Chilled Soba with Ginger-Jasmine Poached Sole

I don't know about you, but it's a little hot around here these days. Also, I'm done teaching my summer class and my dissertation is starting at me. Guess that means it's time to cook something!

My old room-mate, Lea, introduced me to cold soba on a hot day. (She has a blog, too!) And it's probably been that long since I had them, since my favourite noodle book, Noodle, advocates making your own dashi and I can't be bothered. It's not that I'm not one to leap at the chance to do things "the right way" or make stuff from scratch; it's just that there's something about "high heat and humidity warning"that doesn't groove with simmering fish stock in a small apartment. But then another friend of mine opened my eyes to the fact that there is, in fact, ready-made soba dipping sauce. I don't know why this didn't cross my mind earlier.

Anyways, boring story short, I give you soba-something, loosely based on the chilled soba recipe from Noodle, with jasmine-ginger-poached sole, of my own invention, and chilled cucumber salad.

You need:

For noodles:
4 bundles of soba noodles
water to boil
soba dipping sauce (or make your own!)
3 green onions, sliced thinly

For fish:
4 fillets of sole, or other white fish
enough water to cover in a shallow pan
1 jasmine tea bag
6-8 slices of fresh ginger
1 green onion, sliced
1 tsp sesame oil

For salad:
1 large cucumber
rice vinegar
mirin
salt

1. Cook your noodles according to the package directions, then drain and rinse well, until the noodles are cool. Then chill them in the fridge to keep cool. I tossed mine with a bit of sesame oil for good measure.

2. Put all the fish ingredients except the fish in a shallow frying pan, large enough to hold all your fish without overlapping. Let this simmer for 15 minutes, to let the flavours develop.

3. Meanwhile, slice your cucumber thinly. Mix rice vinegar, mirin and salt in the bottom of a medium bowl, and adjust the amounts to taste. Then toss the cucumber in the dressing and put in the fridge to keep cool.

4. Add the fish to the simmering liquid and cook for 15 minutes, never letting the bubbles get big. When the fist flakes easily with a fork, remove it carefully.

Serve the noodles and fish separately, side by side, or stack the fish on top of the chilled noodles; your noodles won't be as cold this way, but the presentation is nicer.

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Salmon Tikka with Cucumber Yoghurt

If you are looking for a way to become friends with fish, this might be a good recipe for you. If you are already a fish enthusiast, then you're in luck too. The Indian spices, though not terribly hot, are so delicious - I'm sure there is a way to do this completely from scratch but I followed directions and bought a jar of Patak's Tandoori paste - if I hadn't made my own naan bread, this would have been a very quick, less than 30 minute meal. This recipe serves two.

You need:
- 1.5 c plain yoghurt
- 1/4 c minced red onion
- 1/2 c chopped cucumber
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 2 salmon fillets
- 3 TBS Patak's Tandoori paste
- 1 TBS oil
- 2 pieces of naan bread
- 1/4 c chopped fresh cilantro

First, prepare your yoghurt. This is a really nice, cool side that complements the spices on the fish really well. If you add some hot peppers to it, you will also get some bit. We are wimps though and don't abide by such things. Anyways, seed a half a cucumber, or a third if you have one of those giant long ones, and dice it finely. I left the skin on because I like it that way. Finely mince a about a quarter cup of red onion. Stir these, along with about a 1/2 tsp of ground cumin, into 1.5 cups of plain yoghurt. I used fat-free organic, but thick Greek style would be great too. Set this aside in the fridge.

If you are making your own naan, you want to start that well in advance, as the bread will have to rise etc. But if not, and you have purchased naan from your local Indian restaurant or from your grocery store, then you can move right on to the salmon portion of this dinner.

You need a couple of fillets of salmon - make sure the fish you are buying is sustainably fished in your part of the world. If you can't find salmon, red-fleshed trout works well too. Cut the fish into thirds lengthwise and leave the skin on. Brush the top and sides of each piece with the Tandoori paste - I used about 3 tablespoons total - maybe a little less. Don't put the brush back into the jar because you will get fishy things in your jar of paste and that is unsanitary.

At this point, bake your naan bread if you made your own, or start heating it up if you bought some. Heat up about a tablespoon of oil in a cast-iron pan, or other pan if you don't have a cast-iron one. But cast-iron is really the best. It should be on about medium or medium high depending on how hot your stove gets. Place the salmon pieces in the pan and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, until the salmon turns opaque.

