May 18 Menu

What would we do without friends? Probably not much, especially this week. I've asked a few of my friends to help me out for this week's menu and asked what they usually resort to for a quick dinner meal. Based on the responses, my friends eat quite well. I was surprised, however, at the overwhelming number of fish dishes, so I had to pare the options down to just two - one on Monday and the other on Thursday. Since the Thursday dish is fried flounder fish, go ahead and freeze it. I'm thinking that due to its thinness, it'll thaw very quickly. I also had to pick and choose the other menus to give the whole week some kind of consistency so that my groceries wouldn't go to waste. In the following weeks, I'll continue to add menus by friends. So if you don't see your recipe this week, don't despair, it's probably being treasured for another week. And thank you to all my friends. My wife is again away this week on a business trip, so it was a really big help. (NOTE: Each day, be sure to serve with rice, except for Wednesday, obviously.)

Monday - Broiled Fish & Vegetables

• Don't forget to set the rice before starting dinner. Also, we're not using the flounder, that is for Thursday.
• Take filet of fish and salt, pepper, oil (olive), and place in broiler. Finish with squeeze of lemon wedge.
• Take broccolini and chinese watercress, heat olive oil and garlice in pan, add vegetables, add chicken broth, optional add oyster sauce for additional spicyness. Pince of salt and pepper.

Tuesday - Ma Po Tofu

• I've linked a recipe from an online source but my friend's recipe marinates the ground pork/ beef in the soy sauce, cornstarch, and spice mixture and adds that to a sizzling wok with garlic. Seems like her way is a bit simpler and more straight forward.
• http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sara-moulton/ma-po-tofu-recipe/index.html
• This dish can be made ahead (maybe on Sunday).

Wednesday - Yang Chow Fried Rice & Miso Soup

• My friend forwarded me her own recipe which was given to her by her mother?, but due to copyright issues, I have posted a link to a comparable recipe on the internet.
• http://www.nibbledish.com/people/chaditz/recipes/yang-chow-fried-rice
  
• Her recipe doesn't add salty fish and also coats the shrimp in cornstarch and pepper and is fried in the wok and set aside.
• I always keep coming back to the miso soup, so easy, tasty, and it's nice to have soup with dinner. Boil water, add tofu, add some vegetables if you wish, add miso paste. Top with chopped scallions.

Thursday - Crispy Flounder & Vegetables

• Another simple and sweet dish.
• Coat flat fish with flour, salt, and pepper. Pan fry in olive oil. For sauce, grate ginger and mix with soy sauce.
• Take baby bok choy, oil and garlic in pan, add vegetables, add chicken broth, add oyster sauce. Pinch of salt and pepper.

Friday - Bon Chon Chicken Take Out

• This chicken is seriously making me consider buying a deep fryer so that I can have this whenever I want.

Grocery List for me:

• Meat, Poultry, Seafood- ground pork/beef, filet of any fish for broil (european seabream is recommended), filet of flat fish for frying (flounder, maybe) freeze because it's for Thursday, medium count shrimp
• Vegetables, Fruits, Herbs - chinese watercress, brocollini, baby bok choy

Grocery List Addtl:

• Dairy, Eggs, Tofu - silken tofu
• Meat, Poultry, Fish - chinese sausage
• Specialty Grocery - miso paste

Notes of the Week:

1. So when trying to make fish crispy, best not to immediately place the fish on a dish without a paper towel or something of that nature to absorb the moisture.  Notice I'm not referring to excess oil, I'm referring to heat/ moisture that will eventually make it soggy.

2. It is very difficult to make ma po tofu baby friendly, but I was amazed to see our daughter chow down.  It seems, true to her korean genes, she's partial to savory foods.

3. When working with cornstarch, always, always, mix in a little water before adding.

4. Another week where I missed a menue - Yang Chow Fried Rice.  My sister-in-law, bless her heart, cooked up dinner to help out while my wife was away in Abu Dhabi.  So, now I have chinese sausage sitting in the refrigerator.  I wonder if I can persuade my wife to try making the dish next week.