Entries in seafood (8)
dumplings… or should i say jiaozi...
growing up, dumplings were always the best thing about some of the soups that my mum used to make. chicken and vegetable soup with fluffy dumplings was a comforting dream of a dish. i still occasionally indulge myself but all too often chicken stock and leftovers get turned into a healthier miso broth which is served with noodles.
however, i have a new plan – chinese dumplings! in honour of the recent chinese new year celebrations i have been looking east for inspiration and i made up a couple of batches of jiaozi. both were scented with ginger and spring onion but half were a combination of pork mince and prawn while the others were prawn and wood ear mushroom. both were served in broth made from good homemade prawn stock and both were delicious.
i’m now planning an afternoon making up several batches of dumplings which can be frozen and then quickly served in broth, steamed or shallow-fried. my cooking mojo is back, with a bang, and it’s all thanks to dumplings!
prawn miso soup with noodles, ginger and pak choi
finally! i have finally managed to take a photo of miso soup that looks vaguely appealing.
miso soup is something we eat often, in various guises, and i’ve been wanting to write about it for quite a while. however, steaming bowls of soup are tricky to photograph so it’s taken a while to get a photo i was happy with.
delicious and nourishing, it is the perfect healthy comfort food. as a result, this is my contribution to meeta’s monthly mingle which has comfort foods as its theme. meeta, i hope you like it!
miso soup is also very quick and easy to make and can easily be adapted to what you have in. this recipe has prawns as the star of the show but we also make it using chicken or, for a veggie version, a mixture of interesting mushrooms. give it a try or, if you’re already a fan, let me know which combination is your favourite.
abby
in seafood, foodblogging events, soup
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8 Comments
spring ravioli
cooking for friends who love food as much as i do is a real treat as it inspires me to push myself and try new things. couple this with the spring vegetables that have emerged and memories of the recent sunny weather (i hope it returns soon!) and i’ll happily spend a few happy evenings looking through recipe books and thinking up dishes to try out.
this open ravioli was delicious. asparagus, prawns and broad beans are always a winning combination (i particularly like them in a spring risotto) but they worked especially well here with the heat of the chilli, the zing of the lemon and the freshness of the mint and basil. the spinach veloute* (from a gordon ramsay recipe) added something wonderful, as its rich flavour held everything together.
despite the fiddliness of this dish - having to keep everything hot and then plate it up as quickly as possible, without burning your fingers too much, so it arrives at the table with some warmth (piping hot plates are a real life-saver) – i think i’ll be trying out variations of this idea.
this dish is my contribution to presto pasta nights, as hosted by ruth at once upon a feast.
abby
in pasta, seafood, foodblogging events
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9 Comments
cooking with guo yue
on wednesday i spent a wonderful 4 hours at divertimenti’s chinese cooking with fish and seafood masterclass. our teacher was guo yue, a self-styled musician, composer, author and cook.
there were 8 of us in the class and the recipes for the day were:
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sesame prawn on toast
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fragrant pearls: steamed scallops with coriander and chilli
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handmade noodles with lobster and asparagus
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hot sichaun butterfly prawns
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hong shao yu (red stewed fish)
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steamed transparent dumplings with fresh salmon and chinese chives
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steamed rice inside a lotus leaf with fresh shrimps and chinese mushroom
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abby
in fish, classes and courses, seafood
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2 Comments
prawn and asparagus hot & sour soup
whenever we have fresh prawns i peel and devein them and put the rinsed shells back into the freezer ready to make prawn stock.
this week it was time to pull the numerous small bags out the freezer and start making stock… prawn stock is very easy to do – chop and fry, in a small amount of vegetable oil or butter, some onions, carrot, garlic and chilli. add the prawns shells and when they are coloured add boiling water and some parsley. boil for 20-30 minutes, drain and leave to cool. remove any fat and then your stock is ready to use.
this soup was a light supper and the stock a good alternative to a miso-based stock.
