Food Talk: Shepherd’s Pie

The conversation about Shepherd’s Pie seemed to have appeared out of nowhere when we were at the Rose Garden at the Chicago Botanic Garden. It was one of those gorgeous days in September when the air was crisp and the sun was bright and warm—a sign of fall’s arrival. My friend Leena, her toddler, and I just had to take advantage of the beautiful weather and strolled around. The food talk went on for a while mainly because of the pretty distractions. We kept marveling at the beautiful flowers and sceneries, the very cool English Walled Garden, and the serene Japanese Garden. Before I knew it the image of the delicious dish haunted me for the rest of the day, into the next, until I decided to make one.

Maybe the food talk was inspired by the change in seasons, the chilly weather, or the butternut squash soup we had earlier that day at the garden’s café. No matter how the conversation came about, it was a great motivation to cook something I have never done before. One more thing to add to my recipe collection!

My version comes with a little curry and cayenne spice kick. This spice-infused meat and vegetable hot pie makes a great dinner choice during colder months.

Here’s how I prepare mine:

  • Boil three (peeled and quartered) smaller Yukon or Russet potatoes until fork tender
  • In a deep skillet add a tablespoon of canola oil and cook chopped garlic (three cloves) and onion (one) until they turn yellow
  • Brown half pound of ground beef or ground turkey in the skillet with the garlic and onion
  • Add a pinch of salt and pepper, one teaspoon of ginger powder, one teaspoon of curry powder, and one tablespoon of cayenne powder
  • Add a small bag of (thawed) frozen carrots and peas mix and chopped scallion to the meat
  • Turn the heat off
  • Mash the potatoes
  • Add one egg and two tablespoons of canola/vegetable oil to the mashed potatoes and mix well
  • Top the meat and vegetables with the mashed potatoes and place the pie into a 400F preheated oven for about 20 minutes. Broil to brown the potato if necessary.
Serve 4

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Spicy Eggplant

(Harini’s Version of Balado Terong, origin: West Sumatra)

My mom’s family came from the west part of the Sumatra Island. We, the children, are very much addicted to the cuisine from this part of Indonesia. The food from this region tends to be VERY spicy and rich! One of my favorites is the spicy eggplant or balado terong. Balado is a red sauce made of chopped peppers, shallots, garlic, and salt. Terong is eggplant in Bahasa Indonesia.

We normally would have spicy eggplant as a side dish to go with grilled chicken or fried tempeh or fried fish. If I want to make it as a main dish, I’d add shrimp to the spicy eggplant.

Serve over white jasmine rice. Most Indonesian cuisines are served with white rice, as the main source of carbohydrate (and also), to neutralize the bold flavors.

Here’s how I prepare the dish:

Chop and mix the following items to make the sauce in a food processor:

  • 7-10 Long red peppers, like cayenne.

  • If the long red peppers are not available, don’t give up. Substitute with 2 red bell peppers
  • 5-7 Thai peppers
  • 4-5 Shallots
  • 3-4 Cloves of garlic
  • A Pinch of salt
  • Cut up one big eggplant OR two skinny eggplants into cubes, place on a plate, and cook to soften for 3 minutes in a microwave oven. (Or put them on a grill with a little bit of oil to avoid sticking for about 2 minutes on each side. You could also broil the cut eggplants for about 3-4 minutes until they turn brownish.) Eggplant absorbs a lot of oil and water. The softening technique helps to expedite cooking time and to avoid using too much oil.
  •  Heat up one tablespoon of vegetable or canola oil in a deep frying pan (medium heat)
  • Add the sauce to the pan carefully and let it sizzle for a minute as it lets its moisture out
  • Add the cut up eggplant (and shrimp too if you want) into the sizzling pan and mix evenly with the sauce
  • Cover the pan with a lid for 15-20 minutes and reduce the heat just a little bit

The dish is ready when the eggplant is soft and the balado sauce has lost most of its moisture.

Serve 2-4

Disclaimer: I like this dish to be VERY spicy. Please adjust the number of hot peppers according to your spicy-tolerance level.

Harini Riana8 Comments

Spinach and Corn Soup

My sister and I love Spinach and Corn Soup (Sayur Bening). Recently she asked me to write the recipe for her. I thought I’d share my version of the Javanese vegetable soup here with all of you. The dish is so simple and delicious. I feel like this particular soup is a perfect buffer to other Javanese bold-flavor, strong spice-infused, and complex dishes. The combination of corn and shallots gives a little sweetness to the soup while the blend of spinach, garlic, and galangal provides a subtle but inviting aroma.  It is easy to prepare and it makes a great company for meat, chicken, or fish main courses.

