O Lepo Lepo, O Lepo Lepoooo - Moqueca de Peixe (Brazilian Fish Stew)

A few months ago I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to Brazil for the World Cup. It was such an awesome time with awesome friends in an awesome country. I guess you could say it was awesome. Despite some small setbacks, like getting ripped off by taxis, bitten by prostitutes or going to shady dance clubs, my time there was truly spectacular.

Of course the parties and the soccer were phenomenal, but the food really stood out for me.  While we were in Salvador (Brazil's old capital, located right by the ocean) we ate tons of moqueca, a fish or seafood stew that's indigenous to the area.  It's typically served over rice, with a side of Farofa (casava flour fried into a gritty consistency) and a caipirinha to wash it down.  Our first pot of moqueca was so good we practically licked our plates clean (of course we also were not allowed to throw any food away or else one of our friends would whine about it).

I was worried that once I left Salvador, I'd never be able to eat it again, but luckily you can find almost all the ingredients at your local grocery store.  The only hard to find ingredient is dende oil, or red palm oil.  This deep red oil was found all over Salvador and was used to cook pretty much everything, from the deep fried acaraje to of course, moqueca.  Luckily, Amazon carries dende oil, and it's prime eligible too! What a world we live in.

Definitely try this out, plus you probably won't run this risk of getting bitten in the face by a whore making this at home.

Moqueca  de Peixe
Serves 4.

2 lbs of firm white fish (I used mahi mahi)
1 onion diced
2 limes
6 roma tomatoes
2 garlic cloves diced
2 bell peppers (I used the little mini bell peppers) diced
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 hot pepper of your choice (for heat)
1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp of tomato paste
3 tbsp dende oil
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Farofa
1/2 cup of casava flour
1 garlic clove diced
2 tbsp olive oil

1. Cut the fish into large, even chunks and marinade in the juice of 1 lime, 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp each of salt and pepper for 30 minutes

2. Blanch tomatoes in boiling water for 1 minute then transfer to an ice bath.  Peel off the tomato skins and dice the tomatoes (optional but I don't like tomato skins)

3. In a clay moqueca pot (or a large dutch oven if you're not in Brazil) on high heat, sweat the onions and garlic with the olive oil.  After onions turn translucent, add the hot peppers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and tomato paste.  Cook on high for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add the coconut milk and dende oil and bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

5. Add fish simmer until fish is cooked all the way through (about 4 minutes).  At the last minute, add the cilantro and squeeze in the juice of 1 lime.  Serve over rice.

Farofa
1. To make the Farofa, heat skillet on high with olive oil and saute garlic for 2 minutes or until fragrant.  Add the casava flour and toss to coat.  Toast this for 3-4 minutes or until brown.  Serve with meat skewers, moqueca, tacos, salad, beans, rice or anything that you want to add some crunch.

Moqueca  de Peixe
Serves 4.

2 lbs of firm white fish (I used mahi mahi)
1 onion diced
2 limes
6 roma tomatoes
2 garlic cloves diced
2 bell peppers (I used the little mini bell peppers) diced
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 hot pepper
1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp of tomato paste
3 tbsp dende oil
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Farofa
1/2 cup of casava flour
1 garlic clove diced
2 tbsp olive oil


1. Cut the fish into large, even chunks and marinade in the juice of 1 lime, 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp each of salt and pepper for 30 minutes
2. Blanch tomatoes in boiling water for 1 minute then transfer to an ice bath.  Peel off the tomato skins and dice the tomatoes
3. In a clay moqueca pot (or a large dutch oven if you're not in Brazil) on high heat, sweat the onions and garlic with the olive oil.  After onions turn translucent, add the hot peppers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and tomato paste.  Cook on high for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the coconut milk and dende oil and bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
5. Add fish simmer until fish is cooked all the way through (about 4 minutes).  At the last minute, add the cilantro and squeeze in the juice of 1 lime. Serve over rice.

Farofa
1. Heat skillet on high with the olive oil and saute garlic for 2 minutes or until fragrant.  Add the casava flour and toss to coat.  Toast this for 3-4 minutes or until brown.  Serve with meat skewers, moqueca, tacos, salad, beans, rice or anything that you want to add some crunch.

Hainan Chicken Rice and Com Ga. A study in multi-cultural adaptations.

Chicken rice.  Com Ga. Hainan Chicken.  A dish that can be found across Asia (as I've been told, I haven't been to Asia in a while.)  

