P.S. How to Make Easy Fried Rice

 What to do if there is extra rice? Make Easy Fried Rice!

The Secret to Avoid Soggy Rice? Keep the eggs separate until the very end...

Put a little oil in a skillet, and put it over medium high heat.

Put the left over rice on one side.

Add additional veggies or protein, if desired.

Crack 2 or 3 eggs in a bowl, add 2 or 3 tablespoons of water and whisk it up.

Pour the eggs in the other side of the pan.

Keeping the rice and eggs separate, heat up the rice and scramble the eggs.

When the eggs are scrambled, mix the eggs and rice together.

Top with some hot sauce and dig in!

Salmon with Lemony Rice

The other day I Googled, "How has COVID changed grocery shopping?".  I looked at few suggested sites and they basically all said the same thing. It seems that people aren't going shopping as often, but when they do, they stock up. Apparently, frozen food is popular. But not stuff like T.V. dinners or burritos in wrappers! Even though some cooking fatigue is setting in, people are buying frozen ingredients to cook with. In the recipe posted here, the salmon and peas came from the freezer section. I followed the package directions by soaking the still vacuum sealed fish until it was thawed, and I ended up throwing the frozen peas directly into the cooking rice.  It all turned out better than fine - it was yummy! Plus, it was something different!

Ingredients and Directions

Lemony Rice - Yields Four 3/4 Cup Servings

4 garlic cloves, minced or put through a press

2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil

1 cup rice

1 (14.5 oz.) can chicken broth

1/3 cup water

1 carrot, peeled and chopped in small pieces

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup frozen peas

Place oil in pan over medium low heat. When oil is warmed, add garlic and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add rice and stir well. Pour in broth and water and scrape up any bits clinging to the bottom of the pan. Add carrots, pepper and lemon juice. Bring to boil. Turn heat down to low and cover. 

Follow the cooking time on the rice package, and stir in peas during the last five minutes of cooking. 

 

Grilled or Baked Salmon

For each piece of salmon:

1/8 teaspoon garlic salt
1/8 teaspoon lemon pepper
1/8 teaspoon dried dill
1 lemon slice
1 teaspoon olive oil

Sprinkle each piece of salmon with the garlic salt, lemon pepper and dried dill. Place a lemon slice on each. Pour the olive oil over the too. Flip the lemon slice over so the seasoning shows.

Grill over medium high heat or grill at 375 degrees for 12 to 14 minutes. The fish is done when it flakes easily and doesn’t look translucent and raw inside. The time needed depends on the thickness of the pieces.

 

To serve, spoon 3/4 cup lemony rice on each plate. Place a cooked piece of salmon on top. 

Miso Flavored Chicken Noodle Soup & Lemony Chickpea and Rice Salad

Miso Flavored Chicken Noodle Soup - Serves Two 

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz,) can chicken broth
1 cup cooked noodles
1 cup spinach leaves
1 cup cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
1 tablespoon white miso
1 tablespoon soy sauce or a sauce such as Maggi, Tamari, or low sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup Thai basil leaves (optional)

Place the chicken broth in a sauce pan and whisk in the miso and soy sauce. Heat the liquid to a boil.

While heating the broth, place 1/2 cup noodles, 1/2 cup spinach and 1/2 cup chicken in each of two bowls.

Pour a cup of the boiling broth over the contents of each bowl. Sprinkle each bowl with 2 tablespoons of Thai basil leaves, if using.

Lemony Chickpea and Rice Salad - Serves Four

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked rice
1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup spinach leaves
2 tablespoons finely diced red onion
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper or red chili flakes

Place rice, chickpeas, spinach leaves and onion in a bowl.

Whisk together olive oil, lemon juice, salt and cumin.

Pour dressing in bowl and gently toss. Divide into four servings.

Sprinkle each serving with a 1/8 teaspoon of the pepper or chili flakes.

