Chicken and Rice Soup with Asian Flavors

This recipe is still a work in progress. I started with a whole 5 pound chicken which produced 2 huge breasts. I poached both breasts to make a broth even though I knew that it would be more meat than what I needed for the soup. But what I really wanted was the flavorful broth and one breast would not make a broth with as much flavor as both breasts. The second breast was perfect for adding to a salad another day so I got at least 2 meals for my effort.

I also ended up with more rice than I thought was appropriate for the soup. Next time I'll start with about 2/3 cup dry rice. On the other hand it's nice to have leftover rice to make a fried rice dish, so perhaps next time I'll make a larger pot of rice and then make chicken fried rice the next day. That sounds like a plan!

2 bone in chicken breasts with the skin attached, from a 5 pound chicken (wings removed)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 whole cinnamon stick
1 whole star anise broken into pieces
6 whole cloves
1 black cardamom pod
a 1-inch piece of fresh ginger cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
5 to 6 cups of water

1 cup brown jasmine rice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups water

Coconut oil, 1 to 2 tablespoons as desired
About 1 cup of 1/4-inch thick celery slices
About 1/2 pound of carrots cut into 1/2-inch dice
About 1 cup of coarsely chopped onion (leek?)
2 to 3 tablespoons fish sauce or to taste

1 large bunch of fresh cilantro
Sesame oil
Hot pepper sauce

Diced daikon radish would be a nice addition to the veggie mix.
Napa cabbage would be good.

First poach the chicken breasts. Place the chicken breasts in a 3 quart or larger saucepan along with the seasonings and enough water to completely submerge the breasts, at least 5 cups. Turn the heat on to medium, cover the pan, and bring the water to a gentle simmer. Do not boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer the breasts until the broth turns clear and then remove the pan from the heat and allow the breasts to at least partially cool in the broth.

Steam the rice while the chicken breasts are cooking. Place the rice, salt, and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to the lowest setting or put the pan on a low burner with a flame tamer, cover the pan and allow the rice to steam until all the liquid is absorbed. Set aside. (This made more rice than necessary, I had at least a cup leftover after adding as much as I wanted to the finished soup.)

Heat the coconut oil in a large soup pot set over medium heat. Add the vegetables, toss to coat with the hot oil, cover the pot and allow the veggies to sweat for a couple of minutes. Uncover the pot and sauté the vegetables until they are slightly softened, a couple more minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the chicken breasts from their pot and set them aside to cool until they can be handled. Strain the broth into the soup pot. Season the soup with a couple more tablespoons of fish sauce and bring the soup to a simmer.

While the soup is simmering, shred the chicken meat to be used in the soup, you will probably only need the meat from one of the breasts if you started with a 5 pound chicken. Remove the chicken meat from the bones, setting the bones and skin aside for another use (they can still be used in a long simmered poultry stock). Shred the meat into bite sized pieces.

Finish the soup when the vegetables are cooked to your liking. Add the cooked rice and shredded chicken. Simmer until the rice and chicken are heated through. Taste the broth and add more fish sauce or salt if needed.

Garnish each bowl of soup with a drizzle of sesame oil and a handful of chopped cilantro leaves. Serve with the hot sauce on the side to allow each diner to season the soup to their own taste.

Cast Iron Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Parsnips, and Carrots

This is a variation on my basic method of roasting Brussels sprouts in a cast iron skillet. I change the mix of vegetables, condiments, and seasonings nearly every time I prepare it. This is just my latest variation. I don't state a time that it takes to roast the vegetables because it varies depending on how large the sprouts are and how full the skillet it, but generally it takes about 30 minutes, more or less, until the vegetables are browned and tender.

About 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half
About 1/2 pound parsnips, scrubbed and cut into chunks
About 1/2 pound carrots, scrubbed and sliced into thick diagonal slices
1 tablespoon olive oil or vegetable oil
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon coarse grained mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Preheat the oven to 400ºF and put a 12-inch cast iron skillet in the oven to preheat also.

Toss the Brussels sprouts, parsnips, and carrots in a bowl with the olive oil and salt to taste. When the oven has come to temperature, carefully remove the cast iron skillet and add the butter, swirling until the butter is melted and starting to brown. Add the vegetables and toss to coat with the butter. Return the skillet to the oven and roast, stirring the vegetables after about 10 minutes and then about every 5 to 7 minutes after that. Roast until the vegetables have become tender and have browned on some sides.

While the vegetables are roasting, stir together the mustard, syrup, and vinegar in a small bowl.

When the vegetables have cooked to your liking, carefully turn the into a serving bowl and toss them with the dressing. Serve immediately.

Makes about 4 servings.

