Golden Milk (with a twist)

 

It has been very warm, so I didn't have much of an appetite. I have heard of Golden Milk, so I thought I would give it my own twist. Turmeric is supposed to be good for you!

What I did differently from other recipes is, I used oak milk, five spice powder, and Horlicks. Horlicks adds a malty flavor!

• 8 oz cold water
• 3 tblsp oat milk powder
• 2 tblsp Horlicks
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp five spice powder
• 1 tblsp honey

Mix everything in a glass. It really is that easy.

Seaweed Oat Milk

 

I had laver, and I had oat milk powder, so I thought I'd experiment with making a drink. It turned out pretty good. I could have used honey, but I wanted to make this completely vegan. It was an acceptable meal replacement for a hot day.

• 1 cup water
• 1 tblsp sugar
• 1/8 oz unseasoned dried seaweed laver
• 3 tblsp oat milk powder
• 2 ice cubes

1. In a blender, add water, sugar, laver, and oat milk powder and blend on low until thoroughly mixed.
2. Add the ice cubes and pulse for a couple of minutes.

Chilled Soba with Pan-fried Shrimp

It has been scorching for the last few days, and I didn't have much of an appetite, so I decided to make chilled soba with shrimps. I don't deep fry, so tempura was out of the question. This was quick and easy and perfect for a very warm evening.

• 1 bundle soba
• 1/2 tsp hondashi
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tblsp hot water
• 3 tblsp soy sauce
• 3 tblsp cold water
• 3 peeled and de-veined medium shrimps
• 1/2 tblsp vegetable oil
• salt to taste
• a dab of wasabi

1. Cook soba according to instructions. Rinse in cold water and drain. Set aside.
2. Mix hondashi, sugar, and hot water. Stir to dissolve. Stir in soy sauce and cold water. Set aside.
3. Thread the shrimp onto a soaked skewer and pat dry.
4. Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet. Pan fry the shrimp until cooked.
5. Serve the noodles and shrimps with the dipping sauce and wasabi on the side.

Nepali Turmeric Soup

 

Eggs do not require chickens to sacrifice their lives, and this is a quick and nutritious alternative to chicken soup. You won’t find this in restaurants, even in Nepal. It’s very much home-cooking.

I had submitted a similar recipe to a website before, and I found it replicated on yet another website. This is just slightly different from that recipe so it doesn’t look like I’m plagiarizing my own recipe!

This is best made in a karahi or wok, as the eggs will cook very quickly and you don’t want them to stick if sautéing in a skillet. You’re basically making a curried stir-fried omelette before adding the water or broth to turn the whole thing into a simple soup. 

I used two eggs (because I have eggs, which is very rarely), but you can also use liquid egg white (although the color will be different). Substitute 3 tblsp liquid egg white for each egg. Some chopped chives would work, but I do not have any.

• 2 tblsp vegetable oil
• 2 tsp ginger paste
• 1 tsp garlic paste
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups water or vegetable broth

1. In a karahi or wok, heat vegetable oil over high heat. Add ginger and garlic pastes and sauté for a minute.
2. Add the turmeric and sauté for a couple of minutes, being careful not to burn the pastes or turmeric.
3. Break eggs into the karahi or wok and sauté very quickly until just solid. (If using liquid egg white, beat it with salt and pepper then pour into the karahi or wok and sauté as for the eggs.)
4. Pour in the water or vegetable broth and bring to a boil.
5. Season with salt and pepper as desired (vegetable broth tends to be a bit on the sweet side)

Cioppino

 
I’ve done Súp Đồ Biển, French Bouillabaisse, American Bouillabaisse, and Kakavia; I think it’s time for me to tackle Cioppino.

The best cioppino I’ve had was in, surprise, surprise, San Francisco. I’ve had some really good cioppino in Chicago, but both restaurants that were famous for cioppino have closed permanently. 

This is of course my own adaptation based on what I have, what I will eat or not eat, and what was easily available at the store. Most recipes include bell peppers; I don’t like bell peppers, but I thought a bit of heat from the hot green Thai peppers (I have a lot of them) would give it extra kick.

I really should use Manila clams and mussels, but I couldn’t get either, so I used just cockles instead of clams and mussels. I love cockles, anyway.

