I’m not even sure this qualifies as a curry since it doesn’t use curry paste, but I do serve and eat it much like a curry.  It’s a quick and easy preparation and makes a delicious meal weeknight meal.

Curry:

• 1 lb of cod, cut into chunks
  
• 1 can organic coconut milk
  
• 1-2 birds eye chilis (depending upon how hot you like it), minced tiny (or you can use ground red pepper)
  
• ½ teaspoon minced ginger
  
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
  
• 1 lime zest and juice
  
• ½ teaspoon white pepper
  

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Mix everything except the lime juice and the cod in the bottom of a casserole dish.  Place the cod pieces so they do not overlap and each piece is submerged. Bake for 15- 20 minutes until the fish is tender and flaky.  Add the lime juice once it comes out of the oven.

Rice:

• 1 cup of jasmine rice
  
• 1 can coconut milk
  
• ¼ cup water
  
• Pinch of sea salt
  

Add in rice cooker and cook while preparing fish.

When the fish and the rice are both ready, fill a bowl ½ way with rice and then add the curry over it.  Top with some basil leaves, and serve. 

• 1 dozen Little Neck Clams
  
• 1 Cup White Wine (or beer of choice)
  
• 1 Cup Clam Juice
  
• ½ stick butter or Earth Balance Buttery Spread
  
• 5 cloves garlic, sliced thin
  
• ½ teaspoon minced sage
  
• ½ teaspoon minced rosemary
  
• 1 Teaspoon minced parsley
  
• Salt and Pepper to taste
  
• *Optional ¼ lb of  chorizo, small dice (this works well with beer – less so with wine)
  

Wash the clams thoroughly in cold water.  The clams should be closed tightly.  If one is open a touch, tap on it.  If it closes again, it’s fine.  If not, toss it. 

In the bottom of a six-quart sauce pan, add the wine, clam juice, butter, garlic and herbs (reserving some of the parsley to garnish the dish at the end).  

Season the liquid (remember to go light on the salt with clams)

Add the clams into the bottom of the pot.  Cover and bring to a boil.

Have a clean bowl ready and next to the stove. 

Start checking the clams at about 6 minutes.  Remove any that have opened.  At this point, I watch them – uncovered, because they are going to start opening.   You don’t want to leave any clams in the pot once they have opened because they will overcook and get leathery.

Discard any clams that don’t open after 10+ minutes. 

Once all of the clams are out, pull out the garlic from the liquid and add it to the bowl with the clams.

Then line a strainer with a cheesecloth or a paper towel and pour the liquid through the strainer into your bowl with the clams.  You do this to remove any sand that may have come from the clams when they opened.

I like to finish them with a dab of butter/Earth balance, fresh parsley and some freshly grated black pepper. 

If I were to serve this over pasta, I’d reduce the strained liquid down into a slightly thicker sauce, and then pour it over the clams/pasta.

I love to eat this with some crusty bread to sop up the liquid. 

I have to thank Nancie McDermott for this recipe.  While it’s different from the recipe she shared in my Craftsy course with her, I never could have gotten to this stage without her original recipe and her help. 

Traditional Pad Thai uses certain ingredients that are difficult to find in the U.S., like tamarind, garlic chives, dried shrimp and a Thai pickled radish that I don’t know the proper name of.

I can find tamarind paste sometimes in the Latin or Asian markets.  I don’t live close enough to a really good Asian market to find dried shrimp and if I want garlic chives, I have to grow them myself. So, my version has some adaptations based on ingredients that more readily accessible.

