What's cooking? part 4

I usually get the water boiling first before I turn it to VERY LOW for 20 mins – do you not do this?

Also I have never sauteed rice 'cept for when making a pilaf or risotto. Perhaps I will try yr method some time (subbing an auditory,visual or temporal cue for the smell one).

depends on the rice. for some rices that take longer to cook i put them in and bring the water to a boil so they get more heat.

i've been thinking about getting a kitchen timer actually

thanks WmC! (i have boring white rice, short grain i think)

Amount of sesame oil is literally in the 2 or 3 drops category btw, shake it like tabasco, the bottle should already have a tiny opening anyway.

justine, your oven should have a timer on it!

and if not that, microwave.

our oven is really basic - no timer!

also: i have a lime. also bought on impulse.

I just put the water in at room temp -- I've sauteed the rice at med-high heat for long enough that I get a big dramatic WHOOOSH and the water pretty much comes up to a boil/simmer immediately.

BTW, J, just use barely enough oil. About a tablespoon for a cup of rice?

Perhaps I will try yr method some time (subbing an auditory,visual or temporal cue for the smell one).

I forgot about you not having a smeller! I think the visual cue would be the rice turning opaque and maybe just a tad golden.

WmC yr method sounds v similar to the tasajara method iirc!

what sort of ratio to canola oil should i use the sesame?

Just a shake or two really. You want 1 part oil to 1/2 part balsamic to 1/2 part cider vinegar, with 1/2 part (or more) sweetener and a healthy amount of paprika (1 Tablespoon per cup of oil) and a few shakes of sesame oil.

so we made this tonight!! jaq, you are AMAZING! i used the pumpkin, which was a nightmare to prep, as expected. that shit is rock hard.

i also caramelised some onions to toss through it, which gave it a bit more flavour.

i used wmc's rice cooking method... but when i turned it down low, the flame went out at some point, so it took awhile longer, but was successful!

A+++ meal, would cook again

now what should we cook tomorrow???

i have the above ingredients (minus the spinach and pumpkin and rice) + a small lime
+ some fresh 'savoury' herbs (rosemary and some other mysterious herbs)

Good spanish-rice variant: strain the liquid out of a can of Rotel tomatoes, reserving the liquid. Squeeze the tomato/chili solids real well in a strainer to get as much out of them as you can. Add water or veg stock to the tomato/chili liquid to achieve your 2:1 ratio. Make rice as normal, adding the spicy tomato solids along with the spicy tomato liquid after you've sauteed the rice.

so i thought the 'drawer microwave' sounded like a bad idea when i was told about it... now that it's a reality, i hate it even more. and what awful placement! one will have to bend over to push the buttons!

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_3CnQQEvhUBQ/Syr_sJ43oaI/AAAAAAAAB6I/cu5-aB-nB18/s640/IMG_0178.JPG

not to mention it sticks out several inches from the counter. my parents are always ruining nice things with crazy accents!

but tehresa according to the sticker that microwave is not only LARGER sleeker but also more accessible. what went wrong??

marketing.

that looks like a terrible idea. We generally only use the microwave to reheat cups of tea and melt butter. I wonder how much the cups will slosh when you open and close that drawer?

In other news, 2 pans of 7 layer bars in the oven for tomorrow's pitch-in. One standard, one with layer 7b (candied ginger bits).

yeah we are kind of chat-fiting about it now. well, 'disagreeing' bc i think it's stupid and he swears it's not. but whatever, his kitchen!

but we can truly go "Freezer or fridge to M/W" in 2 secs flat

he says...

it's also adjacent to the busiest pathway in the house - everyone always walks through the kitchen to the dining/living rooms that way instead of using the other hall. "there was no other place to put it." uhhh what about... anywhere in the giant kitchen???

ok i'm stopping.

Time from fridge to nuker has never been on my kitchen necessity list, tbh.

yeahhhhhhh

i think he was trying to come up with ridiculous justifications?

But look at the rest of that gorgeous big kitchen you will be cooking in soon!!!

