Fish-Fragrant Eggplants

Fish-fragrant flavor is one of Sichuan´s famous 23 flavors and an overall Chinese classic. As my favorite Chinese food guru Fuchsia Dunlop further elaborates in her Land Of Plenty:

... based on the seasonings used in traditional fish cookery, this flavor combines salty, sweet, sour and spicy notes, with the heady fragrance of garlic, ginger and scallions. The core seasoning is pickled red chilies, either on their own or mixed with fava beans in Sichuanese chili bean paste, which give fish-fragrant dishes their distinctive orange-red hue...

There are many dishes I remember ordering that were "fishy" yet vegetarian, such as fish-fragrant pork slivers (did I say vegetarian? :-) , fish-fragrant Tofu or my absolute favorite all-time winner:

FISH FRAGRANT EGGPLANT:
(鱼香茄子 - yu xiang qie zi)

• 450 g purple eggplants *
  
• 100 g minced meat (or reconstituted soy mince)
  
• salt
• oil (+ a splash of sesame oil for final touch)
  
• 2 tbsp Sichuanese chili bean paste (豆瓣酱 -dou ban jiang)
• 2 tsp fresh grated ginger
  
• 3 tsp pressed garlic
• 1/2 cup veggie broth
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp cornstarch
  
• 2 tsp rice wine
• 3 scallions, green parts only

* NOTE: This dish consists of a sauce and fried cubed veggies, so feel free to experiment. Try cauliflower, zucchini or squash, cubed tofu or even hard-boiled eggs.

Cut the eggplants length-ways into 4 quarters and each part further into 4 even chunks. Sprinkle with salt and leave 30 minutes in a colander to loose some of the juices. Wash well and pat-dry with towel.
In the wok, heat the oil until it begins to smoke. Add the eggplants and fry until golden. Set aside.

Heat another tablespoon in the wok, add the mince, chili bean paste and stir-fry for couple of seconds; then add the garlic, ginger and fry until fragrant.

Add the stock together with the sugar, soy sauce and let simmer for a few minutes.
Add the eggplants and the scallions.

Dissolve the cornstarch mixture in a tablespoon of water and add this mixture to the wok. Add the vinegar and cook until thickened. Remove from fire, add the sesame oil and serve over rice.


This one goes to Chinese Take-Out Party hosted by Mochachocolate Rita. I cannot wait to see the round-up and the lucky-drawn :-)

Chinese Food Rocks! Here are some more recipes from the Land of Chopsticks - the real stuff, as taught and experienced while living in Beijing.

Arusuvai - Guess The Secret Ingredients!

About a month ago, Pel of Elaichi Et Cetera was about to cook from his secret ingredient he received in Arusuvai Friendship Chain started by Lathamma of The Yum Blog. He asked us to guess which dish he had in mind. I guessed the "ma" part of it. This innocent "ma" won me a pack of wonderful goodies couple of weeks later. Since it was sent overseas, Pel had to reveal what the ingredients were. But, I thought- just because I know it doesn't mean that everyone else should know. So here is what I got, now GUESS:

1. A spice mix for coffee. Any ideas? And it is not chai masala, that´s for tea :-)

2. A wonderfully fragrant spice mix... Salt and pepper of Indian cooking...

3. Tiny little "deadly" smoked chilies. Any guesses on which type these are?

The fourth "secret" ingredient - smoked dried chipotles has been cooked from as the first.

When I received this beautiful parcel full of these spicy goodies, I went to Tompa:

- Baby, look. One of my blogging friends sent me these smoked chilies. Here smell em, they really stink! (I said pressing the bag of chilies right against his nose)
- (Jumping away). Geez! Toss them right away. They re not good. Moldy or something... (wiping his nose off)
- They re dried, I am sure they re fine (defending my treasure)
- You re not afraid about some strange people sending you something poisonous, are you? - Honeeeeey! I am sure they re fine. It s a part of this friendship chain.... - Yeah, some g-guy sending you presents (shaking his head, walking away, jealously)

(Sorry, Pel :-)...

Two hours later, I yell out of the kitchen, Tompaaaaaa, lunch is readyeeeee... He obediently walks in with a big smile on his face: "Wow, what s smelling so good, mama?"

(Thanks, Pel :-)...

Verdict: We ate it, we loved it and (most importantly) we survived ;-) Long Live Arusuvai!

SMOKED CHIPOTLE ADOBO SAUCE:

• 10 whole smoked Chipotle chilies
• 5 tbsp white vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
  
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
  
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp oregano
  
• 1/2 tsp salt

Mix all the ingredients together with 3 cups water in a pan, bring to boil, cover with a lid, lower the heat on minimum and let simmer for 2 hours or until reduced to 1 cup.
Set off the fire, transfer to a blender and process to a paste.

