Ropa Vieja

The weather in South Florida has been so gloomy these couple of days, so I longed for something warm, comforting... something to satisfy my soul. So I thought of Ropa Vieja.

Ropa Vieja, or translated literraly as "tattered clothes or rags", is a Latin American cuisine. It is named as such because the shredded beef resembles so much like the ragged edges of an old clothing.... as explained to me by my Hispanic friends.



This dish is very similar to some dishes that we have in the Philippines, that's why I've taken so much liking to it. It is actually nothing but beef stewed in a tomato-based sauce. What makes this different though, is that it requires a specific cut of meat – flank - which can be shredded in long pieces.

In my opinion, the real secret to this dish is in the length of time the meat is braised. Longer braising allows more time for the flavors to meld well together, resulting in a very flavorful, tender meat that just melts in your mouth! Yum!



Pictured here is my version of Ropa Vieja. It is my opinion that the best way to enjoy this dish is to have it with rice. Plain rice. A little maduros (or fried plantains) on the side completes the meal.

Then you will be a happy camper.


Ropa Vieja
Adapted from Cooking Light

Cooking spray
2 (1-pound) flank steaks, trimmed
3 cups thinly vertically sliced red onion
2 cups red bell pepper strips (about 2 peppers)
2 cups green bell pepper strips (about 2 peppers)
4 garlic cloves, minced
6 tablespoons thinly sliced pitted green olives
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons sherry vinegar
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon no-salt-added tomato paste
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1 steak to pan; cook 2 1/2 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove steak from pan. Repeat procedure with cooking spray and remaining steak.

Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic to pan; cook 7 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Stir in olives and next 5 ingredients (through black pepper); cook 30 seconds or until fragrant. Stir in vinegar, scraping pan to loosen browned bits; cook for 2 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Stir in broth, tomato paste, and bay leaves. Add steaks; bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat, and cook 1 1/2 hours or until steaks are very tender. Discard bay leaves.

Remove steaks from pan; shred with two forks. Stir shredded beef and cilantro into pan.

Note: This dish is definitely better the next day. Left-over meat can also be eaten with tortilla or taco.

Involtini Of Beef

The South Beach Food and Wine Festival is going on right now even as I write this... and I couldn't go. I'm absolutely bummed out.

It is a 4-day festival taking place by the beach (U.S.'s Riviera, South Beach) which showcases the amazing talents of the world's most renowned wine makers, celebrated chefs and culinary personalities. It's the ultimate event to go for foodies and foodies at heart!

The truth is, it's not so much as I couldn't but that I didn't go - for valid reasons. The tickets for this event are a little expensive. With how the economy is going nowadays, it just doesn't seem right for me to be spending between $200-$400 (for the events I wanted to attend). Arrgghhh!!! I so wanted to go. A part of me is screaming and kicking like a child; but the wise part of me hushed the child down :oD While the experience and fun of meeting all those celebrity chefs whom I admire is arguably worth it, but fact remains - my going isn't a real need. It is just a want; something that I can do away with, or at least, put off for now. If there's any time to spend wisely, it is now. Besides, there's always next year, right?

This festival is definitely an item in my bucket list, so I have to go even for just once. I do hope things will work out for me next time. Till then, I am keeping my fingers crossed, and praying that the economy will take a better turn in the next months to come.

I don't know about you but good food always lifts me up. And since I needed cheering up, I thought that this dish, Involtini Of Beef (or beef roll-ups), would do the trick. It is pleasing to the eye and tastes fantastic! What's more, it is not at all complicated to do. I actually find this quicker to do than, say, lasagna.

If you've been visiting this blog often, you'd notice that my recipes are simple and easy to do. So this dish is right up my alley. Much as I'd like to cook, but I don't want to be spending too much time in the kitchen and not have enough time left to spend with my loved ones. The latter is important too, you know.

I made this for Mr. J for his birthday and he totally liked it. This dish may be simple, but it obviously requires some effort (and love) and the end product is special -- very elegant.

So go ahead and try this dish. As Ingrid Hoffman says, "If I can do it, you can do it!".

I am sharing this dish to Lasang Pinoy Sundays (La.Pi.S): EATS A WRAP!. Lasang Pinoy is a weekly food photography meme, hosted by SpiCes.




Involtini Of Beef
(Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cups carrots, julienned (cut into thin strips)
1/2 cup red or yellow bell pepper (cut into thin strips)
1/2 cup zucchini (cut into thin strips)
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 (3 to 4-ounces each) beef scaloppini (from London Broil or Top Sirloin)
All-purpose flour, for dredging
1/2 cup dry white wine*
1 bay leaf
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/4 cup frozen peas
1-ounce thinly sliced prosciutto, coarsely chopped

Directions
1. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon butter in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Add the veggies, onion, and garlic and saute until the veggies are tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
4. Stir in the Parmesan.
5. Season beef with salt and pepper.
6. Using 2 tablespoons for each, divide the veggie mixture among the beef slices. 6. Roll up the beef slices to enclose the filling, tucking in the ends. Secure the rolls with toothpicks.
7. Heat the remaining oil and the remaining tablespoon of butter in the same large frying pan over medium-high heat.
8. Dredge the beef rolls in flour to coat lightly.
9. Add the beef rolls and cook until brown on all sides, about 8 minutes.
10. Add the wine and stir to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet.
11. Add the tomatoes with their juices and the bay leaf. Cover and simmer until the beef is cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer the beef rolls to a platter.
12. Remove the toothpicks, then cover the beef rolls with foil to keep warm.
13. Add the peas and prosciutto to the sauce in the skillet and stir until the peas are heated through and the sauce reduces slightly, about 5 minutes.
14. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and pepper.
15. Drizzle the sauce over the beef rolls and serve.

