A Chinese stir fry of salty shrimp, sweet snow peas and a tangy garlic-ginger sauce.
Snow peas, along with sugar snap peas, are notable for having edible pods that lack inedible fiber (in the form of “parchment”, a fibrous layer found in the inner pod rich in lignin) in the pod walls. Snow peas have the thinner walls of the two edible pod variants. Two recessive genes known as p and v are responsible for this trait. p is responsible for reducing the schlerenchymatous membrane on the inner pod wall, while v reduces pod wall thickness (n is a gene that thickens pod walls in snap peas).
The green shoots can also be cut and served as a vegetable as is done in Chinese cooking, especially stir-fried with garlic or shellfish such as crab.
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Shrimp with Snow Peas in Ginger Garlic Sauce
A Chinese stir fry of salty shrimp, sweet snow peas and a tangy garlic-ginger sauce.
Instructions
Mix all the corn starch and vermouth in a large bowl, then add the shrimp. Toss to coat. Let sit for 15 minutes.
Heat a wok over high heat for 1 minute. Add the oil and let it get hot, about 30 seconds. Add the ginger and garlic and toss to combine. Stir-fry for about 30 seconds.
Add the shrimp and all the marinade to the pan (scrape out all the marinade with a rubber spatula). Add the snow peas, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and chicken stock. Stir-fry until the shrimp turns pink, about 2 minutes. Add the green onions and stir-fry 1 more minute. Turn off the heat and add the sesame oil. Toss to combine once more and serve with steamed rice.
Recipe Notes
Any protein can be substituted for the shrimp. © Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
Smoked haddock gratin has got to be the easiest and most delicious dish ever. If you like smoked fish, try this. It will blow your mind!
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Smoked Haddock Gratin
Although this dish pairs cheese with fish, which is a big no-no in the culinary world, it is absolutely delicious and served in some of the best restaurants in the south of France.
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Puree the tomatoes in a food processor. Season with salt and pepper. Divide them equally among 4 ramekins. Chop the fish into 1 inch pieces and fill the ramekins with equal amounts of fish. Pour heavy cream over the fish to cover. Top with a sprinkle of mozzarella and a sprinkle of gruyere cheese. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Recipe Notes
Recipe Notes Any smoked fish can be substituted for the haddock. Here, I substituted Wahoo. © Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
This delicious standing rib roast is encrusted with seasoned flour for a juicier roast with a nice crust around it.
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Standing Rib Roast Mom's Way!
Instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Insert garlic throughout the roast. In a small bowl, combine flour, salt, pepper and paprika. Rub flour mixture over entire roast. Roast fat side up standing on ribs at 425 degrees for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 325 degrees. Roast for 18 minutes per pound for medium-rare. Transfer to cutting board and cover with foil to rest 30 minutes. Slice and pour carving juices over slices, serve. Divide the number of people who will be eating by 2 and that's the number of ribs you'll need.
Recipe Notes
© Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
Bruschetta, correctly pronounced in Italian as bruˈsketta, is an antipasto consisting of grilled or toasted peasant bread with a topping. In this case, we are using tomatoes or pomodoro.
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Bruschetta Pomodoro
Bruschetta pomodoro is an antipasto consisting of grilled peasant bread rubbed with garlic and topped with tomatoes, basil, olive oil, salt and pepper.
Instructions
Place the slices of bread in a single layer on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Drizzle with 3 T olive oil and toast in a 400 degree oven until golden, 8 to 10 minutes to make crostini.
Meanwhile, cut the tomatoes in half, remove the seeds by squeezing them over the sink.
Finely chop tomatoes and put them in a bowl with basil and 1/4 Cup of olive oil. (See "how to Chiffonade" for instructions.
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Immediately after removing crostini from oven, sprinkle with salt then rub each slice on one side, with a garlic clove. Top with tomato mixture and serve.
Recipe Notes
The key to this being a really delicious bite is to make sure the tomatoes are home grown, really ripe and that they have never been refrigerated. In addition, keep it simple. The Italians like few ingredients in their dishes so the main attraction shines vibrantly, in this case, the tomato. Skip the onion, balsamic vinegar and added garlic that many recipes have. © Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
Brining makes fish, poultry and pork moister by imparting liquid on a cellular level to the muscle tissue of the meat before cooking. This is done via the process of osmosis, by allowing the cells to hold on to the water while they are cooked, via the process of denaturation. The proteins coagulate, forming a matrix that traps water molecules and holds them during cooking, preventing the meat from dehydrating – particularly useful for grilling chicken breasts. The salt is also desirable as a preservative. The flavor in the brine ends up flavoring the meat from the inside out so make sure you season your brine with flavors you want in the meat you’re cooking.
