Tkemali better.

 

Tuskadze says she ate it every day.  Pretty much the same here, though last night was Japanese curry.

 

 

Edit:  I can't decide whether I like red or green Tkemali better.

 

Edited January 27, 2018 by JoNorvelleWalker (log)

[Ann_T]

Have I mentioned how much I love the little Cuisinart Steam Oven?

Platter for Two

I used it tonight for wings and potatoes.   Cooked them one right after the other

and the wings were kept warm on top of the oven while the potatoes cooked.  

 

Wings took 30 minutes at 450°F Bake Steam Setting and the potatoes 25 minutes

on the same setting.

 

Edited January 27, 2018 by Ann_T (log)

[Dejah]

On 1/25/2018 at 7:48 AM, ElsieD said:

What kind of Shirataki noodles do you use?  We have tried a few different ones, one type is from T & T, an Asian store, another brand is, or was, Nupasta which we were eating until we found Zeroodles which we like the best.  They don't have that "funky" smell/taste and also come as "rice".  You can get them plain or with added oat bran for added fibre.

@ElsieD: I pick up these "Tofu Shirataki" noodles at our Safeway - House Noodles? They do have that funky smell but I just rinse and throw them into hot water for a few minutes. Seems to take that smell away. The texture is not as rubber-band like. I have only seen Zeroodles at the Low Carb mail order store. Been trying to order the rice ones, but they are always sold out! I am looking forwward to trying the rice ones!
Tonight's dinner was Coconut Chicken Meatballs. They are similar to the Beef Meatballs served in Dim Sum restaurants, but much easier to put together. It's a recipe by Urvashi of Twosleeves.
Steamed some turnip and turned them into "fries", asparagus with bacon,  and spinach salad...all fairly low-carb.

 

                                                                     

[ProfessionalHobbit]

tonight was date night so we went to a local seafood place 

 

Anchor Oyster Bar

579 Castro (18th Street)

 

 

I don't remember the provenance of these oysters

 

Served with mignonette and cocktail sauce with horseradish

 

 

Cioppino, served with garlic bread

 

This is a half-portion, enough for two people

 

I finished it, of course. B joked, "Do you have a bottomless pit for a stomach, because I don't understand where you're putting all of that food!"

 

 

Sea scallops, roasted potatoes, vegetables

 

Then we went across the street to an ice cream shop

 

 

Snowball ice cream is toasted coconut, marshmallow fluff and chocolate cake pieces...hmmm, no thanks 

 

 

Milk chocolate banana ice cream with hot fudge

 

 

The exotic flavor known as VA-NIL-LA ice cream with hot fudge

 

 

See you tomorrow!

[chromedome]

On 25/01/2018 at 9:48 AM, ElsieD said:

What kind of Shirataki noodles do you use?  We have tried a few different ones, one type is from T & T, an Asian store, another brand is, or was, Nupasta which we were eating until we found Zeroodles which we like the best.  They don't have that "funky" smell/taste and also come as "rice".  You can get them plain or with added oat bran for added fibre.

Nupasta seems to be the only variety available in my neck of the woods. So far nobody's gotten past the first bite. 

[Duvel]

Pizza night (one day early, as I need to travel tomorrow): the usual poolish, bulk ferment and direct baking on the bottom of the oven applied. Topping of the day was broccoli and bacon (as voted by my four year-old), followed by mushroom and salami and bacon, mushroom and olive (which I liked the best, even though three topping were a bit much for my Asperger's). 

I ran out of beer, so whiskey & coke was in order. Guess what - pizza seems to be very forgiving on its alcoholic accompaniment...