Shish Tawook-Chicken Kebab Skewers and Yellow Rice with Nuts

Shish Tawook is traditionally served as a part of a Kebab trio of Lamb or Beef kebab and kafta kebab. Shish means skewer and Tawook is Turkish for chicken. This trio is usually served in a split pita to keep it warm and a spread of Mezza dishes that include Hummus, Baba Ghanouj, Tabouleh, and a variety of cold and warm dishes eaten with copious amounts of Pita Bread.


Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts, skinless                         4-6 peeled garlic cloves
and boneless                                             2 tbs. canola oil
Juice of 1 lemon                                        ½ tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. paprika                                        ½ tsp. Aleppo pepper*
1 tsp. black pepper                                   ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
* You can substitute with medium hot chili
Bamboo Skewers soaked in water for about half hour

Directions:

Trim chicken breasts removing any fat. Cut breasts into 1” cubes. Place in a bowl. Place oil, lemon juice, garlic and spices in a food processor and process until a paste is formed. Add garlic mixture to chicken and mix until chicken is covered. Marinate chicken for half hour. Start your grill or grill pan, temperature should be high at first so you can sear the chicken. Grill for about 3 minutes until you get grill marks, turning skewers then grilling for 3 more minutes, then moving skewers to a less hot area. If you are using a grill pan lower the heat to medium low. You can test the doneness of the chicken by piercing it with a fork; if the liquid comes out clear then the chicken is done.

Variations and Serving Suggestions:
You can keep breasts whole and grill that way.
For a round meal, serve with yellow rice sautéed mushrooms or any favorite vegetable and a romaine salad tossed in lemon juice vinaigrette.

Stuff  it in a pita sandwich with hummus, tomatoes, lettuce and pickles.
Latin Version:
Add to the marinade ½ tsp. of each, ground cumin, ground coriander and oregano. Serve in a taco with salsa and guacamole.
Italian Version:
Add ½ tsp. dry basil, cook the chicken in a skillet and serve it with pasta.
Asian Version:
Omit salt and add 1tbs.of grated ginger and 2tbs. of low sodium tamari or soy sauce and you will have an Asian version. Present it with a peanut sauce as an appetizer or with white rice and a vegetable stir fry.
Yellow Rice with Nuts

This is my version of spice rice that the Lebanese traditionally serve with poached chicken. Spice Rice or Roz Mofalfal is cooked with chicken broth cinnamon, all spice, black pepper, nutmeg and cloves; topped with fried in butter or ghee. Mine is simpler but as tasty.
Ingredients: Serves 4-6
2 cups Jasmine or Basmati rice         4 cups water or chicken stock
1/4 cup golden raisins                      2 tbs. butter                              
1 tsp. ground turmeric                     ½ tsp. cardamom powder
½ tsp. black pepper                         1tsp. salt
Garnish:
1/8 cup pine nuts or slivered almonds          2 tbs. butter or oil
Or a combination of both
Instructions:
Melt you butter in a wide bottomed pan on medium high heat. Sauté golden raisins until plump. Add washed rice and fry for a few minutes while stirring constantly. Add spices and salt and mix, add water and cover. When water starts boiling mix once, reduce heat to low and cook until water is completely and rice is fluffy. While the rice is cooking toast your nuts on medium low heat stirring constantly until golden brown, remove immediately off the stove and ladle it onto a bowl to stop cooking. Top the rice with the nuts and serve.

Thum- A Lebanese Equivalent to Garlic Aioli

This sauce/spread is very addictive if you love garlic. It is similar to Aioli except that it is made without an egg yolk. It gets milder after a day or two and it can keep for at least three weeks. Be patient while making it especially when you are adding the oil, the slower the stream the fluffier and lighter the sauce. The sauce may separate if you add the oil too fast.
Ingredients:
6 cloves of peeled garlic 3 tbs. water
1 ½ -2 cups canola oil 1 tsp. salt or to taste
1 tsp. citric acid or juice of 1 lemon or to taste
Instructions:
In a food processor chop garlic, while motor is running add water, salt, citric acid or lemon juice. Add oil in a slow stream and continue processing until sauce is fluffy and light resembling whipped cream .
Serving Suggestions:
We traditionally serve this sauce with roast chicken, grilled chicken or Shish Tawook. It can be used instead of mayo in sandwiches, with seafood or garlic bread.

