Chinese Style Oxtail Soup

There is something soothing in a bowl of oxtail soup. The beefy broth, tender pieces of meat, aromatic star anise, pungent flavor of cilantro, and the crunch of fresh scallions make this dish a winner on a cold and rainy night in Hawaii. Yes, it does rain and reach a frigid 65 degrees on occasion in the land of sun and waves.

Drinking this soup conjures up images of Shaolin warriors huddling together near the warmth of a red hot brazier, gulping down bowls of rich oxtail soup, bamboo trees rustling in the wind, chop sticks tapping their bowls as they shovel more rich broth and rice into their mouths. The soup makes one romantic and idealistic. That is, it does for me.

The dish is also very healthy. It is full of garlic, onions, green cilantro, fresh ginger, green onions, and star anise - all very medicinal in Chinese apothecary. Be sure to get an oil separator to drain off some of the fat from the oxtail soup, otherwise it can be a little greasy. The meat is usually eaten with freshly ground ginger and a hot bowl of rice. 

This is my take on a very simple and satisfying soup.

Ingredients:
1. 3 lbs of ox tail
2. 2 quarts of water
3. 1 large ginger (1/4 lb) chopped into chunks and smashed
4. 2 cloves garlic
5. one large onion chopped
6. 5 whole star anise
7. 1 cup f raw blanched peanuts
8. 1 bunch of cilantro
9. 1 bunch of green onions
10. 1 large ginger (1/4lb) grated fine.
11. sea salt and pepper to taste
12. 1/4 cup whiskey or brandy

Cooking Instructions:
1. Boil oxtaill for about three minutes in one quart of water. Discard the water.
2. Then pour two quarts of water into pot and place oxtail, smashed ginger, garlic. onion, whiskey, and star anise into the same pot.
3. Boil all the ingredient for about two hours on high heat. Replacing water as it boils off.
4. Throw in the peanuts.
5. Boil for another hour.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste. Please understand that salt brings out the flavor. Slowly add salt until the flavor comes forth.
7. Ladle soup into bowls and add some chopped cilantro and green onions.
8. Serve with hot bowl of rice and grated ginger on the side. When eating the meat, place some grated ginger on it.
9. Enjoy!

I think this is one of the more satisfying soups to drink on a winter's eve. It will warm you up on the inside and put a smile on your face. Bon Apetit!

Spinach with Raisin and Pine Nuts.

The vegetable dishes keep rolling on down. Hey, in our heart/health conscious culture that is paranoid about clogged arteries and clogged digestive tracks, this dish is a welcome addition to our health and taste regimen.It's healthy! It's tasty! It's a far cry from just spinach cooked in butter and salt, even though I like that too.

This dish is low in fat, salt, and has zero bad cholesterol. That's why the Greeks live so long. It's the ouzo and olive oil, maybe more like the olive oil. I had to throw the elixir of Mt Olympus into the article. You have to have some fun in life!

Well, it's a mildly spiced dish that goes well with the caponata and flavorful braised beef. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
2 lbs of fresh spinach
1/2 cup rasins
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
1 garlic clove crushed
salt and freshly ground pepper

Preparation
1. Fry garlic and pine nuts in oil until lightly browned and set pan on side.
2. Place fresh spinach in a pot of boiling water fro about two to three minutes until it shrinks
3. Chop up spinach and throw into pine nut/garlic mixture. Add raisins too
4. Fry on high heat for six to eight minutes.\
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Serve immediately with main dish.

Again. it's a lovely dish to serve with beef or even chicken. The raisin and pine nuts give it a fruity/mildly nutty flavor to the earthiness of the spinach. It's simply good, healthy, delicious food. Enjoy! Bon Appetit!

Caponata

I never thought cooked vegetables could taste so good. The Spaniards or Greeks or Italians or Lebanese or any of the Mediterranean nations really know how to cook healthy dishes full of antioxidants and vitamins, not to mention flavorful dishes too. This one is no exception.