• 2 tblsp olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, diced
• 4 finely minced cloves of garlic
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/3 tsp hondashi
• 1 28-oz cans crushed tomatoes
• 4 hot green Thai peppers, split half lengthwise
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp fresh basil
• 1 tsp fresh thyme
• 1 tsp fresh oregano
• coarse salt and pepper to taste
• mixed seafood (I used cockles, peeled and deveined tail-on shrimp, sea scallops, squid rings, and broken up crab legs)
• chopped fresh Italian parsley
• crushed red pepper flakes

1. Heat olive oil In a large pot over medium heat.
2. Sauté the onions and garlic until lightly browned.
3. Add the water, hondashi, tomatoes, hot green Thai peppers, bay leaves, basil, thyme, and oregano and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Stir in the seafood and turn off the heat. Cover tightly and let steam for 15 minutes.
5. Serve the cioppino with chopped Italian parsley and crushed red pepper flakes.

Baked Stuffed Tomato

I had one very large tomato and leftover raw Chapli Kabab. I was looking for another way to eat the Chapli Kabab, so I mixed one raw chapli kabab patty with panko and egg white, stuffed a hollowed-out tomato with it, and baked it. 

It is a bit of a fusion from Italian meatballs (breadcrumbs and egg, except I used panko and egg white), chapli kabab (stuffed in a tomato instead of forming into a patty and frying it), and baked stuffed tomato (a spicier version than regular baked stuffed tomato, and NO CHEESE!).

• 1 large tomato
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 oz raw Chapli Kabab
• 2 tblsp panko
• 1 tbsp egg white
• 1/2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1/4 tsp panko

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees.
2. Cut off the top of the tomato. Set the lid aside. Scoop out the inside. Sprinkle the inside of the tomato with salt and invert the tomato to drain.
3. Mix raw chapli kabab with 2 tblsp panko and egg white. 
4. Pat the inside of the tomato with paper towel and fill the hollowed-out tomato with the chapli kabab/panko stuffing.
5. Place the tomato on a baking dish. Drizzle vegetable oil on top. Cover with the tomato lid. 
6. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove the tomato lid, sprinkle 1/4 tsp panko on top, and broil for 5 minutes.

Beef Chapli Kabab Baps

 

I really wanted beef chapli kabab, but most Pakistani restaurants in Chicago only have chicken chapli kababs, so I made my own beef chapli kababs. That was quite labor intensive and time consuming. The patties fell apart a little more than I expected, but they have so much more flavor than regular hamburger patties. I'm ok with loose patties if they taste good.

Originating from Peshawar in Pakistan, the Peshawari chapli kabab is made with beef and is a popular street food throughout South Asia, including Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, and Bangladesh. Chapli kabab is also made with lamb in other countries, but I wanted to stick with the original.

I ordered via Instacart because the Chapli Kabab Masala isn’t available at any store near me. Guess what? The store I was trying to get it from had practically every spice mix on the shelves EXCEPT the one I needed! So I ended up ordering it from Amazon, which cost more than double and I had to wait a few more days. 

Almost everything else I could have gotten from Jewels, but the hottest green chili pepper Jewels carries is only serrano pepper. They had habanero, but it’s the wrong color. I got hot green Thai peppers because those were the hottest green chili peppers available (they're only one step above jalapeño and still below habanero). I did double the amount from raita recipes I've seen and from the Masala packet instructions as they were rather small. They still aren't that hot. Most recipes call for cilantro; I hate cilantro, raw or cooked.

I actually needed 8 oz of natural yogurt, but natural yogurt only comes in 16 oz or more, and I don't need that much yogurt, so I went with the 5.3 oz Greek yogurt. It's a bit thicker, but it spreads very well.

I like soft white baps more than hamburger buns. I think they taste better.

• ½ seedless cucumber, grated, then wrap in a tea towel and squeeze out any excess water
• large handful mint leaves, chopped
• large pinch Himalayan pink salt
• 2 hot green Thai pepper, de-seeded and finely chopped
• 5 oz Greek yogurt
• 2 large tomatoes, cut into thin rounds
• 1 3.5 oz Chapli Kabab Masala packet, mixed with ½ cup water
• 1/2 red onion, finely diced, wrap in a tea towel and squeeze out any excess water
• 12 hot green Thai pepper, finely chopped
• 2 tblsp ginger paste
• 3 tblsp garlic paste 
• 1.5 lb ground beef, 15-20% fat
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 3 cups oil
• whole lettuce leaves
• 1 small yellow onion, cut into rounds
• 8 soft white baps, warmed and cut in half

1. Make the raita by mixing cucumber, chopped mint leaves, salt, 2 deseeded and chopped hot green Thai pepper, and Greek yogurt. Set aside in the fridge.
2. Set aside 8 of the largest tomato slices. Remove the seed and pulp from the rest of the tomato slices and finely dice.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix Chapli Kabab Masala paste, diced tomato, diced red onion, 8 chopped hot green Thai peppers, ginger paste, garlic paste, ground beef, and eggs and knead well. Set aside and let rest for 30 minutes.
4. Make 8 thin patties with wet hands. Press a tomato slice on each patty.
5. Heat oil to medium and fry the patties for 6-8 minutes on each side until crisp and brown. Drain on paper towels.
6. Slather raita on each half of the bap, then layer the bottom half with lettuce leave, chapli kabab tomato side down, and onion slice. Top with the other half of the bap.

