The Adventures of a Calamari Queen

We had this Red Snapper dish early this week. We got this fish in the Filipino store/market and knew right away that we’re gonna have Escabeche. I grow up eating Red Snapper (in the Philippines it’s called MAya-Maya),aside from Tuna (tuna belly),it is my favorite kind of fish. I forgot how expensive they are.  I try to get wild caught fish whenever I can instead of farm raised, even though it is more expensive.  I just feel like the flavor is really superior in wild fish.  Anyways, I wasn’t thinking about the price when I got it, all I know is that it’s coming home with me.  I’m just sharing this because I find it expensive , $18 for this medium size fish.  Is that too much for a fish?I honestly don’t know. Although, once I had a bite of the crispy, meaty fish,and the sweet and sour sauce ,I and the Hubs totally agreed that it was worth it. So worth IT! I prepared it Escabeche style. I deep fried the fish then made a sweet and sour sauce.  I sautéed onions, garlic, carrots, green peppers and then added the sweet and sour sauce once the veggies were soft and tender. Then I poured the sauce on top of the fried fish and served it over boiled rice.

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Sauce(panlasang pinoy.com)

Another quick stir fry recipe I cooked last week ( Recipe from The Everyday Chinese Cookbook)

Ingredients:

1lb. rump steak

2 tbsp. sesame seeds

1 tbsp sesame oil

2 tbsp vegetable oil

4 oz. mushrooms,quartered

1 large green peppers,seeded,cut into strips

4 spring onions,chopped diagonally

boiled rice,to serve

For the Marinade:

2 tsp cornflour

2 tbsp chinese rice wine or dry sherry

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 in fresh root ginger grated, 1 garlic clove,crushed

few drops of tabasco sauce

Procedure:

1. Trim the steak and cut into thin strips.

2. Make the marinade. In a bowl, blend the cornflour with the rice wine,then stir in the lemon juice,soy sauce,tabasco sauce,ginger and garlic. Stir in the steak strips,cover and leave in a cool place for 3-4 hours.

3. Place the sesame seeds in a wok or large frying pan and dry fry over a moderate heat, shaking the pan,until the seeds are golden. Set aside.

4. Heat the sesame and vegetable oils in the wok or frying pan. Drain the steak, reserving the marinade, and stir fry a few pieces at a time until browned. Remove with a slotted spoon.

5. Add the mushrooms and green pepper and stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the spring onions and cook for 1 minute more.

6. Return the steak to the wok or frying pan, together with the reserved marinade, and stir over a moderate heat for a further 2 minutes until the ingredients are evenly coated with glaze. Sprinkle over the sesame seeds and serve immediately with boiled rice.

I love stir fry, especially if it’s beef!  It’s my favorite kind of meat to use, my least fav is pork because I tend to overcook it and it gets dry.  I kinda followed the Food Network recipe from their website and I added the usual stir fry veggies:-)  I will make this again,recipe to keep!

Recipe : Beef Stir Fry (adapted from Food Network)

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons Chinese Shaoxing rice wine, dry sherry or whitevermouth
• 1 pound beef sirloin, thinly sliced against the grain into strips
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 3 to 4 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1 1-inch piece fresh ginger, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 5 to 7 dried red chiles, halved
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 8 heads baby bok choy, halved
• Pinch of sugar
• Cooked rice, for serving

Directions