NOTE*: You may substitute wine with chicken broth, if preferred. As for the veggies, I didn't have zucchini on hand, so I just used carrots and green bell pepper and adjusted the amount accordingly .

Pork Medallions In Sherry Wine and Dried Cherries Pan Sauce

Unlike in the past when abstaining from eating pork was mostly because it was a religious taboo, nowadays the issue about this controversial meat has become more than that.

Pork is said to be one of the unhealthiest meat on earth. So many books have been written lately discouraging consumers to partake of this "dirty" animal. A number of research claim that ALL pork products is unfit for human consumption. One such research for instance, is that of Prof. Hans-Heinrich Reckeweg, MD. In his article from "the Adverse Influence of Pork Consumption on Health", he reports that pork allegedly contains homotoxine (human poison) or death enzyme.

However accurate these reports are, I would never know. But if you choose not to eat pork (or anything else) for whatever reason, then I applaud you for acting on your conviction. That is so admirable, and I am saying this with all my heart. As for me, I am not an advocate of abstaining on certain food nor on extreme diets (except if you have major health issues that necessitate you to do it). My principle has always been: balance and moderation and lots of exercise are the keys to a healthy living. When one lives in an excessive lifestyle (in all aspects), then one is surely bound to self-destruction. Thus, having said this, I will continue to enjoy partaking of this "other white meat" -- once in a while, that is.



Admittedly though, I have become health conscious and have been more aware of nutritional labels especially during the last couple of years. Maybe because my mother was stricken with the dreaded big "C", which eventually caused her demise less than a year ago. For this reason, my hubby and I try to eat healthy as much as possible.

Like I said earlier, I like to have my pork once in a while. For this dish, I used the lean cut of meat, pork tenderloin. The sauce in this dish is lovely, with its deep red color due to the red wine. It's rich and velvety. Make extra, I'd suggest, if you love saucy dishes like I do... Well, if you must know, Filipinos in general prefer saucy dishes. Since every meal is eaten with rice, we like to drizzle sauce over the rice and mix 'em up so our rice wouldn't be that dry... Yum! That's the way most Filipinos like their rice!

Ironically though, I did not serve this dish with rice. We had rice the past two nights when I cooked this dish so I thought, polenta would be the best alternative. And I was right. The polenta soaked up all the flavorful sauce of this dish. I also served steamed green beans with lemon along side this dish. Hmnn.. what a wonderful, balanced meal. Don't you think?



Pork Medallions In Sherry Wine and Dried Cherries Pan Sauce
(Recipe adapted from Cooking Light)

1 cup sweet sherry (ruby port or other sweet red wine)
1/3 cup dried sweet cherries
4 teaspoons seedless raspberry jam
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 med onion, sliced (sweet or yellow)
1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin, trimmed
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon butter
Fresh parsley springs (optional)

Preparation:

1. Combine first 4 ingredients.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over low heat for 2 minutes. Cut the pork crosswise into 16 pieces. Sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper.
3. place pork in pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove pork from pan.
4. Then saute onion in pan until soft and transluscent.
4. Stir in wine mixture, scraping to loosen browned bits. Increase heat to high; bring to a boil. Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat.
5. Stir in butter with a whisk.
6. Serve on a bed of polenta. Pour sauce over pork. Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Simple Polenta With Fresh Parsley

3 cups water
1 teaspoons salt
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
1/2 cup whole milk
3 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1-1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:
1. Bring the water to a boil in a heavy large saucepan.
2. Add 2 teaspoons of salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal.
3. Reduce the heat to low and cook until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, stirring often, about 15 minutes.
4. Remove from the heat. Add the cheese, milk, butter, parsley and pepper, and stir until the butter and cheese melt.
5. Transfer the polenta to a bowl and serve with Pork Medallions.

Taste & CreateXI: Chicken Cooked In Yoghurt (Dum Ka Murgh Zafrani)

It's that time of the month again. Time for Taste & Create, a monthly blogging event where partipating bloggers are partnered off with one another; the partners browse each other's blog and then they each have to cook their recipe of choice from their partner's blog. Cool huh? This blog was authored and is hosted by Nicole of For The Love Of Food.

My partner this time is Swati of Chatkhor. She's from Bangalore, India and so naturally, all of her recipes are for Indian food. She is a vegetarian, but she's started to venture into cooking chicken for her non-veg hubby. I'd say that's love right there. I enjoyed reading her posts. I can tell she's a fun person, who enjoys cooking so much. And her personality is obviously reflected in her cooking too. Swati, it's a pleasure to be partnered with you.

