Gyoza

Continuing on the Japanese theme. If using ready made gyoza wrappers, these little pockets of delight can be made within minutes. They are different from the ones I ate in Utsunomiya, but also very good. Ponzu sauce is an absolute must.

You'll need:
300gr pork mince
3 pak choi leaves, finely chopped
spring onion, finely chopped
3cm ginger, finely chopped
sriracha sauce or chilli flakes
Worchestershire sauce
20-25 gyoza wrappers
ponzu sauce to serve with

1. Mix the pork mince with pak choi, spring onions, ginger, chili and a sprinkling worchestershire sauce and season with salt.

2. Put a spoonfull of the filling in the middle of the gyoza wrapper, wet the edges with some water and close into a half moon shape. Pinch the edges. TIP: do not put too much fillling inside - gyoza wrappers are not as elastic as dough for Polish pierogi or Georgian chinkali and so they would break if overfilled.

3. Heat up some oil on the pan and fry the gyozas until golden brown and then add some water to the pan (1-2cm), cover with a lid and steam the dumplings for a minute or two (no more as they become soft very quickly). This way they will be both crunchy and soft. Serve immediately with ponzu sauce!

Buon appetito!

Japanese beef and mushroom wok

I recently set off on a culinary journey to Japan and came back full of new inspirations, having discovered some new extraordinary flavours and ingredients that were previously completely unknown to me. So, today I propose a dish that uses some of the classical Japanese ingredients and plays on Japanese flavours, even if the end result might be far from authentic. I found pak choi and the different mushrooms in a supermarket around the corner, so depending on where you live, they might not be as difficult to get as it may first seem. Mirin and Japanese seven spice mix might be more difficult to get, but luckily I found a great Japanese store here in Brussels (to buy the former, I brought back with me lots of spices from Japan as is my usual habit when travelling abroad).

 Udon and soba noodles from a Japanese shop in Bxl (Tagawa, I highly recommend it)

You'll need:
a beef steak
soba or udon noodles
one baby pak choi
spring onion
one red chilli
4cm ginger, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
lime zest
Japanese 7 spice mix (shichimi togarashi)
epoki mushrooms
shiitake mushrooms
chestnut mushrooms
dark soya sauce
mirin
salt

1. Start off by preparing all of the ingredients, the cooking time is very short so there won't be time to prep while it cooks.

2. Season the beef in salt and shichimi togarashi and quickly fry on a hot pan. Remove from the pan and let it reston the side.

3. Put the sliced mushrooms on the same pan on which you just fried your beef. Add ginger, garlic, chilli and lime zest.

4. Boil the noodles. One minute before they are ready (follow the instructions on the packet, they should take a just a few minutes to soften) add pak choi and spring onion.

5. Slice your beef, add it to the pan with the mushrooms. Add soya sauce and mirin. Add noodles with the vegetables and stir so that the sauce covers everything, et voila!

Bon appetit!

Oyster mushroom quesadillas with jalapeño sauce

With the summer nearly over, diet is of no consequence anymore, certainly not with this dish, but it's really worth it, maybe on your cheat day?

You'll need:

two tortillas

1 chicken breast

250gr oyster mushrooms

250gr grated cheddar cheese

1 long yellow pepper

chipotle chili pepper

smoked sweet paprika

cumin

garlic powder 

a spoon of butter

For the sauce:

one marinated jalapeño

2 spoons of mayonnaise

smoked sweet paprika

ground cumin

dried onion 

1. The jalapeño sauce is really easy to make, simply chop the jalapeño and mix it in with the rest of the ingredients, adding a little bit of liquid from the marinated jalapeños.

2. Cut the chicken breast into thin slices and fry on a pan, seasoned with chipotle chili, smoked sweet paprika, cumin, garlic (optional) and some salt. Towards the end of the frying, add yellow pepper, also cut into thin slices.

3. Remove the chicken and pepper from the pan, and then use it to fry oyster mushrooms, cut into small pieces, not forgetting to add some butter to turn them golden brown.

4. Warm one tortilla on a grill pan, then remove it and put the other one on. Make sure the pan is not completely dry, but at the same time do not allow the tortilla to drown in oil.

5. Add cheese on top, followed by chicken and pepper and the mushrooms, making sure that the ingredients do not to overflow and removing any excess liquid from the filling beforehand.

6. Add some of the jalapeño sauce and cover with another layer of cheese before covering with the other tortilla.

7. Squeeze down and wait for the cheese to melt, e voila!

TIP: To make sure that your quesadilla does not fall into pices at the end, (i) do not overload it with the filling, (ii) do not load with the filling to the very edge (iii) cut the ingredients into slices,(iv) make sure there is loads of cheese inside to glue everything together, (v) do not put too much oil, (vi) consider using a plastic flat spoon to pick it up, they are usually thinnner, making the exercise easier.

Buon appetito!

