SNICKER DOODLES TIME

It is Christmas time 2015, and we here in the office knows what this means, it means our friend and sister Jaime will be stopping by with some of her famous, delicious Snicker Doodles and other awesome cookies!

Me and a Ziplock bag of Jaime's Snicker Doodles, and there was another bag by the way.

© 2015

Me on the left Jaime on right

© 2015

The video of me eating a Snicker Doodle

© 2015

Life is good with friends like Jaime around, always thinking of others during the Holidays, those cookies were killer, so tasty, all we needed was some cold milk, or even some vanilla ice cream. Mmmmmm goooood!

          

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BACON WRAPPED CHICKEN BREAST WITH CHEF KRYSTLE COOK

Back by popular demand, Chef Krystle Cook doing her thing, making a Bacon Wrapped Chicken Breast, totally Yay Yay! Enjoy the video.

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THE PORTERHOUSE STEAK

Let's talk about the good cuts of beef, it's been a while since we've discussed beef basics, so let's delve into the Porterhouse steak. This steak is basically a T-Bone with more tenderloin meat, that really soft textured meat that's smaller than the bigger side.

If you look at the picture above, the meat on the left side of the t shaped bone is the tenderloin meat, because the Porterhouse and T-Bone comes from the short loin portion of the steer. The T-Bone comes from the front portion of this section while the Porterhouse comes from the rear section. The T-Bone doesn't have as much meat mass in the tenderloin portion of the t shaped bone. The large portion would be your strip steak or New Yorker.

Cooking Methods:

1. Grilling over hot coals. Basic salt and pepper is good enough. Or other seasoned salts. Best cooked medium rare or rare. Overcooked it becomes too tough.

2. Broiler with the flames on top would be just the reverse of grilling, this would be done inside an oven, great for rainy days when you can't grill outdoors.

3. Pan Seared in a stainless steel pan with little oil. (However, the bone may prohibit the steak for sitting flat on the hot pan, leaving some portions of the steak near the bone to look pale, with no crust being developed.)

Happy cooking until next time

Chef Ron :)

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BEHIND THE WOK CRISP GAUGEE MEIN & KIMCHI PORK

My nephew and his family was in town from California, so I asked my sister if I could use her kitchen to cook for them, and of course whoever showed up. I got to the market at 5:15 HST, and bought all of the ingredients to make some Crisp Gaugee Mein, and some Kimchi Pork.

In this video you will see me cooking up some square bunched up noodles, you maybe asking what kind of noodles are they? Well they are from a company called S&S Saimin, and those are saimin noodles (frozen) and fried in vegetable oil.

CAKE NOODLES

These fried squares will be cut in half, and placed on the bottom of a platter, and topped with some stir fried chicken and veggies with some chicken stock, flavored with sesame oil, oyster sauce, soy sauce, salt and pepper and thickened with a cornstarch slurry.

In the next video clip you will see in action, the crisp gaugee being deep fried in a flat bottom carbon steel wok.

CRISP GAUGEE

The video clip below is some pork slices being infused with some store bought Kimchi Cabbage, I got the mild flavored in case anybody couldn't handle the heat.

KIMCHI PORK

I ended up with 30 pieces of Gaugee, with the ground beef filling having about 3/4 of a pound extra. With plenty of leftovers to feed at least four average eating foodies.

Until next time

Ron Sambrano 

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HONOLUA STORE'S FISH N CHIPS

I wanted something to eat yesterday, so I hiked up Office Road to the Honolua Store, went straight to the deli and order their Fish n Chips for 10.49. Was it good? Yes it was!

The batter wasn't too thick, it was crispy enough, and the Mahi was deliciously moist on the inside, it came in 3 pieces each at least 3-4 oz., add to that some curly fries, 2 lemon wedges and a ramekin of tartar sauce. Yay! 

The Fish n Chips 

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Youtube Video

            

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A SLICE OF NIKKI'S

Yesterday I was killing time at the Whaler's Village Shopping Center in Kaanapali Maui. I was a tad hungry, so I walked down towards the food court there. It's been awhile since I've done that, so the first thing I noticed was the Mc Donald's restaurant was gone.

