Wednesday, 21 October 2009

• 3 Dishes using Asian Peanut Sauce in different ways

  * Made a few additions and changes due to Reader feedback, also trying to catch people who don't read on the weekends when I post.  Thanks - MC.
  
  

  The Versatile Asian Peanut Sauce
  Three applications of One Peanut-Butter based Sauce:  As a Marinade - Satay Pork, Chicken
  & Shrimp Shish Kebab / As a Dip - Vietnamese Summer Rolls / As a Sauce - Szechuan
  Cold Noodles with Fresh Crisp Vegetables
  

  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  This is the Fifth Week of IReallyLikeFood's Ingredient Of The Week Showcase, featuring ingredients which readers and contributors use as a base for creating dishes.
   
  This Fifth Week, it's:  Battle Peanut Butter.
  
  Ubiquitous Peanut Butter.  So versatile, with so many uses spanning International Food Culture.  I had a difficult time deciding on what to make for this week's feature.  I actually considered at one point to do a post titled "Eight uses of Peanut Butter" -- but then realized that the size of the post would not only be ridiculous, but it would probably take me forever to produce.
  
  There was the Peanut Butter Cookie, which I have a wonderful, perfected recipe for.  There was the Chili Colorado, and a Moroccan Chicken Tagine.  There was my Peanut Butter, Banana and Chocolate Shake that I occasionally have instead of my healthier Fruit-based Post-Workout Smoothie.  And my variation on PB&J, a PB & Honey Sandwich; as well as a semi-frozen ball of Peanut Butter and Chocolate Ganache, rolled in crushed Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal.  I even considered just posting a photo of a spoon of Peanut Butter.
  
  In the end, I decided to go with the Trio again; loosely based on the concept Michael Mina uses in his San Francisco Restaurant to design his menus. 
  
  
  

  Today we are taking one ingredient, Peanut Butter, and making a versatile Asian Peanut Sauce with it; and then using this one sauce in three different applications: 
  
  We will be using it as a Marinade, for our Satay Pork, Chicken and Shrimp Shish Kebabs; also as a Dip, for our Vietnamese Summer Rolls; and finally as a Sauce, for our Szechuan Cold Noodles with Fresh Crisp Vegetables -- all delicious Asian Street Foods.

  
  
  Hopefully, except for those with Peanut Allergies, this Trio will have something to please all.  The Szechuan Cold Noodle dish is Vegan; the Summer Rolls are Cheap, Light and Tasty (and can also be made Vegetarian/ Vegan by omitting the meat and replacing with Shiitake Mushrooms or other Analog); and Satay Shish Kebab?  I don't think you can get more Caveman than Meat on a Stick over fire.
  
  ** NOTE:  This sauce is a combination of three sauce types from Thailand, Vietnam and China.  It's may not be the most traditional Satay, or the most traditional Vietnamese Peanut Sauce/Dip or the best way to make the Szechuan Cold Noodle sauce; but what this one sauce DOES do is it makes it possible to make a single sauce to be used for all three applications instead of making three sauces.  With a few changes though, the actual sauces can be made also.  The sauce can be made Vegetarian/ Vegan by the omission of the Fish Sauce.
  
  
  
  
  

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  Obligatory Peanut Butter Porn, obviously.  I bet you want to stick your finger in that and lick it, don't you?
  
  In fact, I bet you want to lick that little tip of the Peanut Butter with your tongue, face in the jar and all.  You know you want to.  I bet your tongue is rolling in your mouth right now, in fact.
  
  Alright, enough Food Torture Porn.  Let's get started.
  
  
  I N G R E D I E N T S:
  
  

  For the Peanut Sauce:
  
  

  2tsp Vegetable Oil
  1 Clove Garlic, minced
  1 Cup Low Sodium Chicken or Vegetable Broth (or water)
  1/4 Cup Hoisin Sauce
  1/4 Cup Peanut Butter
  1Tbsp Fish Sauce
  1tsp Sambal Oelek (Chili Garlic Sauce)
  1/4 Cup Unsalted Roasted Peanuts, chopped
  

  
  For the Satay Shish Kebabs:
  
  

  Whatever you want to grill (Pork, Chicken, Beef, Shrimp, Veggies, etc.)
  Peanut Sauce to Marinate
  Wooden Skewers
  
  

  For the Szechuan Cold Noodles:
  
  

  8oz Chinese Egg Noodles
  2 Cups Bean Sprouts (loose)
  3 Green Onions, Julienned or sliced thin
  1/2 Cup Cilantro, torn
  1 Cucumber, Julienned or sliced thin
  1/2 Red Bell Pepper, Julienned or sliced thin
  1tsp Salt
  1/8tsp Ground White Pepper
  1tsp Chili Oil (optional)
  1 Cup Peanut Sauce
  1/4 Cup Ground Peanuts mixed with 1tsp Sugar
  

