Boiled Channa, Simple Guyanese Peasant Food

I always preach on Guyanese food being the food of poor people with limited resources. Meat was expensive. Fresh imports were not available. You had dried goods, canned foods, and whatever you could grow locally. There is fish and seafood, but again, either you catch it (effort and time) or you can buy it (again, expensive to use on a regular basis). 

One thing that is overlooked but so typically guyanese is channa, or as the rest of the world knows it, chick peas or garbanzo beans. You go to a prayers and you get channa curry. You go to a rumshop and you may get fried channa. And if you go to a wake, you may get boiled channa. It's easy and relatively cheap and quintessentially Guyanese for all races and religions. You will never find it in a restaurant, you will never have it for Christmas or Easter dinner. It is the most humble of foods.

I remember serving this when my grandparents died. I also remember eating this on a weekend while I was studying at home. I cannot pinpoint it to a specific time and place, but it is a memory of my childhood and part of my comfort now. It is both healthy and filling. As I'm writing this I wonder why I don't eat this on a regular basis? Alistair, your allergies keep me on my toes; sometimes you react to channa, sometimes you don't. If it weren't for your love of pepper, I would wonder how Guyanese you really are! I hope you can eat this as you grow older. It's one of those things that you can whip up anytime. I keep at least six cans of channa in the pantry and stock up as needed, because if I'm in a pinch, I can make something if needed.

Boiled channa is the easiest (and the only one I make) Guyanese preparations of channa. I would eat a bowl on its own. If you were to make channa curry, then you would eat it with roti, but not rice. I don't make these rules, they have evolved over time by Guyanese people who must have figured out the best combinations. 

So through social distancing before I get some free time back with having to cook every single meal at home for every single person every single day, yeah, I will likely make boiled channa before we return to me wanting to actually cook.

IMAGE COMING SOON!

Ingredients:
Channa (chick peas)		1 can or 1 cups dried and rehydrated
Onion		1 medium - large, chopped
Garlic		6 cloves, minced
Cumin		1/4 tsp, ground (optional)
Black Pepper		1 tsp, ground
Sea Salt		1 tsp
Canola Oil		2 tbsp
Water		1/4 cup
Green Onion / Bandanya		chopped to garnish (optional)

Preparation:

1. Re-hydrate the dried channa overnight with water and baking soda. If using tinned channa you need not hydrate. for both, Drain and rinse in a sieve thoroughly until the water runs clear. 
2. In a medium size pot, heat the canola oil on medium heat.
3. Saute the onions and garlic until they are translucent.
4. If you want the bite of the cumin, add it now. it should colour the onions and garlic and become aromatic very quickly. It is important that you cook it through to bring out all it's seasoning power without burning it. Keep an eye on it, because if you walk away it will burn.
5. Add the channa and black pepper and turn the heat up to medium high.
6. Quickly stir well to coat everything. As the heat comes back up to strength you will hear the change in the pot within minutes.
7. Timing is now very important. with the temperature still on medium-high, add the water and sea salt, then stir quickly. 
8. Cover with a lid and reduce the heat to medium low. 
9. Let the channa simmer gently for 15 minutes. Check and stir occasionally to make sure it does not burn and the texture remains creamy. Add a little more water if it seems to get too dry, but not enough where you can see liquid. You don't want it soupy, but you don't want it dry and chalky either.
10. When the channa is soft enough to crush with little pressure it is done. I like to add a maririri pepper to the pot when I add the channa, but you kids aren't ready for that yet, so I just add peppersauce until you guys are all grown up and ready for more heat.
11. Garnish with herbs if you prefer and have any on hand.

Cook Up Rice

We don't keep a lot of parboiled rice in the house now that I'm married to a Filipino with Pinoy kids. We mostly eat long grain rice, Rooster to be exact. I have no problem with it but you cannot use it for some Guyanese dishes. Now that we are in quarantine it has been difficult to get Guyanese food I wouldn't have to make myself, because mom isn't a short drive away. So I asked Enrique to pick up a bag of Mr Goudas parboiled rice when he made these quest-worthy grocery runs so I could make a pot of cook up rice.

My grandmother and my mother made the best cook up. My mother adds pigtail. This is the absolute best. I love pigtail. It's delicious. Most people don't know how to cook it and they are missing out. If you can get the butcher to chop it up in the store then it's little work to wash and clean before you cook. If you want (as I did in the picture below) you can cook it without any meat and have it bare or with meat on the side. This dish is not picky. My mom uses kidney beans, but I prefer to leave them out. As you continue to make it, you will find the combination that best suits you.

I had no worries that you would like this, Alexis. Alistair, on the other hand, I know you are picky and your allergies give you an aversion to any beans or peas. But somehow, the flavour and texture of the rice outweighed the texture of the peas and he ate the whole bowl. I couldn't be happier. My kids have a bit of Guyanese in them still.

So through social distancing I resorted to cooking a staple that my mother always made for me and it turned out to be delicious. Now if I can only get my hands on some pigtail I'm set.

