SNH COOKING THREAD

[pandabear]

I made this before summer ended. Very easy.

- Boil (water, add tiny amount of sesame oil) veggies, drain water (better if water was squeezed out), top with sesame seeds and leave in fridge until cold. (Carrots were done for color only. I would stick to green veggies).
- Shell 5 pieces (or more) of headless shrimp. Boil until cooked.
- Scramble egg and cut into long, thin strips.
- Somen noodles, boiled for 3 minutes, washed in cold water and drained. Topped with spring onion and strips of spicy nori. Dipped in somen sauce (with more spring onions).
- Soft tofu (ready to eat) with spicy nori and somen sauce. Or you can cut 1/4 inch thick of firm tofu (or 1 inch, cubed) and fried. Drain oil. Top with cilantro and lemon. S&P to taste.

[esfandyar]

Thought I'd finally jump into the fray.

One of my recent and successful experiments...

Foie Gras Waffles... (say it with me Foieffle )
Balsamic Black Pepper mousse
Basil infused Lemon Golden Syrup
Strawberries

sickeningly scrumptious.

[esfandyar]

I made this before summer ended. Very easy.

- Boil (water, add tiny amount of sesame oil) veggies, drain water (better if water was squeezed out), top with sesame seeds and leave in fridge until cold. (Carrots were done for color only. I would stick to green veggies).
- Shell 5 pieces (or more) of headless shrimp. Boil until cooked.
- Scramble egg and cut into long, thin strips.
- Somen noodles, boiled for 3 minutes, washed in cold water and drained. Topped with spring onion and strips of spicy nori. Dipped in somen sauce (with more spring onions).
- Soft tofu (ready to eat) with spicy nori and somen sauce. Or you can cut 1/4 inch thick of firm tofu (or 1 inch, cubed) and fried. Drain oil. Top with cilantro and lemon. S&P to taste.

i really enjoy simple dishes like this, looks good and pretty healthy for you.. the somen sauce is pretty salty but it sure makes things taste good.

[pandabear]

i really enjoy simple dishes like this, looks good and pretty healthy for you.. the somen sauce is pretty salty but it sure makes things taste good.

Ah, I know why. You're supposed to dilute it with water. I get mine diluted already.

[oddy]

CHEESE, CHIPS & BEANS...........that is all

[noam]

for Wilson:

Jerk Marinade ( for 6-8 chicken thighs/legs)

ingredients:

fresh thyme
fresh garlic (2 big cloves)
fresh chillis (scotch bonnets but i used a bhut jolokia and a 'cheeky' http://www.chillisgalore.co.uk/pages/ch ... eties.html cos i had them spare, and a standard cayenne too)
onion salt
celery salt
all spice
cinnamon
nutmeg
dried thyme
vegetable oil

so basically, i put about 3.5teaspoons of all spice and cinnamon, in a bowl, added 1teaspoon of nutmeg, 1teaspoon celery salt and onion salt and about 2 teaspoons of dried thyme.

then i finely chopped and minced the garlic, you can make a paste by adding sea salt and rubbing the flat blade of a knife over it again and again, apply pressure with your palm and keep adding more salt to draw moisture out the garlic (good for loadsa sauces so you dont get made lumpy bits of garlic in your sauce, things like aoli etc.)

lastly finely chop the chilli's and add them and loads of fresh thyme, either pull it off the stem or just whack it in whole it doesn't matter. stir in the oil to make a thick paste.

score your legs and thighs, put them in a plastic sandwich bag and pour the paste in. make sure all the pieces are covered in the paste, i dont use my hands in the bag cos the pastes ends up more on your hands than it does on the chicken, instead i just kinda mash the meat up in the bag... or 'massage' it like a twatty chef would say. then you just tightly roll up the bag and stick it in the fridge for ages - boom!

[wilson]

Nice one Noam, can't wait to give that a go. Sounds bloody delish.

[noam]

well nice, 40mins in oven, 10 under the grill

[slothrop]

I made this before summer ended. Very easy.

- Boil (water, add tiny amount of sesame oil) veggies, drain water (better if water was squeezed out), top with sesame seeds and leave in fridge until cold. (Carrots were done for color only. I would stick to green veggies).
- Shell 5 pieces (or more) of headless shrimp. Boil until cooked.
- Scramble egg and cut into long, thin strips.
- Somen noodles, boiled for 3 minutes, washed in cold water and drained. Topped with spring onion and strips of spicy nori. Dipped in somen sauce (with more spring onions).
- Soft tofu (ready to eat) with spicy nori and somen sauce. Or you can cut 1/4 inch thick of firm tofu (or 1 inch, cubed) and fried. Drain oil. Top with cilantro and lemon. S&P to taste.

