Sauteed, Ceviched, Tigered, uh Shrimp (with cucumber yogurt)

To be served on 5/27/2011, and with green papaya salad

Still on my yogurt high from the last go around, I decided to try another yogurt dressing/dip with these beautiful tiger shrimps I got from the Chinese market.

They are very quickly sauteed with some tom yum paste, and then thrown in freshly squeezed lemon juice to be cooked the rest of the way.  Upon serving, I will finish them off with a creme brulee torch :)

The shrimps:

• tiger shrimp
• tom yum paste
• lemon juice
• olive oil
• black pepper

The yogurt:

• Greek yogurt
• cucumbers
• mint
• honey

 

Tofu Mushroom Salad

To be served on 5/6/2011

Ingredients:

• Shiitake mushrooms
• Fine tofu
• Bean sprouts
• Onions
• Sesame oil
• Chinese black vinegar
• Fresh dill

 

Seared Grapefruit Carpaccio

To be served on Friday, 4/22/2011

I am taking a chance with this one, and not everyone may like this one.

Growing up in Taiwan, we have always had the practice of dipping fresh fruits in a soy sauce and garlic mix and the results were always… surprisingly good!  I am making a dish out of it with some hardy slices of grapefruit and my amateur attempt at presentation.

Goal: to make a refreshing appetizer-esque dish that is NOT a salad (I’ve only had 3 or 4 of those in a row).  The sour-bitterness of the grapefruit needs to be complemented but not lost.

My bed of sauce is a mix of soy sauce, finely chopped garlic, sesame oil, Chinese black vinegar, and some optional sriracha sauce on the side (upper right hand corner of the plate in picture above) for some kick.  I then top it off with some lemon juice and roughly chopped mint leaves to give a fresh aroma and taste.

Finally before serving, I lightly coat the top of the grapefruit slices with sugar powder and melt it with a creme brulee torch; also slightly caramelizing the grapefruit at the same time.

Ingredients:
grapefruit
soy sauce
finely chopped garlic
Chinese black vinegar
sesame oil
sriracha sauce
lemon juice
roughly chopped mint
sugar powder