Now, what to cook? Obviously, we are not vegetarians, but I do cook vegetarian dishes once in a while. There are a number of recipes that I want to try from the blog, but unfortunately, a lot of the the spices the recipe call for are something that I doubt I'd be able to get here in Miami, as I don't know of any Indian specialty store around here. I also don't know what to substitute them with...
So in the end, I decided to do the recipe that Swati herself suggested - dum ka murgh zafrani, or chicken slowly cooked in yoghurt (check out the recipe here)... Doesn't the Indian title alone intrigue you?

Looking at the recipe, I knew right away that it would be a very rich dish. What with all that butter, yoghurt, milk and cream required... whew! So I had to tweak the recipe, just to control the fat content just a little bit. First of all, I used a skinless, boneless chicken breast. We usually don't eat the chicken skin anyway so there's no point in having it in this dish. Also, instead of using 1 cup of clarified butter as called for, I decided to only use 2 tbsps of butter, mainly for flavor, and a couple tbsps of olive oil. For the milk, I opted to use 2% instead of the full cream milk. Also, the yoghurt I used was non-fat. I had to do all these because Mr. J is watching his cholesterol level, so this is important if I were to feed him this dish. And for the fresh cream, I substituted it with heavy whipping cream using only half of what's required. And I have to admit.. I cheated a little bit too. I chose to use canned, peeled and crushed tomato instead of pureeing one from scratch. Not only did I saved a fraction of time, but I've also got lesser dishes to wash this way. I thought that was smart of me, wasn't it? :o)

I don't think the changes I made affected the flavor of this dish at all. In my humble opinion, it's really all the spices that make this dish. The sauce still came out thick and creamy due to the addition of the almond paste and the pureed tomato. At first, I was kind of iffy about the almond paste. I thought almond paste is only for desserts. I never knew that it could be added on to savory dishes as well, but now I know better.. haha! The paste added a slight almond taste to the dish, but not overpowering. And it made this dish a bit sweeter as well, which is a nice balance to all the different spices going on in this food.

As it is only Mr. J and I at home, I decided to cut the recipe down into half. But even with half a recipe, it still made a lot, especially the sauce! But you know what, this food tastes better the next day, so I am not complaining.

Cooking this dish transported me back in time when I was hanging out with pals from New Delhi (India) and Katmandu (Nepal). Almost 10 yrs. ago, I was in a scholarship program in Germany, which was sponsored by the German government. I got close to my colleagues from India (there were 2 of them) and Nepal. The smell of this dish as it cooked made me remember those good ol' times when my friends would cook dinner, or at other times, when we would have Indian theme nights. We would go out to eat at Indian restaurants (in Germany), and watch Indian movies afterwards. Oh, I miss those fun times with them. I still communicate with these friends up to now, actually.

Anyways, before I get carried away too much..... This dish is similar to curry, except that there is no curry in it. It had all the spices that one would expect in an Indian dish. The chicken was creamy and dreamy and I served it with plain boiled jasmin rice garnished with cilantro... Yum! My husband, who thought it was spicy, was surprised because the dish is milder than he had expected and slightly sweet. He actually liked it...Life is good.... Thanks, Swati, for a great recipe!

Steamed Pork Wonton Dumplings (SioMai)

SioMai (shoo-mai) commonly known as steamed dumplings, is one of the dishes brought to the Philippines by the Chinese immigrant, Ma Mon Luk. I told you about his inspiring story two posts ago. If you didn't get to read it, check it out here.

This food is a dimsum staple in China or Hongkong. What I like about this dish is the fact that it is steamed. Steaming leaves the ingredients' essential flavors and textures intact. Also, it is a healthier way to cook, yes?. It does take lot of time to prepare, so as a warning, do this way ahead of time when your tummy has not began churning yet. The actual steaming of these wonderful little bites don't take time, it's the stuffing and wonton wrapping action that does require a bit of patience.

As you know, Asian cuisine is characterized by a lot of chopping, dicing, wrapping or rolling. Really, it's the preparation part that is more time consuming than the actual cooking in itself. But hey,if you love Asian food, then it's going to be worth your effort.


You can serve these dumplings as appetizers, but my hubby and I often eat these for dinner, with a simple noodle soup perhaps. These yummy little things are light but filling.

The recipe below really is for you to learn the method more than anything else. These dumplings are so versatile that you can change up anything from the meat, to the vegetables and the topping.

Here, I used shredded carrots and boiled eggs as toppings. But you can also use shrimps, mushrooms, crabmeat, chopped scallions or quail eggs, or anything that might strike your fancy.

You can eat these with or without the dipping. But I love dips and sauces, so I chose to make a simple dip to go with my dumplings. There are many options to use as a dipping sauce. There is the bottled Thai/Chinese sweet chili sauce, or just the Hoisin sauce. What I did this time is a mixture of Hoisin sauce thinned out by a bit of lite soy sauce, and I added a bit of the garlic-chili paste for a little kick. If you want your sauce to be a little bit sweeter, you can either add more Hoisin, or add just a touch of honey.

