by zan@zeliciousrecipes.com | Salads, Sauces
Asian Cole Slaw with Sesame Oil and Cilantro
Okay, I’ve honestly had enough of this summer heat! With 90+ degree weather for the past couple of months, I thought I would share a light, refreshing coleslaw recipe, to cool you down. This dressing is a little sweet and pungent. Pairs nicely with a Panko Crusted Tuna.
Ingredients:
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh pureed ginger
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 4 tbsp Mirin*
- 2 tbsp Toasted sesame oil
- ¼ cup Organic Canola Oil
* Mirin is a rice wine, similar to sake, but with a lower alcohol and higher sugar content.
Directions: In a mixing bowl, place soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, and Mirin and whisk until brown sugar dissolves. Slowly whisk in the oil to the mixture in a slow stream, waiting for the oil and mixture to begin thickening before adding a little more oil. This is to ensure emuslification. Add to the slaw and refrigerate, this can be made a few hours before serving.
For the Cole Slaw:
Ingredients:
- 1 cup thinly sliced napa cabbage
- 1 cup thinly sliced green cabbage
- 3/4 cup julienned carrots
- 2 tbsp. cilantro, chopped
- 1 tsp black sesame seeds
Directions: If you don’t have the patients to hand slice/chop all of the ingredients, you can use a food processor with the slicing or julienne blades. Mix the cabbages and carrots into a bowl, slowly add in the dressing, tossing to cover. Add in the cilantro and sesame seeds and toss. This can be served with a nice panic crusted seared tuna and sushi rice. You can also make a bit more of the above dressing and add it to the Tuna and rice.
by zan@zeliciousrecipes.com | Meats, Sauces
My husband has always loved a tangy Chinese-American Orange Chicken. I found some great recipes online, and made some slight modifications. I’m mainly adding this one to the blog, so I have quick access to it, but beware, it does take a few steps so it might not be for everyone. Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
For the chicken:
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, patted dry and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Chinese Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- About 2 cups canola oil for frying
For the orange sauce:
- 2-3 oranges
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoon canola oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger (from 1-inch piece)
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (more if you like it spicy)
- 2 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoon Chinese Shaoxing wine or dry sherry
- 2 teaspoon rice vinegar (not seasoned) or cider vinegar
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 4 scallion/green onions (thinly sliced for garnish)
- Cooked rice for serving
PREPARATION
Prep the chicken:
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine the wine and soy sauce together. Toss the chicken pieces with the sauce and let stand while you make the sauce.
Make the orange sauce:
- Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from 1 orange and finely chop it.
- Squeeze 2 oranges to make at least 1 cup of juice (use additional orange if necessary). In a small bowl, whisk together the juice and 2 teaspoons cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved.
- In a 10-inch skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium heat, add the garlic, ginger, crushed red pepper, and orange zest and stir-fry until golden, about 30 seconds. Add the soy sauce, wine, vinegar, and sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves, about 5 seconds. Stir the orange juice–cornstarch mixture then add it to the skillet. Bring the sauce to a boil, stirring, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat and set it aside while you fry the chicken.
Fry the chicken:
- Once the chicken is fried, place the skillet of reserved orange sauce over moderately low heat and bring it to a simmer, stirring and thinning the sauce with a little water if necessary. Add the chicken, and stir until thoroughly coated in sauce.
- In a 10-inch cast-iron skillet, heat 1/2 inch of oil until a thermometer registers 365°F. Or you can use a deep fryer if you have one, which is easier to program the temperature. Meanwhile, coat half of the chicken, a couple pieces at a time, in cornstarch, making sure they are well coated and gently knocking off any excess, then transfer to a plate. Carefully add the coated chicken to the hot oil, making sure to space the pieces apart from each other, otherwise they clump together. Fry the chicken, turning it once or twice, until deep golden, about 5 minutes. While frying, adjust the heat as necessary to keep the oil at 365°F. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to the paper-towel-lined baking sheet. Continue to coat and fry the remaining chicken in the same manner, returning the oil to 365°F between batches.
- Once the chicken is fried, place the skillet of reserved orange sauce over moderately low heat and bring it to a simmer, stirring and thinning the sauce with a little orange juice if necessary. Add the chicken, and toss until thoroughly coated in sauce.
To serve:
- Transfer the chicken to a serving dish and garnish with the scallions. Serve immediately with rice.