"this way if food ever falls on the floor I can get it into the microwave in 2 seconds flat and nuke all the bacteria"

hahaha

Aw if I argued with my dad about something like this he'd be the same but inside he'd be quietly going ";_; i stuffed up didnt I" so I never have the heart to.

oh no, my father is *always* right.

oh dear that does not look like a wise idea. really annoying to clean, too.

i made 2 lbs of creamed spinach the other day (following spanakopita a couple days previously), and i cannot stop eating it at pretty much every opportunity, including breakfast. two of my roommates independently asked if i was pregnant this morning. (not possibly, but maybe i have some sort of nutritional deficiency, or maybe i just really love spinach). anyway, that's what's cooking for lunch and dinner, probably....

early bday present from jordan: veganomicon!!!

Any recs on things to do with parsnips?

I love them roasted - wonderful mildly carrot flavor.

Hey Jaq I made your spice cake this weekend (with orange cream cheese frosting; marmalade between the layers) and it was FAB! Thanks!

Prep for seasonal potluck #1:

Tourtiere - blend of pork / veal / beef / venison. 11 secret herbs and spices (ok, 7 or 8). Cream cheese pastry crust.
Vanilla bean cheesecake - because you can't ruin cheesecake, but it always impresses - good for inept bakers like me. Presentation is key
Turkish apricots - dried apricots candied in simple syrup / pekmez blend with cardamon, cinnamon, stuffed with mascarpone (because it's pretty difficult to find clotted buffalo milk in my corner of the continent.)

those all sound fantastic. nice.

we've got meals planned up through friday (mostly my dad's cooking): spaghetti squash and left over red thai curry, lengua tacos, homemade pizza (brother's weekly staple), shrimp & various mezes/bread/soup, traditional christmas breakfast of doom, and a ham dinner, to which i'll probably contribute vegetable sides (greens and some kind of gratin maybe). this happens whenever my trips home coincide with my dad's vacation time, and then my brother suggests going out to dinner and we're like, "...but what about all the food in the house?"

Christmas eve is going to be zakuski - blini and sour cream, smoked fish, potatoes with crab salad, beet salad, pickles, maybe some other Russian-ish kinds of stuff, plus a bottle vodka from the local-ish distillery made with all the wheat that grows around me.

Friday I'm making a peking duck and chinese pancakes. I expect a lot of semi-racist A Christmas Story jokes from my family.

<3 lengua tacos soooo much

Duck is our trad xmas dinner.

i need to make lengua tacos i think! tongue is so cheap. do you have a good recipe maria?

nope, never tried myself - if my dad's is good tonight i'll ask for it though!

tacos were excellent! he cooked the meat according to this: http://www.examiner.com/x-4059-Chicago-Mexican-Food-Examiner~y2009m6d13-Tacos-de-lengua-beef-tongue-tacos (did take a full 3 hours, and was incredibly tender)

jaq's recipe was so good we made it again tonight:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/821832/cooking%20pics/P1010955.JPG

but this time we changed it a bit:
quinoa instead of rice (my first time eating quinoa! it's pretty nice)
didn't mix it all together - layered it on the plate instead
left the sugar and apple cider out of the dressing
added caramelised onions again

served w/roasted brussels sprouts (done w/garlic and mixed fresh herbs, squirted w/lime juice once they were cooked)

this is by far the best meal i've possibly EVER cooked (but lol i am a terrible cook so that's not saying much) - super simple but great combo of textures and flavours. i owe you big time, jaq! you're my hero!

This makes me so happy! :) I'm really glad you're having fun mixing it up too - I'll bet the quinoa was awesome with the other flavors, it's got such nuttiness going on.

it was! everything just magically went together so well. we feel so proud of ourselves! ytth, too, who has never actually cooked a meal in his life (apart from boiling pasta/quinoa and adding marinara/fake meatballs)

this is pretty easy and quick thing to make too - the only downside is that the buttercup is a BITCH to cut and peel, but it tastes so good :/

thanks for that recipe maria! will definitely try it

i made this for xmas eve dinner
http://lh6.ggpht.com/_3CnQQEvhUBQ/SzUkIqQWOFI/AAAAAAAAB88/97DLeFAq48c/s512/IMG_0218.JPG

did not end up making any fancy dessert this year, tho!

what's in there?

lovely photo, btw

yes, looks wonderful.