Why Restaurant Food is So Damn Good

Let's not start this blog post by dissing you or anyone who is a great cook in your family. This post is about why food at a restaurant is so amazingly good!

 We have all tried to replicate food we fell in love with at a certain restaurant, maybe even asked a reliable server what a secret ingredient was. But despite your best efforts your end result just doesn't turn out quite the same. It's 100 % not your fault, the restaurant definitely has its way and secrets that you might not know. I am here to give you a few tip on how to improve your home cooked meals. Make them taste more like you are dining out!

First things first, kitchen equipment is a special thing to behold! If a line cook showed you a sautee pan they use each night you might not give it a second glance. Maybe it deserves to go in the trash or repurposed as a wall decoration you say... In reality, the wear and tear of that pan has made it incredibly seasoned. Cooking a multitude of dishes 1,000's and 1,000's of times will make each dish taste better than the one prepared before! If anyone would argue that their own mother makes the best pasta sauce you take their word for it, cause her pan has become seasoned to do so! If you ever come across a commercial kitchen auction buy up those used sautee pans, they are like food gold!

Along the same lines as cooking equipment, flat tops and grills are another secret to making great food. Since kitchens can afford to keep grills and flat tops on for many hours a day, they are being seasoned with all kinds of meats and vegetables throughout the day. Many grills and flat tops are seasoned with oil soaked rags (oil that comes from the hot deep fryer),  which adds more flavor! Filtered oil from fried chicken can be kept and used a few times so that could be a good home option.

Next major thing is white wine. Many restaurants use white wine to season things such a fish, chicken and vegetables. It's an ingredient that you may not notice right away, but would definitely notice if it weren't there. It provides depth, slight acidity and fruitiness to things that need a little boost. Line cooks keep it in squirt bottles for easy access. Never use a wine for cooking that you would not drink yourself!!

Another tip I can give you is seasoning. Salt and pepper can make or break a dish especially when it comes to meat. An underseasoned steak is a huge no no in my book! But sometimes it's more than salt and pepper, some restaurants use a blend of things to give all of their dishes a more well rounded flavor. A simple mix of kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and white pepper can do wonders for just about anything. The amounts of each ingredient are totally up to your taste just don't go overboard.

My next tip is about that naughty ingredient we all know and love so much...butter. When butter is rendered and milk solids removed, it has a higher smoke point but all its glorious butter flavor. It's used to finish steaks, pastas, veggies and so much more. Going out to eat for some is a regular thing and for others it's a treat. Just know that a lot of places use butter in things and you have every right to ask for it not to be used, but why would you do something crazy like that!

My next tip is about meats, let's start with chicken. Chicken breasts often time come very thick at one end and thin on another. Cooks will take the hassle out of trying to cook an uneven piece of meat and pound it out to the same thickness. Not only will flattening the meat make your chicken cook fast, but it also retains all of its rich juices. Steaks are a whole different ball game. Steaks can often times be marked off in big batches, be kept raw in the middle and placed into a warmer box. They are marked off on the grill, placed into a warmer box, and all throughout the night can be pulled to cook longer on the grill or pulled at a perfect rare or medium rare temperature.While the steaks sit in the warmer they are bathing in a pool of garlic, butter and fresh herbs to make for a next level piece of meat. This is not ideal for all restaurants nor is this method all that common! Most steaks I have seen are grilled to order right then and there when the ticket is rung in.

My last and final tip I can give you is just to have a bit of knowledge about what you are cooking. Seems silly but when you are trying to time everything perfectly it helps to know how long things cook. Line cooks will often cook vegetables 70-80 % of the way through, shock them in ice water and keep cold until needed for an order. It's one of the last things that are cooked and are often times dunked in hot water, then finished in a pan with butter, white wine, salt and pepper.

I hope this helps anyone who is aspiring to cook more at home or needed a few tips! Many more tips to come, thanks so much for reading, have an awesome day!

New Foods and Drinks

Over the last year or so I have come across some interesting foods and drinks that I wanted to share! Some of them may be familiar to you, some are new, either way, food excites me and it deserves to be shared! Here are some things I have tried recently:

This spiky looking thing is called a horned melon! Although it looked intimidating, I had to try it. 

It's exterior is very firm, not unlike a watermelon, sounds hollow when you tap it, and hard to cut into. But once you get to the inside, it explodes!! 