Shrimp Pad Thai

• ¼ lb dried linguine rice noodles
• 3 Tbsp Fish Sauce
• 3 Tbsp Honey
• 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
• 2Tbsp Tamarind juice (or paste that’s been reconstituted in water)
• 1 Tbsp Apple cider vinegar 
• Zest of one lime
• 1 teaspoon of paprika
• 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
• 3 cloves of minced garlic
• 1 long red chili, minced
• 1 lb medium to large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• ½ cup shrimp or seafood stock (If I were making chicken Pad Thai, I’d use chicken stock)
  
• 2 eggs beaten well
• 2 cups (separated) fresh mung bean sprouts
• ½ cup thinly sliced green onion/scallion or shallots or garlic chives (most authentic, hardest to find)
• ½ cup salted, dry roasted peanuts
• 1 Lime – ½ juiced and ½ sliced
  

Soak the noodles in a large bowl filled with cold water for about 30 minutes. Make sure the water covers the noodles completely.   The will become soft – but still leathery and change color from ivory to bright white

Prepare the sauce: in a medium bowl, combine the fish sauce, soy sauce, honey, Tamarind, juice, lime juice, vinegar, paprika, and chili. Using a whisk, stir to mix everything well and dissolve the honey into a fairly smooth sauce. 


Place a serving platter for the finished noodles by the stove, along with a a pair of long-handled metal tongs for tossing the noodles. Prepare the remaining ingredients and have them handy by the stove. 


When you are ready to cook, drain the noodles well and place them by the stove.

In a large wok, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat until hot.

Add the garlic and toss well until it releases its fragrance. Scatter in the shrimp and toss well.

Cook the shrimp until they are firm and bright pink but not cooked through - about 1 minute.  Remove the shrimp from the wok and set aside.

Add the drained noodles and pull the mass of noodles apart to expose them to the hot pan. Add the shrimp stock and cook by tossing now and then and spreading the noodles out to expose them to the heat. When they begin to curl, whiten, and soften, stir the sauce mixture well and add about half of it, pouring it in around the sides of the pan. Toss well and cook, scooping and tossing and pulling the noodles apart to cook them evenly. Add a little more stock, pouring it around the sides in small amounts, to discourage the noodles from sticking. 


Add the remaining sauce and toss well. Lift the mass of noodles on one side, and pour the remaining oil onto the hot pan. Turn the pan to coat it with the oil, and add the beaten eggs. Turn the pan to spread them out, and let them cook undisturbed until they begin to set. Let the noodles cover the eggs and cook briefly.

Then toss and scoop to mix the eggs into the noodles. Add half of the bean sprouts, and toss well. Add the green onions and half of the peanuts, and toss well. Scoop the noodles onto the serving platter. Pour the reserved lime juice over the noodles, and garnish with the remaining bean sprouts, remaining peanuts, and lime wedges.

I like to finish it with some minced basil too.

Serve hot. 


Ingredients:

• 1 lb calamari, ½ tails and ½ tentacles 
  
• 2 ribs celery, small dice
  
•  ½ cup tomatoes, small dice
  
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives, sliced into rings
  
•  1 mini yellow pepper, sliced into rings
  
•  1 mini red pepper, sliced into rings
  
•  1 teaspoon red chili, seeded and minced (more if you like it hot)
  
•  ½ small red onion, sliced thin
  
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
  
•  1 lemon, zest and juice
  
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
  
•   ¼ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  
•  salt and pepper to taste

 Step 1: Prepare the calamari

Run the calamari under cold water.  Drain and slice the tails into ½ inch rings. Bring a six quart pot of salted water to boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water and keep it next to your pot.  First add the tails (the order is important because the tentacles turn the water purple).  Remove them with a slotted spoon as they begin to float (this takes about 30-45 seconds) and plunge them into the ice water.  Once cooled, drain them and pat them dry.

When all the tails are out, let the water return to a rolling boil and add the tentacles to the pot.  Remove them as soon as they start to float and add them to the pot, removing them as soon as they start to float.  Then plunge the tentacles into the ice bath.  Once cooled, drain them and pat them dry.

Step 2: Mixing the salad

In a large bowl, add the celery, tomatoes, olives, peppers, onion, garlic and lemon zest.  In a smaller bowl, add the lemon juice, vinegar, and olive oil and whisk aggressively until it forms an emulsion. 

Add the calamari to the bowl with the vegetables and then pour the dressing over it.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Then store it in the fridge for about an hour before eating – if it can last that long.