  
  For the Summer Rolls:
  
  

  1 Package Rice Noodle Sheets
  1 Package Rice Vermicelli
  1 Small Head Red Lettuce, leaves washed
  1 Bunch each Mint, Cilantro, Thai Basil; torn
  1 Cucumber, sliced into thin sheets
  1 Cup Bean Sprouts, loose
  1/4 to 1/2 pound Pork, sliced thin (depends how much you want to use)
  1/4 to 1/2 pound Shrimp (depends how many you want to use)
  

  
  

  
  
  P R O C E D U R E:
  
  

  First things first, we're making our Peanut Sauce because we can't start without it:
  
  
  
  
  This is what goes into the Peanut Sauce.  You can get Fish Sauce and Sambal Oelek (Chili-Garlic Sauce) in the International Aisle in most supermarkets.  The Sambal Oelek we're using has a Green lid and has a Rooster on it.  Just remember that.  Uncooked Fish Sauce will be one of the most disgusting things you'll ever smell, but it's a necessity to many South Asian dishes; it cooks out and adds a lot to the dish.
  
  
  
  
  Heat your Saucepan to Medium, Mince your Garlic, add Vegetable Oil to the Pan, and let Garlic flavor the oil, about 15 seconds.  Then add in Chicken Stock, Hoisin Sauce, Sambal Oelek, Peanut Butter and mix.  Stir and let simmer until thickened.
  
  
  
  
  When it's thickened, it will have a consistency like this.  It will have a strong taste; remember you're not eating this by the spoonful.  If you want to thin it out, just add some water.  If you want it sweeter, add some sugar.  If you want more of a Peanut Butter flavor, obviously just add Peanut Butter.
  
  At this point, this is the Peanut Sauce we use for the rest of our dishes here.
  
  

  
  

  
  

  When used for a Dip for the Vietnamese Summer Rolls, garnish with ground Peanuts and thinly julienned carrots.
  
  
  
  
  For our Satay Shish Kebabs, take your meat and shrimp, cut it up into rough blocks and put them into a Gallon size Ziploc bag.  Take some of your Peanut Sauce, spoon it into the bag, squish things around so everything is coated well, press the air out of the bag and seal it.
  
  Marinate for a few hours, or overnight.
  
  Before grilling/ broiling, soak your Wooden Skewers in water for at least 30 minutes so they don't burst into flame when cooking.
  
  
  
  
  If you have a Grill, use that.  If you don't, use your Broiler and your Broiling Pan.  Oil your grill surface with a Vegetable Oil soaked paper towel before you turn the heat on.  We're using HIGH heat here -- I like letting the grill get up to around 500 degrees before I put the meat down.
  
  Put the meat down.  We're searing and then moving.  Using long Grilling Tongs, move the meat from the hot part to the cool part of the grill once the meat is nicely seared.  Cooking time depends on the thickness of the meat.  During Cooking, occasionally glaze (brush down) the meat with a mixture of 1:1 ratio Peanut Sauce and Vegetable Oil.
  
  When done, remove from heat onto a CLEAN pan and cover with foil.
  

  
  

  
  

  De-skewer and reserve some of your meat and shrimp on the side to be used in the Vietnamese Summer Rolls.  Try not to eat it all before you serve your meal.
  
  Otherwise, Make Pretty and Serve.
  
  
  
  
  If you have access to Fresh-Made Chinese Egg Noodles, go get some.  I like using the thin, flat kind that I get from a Noodle Factory in Chinatown.  This is what it looks like.  Otherwise, just use the dried kind.  You can also get this in the International Aisle in most supermarkets.
  
  
  
  
  Cook BOTH your Egg Noodles for the Noodle Dish and your Rice Vermicelli for the Summer Rolls; in Separate Pots.  Follow the supplied Cooking Directions on your packaging.  The Egg Noodles should be soft and silky.  The Rice Vermicelli should be easily bitten through.  Be aware that Fresh Noodles cook very quickly.
  
  
  
  
  Drain and RINSE well under cold water.  The reason we are rinsing is because we are eating these noodles cold in both applications; and the starch on the surface of the noodles will cause the noodles to clump up.
  
  
  
  
  Take your vegetables, put them in a big bowl.  Add the Egg Noodles, and the Peanut Sauce.  Mix until well incorporated.
  
  Chill in the refrigerator until cold.
  
  

  
  
  

  
  

  Garnish with Cilantro and a mix of Ground Peanut and Sugar.
  

  
  
  
  
  This is what the packaging looks like for the Rice Paper Sheets and the Rice Vermicelli.  You don't have to use these brands in particular; this is what I like to use though.
  
