Thursday Dinner: Roasted chicken, spring onion, and red potatoes

This is one of those quick, easy recipes that are perfect for weekday dinners. Nice thing about it is, everything can be cooked together in the oven. Spring onions are sweet and great for roasting.

I placed chicken drums, spring onion (cut into quarters), and red potatoes (cut into quarters) in a casserole and coated them with salt, pepper, and olive oil. They were baked with 2 springs of fresh thyme (rosemary would be good as well) for 40-45 minutes in a 375 degrees oven.

I think it would have been better if I seared the chicken and potatoes before putting them in the oven. That would have created nice crust and cut down the baking time too. If you prefer white meat, you can use chicken breast rather than drums.

Wednesday: Beef and broccoli stir-fry

I wanted to try making stir-fry with oyster sauce and found this recipe. It was so good! I added mushrooms and bamboo shoot to the original recipe. It was actually a little sweet for me, so maybe the amount of sugar can be reduced.

Beef and broccoli stir-fry (for 4 people):
Beef shank (10-12 oz) - half frozen (if you put frozen meat in the fridge in the morning, it'll be half frozen by the time you come home)
Marinade mixture: Soy sauce (1 Tbsp); Potato starch (1 Tbsp); Rice cooking wine (1 Tbsp); Sugar (2 tsp)
Sauce mixture: oyster sauce (3 Tbsp); Soy sauce (1 Tbsp); Potato starch (1 Tsp); Rice cooking wine (1 Tbsp); Water (1 Tbsp); Sugar (2 tsp)
Sesame oil (1.5 Tbsp)
Minced peeled ginger root (1 Tbsp)
Diagonally sliced green onions (1/3 cup)
Water (1/4 cup)
Broccoli florets (3 cups)
Canned sliced mushrooms (15 oz can) - drained and rinsed
Canned sliced bamboo shoots (8 oz can) - drained and rinsed
Vegetable oil (1/2 Tbsp)

1. Slice beef shank as thinly as you can. Combine the marinade mixture and marinade beef shank in the mixture for 10-15 minutes.
2. Heat wok or pan over high heat with sesame oil. Stir fry beef until it's cooked but with some pink parts. Take the meat out.
3. Turn the heat down to medium. Add minced ginger and sliced green onions. Stir fry for 30 seconds then add water and broccoli florets. Put the lid on and steam for 3 minutes or until broccoli florets are bright green. Combine the sauce mixture.
4. Put the meat back in. Add sliced mushrooms and bamboo shoots. Turn the heat up to medium-high. Stir fry until there is no pink part in beef. Add the sauce mixture. Stir fry until the sauce is nice and thick.

Serve it over hot rice!

Tuesday Dinner: Chiles Rellenos gratin

This is not a usual weekday recipe. It takes a while to make, especially the part where you have to roast the chiles. Maybe there are some already-roasted chiles in the store... Anyway, it takes some time, but it's really really good. I made it over the weekend and kept it in the fridge.

Here is the recipe:

Chiles Rellenos Gratin

I didn't put corn or pine nuts, but it was still really good. I actually think both of those things would have added more texture to the dish though... I think also it would be even better if I put some rice in the stuffing. It's vegetarian, so if you want some meat, you can put ground beef or chopped chorizo.

Monday Dinner: Teriyaki fish with radish salad

Teriyaki fish is an easy and healthy dish to make that goes well with Asian salad.

Teriyaki fish (for 2 people):
Horse mackerel (2 whole or 4 fillet pieces) - You can use any kind of firm fish like tuna or salmon
Vegetable oil (1/2 Tbsp)
Rice cooking wine (2 Tbsp)
Mirin (1/2 Tbsp)
Soy sauce (1 Tbsp)

1. Combine all the ingredients except for the fish and vegetable oil.
2. Heat oil in a pan over medium high heat. Sear fish with the skin side down until it gets grill marks. Flip the fish and sear until it's cooked through.
3. Add the soy sauce mixture and cook until it thickens.

Radish is little bitter, so I marinated it with miso dressing.

Miso dressing:
Rice vinegar (1 Tbsp)
Soy sauce (1 Tbsp)
Canola oil (2 tsp)
Miso (2 tsp)
Sugar (1/2 tsp)
Sesame oil (1/2 tsp)

This Week's Menu and Shopping List

Here is this week's menu:

Monday: Grilled sanma dinner with celery kinpira
Wednesday: Herbed chicken breast with tomatillo salsa and queso fresco
Thursday: Beef and sugar snap pea stir-fry with hot and sour soup
Friday: Spring onion and sausage pizza

Shopping list:
Sanma/mackerel pike (2) - grilled sanma dinner with celery kinpira
Grated daikon radish (optional) - grilled sanma dinner with celery kinpira
Sliced celery (2 stalks) - grilled sanma dinner with celery kipira
Julienned carrot (2 small carrots) - grilled sanma dinner with celery kinpira
1/2 pound tomatillos (about 10 small) - tomatillo salsa
1 garlic clove - tomatillo salsa
1/2 to 1 serrano chile - tomatillo salsa
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro - tomatillo salsa
1/4 cup coarsely chopped onion - tomatillo salsa
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice - tomatillo salsa
3 (1-ounce) slices white bread - herbed chicken breast
4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - herbed chicken breast
3 large egg - herbed chicken breast, hot and sour soup
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled queso fresco cheese - herbed chicken breast
Cilantro sprigs (optional) - herbed chicken breast
Lime wedges (optional) - herbed chicken breast
Sugar snap pea, trimmed (about 1 cup) - beef and sugar snap pea stir-fry
Boneless beef shank (6 oz) - beef and sugar snap pea stir-fry
Beef broth (3 cups) - hot and sour soup
Daikon radish, peeled and cut into small sticks (about 1 cup) - hot and sour soup
Celery, cut into small sticks (about 1 cup) - hot and sour soup
Green onions, chopped (3 Tbsp or as needed) - hot and sour soup
Store bought pizza dough (1 package) - spring onion and sausage pizza
Spring onion (1 large) - spring onion and sausage pizza
Portabella mushroom (1) - spring onion and sausage pizza
Sausage (1 large) - spring onion and sausage pizza
Fresh thyme (2 springs) - spring onion and sausage pizza
Shredded mozzarella cheese (1/2 cup) - spring onion and sausage pizza


Recommendations for sides:
Grilled sanma dinner with celery kinpira - miso soup and rice
Herbed chicken breast with tomatillo salsa and queso fresco - roasted sweet potatoes
Beef and sugar snap pea stir-fry with hot and sour soup - rice
Spring onion and sausage pizza - salad with balsamic vinaigrette dressing

Things that may or may not be in your fridge/pantry:
Salt
Pepper
Soy sauce
Mirin
Rice cooking wine
Rice vinegar
Potato starch or corn starch
Garlic chili sauce
Sesame oil
Sesame
Chili pepper
Ground cumin
Ground red pepper
Olive oil
Vegetable oil