Asparagus is in season! And this quick stir-fry seemed like a nice way to enjoy it while it lasts (as well as adding a little green to our plates).

Asparagus Stir-Fry

From the The Woks of Life

Ingredients

• 1/3 c. chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine (绍兴酒)
• 2 tsp. oyster sauce
• 1/4 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/8 tsp. white peppercorns, ground
• 1-2 Tbsp. oil
• 450g asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the bias
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp. water

Directions

1. Combine the stock, wine, sugar, sesame oil, and pepper and mix well. Set aside.
2. Heat a wok or pan over medium-high heat.
3. Add the oil and swirl to coat.
4. Add the asparagus and stir-fry for a minute or two.
5. Add the garlic and the sauce and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes.
6. Make a slurry of the cornstarch and water and add it to the pan.
7. Cook until sauce thickens (~30 seconds).

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Variations

Vegan Version

Ingredients

• 1/3 c. vegetable stock
• 1 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine (绍兴酒)
• 2 tsp. vegetarian oyster sauce
• 1/4 tsp. raw sugar
• 1/4 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/8 tsp. white peppercorns, ground
• 1-2 Tbsp. oil
• 450g asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the bias
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 Tbsp. water

Yes, kung pao beef. I know that chicken is the traditional choice. But Woks of Life had a recipe for it using steak, so I decided to give it a try. And, I gotta say, while it wasn't a favourite, it was very good.

Like many stir-fries, the mise en place takes longer than the actual cooking, but I don't mind that. Just be sure to do all of your chopping before you start cooking. Because once you're underway, there won't be much time to stop until it's done.

Kung Pao Beef

Slightly adapted from The Woks of Life

Ingredients

Beef

• 400g steak (preferably flank steak or similar), sliced ~5mm thick against the grain
• 2 tsp. cornstarch
• 2 tsp. Shaoxing wine (绍兴酒)
• 2 tsp. oil
• 2 tsp. oyster sauce
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda

Sauce

• 3 Tbsp. water
• 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• 1 tsp. hoisin sauce
• 1/2 tsp. Sichuan peppercorn powder
• 1/2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1/2 tsp. dark soy sauce

Everything Else

• 1 tsp. minced ginger
• 5 dried chiles¹, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2-3 green onions, chopped with greens and whites kept separate
• 1 c. roasted (unsalted) peanuts
• 2 Tbsp. oil

Directions

1. Combine the beef, cornstarch, wine, oil, oyster sauce, and baking soda. Mix well and set aside for 1-2 hours.
2. Meanwhile, combine the water, light soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, cornstarch, hoisin sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, sesame oil, and dark soy sauce and mix well. Set aside.
3. Combine the ginger and chiles and set aside.
4. Combine the bell pepper, garlic, and the white parts of the green onions and set aside.
5. Combine the peanuts and the green parts of the green onions and set aside.
6. Heat a wok over high heat.
7. Drizzle in the oil and swirl to coat.
8. Add the beef and cook for 3-4 minutes, flipping and turning once or twice until seared on the outside, but not quite cooked through.
9. Reduce temperature to medium-low, remove beef from wok, and set aside.
10. Add the ginger and dried chiles and cook for a minute or two.
11. Add the bell peppers, garlic, and white parts of the green onion and stir-fry for another 2 minutes.
12. Return the beef to the wok.
13. Give the sauce a good stir and pour it over the beef.
14. Stir-fry until beef is desired doneness (2-3 minutes longer).
15. Add the peanuts and the green parts of the green onions and stir-fry for one more minute.
16. Serve over rice.

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¹ The original recipe calls for removing the seeds from the chiles, which I did. I found this made for a very mild final dish however. And while I suppose that this could be addressed by adding more chilies, I do wonder if simply leaving the seeds in might be the better way to go next time. ^Back

Dumplings with Steamed Egg and Rice

I picked up a bag of frozen beef and kimchi dumplings on sale at the grocery store earlier this week. So, when I wanted something quick and easy for dinner tonight, that seemed like the way to go. I hit up Aaron & Claire for preparation ideas. They have a whole bunch of frozen dumpling recipes, but this one looked pleasingly straigh-forward and we hadn't made it before, so that helped me with my choice.

