Pumpkin Thai Curry with Shrimp

Recently, I borrowed a copy of the Beat Bobby Flay cookbook from my local library. Sorry, Bobby, but why buy the cow when I can get the milk for free? The book has some good recipes, and I was particularly attracted to the pumpkin red curry with seafood--but not as written. It seemed like it would be better as a soup, so I made the appropriate adjustments. Cuz that's what I tend to do.

I wondered what the warm spices (cinnamon, etc.) brought to the table and found that they transformed a Thai red curry to something more like a Massaman curry. I adore red curry, Massaman not so much, so if I make this again, I will leave out the cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg, perhaps replacing them with lemongrass and makrut lime. Bobby used eggplant and sweet potato in his version, but I swapped in regular potato for both. 

Supermarket red curry paste, like Thai Kitchen brand, is pretty mild, heat-wise. I had just received a shaker of McCormick's roasted garlic/cayenne/onion/pink salt blend and thought that would be a good way to boost the heat while also seasoning the soup. You all know how much I like chili crisp, and this stuff gives some good chili crisp vibes, only without the oil. I used a teaspoon in the soup, but added some at the table as well, which gave the dish just enough of a kick. I quite like this seasoning, and will be using it a lot. It comes in a ginormous container, too, which is useful.

Thanks for the recipe, Bobby. I won't be buying the book though.

Pumpkin Thai Curry Soup with Shrimp

I knew this would make far more soup than two people could eat in one meal. I didn't want to deal with rubbery shrimp in reheated leftovers, so I only added as many as I thought Mr Minx and I could eat at one time. The leftovers equaled approximately 5 cups, which I tucked in the freezer for future use, perhaps with chicken or another different protein. 

Soup:

1 cup coarsely chopped onion

Pinch of kosher salt

2 t extra virgin olive oil

1/2 t ground allspice

1/2 t ground cinnamon

1/2 t ground ginger

1/4 t freshly grated nutmeg

2 T Thai red curry paste (if you're using a supermarket brand, like Thai Kitchen, use 3 T)

1 15-oz can pumpkin puree

1 13.5-oz can light coconut milk

2 shrimp, chicken, or vegetable bouillon cubes; if using Knorr XL (double) cubes, just use one

2 medium new potatoes, peeled and diced

1 teaspoon McCormick Roasted Garlic and Cayenne Pepper with Onion and Himalayan Pink Salt, plus more for the table

1 t smoked Spanish paprika

12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

Garnish:

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, toasted

1/4 cup shelled pumpkin seeds, toasted

3 T pomegranate seeds

1 scallion, white and light green part sliced into thin rings

Plain yogurt, sour cream, or creme fraiche

Make soup: Saute onion and a pinch of salt in olive oil over medium heat until translucent, stirring regularly. Add the dry spices and the curry paste and stir to combine. Cook a couple minutes, stirring constantly, to toast the spices, then add the pumpkin puree and coconut milk. Add 3 pumpkin cans of water to the pot (about 6 cups) with the bouillon. Bring to a simmer and cook for at least 30 minutes, to allow the flavors to meld and develop. Add the potatoes; cook 15 minutes and test the potatoes for doneness. Once they are tender (might take a few minutes more), add the McCormick seasoning and smoked paprika. 

Add the shrimp and cook until they are pink and firm, 3-4 minutes.

Make garnish: In a bowl, combine coconut, pumpkin seeds, pomegranate, and scallion. 

To serve: Ladle soup into bowls. Dollop with yogurt and sprinkle on some garnish. Season with additional McCormick seasoning, if needed.

Makes about 2 1/2 quarts.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

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Nova Crisp Grain Free Cassava Chips

Another of my favorite products from the 2021 Fancy Food Show is Nova Crisp Cassava Crisps. I have been eating (almost entirely but not quite) gluten-free for two years now and find myself craving crispy things all the time. I love potato chips, but there are only so many chips this gal can eat! I already love cassava, and use cassava flour in baking all the time, so when I found these chips...wow! I was so excited! Nova Crisps are gluten-free, kosher, non-GMO, vegan, and air-popped, not fried. And they taste so good.

