Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Chef Dan-YEL, Again

Sunday breakfast: Eggs,
  • Over hard and served on a plate for the wonderful wife.
  • Cheese omelets, served on buttered rye toast, for Katka and me.
Pretty darned good!

Monday dinner: Caesar Salad with chicken thighs that had been marinated in Italian dressing. I don't know what anyone else thought of it, but I give it an A+. If I'd paid for it in a restaurant, I'd have been very satisfied.

Tuesday's dinner: Cous cous with shallots, garlic, and almonds; poached salmon; summer squash ribbons. At least a B+. The salmon was the real surprise. I like to bake salmon because frying and grilling tends to make the fish too dry. But it's 90-something degrees here, and I didn't want to turn the oven on. So I asked the guy at the fish counter (Captain Bob) if I could cook it on the stove in a covered skillet ("skillet" is the word we chefs use instead of "frying pan"). He said "Sure. Just add a little liquid." I translated "a little liquid" to mean about a quarter cup of olive oil (EVOO) and half a cup of Chardonnay. It came out great! At supper, the wonderful wife explained that cooking that way is called poaching. Who knew?

Tonight's dinner: Shrimp with pasta, cooked with garlic in chicken broth, and 7-layer salad. The wonderful wife thought the shrimp tasted like scampi; I think she was right. I'll give the meal another B+. Update: Leftovers make a very good cold pasta salad, as I discovered at lunch today.

No comments: