Orange Tofu with Rice (Recipe)

I questioned whether or not to lump this under the "Other People's Recipes" banner, as it was greatly inspired by this recipe that I found on the internet.  I wasn't seeking an orange chicken recipe that emulated Panda Express, but it seemed to be quite popular.  Not only did it show up at the top of the search engine results when I began exploring what goes into orange chicken, but most other faux-Panda recipes seemed to emulate this one.  It was a great place to start.  The flavor profile was excellent.  But not immune to changes, and more importantly; despite the high notes the recipe was hitting, it is terribly written. 

The first thing you're going to want to do is make your orange sauce.  In a small bowl, mix together 5 tablespoons each of sugar and white vinegar, 1 1/2 tablespoons each of soy sauce and orange juice, and a tablespoon of orange zest.  Set the sauce aside.

Trysta is always eager to help in the kitchen.

The perfect accompaniment to a dish like this is always rice, and you'll want to get it started at this point.  3 cups of water to a cup and a half of rice makes a just enough to serve this dish to six people.  Next, you'll want to begin slicing your tofu into bite sized pieces.  Since the recipe I was adapting called for two pounds of chicken, I used three twelve-ounce packages of extra firm tofu, which I sliced in half down the middle both horizontally and vertically before chopping.  Since once things get cooking, you'll also want to prep all the vegetables you'll be using at this time:  one head of broccoli and a red bell pepper (these are optional, as there aren't typically vegetables in orange chicken, but I find that having them adds more substance to the dish) as well as the base of our flavor package: two garlic cloves, a red jalapeno, and a tablespoon of fresh ginger, all minced, and a quarter of a cup of thinly sliced green onion (the white part).

Once you have our mise en place, you can make your batter for the tofu.  Everything comes together pretty quickly at this point.  Mix together an egg with two teaspoons of salt and some freshly ground pepper.  

Now stir in a half a cup of cornstarch and a quarter cup of flour.  This will get really lumpy and hard to stir.  The recipe I am modifying leaves you at this point, with unworkable clumps of nothing.  The commentary on that site showed me that a lot of people decided it worked better mixing the flour and cornstarch separately of the egg mix and dredging them that way, but that's not what we're going to do here....this lumpy mix is still perfectly usable, it just needs a bit of liquid love.  

Stir in liquid until the lumps gain the consistency of a thick pancake batter (about half a cup of liquid).  You can just use water, but I wanted something that complemented the orange flavor without being overwhelming, and used the juice of a freshly squeezed grapefruit (hence the pink chunks in the picture above).  

Heat vegetable oil in a pan, deep enough to cover a piece of tofu, to medium-high heat.  Once the oil begins to bubble, cook the tofu in batches--my twelve inch cast iron was able to fit them in four groups--so that they brown evenly, don't clump together, and don't cool the oil too rapidly (which will cause them to get logged with oil). 

As you begin frying your first batch of tofu, you'll want to get two more skillets going over medium with just a tiny bit of oil to keep things from sticking--I simply used cooking spray, or you could use a non-stick pan if that sort of thing doesn't bother you.  

In the first goes the fresh veg, to be cooked down until they are soft but not mushy.  Give them just a pinch of salt as they cook, but other than that we want to emphasize their natural freshness.

 In the second pan, we have our garlic, ginger, and red jalapeno.  This pan requires a bit more attention than the other vegetables, as it will be providing the flavor punch for our dish.  Saute the ingredients until the peppers begin to soften, but before the garlic starts to become brown and bitter, about 2-3 minutes.  Then add the green onions, and cook for another thirty seconds.  Add a tablespoon of mirin, and cook just until it evaporates, then add the orange sauce.  When it begins to bubble--which won't take long--add an additional tablespoon of cornstarch that has been dissolved in a cup of water, and a teaspoon of sesame oil.

Meanwhile, you should have a pretty good pile of golden brown tofu bites.  Drain them on a paper towel, then toss them in the orange sauce until each piece is thoroughly coated.  Put the tofu and vegetables on the rice and top with the green part of the green onion, sliced thinly.  Makes six large portions.  

Grown Up Shells and Cheese (Recipe)

Macaroni and cheese.  It's a popular comfort food with people throughout the world, and my family is no exception.  However, when it comes to making it, ours is a house divided.  I like it homemade, with a thick layer of crunchy breadcrumbs topping pasta that is coated in a sauce made with the best sharp cheddar I can get.  Wife finds this type of macaroni dry, dull and lifeless.  If you ask her, macaroni and cheese is best when it comes from a box, the only cheese to be found in the form of a radioactive orange powder that has to be resuscitated with milk and butter before you can eat it.  (I imagine my description does a good job of conveying where I stand on the stuff.)  For awhile we tried to find a recipe she liked--she wants to enjoy real mac and cheese, anyway--but to no avail.  Everything from Alton Brown's "Good Eats" version to our friend's fabulous family recipe was met with reactions ranging from "ick" to "meh."  

Spicy Root Vegetable & Leek Soup (Recipe)

Sometimes you just get lucky.

The original recipes I post on Catfish's Dishes get here a variety of ways.  Some are long held family recipes, the stuff I was making long before I ever felt like writing about it.  Some were once other peoples' recipes, but have mutated so much under my watch that I feel fully justified in calling them my own.  Some are even proper "blog" recipes--things I created entirely for the purpose of writing about them, the sort of dish that involves planning, research, and possibly even failed attempts.

DK Donuts (Review)

So..................................................................................................................who doesn't like donuts?