I scaled up the sauce to match the number of dumplings, but I think I'd cut it back slightly next time. I also think it really wanted a few mushrooms in. It was okay as-is, but some mushrooms would've really made it. And, since we had a bunch of asparagus on hand, we also added that to the pan. Not strictly necessary, but having something green in does help to balance it out a bit.

Dumplings wiht Steamed Egg and Rice

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. dark soy sauce
• 1/4 c. light soy sauce
• 1/4 c. mirin
• 1/2 c. water
• 500g frozen dumplings
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 2 onions, halved and sliced
• 225g shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 225g asparagus, broccoli, green beans, or vegetable of your choice, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 6 large eggs, beaten
• 6 green onions, chopped
• cooked rice, to serve
• toasted sesame seeds, to serve

Directions

1. Combine the sugar, dark soy, light soy, mirin, and water in a bowl and mix well.
2. Place the dumplings in a bowl with a little water, cover, and microwave on high for 4 minutes.
3. Heat the oil over medium-high heat.
4. Add the onion and mushrooms.
5. Break up 6 of the dumplings, add them to the pan, and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
6. Add the remaining dumplings, asparagus, and sauce and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat to medium and pour in the beaten egg.
8. Sprinkle with green onion, cover pan, and steam until eggs are set (~10 minutes).
9. Serve dumplings over rice and sprinkled with sesame seeds.
10. Add the onion

陕西臊子面 (Shaanxi Saozi Mian)

The name of this dish literally translates as "Shaanxi sauce noodles". The final product is a delicious lightly spicy, savoury, and sour noodle soup. Full of pork belly, fried tofu puffs, carrots, potatoes, wood ear fungus, and lily blossoms. But the first step is making the intensely flavourful meat sauce. Once the concoction is complete, you make the rest of the soup and then add the sauce, which then gets ladelled over freshly cooked noodles and topped with thin ribbons of omelette and a mix of garlic chives and green onions. The finished product is incredibly delicious and satisfying. This one is definitely a keeper!

Hanzi: 陕西臊子面
Pinyin: Shǎnxī sàozǐ miàn
English: Shaanxi sauce noodles

陕西臊子面

Slightly adapted from The Woks of Life

Ingredients

Meat Sauce

• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 star anise
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 Tbsp. minced ginger or ginger paste
• 450g pork belly, cut into 5mm dice
• 2 Tbsp. 老干妈 (Laoganma)¹
• 1/4 c. 绍兴酒 (Shaoxing wine)
• 1/2 c. black vinegar
• 1/2 Tbsp. five-spice powder
• 2 Tbsp. light soy sauce
• 2 tsp. sugar

Soup

• 1-2 Tbsp. oil
• 1 Tbsp. minced ginger or ginger paste
• 1/2-3/4 c. diced carrots
• ~1 c. diced potatoes
• 20g dried wood ear fungus, rehydrated
• 5-6g dried lily blossoms, rehydrated
• 1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
• 6-8 c. chicken or vegetable stock
• 8 fried soy puffs, quartered

Toppings

• 1 tsp. cornstarch (cornflour)
• 4 tsp. water
• 2 large eggs
• 1-2 tsp. oil
• 450g dried spaghettini or other thin wheat noodles
• 1/3-1/2 c. chopped garlic chives
• 1-2 green onions, chopped