They are indeed crisp, and have a cool dish-shape, which  makes them the perfect vehicle for dips and
toppings. I've even used them to make mini ice-cream sandwiches! (I recommend the Sea Salt flavor for this...not sure the Maui onion, BBQ, or Vegan White Cheddar would work.) 

I've also used Nova Crisp Cassava Crisps on a charcuterie plate, as they are great with cheese, cured meats, and whathaveyou, but my favorite application has been as a vehicle to get things like tuna or egg salad into my mouth. 

I call these little guys, "Banh Mi Bites" because the flavors and textures reminded me a bit of one of my all-time favorite sandwiches, the Vietnamese banh mi. The tuna is spicy, with the natural fishiness of the fish standing in for fish sauce; the broccoli slaw provides a similar texture to the customary pickled carrot and daikon. You could probably use plain tuna mixed with mayo with added lime juice, garlic, and a bit of sugar to mimic the flavors of Vietnam's favorite dipping sauce, nuoc cham. Add fish sauce, too, if you want more umami, and hot sauce or a slice of fresh jalapeno for heat. A little diced cucumber wouldn't be out of place on these, either. 

Banh Mi Bites

1 pouch Starkist Tuna Creations Bold Red Curry with Coconut, Thai Chili, or Sriracha style

handful broccoli slaw or cole slaw mix

mayonnaise

lime juice

salt

cilantro

cherry tomatoes

8 - 10 Nova Crisp Cassava Crisps, sea salt or Maui onion flavor

Put the tuna in a bowl and add the broccoli slaw mix. Stir in a teaspoon of mayo or so to make the mixture creamy and season with lime juice and a pinch of salt. Throw in a little chopped cilantro if you like. Mound the mixture onto the Nova Crisps, garnishing with a quarter of a cherry tomato and a little cilantro. 

Serves 1.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

Posted on Minxeats.com.

Meatless Monday - Massaman Curry

While my favorite Thai curry is the red variety, Mr Minx favors Massaman, or Muslim-style curry. Because of the cardamom in the curry, it has a vaguely Indian-esque quality about it. Potatoes are another unusual ingredient in this hearty dish.

Recently, we prepared it with extra firm tofu, and added sugar snap peas and green beans as well. We used Maesri brand canned curry paste, some coconut milk, a splash of fish sauce, some tamarind, palm sugar, and lime to get a nice balance of flavors.

I still prefer red curry, but Massaman curry is always nice for a change.

Jack's Bistro

I've been wanting to check out Jack's Bistro in Canton for a couple of years now. I'd add it to my short list of places to visit during Restaurant Week, but Mr Minx never seemed to be interested. This time, however, there was interest, possibly caused by the term sous vide that featured prominently in two entree offerings. Finally an opportunity to try this technique that we've been hearing so much about!

According to their Web site, Jack's doesn't take reservations for small parties, so Mr Minx and I made sure to get there early one evening to guarantee a table. Wise decision, as there were several other parties interested in eating before 6pm. Immediately upon entering the corner rowhouse in which Jack's is located, I was confused. There's a vague hipster vibe to the place, but it's a bit muddled. Exposed brick walls were decorated with pseudo-retro 60s prints, and the B-52s were playing on the sound system when we came in. The servers all wore somber black, but the very effusive hostess didn't seem dressed for the occasion. What does this have to do with Three's Company, the 70s sitcom that inspired the restaurant's name? Or the very slick-looking black-and-white logo? 

Absolutely nothing. With logom on the menu, a Swedish street snack comprising a hot dog, shrimp salad, and mashed potatoes in a tortilla, let's call Jack's Bistro eclectic.

Chef/owner Ted Stelzenmuller was one of my fellow judges during a recent battle of the Mason Dixon Master Chefs Tournament. (Although I could see him through the pass, I didn't alert him to my presence.) After hearing his critique of other chefs' food, I was curious to see what he could do with similar ingredients. With that in mind, I made sure one of us ordered the sous vide duck breast.

But first, we started off with a cocktail and a beer - the Camden, made with rye and orange, and a Brewer's Art Ozzy.

And then appetizers. I vacillated between the poutine and the mussel salad, with the latter winning out.

