Foodbuzz Tastemaster: Kikkoman Karaage Coating Mix

One of my favorite sides with a bowl of udon is a plate of chicken karaage. Unlike Korean fried chicken, Japanese fried chicken is not inexplicably expensive. But if you're looking to save even more money, here's a box kit.

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Karaage, at its simplest, is soy, ginger and garlic marinated meat or vegetable fried in potato starch and wheat flour. It's a comfort to see that's mostly what the ingredient list on the box consisted of.



Though Kikkoman suggests chicken too, I kept to the classic chicken. I happily noted that the recipe on the box suggests dark meat chicken thigh. Dark meat is certainly the preferred cut for something like this. And if you prefer white meat, you probably should stick to KFC and Popeye's.


The box contains two coating packets, each sufficient for 1 1/2 lbs of chicken. It's a simple shake and fry recipe. Though the serving instructions are to pan fry, and that's what I ended up doing, I imagine that a proper deep fry is really the way to go. In fact, the instructions are so simple, the recipe doesn't merit repeating here. Instead, in the future I think I'll try variations with vegetables like burdock, carrots, and sweet potato. I do have this note of caution however, the top picture of my chicken in the pan is overcrowded. It is imperative you leave enough space in the pan so that the coating comes out properly crisp instead of soggy or powdery.

The chicken fries quickly in two to four minutes. While Kikkoman suggests serving with Kikkoman banded ponzu, I thought the chicken was salty enough in the coating mix and went best with just a squeeze of lemon. Though it may not be traditional, a quick dust of Japanese shichimi red pepper gives the chicken a spicy kick while still keeping oriental in flavor.

*I received my Kikkoman Karaage Soy-Ginger Seasoned Coating Mix as part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program.
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Homemade Beef Noodle Soup 牛肉麵 Recipe

Being Taiwanese-American, I am ashamed of not knowing much about Taiwanese cooking. Sure, I can enjoy a night on the town eating through a Taiwanese night market, but I don't know how to prepare much of what I see. Food, je t'aime did a great write-up and photo entry on Taipei's Shilin Night Market (士林夜市). So when my friend Stephen offered to make me some of his famous beef noodle soup, I jumped at the chance and asked if I could watch him prepare it too.

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Since there are so many variations on beef noodle soup, no recipe can be definitive. Stephen told me his family recipe was no secret. In fact, I called my mom and she told me she had her own recipe as well but never taught me. You may notice that this recipe does not have any units of measurement. If you're making beef noodle soup, it's likely that you'll have had it before and can determine your own proportions of ingredients by taste. If you haven't tried it before, does it really matter how accurate the taste is? Just adjust to your preferences.

This recipe is best made a big potful at a time. Good for several servings and several days. It may even freeze well.

Ingredients

Two Onions (we used red, but I don't think it matters)
Tomato
Garlic
Napa Cabbage
Green Onions
Beef Shortrib (although most beef noodle soup involves beef shanks, Stephen insisted that the better cut of meat made a better soup. Also, the long cooking time probably compensated for lack of bone for a proper stock.)
Flour Noodles (we used a Korean brand, but you can substitute however you wish)
Imperial Spice Packet 滷味香 (this is where most non-Chinese cooks may run into a snag. Stephen got his from Taiwan, but I've seen equivalent packets in Chinatown. It's a combination of spices, most importantly star anise, cloves, cinnamon used for braises.)
Soy Sauce
Rice Wine
Brown Sugar


Imperial Spice and Noodles

Stephen's simple recipe involves the use of every dorm-bound, college student's best friend, a slow cooker.

1. Chop the onions and slice the beef into large cubes.



2. Brown the beef with the onions and some garlic.



3. Quarter the tomato. Combine the beef, onions, garlic, tomato in the slow cooker. Cover with a combination of soy sauce, rice wine, water and a dash of oil. Pop in two or three spice packets.



4. Put the slow cooker on low and leave it overnight. Your kitchen will smell delicious.

5. For lunch the next day, fry the napa cabbage or any type of hearty, leafy green. Strain out the onions and garlic from the broth. They were there just for flavor. Cook the noodles separately in clear water. If you cook the noodles in the broth, the starch will thicken the soup and you'll have a hard time making multiple batches.