Directions

1. Heat the oil over medium-low heat.
2. Add the cinnamon stick, star anise, and bay leaves and cook, stirring occasionally, until oil is infused (2-3 minutes).
3. Add the ginger and pork belly, increase heat to medium, and cook until meat is opaque.
4. Add the Laoganma (or chiles and salt, if using) and cook for another 5 minutes.
5. Add the Shaoxing wine, vinegar, five-spice powder, soy sauce, and sugar and bring to a boil.
6. Lower heat slightly and cook until sauce is slightly reduced (6-8 minutes). Remove from heat and set aside.
7. Heat the oil for the soup over medium heat.
8. Add the ginger and stir-fry for 30-60 seconds.
9. Add the carrots and potatoes and cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Drain and chop the wood ear fungus and the lily blossoms and add them to the pot with the vegetables.
11. Add the oyster sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes.
12. Add the stock, soy puffs, and the meat sauce prepared earlier and bring to a boil.
13. Simmer for 10 minutes.
14. Meanwhile, mix the cornstarch with the water and then beat in the eggs.
15. Heat the remaining oil over medium heat.
16. Pour in the egg mixture and cook until eggs have set.
17. Carefully flip and cook for ~30 seconds on the other side.
18. Remove omelette from pan and cut into ribbons. Set aside.
19. Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil and cook the noodles according to package directions. Pasta should be fairly al dente and not too soft.
20. Drain noodles and portion out into bowls.
21. Ladel a generous quantity of the soup over the noodles.
22. Top soup with some omelette ribbons, garlic chives, and green onions and serve immediately.

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¹ The original recipe called for 1/4 c. of oil (rather than just 2 Tbsp.) here + 2 Tbsp. Sichuan chile flakes and 1 tsp. of salt. I didn't have any Sichuan chile flakes and didn't want to try to go out and get yet another variety of chiles, so I reduced the oil, omitted the salt, and swapped out the chile flakes for the same amount of 老干妈. This gave me the heat, salt, and extra oil all in one. And, I must say, I'm quite happy with the results. Would definitely be happy to go that route again! ^Back

Sometimes you just get a craving that will not quit. I had one for chocolate cake hit me last week and nothing I did would banish the thought from my head. So I finally gave in and picked out a recipe I hadn't tried before.

I like a good sour cream chocolate cake. And I appreciated that this one didn't need any sort of glaze or icing. They suggest serving it with lightly sweetened raspberries and tangy whipped cream, but those are both completely optional and the cake is still lovely on its own or with just a light dusting of icing sugar.

Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake

Slightly adapted from The Perfect Cake by America's Test Kitchen

Ingredients

• 65g cocoa powder¹
• 170g dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 tsp. instant espresso or coffee powder
• 3/4 c. boiling water
• 240g all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 c. sour cream
• 12 Tbsp. (~170g) unsalted butter, softened
• 400g brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
• 5 large eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F) and grease and flour² a Bundt pan.
2. Combine cocoa, chocolate, and coffee powder in a heat-proof bowl.
3. Pour the boiling water into the bowl, cover, and let stand for 5 minutes.
4. Stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is homogeneous. Set aside.
5. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and salt and sift in the baking soda. Mix well and set aside.
6. Add the sour cream to the chocolate mixture and stir to combine.
7. Cream the butter with the sugar until light (~3 minutes).
8. Mix in the vanilla.
9. Beat in the eggs, one at a time.
10. Add ~1/3 of the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
11. Add ~1/2 of the sour cream mixture and, once combined, follow with 1/2 the remaining dry ingredients.
12. Finish up by mixing in the last of the sour cream mixture followed by the last of the dry ingredients.
13. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
14. Bake at 180°C (350°F) until done (40-50 minutes).
15. Allow to cool in tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack to finish cooling.
16. Serve as-is or topped with a dusting of icing sugar, fresh or macerated fruit of your choice, and/or whipped cream. (Or tangy whipped cream, if you prefer.

