Bibbity Bobbity Bibimbap

Every Tuesday I arrive at kp, Vip, and M's urban hang suite for Gita Sutras with Rasanath Das, and then we make an easy, vegetarian, communal dinner.

Last week, it was this simple Korean brown rice and veggies bowl, or bibimbap.

With the brown rice in the rice cooker in the background, we chopped:
- a bunch of scallions (on the bias, into 1" pieces),
- about 10 shiitake mushrooms (minus the stems),
- a bunch of lacinato kale,
- two handfuls of snow peas,
- a couple handfuls of broccoli florets, and
- a yam (julienned, skin on) and
- a couple of carrots (also julienned).

(Sprouts, other types of mushrooms, other types of greens, some quickly pickled cucumber/daikon, etc., would also be great!)

We also got about 2" of ginger minced and ready, and kept a sliced avocado and about 1/3 C sesame seeds aside.

Vip fried 4 eggs, sunny side down, while we dry toasted the sesame seeds then set them aside, and sauteed (separately) each vegetable (except the carrots, which we left raw with a sprinkle of lemon juice) in a pan with 1/2 tbsp. olive oil and 1/2 tbsp. toasted sesame oil, 1/2 tsp. of the minced ginger, a few dashes of salt, and a couple pinches of our super hot red chilli powder, keeping each aside when done. (For the peapods and kale, we added a squeeze of lemon juice.)

When all the vegetables were sauteed, we stirred the toasted sesame seeds, a pinch of salt, and a dash of lemon juice into the cooked brown rice, then put a serving spoon of the rice mixture into each of our bowls, and topped the rice with a spoonful of each sauteed vegetable, sliced avocado, some carrots, and some Sunja's vegetarian kimchi, then topped each bowl with a fried egg, and each put in his/her own desired amount of hot sauce before mixing everything up!

An Oscar Potluck

Two of my closest friends work in media/entertainment, and I've been left with a rather large television, so they and some others came over for some noshing, dishing, and Oscars-viewing.

We had so much food! laid out - not like an etherized patient, more like the antipasti table at a trattoria. Everything we ate last night was light, refreshing, tasty, simple but high quality, easy to prepare. The floral honey, bright green parsley flavor and crunch in the chickpea salad, and raspberries felt like harbingers of a much-awaited spring, while the depth in the blood oranges and dark, woodsy, berry tang of sumac felt like a poignant last look at winter.

*Popcorn tossed with Sumac

*Queso de Murci Curado, a six months' aged raw goat's milk cheese from Murcia in Southeastern Spain (with unspeakably delicious raw Manoir des Abeilles honey mixed with freshly ground black pepper poured over it)

*Red Kardoula Peppers stuffed with Feta and marinated in olive oil, garlic, and basil

*Green-and-black Olive Tapenade (with pita chips): Simply, pitted green and black olives food processed with fresh parsley and thyme, red chilli powder, a small amount of capers, and a slice of preserved lemon.

*Stuffed Grape Leaves

7-layer Bean Dip

Steak Sandwiches a la Ina Garten courtesy of Miz SunDrop

*The Ratatouille from "Ratatouille"

*Blood Orange and Treviso Salad: I sliced two heads of treviso on the bias and laid supremed blood orange slices over that on a platter, scattered some sliced scallions on top, and dressed the salad with a vinaigrette of blood orange juice, pomegranate molasses, cider vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.

*Roasted Chickpea Salad: I tossed cooked chickpeas with olive oil, salt, sumac, red chilli powder, and cumin, and roasted them spread out on a baking pan for 45 minutes in a 350-degree oven, then tossed them with shredded red cabbage, lots of fresh chopped flat leaf parsley, and a simple vinaigrette of lime juice, olive oil, salt and pepper.

Farmers Market Quiche

*Raspberries with Honeyed Greek Yogurt

*Moroccan Mint Tea

* = organic

Recipe: Grilled Shrimp over Julienned Red Cabbage-Bell Pepper-Mango Salad

Grilled Shrimp over Julienned Red Cabbage-Bell Pepper-Mango Salad for 3

(This is a slight variation on a similar earlier post.)