6. When the noodles are al dente, strain, place in bowl. Add the broth and cabbage. Garnish with green onion.




Food, je'taime also coincidentally wrote up her own family recipe here. That should give you an idea of the variation on this common, but popular dish. I don't write recipes too often, but check out my Sticky Rice Recipe too.
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Turkey Leftover Congee Recipe

Wait! Before you throw out that turkey carcass from the Thanksgiving massacre, there's something delicious and detoxifying that you can use. Annually, my mom would take the leftover bones from the roasted turkey and make a Chinese style congee for the morning after Thanksgiving. It's clean, healthy, and best of all, it doesn't weigh you down like the dinner from the night before.

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Since this was the first Thanksgiving I spent away from my family, I had to deal with the turkey leftovers myself. I called my mom, and got a cryptic and rather sparse answer for making turkey congee. That said, I will try to elucidate it as much as possible, but the truth is, there are so many varying factors that need to be considered. Plus the recipe is hard to mess up, and easy to tweak to your preferences.

It all starts with Thanksgiving dinner. In my family, there are always turkey leftovers. Carve out most of the turkey meat leaving the bones and whatever meat is stuck and not worth pulling off. You can either freeze the entire turkey and make the stock in the near future, but our family always makes the congee for the morning after. Put the turkey bones into the biggest pot you can find. This year, the turkey actually protruded out of the pot, but it's no big deal. If you can, fill the pot up with water to the level of the turkey. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 1-3 hours depending on the size of your bird body.

I simmered my turkey stock uncovered out of necessity, but I don't think you need a lid anyway. Eventually, the connective tissue broke down and I was able to break up the bones enough for the entire body to go into the stock. I don't give a specific cooking time because it really comes down to taste. You know you're ready when the turkey umami permeates the stock. Don't salt the stock yet though.

Put a few cups of rice into another pot. I used two cups this year which made 2-3 servings. Ladle the stock into the rice pot and bring to a simmer. Making congee is much easier than making rice; when in doubt, just add more water. Just keep in mind what the ultimate consistency should be like, and just cook the rice until it reaches that certain al dente. Chinese congee can range in the degree of viscosity. Just add more stock as the rice soaks up the liquid. I also picked through the bones for bits of meat with a big pair of chopsticks. At this point, everything was falling off the bones. The turkey was finished, completely unrecognizable.

As the rice finishes, you can decide to add more stock if you'd like. But this is the point where you add salt to taste. Spoon the congee into bowl and serve your grateful family. Usually we garnish we some white pepper and eat it simply. After all, this is a detox from Thanksgiving dinner. But this year, my congee was a little Japanese inspired and we garnished with an umeboshi pickled plum, shichimi seven spices and nori sheets of seaweed. Sesame is also an option, but congee is a blank canvas. Add whatever you'd like.

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Destination Thailand #3: The Best Thai Cookery School in Chiang Mai with Permpoon Nabnian

I'll wrap up my series on Southeast Asia with my experience at The Best Thai Cookery School in Chiang Mai with "the man" Permpoon Nabnian. When I first read the pamphlet promoting the cooking school, I was hooked right away. The colorful fonts and the self-aggrandizing were too delicious to pass up. Permpoon (Perm for short) had over 20 years of experience with family restaurants, teaching Thai cooking, and a culinary degree. He definitely knows what he's doing, and he'll teach you everything he can along with a litany of jokes so bad they'll still make you chuckle. Not everyone will be fortunate enough to experience something like this,but there’s a list of online colleges offering cooking programs that can teach you to cook well.

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Perm carving a simple flower out of a mango peel

Perm handles everything personally, including picking you up from your hostel in the back of his pick-up. During class, he would sometimes taking calls on his cell phone fielding questions about the school. The class started with a local market tour in which he explained some basic Thai ingredients and also gave some useful produce advice. His opinion on eggs--buy the smaller ones because they come from younger hens.


Perm demonstrating green curry in bulk


Different types of rice available

After learning everything you ever wanted to know about holy basil, we all loaded back onto his pick-up (which is actually more comfortable than it sounds) and drove across town to his home. He converted the backyard into a large open-air cooking school with about a dozen individual work stations. This was a hands-on class experience.


