seafood

Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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After being sick as a dog for the past few day’s, today I can at least walk again without fear of falling on my behind because my legs could not hold me up. So, as any sane person would do, the first thing to do was to prep a meal that would make me feel better. Shrimp and mayo might not seem very smart as a first solid meal in three day’s, but I am happy to report that three hours later I am still ok 🙂
(In case you wonder how I posted the last post about the fish in black bean sauce:
I usually have one or two post’s on stand-by for situations like this and all it needs is the push of a button, the rest takes care of itself)
Anyway, I hope my recovery is going to last for a good time to come and things will be back to normal, at least healthwise.
So here we go, today’s early, delicious lunch:
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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Preparation :
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mise en place

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shrimp, green peas, golden grpe tomatoes, radish, scallion

shrimp, green peas, golden grape tomatoes, radish, scallion

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mayonnaise, sriracha, ketchup, brandy, horseradish, dijon mustard, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, lime juice

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slice italian garlic roll in half (toasting optional)

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top with romaine leaves in lime vinaigrette

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top with generaos amount of shrimp salad

top with generous amount of shrimp salad, garnish with fennel leaves

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serve with lime wedges and arugula in french dressing

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Old Fashioned Shrimp Roll

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Polpi In Umido – Italian Style Octopus Stewed In Wine And Tomatoes

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Octopus is one of my favorite seafood. Unfortunately, fresh octopus is not usually available around here. I sometimes order it online, but for the spur of the moment, I usually fall back to canned octopus. I have tried many different brands over the years and my favorite is the Vigo brand in garlic/olive oil. I usually prepare a salad by mixing it with peppers, herbs, potatoes and vinaigrette. Once in a while I mix it in a mixed seafood stew. However, for the dish at hand it was the perfect taste and texture. I even added the garlic oil from the can since it has a strong taste of the sea. A quick, easy and very affordable seafood recipe. If you are not a fan of octopus, replace it with shrimp, just simmer the shrimp and sauce for less time in order to keep the shrimp succulent and moist.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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Click here for more about Octopus
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Polpi In Umido – Italian Style Octopus Stewed In Wine And Tomatoes

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Polpi In Umido – Italian Style Octopus Stewed In Wine And Tomatoes

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Preparation :
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saute finely diced onions and garlic paste in olive oil

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when onions are translucent add tomato paste, saute another minute

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deglaze with red wine, add octopus with it's canned oil, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, simmer fr three minutes, check/adjust seasoning

deglaze with red wine, add octopus with its canned oil, finely chopped tomatoes, kosher salt and cayenne pepper, simmer for three more minutes, check/adjust seasoning

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meanwhile, cook bucatini al dente, strain, mix with olive oil

meanwhile, cook bucatini al dente, strain, add some olive oil

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plate bucatoni, top with octopus ragout, sprinkle with italian parsley and basil leaves

plate bucatini, top with octopus ragout, sprinkle with italian parsley and basil leaves

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Polpi In Umido – Italian Style Octopus Stewed In Wine And Tomatoes

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Polpi In Umido – Italian Style Octopus Stewed In Wine And Tomatoes

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EASY DOES IT # 16 – Two Quick, Simple Salad’s

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A lot of folk’s shy back from constructed salads because they find them difficult to make and the recipes too complicated.
I can asure you that nothing is further from the truth. First, choose two main components, such as pasta and cold cuts, rice and seafood, potato and vegetables, vegetables and cheese, any grain such as amaranth, barley, quinoa, or rye, add herbs or whatever else tickles your fancy. Add whatever else you want to add that you think will enhance your salad, dress with whatever dressing you fancy. Combine any ingredients you feel will go well together and experiment.
However, if the salad is to be served at a later point in time or outside at a party, I don’t recommend homemade mayo for obvious reasons, use the store-bought version which is safer. Also, for pasta, rice and potato salads, I recommend to cook the starch a bit longer than if you use them in a hot dish. The texture will be more pleasant.
Following find two simple salads which I made yesterday. The whole prep and assembly took about thirty minutes total. If you don’t have much practice, both salads might take you an hour, not bad for two different dishes that serve about 20 each. Just remember, It’s your salad – do with it whatever you like as long as YOU think it’s the way it should be: omit, add, deduct any ingredient You feel makes your dish a better one 🙂

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“Shrimp, Pasta And Egg Salad”

Penne rigata, shrimp, fennel leaves, eggs, peas, cherry tomatoes, mayo (easy on the mayo), olive oil, garlic paste, white balsamic vinegar, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, greek yogurt, maggi. Use whatever ratio of ingredients you prefer. If it tastes good and looks good, you’ve done it right 🙂
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“Farfalle Salad With Salame, Pepperjack And Cornichons”

Farfalle pasta, salame, pepper jack cheese, cornichons, scallions, mayo (easy on the mayo), olive oil, dijon mustard, garlic paste, white balsamic vinegar, cornichon liquid, kosher salt, cayenne pepper, maggi. Same here again, use whatever ratio of ingredients you prefer. If it tastes good and looks good, you’ve done it right 🙂
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Happy Cooking and Bon Appetit !
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Click here for more “Easy Does It”