Eat this with the spicy braised beef and you will be singing a melancholy Fado to some lost love in the past. It's pure love!!!

This is my take on Caponata.

Ingredients.
1 chopped onion
4 chopped celery stalks
12 oz of chopped tomatoes
2 eggplants sliced thin
24 chopped in half green olives
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
3 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup capers drained
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp honey
4 cloves garlic chopped
1/2 cup of pine nuts

Preparation
1. Fry onions, garlic, celery in half of the oil until onions become translucent.
2. Add the tomatoes and cook for another five minutes.
3. In another pan fry up the eggplant with the other half of the oil until lightly brown.
4. Add cooked eggplant to the garlic/celery mixture.
5. Add balsamic vinegar and cook for another three minutes.
6. Add olives, fresh basil, pine nuts, capers and honey and cook for another three minutes.
7. Adjust flavor with salt and pepper. Maybe add more honey if you want.
8. Let sit on the side for about fifteen minutes and then serve with main dish.

It's an awesome vegetable side that excites the palate. It must be the hot Mediterranean love thing. I don't know. Enjoy. Bon appetit! (Serves 4-6)

Italian Caponata

Spicy Braised beef

This was an amazing Mediterranean inspired dish that blew me away. The cloves, cinnamon, garlic, and onion smells that filled the house sent me into another world. Chris Botti blowing his trumpet in the background, dancing sunlight playing off the gum tree, and a cool Hawaiian breeze made the cooking and eating experience very memorable!

Don't let the title fool you. It was not spicy as in spicy hot, but spicy as in very flavorful according to a Middle Eastern Palate. The cinnamon and cloves made it special! Delisioso!!!

This is my take on spicy braised beef:

Ingredients:
2.5 lbs of chuck roast
3 Tbsp tomato paste
5 cloves of garlic
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
4 medium onions sliced thin.
5. 1 cup of red wine
2 tomatoes chopped
1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp ground cloves
salt and pepper to taste.
1 packager of pasta. (Boil in slightly salted water until al dente)

Preparation
1. Rub cinnamon, cloves, pepper, salt and garlic into beef. Let sit for one hour in cool place to let flavors soak.
2. Brown lightly in pot with oil on all sides. Remove and place on the side.
3. Fry onions in the same pot until translucent.
4. Return meat into same pot with onions and add wine, tomatoes, tomato paste, and water to barely cover the meat.
5. Boil on medium high heat for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until meat is tender.
6. Remove meat from pot and slice into warm covered platter.
7. Add balsamic vinegar to leftover gravy in pot  and adjust flavoring with salt , pepper, or even some sugar.
8. Pour over meat and cooked pasta.
9. Serve immediately

The meat should fall apart as you cut it with a fork. Serve with cooked vegetables, salad, and a nice cabernet wine. Bread is good too! Don't forget the butter! You will be licking your plate! Bon Appetit!
(Serves 4-6)

Apple and Pineapple Crisp

Do you like Baked Apples and Pineapple smothered in crumbly butter, cinnamon, sugar, and crisp oatmeal? I do, especially when it's matched with a scoop of velvety ice cream. This past week, I have been trying to figure out what to do with all my leftover, scrap vegetables and stray fruits lying around. I came up with two dishes that were a hit with my family: hamburger curry with savory beef extract and apple and pineapple crisp.

I will start with the dessert dish first. I found four large fuji apples left over from the tray we bought from Costco and a zip lock of pineapple I cut up a few days earlier. I immediately went into creative mode. I hate wasting food and I hate eating old fruit, even though it tasted and looked okay. Dessert dish to the rescue!!!!!

This is my take on a simple dish that will utilize stray fruit lying around in your refrigerator.

