One 8.64 ounce package egg tofu
About 1 tablespoon canola oil
About 2 teaspoons cornstarch
Thai Sweet Chile Sauce, homemade or store bought
1 tablespoon scallion rings, green part only

1. Cut the package on the dotted line and then remove the tofu from the plastic. Cut it into 1-inch-thick rounds.

Trim the uneven ends so they are more or less flat, which makes them easier to cook. Put on a double layer of paper towel to drain for 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Heat a small nonstick skillet over high heat. Pour in enough oil to film the bottom. Blot the tofu pieces dry and then dip the cut ends in a bit of cornstarch.

Pan-fry the tofu for 1 to 2 minutes per side, until golden brown. Reduce the heat if the pan smokes.

While the tofu fries, put about 2 tablespoons of Thai sweet chile sauce on a small serving plate. Sprinkle about 2 teaspoons of the scallion rings on top.

When the tofu finishes pan-frying, transfer the pieces to the serving plate. Top with a little more sweet chile sauce and the leftover scallion. Serve immediately.

source form: vietworldkitchen

1 English cucumber, about 1 pound
2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil
1 large red moderately-hot chile, such as Fresno, seeded and chopped
2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons light (regular) soy sauce
Salt
1 1/2 teaspoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1/4 cup finely chopped red perilla (tia to), see Vietnamese Herb Primer for details
1 teaspoon sesame oil

1. Trim the ends and halve the cucumber lengthwise. Use a teaspoon to scoop out the seeds. Cut the cucumber crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces.

2. Heat a large wok or skillet over high heat. Swirl in the oil. Add the cucumber, spreading the pieces out to cover as much of the cooking surface as possible. Cook,  undisturbed for 1 minute, then turn to fry the other side. Repeat this 2 or 3 times to pan-fry the cucumber until they look shiny and a few pieces pick up color. (This recipe is technically a Chinese pan-fried dish but the actual cooking marries pan-frying and stir-frying.)

3. Add the chile and garlic. Cook for 15 to 30 seconds until fragrant, then add the soy sauce and a few pinches of salt. Add the vinegar and stir to mix well. Turn off the heat. Dump in the red perilla and stir to combine. Turn off the heat and drizzle in the sesame oil. Stir, then transfer to a serving dish.

source form: vietworldkitchen

There are gin lovers and there are vodka lovers. My husband and I happen to tilt toward gin, though we keep a 1.75 liter bottle of vodka around for good measure. We didn’t think that the two would cross paths. But this past week, we put the vodka to use to make bathtub gin. The pale yellow result is what you see above.

My husband read an LA Times story by Greg Easter on using his family’s Prohibition Era-bathtub gin recipe. Easter actually used his concoction to doctor up moderately priced gin. The result was supposed to be more “natural tasting gin.” We were so intrigued by the idea of using vodka and white wine to create a gin-like spirit that we had to try it. Actually, we tried it twice in the past several days.

 

If you enjoy gin, give this a whirl. Use a scale as some of the measurements are pretty subtle. What we used:

1/2 ounce fresh cilantro, use stems and leaves, and weigh before washing and drying
3/8 ounce lemon or lime peel, use a vegetable peeler to remove just the peel (we used Meyer and Bearss for the two batches; the color of the citrus is what mostly colors the alcohol; the Meyer lemon peel above photographed a little orange but it was in fact a super deep yellow)
3 grams fresh marjoram leaves, use no stems (2 lightly packed tablespoons)
14 to 16 juniper berries, available at health food stores and specialty markets
2 to 4 green cardamom pods, crushed (use more if you like cardamom’s menthol qualities)
10 white peppercorns
2 1/2 teaspoons sugar
8 1/2 fluid ounces vodka (we used Smirnoff)
3 3/8 fluid ounces Trebianno white wine (a nearly bone dry Italian white wine typically used for blending; it’s known as Ugni Blanc in France)

Put all the ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat until bubbles appear at the edge. Lower the heat to medium and put the timer on for 2 minutes. This opens up the aromatics.

Turn off the heat, transfer everything to a quart-size glass jar and cap. Leave it to steep at room temperature for 18 to 24 hours. Strain through a paper coffee filter. The gin is ready to drink.

This homemade concoction is aromatic and full of character. It says something back to you, whether you sip a little or a lot of it! Try the bathtub gin out on its own over ice; give the glass a stir to dilute and chill the gin a bit. If it’s too rough, add a hefty splash of your favorite gin (assuming you have some in the house already). We had Beefeater and Plymouth. The extra real gin rounds out the edges. The result is an unusually fragrant and flavorful gin. It’s fancy tasting and smelling. It’s made from low-priced vodka!

We nibbled on olives while sipping the gin and realized that gin is a very savory type of spirits. The salty olives paired swimmingly well with the gin. We then enjoyed it with Vietnamese pickled shallots and the pairing was delightful. The Martini was explained.

