Tie-me-to-the-mast Stuffed Eggplants

Cristopher Nolan’s theatrical version of Homer’s Odyssey was spectacular! In one of the scenes, Matt Damon (in the role of Odysseus) asks his boat crew to tie him to the mast, to resist the temptation of the songs of the Sirens. I felt the same irresistible pull (to OD) when I cobbled together the Farmers market’s baby eggplants. Inspired by the Gujarati stuffed eggplants, and a minimal execution, the dish comes together very quickly. I am always looking for using ingredients that the creators did not intend- hence North African Berbere blend and Turkish Urfa Biber. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Pressure cooker or Instapot.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 lb baby eggplants, stems trimmed
  • Stuffing:
    • base: 1 cup besan (garbanzo flour)
    • nuts/seeds: 1/3 cup chunky nut butter (peanuts, almonds or any other nut/seed of choice)
    • spice: 1 tbsp Berbere spice blend
    • heat: 1/2 tbsp Urfa Biber
  • Sauce:
    • 1 tbsp neutral oil
    • 1 tbsp whole spices (mustard+cumin+corriander+fennel)
    • 4-5 pods of crushed garlic
    • 1 14 oz can crushed (San Marzano) tomatoes
    • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
  • Additionals:
    • baby potatoes
  • salt to taste

METHOD

Stuffing: Dry roast the flour till lightly fragrant and add the spices and pepper til well mixed and continues to be fragrant. Then add the nut butter and mix well till well blended. Season to your taste with salt.

Sauce: Heat oil and the whole spices in the pressure cooker. When they begin to sputter and the crushed garlic and stir for 30 seconds to a minute, till fragrant but not brown. Add the tomatoes and keep on very low flame while prepping the eggplants.

Prepare the eggplants by making two deep slits without breaking it into 4 quarters- the top of the eggplant should hold it together. Then using your finger to pry open the slit, fill it with the stuffing. Arrange in the pressure cooker. Then place the potatoes on top (they dont need to be submerged in the cooking sauce).

Cook on medium pressure for 5-7 minutes. Serve hot with roti or rice. Or, simply enjoy it as-is, like I do.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. You can use any other spice mix of your choice, like curry powder.
  2. Similarly the Urfa Biber can be substituted by any other chili of your choice.
  3. Some like to add a sweetening agent as well to the stuffing, but I did not.
  4. I like my eggplant to really mush up, so I cook a little longer than usual.

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Wok Pasta

I love the wok. I like it’s large working (wokking!) surface. One can char, caramelize, malliard, sear and deglaze. (I realize one of them is not a verb, but you get my drift.) Here is a pasta dish that you can slap together without fussing over neither the pasta nor the sauce. I call it the Rumsfeld Ragù (based on his famous comment that goes something like “you go to war with what you have and not what you wished you had“). Give this a try and you will never go back to any other style. Enjoy!

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Wok.

INGREDIENTS

  • 8 oz approx pasta (any pasta or gnocchi)
  • 2 cups stock (or dashi stock or just water)
  • Ragù:
    • Little oil for the wok
    • (optional) 3-4 garlic pods, crushed and minced
    • diced veggies (broccolini or broccoli or turnips or greens)
  • Topping:
    • 2-3 tbsp EVOO
    • (optional) Umami: 1/3 cup shaved parmesan (or Parmigiano Reggiano)
    • (optional) Brightness: 1 lemon (zest + juice)
  • Salt to taste

METHOD

Warm the wok, char the dice veggies on the wok surface for 3-5 mins. Deglaze with a little water, cover and let soften for 2 mins. Make a hole in the center of the wok and add little oil and the crushed garlic. When the garlic softens (a minute or so), add the dry pasta to the wok. Add about 4 oz stock and cover and cook for about 10 mins till the moisture dries up. Continue the process till the pasta is cooked (if all the stock is used up but the pasta is still too al dente for your liking, use water and continue the process). Then add the layers of topping and serve hot.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. Adapted the use of lemon from https://www.allrecipes.com/one-pot-lemon-pasta-recipe-12018974
  2. Each layer of the topping is optional, except EVOO.

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Fig Balsamic Chicken

I encountered anjeer curry in an Indian restaurant and was deeply intrigued. Until quite mysteriously, green figs arrived in the weekly Misfits bag! Twas the season of the figs, of course. A great opportunity to make a savory main course with the figs. Here is an utterly simple one with balsamic vinegar, a lazy person’s sweet-sour sauce (in cooking that is).

SPECIAL TOOLS:

None.

INGREDIENTS

  • 6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 2 lbs)
  • 8-10 green figs, stemmed and quartered
  • 1 large red onion finely diced
  • 1/4 cup dark balsamic vinegar + 1/2 cup water
  • Little oil for the pan

METHOD

Spray little oil to the base of the pan. Add the chicken pieces, sprinkle salt and and let brown undisturbed for 3-4 mins. Then flip the pieces, salt them. Add the diced onions and let cook covered for 3-4 mins. Then add the figs and the liquid ingredients. Cook covered on medium for about 15 mins. Add the rosemary sprigs and cook for another 15 mins. If the sauce is too thin, cook uncovered for 7-8 mins till the sauce thickens a bit.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. Adapted from https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/275369/fresh-figs-and-chicken-thighs-in-shallot-balsamic-reduction/
  2. Plums can be cooked the same way as figs.
  3. Try chocolate balsamic vinegar for an even deeper flavor of sauce.

