Fried Rice

I love making fried rice because it's quick to cook, which is a definitely plus for a busy weeknight, it's a great way to use up leftovers, but best of all, it's my clever way to sneaking vegetables into Steven's diet. There, I said it! :) If I took carrots, chopped them up, and stir fried them, Steven wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole. But there are no complaints once the little cubes are tucked into fluffy rice coated with sausage or duck fat. Not only do different vegetables make the rice look bright and colorful, but they make the dish healthier too! See? Win win! It's not an evil plan. Though I think Steven is on to me now! Today I even snuck in some crownless broccoli stems that have been sitting in the veggie drawer for who knows how long. In the past I've added everything from salted mustard greens to corn. Now peas are something I can't get away with because Steven hates them (he hates tomatoes too! *waits for the collective gasp of the audience*). But you know, I think he just hates frozen peas because honestly, those are nasty and mushy, so I'll have to try adding with fresh peas. I don't think anyone can resist the sweetness of fresh peas. Mua hahaha!

Everyone make fried rice a little differently. It's usually made with soy sauce, which provides the salty, savory flavor and brown color. Steven's mom, however, hates dark fried rice so she uses only salt to flavor her rice, but I think this is much too boring. Jaden's secret ingredient is fish sauce, which helps to boost the umami flavor. I like to use oyster sauce for both its umami flavor and the color it gives to the finished dish. It's saltier than soy sauce so you don't need to use as much to flavor the whole dish so the rice ends up being a light golden brown instead of a dark brown.

This time I used Chinese sausage, but in the past I've used leftover ham, Chinese bbq pork, and even shrimp and tofu. For an extra special treat, my favorite fried rice is made with leftover Chinese roast duck and cooked in duck fat. I usually try to add a carrot and today I used some broccoli stems, or as I like to call them, heart of broccoli. Makes them sound so much more attractive don't you think? Like heart of palm. After cutting off the broccoli crowns I know a lot of people throw away the stems but you should save them! If you peel or slice off the tough fiberous outer layer, you get a really tender, crisp, and sweet heart of broccoli. This is good in soups, fried rice, or simply sliced and stir fried.

Fried Rice with Chinese Sausage and Vegetables

2 cups cold leftover rice, broken up into as small chunks.
2 Chinese sausage, sliced in half lengthwise then cut into small slices
2 Eggs, beaten
4 Medium dried shiitake mushrooms or 6 small ones
2 Green onions, thinly sliced
Around 1 Tbsp oyster sauce, more to taste
A small shake or two of ground white pepper
Vegetable oil

Optional vegetables
1 Carrot, peeled and cut into a small dice
3 Broccoli hearts, fibrous layer peeled off and cut into a small dice

Rehydrate the dried mushrooms in warm water. Rinse off any dirt stuck in the gills, and chop them finely.

Making fried rice with Chinese sausage includes an extra step of rendering the fat out of the sausages. If you're using with cooked meats like ham, duck, BBQ pork, it should be added towards the end of cooking to heat through but not dry out.

Heat a wok or a nonstick skillet over medium heat and add the pieces of Chinese sausage. Cook until the fat has rendered out. Add chopped shiitake mushrooms and stir fry for a minute. Then add the green onions and any other vegetables that you are using. Add a little salt to flavor the vegetables. I like my vegetables to have a good bite left so I don't cook them very long. Stir fry the veggies for a minute. You want to keep the vegetables really crunchy because they will continue cooking as they are sitting in a bowl from carryover heat and then cooked again with the rice towards the end.

Transfer the sausage and vegetables to a bowl, keeping any residual fat in the pan. If there's no fat, add 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil. Add the beaten eggs and scramble, cooking until the eggs are half set. Transfer the eggs into a bowl. It's okay to use the bowl you beat them in because you'll finish cooking the eggs fully later (and it's one less bowl to wash).

Add a tablespoon oil to the wok or skillet and heat it over medium high heat. Add the rice and break any chunks into individual grains. I use a spatula and press on the chunks of rice until the grains fall apart. Ideally you want all the grains to be separated to get really fluffy fried rice. It's important to use cold hard leftover rice because if you tried this with hot steamed rice, you'll end up with mush.

Cook until the rice grains are all separated and hot, about 3 to 5 minutes. They will start to pop off your pan. Add the oyster sauce and a dash of white pepper and stir until it's evenly distributed in the rice. Taste the rice and see if you need to add more oyster sauce. From this point you'll want to work quickly because you don't want the vegetables and eggs to over cook. Add the sausage and vegetables that you set aside earlier and mix this evenly into the rice. Clear the center of the pan by pushing the rice away and add the half cooked eggs. Cook them until they are almost set up, then break up any large clumps and stir them into the rice.

