December 26, 2024

GCH: What’s on Your Plate? Fish Tacos

January 9, 2013 by

 Fish Tacos

Ah, the humble fish stick.  When I was a kid, my favorite meal was fish sticks, macaroni and cheese, and whatever green vegetable was riding shotgun.  I still love fish sticks, and so do my kids.  And while they’re terrific with tartar sauce, sometimes it’s fun to take the familiar and shake it up.  And that leads us to – Baja-style Fish Tacos!

These tasty treats may be unfamiliar to you if you’ve never visited Southern California or farther down south, into the Pacific Coast of Mexico.  Fish tacos in Southern California are part of surf culture, the favorite food of stereotypically blonde, tan dudes with surfboards who say “gnarly” and wear shorts year round.  And while they’re pretty easy to find in my neighborhood, they probably aren’t in yours.  So make ’em yourself!

There are a few basic, mandatory components to the fish taco.  First is corn tortillas – save the flour tortillas for burrito night.  Next is the fish: regular fish sticks will work, as will the larger fillet-style pieces, but you definitely want the crunchy breading.  Also important are the cabbage and cilantro – regular old green cabbage, sliced as thinly as possible (but not shredded like in coleslaw), and plenty of leafy cilantro.  Last comes a big squeeze of lemon or lime.  I like the “crema” listed in this recipe, but you can also use regular tomato salsa too.  After these ingredients, you can add more to suit your taste – diced onion, avocado, even shredded cheese.

Are you ready to do this?  Cowabunga!

Fish Tacos

Ingredients:

  • 1 package fish sticks
  • 1 package small yellow or white corn tortillas
  • 1 small head cabbage
  • 1 bunch cilantro (use the rest to make the Fajitas Salad!)
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 2 tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt
  • 1 large lemon or lime
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • salsa, avocado, cheese, green or red onion, or whatever else you like on your tacos

Directions:

  1. Bake the fish sticks according to the package directions.  While they are cooking, slice the cabbage as thin as possible.  If you have a food processor, you may want to try that.  Wash the cilantro and remove the tough stems.
  2. Prepare the crema:  Whisk together the mayo, sour cream, and the juice of half the lemon.  Stir in the cumin and refrigerate until ready to use.  If it’s too sour for you, add a dash of sugar.  You can also add tabasco or a little chipotle right to the crema.  Or, my favorite, if you have any leftover dressing from making the Fajitas Salad, use this in place of the crema!
  3. Wrap as many tortillas as you need in a damp dishtowel.  Place the dishtowel between two plates to seal it up, and microwave for 30 seconds.  This gets them hot, flexible and delicious!
  4. To assemble:  Lay out your tortilla (some people use two at a time, which keeps it from ripping or falling apart) and spoon a little crema on the bottom.  Top with fish sticks, sliced cabbage and plenty of cilantro.  Squeeze a little lemon on top, and add any other optional ingredients you like.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

Please visit me at Frugal Girlmet for more unique recipes!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? – Tex-Mex Casserole

January 4, 2013 by

tex

Tex-Mex is one of my favorite kinds of food. It’s typically easy to throw together, delicious, and is hearty enough to satisfy the Mr. (Who happens to give this two thumbs up!)

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb. ground chuck
  • 1 bag frozen corn
  • 1 bag Southern style hashbrowns (the cubed potatoes)
  • 1/2 lb. Velveeta, cut into large cubes
  • 1 pkg. Taco Bell Taco Seasoning Mix
  • 1/2 c. water
  • 1 bottle Taco Bell Mild Restaurant Sauce

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Cook ground chuck in a large pot. (I use a 6 qt. pot.) Cook until done, but do not allow to overcook. Drain meat.
  3. Add Velveeta, water, and taco seasoning mix to the pot.  Heat on medium, stirring occasionally, and allow cheese to melt a bit. (About 5 minutes.)
  4. Add corn and potatoes to the pot. Mix well. Allow to cook for 3 or 4 minutes.
  5. Add 1/3 c. mild sauce to pot. Mix well.
  6. Remove from heat and transfer to a 9×13 baking dish.
  7. Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes.
  8. Remove foil, stir, and return to oven to bake for an additional 15 minutes (until it is heated through.)
  9. Drizzle with mild sauce and serve.

Notes:

  • To make this stretch for another person or for the hubby’s lunch the following day, I add an additional pound of ground chuck to the recipe. It bulks it up a bit without sacrificing the taste or having to double ingredients.