Steamed Pork Wonton Dumplings
1 pound ground pork
1/2 cup carrots, shredded
1 (5 oz) can water chestnuts, strained
1/4 cup scallions, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp fresh ginger, coarsely chopped (about 1-inch size)
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tbsp chili-garlic sauce (optional)
1 (16-ounce) pack wonton wrappers
Savoy or Napa cabbage for lining *

1. Throw in the food processor the carrots, garlic, ginger, chestnuts. Pulse a few times until vegetables are finely minced. You can also do the mincing by hand. The important thing is that thye veggies are minced finely.
2. Pour the processed vegetables in to a large bowl. Add the scallions, sesame oil, egg, soy sauce, oyster sauce and chili sauce (if using). Mix well.
3. Add the ground pork to the bowl and mix thoroughly, making sure that the spices and veggies are thoroughly incorporated. Do not overmix meat.

4. Working with one wonton wrapper at a time, (cover the rest with a damp paper towel to prevent from drying), spoon about 1 tsp meat mixture to the center of each wrapper. Moisten the edges with water.
5. Gather up and crip the edges of the wrapper around the filling; lightly squeeze to adhere to filling, leaving top open. Place your topping on top and gently press into the filling. Place dumpling on a baking sheet; cover loosely with damp towel. Repeat procedure.
6.Line your steamer with the cabbage leaves. Arrange dumpling over the leaves, 1 inch apart
7. If using a bamboo steamer, add water to skillet,about 1 inch deep; bring water to boil. Place steamer in pan and steam dumpling for 15 minutes or until done.
8. Remove dumplings from steamer. Serve warm with the dipping sauce. Discard cabbage.

*NOTE: Lining the steamer with cabbage leaves ensures the dumpling won't stick to the bottom of the steamer.

Pinoy Bistek (Filipino-Style Beefsteak)

Filipinos in general, like the rest of the Asian countries, are not heavy meat eaters. Most of our dishes are prepared with lots of vegetables or noodles in them. Or, when we eat meat, we eat a matchbox-sized piece with lots of rice. (Yes, we love rice. We eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and yet, most Filipinos are petite. So rice really cannot make one fat!)

I can only attribute the way we eat to the Philippines being a third world country, that is, poor. Majority of the people cannot afford to have meat dishes on a daily basis. For a famiy of seven (the average size of a Filipino family), the meals can become real costly. Thus rice, vegetables and noodles are thrown in to extend the dishes and make a big meal out of a little piece of meat.

As for my family, this dish was one of our Sunday lunch tradition. This happens to be one of my Dad's favorite, so my Mom prepares this for him. This is called "bistek", or the Filipino-style beef steak. It is not like the steak that you would think it to be here in the U.S. They're smaller pieces of beef sliced thinly and marinated in "kalamansi" (key lime), soysauce, garlic, salt and pepper. Some say, "bistek or bistec" refers to the Hispanic style of cooking a dish with a sauce. This is most probably true, considering that our culture is heavily Hispanic-influenced.

I remember hating this dish when I was younger because I didn't like the pieces of the meat that get stuck in between my teeth. I would be crying by the end of our dinner. But thankfully, this is not the case anymore. In fact, this has become one of my favorite Filipino comfort food.

Now that my Mom has passed on to be with the Lord, this dish brings back loving memories of her and my family as I was growing up.




Pinoy Bistek
1 lb. beef (round, sirloin or tenderloin), sliced 1/4-inch thick
6 tbsp. of kalamansi (key lime) juice
1/2 c. dark soy sauce
3 tsp. garlic, minced
black pepper, freshly ground
2 large onions, sliced into rings (I used red onions)
2 tbsp vegetable cooking oil, or more if needed
flour, for dredging

1. Slice the beef. Take a piece of plastic wrap and cover the meat. Pound the meat mallet or a heavy skillet. Do this carefully so as not to tear the meat. (This is to ensure that the meat would be tender, but you can skip this step).

2. In a bowl, mix the next 4 ingredients (from the kalamansi juice thru pepper). Mix well and let the meat marinate in it for at least 30 minutes. (My opinion, the longer the marinating time, the better the meat tastes)

3. When ready, bring a heavy skillet up to temperature. Add the vegetable oil. Fry the onions lightly, just until tender. Remove from skillet and keep warm.

4. Take the meat out but reserve the marinade. Dredge the meat lightly with flour, carefully shaking off the excess.

5. Add oil to skillet and heat until smoking. Pan-fry the meat until brown (in batches if you have to). When the beef is done, add the marinade into to the skillet and let it boil for a minute or two. Then add the beef back into the skillet. Mix until all pieces are coated well with the sauce. Add the fried onions. Simmer for another minute or two.