Each person had their own high-powered burner, chopping block, apron, and other utensils

The class proceeded through a series of courses. As a group, we prepared several communal dishes, including spring rolls, mango with coconut sticky rice, tom yam soup and young papaya salad.


Little balls of rice mixed with coconut cream, balancing on my knife


Eating the rice balls with the papaya salad helped temper the heat from the chilies

We then each individually chose one of three dishes to make for each course. For the stir-fry course, I made chicken with cashew nuts. For the curry course, I went with massaman curry, a curry with a plethora of ingredients but primarily flavored with coconut milk and tamarind. Although we didn't make curry paste from scratch, the list of the several dozen ingredients for each type of curry paste was mind-boggling. Lastly, my noodles course was drunken noodles as my friends had each picked pad thai and pad see ew already. According to Perm, "pad" just means fried, making "pad thai" fried Thai people...again, another one of his bad jokes.


Drunken noodles with Thai eggplant

After assembling our feast, we gathered in the front yard where Perm's nephew had set the table and presented a collection of Thai fruits (most of them can be found on my entry of Southeast Asian fruit).

To see me fail by dropping my chicken outside of the wok, check out the accompanying video.


Here's the recipe for Sweet Sticky Rice with Mango (kha neow mamuang). It can be served as a snack, but best as a dessert.

Ingredients (serves 8)
3 ripe mangoes (try to get the small yellow ones, not the big green ones)
5 cups sticky rice, soaked in water at least 4 hours
1 cup coconut cream (if you only have coconut milk, let it sit until it separates and skim off the top)
3/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp salt
2 tbls sesame seeds
10 pandamus leaves or 1 tbls vanilla extract

Sauce
1/2 cup coconut milk
2 pandamus leaves or 1/4 tsp vanilla extract(optional)
2 tbls sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Preparation
1. Place the pandamus leaves in a steamer and sticky rice and steam until rice is cooked.
2. Mix the coconut cream, sugar, and salt together and simmer on low heat for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, remove the rice from the steamer and cool it on a tray for one minute.
4. Add the rice to the coconut cream mixture, combine thoroughly, and remove from heat. Leave to rest for 10 minutes minimum, but preferably 2 hours.
5. Combine the sauce ingredients together and boil for 2 minutes or until the sugar is dissolved.
6. When ready to serve, divide the rice into 8 portions.
7. Peel and slice the mango and arrange on the rice.
8. Sprinkle sesame seeds and serve

If you're interested in superstar Permpoon's class, you can contact him at pp_nabnian@hotmail.com or by his phone number 089-7552632.


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Making Pesto

Actually a picture of reheated leftovers

The other night I made pesto from the basil at Trader Joe's. I'm not going to put up a recipes simply because I don't follow one myself. Just combine fresh basil, oil, pinenuts, garlic, salt and pepper together in a food processor and adjust to suit your taste. The above picture is penne with sauteed Italian hot sasuage. Here are some tips for making pesto:

• DO try other oils besides olive. I used this bottle of avocado oil from Whole Foods. Much more complex and satisfying than the cheap olive oil I use to cook.
  
• 
• DO use a food processor or you can just chop the basil finely and crush the pinenuts
• DO have plenty of balsamic vinegar, salt, garlic and oil
• DO roast your garlic before crushing for a less intense flavor
  
• DO mix leftover pesto to mix with mayonnaise for a sandwich boost
  
• DON'T skimp on the basil; it should be your limiting ingredient.
• DON'T try to make pesto in a blender. Trust me, it just doesn't work.

Pesto is a good alternative to the jars of tomato sauce you reach for on lazy nights and much healthier than cream sauces. Although I wouldn't say it's easy to make simply because it uses much hardware that's difficult to clean, you can make a large batch that lasts awhile in the fridge and has many applications besides pasta.

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Chinese Sticky Rice 糯米飯

I have not been able to find very many good sticky rice (糯米飯）recipes online. This wonderful dish was a Thanksgiving staple in my house for years, our Chinese answer to traditional stuffing. For each step, I have included some interesting facts as an aside in italics. Here's my recipe; there are quite a few steps, but I'll try to make it as simple as I can.