Ingredients:
Parboiled Rice		2 cups
Black Eye Peas		1 can, rinsed
Pigeon Peas		1 can, rinsed
Salt Beef / Pigtail / Chicken		1 lb, washed and cut into 1" pieces
Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream		1 can Milk or 1/2 block of cream, chopped
Onion		1 large, diced
Garlic		1 head, sliced
Marmite		2 tbsp
Chicken Bullion		1 cube / 1 tbsp
Thyme		3 sprigs fresh or 2 tbsp dried
Dried Basil		2 tbsp
Bay Leaf		2-3
Black Pepper		1 tsp, ground
Sea Salt		1 tbsp
Canola Oil		2 tbsp
Water		8 cups

Preparation:

1. Clean, wash and chop meat (salt beef, pigtail or chicken) into 1" pieces. Soak and rinse the salt beef or pigtail until they are clear of the brine.
2. Wash the rice until it the water runs clear.
3. In a large pot, heat canola oil on medium heat. 
4. Saute the onions, garlic, thyme, basil and bay leaf until they are translucent.
5. Add the washed rice and stir to coat, toasting it lightly in the oil and spices for a few minutes until the rice looses opacity.
6. Add the meat and stir until it has mixed with the rice. 
7. Add the black eye peas and pigeon peas, and stir well. Do not let the rice burn at the bottom of the pot! Slightly over medium heat should work, but lower it if needed until you are ready to add the water.
8. While making sure the contents of the pot do not burn, add the last ingredients before adding any liquid (the chicken bullion, marmite, black pepper, and sea salt). 
9. If you are using coconut cream instead of coconut milk, add it now. 
10. Turn the heat up to medium high and stir this in until the marmite has coated everything. If it seems sparse add a little more; this is where you will get the bulk of the colour and the flavour.
11. With the heat up, pour in the coconut milk (if you are not using coconut cream).
12. Pour in the water and stir well.
13. Half cover the pot so steam can escape and turn the heat down to medium. If the heat is too high and the pot is covered, the food will scorch at the bottom of the pot.
14. Let the rice simmer gently for 20-30 minutes. Check and stir occasionally to make sure the rice does not burn and the liquid is distributed. Do not stir often, or your rice will end up mushy.
15. When there is no liquid left and the texture appears coated but not dry, the rice is done. Turn off the heat, preferably take the pot of the heat, and leave the lid cracked open. Covered will steam and clump the food, and open will let too much heat out.
16. I like to add a couple whole peppers, but you kids would not eat so I add pepper to my dish alone. If you want to add peppers, I suggest adding them whole after adding the water, and breaking them up once the cook up has finished cooking.

Grandma's Stew Chicken

A staple of my childhood was waking up on a weekend morning to my mother's chicken stew and dumplings (or duff, as Guyanese people call them). Now Guyanese cooking is quite utilitarian, but that does not take away from it's deliciousness. People have been known to throw tantrums over there being too little gravy left. Not I. Just saying. Your aunt had very strong opinions about the correct proportions of solids to gravy. Of course, her place could 'accidentally' have more gravy. And I'm not bitter. But it flattens your dreams to have a dry piece of duff with only a trace of stew on the edge with an empty bowl that has been mopped clean.

There is something simple and delicious about this meal. It is wonderful on a cold winter day and also wonderful on a breezy summer evening. I can't think of a time of year when stew chicken isn't delicious.

Ingredients:
Chicken		1 whole bird, cut into 2-3 inch pieces (or the equivalent in thighs and breast)
Potato		8 medium Yukon potatoes, peeled, halved or quartered
Onion		4 onions, peeled and chopped
Tomato Paste		3/4 a small tin
Garlic		1 tbsp, minced
Canola Oil		2 tbsp
Water		1/2 L
Geera (cumin)		1 tsp
Marjoram		1 tbsp
Sage		1 tbsp
Thyme		1 tbsp (fresh, if possible)
Black Pepper		1 tsp, ground
Sea Salt		1 1/2 tsp

Preparation:

1. Clean and use a cleaver to chop chicken into 2-3 inch pieces.
2. In a large pot, heat canola oil on medium heat. 
3. Saute the onions. Add the garlic after the onions have cooked down. Saute until coloured.
4. Add the chicken and stir to coat. 
5. Add the geera, marjoram, sage, thyme, black pepper and sea salt. stir to incorporate.
6. The chicken will release its juices. Let this cook on medium high to evaporate.
7. After the liquid has evaporated, add the potatoes and tomato paste. Stir and let this caramelize.
8. Cover the stew with the boiled water. There should be enough to barely cover the stew.
9. Bring to a boil, stir and reduce heat to a gentle simmer.
10. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender (about 20-30 minutes).
11. Serve with fry bakes, rice, or as we used to have it, fry dumplings. I will provide you the recipe for dumplings in a later post. Hopefully, one day, you can make them. Lord knows I've never done it on my own.

