4 Tips for Perfect Stir-Fries | The Feed.
Stir fry dinners are a staple in our house. We eat them about once a week and I try to vary them as much as possible between chicken, seafood, beef and pork and sometimes just vegetables. here are some good tips to follow from Cook’s Illustrated on how to create a really good stir fry. Check it out!
Yikes, it has been unbelievably hot and humid here in New York. Every day it’s muggy and sticky and even thunderstorms don’t seem to cool it off. It certainly doesn’t make me feel like cooking at any time – morning, afternoon or evening. I also have difficulty breathing when it’s this humid, so it really limits what I can do when it’s like this (an after effect of my illness in 2009. You can see my other blog if you’re interested in more facts). The fact is, we have to eat something. There’s only so many nights you can get away with making sandwiches and even grilling can be too much in this weather. I decided to make a meal tonight that take almost no time at all to cook. You’ll actually spend more time preparing the sides than you will the main course. I have made fish tacos before, but this is a fast version of fish tacos from Williams-Sonoma.
Fast Fish Tacos
Heat the tortillas
Preheat a cast-iron or other heavy fry pan over medium-low heat. On another burner, preheat a stovetop grill pan over medium-low heat. One at a time, warm the tortillas in the fry pan until flexible. Stack them on a plate and cover with a clean kitchen towel.
Cook the fish and assemble the tacos
Increase the heat under the grill pan to medium-high. When the pan is hot, add the fish and cook until golden, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook until golden around the edges, 1 to 2 minutes more, depending on type and thickness. Transfer the fish to a plate and cut into bite-size pieces.
Place an equal amount of the fish on each warm tortilla and top with shredded cabbage, a spoonful of salsa and a drizzle of sour cream. Sprinkle with cilantro or parsley and serve.
I do seem to pick odd times to make turkey. I think a lot of people think of it as a Fall meal, but we love turkey in our house and it’s great anytime. I made a turkey breast a few weeks ago, and I have found them on sale recently, so I haven’t been able to resist buying them. This recipe is another roasting recipe, though you could probably do this one on the grill instead if you wanted to. This is a great one pot meal with the turkey, potatoes and vegetables all in one pan.
Roast Turkey Breast With Glazed Vegetables
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon honey
1 pound sweet potatoes, halved or quartered if large
1 pound small parsnips, peeled and halved
1 bulb fennel, thinly sliced, plus 2 tablespoons chopped fronds
1 large red onion, cut into 8 wedges
1/2 cup dried apricots
2 to 3 springs rosemary, plus 1/2 teaspoon chopped rosemary leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 small clove garlic, minced
Grated zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
1 skin-on, bone in turkey breast half (3 to 4 pounds)
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Whisk 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the honey and 2 tablespoons of water in a bowl. Put the potatoes, parsnips, fennel slices, onion, dried apricots and rosemary sprigs in a roasting pan. Add 1/2 a teaspoon each of salt and pepper, drizzle with the honey mixture and toss. Roast until the vegetables are soft, about 30 minutes, stirring once.
Meanwhile, mix the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the garlic, lemon zest and chopped rosemary in a small bowl. Rub the herb mixture under and over the turkey skin. Season with salt and pepper and bring the meat to room temperature.
Place the turkey on top of the vegetables in the pan; roast until the skin browns and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 165 degrees, 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes (Cover with foil if the skin gets too dark.) Transfer the turkey to a cutting board and let rest for 20 minutes.
Toss the roasted vegetables with lemon juice and the fennel fronds. Slice the turkey and serve with the vegetables.
A few quick notes on what I did when cooking this recipe. The turkey breast I had was only 1 1/2 pounds, so I cut the recipe in half. Also, I replaced the rosemary with parsley (Michelle doesn’t care for rosemary) and I didn’t use the fennel at all (too expensive in the store and we aren’t big fans of it anyway). The remainder of the recipe stayed the same.
I love the way the turkey came out and the fact that the whole meal was done in one pan made for easy clean up. Nothing is better than nice and simple, especially on a warm day.
A quick and easy meal and recipe for today. I still have some chicken to use for tomorrow, I just haven’t decided how to use it yet. We’ll have to see what I can come up with. Enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
I got some tilapia on sale at the market the other day and was looking for a new way to cook it without frying. I came across this recipe on the Food Network and it fit perfectly. I already have everything in the house, which made it even easier. It’s a very quick recipe and goes perfectly at this time year when tomatoes are ripe and tasting great.
