oven roasted chicken

It's that time of the year where the apartment is filled with the smell of roasting fowl, maybe some seeping through the door onto the hallway, making the neighbours very hungry. Roasting a bird is not an easy task but it doesn't have to be so difficult either. I roasted my very first chicken for Thanksgiving this year and it was, according to my beloved food critic, fantastic. I will share with you the very simple method to oven roast your first chicken.

Prep: 2 hours
Cooking: 1.5 - 2 hours

1. Clean your chicken in running water. First, let's brine the chicken for tender and juicy meat. Fill a large bowl with cold water, add 1-2 large tablespoon of seasalt (according to your taste or size of the chicken) and soak the bird for about an hour.

2. Take the brined chicken out, clean it with running water and pat dry with paper towel. Place it in empty bowl and air chill in the fridge for an hour.

3. Take the chicken out of the fridge, now embrace it with pepper, herbs, butter and/or any seasoning you'd like. I used black pepper, garlic and Italian herb mix with butter.
IMPORTANT! Make sure you season it well. I mean even under the skin. That lump in the picture above is not fat, it is butter (well, butter is fat..) under the skin. This will make the skin crispier and the chicken breast moist. This process is little bit gross, but necessary for yummy, flavourful, moist chicken.

4. Chop any vegetables you like (onions, carrots, potatoes, etc) or repare a stuffig mix (which I have done along with veges). Place it in a large cooking pan and put the seasoned chicken on top.

5. Set the oven to 175 degrees (350F) . Now begin roasting your chicken. mmmmm can you smell that?
Make sure to regularly check your oven to see how your birdie is doing.

Here is my method:

• my chicken was about 1kg (2.2lbs)
• 1 hour 20 minutes, uncovered
• 10-15 minutes, raise the oven temp to 200 degrees (400F) (until skin is crisp/brown)
• 15-20 minutes, take it out of the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and cool.

Tip: Cook your chicken for 30 minutes per 500 grams of weight. Every 20 minutes or so take your chicken out of the oven and baste it with the juices that have collected in the tray or with butter if you have veges soaking up the chicken juice.

  

 

My recipe is based on multipl recipe searches online, but this one and this one have very easy to follow steps with pictures. Enjoy!



posted by rin

tuna salad roll

rolls are one of the easiest things to eat but laborious to make. but i make it simple! chop, mix and roll.




ingredients:
cooked rice - i used half white and half brown
1 can of tuna - drain the oil/water
carrot - parboil if you like the carrot to be little soft
cucumber
pickled radish
3 hard boiled eggs
mayo
salt&pepper
sesame leaves - washed and dried
nori sheets





preperation:
1. drain tuna. chop carrot, cucumber and pickled radish. separate egg white and yolk, chop egg whites and mash yolk.
2. mix everything (but mashed yolk) in a large bowl with desired amount of mayo (i used about 3 tbsp). add salt&pepper to taste.
3. spread thin layer of rice on the nori sheet. sprinkle the yolk.
4. lay two/three sesame leaves on top.
5. scoop desired amount of tuna salad mix on top and roll!
6. slice the rolls about 1cm thick. serve.

tip: if you use bamboo sushi mat like i did, it is easier to make.
make sure you don't put too much rice or stuffing, it can tear the nori, exploding everywhere.
enjoy!





posted by rin

red wine sangria

1 bottle of red wine preferably cabernet sauvignon
1 lemon (sliced)
1 orange (sliced)
2 cups sprite or club soda
2 tablespoon of sugar
1 cup juice cranberry works really well or lime juice
berries (blue, straw, rasp) and chopped fruits (peach, pineapple, apple, kiwi, etc)

mix wine, juice, berries and sugar in the pitcher. add sprite or club soda before serving.

*tip: make the mix night before (without the carbonated stuff) and keep it in the fridge.
add shot (or two) of gin or vodka if you can hold your alcohol.


a perfect summer drink.
it already feels like summer in toronto.
22'C in march. crazy!

posted by rin

layered rice cake with shrimp

layered rice cake with shrimp

(i don't really  have a formal name for this dish, but this is as close as it gets)

ingredients
cooked rice (white or brown)
crab meat (shredded)
cooked shrimps
boiled eggs
canned tuna
mushrooms
lettuce





1. place plastic wrap over a bowl (size of choice).
2. put thin layer of rice and a layer of tuna. make sure you don't put too much rice, you have about three more layers of rice to add.
3. repeat step 2 with desired toppings. i used tuna, crab meat and chopped red peppers.
4. the top layer should be rice. this will help hold the cake in place. now press it down so it doesn't break. place a large plate on top and flip it over, remove the wrap.
5. mash the boiled yolk and use the strainer to sprinkle on top.
6. add shrimp and mushroom to decorate the cake and arrange chopped lettuce around the cake.

*tip: season the rice with rice vinegar or salt before making the cake.
you can mix the tuna and mayonnaise together for full flavour.


this is a simple yet fancy dish for special occasions. not much cooking is required, only need to make rice and boil eggs. how about your custom-made layered rice cake for upcoming birthday?

posted by rin

kimchi chigae (spicy kimchi stew)

kimchi chigae (spicy kimchi stew) can be prepared as simple as boiling kimchi in water. but we like ours with rich flavour. it is one of the best comfort food in cold cold winter.

ingredients

2 cups of kimchi the older the better
1 potato sliced or chopped
1/2 onion chopped
1 can of tuna drain the oil beforehand
1 tbsp kochujang (red pepper paste)
soy sauce to taste
broth: kelp and anchovies

additional ingredients you can add: zucchini, tofu, scallions, beef, pork, shrimp, mushrooms or experiment!