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¹ The original recipe calls for using natural cocoa powder. I got mixed up and used Dutched/alkalized cocoa instead. I was very happy with the results, so I'm going to go ahead and say that either is fine. I think there's probably enough acid in the sour cream that the pH of the cocoa powder doesn't really matter that much for this one. ^Back
2 If you're worried about flour showing on the surface of the finished cake, brush the pan with a paste of melted butter and cocoa instead. About 1 Tbsp. of each should do the trick. ^Back

Yachaejeon (Korean Vegetable Pancakes)

I think I was a bit too skimpy with the oil when frying these pancakes. They were good, but came out a little gummy. I think a bit more oil, a slightly higher temperature on the pan, and going to the trouble of properly julienne-ing the potato (rather than grating it) probably would've made the difference. But I was still feeling a bit tired and decided to try to save some time and simplify my life by grating the carrot and potato rather than exercising my knife skills. And I had hoped that I could get away with just a light coating of oil on the pan to make these somewhat healthier. But, sadly, this lead to somewhat lacklustre results. Not bad. Just not great either.

On the bright side, this did make for a very low-effort vegetable side to go with the leftover stir-fry from the night before. And it let me clear some things out of the fridge that needed to be used anyway. I didn't have quite as many garlic chives as I would have liked, but everything else was lovely. Although I might consider adding some thinly sliced yellow onion along with the green onion next time. Can't go wrong with more alliums!

Also, given that the batter is basically just a lightly seasoned mix of flour and water, I'd be tempted to try making these with sourdough starter at some point. The hydration of the batter is much higher than what I usually keep my starter at. But that could be easily remedied by simply watering it down a bit. A 2:1 ratio of starter to water by mass should produce the right proportions. The flavour would be a bit different, to be sure, but I think it'd still be good! Something to try for next time...

Yachaejeon

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

Sauce

• 1 cheongyang or jalapeño chile, thinly sliced
• 1 mild red chile, thinly sliced
• 1 green onion, thinly sliced
• 1/4 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 c. light soy sauce
• 2 1/2 Tbsp. white vinegar
• 1/8 tsp. sugar

Pancakes

• 180g flour
• 1/2 tsp. dasida (or salt)
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground
• 360g water
• ~150g (or more) garlic chives, cut into 5-cm pieces
• 1 small Yukon Gold (or similar) potato, julienned
• 1 carrot, julienned
• 1 bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 cheongyang or jalapeño chile, thinly sliced
• 2-3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced (optional)

Directions

1. Combine the chiles, green onion, yellow onion, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar for the dipping sauce. Mix well and set aside.
2. Combine the flour, dasida, and pepper and stir to mix.
3. Pour in the water and mix.
4. Add the garlic chives, potato, carrot, bell pepper, chile, green onions, and yellow onion (if using) and mix well.
5. Heat a pan, skillet, or tawa over medium-high heat.
6. Pour in ~1 Tbsp. of oil.
7. Spoon some batter onto the tawa and spread thin.
8. Cook until golden-brown on underside, then flip and cook until second side is also nicely browned.
9. Repeat with remaining batter, adding more oil as necessary.
10. Serve pancakes with the chunky dipping sauce.

I took a few liberties with this recipe, but I'm quite happy with the results overall. This produced lovely waffles with a crisp exterior and a moist centre. I think I, personally, would have preferred a few more nuts in them. And next time I'd definitely add some vanilla and maybe a few spices, but they were still quite excellent as-is.

The original recipe called for making these with sour cream, but I opted to swap that out for fat-free Greek yogurt instead. And when I came up slightly short on the yogurt, I made up the difference with a bit of cottage cheese. And I swapped out half of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat. And, frankly, I think I probably could've gotten away with doing 100% whole wheat. I also omitted half of the butter and added an extra banana. But, despite all of those modifications, I'm very pleased with how they turned out! And they should be quite a bit healthier this way too: lower fat, higher protein, more fruit, more fibre... Not a bad outcome all-in-all!