Goat Meat Stew

 

I wanted to try cooking goat this time. I found a recipe that looked doable. This hybrid Ghanaian-Nigerian recipe came from someone who’s Ghanaian and her husband is Nigerian. It doesn’t require purchasing a lot of pantry items that I might never use again. I also made some slight modifications. (I never follow a recipe exactly.)

I used tomato sauce, garlic paste, and chopped onion instead of having to chop them (I only had to chop the habanero), and I blanched the meat first. I like blanching meat before poaching/stewing so there is no need for skimming while it is being cooked. 

The goat meat can be poached and fried the day before and kept in the fridge until ready to make the stew. It’s really mainly bone, but bone gives a dish a lot of flavor.

• 2 lbs bone-in cubed goat meat
• 2 tsp coarse salt
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 2 small habanero peppers, chopped
• 1 8-oz can tomato sauce
• 1 tblsp garlic paste
• 4 tblsp vegetable oil
• 2 tblsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 bay leaves
• hot cooked rice (I prefer basmati rice)

1. In a saucepan, cover goat meat in cold water about 4 cups and bring it to just below boiling. Remove the meat and rinse. Discard the liquid.
2. In a clean saucepan, add 5 cups of water, 1 tsp salt, and 1/2 cup chopped onions and bring to a boil. Add goat meat. Reduce heat to low, cover the pot and simmer the meat for 1 hour. 
3. In the meantime, combine chopped habanero, 1 cup of chopped onions, tomato sauce, and garlic paste in a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
4. After the meat has simmered for 1 hour, remove from the saucepan and drain on paper towels. Strain and reserve the poaching liquid.
5. Heat 2 tblsp oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the goat pieces on all sides. Drain on paper towels and set aside.
6. Turn the heat to medium low and add the remaining 2 tblsp oil. Add the remaining 1/2 cup chopped onions and sauté for about 3 minutes until soft. 
7. Add tomato paste and stir for about 5 minutes.
8. Stir in tomato-pepper puree. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. 
9. Stir in the bouillon powder, curry powder, thyme, bay leaves, and 1 tsp salt, and cook for 3 minutes. 
10. Add the goat meat and 2 tblsp reserved poaching liquid. Cover and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.
11. Ladle over rice.

Impromptu Seafood Soup

There is no particular recipe where this came from. I needed an effortless lunch and was looking in my fridge/freezer to see what I could throw together.

• 2 cups water
• 1 tblsp olive oil
• 1 tblsp hondashi
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 sprigs oregano
• 1 cup bite-size pieces of mixed seafood (I used squid, octopus, scallops, and cod)
• 1/3 cup egg whites, beaten with a pinch each of salt and pepper

1. In a saucepan, boil water with olive oil, hondashi, tomatoes, bay leaves, and oregano for about 30 minutes uncovered until the tomato is disintegrated and the liquid has reduced by half.
2. Add seafood and turn off the heat. Cover and let sit from 15 minutes. Discard the herbs.
3. Put beaten egg whites in a serving bowl.
4. Bring the soup to a boil and pour over the beaten egg whites.

Vegan Kheer

I don’t often eat and very rarely make dessert, but I love kheer. Although rice pudding exists in other cuisines, I find kheer to be much richer and more flavorful. However, milk doesn’t agree with me, so I used half soy milk and half oat milk; this is 100% vegan. I don’t think I’ve had a vegan version of kheer at any restaurant, but I’ve seen a vegan kheer on happcow.net, so I adapted that one. I will not use almond milk, and I find coconut milk too strong of a flavor. Soy milk and oak milk are my favorite plant-based milk alternatives.

• 3 cups soy milk
• 3 cups oat milk
• ½ cup basmati rice, soaked for 30 minutes and drained
• 6 green cardamom pods, pounded slightly to break the husks
• ½ cup sugar
• 1½ tblsp chopped unsalted cashews
• 1½ tblsp chopped unsalted pistachios
• 1 pinch saffron strands, soaked in 1 tblsp hot water

1. Place soy milk and oat milk and crushed cardamom pods in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Add the drained, soaked rice and cook over low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add sugar and continue cooking and stirring for another 15 minutes.
3. Add 1 tblsp each of the chopped nuts and saffron and cook for another 20 minutes, stirringly occasionally.
4. Turn off the heat and let stand for at least 5 minutes.
5. Serve warm or chilled with remaining chopped cashews and pistachios.

