Lately I’ve been watching a lot of travel shows that involve copious amounts of eating along the way- think anything and everything Anthony Bourdain is in only because of all the interesting places he visits–but, definitely not what he eats or drinks. Some of the dishes that he tries are, in my opinion, a lesson in what not to eat. At the very least, it’seducation about the vast amounts of food people around the world eat that are completely and utterly a figment of our imagination here in the Midwest. I wouldn’t want his job of eating some pretty stomach-churning (and not so halal) things, but I would love his job of traveling, cooking and eating the halal stuff, for sure…
Backing away from Netflix and right back into the kitchen and I am craving some spicy Thai food- or anything spicy, at least somewhat. All the shows with such great seafood dishes reminds me that the world does offer up some incredibly great seafood recipes I just don’t see very often in restaurants around me, but I like to try making them myself. The problem is, I am usually the only one who ends up eating fish dishes because so few people are turned on by seafood. I think it’s ALL in how it’s made- the resulting flavor is the key factor that’s going to attract eaters, so perhaps just make a great dish without discussing all the details of what’s in it and what it looked like prior to cooking it. At least that’s the lesson I’ve learned…
I mean, none of the ingredients below look unappetizing, do they? No. But we’re not cooking with a whole fish that has to be cleaned up. The only somewhat scary ingredient to anyone not used to fish or seafood dishes is the fish sauce- I can just imagine telling someone that it’s an ingredient in a dish without explaining that it’s not so bad- just ground up salty anchovies or something similar–and that means you don’t need to add salt to your dish. Great, isn’t it?
For this recipe, which totally satisfied my craving for something nice and spicy but not too hot, I chose Alaskan cod in pieces as my main seafood ingredient. I like the because it takes the work out of slicing it up yourself and they’re found frozen which typically means the fish is freshly frozen rather than the ‘fresh’ fish at the grocery store that has simply been defrosted after arriving on ice and frozen from the transport trucks.
I found found this particular fish in nice chunks is at Trader Joe’s- next time I make this dish I’d probably cut them even a bit smaller just because I don’t like huge chunks of fish on my plate, but to each his own. You could even get a large piece of cod and put it in without cutting at all and it would be fine, too.
For the vegetables, I chose an Asian Vegetable Stir Fry mix which you can find at most grocery stores or just make it yourself with equal parts of sliced round carrots, broccoli, red and green pepper, red onion, snap peas, mushrooms, baby corn and water chestnuts, if you like. Leave out what you don’t.
After cooking the vegetables then fish in a neutral oil (i.e. sunflower), I add the fish sauce and Saffron Road Thai Red Curry Simmer Sauce. You can find it at many different stores – just take a look at their store locator on their website for a
The Simmer Sauce is gluten free and halal and contains the ethnic Thai flavors you would want in this dish like lemongrass, coconut milk, ginger, and paprika. It also adds a lot of nice moisture to the dish, which is important when you’re not cooking with much fat, as in this case.
To give the dish a nice kick, I added two heaping spoons of fire roasted green chilies. You can find small cans of this stuff in the Mexican aisle of most grocers. In my case, I got these from Trader Joe’s. Of course.
I let this simmer for some time (around 15 minutes) while my wonderfully fragrant Jasmine rice was cooking at the same time. Once they’re both done, it’s a really nice meal on a plate.
Perfect for dinner. Even on a weekday.
I’ll be giving away a packet of another one of Saffron Road’s Simmer Sauces this week, so stay tuned and make sure you’re subscribed to our newsletter to find out about all the new and exciting things we have coming up, insha’Allah.
Enjoy!
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2 tablespoons sunflower oil
1 pound Asian stir fry vegetable mix (equal amounts of broccoli, carrot, mushrooms, red onion, snap peas, baby corn)
When I’m looking for a quick way to cook and eat healthy, I begin thinking about what I can make in a tagine. They’re easy to make one pot meals in and because they have a conical lid, you can steam the contents either while cooking or when it’s out of the oven and resting. My latest creation was with shrimp and the Saffron Road Harissa Simmer Sauce– a great combination and only minimal ingredients are needed to add to it.
In this case, I added green peppers, garlic, onion, cilantro and parsley.
The main ingredient is large shrimp with the shells on. Boil for 5-7 minutes in water to cook them slightly.
Once cooked (they turn pink), drain the water and let them cool.
Peel the shrimp of all the shells. Place in the tagine with the cut peppers, garlic and onion.
Add a bit of ras-al-hanout, if you have it. It’s not necessary because the Harissa Simmer Sauce has spices in it already.
Just like the other Simmer Sauces that Saffron Road has in their line of sauces, they’re all natural, halal-certified and gluten-free.
Pour it over the shrimp and other ingredients. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Stir everything up before cooking then cook, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Once it comes out of the oven, put a lid on it and let it steam for about 5 minutes.
Serve with a side of pearl couscous or rice, if you have it.
It’s even good with just a nice big piece of rustic bread.
Salmon is one of the easiest types of fish to make on a regular basis. It’s thick texture stays together nicely when cooking, so whether you’re frying, grilling or baking it, it tends to stay together really well. This is great news for novice cooks or those who are a little intimidated to cook fish at all. And winter is a great time to have salmon because it’s super high in Vitamin D.
If you watch enough of the news or programs like the Dr. Oz Show, you’ve probably already seen recent reports that so many people are low in the ever important Vitamin D that protects our bodies and our immune systems from all types of diseases. (more…)
Unless you have an amazing Asian store nearby that sells fresh ingredients from the East, it’s pretty hard to find things like lemongrass, real coconut and interesting chili peppers to cook with, unfortunate because when combined they make for such an exotic and flavorful combination like what’s been prepared for us in one of the latest simmer sauces by Saffron Road that I’m going to show you how to use.
I happen to have several Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese grocers in the great city of Chicago that spoil me whenever I’m craving something exotic (to me) to cook, but even then it can be time consuming and somewhat costly to drag myself out and grab all the ingredients I don’t normally have on hand. (more…)
I’ve grown up making tuna fish sandwiches all my life. In fact, it was probably the first kind I ever made for myself during my latch-key kid days of the late 80’s and early 90’s. I tried to get creative back then, but there was much to be desired gastronomically during that time.
Believe me, if I was allowed to use the stove at that time, I probably would have mixed the tuna with some of Nonna’s homemade Sicilian tomato sauce and made a somewhat flavorful sandwich. Instead, mayonnaise was the sandwich sauce of my youth.
Alhamdullilah, thankfully, much has changed since then. After years of travel and an absolute obsession with eating foods natural and as unprocessed as possible, I’ve taken my tuna to new levels with the incorporation of real Mediterranean flavors and whatever else is fresh and good for us.
The recipe below is one I made recently for a neighbor and friend I hadn’t seen in nearly two years. She recently called one morning and asked to come by for a visit that afternoon. I responded with excitement, “Of course!” and hung up- not realizing I’d love to present a healthy lunch but it would have to be done quickly and give a nice presentation, too.
This simple lunch was a snap to prepare and a success at the table. Try it yourself – I think you’ll love it. Here are the ingredients:
Mediterranean Tuna Sandwiches
Makes approximately 4 healthy size sandwiches or 12 open-faced small sandwiches
1 TB homemade or a good quality(made with olive oil) mayonnaise
Preparation
Drain tuna and put in the bowl you plan to serve the salad.
Add all of the rest of the ingredients and taste. If you need to add more of anything, don’t be afraid- a little more will only extend the serving size.
Serve on your favorite bread, croissants or rolls and with a delicious sliced cheese such as provolone, mozzarella or Swiss. Even better when melted!