Banana-Nut Waffles

Adapted from The Big Book of Breakfasts by Maryana Vollstedt

Ingredients

• 250g whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. coarse sea salt, ground
• 4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, melted
• 3 bananas, mashed
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt
• 1/2 c. cottage cheese
• 1 1/2 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2-3/4 c. walnuts, chopped fine

Directions

1. Preheat waffle iron.
2. Combine the flour, cinnamon, and salt.
3. Sift in the baking powder and baking soda and mix well.
4. Combine the butter, bananas, eggs, yogurt, cheese, milk, and vanilla and mix well.
5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir to combine.
6. Stir in the walnuts.
7. Scoop a portion of batter into the waffle iron and cook according to manufacturer directions. Repeat with remaining batter.
8. Serve as-is or topped with butter, maple syrup, applesauce, custard, whipped cream, sliced bananas, nut butter, and/or chocolate sauce.

This was quite easy to make and we all enjoyed it. It's not a spectacular dish or anything, but it's pleasant enough and simple and comforting. And the egg gives it a little substance too.

Tomato Egg Drop Soup

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

• 2-3 green onions
• 1-2 Tbsp. oil
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 Tbsp. dark soy sauce
• 1 small (~400mL) tin diced tomatoes
• 3 1/2 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. dasida (or chicken bouillon powder)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. ketchup
• 1/8 tsp. while peppercorns, ground
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 2 Tbsp. water
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tsp. sesame oil

Directions

1. Chop the green onions, keeping the white parts and green parts separate. Set aside.
2. Heat oil over medium heat.
3. Add the garlic and the white parts of the green onion, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until oil is infused (1-2 minutes).
4. Add the soy sauce and cook for another 30-60 seconds.
5. Add the tomato and cook until heated through (3-5 minutes).
6. Add the water, dasida, ketchup, and pepper, increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.
7. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Mix the cornstarch with the remaining 2 Tbsp. of water to make a slurry and stir it into the soup.
9. Cook until broth thickens slightly.
10. Reduce heat to medium-low and slowly drizzle in the beaten eggs.
11. Remove from heat and give the pot a stir.
12. Sprinkle with the green parts of the green onions, drizzle in the sesame oil, and serve.

Aaron & Claire describe this as "easy" and "so simple", and as a "15-minute" recipe. I submit that this is only the case if you don't count any of the time needed to prep the sauces and the ingredients; once the mise-en-place is done, yes, it comes together very quickly and easily, but the mise-en-place is a lot! I can't argue with the results, though; it's delicious.

Compared to the original recipe, this uses more carrot, and consistently chooses shaoxing wine over mirin where the choice is given, but is otherwise unaltered.

Beef & Onion Stir-Fry

Aaron and Claire

Ingredients

• Marinade
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp shaoxing wine
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp white pepper, ground
• Sauce
• 5 tbsp water
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp shaoxing wine
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp chicken stock powder
• ½ tsp dark soy sauce
• Stir-Fry
• 500g chuck flap tail, steak, or similar beef, cut into thin strips
• 1+1 tbsp neutral oil, divided
• 2 large yellow onions, sliced
• 4 green onions, sliced, whites and greens divided
• 3 tbsp garlic paste
• 2 tsp ginger paste
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

Directions

1. Whisk together all marinade ingredients in a medium bowl.
2. Add the beef and toss thoroughly to coat. Marinate in the fridge for at least ten minutes.
3. Whisk together all sauce ingredients and set aside.
4. Do all mise-en-place before proceeding.
5. Heat the wok and add 1 tbsp of oil.
6. Add the beef in its marinade and stir-fry until comfortably seared all over. Remove and buffer.
7. Add the other tbsp of oil.
8. Add the onions and let them sit for 1-2 minutes until they start to char and soften.
9. Add garlic, ginger, and green onion whites. Stir-fry until fragrant, <1 minute.
10. Add beef, carrots, and sauce. Stir-fry until slightly thickened and heated through, 1-2 minutes.
11. Remove from heat and toss with sesame oil and green onion greens.
12. Serve over rice.