Give each person a warm naan bread, dollop some of the yoghurt on it, top with the salmon, and with some chopped cilantro if you are into cilantro. If not, that is sad but not your fault. You can fold up the sides and munch on it like a taco, or use a sophisticated knife and fork. Either way, enjoy!

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Fish Tacos

I have reclaimed Mondays for the living. Everyone hates a Monday - even if you don't have an actual Monday to hate, you have to start back to work after a break at some point. No one is immune from Monday... UNTIL NOW.

Actually it's pretty simple. I plan something fun for Mondays. Usually my friend Emily and I go out for a cocktail and catch up. Last night my sister had just returned from out of town so we had family dinner. And because she is always raving about how awesome fish tacos are, and because I had never even tried them let alone made them, I decided that was what was on the menu.

Now as far as a Monday-night dinner party goes, the menu is pretty do-able. There is a fair amount of chopping and slicing but there's not a whole lot of actual cooking. Even with the Mexican chocolate cake I added, the whole thing took less than an hour from start to finish. Not including eating, of course. I can't guarantee that your Monday night dinner guests won't be so enamoured of you that they won't stay until midnight!

Fish Tacos (serves 4 or 5)

1 lb of white flaky fish.*

1/4 c canola oil

1 Tbs chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1/4 c diced cilantro leaves

the juice of 1 lime

8 tortillas, flour or corn

sour cream or plain yoghurt

cilantro leaves

sliced green onions

sliced red onions

shaved red cabbage

sliced avocado

lime wedges

lettuce

minced fresh hot peppers

salsa

1. In a baking dish, mix the lime juice, cumin, chili powder, oil, and 1/4 c cilantro leaves. Add the fish on top. Cover and refrigerate 20 minutes, flipping the fish over part way. If you have time to marinate it longer, feel free!

2. Meanwhile, do all your chopping. Put the toppings in little bowls on the table so your guests can top their own. Make sure you have a Simon to slice the avocado. Simons are avocado experts!

3. When everyone has a beer or a glass of wine, get that fish on the grill pan. Heat it up nice and hot, but not too hot - about medium-high - and grill for about 4 minutes a side or until it's cooked through and there are lovely grill marks.

4. While you're doing this, have your sister heat up the tortillas. Some people might use the conventional "damp towel in the oven" method, but we prefer to live on the wild side so she used the element on medium-low. We also got some lovely grill marks on the tortillas.

 5. And you're done! Pile your tacos high and enjoy! Or stay tuned for spicy chocolate cake.

"Mexican" Chocolate Cake

This is actually a very VERY easy cake. It is so easy that after you make it a few times you will ha ve it memorized. That easy. It's from the Moosewood cookbook and it is in fact VEGAN although no one will be able to tell. It is moist and fluffy and delicious, and very adaptable, as we shall see.

You need:

1.5 c flour

1/3 c cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

1.5 tsp chili powder

1 Tbs cinnamon

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 cup sugar
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup cold water

1 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons vinegar of some sort

1. Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl, having preheated your oven to 350ºF. I did this while the fish was marinating and before I sliced and diced my veggies.

2. Add all the wet ingredients EXCEPT the vinegar and mix.

3. Making sure you have a greased cake pan at the ready, quickly fold in the vinegar. Pour directly and immediately into the greased cake pan and stick it in the oven for 30 minutes.

BAM. Easiest cake ever. We served ours with caramel sauce from a jar (!!!) but vanilla ice cream etc would be lovely. If you double the vanilla and leave out the spices, you will have a plain but equally delicious normal chocolate cake.

*Hey! If you are choosing fish for this recipe, DON'T USE COD. They are almost gone. And while you're at it, take a look at this list and see if you can find something sustainable. Thanks! :)

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Tilapia En Papillote

En Papillote is a style of cooking that involves wrapping up your food in parchment paper and baking it in the oven. The moisture released from the food as it cooks effectively steams whatever it is you're cooking, keeping the dish moist and tender. Fish does really well en papillote because it cooks fast, and moist fish is delicious.


I did two versions of this dish - one in a Mediterranean style with olives and cherry tomatoes, and another just with lemon and garlic. They were both great! I think this would be a fun thing to serve as a "top your own fish" kind of thing - lots of various ingredients, and everyone chooses what to add to their little personal meal.



