The Yuca Diaries

OK, so let me just come out and say I don’t like to fry food. My brothers always make fun of me because I bake everything- very different to what we grew up eating in a Cuban household. But every now and then the culinary angel and devil on my shoulder fight, and the dark side wins. This time it was SOOOO worth it! It all started when I was watching cooking shows stored on my DVR. I started watching an episode of Tyler’s Ultimate and that was it for me. This episode was fish and chips and it looked AMAZING. I wanted to stick my hand into the TV and grab a piece. I tried to put off the craving for a few days but the longer I waited the worse the craving got. To make a long story short, I caved and this is what I ended up with. Golden battered fish, hush puppies, home-made buttermilk Cole-slaw, home-made tarter and cocktail sauce. Serve with two COLD coronas and lime. Man was that a good day… the only unfortunate thing was that it was Sunday and the weekend was about to be over but I hardly noticed since I started to fall into a food-induced coma after this meal. So here’s how you make it:

(Recipe adapted from Tyler Florence)
Ingredients for the fish:
Canola oil, for deep frying
2 cups rice flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 teaspoons salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
1 (12-ounce) can soda water
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 (8-ounce) cod fillets cut in 1/2 on an angle
1/2 cup rice flour, for dredging
2 tbsp cornmeal

Heat 3 inches of the oil in a deep fryer to 375 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Combine soda water and egg and pour into the flour mixture. Whisk to a smooth batter. Spread the rice flour on a plate. Dredge the fish pieces in the rice flour and then dip them into the batter, letting the excess drip off. Fry the fish and chips for 4 to 5 minutes until crispy and brown. Remove the basket and drain the fish and chips on paper towels; season lightly with salt.

Ingredients for Hush Puppies:
1 cup yellow cornmeal
¾ cup self-rising flour
1 teaspoon Sea Salt
½ teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon cayenne
½ cup onion 1 bunch chives, finely chopped
1 egg, whisked
1/4 cup shredded Sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup buttermilk Directions:

Preheat deep fryer to 375 degrees F. Mix all of the ingredients together and form into little balls. Fry until golden brown and crunchy.

Ingredients for cole slaw:
1 bag Cole slaw greens
¼ cup finely diced onions
1/3 cup sugar 1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
¼ cup milk
½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup buttermilk
1 ½ tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tbsp. poppy seeds
Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
Mix all of the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl along with the salt and pepper. Whisk until nice and creamy. Next add onions and the bag of greens and combine with the dressing. Add the poppy seeds and incorporate well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours. I personally think it taste better the next day but that’s just me.

For the tartar sauce mix 1/2 cup mayo and 2 tbsp. dill relish. And for the cocktail sauce mix 1/2 ketchup, 1 tsp. horseradish and 2 tsp. lemon juice.

Phew! That sure was a lot of cooking!

One of my favorite Iron chefs is Masaharu Morimoto. I love his knife skills and how clean he is when he cooks. I also love how he always makes the yummiest looking fish. On Saturday night we did groceries, and to our surprise, Sam’s club had the most beautiful Tuna steaks ever… they were a bit pricey, but we couldn’t resist. So to make sure the fish was eaten at its freshest (after being bought that is), I decided to make it tonight. Originally I was going to make sushi, but felt like making a more whimsical interpretation of the dish. I seared the tuna and served it with Sushi- inspired rice cakes. It was a meal that Brandon asked me to repeat again soon. It fact, right after he ate it, he said ” babe, you have to blog this recipe so you’ll never forget it”. So this is how you make it:

For the Tuna Marinade:
3 cloves of Garlic
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup canola oil
1 lime
3 Tbsp. Huy Fong brand “Sriracha” hot sauce (the one with the rooster on it)
1/3 cup water
1 1/2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tbsp Mirin

Run the garlic through the micro plane and mix all of the ingredients. Leave the tuna marinating over night or at least 4 hours.

For the Rice Cakes:

1 1/2 cups Sushi Rice
2 cups water
2 green onion stalks
1/2 red onion
3 toasted nori sheets
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1 hass avocado

Prepare the rice according to package directions. After the rice has cooked and set a bit, transfer it to a large mixing bowl. Set aside. Next finely slice the red onion and add to the rice. Slice the green onion on the bias (small pieces) and add to the bowl. Next take the sheets of Nori and with a pair of kitchen shears, begin to cut little it into little pieces. Add to the rice. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine well. In a non-stick frying pan, add 1/2 a tsp. of canola oil to the pan and turn the heat to med. high. Take a ring mold and lightly grease the sides so that the rice does not stick. Begin putting the rice mix into the ring mold and press down to make it compact. After it is well formed, add it to the pan. Let the cakes cook until a crisp layer is formed. Gently flip the rice cake over and cook until the other side crisps. Transfer to your serving dish. Slice an avocado and place on top of the rice cake.

Lastly, take a non-stick pan and add 1 tsp. of toasted sesame oil. Take the tuna steaks out of the marinade and sear on either side for about 1-1 1/2 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow it to rest for 3 minutes. Sliced thinly and serve next to the rice cakes.