I probably could've gotten away without making anything for breakfast this morning since we had plenty of bread. But I'd already forgotten that I made it! So I groggily leafed through my cookbooks upon waking and settled on some gingerbread waffles as a relatively quick and easy option. I decided that they needed some sort of sauce to go on them, so TF helped me put together this simple apple sauce.

Personally, I think the cranberry-pineapple sauce actually complements them better, but the chunky apples are good in a pinch. (Cinnamon cream cheese would also be good!)

Chunky Apple Sauce

Slightly adapted from The Big Book of Breakfasts by Maryana Vollstedt

Ingredients

• ~700g apples
• 1/4 c. water
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
• dash (~1/16 tsp.) of ground cloves
• dash (~1/16 tsp.) of ground nutmeg
• a few grinds of salt

Directions

1. Peel, core, and slice apples.
2. Combine apples, water, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until apples are tender (20-30 minutes).

I've been a little preoccupied lately and haven't felt up to doing much meal planning or cooking. This meant that I needed to find something quick and easy to do for dinner last night. Normally my go-to for that is curry. But I've been feeling kind of curried out lately, so I decided to hit up Aaron & Claire for some ideas instead.

I ended up settling on this spicy chicken stir-fry. We were all out of doubanjiang (豆瓣酱/Sichuan spicy bean paste), but we did have Laoganma (老干妈), so I just used that instead. It's not the same. Laoganma is much more oily and salty than doubanjiang. But it makes a tasty dish nonetheless. And some people¹ find they prefer the results of dishes made with Laoganma over doubanjiang anyway. Personally, I think I still prefer the doubanjiang flavour, but this certainly got the job done.

Spicy Ground Chicken Stir-Fry

Slightly adapted from Aaron & Claire

Ingredients

Sauce

• 2 Tbsp. doubanjiang (豆瓣酱/Sichuan spicy bean paste)
• 1 Tbsp. dark soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
• 2 Tbsp. mirin
• 1 tsp. chicken bouillon powder (or dasida)
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns, ground

Stir-Fry

• 1 Tbsp. oil
• 500g ground chicken
• 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. minced ginger or ginger paste
• 200g garlic scapes, cut into bite-sized pieces (optional)
• 450g asparagus or green beans, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 small red bell pepper or mild chile, chopped
• 1/2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
• cooked rice, to serve
• fried eggs, to serve

Directions

1. Combine the doubanjiang, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar, mirin, bouillon powder, and pepper. Mix well and set aside.
2. Heat a wok over high heat.
3. Drizzle in the oil and swirl to coat.
4. Add the chicken and cook until underside is browned.
5. Flip and continue to cook, breaking up as it sears, until chicken is cooked through and liquid has boiled off.
6. Add garlic, ginger, and garlic scapes (if using) and cook for 2-3 minutes.
7. Add the asparagus and bell pepper and cook for another minute or two.
8. Pour in the sauce and stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes.
9. Remove from heat and sprinkle with sesame oil and sesame seeds.
10. Serve on a bed of rice, topped with a fried egg.

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¹ Looking at you, Reiver!

My last feijoa recipe for the year! I managed to bring a few home with me and we've been enjoying them, but this tart used up the last few. Luckily, it was delicious, so I feel pretty good about using them up this way. And I doubt they would've kept much longer anyway. After a week, they were definitely reaching their "use by".

TF and I both liked this pie. Although, I have to admit that I found it a bit too sweet. I think I'd cut the sugar significantly next time. I might also try swapping out some of the flour for oats, since I do enjoy a crumble with oats in!