6. Serve immediately with white rice. Enjoy.

Taste & Create X: Ham Croquettes (Croquettas De Jamon)

First of all, I'd like to acknowledge the efforts of Nicole King, the author/organizer, Taste and Create, an event where two foodie bloggers are partnered and then they get to do whatever recipe they like from each other's archives. I can just imagine the many hours she dedicates inorder to make sure that this event happens every month. Kudos to you Nicole - for your creativity and for your patience!

With that said, I am both thrilled and a bit apprehensive when Nicole advised that I will be her partner for this months' Taste & Create. Here I am, a novice at both cooking and blogging, paired up with an obviously seasoned cook and blogger. Just check out Nicole's blog (here), and you will know what I mean. But, learning from others and taking on a challenge is the essence of this event, right? So, I'm going to learn as much as I can, and enjoy the ride as well while doing it.

When I learned that Nicole will be my partner, I knew immediately what I would do. I visited her blog a few days before the announcement, and was already planning on trying one of her recipes (among others), the croquettas de jamon, or cuban ham croquettes.


ham croquettes on a cuban roll


It is ironic that I would get the recipe for this dish from someone who is in Germany! I am based in Miami, Florida where Cuban abounds (next to Cuba, that is) so I should have been the one who had the recipe, right? But sometimes, distance also has something to do with everything. Because these croquettes are readily available here in Miami, I never had the motivation to make them at home. Ok, ok.. excuses, excuses....

Seriously, like Nicole, I had honestly thought that this would be complicated to make. Almost every Cuban I know has a grandmother who "makes super good croquettas". So, I had naturally assumed that this dish is not only complicated, but would also be very time consuming..... WRONG! As a mattrer fact, it is exactly the opposite. And I have Nicole to thank for proving that it is not. Just read the recipe, or better yet, try it and you'll find out.



The croquettes that are commercially sold, I know, have lard and all kinds of preservatives in them which make them not so good for our health (and figure). With this recipe, I probably would never buy ham croquettes from the bakery ever again. This is so much better! Because I know the quality of ingredients that went into it, I can now truly enjoy eating them without feeling guilty afterwards. (Though next time, I will try baking them for an even healthier version).



If you want to make this, the recipe is here. When I was shopping for the ingredients, I was so delighted to find an already ground ham. Awesome. This has even saved me one more step in making this dish. Talk about living in America!

ham croquettes ready for frying

Anyway, since the ham is water cured and not baked (recipe calls for baked ham), I added a 1/2-teaspoon of cumin for a smokey taste in the background. And then, I also added about 1/2 tablespoon of lime juice for freshness, plus a dash of crushed red peppers for a little kick. These are about the only variations I did to the recipe, otherwise, everything is a-ok!

Now, the next step is to learn making another one of my Cuban favorite, those guava and cheese pastelitos... anyone have the recipe?

Seoul-ful Chicken With Minted Cucumber

I am always interested in educating my palate, that's why I was eager to try this recipe that I happen to find when scanning an issue of Cooking Light magazine - chicken and cucumber done Korean style.

Kimchi is pretty much all I know about Korean food, and I'm sure that there's more to it than kimchi. It is one of the least familiar cuisine to me among the Asian countries, so I'd be glad to get to know a bit more of Korean cooking.

So here's something that resembles that of a korean dish (I hope). The chicken calls for ingredients common in Asian cooking, of course. As for the cucumber salad, it's some kind of a kimchi-type accompaniment, very similar to your cucumber salad with vinaigrette but with a slight difference in the prepartion. Find out how...



Cucumbers
1 English cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, and thinly sliced (about 2-1/2 cups)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp shallots
2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1 tbsp season rice vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1 tsp dark sesame oil
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1 serrano chile, seeded and minced

1. Place cucumber slices in colander; sprinkle with salt, tossing well. Drain 1 hour.
2. Place cucumber slices on several layers of paper towels; cover with additional paper towels. Let stand 5 minutes, pressing down occasionally.
3. Combine cucumber, shallots, and next 6 ingrediets (thru chile) in a large bowl; toss gently. Cover and set aside.


Chicken
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast*, about 1-1/4 lbs
1/4 c soy sauce
2 tbsp dark sesame oil
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 c green onions, thinly sliced
4 tsp sesame seeds, toasted

1. Place the chicken between 2 sheets of heavy duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness.
2. Combine soy sauce and the next 5 ingredients (thru garlic) in a large zip top plastic bag.
3. Add chicken to soy sauce mixture in a bag, seal. Marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes, turning bag occasionally.
4. Heat grill pan over medium high heat. Coat with cooking spray.
5. Remove chicken from the bag; discard marinade. Cook chicken for 6 minutes on each side or until done.
6. Serve chicken with 1/2 cup of cucumber; sprinkle salad with green onions, and chicken with sesame seeds.

NOTE: Recommended meat is chicken thigh (boneless,skinless), but we prefer the breast. You may certainly use chicken thigh if you want, which is actually a juicer and more tender meat.

Spaghetti With Meatballs

Spaghetti being made from worms????? That is sooo not true!!!

Well, if I was told this information today, this exactly would be my reaction. But as a young and innocent kid, I somehow picked up a rumor from school that spaghetti (meaning the pasta) are made of worms. And not knowing any better, this false information naturally affected my behavior towards spaghetti and I grew up not liking this dish at all.