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Brine - The Best Way To Impart Moisture and Flavor
Brining is a technique used to tenderize and flavor meats prior to cooking.
Instructions
Place all the ingredients into a pot and heat just until boiling to dissolve the salt and sugar. Stir and let cool.
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After this mixture cools, add flavors to this basic recipe to impart a taste that suits your individual palate. Anything goes. Some suggestions are: garlic cloves, peeled and crushed;a small onion, thinly sliced;1 lemon, thinly sliced;1 orange, thinly sliced;cloves
Recipe Notes
© Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
This twist on the classic margarita is both delicious and beautiful. If you want to go with the classic margarita, just leave out the strawberries and add an additional squeeze of fresh lime.
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Strawberry Margarita for Cinco De Mayo
A beautiful sweet and sour cocktail that makes any celebration special.
Instructions
Muddle the strawberries and basil in the bottom of a shaker. Add the gin, sour mix and ice and shake. Strain mixture into a glass of ice. Garnish with lemon zest, strawberry and basil leaves.
Recipe Notes
© Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
Fernand Petiot claimed to have invented Bloody Mary’s in 1921, while working at the New York Bar in Paris, which later became , a frequent Paris hangout for Ernest Hemingway. They are fabulous made with vodka or gin, although my favorite is the gin. Gin adds a little more depth of flavor. People add a myriad of garnished to bloody mary’s. You can put anything in them from pickled asparagus to sushi. In this recipe, I use a slider with an olive and a carrot.
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Bloody Mary's, The Best Ever
This delicious cocktail is perfect for any brunch.
Instructions
Stir everything together in a pitcher except the liquor. Pour 2 ounces of vodka or gin in a glass filled with ice and top with tomato juice mixture. Garnish with your choice of celery stalk, cucumber spears, carrot sticks, olives, miniature sliders or a combination of all of the above.
Recipe Notes
I have found that the type of tomato juice used in this recipe is the key to a really thick and delicious Bloody Mary. Don't use V-8 juice or Clamato juice as it changes the consistency and makes it too watery. The name "Bloody Mary" is associated with a number of historical figures — particularly Queen Mary I of England, who was nicknamed as such in Foxe's Book of Martyrs for attempting to re-establish the Catholic Church in Britain — and fictional women from folklore. Some cocktail aficionados believe the inspiration for the name was Hollywood star Mary Pickford. Others trace the name to a waitress named Mary who worked at a Chicago bar called the Bucket of Blood. However, another argument for the origin of “Bloody Mary”, that the name in English simply arose from “a failure to pronounce the Slav syllables of a drink called Vladimir” gains some credibility from the observation that the customer at Harry’s Bar in Paris for whom Fernand Petiot prepared the drink in 1920 was Vladimir Smirnov, of the Smirnoff vodka family. © Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
There’s no comfort food that brings back childhood memories like stuffed cabbage rolls. These Italian style stuffed cabbage rolls are moist, tender and packed with flavor!
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Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Italian Style
These Italian style stuffed cabbage rolls are moist, tender and packed with flavor!
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350°F. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil and season with Salt to taste like the sea. Blanch the Cabbage until tender and bright green, about 5 minutes. Shock in ice water and set aside to dry. Remove leaves.
For the sauce
In a large sauté pan, add a few tablespoons of Olive Oil over medium-high heat. Add Pancetta and cook until the fat renders out and the Pancetta Crisps. Add the Onion, Garlic, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes and cook until fragrant. Add a teaspoon of Dried Thyme and Dried Basil. Add the Tomatoes and a generous pinch of Salt. Simmer until it comes together, about 5 minutes, and then set aside.
For the filling
In a large bowl, combine the Ground Beef, Sausage, Pecorino, Parsley, Currants, a teaspoon of Dried Basil and Thyme, Breadcrumbs, and Egg. Season generously with Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper. Using your hands, mix until just combined.
In a baking dish lightly greased with Olive Oil, ladle a thin layer of sauce. Spoon some of the filling into each of the leaves of Cabbage, and roll up. Arrange over the Arrabiata sauce in the baking dish. Once full, ladle more of the Arrabiata sauce over the stuffed Cabbage and sprinkle with more Pecorino-Romano. Transfer to oven and bake for an hour to an hour and a half, until the filling is completely cooked through. Serve.
Recipe Notes
For big dinner parties, prepare these a day in advance and simply pop them in the oven an hour before ready to serve. © Galley Chef All Rights Reserved