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Shrimp, Pasta And Egg Salad

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Shrimp, Pasta And Egg Salad

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Shrimp, Pasta And Egg Salad

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Shrimp, Pasta And Egg Salad

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Farfalle Salad With Salame, Pepperjack And Cornichons

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Farfalle Salad With Salame, Pepperjack And Cornichons

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Farfalle Salad With Salame, Pepperjack And Cornichons

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Farfalle Salad With Salame, Pepperjack And Cornichons

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Dear Friend’s, to help support this blog,
please be so kind and click on the video on the bottom of this page. Thank you 🙂
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Finkenwerder Meeresfrüchte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style

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Finkenwerder is part of Hamburg/Germany, famous (culinary wise) for its seafood restaurants. When I was a young cook back in the seventies, I worked part time in one of them (the name escapes me now) The restaurant was very elegant, expensive and beautiful. I remember many of the specialties we cooked there but the one outstanding dish I remember in particular was the
“Finkenwerder Meeresfruechte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style”
A creamy soup made of roux, a bit of tomato paste, seafood stock, cognac and lots of cream, chock-full of mussels, shrimp, cockles( herzmuscheln) and scallops. Pure heaven in a bowl for seafood lovers, then and now 🙂
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Saute fine diced onions in butter, add flour to make a blond roux, add a bit of tomato paste, saute another minute, add fish stock and simmer for 15 minutes, add cream and cocnac, simmer another few minutes, season with sea salt and cayenne pepper, add blanched seafodd, carefully stir and remove from heat. to serve, sprinkle with fresh dill leaves

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Finkenwerder Meeresfruechte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style

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Finkenwerder Meeresfruechte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style

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Finkenwerder Meeresfruechte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style

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Finkenwerder Meeresfruechte Suppe – Seafood Soup Finkenwerder Style

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Calamari Rellenos – Stuffed Fried Squid

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The first time I ate this dish was in 1974 in Vigo, Spain. I was in Spain for the very first time and I fell head over heels in love with the country, the food, the wine, the culture, the music and, of course, the women 🙂 I remember many things from these first visit’s to this beautiful, fascinating country. However, what stands out from all these memories is my first lunch with friends at a small restaurant on the pier in the port of Vigo. Most of my friends had fried calamari, the way we were all familiar with, fried breaded rings which are probably the most widely known calamari dish of all. I however wanted to try something I never had before, so I ordered the “Calamar Relleno”.
To this day I can recall the platter that was served to me and how much I admired the dish, so much richer and tasty compared to the fried rings I was used to. They were served with a simple salad and lemon wedges. No fancy sauce, garnish or other fru fru that would have destracted from the wholesomeness of this amazing dish.

Buen Provecho ! La Vida es Buena! Viva España !

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Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

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Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

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: mise en place

: saute garlic paste in its own oil

: add diced onion

: add coarsrly chopped squid tentacles and coarsely chopped shrimps, saute briefly

: mix shrimp and tentacles with kosher salt, cayenne pepper, egg, chopped herbs and panko, fill mixture into tubes, close with bammboo skewer

: mix flour, paprika, sea salt and cayenne, mix well

: dredge squid in flour mixture

: fry for two minutes on both sides

: remove to absorbent paper

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

: Calamar Rellenos -Stuffed Fried Squid

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Steamed Bay Scallops, Peppers And Green Peas

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While I love large sauteed scallops, my budget sometimes dictates my menu. So when I was thinking of getting some giant diverscallops for lunch today, I almost fainted when I saw the price ($ 46.00)
So I went for the next best thing, bay scallops. ( $ 16.00) Now here is the thing: When we think of scallops, we usually think of the beautiful pictures of seard scallops with their golden crust and juicy, opaque center. I don’t suggest you try this with tiny bay scallops, which are much more suited for breading or steaming. I wanted to enjoy the pure taste of the scallops, so I gently steamed them with some vegetables in white wine and butter. Absolutely delicious and easy and quick to prepare.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

P.S.
Instead of eating them with a fork, use a spoon so you don’t miss out on the great sauce 🙂

Steamed Bay Scallops, Peppers And Green Peas

: saute confit garlic paste in its own oil

: add her butter and onion

: add white wine and scallops, add sea salt and cayenne pepper

: add peppers

: add frozen green peas, simmer until scallops are cooked half-way

: add a small bit of corn starch lurry, bring back to simmer, remove from heat at once, check/adjust seasoning

: Steamed Bay Scallops, Peppers And Green Peas

: Steamed Bay Scallops, Peppers And Green Peas

: Steamed Bay Scallops, Peppers And Green Peas

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Fried Seafood, Creamed Spinach & Tonkatsu Sauce

The secret for the success of this dish is in the seasoned flour/bread crumbs in which to dredge the seafood, as well as frying it in small batches in very hot peanut oil. Mix 1/3 of panko bread crumbs, 1/3 of regular bread crumbs and 1/3 of corn starch. Season with plenty of smoked paprika and cayenne pepper, kosher salt, granulated garlic and grated lemon peel. Fry for about one minute only or until the coating has turned golden brown. Remember, this is NOT breaded seafood, so you don’t have to worry if the seafood is not completely covered by the coating. The flour mixture serves to give color, taste and texture. I served this with creamed spinach and tonkatsu sauce, but a green salad and remoulade sauce will fit just as well. Just make sure that you squeeze the lemon on one piece of seafood at a time, so by the time each bite reaches your mouth, the crumbs will still be crispy 🙂