But thank God this dislike did not stay with me forever. As I grew a bit older, I came to know more about food, and I discovered that spaghetti is pasta that is made from wheat/semolina flour, and that it is one of the most popular Italian dish all over the world. Information is indeed power, and armed with the knowledge and new determination, I overcame my aversion to spaghetti so much so that it is now one of my favorite comfort food.

Growing up in the Philippines, spaghetti is not considered an everyday dish. It is a viand reserved for special occasions, such as birthdays. Mind you, where I come from, most folks still eat spaghetti with rice... True story! No meal in my homeland is complete without rice, so people eat rice even with noodles and/or pasta.

Anyway, someone from my office brought spaghetti for lunch a few days back. When warmed in the microwave, the smell of spaghetti just permeated my office, and apparently, my brain as well. Eversince, my brain has reminded me constantly of that rich, meaty spaghetti sauce that I inhaled at the office… Finally, I had to concede for my own peace's sake - I just gotta make my own Neapolitan spaghetti with meatballs. My brain dictated and won. It's really mind over matter, huh?


Spaghetti With Meatballs
1/2 lb spaghetti
Salt, for pasta water
1 bottle of your favorite store-bought marinara sauce (or you can make your own if you've the time)

Meatballs:
1-1/4 lbs ground sirloin
2 tsps Worcesteshire sauce
1 egg, beaten, plus Eggbeaters measure equivalent to 1 egg
1/2 cup grated Italian bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (or romano), and more for topping
1/4 cup onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp parsely, minced
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp lemon zest, grated
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 tbsp unsalted butter, for browning meatballs
Olive oil, fro browning meatballs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a bowl, mix Worcestershire sauce and the next ingredients through red pepper flakes.
3. When thorougly mixed, add ground meat. Mix with hands just until ingredients are incorporated. Do not overmix.
4. Roll meat into 1-2/2 inch sized meatballs (or any size you like. The smaller it is, the quicker it cooks.) Set aside.
5. In the meantime, heat a deep oven proof skillet over moderate heat. Add butter and olive oil (2 turns around the pan, approx). When oil is hot, add the meatballs. Saute them until brown on all sides.
6. While browning meatballs, on another pot, bring to boil your marinara sauce. When boiling, lower heat and let it simmer while waiting for the meatballs to get ready.
7. When meatballs are brown, time to add your hot marina sauce into the pan. Sauce should cover the matballs a little more than halfway.
8. Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake for 30 mins.
9. While meatballs are baking, in another pot bring water to a boil. Cook pasta as directed or until al dente (firm to the bite). Drain. You should start doing this so that the pasta cooks at the same time as the meatballs are done.
10. Add the pasta to the meatballs. Mix and serve spaghetti with grated parmesan cheese on top, if preferred.

Apricot Pork Chops With Roasted Brussel Sprouts

I am always in constant search for new ways to do pork chops. I am sure there is a thousand other ways to do it, but it seems to me that I am stuck with my 2 other reliable recipes - breaded or adobo-style (Filipino-adobo).

And so here's a new recipe inspired by Cooking Light magazine. Apart from it being pork chop, the other thing that attracted me to this dish is its glaze. Adding fruit preserves to a savory dish is a new thing for me, and I've been trying this only recently. It's a whole new world for me that I have yet to discover.

And so, here's an Apricot Glazed Pork Chop. I would say that the apricots can easily be subsituted with other fruit preserves such as peach preserves or orange marmalade.

For this dinner, I served the dish with Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Mashed Potatoes.


Apricot Pork Chops
Cooking spray
4 boneless loin pork chops
1/4 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup apricot preserves
1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tsp garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup sliced green onions
dash of freshly ground pepper

1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle a dash of salt and pepper to chops.
2. Add pork to pan; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove from pan and keep warm.
3. Add onions to pan; saute' 4 minutes or until lightly browned. Stir in preserves, soy sauce, garlic and salt.
4. Cook 3 minutes or until thickened. Add pork back to pan, turning to coat.
5. Serve. Garnish with green onions.



Roasted Brussel Sprouts
1 lb brussel sprouts
2 strips bacon, cut into 1/4 inch pcs
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Wash and peel off any damaged leaves from the sprouts. Trim the root end and cut in half.
3. Cook bacon in an oven-proof skillet over medium heat until bacon begins to get crisp, about 4 mins.
4. Transfer bacon to a bowl and set aside. (Take out some of the bacon grease if you think it's too much.) Add sprouts to the skillet, season with salt and pepper.
5. Transfer skillet to the oven and roast for about 30-45 minutes, or until the sprouts are cooked through and golden.
6. Crumble bacon over the sprouts and serve.

NOTE: I did not include a recipe of the mashed potato as I'm sure you have your way of doing it. You can do it however you like yours done.

Churrasco, baby!

