Tuesday, January 17, 2023
Seared Scallops on Cauliflower Puree 焦がし帆立とカリフラワーピュレー
For seared scallops
Ingredients (for two small servings)
4 diver scallops, thawed if frozen, patted dry and seasoned with salt and pepper
1tsp peanut or other vegetable oil
Pan sauce:
2tbs Japanese sake for deglazing
1tbs lemon juice
1 tsp x4 concentrated Japanese noodle sauce
1 tbs of cold butter
Directions:
Add the vegetable oil with high smoking point to a stainless steel or iron frying pan on medium high flame. Heat the pan until the oil just starts smoking
Add the scallops and brown one side for 1-2 minutes and flip-over . Brown the other side for another 1 minute or until the scallops are just cooked in the center (expect some smoke).
After removing the scallops, add the sake and deglaze the pan. Reduce the liquid to half. Add the noodle sauce and the lemon juice. Reduce briefly and finish with pats of butter.
Place the scallops on the bed of warm cauliflower puree and pour the pan sauce over the scallops.
For cauliflower puree
Ingredients (makes at least 4 to 6 servings):
One head of Cauliflower, washed and florets separated
1 to 3/4 cup 4% milk, warm (I microwave but be careful of over boiling)
Several thin pats (2-3 tbs) of cold butter
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
Directions:
Steam the florets for 7-10 minutes or until very soft.
Meanwhile warm the milk (I microwave but be careful of over-boiling)
In a cylindrical container for a immersion blender, add the cauliflower and half of the warm milk.
Press down the immersion blender at a medium speed, up and down several time.
Depending on the consistency add more milk and blend in high-speed until silky smooth (may take some time to attain the smooth puree).
Add the butter and salt and further blend
Taste and adjust the salt
We really like this combination. The pan sauce also worked well. If this is a main dish, I would use 4 scallops per serving and add side vegetables.
Thursday, November 10, 2022
Chilean Sea bass チリアン・シーバス
We eat lots of fish. When we lived in California many years ago, we really liked “Chilean sea bass” which is buttery moist yet flakey and very difficult to overcook and make dry. Then we learned the real name of this fish is ‘Patagonian toothfish” and, at that time, that the fish was frequently illegally poached. So we stopped buying it and forgot about it for a long time. Then, my wife found Chilean sea bass available at Vital Choice which came from MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) -certified sustainable fishery. We remembered how wonderful it was and ordered it, although it was a bit on the expensive side.
Digression alert: “Chilean sea bass” is said to be the most popular in US, and EU as well as in Japan. (Although when I was in Japan I did not know about this fish.) In Japan, this imported fish is reportedly called “mero” メロ or “ginmutsu” ギンムツ.
The fish was as wonderful as we remembered. Actually the first time I cooked this fish, I did not take a picture. So, I made the same dish a second time in an identical fashion. This was simply sautéed in butter with a caper lemon butter sauce. The sides were cauliflower purée and haricot vert (pre-blanched) and Campari tomato (skinned) sautéed in butter. Everything went well together but the combination of cauliflower puree and Chilean sea bass was sublime.
2 4oz frozen Chilean sea bass, thawed, seasoned with salt and pepper
For Caper lemon butter sauce
2 tsp pickled capers (from a jar)
1 tbs unsalted butter
1 tsp lemon juice (half lemon)
Directions:
Cook the filets in melted butter on medium flame, turn once after 5 minutes and cook another 5 minutes (I put on the lid since one of the filets was rather thick)
Once cooked, set aside on a plate
In the same pan add the butter. capers and lemon juice and quickly warm them up then pour over the filets
We also served small slices of mini-baguette I baked to soak up the sauce. The fish is buttery, flakey but moist. Somehow it went so well with the cauliflower puree. The green beans can be “a hit” (nicely crunchy after few minutes of steaming) or “a miss” (fibrous skin no matter how you cook) but this one was definitely “a hit”.
Tuesday, May 25, 2021
Scalloped potato with cauliflower puree
My wife came up with this dish one day. A few days before I had made my usual Cauliflower puree. Beside eating it as an “adult baby” food, we have made Mac-and-cheese using the puree instead of Béchamel sauce. I am not sure how she came up with this dish but, it is essentially scalloped potatoes made with the Cauliflower puree, cheese, onion and jalapeño pepper. This was topped with several kinds of cheese and baked.