Serve piping hot.

Fried rice from my buddies:
Wandering Chopstick made Yang Chow Style Fried Rice, a Chinese restaurant staple.
And Jaden makes awesome Spam Fried Rice. And if you're saying "ewww SPAM", don't hate, it's actually quite tasty!

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp and White Cheddar Grits

With the holidays coming to an end (I'm so sad... no more listening to Christmas songs 24/7), I finally have some time to tend my blog. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Year. Now it's time to write 2008 instead of 2007. I already had to scribble out two checks because I wrote December, then January 2, 2007. I'm sure I'll finally realize it's a new year sometime in March. What better way to start off the New Year than with some cleaning, blog cleaning that is. As I wade through this blog clog of recipes I'm going to attempt to finally clean it up and start the year fresh with no more old recipes! Hooray! After I post these recipes that is. :)

I made this dish a while ago when Steven and I were watching Top Chef Miami. Steven and I are Top Chef junkies you see; we watch the show religiously and have seen every episode, reunion, special, or what have you. If you ask me, nothing can beat the sheer awesomeness of season 1 (I <3 you Lee Ann) but the last season had its moments, especially the hilarity of Joey's numerous failed euphemisms (gray horse? throwing people over the bus?) and Anthony Bourdain's numerous guest appearances. Anthony Bourdain people! Need I say more? Ahh... I digress... Anyways, the biggest disappointment of the show was the elimination of my favorite competitor, Tre. I mean when someone makes a recipe like bacon wrapped shrimp with cheesy grits, how can you not cheer for them.

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp and Cheesy Grits with Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Butter
Adapted from Tre

Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
12 - 16 large shrimp peeled and deveined
6 to 8 pieces of thinly sliced bacon
Freshly ground pepper

Season the shrimp with pepper, there should be enough salt from the bacon. Cut the bacon in half and wrap each piece around a shrimp.

Sear the shrimp after the grits and sauce have been prepared.

Sear in a skillet over medium to medium high heat until the bacon is crispy and the shrimp is fully cooked.


Cheesy Grits with Toasted Corn
2 C instant grits
3/4 C chicken stock
3/4 C milk
1/2 C corn kernels (frozen is fine)
3/4 C shredded white cheddar
Salt and pepper

Heat an empty skillet over medium high heat. Add the corn kernels, you do not need to add oil. Cook the corn, stirring occasionally until the corn starts to smell toasty and literally pop out of the skillet. Remove to a bowl and set aside.

Bring the chicken stock and milk to a simmer in a saucepan. Whisk in the grits a little at a time. Once all of the grits are incorporated lower the heat and keep warm. During this time you can start the shrimp.

Check the grits to make sure they are not too thick. If they are too thick, add a little milk. Before serving, fold in the shredded cheese and toasted corn.


Roasted Red Pepper Chipotle Butter
1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced,
2 red bell peppers
1 or 2 chiptole peppers packed in adobo, (seeds removed: optional) chopped
1 Tbsp adobo sauce
2 tsp lime juice
1/4 C chicken stock
1/2 stick or 4 Tbsp butter
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Note: if you want the sauce to be less spicy, remove the seeds from the chipotle peppers.

Broil the red bell peppers until the skin has bubbled and blackened. Here is how I prepare my peppers for roasting.

When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel the skin off, chop, and set aside.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute the onions until they have softened and are translucent. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then add the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, red bell peppers, and chicken stock. Simmer until the peppers have completely softened, about 3 - 5 minutes.

Add the sauce to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Whisk in the butter one piece at a time. Then season with salt and pepper and add the lime juice.

What other Top Chef recipes am I pining over? Elia's scallops and Ilan's fideos. Not to mention I'm SO excited for Top Chef Chicago. When will there be Top Chef Seattle?! Cmon Bravo!