Grandma's and Big Grandma's Beef Barley Soup

If there is one dish that is trademarked to my mother, this is the dish. It is not like any other barley soup I've had. Most are oversalted, or the broth is very thin with very little barley texture. Home made is always best. If you are sick, this soup is for you. If you are cold, this soup is for you. If you need comfort, this soup is for you. If you need a cure all... you see where this is going. After a cup of this a bleak day is brighter. I have a vat of this in the fridge to dip into reheat as needed. Soup does just as great the day after. I sprinkle a little ground black pepper before eating. Yum. My babygirl, you know this is true. This is a wonderful lunch on a cold school day. My babyboy, you will learn to love soup, and this is the soup I will make you love. When you grow up you will wonder why you refused to eat this. Maybe (and I hope) you are just a picky toddler at the moment. But it will eventually remind you of grandma. And maybe, one day, me.

Ingredients:
Beef (stewing or soup cuts)		cubed (1/2" - 1")
Barley		2 cups, cooked
Yukon Potato  (or similar)		3 medium, large cubes (1x1/2")
Carrot		2 carrots, cubed or coined
Onion		3 medium bulbs,chopped
Boiled Water		5 cups
Beef Bullion		1 cube
Salt		1 tbsp
Black Pepper		1 tbsp, ground
Thyme		1 sprig
Canola Oil		4 tbsp

Barley Preparation:

1. Rinse barley in a sieve under cold water. Drain.
2. Toast barley in a pressure cooker, stirring often. 
3. When fragrant, immediately pour in water and add a pinch of salt.
4. Stir well and bring to a boil.
5. Seal pressure cooker with whistle (follow the instructions for your pressure cooker) and let it build pressure until it whistles.
6. Reduce heat to low and let it cook for approximately 15 mins.
7. Take the pot off the heat and let it cool completely.
8. When you remove the lid (make sure you release the pressure completely before you do this!) the barley should be soft all the way through.

Soup Preparation:

1. Wash and chop onions and carrots. Set aside.
2. Rinse and cube beef. Set aside.
3. Add canola oil to a large soup pot on medium heat.
4. When warmed through, saute chopped onions. Be sure you do not brown them.
5. When the onions are translucent, increase the temperature to medium high.
6. Add beef and brown on all sides until it is nicely caramelized.
7. Add potatoes, carrots and thyme. Stir until everything is mixed well.
8. Let the mixture cook until there is little moisture left in the pot.
9. Pour in the boiled water and stir to release all the fond at the bottom of the pot. What is 'fond'? You are my children and reading this, you should know. Go look it up.
10. Add the pressure cooked barley, using the water in the pot to rinse out the bowl. Remember; barley is a thickener, it is important to have all the barley for the texture of the soup.
11. Add salt and pepper.
12. Stir well to agitate the barley and mix the seasoning.
13. Half cover pot and reduce heat to medium low. 
14. Let the soup simmer for 30 minutes.
15. When the soup is nearly done, take a pot spoon and try to break a potato on the side of the pot to test for doneness. If it crushes easily, the soup is done aaand... you've thickened the soup a little, just stir it all together. If it does not crush without pressure, then the soup needs more time.
16. You will notice a greenish tinge (remember the sauteed onions?) when the soup is finished. Remove the pot from the heat and serve.

Barley Congee

I have had a difficult time throwing off the weight since I had Alistair, but it is only recently I have made a concerted effort to really take it off and keep it off. One of the changes I made was trading out simple carbs for complex carbs, such as barley.

I never considered how versatile barley could be and reserved it for my mom's legendary beef/chicken barley soup. But when Jocelyn made the last batch I asked her to pressure cook a half cup of extra barley and set it aside for me. Knowing beef and barley are a natural pairing I assumed I would make some sort of tomato based stew, but then Jocelyn made her amazing steamed fish and that changed my entire approach. When you think about barley's thickening power (see almost every recipe I have for use of barley flour), it could potentially behave like rice does in congee. And let me tell you, congee is one of the most comforting bowls of morning love you can ever eat.

I had steamed fish (seasoned with garlic, green onion and ginger), spinach, garlic paste (I make and keep a jar in the fridge) and, of course, cooked barley. So I got to assembling a dish. And it was absolutely delicious and less carb heavy than rice. It will naturally be on the thicker side of congee, but I never liked thin congee anyways. And if the barley thickens up too much, just thin it out slightly with a little bit of water.

You can substitute out ingredients as needed. My rule of thumb would be one leafy green vegetable, one protein, a strong seasoning, and optionally include green onion and century egg. For a couple options, you could do minced pork, garlic greens, black fungus (mushroom), century egg and fish sauce, or chicken, yo choi, garlic and chili. There are so many variations and I can't wait to try them all.

The recipe below serves one, but you can adjust it upwards to serve the whole family.

This is about to get in my belly.

Ingredients:
White Fish (Sole, Tilapia, Cod or similar)		6 oz fillets, steamed
Barley		1 cup, cooked (preparation shown for 1 cup uncooked)
Water		2 cups (barley), 1/4 cup (congee)
Spinach		2 cup, sliced
Garlic		1/4 tsp, minced
Siracha		1/2 tsp
Fish sauce		1 1/2 tsp
Black Pepper		1 tsp, ground
Green Onion		chopped, to garnish

Barley Preparation:

1. Rinse barley in a sieve under cold water. Drain.
2. Toast barley in a pressure cooker, stirring often. 
3. When fragrant, immediately pour in water and add a pinch of salt.
4. Stir well and bring to a boil.
5. Seal pressure cooker with whistle (follow the instructions for your pressure cooker) and let it build pressure until it whistles.
6. Reduce heat to low and let it cook for approximately 15 mins.
7. Take the pot off the heat and let it cool completely.
8. When you remove the lid (make sure you release the pressure completely before you do this!) the barley should be soft all the way through.