Two russet potatoes thinly sliced
2 onions thinly sliced
2 jalapeño pepper
1 cup of cheddar cheese grated
1 cup monterey Jack cheese grated
1/2 cup parmesian cheese grated
Several slices of smoked gouda to top.
Enough cauliflower puree to cover several layers
Directions:
Cover the bottom of an oven casserole dish with the puree. Distribute a layer of potatoes (#1) then the sliced onions, jalapeño pepper and the various cheeses (# 1&2) then the cauliflower pure (#3) Keep layering until all the ingredients have been distributed. End by putting on slices of smoked gouda (#4). Cook in a 400 degree oven covered for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and continue cooking for 30 minutes until the potatoes are tender and a knife slides in easily. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
This is a very comforting dish with thin layers of potatoes between custard like layers of warm cheese. The jalapeño peppers and onion give a nice flash of flavor. You would never guess that cauliflower was one of the main ingredients. It heated up nicely in the microwave. This would the a staple for any menu.
Saturday, February 27, 2021
One spoonful appetizers and more
Monday, February 15, 2021
One spoonful appetizers a.k.a baby food for adults 一口スプーンの前菜第二弾
Ingredients:
Broccoli stem, hard bottom removed and hard skin removed (I used stems of two broccoli heads), cut into small cubes.
One medium onion, finely diced
One parsnip (or maybe a potato), skinned, cut into small cubes.
1/2 cup of chicken broth or more depending on the consistency of the puree (I used Swanson's no fat reduced salt)
1 tsp unsalted butter and 2 tbs olive oil
Salt to taste
Two bay leaves (optional)
Directions:
Add the olive oil and butter to the pan on medium flame and sauté the onion until cooked (2-3 minutes).
Add the broccoli stem and parsnip and coat with butter/oil and add the chicken both to cover.
Remove the bay leaves and puree using an immersion blender until smooth (add more chicken broth for desired consistency).
Season with salt
These appetizers are nice. The spoonful is just the right amount for a satisfying gulp. They provide a nice range of flavors although the consistency seems, well consistent. It is lovely and smooth but I can’t help but think of it as sophisticated “baby food for adults”. I’ll have to come up with something different.
Monday, January 25, 2021
A spoonful appetizer 一口スプーン前菜
My wife gave me some new plates and bowls for Christmas which required us to rearrange things to make a room for them. During these activities, we found spoons my wife got for me some time ago which were meant to serve a just one-swallow/bite appetizer. Since they newly resurfaced, I promptly tried a one-swallow/bite appetizer using the spoon. The handles of the spoons are bent so that they can sit on the plate without a handle sticking over the edge. I served this with the last of New Year’s salmon kelp roll and Russian marinaded salmon.
This was quite good. Although our initial cauliflower purée was made with cauliflower cooked in milk, recently I have been making in an abbreviated quick method.
Ingredients:
One small head of cauliflower, florets separated
1-2 tbs unsalted butter
1 cup warm milk
Directions:
Steam the cauliflower using a basket steamer for 10-15 minutes until very soft.
Place the cauliflower in a plastic container for immersion blender
Add more milk for the nice silky consistency if needed.
Add the butter in thick pats
Season with salt and blend until very smooth and silky
This is wonderful way to prepare cauliflower. This purée can be used in many different ways. The smooth texture of the cauliflower purée was a great contrast to the burst of saltiness from the ikura.
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Baked Cauliflower with Chimichurri sauce オーブン焼きカリフラワーのチミチュリソース
- Combine oil, garlic, jalapeño, shallot and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small frying pan. Cook over medium heat just until the garlic starts to sizzle, 2 to 4 minutes, but don’t let it brown. Remove from heat and stir in oregano, thyme, water, vinegar and paprika. Cover and set aside (#3).
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Coat a cookie sheet with olive oil (we used a non-stick cookie sheet).
- Toss the cauliflower florets with olive oil and season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper.
- Roast the cauliflower, gently turning once halfway through, until browned and the stems feel tender when pierced with a bamboo skewer, 15 minutes (we baked 18 minutes which was a bit too long) (#1 and 2).
- Just before serving, stir parsley into the reserved herb sauce and season with pepper. Dress the cauliflower florets (#4) with the sauce (#5 and 6).