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Super Easy Beurre Blanc

18 Oct

Beurre Blanc literally means “white butter” in French. It is basically an emulsified sauce made by combining white wine, vinegar and cold butter. Vinegar is sometimes substituted for lemon. It is perfect for fish, or any seafood.

Classis French Beurre Blanc does not have cream, however many chefs prefer to add cream in order to “stabilize” the sauce, so it makes it last longer when serving it at a restaurant Just like any protein emulsion, it will quickly separate and break if overheated or solidify if too cold. So, it is always better to serve it immediately after preparing.

It can be modified by adding flavored vinegar to it. This is what I did. I had some Tahitian Vanilla Bean Vinegar home, and I decided to make a Vanilla Beurre Blanc to compliment the beautiful Langoustine tail I had. Vanilla blends perfectly with lobster, it is a marriage from heaven!

I bought some fresh Spaguettini from the pasta restaurant by my house (actually cheaper than buying Barilla!) and made a wonderful Spaguettini with Langoustine Tails in a Tahitian Bean Vanilla Beurre Blanc.You can find very affordable frozen Langoustine tails at your local Costco or Trader Joes. I know it sounds so fancy and elaborate, but it is not! It is a super easy recipe to impress your friends next time you cook them dinner ! Enjoy!

Tahitian Vanilla Bean Beurre Blanc

Ingredients

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup white-wine vinegar (or any other vinegar you have, flavored or seasoned is better)

2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot ( or any type of sweet onions)

1/3 cup heavy cream; salt and pepper to taste

1 sprig of thyme

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces and chilled

Instructions

1) In a small sautee pan, boil the wine, vinegar, and shallot(or onions) over medium heat until liquid is reduced to 2 to 3 tablespoons, for about 5 minutes.

2) Add cream, salt, and white pepper and boil for about 1 minute.

3) Reduce heat to medium low, lift the pan from heat, and add one to two tablespoons butter, whisking constantly. Add remaining butter one piece at a time, whisking constantly and adding new pieces before the others on the pan have completely liquefied (the sauce should have a consistency of hollandaise), lifting pan from heat occasionally to cool mixture.
Remove the pan from heat, and season to taste with salt and pepper.

4) Pour sauce through a cheesecloth on top of a strainer into a serving container, pressing on and then discarding shallot and thyme. Serve immediately.

Langoustine

I bought one pound of frozen Langoustine Tails and let it thaw on my fridge for a day. The next day I patted the dry with a paper towel, and quickly sauteed them with some butter and salt. No extra seasoning required, because you don’t want any other flavors clashing with your wonderful Beurre Blanc.

Cook the pasta according to directions but turn the oven off one minute before ready so it is al dente(to the teeth). Scoop the pasta out of its water and place it on the Beurre Blanc Sauce so it finishes cooking on it for about one or two minutes.

Add the sauteed Langoustine, some grated Parmesan, and Bon Appetite.

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Gyoza dumplings – Pork Pot Stickers

16 Oct

Gyoza cravings!!!! I am always on a quest to find the perfect pot stickers; crunchy and toasted at the bottom, not overly greasy, and with a perfectly well seasoned filling…everytime I order them it always leaves me wanting for something better and I can’t seem to find any that I really love, so I decided to make my own recipe.
Super easy, and it yields so many that you can freeze them for up to months…

Ingredients

1/2 small head Napa cabbage, finely chopped (about 3 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
1 pound ground pork (not too lean)
3.5 oz bunashimeji mushrooms(beech mushrooms), minced
3.5 oz bunapi mushrooms( white beech mushrooms)*, minced
1/2 large or 1 small onion, diced
2 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
3 scallions, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sweet chili sauce such as mae ploy
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoon sambal oelek
1 tablespoon  sesame oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
gyoza (dumpling) wrappers
1/4 cup canola oil

Instructions

In a large colander toss together cabbage and 1 teaspoon salt. Set aside for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile in a large preheated skillet add one tablespoon of canola oil and one tablespoon of toasted sesame oil. Add the onions, mushrooms, ginger,sambal oelek and sweet chilli sauce. Add the garlic last and sautee for about 3 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Remove the cabbage from the colander and transfer it to paper towel or clean dish towel and twist to squeeze out as much water as possible.Transfer it to a large bowl, and add the pork, scallions, mushroom mixture and stir to combine.

In a small bowl, whisk together soy sauce and egg, then add it  to the cabbage,pork, and mushroom mixture. Stir in pepper and salt to taste.
On a clean and dry surface, lay out 1 gyoza wrapper, spoon 1 1/2 teaspoons filling into the center, them moisten the edges with your wet finger. Keep remaining wrappers covered with dampened cloth or paper towel.

Fold the wrapper to form open a half-moon shape. To seal, using thumb and forefinger of one hand, while holding it with the other hand,form 5 to 6 tiny pleats. Stand dumpling, seam-side up, on a baking sheet and gently press to flatten bottom. Cover loosely with dampened cloth or paper towel. Form remaining dumplings in same manner.

Keep it in the fridge until ready to cook or freeze for up to 2 months.

In large lidded skillet over medium high heat, heat oil . Add pot stickers arranging them in a circularpattern standing up in oil.

Cook, uncovered, until bottoms are pale golden, for about 2 to 3 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water then cover tightly with lid and cook until liquid has evaporated and bottoms of dumplings are crisp and golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Add more water if skillet turns dry before bottomsof potstickers are browned. Remove lid and cook, shaking skillet to loosen pot stickers, until there is no more steam. Remove from skillet with a spatula and serve pot stickers warm with dipping sauce.
Dipping sauce

1 cup soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Mix it all together and let the flavor blend for a couple of hours before serving.

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