Salmon With Grilled Fruit And Acerola Vinaigrette

♥ healthy

(serves 1)
(prep time 30 mins)
How it's done

Alaskan king salmon fillet slightly less than a pound
Rub some olive oil on all sides.
Season with some salt, coarse pepper, thyme and some chili flakes.
Cook on a medium grill for about 5-6 mins each side.

Grilled fruit salad

Nectarine 1 - cut into quarters
Plum 1 - cut into quarters
Fresh pineapple 2 wedges

Rub some olive oil on the fruits and grill on high heat for about 3-4 mins each side.
Allow to cool and chop them into smaller pieces.

I also added these veggies to the salad

Celery 1 Tbs - very finely diced
Red onions 1 Tbs - very finely diced
Green bell pepper 1 Tbs - very finely diced
Red bell Pepper 1 Tbs - very finely diced
Raw beet root 1 Tbs - very finely diced
Radicchio 3 Tbs - cut into strips
Romaine lettuce 1/4 cup - cut into strips
Fresh parsley 1/2 Tbs - chopped finely

Toss the fruits and the veggies together in a bowl with about 1 Tbs of acerola vinaigrette.
Serve along side the salmon. I used about 1/2 the amount of salad that was made.

Acerola Vinaigrette

Olive oil 4 Tbs
White wine vinegar 1 1/2 Tbs
Acerola jam 1 Tbs
Fresh ginger 1/4 tsp *optional
Garlic clove 1/2 tsp
Salt
Pepper

Emulsify all the ingredients with a hand blender.
The result will be a rich creamy white dressing.

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Steamed Sea Bass

♥ healthy

Steamed Sea bass
(prep and cook time less than 15 mins)
(serves 6)
Ingredients

I had 6 pieces from 2 fillets of seabass.
Dried chipotle powder
Himalayan pink salt

Sprinkle a little chipotle and salt over the pieces of fish.
I steamed it, covered, over the kale wild rice I was cooking so none of the good fish oils were lost.
You could simply steam it over boiling water.
After 7 mins they will be fork tender, juicy and delicious :-)

Wild rice with Kale
(prep and cook time less than 60 mins)
(serves 6)
Ingredients

Wild rice 1 1/2 cups
Yellow onions 1/4 cup (chopped finely)
Celery 2-3 stalks (chopped finely)
Garlic 1 tsp (minced finely)
Kale 1 bunch about 3 cups chopped (stems removed and leaves chopped coarsely)
Salt 1/2 tsp
Pepper 2-3 grinds
Olive oil 2-3 Tbs

In a large pot heat up some olive oil and add to it the chopped onions and celery.
Cook for 8 mins on medium heat or until the onions are tranlusent, stirring once or twice.
Add the garlic and cook for another 45 seconds.
Season with salt and add about 2 3/4 cups of hot water.
Bring the water to a full boil and then add the rice.
Cook covered on reduced heat for about 30 mins or until the rice is cooked through.
Turn off heat.
Fold in the kale, cover with a lid, and let the kale take in the heat from the rice for about 10 mins.
Serve.

I served this alongside some salsa and guacamole.

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My first Sashimi

A lot of people who know me would know that I don't eat fish. I finally took the plunge with my friend/guide Amanda by my side and had Sashimi which is thinly sliced raw fish, no rice, no seaweed just raw fish! That's hardcore sushi!
It was so delicious, raw fish tastes better than cooked. No fishiness, no stinkiness just fresh fresh fresh goodness! I had salmon, tuna (my fav) and scallops.
Sharing a short/accidental video of my first bite :-)
Here's to new things that are to come!

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Homemade Pasta and Mussels

Meet my fabulous sis and her wonderful hubby.

Their visit to Pike Place Market.

They make it look easy and fun.



Voila!



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Phad Thai

Sometimes I mess up....

Had some very dear friends over at our place a few days back and I made them this gloppy, mushy, too sweet and really bad looking pad Thai that everybody claimed tasted just like baingan ka bharta (roasted eggplant curry).
hmmm I wonder how the eggplant I make tastes like ??? :-) LOL

A lot of things went wrong.

