What's Cooking (Take Three!)

[Jenise]

Karen, I don't know the producer name. Bought it off the shelf at a fish store I go to in the next county. Was intrigued by the combination and hoped it would present more like a gastrique than an actual vinegar, and it did. It's crazy good--a perfect finishing condiment. Anyway, I'll check on the name and get back to you.

So last night's shabu shabu beef became a beef and broccoli (actually, broccolini) stir fry. Based on ingredients on hand, I gave Bob the option of that or the Mexican thing I mentioned here yesterday and to my surprise, he didn't choose Mexican.

[Jenise]

Karen, I checked and yes. Walden-whatever-you-said.

Thanks Jenise, I ordered it along with their Roasted chile and garlic variety. I think it would be great in a marinade for chicken and beef.

[Jenise]

Thanks Jenise, I ordered it along with their Roasted chile and garlic variety. I think it would be great in a marinade for chicken and beef.

I wouldn't include it in a marinade; use it straight from the bottle as a drizzle. It's finishing-condiment quality.

The Chile one is an evoo....I did not read the entire description. I was in a hurry yesterday and ended up ordering the wrong balsamic, I ended up with a different company, but the company called me as I had tried to cancel the order when I realized I was in error. It was crazy so at the end of the day I ended up with two new balsamic and an evoo I thought was a vinegar. I keep working on slowing down but sometimes..
It will be fun when they come, so it all ended up OK

I found a recipe that I printed out ages ago from the rec.food.recipes Usenet group for Hunter's Chicken. As the name would suggest, this is another chicken/mushroom/tomato chicken cacciatore variant. I'll be making it tonight. Chicken cacciatore and chicken Marengo are two dishes that my mother used to make regularly and that I was fond of as a kid.

-Paul W.

Today I am making a beef pho for a few lunches the next few days. Ingredients include yellow onions, low sodium beef and chicken stock, fish sauce, fresh ginger, cinnamon stick, sugar, anise pod, cloves, rice noodles, thinly sliced beef, and optionally bean sprouts. At serving, one can top it with fresh cilantro, limes wedges Hoisin sauce, and sriracha. I will be using soba noodles today, as that is what I have in the pantry right now. This is a quick recipe and so much easier than making the broth from scratch and cooking for hours. I have made it several times now and love it. I do not strain anything either. Since I am cooking for me only, having a clear broth is not important.

Today I am making a beef pho for a few lunches the next few days. Ingredients include yellow onions, low sodium beef and chicken stock, fish sauce, fresh ginger, cinnamon stick, sugar, anise pod, cloves, rice noodles, thinly sliced beef, and optionally bean sprouts. At serving, one can top it with fresh cilantro, limes wedges Hoisin sauce, and sriracha. I will be using soba noodles today, as that is what I have in the pantry right now. This is a quick recipe and so much easier than making the broth from scratch and cooking for hours. I have made it several times now and love it. I do not strain anything either. Since I am cooking for me only, having a clear broth is not important.

I've never made pho before. Is your recipe something like this?: https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/q ... f-pho.html

Yes, that is the one I make. However, I do not toss out the onions used to flavor the broth.

Rai, rain, and more rain, so it is fun in the kitchen. I am having fresh halibut, cooked in butter and fresh lemon juice tonight. Then my favorite multi-colored baby potato salad with creamed horseradish and low-fat sour cream with peas and tarragon. A crispy coleslaw with red cabbage shaved Brussels Sprouts, green onion, and a lemon, vinegar vinaigrette I may add some celery seed.

Thanks for the recipe pointer, Jeff. I've never made pho (or eaten it in a restaurant, for that matter) but now I think I'll give it a try.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Paul, never eaten pho? Wow, it's SO good. My favorite restaurant lunch while out doing errands in cold weather. I make it at home too. Never put cinnamon stick in it though, and I don't think it or star anise are typical ingredients. I've never tasted either in a restaurant pho, but it sure sounds intriguing.

That spice mixture, including star anise and cinnamon, occurs a lot in Chinese braises and hot pots. There's likely a lot of mixing of Vietnamese and Chinese culinary techniques along the border between the two nations.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Paul, thought of you the other day. Took my car in for service (dealership's 90 miles away, so meals out are a side benefit of the long trip) and we found a place called Best of Cheng Du. OMG good! Lots of hot pots and other things with no Americanization that I could detect. They actually had a section of the menu called American Classics in which they acknowledged a few of the dishes that have been created by Chinese immigrants in America (i.e. Honey Walnut Shrimp) but by segregating them they kept the rest of the menu Szechuan-authentic. I loved it.