Inactive Prep Time: 30 mins
Active Cook Time: 40 mins
Serves 3 as a main course, 5-6 as a side

1 1/2 cups glutinous rice
1/2 cup jasmine rice
3 Chinese sausages
8 Dried shiitake mushrooms
1/4 bunch of cilantro
1/2 yellow or white onion
2 stalks green onions
1 cup chicken broth or stock
1 tbls. rice wine or cooking brandy
2 tsps. soy sauce
1 tbls. oyster sauce
2 tsps. sweet chili sauce

1. Find a short-grain glutinous rice. This is the one I picked up at my local 99 Ranch. It is also known as sweet rice. For this recipe, I mix 3 parts short-grain rice with 4 parts Jasmine rice. Do not wash the rice, but instead soak it in cold water.

Rice is made up of two types of starch: amylose, a long chain of glucose, and amylopectin, branched chains of glucose. Long-grain rice has more amylose and need more water to cook than short-grain rice which has more amylopectin. The more amylopectin, the softer and stickier the texture of the rice. Arborio rice used in Italian risotto is short- to medium-grain resulting in a fluffy texture similar to sticky rice.

2. Soak the dried shiitake mushrooms in warm water to allow them to rehydrate.

Shiitake mushrooms are cultivated decomposers that grow on rotting oak trees. Chinese have been harvesting shiitakes since the 13th century. Studies have linked these mushrooms to tumor inhibition in humans. Contrary to popular belief, mushrooms should be washed before preparation and not just brushed. They will not absorb much water considering they are mostly water to begin with.

3. While the mushrooms and rice are soaking, begin chopping the onion, green onion and cilantro. Set the green onion and cilantro aside in the fridge under a damp paper towel for garnish.

Cilantro is actually the plant that grows from coriander seed. Though they are the same plant, the taste is widely different and cannot be substituted. Cilantro grows in sand, so make sure to wash it thoroughly. If you want it to keep longer in your fridge, put it into a small bottle of water like a vase. Even then, make sure to use it in less than a week or so.

4. Remove the shiitakes from the water but reserve the soaking liquid. It will be used to cook the rice and infuse it with mushroom flavor (I hate the word "infuse" in cooking, but in this case it actually applies). Reserve two mushrooms whole and place to the side. Chop the remainder of the mushrooms finely. When chopping the mushrooms, remove the stem; they are typically too woody and not good eats very fun to chew on.

5. Slice the sausage into quarters lengthwise. Then chop those quarters into small pieces. It is a versatile ingredient that lasts long and is useful for all types of stir-fries. You can find it at most Chinese groceries.

6. Heat a large frying pan or wok on medium-high until a drop of water sizzles. Combine the sausage, onion and mushrooms and place in the pan. Don't add extra oil because the sausage has plenty of fat to fry the shiitakes and onions. Add a dash of rice wine or brandy and stir-fry until the onions have turned golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add soy sauce and oyster sauce to the mixture. Be careful not to add too much, although at this point it will be excessively salty because it will also flavor the rice later.

Oyster sauce is actually made from oysters unlike its counterpart hoisin sauce which means seafood sauce but has no seafood ingredients.

This is what the mixture should look like at the point of adding the oyster and soy sauces. Notice that the onions have softened and that the sausage has browned nicely. This kind of sausage needs to be fully-cooked before eating.

On lazy nights, simply place two sausage on top of the raw rice and water in your rice cooker and let it all cook together. The sausage will flavor the rice and the steam will cook the sausage thoroughly. Consider adding a steamer attachment that comes with most modern rice cookers and steaming some vegetables at the same time.

7. Drain the rice and put into a medium to large pot with a lid. Place the reserved two shiitake mushrooms in with the rice. Pour in equal parts of the liquid used to soak the mushrooms and chicken broth. The liquid should come cover the rice. Lid the pot, keeping it to one side to let a small opening for steam to escape. Turn the heat to medium-low.

