Grilled Citrus Balsamic Salmon – choice of the day

Last Thursday, I met my former colleagues in my first company here in Dubai and had an Iftar with them at Carino’s Italian in Dubai Festival City.  Lots of chit-chats and updates as it has been quite a while (actually like already 2 years) since the last time we gathered. Blame me, I’m not always available (as they said).

I don’t know whether its the location of our table (I think it’s partly hidden) that not any of the waiters approach us and get our orders. Or maybe they are giving attention more to the customers that they believe are fasting (I admit not one in my group fast that day). With hungry tummy, we jokingly said..when a person is hungry, he/she cannot think that well. Would they want another hostage drama from a Filipino?  The waiter serving the other table must have heard of the joke and he called a waiter to assist us. 

So we gave our orders and all of us we wanted to order same meal! It’s the Grilled Citrus Balsamic Salmon!  Looks so delicious that all of us wanted to try its goodness. But at the end we agreed to just order 3 of this dish and we’ll get another on the selection to share. The salmon was so impeccably tasty that I am still eating yet already thinking of replicating this dish minus the pasta of course as I prefer to have it with rice.

Ended the meal with a dessert - chocolate cake with ice-cream on top. Yum yum! But after couple of bites, we felt we needed something to balance the sweet taste so we ordered for an American coffee.  Happy tummy!

Ramadan 2010: Iftar meals

Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, the month of fasting.  Whenever we are both free, me & Hayati meet for the fast-breaking meal called Iftar.  He used to buy food from a restaurant before, comes in my place and there will eat together. But now it changed as we prefer to cook at home and enjoy the fruit of our labor.

Yesterday, we had another cooking session (Ramadan Special). I decided to fast as well so I will feel what hayati feels whenever he’s breaking his fast. Thought was easy but the smell of the food in the kitchen was so tempting. Wanted to get a piece and have a taste of what we are cooking but I have to stop myself. My body was shaking because of hunger yet I patiently waited for the Maghrib prayer time signaling the end of our fast. We cooked for nearly 4 hours without tasting the food…ingredients are all by approximation. Below are some of the dishes we made.

DESSERTS – All bought pre-mixed (RTC- ready to cook) and just cooked as per instruction in the package.

The caramel cream turns out a success.The jelly while settling seems okay...but we had difficulty unmolding it. So I suggested to hayati to dip the molder in a hot water. We counted 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10! And the jelly easily slipped out of the molder. But it turned out a bit watery :(  We have dipped it for quite long in the hot water..we learned that maybe 3 counts should have been enough.

THE DUMPLINGS/ PIKA PIKA FOODS  – as starters. Again mostly pre-mixed and RTC.  This is the most we can do I guess as newbies in cooking.The dumpling was prepared as package direction.  Hayati patiently mixed it with a carefully measured amount of water (don’t want to go wrong with this)until he arrived with a smooth mixture, then covered it with moist damp cloth for about 45 minutes for it to rise.We formed a small ball from the batter and fried in hot oil. Drizzled with a bit of honey and ready to be eaten.  I am in doubt though..should this be classified dessert or starter? We also fried other vegetable fritters: samosa, pakora (potato dipped into a batter then fried) and mashed potato with some parsley formed into small balls (the round ones in the below picture). Of all the fritters, my favorite one was the potato dumplings.

 THE MAIN DISHES

He is craving for something sour..hayati experimented on this dish. He sautéed onion in about tablespoon oil, added the drained chickpeas, then about 1/2 teaspoon of the mixed masala & pinch of salt. Cooked for about 5 minutes under low fire. Then he dissolved tamarind in a small amount of water and mixed in the dish. He liked the outcome of his experiment and finished everything in the bowl.Lastly, the dish that up to now I could not believe he prepared…

Hayati doesn’t like the smell of fish. In our years of relationship, I never saw him eating fish dish except when I forced him to have a little bite on my fish sandwich. He claims that in his entire life, that was his first taste of fish food.

Surprisingly, he asked me to buy hamour fillets when I went in the supermarket. When he said he’s going to cook it, I was so hesitant as never he had experience in cooking fish and thinking he might just ruin the fillet and will end up in the garbage bin. I kept on reminding him that this is an expensive fish and he kept on answering me with “no worries, it will be a good dish”. So I entrusted to him the fillets..but of course I did the slicing and slitting.

