Spiced Sesame Noodles
Keep this recipe where you can access it quickly because it is THAT good. These noodles have become a staple in my house over the last year. Reminiscent of Dan Dan Noodles, these are noodles are meaty, hearty, and spicy. Like most things, this recipe started as one thing and evolved with time into its present version. Don’t be afraid of the amount of chili paste this recipe calls for, though it does pack some heat, the other spices, and sugar mellow out the fire so it lingers gently without burning your head off.
Spiced Sesame Noodles
Ingredients
¼ cup sambal oolek
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
¾ teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced ginger
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Fish sauce
2 tablespoons Brown sugar
2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, minced
1 shallot, minced
8 oz dry spaghetti
Fresh cilantro, for garnish
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Directions
In a small bowl, combine the sambal oolek, through the balsamic vinegar. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved and set aside.
Add the beef to a large, nonstick skillet and cook over medium heat until browned, about 5 minutes. Add the onion and shallot and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger, stirring until fragrant - about 30 seconds. Add the sambal mixture and stir well.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta as instructed on the box. Reserving some of the pasta water before draining. Add the cooked pasta to the beef mixture and toss until well mixed. If necessary, use the reserved pasta water to thin out the sauce so it coats everything.
Cover the noodles and cook over medium-low heat for 3 minutes. To serve, sprinkle sesame seeds and cilantro over the top.
Asian Braised Short Ribs
Comfort food still reigns supreme in our home. Despite my best efforts and New Year’s Resolutions (HA remember those?!) rice, pasta, and other comfort foods have been flooding my kitchen table for weeks now. I try to eat a salad a day for lunch but when dinner comes around, I want soft, comforting food that tastes like a hug from my mom.
These short ribs do just that. These may not have been in my mom’s rotation as a kid but soft, tender meat that’s been simmered for hours is comfort food at its finest. Anything with a liberal amount of fat, starch, and salt will do for me, just don’t tell my doctor.
As the middle of May gets closer, I’m feeling a sense of urgency to savor every moment I have left with Anthony before I leave for the summer. Running the family business is something I wouldn’t trade for anything but it comes with a unique set of challenges like being away from your spouse and home for almost half the year. Sure, he comes up and visits when he can but for the most part, our life together is put on the hold for months.
One thing that does help with the impending separation is savoring each moment. We’ve been spending a lot of time taking walks together in the woods, working on projects around the house, and just enjoying the little moments we take for granted - waking up together in our own home, snuggling on the couch, sitting by the fire in our back yard.
What makes short ribs so delicious is the marbled fat they sport. Coaxing the flavor out of these over the course of several hours yields meat that is addictively tender and succulent. The liquid that the ribs braise in is equally as delicious. The combination of soy, sugar, lime juice, and broth results in a liquid that is sweet, salt, sour, and spicy all at once, and as the meat breaks down, the fat from the ribs gives the liquid a full-bodied presence that is fulfilling and velvety.
I use Chinese Five Spice Powder in this recipe but if you don’t have any in your spice drawer, make some using cinnamon, cloves, ginger, fennel, and star anise. It is basically apple pie spice with a kick and works really well with all the other flavors in this dish.
Asian Braised Short Ribs
Ingredients
2lbs Short Ribs
3/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons five-spice powder
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 onions, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2-inch ginger nub, grated
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sriracha
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 cups broth
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350
Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and five-spice powder in a bowl and stir to combine. Dredge the short ribs in the flour mixture so they are evenly coated, tapping them to discard any excess.
In a large, oven-safe pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Once it is hot and shimmering, brown the short ribs on all sides, about 1 or 2 minutes per side. Work in batches if necessary, do not crowd the pan or the ribs won’t brown!
Remove the ribs from the pot and add the onions and saute until they are soft. Add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant - 30 seconds to one minute.
In a mixing bowl, whisk the soy sauce, sriracha, brown sugar, and brown sugar. Add the mixture to the onions and bring to a simmer.
Add the ribs back to the pot and cover. Move everything to the oven and bake for 2 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender and easily releases from the bone.
Garnish with sesame seeds and cilantro and serve with steamed rice.
Corned Beef and Kimchi Sandwiches
It is amazing how quickly life can change. While I was working on this recipe over the weekend, Anthony questioned whether or not people would know where to buy kimchi. I laughed and told him every grocery store in America carries kimchi and that these ingredients would be SO simple to find. Fast forward to last night at the grocery store and it is an image all too familiar in America; empty shelves, panicked shoppers, stressed-out parents, and wide-eyed clerks.