Congee Preparation:

1. Wash and chop spinach.
2. In a pot on medium-low heat, add spinach, minced garlic, black pepper, fish sauce and siracha. Give it a quick stir.
3. Add the cooked barley. This can be fresh from the pressure cooker or leftover from the fridge - the only difference is the amount of water needed and time stirring to reconstitute the original consistency.
4. Add water slowly while stirring. Continue adding water as needed to create a creamy congee like texture. The key is to continue stirring. Agitating the barley releases the starch to form the sauce. No stirring just leaves you with barley and strongly flavoured water.
5. Once the texture is perfect remove the pot from the heat - you do not want to dry out the congee at this point.
6. Ladle out into soup bowls and layer the steamed fish on top (assuming the fish is well seasoned during steaming - think ginger, green onion, garlic, soy sauce).
7. Garnish with green onions.

Fish and Rice Noodle Soup

[NEEDS PIC]

This is a nice, simple soup that is comforting yet light. I think the kids would like it, because it's not going to seem 'fishy', but the sweet vinegar and the tamarind will give it a sweet tang that should be delicious.

For an understanding on the 'sweet vinegar', it look like this bottle:

Ingredients:
White Fish (Sole, Tilapia, Cod or similar)		1 lbs, Fillets only
Gai Lan		8 (approx), chopped
Fried Tofu		1 cup, sliced
Chicken Stock		4 cups
Chinese Sweet Vinegar		3 tsp
Tamarind Sauce		1/4 cup
Onion		1, sliced
Green Onion		4 stalks, chopped
Ginger		1" knob, peeled
Garlic		4 cloves, finely minced
Water		2 L
Soy Sauce		3 tbsp
Canola Oil		3 tbsp
Black Pepper		1 tsp (ground)
Wide Rice Noodles		1 fistful per person

Tamarind Sauce:

1. Take a knob of tamarind paste and place it in a small dish
2. Pour boiling water over the paste. work through with a strong fork. 
3. Cover with a plate and let sit for 15 mins.
4. When the dish cools, stir and heat in the microwave for 40-60 seconds.
5. Stir again and cover to let sit for another 15 mins.
6. When cool, stir and sieve through into a clean bowl. This removes skins and pits.
7. Ta Da. Tamarind Sauce.

Soup Preparation:

1. Fill a kettle of water and leave to boil (use some of this for the tamarind sauce).
2. Clean the fish and slice fillets into 1.5" pieces. Set aside.
3. Wash and chop the Gai Lan and Fried Tofu. Set aside.
4. Slice finely the onion and ginger. Mince the garlic.
5. In a soup pot, add oil and raise heat to medium. Add onion, garlic, ginger and saute. 
6. When translucent, stir in the sweet vinegar, soy sauce and the tamarind sauce. 
7. When sizzling, pour in water to cover, about 2" high.
8. When mixture boils, pour in chicken stock and bring to a boil
9. Add salt and pepper and stir. Leave to boil for 15 minutes.
10. Add Fried Tofu, Gai Lan, and stir. Reduce heat to medium-low.
11. When heat reduces, stir once. Layer slices of fish on top of the broth. 
12. Cover and let steam for 10 minutes.

In a separate dish,

1. place rice noodles and pour hot water and cover. Leave for 10 mins. Do this prior to serving.
2. Pour off water from rice noodles and place in a dish.
3. Ladle soup over noodles.
4. Garnish with green onions..

Beefaroni

Alexis, there is nothing more heartwarming than to see you thoroughly enjoying a meal. Pointing to me and saying 'good cook!' But I get it all from your Grandma. Alistair, you'll learn this as well. In fact, I see you wolf down beefaroni just as quickly (if not faster) than your sister!

Ah, beefaroni. How many school night did I come home before my parents and found comfort in dishing out a bowl of leftover beefaroni from the fridge, my mouth watering as the smell wafted from the microwave as it heated up. Of course it is best as soon as it came from the pot (even sneaking a spoonful before dinnertime) but it didn't matter to me; it was afterschool comfort and both my sister and I enjoyed it every day.

I could make my own sauce from scratch and I could get fresh pasta for any dish, but the key to this beefaroni is in it's minimalist approach to cooking. I've tried it with everything homemade and it never turns out right. Take it from yourself Alexis - you will eat any of my pastas, but this is the version you will devour.

