Braised Carrots

Braised Carrots

Time: 90 minutes

Serves 4

This is one of those recipes that I just made up as I went along. I started with an empty stomach and a couple of really nice looking carrots. After emptying my pantry and formulating some ideas, I got inspired and made this version of “candied carrots.” The thing is, this recipe is so much more than candied. The carrots become so delectable and complex that I think they can even be elevated to main dish status. Nevertheless, if you want to impress people with a really interesting side dish, this is the one.

Note: This dish requires more ingredients than what you would normally see on Stovetop Junkie, I apologize, but it is really worth it.

Braised Carrots

1 large carrots sliced into 1/8 inch bits

4 shallots sliced thinly

hand full of toasted pecans crushed into a powder

4 dates mashed

1 tangerine seperated into sections

juice from one lemon

half cup white wine

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

dash cinnamon, allspice, and cloves.

Before anything else, I would steam the carrots for about 5 minutes (this cuts down on cooking time).

Ok, start by sauteing the shallots in a bit of butter. Once they have started to soften, add the carrots and toss them with the shallots. Cook until the carrots soften, add olive oil periodically as the pan dries out.

Next, add the crushed nuts, tangerine, spices and dates. Mix together well, and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the wine, mix and cover with a sheet of tin foil (This is to both block the spray and keep some of the moisture in, the normal cover to your pan may be too tight for this recipe).

Cook until the carrots are soft and darkened, and all of the other ingredients have formed a nice pasty texture (about 30 minutes). If the sauce seems to be getting too dark or thick before the carrots are really soft, add more wine, or even some water.

When finished, give them a light drizzle of lemon juice. Enjoy.

“Tamago” style Omelet with Sushi Rice

“Tamago” style Omelet with Sushi Rice

Time: 15 minutes

Serves 2

Sushi Rice: Singular puffy grains that melt on your tongue but have a slight crunch to the tooth....in Japan, some teach children to never waste a single grain-when they are this good, how could they. It is also traditional to not allow the rice to touch anything but wooden utensils and steamers. I wouldn’t recommend doing this, but it is vitally important to appreciate how even making the simple dishes well requires care and respect for the food.

1 cup sushi grade rice (Don’t skimp on the rice, high quality rice is worth the price and effort)

1 cup plus a little filtered water

1 teaspoon rice vinegar (to taste)

2 tablespoon mirin/or 1 tablespoon sugar (to taste)

1 teaspoon salt (to taste)

Sushi rice is really easy, and can be a great alternative to normal long grain rice-it sticks together wonderfully. The only thorny part of the cooking process is washing the rice. You have to rinse the rice about seven times in order to wash off the starch. I place the grains in a bowl and fill it with cold water. I rinse it around for a minute or so and then pour it through a fine mesh colander/sieve into another bowl. Repeat until the rinsing water is clear (usually seven times, sometimes more).

Next bring the water and the rice to a boil in a saucepan. Once it is boiling turn the heat to the lowest possible setting and cover. Steam for 15 minutes and then let stand covered for 10 more.

Mix the remaining ingredients together and toss with the hot rice. Serve either hot or room temperature (I have never really been a fan of cold sushi rice, although some forms of traditional Japanese food call for this kind of treatment).

Tamago Omelet

First off, Tamago means egg, so the name of this recipe is “egg” style omelet....just wanted to get that out there in the open and admit the ridiculousness. In any case, if you’ve ever ordered Tamago at a sushi restaurant, I’m sure your curiosity has been piqued by its sultry texture and deep flavor-I mean it can’t just be a scrambled egg. Well, I did some research, and making real Tamago takes some refined technique, a few obscure ingredients, a Tamago pan, and a ton of time (mostly for resting and refrigerating).

What follows is a recipe that captures the delicate flavor, and if done right, has it’s own delectable texture that melts on the tongue.

This recipe requires a few specialty ingredients. They are all pantry items that pretty much never go bad, and are usable in a plethora of contexts and dishes.

A quick note about eggs: Eggs will go from being undercooked to overcooked very quickly-they also cook considerably after being removed from the heat/pan. I always make sure my eggs still have some moisture to them when I stop cooking, the result is perfectly cooked eggs that are not overdone or stiff. In the case of this recipe, when pressed with the spatula, the omelet should have a pillowy softness, if it gets any harder remove from the pan immediately.

6 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites.

2 tablespoons mirin (japanese cooking rice wine)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

a few dashes chili oil

pinch ginger powder (optional) or 1/8 teaspoon finely minced fresh ginger

Vegetable Oil to taste

Wasabi as a garnish (At most markets, they sell these tubes of wasabi that you put in the fridge after opening, they are really quite good and easier to use than the powder. They also last for a while.)

First, take your egg whites, and beat them until they are really foamy and have started to thicken and turn white (about 5-6 minutes by hand, probably 2-3 by machine-but seriously do it by hand, it won’t kill you).

Mix the 3 of the remaining egg yolks (save the yolks for another dish-or if you can’t think of why you would use them, I guess you can throw em out) with the mirin, soy sauce, chili oil, and ginger. Meanwhile preheat a large skillet until it is very hot, pour a liberal amount of oil (you don’t want your eggs to stick) into it. Carefully fold the yolk mixture into the white mixture and pour into the pan, spread it around evenly.

Cook for about 4 minutes on one side (or until you can see it has gotten golden brown. Now flip it over and cook it for another 4-5 minutes (Flipping it in the air can be tricky, if you are gun shy, or just don’t want to risk messing up your counter and ruining the dish, I suggest sliding the omelet onto a plate, carefully placing the pan on top of the plate and flipping the whole apparatus, I however, take the risk-if only to show off).

When finished, both sides should be crunchy and golden brown and the inside should be slightly creamy and velvety.

Serve with warm sushi rice and a wasabi garnish.