Pork Vermicelli!

If there is one thing Mark and I miss about Colllege Station...ok.

Scratch that.

Mark and I miss LOTS of things about College Station. Friends. Family. Church. BCS. Climbing wall. And etcetera...

but, the one thing I was referring to that we miss tons are these 2 food joints off Texas. Pho Johns and Rosie Phos. Oh how we miss the pho. More than that, we miss the vermicelli. Last night I decided I'd try and whip up one myself from a recipe I found in this Gourmet Today cookbook.

Side note - this cookbook is amazing. We bought it for 50% off at one of the many Borders close out sales...and we've cooked every meal from it since. On Monday night we had some friends over and I made a delectable arugula salad with pancetta wrapped peaches, the most commented on corn and tomato gratin, and steph king even helped out by making the delish catalan tomato grilled bread...with a beer can chicken as the main dish. Every single bite was amazing and I am officially in love with this cookbook. 

Back to vermicelli. So. We found a pork vermicelli recipe in here and with all the amazingness we had on Monday evening, we had high hopes for supper last night. Mark even texted me during the day saying "I AM SO EXCITED TO COME HOME AND EAT!" That's not a normal occurrence. He was stoked about his vermicelli.

If you're just as stoked as we were here is what you need to do...

Get this stuff.

and this stuff.

To be even more precise for you here is a list:

1/4 pound thin rice vermicelli noddoles

1/4 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

1 tablespoon + 1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce

1 tablespoon + 1/3 cup sugar

1/3 teaspoon + 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 carrot, shredded

1/4 cup scallions, thinly sliced

1/4 cup unsalted, roasted peanuts, chopped

1/3 cup fresh cilantro and mint, torn

8 (1/4 inch) boneless pork loin chops

1 finely chopped shallot (1/3 cup)

2 limes (juiced)

Once you have what you need you will first want to make the noodles.

Vermicelli noodles are rice noodles that can be found in the Asian section of your grocery store. If you don't have International sections, you should look near the rice and it should be there. The store should have a selection of various rice noodles - you'll choose the vermicelli style...aka the really thin ones.

To make them you first need to boil a pot of water and fill a different pot or bowl with hot water from your sink.

Place the noodles in the bowl of water from your sink and let it all soak for around 10 minutes.

 

Then, drain the vermicelli noodles in a sieve. If you don't have a sieve (such as myself) you can use a strainer.

Just make sure you watch the noodles because they could easily slip through.

Now place the drained noodles in the boiling water for 1 minute. 

If you are impatient like me and place the noodles in when the water is really just simmering, make it 2 minutes.

{it's boiling...kind of}

Once that has gone for 1 (or 2) minutes place it back in the sieve/strainer.

But.

This time run cold cold water on it to get it to stop cooking.

Once all of the noodles are cooled, turn the water off and let the vermicelli strain away. You want these noodles dried off. It helps to use towels to make it even more dry. 

I used paper towels and patted it down pretty nicely. 

You can even have the noodles sit there while you get the rest of the dish ready.

Next, you can make the sauce that will go with the salad. This is a noodle salad. I don't think I told you that.

Whisk together 1/4 unseasoned rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon Asian Fish Sauce (watch out, this stuff smells real fishy), 1 tablespoon sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Whisk away until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved. Then set that aside.

According to the list way up top, you should already have one shredded carrot, a handful of cilantro and mint leaves (tear these up if they are big), thinly sliced scallions that equal out to be about 1/4 cup, and 1/2 cup chopped unsalted and roasted peanuts. Leave all of those items aside.

I keep everything in little bowls. If you don't have the counterspace...which will be me in 1 month from today because of small kitchens in California...you can go ahead and combine the noodles, sauce, and all that's mentioned above. I don't like to do that because I like how it looks in the end without it. No difference though. 

Now that the whole salad/noodle part is done you'll want to make the pork.

Here's what you do. 

Get your boneless 1/4 inch thick pork and pound them into being thinner. About half the size. You can do this by placing them in between plastic wrap and pounding them away with a mallet.

{use the non spiky side on such thin meat}

Once pounded down cut each pork loin in 1/2 lengthwise.

Then place all the pieces in a bowl.

Then, go to your stove stop and place a little saucepan on medium heat. 

While that heats up take a shallot and chop it up.

You only need one good sized whole shallot. Keep the other one to use for something else later.

Go back to your (hopefully) medium heat sauce pan and put in 1/3 cup sugar.

{that's sugar...cant you tell?}

However enticing it may be, do not stir.

Wait.

Now. once the sugar has begun to melt, you can give it a little stir. 

Use a wooden spoon. Metal on metal is no bueno. And plastic stirring in such heat equals melted plastic.

Keep stirring OCCASIONALLY (does anyone else have a habit of wanting to stir a lot?) until the sugar dissolves and becomes a golden caramel color. 

Resist the urge to put that over a bowl of ice cream. 

Instead. Pour in the chopped shallots, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon of fish sauce, and the juice from 2 limes.

I know the picture is poor, but in case you can't tell, this thing is lighting up and boiling like crazy.