Cai Fan - Vegetable Rice with Chinese Sausage

Ever since I was little, I have always been captivated by infomercials boasting of ridiculous products that can perform almost impossible feats that defy the laws of science. Plastic Pringle-tube esque pasta doodads that "cook" pasta in just 2 minutes. Knives sharp enough to cut through a brick and stay sharp enough to slice through a tomato or a pineapple in midair! Or what about those indoor rotisseries - just set it and forget it! As-Seen-On-TV products amazed me when I was a gullible youngster, but now that I'm older, practicality always wins out over curiosity and I stick with my tried and true kitchen gadgets and appliances. The only thing that comes to my mind that you can set and forget is a rice cooker. That's not to say I don't believe in any shiny bells or whistles. Oh no, when it comes to rice cookers, I've been eyeing the Bentley of all rice cookers, the Zojirushi Neuro Fuzzy Logic. When you eat rice at least once a day, perfectly cooked rice is important, downright crucial! Bad rice can ruin a meal. I mean c'mon, who doesn't want a machine that serenades you with "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" when it's finished cooking each grain of rice to fluffy perfection with its Fuzzy Logic "electronic brain." Ah alas, the catch? The $180 price tag. Oh well, practicality wins out over extravagance (but here's something that's definitely going on the wedding registry some day).

In Chinese, the word cai has two meanings. It can mean vegetable or any type of dish or entree (veggie, meat, or both) that you normally eat with rice (fan). Cai fan translates into vegetable rice. Traditionally cai fan is made with just veggies and rice, but when my mom made this she would add baby bok choy along with Chinese sausage because I loved these sausages and the fat from the Chinese sausage melts and cooks into the rice (mmm...). So now this cai fan, has taken on a second meaning. Now it is almost like "your entree" with rice, or entree in your rice (this is just my interpretation of my mom's recipe, not the traditional cai fan that is strictly rice and veggies). She cooked it on the stovetop and there would be a layer of golden brown, toasty, very fragrant rice crust, the guo ba, on the bottom of the pot. That crust is the best part so we would dig deep into the bottom of the pot to scrape up the yummy crusty bottom. Unfortunately, I never learned how to make rice on the stovetop so I'm forever reliant on my rice cooker (and no yummy guo ba using the rice cooker). On that bright side, that means this recipe can't get any simpler, toss the ingredients into the rice cooker, set it and forget it!


The caveat of this method is that the bok choy becomes very soft and the leaves do not stay a bright green. If you prefer the bok choy to stay crunchy, you can lightly stir fry the bok choy and then mix it into the rice later. But this is an extra step, dirties another pan, and to me it defeats the "toss everything into the pot" method of cooking. The Chinese sausage and bok choy only lightly stud the rice so we can eat this accompanied by other Chinese dishes in place of plain white rice.

Cai Fan - Chinese Vegetable Rice with Chinese Sausage

Note:
- A rice cup is a plastic cup that comes with the rice cooker. It is 180 mls, which is the equivalent of about 3/4 standard US cup. I use a 1:1 rice to water ratio in my rice cooker.
- Instead of baby bok choy you can also used some Chinese mustard greens, xue li hong.

1 head of baby bok choy, 1 link of Chinese sausage, and 1/4 tsp of salt for every rice cup (or standard cup) of rice (I like medium grain)

Wash and roughly chop your bok choy and chop the Chinese sausage into small bite-size pieces.









Add your ingredients to the rice cooker. I normally add 3 rice cups of rice, wash, then filling with water to the line, then toss in the Chinese sausage, then put the bok choy on top, and let the rice cooker do all the work.

For the second version, more stand-alone rice, simply double the amount of Chinese sausage and bok choy (2 links of sausage, 2 heads of bok choy for every cup of rice) then salt to taste and you have a very quick one-pot meal and you won't need any more dishes.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

Hainanese chicken rice is a dish that originated in Hainan, a tropical island off the southern coast of China. (It was there that I got picked up by an elephant and ate mangoes the size of footballs on the beach, but I digress...) Soon the dish made its way to Malaysia and Singapore. In fact, it is so popular in Singapore, some would consider it to be the national dish. Singaporeans take chicken rice very seriously and will heatedly debate about which stall has the best chicken rice.

A whole chicken is slowly poached in chicken stock and the rice is cooked in rendered chicken fat and stock. Finally, the chicken is chopped up and served cold with cucumber slices, chicken rice, a bowl of stock, and dipping sauces.