Beefaroni:
Ground Beef (lean)		2 lbs
Pasta Sauce		2 (680mL) cans
Pasta (Ditali or Macaroni)		750g
Garlic		1 clove, finely minced
Water		680 mL
Sea Salt		1 tsp (ground)
Black Pepper		1 tsp (ground)

Preparation:

1. In a large pot, brown the ground beef and garlic until fully cooked.
2. Add the pasta sauce and stir together.
3. Rinse the pasta sauce from the cans with the equivalent of one can of water and pour it into the pot.
4. Bring the pot to the boil and then reduce the heat to low.
5. Add salt and pepper and stir.
6. In a separate pot, bring salted water to boil and cook pasta to one minute shy of al dente.
7. Strain pasta in a colander and pour pasta into the beef sauce.
8. Stir to fully incorporate and turn off the heat.

Mashed Potatoes and Sausage

If there was a comfort food fit for a chilly fall evening then this would be it. My mother would brepare this in all it's carby buttered goodness. It doesn't have to be that way, really, so we all now use 1% milk and Becel. It's still absolutely delicious. And Alexis and Alistair, you both love them. Alexis loves the sausage coins and brother laps up spoonfuls of mashed potatoes. I'm hoping you both will love this for years to come.

The sausages are just store bought, parboiled and then roasted in the oven. It's the mashed potatoes that shine here. The recipe below makes a potful.



Mashed Potatoes 

Yukon/Yellow Potatoes		8 large
Garlic		4 cloves
Milk		2 cups
Butter/Becel		4 tbsp
Salt		1 tsp

Preparation:

1. Peel and chop potatoes into approximately 2" cubes. Set aside in a bowl of cold water.
2. Fill a tall pot three quarters full with water. Sprinkle a generous amount of salt and bring to a boil.
3. Drain potatoes and add to the pot.
4. Add the garlic cloves to the pot.
5. Wait for the pot to return to a boil and then reduce the heat slightly (med - med-high)
6. When the potatoes can be pierced with a knife without resistance, they are ready.
7. Strain the potatoes and garlic in a colander and rinse the pot they were boiled in.
8. Return the same pot to the same burner on the stove. It is already hot and timing is important now.
9. Add the Becel margarine to the pot. Let it melt completely.
10. Pour in the milk. This is critical. You do not want to add cold milk to the potatoes; the liquid must be brought up to heat to guarantee fluffiness. Else you will have starchy, gluey ick.
11. Once the milk is steamed through (but not boiling), add the salt.
12. Fish the four garlic cloves from the colander and add to the pot.
13. Using a potato masher, mash the garlic cloves until they are pulverized.
14. Stir the liquid together.
15. Return the potatoes to the pot and turn the heat off. The residual heat is more than enough to finish the dish.
16. Mash the potatoes until they are all light and fluffy. Do not overmash or the texture will go from fluffy to gloopy.
17. Taste for salt - you can always add a little more salt and/or butter.
18. Dig in!

Red Wine Venison Stew with Dumplings

[NEEDS PIC]

En's friends and co workers go hunting every year, and sometimes we will get a nice hunk of venison. When this happens I love to make venison stew. For the wine, I like using Cono Sur. It is my go to cooking wine (good to drink, good to cook) and is wonderfully inexpensive. Other reds are not so forgiving in a stew.

My parents are not really big on stews that are not Guyanese (i.e. heavy on potatoes and thyme), and to them, dumplings are duff, the Guyanese torpedo shaped boil and fry bread, but they did find this yummy.

Now that I'm pregnant and going on my second maternity leave, wine based cooking isn't an option (for the next few years), but this will come back once the kids are a little older (5 seems reasonable). Then again, I haven't had any venison delivered lately. This does work just as well with boar, bison, or even beef.


Ingredients - Stew:
* 1.5 kg trimmed venison meat, cut into 3-4 cm chunks
* 750ml good red wine
* 6 cloves of garlic
* 3 juniper berries crushed
* 1tsp thyme
* 4 bay leaves
* Vegetable oil for frying
* 60g butter
* 2 onions, finely chopped
* 3 tbsp plain flour
* 1/2 tbsp tomato purée
* 1 1/2 litres dark meat stock
* Sea salt & fresh black pepper

Ingredients - Dumplings:
* 1/2 cup plain flour
* 1tsp baking powder
* 60g butter
* 1tbsp chopped parsley
* 1tbsp finely chopped celery leaves
* 1/2 tsp ground celery seeds
* Water to mix
* Sea salt & fresh black pepper


Directions:

* Marinate venison in stainless steel or ceramic bowl in the fridge for two dayswith the red wine, garlic, thyme, juniper and bay leaf.
* Drain meat , reserve marinade, and dry the pieces on some kitchen paper.
* Heat the vegetable oil in a heavy frying pan, lightly flour the meat with a tablespoon of the flour, salt and pepper and fry the meat on a high heat, a few pieces at a time, until nicely browned.
* Heat butter in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan and sautee onions until soft.
* Add flour and tomato purée and stir over a low heat for a minute.
* Slowly add the marinade, stirring constantly to avoid lumps forming. Bring to the boil and simmer until it has reduced by half.
* Add meat stock and venison, bring back to the boil, cover with a lid and simmer gently for about 11/2 hours until the meat is tender.
* It's difficult to put an exact time on cooking braised meats: half an hour extra may be required.
* The sauce should thicken sufficiently. If not, dilute a little cornflour in some water and stir into the sauce and simmer for a few minutes.
* Meanwhile, make the dumplings. Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl and add half a teaspoon of salt.
* Mix in the butter, parsley and celery leaves and ground celery seeds, then add enough water to form a sticky dough.
* Flour your hands and roll the dough into 12 little balls.
* Poach the dumplings directly in the stew for the final 15 minutes of cooking. They will float in the  stew when cooked..

