Meat – Page 2 – Goboroot.com

Chicken Wraps

Every so often, we miss the place we used to live: Main Street and 15^th Ave. in Vancouver. We considered this place to be the centre of all interesting things happening, be it culture, food, people or little clothing boutiques. However, we particularly miss going to Canteen Mitra, a Mediterranean falafel place. We used to grab a chicken wrap and eat under the summer evening light, watching waves of people pass by. Of course, one cannot skip richly flavoured, artfully made latte at JJ Bean coffee roasters next door either.

Possessed by a sudden craving at home, I did my best to imitate Canteen Mitra’s chicken wrap with a lemon herb twist. Alas, nothing beats that chicken wrap they serve, but this is still a pretty delicious version. Also, we enjoyed the leftover chicken made into another meal with roasted asparagus, a super simple yet tasty pasta dish.

Chicken Wraps

Makes 2 wraps

2 pieces of pita bread

Lettuce leaves

Roasted chicken (see recipe below)

Red onion, thinly sliced

Cherry tomatoes, cut in half

Tzatziki (see recipe below)

Cilantro leaves

Carefully tear the edge of the pita bread all around to open, leaving a part intact. Layer the ingredients on one side, flip the other side of the bread on top, roll tightly and serve.

Lemon Herb Roasted Chicken

1 free-range chicken

2 tablespoons butter, room temperature

A bunch of herbs (thyme, oregano and marjoram)

2 tablespoons olive oil plus extra for sprinkling

Sea salt and pepper

2 lemons

3 whole heads of garlic

Make herb butter. Place the butter, half of herbs (remove tough stems) and oil in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until smooth. Set aside.

Quarter lemons lengthwise. Halve the garlic lengthwise. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Rinse the chicken inside out and pat dry. Season with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Rub the herb butter all around the chicken. Stuff two pieces of lemon, the rest of the herbs and ½ whole garlic head into the cavity. Tie the legs with kitchen string.

Place in a large roasting pan along with the remaining lemon pieces and garlic. Sprinkle some oil over the lemon and garlic. Roast until meat thermometer inserted in thigh registers 185°F, for about 1½ hours. Remove from the oven and cover with a piece of tin foil for 10 minutes. Carve and serve.

Tzatziki

Makes about 1 cup

2/3 cup julienned cucumber, moisture squeezed out

A few parsley leaves, finely chopped

A dash of lemon juice

A pinch of cayenne pepper

½ cup full fat plain yogurt

Salt and pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to mix.

Roasted Asparagus

Serves 4

2 bundles of asparagus

Salt and pepper

Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 475F.

Rinse the asparagus and cut off the tough ends. Place them in a roasting pan and sprinkle with a generous amount of salt, pepper and oil over top.

Lower the oven to 450F. Roast until tender, for about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve hot. Remember to reserve the oil for the below pasta dish!

Pasta with Roasted Chicken and Asparagus

Serves 4

Spaghetti

Leftover cold chicken, cut in cubes

Roasted asparagus, cut in 2 inch pieces, oil saved

Cherry tomatoes, cut in half

Parmesan cheese, grated

Salt and pepper

Boil water, add a generous amount of salt and cook the spaghetti until al dente.

Drain the spaghetti well, and toss the chicken, asparagus, tomatoes and reserved oil from the asparagus in a large bowl to mix. Serve and sprinkle with the cheese. Adjust with salt and pepper.

Chana Masala and Delightful Accompaniments

A big thank you to my friend Paula, who recently threw a beautiful Bollywood-themed birthday party, for kindly sharing some of her delicious recipes. This event also inspired me to create a wonderful curry dish. Now I’m able to pass these delights on to you!

At Paula’s party, all of the guests appeared in colourful, gorgeous saris and brought with us tasty dishes to share. The night was filled with Paula and her talented musical friends’ tunes; in fact, Paula possesses an extraordinarily beautiful voice and melted all of our hearts with her singing. Sunshine, good company, irresistibly tasty food, enthusiastic music–what more can you ask for? Thank you again for the wonderful time, Paula!

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Chana Masala

Serves 6

2 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon canola oil

Spices

1 teaspoon fennel or anise seeds

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon Garam masala

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch ground clove

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 large bay leaf, torn in a few pieces

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 small knob ginger, finely chopped

4 tomatoes, finely chopped and juice saved (makes about 2 cups)

About 3 cups cooked chickpeas (I use cooked ones from 1 cup dried chickpeas)

1 ½ cups chicken stock or water

1 teaspoon salt or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

3 cups cooked Basmati rice

In a large heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter, add the oil and fry all the spices over medium heat. When the spices give off a nice scent, add the onion, garlic and ginger and sauté until soft and onion becomes translucent.

Add the tomatoes and their juice, and cook until softened. Add the chickpeas, salt, generous amount of black pepper and chicken stock, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and cook for 15 to 20 minutes.

Serve with Basmati rice.

Spicy Blackstrap Chicken

This chicken is quite sweet, but adds a nice caramelized smokiness to a plate of Indian cuisine. Combined together with the curry and the below salad, it is just perfect.

Serves 6-8

6 to 10 pieces of boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut in about 2 inch pieces

1/3 cup unsulfured molasses

¼ cup cane sugar

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon chili powder

½ tablespoon turmeric

½ tablespoon ground saffron

½ tablespoon ground cumin

½ tablespoon whole coriander seeds, freshly ground

Preheat the oven to 375F. Rinse the chicken and pat dry. Combine the molasses, sugar, salt and all the spices. Place the chicken in a large cast iron pan and pour over the molasses mixture. Roast until chicken produces a caramelized look, for about 35 to 40 minutes.