*this is the first time I made this recipe so if you have any special tips, let me know :)

Hainanese Chicken Rice
For the chicken:
1 whole chicken, around 3 1/2 lbs
3 1/4in slices of fresh ginger
3 green onions
Salt
Lots of chicken stock (making chicken stock)

For the rice:
3 C long grain rice, washed and drained
3 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
2 tsp of freshly grated ginger
1 green onion, white part only, thinly sliced (save the green top for garnish later)
3 1/2 C chicken stock from boiling the chicken

*I made the sauces to taste so the quantities are estimations
Chili Ginger Dipping Sauce
8 red chilis, or hot sauce like Sambal Oelek
2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
2 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice
2 Tbsp chicken stock
Salt

Soy Dipping Sauce
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp Sesame oil
2 Tbsp chicken stock

Other:
1 cucumber

For this recipe, you’ll need lots of chicken stock and a deep, thick walled (to retain heat) pot that can fit a whole chicken.

I can't say for sure how much stock you’ll need. It depends on the size of the pot you use and the size of your chicken but you need enough stock to fully submerge the chicken.

One way to tell how much stock you'll need is to add the chicken to the empty pot then add enough tap water to cover the chicken by an inch or two. Then remove the chicken. Make a mental note of the water level without the chicken. Dump out the water and add your chicken stock to the appropriate level. If you don’t have enough stock, you can add more water so you have enough. You don’t want to boil the chicken in only water because it will leech out too much flavor from the chicken.

Cooking the chicken:
Wash chicken, remove and save the excess fat, you’ll need it for the rice. Rub the entire chicken with salt. Set aside at room temp for about 30 minutes. Stuff the cavity with 3 green onions and ginger slices.

Bring enough stock to cover the chicken to a boil. Add the chicken breast side down and turn the heat down to the lowest setting so it’s barely (only a few bubbles) simmering. You don’t want to boil the chicken but you don’t want the stock to cool down too much either. After 25 minutes, gently lift the chicken out of the pot, let the stock from the cavity drain back into the pot, and set aside temporarily.

Quickly bring the stock back up to a boil, add the chicken, this time breast-side up, then turn back down to low heat, barely simmering, and cook for another 20 – 25 minutes.

Meanwhile in a wok or skillet, heat the reserved chicken fat over medium low heat to render out the oil. You’ll want about 2 tbsp for the rice.

Have a big bowl of ice water ready for the chicken. The chicken is done when juices from the thigh runs clear. When it’s done, submerge it in the bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. This helps tighten the skin and makes it jelly-like and taste really, really good. Let it cool in the ice bath for 10 - 15 minutes, then take it out and cool to room temperature.

Bring the chicken stock up to a boil and skim off the excess fat and scum. Continue to boil and reduce the stock for a more flavorful soup.

Cooking the rice:
Heat the chicken fat in a skillet over medium heat and add the chopped white part of the green onion and rice. Toast the rice until each grain is evenly coated with fat and looks golden.

Stir in the ginger and minced garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.

Add 3 1/2 cups of chicken stock and transfer this mixture to a rice cooker. I have to admit I always let my rice cooker do all the work and consequently, I don’t know how to cook rice on the stovetop. But Chubby Hubby has some stovetop chicken rice instructions. After some research it seems like the gist is you bring the rice and stock up to a boil in a saucepan over medium or medium-high heat, let it boil until the water level gets down to the level of the rice. Decrease the heat to low, cover the rice and let it cook for 30 - 40 minutes.

While the rice cooks, chop the chicken into bite size pieces and slice the cucumber. Whisk together the dipping sauces. Ladle the stock into bowls and garnish with some sliced green part of the reserved green onion.

Serve the chicken with cucumbers, chicken rice, soup, and the 2 dipping sauces.

Sticky Rice Siu Mai

There’s a potluck party at work tomorrow and I wasn’t sure what to bring. I remembered I had some siu mai wrappers tucked away in the freezer somewhere so I decided to make some sticky rice siu mai. Cantonese style siu mai (shu mai or shao mai) is filled with ground meat, like pork and shrimp, and is commonly served at dim sum. Another kind is the Shanghai style siu mai which is made with sticky rice.

Stick Rice Siu Mai
1 C glutinous rice (also called sweet rice)
1 C water
2 Chinese sausages
4 dried shiitake mushrooms
1 Tbsp dried shrimp
1 green onion
1 clove of garlic
1 Tbsp oyster sauce
1/8 tsp white pepper
30 siu mai wrappers (siu mai wrappers are round like potsticker/gyoza wrappers only thinner)

Rehydrated dried shrimp and dried mushrooms in some hot water for 5 minutes.

Rinse and drain glutinous rice, add water and steam for 30 twenty minutes.

Meanwhile, finely dice Chinese sausages, mushrooms, shrimp, green onion and mince the garlic.

