Monday, January 10, 2011

"Lions' heads", with eel ravioli

Well, this is something which I've thought about getting around to for quite a while--I finally actually decided to do so.
   There are some issues, of course:
      - I'm not a professional chef (so they're not presented in a standardized manner--hell, the presentations aren't even uniform in format, from one to the next [some give cooking time, some list total servings...]);
      - these weren't written with others in mind (so some of the measurements are normal, such as "tsp", and some are less orthodox, as in the manner of Rachael Ray's "3 count");
      - some notes were jotted in a shorthand fashion (as in the eel ravioli, where I simply wrote "eel ravioli", with the underlying assumption that it's a standard ravioli recipe, altered only in the choice of eel as the main filler, and the side notes about curry & wasabi, etc.);
      - some sub-recipes (not the main body of any given recipe itself) I had simply grabbed from online for quick reference, so their grammar/etc. probably wouldn't match mine (as in the eel ravioli's ravioli sub-recipe).

Meh, this isn't meant to be perfect.  I'm just trying to share some food which I liked (to one extent or another).
   Picking which recipe to post as my first took a bit of thinking.
   I hope that you like it, but I'll be posting more to come; perhaps one of the later recipes will work well for you.
   Please note: some of these recipes will have healthy goals in mind, but some will very definitely be rather high calorie (tasty, perhaps, but certainly not particularly healthy).
   Please feel free to post comments on anything, particularly if you try them and find good substitute ingredients, or tasty alternatives.
   Right now, I have to go.  I've cleaned it up for posting as well as I have the time to right now.  Maybe I'll come back and fix it up better, later, but no promises.
   Happy eating!   :-)



Swimming lions’ heads, with manes - ~1 hour
   Pork balls on pineapple, with sauce--modified to hamburger form, served over pineapple, surrounded by egg noodles Alfredo (the "manes" of the "lions' heads").  Inspired by 2 separate dishes, cooked concurrently on The Iron Chef.

Lions’ heads
   Spray oil
……………………………………………………………………………
1 lb ground pork
   1 egg
   2 tbsp oyster sauce
      Alt.:  clam sauce
   2 tbsp sherry
      Alt.:  white & red wine
   2 tsp sesame oil
   2 tsp ginger, grated
   4 shiitake mushroom caps, diced
   4 shallots
      Alt.:  light garlic & onion

……………………………………………………………………………
9 pineapple rings
……………………………………………………………………………

Lion-head sauce
   0.1 oz seaweed
   1 c chicken broth
   1 oz mango chutney
   0.5 oz minced jalapenos
   Pomegranate juice, to taste
      Alt.:  grenadine
   1 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with water to form a slurry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
   1 lb egg noodles
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lion-head mane-sauce
   1 c milk
   6 tbsp butter/margarine
   6 tbsp Romano
   2 tsp ground thyme
   1 tsp parsley
   1 tsp rubbed sage
   ½ tsp ground rosemary

===================================================

Mix head-sauce ingredients, simmer on med-low heat; likewise for mane-sauce.
   Mix burger materials (holding back a few shitake per patty) & cook nine 1/3-pound patty-balls (oblate, preferably) until thoroughly done--these form a wet material, so dry-pan fry them initially for a semi-hard skin, then oil-fry (~3-3½ on an electrical stove, assuming 5 settings) to cook them within.
   Serve each lion’s head on a pineapple ring, place a couple shiitake slices on each patty, and smother lightly w/ slightly thinned sauce.
   Surround these with noodles, covered in slightly thickened mane-sauce.

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈≈
 
Eel ravioli
   3 cups tofu miso soup
   Handful of ½ cm cubed green onion
   ½ cup of diced shrimp
   Seaweed
   Pinch of saffron
   Bit of savory.
   Eel ravioli (pref. river eel, w/ yellow and red curry, tiny dab of wasabi, wafer of pickle [substitute paste of pickling spices?])
      NOTE: shrimp sub ok, curry wasn’t bad, wasabi seemed ok, ground pickle spice ok, saffron seemed to go well, the ravioli’s savory didn’t seem out of place, but their overall form and definitely their pasta-skin were too thick and just didn’t seem right (made `5, should have halved quantities).  Forgot about the string beans, but banana-strawberry smoothie ice cream went well.

   Ravioli:
      4 Eggs
      3 tb Olive oil
         (note: used canola)
      1 tb Salt
      2 c Flour

On a clean surface, make a mountain out of flour and salt, then make a deep well in center. Break the eggs into the well and add olive oil. Whisk eggs very gently with a fork, gradually incorporating flour from the sides of the well. When mixture becomes too thick to mix with a fork, begin kneading with your hands.
   Knead dough for 8 to 12 minutes, until it is smooth and supple. Dust dough and work surface as needed to keep dough from becoming sticky. Wrap dough tightly in plastic and allow it to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
   Roll out dough to desired thickness. Cut into your favorite style of noodle or stuff with your favorite filling to make ravioli. Bring water to a boil in a large pot, then add 4 teaspoons salt.  Cook pasta until tender but not mushy, 1 to 8 minutes depending on thickness. Drain immediately and toss with your favorite sauce.

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