Nothing so fancy he did on the fish..just seasoned with salt, pepper and squeezed juice of a half lemon in the fillets. Then in a non-stick pan, he heated around 3 tablespoons of cooking oil, fried both sides of the fish till browned. Then transferred into a baking tray and put in a pre-heated oven (temperature set at 150 degrees) to continue cooking  for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in the same pan used for frying the fish, he sautéed 1 chopped onion, 1 chopped tomato, added tomato paste, then dropped 1 can of drained mixed vegetables. Seasoned with 1/4 teaspoon masala, dash of salt & pepper and cooked for about 5 minutes in medium heat.

Served with love the hamour in a bed of basmati rice with vegetables. Plus a bonus of one boiled egg :)Hayati’s first fish dish was not that bad..in fact, I can say it was perfectly done and the fish was so tasty (maybe the reason why hamour is so expensive).  For that I am giving him a rate of 9/10!  Also, just the effort of cooking this dish thinking he dislike the smell is already a ++ points for him…and that’s why ahabek hayati. 

Breaded Cream Dory with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

The last time I prepared a fried fish dish, I got a week long remembrance -  oil burns on my face & hands. I definitely love cooking but not the splattering oil.. When I was newbie in frying I was so afraid of the oil to the point of shielding myself with a big pot cover or a panner (our bilao in the province) just to avoid the oil. Funny scene! Battle in the kitchen and oil is the enemy?

I’m cooking fish (again) tonight but no worries on splattering oil as it will be a breaded fish.  Listing the ingredients:

• 2 fillets of cream dory, each sliced into four parts
• Flour
• Bread crumbs
• 1 beaten egg
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 head onion
• some button mushrooms, sliced
• chopped parsley & basil leaves
• 125 ml fresh cream
• EVOO (Extra-virgin olive oil)
• For side veggies – asparagus spears, broccoli florets, green beans (ends trimmed)

Procedures:

1. Pat dry the fillets with paper towel.
2. Prepare the breading. First plate – bed of plain flour. Second plate – crack egg, add salt & beat.  Third plate – bream crumbs seasoned with salt & pepper.
3. Coat the fillet with the flour, shake off any excess and dip to the egg mixture. Lastly roll it in bread crumbs and again shake off any excess breading.
4. Heat about 3 tablespoons olive oil in a non-stick pan.  Fire set to medium. Once hot (not burning hot), put the breaded fillets and fry on both sides till golden brown.
5. Transfer the fried fillets in a baking tray, and continue cooking in a pre-heated 180-degree oven for about 10 minutes…just enough time to prepare the sauce.
6. In a non-stick pan, add 1 tablespoon EVOO and sauté the garlic and onion till translucent. Add the mushroom and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the fresh cream, sprinkle some salt & pepper, drop in chopped parsley and basil leaves. Cook in a low fire for another 5 minutes. Check taste and adjust as desired.
7. For the side veggies, blanch the vegetables in a boiling water with little salt added for about 3 minutes or less. Drain and put in a cold water to stop the cooking. Drain thoroughly.
8. Arrange the veggies on the side of the plate, breaded fish on the center topped with the creamy mushroom sauce.

9. Serve and enjoy.

The perfect fried chicken (so far)

Cooked fried chicken for may times but always a fail. The crunchiness is not always a perfect outcome. But as they say, keep on trying! And that I did..until..one trial turns as a success.

• 1/2 kg chicken wings, clean and cut each wing into two pieces
• 5 cloves garlic, pealed
• Ginger, pealed & sliced any way you want
• Ground black pepper
• Salt
• Cooking oil
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 2 eggs, beaten

This is my own rendition for cooking a friend chicken. Almost the same as the usual way of cooking an FC but the difference is on tenderizing the chicken. I don’t want eating rare meat nor any hint of blood in my FC so first thing I do is to tenderize the cut chicken. Put the chicken in a pot, add the garlic & ginger, bit of salt and boil until chicken is tender.

Drain and pat dry with paper towel.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a non-stick pan in a medium fire. Don’t make the oil reach its smoky level as it will just burn the coating of the chicken.

Get three plates for the breading. First plate – make a bed of plain flour.  Second plate - crack 2 eggs, add pepper & salt & beat thoroughly.  Third plate – mix some salt & pepper to the bread crumbs and spread in the plate.

