Heey Everybody!

Let's share recipes from our culture or part of the country/world!!!

LEMONED FISH(I made this up so it's not officially a cultural dish, but using Vietnamese ingredients)
Preparation time 15 minutes/Cooking time 5 minutes/Serves 4

-- juice of one lemon (which amounts to maybe 1/4 cup?)
-- lemon peel from aforementioned lemon
-- 2 lemon leaves
-- choice of fish herbs, but must include lots of dill.
-- 1/2 tsp brown sugar
-- 2 tsp Vietnamese fish sauce, or otherwise salt to taste as an acceptable substitute.
-- a couple dashes of pepper
-- peeled smashed fresh garlic cloves
-- 4 serving-size portions of Tilapia, Chilean Sea Bass, Cod, or Catfish (Catfish only a last resort)


Give the lemon a name. Peel the lemon zest as humanely as possible, avoiding the white layer. Using scissors, cut the lemon leaves to very narrow strips. Juice the lemon and combine all lemon ingredients to set aside.

In a deep marinating dish, combine the brown sugar, fish sauce or salt, pepper, half of the smashed garlic, and all the fish herbs; adjust to taste if needed, and add the fish.

On medium heat, brown the peeled smashed garlic with about a tsp of choice cooking oil. Set it aside for the garnish.

Change to high heat and brown the fish in all its glory... when it's fully cooked, pour lemon mixture into the frying pan, letting the sauce thicken slightly on high heat. After removing onto serving plate(s), garnish with crispy browned garlic and cilantro, serving with white rice (and chili peppers on the side).

Anais Satin

That sounds scrummy, Anais Satin. I can't get lemon leaves here on the tundra but I assume that Kaffir lime leaves would work?

Great idea, too. I am recipe-obsessed - most of my reading is from cookbooks and my current project is the composition of a friend's wedding cake. I don't like most Swedish food, so here is a standard Kate recipe instead. I often have a big bowl in the fridge during the summer so I can take it on picnics.

Lemony Bulgur Salad

4 dl (300 g) (1.6 c) bulgur wheat
7 dl (3 c) water + 1 tbs olive oil
1 chicken bouillon cube
3 chicken breasts, in bite-sized chunks + 1 tbs olive oil
4-5 seeded, chopped tomatoes
1 finely chopped red onion
1 large bunch rocket/arugula
about 3/4 good sized cucumber, cubed
fresh mint and/or basil, sliced
roasted pine nuts

Dressing:
grated peel + juice of 1 1/2 lemons
4-5 tbs olive oil

Boil the water with the olive oil, crumble in the bouillon cube. Stir in the bulgur when the water is boiling. Reduce heat to low, cover pot and let simmer 3 minutes. Stir once or twice. Remove from heat and let stand 10 minutes. Remove lid and stir. Mix all dressing ingredients and gently blend with the bulgur. Let cool.

Meanwhile, fry the chicken breasts in minimal oil until cooked through. Season with salt and pepper and mix with the bulgur. Add all other ingredients to the salad, garnish with pine nuts. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Serves 6-8.

Note: I replace the chicken with feta cheese and/or more vegetables when making this vegetarian. You could substitute couscous for the bulgur (follow the cooking directions on the box in that case), but bulgur is healthier.

Bikerbraid, you can just send your son and his wife the link to this thread. Problem solved! 

/Kate

Definitely, Anais Satin. To be honest, I just chuck in whatever I have in the fridge. Anything goes well with that lemoney base!

/Kate

Is anyone else of Slovak heritage?  Two of my absolute favorite slovak foods are haluski, and poplanuk, ohhh, I can still smell it in my Baba's kitchen being made on a cast iron coal stove...good memories!  Anyway they are both fairly easy and very delicious.  For the haluski we sometimes will make our own noodles using a flour, egg, and water dough and dropping small amounts  into boiling water, making little dumplings. But store bought noodles are good as well, and a lot more convenient.  What works best is either a homemade style noodle (I use Mrs. Weiss's kluski noodles), or a flat egg noodle.  You will need a chopped head of cabbage, and a chopped onion, sautee these up in a pan with a good amount of butter, about a half stick to a stick, depending on how much you are making.  Once the cabbage and onions become soft (not fried), add your noodles and some salt & pepper to taste, and it is ready to serve.  One of my favorite ways to eat it is with cottage cheese-very good!  To make the poplanuk:
     This can be described as kind of a white pizza, but slightly different.  For the dough, you can use a frozen bread dough (I like Rich's Bread Dough the best, tastes like homemade), or if you have a good light & fluffy recipe, even better!  Thaw the dough and press into a greased round baking pan, and let rise according to the instructions.  Once risen, you make an egg wash by beating one egg, and brush it generously over the dough leaving some small puddles in any low sections, this will make it good. Then you will sprinkle about 2-3 cups of grated sharp cheese (I use CV Cooper sharp, comes sliced or in block form, you will want it in block form for this).  Bake in a 350-375 deg. oven until cheese begins to bubble and brown a bit.  I don't have exact baking time, i am at work, recipe is at home, I'm just going off of memory here!  I can get that if anyone needs.  That's it, just let it cool and enjoy!

It's getting cold here, so I thought I'd share a recipe for soup my grandmother used to make.  As I understand it, every has their own special version of it in Ireland.  *whsipers*  My grandmothers' version is the best, though!  *winks*

Yellow broth:

Melt some butter in a large saucepan (about 2 TBS).  Add a finely chopped onion,  a stalk of celery; minced, a chopped carrot, and some ground black pepper.  (You can also use parsnips, diced fine)  Cook until the onion gets soft.. two minutes or so.  Add a bit of flour to the pan (to help thicken the soup) and stir and cook a minute longer.  Then add enough chicken stock (homemade is best, but you can used canned in a pinch, though the taste isn't the same) to cover the veggies and a bit more.  (sorry this isn't precise measurements, but my grandma never used measuring cups and I just had to watch and scribble down what she was using)  Bring to a boil and then simmer for about 30 mins till the veggies are tender.  Add about a quarter of a cup of medium steel-cut oats (usually sold in a tin can at the grocers) and some fresh, chopped spinach, and cook about 15 mins. longer.  Add a splash or two of heavy cream and season once more to taste with salt and pepper.


A bowl of yellow broth and a good chunk of soda bread.. what more could a girl ask for?  *yum*

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Ooh oh oh!   

Thank you Rua!!!  *runs off to the store*