Salad
1/3 of a whole red cabbage, julienned
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1 orange bell pepper, julienned
1 mango, julienned
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped (can also add fresh chopped mint)
1 bunch scallions: chop 3 of them finely; chop the rest on the diagonal into 2-3" pieces

1 pound shrimp, cleaned, de-veined, tails left on; rinsed, patted dry, and marinated for 10 minutes in salt, pepper, a tablespoon of peanut oil, and the juice of 1 lime or 3 key limes

Dressing
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup nam pla (fish sauce)
Splash peanut oil
1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar
1 bird's eye (or serrano) chilli, minced
1/2" piece ginger, julienned

In a measuring cup, mix dressing ingredients and set them aside for the flavors to marry. 

Heat grill on high heat and spray with grapeseed oil. When grill is hot, place shrimp and 2-3" long scallion pieces on grill in one layer. When the shrimp is pink, turn the heat off and flip each shrimp.

Toss the salad ingredients with the dressing, and divide the salad among three large bowls. Top each salad with a third of the grilled shrimp and scallions.

Recipe: Fish or Shrimp Tacos

Shrimp or fish tacos are perfect for an assemble-your-own dinner. Lay out warmed soft tortillas, prepared shrimp or fish, a few different sauces or salsas, shredded cabbage (green cabbage is classic but I like to use very finely shredded red cabbage), and lime wedges and let people fill their own tacos. Here's an assortment of options.

Avocado Sauce makes 1/2 cup. Mix/mash together 1/4 ripe avocado, peeled; a pinch of salt; a few drops of lime juice; 1-2 tablespoons water; and 2 cilantro sprigs, chopped (optional).

Chilies de Arbol Sauce makes 1/2 cup. Pour 1 teaspoon oil in a small skillet over low heat. Add 1 garlic clove, smashed with the side of a large knife, and cook 4-5 minutes until golden and aromatic. Place in a small food processor. Wearing gloves, seed 1 cup dried chilies de arbol (about 30 chilies), stemmed (unless you want hotter sauce, in which case, leave the seeds), and place in the processor. Process until well pulverized. Add 1/3 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt and puree until smooth. Scrape into a bowl and add 1 teaspoon white vinegar. Let stand at least 30 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and/or vinegar as necessary.

Tomatillo salsa Whisk 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger, 2 teaspoons cider vinegar, 2 teaspoons honey, 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice and 1/8 teaspoon grated zest in a small bowl and set aside. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a medium skillet over medium heat; add 1/2 cup diced red onion and cook 2-3 minutes until slightly browned. Add 1 cup diced red bell pepper, 1 cup diced tomatillo, and 2 tablespoons diced jalapeno pepper (with seeds), and cook 1-2 minutes. Add the ginger-vinegar mixture to the pan and cook 1-2 minutes more, until slightly bubbly. Place in a bowl and gently stir in 2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro. Season with salt.

Chipotle Cream Heat 1 tsp. oil in a small skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 large garlic clove, peeled and chopped roughly, and cook 1 to 2 minutes until aromatic and slightly golden. Add 2 chopped scallions and cook an additional 1-2 minutes. Place in a small food processor. Add 4-5 chilies in adobo sauce, 2 tbsp. mayonnaise, 1 tbsp. Mexican crema and 2 tsp. water, and pulse. Add more water as necessary and pulse until sauce is thick and creamy (a few little bumps are fine).

Beer battered and deep fried fish (Baja-style) makes 24 servings, enough for 6 to 8 people
For the batter, whisk together 2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic, 1/4 teaspoon cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard, 1/2 teaspoon dried whole Mexican oregano, rubbed to a powder, Kosher salt to taste, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper in a large bowl until well blended. Stir in 1 bottle (12 oz.) cold beer until there are no lumps. Cut 2 pounds firm, meaty fish such as halibut or snapper into finger-shaped pieces and sprinkle them with some lime juice and salt. Pat dry. Dip the pieces into the batter, let the excess drip, and deep fry the battered fish pieces until golden; drain on paper towel-lined rack.

Baked fish makes 2 servings
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place two egg whites in a shallow bowl and lightly beat with a fork. In another shallow bowl, place 1/2 cup coarse cornmeal or grits seasoned with salt and pepper. Pat dry four 4-oz. servings of white fish, such as tilapia or halibut, and dip each piece of fish first in the egg whites and then dredge in the cornmeal. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet or baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, turning once mid-way through.

Skillet shrimp
Place 24 large or jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, in a large bowl with 1 tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper to taste. Toss well to coat. Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and cook 5-6 minutes, turning to ensure that they brown evenly on both sides.