Roll the chicken first to the flour, shake off for any excess, then dip to the beaten eggs, then lastly to the bread crumbs. Again shake for any excess coating then carefully put to the frying pan. Fry till brown and turn for the other side to cook.

Serve and eat while crispy.  Bring out the catsup to dip, but mine is fresh labneh.

Stir-fry vegetables with oyster sauce

Chinesy dish for today.

The ingredients:

• 1/4 kg medium size fresh shrimp, shell pealed, deveined
• 1/4 kg squid, skin removed and sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, cut into about 1-1/2 triangular shape
• 1 carrot, sliced diagonally into a quarter inch thickness
• Button mushrooms, sliced
• 1/8 kg fresh snow peas
• 1 head onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 of a vegetable bullion cube
• 2 tablespoons EVOO (Extra-virgin olive oil)
• 5 tablespoons Mama Sita’s vegetable oyster sauce
• Salt & pepper

The procedure:

• In a non-stick pan, with a bit of olive oil sauté the garlic and onions till translucent.
• Set the fire on medium level.  Drop the shrimp and squid. Sauté for about a minute.
• Add in the vegetables, the oyster sauce, bullion cube, dash with half teaspoon ground pepper. Stir till all vegetables are coated with the sauce. Cover to cook for about 5 minutes.
• Taste check. Add salt if necessary till you achieve desired taste.
• Serve right away with jasmine rice. 

Papaitan/ Pinapaitang Baka

Its been a while since I cooked this dish but cannot locate the pictures I had taken…but last night, was able to, so now I’m sharing it here in my blog.

I don’t exactly know the parts of beef for this recipe except the innards. We buy fresh meat at Karama meat shop (yes we are suki, go there every month even though its half hour drive from our residence). Forget the parts for pinapaitan, just visit the shop and ask for pinapaitan. The butchers (note they are not Filipinos) know already what to give..meat, liver, innards, bile. But the latter I don’t really take it..I just don’t like the thought playing in my mind…instead, for a bit of bitter taste, I add bitter gourd slices which serves as substitute for the bile. Okay, the recipe for the above pictured dish. But first the ingredients:

• set of beef pinapaitan meat, 1 kg
• 4 cloves of garlic
• Ginger, chopped half cup
• 1 head onion, chopped
• Scallions/ spring onions, sliced about an inch
• Lemon slices
• 1 tablespoon EVOO (Extra-virgin olive oil)
• Pepper & salt
• 1 knorr vegetable bullion cube
• Optional: 1 green finger chilly (siling haba)
• Optinal: 1 cup bitter gourd, sliced thinly

First, take some time for cleaning the meat, especially the innards. My brother usually does this part. Wash thoroughly the meat, rub the meat with coarse salt and again wash.

We go easy way. We tenderize the meat using a pressure cooker. Put the meat in the cooker, add water just enough to cover the meat, seal the lid and cook for 30 minutes. Done tenderizing.

Remove the meat from the cooker, let it cool and slice into desired size.

In a casserole, put EVOO just enough coat the pan. Sauté the onion, garlic and ginger till translucent. Drop the meat slices, sauté for 5 minutes in low fire. Add the broth plus water if broth is not enough. Drop in bullion cube. Bring to boil. Season with salt & pepper. Add one finger chilly for a bit of spice. Add bitter gourd slices for bile/ bitterness taste. Cook till the vegetables are done.

Serve while hot.  Garnish with scallions and lemon slices.

Note: Heard from my doctor that lamang loob meat triggers rheumatism? So watch the volume you eat if you have such health problem.

Beef caldereta

Not in the mood for another stew this week so I made a twist on the supposed to be nilagang baka of my brother.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 kg beef cubes
• 1/4 kg potatoes, cut into cubes
• 1 medium size carrot
• 1/2 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 1 bell pepper, cut into 1-1/2 triangular shape
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 head onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons EVOO (Extra virgin olive oil)
• Mama Sita’s caldereta seasoning (I use only half of the 50grams pouch)
• Water as needed

How to prepare:

• Cook the beef in a pressure cooker for about 30 minutes to tenderize.
• In a pan, heat the oil and sauté the garlic & onion until translucent.
• Add the beef and sauté for around 5 minutes.
• Add 1 cup of water, drop the carrots, potatoes and Mama Sita caldereta seasoning. Let it simmer until the potatoes are nearly done. Add more water if necessary.
• Add the remaining vegetables (peas & bell pepper). Season with salt & pepper to taste. (I add a slice of cheese – my own style of cooking caldereta). Simmer for another couple of minutes or just until the peas are cooked.
• Serve with jasmine rice.

