I made this! Myself! From scratch! For real!
I’m sad to say it doesn’t look anywhere near as good as the first batch – this one is a bit paler and pouffier (like its creator) due to my excitement-triggered belief I could improve upon it, and make it even crispier. Next time I’ll go back to the version below. I still had to photograph it, as the light died and we had ten minutes to finish eating and get to gymnastics. Mike said it was better than take-out.
In the past I’ve been inclined to leave this sort of thing to the experts, but gave it a shot earlier this week for CBC in anticipation of the Chinese new year. If I can make ginger beef from scratch at 6:30 in the morning, you can do it too. (Preferably at 6:30 pm.)
Ginger Beef
If you can find thinly sliced beef for rouladen or bolgogi beef, it’s an easy start. Adapted from the Best of Bridge.
1 lb. sirloin steak or any other cut you like (I used eye of round)
1 egg, beaten
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. wine (red or white – optional)
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
pinch red chili flakes
1/4 cup grated fresh ginger
4-5 garlic cloves, crushed
canola oil, for cooking
1 small red pepper, sliced
1 large carrot, coarsely grated
2 green onions, chopped
Thinly slice the beef into strips a few inches long and about 1/4-inch wide. Toss with egg in a medium bowl. Stir together the cornstarch and water and add to the beef; toss to blend well.
In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, wine, sesame oil and chili flakes. Stir in half the ginger and garlic.
In a wok or heavy pot, heat about an inch of oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Drop the strips of beef into the oil using a fork, chopsticks or tongs, keeping them from clumping together and cooking in batches so the beef doesn’t crowd the pot. Once golden and crisp, transfer to a paper towel-lined plate or sheet. Pour the oil out into a jar (or start with a fresh pan or wok with a new drizzle of oil) and add the pepper, carrots, green onion and remaining ginger and garlic to the pan. Cook for a minute or two, then pour the sauce overtop and heat through. Put the beef in a shallow bowl, pour the sauce over top and serve immediately. Serves 6.
February 03 2011 | appetizers and beef | 31 Comments »
Sorry guys, it’s taken me awhile to get this soup up – I keep getting requests for it, and understandably – it’s one of my absolute favourites, one I should really have a stash of at all times. It’s the perfect midwinter soup – warm and sippable with protein and spice and beta carotene and all good things. (You may recognize the photo from a year-old issue of Parents Canada-taken out in Tofino! SIGH.) Print this recipe out RIGHT NOW and stick it on your fridge. Please.
In case you didn’t know – it seems a great many people are less familiar with dried lentils than I am – red lentils don’t need to be presoaked. Having been split in half, they can be tossed straight into the soup and cooked along with the vegetables. Take this soup with you to go in an insulated coffee mug to keep it warm.
Curried Sweet Potato, Carrot & Red Lentil Soup with Ginger
canola or olive oil, for cooking
1 medium onion, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger
1/2 cup dry red lentils
1 medium dark-fleshed sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. curry paste or powder, or to taste
4 cups (1 L) chicken or vegetable stock
salt, to taste
1/4-1/2 cup half & half, plain yogurt or heavy cream (optional)
In a medium pot, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat and sauté the onion, garlic and ginger for 3-4 minutes, until soft. Add the lentils, sweet potato, carrots, curry paste and stock, along with a cup of water. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down, cover and simmer for half an hour, until the vegetables are very tender.
Season with salt, add the half & half (if you’re using it) and use a hand-held immersion blender to puree it right in the pot. Alternatively, transfer it in batches to a blender and puree until smooth or mash it roughly with a potato masher.
Serve hot. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to a week, or cooled and frozen for up to 6 months. Serves 4.
Per serving: 241 calories, 4.4 g fat (1 g saturated fat, 2.2 g monounsaturated fat, 1.1 g polyunsaturated fat), 13.5 g protein, 37 g carbohydrates, 7 mg cholesterol, 5.4 g fiber
February 02 2011 | soup | 15 Comments »
I’ve had a lot of people inquire lately about homemade yogurt – how to do it using the good old pot-jar-towel method – and yes, it’s really that easy, even when it’s close to 30 below (!!) outside.
All you need to do is keep the jar warm (glass provides good insulation) and leave it to make itself.
I’ve posted the formula over at the Family Kitchen.
February 01 2011 | leftovers | 15 Comments »
I do love working from home out of our wee extra bedroom. But one of the downfalls about this arrangement, besides the slight Twitter addiction (it makes the self-employed feel like they’re somehow in an office environment, I think), and too-strong incentive to live in PJ bottoms, is the lack of separation between work and home. There’s always work around, and always something that should be done. So when weekends come along, particularly during a deep freeze, and especially when there are PD days scheduled on Friday and Monday, sometimes you just gotta get the hell outta Dodge. This was one of those weekends. Some people pay big bucks for high-priced hookers – I’m willing to pay for a night with a bed like this – crisp sheets, turn down service, and no need to fight for the best pillow.
Also, I adore the Banff Springs. When it’s been too long, especially over the winter, I get homesick for it.
As kids we often made day trips to Banff, sometimes staying at the Springs during a ski weekend. My youngest sister used to go from ballroom to ballroom, looking for the king. When W was about three, he was terrified to go inside, and cautiously peered up every spiral marble staircase, worried that a dragon was lying in wait for him to come around the corner.
Ben had never been, and so we told them on Friday that we were going to to Banff and stay in a castle, one with suits of armor and a bowling alley, and that we’d stop at the candy store on the way, spend lots of time at the pool, and go for a breakfast buffet Monday morning. They fake fainted.
It was a stunning, sunny, snowy drive. Banff is the perfect distance, I think – not long enough to drive anyone squirrely, yet long enough to seem like a special event. And the Banff Springs, despite its worldwide fame and regular visits from Hollywood stars and royalty, is really not at all snooty (the opposite, in fact). It’s very accessible, and big enough that you couldn’t possibly get cabin fever even when the temperature drops to -29. I could spend days wandering through the castle and grounds, sitting in chairs in nooks and just hanging out in my favourite bathroom in the world (below) – I brought W in to see it and he said, “it smells like girls in here”, and promptly left. (It has a dusty perfume that reminds me of my great aunt.)
Brunch was the most notable meal of the day. The boys were ecstatic to be able to serve themselves Froot Loops, smoothies and bacon. We ate vegetable frittatas, maple bison sausage (they also had a gluten-free chicken apple variety), creamed roasted mushrooms, baked apples stuffed with raisins and walnuts, crispy potato rösti (topped with a bit of corned beef hash!) and sticky, smoky maple baked beans. And a bit of yogurt with granola and berry compote, a wee Danish, coffee, the last of W’s grainy toast with cherry jam. They do the buffet every morning, and I’ve never seen it crowded. Every table has a spectacular view. Don’t you love supporting local business in this way?
I’m writing this in this little nook in the Mt Stephen hall – one of my favourite rooms in the world – one of these days, when I win the lottery or come into some big money or finally marry rich, I’ll throw a huge party here.
I so badly wanted to crash this party.
The boys are in the pool for the fourth time, their orange-sized jawbreakers bought at the Banff candy store yesterday wrapped carefully in the shower caps that come with the room – I always wondered who used them.
February 01 2011 | eating out | 28 Comments »
