Chicken Nutmeg

Delicious and unique flavoring using the fragrant nutmeg. The sauce is smooth and silky, a little bit sweet from the "kecap manis", and spicy but not too spicy! I didn't put any salt for this recipe as the fish salt is already too salty for me. Very easy to make!

1.5 lbs cornish hen, quartered

2 shallots, sliced

2 garlic cloves, sliced

1 - 2 tbs canola oil

¼ to ½ tsp (depending how strong you want it, I like mine strong/nutmegey) freshly grated nutmeg

1 stalk fresh lemon grass, bruised and knotted

1 sliced fresh galanga

5 Kaffir lime leaves

2-3 fresh Thai chiles, chopped (optional)

1/3 cup kecap manis

1/3 cup Shaoxing or Michiu

1/2 tsp fish sauce

white pepper

• In a braiser fry the shallots with oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and the rest of the ingredients. Coat the chicken well. Cover, turn the heat to medium low, and let it cook for 35 - 45 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve with steam plain Jasmine rice.

Mussakhan, Roasted Chicken With Sumach on Pita Bread

What I really adore about this dish is that you serve it  on a flat bread that served as a plate. The bread absorbed the juices from the dish, resulting in such a delicious specialty. Just in case you are curious, the mussakhan is an Arabic word, means "browned during additional baking". 

You can use any type of poultry or meat/lamb for this recipe, since I don't like big chicken that much, I use 2 small cornish hen instead, each weigh about 1 pound. My husband, my son and his girl friend really like this, so I'll be making it again with better looking flat bread.

I am sorry, it looks a bit messy here in the presentation, but the taste that it counts right? 

Mussakhan  is pretty simple and straight forward to make. So don't be discourage! 

I normally serve it with fresh herbs such as, mints, cilantro and parsley. It is a fun dish to eat, as everybody at the table tear a piece of the bread and the chicken, add herbs, then pop it into your mouth. No fork and knife necessary. Just your clean hand .... But, if you are not comfortable with it, then use knife and fork. 

MUSSAKHAN

Recipe  adapted from: The Food Of ISRAEL, Authentic Recipes From The Land Of Milk And Honey

by: Sherry Ansky

4 pounds  chicken, clean and buterflied by cutting through a long the breast bone, then flatten with the palm of your hand. Set aside.

Juice of 1 lemon

¼ cup olive oil

2 - 4 cloves garlic, crushed

¼ teaspoon  turmeric

¼ teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon

4 tablespoon sumach (can be purchase at the Middle Eastern Store, Iranian store, or Arab store)

salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

• In a large bowl combine lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, turmeric, nutmeg, cinnamon, and the sumach. Add the chicken, coat completely with the spices mixture. marinate in the refrigerator overnight, or minimum 2 hours. 
• Preheat the oven to 375⁰F. Transfer the chicken including the marinate on to a baking dish, season with salt and pepper. Roast for 1 to 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked thoroughly, and the juices run clear.

To finish:

1  Pita dough recipe*

2 large onion, sliced

2 - 3 tablespoon olive oil

a handful of pine nuts, lightly toasted

1 tablespoon sumach

• Fry the onion with olive oil until caramelized. Set aside.
• Increase the oven to 450⁰F.
• Take the pita dough, flatten into round ( about ¼ inch thick)  to fit the size of your chicken. Place it on a baking sheet and bake for 5 to 10 minutes depending how thick your dough is. Take it out from the oven, transfer the pita on a large serving dish. Place the chicken on top of Pita bread including all of the delicious juices/drippings, add caramelized onion, sprinkle with  sumac, and garnish with toasted pine nuts. Return to the oven for 5 minutes to brown the top (I skip this part, as mine was browned enough already). Serve immediately!

*Pita Dough:

3 cups bread flour

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoon olive oil

• Place all ingredients into a mixer bowl, add enough water (more or less 1 cup) to make a soft dough. Knead the dough with dough hook attachment on medium setting for 10 minutes. Gather the dough into a ball, place it on a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let the dough rest until double in volume for about an hour. 

Vegetarian Spring Roll, A Tasty Snack For the Week End

I would rather make my own Spring Rolls, then buy the package that you see a lot in a grocery store. Honestly, I don't even want to order them at the restaurant, because I am afraid of the oil that might have been recycled for, who knows how many times!

So, making this at home give me the flexibility of what ever vegetable or even meat filling I fancy, most of all it fresher and crispier. I only use olive oil, or canola oil, and fry just enough to satisfy my craving of fried food.

These are pretty simple to make, I used small square wonton wrapper, put the filling in the middle, then add another layer of wrapper on top, sealed the end with a little bit of egg white. I also made them into the traditional wonton shapes, and spring roll shapes. These sizes are really small compare to the one that you normally get at the restaurant.

Ingredients:

Please note that the amount of this ingredients here are approximately. You may or may not have left over filling. So, use this ingredients as a guidance only.