For one serving of the Mediterranean style, you need:

1 Tilapia or other (sustainably fished) white fish
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp butter
1/2 tsp oregano, dried
3 cherry tomatoes, halved
4 kalamata olives, pitted and quartered
2 tsp white wine, if you have it
salt and pepper
6 stalks of asparagus, tough ends removed


For one serving of the lemon style, you need:

1 Tilapia or other (sustainably fished) white fish
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tsp butter
2 slices of lemon
2 tsp white wine, if you have it
salt and pepper
6 stalks of asparagus, tough ends removed


In both cases, you assemble the meal in the same way.

1. Cut out a piece of parchement 3 inches on each side larger than the fish. I did mine in a heart shape because that's what Martha says to do. To do this, get a large sheet of parchement and fold it down the middle. Cut half a heart shape. When you open it up, you have a full heart shape! Magic from grade three arts and crafts! :)

2. Spray in the parchment with cooking spray (I did not do this because I forgot - nothing bad happened!) Preheat your oven to 375º.

3. On one half of the parchment, next to the crease, assemble your asparagus and lay your fish on top of it. Season the fish, then dot the top with butter.

4. Top the fish with either the tomato/olive topping or simply the lemon, or any other topping your little heart desires!

5. This is the only tricky part. Starting from the top of the heart, next to the crease, fold the two halves together making long pleats in the paper. When you have folded the whole of both edges together and you've reached the bottom of the heart, twist the end together to seal.



6. Put the parchment packets on a baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the packets are browned and puffy. The fish will be flakey and moist and the asparagus tender.


7. Snip open the parchment packets - watch out for steam! You can either serve them like that, or lift the whole meal out onto plates.



Enjoy!

My absence

I was away for five days, kicking up my heels on the east coast! I'll be back to cooking and baking soon, but for now, here are some photos to keep you drooling.

While we were in Halifax we had two really good meals. The first was at the brew-pub, The Split Crow. They stock local brew and cook a mean dinner. Friendly service, too! The photos below are from our meal there:

First, a delicious seafood chowder with lobster, haddock, and potatoes:



Please note the delicious lobster claw left whole in the chowder: mmmmmmmmmmm!

And then a plate of local-beer battered haddock with hand-cut chips, and a pint of India Pale Ale to wash it down.
Crispy batter, moist fish, delicious fries, and home-made tartar sauce. Malt vinegar may also have played a role.


The other delicious meal we had was at Little Fish, which is a little more upscale and a bit pricier, but very much worth it. They showcase Nova Scotian wines, which were actually quite tasty, at least the one we sampled! Again, great friendly service and fantastic food. Some of our party had whole lobster, but I had lobster-stuffed haddock with dauphinoise potatoes and fresh, local asparagus, which was perfectly cooked. The pan-fried haddock with capers was also delicious.

They also have an even more upscale dining room called The Five Fishermen, which we didn't get to try out because of an electrical outage.

Herb-crusted White Fish

This is sort of the antidote to the last post: fresh, healthy, and bursting with flavour. It was a bit labour intensive, since Quebec apparently does not believe in the selling of anchovy paste, and sells only the whole fillets - I ended up having to make my own.

The recipe is, once again, from Serious Eats' column, Dinner Tonight. It calls for three different fresh herbs, lovely red onions, and salty, tasty anchovies. All together, the taste is rich without being heavy, and the combination of fresh herbs brightens the flavour of the fish rather than overpowering it. I almost left out the mint because I'm not usually a big fan, but I'm really glad I kept it in. It really made the dish.

The only thing I changed from the recipe was the type of fish. Atlantic Cod stocks are very low. If you can, you should choose a more sustainable firm, white fish for this recipe. Here's a guide.

Here's the recipe, copied from Dinner Tonight:

1 medium or 1/2 of a large red onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
12 to 16 ounces firm white fish fillet, cut in 3 to 4-ounce portions
1/2 teaspoon anchovy paste*
3 tablespoons dried breadcrumbs
3 or 4 sprigs fresh, flat-leaf parsley
8 to 10 fresh mint leaves
3 or 4 large fresh basil leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup dry white wine or water
10 to 12 oil-cured black olives, cracked and pitted

*If you want to make your own anchovy paste, blend a tin of anchovies with 2 cloves of garlic, 1 tbs of wine vinegar and some of the oil from the can in a food processor until it is a paste. Easy.