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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tonkatsu sauce recipe click here
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creamed spinach recipe click here
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Fried Seafood, Creamed Spinach & Tonkatsu Sauce

Fried Seafood, Creamed Spinach & Tonkatsu Sauce >>>>

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Dear Friend’s, to help support this blog, please be so kind and click on the video below. ( You don’t have to watch it, just click once ) Thank you 🙂
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Grilled Portuguese Sardines

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During the time Maria and I were living in Madeira, Portugal, we usually had grilled sardines at least twice a week. There was this beautiful restaurant, built into a cave in the rock’s below our apartment building, just a three minute walk, which served these wonderful, fresh, juicy, tasty sardines off a wood fired grill. Adorned with just lemon wedges, a small green salad with onions and rustic sour dough bread, this was the perfect meal every time and I remember them very fondly, both for the great food, as well as the romance the surroundings provided to Maria and I.
I usually had all my dinner’s in Madeira with a bottle (or two) of Gatão Vinho Verde, while Maria usually stuck to her diet coke.
While shopping for food on saturday, I came across these great looking (frozen) Portuguese sardines and I just had to get them. I prepared them the way they are usually prepared in simple restaurant’s and homes by the sea – some sea salt inside and out, brushed with olive oil and quickly grilled or sauteed. Then a squirt of lemon or lime and voilà – sardine heaven.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !

– and yes, Bella and I had all twelve of them at once…….. 🙂
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Grilled Portuguese Sardines

: Portuguese Sardines

: Season With Sea Salt

: Grill

: Served With Sauteed Potatoes And Greens

: Grilled Portuguese Sardines

: Grilled Portuguese Sardines

: Remnants Of A Great Dinner

: Gatão Vinho Verde

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Seafood In Whole Grain Mustard Cream

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After yesterday’s less then stellar lunch experience I needed to get something nice and satisfying for dinner. I still had some seafood from the day before, some button mushroom and small potatoes.
Now this was a dish worth paying for 🙂

Season raw seafood with sea salt and sriracha sauce and saute in whole butter until halfway cooked, add cooked seafood, saute until heated through, remove from pan, set aside. Add
Garlic paste, saute until fragrant. Deglaze pan with white wine, heavy cream and juices from the sautéed seafood. Simmer and reduce until a light sauce has formed. Remove from heat, add mustard and lemon juice, check seasoning and adjust if necessary. Return seafood to the pan, return to heat until heated through. Make sure you don’t let the sauce simmer anymore or your seafood will get tough and dry. Serve with basmati rice or sautéed potatoes. (I did place sautéed parsley potatoes and garlic mushroom on the bottom of the plate but forgot to take the picture before topping them with the seafood. If you look closely, you’ll see a potato peeking out under the crayfish in the last picture) 🙂 >
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Seafood In Whole Grain Mustard Cream

: Lobster, Crayfish, Octopus, Cuttlefish, Mussels, King Crab.

: Seafood In Whole Grain Mustard Cream

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Spiders From Mars

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Just a light dinner tonight with one of my favorite ingredients – Octopus.
In the seventies I spent a lot of time in the Mediterranean and some of my fondest memories take me back to Turkey, Spain and Greece and their great seafood.. Almost all memories I possess of that time are connected to food. Parties, dates, travel, good times and bad times, all somehow lead to (mostly) great meals. Most involved seafood of one way or another. While there were too many outstanding meals to count, the ones I remember the most were the many octopus dishes I had, and of those, the ones I had in Mykonos. To this day I can picture exactly in my head walking along the very small area in town, right on the water, where the fishermen had hung up their freshly caught little monsters on racks in the fresh air. We used to pick the ones which appealed to us the most, took a chair at one of the tiny restaurants right there on the other side of the walk way and just pointed the waiter to our catch, which he then took to the cook who added nothing more than salt, garlic, olive oil and lemon juice and grilled it to perfection. Memories……….
I am fond of octopus of any size and any preparation, so today on my way home from work when I saw some nice baby octopus at my neighborhood Asian store, there was only one option for dinner tonight : ” Baby Octopus Salad ” .
( Once I looked at the finished dish, ” Spiders From Mars ” just came to my mind and stuck there 🙂
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Click to hear “Spiders From Mars”
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Real Food, Real Opinions & ” REAL MUSIC ”
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When it comes to baby octopus, folk’s have different opinions and preferences. Some people eat the head, others remove it (me). Some grill or saute them straight, others simmer them first until tender (me), then continue to grill or saute. Some like them in complicated sauces, others just simply grilled or sauted (me). Baby octopus curry anyone? Good stuff 🙂 So if you love seafood but have not yet tried these little creatures, it is high time to get a bit adventurous and put them on the menu.

Bon Appetit ! Life is Good !
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