The Dim-Sum is Greater than its Parts

 

Dim-Sum always seemed like such an intimidating thing to me. Often talked about by more adventurous friends or those that, through heritage, had a natural foot in the door of this unique brunch like dining experience, the descriptions of soft buns, small plates and the presence of chicken feet just seemed overwhelming to an outsider. (An outsider, in this instance, being someone who stuck to relatively safe brunch fair such as fried eggs or waffles.)

 

It was through a work lunch that I got my first experience of Dim Sum, feeling relatively safe with 2 seasoned veterans who could point me towards safe fair or at least tell what something was if I thought to ask what the mystery meat was inside the small dumplings and noodle wrappers. I went in with a brave face and a determination to be open mind and strong of will, and stomach. This attitude was totally unnecessary as the steam plates came around and I was treated to steam buns with sweet pork, shrimp dumplings and other delicious little bites. The thing that stuck out most for me was the bao or steamed buns with bbq pork inside. So it was with this in mind that I set out to try and make my own steam buns.

 

I researched a fairly simple recipe for the steam buns in Ken Hom’s Complete Chinese Cookbook. With only 5 ingredients and nothing that I didn’t already have on hand I put together this basic recipe and made the steamed buns. The buns are very simple and lacking even salt have a very plain flavour. That is where the second recipe comes in.

 Recipe: Steamed Buns

 

The BBQ Pork packs a lot of flavour and transforms these simple buns into a delicious package with an explosively flavoured center. I have read through several recipes for BBQ Pork but most have included a multitude of ingredients I didn’t have and didn’t know where to source. It was in Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking, that I found the recipe I would finally use and a method that utilized our home oven.

 

The one ingredient I went without was the ferment bean curd. The recipe says that this is where the pork gets it distinctive red colour. I for one could live without the distinctive red colour if it meant I didn’t have to brave the T&T Supermarket.

My biggest recommendation for this recipe is to go to the dollar store and get a foil liner for your baking this as you broil the meat in the salty sweet marinade and run the risk of creating a serious mess if left unattended.

Additionally the recipe just says to broil the meet 4 inches from the heat source. I used a lo broil setting so as not to burn the meat.

My last recommendation is to keep an eye on the pork and turn it often to make sure an even crust forms around the pork slices.

 

Recipe: BBQ Pork

I made 2 variation of the buns, the first just plain buns that I sliced open and put some bbq pork and fresh green onions into with a dollop of the reduced cooking sauce. The second I rolled out some dough and wrapped it around some of the pork before sealing and steaming creating the traditional bao.

Bringing the Steak Sandwich Home

Katie can usually guess what I am going to order at a restaurant for lunch. I may hum and haw over the menu, taking time to read all the descriptions, but in the end I always come back to the trusty steak sandwich. I am not sure what it is about this fairly simple meal but it rarely disappoints.

A while ago I decided to make my own mark on this venerable classic. Below is my recipe for a Melted Mozzarela and Mushroom Steak Sandwich:

Ingredients:

·        300g Sirloin Steak

·        1 small onion, sliced

·        1 handful button mushrooms, sliced

·        ½ cup mozzarella cheese, grated

·        1 tbsp bbq sauce

·        1 ciabatta bun

 

Method:

Season steak with salt and pepper and drizzle with oil, let steak come to room temperature. Heat a pan to medium high and fry steak for 3 minutes per side or until medium rare.

Meanwhile in a separate pan, add 1 tbsp oil and heat to medium high heat. Add onions, frying for 3-4 minutes until browned and then add mushrooms, cooking for another 4 minutes until softened.

 Assemble sandwich by slicing steak into strips and laying on bottom layer of bun. Add bbq sauce, onions & mushrooms. Sprinkle cheese over top and broil in oven until cheese melts. Squish top of bun on top to allow bread to soak up juices and serve with a side salad.

Lunch Pizza or Pizza for Lunch

 

 

Faced with a tomato that has been sitting on the kitchen counter staring me down for the last week, I took the initiative and tackled lunches for the next 2 days. We had an odd assortment of ingredients to work with, but unfortunately no meat. I had leftover shallots from a risotto I made the other week, a red pepper intended for a pizza last weekend, and some asparagus that is to accompany some pork tenderloin later this week. This motley crew of ingredients, though disparate, turned into a nice vegetable based sauce that will make a delicious lunch.

 

Dough:

2 ¼ cups flour

1 cup warm water

1 tsp yeast

½ tsp Salt

½ tsp Sugar

 Mix together dry ingredients. Add yeast to warm water and allow to activate for 10 minutes. Add water to dry ingredients. Blend until a dough forms. Knead for 5-8 minutes. Let rest for 1 hr. Knock down dough and cut into 4 pieces.

Sauce Like Topping:

1 Tomato, Chopped

1 Red Pepper, roasted and chopped

2 Shallots, Sliced

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

1 Celery Stalk, Finely diced

5 stalks asparagus, roasted and chopped

1 ½ tsp Italian Seasoning

3 Tbsp Tomato Puree

A sprinkle of parmesan cheese

Salt + Pepper to Taste

Fry shallots over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, add in Celery, continue cooking for 3-4 minutes. Stir in garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, red peppers, tomato puree, asparagus and Italian seasoning. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. Add parmesan cheese and stir to combine

 

Pizza

2 cups shredded Mozzarella

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Take piece of dough and form into small disc. Top with ¼ of sauce. Sprinkle over mozzarella cheese. Repeat with remaining dough and sauce. Bake in oven for 15 minutes. Switch to broiler and brown top of pizzas. Remove, enjoy or pack your lunch for the next day!