It's as if the fruit inside is scared of you when it's cut into, it just runs everywhere! Never in my mind would I have imagined that it looked like this on the inside LOL! I had no idea how long to wait until it was "ripe" or what, so I cut into it the day after I bought it. The actual "pulp" if you will tasted very much like a bitter cucumber. So perplexing! I had no idea how to eat it so I went at it with a spoon. 

It didn't want to stay on the spoon, which made me have that much more fun with this crazy fruit. I had no intentions of letting the fruit go to waste though, I wanted to finish it! So I added a bit of sugar to it, and it took it to a whole different level. Now it tasted like a grape! How did it do that? LOL. Give this fruit a try some time. Have a sharp knife and a bowl ready! Oh and maybe look up online how long to ripen it! 

Next up is something that I have fallen in love with! Bubble Tea! A man in the mall has his own stand and I bought Bubble Tea from him just about every Saturday last summer. Here are two of my favorite flavors: 

The green one is kiwi boba and it was devine! Had a great balance of tart and sweet in it, and super smooth ice. The slushy made the pearls firm up a bit making them even more chewy, loved it!

This yellow one is pineapple! Oh so sweet and bright. Perfect way to cool off from a hot summer's day. 

Next up are these adorable jellies I found at an Asian food store. They came in a large bag with 4 flavors. I only have pictures of 3 because my sister and I ate a lot on the ride home LOL. 

These I actually ate at room temperature, just as they were displayed on the shelf. They aren't your typical American jelly/jello. They have a lot more bite to them. I think perhaps they had tapioca starch in them. There is just the tiniest amount of syrup with them too so you better open them on a flat surface! 

Here's a look at the jellies out of their package:

ADORABLE!! They have a swooping heart shape! Some are opaque and others are almost see through. Very fruity in flavor, they taste more like real fruit than artificially flavored fruit. Try these if you see them!!

Next up is a very yummy soda which I have loved since I was a small child. It's root beer! But not just any root beer, artisanal root beer! Hand crafted in Virginia and sold at farmer's markets all over. 

 

Look at this awesome packaging! It was a little sweeter than say IBC or A&W root beer, but still oh so bubbly and refreshing. I was one of those weird kids who ate those root beer barrel shaped candies. They have a slightly effervescent hint to them, yummy!! Anyway, this root beer has that great foam on top as if it were real beer too. I loved eating the foam off of root beer floats as a kid. 

Lastly is a more adult beverage. This drink I discovered at a french restaurant with my lovely mom and grandma. It's called Lambic, and it is a FRUIT beer. Sounds girly I know, but who cares! I am a girl and I like what I like! There are such a wide variety of Lambics out there I hope to try them all. But here are the two I enjoyed:

The one on the left is "Peche/Peach" and the one on the right is "Fraises/Strawberry". The strawberry was significantly sweeter than the peach, but they were both very bubbly. The peach was more savory and took on more beer personality. They had a slight head in the glass when poured, and were super refreshing. I actually had them served on ice but you can choose to do without. They come in a 12 oz. bottle and are corked in front of you. Great presentation and great taste. Please try one if you see it on a menu! 

Those are just a few things I have tried recently! I encourage all of you to try new foods, even if you end up hating it, it's all about the experience. I can't wait to post more things I try in the future, maybe I will try a creepy crawly or fermented foods LOL! Who knows! Take care and thanks for reading! 

Panzanella Salad

If you are a fan of any kind of Italian food, you will love this recipe.!! Italian cuisine has such a unique flare and take on fresh ingredients, but something that amazed me is their take on revamping boring old bread!!You know you are guilty of letting bread go stale, and you have no clue what to do with it! That hard brick that you let air out by accident cause your wine buzz got the best of you and you forgot to put away your left overs, mmhhmm, don't try and hide it LOL!! This salad recipe is so simple, refreshing, and in my opinion can be eaten year round. 