1 package square (about 3½ by 3½) wonton wrapper

¼ cup chopped shallots

½ cup carrots, julienne

½ cup cabgage, shredded

½ cup water chesnut, julienne

¼ cup chopped spring onion

2 tbs chopped cilantro

1 clove garlic, minced

a dash of white pepper powder

a dash of nutmeg

½ tbs corn starch mix with ¼ cup water

½ tbs tamari or soy sauce

1 egg white

olive oil or any other oil of your preference, for deep frying

• Saute the shallot with little oil on a large skillet over medium heat until soft, add garlic, and cook for a few second. Add carrots, then the rest of vegetables.
• Season with white pepper powder and nutmeg, stir, then add tamari and the corn starch. Stir to mix, taste to see if need more seasoning. Take out it out from the heat. Cool slightly before proceed.
• To make into a square shape: Lay one wonton wrapper on the flat working area, add about 1 tablespoon of vegetable filling in the middle, brush the edge with egg white, take another wrapper and lay it on top. Press down to close completely.
• For rectangle/pillow shape: lay one wonton wrapper on the flat working area, add the filling almost all the way to the edge the one closest to you, brush but the edge (the right and left hand side) with egg white. Roll then press both ends to seal.
• For the wonton shape: Lay one wonton wrapper on the flat working area, add about 1 to 1½ tablespoon of vegetable filling in the middle, brush the edge with egg white, take all for corner and press and connect them together.
• Fry until golden brown on medium high heat. I use very small high pan (6½" wide and 4 " high), and put about ¾ cup of olive oil, and fry them one at a time. This way I don't have oil splatter every where. Transfer to rack set on a baking sheet to catch all of the dripping oil. Serve with hot and sweet sauce of your preference.

I eat them with fresh Thai chilies, no I am not joking here. This is how I eat my Spring rolls, like most Indonesian do! That Thai chili you see in this photo, it meant to be eaten! A big warning though, it is extremely hot!!!!!!!!! So, if you never eaten this fresh chili before, don't even try it! It will burn your tongue!

Grilled Yellow Tail Snapper With Spicy Kemiri Nut and Lemon Basil Sauce

The kemiri nut (normally available at the Asian store) in this sauce not only for the flavoring, but also to thicken the sauce. If the Kemiri nut is not available or hard to find, Cashew will be the best substitute.

1 whole (about 2 pounds) yellow tail Snapper, cleaned-gutted
1 tbs coriander seeds

½ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp salt

2 tbs canola oil

• Rinse the fish under cold running water, then pat dry with paper towel. Make three slashes on each side of the fish. Place on a large plate, set aside while you make the marinate.
• Coarsely grind the coriander seed, transfer to a small bowl, add turmeric, salt and the canola oil. Rub this mixture all over the fish, don't forget to stuff some of the marinate into the cavity. Let marinate for at least fifteen minutes.
• Grill over medium heat for about 5 to 10 minutes on each side, or until the fish is cooked.
• Pour the sauce on top, garnish with fresh basil, serve hot with steam Jasmine rice, and simple green vegetables.

The Sauce:

3 shalots, chopped roughly

2 cloves garlic, chopped roughly

2-3 Kemiri or Candle nuts, chopped roughly (if using Cashew, use about 10 to 15)

2 red jalapeno, chopped roughly

½ teaspoon kencur (Zedoary) powder

½ tablespoon fish sauce

¼ cup coconut milk

¼ cup water

5 - 10 Thai chilies, leave whole

a few handful lemon basil, or Thai basil

2 tbs Canola oil

• Put the shallots, garlic, candle nuts, red jalapeno in a blender, add a few tablespoon of water and process until smooth. Place this mixture onto skillet, add the kencur or zedoary powder, and fry this sauce with oil on a medium heat until fragrant, about 5 minutes.
• Add the coconut milk and water, turn the heat to low, add the fish sauce, stir and continue to cook on low until bubbles start to appear at the edge of the pan. Do not let the sauce to become a boil, or it will be separated. Although, this will not change the taste, it will give the sauce unpleasant appearance. Add the whole Thai chiles and the fresh basil, taste and adjust seasoning if needed, turn of the heat. The sauce is now ready.

Note:

If you do able to find Kemiri nut or Candle nut, make sure you store them properly, preferably in the freezer, out reach of children as this nut is poisonous and should never be eaten raw. The nut has to be crush together with other ingredients into a smooth paste, then cook. Once cooked, it is quite safe to eat. Kemiri nut look very similar to macadamia nut, but I wouldn't recommend to use macadamia as a substitute, as they are quite different in taste.

Maque Choux

Maaa ... whaaaat???? 

Okay, some of you might have your tongue twisted  to pronounce this! No worry, Donald said, it’s pronounced ‘mock shoe’. Yaaao, I can say that for sure! 

