I don't know why I haven't tried steaming chicken before. The meat turned out very tender and delicious. This could just be one of those 30-minute meals. I imagine that a slightly longer cook time would be needed for thicker cuts of chicken, such as the thighs. For this attempt, I used chicken drumsticks (1 lb 7 oz).
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs chicken parts
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp chili black bean sauce -or- 2 tbsp fermented black beans
Directions
0. Remove chicken from package and rinse with cold water. Place it in a heat-proof bowl that is large enough to accommodate the chicken. Pour boiling water on the chicken and blanch for 1 minute. Discard the water in the bowl.
1. To the chicken: add garlic, ginger, cornstarch, soy sauce, and chili black bean sauce. Mix thoroughly so that the chicken is coated with everything.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil, large enough to fit both a steamer basket and the heatproof bowl.
3. Cover the pot and steam chicken for 30 minutes, until the juice runs clear when the meat is pierced with a knife, or the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F. Let rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
For this amount of meat and time, the thick part of the drumsticks measured between 175 F and 185 F (a bit overcooked, oops).
Showing posts with label steamed. Show all posts
Showing posts with label steamed. Show all posts
Perfect Soft Boiled Eggs via Steam
I'm pretty sure that you can use any quantity of eggs for this. It's definitely not something that you'd want to do for Easter though, unless these were for breakfast and not EE dyeing/hunting.
Bring a pot of water to boil. Insert metal steamer basket. Add eggs. Boil for 6 minutes. Turn off heat. Put eggs in cold water to cool down. Peel eggs. Enjoy.
Bring a pot of water to boil. Insert metal steamer basket. Add eggs. Boil for 6 minutes. Turn off heat. Put eggs in cold water to cool down. Peel eggs. Enjoy.
Chinese Steamed Buns (mantou)
I have apparently made this before and this version one doesn't use dried milk. The metric recipe ratio comes from the China Sichuan Food website. I'm not sure why the measurement for liquid milk was done in grams, so I used a kitchen scale and measured it out by weight. My Imperial conversion of the recipe is as follows:
Makes 8 buns
Ingredients
10 oz (by weight, roughly 2.25 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp organic granulated sugar
1/2 c whole milk, warmed to 110 degrees F
1/4 c water, warmed to 110 degrees F
Directions
1. To ensure that your yeast is still alive. Proof the yeast in warm water with 1 tsp of sugar. After 10 minutes, if the yeast is foamy then it is still active.
2. In a large bowl, add flour and stir yeast water with chopsticks to combine.
3. In a small pot, heat milk and remaining sugar until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat before the milk comes to a boil. Let cool to 110 degrees F before adding it to the flour.
4. Gently knead flour into a ball and cover bowl with a plate. Let rise for about an hour until it has doubled in size.
5. Roll dough on a silicone mat or on a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Roll out each half into a log and use a dough scraper to divide the log.
6. Dab a little olive oil to the bottom of each bun before placing onto a 2" square of waxed paper. This step is optional. It helps you remove the paper after the buns are steamed.
7. Bring a large stockpot with a steamer basket set inside to a boil. Add enough buns so that they are spaced at least 1/2" apart. Steam for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and enjoy.
These are best eaten right after they're cooked, otherwise the buns will get hard if left out too long.
Makes 8 buns
Ingredients
10 oz (by weight, roughly 2.25 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp organic granulated sugar
1/2 c whole milk, warmed to 110 degrees F
1/4 c water, warmed to 110 degrees F
Directions
1. To ensure that your yeast is still alive. Proof the yeast in warm water with 1 tsp of sugar. After 10 minutes, if the yeast is foamy then it is still active.
2. In a large bowl, add flour and stir yeast water with chopsticks to combine.
3. In a small pot, heat milk and remaining sugar until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat before the milk comes to a boil. Let cool to 110 degrees F before adding it to the flour.
4. Gently knead flour into a ball and cover bowl with a plate. Let rise for about an hour until it has doubled in size.
5. Roll dough on a silicone mat or on a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Roll out each half into a log and use a dough scraper to divide the log.
6. Dab a little olive oil to the bottom of each bun before placing onto a 2" square of waxed paper. This step is optional. It helps you remove the paper after the buns are steamed.
7. Bring a large stockpot with a steamer basket set inside to a boil. Add enough buns so that they are spaced at least 1/2" apart. Steam for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and enjoy.
These are best eaten right after they're cooked, otherwise the buns will get hard if left out too long.
Steamed Manila Clams
According to Wikipedia, among the natural predators of this humble clam are the dungeness and red rock crabs...which in turn would suggest that I could harvest manila clams in the same areas where people drop crab pots for these crabs. Mmmm, what a tasty thought.
In this recipe, the Chinese rice wine and dry sherry are a substitution for a dry white wine. Up to a half cup of white wine is typically used to steam most clams. Also, shallots can replace the green onions. Against a strong flavor like garlic, I can't taste the thyme in the broth.
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs fresh manila clams, scrubbed clean
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 c Shaoxing rice cooking wine
1/8 c dry sherry
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 green onions, white part only, chopped
pinch of dried thyme
Directions
1. In a skillet (with a lid), melt butter over medium heat and add the cloves and onions. Saute until fragrant, about a minute.