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Buckwheat Cigar Rolls

A minimalist buckwheat crepe-roll. Nothing but buckwheat (just some yogurt). Unexpectedly delicious and can be an interesting alternative to your idli/dosa. Or, simply accompany your favorite soup.

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Nonstick griddle and spatula

INGREDIENTS

(makes 8 rolls)

  • 1 cup cream of buckwheat soaked in 3-4 tbsps yogurt + 1 cup water
  • salt to taste
  • Little oil for the pan

METHOD

Let the buckwheat soak for 20-30 mins. Add salt to taste and mix well. The batter will be of thin pouring consistency.

Heat a nonstick griddle on low-medium heat. Spray some oil to very lightly grease it. Then add a ladle (approx 1/8 cup) of the batter onto the griddle and let it spread to the edges. You may have to tilt the pan a little. This delicate crepe cooks only on one side. When the edges begin to brown slightly; start to roll the crepe using a nonstick -friendly spatula while still on the pan and then remove to a serving plate.

Serve warm with dal/sambhar or any other accompaniment of your choice.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. Cream of buckwheat is ground buckwheat that made into porridge. Ala cream of wheat.
  2. If you cant find cream of buckwheat in your grocery store, you can run buckwheat through a processor to make your own.
  3. The non-stick pan helps in removing the crepe from the pan.
  4. Filling is also a good option. Before rolling you can add South Indian gun powder or finely chopped prepared veggies (onion, tomato, carrots etc.)

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Super bowl Rolled Kebabs

Kibbeh casserole, with ground meat and bulgur, had been a staple for super bowl for years, with roaring success. But I diversify this year, but remain still in the same geo. This recipe landed in my inbox and I was fascinated by the parchment rolling technique as a domestic substitute for the restaurant vertical spit. Moreover, it fits well into my minimalist approach. The result was astonishingly good!! Enjoy.

SPECIAL TOOLS:

Food processor with grater and mixer blade; Mechanical rolling pin; Baking tray with wire-rack.

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 lb ground lamb + 0.5 lbs grated veggies (nappa cabbage)
  • Aromatics: 2 medium onion, diced + 4 pods garlic, crushed + (1.5 tbsp each of oregano, cumin powder, red chili powder, paprika) + 1 tbsp black pepper + salt to taste
  • 1/2 cup yogurt
  • To serve: yogurt, lemon wedges and salad (tomato+onion+lettuce)

METHOD

Fit the grater blade and grate the veggeis. Remove the grater blade and fit the mixer blade and add all the aromatics with the yogurt and mix well. Then add the ground lamb, little at a time, till all are well mixed.

Make four portions of the mix. Work with one portion at a time. Place the portion on parchment, the size of your wire-rack. Cover with another parchment and with the mechanical rolling pin gently roll till very thin. Gently peel off the top parchment and roll the meat with the base parchment into a long roll and place on the wire rack. For the next one, you can reuses the last top parchment as the next bottom. Make the other three rolls.

At 400 F, bake on a wire-rack on the baking tray for 15 mins; rotate and bake for another 15 mins.

Let cool. Peel off the parchment and let the liquid collect in the tray. Cut up the long rolls into 5-6 inch lengths. Serve with salad, pita and yogurt.

NOTES, HINTS, TIPS:

  1. Adapted from the NYTimes’s Sheet-Pan Döner Kebab.
  2. The two main changes I make is that I add veggies to the meat and completely remove any additional oil (since lamb is already so fatty).
  3. I bake on a wire-rack- so collecting the run-off liquid is easy as well.

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Tea Leaves Zhug

Last time I was at Taipei, I visited a few tea estates, and not surprisingly, I brought back some excellent oolong teas. But in the mountains of the tea estates I saw that the restaurants specialized in using tea (leaves) in the food. Then I discovered the Burmese tea leaves (fermented) salad dressing!

When I make the high mountain oolong tea, I see the tea leaves unfurl and get their original shape back. They continue to be very fragrant even after multiple fusions; so it seemed such a waste to just toss them. So I decided to use these tea leaves here. Influenced by my visit to the tea gardens in Taiwan and and not to mention my frugal disposition, I present my tea leaves zhug. Surprisingly tasty and is bound to steal your heart.

Special tools:

Small high-speed processor.

Ingredients

  • Used tea leaves from 3 tbsps of good quality oolong tea
  • Aromatics: 1 clove garlic crushed + 1 tsp grated ginger
  • Brightness: 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • Seasoning: 1/2 tsp sea salt + 1/2 tsp fish sauce
  • Medium: 3 tbsp peanut or other neutral oil (NOT EVOO!)

Process all ingredients till a coarse paste.

Here I serve as pasta dressing.

Notes, hints, tips:
  1. Why zhug ? Mainly, the looks. Zhug is actually of Yemeni origin.
  2. Adapted from Andrea’s– a Burmese salad dressing. But I flipped it to a sauce for gnocchi.
  3. I use 1 tbsp tea leaves for a drink (with multiple infusions; usually 8 oz + 8 oz of hot tea). After each use, I dry out the leaves on a flat surface. So I collect my 3 tbsps of unfurled, fragrant tea from three sittings over one or two weeks.

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