Hainanese Chicken and Rice

1 whole chicken

2 T. kosher salt
2 scallions, cut into 2-inch lengths
1 5-inch piece ginger, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
2 T. toasted sesame oil
1 t. ground white pepper
2 c jasmine rice, grains sautéed in schmaltz and cooked in 3 c. chicken stock

SAUCE
1 T. minced green chile
2 t. minced garlic
2 t. minced ginger
1 t. kosher salt
1⁄2 t. sugar
3 T. lemon juice
1 T. fresh mandarin or orange juice
The night before, rinse the chicken under cold running water and thoroughly pat dry with paper towels. Rub the salt all over the outside and inside the cavity of the chicken. Loosely wrap the chicken in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 12 hours or overnight.

The next day, unwrap the chicken, stuff the cavity with the scallions and ginger, and tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Fill a pot large enough to fit the chicken three-quarters full with water and bring to a boil. Add the chicken, cover the pot, and boil for 20 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and let stand, covered, for 1 hour.

Uncover the pot and, using tongs, transfer the chicken to a bowl of ice water. Turn the chicken in the water for 10 seconds to stop its cooking, then drain and transfer the chicken to paper towels on a cutting board; do not pat the chicken dry. Using a brush, baste the outside of the chicken with the sesame oil. Cut the chicken into serving pieces, transfer to a serving platter, and sprinkle with the white pepper.

Make the dipping sauce: In a small bowl, combine the chile with the garlic, ginger, salt, sugar & juices. Skim off all the fat from the top of the chicken's cooking broth and stir 1 tablespoon into the bowl along with 5 tablespoons of the cooking broth; reserve the remaining cooking broth for another use. Stir the remaining fat into the rice until evenly combined and serve alongside the chicken and dipping sauce.

Egg Roll in a Bowl

1 lb. Ground Pork

1 lg. Sweet Onion, chopped
2 Carrots, shredded
3t. Minced Ginger
3 Cloves Minced Garlic
¼ c. Chicken Broth
1 head of Shredded Cabbage
1 T. Soy Sauce
1 t. Rice Vinegar
Salt
Pepper
½ t. Toasted Sesame Oil
Green Onions
3 Blocks Momofuku Ramen, including sauce packets

Bang Bang Sauce:
½ c Mayo, Sour Cream or Greek Yogurt
1.5 T. Honey
1 T. Sriracha
1 t. Rice Vinegar

Brown ground pork and chopped sweet onions and cook until the onions start to soften.

Add carrots, garlic, ginger and chicken broth and sautè for a few minutes. Then add cabbage and add a cover on top of the pan to soften.

Add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, packets of Momofuku liquid seasoning packets, sea salt, black pepper and 3 blocks cooked ramen. Mix for another minute or two till all is combined!

Add your green onion and bang bang sauce on top and enjoy!

Bibim Grain Salad

A family favorite is the Bibim Grain Salad from Young Joni. A cold take on the classic Korean bibimbap rice bowl, the salad is anchored by farro and Job’s tears, a barleylike grain native to Southeast Asia. Piled atop is a color gradient of pickled veggies (cucumber, radish, mushrooms & carrot) along with fresh purple daikon, brussels sprouts & zucchini that shows off some neat knife work, a sweet and spicy gochujang vinaigrette, nori, mixed seeds and a jammy egg that’s garnished with delicate threads of saffron. Pierce the egg and get the oozing yolk involved, and you’ve got a stunningly great salad in front of you: toothsome grains, crisp veggies, the soft egg — brilliant. Trying to piece together a recipe, here's a start...


INGREDIENTS

PICKLES
1 c rice wine vinegar
2 T sugar
1 ½ t salt
1 cucumber, peeled, sliced thin on mandolin

1 carrot

2 radish 

8 oz shiitake mushrooms

CHILE SAUCE
¼ cup gochujang
3 T water
2 T toasted sesame oil
1 t sugar

GRAINS 
2 ½ cups short-grain white rice (or substitute job's tears and farro)
2 ½ cups water
¾ t salt 

OTHER 
zucchini matchsticks

1 purple daikon, matchsticks

shredded brussels sprouts

nori chiffonade

sesame seeds

Jammy Eggs


1. FOR THE PICKLES: Whisk vinegar, sugar, and salt together in medium bowl. Add cucumber, radish & carrot and toss to combine. Gently press on vegetables to submerge. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours. 