One of the most interesting discoveries was the use of marjoram, which I don’t usually cook with. However, the herb imparts a piney fragrance and flavor that echo fresh juniper berries. Dry juniper berries are sweet and have just a touch of that conifer quality left.

The other find was Trebianno d’Abruzzo. It’s a white wine that a good liquor store should carry. We paid about $10 for the bottle at K&L Wine. What you don’t use, drink. Trebianno is a terrific everyday wine that goes well with food.

This was a rough week full of deadlines as we’re gearing up to polish the videos for enhanced eTofu. Having this little DIY hooch project made it all move along. My husband says that he’s not running to switch from his preferred brand of gin, Plymouth, but this experiment with bathtub gin was loads of fun.

Feel free to tinker with the aromatics. Easter used allspice instead of juniper berries, for example. Lightly crush the juniper berries to see how that affects your results. The bathtub gin will steep while you sleep!

source form: vietworldkitchen

6 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 scallion, trimmed, quartered lengthwise, and cut into 1-inch-long pieces
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 pound fresh silver pin noodles
1 1/2 cups mung bean sprouts
6 tablespoons thin soy sauce
Fresh ground black pepper

Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok over high heat, and stir-fry a third of the scallions until wilted, about 1 minute. Add a third of the chicken and continue to stir-fry until cooked through, about 2 minutes. Add a third of the noodles and continue to stir-fry until the noodles are heated through and softened, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the mung bean sprouts, 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce, and season with pepper to taste. Toss, cook for 1 minute, divide into 2 servings, and serve hot. Repeat twice more, splitting each batch into 2 servings.

source form: vietworldkitchen

Makes 1 1/3 cups, enough for 16 medium or 32 small buns

2 tablespoon canola or peanut oil
1/3 cup chopped shallot or red onion
2 large dried shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, reconstituted, and cut into small dice (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup chopped garlic chives or scallion , green part only
1/2 teaspoon plus 1 or 2 pinches of salt
1/4 teaspoon black or white pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon fish sauce or light (regular) soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons oyster sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons egg white, lightly beaten
6 ounces coarsely ground or hand-chopped boneless, skinless chicken thigh
2 tablespoons cup coarsely chopped cilantro, leafy tops only
1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger

1. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot, and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until they start to caramelize. Add the mushroom, sprinkle in 1 or 2 pinches of salt, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant. Remove from the heat, stir in the garlic chives. Set aside to cool completely.

2. In a larger bowl, combine together the cooled vegetables, chicken, cilantro, and ginger.  Stir together, making sure the ingredients have commingled well.

3. In a small bowl, combine the 1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper, sugar, fish sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, cornstarch and egg white. Beat with a fork to blend well. Pour over the chicken and vegetable mixture, and stir, fold, and mash everything together into a cohesive mixture.

4. Cover the filling with plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes, or refrigerate overnight, returning it to room temperature before assembling the bao.

source form: asiandumplingtips

Ingredients:

• 5 pounds Prime Rib (prepared)
• 1 cup salt
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon black pepper

Instructions:

1. Heat the oven to 400 F (200 C).
2. Cut top of roast with knife to create an eighth inch hatch score.
3. Combine ingredients in a bowl and rub into roast to form a thick crust.
4. In a roasting pan, add enough water to cover bottom by half an inch. Place in roast and cover, roasting in preheated oven almost two hours. At this time, internal temp. should be at least 145 F (63 C).
5. Leave roast in the oven at 200 F (110 C) until ready to serve. Leave to rest several minutes before carving to serve.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients:

Two beef tenderloin steaks (8 oz and 1″ thickness each)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
Salt and Pepper for seasoning
2 tablespoons onions (minced)
2 slices lean bacon

Instructions:

Heat oven to “Broil” setting, and place rack at the top of the oven.
Using olive oil, rub down the beef and season with spices. Wrap steaks with bacon, one each.
Broil on a pan for about six minutes in the preheated oven. Flip the steaks and garnish with minced onion. Broil for another six minutes, or until cooked to desired temperature.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients:

• 1 pinch baking soda
• 2 cups boiling water
• 6 cold brew tea bags (flavor of your choice)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 6 cups chilled water
• Lemon slices for garnish

Instructions:

1. In a glass pitcher, sprinkle in the baking soda, then add in the boiling water, then all of the tea bags. Cover, and let steep for about fifteen minutes.
2. Throw out the tea bags, then add in the sugar and stir until dissolved. Add in the cold water, then leave to chill in the fridge until time to serve. Serve with lemon slices.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients

• 1 leg of lamb
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, sliced
• 6-8 sprigs of rosemary
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• mixed vegetables, peeled and chopped

Cooking Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400 ° F (200 ° C).

Use a sharp knife to make a few small incisions in the outside of the leg of lamb.