Not lighting up really. That was an exagerration.

It was a bit crazy for a bit though. I had moments of wanting to take it off the burner. 

Once again, resist, and instead stir like mad for 2 around 2 minutes. The caramel will dissolve away and the shallots will be softened and your kitchen will smell good. 

Take that sauce and pour it over the pork (which should still be in the bowl). 

Make sure each piece gets the mixture soaked in it.

Then place a grill pan (or a good saute pan if you don't have one) on medium-high heat. 

Once hot, lightly oil the pan, and place the pork on it.

After just one minute flip the pork over

The pork will have this caramel colored glaze on it.

After one more minute, take off your done pork and put it on a plate to the side while you finish up the other pieces. 

Once down you are now ready to assemble your dish. 

First, place the noodles in a bowl or a plate. Follow that with the carrots and the green onions.

It should look like this...

Then add the chopped peanuts, the pork, and the fresh herbs. 

Pour the fish sauce over it (what you whisked together earlier) and boom. 

A Meal. 

Post bite thoughts:

Mark and I loved this meal, but it definitely was not up to par with what we missed so dearly from CStat. I've decided next time I need to make more fish sauce, add some jalapeno peppers in it for a kick of spicy, and add some chopped lettuce as well for more vegis. 

But, this was still really good and will definitely be made again (with those few additions). 

Rumor has it that in California the Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, and Thai food restaurants are incredible. 

Along with the Gourmet Cookbook we bought at Borders, we also bought some California and San Francisco reading guides. The Chinatown and Japantown sections were read instantly.

Mark says that is what he is most excited about. 

I semi-agree :)

Grilled Chicken with Mushrooms

Today was quite an adventure.

Here's what went down.

I went to the grocery store to pick up the things needed for tonight's supper (because I just decided this morning what we would be having). When I got there, I decided, why not take a stab at cutting open a chicken all on my own? It was an experience.

Here's what I started with...

And a good 20 minutes later, here is what I ended up with...

8 good pieces of chicken to work with all thanks to this book. I air sealed everything but the chicken breasts and started marinating the meat for tonight. In case you would like to try out this delicious meal, here's what you do!

Check out epicurious.com for the recipe we used and then go to the grocery store and get the goods. Instead of quartering the chicken, we just used the breasts. So, you can just buy some boneless, skinless chicken breasts (which you probably have on hand in the freezer). We also didn't get shiitake mushrooms because they were a little on the pricey side. We stuck with cremini mushrooms! Besides that, we followed everything to a T.

And here is what we ended up with...

Sauteed Shrimp and Scallops with Avocada-Mango Salsa!

Thank you Bon Appetit for always producing such delicious meals. 

Every time Mark goes to the grocery store he makes some comment surrounding scallops. He loves them. So, when I went to the grocery store yesterday I knew I had to do something with scallops...but they are just so darn expensive. So, I found this great recipe on Bon Appetit that uses both scallops and shrimp! Score!

Here is what the Mr. and I had this evening! Enjoy :)

As the title explains, this meal has two parts. Actually, I made it into three parts. I am just going to share part one and two though. So....here goes!

Part One: the Salsa

Part Two: the Seafood Goodness

Here goes Part One! Get out those ingredients. Here's what you need, friend.

{mango. jalapeno pepper. avocado. shallot. some limes. fresh mint}

{step uno}

  

dice up the whole thing. there's a better way to dice a mango than how i did it. i wasn't thinking at the time.

here's a how to video on a simple way to dice up a mango. you won't even need a peeler. so great. 

{step dos}

{step tres}

the easiest way to seed out the jalapeno - cut jalapeno in half. take a spoon. scrape out the spicy seeds. then slice it vertically and horizontally to dice.

{step cuatro}

 you'll end up with around 2 tablespoons

{step cinco}

{step seis}

{step siete}

i added some salt and pepper to taste. 

mix everything up and set in the fridge to chill.

it can be in there up to 2 hours before eating.

  Part Two! 

Even though the chalkboard is oh so fun. I had to give it a rest. Mark was going to be home soon and I needed to get this dinner cooking. So, without the chalkboard, here are the ingredients you need.

2 shallots

2 limes

1/4 cup tequila

2 garlic cloves

2 tsp. ground cumin

olive oil

3/4 lb. shrimp

1/2 lb. sea scallops

green onions

{step uno}

 de-vein and peel the shrimp. if you're like me and can't stand the tail, go ahead and take it off.

  like that. 

all until you get a whole big bowl of your uncooked large shrimp...

set them aside for later

{step dos}

 clean those mussels.

  oops.

those aren't mussels. 

but oh how i love mussels.

clean the scallops.

then, take off the muscle of the scallop

notice that hanging part of the scallop up there?

it's the muscle. you can eat it. but it's tough and chewy.

take it off. use a paring knife to start and then it'll rip right off.

Do this to all of them. I placed mine in a bowl as I did the shrimp.

set on aside.