2. FOR THE CHILE SAUCE: Whisk gochujang, water, oil, and sugar together in small bowl. Cover and set aside. 

3. FOR THE GRAINS: Prepare Jobs Tears and farro per package instructions. Cool.

4. ASSEMBLE: arrange ingredients on top of a puddle of sauce. Top with jammy egg.

Kung Pao Shrimp for Two

12 oz. large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tablespoons dry sherry
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
4 teaspoons canola oil
1/3 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 red bell pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons minced scallion whites
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh ginger
1/4 cup sliced scallion greens

Toss shrimp with 1 tablespoon sherry and 1 tablespoon soy sauce in a bowl; marinate about 10 minutes. Transfer shrimp to a plate; discard marinade. Combine broth, remaining 1 tablespoon sherry, remaining 1 tablespoon soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and cornstarch in a bowl. 

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a wok or large non-stick skillet over high heat. Add shrimp, peanuts, and pepper flakes; cook until shrimp are nearly opaque, 1-2 minutes. Transfer shrimp mixture to a plate. Cook bell pepper in remaining 2 teaspoons oil in the wok until they begin to soften, 1-2 minutes.

Add scallion whites, garlic, and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth mixture and shrimp mixture, and cook until sauce is thick and syrupy, about 1 minute. Stir in scallion greens and serve over baked rice.

Ginger-Pork Spring Rolls

1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons Asian chili-garlic sauce

1/4 cup water
1 (16oz) bag coleslaw mix
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
6 scallions, white parts minced; green parts sliced thin
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound ground pork
3 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
12 (9 inch) rice paper wrappers

Combine the hoisin, soy, and chili garlic sauces and water in a small bowl. In another bowl, combine the coleslaw, cilantro and scallion greens; set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat until just smoking. Add pork and 1/3 cup of the hoisin sauce mixture. (The remaining hoisin sauce will be used as a condiment for dipping.) Cook the pork until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Stir in the ginger and scallion whites and cook until fragrant. Place this pork mixture into the bowl with the coleslaw, cilantro and scallion greens. Toss to combine.

Spread a clean, damp kitchen towel on the counter. Soak a rice paper wrapper in a shallow bowl of warm water, about 10 seconds, and spread out on towel. Arrange 1/2 cup of filling on each wrapper, leaving a 2 inch border on the bottom. Fold in sides and roll up tightly like a burrito. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling. Serve with the remaining hoisin sauce mixture for dipping.

Orange-Coconut Shrimp

Dave whipped this up last night and it was so tasty. I recommend doubling this so you have leftovers. Our house is going to smell amazing for days.

Similar to a stir-fry, this dish cooks up super fast, so be sure to have all your ingredients ready to go before you fire up the saute pan. Makes 4 servings (about 6 cups) and takes about thirty minutes from start to finish (not including rice, which I recommend you bake). Add more red pepper flakes if you like a really spicy dish.

1 pound large shrimp, peels, deveined, and seasoned with salt and black pepper
2 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoon minced scallion whites
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon minced orange zest
1 cup canned coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon corn starch
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion greens

Saute shrimp in one tablespoon oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat until pink and beginning to curl, 2-3 minutes; remove from pan. Heat remaining tablespoon of oil in pan. Add scallion whites and garlic and cook for one minute.

Stir in orange juice, ginger, and zest. Reduce mixture until it measures 1/2 cup when strained, 3-5 minutes; discard solids. Return juice to pan.

Whisk together coconut milk and cornstarch; stir into juice in pan, add pepper flakes, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook sauce until slightly thickened. Season sauce with salt.

Toss shrimp in sauce, stir in scallion greens and cook 1-2 minutes more. Serve shrimp with baked rice or rice noodles.