Praise God! Let’s eat!

Shandy

Be sure to visit Shandy’s personal blog Aprons ‘n Pearls for recipes, crafts, homekeeping tips & more!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? Japchae (Korean Noodle Salad)

January 3, 2013 by
Japchae – (Korean Noodle Salad) by Dana KimJapchae - Korean Noodle Salad

Happy New Year!  Do you have any fun New Year traditions?  I think it’s fascinating to learn about different cultures, and traditions and foods are a wonderful insight into other people’s way of life.  For instance, my Mom used to make a pork roast with sauerkraut and mashed potatoes on New Year’s Day, as it is the Pennsylvania Dutch “good luck” food for the new year.  I never knew why, but a little research uncovered this bit of trivia:  Pigs root forward, while chickens and turkeys scratch backwards, so eating pork is a symbol of positivity and looking forward to the good things in life.  We always spend New Year’s Day with my Korean in-laws, so I am learning about Korean “good luck” food too!

Like many other Asian cultures, Koreans eat long noodles for good luck to symbolize a long life.  And my favorite Korean noodle dish is Japchae!  Pronounced “Jop Cheh”, it translates to “a mixture of vegetables”, and along with the noodles and a sesame dressing, that’s about it.  My mother-in-law always makes it with a little bit of beef in it, and that makes it even more filling and delicious.

The two things you’ll need to buy at the Korean store are the noodles and the mushrooms.  The noodles are called “dangmyeon” and are clear noodles, made from sweet potato starch.  They’re very pretty, but don’t have a lot of taste on their own.  (If you can’t find them, I suppose you could try this with another noodle – I won’t tell on you!)  The mushrooms are dried shiitake mushrooms.  They can be pricy in American stores, but in Asian markets, they are easy to find and inexpensive.

Japchae is served warm or at room temperature.  I like the leftovers for breakfast – I just warm it up in the microwave for 30 seconds.  May these noodles bring long life and good luck to you and your family in the New Year!

Japchae

Ingredients:

  • 4 ounces beef, sliced as thin as possible into small bite-sized strips
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 10 dried shiitake mushrooms
  • 2 bunches spinach, tough stems trimmed and washed well
  • 2 large carrots, peeled
  • 1 small onion, sliced very thin
  • 1/2 package sweet potato noodles, about 6 oz.
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil, maybe a little more
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

Directions:

  1. Prepare meat:  Heat sauté pan and add a tablespoon of sesame oil.  Add meat and 3 cloves minced garlic and cook until done.  Remove from heat to a very large mixing bowl, and add 1 tablespoon soy sauce.  Set aside.
  2. Prepare mushrooms:  Place mushrooms in a bowl and cover with boiling water.  Place a plate on top to keep the heat in.  Let the mushrooms steep and rehydrate for about half an hour.  When they are rehydrated and soft, slice thinly.
  3. Prepare spinach:  Boil a large pot of water, and get an ice bath ready.  Blanch the spinach for about 15-20 seconds.  Remove spinach to ice bath, but keep the water boiling on the stove for the noodles.  When the spinach is cool, squeeze out the water, but don’t crush the spinach.  Add to the bowl with the meat and stir to combine.
  4. Prepare noodles:  Put the noodles into the boiling water you used to cook the spinach in, then turn off the heat.  Leave the noodles in the pot for ten minutes, then drain, and add to the meat and spinach.  Toss to combine.
  5. Prepare carrots, onions and mushrooms:  Peel carrots and cut into 2-inch lengths, then slice as thinly as possible into match sticks.  Heat sauté pan, add 1 tablespoon sesame oil, and cook sliced carrots, sliced onion, the mushrooms, and the remaining garlic until the onions are soft.  Remove from heat and dump it all in the bowl with the meat and noodles.
  6. Sprinkle with sugar and remaining soy sauce and toss again to combine.  Shake on some sesame seeds and taste.  You may need a bit more soy sauce or a little more sesame oil.  What you are looking for:  balanced umami perfection!

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

Find more recipes from Dana, Korean and otherwise, at Frugal Girlmet!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? – Norwegian Fattigman “Poor Man’s Cookie”

December 30, 2012 by

fattigman

A few weeks ago, I posted a delicious recipe for Scandinavian Spritz and talked about the “syv slag kaker til Jul,” the seven cookies of Christmas. (You can click HERE to go to that post.) I am back this week with a second, and my favorite, Norwegian Christmas cookie… fattigman!