This recipe will vary among person to person, so please feel free to add what you like! Let's dive in shall we? This recipe has two parts: 

Ingredients for Salad

1/2 cucumber, diced
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
2-3 cups stale bread, cubed***
1/2 large red bell pepper, diced
1 cups fresh mozzarella/stick mozzarella diced
thinly sliced scallions for garnish

Ingredients for Tomato Dressing


1/2 pint cherry/grape tomatoes cut in half
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp chopped garlic
Salt/Pepper to taste
1 TBSP lemon juice
1 tsp, dried Italian seasonings


Directions

1.) Warm a nonstick skillet over medium heat. 
2.) Cut the tomatoes in half and chop your garlic. 
3.) Pour the olive oil into your pan and get it warm, then add the tomatoes and garlic. Sautee until the tomatoes release their juices. Cook just until their skins begin to wrinkle. Add in the salt, pepper, lemon juice and Italian seasonings. Stir together and remove from the stove. 
4.) In a food processor/blender, pulse the dressing to your desired texture. I like it very smooth. Taste it and make sure it's to your liking. 
5.) Add all of the dressing to the bottom of a large bowl. Pour in all of your diced veggies, cheese and bread on top of the dressing and toss to coat. This salad is best if allowed to sit for10-15 minutes so the bread softens up a bit. Toss again right before serving and top with the sliced scallions. 

This makes for a great dinner for two, or perfect as a side dish for 4. The prep work is simple and these ingredients are very easy to find at your local grocery store. You can use any short cuts you want in this recipe too like using bottled lemon juice, stick mozzarella, shredded mozzarella, frozen and diced veggie mix, what ever you like! If you really want to wow your friends or family, make it with the freshest ingredients possible, they are all fairly inexpensive. Please enjoy my recipe!! Thank you so so much!! 

****Cook's side note: I would highly suggest using an Italian bread loaf or sour dough bread for this recipe. Makes for a nice contrast against the vegetables and dressing. Please avoid using regular sliced bread, unless it's texas toast, you want the bread to be able to soak up the dressing without becoming complete mush. 

Also, I am working on taking photos of ingredients you will need before hand, what it looks like while I am preparing the dish and afterwords. Thank you for your patience!! 

Frittata

Weekend breakfasts for me are a treat, and I want to treat myself right with something cozy. This simple and tasty frittata is one of my favorites. I will say that this makes enough for 2-3 people (If eating other accompaniments or want a light breakfast), which I will gladly eat by myself if my hunger calls for it LOL. Here we go!

Ingredients:

4 Large eggs

1/4 White onion, thinly sliced

1 large red bliss potato, quartered and sliced thin

1/4 tsp. Chopped Garlic

2 TBSP. Bacon fat/Butter

Mixed shredded cheese of your choice

Salt and Pepper to taste

Parsley Garnish (optional)

Directions:

1.) Crack and whisk the eggs in a bowl, set aside. 

2.) Cut and slice the potato and white onion, set aside.

3.) Get a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add in the cooking fat of your choice. 

4.) Cook off the onions and potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook until lightly golden brown. Add in the garlic and stir to combine. 

5.) Pour the beaten eggs over the potatoes and onions. Stir so the egg goes underneath the potatoes and onions. Season with more salt and pepper to taste. 

6.) Reduce the heat to low and cover the saute pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes. Lift the cover and check if all of the eggs are set. Cook more if necessary. 

7.) Sprinkle cheese on the top of the frittata and cover again to melt. 

8.) Carefully slide frittata onto a large plate and enjoy immediately. 

9.) Garnish with fresh parsley if you so desire. :) 

You can eat this piping hot or at room temperature. Makes for a great breakfast or brunch item. 

Please enjoy and thank you! 

Veggie Stir Fry With Jasmine Rice

This is one of my favorite go to recipes! When I am looking to make something quick during the middle of the week this meal really hits the spot. This time around I am trying out something new. My grocery store offers bagged veggies ready to steam for only $1 per bag. I got two. This bag is a mixture of broccoli, red cabbage and carrots sliced very thin. I also made jasmine rice with this dish, it's so much better than plain white rice (not sushi rice, long grain white rice, BORING!). The rice makes it filling and the quick saute of veggies keeps them crunchy and full of nutrients. Here's what you'll need:




Ingredients
1/2 of a white onion, sliced thin
1/2 cut into match sticks, batonette***
1/2 yellow crookneck, cut into match sticks
1/2 bell pepper of your choice, sliced thin
1/2 rib of celery sliced thin lengthwise
1 bag mixed, sliced vegetables
1 large Handful of washed and torn spinach
1 TBSP minced ginger
1 large garlic clove, minced
Ponzu Sauce TT
Teriyaki Sauce/Soy Sauce TT
Sesame Oil TT or enough to saute veggies
Fish Sauce TT                                               
Pinch of white sugar
Pinch of red pepper flakes


Directions:


1.) Wash and prep the vegetables as instructed in the ingredients list. 
2.) Heat the sesame oil in a large skillet on medium. Once hot, add in the vegetables. 
3.) Stir constantly while you saute the vegetables for 3 minutes. Add in the seasonings to your taste at this point and saute for 2 minutes or to your desired level of doneness. 
4.) Right before switching off the heat, add in your minced ginger and garlic so they do not burn. 
5.) Serve over freshly steamed jasmine rice. 

