Kimchi Fried Rice

This week has been quite crazy. I feel like my life is moving at 75 mph, and it’s not slowing down any time soon. I’m a broke ass student at the moment so my penny pinching days are back. Although I may not have much, I always eat well. It’s not about buying expensive or exotic food. It’s about balancing flavors and making it tasty. Kimchi is quite cheap, and I can get a medium jar for $6.99 at Hmart in Manhattan, and it’ll last me for 2-3 weeks. I finally found some recipes, and below is a kimchi fried rice that I would make when I have left over meats. It’s a quick and easy meal.

Whenever I have leftover kimchi, I’ll make kimchi chigae or kimchi fried rice to finish the rest. The spicy, salty, and sweet combination makes this dish intensely flavorful and would makes it hard to revert back to normal fried rice. It’s also a versatile recipe to get rid of leftover meat as well.

Kimchi Fried Rice

Ingredients

2 cups cooked white rice (cold and day old is best)
3/4 cups kim chi, chopped
2 slices of turkey bacon, chopped (you can use 1/2 cup of chopped spam or meats)
1 large clove garlic
1/4 c. chopped onions
1/2 c. frozen mix vegetables
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 to 1-1/2 tsp. soy sauce
1 tsp. sugar
1 sprig of green onion, chopped
garnish with sesame seeds
oil for cooking

Directions

1. Cook up the selected meat and set aside.
2. Heat a frying pan or wok on medium high heat, and add some oil and cook the chopped onions for about 5 minutes. Stir frequently so the onions cook evenly.
3. Add the chopped garlic. Cook until it’s lightly golden brown.
4. Add the frozen vegetables and meat in the pan. Cook until the vegetables are tender.
5. Add the rice into the pan. If it is clumpy, let the rice heat through before stirring it. Be careful not to mash it or else it’ll be mushy.
6. Add the chopped kim chi and mix as needed. If it is too sticky, drizzle just enough oil to separate the rice.
7. Stir as necessary to incorporate the fried rice thoroughly.
8. Create a well in the center of the fried rice, and add the egg. Cook the egg thoroughly in the well before mixing the rice into it.
9. Add soy sauce and sugar to the rice and mix well.
10. Remove from heat and garnish with chopped green onions and sesame seeds.

Zesty Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce

I finally found a few of my old posts/recipes. This is a zesty sun-dried tomato sauce that I make regularly for pasta.

On Friday night, I broadcasted and made this robust sauce live on Justin.tv. I decided to make something low key as I don’t want to be laboring in the kitchen all night long to appease my fellow viewers. I pulled out one of my most reliable recipe that I know. It’s so versatile that I use this sun-dried tomato sauce on all sorts of pasta, including raviolis.

I make this frequently during week nights. Making homemade tomato sauce with pasta takes about 30-45 minutes. You don’t need alot of fancy ingredients to make a good sauce.

I got the large jar of sun-dried tomatoes at Costco. It’s halved tomatoes soaked in olive oil with Italian herbs. This is my must have item for the kitchen pantry.

The chopped garlic and onions are also very important in this sauce. I cooked them down so they are soft and tender before adding the tomato sauce to the pan. The sweetness from the onions lends perfect harmony to the acidity of the tomatoes.

The sun-dried tomatoes get a blender treatment. You can hand chop it or use a food processor as well. I add 1/4 cup of water to make the blending easier.

Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup of pureed sun-dried tomato
• 1 can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 3 tsp. chopped garlic
• 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 2 tsp. dried basil
• 1/2 – 3/4 cup water (depending on how thick you want your sauce)
• 2 tsp. white sugar
• 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
• salt to taste

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, add some oil saute the chopped garlic and onions until the onions are soft but not brown. This will take about 5-7 minutes.
2. Add the pureed tomato sauce, canned tomato sauce, water, dried oregano, dried basil, sugar, and salt to the pan. Turn the heat down to low and cover the pan if necessary to avoid splatter. Let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes and stir occasionally.
3. Add the olive oil to the sauce and turn off heat.
4. Serve over pasta and enjoy.

