Lake Perch & Chips

If you’ve never had Perch from Lake Geneva, it is something you need to correct very soon. This fish is light, flavorful and delicious no matter how it’s cooked.

I’m in Geneva and have an extra day while I wait for my friend to arrive before we head to ski the Alps. On the menu at the Marriott near the airport in “Perché & Chips” – essentially fish & chips made with local perch. So I had to order it and it did not disappoint. The “chips” weren’t quite the authentic British version but then I rarely find them in the US either, and they were way tastier than most French fries I find at home.

I paired my perch with a glass of local sparkling and enjoyed every morsel.

The quality of the ingredients in Europe is just far superior to anything we find in the States. Don’t get me started on prices in Switzerland though. You must come here expecting to spend more than your budget. Well worth it for short stays to enjoy the beauty of this region.

Spicy Crab Cakes

Living near Mumbai, I grew up eating crab curry in India and remember having live crabs brought into our home and my mother and grandmother preparing them. There were even a few episodes of fingers getting caught between claws or an escaped crab here and there crawling around the floor. The flavor of that spicy curry with the flavor of crab abound and the sweet crab meat is a fond memory for me. After moving to the US, we didn’t have crab curry often. It was difficult to find fresh crabs, but my family would often make the trip to Baltimore, MD for blue claws with old bay seasoning served on paper by the dozens with ice cold beer. Those are also fond crab memories for me.

As I’ve gotten older, I just don’t enjoy the process of cracking a crab any more. The meat to work ratio is just not worth it and I suppose what I really enjoyed about the trips to Baltimore was the time together. Now I prefer to have dishes with the crab meat already removed, and I love a good crab cake. But it’s hard to find good crab cakes in restaurants and when you do, they are often priced steeply. Most are often dry, have too many fillers or the crab meat is all mushed up. So, I started making my own. I modify the ingredients each time to try something new but I always try to leave the crab lumps as whole as possible and never add too many fillers.

Recently I made this recipe. I had made a batch of schug for a dinner party and thought it would be a good addition to the crab cakes. I’ll be honest, I’ve become addicted to this fresh and spicy condiment. I put it on everything from eggs to sandwiches to grilled fish and chicken. I’m sad I didn’t discover it sooner. I hope you enjoy this recipe and let me know if you become as addicted to schug as I am.

Spicy Crab Cakes

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Schug is a spicy, Yemeni condiment found in Israeli cooking. The recipe for Schug below is courtesy of Michael Solomonov in his cookbook “Zahav”. It can be adjusted to your heat level preference by using more or less chiles; I also like to add a bit more garlic than the recipe suggests and the zest of one lemon. I sometimes use olive oil instead of canola.

Ingredients

    For the Schug :
  • 20 Serrano Chiles – stems removed
  • 1 Cup Parsley leaves
  • 1 Cup Cilantro leaves
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 1 Tbsp kosher salt
  • 1 Tbsp ground cardamom
  • 1 Tbsp ground coriander
  • 2 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 Cup canola oil

    • Place all ingredients except the oil in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped but not a paste. Remove to a jar, and stir in the oil. Can be stored in refrigerator for up to one month

    Crabcakes :

  • 2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped finely
  • 1 Tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped finely
  • ½ tsp baking powder
  • 2 Tbsp Schug/Zhub (see recipe below)
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 2 tsps Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp mayonnaise
  • 4 – 5 cornichon, chopped finely
  • 1 large egg
  • Zest of one lemon
  • Juice of half lemon
  • 1 lb jumbo lump crab meat
  • ½ cup panko bread crumbs

Directions


1. In a large bowl, combine the cilantro, parsley, baking powder, Schug, mustard, Worcestershire, mayonnaise, cornichon, egg, lemon zest and lemon juice. Stir to combine.

2. Add the crab meat and bread crumbs and gently combine by using your hands with fingers apart in a claw shape.  Try to leave the crab meat as intact as possible while mixing. Do not over mix. 

3. Cover bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

4. Preheat over to 475 F. 

5. Divide the mixture into four equal portions.  Very carefully form each portion into a crabcake pressing only enough to bring together into a large thick round. Place on a baking sheet lightly greased with olive oil (I line mine with foil and grease the foil only where I place the crabcakes). Repeat with the other three crab cakes

6. Bake in preheated oven on center rack for 20 minutes.

7. Turn on the broiler and broil crab cakes for 3 – 5 minutes until browned & crispy on top

8. Remove and serve immediately with you favorite tartar sauce or combine 1/2 Cup Greek yogurt, 1 tsp lemon juice and 1 Tbsp Schug to make your own fiery sauce.

Happy Diwali!!!

Sharing photos of some of the delicious goodies we made for the holiday this year. It was so much fun to get together to make them them while telling stories and reminiscing about the good old days.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful Diwali filled with peace and joy!!

Chuklees – spiral savory snack made with rice flour, gram flour, moong flour & black gram flour plus sesame seeds and spices.