Here are the must-haves:

-2 cups of water

-1/2 Bag of spinach leaves

-1 Bag of frozen corn kernels (get the smaller bag)

-3-4 Cloves of garlic (chop into tiny bits)

-3 Shallots (chop into tiny bits)

-1 inch of galangal root (or ½ teaspoon of galangal powder)

-Salt

Steps to follow:

  • Bring water to boil in a small or medium pot
  • Add a pinch of salt
  • Throw in the galangal root/powder for aroma (optional)
  • Add the chopped garlic and shallots along with the corn kernels into the pot
  • Wait until the soup simmers
  • Add the spinach leaves into the bubbling soup and stir (no more than 1 minute to avoid overcooking the spinach)
  • Take out the galangal root before serving

Serve 2

For my sister across the ocean

Harini Riana5 Comments

Adding Kale into the Mix

So I got this Kale recipe from Cheeky Chicago this morning. Looks super delicious. Now, I am neither a vegan nor a vegetarian but I like vegetables. Especially the ones cooked or prepared in a bold flavors. With this recipe, I’d add grilled trout and make the kale dish (click on the link below) as a side.

Vegan Food: Kale Stuffed Mushrooms | Cheeky Chicago.

Photo by Dirk Ingo Franke

Here’s how I’d prepare my grilled trout:

Photo by Kyle and Kelly Adams (Wikimedia Commons)-Get a couple of fresh trout fillets

-(In a large bowl) Pour a little bit of apple vinegar, enough to coat the fillets on both sides. Lemon juice works fine too.

-Mix a little bit of salt and (1 teaspoon of) ginger powder, chili powder, coriander powder, and chopped garlic.

-Rub the spices to the the vinegar-coated fillets

-Drizzle with a little bit (1 tablespoon) of olive oil

-Let them sit for 15 minutes

-Wipe the surface of the grill with olive oil

-Heat up the grill

-Grill each side of the fillet for 4 minutes (total 8 minutes)

-Leave the fish alone and flip only when the surface facing you changes color

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Sweet Tomatoes!

Photo by FoeNyx

This summer, I have been so lucky to be receiving plenty of organic tomatoes and basil supply from my good friend’s vegetable garden. (Thanks again, Leena!) I have turned the basil into delicious pesto sauce and the tomatoes into salad mixed with cucumbers. Last week, I got my biggest supply yet!  Tons of tomatoes and basil! So I figured out more ways to enjoy these great summer produce.

For breakfast this weekend, aside from the usual toast with strawberry preserve, I sliced the tomatoes into smaller chunks and sprinkle a little bit of sugar on top of them. My mom used to prepare tomatoes that way when I was little. She’d add crushed ice cubes to it too. Delicious summer treat! Then I cut up some Parmesan cheese into bite size and voila…great breakfast in no time!

I also made a hearty pasta sauce using those fresh tomatoes and basil. When I told another friend about it, she asked for the recipe. So, I thought I’d share with all of you.

My Tomato Basil Pasta Sauce with Ground Beef

  • Heat up a medium pot
  • Add 1 table-spoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • Cut 6-8 fresh tomatoes into big chunks and add into the pot (tomatoes will dissolve into red tomato juice)
  • Let it bubble for a half hour till most of the juice evaporate and the tomatoes turn into a thin sauce
  • In the food processor:

-A handful of fresh basil leaves

-3-4 cloves of garlic

-½ – Large onion

  • Add the blended goodness above to the simmering tomato sauce
  • Add salt, pepper, and …of course…chili powder!
  • Add a small can of tomato paste IF you want a thicker sauce
For the ground beef:
  • Heat up a medium pan
  • Add ½ a spoon of extra virgin olive oil
  • Brown the ground beef (I guess you can also try ground turkey. I have never done it but I think it will also be delicious) and throw away the fat
  • Add 2-3 chopped clove of garlic
  • Add a dash of ginger powder (optional—I add ginger powder to lessen the meaty beef aroma)

Add cooked ground beef to the tomato sauce pot and stir. Serve with spaghetti or other favorite pastas. Enjoy!

Harini Riana1 Comment