Chilled Panang Curry Mussel Salad - Kimchi, mint and basil, Panang curry, coconut milk, roasted peppers, fried shrimp cracker 

This dish was an odd juxtaposition of Korean and Thai flavors, however both sides were successful. The curry could have been both hotter and fishier, but there was no mistaking the very Thai flavor of kaffir lime. The kimchi was nearly perfect to my tastes - more fresh than fermented - but it, too, could have been spicier. Each of the two elements would be a good introduction to Korean or Thai food for the novice.  Together, however, they seemed more competitive than complimentary.

Mac & Cheese & Chocolate - Shell pasta, 5 cheese sauce, dark chocolate

As suspected, this was mostly weird.  It is aptly named, however. This dish is definitely mac & cheese "& chocolate" and not "chocolate mac & cheese."

Despite its almost universal popularity, chocolate can't be added willy-nilly to just any recipe. Its distinctive flavor is sometimes hard to integrate, and it basically just sat on top of the pasta. While the chocolate was pretty obvious, the cheeses were a little more difficult to discern. The taste was pure cream, apart from a slight smokiness in the background. I would have liked the smoky flavor to be more pronounced - perhaps it would have allowed the dusting of dark chocolate to be better integrated.

By the time we finished the dish, the chocolate had melted and become part of the sauce. This worked a bit better, but overall the dish is mostly a novelty.

Bistro Crab Cake - Dijon and horseradish sauce, arugula salad, roasted fingerling and red pepper and onion

No complaints here. This was a solid, fairly traditional, crab cake with lots of crab and little binder. The fingerlings were perfectly cooked and piping hot, and the creamy mustard sauce was a pleasant accompaniment, although the crab cake was so good, it didn't need a sauce at all. I only wish there had been a little acid on the salad.

Sous Vide Duck Breast - White corn, sour cream sauce, arugula and cherry tomato salad

The duck was our very first taste of meat that had been through the process of sous vide. While visually gorgeous, the dish didn't thrill us. Duck is one of those very versatile proteins that can be eaten rare or long-cooked. It's fabulous seared, or roasted, grilled, or stewed. Duck is poultry, and has a similar texture when cooked to turkey or chicken, although I would say the flavor is unlike either. This particular duck breast, cooked sous vide, didn't seem very duck-like at all. In fact, the texture was terribly close to ham - squishy and pink all the way through. It didn't even taste like duck. And I like a crust on my meat, thankyouverymuch; if this is what sous vide does to it, well, I'll pass, thanks.

A crisp bit of skin might have helped, but we were denied that. The corn and sour cream sauce also didn't help. It was so bland, I had to taste it a few times to really notice any corn flavor. Mr Minx and I had some white corn recently that was completely flavorless, and once again I will wonder out loud why people in this region insist on eating this insipid vegetable.

The arugula and tomato accompaniment were fine, but a little too repetitious considering I had the same things on my plate.

Durian Creme Brulee - Traditional creme brulee made with durian fruit

Finally, we come to dessert, and the main reason I wanted to eat at Jack's during Restaurant Week: the durian creme brulée. Neither Mr Minx nor I had ever tried the stinking fruit and we were very curious. I half expected to experience the proverbial reek of gym socks when we walked in the front door, but alas, the odor was well-contained. So well, in fact, that raising the pudding to my nose and sniffing it gave no indication that it contained anything other than cream and sugar.

Our waitress described the dessert's flavor as being mostly like a normal custard but with a weird garlic/onion background, but, to me, the durian flavor was more akin to something rotting. Rotting in a somehow pleasant way. The more I ate, the more I liked it. Apart from somewhat runny custard (I'm a firm believer in chilling the custard after bruléeing, as well as before, to re-harden any melting), this was shockingly good.

Pink Peppercorn & Lavender Ice Cream - warm sugar cookie

And then we have Mr Minx's shocking pink dessert. While the first bite was rather like eating a bar of soap, the rosemary-meets-perfume-like flavor of lavender grew on us after several tastes. The fresh-from-the-oven sugar cookie, reminding me of a chip-less Toll House cookie, was dreamy.

Mr Minx went so far as to say this was his favorite dish of the night. But then he doesn't like ham.

