Hot Giardiniera Two Ways

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This recipe makes one batch of chilli oil giardiniera and one batch of chilli vinegar giardiniera. If you want to make just one or the other, halve the vegetables and brine and omit the extra ingredients.

3 carrots, sliced into rounds
1 each red, green & yellow capsicums, diced
6 stalks celery, sliced
1 medium cauliflower, broken into small florets
6 cloves garlic, peeled and slightly crushed
1/2 cup table salt, divided
2 sterilised jars/containers

For chilli vinegar giardiniera:
6 long green chillies sliced into rounds, seeds disgarded if desired
6 long red chillies sliced into rounds, seeds disgarded if desired
1 tsp peppercorns
2 cups apple cider vinegar

For chilli oil giardiniera:
1/2 cup chilli flakes
2 cups canola oil

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Day 1: 
To make chilli oil: In a medium saucepan, heat canola oil over medium heat until it's just smoking. Turn off the heat and allow the oil to cool for 7 minutes.
Add the chilli flakes carefully (they will sizzle and foam quite a bit- be brave).
Leave to cool for an hour. Pour into a bowl, cover and set aside. You can refrigerate if you like but it's not necessary.

Day 2:
Take all vegetables, except garlic, and divide between two non-reactive bowls, placing a little over 1/3 in one and the rest in the other.
Add the sliced chillies to the bowl with 1/3 vegetables and mix them together.
Add 1/4 cup salt to each bowl and stir through the vegetables. Fill each bowl with water to cover the vegetables.
Cover the bowls and refrigerate overnight (about 12 hours).

Day 3:
Drain each batch of vegetables and rinse.
Place back in their bowls. Add peppercorns to the batch with chillies. Add three cloves garlic to each batch.
For the chilli oil giardiniera (the batch without chillies in it): Pack the vegetables into their container, layering them with some of the chilli flakes from the oil as you go.
Pour chilli oil over the vegetables to cover. Put lid on container and refrigerate for a day or two.

For the chilli vinegar giardiniera (the batch with the chillies in it): Pack the vegetable into their container.
Heat the vinegar in the microwave or on the stove until hot (it doesn't need to be boiling) and pour over the vegetables to cover. Put lid on container and refrigerate for a day or two.

Eat! Use both within 3 weeks.


You'll probably have some chilli oil leftover. Store for later use in salads, stir fry, dumplings etc.

Thanks for stopping by The Cookbook Resolution. Come back soon for a very special sandwich.

Sushi

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There's so many parts to this I don't really know where to start. Okay....

1) Gomashio: It is truly the most delicious seasoning I've ever tasted. You don't need to make it but it takes the sushi to a whole new level and you will use the rest. Sprinkle it on rice, baked potatoes, stir fry, use it in salad instead of salt, serve it with bread and olive oil like dukkah. It's unbelievable. Recipe here.

2) Julienne some spring onions (green onions/scallions), cucumber (seeds scraped out first) and slice an avocado or two. You can include a couple or all of these plus a sprinkling of gomashio in every roll, along with the main filling.

3) Here is a servicable tutorial on rolling makizushi. But seriously, lady, an all cucumber sushi roll? All aboard the Flavour Express!

4) Here is the recipe I use for making sushi rice except I use the rice cooker. Don't bother fanning the rice either. Get an electric fan and point it at the rice as you stir. It's much quicker and easier!

Fillings:

Kimchi: I used my homemade kimchi that I make using my mum's recipe found on her blog. I make it with julienned carrots and chopped cabbage, not big chunky carrots and daikon like in the recipe. That would be ridiculous in sushi. You can buy kimchi which is also delicious but drain most of the liquid and chop it a little. 

Roll with julienne cucumber, spring onion and gomashio.

Roasted sweet potato: This is barely a recipe, it's embarrassing. My mum makes sushi with this, though, and it's unbelievably good.

Slice two large sweet potatoes in half lengthwise and place cut side down on a lined baking tray. Roast for half an hour at 200°C (390°F) or until flesh is very soft.

Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle, scoop the flesh out and mash. Season with soy sauce to taste.

Roll with julienne cucumber, spring onion, avocado and gomashio.