Baked Tilapia with Tomato and Basil
Non-stick cooking spray
2 (8 ounce) tilapia fillets
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano leaves
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large tomato, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a shallow baking dish with the nonstick cooking spray.
Sprinkle the fish evenly with salt and pepper. Arrange the tilapia in a baking dish and sprinkle evenly with basil, oregano, onion powder and garlic. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Arrange the tomato slices evenly over the fish and drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Bake until the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 20 to 25 minutes. Squeeze the lemon juice over the fish and serve immediately.
The fish turned out perfectly and the flavor from the tomatoes mixed very well with the fish and the spices on the fish. As side dishes, I made corn on the cob and I decided to make some black beans and rice. The black beans and rice could easily be a meal on its own if you wanted it to be. It’s not a tough recipe and takes a little longer, but you can make it ahead and re-heat it if necessary.
Black Beans with Rice
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red or yellow pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3/4 cup dried black beans, washed, picked over and soaked if you have the time
1 1/2 cups long grain rice
1 cup chopped tomato
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
Put th oil in a large ovenproof pot over medium heat. When hot, add the onion, bell pepper, garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to low so that the mixture bubbles gently. Cover loosely and cook, stirring occasionally and adding water if necessary, until the beans are about half-done, softening but still tough in the middle, about 40 minutes (if you didn’t soak the beans, it will take about an hour or more) Heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Use an immersion blender or a potato masher to semi-puree the beans in the pot. Leave at least half unpureed.
Stir in the rice, tomato and a good amount of salt and pepper. If you don’t want a crust to develop, cover the pot. Bake in the oven until the rice and beans are tender, about an hour, adding a little water if needed. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Sprinkle with parsley and serve or store, covered in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. If storing, when you re-heat, stir in a little water and olive oil just before serving.
As I said, the black beans and rice could easily be a meal as themselves. You could eat it this way as a vegetarian meal or you could add in things like chorizo, some diced cooked chicken or some shrimp.
All in all, it was a very nice meal for the two of us.For tomorrow, I do have some chicken that I am not sure what to do with yet. Check back and see what I can find. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!
I know it was a very hot day here in New York to think about using the oven, but I had one piece of boneless chicken breast and some pizza crusts, so I decided to use both of them. Since Sean isn’t home for a couple of weeks, I also decided to spice things up a little bit and make something I know he wouldn’t eat, Buffalo Chicken Pizza. I looked around on the Internet and found a whole bunch of recipes for this, so what I did is a kind of combination of several of them that I thought would work best.
Buffalo Chicken Pizza
1 large boneless chicken breast
salt and pepper
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon oil
1 tablespoon butter
¼ cup Frank’s hot sauce
½ teaspoon packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon buttermilk or plain yogurt
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
pinch of sugar
pinch of garlic powder
2 ounces (½ cup) mozzarella, shredded
¼ cup red onion or scallions, diced very fine
1 store bought pizza crust or pre-made pizza crust (I use Boboli myself)
For the chicken: Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Thinly slice the chicken breast, dip in the egg to coat, shaking off any excess, then place in the breadcrumbs to coat, again shaking off any excess. Place the chicken in the skillet and saute until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes. Place the chicken on a paper towel lined plate to drain.
For the buffalo sauce: Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add the brown sugar, hot sauce, and vinegar. Mix the sauce with the chicken.
For the ranch dressing: In a small bowl, stir together the buttermilk or yogurt, mayonnaise, sugar, garlic powder, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
Assemble the pizza: Place the pizza dough on a pizza stone or the back of a cookie sheet. Spread the ranch dressing evenly on the pizza dough; top with the chicken, then the cheese, and finally the onion.
Bake the pizza for 10-12 minutes, until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the crust is browned. Let the pizza rest about 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
Just a couple of quick notes about the recipe. You could easily use a store-bought ranch dressing instead of making your own, but I think the one I made for this recipe tastes good and is very light. You could also use a tomato sauce instead, but I think the ranch adds to the flavor with the buffalo chicken. A lot of the recipes I found use bleu cheese in addition to the mozzarella cheese. I omitted it from the recipe since neither Michelle nor I are big fans of bleu cheese, but you could add some in when you sprinkle on the cheese.