 

Taste of Switzerland: mountain style rösti

This hefty rösti dish was inspired by one servered in one of Bettmeralp's restaurants. It should fill not only a farmer's appetite, but also one of a hungry hiker after a long day of walking. Rösti are simply potato pancakes, but this one is served with onions, bacon, an egg and loads of cheese. The Swiss cheese I used melted beautifully with the egg.

You'll need:
2-3 coarsely grated potatoes (can be bought ready in Swiss supermarkets, ready with potato flour and already salted)
one red onion
a handful of bacon cut into cubes
one egg
cheese (I used mild Swiss Vacherin Friboureois)
sweet paprika
nutmeg

1. Slice the onion and fryit over low heat, adding a bit of water once it starts to take colour. Once soft, add the bacon cubes to the onion and fry for a few more minutes until crispy.

2. Transfer grated potatoes into a separate, small pan and fry the potato pancake pressing the potatoes to the pan in the process. Season with some nutmeg (best freshly grated) and sweet paprika. Once it turns golden brown (it will be visible on the edges), turn to the other side with the help of the pan cover.

3. Once nearly ready (depending on the potato pancake thickness, it should take around 12-15 miuntes for both sides), sprinkle the onion and bacon on top of the pancake and then add grated cheese and an egg in the middle. Cover the pan with a lid and continue frying for another two minutes, et voila! You can add some greenery for decoration and transfer carefully into a plate or eat straight from the pan.

 

 

En Guetä! 

(Buon appetito!)

Three cheese mushroom soup

This is not exactly a summery recipe, but I had some leftover mushrooms and this solution came to my mind. I used three different cheeses to go with it (making it even more filling), including French mimolette, which is a traditional cheese coming from Lille. Its distinct orange colour comes from annatto, which also gives it a slightly nutty taste. If you don't have access to mimolette, cheddar or gruyere should go well here too.

You'll need:
400-500g mushrooms (champignons de Paris)
1 medium size gold onion
1/2 carrot
2 medium size potatoes, or 1 big one
400ml broth
3-4 spoons of cream
3-4 mozarella mini balls
grana padano
mimolette (or other cheese)
a few ciabatta slices
salt&pepper
butter

1. Add chopped onion into a pot and fry over medium heat for around 5 minutes. 

2. Add thickly sliced mushrooms and a generous dose of pepper and fry for another 3-4 minutes, before adding grated carrot.

3. When the carrot is already in the pot, peel and cut the potatoes into small cubes.

4. Add the potatoes, allow to fry for another minute or so, and then add the broth. I used beef broth, but you can use any kind of broth. cook until the potatoes are soft.

5. Add cream and blend.

6. Grill the bread slices with some butter. You can also grill a few mushroom slices for decoration.

7. Put the mozzarella balls in a bowl, pour the soup over them and sprinkle with grated mimolette and grana padano. Serve with grilled ciabatta slices and grilled mushrooms.

Buon appetito!

Lamb yoghurt curry

It takes some time to prepare this dish, but it's definitely worth it. Deliciously warming smooth sauce covering soft pieces of lamb will make you reach for another helping.

 You'll need:
600gr lamb leg or shoulder cut into 3-4cm chunks
2 onions
3 cloves of garlic
4cm of ginger
6 cloves
5 green cardomon pods (seeds only)
garam masala
chili powder
150 ml greek yoghurt
200gr chopped tomatoes
fresh coriander (to decorate)

1. Roughly chop the onions and put to a blender with a bit of water. Transfer the mixture into a deep pan and fry over medium heat together with some oil for around 10 minutes.

2. In the same manner, blend the garlic and ginger. Add to the pan.

3. Stir in half of the yoghurt and add the meat. Brown the meat.

4. Grind the cardamon seeds and cloves. Add to the meat together with garam masala and chili powder. Add the rest of the yoghurt and simmer for around an hour with a lid on.

5. Stir in the tomatoes and simmer for another 30-40 minutes, et voila!

6. Serve with chapatis or naan bread.

Buon appetito!

Saag aloo

Saag aloo is a great Indian side dish to accompany your tandori chicken or meat curries. It works very well as a lunch idea as well, even on its own.

You'll need:

4-5 waxy potatoes

2 big handfulls of fresh baby spinach

1 onion

a clove of garlic

3cm of ginger

brown mustard seeds

cumin seeds

chilli flakes

oil for frying

1. Peel the potatoes and cut them into small cubes. Boil in salted water 'al dente' that is 2 minutes less than what is needed for them to be fully cooked (which depends on the potato variety and the size of the cubes).

2. In the meantime, toast mustard seeds and cumin on a hot pan before adding chopped onion. As the onion is on its way into becoming golden brown, finely chop the garlic clove and ginger.

3. Add ginger, garlic and chili flakes to the pan. Add the potatoes and then spinach, shredded into smaller pieces (don't forget to wash it beforehand). Stir and cover the pan with a lid and wait around half a minute for the spinach to soften, et voila!

Buon appetito!