1. boil kelp and anchovies in 3-4 cups of water. this is the broth. you can use chicken stock as an alternative.
2. add kimchi to the pot and stir fry until it is cooked (about 3-5 min).
3. pour the broth into the pot, add onion, potato, red pepper paste and can of tuna.
4. cook 20-30 minutes.

*if you are adding tofu, add it after the first 10 minutes or so and add scallions just before serving.

i feel that kimchi chigae taste better and better as you reheat and re-reheat. i usually make a large batch and eat it for couple of days. enjoy!



posted by rin

homemade pork dumplings

ingredients:
dumpling skin (can be store bought or homemade)
ground pork
chopped onions
chopped scallions
minced garlic
firm tofu
shredded napa cabbage
bean sprouts
eggs
salt
pepper
flour

1. parboil bean sprouts and drain.
2. in a large bowl, add the pork, onions, scallions, garlic, tofu, napa cabbage and bean sprouts. mix well.
(ratio of the mix: 2 pork, 1 onions, 1 scallions, 0.5 garlic, 2 tofu, 1 napa cabbage, 1 bean sprouts)
3. add one egg, if the mix is too dry, add one more egg. mix well.
4. sprinkle salt and pepper. i usually dip my dumplings in soy or other dipping sauce so i like the dumplings bit plain. add salt to your taste.
5. place 1 heaping teaspoon of the mix onto 1 dumpling skin. you can adjust the amount of the mix as you like. moisten the edges with water and fold the edges over to make a nice half circle. make sure the edges are sealed otherwise it will burst when cooking. too much stuffing can also cause the burst.
6. set the dumplings onto lightly floured surface so they don't stick.

cooking tips:
1. steam (in metal or bamboo steamer for about 15-20 minutes)
2. dumpling soup (make the broth and add dumplings)
3. pan fried (steam the dumplings first and then pan fry)
4. deep fried (375°F 2-4 minutes)

*if you made lots and want to save them for later, keep them in the freezer, tightly sealed in a ziplock bag. it's recommended that you freeze them on a tray first so they don't stick to each other and then transfer them into a bag.

dumpling soup is one of my favourite winter dishes♥

posted by rin

everything alfredo pasta

i like making pasta. it is easy, quick and never fails. but i like my pasta with everything i like or anything i can find. here is not-so-secret recipe for my everything alfredo pasta.

ingredients
chopped garlic
sweet onion
roma tomato
broccoli
white mushrooms
shrimps
carrots ( i used baby carrots)
alfredo sauce (i used classico)
olive oil
black pepper
rotini

boil water and add rotinis. cook al dente. drain the water.
1. thoroughly wash the vegetables. chop onions, carrots, tomatoes to a small size. cut broccoli and white mushrooms to sizes you desire.
2. spread olive oil on a pan. add chopped garlic and cook until brown. add chopped onions, carrots and cook until the carrot is cooked.
3. add tomato, mushrooms, broccoli and shrimp. stir it until shrimp is cooked (i used cooked shrimp). if you are using raw shrimp it is best if you parboil but if not, add bit of white wine or lemon juice to get rid of the fishy smell.
4. add the alfredo sauce. or any type of sauce you like. i got lazy and took a shortcut by using classico alfredo sauce. which in my opinion still taste good!
5. add the cooked pasta into the pan, mix well with the sauce. this way, the sauce is well blended in with the noodles. place it in a pasta dish and sprinkle some black pepper on top. voila!

tip: i tend to eat my meals with less or no salt. if you like yours bit salty or with more flavour, add the salt when you are cooking your vegetables (stage 3).

happy december everyone! 31 days left of 2011.hope you make best of it :D

posted by rin

Housewarming/Birthday Party!

My new love nest was ready to be introduced to my friends (Rin, Ros and other guests) and it was a great chance to throw a birthday party at the same time. With my mom's help, I prepared a full table of meals of Korean fusion food. Presented in buffet style, it made it easier for everyone to enjoy the food they like.

* Appetizer: 

 - Salmon Salad: I  love salmon!!!! This fresh salad is a perfect appetizer for salmon lovers. To get rid of some fishy smell, I marinated it with some lemons, onions and capers. I used creamy poppyseed for the dressing.

 * Main dish: 

 - KalBi (Korean marinated short libs): KalBi is one of popular Korean food, it can be found at most Asian markets. BBQ them each side for 3-5 mins till it's brown. I prepared chicken wings just in case if Kalbi was not enough. :)

* Side dishes:

- Kimchi: Korean traditional dish. It's spicy pickled cabbage. At some point it was proved to be a well-being food that prevents SARS (haha that powerful!). Kimchi can be found at most of Asian markets as well, however the best is the ones made at home.

And as some of you might know, Korean dish always comes with RICE! 

* Dessert: we celebrated my birthday with the strawberry cream cake that Ros bought from Dufflet. SO GOOD! The reason that we all love this cake is that it's not that SWEET as it looks. It's very soft and creamy and we all love it! (it was soooo good, forgot to take pic of it :P )

Thanks all for coming and it was a great housewarming/birthday party! Already looking forward to the next one!


Posted by mimi

Time to take over the kitchen!

My mama was staying with me and my brother for quiet a while this year and made our kitchen her territory.. but she went back to Korea a few days ago and it's time for me to take over the kitchen again. I miss mama already..(tears)

The day she left I made.. Pad Thai~ with some vegetables, shrimp and beef with my special sauce!(oh, and some ground walnut on top) I actually don't know if i should call it a pad thai though.. I don't even know what they use to make pad thai in a Thai restaurant.. haha


Anyways, my brother admitted that it was the best pad thai he ever had! 


Ros's kitchen experimental continues....