• I let the rice noodles soak in the water too long (40 mins), they turned waaaay softer than necessary and broke very easily.
• I added the eggs after adding the noodles. That just made a big giant blob of everything.
• The sauce had too much palm sugar.
• I couldn't get raw shrimp so had to get pre cooked shrimp. I suppose they are OK for cocktails and stuff but for this they got too tough and couldn't absorb any of the flavors from the sauce.
• Chopped the tofu too small!

Tried making it again and I think It came out much much better. Looks better too :-)

I made this vegetarian without any shrimp however the recipe below includes shrimp.

(serves 2-3)
(prep time 40 mins)

Ingredients

Oil 1/4 cup

Garlic 1 1/2 Tbs (minced fine)

Shallots 2 Tbs (minced fine)

Red Thai chilies 4 Tbs (sliced thin)

Shrimp 6-8 med size (deveined)

Egg 1 large

Tofu 1 cup (cut into 1" cube)

Dried shrimp 2 Tbs (optional)

Pad Thai sauce 1/2 cup

(2/3 cup tamarind pulp + 1/4 cup soy sauce + 2 Tbs fish sauce + 1 Tbs palm sugar cooked over med low heat for 30 mins)

*Rice noodles 3 cups (**soaked in hot water for 10 mins only!)

Garlic chives 2/3 cup (cut into 4" strips)

Bean sprouts 2/3 cup

Spring onions 1/2 cup (cut into 2" strips)

Roasted peanuts 1/4 cup (crushed)

Juice of 1 large lime

Pepper 1/2 tsp

Chili flakes 1/2 tsp

It's important to follow this order

I listed the ingredients in the order they go into the wok.

Please make sure you have everything ready.

Heat up some oil in a wok.

Add the garlic cook for 30 seconds

Add the shallots and chilies cook for a minute.

Add shrimp and cook for 3 minutes.

Crack in the egg and let it set for a bit and then scramble it.

Add tofu and stir for another minute.

Add dried shrimp and cook for a few seconds.

Add the pad thai sauce.

Dump the noodles in and mix well.

Add garlic chives, bean sprouts, spring onions, crushed peanuts and stir for no longer than a minute.

Sprinkle some lime juice, coarse pepper and chili flakes.

Combine well.

Done! 

* Rice noodles come in different thicknesses, I used 3mm. They are also called rice sticks and I am pretty sure I saw some fresh ones at Uwajimaya that don't need to be soaked in water.

**Bring a pot full of water to a gentle simmer and turn the heat off. The pot should be wide enough for the noodles to swim around. Soak the noodles for 10 mins only, when you take them out they should be el-dente. Drain well and allow to cool before adding it to the wok.

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Goan fish curry

Wow.... August is surprisingly turning out to be all about south Indian delicacies!

This fish curry is prepared with an oily fish and has lots of coconut in it. Eating with your hands preferably on a banana leaf is highly encouraged :-)

Hubby ji loves fish, me not at all!! Anytime you see a post about seafood is because I made it for solely for him and had a salad for myself (and spent the rest of the day airing out the fish 'aroma?' from the apartment)

Sigh..... love!

:-)

(prep time 40 min)

(serves 2)

Ingredients

Mackerel 1 lbs - cut into large pieces

Desiccated coconut 1/2 cup (un-sweetened)

Coconut milk 2/3 cup

Ginger 1/2 Tbs (chopped fine)

Garlic 1/2 Tbs (chopped fine)

Onion 1/2 cup (sliced thin)

Tomatoes 1/2 cup (cut into small chunks)

Green chilies 1 Tbs (chopped fine)

Juice of 1 large lime

Coriander powder 2 tsp

Cumin 1 tsp

Turmeric 1 tsp

Tamarind pulp 1/4 cup

Black pepper 1 tsp

Salt

Oil for cooking

Method

Season the fish with coriander powder, cumin, turmeric, tamarind pulp, black pepper, salt and lime juice.

Marinade in the fridge for 15 mins.

Heat some oil in a frying pan and brown the onions until dark brown.

Add the tomatoes and cook for another 5 mins or until the tomatoes are soft.

Mix in garlic, ginger and chilies and cook for 2-3 mins.

Blend grated coconut, coconut milk and the fried onion mix into a smooth gravy.

Add the fish to this sauce and cook on med-high heat for another 8-10 minutes or until the fish is cooked.

Don't over stir this.

Small little chunks of fish will fall off and mix with the sauce.