Basic Recipe for Cast Iron Roasted Brussels Sprouts

This is my basic method for roasting Brussels sprouts in a cast iron skillet. I don't specify exact amounts because I've never measured. The key to this preparation is to not crowd too many sprouts into the skillet. Use enough sprouts to fit in one layer in the skillet, this ensures that the sprouts get nicely browned on one side and that they don't steam too much in their own juices. The sprouts get nice and browned but not overcooked when they get started in a HOT skillet. Adding the condiments half way through insures that those don't get burned.

The recipe  is really flexible. When sweet onions are available I like to add some thick slivers to the mix at the start so that they become brown and tender. Parsnips and/or carrots are great additions. The bacon or pancetta is totally optional, as are the nuts and pepper flakes. Pumpkin seeds are a nice substitute for the pine nuts. Experiment with different vinegars, balsamic vinegar is tasty although its dark color stains the veggies. Chunks of fresh apple added to the mix from the beginning add a nice sweetness and some apple cider vinegar reinforces the apple flavor. Add some dried fruit, such as cranberries or tart cherries to the condiments. The variations are endless.

About 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and cut in half
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Some chopped onion, shallots, scallions and/ or garlic
A few slices of pancetta or bacon cut into small pieces
A handful of pine nuts
A pinch of pepper flakes
Vinegar to taste

Preheat a 12-inch cast iron skillet in a 400ºF oven. Toss the sprouts with some olive oil, salt, and pepper. Turn the sprouts into the hot skillet and use some tongs to turn as many of them cut side down in the pan as will fit so that the cut side browns nicely. It's important to not crowd the pan too much or the sprouts will steam in their own juices and you won't get that nice brown side. About half way through the roasting, about 15 minutes, add the chopped onions (I'itoi is great), bits of pancetta, pine nuts, and pepper flakes, without stirring the sprouts. After another 10 or 15 minutes remove the skillet from the oven and toss the sprouts in the skillet with some good quality vinegar. One of my favorite vinegars to use for this is the Late Harvest Honey Viognier from Katz, it is both sweet and tart with a nice honey flavor.

Makes about 3 or 4 side dish servings.

Braised Baby Turnips and Carrots

Mikado baby turnips

Wow, this really exceeded my expectations. Sometimes the most simple preparations are the best, and of course it doesn't hurt to use vegetables plucked fresh from the garden. The baby turnips are very mild and almost sweet, and of course the carrots are sweet, but big surprise, the turnip tops were sweet also, I had expected them to have some bite or heat but there was just a bare hint of that. This is based on the recipe of the same name from Chez Panisse Vegetables, with just a few alterations on my part.

I used about 10 ounces of Mikado baby turnips, harvested when they were about 1 1/4-inches in diameter, give or take 1/4 inch (about a dozen turnips with their tops). Trim off the thin tap root and remove the leaves leaving about 1/2-inch of the stems attached. Reserve all but the yellowing or battered leaves, trim off the larger stems if desired. Scrub the roots lightly but don't peel them.

Use a like amount of baby carrots, I had a mix of purple, white, and orange carrots, tops removed with a bit of the stems left, lightly scrubbed. The carrots were large enough that I cut most of them in half lengthwise.

Put a few tablespoons of butter in a medium sized skillet. Melt the butter over medium heat, add the turnips and carrots and a couple of tablespoons of water, toss everything together. Cover the pan and bring the contents to a boil, toss the vegetables again, place the turnip leaves on top of the vegetables, cover the skillet and let everything steam for a moment or so. Toss the vegetables again, recover the pan and let everything steam a moment, do that a few times more until the veggies are tender but not soft. Season with salt (truffle salt!) and pepper and serve. And don't trim off the green stems, the stems on the baby vegetables are tender and sweet also.

This made enough to serve the two of us.

Next time I have to try to take a photo, it was a very pretty dish.

Cucumber-Carrot Salad with Asian Flavors

Cucumber season is starting and the Tortarello Abruzzese plant which barely germinated, started out runty, and very nearly hit the compost instead of the garden is pumping out its fuzzy cylinders. With 2 1/2 large cucumbers in the fridge and more nearly ready to harvest in the garden it's time to come up with some quick and easy uses.

I tossed this together without measuring but it was so tasty that I want to remember what I put in there, perhaps I can refine it later.

Grab the Benriner and very thinly slice a few young sweet carrots and half of a large cucumber. Toss with some fish sauce, seasoned rice vinegar, a dash of sesame oil and a glug of rice bran oil. Add toasted sesame seeds, chopped chives, chopped mint, and chopped basil. Serve right away so it doesn't get too watery.

Fiery Carrot Dip My Way

2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 3 or 4 pieces

3 cloves garlic, peeled

3 chile peppers, such a Aji Pineapple, stems and caps removed

6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
5 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Braing a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the carrots and simmer over low heat until tender, about 20 minutes.

Drop the whole garlic cloves and the chiles through the feed tube of a large food processor while it is running. Run until the garlic and chiles are minced. Drain the carrots and add them to the work bowl of the processor. Add the remaining ingredients and process to a smooth puree.

Serve at room temperature with pita chips and/or jicama sticks.