Saffron rice with barberries, pistachio and mixed herbs

Posted on December 26, 2015 by melsmosaic

I was introduced to Yotam Ottolenghi‘s cookbooks a few months ago and finally have one of my own — Jerusalem. The recipes and pictures are mouth-watering just when reading them. I made Christmas Eve dinner for some friends and had to break the cookbook out. One of the recipes I tried was Saffron rice with barberries, pistachio and mixed herbs.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 /40 g tbsp unsalted butter (I just used some olive oil)
2 cups/360g basmati rice, rinsed under cold water and drained
2 1/2 cups/560ml boiling water
1 tsp saffron threads, soaked for 30 minutes in 3 tbsp boiling water
1/4 cup/40g dried barberries, soaked for a few minutes in freshly boiled water with a pinch of sugar (I couldn’t find them after checking out several specialty stores, went with dried cranberries)
1 oz/30g dill, roughly chopped
2/3 oz/20g chervil, roughly chopped (nixed it because there was none at the store and it was such a small amount)
1/3 oz/10g tarragon, roughly chopped (used dry)
1/2 cup/60g slivered or crushed unsalted pistachios, lightly toasted
Salt and freshly ground white pepper

Directions:

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan and stir in the rice, making sure the grains are well coated. Add the boiling water, a teaspoon of salt and some white pepper. Mix well, cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook on a very low heat for 15 minutes. Don’t be tempted to uncover the pan – you need to let the rice to steam properly. –I had to go a bit longer than 15.
Remove the pan from the heat – all the water will have been absorbed by the rice – and pour the saffron water over about a quarter of the surface, leaving most of the rice white. Cover with a tea towel, reseal tightly with the lid and set aside for five to 10 minutes.
With a large spoon, transfer the white rice to a large bowl and fluff it up with a fork. Drain the barberries (again, just used cranberries) and stir them in, followed by the herbs and most of the pistachios, reserving a few to garnish. Fluff up the saffron rice in the pan, then fold gently into the white rice – don’t overmix: you don’t want the white grains to be stained by the yellow ones. Taste, adjust the seasoning and transfer to a shallow serving bowl. Scatter the remaining pistachios on top and serve warm or at room temperature.

This was so good. The nice taste from the saffron and all other flavors jumping together. And the red and green colors coming together on Christmas Eve. So glad I tried this!

Crusted!

Posted on September 20, 2015 by melsmosaic

Tried another recipe from a recent issue of Bon Appetit — Wild Rice-Crusted Halibut. Sounded pretty unique so had to give it a try. Also relatively easy to make.

Ingredients
4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
½ cup wild rice
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
4 5–6-ounce skinless halibut, hake, or cod fillets (I went with the cod, much more affordable)
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
Lemon wedges (for serving)

Preparation
Heat 2 Tbsp. oil in a medium skillet over medium-high. Add rice and cook, tossing occasionally, until grains have popped open like popcorn and are lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels and let cool. Pulse in a food processor or blender to a fine powder. Perfect in the mini-prep.

Preheat oven to 350°. Place flour in a shallow bowl. Beat eggs and 1 Tbsp. water in another shallow bowl. Place wild rice powder in a baking dish. Season fish with salt and pepper. Working with 1 fillet at a time, dredge in flour, shaking off excess, then dip into egg mixture, turning to coat evenly. Coat with rice powder, pressing gently to adhere. -Was tough to get it to totally adhere, but still got a good amount on there

Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. oil in a large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high. Cook fish until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer skillet to oven and roast fish until just opaque throughout, about 3 minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.

The crunch you got from the rice was great! And I have now taken this concept and used it for just extra in ‘stuff’ — I toasted the wild rice the other day and pulsed/crushed it just not quite as fine and tossed it with some brown rice. Gave it great extra crunch. Going to see what else to do with it now.

Rice Salad with Pecans, Fennel, and Herbs

Posted on March 9, 2015 by melsmosaic

Was flipping through a (sort of) recent Bon Appetit issue the other day (January 2015) and came across a recipe that looked tempting. With the ‘warm’ weather — I’m talking upper 50s and sunny after 8″ of snow last week — it was just far too appealing. It’s essentially a no-cook recipe, which was a bit off for a January recipe.

Red Rice Salad with Pecans, Fennel, and Herbs

1 cup red rice (I used the priceless Trader Joe’s microwave rice)
1 small fennel bulb, very thinly sliced
1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice, divided
2/3 cup pecans, divided
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup cilantro leaves and finely chopped tender stems
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
Toasted pistachio oil or almond oil (for serving; optional)

Directions

Cook rice according to package directions. Spread out on a rimmed baking sheet; let cool.

Meanwhile, toss fennel and onion with 2 tablespoons lime juice in a large bowl and let sit, tossing occasionally, until lime juice is almost entirely absorbed, 10-15 minutes.
So at this point, since it had to be thinly sliced, it was time to pull out the V-slicer/mandolin. Had such a great time!

Coarsely chop 1/3 cup pecans; finely chop remaining nuts. Laziness here, bought them that way — and, a heck of a lot cheaper for some reason. Cook in olive oil in a small saucepan over medium-low until golden brown, 5-10 minutes. Let cool.

Add rice and pecans to fennel mixture along with remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice and toss to combine. Gently fold in cilantro; season with salt and pepper. Serve drizzled with pistachio oil, if desired.

*Do ahead: Rice salad (without cilantro) can be chilled up to 1 day. Bring to room temperature before serving.

This salad was mouthwatering. I did not expect it to be this good. Wow. It could also easily be made with quinoa and/or another nuts. Will be a perfect summer recipe. Wow, delicious.

Zentan

Posted on February 10, 2014 by melsmosaic

Was treated to a very nice lunch the other day at an Asian restaurant near Thomas Circle in DC. The venue, Zentan. Per their own description, they are a modern Asian restaurant featuring award-winning cuisine, focusing on Japanese-inspired small and shareable plates.

The restaurant is very ‘sharp’ — that’s the best way I can think to describe it. Lunch was at 1 on a Thursday, so it wasn’t packed but busy enough. Nice decor, cool tables, overall good atmosphere. We get the menu. What to order? Too many choices! (sorry for the shadow on the picture, odd light in the restaurant)

I finally opted for the Rainbow Don Bento Box — tuna, salmon and whitefish sashimi, cooked shrimp sashimi (I can’t quite get why it’s sashimi if it’s cooked), sushi rice and seaweed salad.

I don’t really like seaweed and this salad was a knockout! Wow, so good. The whitefish was unreal. The waiter said what it was and I can’t totally remember the Asian name he mentioned. Melt in your mouth. Absolutely amazing lunch. Will totally have to check this place out for dinner, too. Add it to your list if you’re looking for a new restaurant to try in DC.

Genes & Food

Posted on August 28, 2013 by melsmosaic

You learn something new everyday is all too true. I was reading this short, interesting article earlier today in National Geographic about how (some of) what we eat is somehow tied to us, DNA-wise. As the articles states, ‘…at first glance, look like cousins.’ Glad they said that because for a second I had to think…does this truly mean we are what we eat?

Ok, back on true topic. From that flank steak & burger to a great chicken breast; then further down the line, think of that rice some stir-fried chicken might go on top of. Baker’s yeast — bring on the bread — was on there! And, wine grapes, not just ‘grape’ grapes made the list.

The article mentions how while all species are unique, from inanimate to breathing objects, we have many genes in common at the base. Check out the article. I just though it was great to learn about. The kitchen and food can be much more/provide much more information than we think. Talk about food for thought.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2013/07/125-explore/shared-genes