Dredging Up Dinner

I can’t remember how many times pork schnitzel has been on our menu plan over the past few months without me actually having made it. This week the infamous dish finally made it onto the plate. This is a variation on a childhood classic that my mom used to make routinely. She took the flattened pork pieces, dredged them in seasoned flour and then pan fried them, often making a gravy to accompany the meat. I took the basic idea of this and transformed it into something a little fancier. One technique I utilized this week was seasoning each step of the breading process. This involved adding a little salt and pepper to the flour, then some for the egg wash, and finally some in the bread. This tip was mentioned by celebrity chef Bobby Flay on his show 3 Days to Open.

 

Pork Schnitzel w/ Apple Sage Sauce

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 pork tenderloin

½ Cup Flour
2 Eggs
1 cup bread crumbs
1 ½ tsp Thyme
Salt + Pepper to Taste
2 Tbsp Oil
 
Sauce:

2 Tbsp Butter

2 Tbsp Flour
300 ml apple juice
2 Tbsp Fresh Sage, chopped
Salt + Pepper to Taste

Method :

Cut Pork tenderloin into 1 inch slices. Place medallions between two sheets of plastic wrap and use a mallet to flatten to ¼ thickness.

Place Flour, Eggs, bread crumbs in separate bowls. Lightly season each. Add thyme to bread crumbs and mix thoroughly.

Take flattened medallions and dredge in flour, then dunk in egg wash and finally coat in bread crumbs. Repeat for all pieces.

Heat a frying pan to medium heat. Add oil. Take 2-3 pieces of pork at a time and fry 2-3 minutes per side, until golden brown. Remove from pan and keep warm in oven (250 degrees F). Finish off remaining pork.

For Sauce:

Melt butter in small saucepan over medium heat. When completely melted add flour and stir until a loose dough form. Continue cooking until lightly browned. Slowly whisk in apple juice, making sure to break up dough. Whish until all lumps are removed. Add sage and season to taste.

To Serve place 2-3 medallions on each plate and drizzle with apple sage sauce. We served ours with steam broccoli and mashed potatoes.

The Vegetable Conundrum

What do you do when you want to make a vegetarian meal but you used up your trustworthy standby Eggplant Parmesan earlier in the week? This was the dilemma I was facing this week as we invited some friends over for dinner and wanted to serve a meatless main course. I looked back on some of our earlier posts such as Vegetarian Chili, but while this was a delicious recipe, it did not seem guest worthy. Luckily we saw this recipe for Risotto Cakes while watching the new show from Michael Smith on the Food Network. As you can see the recipe can be utilized using any variation of risotto you can concoct. I used a Curtis Stone recipe for Asparagus Risotto, making it the night before so that I could form and fry the cakes the next day. The Risotto Cakes turned out great, with a crunchy outside and gooey middle. The slight variations I made to the risotto were substituting vegetable stock for the chicken stock, I left out the mint and I left out the mascarpone cheese. We served these alongside a spinach salad and zuchinni gratin.

Weeknight Winner

 

 

Imagine a crisp, light cheesy crust with a golden hue; a soft springy slice of eggplant; a sweet tomato marinara sauce subtly poured on top. Add a fresh Caesar salad and you have one impressive dinner. Now imagine this dinner made in 30 minutes! This healthy meatless Eggplant Parmesan is the perfect weeknight dinner and a great way to infuse your week with a hit of vegetables. We cheat from the posted recipe and just use a jarred marinara sauce, further speeding up this recipe. Katie has made this dish twice now and both times it was delicious. Highly recommended for a quick, healthy weeknight dinner!

Baked Expectations



Baked Eggrolls and Stir Fried Vegetables

 

Having recently been reading up on Chinese cooking, I found it interesting that there was a small blurb written on egg rolls in one the cookbooks I borrowed from the library. The book declared egg rolls to be a bastardization of Chinese cuisine originating in North America. This seems like a harsh statement for something so akin to spring rolls and that are delicious in their own right.

Katie found this recipe for Baked Egg Rolls in the Best Recipes Ever cookbook the other week and she painstakingly rolled and assembled them and popped them in the oven. We both enjoyed the concept of these egg rolls but found them to be rather bland. We would suggest either adding some sort of sauce to the meat filling or using a pulled pork or Chinese BBQ pork as an alternative to the ground pork. They did have the desired crispiness that is offered from the traditional deep fried version and the water chestnuts gave the filling a nice crunch as well!

 

 

All layed out and ready to roll!

 

Such a nice looking dinner table!

 

The Famous Crispy Wontons

 

Last Christmas I made a variation of a Chuck Hughes recipe for Shrimp Dumplings for Katie’s family. The recipe was an instant hit, I have since been asked to make them on more than one occasion.  I am beginning to think that they believe I don't have any other recipes!

 

I made a few changes to the basic filling recipe by leaving out the pork, cilantro, lime, sesame oil and chilli flakes and adding a couple of tablespoons of hoisin sauce plus more shrimp to make up for the lack of pork.

 

This recipe is fairly labour intensive as you have to individually wrap each wonton and then steam and fry them. I was able to make them ahead of time though and just reheat in the oven just prior to serving. We served them with some plum sauce, but I am sure the sauces on the recipe page would work great too!