That’s it for tonight. I’m not sure what I’ll be making for Michelle and myself tomorrow, so we’ll have to wait and see. I have a bunch of things in the freezer, so it could be anything tomorrow, depending on the weather. Check back and see what I come up with. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!
It was a busy weekend with lots of family events going on and we had a house full of people for a few days, so I haven’t had much of a chance to do any blogging. I also didn’t do much cooking the last few days either, although on Sunday I did make a London broil and some bratwurst on the grill. I did do some baking yesterday though, so that’s the recipe I am going with today. As I have written on here before, I am not a baker and there are many people who are much better at it than I am. I also have a very small kitchen, so I don’t really have the space to make my own dough, so I very often use store-bought pie crusts when I make a pie. This recipe I got from Pillsbury, although I did change it around a little bit. They use three berries in their pie: blueberries, blackberries and raspberries. I used blueberries and strawberries and it was a big hit. There is only a tiny bit left after yesterday, so excuse the picture (I really need to get better about remembering to take pictures of the things I make!). It’s a pretty easy pie to make and it tastes great.
Double Berry Pie
1 package Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
5 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 pint fresh strawberries, trimmed and quartered
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons sugar
Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Place the bottom crust in an ungreased 9-inch pie plate. Press the crust firmly against the side and bottom of the plate. Trim the bottom crust along the pan edge.
In a large bowl, stir together 1 1/2 cups of sugar, the cornstarch, tapioca and salt; gently toss with the berries. Let the berries stand for 15 minutes. Spoon the filling into the bottom crust. Top with the second pie crust to make a lattice topped pie; cut the second crust into 1/2-inch wide strips. Arrange the strips in a lattice design over the filling. Trim, seal the edges and flute. Brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of sugar.
Place the pie on the middle oven rack with a large cookie sheet on the rack below the pie pan in case of spillover.. Bake the pie for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Cover the edge of the crust with strips of foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake the pie for 40 to 45 minutes longer or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Let stand for 2 hours before serving.
The pie goes great with some vanilla ice cream and some whipped cream and a nice cup of coffee. I am not a dessert expert, but this one came out pretty good.
I’m not sure what the dinner plans on for the rest of the week. Sean is away for a couple of weeks so it’s just Michelle and myself for dinner, so we really haven’t planned anything out yet. When I come up with something though, I will be sure to put it on here. In the meanwhile, if you have any recipes you would like to contribute, please feel free to contact me with a comment here, via Facebook, Twitter or email at IguanaFlats@msn.com. Enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!
I had planned on chicken all week for dinners, but I had also taken out some pork chops to make for dinner one night. I thought tonight would be a good night to do that and I thought it would be an even better night to have Sean take over in the kitchen. He is planning on taking a cooking class later on this summer so I figured tonight would be a good night for him to do some of the cooking while I just supervised. He chose this recipe of skillet barbecued pork chops as his first test. You don’t have to do the brining of the pork chops if you don’t have time to do it, but it does help to add to the meal by making the pork chops more moist.
Skillet-Barbecued Pork Chops
1/2 cup salt
4 bone-in rib loin pork chops, 3/4 to 1 inch thick, trimmed of excess fat
4 teaspoons vegetable oil
For the spice rub:
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
For the sauce:
1/2 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons light or mild molasses
2 tablespoons grated onion
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
Dissolve the salt in 2 quarts of cold water in a large bowl or container. Submerge the chops in the brine, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
For the spice rub, combine all the spices in a small bowl. Measure 2 teaspoons of the mixture into a medium bowl and set aside for the sauce. Transfer the remaining spice rub to a large plate. For the sauce, whisk the ingredients in the bowl with the reserved spice mixture until thoroughly combined; set aside.
Remove the chops from the brine, rinse and pat dry with paper towels. Use a sharp knife to cut 2 slits, about 2 inches apart, through the outer layer of fat and silver skin of each chop (don’t cut into the meat of the chops). Coat both sides of the chops with the spice rub, pressing gently so the rub adheres. Shake off the excess rub.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until just smoking. Place the chops in the skillet in a pinwheel pattern, with the ribs pointing toward the center, and cook until browned and charred in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip the chops and continue to cook until the second side is browned and the center of the chops registers 130 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 4 to 8 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and transfer the chops to a plate. Lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 teaspoons of the sauce.