Banh Mi Bowl, Citrus Beet Salad & Brown Rice Chickpea Stew

Banh Mi Bowl 

To Assemble Banh Mi Bowls:

1.  For each bowl, cut a fourth of a cucumber into sticks, place in a bowl, cover with rice wine vinegar. Do the same thing for 1/8 of a sliced red onion. Plain or even apple cider vinegar can be substituted for the rice wine vinegar.  On the day I made this lunch, I didn't have any carrots or daikon radish on hand, but they are wonderful to give a soak in vinegar and use in this bowl as well. Set the cucumber sticks and red onion slices aside while they sit for at least 5 minutes. 

2. For each serving, use a heaping half cup of left over cooked chicken, beef, or pork.

Whisk together:

2 cloves garlic, put through a press
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Maggi, Tamari or soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
pinch black pepper

Place the cooked meat with the whisked mixture and saute together over medium low heat for a good 5 minutes until the meat gets a crispy brown texture on the out side.

3. According to package directions, cook one serving of rice noodles, or even thin spaghetti. Drain and place noodles in serving bowl.

4. Drain the vinegar soaked cucumbers and any other veggies that might have been soaking, and place them on top of the noodles.

5. Add the meat.

6. Finish with a handful of cilantro, Thai (or regular) basil, and sliced radishes. A few slices of a hot pepper such as jalapeno or Serrano look nice on top.

Citrus Beet Salad

Ingredients and directions for each serving:

About 3/4 cup cooked beets - that's about 1 medium beet per person.
1 medium orange, peeled and sectioned
1 medium grapefruit, peeled, sectioned, and cut into pieces if sections are large
Heaping 1 tablespoon of shelled pistachio nuts
Kosher salt
Pepper
Some good olive oil
A handful of washed and dried herbs such as dill, parsley, or basil 

Peel the beets, cut into chunks and either simmer on the stove in a small amount of lightly salted water until tender - about 7 minutes. Or, roast by putting them in a single layer, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with Kosher salt, on a baking sheet at 375 degrees for about 45 to 50 minutes or until easily pierced with a fork.

Place the beets, orange and grapefruit slices on serving plate. Top with a handful of herbs. Sprinkle with pistachio nuts, Kosher salt and pepper. Add a swoosh of Greek yogurt on the side. Drizzle with some good olive oil.

Brown Rice Chickpea Stew

Ingredients and directions for four servings.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 stalk celery, diced (optional)

2 garlic cloves, peeled and put through a press

1 (15 oz.) can broth - beef, chicken or vegetable

1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes

1 (15 oz.) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 cup rice, brown or white

1 cup water

1/2 cup of protein if desired, such as cooked chicken, shredded beef,pork or poached egg

1/2 teaspoon salt

scant 1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, washed and dried

Heat the oil in sauce pan and saute the onion and celery (if using) until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute another 30 seconds. Pour in the broth, diced tomatoes along with their juice, and the drained chickpeas. Add the cup of water and rice. Season with the oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then turn down heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes or until the rice is tender. Ladle into bowls and sprinkle each serving with a tablespoon of cilantro leaves

Allison's Fake Paella

When Allison was in high school there were two things that were absolutely true about her: she loved, loved, loved learning the Spanish language and she was very social. It was the perfect storm for me to try to reproduce cultural recipes when she brought home large groups of kids that happened to be hungry. I sort of cringe when I call this recipe "Paella" because, although it really is tasty, it's not the real deal. When we visited Allison in Spain this spring, we ate at a wonderful restaurant right on the beach in Barcelona. The paella we had there was served in huge shallow dish and was made the traditional way with arborio rice that is diligently watched and stirred. The recipe posted here is yummy also - just different! It feeds a large crowd with little effort!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper or a combination of green, yellow or red to equal a pepper, diced
2 large cloves garlic, minced or put through a press
2 (15 oz.) cans broth - beef, chicken, or vegetable
1 (15 ox.) can chopped tomatoes, juice and all
1 (15 oz.) can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice - brown or white
2 heaping tablespoons sliced green olives
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon saffron or substitute ground turmeric

Also:

1 cup frozen peas & carrots

Some protein: I usually add in cooked chicken. Traditionally it is shrimp, clams, chicken.

