Main Dishes

You are currently browsing the archive for the Main Dishes category.

My right to curry

July 9, 2010 in Seafood, Vegetable | 3 comments

It is my right as a Guyanese to curry anything that is edible. Yes that’s right, we curry everything….think I’m joking?? Almost any type of meat or vegetable I’ve eaten in my life I’ve had it in a curry.

From time to time I have conversations with my husband about exotic meats I’ve eaten growing up in Guyana and his question is always “How was it cooked?” And I will always reply “Curried of course.”

Today I felt like having shrimp curry with spinach cooked in coconut milk for lunch, but alas…I forgot to buy coconut milk. As I whined to Borderline Mommy about my misfortune, she said “Hey, why not curry the shrimp and the spinach?” I present to you Shrimp and Spinach curry.

Shrimp and Spinach Curry

1 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 inch piece of ginger crushed

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

1 onion, chopped

10 sprigs thyme

3 scallion, chopped

2 tbsp curry powder

1/2 tsp garam masala

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 lb frozen spinach, defrosted and drained of all liquid

Place shrimp, ginger, garlic, black pepper and salt in a bowl, mix will and set aside. On a medium fire heat 2 tbsp of vegetable oil. Place curry, garam masala, scallion, garlic, thyme and 3 tbsp spoon of water. Mix well.

Add curry mixture to hot oil and stir well. Allow to cook for 7-10 mins, stirring frequently to keep it from burning. If curry gets dry, add about 2 tbsp of water at a time. Add Shrimp and cook for 2-3 mins. Remove from pot and set aside.

Add 1 tbsp of vegetable oil to the pot and add spinach. Cook for 5-7 mins then add shrimp back to the pot. Add salt and pepper as needed. Stir well to combine and cook for an additional 3 mins. Remove from heat. Serve with white rice.

Tags: curry, main dish, Seafood, shrimp, spinach, Vegetable

Crab Take 2

April 5, 2010 in Grains and Rice, Seafood | 2 comments

Yesterday was Easter Sunday, and it was a very laid back day for me. Instead of spending the day cooking a glorious spread, I bought a few pounds of snow crab clusters and a jug of cane juice and that pretty much summed up Easter Lunch/Dinner. I started the day off with a trip to the miniature golf course where I played 27 holes. I think I did well, I got a hole in one! As for the overall score, lets just say we stopped counting since the second hole. golf

After golf I stopped at the DeKalb Farmers market, which was packed with people in the Sunday best, and I picked up a few items. Initially I had planned to cook some kind of salmon with roasted asparagus, a spring salad and some sort of fruity dessert, but after spending half the day in the scorching sun I was too pooped to even attempt such a meal. So I settled on snow crabs…can’t say I missed the salmon because the crab was phenomenal! We ate a much as we could and put away the leftovers, which was 4 clusters. This morning I decided to make Chicken Alfredo, but I soon remembered the crabs in the freezer and made a quick change, Crab Alfredo it was. I must say I’m pretty darn proud of myself, I am a crab picking fool. I cracked open those legs with such speed and precision I even shocked myself. Of course you don’t have to do what I did, you can simply buy lump crab meat. Crab Take 2 was a success…I enjoyed this dish!

P.S. If you look closely at the photos you will notice that one of my herbs from my one pot herb garden has made a cameo..its my chives!!

crab3

Crab Alfredo Pasta

1 lb pasta cooked according to directions on box. (I used angel hair, you can also use fettuccine)

3 tbsp butter

1/4 cup flour

2 cups milk

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup cream cheese

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp parsley, chopped

1/8 tsp nutmeg

3 cups lump crab meat

salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to directions on box and set aside. Melt butter over a medium fire, the stir in flour to make a roux. Whisk milk slowly into flour and butter mixture. Don’t add the milk too fast or you will end up with a lumpy sauce. On a low fire, add parmesan cheese, nutmeg, parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, cream cheese, salt and pepper. Stir until well combined. Add crab meat and cook until heated through. Stir in the pasta making sure to coat it well, garnish with additional chopped parsley or chives and grated parmesan cheese.

crab2

Tags: alfredo, crab, dinner, pasta

A traditional Guyanese Cook-up Rice.

March 23, 2010 in Grains and Rice, Meat, Poultry | 4 comments

cookup As promised I’m slowly going through all of my recipe requests and this was on the top of my list. Cook-up Rice is a traditional Guyanese recipe that’s very versatile. It is a one pot dish that can be made with any type of peas, such as pigeon peas or chickpeas and some type of meat. If you’re not a lover of peas or beans you can opt not to use peas and use callaloo or spinach in place of the peas. To add extra flavor you can use salted pigs tail or salt beef, I didn’t have either so I used a chunk of corned beef brisket that I scooped up at the store this past weekend. Today I made black eyed peas Cook-up with chicken and beef, my favorite! This dish seems complicated but I promise you it’s not, just follow the instructions and you will have a perfectly cooked meal. For those of you who have never had this dish, here’s a little tip, it tastes even better the next day!

Black Eyed Peas Cook-up Rice with chicken and beef brisket

1 cup black eyed peas

3 lbs chicken, cut up

1 lb corned beef brisket, cut into bite sized pieces(you can use regular beef also)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 scallion, finely chopped

about 10 sprigs thyme

1 13 oz can coconut milk

1 tbsp vegetable oil

2 cups rice

3 cups water

*I included the recipe for green seasoning at the bottom of the post.

Place peas in a a bowl with enough water to cover and soak overnight. Strain the peas and set aside. Season chicken with green seasoning* and let sit for at least an hour.

Place beef brisket in pressure cooker with 3 cups water and pressure for 15 minutes. If you do not have a pressure cooker cook for about 30 mins. In a separate pot over a medium fire, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add chicken, black eyed peas, onion, garlic and thyme. If you chose to use any type of pepper, now is the time to add it. Cook chicken for 10 minutes. Add coconut milk to chicken and cook for an additional 5 mins. Add beef and 2 cups of the liquid that the beef was cooked in to the pot with the chicken. Bring to a boil, add 2 cups rice and scallion. Stir pot thoroughly, cover pot. On a low fire, cook for 25 to 30 mins. The rice should be tender and all of the liquid should be absorbed. If rice is not tender and all of the liquid is gone, add water, a little at a time and continue to cook until rice is tender.

*Green seasoning is usually a mixture of onion, scallion, garlic, scotch bonnet pepper and salt that is finely chopped in the food processor or blender. This is used to season meat and add flavor to food. There are no exact measurements, you can use as little or as much of each ingredient according to your taste.

cookup1 cookup2