So, Jack's Bistro. Interesting. Eclectic. A couple of pretty good dishes and a couple that had unreached potential. And sous vide duck. Despite the duck, I'd go back to try some of the items from their non-Restaurant Week menu, like the ground bacon burger, the poutine, and maybe even that hot dog with shrimp salad on top.

Jack's Bistro
3123 Elliott Street
Baltimore, MD 21224
410-878-6542

Charm City Chowhounds Dinner at Bangkok Garden

I've whined here on many an occasion about the dearth of really fine Thai food in my area. While most restaurants serve some variation on some of my favorite dishes - panang curry, tod mun, tom kha gai - the curry and soup are usually far too sweet and the fish cakes are greasy. So when given the opportunity to try dishes from the "secret" menu at Bangkok Garden, in Columbia, Mr Minx and I jumped at the chance.

We were not disappointed.

We started out with a trio of appetizer-type dishes.

Som Tum Thai - green papaya salad with marinated crabmeat. I really didn't notice much crab meat (although we did get a couple of random legs). I'd never eaten green papaya before, and I'm happy to report that it doesn't have the same vomitous pre-digested quality as the ripe stuff. However, the crab and lashings of fish sauce gave the dish a "garbage" essence. But as one of my dining companions, Kwan, put it - "garbage in a good way."

Yam Makheua Yao - warm salad of smoky grilled Thai eggplant. I loved this! The meltingly soft eggplant paired with red onion and mint in a bright citrus dressing was heavenly. I could easily have eaten a whole order myself.

Naam Prik Plaa Raa - fermented fish paste dip with sliced raw vegetables. This was my least favorite of the dishes. While it was tasty enough and not too fishy, it was difficult to eat as a dip, particularly with thin slices of bamboo shoot. It just didn't scream, "more" at me.

Next came the entrees.

Khang Som Cha-Om Kai Sai Koong - hot pot of sour red curry broth with shrimp and acacia omelette. This was simply delicious. I loved the bits of spongy omelette that had absorbed some of the rich, tangy, and tomatoey broth.  I scooped every last drop out of the hot pot because it was too good to waste.

Pla Muk Pad Kra Pow - squid stir fried with sweet basil leaves. This was very good, with fairly tender squid that had been scored in the traditional Thai style that leaves it looking a bit like ginger flowers after cooking. I thought the dish could have used a tad more basil, but the dish was a favorite around the table.

Panang Kai - red curry with chicken. Before this dish came to the table, I mentioned to the group that although I love penang curry, I find it is often too sweet. And such was the case at Bangkok Garden. Sweet indeed, but it still had a nice depth of flavor that put it above other such dishes I've eaten elsewhere. (But still no match for the aromatic perfection at Bangkok Place.)

Raat naa taleh - wide noodles with seafood. The components of this dish came in a thick gravy-textured sauce that was quite different from all of the other sauces; unfortunately I think the preponderance of sauce made the noodles soggy. This was, however, better than the too-tough undercooked noodles we had at Bangkok Delight last Fall.

We also had a dish of pork with garlic and white pepper. I wish they had brought a bigger portion for our table of 7 people because I enjoyed this one very much. It was simple and flavorful.

Finally, we shared a dish of perfectly ripe mango and still-warm sticky rice topped with a bit of coconut milk, one of my all-time favorite desserts.

Overall, I give this meal a pretty high score. I loved the variety, and the chance to try things I might not normally try. I had originally thought that the heat level would be incendiary, since we were ordering from a menu that was written in Thai, but found that the heat level was perfect for me. Ok, I gasped twice, but a bit of rice mellowed things out nicely.

There will definitely be trips to Bangkok Garden in my future.

Bangkok Garden
5810 Robert Oliver Pl
Columbia, MD 21045-3740

Meatless Monday

After so much recent carnivorousness, I thought it was time to try eating more veggies. I'd like to do a whole week of vegetarian dinners in the near future (when we get rid of the meaty goodness that is currently in the fridge) and Mr Minx thought it would be nice to try a Meatless Monday. So this is a Thai red curry he whipped up with various veg we had in the fridge and freezer, including onions, carrots, peas, and Italian-style green beans. Yum!