Roast Chicken

During my maternity leave, mom would often visit (or Alexis and I would visit them) and invariably she'd prepare a dinner for En and me, most times it would be a halved chicken, rubbed with spices, ready for me to stick into the oven and let cook while I tend to Alexis. It was one of the most wonderful thing anyone could do for a new mother.

Roasting a chicken can seem intimidating, but honestly, it's a little easier than cleaning chicken breast or cutting up chicken quarters. As a general rule, whole beast is tastier and juicier than when broken down into parts, and if I can get my hands on a whole chicken, then I'm roasting it. This recipe is as simple as they come. The coating can be prepared in advanced and stored, but the closer to the grinding of the spice, the better the flavour will be, though the diminished freshness is negligible. Time does the real work, freeing you up to do whatever you need for an hour and a half.


There is one other preparation of whole chicken I would like to someday try, but it would require  experimentation and tending to, both things I cannot afford with Alexis as young as she is. It is Chicken In Milk, an Italian dish which I've seen Jamie Oliver recreate, and it seems delicious. But that is for another time.

Jev, you asked about the chicken, so this post is for you.

Ready for carving

Coating (1 3/4 cup)

Cornmeal (fine)		1/2 cup
Whole Wheat Flour		1/4 cup
Unbleached Flour		2 tbsp
Barley Flour		2 tbsp
Cornstarch		2 tbsp
Oregano (dried)		2 tbsp (ground)
Thyme (dried)		2 tbsp (ground)
Garlic Powder		3 tbsp (ground)
Chili Powder		2 tbsp (ground)
Onion Powder		1 tbsp (ground)
Black Pepper		1 tbsp (ground)
Sea Salt		1 tbsp (ground)

Chicken

Whole Grain-fed Chicken		1
Dry Coating		1 cup

Preparation:

1. Gut and trim any visible fat from chicken without removing skin
2. loosen skin from breast, again removing fat, and be careful not to tear skin
3. Wash chicken in vinegar and salt solution and rinse well
4. Allow chicken to dry
5. Truss chicken
1. cut a good length chicken twine
2. tuck wings to back and hook twine inside crook of wings
3. cross twine over spine so they form an 'X'
4. wind twine around  opposite drumstick bone
5. draw ends together under and tie off
6. I keep the wingtips untucked but close to the side of the bird. This way, the tips get crispy, but will not burn.
7. In the same spirit, I don't torture the drumsticks into position under the bird. The twine will hold them together and close to the body, that's all they need to keep from burning. If you fix them beneath the bird, the coating will bake soggy rather than crisp.
6. When bird is dry, place on roasting rack on the side and take a handful of coating, pressing it into the skin. Get into the creases of the wing and where the leg joins the body. Use your bare hands; there is no other way to get the coating into every crevice. Once they are coated, they will not absorb a great deal more coating. Just don't wash your hands until you've finished coating the chicken.
7. Repeat on the other side
8. Repeat on the top of bird, but first, push some of the coating under the skin on the actual breast meat
9. Press coating on the top (neck area) and the bottom of the bird
10. With half a handful of the coating, rub it around inside the cavity. This is more for flavour than for texture, but for it will absorb the cooking juices and fall onto the spine, which you will cut away when carving. This step is crucial for infusing the best possible flavour into the meat.
11. Some of the mixture may have fallen, so press any of the remaining mixture over top of the bird
12. Place bird uncovered into a 350C oven for (approximately) 1 hour and 30 minutes (for a medium sized bird)
13. DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR. Just look at it through the glass. If the coating isn't black, what are you worrying about?
14. Depending on the weight and size of the bird you may need to give or take 10 minutes of cooking time. I judge by colouring, but if you are really unsure, use a meat thermometer. I've used one before, but I hate poking holes into the meat. If your bird seems unusually big, give it a little more time.
15. Let rest for at least 10 minutes to allow juices to redistribute.

Ma Po Tofu

Today was a snow day. Well not exactly; I worked from home, En took the day off to watch Alexis, and Alexis ran around the house. The storm dropped at least a foot of slush on the city which is worse than either rain or snow because slush is like liquid ice; it causes flooding, it is dense and backbreaking to shovel or walk through, and it is the perfect medium for hydroplaning. Our street was a river. The highways were flooded out. If it was En and I alone we would have battled our way in, but we couldn't bare to think of what could happen as we tried to get Alexis to and from my mother in law's.

So I had the ingredients in the fridge and figured this was the perfect day of the week to try this recipe. Believe it or not, I made it over my lunch (hour). Mind you, I prepped all the ingredients early in the morning, so by noon I was ready to go.