From Singapore to Vietnam to China, each country puts it's own little twist on it. In Vietnam, we call it Com Ga. In China, they call it chicken riceahhhhhhhh. Whatever you call it and however you serve it, it's a delicious, and super easy to make. Perfect for a week day meal.

Com Ga is served with nuoc cham (a fish sauce/sugar/vinegar mixture) and Hainan chicken is served with a ginger scallion sauce.

So let's do this thing!

Com Ga/Hainan Chicken
Serves 4

1 4lb Fryer chicken
1 stalk of green onion
1 3 inch knob of ginger
3 cups of uncooked rice
2 quarts of water
1 tsp of salt

Brine:
2 quarts of water
6% by weight kosher salt (about 1/2 cup per quart of water)

Ginger-Scallion sauce
2 green onions - diced
1 3 inch knob of ginger
1/2 cup of vegetable oil
1 tsp salt

Nuoc Cham (prepared fish sauce)
Ask your mom to make you a giant jug of it

First things first, we're going to brine the chicken over night in a 6% salt solution.  This is where a kitchen scale comes in handy.  Measure out 2 quarts of water, or enough to cover the chicken, and dissolve kosher salt until you reach a 6% salt solution by weight.  If you don't have a scale you can use 1/2 cup of salt per quart of water to get you close.

Cover the chicken in the brine and place in refrigerator over night.  The purpose of the brine is to ensure the chicken is extra moist once you're done cooking it.  The salt dissolves some of the myosin proteins in the chicken, allowing them to absorb more moisture.  Don't worry, it won't be overly salty.

The next day, wash off the brine thoroughly.  Stuff the cavity of the chicken with the onion and ginger. Place the chicken into a pot with a tsp of salt and cover with water. Bring it to a boil over high heat.  Once at a rolling boil, turn off the heat and cover the pot with a lid and let it stand for 15-20 minutes or until the breast temp reads 145F with a meat thermometer.  Remove from the pot and let chicken cool.

Instead of water, we'll be using the stock from cooking the chicken to cook the rice. Make sure you get the fat floating at the surface for some extra flavor.  I threw in the ginger and onion from the cooking the chicken for a little extra oomph.

To make the ginger-scallion sauce, heat up the oil and diced onions until it starts bubbling slightly.  In the mean time, grate the ginger.  Once the oil starts bubbling, remove from the heat and add the salt and ginger.

Serve the chicken with the rice and your choice of sauces.

Com Ga/Hainan Chicken Rice
Serves 4

1 4lb Fryer chicken
1 stalk of green onion
1 3 inch knob of ginger
3 cups of uncooked rice
2 quarts of water

Brine:
2 quarts of water
6% by weight kosher salt (about 1/2 cup per quart of water)

Ginger-Scallion sauce
2 green onions - diced
1 3 inch knob of ginger
1/2 cup of vegetable oil
1 tsp salt

Nuoc Cham (prepared fish sauce)
Ask your mom to make you a giant jug of it

1. Brine chicken in 6% salt solution overnight
2. Wash off brine, stuff the chicken cavity with green onion and ginger. Place in pot and cover with water.
3. Bring to a boil then turn off heat and cover with lid. Let the residual heat cook the chicken for 15-20 minutes or until internal temp reads 145F
4. Cook rice using stock from cooking the chicken
5. Heat oil and diced onions until bubbles form.  Grate ginger and add to the oil along with the salt.
6. Serve rice and chicken with choice of sauce

Dangggggg. Enoki Beef Wraps

A few months ago, my buddy turned the big 2-7. Gasp.  Officially in our late twenties now.  According to my high school yearbook, I should be a world famous plastic surgeon, living in a huge mansion and driving a Ferrari Enzo.  What happened? Where's my Ferrari?!? Taking Muni to work just doesn't have the same oomph.

Oh well. I guess 27 isn't so bad, it is divisible by both 3 and 9... buh dum psshhhh.  

Anyhow for his birthday, he had a huge BBQ at the park and everyone brought some dishes to share.  My other friend Jeff brought some Dang good enoki mushrooms wrapped in thinly sliced steak marinated in soy sauce (get it, because his last name is Dang.)   They were delicious, and being that everyone was super drunk, didn't last too long.

I had some left over meat and enokis from shabu shabu night so whipped this up for a quick sunday night dinner.  

They taste great in a pan but really shine on the grill.

