Egg Noodle with Shiitake Mushrooms and Collard Greens

(My version of Mi Goreng Jawa)

Similar to the universality of beef stew dish, noodle seems to exist in many different cultures’ cuisines. For many Indonesians, especially who live in the island of Java, the Javanese pan-fried egg noodles or Mi Goreng Jawa is most likely a favorite dish (among many).

I simply love the flavor of this noodle dish. It gets cooked with nutmeg, candlenuts, soy sauce, garlic, and shallots. Traditionally, the dish is mixed with some greens, pulled chicken, and scrambled eggs. In my version, I mix in a bunch of flavorful and meaty shiitake mushrooms and hardy collard greens and I get myself a delicious one-pot meal. The combination of the spices coats the noodle, mushroom, and greens so well it is almost addictive. I try to make a huge pan of it whenever I cook this dish, invite friends over for a meal, and eat the leftover for a couple of days :).

My version will require:

  • 1 bag of fresh egg noodle. (They come in 3-4 bundle per bag. Find them in the refrigerated section of your Asian grocery store.)
  • 2-3 cups of fresh shiitake mushrooms. (Remove and discard all of the stems and then chop the top of the mushrooms.)
  • 1 large bundle of collard greens. (Strip the leaves off the stem, discard the stems, stack and roll up the leaves, and slice them into 1 inch slices or thinner.)
  • 4-5 shallots (chopped)
  • 1 tablespoon of minced garlic
  • 4 candlenuts (finely chopped)
  • ½ teaspoon of nutmeg powder
  • Salt
  • Black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon of canola/vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoon of soy sauce
  • 4 tablespoon of sweet soy sauce. (If you don’t have sweet soy sauce, mix 4 tablespoon of regular soy sauce with 4 tablespoon of honey.)
  • ½ cup of water or chicken (or vegetable) stock
  • 3 eggs (scrambled)

Here’s how I do it:

  • Fill a medium pot with water (halfway) and bring to boil.
  • Once boiled, using a food stainless steel strainer, dip the noodles in the water for a minute.
  • Place the noodle in a large bowl and set aside.
  • In a large pot, heat up the canola/vegetable oil (medium heat), and add all of the spices: shallots, garlic, chopped candlenuts, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Let them sizzle for two minutes.
  • Add the noodle.
  • Use two forks and your arm muscles to mix all of the ingredients well with the noodle.
  • Add the soy sauce and sweet soy sauce. Continue mixing.
  • Add the collard greens and mushrooms.
  • Add half a cup of water or chicken stock. Lower the heat, continue mixing, cover the pot with a lid, and let it cook for 5 more minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
  • Serve with the scrambled eggs on top and Thai peppers on the side (optional)

Serve 6+ people generously.

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Jasmine…

I am crazy about jasmine and its sweet fragrance. They are mystical and romantic. Their scent seems to trigger nice memories of my childhood and of the people who I deeply care about.

About three summers ago, I bought two jasmine plants from a nursery in my old neighborhood in Chicago. I planted them together in a rectangular plastic container and placed them outside of my apartment window. I would move them inside of the apartment when the breeze turns colder, keep them close to a bright window, and hope they stay alive until spring returns. Once the air becomes warmer, I’d move them back outside again and let them stay out for the whole summer. That dance continued every year to this summer in our new home in Michigan. As a native to the tropical regions of the world, my jasmine plants love and thrive in the bright sun, heat, and humidity that summer offers this year. I just have to make sure that they drink lots of water once a day.

Here are the little beauties. Wished you could smell their intoxicating beautiful fragrance.

I notice that they start budding and blooming like crazy in July.

My morning coffee ritual on the patio becomes even more special with the little beauties’ scent all around. It’s pretty fantastic!

Hope you’re enjoying your summer wherever you are!

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Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with Tomatillo Mango Salsa

A good conversation with a friend could lift up the spirit. A good FOOD conversation with a friend could inspire and create a fantastic dish. Spicy grilled shrimp and mint chutney, along with other types of food, came up during the talk. Then for a couple of days, not sure how, my mind played a food puzzle game by itself. It combined these images of grilled shrimp, some type of sauce, and the ingredients I’d like to use together. These pictures seemed so real I felt like I could almost taste them. The next day, I produced my grilled shrimp with tomatillo mango salsa dish 🙂

Here’s how I do it. For the grilled shrimp, we will need:

  • 24 jumbo shrimp (raw, deveined, and shelled)
  • Lemon juice from 1-2 lemon
  • A handful of mint leaves (chopped)
  • A handful of parsley (chopped)
  • A teaspoon of minced garlic
  • Salt
  • Pepper
  • Cayenne pepper
  • 6-8 bamboo skewers (soaked in water for at least 30 minutes)

Steps:

  • Mix everything together in a zip lock bag and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.
  • Thread 3-4 shrimp on each skewer
  • Fire up the grill to medium high and let the shrimp sizzle for 3-4 minutes on each side until they are pink and firm.