I loaded up on cool produce at an H-Mart nearby before heading home.

Tonight for dinner I'm mixing ground lamb and beef into a meatloaf that will get Armenian/Turkish seasoning. Or so I think at this point. I'll serve that with baby confetti eggplants bought at H-Mart and some wilted Chinese greens. I might cook celtuce for the first time, too; I bought some at H-Mart.

[Jenise]

Tonight I'm re-imagining some leftover Chinese food from a restaurant meal earlier this week. The Mongolian Beef will get a load of green onions (it didn't have any), the Kung Pao chicken will get a lot of green bell pepper, and the dan dan noodles will get tamed with cooling cabbage (the dish was too hot on its own--I could eat it but neither Bob nor my brother could).

Cassoulet is on the menu here. It's brutally cold here in New England and I really need something comforting.

Rain, rain, and more rain...our lakes will be full again this year. Today, I have a small Prime Rib roast, marinated yesterday with Mandarin, Fig Balsamic vinegar, lots of fresh garlic, fresh Thyme and Rosemary from my herb garden, black pepper, and 1 tablespoon of fresh garlic oil. This was rubbed well into the meat on all surfaces. It will be cooked in the oven tonight. I surrounded the meat with carrots as the cut was minimal and would not stand up independently. I drizzled a small amount of the garlic oil on the carrots and a bit of Cabernet Sauvignon that I had left in an open bottle. I've been craving beans again, so I made a pot of Royal Carona beans in the slow cooker using sauteéd onion, garlic, oregano, a sprinkle of Sriracha powder, and chicken stock. A fresh salad of marinated tomatoes and thinly sliced English cucumbers with honey, salt, pepper, fresh basil, thyme, olive oil fresh garlic and
Oliver Balsamic vinegar. I used Campari tomatoes which are great this winter.

UPDATE: It has been a very long time since I cooked a Prime Rib roast. It was usually reserved for Easter or Christmas dinners. This was one of the best I have had, along with my youngest son's FIL who cooks them in rock salt. I loved the mandarin, and fig balsamic, the meat was very beefy tasting and flavorful. Very tender, juicy, and garlicky. It was a small roast and as I stated I propped it up with carrots all around, however as it cooked it did fall over but the pan I used had a very small lip so it was browned all over. It became a hazard to slice and I had a very sharp slicing knife. My knife slipped and landed on my pointer finger which now has a deep slice. My first aid efforts took over and got the bleeding stopped. Today I will change the bandaid and begin with the Neosporin. Kitchen hazards!

[Jenise]

Karen, that sounds great. I'm so hungry for beef (but cutting back on red meat) so tonight instead we're having chicken schnitzels and a green salad.

As well I'm starting the prep for a small dinner party tomorrow night. First time we've had company over for dinner since about April-May last year. The menu:

Grilled shrimp and champagne
Green salad with black truffle-goat cheese crouton
Roast prime rib of pork
Crispy local yellow potatoes
Carrots and parsley
Ben & Jerry's strawberry cheesecake ice cream drizzled with cherry-walnut balsamic vinegar

Jenise, how did your guests like the dessert with the vinegar over? My vinegar arrived from a company called Made in Washington and it is very good, and I like the fig mandarin very much. I used the Cherry Bourdeau Walnut on my salad yesterday at lunch. These two are very thick balsamic, I have to shake the bottle to get it out.

[Jenise]

The dinner party's tonight, so no reports yet. But they'll love it, I'm fairly certain, although the Picky People will be here and might balk at it as they oft do when facing things they haven't had before.

Tonight I'm making pho for the first time. It will be the first time I've ever eaten it, let alone cooked it.

-Paul W.

Tonight was pan-seared salmon with balsamic glaze, using the cold pan method, and sauteed mix of sugar snap peas and com. Strawberries with pears with a strawberry-balsamic vinegar.

Tonight I'm making pho for the first time. It will be the first time I've ever eaten it, let alone cooked it.
-Paul W.

I love beef pho. Hope yours turns out well.

You really should try pho next time you run across a good Vietnamese restaurant.

[Jenise]

Paul, I can't believe you've never tried pho before. I am sure you're in for a revelation. I absolutely adore it, but then I adore everything broth and noodles, and the additions of bean sprouts, fresh basil, sliced jalapenos and fresh lime that are generally provided to finish every bowl is just magic for me. What protein are you using?

Btw, one thing about having it at a restaurant? Three words for you: the version known as Spicy Beef Pho wherein the beef might be long-cooked brisket *and* thinly sliced raw beef that cooks on top of the soup (and maybe even a third item), and the spice comes from crushed red chiles. It's the ultimate! And my god would you love it.