Hey, it's Mr. J here again, the mystery chef (or shall I say guest chef in this blog.. hehehe). One day I felt like making a special dinner for my gorgeous wife, so I thought to myself there's no better way to show my love than to grill up some churrasco, baby...MMMMMM! I love to cook a tasty piece of meat, especially when its got that fat slightly marbled throughout the cut. When grilling, this type of meat is not as easily dried-out by the heat and delivers, in my opinion, a better flavor than super-lean cuts of meat. Follow closely as we cook up some awesome steak and side dishes that will have you smacking your lips!

Spice Rubbed Skirt Steak With Apple-Glazed Sweet Potato
1-1/4 lbs skirt steak (churrasco)
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp sea salt

Ready, Set ... Remove Churrasco meat from refrigerator to let it come to room temperature. Rub lightly with olive oil, and coat evenly, (on both sides) with the spices: Cumin, ground black pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and some chili powder. Rub well into meat. Now, most recipes I've seen ask you to make a special rub for the meat beforehand by combining a long list of ingredients (not that there's anything wrong with that...LOL), but for me I know what I like and when I am being lazy I can do it this way and still know that I am going to get a good flavor from my steak and seasoning without all of the fuss.

After seasoning, let the meat stand for about 30-45 minutes before heading off to the grill. This gives you ample time to get started on those sweet potatoes. Actually, you should've had them in the oven 15 minutes ago... :O)

Apple Glazed Sweet Potato
2 pcs good sized sweet potato
2 pcs large apple (Macintosh/Golden Delicious), diced
3/4 stick butter
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon

I upgraded this dish to almost like a dessert. For starters, get those potatoes cleaned up and dried. Take some butter and coat the outside and wrap in foil before placing them into the oven for 1 hour at 350 degrees.

To make the glaze, I melted the butter in a pan over medium heat, then added the sugar and cinnamon to it. When the sugar has melted, I added the apples and just stirred them in to be coated with sweet butter-cinnamon mixture. I didn't let it stay long under the heat though because the apples are diced, red and delicious,but still not as firm as say a granny smith's apple -- So, it cooks pretty quick. Set the glaze aside until later.


When you have about 15 minutes left on your potatoes, get the grill going and start cooking your meat, after all its all about timing. Churrasco time! Go ahead and cook your meat about 4-6 minutes on each side over medium heat, for medium doneness. Don't forget to get the nice grill marks before flipping! The olive oil will help out with that since it has a lower burning temperature than regular oils. Focus on cooking the steak how you like it, because your potatoes will be ok until you get to them.

Once the meat is cooked set it off to the side and grab your sweet potatoes. Plate them first, pop 'em open, and add the glazed apples to the top of them. Start cutting into that churrasco and get some of that on your plate.

If you have some chimichurri sauce laying around go ahead and add that to your steak for more kick! If not, don't worry the steak will be great all on its own. We also had a mini-salad with our meal, nothing too special; simply a spring salad mix with tomatoes, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

It doesnt take a lot to have a special meal, just good timing! Enjoy!

Flank Steak With Five Spice Rub & Chile Relish

One of the challenges of cooking in the middle of the week is making something that is simple, quick and yet packs a lot of flavor. And for us, grilling - steak in particular - is the way to go.

My hubby's most favorite cut of steak is rib-eye, but this time, I ventured into something that we don't usually do - flank steak. I was aware that doing this particular cut would be a challenge as this cut yields a tougher meat, but I really wanted to get acquainted with this part of the cow...hahaha.

My inspiration came, once again from Cooking Light magazine. I was intrigued by the chile relish and so I decided to try this recipe. And we were not disappointed. The flavors of this dish are so good. Though if you ask me, I'd rather use the skirt steak (churrasco) than the flank...there I said it... I am now convinced that flank is better used for stewing/braising, but not for grilling.

So if you try this recipe (which I hope you would), get the skirt steak. This dish is very good - simple enough for a weeknight dinner but yet, very tasty that you can even entertain with it.

Steak
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp five-spice powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 (2-lb) flank steak, trimmed
cooking spray

1. Prepare grill
2. To prepare steak, combine sugar and next 4 ingredients (thru ginger) in a small bowl. Sprinkle steak with sugar mixture.
3. Place steak on a grill rack coated with cooking spray. Grill 6 mins. on each side or until desired degree of doneness.
4. Cut steak across grain into thin slices.
5. Serve with relish and toasted pita.

Relish
2 poblano chiles
1 orange bell-pepper
1-1/2 tbsp chopped dry-roasted peanuts
1 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tbsp seasoned rice wine vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced

1. Pre-heat broiler.
2. To prepare relish, cut chiles and bell pepper in half lengthwise; discard seeds and membranes.
3. Place halves, skin side up, on a foil-lined baking sheet, flatten with hand.
4. Broil 15 mins or until blackened.
5. Place in a zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand for 15 mins.
6. Peel and chop.
7. Combine chiles, bell pepper and next 6 ingredients (thru garlic) in a small bowl; toss well. Set aside till steak is ready. Serve with steak.

Red Curry With Chicken & Bamboo Shoots

Red, yellow or green. Nope, I'm not describing a flag, nor are these the latest color trends in fashion, but rather, they're the colors of an Asian spice: the curry.

