Kevin's Watch

Today, I took cubes of tofu that had been marinating in soy sauce for two days and 'wrapped' them in felafel... which had also been sitting around for two days

It was all right, but maybe I should mix the felafel fresher next time... might make for a better wrap, as it were.

I am defrosting a pound of firm tofu and will press it with a wrapped brick while on a slanted board tomorrow to remove some moisture. Then I am going to simmer the resulting cubes in green curry paste and lite coconut milk, adding some stir fried onion, celery, and red and green peppers to the mix. I'll miss the basmati rice, but it should be a treat anyway, as curried tofu is not something I can usually get away with serving when Hyperception and/or Beorn are home. With both away this week, I'm doing my best to indulge myself while staying within my new way of eating.

I have just discovered the best ingredient ever [except maybe garlic]
Blackberry-ginger Balsamic Vinegar. Great for everything from homemade salad dressing to adding an extra zing to your hot-sauces to meat marinades [it's a little potent for fish/chicken...but maybe if you're careful] to just a tiny dash in making homemade ricotta...even good in small amounts on fruits and ice cream [the label suggested it...I didn't believe, but tried it anyway]
Oh...I mentioned it here cuz I added just a dash to the oil while frying up some previously marinated tofu.
YYYYUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMM!

Ooo, that sounds good, Vraith. Do you have a brand name to share?

Sounds like my current fascination with Kikkoman's Citrus infused Ponzu sauce. Good stuff!

Woo, hold on... you can add dashes of stuff to oil for frying and make things AWESOME?!

Menolly wrote:Ooo, that sounds good, Vraith. Do you have a brand name to share?

Sounds like my current fascination with Kikkoman's Citrus infused Ponzu sauce. Good stuff!

The brand is Wine Country Kitchens. My wife picked it up for me while designing for a theater company in Bay View Michigan [cuz she knows I'm a freak for oils and vinegars, especially balsamic....but the label says it's from the Napa Valley...so should be available lots of places.
It's nice and thick [not as thick as steak sauce, but thicker than heavy cream, so it's easy to work with when drizzling and such]

Orlion wrote:Woo, hold on... you can add dashes of stuff to oil for frying and make things AWESOME?!

What do you think adding onion, garlic, and ginger at the start of a stir fry is? You are flavoring the oil to give a hint of those flavors to the rest of the ingredients.

My only caution is that you be extremely careful when adding other liquids to hot oil. Spatters or even boil overs can easily occur when doing so, leading to what can be severe burns.

Vraith wrote:The brand is Wine Country Kitchens. My wife picked it up for me while designing for a theater company in Bay View Michigan [cuz she knows I'm a freak for oils and vinegars, especially balsamic....but the label says it's from the Napa Valley...so should be available lots of places.

Thanks! I'll search it out.

Menolly wrote:

Orlion wrote:Woo, hold on... you can add dashes of stuff to oil for frying and make things AWESOME?!

What do you think adding onion, garlic, and ginger at the start of a stir fry is? You are flavoring the oil to give a hint of those flavors to the rest of the ingredients.

My only caution is that you be extremely careful when adding other liquids to hot oil. Spatters or even boil overs can easily occur when doing so, leading to what can be severe burns.

Vraith wrote:The brand is Wine Country Kitchens. My wife picked it up for me while designing for a theater company in Bay View Michigan [cuz she knows I'm a freak for oils and vinegars, especially balsamic....but the label says it's from the Napa Valley...so should be available lots of places.

Thanks! I'll search it out.

Yeah, I knew about solid foods like garlic and ginger but not vinegar or other liquids! I'll keep your caution in mind, though, as I don't like to be burnt with hot oil on a normal day.

I usually add flavoring liquids after the foods are cooked in the oil, rather than flavoring the oil itself, and then tossing in the hot wok right before service. But you can use far less by flavoring the oil before adding the food for a similar effect.

Orlion wrote: Yeah, I knew about solid foods like garlic and ginger but not vinegar or other liquids! I'll keep your caution in mind, though, as I don't like to be burnt with hot oil on a normal day.

You can reduce splatter by doing tiny amounts at a time and especially by adding them immediately after the other stuff...and still small amounts.
[I actually have it down to my personal science: grab a handful of whatever, toss it in with the left hand, instantly stir twice with right hand, toss spices/liquid with left, stir twice with right...repeat till everythings in there.]

An easy flavor/texture thing when working with rice [unless you're one of those weirdos who likes sticky white rice]:
I actually fry my dry rice [sometimes with a dash of spices] before the boiling stage...to golden brown if it's white, which I rarely use...but whatever you start with just a few shades darker. This adds a slight toasty/smokiness to the dish, and as a side effect it seems to make the rice much less clumpy.

If you haven't yet found it, Watkins (which can be found online) has a couple of oils which are awesome! My two favorites are Grapeseed with citrus and Cilantro, and Chipotle . Also, House of Tsang has a Mongilian Fire Oil which is pretty great. Made some rice noodle stir-fry with Cilantro/grapeseed and fire oil mixed with a bit of sesame oil. Very tasty!