I saw the recipe at Donald, and I couldn' t resist to wait that long to make it. So, here it is. It was very satisfying delicious meal made from the simplest ingredients. The only item missing was, ramps. So, I used Spring onions instead. I serve Maque choux with plain steam Basmati rice. Oh, gawd ... typing and loading this photos make me hungry again. So, let me excuse myself, 'cause I need to eat some more. Recipe? right, go here, and you will not be disappointed! 

DUCK Curry With Potatoes, Carrots and Peas.

I love duck, the meat is flavorful, and i don't have to wait for a special occasion to cook it. You can make any dish from the duck as you would make from chicken. Asian market normally carry duck legs, or you can probably special order them in your grocery store too. Otherwise, buy the whole Moscovi Duck, cut them into pieces, save the breast for other use. I like to use Moscovy duck as it is almost 40% leaner than a Peking Duck, the meat is rich and  flavorful, I personally think that it is perfect for making any type of spicy curry, such as Thai, Indian, or South East Asian curry. You can use chicken for this recipe, adjust the timing for cooking accordingly. 

Although it is leaner then Peking Duck, it is still fattier then chicken, you really need to skinned the leg before using them for your curry. Otherwise you curry will swim in oil, and will be unpleasant to eat them. What I did was, brown the duck a little bit, as soon as its cool down a little, I pull out the skin. 

Ingredients:

4 whole skinless duck legs

2  tablespoon canola oil

¼ cup sliced shallots

2 garlic cloves, sliced

2 teaspoons garam masala, homemade or store bought

3 whole cardamoms

1 cinnamon stick

2 cloves

1 whole star anise

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

water

4 medium size yukon gold potatoes, peel and  cut into big chunks
4 carrots, peel and slice

1 small can (5.6 fl ounces) coconut milk

2 Roma tomatoes, quartered

½ cup frozen green peas

5 - 10 Thai green chilies, leave whole

salt and pepper

Seasoning:

1 teaspoon black mustard seed

2 tablespoon canola oil

15 fresh curry leaves

5 dried chilies 

• In a large soup pan, fry the shallots with canola oil over medium heat until the shallot is soft, add garlic. Saute for 20 seconds. Add to the pan: garam masala, cardamom, cinnamon stick, clove, the whole star anise, and the cayenne pepper. Stir and saute until they releases their fragrance.

• Add the duck to the pan, add water just enough to cover the duck. Let the water to a boil, then turn the heat to low. Simmer slowly for 1 hour, add more water if you find during this time the water is reduce too much. Add the potatoes, and carrots, cook for another 30 to 45 minutes, or until the duck is tender and the potatoes are cooked. 

• Still on low heat, add the coconut milk, Roma tomatoes, frozen green peas, and Thai green chilies,  season with salt and pepper. Stir and continue to cook just until the peas are changing into darker color. Do not let the broth to become boil, or the coconut milk will break and separated.

• Meanwhile, heat the oil a small frying pan over medium low heat. Add the mustard seeds, cover with the lid, as soon as you hear the mustard splutter, add the rest of the ingredients. Fry for a few seconds. Turn off the heat. Pour  this seasoning into the duck curry and stir briefly. Taste to see if need more salt. Best serve with plain basmati rice.

Pomme Anna

Such an easy recipe, the only thing you need is patient, as you have to slice the potatoes thinly, and arrange them neatly into a nice layers. The mandolin certainly will safe you time for the slicing, but I don't have one, and I don't feel the need to have it either. For now, I am happy using my knife for the job. 

This recipe goes to the monthly PHd, created by Cathy and Krysta. Care to join? Have any potato dish that you would like to share with us? Please visit this site to find the information. It's totaly easy! This month roundup will be hosted by Cathy at Noble Pig on Wednesday, May 20, 2009. Please send your entries to cathy@noblepig.com by Monday, May 18, 2009.

Ingredients:

2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes

2 - 3 tbs garlic infused olive oil, or use regular olive oil, or butter if you like

• Preheat oven to 400⁰F. Grease or butter an  8-inch round cake pan. Set aside
• Peel the potatoes, slice thinly using mandolin if you have one. I use regular chef knife. Dry them with kitchen towel.
• Arrange the potatoes slices overlapping them in circular pattern, starting from the center of the pan, all the way to the edge. Drizzle with oil or melted butter. Repeat the pattern starting from the center, drizzle with more oil. Continue to layer the potatoes in the same manner until you use up all of them. 
• Cut a piece of  parchment pepper into rounds to fit the size of the pan, and place it directly on top of the potatoes layers. 
• Bake for 1 hour to 1½ hours, or until the potatoes are cook and look brown.
• Remove from the oven. Let rest for 5 minutes, remove the parchment paper. Run a knife around the edges to loosen any potatoes that are sticking to the side. Place a serving plate on top of the pan, carefully  flip the pan over.  Serve cut into wedges.