There were only four food counters there, and the first thing that caught my eyes were Nikki's Pizza. In the warm showcase I was magnetized by this huge piece of Supreme pizza. Hmmmm, for 5.00 it was well worth it. The fresh veggies, the sauce, the Italian sausage... man it was good. And what I really loved about this piece of pizza was that the crust was thin and crispy, but also tasty. Check them out when visiting Maui.

The Supreme Slice

© Sambrano 2015

Me outside the food court

© Sambrano 2015

The sign

            

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KATSU CURRY AT MIKE'S HONG KONG BISTRO

It was Wednesday, December 9th and I had to run an errand in the town of Wailuku, Maui. Didn't have a ride, so I called up my buddy Ron, and off we went. Before the errand, since it was lunch time, I figured we go and eat some local food at Mike's Hong Kong Bistro.

My buddy Ron ordered some Kau Yuk pork, and a Hamburger Steak Plate with rice and macaroni salad. And me? I ordered the Katsu Curry. It was cooked the way a chicken katsu is supposed to be cooked, very crispy on the outside, the panko flakes nice and golden brown, while the dark chicken meat is moist on the insides, juicy and tender and not dried up like how some other stupid restaurants makes it. And the golden curry gravy was no doubt a ready mix one, but of good quality. Most likely S&B's Golden Curry mix, mild, no problem with that, I understand buying good quality ready made mixes is a must for some restaurants. As long as that chicken wasn't frozen, thawed and fried I'm good with that. Good, slice it up fresh, panko fresh and fried fresh, all Yay Yay, no worries. It's the totally 'cut the corner' type of dives I can't stand. It's like they charge you an arm and a leg, and you're thinking, "This tastes like the stuff I buy from Foodland in the frozen foods section."

If you are ever on Maui, you want better than decent Chinese and local foods, try Mike's Hong Kong Bistro in Wailuku Town, Maui. Google and Yelp it. 

Check the video out, it's only 22 seconds but you can see what it looks like.

      

© 2015

FILIPINO STYLE SWEET AND SOUR PORK STIR FRY

Sweet and sour pork stir fry Filipino style, well it's not too much different from the Chinese style, only difference is with the Filipino version, we are going to use some tangerines and some raw sugar for the sweet, and for the sour basic apple cider vinegar as the two star ingredients besides the pork bellies.

Belly Pork Slab

INGREDIENTS:
1- 8 oz. slab of pork bellies sliced thin and set aside to room temperature.
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 tsp. minced ginger
1 tbsp. vegetable oil

1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup sliced bell peppers
1/2 cup tangerine pieces

MARINADE (mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl, stainless steel or glass)
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp. patis fish sauce
1/2 cup of fresh squeezed tangerine juice
2 tbsp. raw sugar
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar or more to taste

First- sprinkle some salt over the sliced pork bellies, then marinade the pork belly slices in the marinade for 20 minutes.

Directions:
1. Heat up oil in a wok or fry pan over medium high heat, then add in garlic and ginger and stir quickly to just bring out the aroma, quickly add in the pork pieces without the marinade (save marinade set aside). Fry pork until it turns color, do not over cook. Remove and set aside.

2. Return wok/pan to heat, add more oil, and cook the mushrooms, bell peppers and tangerines for about 2 minutes. Return pork to wok/pan, continue to cook for about 2 minutes. Add in the reseved marinade and cook for 1 minute.

Note: if you want the sauce to be thickened, simply add a slurry of 1 tsp. cornstarch to 3 tsp. of water, add to wok/pan until thickens.

Serve Hot with Rice. It can serve 2 to 4 people.

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Until next time

Ron Sambrano

          

©2015

THE MINI BEEF PLATE AT PEARL'S KOREAN BBQ

Hungry for Korean BBQ? You best head to the Queen Kaahumanu Center upstairs at the food court, head up the escalators, turn left, then right towards the end corner you'll see Pearl's Korean BBQ. Delicious food, totally flavorful.

Photo © 2015 Chef Sambrano 

Today I got the Mini Beef Plate, it came with 1 scoop of white steamed rice, and my choice of 2 sides, mind you, you got a variety of healthy veggies as sides to choose from, I went with the kimchee cabbage, and macaroni salad. And of course the main protein was the barbecue beef, marinated perfectly and grilled over a hot flame producing some char which adds flavor. Check it out $7.99 was a great value with a drink it came out to less than $10.00.

