What's Cooking EDF? #4

[SamIAm]

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Would appreciate if you could share your recipe.

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This is Cook's Illustrated's recipe. CI is such a good resource, I seriously recommend fans of the magazine or the show (America's Test Kitchen) check out the website. It's $15/yr for every recipe they've ever published.

Chicken Tikka
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon table salt
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts , trimmed of fat
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (see note above)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion , diced fine (about 1 1/4 cups)
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 fresh serrano chile , ribs and seeds removed, flesh minced (see note above)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon garam masala (see note above)
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

See Illustrations Below: Chicken Tikka Masala

1. FOR THE CHICKEN: Combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with spice mixture, pressing gently so mixture adheres. Place chicken on plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes. In large bowl, whisk together yogurt, oil, garlic, and ginger; set aside.

2. FOR THE SAUCE: Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until light golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, chile, tomato paste, and garam masala; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, sugar, and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream and return to simmer. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.

3. While sauce simmers, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from heating element) and heat broiler. Using tongs, dip chicken into yogurt mixture (chicken should be coated with thick layer of yogurt) and arrange on wire rack set in foil-lined rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Discard excess yogurt mixture. Broil chicken until thickest parts register 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer and exterior is lightly charred in spots, 10 to 18 minutes, flipping chicken halfway through cooking.

4. Let chicken rest 5 minutes, then cut into 1-inch chunks and stir into warm sauce (do not simmer chicken in sauce). Stir in cilantro, adjust seasoning with salt, and serve.

[ElSapo]

One of the best things about working from home is that I'm no longer eating crap around the Rosslyn metro station in Arlington, Va.

[pokah5]

ugh... i eat at the chicago metra station food court 3 out of the 5 work days.... i envy you.

[dogsballs]

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One possibility is that the scallops might be a bit too "wet" when you throw them in the skillet. I believe that this can be caused by two things - not drying them properly before seasoning and cooking, or buying scallops that are not completely fresh. Fixing the first problem is easy - just make sure that you pat the scallops dry with a paper towel. The freshness might also have alot to do with the browning you are seeing and the overall blandness - I believe that scallops that have either been previously frozen or are a little older than ideal can easily become waterlogged. I could be wrong about this, but I think I read it somewhere (and it seems to make sense)
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Scallops are sold by weight and the wholesalers freeze them with added water to increase weight. The side effect is it seriously reduces quality. There are laws about how much weight of water can be added. The best are when these middlemen haven't added water. Otherwise, thaw em out and pat em as dry as possible on kitchen roll.

[dogsballs]

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Pan Roasted Fresh snapper (dry filleted) on a roasted capsicum sauce with fresh mayonnaise and a side of spinach with roasted hazelnuts (and apple cider vinaigrette). Plating is way too busy, in hindsight i would serve the spinach and salad in a separate bowl.




This was the first time i've filleted a fish on my own but it turned out ok.

Red Wine Syrup Poached Quinces on overnight Bircher Muesli w/ roasted hazelnuts, yoghurt, honey, etc.


This was ok but a bit too sweet for breakfast.

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Looks good. Suggestion; don't chop off the tail next time. To remove the flesh from the skin (after you've taken most of the filet off the spine/guts/head, use a blunt or slightly blunt knife & run it up along the skin/flesh boundary (having the filet still attached to the fish helps here - for gripping the narrow end). A sharp knife will cut right through, ie it can't "discern" between skin/flesh; a blunter knife will just run right along next to the skin without cutting through the skin, hopefully perfectly taking the filet off the skin. When I finish a fish I have two filets and a carcass with all the skin still attached as two large flaps on each side; only attached at just the base of the tail.

[BK_]

This was a huge improvement over our previous fries attempts. The key blanching the fries for a couple of minutes after they had been cut and before putting them into the oven. The aioli was just some mayo, garlic, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Just add some of each until it tastes right. So good.

[BK_]

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/232478

Unfortunately, living in a Manhattan apartment, we didn't have access to a grill. So after slicing the raw eggplant, heirloom tomatoes, and zucchini, I grilled them in batches on a stovetop grill pan, seasoning them with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Next, I made a sort of pesto, pureeing basil, lemon basil, olive oil, and some sundried tomatoes, adding salt, pepper, and chopped garlic. I spread this mixture on the vegetables, then baked them in stacks for about 10 minutes. Slices of cherry tomatoes, basil, and some grated pecorino served as the final touches.
This dish could have been more flavorful - I would use more of the pesto, and possibly some vinaigrette next time - but overall it was still very enjoyable.

[pokah5]

i'm not too big on eggplant, but i looooooooooooove zucchini...

fries look delicious.

[DcifrThs]

i wish i took pictures but for my brother's bday i made him the following:

1 bottle corona
about 8-10 tbs extra virgin olive oil
2 lemons
2 limes
a big handful of basil finely chopped
frank's extra hot hot sauce
salt & pepper.

mix all those together and marinade salt & peppered chicken thighs in it.

grill chicken thighs, liberally applying marinade while cooking.

get multi grain bun and grill till toasty.

take 2 chicken thighs and put on bun, splash a bit of the frank's extra hot hot sauce on them.

then take 2 nice slices of tomato, 3-4 circular slices of goat cheese and 1/4 avacado (sliced thin) and assemble sandwich.

absolutely freaking delicious.

Barron

[BK_]

This sauce was excellent- it easily was one of the top 3 we have ever made (along with the savory cherry sauce and the blackberry sauce from last week) It was really really easy too.

The steak was marinated in a dry rub of sumac, salt and pepper, then pan-seared to a perfect rare/medium-rare. Meanwhile, we let a bottle of pomegranate juice reduce on medium-high heat along with some sugar and a pinch of salt. When the steak was just about ready, we sauteed some shallots in butter, deglazed the skillet with port, simmered for a few minutes, and added the steak drippings. Next we added the pomegranate reduction, some fresh lemon juice, and a tablespoon of butter (half of what the recipe called for, but it worked perfectly). On the side are some nice(though highly overpriced) microgreens from Union Square, dressed in a simple balsamic vinaigrette.

This was one of our favorite (and most photogenic) meals I think.

You can find the original recipe here: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/235757