Variations:

• To make it spicy, add some dried red pepper flakes to the sauce and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes.
• For a Mediterranean twist, add some chopped olives to the tomato sauce, and sprinkle with feta cheese before serving.
• You can add meatballs, chicken, seafood to the sauce for a heartier meal.
• This is also a great sauce for dipping!

Cooking With Casa is Back!

Yes, I am back. 2009 was a turbulent year for me. Like the economy, there was more down than up. I lost my job back in March 2009. I was angry and upset, but at the end, it was probably for the best. I now have no more excuses why I can’t aggressively pursue my construction management degree. I can no longer say that I have no time to study because of work.

I tried to use the time wisely by visiting my family and spending time with them. Shortly after returning to New York City, I ended my relationship of nearly 3 years. We were trying to make it work, but we weren’t working together on our issues nor did we worked on the same goals. I decided to spend the rest of the year with my family, nurse my broken heart, and re-prioritize my life. It was nice being close to my family, reminding me how much I am loved and cared for.

In 2010, I turned a new leaf. New place. New roommate. New job. New website. I won’t be live casting anytime soon as that would require me to purchase some equipment and upgrade my broadband service, but that will be in the works. In the meantime, I’m back to enjoying life, food, family, friends, and back to loving myself.

To start off Cooking With Casa, this blog is about enjoying food, whether it is cooking or eating it. I will occasionally write about Mew Mew, my cat that I rescued almost 6 years ago in Texas. He’s an adorable furball that keeps me company so I put up with his excessive shedding.

Breakfast is the most important meal, and a loaded breakfast burrito is a quick and easy food to make. You can even eat it on the go. This is one of my mom’s popular item at her store, Skymark Deli.

INGREDIENTS
4 small flour tortillas
1/3 – 1/2 cup cubed potatoes, cooked
1/2 – 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4-5 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
4 breakfast sausage links, cooked and chopped
4-5 large eggs, scrambled
salt to taste
black pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Divide the ingredients onto the 4 flour tortillas.
3. Roll each tortilla up and place it on the cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 5-8 minutes until lightly golden brown.

Make 4 servings.

Healthier Versions:

• Use egg whites instead of whole eggs
• Use turkey bacon and sausage instead of regular bacon and sausage
• Use whole wheat tortillas instead of white flour tortillas
• Use low fat shredded cheese

30 Minute Baked Potato Soup

I made this soup many times, especially when I have a lot of potatoes that I need to get rid of. It’s quick and very easy, but in order to make it within 30 minutes, I placed the potatoes in the microwave. It’s also a slightly healthier version using milk instead of cream and flour to thicken.

INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup flour
3 cups milk
2 large potatoes
6 Tbsp margarine or butter
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp ground black pepper (to taste)
1 small onion, chopped (white or yellow)

Toppings:
6 slices of bacon
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream

DIRECTIONS

1. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned.
2. Drain, crumble, and set aside.
3. Wash and place potatoes in a plastic bag. Place bag in microwave and cook for 7-8 minutes or until fork tender. The microwave and plastic bag mimic steaming for the potatoes. Be careful of the steam when opening the bag. Insert a fork in the potato to check for doneness. Peel and cube potatoes and set aside.
4. In a 3-4 quart pot, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth.
5. Add the chopped white or yellow onions and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to brown the onions.
6. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
7. Reduce heat, and simmer for about 5-10 minutes. You can add milk if it is too thick.
8. Season with salt and pepper.
9. When serving, ladle soup into bowl and top with crumbled bacon, cheese, onions, and sour cream.

Enjoy!!

Healthier versions:

• Use skim milk instead of whole milk. If you do, increase the flour to 1/2 cup to thicken the soup.
• Use olive oil instead of butter or margarine.
• Use turkey bacon instead of regular bacon.
• Use light sour cream and low fat cheddar cheese.