Serve hot along with below dishes.

Curried Apple and Celery Salad

Serves 6-8

¾ cup slivered almonds

4 sticks celery

2 medium apples (I like this salad with Granny Smith)

½ cup raisins or dried cranberries, or mixture of both

3 tablespoons parsley, chopped finely

Dressing

1/3 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 teaspoon curry powder or a mixture of small amount of following spices;

Turmeric

Ground ginger

Ground coriander

Ground cumin

Garam masala

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice (from ½ orange)

Chop the celery stalks into ¼ inch pieces or, using a food processor, make small slivers. Peel, core, and chop the apples into ¼ inch pieces. Make dressing by thoroughly combining all the ingredients in a bowl.

Combine the almonds, celery, apples, raisins, parsley and the dressing in a large bowl. Keep refrigerated until serving time. Serve with the curry and the chicken.

Fried Cumin Tortilla and Cucumber Raita

Make a large platter

2 packages of whole wheat tortillas

Olive oil

Ground cumin

Coriander, freshly ground is preferred

Brush a cast iron frying pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and add ¼ teaspoon of each cumin and coriander. When the pan is hot, add tortilla and fry until golden brown. Flip over and fry the other side. Repeat for the rest. Cut into wedges and serve around a small bowl of raita (recipe follows) on a large platter, pointy part facing toward the raita for a pretty presentation.

Cucumber raita

½ cup grated cucumber

¾ cup plain yogurt

¼ tablespoon ground cumin

½ tablespoon cane sugar

Salt

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir well. Adjust the sugar and salt to your liking. Chill and keep refrigerated until serving time.

Katsudon – Pork Cutlet Bowl with Rice

Unofficially, I ended up sorting through Japanese recipes here in my March posts. As someone who has moved from one country to another, from city to city, I have never felt that I had a place to really call home. Japanese cuisine and, of course, my partner, are essentially my home, allowing me to feel most comforted wherever I am; maybe that’s what I’ve been needing lately.

Undoubtedly, when I think of comfort food, katsudon comes to mind. I recall working at one of the reputable tonkatsu (specializing in pork cutlets) restaurants, called Wako, in Shinjuku during my university year, honing my skills in the kitchen with an enthusiastic Japanese chef and another chef who had French cuisine training under his belt. I learned not only how to cook but also why we cook. The ultimate answer was the pleasure of serving good and delicious food to those who love to eat! This mentality has always been inside of me, both before and after this experience, and to this day I remain unchanged. I wish I could track down those colleagues who cooked the most intricate and delicious lunches for us employees every single day–we had the greatest team in the kitchen!

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Katsudon – Pork Cutlet Bowl with Rice

The key to restaurant-quality katsudon is all about using good quality pork and bread (plus the secret sauce). My soba sauce recipe is very similar to what I used to concoct every week in a huge batch within Wako’s kitchen. Thus, I still make batches big enough to last for a few months in my fridge, and I ensure that they keep moving with me, wherever I go! The best texture is achieved by making your own homemade panko on which you nestle the pork, creating a veritable bed of sweet, fluffy panko. The size of the skillet matters as well; try to use the smallest one in which you can fit all the ingredients in order to ensure even cooking during the shortest possible time.

Serves 2

2 pork centre loin pieces, about 1 inch thick, boneless

Salt and pepper

All purpose flour

1 egg + 2 tablespoons water, beaten well

2 cups fresh white bread, torn in large pieces (for making panko)

Oil for deep frying

½ onion, sliced into ¼ inch pieces

3 tablespoons soba sauce or more to your liking

Or a mixture of 1 tablespoon sugar, 2 tablespoons soy sauce and 1 tablespoon mirin

2 eggs, beaten very lightly

Green onions, scallions or chives, chopped finely

Cooked white rice

Rinse and pat the pork until dry. Season with salt and pepper. Place the bread pieces in a blender and roughly grind until they look like large snowflakes. Don’t grind to the size and texture of store-bought panko, as larger flakes are key to making the pork cutlet fluffy and textured.

Prepare the breading station by placing flour, beaten egg, and breadcrumbs in separate shallow bowls.

Do one piece at a time. Evenly coat the pork with flour, removing the excess, and then coat with egg. Lay the pork on the bed of breadcrumbs and cover the top with plenty of the crumbs as well. Press gently but firmly. Refrigerate, covered with a piece of clean wrung cloth or Saranwrap, for at least 10 minutes to moisten the breading. This makes breading adhere well and ensures an ideal texture.

In the meantime, warm oil to 345 to 355 F in a deep-rimmed pan, enough for deep frying.

Deep fry the pork until golden brown. Flip when halfway done. Test the doneness by slicing the thickest part. It is finished if the pork is light pink in colour and the juice is clear. Rest the pork on a rack for 5 minutes. Slice into pieces that are easy for you to eat.

Place the soba sauce, or the mixture of sugar and soy sauce, plus 2/3 cup water in a small skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion until tender. Place the sliced pork pieces in the skillet, and pour some sauce over top; cook for a couple of minutes. Pour the lightly beaten eggs over top, cover with a lid and cook for another 15 seconds, until eggs are half cooked. Serve over the cooked white rice, scattering the green onions on top.