Serve with any cous-cous or rice dish or toss a generous spoonful of the sauce with stir-fried vegetables as in our lunch today:

I stir-fried some onions, garlic, added a handful of frozen peas, corn and broccoli, mixed together with black beans and some soy mince and finally added a huge tablespoon of adobo sauce. Mixed all well, garnished with chopped basil and ate on a bed of fresh green salad.

HAVE FUN GUESSING THE SECRET INGREDIENTS 1, 2 AND 3! I will come back with correct answers soon.

Chickpea Curry

Chana Curry was the very first dish I made after deciding to start cooking Indian at home. The dish looked super easy to make, but mainly, I was lurked in by the amazing combo of spices - the sweet ones (cloves, cardamom, cinnamon) and the spicy ones (cumin, chili or bay leaf). I was convinced it was going to turn out just fine, but honestly speaking, I was amazed by HOW well the curry turned out. I know it looks like a helluva lot of ingredients to bother, but trust me, this is the best dish to start your curry making carrier:

CHICKPEA CURRY:
(Chana / chole)
Recipe adapted from Camellia Punjabi´s 50 Great Curries of India

serves: 6 hungry diners

• 250 g dried chickpeas
• 3 large onions
• 2 cm fresh ginger
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 big red chili
  
• 250 g tomatoes
• 2 black cardamom *
• 8 cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 bay leaf
• 15 peppercorns
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• salt
• pinch of asafoetida
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1/2 tsp ground chili powder
• 3/4 tsp amchoor (dried mango powder)
• fresh coriander leaves (to garnish)
  

* Note: Cooking the chickpeas together with whole spices is a really great method of absorbing all the flavors immediately, while cooking. However, at the end, the spices stick to the chickpeas which can be unpleasant during the meal (biting into cardamom pod is not particularly my favorite experience). The easiest way to avoid this is to make a pouch (a "tea bag") from a piece of thick cheese cloth with all the whole spices inside, cooking that together with chickpeas and water, so once cooked, straining becomes a matter of three seconds.

Soak the chickpeas overnight in 5 cups water.
In a blender, process 1 of the onions together with the garlic, fresh chili and ginger. Chop the tomatoes and the remaining 2 onions.

Transfer the soaked chickpeas (together with the soaking water) to a big casserole and add one of the chopped onions, all of the whole spices,* salt and asafoetida powder. Bring to boil, cover and cook for about 50 minutes or until the chickpeas are soft. Set off the fire, drain, reserving the cooking liquid.

In a heavy pan, heat up the oil and brown the third onion. Add the purreed onion-garlic-ginger-chili paste and sautee for about 10 minutes. Add the powdered spices and cook for another minute.

At last, add the chopped tomatoes and cook until they resemble a thick sauce. Mix in the chickpeas, stir well, so each of them is well coated, add the cooking liquid and cook until well absorbed. Adjust the salt to taste and garnish with coriander leaves.


Great job and it didn't even take so much time, eh? Now with this wedding of flavors, next time someone screams: "Waiter, there is something in my... Pulses", just nod your head and say, : "True, tons of spices..." This one is for you Joanna of Cook Sister :-)

(We had ours with rice topped with Peanut Podi and Vegetable Berbere )

Shrimp Salad with Tomato Raita Dressing

I have always enjoyed a small bowl of raita with my fiery hot curries. I loved the way the yoghurt cooled the heat in my throat and kept me ready for another bite.
Yet in summer, I felt like indulging myself in such mind-blowing ritual every night was definitely not good for my shapes. So I figured out another way of enjoying the sensational yoghurt mix - as a dressing to a vegetable salad.

There are several ways of making raita. For a basic one, whisk some yoghurt with salt, pepper and cumin powder. Should you find it too sour, add a bit sugar. Then add chopped cilantro and sprinkle with paprika powder or chilli. Raitas can be further combined with chopped veggies, such as boiled potato, tomato, onion, grilled eggplant, blanched spinach with raisins or dates. Ramki of One Page Cookbooks compiled 1001 Raita - a wonderful one-page matrix of different raita ingredeitns and flavors. My favorite one is:

TOMATO RAITA

• 1 tomato, chopped
• salt, pepper
• 1/4 tsp cumin powder
• 1/4 onion
• 1 tsp fresh coriander leaves
• walnuts, chopped
  
• sweet paprika powder (try the smoked kind)
• chilli powder

Whisk the yoghurt with spices, add a little water, if desired. Combine with the rest of ingredients and sprinkle with paprika powder. Garnish with cilantro.

