4/3/07 | Leftovers: 3 Lunch Meals
[ Currently Eating: Coffee ]
The reason for this particular post: my digital camera is about to explode. It’s filled to the brim with pictures of FOOD leaving room for nearly nothing else. So every now and then I have to dump some pics that were meant to be future posts to make room. Instead of wasting the pictures (for the average Cheap Eats post I usually need to take about 15-20 photos - because I’m not an accurate photographer) I decided to lump some of them together in a Leftovers for Lunch post.
Actually, these don’t really qualify as leftovers but they were definitely lunch. They could probably slide under the “three dollar or less” bar as well if I had the time write up a recipe for them. But I’m not going to insult the intelligence of canny crustacean cookers with a recipe for the fried shrimp pictured above - this is like the first time I tried to make them like this. I’m a bit of a fried shrimp newbie. Still, you can make some pretty decent results with a deeper cast iron skillet. It ain’t like the restaurants, but then I don’t have a deep fry cooker.
In the past, I’ve either tried the flour / eggwash / panko (”Pawn-Ko” please, not “PAN-Ko”) method, or a slurry batter using tempura batter. Lately, I’ve been having fun frying things using an interesting corn starch /yam flour mix that they sell at the Chinese Market near me. It contains these tiny nodules of yam that when fried up get extra crispy - the in-laws use it on fried pork chops. You can sort of see the yam bits as bumps on the shrimp. I’ve also tried it on fish filets with some decent results. I didn’t use any egg at all for the shrimp, just a shake-n-bake method in a ziploc bag and then into the oil.
The part that takes the longest is de-shelling, de-veining and butterflying (if desired) the shrimp. You can buy it pre-processed, but it costs more - unless you happen to live in a place where they get fresh shrimp all the time.
Next up is Yaki-soba. If you’re thinking this looks like chow mein, then you’re mostly correct. The only big difference is that it’s fried with a Worcestshire sauce type of base, and they often sprinkle stuff like furikake and a greenish seaweed called “Laver” on the top.
I usually try and make mine by boiling up some fresh ramen (they sell it just like they sell fresh pasta, although you can use instant as well), draining and rinsing it and then re-frying it quickly w/ leftover pork or beef, veggies and a Worcestshire and soy sauce base. Nice fast lunch that uses up various leftovers in the fridge.
Last up is an attempt at grilled chipotle chicken thighs. I like opening up a can of chipotle chiles (basically smoked jalapeños) and using it gradually in various dishes throughout the week. They’re pretty spicy, so you only need to add one or two for a dish. I was trying to find a recipe for grilled chipotle chicken, but couldn’t find a really good one (if you happen to know one, please send it!)
I basically marinated the chicken in chipotle, olive oil, lemon, garlic, cilantro, sugar and salt, and then cooked it in a nonstick grillpan. It came out OK-looking, but there was something missing in the taste - probably because I only marinated it for 1/2 hour. I think next time I’d also try a few other spices like cumin or chili powder and marinate it overnight.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:41 am
An off topic comment from me, to say well done on creating an interesting and original idea for a blog. I’m quite often a cheap eater, myself. Gotta watch those pennies!
April 3rd, 2007 at 1:47 pm
The chicken actually looks really appetizing, especially on the plate. But the ALT text for the pictures confused me. I kept wondering why the last shot was “Laughing Out Loud” Chicken, then I realized what it actually stood for and felt like an idiot.
April 3rd, 2007 at 2:01 pm
justin - LOL… yep, as I was typing that I was thinking, I wonder if anyone will say anything about “Laugh Out Farking Loud” Shrimp, haha!
April 3rd, 2007 at 9:55 pm
The chicken looks awesome. Unfortunately I’m in a dorm room right now so my cooking is severely limited to microwave fare. I might try it when I go home this weekend though.
April 4th, 2007 at 7:42 am
Since I started my blog, I take pictures of everything I prepare…just in case…so when Hubby asks if dinner is ready, I have to answer,”As soon as I take a picture of it!” The grandkids don’t get photographed as much as my meals…but then, again, the chicken doesn’t make faces for the camera. btw…I’m going to find some of that yam flour…that looks interesting! Wonder if it would qualify as a WW vegetable???
April 5th, 2007 at 9:03 pm
I gotta say, I’m a pro photographer, and you’re truly not half-bad in that department! I’m not sure what type of equipment you’re using, but it seems to be working. I like how you always shoot the food on the same plate and in roughly the same lighting conditions, so I can assess the colors and portion size. Way to go, keep it up!
April 7th, 2007 at 7:17 am
Honestly I think the shrimp looks awesome. Nice and crunchy but not too greasy or heavy.
For the chicken, maybe try lime juice instead of lemon. However if you’re going to marinade it, I wouldn’t do it over night as that’s too long. The acid will tear up the chicken if it sits in it too long. You could do like half a day though.
April 10th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
sam - there was this episode for Ham on the Street where he cooked tons of great looking stuff in the microwave - including a chicken dish. I think he did a chicken curry that looked pretty amazing.
kathy - the worst thing is trying to get good accurate pictures while the food you just cooked is cooling on the plate… and you’re really hungry. I actually get stressed about it sometimes! The yam flour is really weird, it’s like flour mixed with cornstarch but there are these tiny hard yam bits mixed in. I dunno if they sell it at the normal market but you can probably make something similar - maybe with cornmeal?
MVP - thanks, I’m just using a Sony Cybershot digital camera. Unfortunately, i usually have to resort to messing around in photoshop to get a picture that can be used.
andie - yeah, i’m so surprised that the shrimp came out pretty good, and tasted really good. Funny you mention lime, because the few recipes I found DID call for lime. But I only had lemon on hand (I’m waiting for our trees to start producing again!)
April 13th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Over at www.tammysrecipes.com she did an article on how she shoots food pictures last week. She covers lighting, dishes, arrangement, garnishes, and backgrounds.