Another photo: (added some sesame seeds to the recipe)
by zan@zeliciousrecipes.com | Fish
What is Cobia you ask? Cobia is a mild flavored white fish, and a great sustainable substitute for salmon or sea bass. It has also been called black kingfish. Open Blue’s Cobia fish are carefully raised in deep pristine waters and is always sourced from the open ocean. Open Blue Cobia is pure, healthy and safe – free of contaminants, hormones, colorants and pesticides. They raise their fish in a stress free, low density and high-energy environment. This results in healthier fish that is naturally high in protein and very rich in Omega 3 (DHA & EPA), with levels almost 2X as high as farmed Atlantic salmon. There is a great story about Open Blue and their founder Brian O’Hanlon, by Daniel Stone of National Geographic (click here to read more).
Open Blue Cobia is a truly versatile fish that offers a world of culinary possibilities. I have had some amazing Cobia dishes created by one of our favorite restaurants in Boulder, Centro Latin Kitchen on Pearl street. If you want to buy Cobia you can find it at this website: http://www.chefsfreshfish.com/Cobia-Fillet-p/e725a.htm
I will be posting my own recipes for Cobia, starting with this one:
Soy Marinated Cobia
For the Fish:
- 1 ½ pound of Cobia cut into 6 even pieces
- 1/2 cup chopped green onions
- 3 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
- 3 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry, divided
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil or vegetable oil, divided
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
For the Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons Asian sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry
- 1/4 cup chopped green onions
PREPARATION
For fish:
Rinse fish and pat dry. Mix green onions, ginger, 1 tablespoon rice wine, 1 tablespoon oil, and soy sauce in 11x7x2-inch glass baking dish. Add fish and turn to coat. Let marinate 1 hour at room temperature (but no longer as you will loose the taste of the fish).
For sauce:
Bring first 6 ingredients to boil in heavy small saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce is slightly thickened and reduced to 1/3 cup, about 6 minutes.
Remove fish from marinade and place on several layers of paper towels to drain; reserve marinade. Pat fish dry. Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a iron skillet, then fish pieces, spreading evenly. Cover and cook 30 seconds. Uncover and loosen fish pieces with metal spatula. Reduce heat to medium and cook 1 minute. Turn fish pieces over; cook 1 minute. Add remaining 2 tablespoons rice wine and reserved marinade from fish. Cover and cook 1 minute. Remove skillet from heat; let fish stand covered until just opaque in center, about 1 minute. Using metal spatula, transfer fish and sauce from skillet to plate. Spoon sauce over fish; sprinkle with green onions.
by zan@zeliciousrecipes.com | Meats, Sauces
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of soy sauce
- ½ cup olive oil
- 6 cloves of crushed garlic
- 2 tsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2-3 pork tenderloins
Directions:
In a mixing bowl whisk brown sugar with soy sauce until brown sugar dissolves. Slowly add in the olive oil, whisking to prevent emulsifying. Add in the garlic and ginger. Place all ingredients into a large ziplock bag and add the tenderloins to the bag. Make sure all parts of the tenderloins are covered with the marinade. Marinate in the fridge for up to 2-3 days (but not longer than 3, as the pork will get too salty). Remove Pork from the bag and place the reserve the sauce in a sauce pan. Grill the pork on high heat (on BBQ Grill) or broil the pork, to get a nice crust on the outside. You can also sear the pork in an iron skillet to get a nice crusty outside, then bake at 350 degrees until internal temperature reaches 140. I like my pork medium rare, so I normally pull it out at 135 (internal temp), and let rest 5-10 minutes until it reaches 140. This is great served with Asian Slaw and Sesame Sushi Rice with Cucumbers and Avocado, or sautéed ginger carrots. Optional – Slice meat on to each place and sprinkle with apples (instructions below).
Sauce:
- remainder marinade from above
- 1 cup chicken stock/broth
- 1 tbsp flour
- 3 tbsp water
While the pork in cooking, cook the marinade on medium-high heat, so you cook down any of the raw pork juice. Add in the broth, and cook down till reduced by half. In a cup combine the flour and water, mixing so it turns into a paste, making sure there are no clumps. Slowly whisk in the flour to pan, making sure there are no clumps. Your sauce will be come thicker, if it becomes too thick, add some more chicken broth. Pour over sliced pork loin.
A little added accouterment: Sautéed apples with butter and brown sugar.
- 1 apple chopped into ½” cubes
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
Place butter in iron skillet until it bubbles, add in the apple and toss in pan for 4 minutes, add in the brown sugar until melted and covering apples. Add the apples to the pork.
by zan@zeliciousrecipes.com | Vegetables
One of my favorite side dishes is Ginger Carrots. It’s a simple but delicious side for any dish, fish or meat.
Ingredients:
- 2 large bunches of fresh baby carrots Julienned
- 1 tbsp of pureed ginger
- 1 tbsp of honey
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
Place the butter in a preheated sautè pan. Add the julienned carrots and ginger, and cook over medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes until tender and browned. Add honey to pan and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper then add the parsley to each individual plate. This dish can pair well with any asian, ginger or soy based protein.