Fattigman is an ages-old Norwegian cookie that translates to “Poor Man,” and was named so either because purchasing all of these ingredients would’ve cost someone in the old country quite a bit of money, leaving them “poor,” or because sugar was so expensive in Norway that even a poor man (or woman) could afford to make these, since there isn’t much sugar used in these cookies. I’ll let you decide which version of the story you like better, but I grew up hearing the first version, and I’m sticking to it 😉

The recipe(s) for fattigman was brought to America by Norwegian immigrants in the 1800’s… my family included. Christmas just isn’t Christmas without these on the table, and they quickly disappear once put out! They’re traditionally rolled out, then cut using a fattigman roller. My grandmother, however, rolled them out and cut them in triangles, so that’s how we’ve always made them… no special cutter required! I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 4 T. heavy whipping cream
  • 3 T. powdered sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
  • 1 T. brandy (optional)
  • 1/2 tsp. grated lemon rind
  • 1 1/2 – 2 c. flour
  • lard for deep frying

Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients together, stirring in flour until dough becomes thick enough to knead. Dough will be slightly rubbery.
  2. Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours.
  3. On a floured cutting board, roll out dough (small pieces at a time) to 1/8″ thick.
  4. Cut in triangles.
  5. Fry in lard, which has been heated to approximately 350 degrees (F.) Dough will rise to the top. Turn dough over with tongs and fry to a very light golden brown.
  6. fattigman fryingRemove from lard and place on a cookie sheet covered in paper towels.
  7. Generously sprinkle both sides of cookies with powdered sugar.
  8. Store in airtight container on counter or in pantry.

Notes:

  • This goes much faster with 2 people making the fattigman. One person to roll out and cut cookies, and one person to fry them.
  • The cookies are very fragile (and VERY yummy!)

Praise God! Let’s eat!

Shandy

Be sure to visit Shandy’s personal blog Aprons ‘n Pearls for recipes, crafts, homekeeping tips & more!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? Tonkatsu (Japanese Pork Cutlet)

December 20, 2012 by

pork-tonkatsu

Don’t let the name fool you – there’s a good chance you’ve had Tonkatsu before.  A staple of Japanese restaurants, this pounded, breaded and fried pork cutlet is a crunchy counterpoint to rice and Miso soup.  Another place you may have come across Tonkatsu is on vacation!  Tonkatsu is the most popular choice on Hawaii’s “plate lunch” menus, served alongside rice and macaroni salad.  If you are still unfamiliar with this deep-fried Asian delicacy, don’t give up – it is incredibly easy to make at home, and it’s just as tasty and satisfying as a bowl of potato chips!

The only ingredient you may not have in your pantry is panko.  Panko is Japanese breadcrumbs, and it’s what takes this dish from Shake-and-Bake to “Arigato!”  You can find it in your grocery store if it has an “Asian” section, or at any Whole Foods or Japanese market.  Aside from making Tonkatsu and Tempura so delicious and crispy, I use it in place of regular breadcrumbs on top of casseroles.  It stays fluffy and crunchy and doesn’t get soggy.  Trust me and use it on top of baked macaroni and cheese – fantastic!

As far as serving Tonkatsu, you have a lot of options.  There are many brands of Katsu sauce (katsu is the name of the preparation, so you could make chicken katsu, ground beef katsu, even ham katsu, if the mood struck), but through much arduous research and hours of scholarly pursuit, I found you can easily make it at home.  (Just kidding – I read the ingredients on all the bottles!)  I’ve included my take on Katsu sauce, but you can also serve it with other Asian sauces – Citrusy Ponzu sauce, Sweet and Spicy Chinese Plum sauce, or like the Hawaiians, with a bottle of fiery Sriracha at hand!

Don’t feel like Miso Soup as an accompaniment?  Don’t worry.  Serve Tonkatsu with a green salad and pasta.  Serve it Korean-style, with banchans, kimchee and rice.  Get wacky and serve it on a roll as a sandwich!  Next time I make it, I’m serving it club-style on wheat bread, with lettuce, avocado, and maybe a jury-rigged spicy mayo.  The sky’s the limit; get frying!