Khajyache Kanavlé – a specialty of the CKP people of Maharashtra – flaky pastry made with all purpose & semolina flour filled with dry coconut, nuts and spices.
Left: Kanavlé filled with grated fresh coconut, ricotta cheese, spices, sugar & rose syrup Right: Shankarpalya (a sweet cookie made with a rolled dough & deep fried

Stuffed Pork Chops

I often make up recipes at the last minute for weeknight dinners based on what I happen to have in the house. With Covid isolation continuing and keeping my trips to the market to a minimum, I’m finding I do it even more often. A few days ago, I defrosted some thick cut pork chops for dinner the next day with no plan whatsoever. After a long day of meetings, I walked into my kitchen after 6pm and had to come up with something quickly. What I made up resulted in juicy, flavorful, perfectly cooked pork chops which I served with a side of steamed asparagus dressed simply with salt & pepper, lemon juice & olive oil. Best part – it was ready in 45 mins including prep.

Stuffed Pork Chops

  • Servings: 2
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients

    :
  • 2 boneless, thick cut (1.5 inches) pork chops
  • 5 dried apricots chopped fine
  • 1 Tbsp capers chopped fine
  • 1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano (or substitute 1 tsp dried oregano)
  • 1 inch piece of ginger grated or finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Tsp apricot jam
  • salt & pepper to season pork chops
  • 2 Tbsp olive oil plus more to coat the chops
  • 4 Tbsp cold butter (optional)

Directions


1. Preheat oven to 350 F

2. Prepare the stuffing by combining the apricots, capers, oregano, ginger, garlic, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and olive oil in a bowl. Stir to combine.

3. With a sharp paring knife, cut a small slit into the side of each pork chop to create a pocket being careful not to go all the way through on other sides.

4 . Fill each pork chop with half the filling and then use a toothpick or trussing needle to close the opening.

5. Heat a 10″ cast iron pan on medium high heat until it starts to smoke.

6. While pan is heating, pat dry each pork chop on both sides and season with salt and pepper and rub with a little olive oil to coat.

7. When pan is hot, add the olive oil and place each chop carefully into the pan. You should hear them sizzle as they are placed.

8. Sear for 2 minutes then turn and sear for an additional 2 mins on the other side. Then place the pan in the preheated oven.

9. Finish cooking in the oven for approximately 10 mins until temperature of chop is 140 degrees.

10. Remove from the oven, place pork chops on serving plate and allow to rest for 5 mins tented with foil.

11. If you’d like to make a sauce for your chops, add 4 Tbsp cold butter to the hot cast iron pan and stir briskly to form a sauce from the drippings. Spoon over the chops. I used a compound butter made with rosemary & garlic but plain butter will do just fine.

Fried Chicken

In an attempt to be healthy, I don’t eat a lot of fried foods but every once in a while I crave a really great piece of fried chicken. I like my fried chicken crispy, juicy and flavorful with just the right level of spice. One of biggest challenges though is that I’m not a fan of chicken skin. It sends the unhealthy meter a bit too high for me. So, I’ve come up with a recipe that uses skinless & boneless chicken thighs and still fulfills all my criteria. My son loves it and I’ve received many compliments from friends who have tried it. The garam masala adds an interesting flavor to this recipe. This week I did a comparative taste of my fried chicken and Thomas Keller’s recipe and while his chicken was juicier, I preferred the flavor of mine. A post to a foodie page on Facebook led me to share this recipe with you. I hope you will try it and leave me your comments below along with any suggestions for improvement.

Swati's Fried Chicken

  • Servings: 4
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

You can adjust the heat level in this recipe to your taste by controlling the amount of black pepper & cayenne but I recommend you use the noted amount of Sriracha. It adds flavor to the chicken without too much heat.

I use Bell & Evans young chicken which is smaller so most people will eat two per serving. I’m generally satisfied with one. Below recipe assumes two pieces per person. If you use larger thighs, one should suffice.

Ingredients

    : For the Marinade :
  • 8 skinless/boneless young chicken thighs
  • 3 Cups buttermilk
  • 1 Tbsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 Tbsp Sriracha (you can use other hot sauce if you don’t have sriracha but flavor will be different)
    • For Dredging :
  • 2 Cups all purpose flour
  • 2 Tbsp corn starch
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp cayenne
  • 2 tsp garam masala (can be found at Indian markets or some supermarkets in International aisle)
  • 1 Tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 Tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
    • For Frying :
  • 12″ saute pan with minimum 3 inch sides
  • Canola or Peanut oil – enough to fill pan 1/3 full

Directions


1. Marinate the chicken – In a large glass bowl, combine buttermilk, salt, black pepper & sriracha and stir well to combine. Add chicken thighs and mix to coat completely submerging all if possible. Refrigerate overnight (I do this the evening before I plan to cook the chicken)

2. Prepare the dredging flour – In a shallow plate or bowl, combine all the dredging ingredients and mix well.

3. Heat oil to 325 F (160 C) on medium heat (adjust stove to maintain temperature throughout cooking)

4 . Remove chicken one piece at a time from the buttermilk marinade and dredge into flour mixture, turning until completely coated making sure it gets into every crevice of the thigh.

5. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and allow to rest for 5 mins

6. Carefully and gently place chicken into the hot oil – smooth side down. I recommend frying in two batches of four thighs each.

7. Cook chicken for 5 – 6 mins until golden brown then turn. Cook another 5 – 6 mins. You can check the chicken for doneness with a thermometer – 165 F and add cooking time if needed.

8. Remove and drain on cooling rack set over a cookie sheet to retain crispness

9. Serve hot for optimum experience.

1 2 … 27
Blog at WordPress.com.