Gumbo revisited

The last gumbo was dry and weird, so this time it was by the Price brothers' recipe:
http://www.dr.dk/DR1/SpisemedPrice/Opskrifterne/Chicken_gumbo_m_krydret_poelse.htm

Details:
Fried chorizo and chicken with cajun spicemix (one I had around). Then made the roux. Let it turn nutty brown, and added the "holy trinity". Added spices and standard chicken stock, then meat, and simmered for half an hour.


Result:
THIS is gumbo! A little too spicy, and could have used more "body" in the taste. But it was good... Too much sauce though, but who cares. Ate it with wheat tortilla for dipping.

Spicy omelet

Just wanted to use some spare eggs and the rest of my smoked ham.

Details:
Omelet of 2 eggs and an eggwhite. A little milk, nutmeg, dried cilantro (I think...), poured over butterfried mushrooms and onion, and topped with aubergine in oil, and thin slices of smoked ham.
A small piece of bread on the side.


Result:
This was really tasty, with the nutmeg. Went well with the aubergine and the meat. Also, mushrooms are always great in omelet.

Dry Porridge

This was suppose to be a porridge, to see if I could make a savory porridge. Unfortunately, there was more mushroom than porridge, and too little water.

Details:
Finely chopped mushrooms and onion, fried with garlic, rosemary, thyme. Added stock, and then porridge. To add protein I added deer culotte chopped into cubes.. Topped with thyme, chili oil, piece of meat, and pecorino.


Result:
It was good, but next time there should be more porridge, or it should be blended with the submersion blender.

Kebab kabob

I don't care what is called what where, I'm calling this kabob!

Details:
Mango, chicken, tomato, and red onion on wood skewers, "grilled" on panini grill.
Simple salad with a dressing of mango chutney, extra roasted tahini, grated ginger, chopped chili, ketchup, chopped cilantro, and lime juice.
Inspiration: Mango-chicken kabobs

Result:
It was good, though took some time to grill. The dressing was really nice, like a variation of satay.

Hearts

Soon I will have to live on a really low budget, but that shouldn't stop me from getting my protein.
Therefore, in a search for cheap protein-rich food, I decided to try pigs heart.
This was made from this danish TV chef recipe: http://www.dr.dk/DR1/SpisemedPrice/Opskrifterne/Program_5_-_Krise_Med_Price/

Details:
Same as recipe. Yasmin rice, and cilantro on top, in lack of parsley. Also, used 38% creme fraiche. 18% could have done the trick if mixed with a little flour. But it is tricky to get right, and will taste slightly "worse".. Also, 1-2 tbsp of creme fraiche isn't THAT bad. 

Result:
This var really good! Maybe a little more than 70 minutes would have done the hearts good, making them slightly less chewy.

Another awesome israeli dish

At almost every meal in Israel, I was served a small salad. Usually of iceberg, cucumber, tomato, and bell pepper. On top of it was a typical herbal sweet/sour dressing (the kind we call "italian").
Also served often was bread with tahin-dip. This was "raw" tahin (just the very liquid paste) mixed with water, lemon juice, garlic, and salt.
Thought I'd make a slightly different salad, and use the tahindip as dressing instead.

Details:
Diced cucumber, sliced red onion, and chopped red bell pepper. Crumbled soft feta-like cheese.
Tahin-dressing, and topped with roasted almonds and cilantro. Also mixed in some cottage cheese to get it used, and eaten with a slice of dark bread on the side.

Result:
The cottage cheese did nothing for the experience, but the tahin is awesome! Also nice with something that didn't cater to the umami or sweet tastebuds. Very summer-like, for the grey weather.

Pretty purple, ugly eggs

So I realised that fried rice with eggs is really good... But I kind of made it the wrong way :(
Learned by it, however!

Details:
Glutinous purple rice, fried with red onion, chicken stock, and with an egg just mixed in. Added a little bit of red wine.
Topped with carrot and spring onion, for colors.

Result:
This did not work! Fried white rice with eggs and chicken stock is good. Probably with a squeeze of soy sauce, garlic, and maybe onion.
Fried purple rice with red onion and redwine is pretty, and maybe with beef stock and garlic, it would have been real nice. But the eggs in this dish turned green! :S And the taste wasn't that damn awesome. 

Shakshukaaaaa!

Yes, of course I should try with some israelian food :P

This is shakshuka. A tomato casserole with porched eggs on top. In this case topped with cilantro and salted soft fresh cheese.

Details:
Onion, bell pepper, chili, garlic, paprika, cumin, fried in olive oil. Canned whole tomatoes added, and simmered a bit. Eggplant fried for a bit in olive oil, then added to the simmering sauce. Eggs added on top for poaching, and lid was put on the pot.
For "cosmetic reasons" the eggs were taken up again when done, and the sauce poured into a suitable dish. Then eggs added back, and the dish topped with cheese and cilantro. Served with large "pita".


Result:
The dish was pretty good, and the different spicing was a nice different. Fresh cheese was a great addition to the dish, and I think I like cilantro again :) Only thing wrong was that the eggplants still need a little more time to get done.

Emptying the Fridge

This is from before I went on vacation. I had to use up whatever I had, so I felt like something umami and fulfilling...

Don't remember all the details though :(

Details:
A tomatosauce with mushrooms, peppers, onions, and chopped fresh tomatoes. Topped with grilled aubergines, which was then topped with roasted mushrooms and 1000 days gouda.


Result:
I don't know what does wrong when I try to make roasted aubergines.. They try out and get boring :/
Mushrooms, onions, and cheese are a sure winner.