Keema Matar and Plain Parathas
January 4, 2006 | Filed Under Beef, Indian Recipes | Leave a Comment
There have been a lot of wonderful Indian cuisine blogs and I’ve been having fun reading them and saving many of the recipes that catch my eye. After my two successful meals (see here and here), I continued my next cooking adventure by preparing Keema Matar (Ground Meat with Peas) served with plain parathas. I got this recipe from Meena. By the way, she recently posted all the results of her fun “From My Rasoi” event. The listing of Indian cuisine meals is mouthwatering. Check it out!Back to my meal: I liked the idea of the ground meat and peas. I’d never had parathas before but they looked easy to make, so I decided to make them to serve with the keema matar as the recipe suggested. Making the keema matar went well. I had all the ingredients in the kitchen and they blended well together: Ground chicken, onions, tomatoes, mixed with spices — green chilies, cumin seeds, green cardamoms,cinnamon stick, bay leaves, black peppercorns, whole cloves, red chili powder, cumin powder,garam masala, salt and fresh chopped coriander leaves to garnish them meal. After I prepared the ground beef, I turned my attention to the parathas. The ingredients and directions were very simple — whole wheat, salt, mixed with water and fried in oil. My only problem with the parathas were that they came out kind of thick. While I’d never tasted parathas before, I had a feeling that they weren’t supposed to be that thick. I believe I didn’t roll the dough thin enough. Can anyone tell me what I may have done wrong? Despite its thickness, the parathas were still edible and went well with the keema matar. It’s another meal to try again. Here are the recipes for the Keema Matar and Plain Parathas. Thanks, Meena! Paz
Ground Chicken which is prepared first and then set aside
Ground chicken mixed with the vegetables and spices 
Parathas dough 
Preparing the parathas in the pan 
The end parathas products
Empanadas Chilenas
December 30, 2005 | Filed Under Beef, Empanadas, Latin Recipes | 10 Comments
When I start a cooking adventure, I never know what to expect. Sometimes the road is straight and smooth. Other times, there are bumps, twists, turns, and forks in the road, so that I don’t know which path to take.I had that type of experience when I decided to make the dessert empanadas that I saw on Cooking Diva. The recipes involved empanadas with choice fillings of either guava or pineapple. I’d never tasted that before. I love guava and was anxious to make them for the holiday season. I bought the ingredients and followed the instructions. I made the dough and refrigerated it. When I pulled the dough from the fridge, it became soft again. So soft that I couldn’t roll it, couldn’t do anything. The dough became stickier and sticker, clinging to my hands and fingers and the rolling pin. I put a little more flour on it and the board, hoping that would solve the problem. It didn’t help. After contacting Melissa Cooking Diva about my problem, she told me that this particular dough is delicate and some of her students can’t work it out because their body temperature is too high, causing them to have hot hands. Perhaps that could have been my problem, too. I’d never heard of that before and found it very interesting. Funny in my case, because usually when people shake my hands, especially in the winter time, I’m told that I have cold hands (to which I reply cold hands, warm heart). I put the dough back in the fridge (I didn’t want to throw it away) and Melissa sent me another recipe — one for traditional empanada dough. It could be used for both dessert and meat empanadas. At this point, I’d reached the fork in the road and had to decide which road to take, the left or the right — the meat or the dessert empanada? I decided to make the meat. This time, with the second recipe, I didn’t have a problem with the dough. I made the shell and put the meat filling inside. The meat filling was easy to make and involved potatoes, tomatoes, raisins, green olives, dried oregano, salt, ground black pepperand dried thyme. I didn’t have any raisins or green olives. So, I left them out. My empanadas didn’t taste bad at all except that they came out kind of thick. Next time I’ll make sure to roll the dough even thinner. I plan on perfecting my empanada-making skills. By the way, part of the ingredients for the dough called for vegetable shortening in addition to butter. I omitted the vegetable shortening. I’m not sure what difference it made. Perhaps if you read this, Melissa or anyone else who knows can tell me. Here’s the recipe for Empanadas Chilenas. What happened to the guava empanadas, pineapple mini pies, and the delicate dough that I put back into the fridge? I plan on making them and using the dough very soon. Wish me luck! Paz
The chilled dough
Preparing the dough 
Preparing the beef filling 
Going into the oven
Ed. Note: The initial recipe calls for using whole wheat flour in addtion to all purpose flour. Melissa CookingDiva says: “You can try to make the dough just using all purpose flour. It is not common to find empanadas made with whole wheat flour, and the flavor changes completetly.” Thanks for all your help, Melissa!
Steak Salad
October 26, 2005 | Filed Under Beef, Salad | Leave a Comment
I made a nice steak salad courtesy of Giada’s recipe: Pan fried rib eye steak, cut in stripes, then placed of a bed of a salad mix of romaine lettuce, baby arugula, endive, cherry tomatoes, and red onions. Splash some Red Wine Vinaigrette and you’re good to go.
The mix of the salad and the dressing go well together and taste very good. I liked the combination of the crunchy, cool, fresh romaine lettuce, together with the spicy, smooth, flat arugula. The color of the red onion and cherry tomatoes offset by the different colored greens from the romaine lettuce and arugula, and then the dark-colored steak slices make a colorful presentation.