{step tres}

Marinade making time. All of the following things will be whisked together to make a marinade. 

 dice up the shallot. you'll want to dice long ways, but not all the way to the end. 

then you'll have some love to still hold on to and keep it intact.

then carefully.

carefully.

cut through the shallot as the picture shows. 

I did this three times.

the picture shows the middle cut made.

the final cuts makes those dices look amazing.

side note: this is the way to dice onions. it makes life so simple. but, yes. you still cry. onions just have a way of doing that. that's why shallots are fun. they don't make you cry. and they taste so darn good. 

 squeeze out the lime juice till you have a 1/4 cup.

smash that garlic up. I use a knife and the palm of my head to crush it and then put in a garlic press to do the work. you can always mince it yourself using a knife :) 

add in 2 teaspoons of ground cumin. 

pour in a 1/4 cup of tequila.

this tequila was a wedding gift to Mark from his sister and brother-in-laws wedding. So, thanks Omar and Joanna for stocking our cabinet with special Mexican Tequila...otherwise, I would have had to go buy some, which I probably wouldn't have done. 

And there you have your marinade.

{step cuatro}

take that marinade and pour it into your shrimp and scallop bowl.

mix it around a bit and let it chill in the fridge for 30 - 60 minutes.

{step cinco}

 take out the green onions. 

discard the darker green part.

slice up the white and pale green part.

set aside.

{step seis}

 take out the scallops and shrimp and drain them. you will want the drained mixture to go in a small sauce pan. 

put that sauce pan on the stove top and let it boil. once boiling, set it aside.

you'll want the drained and semi dry scallops and shrimp separate and set aside as well. .

{step siete}

 

heat some olive oil over medium-high heat in a sautee pan. place the scallops in.

keep them in for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side.

they should just be starting to brown.

take them out, juice and all, and set in a bowl to the side.

{step ocho}

drizzle in some more olive oil in the same pan.

over the same medium-high heat.

now toss in the shrimp and the green onions.

stir it around for about 3 minutes.

{step nueve}

put in the scallops and the boiled marinade.

let it simmer for about 3 minutes.

the kitchen is smelling oh so good.

the nueve steps are worth it.

you're ready to plate it up.

unless you just want to eat it out of the pan.

but, trust me.

it's so much better when it's plated.

i threw in a part three by cooking up some buttery, cheesy quesadillas. 

it went well and i definitely suggest it. 

please don't let the many many steps overwhelm you (i don't know why i put the steps in spanish. i just started to and then didn't go back.) this thing is so easy to make and oh so delicious! we didn't even have any leftovers. 

i have a feeling i will make that avocado-mango concoction quite a bit this summer.

any thoughts on what you think it would be good with? 

Shrimp Spring Rolls

Have you ever gone through a "cleansing" of sorts? That sounds weird. You know what I mean though. Ok, maybe you don't...let me explain :)


Every time around the holidays (or when my whole family gets together for an extended amount of time) I tend to divulge myself into a huge collection of greasy foods, yummy desserts, large servings from restaurants and endless amounts of chips and dip. What can I say? I love queso. My mom & dad love eating out and my mom always has an endless amount of food on hand when the family is in town. I just lose control...especially when there is queso. 

So, a couple years ago my sister introduced me to "the cleanse". Basically, we spent the next few days or a good week eating really, really healthy. I'm talking green tea at every meal, snacking on cucumbers, not having carbs, but just vegetables and some meat. Paleolithic diet at its finest.

I get a bit bored with the whole thing pretty quickly. I can't live without that queso (I actually haven't eaten queso in a good month...insane)

At one point she (the sister) introduced me to these shrimp spring rolls. They use rice paper, but we didn't include that as a heavy carb such as bread. They were delicious and I even have them on non cleansing moments such as today. So, in honor of Asian Food night at our neighborhood parish this evening, here's a little how to for shrimp spring rolls.

I added a peanut satay dipping sauce. This would not have been allowed in the cleanse, but I haven't done that in a good year...

First things first. Go to the grocery store, get your ingredients, and chop em on up. Here's a shot of them:

Here's a better list of what you need, friends:

2-3 carrots, diced up

1 green bell pepper, diced up 

*Note: I would've gotten red but it was a whole dollar more

 3-4 green onions, chopped up

lettuce, shredded up

cooked shrimp, halved up

rice paper

asian food aisle. easy to find.

I pretty much eyeball everything. I had about 3/4 pound of shrimp and used about a half head of green lettuce. The add ins always vary depending on what I have in stock or what's on sale at the store. This is something you can change things up with. I usually always use  green onions, a bell pepper, lettuce, and shrimp. Sometimes I'll add some fresh herbs, onions, or carrots. Do what ya want. 

Mussels, not Muscles.

We had a good friend over last night. A friend who is about to get married {so exciting!!!}It was our first person to have over to eat on our brand new rockin' dining table, so we wanted to go all out on food. The easiest way to do that...make mussels. They're not too pricey, they look good, they're fun to eat, and they taste delicious. So here's another recipe for you friends...

First things first. Get the ingredients :)

two cups of halved cherry tomatoes

two shallots and a couple minced cloves of garlic