Ingredients:
5 cups chopped apple (The tart type is the best, but anything will do)
2 cups pineapple (or any other type of fruit that has good sugar content)
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup dry oatmeal
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup butter sliced up (a stick)
1 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1/2 a lemon

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Place chopped apple and pineapple in a flat standard glass baking dish.
3. Squeeze lemon on the fruit
4. Mix all dry ingredients and butter in a mixing bowl until thoroughly mixed and crumbly
5. Pour over top of fruit. Be sure to cover all the fruit with the oatmeal/flour mixture
6. Place in oven for approximately 30 to 40 minutes until brown on the top.
7. Take out and let sit for three minutes
8. Serve with ice cream and hot Kona coffee. Yes, Kona coffee. Okay, okay, okay, Brazilian is fine too.

This is a winner dish. Your family will call you super chef from this point on

Apple Crisp

Jack's Restaurant In Aina Haina

Do you like fast, friendly service, good food, and simple offerings? Jack's is definitely your kind of place. My wife, daughter and myself tried out their breakfast menu this past Monday. It was packed out. Families, retirees and friends filled most of the seats in this small nook of a restaurant. It can hold up to about thirty people comfortably.

I ordered their hamburger steak and two eggs; my wife ordered the loco moco; my daughter had their pancakes. The whole meal with coffee and biscuits came out to less than twenty five dollars with tip. 

Nothing stood out as outstanding. It was just a good, no frills breakfast in quiet Aina Haina. Who says you have to go all the way into town for a good meal? That was the blessing. I didn't have to drive all the way into downtown Honolulu for breakfast.

Their lunch menu, however, is a terrific assortment of local, comfort foods. You have Thai barbecue chicken, beef stew, lamb stew, lau lau plate (pork wrapped in taro leaves), and other delectables entrees to choose from. Their lunch is worth checking out. I tried their lamb curry and I was impressed.

If you are ever in Aina Haina and want  a good meal, check out Jack's in the Aina Haina Shopping Center.  You will not be disappointed

Hawaiian Pot Roast

Why am I calling this a Hawaiian Pot Roast? There is no inherent quality about this dish that would categorize it as Hawaiian. Maybe it's because I am Hawaiian and my kitchen is in Hawaii. That's it!I knew I would have an answer.

As you can tell, I am into comfort food. It makes me happy, happy, as Emeril likes to say. There is nothing like a plate of sliced pot roast, stewed carrots and potatoes laden over some steamed rice or mashed potatoes. Heaven!!!! (the picture looks as if there is only carrots, but the beef is beneath)

This is my version of a New England and Hawaiian favorite.

Ingredients.
2 lbs of chuck roast
5 celery stalks chopped
6 cloves of garlic minced
1 large onion chopped
5 carrots chopped into bite sized pieces.
2 large potatoes cut into big bite sized pieces
2 Tbsp natural boullion paste
5 cups of water.
3 bay leaves
4 Tbsp brandy
salt and pepper to taste.
1 Tbsp corn starch.
1/4 cup flour


Preparation.
1. Flour, salt, pepper the chuck roast, and then in a little oil brown in a stew pot. remove.
2. Fry up the onions and garlic in the same pot until onions are translucent.
3. Put meat back into the same pot with onions and garlic.
4. Add all the water, boullion paste, brandy, and bay leaves.
5. Boil on high for two hours on high heat.
6. Add water if it starts to boil off. Replace until it covers meat again.
7 Add carrots and cook for another twenty minutes.
8. Add potatoes and cook for another fifteen minutes
9. Remove roast and veggies into a deep platter and cover.
10. add corn starch into 1/4 cup of water, mix, then add to gravy mixture. Stir constantly until thick. Add salt and pepper to taste
11. Pour over meat in deep platter.
12. Serve immediately with steamed veggies, bread, rice, or mashed potatoes.

I love eating this with fried rice. That's just a Hawaiian thing or maybe a Chinese thing or maybe a completely incomprehensible thing. It doesn't matter. Enjoy. Bon Appetit!