Whatever you do, do NOT throw away the marinating liquid. I repeat, DO NOT THROW AWAY THE MARINATING LIQUID!! This stuff is AWESOME and totally makes the dish so much tastier. After you remove the Tuna from the hot pan, take the marinating liquid and cook it down until it turns to a nice deep glaze. The brown sugar in the sauce will cause it to caramelize beautifully. I served this on the side and it was so good- really HOT, but good. It made my lips tingle. Lastly, sprinkle some black sesame seeds over the tuna and serve to your salivating dinner companions.

As you may have read in the post I wrote about our new car, Brandon and I are on an austerity plan because we now have a lovely car payment to go along with our lovely new car. With the plummeting economy its also probably a good idea to save money for when the going gets rough. This has led me to be more creative in the kitchen. I’ve been trying to recreate my favorite meals from different restaurants. On Friday (our usual dinner date night) I made Vegetable fried rice with Mongolian Beef (for me) and Salmon for Brandon. So this is what I came up with:

The rice:
2 1/2 cups short grain brown rice
4 1/2 cups water
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup chopped broccoli
1 small onion diced
2 garlic cloves minced
1/2 red bell pepper extra finely diced
1 bunch scallions sliced on a bias
1 box of baby bella mushrooms
6 eggs- scrambled
Soy sauce- to your liking

First wash the rice well and drain it well. In a pot or pressure cooker (I use the pressure cooker because it cuts the cooking time in half but this is totally optional) sauté the uncooked rice until nice and toasty. Next add the water. If you are using a regular pot, top with the lid once the water has evaporated about two thirds of the way and bring the heat to low. If you are using a pressure cooker, put the lid on and cook at medium heat for about 10 to 15 minutes. I then turn off the heat and run the pressure cooker under cold water to release the steam. Next I take a fine mesh colander and dump the rice in there to rinse with water. This removes the excess starch from the rice and helps it to not stick. Fried rice is usually better when made with left over rice, but I didn’t have any already made. If the rice is not tender enough I put it back in the pressure cooker and add a bit more water to finish cooking it off. Then I repeat the rinsing process. Phew! Leave the rice in the colander while you make the rest of the dish.

The next thing I did was sauté all of the vegetables on really hot heat with a little canola oil. Make sure to sauté the veggies in batches. You don’t want to cook them all at once because then they’ll stew and get soggy. First I did the carrots and as they cooked I transfered them over to a large bowl. Next I sautéed the brocoli. then the onions, bell pepper and garlic. I kept adding the newly cooked veggies to the bowl. Next I sliced the mushrooms and sauteed those as well and added to the bowl. Then I scrambled the eggs and cooked them in the pan. With a silicone coated whisk I kept whisking the eggs until they were fully cooked- this eliminated large clumps of eggs. Lastly, removed the eggs and put them into my bowl. I added a little canola oil to the wok and let it get really hot. Then I added all of the veggies, egg and rice and started sautéeing it. Once it was thoroghly combined and hot, I added soy sauce and mixed. And that was that for the rice.

For the Fish and Beef
1 cup cornstarch (for the beef only)
1 cup Tamari or regular soy sauce
1/2 water
2 cloves garlic
1/8 tsp. fresh minced ginger
1 tbsp. canola oil
2 tbsp. dark brown sugar
1 bunch scallions
8 oz. Salmon
8 oz. Skirt Steak

The first thing you do for this dish is you cut up the skirt steak into pieces (against the grain and not too small) and set aside. Coat the beef in cornstarch well and brown in a pan with a little oil. Once the beef is cooked through, set aside. Now you will begin to make the sauce by taking the canola oil and add it to the pan along with the sugar. You combine this mix and let it get very hot. but don’t let it scortch. Then you run your garlic through the microplane or press and add to the mix along with the ginger- and folks a little ginger goes a LONG way so go easy on this. You can always add more if you like but I think 1/8 of a teaspoon is sufficient. Next you add the soy sauce (I like Kikoman a lot better than any other brand I’ve tried. It’s a lot richer) water and stir. You bring the temperature down a to medium high heat and let the sauce reduce a bit. Once the sauce is reduced, you add the scallions until cooked through. I like my scallions with a little bit of bite so I don’t cook them all the way. Add the beef pieces to the sauce and coat well.

For the fish, you’ll basically repeat the same steps except I don’t dust with cornstarch first. I make the sauce the same way as listed before. I basically just added the fish to a non-stick pan with a little oil. I let it sear well before adding the sauce to pan. Once cooked through I removed the fish and serve. I did the same thing with the steak- I seared it really well and added the sauce. After cooking it for a little while the sauce turns into a glaze that coats the meat. You can do this with chicken too if you prefer.