Kimchi Fried Rice

Adapted from Orangette

The best type for this recipe is Calrose, a medium-grain, Japanese-style white rice from California. But I’ve also used Thai jasmine rice, which is nice - though when you fry it, it tends to stick aggressively to the pan. Whatever you use, cook it a day or two ahead, cool it, and chill it. If possible, allow it to come to room temperature before frying.

About the pan: if you have a well-seasoned wok, use it. Or, if you’re stuck with just a heavy skillet and an electric range, as I am, that’s okay.

Oh, and if I were you, I might fry two eggs per person. But it’s really up to you.

3 strips bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch pieces
2 cups Napa cabbage kimchi, diced
4 cups cooked rice (see above)
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, plus more for frying eggs
2 tsp. sesame oil
Salt
Sesame seeds, for garnish
Sliced scallions or sweet spring onions, for garnish
Eggs, for frying

Put the bacon in a large skillet or wok, and place over medium heat. (I find that by starting the bacon in a cold skillet, I can get it to render more fat than it does when I start it in a hot skillet, and that’s helpful for this recipe.) Cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is cooked through but still tender. Add the kimchi, and cook for several minutes, until the kimchi is hot and maybe even beginning to brown in spots.

When the kimchi looks right, raise the heat to high, and add the rice, stirring well. Cook, stirring occasionally, for several minutes, until the rice is hot and beginning to brown. (If the rice is wanting to stick to the pan, it’s going to be hard to brown it properly, but don’t worry. Just make sure it’s nice and hot. It’ll still taste very good.)

Meanwhile, in another skillet, warm some butter and fry as many eggs as you’d like, seasoning with salt to taste.

When the rice is ready, stir in the butter and sesame oil, and season with salt to taste. Divide between two or three bowls, and top each with a fried egg or two. Garnish with sesame seeds and scallions.

Yield: 2 generous or 3 moderate servings

Indonesian-Style Fried Rice (Nasi Goreng)

Published May 1, 2011. From Cook's Illustrated.

For a different take on a leftover classic, we created a recipe for Indonesian-style fried rice. We found everyday alternatives to traditional Indonesian ingredients and then tweaked the cooking process so that we could avoid cooking the rice the day before or waiting until we had leftover rice on hand. To mimic the firmness of leftover rice, we rinsed the raw grains and sautéed them in some oil. We then cooked the rice in less water and let it cool in the refrigerator. All our Indonesian-Style Fried Rice needed was the traditional garnishes: frizzled shallots, cucumbers, tomatoes, and an egg, which we conveniently turned into an omelet to avoid the last-minute work of egg frying. Serves 4 to 6.

If Thai chiles are unavailable, substitute two serranos or two medium jalapeños. Reduce the spiciness of this dish by removing the ribs and seeds from the chiles (I STRONGLY RECOMMEND DOING THIS AS IT IS STILL QUITE SPICY EVEN AFTER THE RIBS AND SEEDS ARE REMOVED). This dish progresses very quickly at step 4; it’s imperative that your ingredients are in place by then and ready to go. If desired, serve the rice with sliced cucumbers and tomato wedges.

5 green or red Thai chiles, stemmed
7 large shallots, peeled
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons light or mild molasses
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons fish sauce
table salt
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 recipe Faux Leftover Rice (see related recipe)
12 ounces extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled, deveined, tails removed, and cut crosswise into thirds
4 large scallions, sliced thin
2 limes, cut into wedges

1. Pulse chiles, 4 shallots, and garlic in food processor until coarse paste is formed, about fifteen 1-¬second pulses, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary. Transfer mixture to small bowl and set aside. In second small bowl, stir together brown sugar, molasses, soy sauce, fish sauce, and 1¼ teaspoons salt. Whisk eggs and ¼ teaspoon salt together in medium bowl.

2. Thinly slice remaining 3 shallots and place in 12-inch nonstick skillet with oil. Fry over medium heat, stirring constantly, until shallots are golden and crisp, 6 to 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer shallots to paper towel–lined plate and season with salt to taste. Pour off oil and reserve. Wipe out skillet with paper towel.

