Tag: appetizer
Lebanese Stuffed Grape Leaves
Lebanese Stuffed Grape Leaves
I’ve been obsessed with stuffed grape leaves for a while. Many countries have their own version them: Greece with dolmades, Turkey with dolmas, and Lebanon with warak enab. They all are fairly similar with slight variations in fillings and preparation. These particular stuffed grape leaves are of the Lebanese kind. The stuffing is simply ground beef seasoned with 7 spice, cinnamon, salt, fresh parsley, plus a short grain rice. You can also use ground lamb instead of beef. The leaves are then stuffed and rolled up. You should yield about 50 stuffed grape leaves from this recipe. To cook the stuffed grape leaves, layer the bottom of a wide pot with slices of potato and tomatoes. This will keep the grape leaves from sticking to the bottom while adding flavor. Layer the grape leaves on top of the tomatoes. Then layer the second layer facing the opposite direction. Place a heaving plate on top of the leaves. This will hold them in place while cooking. Pour enough boiling water in the pot to almost completely cover the plate. Place a cover on the pot and simmer for 30 minutes over medium heat. Take off the plate. Squeeze over lemon juice. Simmer on low for 45 minutes. Take off the heat and let sit for 30 more minutes.You can serve these stuffed grape leaves as an appetizer. But after trying one, you will change your mind and eat these as your main course. While I’ve always have eaten these cold, these are eaten warm. Both ways are right.
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef or ground lamb
- 2 tsp 7 spice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cups short grain rice
- 1/2 cup parsley chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 jar grape leaves
- 2 medium potatoes peeled; thinly sliced
- 1 medium tomato thinly sliced
- boiling water
- 2 lemons juiced
Garnish
- lemon slices
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef in a sauté pan.
- Season with 7 spice, cinnamon, and salt.
- Mix the ground beef with the rice, parsley, and olive oil.
Stuffing the Grape Leaves
- Rinse all of the grape leaves under water. Cut the stems from each of the grape leaves.
- Place a heaping tsp of the filling in the center of the leaf, with the pointy side facing up.
- Fold up each of the sides.
- Fold in the corners.
- Roll it up. You don’t want them to be too tight, since the rice will expand during cooking.
- Roll up until all of the stuffing is used. You should yield 40-50 stuffed grape leaves.
- Slice the potatoes and tomato on a mandolin. Layer the bottom of a wide pot with them. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt.
- Place a single layer of the grape leaves on top of the tomatoes. Drizzle with olive oil.
- Place the next layer faving the opposite direction on top of the first layer. Drizzle with more olive oil.
- Place a wide plate on top of the grape leaves. Fill the pot with boiling water; enough to almost cover the plate.
- Place a cover on the pot. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove the plate. Squeeze the lemon juice over the grape leaves. Place the cover back on. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 45 minutes. Take off the heat and let sit for another 30 minutes.
Smoked Char Siu Baby Back Ribs
Smoked Char Siu Baby Back Ribs
This recipe is another reason why we need to legalize marijuana federally, if not globally. Without it, I might not have came up with this concept. Char siu is my absolute favorite. So why not marinate ribs in char siu marinade and smoke them? It happened. All I can say is that this might be my favorite way to prepare ribs. It’s rather simple to do. It will take some patience since it’s really a 3 day process if marinating, 1 day of drying, and the next day to smoke. If you don’t have a smoker, you can bake these in the oven at 300 degrees for 2 1/2 hours, wrapped in foil. Then place the ribs under the broiler, brushing the ribs with the cooked marinade every 3 minutes until the top side is browned.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
Ingredients
- 2 racks baby back ribs
Marinade
- 3 tbsp light soy sauce
- 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 3 tbsp honey + 1 extra tbsp for glazing
- 3 tbsp shaoxing cooking wine
- 3 red bean curd cubes + 2 tbsp of liquid
- 1 1/2 tbsp five spice powder
- 1 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 3 garlic cloves minced
Wood Chips
- 1/2 cherrywood
- 1/2 applewood
Instructions
- Mix all of the marinade ingredients together.
- Place the baby backs in a gallon sized storage bag. Pour in all of the marinade. Marinate for 3 days; flipping the bag over a couple of times a day.
- After the ribs have marinated, place on a rack and let dry out in the refrigerator for a day. Save the marinade. Let sit at room temp for 1 hour prior to smoking.
- Place the ribs in a preheated 250 degree electric smoker.
- Simmer the saved marinade with an extra tbsp of honey for 10minced until reduced. At the 2 hour mark of smoking, brush a layer of the marinade on the racks of ribs. Smoke for another hour, brushing another layer of the marinade on the ribs. Some for 1 more hour.
- Let the ribs rest for !5 minutes before serving.
Spring Onion Pakora
Spring Onion Pakora
If you’ve eaten at an Indian restaurant, you most likely have had pakora of some sort. Pakora consists of the main ingredient fried in a chickpea batter and served with a green chili chutney. My favorite use of pakora is to batter spring onions. Other ingredients that can be used include cauliflower, white onions, potatoes, paneer, and even chicken.
Ingredients
- 2 cups spring onions cut into 2” pieces
- 3/4 cup chickpea flour
- 1 tbsp rice flour
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/8 tsp turmeric
- 2 green chilies finely chopped
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 4 tbsp water
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
- Mix together the chickpea flour, rice flour, and dry spices.
- Mix in the green onions, ginger paste, sesame seeds, green chilies, and water. The batter should be very thick.
- Heat up 2” of vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat. Using a cookie dropper, drop scoops of the batter into the oil, making sure not to overcrowd the pot. Fry for 3 minutes. Gently flip the pakoras and fry on the other side for 2-3 more minutes.
- Drain on paper towels.