Raita makes a wonderful accompaniment to hot curries as well as cooled salads.

How to make raita different every time:

- Try chopped baked potatoes or chopped fresh cucumber instead of tomato and walnuts.
- This raita can also be topped with a tablespoon of date chutney.
- Right before serving, enrich the raita with some tadka.

Here is one with a simple vegetable salad (tomato, lettuce leaves, cucumber and olives) topped with shrimps (roasted with garlic, salt and black pepper).

My healthy contribution to you, Andrew. Nice to see you hosting Waiter, there is something in my Salad. I am looking forward to the round-up.

Kufta Curry Sauce

... Tompa´s absolute most favorite one. Each time I am making kufta (any kind) I always hear him suggesting: "...And we need to have that kofta curry sauce with it..."

You would imagine that I sigh and mumble off to the kitchen, but I actually don't. For some simple reason. This gravy is so easy and quick to make that one cannot complain. Ready in less than 25 minutes, this spicy sauce is all you need to flavor up your kufta balls ;-)

I intended to keep this recipe a secret until I have a good reason to post it.
And then I got two:

1. I got an e-mail from my reader Aparna Krishnan wondering: "...if you can give me a nice easy recipe for a dip? A dip for Zucchini Koftas?" Since it is always my utmost goal to satisfy every recipe request I receive, I was more than ready to publish one.

2. And then, round about the same time, as I read about Grindless Gravies event hosted by Sra of When My Soup Came Alive I knew I just HAD to post this one... She was basically asking for this one.

KOFTA CURRY SAUCE:
(kopta karai)

prep time: 45 minutes
serves : 2

• 2 tbsp oil
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp chopped ginger
• 3 garlic cloves
• 100 ml yoghurt
• 2 tbsp puréed tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp fennel powder
• 1/2 tsp garam masala
• 3 green cardamom
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• pinch of salt
• chopped coriander leaves
• 100 ml water

Heat the oil in a wok, fry the cumin seeds, chopped garlic and ginger until it slightly turns color. Lower the heat and slowly, add the yoghurt. Mix well, add the spices (except for the coriander leaves) and salt to taste. Add the water, bring to boil, cover and let simmer over the low heat for 20 - 25 minutes, or until the sauce reduces by half and thickens. Five minutes towards the end, add the chopped coriander leaves.

Add the kofta of your choice, coat with the sauce and let cook for another 5 minutes. Serve hot with rice.

Aglio Olio e Pickled Jalapeno

To be completely honest, I am not always up for pasta dishes. For one simple irrelevant fact that they usually come with rich heavy cream, cheese or meat sauce. That is it for eating out. As for home cooking, this is a different story. Tompa is the chef when it comes to cooking pasta (hope you all have tried his awsomely awsome mushroom red wine sauce). But now that he is gone to Japan and I am sitting here, jealously alone, I became all of a sudden, pasta-homesick.

Not having much to do, but being lazy enough to go to the store, I decided to go for the simplest, but delish Italian Classic :

AGLIO OLIO e PICKLED JALAPENO:
(Garlic Oil And ...)

spice ladder: ***

prep time: 15 minutes
serves: 1 lonely soul

• pasta of your choice
• 3 garlic cloves
• olive oil
• 2 pickled jalapeno peppers
• salt

Cook the pasta according to the instructions (you want it Al Dente, meaning "just done", not soggy and not raw). Slice the garlic and chop the jalapenos (with some liquid, too, no need to squeeze it out). In a wok, heat the olive oil (be generous, that s all you re getting pretty much, plain pasta with flavored oil) and roast the jalapenos together with the garlic. Add salt and once ready, toss it all with pasta. Super easy, super quick.

(I usually add chopped seasonal veggie, like this time it was zucchini).

Here are some tips on how to enrich the basic sauce:

1. Use chopped seasonal veggies (like I did on the pic above), such as brocolli florets, zucchini or grilled eggplant.
2. Experiment with salt and herb mixtures (again, like I did on the pic above). I usually use VEGETA - "vegetable salt". It is a richer alternative to plain salt. Or, sprinkle some of Herb De Provence on top of it for extra herby flavor.
3. Dont hesistate to put some parmesan cheese or fried bacon bits for the meat eaters.
4. Go with fresh herbs - basil, thyme, ... they all work well.

This one goes to Ruth of Once Upon A Feast for her Presto Pasta Nights (lovely roundups there)... I know this is not the most ellaborate one, but let´s call it simle, but great...

