The Lemongrass

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TLG

Let us pause for a moment of silence, for the deer that I will blog about is wild and innocent. And so are other farmed animals in cruel slaughterhouses. I read part of the "Fast Food Nation" book by Eric Schlosser, and a chapter details the sad and shocking truth that transpires in American slaughterhouses. This is a very good excerpt, and I recommend you to read it.

Deer meat can be my most favorite meat if I would base it strictly on a purity criteria. Primarily, deers are wild and very mobile animals. That means they were raised without antibiotics and processed feeds. Their muscles are also well exercised, hence a prime source of healthy meat because of proper blood circulation; unlike farmed, sedentary animals in cramped spaces. That's why leg meat is darker and healthier than breast meat. As quoted by Mercola:

Dark Meat

Simply speaking, dark meats are dark because the muscles are used more (think drumsticks vs. breast meat). They have more myoglobin proteins, which help ship oxygen to your muscle cells.

When dark meat is cooked, the myoglobins turn into metmyoglobins, which are very high in iron.

White Meat

White meat contains glycogen, which is a polysaccharide of glucose, an animal starch. Animal starch is stored in your liver, then broken down into glucose when it’s needed by the white muscle.

Nutritional Differences

Dark meat contains more zinc, riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, vitamins B6 and B12, amino acids, and iron than white meat. Dark meats also contain more saturated fats, along with omega-3 and omega-6 fats.

How much brainwashing do we get from the mainstream media about healthy choices and nutrition? Why low or non fat is the best choice, and why we should totally obliterate animal fats. Institutions doesn't really care about you or your family, they just want to sell you stuff and suck you dry.

Moving on, this was my first time to cook deer meat and I don't have any idea how to cook it. So, it was the right time to bring out the somewhat dormant miracle worker in me (that I've extensively used to exhaustion before) and I was able to come up with this... which my hubby's office mates also dig.


Oriental Deer Heart

1 deer heart, sliced thinly
1 whole onion, cut into shreds
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 tsp. fish sauce
4 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. ginger powder
ghee or clarified butter
1 cup mushrooms, quartered
1/4 cup parsley, processed in processor
pepper
salt to adjust taste


1. Saute garlic and onion in ghee.


2. Pour in deer meat slices and stir-fry for about 2 minutes. It will start to give a buttery smell.
3. Season meat with fish sauce, soy sauce, ginger powder, pepper and stir. Add salt to adjust taste according to preference. Cover and simmer for 5 mins.
4. Add mushrooms, stir, cover and simmer for another 3 mins.
5. Add parsley and mix evenly before serving.

This has a potential to be a very good beer match.

I am already getting sick of meat, and if I'm ever going to eat another piece of lamb, I'm going to evolve into a furball and say "Baaaaaaaa". My hair is already beginning to look like locks of wool. Well, at least the sheep is cuter than the pig... fluffier too. I can be a walking exaggeration, i know.

Metamorphosing into a domestic diva can be very daunting, I should sign an affidavit and change my legal name to "Nigella". Did I sign up for this? The officiant did not explain in details, and there's no mention of the clause that contain the words "upholding the standards and expectations". I'm just feeding words to the blog and I'm wide awake with "Reality Check" written all over me... there's no getting away with this and that's a fact etched in the hardest mineral compound, geologically speaking.

Domestic divas are scientists in their own rights. You are supposed to unearth (archeology) forgotten remains in the fridge and concoct (chemistry) something edible out of them. You should also be skilled in experimentation and establish a theory, whether the outcome is succesful in the lab test (dinner table) or not.

This is a short journal of my edible experiment using available resources within the perimeter of my test area.


Baked Wild Salmon with Mushrooms and Dill

4 portions wild salmon fillets
1 tbsp. lemon juice
garlic powder
dried dill herb
salt and pepper
1 onion, chopped
2 cups mushrooms, sliced into quarters
2 tomatoes, diced
Mary's oil blend / oil

1. On a plate, lay salmon fillets and evenly pour the lemon juice, turn once for an even coating. Sprinkle salt, pepper, garlic powder and dill herb on both sides of the fillets. Best to leave it for 30 mins. to marinate.

2. Pre-heat oven to 400F.
3. On a glass bake ware, layer the mushrooms and half of the chopped onions at the bottom.


4. Carefully position the salmon fillets on top and blanket it with the chopped tomatoes and remaining onions. Drizzle some oil all over the surface to wrap it up.
5. Cover bake ware with aluminum foil and bake for 25 mins. If you can flake it with a fork, it is ready to be served. Don't overcook to retain the succulent texture of the meat.


Bon Appetit!

I am never going to boil my corn, ever again.

I never thought of cooking corn inside an oven because I'm used to eating it boiled or grilled. The latter is my least favorite because the corn tends to dry and burn, although I like the smoky flavor. Baked corn on a cob is sweet, juicy, and tender… and it doesn’t drip! I think boiling somehow washes away some of the sugars (high fructose?!!) because I find baked corn more intense and flavorful. Maybe that's why some people add sugar and salt in the water to make it more appealing to the taste buds. Baking is also easier and less hassle to cook (read: boiling a pot of water and splatters), just shove it inside and go to the spa.

Baked Corn on a Cob

2 ears of sweet corn with husks or as much as your oven can accommodate with spaces

1. Pre-heat oven to 350F.
2. Wash corn to clean and wet the husks.
3. Put corn on the oven rack. Be careful and don't let loose husks touch the oven's heating rod.
4. Bake for 30 minutes.
5. Peel off husks by twisting it off the cob.

