Pot Stickums

Recipe adapted from Alton Brown's recipe.

Particulars:

• 1/2 lb ground "meat" of your choice (tofu, pork are usual suspects)
  
• 2 c cabbage, finely chopped
  
• 1/4 c scallions, finely chopped
• 2 T bell pepper, red, finely chopped
• 1 egg, lightly bruised (or 1/4 c egg substitute)
• 1 T rice wine vinegar
• 2 t Worcestershire sauce
• 1 t light brown sugar
• 1.5 t kosher salt
• 1 t black pepper, fresh ground
• ~1 t cayenne pepper (adjust to your liking)
• 1 t sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 T light soy sauce or fish sauce or oyster sauce
• ginger, freshly grated fine (approx 1T or less)
  
• wonton wrappers (~40)
• chicken stock (~1 1/3 c) in 1/3 c increments
• vegetable oil
• water
• brush
  

1. Chop up the scallions, bell peppers, and cabbage - I suggest using a food processor. Drain all water from chopped veg. Sprinkle a little salt over the veg to draw out water. Let sit for 5 minutes, then squeeze out all water.
   
2. Preheat your oven to 200F.
3. Mix up all ingredients (except wrappers, chicken stock, veg oil, and water) in a large bowl. Mix it good. Set aside.
4. Fill wontons. Brush water on two edges, place about 1/2 t - 1t of filling in center, fold, seal, shape as desired. Set filled wontons aside, cover with damp cloth. Repeat until all wrappers are filled or you're out of filling.
5. Heat a 12" saute pan over medium heat.
6. Once pan is hot, brush with veg oil - lightly - and make *sure* you're up to temp.
   
7. Add filled wontons to pan about 8-10 at time and cook for 2 minutes. Don't touch them.
8. After 2 minutes, gently add 1/3 c chicken stock and drop heat to low. Cover. Cook for 2 minutes.
9. Remove wontons to a baking dish or other heatproof platter and put in 200F oven to keep warm.
10. Clean pan between batches by deglazing with water.
11. Repeat steps 6-10 until all wontons are cooked. Serve and enjoy!
    

California Roll

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2005
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Wake Up Little Sushi
Difficulty: Medium
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 8 appetizer servings

Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 medium avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced into 1/4-inch thick pieces
4 sheets nori
1/2 batch sushi rice, recipe follows
1/3 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, and cut into matchstick-size pieces
4 crabsticks, torn into pieces
Pickled ginger, for serving
Wasabi, for serving
Soy sauce, for serving

Squeeze the lemon juice over the avocado to prevent browning.

Cover a bamboo rolling mat with plastic wrap. Cut nori sheets in half crosswise. Lay 1 sheet of nori, shiny side down, on the plastic covered mat. Wet your fingers with water and spread about 1/2 cup of the rice evenly onto the nori. Sprinkle the rice with sesame seeds. Turn the sheet of nori over so that the rice side is down. Place 1/8 of the cucumber, avocado and crab sticks in the center of the sheet. Grab the edge of the mat closest to you, keeping the fillings in place with your fingers, and roll it into a tight cylinder, using the mat to shape the cylinder. Pull away the mat and set aside. Cover with a damp cloth. Repeat until all of the rice has been used. Cut each roll into 6 pieces. Serve with pickled ginger, wasabi and soy sauce.

Sushi Rice

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2005
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Wake Up Little Sushi
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4 cups

2 cups sushi or short grain rice
2 cups water, plus extra for rinsing rice
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt

Place the rice into a mixing bowl and cover with cool water. Swirl the rice in the water, pour off and repeat 2 to 3 times or until the water is clear.

Place the rice and 2 cups of water into a medium saucepan and place over high heat. Bring to a boil, uncovered. Once it begins to boil, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cover. Cook for 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes.

Combine the rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl and heat in the microwave on high for 30 to 45 seconds. Transfer the rice into a large wooden or glass mixing bowl and add the vinegar mixture. Fold thoroughly to combine and coat each grain of rice with the mixture. Allow to cool to room temperature before using to make sushi or sashimi.

Tomato Sauce

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Tomatoes
Difficulty: Easy
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Yield: 4 cups

20 Roma tomatoes, halved and seeded
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 cup finely diced onion
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon finely chopped oregano leaves
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme leaves
1 cup white wine

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In 2 (13 by 9-inch) pans place tomato halves cut side up. Sprinkle with oil, salt and pepper, onion, garlic, and herbs. Bake tomatoes for 2 hours. Check the tomatoes after 1 hour and turn down the heat if they seem to be cooking too quickly. Then turn the oven to 400 degrees and bake another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and process tomatoes through a food mill on medium dye setting over a small saucepan. Discard skins. Add white wine, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 5 minutes.

Pantry Friendly Tomato Sauce

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Seeing Red
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Yield: 1.5 quarts

2 (28-ounce) cans whole, peeled tomatoes
1/4 cup sherry vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 onion
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
2 ounces olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup white wine
Kosher salt and black pepper, to tasteIn a sieve over a medium non-reactive saucepot, strain the tomatoes of their juice into the sauce pot. Add the sherry vinegar, sugar, red pepper flakes, oregano, and basil to the tomato juice. Stir and cook over high heat. Once bubbles begin to form on the surface, reduce to a simmer. Allow liquid to reduce by 1/2 or until liquid has thickened to a loose syrup consistency.

Squeeze each tomato thoroughly to ensure most seeds are removed. Set the tomatoes aside.

Cut carrot, onion, and celery into uniform sizes and combine with olive oil and garlic in a non-reactive roasting pan over low heat. Sweat the mirepoix until the carrots are tender and the onion becomes translucent, 15 to 20 minutes. Add the tomatoes and capers to the roasting pan.

Place roasting pan on the middle rack of the oven and broil for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Tomatoes should start to brown slightly on edges with light caramelization. Remove the pan from the broiler. Place the pan over 2 burners on the stove. Add the white wine to the tomatoes and cook for 2 to 3 more minutes over medium heat.

Put the tomatoes into a deep pot or bowl and add the reduced tomato liquid to the tomatoes. Blend to desired consistency and adjust seasoning.

Okra and Tomatoes

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2006 Show: Good Eats Episode: Okraphobia
1 pound okra, rinsed and trimmed 3 tablespoons olive oil 1 1/2 cups finely chopped red onion 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt 1 tablespoon minced garlic 2 cups peeled and chopped tomato 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger 1 teaspoon freshly ground grains of paradise* or black pepper 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground cardamom Cut each okra pod in half lengthwise and set aside. If there are any pods longer than 4 inches, cut them in half crosswise and then lengthwise. Heat the olive oil in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions along with the salt and cook until they begin to turn golden, approximately 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer. Add the tomatoes and bring the mixture to a boil. Decrease the heat to low and add the ginger, pepper, cardamom and okra. Stir to combine. Cook, uncovered for 20 minutes. Remove from the heat, taste and adjust the seasoning as desired. Serve immediately. *Cook's Note: Grains of Paradise are available online and in specialty spice markets. They have a zesty flavor reminiscent of pepper, coriander, and cardamom.