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

2. Cut the onion into quarters, then cut the quarters crosswise and separate the layers to create wide, square slices. In a sauté pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive and add the onion. Season with salt and pepper, and sauté over low heat until the onion has wilted and started to turn translucent; be careful not to let it brown. Add the red wine vinegar to the pan and shake it briefly, then transfer everything to the bottom of a medium-sized baking dish.

3. Wipe the pan with a paper towel to clean it, then place it back over low heat and add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Add the anchovy paste and stir with a wooden spoon to dissolve the paste into the oil. Dump the breadcrumbs into the pan and stir to completely coat them with the oil. Transfer the breadcrumbs to a small bowl to cool slightly.

4. Wash the herbs, pat them dry, and finely chop them. Add them to the bowl with breadcrumbs, and season everything with a small pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper.

5. Lay the portioned fish on top of the onions and season with a bit more salt and pepper. Distribute the breadcrumb-herb mixture evenly on top of the fish. Add the white wine or water to the pan and scatter the olives around the dish.

6. Bake the fish for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish; it should be cooked through but still moist; check the pan after 10 minutes and add a bit more water or wine if necessary.

7. Serve immediately, with the some of the onions, olives and pan juices spooned alongside the fish.

Roasted Trout with Sundried Tomato Marinade

This was the fastest, easiest, most refreshing meal. It looks great, tastes great, and took under 25 minutes from start to end.


You need (serves 2):

• A trout or salmon fillet about 2" thick and 5" by 6" in area
• 2 tbs miracle whip or yoghurt
• 2 tbs minced sun-dried tomatoes (I used dried, soaked them in hot water for 10 minutes, then minced them)
• 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced, divided
• enough green beans for 2
• 3/4 c orzo
• 1 can chicken broth + 1 can water
• 1 tsp butter
  

You can serve this with things other than green beans and orzo - this is just what appealed to me.

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.


2. In a small bowl, mix about half of the minced garlic, the miracle whip/yoghurt, the sun-dried tomatoes, and the pepper.

3. Wash and dry the fish and place on a foil-lined baking sheet. Smear the marinade over the fish and put the fish in the oven.



4. Put your broth on to boil and start trimming and washing your beans. When the broth boils, pour in the orzo.


5. When the orzo is almost done (about 15 minutes), put the beans in a saute pan with 1 tsp butter and the rest of the garlic. Saute on medium-high. By the time the beans are done, the orzo and the fish will be too! Make sure the fish is opaque throughout before serving.

Seafood Chowder

The craving for some sort of fish soup seems to be going around these days. I was thinking about fish chowder last week when I was going through some old food magazines, combing for ideas, and then The Omnomicon featured a fish chowder earlier this week. Then I was talking to a friend last night, and despite not really liking fish all that much, she admitted that she had been thinking about making a fish chowder! With the stars happily aligned, I went straight to the butcher.



A good chowder starts with bacon. I bought good bacon. My elderly Polish butcher told me this is the best bacon for soup. It was pretty good. And beautiful.

I also bought:

2 medium leeks (whites only, halved and thinly sliced)
2 bunches of green onions (whites only, thinly sliced)
3 medium white potatoes (peel on, in 1 cm cubes)
1 c frozen/fresh/canned corn kernels
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp thyme
1 small sweet red pepper (finely chopped)
6 c broth (fish or veggie or chicken)
1 can of crab meat
1 c heavy cream
2 filets of firm white fish (I used tilapia because it was on sale for some reason) cut into 1" chunks.

1. Heat up your dutch oven/stock pot and fry that bacon. Add the leeks part way through, and when the bacon is almost cooked, throw in the green onions. Now, my type of bacon didn't release its fat. Yours might, if you use regular bacon, so you may have to pour off some (but not all) before the next step.

2. Add your stock and potatoes along with the herbs and bring to a boil.

3. When the potatoes are soft, reduce the heat and add the crab (don't drain it!), the pepper, and the corn and cook until the pepper is softened. Then, when you're five minutes away from eating, add the fish and simmer until the fish is opaque throughout.

4. Heat up the cream in the microvave and stir it gently into the chowder.



I served this with a whole wheat variation on the french bread I made last week and it went over very well! This makes a big batch - enough to feed 6 or 8 for dinner - but it keeps in the fridge and it's even better on the second day.