Insert the garlic and rosemary into each of the cuts. Both these flavors are a classic combination with lamb.

Rub the skin of the lamb with a little bit of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Place the lamb in a large baking tin and surround with a selection of peeled and chopped vegetables. Drizzle the vegetables with the remaining oil.

Roast the lamb in the oven for about1 hour, maybe a bit longer. Approximately every 20 minutes coat the lamb with the juices which develop at the bottom of the baking tin.

Remove from the oven, cover and allow to cool down before carving. Keep the vegetables warm until ready to serve.

You can make a gravy using the pan juices, which is a great accompaniment for the leg of lamb to pack it with flavor.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients:

• 1 Marshmallow
• 2 cinnamon sugar crackers (such as Graham Crackers)
• 1 square milk chocolate

Instructions:

1. Over an open flame, toast marshmallow until slightly charred. Remove from flame before it begins to melt.
2. Place chocolate square on one cracker, then sandwich the hot marshmallow with a second cracker. Let cool before enjoying.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients

• 12 lamb cutlets
• 2 bunches of asparagus
• 1 cup of plain all-purpose flour
• 1 cup of breadcrumbs
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup of olive oil
• 1/2 cup of fresh parsley, chopped

Cooking Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 ° F (180 ° C).

Beat the eggs lightly in a shallow bowl which is big enough to hold a lamb cutlet.

Use a different bowl to put the breadcrumbs and a third bowl to also hold the flour.

Start the process by rolling the lamb cutlets in the flour, one at a time, then dip them in the egg mixture before coating with breadcrumbs.

Heat oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Cook the lamb cutlets for 3-5 minutes on each side until they are golden brown.

Place the lamb cutlets on an oven tray and bake for a further 20 minutes.

Use the same sauce pan to cook the asparagus for about 2 minutes. Add any remaining breadcrumbs which are leftover into the pan and cook for a a couple more minutes, until the asparagus is a golden green color.

Serve the lamb cutlets alongside the asparagus in a serving plate.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients

• 4 sirloin steaks
• olive oil for cooking
• 2 tablespoons of butter
• red wine sauce
• 3 1/2 oz of red wine
• salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions

Brush the sirloin steaks with a little oil to prevent them from sticking to BBQ cooking surface.

Cook steaks on the BBQ hot plate until the meat is well cooked on both sides. How long you cook the steak for will depend on if you prefer your steak cooked rare, medium, or well done. When cooking the steak use the juices which will appear on the uncooked side as an indication when you should turn the steak over.

To make the red wine sauce, pour 3.5 oz of red wine into a small frying pan over medium heat. Continue the red wine reduction until you have reduced the red wine by 2/3. Add a dollop of butter, stirring constantly to combine the butter with the wine. Reduce from the heat when the butter is no longer visible in the pan and the sauce has a smooth consistency.

Place the cooked steak on a serving plate on top of green vegetables, pour over red wine sauce. Serve some greens to accompany this dish on the side (optional).

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients

• 1 can (400-450g) pink salmon, drained
• 1 large baking potato, sliced thinly
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• pack of breadcrumbs
• 10g fresh dill, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and drained
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

For the Garlic Tomato Sauce

• 30g sun dried tomatos
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 100g low fat yoghurt (plain)
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli sauce (hot preferred)

Cooking Instructions

To make the sauce, cook the tomatos and garlic in a small saucepan of boiling water for 3 minutes. Drain, but keep 80ml of the cooking liquid as you will need it later. Put the tomatos and garlic in a food processor, add the reserved cooking liquid along with the yoghurt and chilli sauce and process until completely smooth.

Cook the potato and garlic cloves in a saucepan of boiling water for 7 minutes. Drain and place them them in large bowl. Use a potato masher to mash them completely.

Stir in the salmon, 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs, the dill and capers and mix thoroughly. Shape the mixture into 8 cakes.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan (non-stick preferred) over a moderate heat. Coat the salmon cakes evenly with breadcrumbs. Place in the frying pan and saute for 3 minutes on each side. Serve with the garlic tomato sauce.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup fresh strawberries (sliced)
• 3/4 cup fresh blueberries (whole)
• 6 ounces vanilla yogurt
• 1 tablespoon wheat germ
• 1/2 banana (sliced)
• 1/3 cup granola

Instructions:

1. Divide ingredients roughly in thirds, layering in order of: berries, yogurt, wheat germ, banana, and granola, and repeating.

source form: freerecipes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups biscuit mix
• 1 1/2 tsp. ginger
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. cloves
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup molasses

Instructions:

1. Combine together the baking mix with the spices in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the milk, egg and molasses until well combined; add into the dry ingredients just until combined, don’t over stir.
2. Lightly grease a griddle and pour batter by the quarter cup. Flip and cook until golden brown on both sides. Garnish with syrup before serving.

source form: freerecipes