Pork & Cabbage Potstickers

I love these! The first time I made them was under my little big brother's tutelage. (He may be bigger than me but I am older therefore he is still my little big baby brother.) It was so easy and fast! I thought they would take much longer to make.  But as the wrappers are store bought the entire process moves along very quickly. My brother makes various kinds with meat, shrimp, vegetables ... he is very creative with his and makes various dipping sauces for his dumplings. My dumplings are just a simple dumpling - as I am just a simple girl - but I played about to find the right balance of ground pork, cabbage and seasoning for my taste. In my ever so humble opinion this is not too heavy, not too light - it is just riiiight. The flavour is soft and full but not rich or complex. Prepare your ground meat mixture then fill a dumpling, quickly pan fry it, taste it and adjust your seasonings to suit yourself before you go any further. When I make these I make about seventy at a time so I really do not want to discover when I go to serve them that I wished I had added more salt! As I fill my wrappers I lay the uncooked dumplings on a sheet of plastic wrap on a cookie sheet. When I have filled the sheet I cover the pan with another sheet of plastic wrap, and place it in the freezer. Then when the dumplings are solidly frozen I pour them all into a freezer bag. This way they are always 'free flow' and do not stick together.   

Pork and Cabbage Dumplings

2 cups ground pork

2 cups chopped Chinese cabbage (also called Napa cabbage)
1 stalk green onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon minced ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil

35 dumpling skins (not wonton skins which are to thin - you will regret it if you use them)

Mix altogether. Place 4-6 skins on counter. Swirl outside edges with pastry brush dipped in water.
Place 1 Tbsp pork & cabbage filling on half of skin. Fold skin over and seal, removing air pockets.

To cook (fresh or frozen): Pour 2-3 tsp oil in a no-stick pan over medium low heat. When oil is hot add enough dumplings to cover 1 layer. Check here and there to ensure they are browning on bottom. When they are brown enough for your tastes flip them and add about 3 Tbsp hot water to pan. Turn heat to low and cook until brown and cooked through. Serve with dipping sauces.
If you make any dipping sauces you love please send me the recipe to add here. I think everyone likes to try different variations. Enjoy.

Soy Sauce & Sesame Oil Sauce:
    3 Tbsp light soy sauce
    1 tsp cooking sherry or rice wine vinegar
    1 tsp sesame oil

 Janey's Hot & Sweet Hoisin Sauce
    2 tbsp. hoisin sauce
    ½ tsp. Sriracha Chili Sauce (or to taste)
    1 – 2 tbsp. hot water from the tap.

Curried Pork Hamburgers with Mustard Seed Raita

These are great and easy to. I love my regular cheeseburgers but these are a great variation when you feel the need for a change or you want an Indian cast without going to any work. This recipe makes 4 normal sized hamburgers for a normal sized hamburger bun ... humph. What's normal - well my normal is the smallish hamburger bun - 3 1/2 inches across or so. (I like the ones with sesame seeds myself.) Therefore if you like those big Kaiser buns you will need to use more ground pork for sure.

Curried Pork Hamburgers with Mustard Seed Raita

1 pound gr. pork
8-9 french onion biscuits (crackers) soaked in just enough water to moisten, smack into a paste
4 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro
1 1/2 - 2 tsp curry powder
1 hot chili pepper - your favorite type seeded & finely chopped (I like the long thin green hot chilis best)
1 tsp fresh minced garlic
1 tsp fresh minced ginger
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Mix altogether. Form into 4 patties 3/4 inch thick. Pan fry or barbeque.

Top with Mustard Seed Raita, charred red onions, and a crisp lettuce like romaine.

Mustard Seed Raita
     1 1/4 tsp cumin seed
     1 1/4 tsp black mustard seed
     dash salt
     4 Tbsp thick yogurt

     Microwave seeds for 1/2 - 1 1/2 mins then add to yogurt.
     Check after 20 secs. Cumin seeds burn quickly in the micro.

Charred Red Onions
     1 large red onion, sliced

     Pan fry over med high heat in a dash of oil until charred on edges. Add dash salt & pepper.

Pasta Puttanesca ... the 'Working Girls' solution to rush hour cooking ...