  
  
  
  Put some water in a frying pan.  Lay down a sheet of Rice Paper on it.  Let it soak until it's pliable but still a little stiff.
  
  
  
  
  I'm using the Pork and Shrimp we grilled for the Satay Shish Kebabs.
  
  If you don't grill and only want to make the Summer Rolls, simply purchase thin-cut Pork (doesn't matter what part of the pig) and cook either by boiling, steaming or frying.  It doesn't really matter.  You can also just throw some shrimp in a pot of boiling water until they turn orange, then remove and they're ready to go.
  
  I like eating Shrimp shell-on.  I know a lot of people find this disgusting.  Peel your Shrimp if you like, but I think there's more flavor shell-on.  I use whole shrimp, and lots of it.  If you need to stretch the dollar, slice the shrimp in half lengthwise.
  
  I'm also using what some Koreans may recognize as Samgyupsal, or Pork Belly.  You don't need to use this.  I just happen to have some, and I like eating it.  I slice mine thin and use this instead of the thin-sliced regular Pork.
  
  
  
  
  This is what goes into the Summer Rolls.  Meat and Shrimp can even be omitted, but I don't like doing this.  If you want to make it Vegetarian (Vegan, even), feel free to omit the meat and replace with Shiitake mushrooms or Grilled Vegetables (yum).  The interest in this dish comes from the contrast between crunchy and soft, umami, and natural vegetable sweetness, and all the aromatic herbs (Mint, Thai Basil, Cilantro) rolled inside.
  
  
  
  
  Take your Rice Paper Sheet, lay it on a damp cutting board.  Lay down the Lettuce, and then add the rest of your ingredients lengthwise in a strip as if you are making a burrito. 
  
  Fold up the two "edges" (left and right in the photo) onto the filling, and then roll up one "end" (bottom or top in photo) over the filling and continue rolling like a burrito.
  
  ** NOTE:  When you lay down your ingredients, try to put ingredients that "shield" the skin from the more "pokey" ingredients.  Putting bean sprouts on the outside, for example, tends to tear the skin.
  
  
  
  
  When rolled, it will look something like this.  If you want an easier time rolling, use two sheets instead of one.  Slice this roll near the center, diagonally.
  

  
   
  

  
  
  
  

  Plate and Serve.
  
  
  
  
  
  Finis.
  

  
  
  
  
  

  * * * * *
  

  
  
  
  I love Street Food.
  
  Whenever I travel to a foreign place, it's not the fine restaurants that I look forward to eating in -- it's the little booths here and there set up on the streets or in the night markets inside old plazas serving the food that the locals know and love. 
  
  Whether the rich, hearty Bus Station Kefta or Baghira sold on the streets of Morocco; or the sizzling Okonomiyaki and Takoyaki Balls of Japan; or the thin crispy Stroopwafels of Amsterdam; or the steaming Bao-zi dumplings and crisp You-Tiao crullers of Taiwan; refreshing Cold Noodles or infuriating Hou-Guo of Szechuan, China; or the Satay Shish Kebabs grilling over a fire in South Asia -- this is the food that I seek out when I travel.  Not only because it's the most authentic of the local cuisine -- sold by people who would scoff at the word "cuisine" if they even understood what the word meant -- but also because Street Food is cheap.
  
  This got me thinking.
  
  

  Street Food is popular with Students in almost every country; specifically because they tend to be tasty and cheap at the same time.  Being that I've been meaning to start a series on International Street Foods; and at the same time, preparing to start a series designed for College Students (cheap, fast, easy); I thought that I could combine the two ideas.

  
  The dishes above are all easy to make, requiring only basic cooking skills.  The sauce is basically "mix ingredients and simmer", and holds for a very long time refrigerated.  The rest of the dishes have cooking instructions that go no further than "boil your noodles" and if thin-sliced meat and shrimp is desired, those can be boiled in the same water as well.  Otherwise, these dishes are merely assembly-type dishes.  Beyond this, all the ingredients in these dishes are very cheap and are affordable on a Student's Budget.
  
  I hope you try this Trio.  It's the most do-able of the three Trio's that I've done so far; and even use common ingredients -- you can make a three course meal out of these three; serving a dozen people at once, or you can make it just for yourself because as these are cold dishes, you can make them all at once and keep them in your refrigerator to eat later.  The Summer Rolls transport well, and can be taken to School or Work for Lunch.  The Cold Noodles taste good in subsequent days as well, and are especially tasty when combined with the Satay Shrimp, Chicken or Pork Shish Kebabs.
  
  My Love and Aloha, from these islands of Hawai'i.
  

  
  
  

  What's your favorite Street Food or Fair Food, and where do / did you have it?
  

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