2. Add clams and pour alcohol on top. Cover and let cook until the clams open, 5-8 minutes.
3. Scoop the cooked clams into a bowl and pour the broth over them. Serve hot.
In this recipe, the Chinese rice wine and dry sherry are a substitution for a dry white wine. Up to a half cup of white wine is typically used to steam most clams. Also, shallots can replace the green onions. Against a strong flavor like garlic, I can't taste the thyme in the broth.
Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs fresh manila clams, scrubbed clean
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 c Shaoxing rice cooking wine
1/8 c dry sherry
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 green onions, white part only, chopped
pinch of dried thyme
Directions
1. In a skillet (with a lid), melt butter over medium heat and add the cloves and onions. Saute until fragrant, about a minute.
2. Add clams and pour alcohol on top. Cover and let cook until the clams open, 5-8 minutes.
3. Scoop the cooked clams into a bowl and pour the broth over them. Serve hot.
Shanghai Styled Soup Dumplings
My dad, who is originally from the Shanghai region, tells me that dumplings, noodles, and all sorts of bread-oriented foods tend to be more Northern in cuisine since wheat and meat are more readily available. You'll likewise find a plethora of vegetarian dishes the farther south you go within China. While these dumplings are very labor intensive and you'll have the satisfaction that you didn't pay a small ransom to eat at Bellevue's Din Tai Fung restaurant, even though they have a visitor's window that lets you see their prep cooks rolling, filling, and making the very same dumplings.
Think of the last bread recipe you've done then multiply the time you spent waiting for that lazy dough to rise up by two and you get the approximate time it takes for all these ingredients to come together. Good thing gelatin that comes in small neat packages or else we'd be scraping down a length of pig skin for its gelatinous properties.
This recipe ratio comes from Brian Yarvin's A World of Dumplings book. The secret to having soup in a dumpling is to add a small amount of jelled soup to the dumpling before it gets steamed. The heat melts the soup that gently bathes the dumpling in a rich meaty broth, enhancing the elements of the dumpling; or at least that's the idea.
Dumpling making is a group affair, and doing this recipe with others is pleasantly more enjoyable. I should also mention that for this batch, I only made the dough and had the patience to pleat one dumpling. Oh, and I wrote the post and took the pics. :)
Think of the last bread recipe you've done then multiply the time you spent waiting for that lazy dough to rise up by two and you get the approximate time it takes for all these ingredients to come together. Good thing gelatin that comes in small neat packages or else we'd be scraping down a length of pig skin for its gelatinous properties.
This recipe ratio comes from Brian Yarvin's A World of Dumplings book. The secret to having soup in a dumpling is to add a small amount of jelled soup to the dumpling before it gets steamed. The heat melts the soup that gently bathes the dumpling in a rich meaty broth, enhancing the elements of the dumpling; or at least that's the idea.
Dumpling making is a group affair, and doing this recipe with others is pleasantly more enjoyable. I should also mention that for this batch, I only made the dough and had the patience to pleat one dumpling. Oh, and I wrote the post and took the pics. :)
Steamed Whole Tilapia
There are three chain ethic supermarkets in southern California near where I live: Ranch 99, Vallarta, and Jons. Meats, seafood, spices, seasonal fruits, and odd-things-to-try-out, etc., are very inexpensive here. At the latter two places I can buy a lot of whole tilapia for a very good price. The following is a relatively generic, but simple way to steam tilapia. I'd imagine that this preparation style is common to asian households.
Ingredients:
1 whole tilapia, thawed and cleaned
2 stalks green onions, sliced
1-2 slices of peeled ginger, thinly sliced
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (red or white, doesn't matter)
Before the fish is steamed, you need to make two slits on each side of the fish (through the flesh to the bone but not cutting through the fish, this helps it steam evenly and cook faster). Pour the wine over the fish and place the ginger and green onions on top.
The average whole tilapia will be under a pound, total cooking time is about 20 minutes. This seems like a long time, especially for fish, but I skip the process where you let a steamer come up to temperature then put the fish in. The flesh of the fish should be of a white-ish color when fully cooked. Promptly remove from heat and serve.
Whole fish pairs with steamed rice (brown, white, or "wild"). It goes pleasantly with a dry riesling wine, like Columbia Crest (which you can usually get from Trader Joe's).
I eat this with a sauce that has equal parts rice wine vinegar and light soy sauce.
Ingredients:
1 whole tilapia, thawed and cleaned
2 stalks green onions, sliced
1-2 slices of peeled ginger, thinly sliced
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (red or white, doesn't matter)
Before the fish is steamed, you need to make two slits on each side of the fish (through the flesh to the bone but not cutting through the fish, this helps it steam evenly and cook faster). Pour the wine over the fish and place the ginger and green onions on top.
The average whole tilapia will be under a pound, total cooking time is about 20 minutes. This seems like a long time, especially for fish, but I skip the process where you let a steamer come up to temperature then put the fish in. The flesh of the fish should be of a white-ish color when fully cooked. Promptly remove from heat and serve.
Whole fish pairs with steamed rice (brown, white, or "wild"). It goes pleasantly with a dry riesling wine, like Columbia Crest (which you can usually get from Trader Joe's).
I eat this with a sauce that has equal parts rice wine vinegar and light soy sauce.
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