Wipe the pan out with paper towels and return it to medium heat. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon of oil and heat until just smoking. Add the chops to the pan, sauce side down, and cook without moving them until the sauce has caramelized and charred in spots, about 1 minute. While cooking, lightly brush the top of each chop with 2 more teaspoons of sauce. Flip the chops and cook until the second side is charred and caramelized and the center of the chops registers 140 to 145 degrees on an instant read thermometer, 1 to 2 minutes.
Transfer the chops back to the plate, cover loosely with foil, and let rest until the center of the chops registers 150 degrees on an instant read thermometer, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, add the remaining sauce to the pan and cook over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits, until thickened and it measures 2/3 cup, about 3 minutes. Brush each chop with 1 tablespoon of the sauce and serve, passing the remaining sauce separately.
Sean handled most of the prep and the actual cooking pretty well. The only thing I really did was take the chops out of the pan. He also made some oven roasted potatoes, corn on the cob and skillet cornbread to go along with the meal. Again, he did most of the work himself, including the chopping of the potatoes, mixing everything for the sauce, the rub and the cornbread. All I handled was the hot cast iron skillet for the cornbread. I have to say I was quite proud of how well he did with everything. Now if I could just get him to clean his room, all would be wonderful!
That’s it for tonight. It might be back to chicken tomorrow night, or maybe some burgers, i haven’t quite decided yet. We’ll see what I feel like doing. Enjoy the rest of your evening and enjoy your meal!
How to Make Fried Chicken | Cook’s Country – Recipes That Work.
Since I have been making chicken meals all week this week, this seemed like a good article to post. I haven’t tried their recipe for fried chicken, but it sure does sound good and doesn’t look any harder than other methods I’ve tried for fried chicken if you want to check it out!
I had boneless chicken breast to use out of the freezer it since it was a nice, comfortable day here today outside I thought it might be a good day to use the grill and make some chicken kabobs. I looked at a few different recipes and settled on this one from Williams-Sonoma. it falls right into the simple with simple ingredients category and makes a nice sauce to go with it.
Grilled Chicken Kabobs
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 small serrano chili, seeded and minced (optional)
1 teaspoon minced fresh marjoram
1 tablespoon minced fresh basil
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 pound boneless chicken breast, cut into chunks
1 yellow squash, cut into chunks
1 red onion, cut into chunks
Soak bamboo skewers in water to cover for 30 minutes. Prepare the grill to medium-high.
Put the mustard in a small bowl. Add the lemon zest and lemon juice and mix well. Gradually whisk in the 1/3 cup of olive oil, then mix in the chili, if using, marjoram and basil. Season the sauce with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Drain the skewers. Thread the chicken, squash and onion onto the skewers, alternating each piece until the skewers are filled. Brush the chicken, squash and onion with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the skewers on the grill, cover the grill and cook, turning once until tender and lightly charred, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and remove the chicken and vegetables from the skewers. Serve with the lemon-herb sauce.
You could certainly vary this in many ways, substituting different colored peppers, using zucchini, or using scallops or shrimp instead of chicken. One way I decided to vary it a little bit was by making a second sauce to serve along with the lemon-herb sauce. I opted to make a cucumber yogurt sauce, knowing I already had all the ingredients on hand it wouldn’t take long to put together.
Cucumber Yogurt Sauce
2 cups plain yogurt
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 shallot, minced
1 tablespoon parsley, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint
1/2 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large pinch salt
Ground white pepper, to taste
Drain the yogurt in a cheesecloth-lined strainer set over a bowl for 1 hour. In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Serve as an accompaniment with any variety of foods or as a salad dressing.
Michelle really likes the yogurt cucumber sauce, so I do make it as a dipping sauce for other meals. It goes great with lamb, chicken or beef.
I served the whole meal with some corn on the cob and white rice to round things out. For dessert, since I had the grill on, I grilled some peaches and pineapple slices, Simply slicing the peaches in half and brushing them with a little olive oil and then brushing the pineapple also with olive oil and grilling both just until you get good grill marks on each, about 4 or 5 minutes. When I took them off the grill, I put just a touch of honey on each piece for some extra flavor.
That’s all for tonight’s meal. Tomorrow will be either pork chops or chicken drumsticks in one form or another, I haven’t decided yet. Check back and see what decide to do. Until then, enjoy your evening and enjoy your meal!
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