Ma Po Tofu is an iconic Szechuan dish which translates loosely to 'pockmarked face of grandmother' which is not a name fitting to its taste. It has become a favourite of ours after I got En to try some from a take out restaurant his family frequents. After that he was hooked! This is a much healthier version, of course, but what I did here was use actual black beans instead of the prepared black been sauce. Trust me, there is a difference in texture, and I'm writing the recipe below using the sauce, though the picture contains the actual black beans. Don't get me wrong - using actual black beans still made a very tasty dish, but it is not the same flavour or texture as the original dish, and to me transforms the dish too much from what it is intended to be.

Thinking ahead to prepare everything to make a bowl of comfort on a snowed-in-yet-working day is a wonderful mini escape that affords you that time of eating like it's the weekend. I prepped ingredients before the sun came up with a toddler running around my kitchen. I'm not saying to do this every day, but once in a while, it really is worth the effort. At least, that's what En and I thought as we relaxed on the couch with a bowl of Ma Po Tofu over Steamed Rice as we watched Alexis play on the living room floor.

Ma Po Tofu

Medium Tofu		1 pkg, drained, cubed 1/2"
Oyster Mushrooms		4 cups, sliced
Lean Ground Pork		2 lbs
Baby Bok Choi		6, shredded or minced
Green Onion		3 stalks, chopped
Onion		1 medium, minced
Garlic		5 cloves,  minced
Corn Starch		2 tbsp
Black Bean Sauce		4 tbsp
Hoisen Sauce		2 tbsp
Hot Bean Paste		2 tbsp
Crab Paste		1 tbsp
Soy Sauce		1 tbsp
Chilli Peppers		4 whole
Black Pepper		1 tsp, freshly cracked
Water		2 cups / 4 tbsp
Canola Oil		4 tbsp

Preparation:

1. If tofu is easily broken to the touch, wrap it in cheesecloth/heavy kitchen paper and press it in a sieve for an hour.
2. In a wok like pan, heat oil on medium and saute onions and garlic.
3. When translucent, add mushrooms and stir.
4. Once mushrooms have browned and reduced, add hot bean paste, black bean sauce, soy sauce, crab paste and hoisen sauce.
5. Add the ground pork and brown. Step 4 and 5 are interchangeable, but I've found browning meat with the mushrooms lends a better flavour and the nature of the dish allows for the mushroom to cook down.
6. Add the chilli peppers and cracked black pepper. Szechuan peppercorns are best and authentic, but if you don't have them on hand (and I don't), use fresh, good quality black peppercorns.
7. Once meat has browned and begins to sizzle, add two cups of water. This shouldn't cover, but come about half way up the mixture.
8. Cook for 10 minutes on medium heat. When it's ready the water has thickened slightly into a sauce.
9. Add the tofu and stir.
10. Add bok choi and stir. Bok choi is not authentic, but it gets some greens in to my diet, gives a nice freshness that deepens the mushroom flavour and that's just how I've done it.
11. RLet the mixture simmer for another 10 minutes.
12. Mix the cornstarch in the remaining four tbsp of cold water and stir vigorously into the pot.
13. Let the mixture come to a boil for a minute (to activate the thickening of the corn starch) and then remove from heat.
14. Stir and let rest covered for 10 minutes

Slow Cooked Ribs in a Mushroom Gravy

Step 10: Close Up

Ribs are not a staple in my home or my mothers while we were growing up. We ate them, but it wasn't something we made, so when there were back ribs on sale at the local Asian grocery store they called out to my adventurous side. Maybe it was having all the usual during our holiday feasts. Maybe it was the yearning to try something new before I returned to work. Maybe it was wanting to use the new sautee pan my mom got me for Christmas. Maybe it was the need to cook En one really nice treat before I'm too busy with my job. For whatever reason, I picked them up and needed to figure out what to do with them. My mom's Doubleday Cookbook has a basic recipe for slow cooked ribs. I took it and modified it slightly to be a little more tasty.

Step 10: Simmering Ribs with Aromatics

Step 15: Gravy Returned to Pot

Step 15: Close Up

Ribs in Mushroom Gravy on Rice

Ribs in Mushroom Gravy

Beef Back Ribs		3 lbs, cut & cleaned
Mushrooms		4 cups, sliced
Onion		2, finely sliced
Carrot		1, chopped
Celery		1 stalk, chopped
Garlic		3 cloves, minced
Barley Flour		2 tbsp
Black Pepper		1 tsp, ground
Soy Sauce		2 tbsp
Fennel Seed		1 tsp, ground
Thyme		2 tsp
Bay Leaves		1
Vinegar		1 cup
Salt		1/4 cup
Water		to twice cover ribs
Canola Oil		4 tbsp

Preparation:

