Tuna Ceviche, Thai inspired salad & Miso Soup

Tonights A BIG NIGHT! In an effort to satisfy my raw fish craving, I've decided to try my hand at a really simple Tuna Ceviche. Let me preface this with a tidbit, which is that I very rarely eat Fish. I've got a rant about sustainable farming, wild vs farmed, etc, but as of late I've really been craving it, so I'm indulging in small amounts. I've asked my local seafood counter how they farm/wildcaught and think about sustainability concerns, and I'm satisfied enough to purchase seafood from them occasionally. More frequently I have been getting mussels, farmed in Canada.

Thai inspired Confetti Salad
1 Roma tomato, chopped
1 1/2 cups fresh green beans, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 cucumber, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 1/2 cups cubed papaya
2 cloves cloves garlic, minced
1 fresh Thai or Serrano chile, finely minced
1 lemon, juiced
2 limes, juiced
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

Directions

Combine tomato, beans, cucumber, and papaya in a large bowl. Toss with garlic and chile pepper.
Stir together lemon juice, lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar in a small bowl. Pour over papaya mixture and toss. Sprinkle peanuts and cilantro on top and serve.

* As an aside, I'm substituting Mango for the papaya, and will probably work in sesame oil and soy sauce instead of the fish sauce. (I have the soy/sesame oil on hand.)


Tuna Ceviche
12 ounces sashimi grade tuna
3/4 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 medium onion, finely diced
2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger root
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
1/4 cup lemon juice, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon soy sauce, or to taste

Directions

Cut tuna into 1/2 inch cubes, and place into a bowl. Stir in the onion, green onions, ginger, jalapeno, lemon juice, and soy sauce; mix to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours. Taste before serving and add more lemon juice or soy sauce as needed




In hindisght (which is 20/20) --

This adventure was a tasty food adventure, and a bit of a learning experience. I followed the ceviche recipe to a T, and it turned out fabulously. Tuna is such a delicious flavor on its own, and it needs very little cooking to maintain its tastyness. (in fact, its amazing completely raw without anything but a dab of salt) The ceviche was fantastic, and there was enough leftover that I had it for lunch the next day with blue corn taco shells, just cold and everything.

The Miso turned out well, but the mushrooms in it were almost over whelming. I had to go on an adventure to the oriental food store to find the miso paste, and now I have a giant box of it sitting in my fridge. Rewarding trip though. Next time I'll use half the mushrooms, and buy them at the oriental store as well, because they were stupid cheap there compared to the Local Super Market Chain. (The store itself was an adventure because everyone was Vietnamese and they kept taking me to the "instant miso soup" packets vs the actual big stuff of miso to make your own soup with.)

The vegi salad was ok. I ended up not following the recipe at all, and just kind of threw things together. It wasn't that great, and I probably won't do it again, but mostly it was my own fault for not following a recipe.



Miso Soup





























































Main Course Plate

RE: "Mussels Mariniere"

The Mariniere recipe seemed interesting on the surface. (How can anything with garlic, tomato, onion, wine, and mussels be bad?) In any event, I reduced the tomatoes, and mussels, and broth used as well, but it still ended up being almost soupy. I added a slurry to it to thicken it up, which it did very nicely. I also boiled linguini, and made sourdough crustinis under the broiler (Sliced sourdough, salt, pepper, butter, and Parmesan cheese) I also steamed some asparagus

Recipe Follows (From one of the Weight Watchers cookbooks)

1 diced shallot
3 cloves of minced garlic
1 tbs of fresh thyme
1 tbs olive oil
8 plum tomatoes, diced
1.5 cups of chicken broth
.5 cups of white wine
2lbs of mussels, cleaned and debearded
1/4 cup fresh basil


Cook shallot, garlic and thyme in a pan until Shallot is translucent (about 3 minutes). Add tomatoes. Cook for 8 minutes, or until the tomatoes are soft and flavors are mingled. Add mussels, chicken broth and white wine. Cook for 7-9 minutes, until all the mussels are opened and cooked. (Don't overcook those suckers)
Remove mussels with a slotted spoon and add basil, mixing into the sauce. Pour sauce over mussels.

In the beginning

In the beginning...

There was food. I've been cooking as long as I can remember, first in my mothers and grandmothers kitchens, and now in my own. Somewhere along the way, I became pretty good at it. I think it has to do with my obsession with eating what I cook. In any event, I tend to try a lot of new recipes. This is a place for those recipes, failed experiments, and exceptionally successful tidbits and morsels of tasty treats.

In any event, tonight its Mussels ala Mediterranean style. After agonizing over what type of side to serve with it, I think I'm settling on steamed asparagus with hollandaise, and either linguini, or bruschetta. (Or both, since at this point I still can't decide.)