Monday, March 26, 2012

Kale and Scallion-Fried Brown Rice

I've become pretty enthusiastic about kale, to the point where I got this t-shirt for Christmas as a joke (though I wear it often with pride).  Vince isn't completely convinced, but one batch of kale chips was enough to get Alexa onto my side too.  It makes it's way into soups and stews pretty often, and into my lunches as massaged kale salads, but I've been looking for more side dishes to use it in.


This kale and scallion fried rice was a great side for teriyaki salmon.  It came together quickly, and the earthiness of it balanced the sweetness of the teriyaki and the richness of the salmon perfectly.  The leftovers were perhaps even better warmed up and topped with a runny poached egg and a few dabs of Sriracha.  If you're not a fan of kale yet, this is a nice way to sneak some in.

Kale and Scallion-Fried Brown Rice
adapted from the The Kitchen Daily

What's in it:

1/2 lb kale, stems discarded
1 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
5 scallions, thinly sliced
2 1/2 c cooked brown rice
1 Tbsp soy sauce

How to make it:


Chop the kale into bite-size pieces.  Cook the kale in a deep saute pan with 1/4-1/2 cup water until tender.   Drain the kale and squeeze out the remaining water when it's cool enough to handle. 

Wipe out the pan, then heat the vegetable oil over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes, being careful not to brown the garlic. Raise the heat to medium and add the kale and scallions. Cook for 2 minutes and then add the rice and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring. Add the soy sauce and cook for 30 seconds more.

Friday, March 23, 2012

Corned Beef Hash with Poached Eggs

This round of A Taste of Home Cooking's recipe swap had a slightly different set up than usual; rather than being assigned a recipe, we were each given a blog to pick a recipe from.  Yes, that's right, a whole blog's worth of recipes to narrow down to one choice.  I was given The Jey of Cooking, one I already follow and pull recipes from quite often, and let me tell you, it was really hard to choose.  I checked what I already had outlined for our weekly meal plans, and found that what I really needed was an awesome weekend breakfast. 


As I scrolled through Jey's breakfast tag, I saw corned beef hash and how to poach an egg.  It was like the stars aligned- I knew I'd have corned beef leftover from St. Patrick's Day, and I've been looking for an excuse to try poaching eggs.  Perfect!  I didn't change much, just added some bell pepper since I had it, and used thawed bagged shredded potatoes. 

Corned Beef Hash with Poached Eggs

What's in it:

1 c frozen hash browns, thawed
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/4 red bell pepper, diced
2 Tbsp chopped chives
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 c chopped or shredded corned beef
white vinegar for poaching
2 eggs

How to make it:

Mix potatoes, onion, bell pepper, chives, salt (go light on this, the corned beef will add a lot) and pepper to the potatoes and mix well to combine.  Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high.   Add potato-onion mixture and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.   Add the corned beef and stir to combine.   Cook, stirring occasionally, about 10-12 minutes, until potatoes are golden and beginning to crisp.  Keep warm in the skillet until the eggs are ready.

To poach the eggs, fill a saucepan with water, a little more than halfway full.   Add a splash of white vinegar.   Bring to a boil.  Break each egg into separate small dishes.   Swirl the water to create a tornado and carefully guide one egg at a time into the vortex.   Reduce heat to medium high.  Repeat with the second egg.  As each egg cooks, serve the corned beef hash onto a plate or into a shallow bowl so that it's ready to go when the egg is done.

For a soft center, cook for 2 minutes.   For a medium center, cook for 3 minutes.   For a hard center, cook for 4 minutes.  When the egg reaches your desired doneness, carefully remove with a slotted spoon and allow water to drip off.   Gently place on the hash and serve immediately.