 My current obsession in rice

  
     


Final result! :D 


















This dish serves 4. You can eat leftovers of this and not feel guilty about grease, too much salt or cholesterol. You add what you want to it, TT. Soy sauce and Ponzu sauce go a long way especially when it concentrates in the pan so go light!! The sugar adds a new depth of flavor by enhancing the lemon in the ponzu sauce.I really hope you enjoy this dish and thanks so much for reading! 




**Cooks side note: Batonette is a french term used in the kitchen referring to a style of cut (vegetables, fruits, meats etc.) The size of a batonette cut measures 2 inches long x 1/4 in. x 1/4 inch. It is from this cut that you can make small dice cuts. 

Mixed Vegetable Soup

 This soup features a lot of great veggies and can be turned vegetarian by swapping out only one ingredient! Please feel free to use what's available to you in your area or seasonally available.




For this recipe you will need: 


Ingredients: 
1/2 large white onion, diced small
1 medium zucchini, diced small

Stems from 1 pint of button mushrooms, diced small
1 medium yellow crookneck squash, diced small
1 & 1/2 cups broccoli florets, chopped fine
2 stalks of celery, diced small
1 cup of lentils (your choice really)
4 cups of water (depending on your taste, the less water, the thicker it will be. )
2-3 cups chicken stock/vegetable stock
Handful of fresh spinach
2 garlic cloves, diced fine 
1 pinch of Herbs de Provence**
1 &1/2 TBSP tomato paste
salt and black pepper to taste
Red wine Vinegar to taste




Directions:


1.) Wash and chop all vegetables (minus the spinach) and set aside. 
2.) In a soup pot, add in 2 TBSP of olive oil and warm over a medium heat. 
3.) Add all veggies (minus the spinach) and garlic to the oil and sweat for 4-5 minutes. Stir often to make sure they don't brown. 
4.) Add in the tomato paste, Herbs de Provence and mix. 
5.) Pour in lentils and toss to coat with everything in the pot. 
6.) Immediately pour in the chicken stock and the water. Mix to combine. 
7.) Cook until the lentils are soft and vegetables are tender, 10-15 minutes. 
8.) Season with salt, pepper and red wine vinegar to your liking. Wilt the spinach in at the last minute and serve. 

You could very easily puree this and the lentils will give it a nice thickness. Soups like this get better when they have time to sit, so it makes for great leftovers. Freeze in a mason jar and have it at your disposal for a sick/rainy day. Thanks so much for reading!! 

                               


**Cook's side note: Herbs de Provence is a french staple in the spice cabinet. This spice mixture is available at most grocery stores.  It may contain but is not limited to: Thyme, Basil, Fennel Seeds, Savory, Rosemary, Lavender and Tarragon. It's really popular in chicken dishes. Feel free to substitute this herb mix with Italian herbs if you do not have Herbs de Provence in your home. 




P.S: I am going to work on taking photos my prep work as I am making the food. I feel like it makes the work a lot easier on you all when you can see what I am doing throughout the whole process. Thank you! 

Japanese/Korean Inspired Dinner

2012 is off to a great start for me. I am proud to say I am eating healthier and creating more vegetarian options for myself. This meal I have created technically isn’t vegetarian because I added fish sauce in it, but please feel free to leave it out. I am in no way a vegetarian but it's nice to have the option. This meal I cooked for myself is Japanese and Korean inspired, I hope you try it for yourself. 

There are 3 parts to this meal: Vegetable stir fry, Korean seasoned cucumbers and jasmine rice. Here's the recipe for the vegetable stir fry. 

Ingredients

- 1 package bean sprouts, washed and drained (Sprouts of your choice, mung, soy etc.)