Well, all working girls need some quick and easy great mains.  However it is not necessary for you to stand on street corners at night in order to appreciate this dish. It is one of my staples and it really is very quick and easy. Don't be hysterical about the amounts of anything in it really as it is very forgiving, I tend to like a little less pasta than most recipes call for. Just relax and add amounts that suit your tastes. You like garlic, go mad - it's your supper. You want 29 shrimp, hey go for it. My favorite is lovely large sea scallops but use whatever you want. I already broke the rule for you anyway, as Pasta Puttanesca is usually a vegetarian dish ... which is usually how I have it to. What a rebel. I hope the true Italian Pasta Police squad doesn't come looking for me for my outrageous crime. Well, if I'm not around for a bit you will know why...
I hope I don't sound arrogant but I have to recommend that you use a good pasta. One from Italy - De Cecco or Bernardo or Pirro or another brand that catches your eye. There is a huge difference in the texture of a really good pasta vs the American brands we all grew up on. A good pasta never gets gummy. Good pasta is only about fifty cents a box more so do try it. If you are the kind of person who notices textures, you will appreciate the difference immediately. And if you are not particularly fussy then don't worry about it. A great way to thaw scallops (and fish to) is to let them sit in milk to cover, or water with a dash of lemon juice. They thaw very quickly and this method removes any 'fishiness' smell. Once they are thawed rinse in clear water and use paper towels to blot thoroughly dry. Otherwise, when you fry them you will be unable to achieve the caramelization that makes scallops so delicious and beautiful. For those of you who are worried the scallops will become waterlogged do not worry so. These gentle tasty creatures once lived in the deep blue sea and never once sank to the bottom against their will. Scallops like to live way down there. They don't like crowds. Just because they are not wearing their bathing suits doesn't mean they will suddenly become waterlogged.

Pasta Puttanesca

8-12 scallops, depending on number of servings (substitute shrimp if you'd like)
1/2 pound spaghettini or 5 pasta nests (use 6 if you like more pasta than sauce)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 generous tbsp capers, rinsed
1/4 - 1/3 c. pitted black olives, roughly chopped
1 tsp anchovy paste or 12 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
1/2 tsp chili flakes
2 - 3 tbsp fresh basil, roughly chopped or 1heaping tsp dried 
1 tsp dried oregano (optional)
extra - virgin olive oil
1 - 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, drained 
Salt & fresh ground pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese

Cook the spaghettini or nests in salted, boiling water until almost done. Pour off cooking water and add cold water to pot. Set aside until needed.

Dry scallops then salt & pepper them. Heat 2-3 tsp olive oil in pan over med heat. When hot add scallops and cook 1- 2 mins on one side, flip and cook 1- 2 mins other side. Remove to small plate and set aside.

Dash of oil in pan, fry garlic, add a couple tbsp of the liquid from the canned tomatoes. Add anchovies, stir about until smooth. Drain the tomatoe juice from canned tomatoes into a cup & set aside in case needed. Add the diced tomatoes to the pan. Add dash of salt if needed & pepper. Stir. Add pasta, cook 3-4 mins until pasta is reheated adding a bit of the tomatoe liquid if desired. Add capers, olives, chili pepper flakes & herbs & serve with 4-5 scallops / shrimp per person on top.

Pass pepper flakes & parmesan. 
Serves 2 not so generously ( and 1 if you have a big appetite like mine)

Oriental Meatballs

These meatballs really started out as Vietnamese pork meatballs - that is why you will find green onions and fish sauce in them.  All Vietnamese dishes have fish sauce except their ice cream. However I had decided to use ground beef instead of pork. I performed a tightly controlled taste test in which I fast fried a loosely formed mini patty in a pan and left it to cook for as long as it took to throw in a load of laundry.  Results showed that the Vietnamese seasonings were great for the milder flavor of pork but not nearly rich enough for beef. So I added some Chinese seasoning instead. Rather a lot I suppose. After another tightly controlled but hastily performed taste test during which I sauntered off to my office to check my email - I then assessed the results. Here it is with the final inexact quantities. The amounts are approximate, and I am sure I used a bit more of almost everything here (accept the crackers) rather than a bit less. The sesame seeds give a lovely little texture and taste bonus but these are wonderful without them to...