8. When the rice has absorbed some of the liquid, about 10 minutes, spoon the fried mixture over the rice. Do not stir or otherwise disturb the rice yet. It is not done. Recover the pot and let it cook for an additional 10 minutes or so.

9. When the rice has finished cooking and absorbed all of the free-standing liquid, it should reach this consistency. At this point, you can stir the rice to incorporate all the ingredients together. Also, you can add additional oyster sauce to taste. To plate like my serving suggestion above, fill a bowl with sticky rice and simply turn over onto a place. Garnish with green onion, cilantro and sweet chili sauce.

There are many variations to the recipe. Some ingredients I would consider adding include dried shrimp and Chinese dried pork. As I mentioned before, consider using this as an alternative to stuffing. It is great as a main course to a simple meal or a side dish to a more elaborate feast.


Some research from On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee.

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Eating Veal is NOT Eating Babies

Reading my last entry, a review of Mio Babbo's, I realize that I may not have as many veal fans among my cohorts as I might believe. Though I do not think I can bring over the moral objectors with words alone, it would take a delicate veal chop to do that, I want to lay the groundwork for their first foray into the tender meat of calves.

All meats bear their characteristic flavors due to the lifestyle and genetics of the animal. When we say meat, we generally refer to the skeletal muscle tissue of terrestrial animals. This muscle is made up of water mostly, protein, and fat. Though different muscles have slightly different muscle fibers, muscles themselves taste relatively similar. The difference in flavor between different animals comes primarily from the fat. Since fat cells store any fat-soluble material that comes through the body, an animal's diet heavily influences the flavor of its fat. In cows, the forage plants create the distinctive beef flavor. Also, the older an animal gets, the more pronounced the flavors and the tougher the meat. Therefore, these calves are slaughtered at 5 to 16 weeks while their flesh is still tender and delicate in flavor. In comparison, beef in the U.S. is typically slaughtered at 15 to 24 months. Consider, if the cows are raised for slaughter anyway, why prolong their suffering?

In the United States, veal production is tied directly to the dairy industry. Dairy cows must give birth yearly to maintain a steady supply of milk. The female calves are nursed till maturity to produce milk also. Male dairy calves on the other hand, were previously routinely killed because they were unsuitable to be raised as meat. The rise of the veal industry has given these calves a new avenue for life, albeit short and ultimately doomed.

Veal calves are kept away from an ordinary cow's life as much as possible to prevent the development of common beef flavors. They're confined to exercise that will not darken or toughen their muscles and fed a low-iron milk supplement diet. Although in the past there have been claims of poor raising conditions for veal, these outrages have forced industry changes for more humane environments. Nowadays, most veal are raised in well-ventilated, climate-controlled barns with enough room to stand, lie, and move around.

The flavor of veal has been described as subtle, buttery, aromatic and more. In my personal experience, I find the delicate flavor of veal as a counterpoint to a hearty Angus beef. What I appreciate in veal is similar to how I appreciate good sushi, the texture and the marbling. Granted, veal is more expensive than beef, chicken and pork, but the price should not stand in the way of a new flavor experience. So look past your own prejudice and give this humble meat a try. As any decent foodie, you owe it to yourself to indulge a little. Try a veal piccata at your next Italian restaurant or try the simple recipe I have provided below.

all purpose flour
veal chops
dry white wine
chicken stock
garlic , chopped
lemon juice
capers, drained
unsalted butter

1. Wrap the veal individually in plastic wrap and pound to as thin as you can without tearing.
2. Salt each chop and dredge in flour.
3. Heat a shallow pan and add a layer of frying oil (vegetable, corn, canola, peanut, NOT olive).
4. When a drop of water sizzles immediately upon contact with the oil, add the veal. Do not crowd the pan. Work in batches if necessary. Flip the chops when lightly browned on the contact side. It should be only a few minutes per side.
5. After all chops have been cooked, remove from pan and set aside. Deglaze the pan with white wine. Then bring up the heat and reduce the wine. Add chicken stock, garlic, lemon juice, and capers to taste.
6. Work in a pat of butter to thicken the sauce until it is nape (when it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon). Add the veal back to the pan to warm. Plate and serve.

Goes great on a bed of pasta.

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