Tonkatsu

Ingredients:

  • 4 thin-cut, boneless pork chops
  • salt and pepper
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
  • oil for frying – I’ve used grape seed oil, plain vegetable oil, and the best was rendered bacon fat!
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 1 teapoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar or honey

Directions:

  1. Prepare your pork chops:  If they are thicker than 1/4-inch, lay them out on a piece of plastic wrap, and pound with a meat tenderizer.  You want them flat and pounded down to a 1/4-inch thickness, and you want to try to get it as even as possible, so the cutlets cook evenly.  Trim any excess fat and season with salt and pepper.
  2. Make a breading station:  in one bowl, add the flour; in a second bowl, beat the egg with a teaspoon of water; and in a third bowl, pour in the panko.
  3. Heat the oil in a small pan – cast iron works really well here, but whatever you have is fine.  Smaller is better because it means you can use less oil and fry the cutlets quicker.  You want about 1/4 cup of oil, so that it will come about halfway up the side of the cutlet, but adjust the amount of oil depending on the size of your pan.  While the oil is heating, prepare your first cutlet:  dredge in flour, dip in egg, then coat in panko, pressing it to make it stick and ensure even coverage.  Lay the cutlet gently in the hot oil – careful for splatters!  Now is a good time to wear an apron!  Cook for about 3 minutes, and flip when the bottom is medium-golden brown.  Cook the other side for about 2-3 minutes.  These go from underdone to too-dark pretty quickly, so no wandering away!
  4. Prepare the rest of the cutlets the same way, adding more oil if necessary, adjusting the heat so the cutlets brown but not burn.
  5. Make the dipping sauce:  stir together the ketchup, soy sauce and sugar or honey.  Add a few drops of hot sauce if you like, or a bit of hot mustard if you like.  In the photo above, I added some minced onion.  Drain the oil from the tonkatsu on a paper towel-lined plate, and sprinkle with salt.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

Find more recipes from Dana, Asian and otherwise, at Frugal Girlmet!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? – Old-Fashioned Chocolate Fudge

December 15, 2012 by

fudge

There is nothing like summer on Mackinac Island. The no cars rule (you get around by bicycle or horse!), the beautiful Victorian homes, the Grand Hotel’s porch, the lilacs, the quaint downtown, and the FUDGE. Ryba’s Fudge Shop has made me a fudge snob. There is nothing in the world like it, and believe me… I’ve tasted a lot of fudge from a lot of places and have tested several recipes, looking for something that comes close, and this recipe comes the closest! Some of my taste testers have even said it’s the best fudge they’ve had. While it’s not Mackinac fudge, I sure enjoy it, and hope you do too!

Ingredients:

  • 4 ounces baker’s unsweetened chocolate
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 3 1/4 Tblsp light corn syrup
  • 4 cups baker’s ultrafine sugar
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 3 1/2 Tblsp salted butter, melted

Directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and chocolate on low until melted, stirring occasionally.
  2. Add salt, corn sugar, and syrup to the saucepan, and gradually increase heat until boiling while stirring constantly.
  3. Once it reaches a boil, stop stirring, and allow to boil until it reaches 234 degrees F on a digital/candy thermometer.
  4. As soon as it reaches 234 degrees, remove the saucepan from the burner, then add in the vanilla and melted butter. Do not stir.
  5. Allow to cool in the pan to 110-115 degrees.
  6. Butter an 8″ cake pan. Bottom and sides.
  7. When fudge reaches  the correct temperature, stir for 14-18 minutes with a wooden spoon. It will become thick and lose its glossiness.
  8. Pour fudge into cake pan and smooth top.
  9. Allow to cool in the refrigerator. Once fudge is completely cooled, cut into small squares.

Praise God! Let’s eat!
Shandy

Be sure to visit Shandy’s personal blog Aprons ‘n Pearls for crafts, recipes, homekeeping tips & more!

 

 

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? Korean Banchans

December 6, 2012 by

Spinach Banchan

If you read my post last week for Dubu Buchim (Korean Pan-Fried Tofu), you’ll remember that a Korean meal has many components:  the rice, kimchee, main dish, and the banchans.  Banchans are little dishes, meant to be shared, and are usually vegetable-based.  Today I’ll show you how to make two very easy banchans:  spinach banchan and a cucumber salad.

