Re: ***weekly menu 10/13***

Message edited 10/15/2012 11:36:34 AM.

Re: ***weekly menu 10/13***

Posted by Ophelia

Posted by rojerono

Posted by Ophelia
Tues: potato, leek, and salmon chowder

Oh YUM! Share the recipe?? How do you keep the salmon from falling apart in the chowder?

it's actaully a bastardized recipe b/c I lost the original one I made and I have been clunking along blindly since then.

but it's this basic potato chowder recipe (I don't use sage, just thyme and I will not be using bacon b/c I don't want to ) I also add a bay leaf. you could also add a bit of Old Bay. I will also be adding celery and carrots, one stalk celery and two chopped carrots.

the salmon, I put it in towards the end in a few large pieces and try to to stir/break it up too too much. but honestly, little bits do not bother me so I am not militant about it.

Potato Chowder Saute 4 ounces chopped bacon; add 2 tablespoons butter, 2 sliced leeks and 2 teaspoons each sage and thyme. Add 4 cups chicken broth, 1 1/2 cups cream, a bay leaf and 3 chopped potatoes. Simmer until tender; top with chives.

Re: ***weekly menu 10/13***

Message edited 10/16/2012 10:32:23 AM.

Re: ***weekly menu 10/13***

Posted by klingklang77

Posted by rojerono

Posted by klingklang77

Sunday: had some friends over, I made butter chicken, she made potato prawn curry. Served with an arugala salad with pine nuts, parm cheese, and tomatoes. Followed by baked pears for dessert.

Can you share your butter chicken recipe??

Sure! I've made it three times so far and I wasn't as happy with it on Sunday . The other two times were better. I know where my mistake was though- in the tomatoes. I went a bit cheap and got cheaper smaller tomatoes, but I suggest going for some nice bigger tomatoes or Roma. Make sure they are nice and red and cook them down. More important, taste to make sure it isn't watery, like mine was on Sunday. Hope you don't mind the metric weights.

Butter Chicken

1. Prepare Chicken for grilling. Tandoori style (Shapla's recipe). I do 800g of chicken Marinate, grill and add to end of recipe. I do breasts and put them on skewers, but on the bone would work fine.

2. Making tomato puree (makes 4 cups. Since it's just me and my husband, I use half and then freeze the other half for another meal. This part is always a bit of a pain, so I do it in bulk and the day before.)

1.7-2 kilograms of ripe, juicy tomatoes cubed (no need to get fancy, just cut out the hard part at the top.
1 Tablespoon of minced garlic
6-8 green cardamom pods
2-3 mace blades
1-2 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon oil.

Heat oil and butter. Add cardamom pods and mace blades. Sautee for 1-2 mins releasing a nice smell and making sure not to burn butter. Add garlic and cook for 30 secs-1 minute.
Add tomatoes and cook until liquidy. There will be some chunks of tomatoes, but not overly chunky. Taste make sure not too watery, bit a nice tomato taste with hints of spice. Cool. Blend in blender or with immersion blender. Strain (don’t save what’s left in the strainer). Maybe even cook it down after straining, in case you have the same problem I did this past weekend.

3. For butter chicken sauce

4-5 Heaping Tablespoons of butter
4 cups of above tomato puree (can also just use canned pureed tomatoes, but it just isn't the same)
2 Tablespoons of minced ginger (can use jarred ginger paste)
1- Tsp- 1 Tablespoon of minced garlic (can use jarred garlic paste) This really depends on how much you like garlic, lol.
1-2 green chilies (optional)
3-4 large green cardamom pods
3-4 large black cardamom pods
3-4 large whole cloves
8 peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick, break in half
2 teaspoons fenugreek leaves (Kasuri methi)
2 teaspoons chili powder (if you can, Kashmiri as it’s best for colour; regular will work just fine, but Kashmiri is oh so nce)
2 teaspoons garam masala
Salt to taste
4-5 heaping Tablespoons crème fraiche (could use 6-7 Tablespoons heavy cream)
4 teaspoons sugar or some honey, about 2 tsp
Green cardamom powder to finish with a pinch more fenugreek leaves

Melt butter. Add green cardamom pods, cloves, peppercorns, and cinnamon. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes (careful not to burn). Add garlic and ginger and chilies if using. Cook for 1-2 minutes (again watch the heat and burning). Add chili powder and salt. Cook for 30 seconds to release flavour. Add tomato puree. Bring to a boil and reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add fenugreek leaves. Simmer some more. Cooking more makes for a better tasting curry, IMO.

Add cooked tandoori chicken. Simmer for 5 or so minutes. Add sugar. Add crème fraiche and more butter if you think it needs it. Mix well. Taste and adjust salt and add more crème fraiche or butter if needed. Finish off with a pinch of green cardamom powder, fenugreek leaves and garam masala. Serve over rice or naan.

It's kind of complicated, but I used the following link and an Indian cooking class to make my final product.

My friend (she's Indian) suggested that I add a tablespoon or two of cashews or almonds that have been finely ground at the end. I'm going to try that next time.

Good Luck and let me know how it goes! I was a bit disappointed with the last time I made it, but now I know that the quality of the tomatoes is so important.

ETA: For some reason, the link says 1 kg of tomatoes, and I used two. Hmm not sure why, maybe that was my mistake, lol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nzHXxasZ8E

***weekly menu 10/13***

Sunday: Oysterfest. Had a dozen Oysters and a steak sandwich. Stopped at Vittorio's on the way home and had a drink and some appetizers.

Monday: Crock pot chipotle/cherry roast beef with buttered whole wheat egg noodles and candied carrots.

Tuesday: ST Turkey Pumpkin chili with whole grain Tostitos.

Wednesday: ST Salisbury Steak, sweet potato and sauteed brocollini.

Thursday: Beef stroganoff over egg noodles.

Friday: Homemade pizza night.

Saturday: Mini Thanksgiving.