The recipe calls for Gorgonzola cheese, but I left it out since I didn’t have any on hand. The missing ingredient did not take away from the success of the salad. It still tasted good and filling.
Paz
Steak Salad
1/2 head romaine lettuce, cut into bite-size pieces 1 large head Belgian endive, thinly sliced crosswise (about 1 1/2 cups) 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced into rings 3 cups fresh baby arugula 12 cherry tomatoes, halved 4 ounces Gorgonzola, coarsely crumbled Red Wine Vinaigrette, recipe follows Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 pound steak (such as New York, rib-eye or filet mignon), pan-fried or grilled and chilled In a large bowl, combine the romaine lettuce, Belgian endive, red onion, baby arugula and cherry tomatoes, and half of the cheese. Toss the salad with enough vinaigrette to coat. Season the salad with salt and pepper, to taste. Arrange the salad on a platter. Cut the steaks crosswise into thin slices. Arrange the steak slices atop the salad and sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Drizzle more vinaigrette over the steak slices and serve. Red Wine Vinaigrette: 1/2 cup red wine vinegar 3 tablespoons lemon juice 2 teaspoons honey 2 teaspoons salt Freshly ground black pepper 1 cup olive oil
Mix the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper in a blender. With the machine running, gradually blend in the oil.
Yield: 1 2/3 cups Prep Time: 5 minutes
Coda alla Vaccinara (Oxtail soup)
August 23, 2005 | Filed Under Beef, Books, Italian Cuisine, Italian Recipes, Soups/Chowders/Gumbos | 3 Comments
A couple of successful recipes later, my family and friends who know that I’ve taken an interest in cooking start calling me “Chef Paz.” It’s all in jest but soon the moniker sticks. My family actually begs for my food…. Okay, okay… They don’t beg, but do ask me whether I’m going to cook. That’s a good sign, isn’t it?
“What’s for dinner?” I’d frequently hear. They’re a vocal group and will let me know if they like something or not. Lately, they seem to be happy with the dinners I prepare and I don’t hear any complaints from them. Good. Very good.
So, my cooking adventures continue as I jump at the chance to try another one of the recipes from The Food of Love: Coda alla Vaccinara – oxtail soup.
I LOVE oxtails. Always have. I’m not sure why. Sometimes I wonder if it’s a taste that I developed from the time that I was in my mother’s womb. Really!
I remember a story that my mother mentioned a long time ago. It’s about one of her eating habits when she was pregnant with me in her third trimester:
Just before my mother’s due date, a woman gave birth to quintuplets. To help with the financial burden of an instantaneous large family, people and companies donated gifts ranging from a long-term supply of diapers, to baby food, and clothing. The Government also arranged free spacious housing for the quintuplet family.
In an interview, the press asked the new mother what she had eaten during her pregnancy. She told them that she’d eaten a lot of oxtails because it was the cheapest meat in the supermarket and that was all she and her husband could afford.
The next day, oxtails were sold out in the meat section. My mother was one of those people who ran to the supermarket for the oxtails. Hoping for quintuplets, she ate it for the remainder of her pregnancy.
Poor lady, she got me instead – one child with the energy of five. However, four more children eventually followed after me. So, she did end up having the five children she wanted; it just didn’t happen at once.
I’m unsure if my mom’s story is the reason for my love of oxtails but it certainly comes to mind.
This oxtail recipe is good at anytime. Contrary to what the instructions call for, I now leave out the nutmeg, cinnamon, bitter cocoa powder, and raisins. The first time I made the soup, I included them but didn’t care for the sweet taste that it gave the soup. I had to add water to the soup to dilute the taste.
I didn’t bother looking for ox or pork cheek, for which the recipe calls. One day I will. I think it’ll be an adventure looking for it, as I wonder if they are readily available at the butcher’s. At the moment, I’m a bit intimidated to go asking for them.
I did use bacon instead, and I added chopped celery. I like the crunch that the celery adds to the soup. This oxtail soup makes a satisfying meal. Here are the instructions.
Paz
Coda alla Vacinara (Oxtail soup)
You’ll need an oxtail, about 3-4 pounds, washed and chopped across the joints. Boil for ten minutes and remove any scum. Add 1 carrot, 1 leek, 1 celery stalk, and some parsley or thyme. Simmer for about 3 hours. If you can get ox or pork cheek, put that in, too. Keep the liquid.
Next, in a different saucepan, heat some lard or oil and gently fry a chopped onion, chopped carrot, the pork cheek, also chopped (or some bacon if you couldn’t get pork cheek), an a chopped garlic clove. Add some chopped parsley and the oxtail. Pour in half a bottle of dry white wine and allow some to evaporate. Then add half a dozen chopped tomatoes (i.e., about a tin an a half) and a big spoon of tomato paste. Nutmeg and cinnamon could also make an appearance. Simmer for 2 hours, adding a little of the stock from the other pan whenever it gets dry.
You could also add some boiled, sliced celery hearts, raisins, pinenuts, and even some bitter cocoa powder. If so, add at the end and cook for 10 minutes extra.