Feijoa and Custard Crumble Tart

Slightly adapted from NZ Woman's Weekly

Ingredients

• 1/2 recipe sourdough pastry or sweet shortcrust pastry
• 3 large eggs
• 50g sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. heavy (35%) cream or half-and-half (10% MF)
• 1/2 c. flour
• 50g brown sugar
• 100g butter
• 1/2 c. rolled oats
• 250g fejoas, scooped and sliced

Directions

1. Make your pastry, wrap, and chill it for at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F) and place a baking sheet in the oven.
3. Roll out the pastry and use it to line a 23cm (9") pie plate, crimp the edges, and line it with baking paper and fill it with baking beans.
4. Blind bake the pastry shell for 15 minutes, then remove the baking paper and pie weights and continue baking for another 5 minutes.
5. Remove the pastry shell from the oven and set aside and reduce oven temperature to 160°C (325°F).
6. Beat the eggs with the sugar, vanilla, and cream.
7. In a separate bowl, combine the flour and brown sugar and cut in the butter. Then mix in the oats.
8. Place the feijoas in the pastry shell and pour in the custard, then sprinkle with the crumble topping.
9. Return to oven and bake at 160°C (325°F) until custard is just set (~25 minutes).
10. Serve with whipped cream and or powdered sugar.

Cochin Jhinga (Kerala Shrimp Curry)

I made this tasty shrimp curry on Easter to go with the fish and dal when we had Reiver's parents over for dinner. The kahawai was definitely the standout of the night, but the shrimp seemed to be thoroughly enjoyed as well.

Photo goes here.

Cochin Jhinga

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. coconut oil
• 1/2 c. chopped shallots
• 10 fresh or frozen curry leaves
• 1-2 fresh green Thai, jalapeño, or serrano chiles, halved lengthwise
• 200mL diced tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp. vinegar
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies¹
• 500g peeled and deveined shrimp
• 3 slices of fresh ginger² (each 6x2.5x0.3cm), julienned

Directions

1. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
2. Add the shallots, curry leaves, and chilies and sauté for 2 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes, vinegar, salt, and ground chilies and bring to a boil.
4. Add the shrimp and stir to coat.
5. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and poach, stirring occasionally, until shrimp are cooked through (~5 minutes).
6. Sprinkle with the ginger and serve.

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¹ As I was trying to make this curry extra mild, I used only half of a fresh jalape&ntile;o with its seeds removed and 1/2 tsp. of Kashmiri chiles. This produced a flavourful curry and, more importantly, everyone was happy with the spice level. That said, if I were making it again, in a situation where the spice level didn't matter, I would probably put 1 fresh chile and a whole teaspoon of ground chiles in. ^Back
2 I didn't have any fresh ginger on hand when making this, so I ended up just tossing a few Tbsp. of ginger paste into the sauce. Obviously, that is not ideal and produces a different effect, but the overall result was still quite tasty so I'm not upset about that! ^Back

Kishmish Waale Murghi (Raisin Chicken)

Whole chickens were on sale at the grocery store again a couple of weeks ago. I was somewhat reluctant to get any since I was worried that I wouldn't have time to break them down before I left. But, after discussing it with Reiver, I decided to go for it anyway. I got the chickens broken down the next day and then ended up using one of them in this curry a few days later.

I ended up going with this recipe, specifically, both because it wasn't on the blog yet and because it let me incorporate some veggies into the meal without having to make an extra dish. The original recipe calls for making this with chunks of chicken breast, but I think it also works quite well with bone-in chicken pieces.

Photo goes here.

Kishmish Waale Murghi

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1/2 c. golden raisins
• 1/2 c. slivered almonds
• 1kg skinless boneless chicken breasts, cut into 2cm pieces
• 1 Tbsp. Punjabi garam masala
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne or Kashmiri chilies
• 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 250g chopped frozen spinach
• 1/2 c. water

Directions

1. Heat oil over medium heat.
2. Add the onion, raisins, and almonds and cook until the onions soften and nuts brown (15-20 minutes).
3. Add the chicken and cook until it sears (~10 minutes).
4. Add the garam masala, salt, ground chilies, and turmeric and cook for a minute or so.
5. Add the spinach and water, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through (~10 minutes).
6. Serve with rice and/or your favourite flatbread.