Although curry originated from India, this spice is widely used among the East Asian as well as the South East Asian cuisine. Its color tells you how spicy it is - with red being the most spicy (from red chilies), green-medium (from green chilies) and yellow, mild (from cumin and turmeric). I like 'em all but prefer having them cooked Thai-style, which means, with coconut milk. Combining the curry with coconut milk tends to be more aromatic, it seems to me.

My husband and I love red curry. There's a small Thai-Chinese restaurant we go to when we're craving for Thai food. It's a hole-in-the wall place, but man, their chicken with red curry is the best. I've been craving for red-curry chicken these past days, but this time, I resolved to make it myself. And boy did I enjoy this dish. It's even better the next day!

Red Curry with Chicken & Bamboo Shoots
(recipe adapted from templeofthai.com)

1.5 lb boneless chicken breast
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 pcs garlic cloves, minced
1/2 medium onion, sliced
2 tsp green onion, chopped
1 can (16 oz) bamboo shoots, sliced
1-2 tbsp red curry paste
1 can coconut milk
1/2 cup basil leaves, torn (if you find Thai sweet basil, much better)
2 tbsp fish sauce
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp sugar
2 tsps lime zest (approx 1 lime, or 3-4 kaffir lime leaves)
1/4 cup red bell pepper, sliced
1/4 cup green bell pepper, sliced
Cilantro & basil, for ganish

1. Heat oil in pan. When hot, saute onion 'til translucent. Add garlic.
2. Then add chicken pieces. Saute till chicken have turned white.
3. Add red curry paste and stir till curry is well incorporated and oil comes to surface.
4. Then add half of the coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar,bamboo shoots. Go easy on the salt, as remember, the fish sauce is already salty.
5. Then, let the chicken simmer in coconut milk for about 3-4 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
6. Then add the rest of the ingredients: red & green peppers, green onions,the rest of the coconut milk. If using kaffir lime leaves, add them at this point. Adjust seasoning. Simmer for 1 minute more.
7. Before serving, garnish with basil leaves and/or cilantro.
8. Serve with steamed rice.

***NOTE: 2 tbsps red curry paste might be too much, so I suggest you start by adding 1 tbsp first. I got carried away and added 2-1/2 tbsps. My hubby found it a bit too spicy. He added a more sugar to balance the heat.

Giniling, a.k.a. Picadillo

Filipino lesson: Giniling (ghee-nee-ling) - refers to anything that's ground; also applies to a dish made from ground meat

Philippine cuisine is very much like a Filipino himself: a result of a mixture of different cultures. There's the influence from the Chinese, Malay, Arab and Indonesian with whom the native Filipinos traded with during the pre-Hispanic era in our country. This economic exchange introduced to our people stuff such as noodles, cumin, soy sauce, fish sauce and others, to name a few.

The discovery of the Philippines in 1521 by a Portuguese explorer Fernando Magallanes (whose service was employed by King Philip of Spain, thus the name "Philip"-pines) marked the beginning of the Spanish occupation in our country lasting for more than 300 years. And it was during this period that our culture, and yes, including our palates, was transformed into what it is now: a fusion of the East and the West, an Asian-Hispanic blend.

This dish that I am sharing with you today is just one of the many East-West combination of flavors. "Giniling" is similar to the Hispanic/Latin American dish called “Picadillo” in that it calls for tomato paste, but different in that it has soy sauce in it too. I made it the way I remember my mother used to do it when I was growing up, but the wine and olives are a new twist, inspired by another blogger, Susan of stickygooeycreamychewy.blogspot.com. Thanks, Susan!

Giniling
1-1/2 lb ground beef (or pork), I used sirloin for lesser fat
3 tbsps olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 big cloves of garlic, minced
1-1/2 c potatoes, cubed (approx 1 large piece)
1/2 c red bell pepper
1/2 c carrots, diced
1/4 c pimiento stuffed olives
1 handful green peas, thawed
2-3 tbsp tomato paste
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 c white wine
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 bay leaves (3, if small)
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
Parsely, for garnish

1. Heat your oil in a deep skillet. When hot, sauté onions till translucent. Then add garlic.
2. Sauté for a minute and then add the meat. Cook meat till its done (when brown).
3. Add the potatoes and the carrots. Season with a bit of salt and pepper. Be
careful with your salt since you’ll be adding soy sauce later on.
4. Cover the meat mixture and let it simmer for just 2-3 minutes.
5. Then add the wine. Let is simmer for another 3 minutes or until the wine has
reduced to half its amount.
6. Then add the vinegar and the next 9 ingredients (thru sugar).
7. Cover and simmer until the potatoes are cooked.
8. When potatoes are done, adjust seasoning (add more according to your taste).
9. Add the red bell peppers and the peas just before turning off the heat.
10. Serve with steamed white rice, or yellow rice. Garnish with chopped
parsely/cilantro.

*Note: By all means add more of the liquids (wine, vinegar and soy sauce) in step #6 if you find the meat mixture dry/ or if you just want more sauce. You will need to adjust seasoning accordingly as well.