#dad cooking

[gothshostakovich]

A Mexican twist on my usual Dad Cooking. After my dad told me that adding beer to slow-cooked pulled pork makes it nice and juicy, I took delight in pairing beers and BBQ sauces (last time, I did tangy Carolina BBQ with a hoppy IPA). This combo is an homage to my parents, who kept both mole and Negra Modelo on hand at home. I felt that the richness of mole demanded demanded a rich, dark beer as well. So stoked for tomorrow's lunch!

[foodieschmoodie]

A gift from Papa Chang

Growing up in my household, my father was the cook in the family.  He certainly didn't cook the most (being a doctor made cooking dinner every night difficult), but his dishes were the household staples that we looked forward to each week: Spaghetti Sundays, Chicken Adobo, the occasional Chinese recipes he remembered from his mother, and what I like to call "leftovers fried rice."  Many people ask my dad if he knows how to cook Chinese food.  His response, "well, I know how to cook with soy sauce" so hilariously represents his assimilated Chinese-American upbringing.  While it's not the whole truth (there are those few dishes I mentioned before), it is generally accurate.  We cooked fried rice in our house when the fridge was stuffed to the gills with leftover foods: meat, poultry, fish, vegetables, and, of course, rice.

The method is simple:

1. Heat 1-2 tbl oil in a large pan or wok over high heat (I like to use a neutral oil for these recipes such as canola or vegetable).  You want a "screaming-hot" pan for this preparation.

2. add your desired leftovers and rice to the pan.  Mix well.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Perhaps add some freshly minced garlic and scallions and cook for 1-2 minutes.  When all the ingredients a piping hot and the seasoning is perfect, turn off the heat and enjoy!

Oh, yeah.  The soy sauce!  That part is optional.  Depending on what kind of leftovers you are dealing with, your seasonings will vary.  If you decide to add soy sauce, omit the salt and splash an equal amount of rice wine, white wine or dry sherry and a couple of squirts of honey or agave nectar to make your own sweet soy seasoning.

Last night I found myself reminiscing about my dad laying out all of the leftovers onto the kitchen counter and taking our orders for what kind of rice we wanted so many years ago.  I happened to have some leftover brown rice, chicken thighs and a bunch of vegetables from the Green City Market.  This wasn't quite "leftovers fried rice" but it was up there.  I seasoned mine with mirin (sweet rice wine), garlic and ginger.  I also added some egg at the end for an extra shot of protein and an assurance that my dish would be ugly.  No regrets!  It was so good I ate three portions and saved the rest for more "leftovers" to enjoy today!  Here's the recipe.  Mix it up a little!

Mix and Match Fried Rice

Serves 2

This recipe is just one variation that I made.  Stir-frying is one of the most versatile techniques in cooking.  I encourage you to take the method and switch around the ingredients!

2 Tbl canola oil

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 tsp of red pepper flake (or more, to taste)

 tsp fresh ginger, minced

3 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, fat trimmed off and cut into 2 inch dices

A collection of vegetables.  I used 1 Chinese eggplant, sliced, 2 cups green beans, and 1 ear of corn, cut off the cob.

1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice

1/2 tbl butter

2 eggs, beaten

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup Mirin

Heat the oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat.  When the oil is almost smoking, add half of the garlic, the ginger, and chili flakes.  Cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.  Add the chicken and cook until brown, about 2 minutes.  Removed chicken and garlic.  Add more oil if you think it's necessary.  Add the vegetables and cook, stirring for about 5 minutes.  Season with salt.  Return the chicken to the pan, add rice, butter, and mirin and stir.  Add the egg to the pan.  Let cook without stirring for about 15 seconds and then stir vigorously.  When egg is fully cooked, remove the pan from the heat and serve!