For the spinach, you can buy whole spinach, which is the cheaper option, or a bag of washed and trimmed spinach salad – it will cost more than whole spinach, but the upside is that the roots and sand have been removed for you!  This spinach banchan is also a component in several other Korean dishes, including kimbap, japchae, and bibimbap.  (We’ll get to those later!)  For the cucumbers, you’ll want to look for small cucumbers, often called Persian cucumbers.  They have thin skin and very little seedy pulp in the middle.  You could also use a regular English cucumber, or a hothouse cucumber, but you may want to take off some of the skin if it’s waxed or feels tough to you.  Also, the cucumber banchan calls for a pinch of Korean dried peppers.  If you don’t have these in your pantry, you can use crushed red pepper (like the kind used in Italian cooking or on pizza) or even a little cayenne.  It won’t be the same, but you’ll get the idea!

Both of these banchans are best made fresh, and won’t last in the fridge more than two or three days.  Make a batch, cook some rice, and  practice your chopstick skills:  it’s dinner time!

Spinach Banchan

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound whole spinach, trimmed and cleaned, or 1 large bag prepared spinach salad (9 oz.)
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
  • 1 green onion, minced

Directions:

  1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.  Prepare an ice bath:  a very large bowl filled with ice and water.  When the water boils, add the spinach, and blanch for 15 seconds.  You want all of the spinach out of the boiling water within 30 seconds at the max, or it will be mushy.  Remove from the water and transfer to the ice bath.
  2. In a medium-sized bowl, mix together garlic, oil, soy sauce, sesame seeds, and green onion.  Squeeze the water from the spinach – be firm, but don’t pulverize it!  Add the spinach to the garlic mixture, and using your hands, massage the sauce into the spinach.  (Korean housewives go through more plastic gloves than the school lunch lady.  I just get in there and don’t worry about the gloves.)  Let the spinach marinate in the sauce for about 30 minutes at room temperature.  Taste for seasoning – you can add a tiny pinch of sea salt or more soy sauce if you like.

Cucumber Banchan

Cucumber Banchan

Ingredients:

  • 4 Persian cucumbers, or one large hothouse cucumber
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar
  • pinch hot pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

Directions:

  1. Wash cucumbers, and if you’re not using Persian cucumbers, remove the peel.  Slice very thinly into coins and put in a sieve.  Sprinkle with the sea salt and let sit for 15 minutes.
  2. In another bowl, mix together oil, vinegar, sugar and pepper flakes.  Rinse the cucumber and squeeze out any extra water.  Add to the oil mixture and let marinate for 30 minutes before eating.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

Find more recipes from Dana, Korean and otherwise, at Frugal Girlmet!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? – Baked Spaghetti

December 4, 2012 by

Baked Spaghetti

This is a very simple recipe, but it tastes great!  It’s a nice solution for those weeknights after work when you’re wondering what to make with the pound of ground beef in the fridge.  You probably have all of this stuff in your pantry and fridge already, that’s one reason why I love it!  I found this online and then tweaked it because my husband and I are picky eaters…  I hope you enjoy! 🙂

What you need:

1 – 8 oz package of spaghetti, cooked

2 tbsp of butter

1 1/2 cups shredded Parmesan cheese, divided into 1/2 cups

1 – 8 oz package shredded cheddar cheese

1 – 8 oz package shredded mozzarella cheese

1 lb ground beef

1 jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce (the one I used was 24 oz)

13×9 baking dish

Cooking Spray

Pot or bowl for mixing spaghetti and butter

Spoon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray baking dish with cooking spray.

Brown ground beef, drain and mix with spaghetti sauce, then set aside.

Combine the hot cooked spaghetti with butter and stir until butter melts and coats the spaghetti.  Add 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, stir.

Arrange spaghetti in an even layer in the baking dish.  Then cover with the entire package of cheddar cheese and sprinkle that with 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese.

Cover that layer with the browned ground beef and spaghetti sauce mixture.  Top that with the entire package of mozzarella cheese and then remaining 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil cover and continue baking 15 minutes or until cheese is as brown as you would like.

Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Yum!! 🙂

God is great, God is good… let us thank Him for our food!

<3 Shauna

_________________

PS – you can also find Shauna on her personal blog, www.workhomeplay.net.

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? Dubu Buchim (Pan-Fried Tofu, Korean-style)

November 29, 2012 by

Okay ladies, are you ready to step outside the box?  Time to put on your Big Girl shoes, be brave, and try something new!  This is a recipe called Dubu Buchim (pronounced “Dooboo Boocheem”), which means pan-fried tofu in Korean.  It’s easy, it’s tasty, and it’s a perfect way to get your first taste of homemade Korean food.