Check out my selfie video below.

    

© 2015

KOREAN STYLE BEEF STEW IN A SLOW COOKER

Fill the slow cooker and in the morning, and this Korean inspired beef stew will be ready when you return home from a long day. Just have the cooked rice ready, to save time you can go to your local market and pick it up, or order rice from an Asian restaurant.

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2

lbs. beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch pieces

1

lb. ready-to-eat baby-cut carrots

6

green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2

cup tomato juice

1/3

cup soy sauce

3 1/2

tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons sesame or vegetable oil

1/4

teaspoon pepper

2

teaspoons cornstarch

4

teaspoons cold water

Cooked rice to serve with stew

Directions

Spray 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In the slow cooker, mix the beef, carrots, onions, garlic, tomato juice, soy sauce, sugar, oil and pepper.

Cover and cook on Low heat setting for about 10 hours. 

In small bowl mix cornstarch and cold water and mix; stir into beef mixture in slow cooker. If you are cooking on low heat setting just increase heat to high. Cover and continue to cook for about 20 minutes more, or until mixture is slightly thickened. If you don't want the stew thickened skip this step. Serve with rice.

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MULLIGAN STEW ANYONE?

The Irish, what a people. They love to eat and drink and be totally happy, and most of them by nature can see right through someone's BS! My sister in-law is Irish, I got Irish friends, they're fun peeps.

Mulligan Stew.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 c. a.p. flour
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 1/2 lbs. of beef stewing meet cut into cubes
1 1/4 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 cups of beef broth
1/3 cup of water
1 to 2 bay leaves
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
3 medium or 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch slices
2 large potatoes, cubed
2 cups of chopped celery
1 round onion cut into 1/2 inch squares
4 cups of frozen mixed veggies
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1 1/4 tbsp. minced parsley

Combine flour and pepper & mix with beef cubes. In a roasting pan with a lid, brown beef in oil. Add broth, water, bay leaves, garlic salt, oregano, basil and dill; bring to a boil. Lower heat; cover and simmer until meat is tender, about 1 3/4 hours. Put in the carrots, potatoes, celery and onion; cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Add in mixed veggies and simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Mix cornstarch and cold water until smooth; add to stew. Bring to a boil and stir for 2-3 minutes. Remove bay leaves; add parsley. Serves about 8.

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© 2015

CUSTARD A SIMPLE RECIPE

With the Holidays here, Black Friday is behind us, and more family and friends will be invited for festive occasions. Being a cook, and mind you, I haven't been cooking for a few months, I kind of like not cooking, haha. Which leads me to this one basic recipe for custard.

Custard is one of my favorites, filled in puff pastry for a cream puff, or in a custard pie, the list goes on and on, especially when a very lovely person bakes a fruity infused custard, man, that's heaven. One time at work some nice woman, baked us some custard lilikoi pies. Man it was awesome, so sweet, and rich, man it was heaven...it really was! Christmas time, we have so much food being passed around, we really should be thankful... anyway, let's get to making a basic custard.

INGREDIENTS

(Makes 6)

2 cups of milk

2 large eggs

* 2 egg yolks (whites removed)

1/2 cup of brown sugar

1 1/4 tsp. of pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Ground nutmeg for garnish

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 300 F

1. Set 6- 4 oz. oven ready  ramekins in a deep baking pan wide enough for 6.

2. In a saucepan simmer the milk over medium low heat, not too hot.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk the 2 whole eggs, 2 egg yolks, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and cinnamon.

4. Very carefully, and slowly pour the egg mixture into the simmering milk, and whisk to combine.

5. Use a fine strainer or sieve, to strain the mixture into the cups that's inside the baking pan. Use a spatula to press the mix through. It may be clogged but no worries.

6. Pour some hot water (Not boiling) into the pan until it just reaches halfway up the sides of each ramekin or cup.

7. Bake until the custard is just settled, about 30-35 minutes. (if you are using a convection oven it may be faster, so please keep your eyes and nose on it).

8. Remove from pan, rinse out baking pan, fill with cold water, and let sit for 2 hours before serving. (When it is cool to the touch, you can put it in the fridge, when ready to serve top with ground nutmeg.)