Note: you may substitute the beef meat with Lamb or chicken.

Halabos

Talk about seafoods and shrimp will definitely one of the top 5 mentions.  It’s one of my favourite, however I do not eat that often as it is high in cholesterol content. But whenever I cook, halabos is the easiest way to do it.  All you need for this recipe are:

• > 1/2 kg medium sized shrimps, cleaned
• > 100 ml sprite, at room temperature
• > 3 tablespoons EVOO (extra-virgin olive oil)
• > 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• > Salt & pepper

 

 

• Put the shrimp in a shallow pan, add the sprite, sprinkle with some salt & pepper.
• Cook for about 3 minutes in the liquid or until the shrimp turns pinkish.  Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside.
• Remove the remaining liquid in the pan.  Add the EVOO and sauté the garlic. (Butter can be used instead of EVOO but I just feel healthy using the latter)
• Put back the shrimp and sauté for another 3 minutes.
• Serve with tomato slices or soy sauce with a bit of lemon juice.

Saint Peter’s Fish with Coconut Milk (Ginataang Tilapia)

I can’t remember where exactly I learned this dish..I guess its either in my Uncle Jess' house when I stayed there during my college days or from Ate Baby (my landlady in KNL – Diliman, Q.C.) :)

It’s a dish I learned while away from home…then shared to my family when I went back…and they love it!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 kg tilapia, cleaned & sliced into desired portion
• 5 cloves garlic, pealed
• 1 medium ginger, pealed & julienne sliced (this helps eradicate the ‘bad’ smell of the fish)
• 2 spring onions, cut into 3 inches length
• 5 medium sized eggplants, cut length-wise into quarters
• 1/8 kg string beans (or more if you desire), cut into around 3 inches long
• Optional: 1 long green pepper / siling haba (for a bit of spice)
• Other veggies you may add: 1 bundle of pechay (separate the stalks with the leaves; cut stalks into half)
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/2 vegetable bullion cube (fish cube may do)
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar (or lemon juice)
• 1/4 cup water

Preparation /Cooking:

• Arrange the fish slices in a casserole. Put in the garlic cloves and ginger. Sprinkle some salt & pepper. Add the vinegar and water. Cover, bring to boil and simmer in low fire until all the water has nearly evaporated.
• Pour in the coconut milk. Simmer for another 5 minutes.
• Next, drop the bullion cube and all the vegetables except the spring onions. If pechay is among your veggies, put first the stalks as they take longer time to cook. When the vegetables are nearly done, add the pechay leaves and spring onions.
• Lastly, check the taste. Season with salt if necessary.
• Garnish, serve with rice.

For guests with saltier taste, prepare fish sauce squeezed with a bit of lemon juice.

Note: You may substitute the tilapia with crab. All you need to do is remove the vinegar from the ingredients and just cook the same way as instructed.

Roasted chicken with vegetables

I have been planning since long time to do a trial of this recipe, and last week, even though I was not quite feeling well, I managed to carry out my first experiment.

Don’t have fresh chicken in the house, so I asked hayati to buy one in the nearby supermarket. Sad to say, without much clear instruction from my side, the vendor had cut the chicken into pieces.

Yet I decided to push through with roasting method, but instead of the whole chicken, I have it in pieces.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 kg chicken, skin removed
• 1/2 kg potatoes, cut into chunks, almost same size as the chicken
• 2 carrots, sliced into chunks
• 2 medium onions, cut into quarters
• 3 cloves of garlic
• Salt & pepper
• Extra virgin Olive oil (EVOO)

Put all the vegetables and chicken in a roasting pan. Dash with some salt, pepper and around 2 tablespoons of EVOO. Toast until all gets coated with the oil.

Cook in a 220-250 degrees C preheated oven for an hour. Serve & enjoy.

My roasting lesson actually turned out okay, but will do it again some other time with a whole chicken instead.