Cooking with Alison

Posts Tagged ‘gluten-free’

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How to Determine the Doneness of Meat Using Touch Test

In How-To, Red Meat and Eggs on October 1, 2013 at am

Regardless of what type of meat you’re cooking or how you’re cooking the meat, the biggest mistake you can make is overcooking it.  Unfortunately, the required cooking time for each cut or piece of meat can vary greatly depending on the equipment used to cook it, the size of the meat, the starting temperature of the meat, and the ratio of meat to bone, etc.  Therefore, it is very important to rely more heavily on the touch test or meat thermometers than general cooking time guidelines.  Determining the doneness of meat is the most difficult part of any recipe, but luckily, it gets easier with practice.  

Over time, you will be able to tell whether or not the meat is cooked through simply by smelling and looking at the meat.  (Hint:  The meat will be opaque in colour and it will have shriveled away from the bones.)  Until then, you have the touch test and meat thermometers.

Although using a meat thermometer will give you precision (as long as it has been calibrated properly), you end up losing some of the meat juices when you poke it into the meat.  You also end up with unsightly holes or tears in your meat.  So I prefer to use the touch test.  Below, I’ve shared three different variations of the touch test for checking the doneness of meat.  Note that I have also heard this being called the “finger test”.  Let me know if you know of any other touch methods.

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Thai-Inspired Noodle Salad Recipe

In Asian, Rice and Noodle Dishes on September 5, 2013 at am

This is a great dish to make during the summer months, because it’s easy to make, it’s light, and it can be served cold.  This is also a great way to use up leftovers.  Feel free to substitute with any vegetables and/or cooked meat that you like or happen to have on hand.  I served this Thai inspired noodle salad alongside a Thai mango salad for lunch (recipe here).

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Thai Mango Salad Recipe

In Appetizers, Hors D'oeuvres, Snacks, Asian, Other Asian Foods, Sides and Sauces on September 1, 2013 at am

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This Thai mango salad is delicious and very easy to make.  The key to success is to use mangoes that have the perfect ripeness, just starting to ripe and still firm.  Some recipes call for green mangoes, but I’ve found that using green mangoes results in a crunchy salad that lacks mango flavour and colour.  I made this for my sister’s lunch group at work and everyone loved it.  I served it as an appetizer to a cold Thai noodle salad (recipe here).

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Favourite Slow Cooker Fish Recipe

In Asian, Fish / Seafood, Seafood on August 28, 2013 at am

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I have had the toughest time trying to figure out how to cook using a slow cooker.  I’ve tried different recipes from different cookbooks and websites, and I’ve tried using different meats and/or vegetables, but 9 times out of 10, I end up with overcooked slop.  I’d love to hear how you mastered the slow cooker!  The only other recipe that I’ve had success with is this slow cooker pulled pork.  So I tested this fish recipe a few times and even had John (a beginner in the kitchen) make it once by himself before I shared this new favourite slow cooker recipe with you.  We love this dish.  It is Thai inspired, mild, and light yet creamy.  My family approves of this dish too, and that’s saying a lot because they strongly dislike slow cooker cooked food.  But I should warn you, this recipe requires a bit more work and attention than typical slow cooker recipes.  In my opinion, it’s worth the extra effort, because your meal won’t look or taste like it came out of a slow cooker.

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How to Render Lard

In Appetizers, Hors D'oeuvres, Snacks, Asian, Breakfast, Desserts, How-To, Main Course on August 18, 2013 at pm

I recently jumped onto the lard band wagon and I saved a seat for you.  I know what you’ve heard about lard.  I heard the same warnings about high cholesterol and clogged arteries.  In fact, I grew up listening to my dad blame his blocked arteries on the use of lard in every day cooking during his youth.  But the truth is that home rendered lard can actually be considered a healthy fat!  (See here for more details.)  It is better for you than butter and is a rich source of vitamin D.  But I want to be very clear that only home rendered lard is good, and it’s best if the fat comes from naturally raised hogs.  Processed store-bought lard, however, contains trans fats – the very bad fats – and preservatives.

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Home rendered lard

I am so glad that we’ve cleared up that misunderstanding, because lard makes everything taste better.  For example, it’s perfect for deep frying foods, because it has a high smoke point.  This allows your food to cook more quickly, meaning that your food will be crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, all the while absorbing less oil.  Also, lard is necessary for making the best flaky pastries.  You may be surprised to know that lard is one of the secrets to many delicious Asian dishes as well.  Cooking your stir fried noodles in lard will result in an inimitable flavor and silky texture.