3. Remove rice from refrigerator and break up any large clumps with fingers. Heat 3 tablespoons reserved oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until just shimmering. Add chile mixture and cook until mixture turns golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Add shrimp, increase heat to medium-high, and cook, stirring constantly, until exterior of shrimp is just opaque, about 2 minutes. Push shrimp to sides of skillet to clear center; stir molasses mixture to recombine and pour into center of skillet. When molasses mixture bubbles, add rice and cook, stirring and folding constantly, until shrimp is cooked, rice is heated through, and mixture is evenly coated, about 3 minutes. Stir in scallions, remove from heat, and transfer to serving platter. Garnish with egg segments, fried shallots, and lime wedges; serve immediately.

FAUX LEFTOVER RICE

For a different take on a leftover classic, we created a faux leftover rice recipe to use in our Indonesian-Style Fried Rice recipe. Tweaking the cooking process gave us a recipe that we could prepare with little foresight because we could avoid cooking the rice the day before or waiting until we had leftover rice on hand. To mimic the firmness of leftover rice, we rinsed the raw grains and sautéed them in some oil. We then cooked the rice in less water and let it cool in the refrigerator. Makes 6 cups.

Note: To rinse the rice, place it in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cool water until the water runs clear.

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups jasmine or long-grain white rice, rinsed
2 2/3 cups water

1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add rice and stir to coat grains with oil, about 30 seconds. Add water, increase heat to high, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until all liquid is absorbed, about 18 minutes. Off heat, remove lid and place clean kitchen towel folded in half over saucepan; replace lid. Let stand until rice is just tender, about 8 minutes. Spread cooked rice onto rimmed baking sheet, set on wire rack, and cool 10 minutes. Transfer to refrigerator and chill for 20 minutes.

Sichuan Stir-Fried Pork in Garlic Sauce

Published March 1, 2012. From Cook's Illustrated.

To re-create the succulent pork found in the best restaurant stir-fries (usually achieved by low-temperature deep frying), we soaked the pork in a baking soda solution, which tenderizes and moisturizes the meat, and then coated it in a velvetizing cornstarch slurry, which helps it retain moisture as it cooks. And the secret to the sauce's silken texture and rich flavor? Ketchup and fish sauce, both high in glutamates. Serves 4 to 6

NOTE: If Chinese black vinegar is unavailable, substitute 2 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar and 2 teaspoons of rice vinegar. If Asian broad-bean chili paste is unavailable, substitute 2 teaspoons of Asian chili-garlic paste or Sriracha sauce. Serve with steamed white rice.

SAUCE:
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons Chinese black vinegar (see note)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 teaspoons ketchup
2 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch


PORK:
12 ounces boneless country-style pork ribs, trimmed
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup cold water
2 teaspoons Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 teaspoons cornstarch

STIR-FRY:
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 scallions, white parts minced, green parts sliced thin
2 tablespoons Asian broad-bean chili paste (see note)
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced thin
2 celery ribs, cut on bias into 1/4-inch slices

FOR THE SAUCE: Whisk all ingredients together in bowl; set aside.

FOR THE PORK: Cut pork into 2-inch lengths, then cut each length into 1/4-inch matchsticks. Combine pork with baking soda and water in bowl. Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Rinse pork in cold water. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels. Whisk rice wine and cornstarch in bowl. Add pork and toss to coat.

FOR THE STIR-FRY: Combine garlic, scallion whites, and chili paste in bowl.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Add celery and continue to cook until celery is crisp-tender, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer vegetables to separate bowl.

Add remaining 3 tablespoons oil to now-empty skillet and place over medium-low heat. Add garlic-scallion mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Transfer 1 tablespoon garlic-scallion oil to small bowl and set aside. Add pork to skillet and cook, stirring frequently, until no longer pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk sauce mixture to recombine and add to skillet. Increase heat to high and cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened and pork is cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Return vegetables to skillet and toss to combine. Transfer to serving platter, sprinkle with scallion greens and reserved garlic-scallion oil, and serve.

Chinese Chicken Salad

This is INSANELY yummy. I went back for thirds. The end.