Heat 2 tsp of oil in a skillet or wok and stir fry the sausage, mushroom, shrimp and green onion for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is fragrant and some pieces are lightly browned. Add garlic, oyster sauce, white pepper and stir fry another few seconds. Remove from heat and stir in steamed rice and 2 tbsp water to help loosen the mixture. Let the filling cool until it is warm or room temp before making the siu mai.

To make the siu mai, form a C shape with your fingers and thumb much like if you were to hold a cup. Place the wrapper on top of your index finger and thumb. Add less than a tablespoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper. Cup the siu mai with your index and thumb forming a collar around the top of the siu mai and squeeze lightly. While holding the siu mai, use the back of a spoon to push the filling in and flatten the bottom with the bottom of your palm.

Steam for 7 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately

Yields 30 siu mai.

I hope my coworkers like them. :)

Jambalaya

Jambalaya is one of Steven's favorite foods since he really loves hearty, stick-to-your-ribs dishes. It's a one pot meal that has pretty much everything: starch, various meats and seafood, and a trio of veggies (plus or minus tomato). There are so many variations to jambalaya it's almost dizzying; it can be made with chicken, shrimp, ham, duck, even alligator, tomatoes (Creole style) or without (Cajun style).

I still don’t understand the difference between Cajun and Creole cuisine but one thing common to both is the “holy trinity”: onion, bell pepper, and celery. These three aromatic vegetables make up the backbone of many dishes in the Bayou. Other notable trinities include the French mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery) and bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay leaf), the Italian soffritto (olive oil, onion, and garlic) and a trinity of tomato, basil, and garlic, and many more.

Chorizo or linguica can be substituted for andouille but since they're less spicy so you may need to increase the amount of cayenne and maybe add some paprika. I've heard great things about smoked paprika. I'm not sure how much salt I added because I rarely measure it (maybe around 1/2 tsp), I just taste and work my way up.

Jambalaya
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

4 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on, and trimmed of excess fat
8 oz andouille, cut into 1/4 in coins
8 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 medium onion
1 medium bell pepper
1 rib of celery
1 1/2 C long grain rice, rinsed well (I used short grain since it was all I had)
5 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp cayenne
Additional paprika or smoked paprika (optional)
14 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained but reserve juice
2 C chicken stock
1/2 C reserved tomato juice
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper
Vegetable oil
Parsley or green onion tops for garnish

Finely chop onion, bell pepper, and celery to a 1/4 in dice or pulse in a food processor (do not puree).

Heat 2 tsp of vegetable oil in a Dutch oven or skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken skin side down and brown for 5 minutes; turn and continue browning for 3 more minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside. Reduce heat to medium and add sausage; brown, stirring occassionally, for 3 minutes. Remove and drain on a paper towel lined plate.





Drain excess fat from the pan, leaving about 2 tablespoons in the pan (Don’t pour this down the drain or it will clog the pipes). Add the vegetables and cook while stirring and scraping up the browned bits until softened, about 4 minutes.

Add the rice, cayenne, paprika if using, and toast for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, chicken stock, tomato juice, browned sausage, bay leaves, salt and pepper. Remove the chicken skin (try to remove in one piece to make chicken crisps but this is optional) and nestle the chicken thighs skinned side down in the pan.

Cover and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. This is when I peel and devein my shrimp. Stir once keeping the thighs on top, cover and simmer again until the chicken is fully cooked, about 10 more minutes (juices run clear). Remove the chicken thighs and bay leaves and scatter the shrimp over the top of the rice (cooking the shrimp at the end helps keep them from becoming rubbery). Cover and simmer another 5 minutes (4 -5 minutes for small shrimp, longer time for larger shrimp).

Meanwhile shred the chicken with 2 forks. After the shrimp turns pink, remove from heat and add the shredded chicken. Stir to incorporate everything.



Garnish with fresh parsley or green onion tops and serve with Tabasco.

Serves 6

Optional: Chicken Skin Crisps
Leaving the skin on the thighs and cooking them in the jambalaya turns beautifully browned skins to a flabby mess that adds more grease to the dish. Both Steven and I like chicken skin but I realize not everyone is a fan of it, so this is completely optional.

After removing the chicken skins from the thighs, instead of tossing them, I sprinkled some salt and pepper on top and baked them in the toaster oven at 300º F for about 5 - 10 minutes, flipping them over halfway. This renders most of the grease out of the skin and leaves them super crispy. Drain them on paper towel and serve with the jambalaya on the side or crumbled on top.

Links:
Jambalaya at Simply Recipes