Recipe: End of Summer Delights

Scallop glazed with Kalamansi and topped with Chiang Mai sausage and roasted corn

As the summer is winding down, there are still large nice fresh succulent scallops from Maine.
With the end of season of corn still available from the farmers market, these two ingredient complement well as hors d'oeuvres. Our kitchen has been serving Seared Diver Scallops with Brown Butter sauce and Sage, with abundance sage in the garden, it's delicious with crispy sage leaves!
Another way to enjoy the best of it is the Grilled Scallops marinated with Miso and Sake topped with Hijiki salad.

Recipe: Grilled Scallops marinated with Miso and Sake topped with Hijiki

Ingredients:

2 lb. Diver Scallops (approx.18/20 pcs )
1/4 cup sake
1/4 mirin
4 tablespoons white miso paste
2 tablespoons sugar
black pepper

Classic Fish Recipes From Cambodia and Myanmar

I would like to share two simple classic fish dishes from Cambodia and Myanmar. It is an all-time favorite of mine and created for my previous restaurant Road to Mandalay.  You can substitute the white fish (the firmer, the better) with large shrimp or any seafood you have on hand.

Si Byan (Burmese Fish) in 15 minutes

Makes: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs cod fillet or halibut, sea bass, etc - into 1-inch chunks

1-inch chunk ginger

2 tsp turmeric powder

¼ cup of vegetable oil

3 med. tomatoes, small chunks

3 med. onions, minced

5 cloves of garlic, minced

1 1/2 inch of ginger, minced

2 tbsp sweet paprika 1 tsp hot paprika or 2 fresh chili peppers

 1 1/2 tbsp fish sauce

¼ cup of vegetable or fish stock

½ cup cilantro leaves (reserve some for garnish)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a mixing bowl, marinade the fish with salt, pepper and turmeric for five minutes.

2. In a frying pan, heat the oil and mix in the onion till lightly brown and add in ginger, chili (if not using paprika) and garlic till fragrant.  Add in the paprika then immediately the fish and let it seared then stir in tomatoes, liquid stock and cook for five minutes.

3. Lower the heat and add fish sauce, coriander and simmer for another

2 minutes.  Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve hot with steamed jasmine rice.

Amok Fish Steamed in Coconut Shell

Cambodian Fish Amok 

Makes: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS

1lb White Fish Fillets, e.g. (Catfish, Cod, Haddock, Sole, etc)
1 Garlic Clove, chopped

1 Red Onion, chopped

Holiday Cocktail Party Ideas

A cocktail party should be fun and festive; it can be as simple or complex as you wish to make it.

Make a quick list- how many guests will be attending? YOU DO NOT want to be working at your party. It's wise to have someone there to give you a hand but not your friend or family members.

It is great to mix guests with different backgrounds and interests, you will be playing the host. Have a caterer and combo of your own signature dish you are best at with flavorful spices. And do one or two fun delicious cocktails to get your guests buzzing and have a fabulous time.

Here is one of the easy delicious recipes from my kitchen.

Seafood Ceviche (you can do this ahead of time and mix it an hour before the guests arrive

1 lb of #36 shrimp (deveined and shelled)
1 lb. of bay scallops
1 lb. filet of sole- sliced thin pieces
1 sliced serrano chile, minced
6 juice of limes
salt and pepper
1 minced red onion, minced
1 mango- peeled and diced into small pieces
1 asian pear- peeled and diced small pieces
2 cloves of garlic

Prepare all these ingredients, put aside all the seafood on bed of ice. mix all the seafood ingredients with lime juice one hour before guests arrive and then toss with the rest of ingredients. add salt and pepper to taste. served with toasted tortillas or point toast......

Recipe: Soft Shell Crab with Tamarind Glaze

Soft shell crab is in season!

Now is the time for soft shell crab! It's easy to make, delicious, and a fast dish for the summer. The best soft shell crab usually comes from Maryland and is only $3-$5 a piece from your local seafood market and is seasonal and fresh. You can lightly sear it with butter and garlic or olive oil, or you can use my signature dish we feature at Saffron 59. It is one of the traditional recipes that I made while I lived in Saigon, Vietnam.

Recipe

To prepare the crab, simply remove the gill and the claws. Then egg wash- flour, beaten egg

add panko crust then sear each side for 2 minutes

For the sauce,

small chunk of dried tamarind, soaked with 1/2 cup of warm water

then you squeeze the pulp and seeds out to get the juice (set aside)

brown the shallots and add the tamarind juice

season with fish sauce, sugar, salt and pepper

bring to a boil

Spoon the sauce over the crab then garnish with fresh slivers of scallion and enjoy!