For the Tomatillo Mango Salsa:

  • 5-6 tomatillos (remove the husk and wash until the green tomatillos no longer feel sticky)
  • 5 Jalapenos peppers (please adjust the number to your preference)
  • A handful of cilantro leaves (chopped)
  • A tablespoon of minced garlic
  • Salt
  • 1 ripe mango

Steps to prepare the salsa:

  • Heat up a small skillet on the stove over medium heat.
  • Halve the tomatillos and chop the jalapenos
  • Add into the skillets and let them char a little
  • Add a tablespoon of water, cover with a lid, and let them cook for 5 minutes.
  • In a food processor, add the cut up mango, cilantro, garlic, a little salt, and the cooked tomatillos and jalapenos. Pulse until everything is mixed together.
  • Put the salsa in a bowl, let it cool down, cover with a plastic wrap, and place in the fridge before serving. I like the salsa to be served cold. I like it even better when I make it the night before serving. It gives all of the great flavors some time to chill and blend well with each other. There’s a little bit of everything in this salsa. It’s sweet, tangy, with a jalapeno kick, and fragrant with wonderful fresh aroma.
  • To serve, scoop the salsa into a serving plate and place the shrimp on top of it.

These two things could also be served separately. Next time, I’ll put the salsa on top of grilled (white meat) fish or on a nice skirt steak.

Have a great weekend!

Harini Riana4 Comments

Summer Fave: Grilled Lamb Shoulder Chops

Grilled lamb shoulder chops with sweet and spicy corn and tomato salad.

I may have found a summer favorite. Inspired by Ina Garten’s recipe (minus the yogurt mint sauce), I decided to experiment with a couple of lamb shoulder chops a few weeks ago. The amazing result has made me repeat this recipe a couple of times already. The marinade’s combination of rosemary, oregano, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and red wine work so well together in creating such a succulent grilled lamb.

 

I followed the recipe’s ingredient list but adjusted a few things:

  • Instead of using rack of lamb, I used lamb shoulder chops
  • Lemon juice from 1 lemon
  • 1 tablespoon of minced garlic
  • 3 tablespoon of olive oil
  • 3 tablespoon of red wine
  • 2 sprigs of rosemary (fresh from the garden, yay!)
  • A dash of dried oregano

Steps:

  • Mix all of the above in a big zip lock bag. Please make sure that all ingredients coat the lamb nicely. Leave the bag in the fridge and let the chops marinate for half a day or overnight.
  • Fire up the grill and, as Ina Garten’s recipe suggests, add salt and pepper on the lamb. Then let them sizzle on a medium-high heat grill for 5 minutes on each side.
  • Serve with my Sweet and Spicy Corn Salad and Tomato Salad. Hmm…insanely good!

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Easy Summer Menu: Sweet and Spicy Corn Salad

A few weeks ago, Jeff prepared a corn dish to serve alongside our steak and tomato salad. He basically just cooked thawed frozen corn kernels in a little bit of butter and cayenne pepper powder. I couldn’t believe how that simple process produced such a delicious dish. I was hooked and inspired to create a salad out of it.

This colorful salad just screams summer, don’t you think? 🙂 It’s a little sweet and spicy, lemony, crunchy, and mmm…it’s got that wonderful cilantro’s fragrance!

Here’s what we will need for my version:

  • A bag of thawed frozen corn or peeled fresh corn kernels from four to six ears
  • One tablespoon of unsalted butter
  • One red bell pepper (cored and chopped)
  • Cayenne pepper powder (I also added three fresh cayenne peppers. But PLEASE adjust to your piquant-tolerance level)
  • Salt
  • Black Pepper
  • A handful of chopped cilantro (if you’re not a cilantro fan, go with parsley).
  • Lemon juice from 1 lemon

Steps:

  • Heat up a medium pan
  • Melt the butter
  • Add the chopped bell pepper and corn kernels. Cover with a lid and let cook for 5 minutes (until the butter and water that comes out of the corn and bell pepper start to bubble).
  • Remove from the heat
  • Add salt, pepper, a dash of cayenne powder, cilantro, and drizzle with the lemon juice. Mix and serve. You could also chill it in the fridge and serve it cold.
This time I served the corn salad with grilled lamb shoulder and tomato salad. Delicious!

Harini Riana3 Comments