DK Donuts & Little Bean Espresso (1300 W State St, Boise, ID 83702 (208) 385-7480) has a special place in my heart.  For about a year I lived just across the street, in a dilapidated house that contained no less than four raging alcoholics at a time.  My place was in the basement, where I avoided much of the drama in exchange for mildew.  I didn't have much money at the time, and most of my food came in the form of Ramen noodles or canned food graciously given by churches.  Still, everyone needs an occasional treat, and mine was DK.  Every other weekend, said basement would be filled with a collection of my nerd friends, where we would stay up late into the night playing Dungeons and Dragons.  After the party had slain the heroes (because of course, everyone wanted to play as the bad guys,) we would venture over to DK, where plenty of fresh donuts could be found in spite of the late hour.

Other People's Recipes: West African Peanut Soup

    I thought it was going to be a long time before something replaced the roasted tomato soup I've been making as my soup obsession. I was wrong. But I can't claim the credit for my new fixation.
     We're cookbook readers in my house. Myself most of all, but Wife will pour through different tomes of recipes over breakfast, and the kids like to go through and imagine what it will be like when they are old enough to make molten chocolate cakes and bacon wrapped meats without anyone hovering over them providing moderation. My favorite is "The Joy of Cooking." It's dependable, instructive, and thorough. Though (at least according to the Meryl Streep film "Julie and Julia,") the recipes in the original "Joy" were hardly tested compared to the cookbooks of real chefs, I have found it invaluable as a starting point for nearly everything, and as somebody who really likes tinkering with the recipes I make, a starting point is all I need. Boy and Girl are both drawn to the holiday cookbook Mother-in-Law got us for Christmas, with vibrant pictures that really sell the food. But it is Wife who started the latest obsession--Cooking Light. She bought one of their magazines simply because we were trying to eat healthier, but I have come to appreciate the publication on its own merits. So many "healthy" recipes cut out any sense of flavor, but Cooking Light recipes have never disappointed me. I enjoy their recipes enough that when I saw a giant anthology collection at the public library, I knew I had to check it out.

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

We'd finally gotten into a rut.  As I've mentioned on this blog already, friend of the family Lotus and her son have been staying with us for the past month and a half, and to save wear and tear on the oven as well as the budget, it was easier to plan meals as a joint unit instead of seperately.  This has meant that, apart from the lunch meat I take to work and a bit of smoked salmon on Mother's Day, we have effectively turned into vegetarians.  Now, I've said it before.  I like vegetarian food.  While many people find it restrictive, I actually think I am a more creative cook when I can't rely on meat to supply its flavor to whatever I am cooking.  That being said, this past week I hit a wall when it came to menu planning.  Black bean burgers were on the menu for a third time.  I'm growing to dread the sight of any form of noodle EXCEPT ramen.  Without revisiting Asian flavors Wife could do without or breaking her calorie budget, I'd pretty much exhausted every meatless recipe on Eating Well, Epicurious, Simply Recipes, and the other websites I visit for inspiration (not to mention traditional cookbooks.)  That's when I remembered it.  Catfish's Dishes.  Not this blog, but the ink-stained source material.  In the cabinet where I keep all of my cookbooks is a tiny notebook, lightly tan in color to emphasize how recycled it is.  It was part of a three pack I recieved one Christmas, and I think it was meant to hold poetry or personal musings.  Instead, I wrote recipes.  Just a handful; I didn't know much at the time.  The children were still toddlers, Wife was still Fiancee, and I knew plenty about cooking improvisationally, but I didn't have many recipes of my own.  There was a chili recipe that I still use to this day, and a chicken enchilada recipe that I most certainly don't...and then there was several pages of vegetarian recipes.  I pulled the book out and began looking for an idea to set me free.  Deep-Fried Tofu with Mashed Potatoes and Mushroom Gravy looked good, but doesn't fit Wife's diet.  Green Tofu Enchiladas ceased to be a possibility when the local Winco stopped carrying tomatillos. (Edit: This was only temporary. The tomatillos are back.)  Several others were shoddy things that should probably never see the light of day; edible at the time but not worth writing about.  What stood out, though, were the stuffed peppers.  I used to make them all the time when we were vegetarian.  I made them because I'd always liked my mom's stuffed peppers, but I have to say that the traditional beef-and-rice filling doesn't interest me as much ever since I came up with this stuffing mix.  The original recipe called for couscous, and you can substitute it if you prefer, but I have started using quinoa instead  because it has a much higher nutritional content. 

Other People's Recipes: Roasted Tomato Soup

I'll come right out and admit it; I don't mind the taste of most healthy foods.  My mother always tells people as a point of pride that I loved salad as a child, and I still do.  I like to snack on carrots and almonds just as much as I like to snack on Doritos and French fries.  But I've been learning, as Wife embarks on a quest to improve her health, that one thing is missing from most healthy dinners I've come across on the Internet. 

Decadence. 

Zesty Black Bean Burgers

When I first sat down to write this post, I included a lengthy explanation about my absence.  Then I realized that all I really cared about was the food.  I was in school.  I got overwhelmed.  Either you are still here or you aren't.  So let's skip any long-winded allusions to the prodigal son and get to cooking. 

                Now, I grew up in a very meat and potatoes kind of household.  Not just figuratively, either.  My mother is required as part of her job description to serve meat at every meal.  While I am sure that vegetarian ranch hands do exist, they are few and far between, and the bulk of the men and women who work out there want something more substantial than "hippie food."  Sometimes we had chicken. Sometimes we had pork.  On rare occasions fish (albeit in the form of "sticks,") made it onto the menu.  But mostly we ate beef.  Steaks followed hamburgers followed big beefy lasagnas followed sloppy Joes followed yet more steaks.  I'm not complaining.  Sometimes, like right after helping my dad butcher a cow, I might have questioned my eating habits; for the most part I ate of the meat and the meat was good.