If you read my previous post about stocking an International pantry, you may have already purchased a tub of gochujang.  That’s the red pepper paste used frequently in Korean cooking.  It’s hot, fruity, spicy, and complex.  You’ll need it for the sauce.  A little goes a long way if you are new to spicy foods, so when you make the sauce, start with only a teaspoon of gochujang.  Taste it and see if it needs more heat – you may like it so much you’ll want to add a lot more!

One of my favorite things about Korean dining is that, unlike a typical American meal of meat, vegetable and starch, Korean meals  have many components.  Steamed rice is always served, as is some kind of kimchee.  Then there is the protein – either meat, tofu, or fish.  And my favorite part is the banchan.  Banchan means simply “little dishes”, and these are small portions of vegetables and other side dishes meant to be shared: some pickled vegetables, some steamed, some in different sauces, little salads, kim (seaweed), noodles – the possibilities are endless!  Also, a soup is usually served, something light and brothy.  So instead of eating large portions of three things, you get to eat small portions of a dozen different things!

When you make this at home, don’t worry about making twelve different banchan.  Make some steamed rice, open that jar of kimchee you were brave enough to buy (and now try!), and serve with a spinach salad or steamed broccoli.  You’ll be so proud of yourself for trying something new, and may even find a new favorite cuisine!

Dubu Buchim

Ingredients:

  • 1 block firm or extra-firm tofu
  • 2 teaspoons sesame oil
  • kosher or sea salt for sprinkling
  • 1 heaping teaspoon gochujang
  • 2 tablespoons sesame oil
  • 1 clove garlic, finely minced
  • 2 green onions, minced
  • 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sugar

Directions:

  1. Drain the tofu, then squeeze it in between two plates to get out even more water.  Press firmly, but don’t crush the tofu.  Cut the tofu in half lengthwise, and then slice each half into eight equal squares so you have sixteen total.  In a large pan, heat 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and cook the tofu until golden-brown and crusty, about 7 minutes.  Flip and cook the other side until golden, about 5 minutes more.  You’ll probably need to do it in two batches.  Remove from heat to a plate lined with paper towels and sprinkle the tofu with salt.  You can be generous with the salt, since the tofu is very mild-tasting.
  2. While the tofu is cooking, make the sauce.  Simply mix the gochujang, oil, garlic, onions, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and sugar together.  The gochujang is kind of stiff, so you are really going to use some muscle to stir this stuff together.  You can do this next to the stove, since the gochujang gets a little smoother when it’s warm.  Now taste it – it should be balanced – not too spicy, not too salty.  You can add more oil or sugar if it’s too spicy.  To serve, spoon the sauce over the tofu.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

Find more recipes from Dana, Korean and otherwise, at Frugal Girlmet!

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GCH: What’s on Your Plate? – Cornbread

November 27, 2012 by

One of my dad’s signature recipes was his cornbread and everyone who tasted it wanted the recipe.  This is not a sweet or cake-like cornbread; it’s simple and savory and goes great with a big bowl of chili or stew.  You can make these in a muffin tin as I did this time or you can pour the entire batch into a cast iron skillet for one big pone of cornbread.  Either way, it’s delicious.  Also, my husband likes to crumble up a couple of pieces of cornbread in a bowl and pour some sweet milk over it like cereal 🙂

You will need:

1 cup self-rising flour

1 1/2 cups self-rising corn meal mix

1 3/4 cup buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

Large bowl

Large spoon

Small bowl and fork for beating the egg

Whisk

12 cup muffin tin or cast iron skillet

Butter or cooking spray for muffin tin or cast iron skillet

Butter for the top of the cornbread

Directions:

Mix all ingredients well with spoon and/or whisk.  Make sure to beat your egg in a separate bowl before adding to the mixture.  I’m not sure why, but I accidentally added it unbeaten to my mix once before and the cornbread did not turn out.  Then pour mixture into greased muffin tin or cast iron skillet.  Bake in preheated 450 degree oven.  If using a muffin tin, bake for 12-13 minutes; if using a cast iron skillet bake for 20 – 25 minutes.  Use a toothpick inserted into the cornbread to determine if it is done.  Toothpick should come out clean.  If the top is not brown when done, put under the broiler for a couple of minutes until brown.  Take out of the oven and butter the tops of the corn muffins or corn pone.

I hope you and your family will enjoy my dad’s cornbread recipe as much as we do!  Please let me know how it turns out for you!

God is great, God is good…. let us thank Him for our food! 🙂

<3 Shauna

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PS – you can also find Shauna on her personal blog at: www.workhomeplay.net.

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