Getting that smoky flavor...

   I love the smoky flavor of meats--however, I always disliked the process of using smoking chips and having to monitor the process. Yesterday, I went to William and Sonoma and picked up a Polyscience smoker. Afterward, I went to Wholepaycheck and picked up some halibut and New Zealand lamb.

          I got home, and put the rack of lamb with herbs and garlic into the sous vide at 146 degrees for two hours. In the meantime, I prepped some vegetables for my quinoa and prepared the asparagus for roasting. Next, smoked the halibut. I prepped the halibut with salt and pepper  and let me smoker do the work. I chose apple wood smoke, and put the smoke in a container with the halibut and covered it for 20 minutes.

    Next, I put the halibut in the sous vide. Also, I got the quinoa going on the stovetop. In 30 minutes, I put the asparagus in the oven to roast. I also, made my version of salsa verde---fresh parsley, basil, capers, lemon juice, garlic, dijon mustard and salt and pepper.

      The fish was oh so smoky--it had rich smoky flavor--unbelieveable and so easy. The salsa verde acidity cut through the tender halibut. The lamb was moist and flavorful and of course the quinoa was great as always. I matched this with a French Red Burgundy. A wonderful meal.

Sometime you just need a steak and of course wine as well...

           I was getting off work, and was wondering what to cook. It then hit me---Steak. I stopped by the grocery store and picked up some porterhouses and potatoes. I drove how thinking how I was going to prepare them. It was getting late, so sous vide was out. I decided to grill them in butter with salt and pepper.  I grilled my steak medium rare, and medium for the rest of my family. Logan takes great pleasure in eating meat from the bone. For the potatoes,  I put bacon in the pan, and peeled and sliced them 1/8 of an inch. I waited until the bacon was crisp, and added the potatoes, sliced onions, fresh rosemary, sage and crumbled bacon. I let them cook for 16 minutes, and added garlic. I also cooked a side dish of peas. The steak was tender, but I have to say I have been spoiled with the sous vide. The potatoes were great--nice tender, with smoky flavor.

The wine that was served was a Karma, 2006, Cabernet Sauvignon. It smooth, leather taste, with hints of raspberry. It matched great. Dinner was great---sometimes a steak just hits the spot.

Dinner like Hemingway

       Last year in Spain, I was fortunate enough to visit Valencia and had lunch at La Pepica. I had paella, of course and this was a restaurant that Ernest Hemingway used to visit. Fast forward to now, I also in my attempt to make paella. I first start with sliced onions, red capsicum sauteed in with Spanish sausage. I remove the sausage and add chicken, and fish--in this case mahi-mahi. I put in the rice, and added the chicken broth along with a healthy dose of saffron. I added salt and pepper to taste.
        About 10 minutes later, I added the peas and waited about 6 minutes and added the shrimp. The shrimp must be added last so that they do not overcook.  I tasted again and added salt and pepper. I added Italian Parsley for garnish. It was great. It had a very deep yellow color, and tasted incredible. I matched this with a Spanish Rosado wine, from Rioja. Great meal and conversation.

Hailbut--wow

 Wow--I have never made fish in the sous vide--but this time I did halibut--it was soooooooo tender. I put it in the sous vide bag with butter,fresh garden dill, salt and pepper . I drizzled lemon juice on it. I also made a risotto. I took basil and kale from my garden and pureed it in chicken broth. I used this with to make the risotto. I used white wine, and manchego cheese in the risotto. The asparagus, I roasted in olive oil with salt and pepper. Wonderful meal. Logan ate momma halibut--oh well.

Continuing with the trip around the world...

        I realized I had been cooking dishes from around the world. I started in India, next was Bologna, afterward, went to the US for ribs, made a  jump across the pond to France and Spain. Now, I have went to Morocco.

    I picked up some lamb at wholepaycheck. I looked at my spice rack and decided to make lamb tagine.  I made this over my vegetables quinoa. I served this with a wine from St Emillion.

Duck l'Orange, homemade macaroni and cheese, and Pea Ravioli a la Ferran Adria

      Today, was the bold day---I picked up a duck  decided at wholepaycheck and decided to make duck l'Orange. Logan grabbed a box of macaroni and cheese at wholepaycheck, and I said no Logan--I will make this from scratch. I also decided to try a molecular gastronomy recipe. I was able to bring back the ingredients from San Diego. I tried a pea ravioli a la Ferran Adria.

     The duck came out great and the sauce was not too sweet. The macaroni and cheese was good--I used cheddar, swiss, and gouda cheese. The pea ravioli was so-so. It tasted fine, I couldn't get the right shape. I served it with a 2008 Domaine Chandon Pinot Meunier. It pared well--nice mellow taste, with a fruity taste and raspberry finish.

Ribs, ribs, ribs

  My brother in law loves ribs--so today was ribs. I made a rib rub courtesy of Alton Brown---changed it by adding more cayenne pepper. I put them in the sous vide for 12 hours. Afterward, I put them under the broiler for 5 minutes and covered them with BBQ sauce (vinegar based sauce). I made a warm potato salad and a side of green beans.

I served with a Cabernet from California, Karma. The meat was so tender.

Indian Dinner

      Last week in San Diego, I went by Cost-Plus in Gaslamp. I love going to the store since they have s particular type of hot sauce I like name Sontava. While we we there, I naturally looked around and found some spices (juniper berries, mace, and sumac). I also found Indian serving dishes as well as tiffins. Indian lunch-pale like. Check out this article: http://www.bpic.co.uk/articles/dabawallas.htm

   I made tandoori chicken in the sous vide for two hours at 149 deg and grilled afterward. I also made mahi-mahi vindaloo (Maya Kaimal) and brown rice. I used cilantro to garnish and served with  Costco naan. It came out great. the tandoori chicken was tender, with a touch of spicy. The vindaloo was loaded with fresh vegetables, like spinach, onion, and carrots nand went well with the brown rice's nutty flavor. Great Meal

Donovan's Steakhouse, La Jolla

           We were lucky to take a trip to San Diego last week. I went to attend a work conference and Kim and Logan came along. we first went to Legoland--wow---Logan went crazy. We then moved to La Jolla, and had dinner at Donovan's Steakhouse. The Donovan's chopped salad was good--it needed a little more acidity.

     I ordered the filet mignon and Kim ordered the steak and shrimp. I have to say--it was good. We usually go to Morton's in Honolulu fairly regularly and this steak was great. Logan had the macaroni. The wine was a 2006 Hitching Post 2007 Syrah.

Making Tortellini

     Sorry for the delay in posting. Last week I decided to make tortellini with ricotta, herbs, and spinach. I used a shortcut by using wonton wrappers. I filled them with the filling and folded in a triangle, and folded them back.

    I prepared the filling, by putting sauteing spinach, with salt. I let it cooled and chopped it up. I mixes oregano, garlic, ricotta cheese, and chopped spinach. Next, I placed a small amount i the middle of the wonton, and folded the wonton into a triangle. I folded the two ends of the triangle towards the back.

Lastly, I boiled the wontons until they floated and put them in a saute pan with the simmering pesto sauce. I added romano cheese and served. It is fantastic.