Enoki Beef Wraps 

Serves 4 (quick steps at the bottom)

1 lb of thinly sliced short rib

1/2 package of enoki mushrooms (about 3.5oz)

1 green onion sliced into 3 inch pieces

Marinade

1 tbsp Ponzu sauce

1 tbsp Dark soy sauce 

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar
1 minced clove of garlic

1/4 tsp pepper 

Take a small amount of the mushrooms, maybe 10 or so caps and a piece of the green onion and wrap it with a piece of the short rib.  Repeat.

In a small bowl, combine the marinade ingredients and then coat the beef. Make sure to roll the wraps around so they're evenly coated. Let marinade for 15 minutes.

Heat up a medium sized skillet over medium high heat for a few minutes to let it get nice and hot.  Place the beef wraps into the skillet and quickly sear one side.  Cover with a lid for 2 minutes to allow the mushrooms and onions to cook.  After 2 minutes, remove the lid and turn the wraps so you can sear the other side, cook for another minute.   Let it rest for 2-3 minutes.  Serve with a side of rice.  

Alternatively, you can cook these over a hot charcoal fire, turning every 30 seconds so it evenly cooks. Cook for 2 minutes, then let rest for 2-3 minutes before serving.

Enoki Beef Wraps

1 lb of thinly sliced short rib

1/2 package of enoki mushrooms (about 3.5oz)

1 green onion sliced into 3 inch pieces

Marinade

1 tbsp Ponzu sauce

1 tbsp Dark soy sauce 

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp sugar
1 minced clove of garlic

1/4 tsp pepper 

1. Wrap 1 piece of onion and about 10-12 caps of mushrooms with the short rib

2. Combine the marinade and coat the beef wraps evenly, let marinade for 15 minutes

3. In a medium pan, cook over medium high heat for 2 minutes covered, turn the wraps then cook 1 minute uncovered (or grill over a hot charcoal fire for 2 minutes, turning every 30 seconds)

Pho-co Moco - Creative Leftovers

Leftovers.  I never seem to remember the meals they were leftover from.  But they're always there, in your fridge, wasting away in styrofoam boxes and plastic to-go containers before you finally decide to make room for some beer and throw away the food, which by now has probably started showing signs of intelligence.

Of course you could just reheat in the microwave and often times that'll do pig, that'll do.  But luckily if you're creative, you can make a new creation out of what's left in your fridge.

This is my take on the Hawaiian loco-moco, a beef patty topped with a fried egg served over rice and smothered in gravy.

I guess I'll call it pho-co moco, made from the leftovers of my pho burger.

Pho-co Moco
Recipe makes 4 servings.  (Quick recipe at the bottom)

4 Pho-burger patties
2 cups of white rice, cook it first, duh.
1 package of beef meat balls
8 eggs
2 cups of pho broth
1.5 tbsp of hoisin sauce
2 tbsp of white flour
thai basil
green onions

1. Heat a 12 inch skillet on high until so hot you could fry an egg on it (literally) and cook your burger patties. Once cooked to your liking, remove and reserve the patties in a warmed oven.

See all that fat and brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan? You want that. That fond and fat will make the gravy oh so good.

Add in the flour and mix in with a whisk, this will form a roux.  Allow the roux to cook for 4-5 minutes over medium heat to cook out the raw taste in the flour.  Then add the pho broth. Make sure to whisk while adding the broth in to avoid lumps in your gravy.  Keep over a medium heat and reduce.

When the gravy has reduced to a "nape" state (easily coats the back of a spoon), you're done!  You can strain the gravy too if you don't like lumps. Those lovely lady lumps.

For the rice portion.  Dice the meat balls into bite sized chunks and do a quick sear with the white part of the green onions. Add the rice and hoisin sauce and mix until well combined. Add in basil leaves towards the end.

Finally fry up 2 eggs per person.

Top the rice with the burger patties, the fried eggs and pour on the gravy. Oh yeah and don't forget to instagram that shit before you dig in.

Pho-co Moco
Recipe makes 4 servings.

4 Pho-burger patties
2 cups of white rice
1 package of beef meat balls
8 eggs
2 cups of pho broth
1.5 tbsp of hoisin sauce
2 tbsp of white flour
thai basil
green onions

1. Cook burger patties in heavy pan, reserve.
2. Add flour to the pan to make a roux, cook for 4 minutes and add broth while whisking.  Reduce gravy until thickened
3. In another pan, add meat balls and green onions, cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add white rice and hoisin sauce and mix until uniform.
5. Fry eggs
6. Serve rice topped with burger patty, eggs and gravy.