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Well that was the simple custard recipe. I like simple stuff, it's YAY YAY.. got to be simple... I mean, don't buy it if you can make it, you silly Xmas foodies. :))))

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© 2015

GRILLING A NICE JUICY LOIN PORK CHOP

Grilling pork chops in winter? Yes. Well I'm in Hawaii and it's kind of grilling season as long as no hurricane is near by or a tsunami rolling on to the yard, then it's all yay yay.

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FROM GOOGLE

DIRECTIONS:

First go and heat up your grill, nice and hot.

Ingredients

2- Loin pork chops about 8-9 oz each bone in. (1 to 1 1/2 inch thick)

3 tbsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. black pepper

Garlic powder (to be sprinkled over the chops before you flip it once, and after it is done.

DIRECTIONS

1. Sprinkle the chops with salt and pepper on both sides, more if you want. (Let sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes) * Grilling a cold chop isn't wise, the cold in the center of each chop will prevent it from cooking through well.

2. When ready for the hot grill, place chops on to the grill, and let it sit for about 5 minutes, making sure the flames don't burn the chops. After 5 minutes, sprinkle some garlic powder on the chops before flipping. Then flip, and cook for another 5 minutes. Use an instant read thermometer and stick it into the center of each chop, if the reading is at least 145 to 150 remove from heat, sprinkle more garlic powder and let sit before serving. If it isn't 145 f continue to grill until the insides reach that.

Too many people overcook a pork chop and it becomes totally dried out, but if the heat penetrates the chop, that's the key... it should be safe to eat. There's a misconception, if the pork is pink it's no good. Well if it is totally red, then no good, but if that thermometer reads at least 145 f, it's good to go, and serve hot.

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MARTIN YAN CAN

I'm in a lazy mode, it's the night after Thanksgiving 2016, and I just ate another full plate of turkey with gravy, apple pie and a Coke, so as I'm thinking of something to write, well.. I can't.

So why don't we watch one of my favorite chefs, Chef Martin Yan as he cooks us something really delicious. Thank God for Google and Youtube the company that drives my blog, I can post a lot of videos for your culinary entertainment. In fact, I should just be hosting Youtube videos on cooking. How's that? Yay? Okay.... let's watch chef do his thing.

PEKING DUCK DINNER!

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SHREDDED CHICKEN MAKES MANY MEALS

Shredded chicken meat can make a lot of delicious meals. Cook it, and shred it, refrigerate it, and heat it up later, or not... you can use cold cooked shredded chicken meat to make chicken salad. Yay!

PIC FROM GOOGLE.COM

Here's how to make shredded chicken. it's very easy. You can use dark meat from the chicken like the legs and thighs, or the white meat from the breast meat, or do what I do, and that's to shred a whole chicken. Just take a whole chicken, rinse it off, and take out the stuff from the cavity of the bird.

Place the bird in a pot of boiling water, and cover it, simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. Cool, and using a knife, remove the legs, separating the drum from the thighs, and removing the meat. Break the meat apart with your fingers and just hand shred it, or use a fork and beak the meat apart. No matter how you do it, cover the meat, and refrigerate it, and use it when you are ready.

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Chicken Salad

Use your shredded chicken to make chicken salad, just chop up the meat a little finer, add some minced onions, salt and pepper, and some mayonnaise and mix it up, I swear it will taste better than canned chicken or canned tuna, Yay!

Chicken Stir Fry

Just heat up a fry pan or wok with some cooking oil, add some garlic and ginger, and toss that meat in there, stir it around, add some soy sauce, oyster sauce, minced scallions, you are good to go baby... Yay!

Fake Roasted Chicken

Fake? Yes. Fake in a good way. Just heat up some shredded chicken in a pan, with some oil and garlic, then add in some canned or bottled brown gravy, oh yeah, simple is king man! Who wants to slave roasting a bird? I don't. I did enough cooking.... well that's debatable, but I'm a lazy ass..haha. Fake Roasted Chicken is all Yay Yay!!!

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So as you can gather, shredding some chicken tonight for some future use is totally a good thing. You hungry? Hey you can snack on some shredded chicken, make any kind of snack with it. Place it on some French bread with some garlic butter and stick it in the toaster oven. There's a lot of things you can do with it, get creative.

Until next time Ron

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