Cooking Tips

Links

• Common mistakes made when cooking pork chops - Bon Appetit
• Complete guide to pan seared steaks - Serious Eats

Favorite Products

• BBQ Sauce
  • Stubbs Original BBQ Sauce
  • Bulls Eye Original BBQ Sauce
• Salad Dressings
  • Pietro's Shoyu Salad Dressing
  • Brianna's Poppy Seed Dressing
• Fish Sauce
  • Red Boat Fish Sauce

Recipes

Dishes

Mochi Rice Stuffing

Ingredients

• 1 cup mochi rice
• 1 cup water (for soaking mochi rice)
• 1 cup regular rice
• 1 bag/basket of crimini mushrooms or 1 tall can button mushrooms – bits and pieces
• 4 strips of bacon – cooked and slice
• 1/4 cup round chopped onion
• 4 sticks of lup cheong, cooked and diced
• 3 stalks of green onion
• 2 eggs fried and diced
• 2 tablespoons of parsley or cilantro

Rice Preparation

1. Cook regular rice in rice cooker.
2. Soak mochi rice for 12 hours.
3. Place in a steaming basket or cheesecloth lined colander over simmering water and steam for about 10-15 minutes. Mochi rice is done when it is firm and chewy.

Stuffing Preparation

1. Sautee all the ingredients except the rice with 1/2 stick of butter and season with salt, shoyu, and 1 tablespoon oyster sauce.
2. Mix in the two kinds of rice and put in a securely covered pan and bake for 1.25 hours at 325 degrees.
3. Check for dryness every 20-25 minutes.
4. To keep stuffing moist, boil gizzards from the turkey ahead of time and use broth to sprinkle on stuffing. Chicken broth can also be used as a substitute.
5. If the stuffing is too wet, uncover and cook for 10-15 minutes to dry it out.

Seafood

Miso Glazed Sea Bass

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup sake
• 1/3 cup sweet mirin
• 1/3 cup light yellow miso paste
• 3 tablespoons (packed) brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 6-ounce sea bass fillets (each about 3/4 inch thick)
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onions
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Preparation

1. Mix sake, mirin, miso, sugar, and soy sauce in a shallow glass baking dish.
2. Add fish and turn to coat.
3. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to 6 hours.
4. Preheat broiler.
5. Remove fish from marinade.
6. Place fish on rimmed baking sheet.
7. With broiler door slightly open, broil fish 6 inches from heat source until just opaque in center, about 6 minutes.
8. Transfer to plates. Sprinkle with green onions and basil and serve.

Pork

Maple Brined Pork Chops

Brine Ingredients

• 1 cup kosher salt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup Grade B maple syrup
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 2 teaspoons hot red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons juniper berries
• 1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
• 1/4 cup fresh rosemary, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
• 12 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger
• 8 cups water

Ingredients

• 4 center-cut loin pork chops, 1 1/2 inches thick
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil for grilling

Brine Preparation

1. Mix all of the brine ingredients together in a nonreactive pot and bring to a boil.
2. Turn off the heat and stir the brine to ensure that the salt, sugar, and maple syrup have dissolved.
3. Let the brine cool, then put it in a large nonreactive container and add the pork chops.
4. Cover and refrigerate for no more than 12 hours.

Pork Preparation

1. Remove the pork from the brine and pat dry (without rinsing).
2. Prepare a grill with hot and medium cooking areas. A grill is hot when you can't hold your hand near the grill surface for longer than 2 seconds without pulling it away; it's medium when you can't hold your hand there for longer than 4 seconds.
3. Season the chops with pepper (not salt — remember, the brining solution is salty) and brush with the oil.
4. Sear the chops directly over the hottest part of the open grill for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side.
5. Then move the chops to the medium area of the grill, cover the grill, and cook to the desired doneness.
6. Use an instant-read digital thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chops. A reading of 145° to 150°F will give you a pink, moist chop, 160°F is well-done. Serve immediately, accompanied by the chutney, if using.

Vegetables

Eggplant Tomato Cheese Bake

Ingredients

• 1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rounds
• 3 tomatoes, sliced
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and ground black pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Prepare a baking pan lined with aluminum foil.
3. Arrange eggplant and tomato slices into the bottom of the baking pan.
4. Drizzle olive oil over the vegetables
5. Season with oregano, salt, and pepper.
6. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the entire mixture.
7. Bake in preheated oven until the cheese is beginning to brown, about 30 minutes.
8. Switch oven broiler to high; continue baking until completely browned, about 5 minutes.