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Hot Chili Oil Recipe

In Other Asian Foods, Sides and Sauces on June 19, 2012 at pm

Chinese hot chili oil is versatile, delicious, and cheap and easy to make.  Use this as a condiment (e.g. for dumplings), use it in sauces (see bang bang chicken recipe here), soups (hot and sour soup recipe here, Chinese borscht (lor sung tong) recipe here), add this to a noodle dish (even instant noodles), or use it as a substitute for cooking oil to add heat to any dish.

Normally, this is made using whole, dried red chilies, which gives the hot chili oil a red colour.  However, I happened to have a lot of red chili flakes on hand, so I used that instead.

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Chinese Salted Egg Recipe

In Meat and Eggs on May 11, 2012 at am

Cooking with Alison’s Grandma (Part 3 of 4)

During my last visit with my grandma, she showed me how easy it is to make your own Chinese salted eggs!  Chinese salted eggs are simple, delicious, cost-efficient side dishes.  Personally, I find them addictive.  They can be enjoyed as a side dish to compliment a plain bowl of white rice or congee, or they can be used to flavour many different Asian dishes; just to name a few: steamed egg dish, claypot rice, steamed minced pork, rice dumpling (joong/zhong zi), etc.  You can even add salted eggs to simple Chinese vegetable soups.  This recipe makes a very large amount, which is perfect for making a large batch of Chinese rice dumplings (joong / zhong zi).  Feel free to scale it down if you’re not making rice dumplings.  My family never has trouble finishing a batch.

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Delicious Bang Bang Chicken Recipe (bang bang ji)

In Meat and Eggs on April 24, 2012 at am

Bang bang chicken is a Chinese dish that originated in Szechuan.  I really hope that you’ll try this recipe because I love it for many reasons:

1.  The dipping sauce is delicious and addictive.  It’s very flavourful and the perfect compliment to the otherwise bland chicken and cucumbers.  My family and I can’t get enough of it.

2. This meal is cost effective to make, because you use chicken that has the skin on and bone in.

3.  It’s healthy.

4.  It’s easy to make.

5.  This recipe makes a lot, so you can feed a lot of people or use the leftovers for tortilla wraps or rice paper rolls (see my rice paper rolls recipe here).

6.  This can be served warm or cold, so it can be made in advance.

Traditionally, this is served alongside other dishes with white rice.  But if you wanted to turn this dish into a complete meal on its own, you could try this variation:  Toss together the shredded chicken, sauce, and thinly julienned cucumbers, along with added cilantro, thinly julienned carrots, and thinly sliced green onions, and serve on top of boiled and drained, thin vermicelli rice noodles.

Update:  I made this for my dad’s company pot luck and people from all different backgrounds loved it, even the two pickiest eaters there.

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How to Boil or Poach Chicken

In How-To, Meat and Eggs, Poultry on April 19, 2012 at pm

Cooking chicken by boiling or poaching is easy and great for making healthy, oil-free, meals.  It may sound bland, but this results in deliciously moist meat and a pot of chicken stock.  When boiling or poaching chicken, you want to use meat that still has the skin on and the bone in, so you can purchase cheaper cuts of meat and save money while eating healthy.  You can boil a whole chicken or pieces of chicken.  Shred the cooked meat and use it in salads, sandwiches, wraps, soup or, my favourite, bang bang chicken (recipe here).  Another healthy and simple way to cook chicken is by steaming (see recipe here).

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Favourite Coleslaw Recipe

In Sides and Sauces, Soups and Salads on March 17, 2012 at am

This coleslaw has been really really popular with everyone that’s tried it.  The cider vinegar adds a really nice sweetness.  I like to serve coleslaw with heavier meats such as pulled pork (recipe here) sandwiches, but my family likes to eat it on its own as a snack too.

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Broccoli, Egg, and Cheese Breakfast Muffins (with a gluten free variation)

In Breakfast, Rice and Noodle Dishes on March 7, 2012 at pm

These breakfast muffins may not look very appealing, but they’re tasty, easy to make, and great on-the-go snacks or breakfast.  Also, if you use coconut flour instead of all purpose flour, you’ll be adding fiber and eating gluten free.  I have my old housemate to thank for introducing me to cooking with coconut flour and for sharing this recipe.

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Ketchup Soup Recipe

In Soups and Salads on February 15, 2012 at pm

Note: This recipe was updated and improved in September, 2020!

Years ago, Ed’s mom introduced me to her ketchup soup.  I couldn’t get enough of it!  It’s sweet and sour and hearty.  I am very grateful to her for telling me how she makes it. I played around with her guidelines a bit, added some spice and more beef, and came up with the measurements. This is super kid friendly if you omit the spice. It’s also perfect for using up leftover ketchup after the summer and BBQ season ends. Hopefully you’ll like it too!

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