- 2 medium sized carrots, washed, peeled and sliced into thin 2 inch. strips

- 1 pint baby bella mushrooms, wiped free of dirt and quartered (you can use the stems too)

- 1 red bell pepper, sliced thin

- 2 roma tomatoes, deseeded and diced

- 2 TBSP toasted sesame oil

- 1 tsp. grated ginger

- 1 grated garlic clove

- pinch hot pepper flakes

- TT Fish sauce

- TT Teriyaki sauce

-TT Ponzu sauce

- 1/2 of an onion sliced thin ( I forgot to add onion but please feel free to use it here)

Directions

1.) Prep the vegetables as they are listed in the ingredients. 

2.) Separate the vegetables into 3 different bowls: Bean sprouts in one, tomatoes and carrots into one, and mushrooms, bell pepper and onion into another. 

3.) In a large skillet, warm up the sesame oil. Add in the tomatoes, carrots and hot pepper flakes. Cook them for 5 minutes, or until the tomatoes soften into a sauce. 

4.) Add in the mushrooms, bell pepper and onion and cook for 2 minutes. Be sure to stir every so often. 

5.) Finally add in the bean sprouts and liquid seasonings. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. 

6.) To prevent burning, add in the grated garlic and ginger at the end. Stir to combine for 30 seconds to 1 minute and remove from the heat. 

I apologize if the picture is dark, I am still getting used to this camera. As I said before, I left out onion in my stir fry but please feel free to add it. 


Moving onto the seasoned cucumbers, here is what you'll need: 

Ingredients:

- 3 large cucumbers

- 1 grated garlic clove

- 1 tsp. grated ginger

- pinch of hot pepper flakes

- TT fish sauce

- TT toasted sesame oil

- TT Black pepper

- Optional, scallion for garnish

Directions

1.) Add in all of the ingredients to a large bowl minus the cucumbers. You want to make it a little strong because the cucumbers will water it down slightly.

2.) Wash the cucumbers. (This is totally optional but I do it because it makes for a great presentation.->) Use a channel knife to score strips into the cucumbers. I save these strips and add them to the cucumber dish. 

2.) Cut off both ends of each cucumbers and throw away. 

3.) Cut each cucumber lengthwise and remove their seeds with a spoon. 

4.) Thinly slice the cucumber to look like half moons. (When they are scored, they look more like gears in a clock, kinda cool!)

5.) As you are cutting the cucumbers, add them to the large bowl with the sauce. Once all of the cucumbers and strips are added to the sauce, toss to combine. Allow them to marinade for at least 30 minutes at room temperature, or overnight in your fridge if you have the time. 

6.) Before serving, toss to coat once more and enjoy! 

In my picture, I left the seeds on some and others I didn’t. I wanted a variety. We eat with our eyes first after all! :D

Even though they have been marinated, the cucumbers retain their crunch. These are great served cold in the summer time! 

I drew inspiration for this recipe from two beautiful ladies I follow on Youtube, please subscribe to them if you are at all interested in Korean Cuisine. 

Maangchi - http://www.youtube.com/user/Maangchi

Aeri's Kitchen - http://www.youtube.com/user/aeriskitchen

Lastly we have the jasmine rice. As far as the jasmine rice goes, this always seems to work great for me! NOTE: You do not have to have a rice cooker, you can make this on the stove top. 

Ingredients

- Jasmine rice (I just eye ball the quantity for 1 serving but if you are serving a crowd, please measure.)

-Water 

- Optional, a pinch of salt or dried kelp 

Directions

- Wash the rice in a bowl until the water runs clean. Rice is notorious for sticking together and you need to get rid of the extra starch. 

- Pour the rice into a medium size pot and pour water over it. Pour enough so that 1/2 an inch of water is above the rice. 

- Bring the rice to a boil. Reduce to a simmer until almost all of the water is evaporated. 

-Fluff with a fork, put on a lid and remove it from the heat source. Allow it to rest for 10 minutes. 

If you want to time this recipe just right, make the cucumbers first. Their timing really doesn't matter. Then do the prep for the vegetables and then make the rice. Once the rice starts boiling, then cook the vegetables. They should finish around the same time. I really hope you enjoy these recipes and try them some day! Thanks for reading! 


Just a side note though, the cucumber side dish and the vegetable stir fry are very different in flavor so you might want to eat one first, and then the other. They are probably not meant to be on the same plate but I was feeling it The bell peppers are pretty strong and can make the cucumber side dish taste funny if you are eating both. lol. You have been warned!