Leftover Chicken Enchilada Angel Hair Pasta

I got the leftover chicken enchilada from Chef Neda, who is a Private Chef for a family in San Francisco. When I looked at them, I saw tomato sauce lookalike. Of cos, the taste is a little different. So in my head, I immediately think of a sauce for pasta. See, you can make over one dish to another so easily. Think of the food lookalike, and makeover them. Just add some olive oil so that the angel hair pasta or whatever pasta you are using looks shiny and great. Chopped some tomatoes and parsley to give it a texture, color and taste. Garlic salt to season and ground black pepper too. Wa la........ your new food on the plate for a party.

White Ciopino

Gregg and I went to Blue Eye, MO to visit Jim Long and Josh Young. Of cos, Barbara (Josh's mom), Molly the dog and Squeeky the cat. Usually, I will cook for them, The Chef Chong's style. I cooked seafood ciopino that day for dinner because Barbara wanted to have some scallops. Well, in my head I was thinking of searing them with salt, pepper and some seasoning. However, I changed my mind the last minute, because the big scallops were not enough for all of us. So I used small scallops and shrimps in the freezer for the ciopino. You can soak the frozen in water to thaw.

Also that I used the peppers and cilantro grown in Jim's garden. See, it is simple and delicious.

Ingredients:-

Scallops and Shrimps (clean and pat dry)
One garlic (smashed and chopped finely)
Half Onion (sliced)
4-5 mini yellow peppers (cut into pieces, any shapes you want) will find out the name of the peppers later
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/2 cup white wine
1 tablespoon butter
salt and pepper to taste

Methods:-
1. Heat the pan with olive oil. Caramelised the sliced onion and peppers. Then put aside.
2. Use the same pan, throw in the seafood. Add salt and black peppers. You can see some juice coming out from the seafood after a min or two.
3. Add in the caramelised onion and peppers, the butter, garlic, wine, cilantro and green onion into the seafood.
4. Cook for another min or two, try one of the shrimp and the taste. Add salt to taste. You can put in the oven at low while waiting for your guests.

Bon Appetite!

Chef Chong's Figs Jam

There is this giant Fig tree in our backyard. Time to pick the figs in this fall and lots of them. The birds are the frequent pickers. I pick some of them and put in the ziploc bag, store them in the freezer for future use. Now, making figs jam is easy. Just sugar, wine, vanilla extract and water and of cos, figs.

Measurement:-

1/2 full 9" x 9" pot

2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups Apple Cider

3 Tbsp Vanilla extract

1 cup White wine

Water to cover the whole figs

Methods:-

Just cook until the texture is like a jam. It is all about your preference, whether you like it thick or smooth or light or thin.

Gregg's Onion Steak

That day, Gregg wanted to have steaks for dinner and he told me to cook the steak like last time with onions and bbq sauce. Well, since we have some steaks in the freezer, we were having steaks.

Ingredients:-

8 oz steak, marinated with sugar, soy sauce, sake, olive oil and pepper, over nite.

Methods:-

1. After over nite marinating the steak, heat a non-stick pan with some oil on medium to high. Sear the steak first side for about 4 min or little brown, then the other side for another 4 min, depends on your preference, either rare, medium or done.
2. Take the steak when done on a plate for rest.
3. Caramelised the onion and put back the steak with bbq sauce and very little water to dilute the thickness of the sauce.
4. Serve with sauteed vegetables.

Ingredients for sauteed vegetables:-

1 zuchini
1/4 purple cabbage
1/2 yellow and red peppers
1/4 cup chopped mint and basil
garlic salt to taste

Boulder's Apple Strudel Pie

I've made this pie before, but it's become one of my regular desserts to make. This time, I made it for our friend, Cecilia, in Boulder, Colorado when we were staying there. This, I promise you, will be a hit at any party.

Ingredients:-

5-6 Red Delicious Apple

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

1 Teaspoon cinnamon

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 Teaspoon Salt

1/2 Stick Unsalted Butter

8" Frozen Pie Shell

1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice (optional)

Toppings:-

1/3 cup All-purpose flour

1/2 stick unsalted butter (soften)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Teaspoon cinnamon

* Mix all together with hand, until crumbly. Dont over do it.

Methods:-

1. Peel and slice the apple, so that you can arrange it on the pie shell.

2. Heat a pot in medium, and melt the butter. Throw in the apple, sugar, cinnamon and salt.

3. Cook for 15 min or until the apple filling get syrupy and shiny. Add vanilla and lemon juice (optional). Cook for another 10 min until little concentrate.

4. Fill the pie shell with the filling and put the toppings cover the pie. Then bake at 375 C for about 25-30 min.

The only day I made Kung Pao Chicken

Kung Pao Chicken is very americanized. In fact, a lot of chinese food you might eat at your local chinese restaurant you would never actually find in China. But now they have become a part of our american culture, and are most likely here to stay. Gregg's family loves this type of chinese food, so I made it especially for them, this one time, when they came to visit our new house for the first time.

Recipe:

1 Chicken Breast (cut into chunk)

1 Red bell pepper (cube or slice)

1/2 Onion (cube or slice)

1 stalk Green Onion (chopped)

1 clove Garlic (chopped)

1/2 cup Roasted Walnut (chopped)

1 Tablespoon Oyster sauce

Method:-

1. Heat the work high, add the cooking oil and then the garlic. Stir for just few second, not to burn the garlic. Immediately add in the chicken. Stir the chicken until little golden, or half cooked.

2. Add in bell pepper, onion and green onion, stir fried for a minute.

3. Add the oyster sauce and stir until even.

4. Lastly, just throw in the Walnut, stir for few second. Then serve.

Bao Bao (Full Full) :)

Ginger Thyme Pork Chop

A friend of Gregg wanted me to cater for her an entree one day. I made her my signature Ginger Thyme Pork Chop with White Wine mixed mushrooms sauce. Yes, white wine instead of red. Sometimes, we have to be adventures a little, see the outcome. And certainly, it was good. Why have to restrict yourself with all the French or Italian cooking, claiming that Red Wine must go with Red Meat, White Wine should go with White Meat. It is all depends on the quantity you used and also the taste you wanted. See, cooking is fun....

Marinating Pork Chop:-

4 pieces Pork Chop
1/4 cup White Wine
1 Tablespoon Ginger (smashed and minced)
1 Tablespoon Fresh Thyme leafs
1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon Sugar (can use brown sugar)

* Put all into a Ziploc bag and put into the fridge marinating it overnight, or at least 4 hours.

Methods:-

1. Heat the non-stick pan with some cooking oil (say about 3 Tablespoon) over high heat. Searing meat, you have to put high actually so that the brownish is formed and also it will not overcook the pork chop.
2. Put the marinated pork chop one at a time (the marinade in the bag is for making the mushroom sauce), seared for 3 min at least each side. Then put on the plate for rest for a minute and then seared again for another min on each side (this step is to let the meat rest, so that the meat stay soft and moist).

Mushroom sauce:-

1 cup Baby White Button mushroom (sliced)
1 cup Baby Portabella mushroom (sliced)
1/2 cup White Wine (I used Sauvignon Blanc)
1 Tablespoon Shallots (minced)
1 Teaspoon Fresh Thyme leafs
The marinated residue from the Pork Chop marinade (very important)

Making the sauce:-

1. Sauteed the mushrooms together with some cooking oil over medium heat until little brown, seasoned with little salt and pepper.
2. Add in the shallots, stir for few seconds and then add wine and thyme leafs together.
3. Add the Pork Chop marinade and simmer until reduce. Depends on how thick the sauce you want it. See, I try not to use butter. It tastes good as well and healthier.