Tuna, at least tuna in a can, is one of those fish that I came to eat only when there was absolutely nothing in the house or I didn’t feel like cooking anything. Having said this, it became a staple in the Buil household for reasons too many to list. The only downside was that I made myself sick of it. After a long hiatus, I decided that I needed to re-think tuna. After all, it had been there for me when I needed it- always available, ready to feed my brain and feed my gut. I decided this affair with tuna had only fizzled because of monotony, simple, boring routine- even though, I realize it isn’t filet mignon… it is after all a canned product.. All I needed was to rekindle the spark. So here’s what I came up with. Make it open-faced, too much bread meant dull flavor. Add some surprising ingredients and get ready to embrace the tuna sandwich like never before. So here’s how you make it:

Ingredients:
Whole wheat bread, sliced
1 can tuna- packed in water
1 1/2 tbsp. light mayo
1 tabsp. whipped cream cheese
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley, and dill
1 green onion chopped
1/2 a lemon’s juice
1 hass avocado
1/4 cup shredded mozzarela cheese
1 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

First toast the bread with a little olive oil. Next take the can of tuna and drain well. Make sure you get rid of all of the excess liquid. Combine the tuna, mayo, cream cheese, lemon juice, onions, herbs and salt until the mixture is nice and creamy. Top the bread with the tuna salad and then top it with cheese. Next take the avocado and slice thinly. Place on top of the sandwich and drizzle with olive oil. Season the top with a little salt and fresh ground pepper. Voila! There you have it folks- my upgrade on the plain ol’ tuna sandwich.

If you are looking for a way to wow your sweetie or impress a crowd, here’s how ya do it. This dish is so simple, yet so tasty it surely will be a hit. The saltiness of the capers, combined with the cool touch of the dilled cream cheese spread, and the crunch of the fresh greens and red onion allow for the perfect balance of flavors, not to mention, really stand up to the pungent taste of the salmon. So here’s how you make it.

Ingredients:
2 packages smoked salmon (I like Norwegian or Scottish because it’s not as salty and a bit milder in flavor than the Atlantic version)
1/4 cup freshly chopped dill
1 lemon
1/4 cup sliced red onion
1 large garlic clove, grated
1 tbsp. capers (with brine)
1 1/2 cups spring greens
2 tbsp. grapeseed oil

For the Spread
1 package of cream cheese
1 handful of dill
3 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt

Take the package of salmon and thinly slice it.

Peel the red onion, and grab a large handful of dill and finely chop. Next using your microplane finely grate the garlic clove. Add all of the ingredients to a bowl.

Take the juice of a lemon and squeeze into the mixture. With your microplane, zest a quarter of the lemon and combine with the ingredients

Add two tablespoons of grapeseed oil and mix with the rest of the ingredients. I like to use grapeseed oil because I find that the taste of olive oil is too strong for this dish, you already have so many flavors going on, that it would only compete. Grapeseed oil is really mild, so it’s perfect. If you don’t have grapeseed oil, or can’t bring yourself to pay 8 bucks for a bottle, then you can use canola oil. The next thing you do is add the salmon to this mixture and let it marinade while you make the spread.

For the spread take an 8 oz. package of cream cheese and a handful of dill and run through the food processor. Add salt and mix well until the dill is finely chopped and the mixture is nice and creamy. Serve on a platter with the salmon and greens and flatbread. Enjoy!

Ok so my husband loves sushi and I really don’t care too much for it, actually this is an understatement. So what ends up happening is that we go to a sushi place and I end up leaving like I’m gonna hurl. I decided I would try making sushi at home. I must confess it seemed like an insurmountable culinary undertaking, but I felt up to the challenge. I bit the bullet and bought the ingredients. So here’s the recipe for sushi trial run #1. I think after this, I’ll experiment with a few more ingredients.

Ingredients:
3 cups sushi rice
3 3/4 cups of water
2 lbs Salmon
1 block of cream cheese
6 sprigs of green onions
Roasted nori sheets (seaweed)
Cucumbers

In a sieve, wash the rice until water runs clear. Add the water and rice to a pot and bring to a boil. Once the water has mostly evaporated, turn the heat to low and cover with a lid. Leave to cook for about 20 mins. Take the rice and put it in a large wood or non-metal bowl to cool. Once cool, add a few tablespoons of rice wine vinegar and mix.I listed some of the ingredients I used above, but I mixed and matched some of this. For the first roll I did, I sliced salmon, green onions and cream cheese and set aside. Next I took my sushi rolling mat and put down a sheet of nori. Next, I scooped some rice over the nori and flattened. I then aligned the salmon, green onion and cream cheese in the center of the nori sheet. I began to roll using the mat. You want a tight roll so that the sushi doesn’t fall apart. Once rolled, take a very sharp knife and slice. Serve with soy sauce and wasabi. You can mix and match ingredients to change it up a bit. But this is pretty much the deal. I also did an inverted roll with the same ingredients. What you do is you line the rolling mat with plastic wrap first so that the rice doesn’t stick to the mat. Next put rice, then the seaweed and other ingredients. I then coat the roll with white and black sesame seeds and then cut. Another variation of the first sushi roll I mentioned is to dunk the roll (before slicing) in egg, then in Panko bread crumbs and fry. This is not traditional sushi I know… but it tastes pretty good even to me- a self proclaimed sushi non-enthusiast.