Poblano-corn salsa
Char a fresh poblano pepper over an open gas flame, turning occasionally, until thoroughly blistered on all sides. Wrap tightly in aluminum foil and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and gently scrape off the skin. Halve, stem and seed the pepper. Cut into strips, then dice and place in a bowl. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the kernels cut from one large ear of corn and cook 3-4 minutes until slightly charred yet crisp. Add to the bowl with the poblano pepper. Peel and dice 1 small avocado, sprinkle with a little lime juice to prevent it from turning brown, and add to bowl. Add fresh cilantro, season with salt, and toss gently.

Recipe: South Indian-style Red Cabbage

One of my favorite ways to prepare either cruciferous vegetables (like cabbage or brussels sprouts) or tough greens (like collards) is to stir-fry them with mustard seeds, curry leaves, turmeric, ginger, red chillies, salt, and lemon juice. Even people who swear they don't like brussels sprouts have told me they've enjoyed them prepared this way!

Last night we had a mix of red cabbage and collards prepared this way as an accompaniment to vegetable tikki sandwiches layered with avocado, peppadews, chutney, alfalfa and daikon sprouts, and spicy pickled okra on multigrain nut bread.

South Indian-style Red Cabbage (serves 4 as a side dish)

4 Cups shredded red cabbage*

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp mustard seeds

Curry leaves from 1 stalk (about 6-10)

1" piece ginger, peeled and minced

4-6 whole dried red chillies

salt to taste

1 Tbsp turmeric

Juice of 1 lemon

Great optional stir-ins: 1/4 Cup toasted shredded coconut, 1/4 Cup roasted Spanish peanuts

Heat oil in wok on medium-high heat until it swirls around the wok very thinly and easily (should take less than 45 seconds). Add mustard seeds; they will pop, so if you have a mesh lid/grate, cover the wok with that, or partially cover it with a lid. Add the curry leaves, ginger, and dried red chillies when the popping subsides. Stir fry until ginger is fragrant and curry leaves are coated with oil, but don't allow the ginger to brown.

Add the cabbage and turmeric in batches, stir-frying and adding appropriate amounts of salt with each batch, until all the cabbage is added and all of the ingredients are thoroughly mixed. Assuming the cabbage is exuding a lot of its own water, turn down the heat to medium-low and cover, letting the cabbage steam-cook, uncovering every few minutes to stir. (If the cabbage is dry, you might need to add a little water before covering for the cabbage to steam.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is al dente or soft, as you prefer (about 10 minutes).

Turn off the heat and stir in the lemon juice (optional: also stir in toasted coconut and/or peanuts).

*You could substitute quartered and partly cooked (by steaming in the microwave, for instance) brussels sprouts, or shredded green cabbage, collards, mustard greens, or kale, for example.

Recipe: Vietnamese-style Shrimp and Cabbage Salad

Something we had for dinner on Friday...

Vietnamese-style Shrimp and Cabbage Salad (for 4)

Dressing:

1/3 Cup rice vinegar

2 Tablespoons nam pla

Juice of 1 lime

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 fresh red chilli, minced (I keep the seeds in for more heat)

Shrimp:

some peanut oil (~2 tablespoons)

some hot chilli oil (~ 1 teaspoon)

1 clove minced garlic

dash (or three) nama shoyu

~20 shrimp, peeled, deveined (leave tails on)

1 bunch scallions, white parts, chopped into 1" pieces

Salad:

1 bunch scallions, green parts, finely chopped

1 mango, peeled and julienned

1 red bell pepper, seeded and julienned

2 Cups finely shredded Napa cabbage

2 Cups finely shredded red cabbage

1/2 a big daikon, peeled and julienned

1/2 Cup fresh mint leaves

1/2 Cup fresh cilantro leaves

Combine the vinegar, lime juice, nam pla, brown sugar, and chilli in a small bowl and stir until the brown sugar dissolves. Keep aside.

Heat the oils in a stir-fry pan and when hot, add the garlic, briefly stir-frying until fragrant (~10 seconds), then add the shrimp and 1 1/2" scallion pieces, a few dashes of nama shoyu, and stir-fry until the shrimp are at least cooked through and pink (~4 minutes) -- or, if you're like 

me and like them a little more cooked, until the garlic is browned and some of the shrimp look almost grilled (~6 minutes).

In a large bowl, toss the finely chopped green scallion parts, mango, bell pepper, cabbages, daikon, mint and cilantro with most of the dressing.  Divide the salad among four plates/bowls.  Top with the stir-fried shrimp and white scallion parts.  Drizzle a bit of the remaining dressing over each plate/bowl.  This would be good served with lime wedges.