Sprinkle some fresh chopped cilantro over the curry.

Goes well with boiled cumin rice.

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Grilled Pomfret

You won't find this fish in Pike's Place, I got it from Uwajimaya and they also cleaned it for me. My husband loved it with khamiri roti, onions and lime .

(prep time 30 mins)

(serves 2)

Ingredients

Pomfret fish (whole) approx 1 lbs

Greek yogurt 3 Tbs

Red thai chilies 2 (med)

Lime juice 2 Tbs

Carom seeds (Ajwain) 2 tsp

Turmeric 1 tsp

Coarse black pepper 1 tsp

Cumin 1 tsp

Salt

Method 

Make a few cuts across the fish.

Combine all of the spices, lime juice, yogurt and rub the paste liberally over the fish and inside the cuts.

Marinade it in the fridge for 30 mins.

Rub a little oil or butter on both sides. Do this again when you turn the fish.

I baked this in a pre-heated oven for 8 mins at 400 over a rack and then broiled it for 2-3 mins each side on high. This should also be great for grilling outdoors. Make sure to cover the fins and tail of the fish with some aluminum foil before you broil or grill as they blacken quick and catch fire.

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Smokey shrimp kebobs

(serves 2-3)

(prep time 20 mins + 2-3 hours marinating time)

Ingredients

Regular shrimp 16 or Jumbo shrimp 8 (shelled and deveined)

Dried ancho chili 1 med sized
Cumin whole 2/3 tsp
Peppercorns 2/3 tsp
Brown sugar 1/2 tsp
Garlic 1 tsp (minced very fine)
Olive oil 3 Tbs
Fresh lime wedges
Coarse sea salt

The first step will be to grind the ancho chili, cumin, peppercorns and brown sugar together into a fine powder. I like using a coffee grinder for this purpose. We will only need some of the spice mix for the amount of shrimp we are using, the rest will stay fresh for ages in an air tight container.

Lightly heat the oil in a sauce pan and turn the heat off. It's important that the oil should be warm and not hot. The idea is to release the essential oils and not to burn the spices. Add the garlic and 1 1/2 tsp of the spice mixture and mix well. Let the spices steep for 10 minutes at least (or overnight better).

The spices would have settled down, gently pour off the extra oil and keep it aside for later use. Rub the spice paste onto the shrimp. Use bamboo skewers to make kebobs. Marinate for 2-3 hours.

Use the oil for basting the shrimp during cooking. Season the shrimp with salt just before grilling over hot coals. Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes, or until pink and springy to the touch, turn once halfway through the cooking time.

Squeeze fresh lime juice over the shrimp.
Great with a green salad.

:-)

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Almond crusted Halibut

Sounds crazy but I don't eat fish or anything that comes out of the ocean!
Hubby loves it. So I made this for him today.
He is a genuine cutie pie :-)
Something tasty and light for summer in Seattle. I served this with the left over citrus sauce and panzanella salad.


(Single serving)
(Prep time: 45 mins)
For the citrus sauce

Use freshly squeezed juice for best results.
Pink grapefruit juice 4 Tbs
Orange juice 4 Tbs
Lime juice 2 Tbs
White wine vinegar 4 Tbs
Orange zest 1 tsp
Ginger zest 1/2 tsp
Store bought orange juice 4 Tbs
Salt

Combine all the liquids in a pan and reduce to half over low heat.
Stir occasionally.

Preparing the fish

Fresh halibut fillet 1/2 lbs
Panko or bread crumbs 1/4 cup
Flat leaf Italian parsley - chopped fine 1 Tbs
Almond flakes 1-2 Tbs
Olive oil about 2 Tbs
Salt
Pepper

In a bowl prepare the topping for the fish.
Combine the panko, 1 Tbs of olive oil, chopped parsley, sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Mix well so that the oil is well incorporated.
Lastly add the almond flakes and toss gently so they don't break.
Brush a little of the citrus sauce over the fish.
Season the fillet lightly with salt and pepper.
Spoon the almond mixture on top.
Heat some olive oil in a pan and sear the fillet on one side.
Cook for about 2 mins and transfer the fish to a pre-heated 400 degree oven to finish cooking.
The fish cooks very quickly and after about 8 mins it will be nice and flaky!
Ta da!


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