Looks sweet!

Tonights dinner was noodle soup - kind of similar idea and also very easy:
simmer vegetable (or chicken) stock with some dried shitake, star anise, whole dried chillies, black cardamon seeds (optional) a slice of ginger and a little bit of soy for an hour or two.
Strain the bits out and chuck everything except the shitake. Put the liquid back on the heat and add dried noodles. Slice the shitake and stick them in too. When the noodles are cooked, strain out them and the shitake and divide them between your serving bowls. Put the liquid back on the heat again and add some pak choi leaves. Blanch them until the green bits are wilted but the white bits are still crunchy and then pick them out and put them in the bowls with the noodles. Pour the soup over and serve.

You could probably clever it up with some extra herbs or fresh chillies or vegetables at the end, but it's good as it is... and ridiculously little effort, since you can basically put your feet up while it simmers.

[pandabear]

Looks sweet!

Tonights dinner was noodle soup - kind of similar idea and also very easy:
simmer vegetable (or chicken) stock with some dried shitake, star anise, whole dried chillies, black cardamon seeds (optional) a slice of ginger and a little bit of soy for an hour or two.
Strain the bits out and chuck everything except the shitake. Put the liquid back on the heat and add dried noodles. Slice the shitake and stick them in too. When the noodles are cooked, strain out them and the shitake and divide them between your serving bowls. Put the liquid back on the heat again and add some pak choi leaves. Blanch them until the green bits are wilted but the white bits are still crunchy and then pick them out and put them in the bowls with the noodles. Pour the soup over and serve.

You could probably clever it up with some extra herbs or fresh chillies or vegetables at the end, but it's good as it is... and ridiculously little effort, since you can basically put your feet up while it simmers.

That sounds good!!! Yum! I will try it next time. I haven't made pho too so maybe I'll do that, spring rolls, or Vietnamese egg rolls.

I made mussels with pasta in white wine for my girl Rae for dinner (forgot to take photo). Very easy (1/5). Maybe I've posted it here before, in case I haven't since I'm too lazy to open a new window and search.

Ingredients:
New Zealand mussels (sweet as!) prepackaged and cooked, or fresh ones if you are able to get them*
Moscato white wine
Linguini or angel hair or spaghetti (I would use angel hair just to lessen cooking time, but favor linguini more)
Fresh parsley
Garlic
Olive oil
Optional: dash of S&P, hot pepper flakes,

Clean fresh mussels or thaw prepackaged.

In a large pot, bring water to boil, add pasta cook until al dente. Drain and put aside.

In a skillet (or wok) heat olive oil, add chopped garlic and parsley, then add mussels. After one minute (or when the mussels open), add white wine (2/3 to 1 cup per .5 lb/half package of pasta). If skillet has lid, cover and leave until mussels are cooked (5-8 minutes covered, *fresh mussels add another 2-5 minutes), may add dash of S&P if desired. Add cooked pasta, mix, leave for another 3-5 minutes. Ready to serve. Sprinkle fresh parsley and hot pepper flakes if desired. Buon appetito!

[magma]

Americans! Anyone else on Thanksgiving duty?

Gotta make my first ever Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Pies and a Mac/cheese tonight.

Anyone got any killer tips for the pies? I'm cheating a bit and using Libby's pumpkin because it seems to be impossible to get a fresh pumpkin in England at the moment.

[noam]

for Wilson:

Jerk Marinade ( for 6-8 chicken thighs/legs)

ingredients:

fresh thyme
fresh garlic (2 big cloves)
fresh chillis (scotch bonnets but i used a bhut jolokia and a 'cheeky' http://www.chillisgalore.co.uk/pages/ch ... eties.html cos i had them spare, and a standard cayenne too)
onion salt
celery salt
all spice
cinnamon
nutmeg
dried thyme
vegetable oil

so basically, i put about 3.5teaspoons of all spice and cinnamon, in a bowl, added 1teaspoon of nutmeg, 1teaspoon celery salt and onion salt and about 2 teaspoons of dried thyme.

then i finely chopped and minced the garlic, you can make a paste by adding sea salt and rubbing the flat blade of a knife over it again and again, apply pressure with your palm and keep adding more salt to draw moisture out the garlic (good for loadsa sauces so you dont get made lumpy bits of garlic in your sauce, things like aoli etc.)