Next time I’m going to try cooking it in aluminum foil with salt and butter. Although cooking in foil is not a healthy practice, but once in a while doesn't hurt.

I'm not a very big fan of Strawberries compared to my sisters. I like super sweet Cherries more, and it saddens me that it's hard to find the organic version since it is loaded with pesticide. It's the season because a huge bulk of those Strawberry-filled shiny plastic packs will greet you when you enter the grocery store. We purchased the organic ones because they were on sale, but the Cherries and Grapes were going and the Strawberries were still sitting untouched and slowly deteriorating inside the fridge. So, what better way of consuming them by turning them into jellies! In came the magician and savior of endangered food... yours truly. My hubby and I are fond of jams or fruit spreads (before I wasn't) on top of melted cheese on a bagel, pbjs, or to jazz up the plain, balkan yogurt. It is also healthier than buying mainstream jams, since they just full of high-fructose corn syrup and fillers.

1. Process Strawberries in the food processor to get the exact 2 cups measurement.
2. In a pan or casserole pot, mix all the ingredients and stir over low heat until sugar is dissolved.
   
3. Turn up heat to high to achieve a rolling boil, keep stirring. Skim off the foam that forms on the surface.
   

4. Boil for around 13 mins. and check consistency. Other recipes suggest to reach a boiling point of 105C, but I reached the preferred consistency after 13 mins. at about 90-95C. To test, place 1 tsp. of the liquid on the frozen plate and put it back in the freezer. Check it after a minute or two by running your finger through the jam across the plate. If the liquid appeared like jelly or intact, it is ready to be bottled.

5. Retrieve the sterilized jar, remove excess water and pour in the hot jam. Leave 1/4 to 1/2 head space and close tightly. Turn the bottle upside down for around 5 mins. to create a vacuum seal. If you are using a pop-up lid, the raised center will be sucked in. It is important to keep the jars hot to prevent the glass from shattering due to high temperatures when you pour in the hot liquid.


6. Let it cool at room temperature then refrigerate.


Watch out for fruits or berries on season sale to make your jam. You can freeze them and cook them later to retain freshness.

Have a wonderful breakfast the next day.

It was a sweltering hot and humid Sunday, and we spent it lying down on a woven mat by the river bank, staring at the bright green maple leaves scattered all over the light blue sky. The bird fluttering from branch to branch looked like a black canvass with predominant bright red smear, and other array of colors. Surprisingly, it got a weird chirp... somewhat bigger than its size. My poetic thoughts are intermittently disrupted by different species of bugs, insects and spiderman-like caterpillars attempting to get a piece of me! Hubby is SPECIFICALLY bothered by the caterpillars with a special interest inside his Cayman Crocs. He got his own way of dealing with them, and it was merciless and cruel. The rest of insectopia are free to roam, get lost, and get caught between the wire mesh of his body hairs. A group of baby geese and their sitters passed by and cautiously nipped off the grass inches away from me. They were so cute, I could crush them.

Afterwards, we decided to go biking to our favorite Kitchissippi trail route to stretch some muscles and shrug off the lazy bug. Biking is always a wonderful experience especially beside the riverbanks where the breeze is extra cool and crisp. Added bonus if you have suspensions or fork shocks... and gear shifts for those uphill climbs.

Coming home from a long, humid day almost feels like swimming under the sun all day - minus the vegetable extremities. You just feel too tired to make dinner, but at the same time don't wanna settle for some crap. So, here are some kitchen quickies I was able to come up with...


Asian-style Pantacce with Asparagus

225 grams Pantacce or any kind of pasta
bunch of Asparagus spears, cut 1 inch long
3-4 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. fish sauce aka patis
garlic
onion
oil
dash of salt

The spearheads are making their presence felt this spring. Wonderful bunch of lavender and forest green colored stalks, cooling their tips in a calm inch of crisp water. I go for the thin spears because I just felt like they are fresher, crispier and spent a short while growing on the earth, thus more unspoiled and pure... or that's just me. Asparagus are the best, sweetest, prime quality at the beginning of spring - the first offerings of the season. I've read that it is best to treat them like a bunch of flowers, and prop them up in a vase filled with fresh water to prolong shelf life. Best cooked within 2 days of purchase.

Asparagus got lots of little nooks and crannies for germs and bacteria to dwell and spend their hey days. As a self-confessed germophobe, I would usually wash them first and spray a generous amount of Hydrogen Peroxide (H2O2) to annihilate any unwanted living organisms. Then for the best part, I take a moment and enjoy the zen-like sounds of the gazillion fizzles that translates to the extinction of those poor, unfortunate souls. I leave it at that for a while and repeat the process again to make sure none of them bastards survive, and I end it with a thorough wash. Speaking of H2O2, I will leak you The Amazing Secrets That THEY Don't Want You To Know!

I always use Asparagus in pasta or soups; below is a quick, no-hassle compliment to any dish.


Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus spears, washed and cleaned
oil
salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 400F.
2. On an oven tray, spread the Asparagus and brush it with oil.
3. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Bake for 8-12 mins. depending on the thickness of your spears

You can also blanch those spears in hot water for 1-2 mins. and dip it in rich, REAL butter. There are tons of ways to enjoy them, just take your pick.