"This chain restaurant classic needed a serious makeover, and we started by nixing anything from a can. The salad bar pile-ons (chow mein noodles, sprouts, snow peas, fried wonton strips, and water chestnuts) also got the ax, and instead, we started with crisp romaine lettuce and Napa cabbage, bell peppers, fresh cilantro, and scallions. To keep the title ingredient from tasting like an afterthought, we eschewed rotisserie chicken, instead poaching boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a flavorful mixture of soy sauce, orange juice, rice vinegar, and ginger. We whisked more of the same mixture with sesame and vegetable oils to make a bold dressing for our salad and finished the whole thing off with orange segments—fresh, of course—and crunchy roasted peanuts. Serves 6."

You can substitute one clove of minced garlic and ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper for the Asian chili-garlic sauce.

2 oranges
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon Asian chili-garlic sauce
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
4 (6- to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
2 romaine lettuce hearts (12 ounces), sliced thin
1/2 small head napa cabbage, cored and sliced thin (6 cups)
2 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 2-inch-long matchsticks
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 cup salted dry-roasted peanuts, chopped
6 scallions, sliced thin

1. Cut thin slice from top and bottom of oranges, then slice off rind and pith. Working over bowl, cut orange segments from thin membrane and transfer segments to second bowl; set aside. Squeeze juice from membrane into first bowl (juice should measure ¼ cup).

2. Combine orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, sugar, and chili-garlic sauce in bowl; transfer ½ cup orange juice mixture to 12-inch skillet. Slowly whisk vegetable oil and sesame oil into remaining orange juice mixture to make vinaigrette; set aside.

3. Bring orange juice mixture in skillet to boil. Add chicken, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until meat registers 160 degrees, 10 to 15 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking. Transfer chicken to plate and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, boil pan juices until reduced to 1/4 cup, 1 to 3 minutes; set aside. Using 2 forks, shred chicken into bite-size pieces. Off heat, add chicken, any accumulated juices, and 2 tablespoons vinaigrette to skillet. Toss to coat and let sit for 10 minutes.

5. Toss romaine, cabbage, bell peppers, cilantro, peanuts, and scallions with remaining vinaigrette in large bowl. Transfer to serving platter and top with chicken and oranges. Serve.

Thai Basil Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Here's another one of our favorites. When we first came across the recipe we immediately thought the Thai basil chicken would be much better served up as lettuce wraps, rather than an entree over rice. We turned out to be right. This one always gets devoured right at the kitchen counter... sitting down first would only delay the time it takes to get into our mouths.

2 cups basil leaves, tightly packed
3 garlic cloves, peeled
6 green or red Thai chilies, stemmed
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 pound chicken breast, cut into 2" pieces
¾ cup shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 head of iceberg lettuce, leaves cut into cups
red pepper flakes for serving

Process 1 cup basil leaves, garlic and chilies in food processor until finely chopped, 6 to 10 one-second pulses, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula once during process. Transfer 1 tablespoon basil mixture to small bowl and stir in 1 tablespoon fish sauce, oyster sauce, vinegar and sugar; set aside. Transfer remaining basil mixture to 12" heavy-bottomed nonstick skillet. Do not wash food processor.

Pulse chicken and 1 tablespoon fish sauce in food processor until meat is chopped into approximate ¼" pieces, 6-8 one-second pulses. Transfer to medium bowl and refrigerate 15 minutes.

Stir shallots and oil into basil mixture in skillet. Heat over medium-low heat (mixture should start to sizzle after about 1½ minutes; if it doesn’t, adjust heat accordingly), stirring constantly, until garlic and shallots are golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes.

Add chicken, increase heat to medium, and cook, stirring and breaking up chicken with potato masher or rubber spatula, until only traces of pink remain, 2 to 4 minutes. Add reserved basil-fish sauce mixture and continue to cook, stirring constantly until chicken is no longer pink, about 1 minute. Stir in remaining cup basil leaves and cook, stirring constantly, until basil is wilted, 30 to 60 seconds. Serve immediately, passing extra fish sauce, sugar, red pepper flakes, and vinegar separately.

NOTE: If fresh Thai chilies are unavailable, substitute 3 Serranos or 1 medium jalapeño.