In light of all the scary things that are happening in the world, life does move on and we adapt. Some friends from college and I spent two hours last night on a zoom call, we dubbed it our “digital happy hour”. It was the first time we had all been together since my wedding in 2018 and I didn’t realize it at the time but I really needed it, even if I did drink too much.
In the spirit of progress, I’m sharing this recipe. If you have everything at your house, awesome. If you don’t please just save this for our post-pandemic life. Don’t leave your house unless you really need to. The kimchi cuts through the fattiness of the corned beef with hits of heat and funk. I had a little leftover corned beef this morning so I made this again. It was a weird breakfast but tasted so good and I’d like to think that the punch of probiotics is keeping me healthy.
Corned Beef and Kimchi Panini
Ingredients
4 Rye Bread
Mayonaise
4 slices Swiss Cheese
Leftover Corned Beef, shredded
Kimchi
Directions
Heat a skillet over medium-high and spread some mayonnaise on one side of each piece of bread.
TO build the sandwich, place a piece of bread in the skillet, greased side down. Lay cheese, corned beef, kimchi, cheese, bread. place a piece of foil over the sandwich a place another heavy skillet on top of it to compressed the sandwich. Toast until each side is golden brown.
Transfer the sandwich to a plate and allow it to rest for one minute. slice and serve.
Better Corned Beef and Cabbage
The last time I checked, there are close to 20 million results for “corned beef and cabbage” on Google. With so many options out there, does the world really need another recipe for this iconic dish? Probably not. Instead of reinventing the wheel, I’ve taken some time to reflect on some of my favorite methods and pulled techniques together to make, what I believe, is a better-corned beef and cabbage dinner.
First, use your slow cooker. I know, everyone has an InstantPot these days and they are awesome. Hear me out, your slow cooker was made for this recipe. It has been waiting, patiently, to braise this salty, cured, tough cut of meat its whole life. Not only is it the best tool for the job, but it also means you can leave your house while it is doing most of the work for you.
Second, this is purely a personal choice and you do not have to follow it but, use a flat-cut piece of meat rather than a tip. This can be a thorny issue as I’ve seen online and both cuts have their merits but in my opinion, the leaner, flat cut beef is far superior. One of the things I dislike about corned beef is that the fat is always slimy and gelatinous and it just grosses me out.
Third, use your broiler! When I make steak inside, I use the reverse sear method - cook it in the oven and then sear it on the stove before serving. You can use the same method with corned beef and your broiler. This will give the beef a crispy exterior and maintain that tender, juicy interior.
Finally, while you’re more than welcome to stick with tradition and boil everything together, take a chance and be different. I opted for roasted my cabbage but kept the potatoes and carrots in the braising liquid. Why? Because I love how soft and pillowy the root vegetables get and roasted cabbage gives the humble vegetable a totally different flavor and texture. Of course, you can boil that too. Remember, there are no rules, merely suggestions!
A couple more tips
Bloom your spices before you start braising. This is a trick I learned while making Vietnamese and Thai food. Toss your spices in a skillet and gently toast them until they are aromatic - about 1 minute.
Don’t forget to rest! Rest the corned beef for at least 10 minutes before slicing it. This will give the meat time to cool and for the juices to really soak in. You’ve already waited all day for this moment, what’s another 10 minutes?
Hopefully, we can all enjoy St Patty’s Day in light of the recent coronavirus outbreak. In times of great need and calamity, sometimes you just need soft comforting food. Enjoy and wash your hands.
Better Corned Beef and Cabbage
Ingredients
2 1/2 lb corned beef brisket
4 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped, quartered
2 cloves garlic, smashed
4 bay leaves
1 tablespoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 T peppercorns
2 T coriander seeds
6 oz beer
1 lb baby potatoes, washed and halved
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 head cabbage, cored and quartered
Directions
Bloom the spices by tossing them in a dry skillet and toast until aromatic, about 1 minute.
Place the corned beef, spices, potatoes, turnips, and carrots in a slow cooker. Add the beer and enough water to barely cover the meat. Don’t worry if the vegetables float on top. Set the slow cooker to low and cook 8 hours or until the beef is tender.
About an hour before the beef is ready, preheat the oven to 400 and arrange the cabbage in a roasting pan, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.
When the beef is done, take it out of the liquid and transfer to a sheet pan with the fatty side up. Turn the broiler to high. Broil the beef until the top is crispy, about 3 minutes.
Slice the corned beef against the grain and serve with vegetables and mustard.