African Spicy Harissa Chili Sauce

Harissa is a simple chili sauce widely used in Moroccan, Tunisian, Lebanese or Algerian cuisine. I have to admit myself, that this sauce is probably the one that I make most often, probably because (1) it is ready in no-time, (2) there are countless ways of using it and (3) a simple reason - everybody loves it. There are many varieties of this sauce available, all depending on their usage or spiciness, however they all have couple of ingredients in common: Chilies, garlic, olive oil, coriander seeds, cumin and salt. I would like to present the most traditional one and some varieties on usage on the bottom:


AFRICAN HARISSA SAUCE traditional:

spice ladder: *****

prep time: 10 minutes
makes: 1/2 cup

• 12 dried chilies
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 5 tbsp olive oil

Remove the green tops from the chilies and soak them in hot water for 30 minutes. Meantime dry fry the seeds and crush them in a mortar.
Grind garlic together with salt, add the chilies and process to a smooth paste.
Add the crushed spices and mix well. Finally, add the oil, a drop by drop and mix thoroughly.

This is a very basic chili sauce. No you can add anything your little heart desire to make it 'your-style'. Here are some suggestions:

If you like milder version:

1. Substitute 1 bell pepper (capsicum) for every 4 chilies. Simply roast them, skin them and mash them.
2. Increase the amount of salt, you will naturally use less of the paste.
3. Add a tablespoon of pureed tomatoes to the paste.

Here are some regional tips for different flavor:

1. Add a teapoon of cinnamon (Jordan)...
2. ...a sprig of rosemary (Marocco)...
3. ...or some mint leaves (Tunisia).

USAGE:

Just as there are countless recipes for harissa out there, there are tons of recipes and ways to use them.

Here are my simple general suggestions:

• HARISSA COUSCOUS:

Wok-fry some chopped onion and veggies, add harissa, cous-cous or bulgur cracked wheat, add enough water to cover all the ingredients and let boil, until the water absorbs into the grains.

• HARISSA MARINADE:

Mix some harissa with plain yogurt and rub onto meats or veggies and let marinade for couple of hours.

• HARISSA DIP:

Add some pureed tomatoes to the harissa, sprinkle with cilantro or mint leaves and serve as a dip.


... And some more tips on how to use harissa.
I strongly recomend that you just keep on experimenting with Harissa and let me knwo what happened.

Update Feb 20th - My harissa picture made it to a cooking software. Read more about this pleasant news.

Hot And Sour Chinese Chili Sauce

It has been a while since I made my own real Chinese chili sauce. My recent kitchen activities has been focused mostly on Indian food. But now that Nupur asked for a 麻婆豆腐 ma po dou fu recipe in her Saturday´s article, (did you get the one I sent you, btw?), I somehow got a sudden urge to dust off my cooking Chinese skills. So just a couple of minutes ago, I made a jar of goes-well-with-whatever:

HOT AND SOUR CHINESE CHILI SAUCE:
(酸辣酱) Suan La Jiang

spice ladder: ***

prep time: 10 minutes
makes: 100 ml

• 5 tbsp lime juice
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp chili flakes
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp salt

In a bowl, mix in lime juice with sugar. In a small pan, bring it to boil. I microwaved it for 1 minute instead, because it saves time and there was not that much of sauce anyway. Let cool down partially. Add salt, chili flakes and pressed garlic and mix well.

Store in an airtight container.
There are zillion of ways to use the sauce, e.g. as a:

• Dipping sauce - to any kind of tempura (probably not to my fiery hot Beer Batter Stuffed Chili Pepper Tempura) or spring rolls, or on omelet.

• Glaze or marinade - for firm veggies or Tofu.
  

• Stir-fry sauce - simply add a few tablespoons to stir-fried vegetables.

For today´s lunch, I tried Lisa´s Gobi Manchurian, whose blog I discovered only recently. I loved the recipe as soon as I saw the beautiful picture. Here is my (un-deep-fried) version of her recipe for my reference:

• 250 g cauliflower
• 1/4 tsp white pepper powder
• salt to taste
  
• 3 tbsp oil
  
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1'' piece ginger
• 2 green chilies, chopped
• Hot and sweet sauce (combine the following)
  
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 4 tbsp Hot and Sour Chinese Chili Sauce
• 1/2 tsp vinegar
• splash of Worcestershire sauce
• spring onion, as a garnish
  

Wash the cauliflower and separate into florets. Sprinkle with some salt and white pepper powder. Fry in a wok, in 2 tbsp oil.