1. Wash ribs
2. Brine ribs in salt and vinegar solution diluted with only enough water to cover for 1-2 hours
3. Rinse off ribs and set aside to dry
4. In large saute pan, heat canola oil and sear meat over medium high heat and remove to a dish
5. In the same pan, saute the mirpoix (onion, carrot, celery) until translucent
6. Add the garlic, thyme, black pepper, fennel and bay leaf and half the mushrooms
7. Return the ribs to the pan
8. Add the soy sauce and stir all ingredients together
9. Cook covered for 10 minutes on medium heat
10. Add water to cover and bring to a boil
11. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered for 1 1/2 hours
12. Remove ribs and pour all other ingredients into a food processor
13. Return ribs to pan
14. Puree mixture in food processor until liquidized
15. Return mixture to the pan and stir together with the ribs
16. Sprinkle barley flour lightly over the entire pan and stir in thoroughly to avoid clumps (if you can't do this without clumping, add to food processor in step 12)
17. Continue simmering on low for 1 hour
18. Stir and let rest covered for 10 minutes

Taking Brunch in the Solarium on Good Friday

We were chatting, it was a warm morning and it just felt relaxing to brunch in the solarium for the first time since moving into the house.

Tuna Wraps

It's one of those rainy mornings where the cold is bone chilling. You want something comfortable to eat. Usually I'd go to fries and hot dogs, soup and sandwich, grilled cheese, toast and tea... but I digress. Yesterday morning was as I described above and I just woke up feeling that tuna salad was what we needed.

I have a simple basic recipe that really works. Again, the key is the accompaniments to the tuna - you can have it creamy and tasty, yet you can do it so that it's not a whole heap of fat or calories.

People knock the low fat or no fat options at the grocery store, but you shouldn't rely on fat for flavour. That's what freshly ground spices and herbs are for. I use low-fat mayo and non-fat sour cream for texture, and for seasoning, use a fresh garlic clove, freshly ground black pepper, and green onions. For lunch sandwiches, I prefer tuna salad cold, but for these breakfast wraps, we added a slice of 'non-fat Kraft sliced cheese' and toasted it in the oven. Out of everything on the list of ingredients, this is the one that everyone seems to hate, yet it flies off the shelf. Someone's buying all this cheese besides me! Chef's hate it because it's processed garbage, and generally it's seen as the simulated oil based non-dairy product. But the Nutrition Data website tells the truth about it - it's actually a decent product that just has a bad reputation. And honestly, nothing gets all melty-gooey like sliced cheese. That's what makes it 'comfort' - it takes you back to your childhood. Just great yummy, unpretentious food. If it makes my family (any myself) happy, that's all that matters.

Tuna Wraps
_________________________________

Tuna Filling:
Canned/Vacupacked Tuna, drained		4 cans
Low-Fat Mayonnaise		1/2 cup
Non-Fat Sour Cream		2 tbsp, heaped
Celery		1 stalk, finely chopped
Green Onion		3 stalks
Garlic		1 clove, finely minced
Worcestershire		1 tbsp
Tabasco		1/2 tsp
Celery Seed		1/2 tsp (ground)
Sea Salt		1 tsp (ground)
Black Pepper		1 tsp (ground)
Lemon Juice		1 tbsp (optional)
Wraps:
Small Whole Wheat Wraps		8
Sliced Cheese		8

Preparation:

1. In a medium bowl, add strained tuna, celery, green onion and garlic and mix well.
2. Stir in sour cream until fully incorporated.
3. Add mayonnaise and make a divot to pool the seasoning before mixing into the tuna.
4. Add ground celery seed, ground black pepper, Worcestershire, Tabasco, salt and mix into the mayonnaise.
5. Stir entire mixture together until fully incorporated.
6. Set oven to 350F (I use a toaster oven).
7. I place two dollops in the centre of a wrap and spread out to fill the middle third.
8. Place cheese slice atop the tuna filling.
9.  Fold in sides of the wrap and hold fast with a toothpick. Lift the wrap a little to ensure the toothpick pierces through the bottom - it holds better this way.
10. Bake for 10 minutes. each person is served two wraps. This preparation serves four people.

Tomatoes & Sea Salt

Sometimes this is all I need...

Toast and Tea

Many times I'll come home and not want a big meal. It maybe that I'm not up to preparing something, but mostly, it will be because I want nothing heavy, substantial or complex. I want simple comfort.

Growing up, a snack before bedtime, or an enjoyable breakfast could be as easy as toast and tea. Not just any toast and not just any tea. Else, it wouldn't be the same comforting meal. It was Orange Pekoe (yes, ordinary, nothing extravagant) with milk and sugar, and white sliced buttered bread. It easily puts me at ease. Who needs sleeping pills when you have this.

Nowadays, I skip the white bread. I don't eat the stuff. Instead, I have a wonderful bakery down the street. I get a loaf of grain bread, freshly baked on the weekends, and if you store it properly, it keeps for the week. And no butter in my house (I'll get into that later); I use margarine. But the tea remains the same, and I can drink cuploads of it. And I no longer dip the toast in the tea, giving it just the right amount of moisture and eating it before it gets soggy. I let that rest with my childhood.

Ask anyone from the West Indies, and they will know of toast and tea. We're a series of colonies - we grew up on tea. Brew a fresh pot. Cut a thick slick of fresh and fragrant bread. Slather on butter (or my case, margarine). It's the ingredients that do it. Its the expectation of 'that' tea, and 'that' toast, that make the dish what it is to me - a sedative on a plate (and in a cup).