lastly finely chop the chilli's and add them and loads of fresh thyme, either pull it off the stem or just whack it in whole it doesn't matter. stir in the oil to make a thick paste.

score your legs and thighs, put them in a plastic sandwich bag and pour the paste in. make sure all the pieces are covered in the paste, i dont use my hands in the bag cos the pastes ends up more on your hands than it does on the chicken, instead i just kinda mash the meat up in the bag... or 'massage' it like a twatty chef would say. then you just tightly roll up the bag and stick it in the fridge for ages - boom!

did my third batch of this tonight with one of these in it



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trinidad_S ... h_T_pepper

needless to say... it was an experience

[magma]

Made two somewhat awesome looking and smelling pies last night. Should've taken a couple of photos.. maybe tonight before they get served.

Mac & Cheese done... just needs finishing in the oven tonight. Mash is done and just needs a bit of reheating.

Turkey defrosted and on a timer so it'll be cooking when I get in from work... then it's just steaming and roasting some veg, a Waldorf salad which the lady's on duty for and . We've got a big cache of root beer too.

I've never cooked a meal this BIG... I'm getting kind of neurotically obsessive about doing it right. Had so much fun last night!

[noam]

mac'n'cheese is so good when its done properly

[Naan_Bread]

I make this tonight and it was fucking good and also relatively easy. I used duck livers instead of ox.
http://www.tastemag.co.za/Recipe-2977/A ... nions.aspx

Ingredients:
2 T sesame oil
6 baby onions, halved lengthways
10 shiitake mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 ox liver
Fine salt, to taste
Cornflour, for dusting
3 T Chinese rice wine
2 T balsamic vinegar
5 T oyster sauce
Spring onions, sliced, to garnish
Roast sesame seeds, to garnish
Cooking instructions:
Heat the oil in a medium-sized wok and add the onions, mushrooms and garlic. Toss for 1 to 2 minutes, or until caramelised. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Cut the ox liver into 2 cm pieces and dust with the salt and cornflour. Dust off any excess cornflour.

Stir-fry the liver in the wok until crisp on the surface but undercooked in the middle, about 30 seconds. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and reduce to a glaze. Add the vinegar and oyster sauce and simmer slowly until slightly thickened.

Add the onions and liver and stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the liver is just cooked.

Serve garnished with the spring onions and sesame seeds.

[esfandyar]

I make this tonight and it was fucking good and also relatively easy. I used duck livers instead of ox.
http://www.tastemag.co.za/Recipe-2977/A ... nions.aspx

Ingredients:
2 T sesame oil
6 baby onions, halved lengthways
10 shiitake mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 ox liver
Fine salt, to taste
Cornflour, for dusting
3 T Chinese rice wine
2 T balsamic vinegar
5 T oyster sauce
Spring onions, sliced, to garnish
Roast sesame seeds, to garnish
Cooking instructions:
Heat the oil in a medium-sized wok and add the onions, mushrooms and garlic. Toss for 1 to 2 minutes, or until caramelised. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Cut the ox liver into 2 cm pieces and dust with the salt and cornflour. Dust off any excess cornflour.

Stir-fry the liver in the wok until crisp on the surface but undercooked in the middle, about 30 seconds. Remove from the wok and set aside.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and reduce to a glaze. Add the vinegar and oyster sauce and simmer slowly until slightly thickened.

Add the onions and liver and stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the liver is just cooked.

Serve garnished with the spring onions and sesame seeds.

i have been using shiitake mushrooms in a lot of my recent cooking as of late, the texture they have is so much like a good steak, and that unique earthy flavor they have brings such an extra layer to dishes you use them in. i like making them with some miso soup, hot pots... i even will marinade them in a variety of spices, sauces, and fruits, then eat them raw...

[Naan_Bread]

They are great.

Massive umami kick without being too salty.

[test_recordings]

Use the stems to make stock (just put them in from the start) and save the head for later in cooking so it doesn`t get overdone.

[slothrop]

Count me in on the shitake love.

Also getting quite into weirdy chinese preserved vegetables at the moment, mostly as a result of getting Fuschia Dunlop's book, Every Grain of Rice:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Every-Grain-Ric ... 140880252X

[test_recordings]

That book looks a hell of a lot better than `Chinese Cooking Made Easy` by the BBC as of late...