Sriracha tuna: Also barely a recipe.

Drain a 425g (15oz.) tin of tuna in springwater and break up the flakes in a bowl. Add sriracha and Kewpie mayonnaise to taste (I used 5 tbs of each) and mix together.

Roll with julienne cucumber, spring onion, avocado and gomashio.

Teriyaki chicken: I was going to make chicken teriyaki from scratch but I ran out of time. Also, lazy!

I combined 8 chicken thighs (trimmed of fat), a bottle of teriyaki sauce and a cup of water in a wok. Bring to a boil and then simmer til the sauce is very reduced and coats the thighs. Slice the chicken thighs thinly and stir the slices with the remaining teriyaki sauce in the wok. 

You won't use all of it on sushi (unless you're catering a wedding or something), so use the leftovers for another meal.

Roll with julienne cucuber, spring onion, avocado and gomashio.

Finally, if you're interested in the green tea mousse I made for dessert, the recipe can be found here. I bought a packet of sweet red beans from the Asian grocer, mashed them and served a spoonful on top of each serving. They compliment each other perfectly!

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Thanks for stopping by The Cookbook Resolution! Come back next week for the Valentine's Brains Debacle!

Beef Rendang

 

Adapted from Foolproof Asian Cookery by Ken Hom 

2 large onions, sliced

1 tbs ginger, grated

6 garlic cloves, crushed

1.2 litres coconut milk

1kg stewing beef (I used topside because it was already cubed #lazy)

2 tbs vegetable oil

2-3 tsp dried chilli flakes

5 cloves (I spent 30 seconds thinking "five cloves of what?!" before I figured this one out)

1 cinnamon stick

2 tsp salt

pepper to taste

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground ginger

4 tbs lemon juice

1. In a blender combine half of the onion, the ginger, garlic and a splash of coconut milk. I did this with the hand blender, not worth dirtying a whole big thing. Toss the mixture through the beef til it's all covered.

2. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or big pot and sauté the onions until golden. Take out of the Dutch oven and set aside.

3. In two or three batches, brown the beef on all sides in the Dutch oven.

4. Add all the beef and the onions back the Dutch oven with all the other ingredients except the lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and then reduce to the lowest heat possible. Simmer with the lid off for 2 1/2 - 3 hours, stirring occasionally. 

5. The curry is ready when just about all the liquid is evaporated. It's supposed to be almost dry. Add the lemon juice, stir through and cook for another minute before serving.

I highly recommend serving with plain rice and and some braised bok choy and spring onions with a little kecap manis, fish sauce and soy sauce stirred through.

Beetroot, Balsamic and Chilli Relish

 

Beetroot, chilli & balsamic relish (Adapted from Well Seasoned)

1kg tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated (I used my Microplane) 
2-4 tsp sambal oelek, to heat preference (I also used one fresh bird's eye chilli from my garden)
2 dried bay leaves
2 sprigs each fresh rosemary and thyme
2 tbs sherry
1kg fresh beetroot
1 large red onion, finely chopped
50g brown sugar
100g caster suger
100ml balsamic vinegar
50ml red wine vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F), scrub any dirt off beetroots, trim roots and tops off and wrap each in foil. Bake from 40 minutes to an hour until they're soft (mine took 55 minutes).

2. In a large frying pan or saucepan, heat a little oil and sauté the garlic. When it's golden add the tomatoes, sambal, herbs, and sherry. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and cook until the tomatoes have broken down (about 20 minutes). Turn of the heat, pull out the herb stalks and bay leaves and set aside.

3. When the beetroot are cooked and cooled slightly, put on some gloves (highly recommended) unwrap and peel the beetroot. Put the beetroot into the food processer and process until all grated up into bits (alternatively, grate it by hand). If you'd like a smoother relish, then add the tomato sauce to the processor and combine it with the beetroot (again, not necessary if you haven't got a food processor).

4. Heat another large frying pan with a little oil and sauté the onion until soft. Add vinegars and sugars and bring to a boil. Add the tomatoes and beetroot. Bring to the boil again, reduce heat and cook until it's thickened and the liquid has evaporated. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

5. Pour into sterilised jars. Try not to eat with a spoon.
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