Geeks eat fast food too
I was deep into database-world today at work. Part of my day job is to make maps that are graphical representations of underlying databases. I love this part of my job because it is such a cool mix of design and database manipulation. On the way home I stopped by Trader Joe’s to get Double Rainbow ice cream for the guys and while I was there I scrounged up a quick, easy, and healthy dinner. Fast food for geeks. I didn’t keep track of the cost but I’m sure it was under $10 for the two of us (the boys scarfed down my homemade chili before returning to their gaming lair).
I took one bag of jumbo shrimp, in shell and, after thawing them under running water for 5 minutes and letting them sit for 10, I dumped them into a ziploc with 1/2 cup mango/chili vinegar, 1/4 cup olive oil, and 1 tablespoon Penzys Adobo Spice mix. I let that rest for 10 minutes while I read the paper and sipped a well earned glass of chardonnay. Then GH lit the grill and I heated a medium skillet on a medium flame and added a tablespoon or so of canola oil, and a tablespoon of Penzys Singapore Seasoning. A minute or two later I added a bag of Trader Joe’s Nasi Goreng Indonesian Rice Dish.
I walked out the door, put the shrimp on the grill, walked back into the kitchen and stirred the rice, walked back to the grill, flipped the shrimp, back to the stove, stirred the rice, back to the grill to remove the shrimp, turned off the grill (yes, it’s gas…we’re not certified for real fire…we’re geeks!), back to the stove where I plated the meal.
That meal took less time to make than I would have spent in the Culver’s (substitute Sonic or whatever) Drive-Thru lane. Fat per serving was from olive oil and canola oil, protein was good, a little fiber, even a little iron for those of us with iron-poor blood. Beyond that it was simply tasty. The shrimp were tangy yet smoky, the Nasi Goreng was spicy and had a nice texture.
Okay fellow geeks and random readers…what is your version of fast food and why. Don’t be shy, we all need the inspiration. And by the way if you’re lurking and not sure about commenting…jump on in, the water’s fine and the geeks don’t bite.
Ginger and black sesame chicken - WHB
I was shopping the other day when I came across a product new to me…Ginger People’s Ginger Juice. Of course I managed to embarass everyone around me when I gleefully shoved the bottle of ginger juice in their face and blurted out something along the lines of “Wooohooo ginger juice…I am soooo excited“. Actually I should have been embarrassed but I was just too damned pysched about the ginger juice to care.
I’ve not done much with it yet other than whip up this marinade for chicken. Chicken breast really doesn’t do much for me unless its been bathing in a bath of deliciousness like this plump specimen was allowed to do. I know I’m given to hyperbole when it comes to food but really, this marinade mixed with the heat of the grill combined to transform this hohum chicken into chicken you’ll fight for. Just make plenty and if you don’t and a fight ensues…well don’t say I didn’t warn you!
The black sesame seeds gave it an almost smoky flavor when they cooked over the fire. All that good taste and good for you too. According to Wikipedia sesame seeds are rich in manganese, copper, and calcium and contain Vitamin B1 and Vitamin E. They also contain antioxidants called lignans, which are also anti-carcinogenic and phytosterols, which block cholesterol production.
Ginger Black Sesame Marinade
1 tsp ginger juice
1/2 tsp wasbi powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsps lime juice
1 tbsp black sesame seeds
salt
This is a weekend herb blogging post and many thanks to this weeks host, Ellie of Kitchen Wench
Easy pork satay stir-fry
To finish off the pork shoulder roast that I used for ginger pork I made this stir-fry that was easy and turned out better than any pork satay I’ve been served in Thai restaurants (at least here in Madison…Marnee Thai in San Francisco is still the bomb). The greens on the side are collard greens and they were good too…but I made the mistake of oversalting them so I didn’t like them as much as GH did. I used the blender to create the stir-fry marinade and that made the prep work fast and easy to clean-up. If you like pork satay I recommend you give this a try. It’s quick, easy, and has great flavor.
Easy Pork Satay Stir-fry
1/4 cup chunky, natural peanut butter
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon Maggi seasoning (if you don’t have this use soy sauce)
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 knob of ginger, chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp Sriracha chile sauce (or more if you want to feel the heat)
1 pound pork shoulder or pork steak
Slice the meat into thin strips and pound it with the serrated side of a meat mallet. Put all of the other ingredients into the blender and mix it well. Put the marinade and pork into a ziploc and squish it around. Let it sit for 15-30 minutes.
Heat a large flat skillet or wok on high. Add some canola oil and let it continue to heat until it starts smoking. Add the pork and the marinade to the skillet. Depending on the size of the skillet you may have to do this in two batches or use two skillets since you don’t want to overwhelm the heating surface. I have a 15″ skillet that worked just right.
Keeping the heat on high you want to let the pork sit and cook. Don’t stir it until your reasonably certain that you’ve got a nice brown, carmely crust. Keep doing this and eventually the marinade will be clinging to the pork strips and everything will be a brown, carmely mess.
I think it may be hell to clean-up the pan (although GH didn’t complain) and I should have used my spatter screen to protect the stove and area from the mess…but I forgot.
I had a great birthday and the movie 300 was epic and awesome…I loved it. It was the first time I’ve ever been to a movie where 90% of the audience was male, the ladies room was vacant and the men were standing in line for once. We tried to have dinner at Jada’s Soul Food but it was closed…we’ll try again sometime. It’s warm and melty here and I can finally believe that Spring might be around the corner.