Directions:

Over medium setting, heat oil in a large skillet. Add the diced onions and peppers and saute until tender. Add the garlic and saute another 30 seconds. Then, add the broth, chopped tomatoes, artichokes, rice, green olives, paprika, salt, black pepper, red cayenne pepper, and the saffron or turmeric. Cover and turn the heat down to simmer. Allow to cook until the rice is cooked, using the directions on the rice package as a guide. All the liquid will be absorbed by the rice. 

 Cover and turn the heat down to simmer. Allow to cook until the rice is cooked, using the directions on the rice package as a guide. All the liquid will be absorbed by the rice. Before serving, add the peas & carrots along with what ever meat desired. 

Terminate Leftover Meat with Arroz de matanzas (Rice Killings) from Spain

Beautiful Ibiza, Spain

A few days ago Roy, Jennifer, and I returned from visiting Allison in Spain.  We traveled all over, but ended out trip on the Island of Ibiza, where Allison teaches English. She also has a job as an au pair for an eight year old girl and lives with the family, Apparently, Ibiza is a wild party place, but since Allison has only been there during the off season, she hasn't seen the hedonistic side to it yet. What I saw was its gorgeous raw beauty. It's very rocky and cactus and palms grow right beside pine trees.  We took a few hikes on paths that led to breathtaking views of the ocean. The color of the water was amazing!  On one of our hiking days, the weather was cold and overcast. When we returned to the house, the mother was making a traditional Spanish dish called Arroz de matanzas. It translates as "rice killings" and was served after a pig was slaughtered to those who had helped throughout the process. Originally it was made with fresh pork, but the recipes I found on the internet included sausage and chicken. Basically, it's rice, mushrooms, and meat surrounded by a savory broth seasoned with saffron and a hint of Jamaican like spices such as allspice and nutmeg. As I watched it being made, it struck me that it would be a great way to use up meat such as a left over pork chop, a lonely chicken leg, or a bit of sausage. I translated a couple recipes and even found one in English. What I have posted here, is a combination of the three of them. In this "Americanized" version, dinner could be made fairly quickly and either leftovers or fresh meat could be used. Crusty bread and a green salad is great with this.

Above is how my version looks...

This is the "real deal" which the lady of the house, was kind enough to share with us after a morning of hiking on a chilly spring day in Ibiza.

Ingredients for Four to Six Servings:

*Chicken, pork, and/or sausage to yield 3 cups of meat
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large tomato, diced
1 medium bell pepper, red or green, chopped
1 small package of mushrooms, wild is nice, sliced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 garlic cloves, put through a press or minced
1 clove garlic,  put through a press or minced
8 cups of chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/8 teaspoon saffron
**pinch nutmeg
**pinch cinnamon
**pinch clove
**pinch allspice
2 cups uncooked rice - I used arborio

*The meat could be left overs such as a pork chop/chicken/sausage or fresh and still on the bone. 

** Roy calls these "dark spices" and he doesn't really care for them. Leave them out for a more Americanized palate.  I think if  the "dark spices" were left out and 3/4 cup of white wine was put in with the broth, this would be scrumptious!

Directions:

1.  (Skip this step if using left over meat that is already cooked.) If fresh meat is being used, put the olive oil in a skillet and turn the heat to medium/low. Brown both sides of the meat. Take the meat out of the skillet and set it aside for a moment.

2. (This is first step if using left over meat that has already been cooked.) In the same pan that the meat was browned, add the tomato, pepper,and mushrooms (and olive oil if this is step one). Saute for about 5 to 7 minutes until tender. Then add 2 cloves of minced garlic and saute another 30 seconds. Add the meat, broth, and pepper, thyme, saffron (and dark spices if using) to the pan and bring to a boil. Allow it to boil for 15 minutes.

3.  Add the rice to the pot and boil for 15 minutes. It doesn't look like a lot of rice in the beginning, but it will absorb quite a large amount of the liquid as it cooks. During the last 5 minutes, add parsley and the extra clove of minced garlic. (The traditional recipe calls for a cooked chicken liver to be made into a paste and added at this point - perhaps to thicken it up? I skipped this step since I felt the soup was thick enough and I'm not a chicken liver fan!)

4.  Ladle into bowls and dig in!

By the way, this Ibizan house was amazing!