Meantime, heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil in a pan, add chopped onion, green chilies, minced garlic and ginger. Saute over the high flame for 5 minutes until they turn slightly tender. Lower the heat and mix in Hot and Sweet sauce. Saute again for 3 minutes.
Add the fried cauliflower and mix them so all the florets are covered with the sauce. Remove from flame and garnish with chopped green onion and coriander leaves. When serving, add a final splash of Worcestershire sauce onto each plate. Serve with rice.

Ok, mine isn't as gorgeous as Lisa´s, but.... I fried the florets in almost no oil, so they turned slightly black (= crunchy) and the sauce is home-made, so naturally it´s missing all the artificial fancy red colorings :(
This one was very spicy and simply fantastic. Thank you Lisa for a wonderful recipe. I will definitely be making this one, again :)

Red Wine Mushroom Pasta Sauce

Ever since my B-day (ok, not such a long time ago) I was treated for a wonderful dinner by Tom, again. Having nothing else left in the fridge, but a bunch of grandpa aged mushrooms, plus my lack of creativity made my 'sambo' (a Swedish expression for a 'live-together partner') take his good ol´spatula out of the secret drawer again :) ... His kitchen leftover treats always turn out to be the creme de la creme, yet somehow in a spicy way :)

So here is my last night reward for being lazy:














RED WINE MUSHROOM PASTA SAUCE:

serves: 2
prep time: 20 minutes

spice ladder: **

• 3 tbsp oil
• 4 cloves garlic
• 200g mushrooms (champinones)
• 1 tsp tomato paste
  
• 1 bottle nice red wine (we used Les Jamelles)*
  
• 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp dried marjoram
• 1 tbsp dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 generous tsp chili flakes
  
• salt
• black pepper
• 12 dark olives (or 50g frozen green peas)

* Note: Ok, you probably need no more than a 'shot' of red wine for cooking, but the rest is a nice cherry on the top... and matches perfectly the dish :)

We cook in a wok, because stuff never burns and is easy to toss around. So, heat the oil in a wok, add sliced garlic and quick stir-fry it (be careful not to burn it, it will taste bitter). Add sliced mushrooms and sprinkle with salt (salt makes them loose water and saute in their own juices). Add the the tomato paste and wine (a nice splash, not the whole bottle !!!), Worcestershire sauce, herbs, chili flakes and black pepper. Let simmer for 10 - 15 minutes. Towards the end, add peas or olives (or both).
Should look like this:


















When the sauce is ready, mix in the cooked pasta (we love the black sepia variety, but we mix in a bit of regular ones, so it is not a black dish all the way through). Toss well, so the pasta is fully coated with the sauce and let cook for a minute, so the flavors absorb.


















I apologize for the quality of taken pictures (I usually take some nice ones, right?) Therefore, I am convinced that it was the WINE,... NOT ME :)

This is my contribution to the 'Waiter, There´s Something In My ... SAUCE! Food Event run by a wine and food lover Andrew of Spittoon Extra (Hope I tickled your both passions with this one ;-)

Thai Green Leaf Stir-Fry Sauce

This is my personal number one recipe when it comes down to the green leaf vegetables. I was taught this one by my Thai friend Ying more than three years ago. However, it still is a frequent side dish on my dinning plate.

This traditional stir-fry sauce is super easy to prepare and will take only a couple of seconds to make. Easy as it is, delicious as it should be:

Spice ladder: ***

prep time: 5 minutes
yields: 2 people

(clockwise as shown on the picture)

• 2 cloves garlic
  
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 fresh chili
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce

+ 100 g green leaf vegetables

As I already mentioned, you can use any kind of green leaf veggies, you can get: spinach, mangold, morning glory, bak choi, jungle veggies, even parboiled broccoli or iceberg salad.

My absolute favorite is the very traditional Pak boong fai daeng, a dish that uses morning glory (water spinach, swamp cabbage or 'pak boong' in Thai) as the main green leaf ingredient.

PAK BOONG FAI DAENG:
(oyster sauce morning glory stir-fry)

Cut the ends of the morning glory and wash. Cut in three (leaves, stems included). Splash oyster sauce, say sauce and some water over it. Set aside.
Peel the garlic.
Wash the chilies and make a slit in the middle.
Heat oil in a wok, add garlic, chilies and fry for a minute or until they crack and turn brown. Add the morning glory, continue frying. If you like your dishes milder, add a teaspoon of sugar. Once the leaves shrank and the stems are soft, you are done.

Update (July 15th):
Once served, sprinkle white sesame seed.
Add a couple of fermented soy beans in the oyster and soy sauce mix.