surf and turf

a week after the hubby and i got back from san fran for a family wedding, we were still very much in the pacific/beachy/sunny mood. and the following sunday, was the perfect day for cooking to our desire, and pretend we were back on the west coast. that, and the parents-in-law, who had spent extra time in cali, brought us back a fresh king crab. yum!

so sunday afternoon e, the sis and i took a drive up to whole foods to pick up a few things for our feast. i got some pre-marinated shrimp kebabs (i know i know... next time i'll marinade myself), as well as some chuck, and fresh veggies. oh, and a side of potato salad.

this was to be a lazy feast. :)

brought it all home, picked up the king crab and got to work. so the only cooking i really did was seasoning the meat and veggies and arranging it all on bamboo skewers. then onto the "grill"... a countertop one, i.e.

i just seasoned the meat and veggies with kosher salt, black pepper, some paprika (i'm obsessed) and brushed a little bit of evoo once it was skewered.

in the meantime, e got to steaming the king crab in our pasta cooker. haha.

in about 10mins, everything was done and we got to eating in our little kitchen with the patio door open, the sun streaming in, and the smell of grilled seafood and steak!

cPe 2008

the perfect trio

during my recent grocery splurge at mitsuwa, i decided to pick up a pack of 2 wagyu steaks. it was friday afternoon, and i really wanted a good steak with simple sides that wouldn't detract.
last time i was at mistuwa, there were signs everywhere, advertising this wagyu beef. i didn't know much about it then, so i skipped it, but i read up about it a bit recently.
if you want to know what the hype is, please read here and here.

so for this very quick and delicious friday night dinner, i also picked up a bottle of kimchi. i've recently been dreaming of pickled veggies... strange, i know.
i'm sorry, maybe one day i'll make some myself... but for now, the bottled one is fine.
and to go with that... rice. sushi rice.
for the steaks, only sprinkle with some kosher salt and pepper, and drizzle a bit of olive oil on each side prior to grilling. i have a grill pan, which is what i used, but i can only imagine how yummy these steaks would be cooked on a real grill!

cPe 2008

sunday supper

.a twisted surf 'n turf.

after a refreshing weekend, we decided to have dinner at home and just relax. i wanted a good steak. e wanted something saucy. so i pulled out the bridal shower gift from my aunt - a book/folder with her favorite homemade recipes! e spotted a specific recipe that he was dying to try... "uncle g's favourite steak". now this isn't your normal steak. no, this one has a whiskey sauce poured ontop!
i made a huge portion of shrimp couscous that day, and we had plenty over. that was the accompanying side dish to the main star, the steak. and there we had our version of a surf 'n turf meal.
now, onto the recipes. as far as grilling the steak, i only used kosher salt and pepper, and very hot grill pan; cooked 5mins on each side for a "medium" steak. you can grill the steak however you like. what's most important is the sauce.

whiskey sauce
ingredients:
1/4 stick of butter
1 small shallot, diced
2 clove of garlic, minced
2 tbsp ap flour
1/2 cup of veg or beef broth
1/2 cup of heavy cream
kosher salt & pepper
fresh parsley, roughly chopped

steps:
melt the butter in a medium-heat saucepan and add the diced shallots. add the minced garlic as the shallots begin to brown. once the garlic and shallots of browned to your liking, add flour and stir. then add the broth. i used organic beef broth, which gave more depth to the final flavor.
at this point, you can turn up the heat a bit so that the broth mixture can boil for a minute or so. once it has reached boiling point, turn it back down to medium-high and add the heavy cream while stirring. once the sauce starts to thicken, give it a taste and add as much or as little salt & pepper you'd like. then add the freshly chopped parsley and it's ready!

now onto the side dish...

spicy shrimp couscous
ingredients:
3 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp of ginger, freshly grated
1/2 onion, diced
1 bag of cleaned shrimp (no shells or tails)
2 handfuls of snap peas
1 cup of peas
2 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp red-pepper flakes
1 tbsp masala
kosher salt & pepper
1 cup of couscous
1 small container of plum tomatoes
2 handfuls of feta
1 handful of freshly chopped parsley

steps:
heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pan. add the onion, garlic and ginger and allow to brown slightly. add the shrimp, snap peas and all spices, mixing thoroughly so that all ingredients get some flavor. once the shrimp are cooked, and the mixture is just about ready, add some more olive oil (total amount of olive oil depends on the amount of couscous used. check the container for specific amounts). once the added oil is heating up, add the peas - as these barely need any cooking.
add this entire mixture to a bowl containing the couscous, and thoroughly mix so as to incorporate the oil especially. cover the bowl with foil, to allow the couscous to absorb the oil and heat.
after 5-7mins, the couscous is done. add the plum tomatoes, feta and parsley... your side dish (or any-day lunch) is now done!

this entire meal takes maximum 5mins of prep time, 20mins cooking time, and approximately 15mins eating time. :)
enjoy!!


cPe 2008