 

Hyderabad Chicken Biryani

I love biryani, but most recipes are really complicated and not worth the time to cook for one person. I found a biryani kit at Jewels (they do make other biryani kits, but this is the only one Jewels carries, apparently), so I thought I’d give it a try. It comes with rice, which I don’t really need, but, oh, well. I mostly followed the measurements; I think it’s a bit too saucy, and I made more rice after the fact.

What’s annoying is, the recipe is inside the box, so you can’t tell what you need to buy until you open the box. I found the recipe on their website, but it is slightly different from the recipe in the box. They really need to be more consistent! 

I had to source several recipes to come up with this particular recipe. It’s still fairly complicated, but at least I didn’t have to assemble the spices. Most recipes say marinate the chicken, but neither of the biryani kit recipes mention marinating the chicken, so I didn’t. Marinating would probably give it more flavor, but that would take overnight.

• 1 biryani kit (comes with rice, biryani paste, whole spices)
• 4 1/3 cups water
• 3 tblsp oil
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 2 serrano peppers, sliced in quarter lengthwise
• 2 chicken thighs
• 2 chicken drumsticks
• 1 pinch saffron strands, soaked in 2 tblsp hot water
• 1/2 cup green peas
• fresh mint leaves

1. Add 4 cups water with 1 tblsp oil and whole spices to a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the rice and boil, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Heat 2 tblsp oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat and fry the onion until golden brown. Remove the onion and set aside.
3. Add the chicken and fry until brown in all sides. Remove the chicken and set aside.
4. Add biryani paste and serrano peppers and sauté for a few minutes. 
   
5. Add 1/3 cup of water and return the chicken to the Dutch oven. Let simmer covered until the chicken is almost fully cooked, about 15 minutes. Remove the chicken, serrano peppers, and half the gravy.
6. Layer 1/2 of the rice, 1/4 of the fried onions, half of serrano peppers, all of the chicken, another 1/4 of the fried onions, and the remaining serrano peppers and rice in the Dutch oven.
7. Drizzle the gravy that was set aside and sprinkle with the soaked saffron and another 1/4 of the fried onion on the rice.
8. Cover tightly and cook on medium for 5 minutes. Turn the heat to low and cook for another 20 minutes. 
   
9. In the meantime, pour boiling water over the green peas. Let sit for 15 minutes and drain.
10. Turn the heat off and let rest for 10 minutes. Stir in the drained green peas.
11. Garnish with mint leaves and the remaining fried onions before serving.

 

Chicken Congee

I don't usually eat or make congee, but I had rice left over from a previous meal and had several bone-in pieces of chicken bought for other recipes, so I decided to make Chicken Congee.

I prefer shredded chicken over cut chicken. I like the stringiness.

• 1/4 cup cooked rice
• 1" fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin strips
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 4 cups water
• 1 chicken drumstick
• white pepper to taste

1. Put all ingredients except white pepper in a saucepan and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer partially covered for an hour, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove the drumstick and shred the meat.
3. Return the meat to the saucepan and simmer for another hour until the rice has almost disintegrated and the congee is thick.
4. Ladle into a serving bowl and mix in white pepper.

 

Kozhikari Varuval

Most Indian restaurants in the US are North Indian. Most South Indian restaurants in the US are vegetarian. I’ve been trying to find a restaurant that has Kozhikari Varuval on the menu. In the meantime, here is my VERY loose adaptation. Yes, I know, using curry powder and five-spice powder is cheating and rather weird, but, combined, they include all the spices I need.

• 1 pcs each chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/2” ginger and 2 cloves garlic, ground into paste
• 2 tblsp curry powder
• 1 tblsp five-spice powder
• 1 tblsp freshly ground black pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 jalapeños, thinly sliced into long strips
• 1/8 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• hot cooked rice (I like basmati rice)

1. Rub the chicken with turmeric and salt. Leave in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Over medium high heat, pan-fry the chicken pieces until they turn a light golden brown.
3. Remove and drain on paper towels. Set aside. Pour off excess oil, leaving about 2 tblsp in the pan.
4. Over medium heat, saute the onions for 3-4 minutes.
5. Add ginger and garlic paste and saute until fragrant. Add spices and sauté for a couple of minutes.
6. Add black pepper, bay leaves and jalapeños.
7. Return chicken and lemon juice,  and stir to combine.
8. Simmer on low heat uncovered for 20 minutes, turning the chicken every 5 minutes. Add a little water if it’s too dry.
9. Serve over hot cooked rice