Oriental Meatballs

2.5 lbs regular gr. beef
about 15-20 french onion biscuits (Christie)
2 tbsp fish sauce
3 - 4 tbsp soy sauce
2 - 3 tsp sesame oil
lots grated garlic (2 -3 tsp or so)
lots grated fresh ginger (2 - 3 tsp or so)
1/2 - 3/4 c. onion, minced
1/3 - 1/2 c. green onion, minced
salt (1 - 2 tsp) to taste
pepper (1/2 tsp) to taste
1/3 - 1/2 c. sesame seeds if you would like

In large bowl crush onion biscuits roughly. Add enough water just to moisten the crackers. Let sit few minutes to absorb water then smack them in to a paste. Add fish sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic & ginger, salt & pepper. Add onion and green onion. Mix. Form a little tiny patty and pan fry to test.
Adjust seasonings. Roll into balls. Roll in sesame seeds. Bake 400 farenheit about 30 - 40 mins. Turning every 7 - 10 mins or so.
Serve by themselves or with a dipping sauce.

Not all comfort food is soothing ... some is hot hot hot!

This is another one of my favorite recipes.  This dish is delicious and somewhat rich but not to heavy.  It is flavorful and packs some heat with a little sweetness and creaminess from the coconut milk and a hint of sour from the limes with wonderful herbal punches from the fresh basil and cilantro.  If you do not like cilantro just use basil alone.  (Amazingly some people do not like cilantro.  I'm not lying.)  Anyway the dish will lose nothing at all.  Nada. Different times I use just one or the other and sometimes I use both depending on my inclination at that moment.  

If you have a home made red curry paste that you like then you use it.  There are many thai curry pastes on the market and I just kept on going and going and going until I found one I love.  For my tastes Mai Jin Red Thai Curry Paste is the one.  I also like Mae Ploy though it is hotter.  All the Thai curry pastes are hot but some are hotter than others - I mean hotter than hell itself I hear for any of you who have been there and would like to know just how hot.  (If you have been to hell and back please leave a comment sharing your experience with others.)  Anyway, I am meandering a tad ... so - I urge you to try many different curry pastes until you find your true love.

Most red curry chicken recipes include those lovely little round Asian eggplants but frankly I am just fine with my Italian zucchini cut in a large dice.  (Okay - the truth is the tiny Asian eggplants cost an arm and a leg, neither of which I feel I can spare right now.  They cost about $4.00 for about 1 - 1 1/4 cups! Even in the Asian grocery stores!)  So, if you are not cheap go get em tiger, and if you are a bit of a tightwad then just buy some lovely firm zucchini.  Also, I frequently do not wish to make extra pots of food - instead I want my meals to be 'all in one'.  Therefore I have also added red pepper.  It gives me my beloved vegetables and healthy eating all in one dish as well as being aesthetically pleasing. Yeah. Pleasing to look at.  But you can still eat it after you've looked at it for a bit.  Use whatever rice you like.  Traditionally one serves this with a white long grain rice.  I do too but I like to use Basmatti rice - it is so light in texture and I like that with this dish.

Thai Red Curry Chicken

4 Tbsp Mai Jin Red Thai Curry paste (use 2 Tbsp to start if using other brand curry paste)
3/4 c. water
2 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 pound skinless chicken breasts (about 3 med), sliced in strips ¼”w x 1 ½ “long
1 - 14 oz can coconut milk
½ c. packed fr. Thai basil leaves
½ c. loosely packed fr. cilantro leaves
2 Tbsp juice from lime
1 ¼” c. zucchini, sliced thick then quartered
1 ½ c. chopped red pepper (large dice)

Cook curry paste for 2 mins. Add water, fish sauce & sugar. Stir. Add chicken, peppers & zucchini. Simmer 10 mins. Shake the can of coconut oil 10 seconds in case the contents have separated then add it to the pot. Simmer 5-10 mins. Take off heat and stir in lime juice. Stir then add cilantro & basil.  Ladle over white rice and sprinkle with fresh cilantro and Thai basil.
Note: If you want more meat and no vegetables increase the chicken to 1 ½ pounds and eliminate the peppers and zucchini.
And remember .... ไม่กินเท้าไก่เพราะจะทำให้คุณเสียลายมือ
(Don't eat chicken feet because it will give you bad handwriting.)
Furthermore .... ปลาตัวเดียวเน่าเหม็นหมดทั้งข้อง
(One rotten fish makes the whole catch stink.)