Hummus be-Tahini

 Hummus is served in Lebanon with a medley of different dishes some cold, some hot. Those dishes are called mezza. The word is a derivative from the verb to sip since mezza is eaten while sipping on a drink in this case Arak, Lebanon’s national drink. Hummus is served plain and then topped with flavoring, like paprika, cayenne, chopped mint or parsley mint. Copious amounts of extra virgin olive oil are drizzled on and bread is plentiful. A vegetable platter is always served with mezza. The platter may include a variety of vegetables and herbs, like cucumber, tomato, scallions, mint, green pepper, hot pepper among others along with a big bowl of olives, green and black…………
Ingredients:
2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
¼ cup sesame tahini
¼ cup - ½ cup cooking liquid
½ tsp. kosher salt
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
2 garlic cloves
In a food processor add garlic, garbanzos, salt and lemon zest. Process the mixture until smooth. Add tahini, lemon juice and ¼ cup of liquid. Run processor until hummus turns whitish and creamy. Adjust taste if needed by adding salt and lemon juice. If too thick add more liquid and run processor until incorporated. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and serve with pita bread, pita chips, vegetables and herbs.
Tips: Soak overnight; ¾ cup of dry garbanzos with ¼ tsp. of baking soda and 6 cups of water. Next day, rinse garbanzos very well and cook uncovered on medium heat with 4 cups of water. Skim foam that forms on top then cover and cook for about an hour until garbanzos start to break down. Garbanzos should be covered with water at all times, so you may have to add more water to the pot. When fully cooked, strain garbanzos and reserve cooking fluid. Cool garbanzos down and process.You may use canned garbanzo beans, but it is worth it to cook your own, you will get a creamier tastier hummus.

Vegetarian Pho

 

 

I have been thinking of a way to make a vegetarian version of the Vietnamese staple soup Pho. The secret of any good Pho is the broth which is usually cooked 4 to 5 hours and left overnight for the flavors to develop. The clear broth is made with beef bones like marrow bones, knuckles or oxtail and a mix of sweet fragrant spices like cinnamon, star anise and fennel. Doing my research I found recipes that have common elements like the charred onions and ginger, the spices seemed to be the same with an addition of one or two in some of them. I have to come up with my own…….

I have been using mushrooms in soup stocks and sauces for a long time; sometimes using red wine or different herbs to capture the richness of meat. This time was not going to be different .I used dried shiitake mushrooms which have a concentrated earthy flavor that lends a deeper accent to the broth. I put my own signature by using my universal spice threesome; all spice, black pepper and ground cinnamon in addition to the recommended spices plus garlic and lime peel. Roasting the onions and the garlic makes it sweeter and enhances the overall flavor of the broth.

I was really surprised by how deep and rich the broth was; I did not miss the meat and bone flavor at all.

When you strain the broth you can fish out the mushroom, slice it and add it to your soup.

 

Recipe-Vegetarian Pho with Vegetables 

Serves: 4 to 6

Broth

5 Liters/ 20 cups of water

1 oz. washed dried shiitake mushrooms

1 large yellow onion, skin on and cut in half

2 carrots cut into 4 pieces

2 celery stalks cut into 4 pieces

5 whole garlic cloves, skin on

3 “ fresh ginger

3 scallions cut into 4 pieces

5 bay leaves

1 tsp fennel seeds

8 star anise

15 black pepper corns

10 allspice corns

8 whole cloves

1 tsp. powdered cinnamon

½ tsp. powdered allspice

2 tbs. Bragg’s amino

Kosher salt to taste

Directions:

Put water in heavy bottom pan and add to it mushroom, cook on medium high heat. In the mean time broil onion and garlic in a pan in a 400 degree oven. Stick ginger on a metal skewer and roast it on an open flame turning it around until charred. Cool ginger down, peel and chop and add to pot. Place star anise, black pepper corns, allspice corns, and cinnamon stick in a small skillet and toast over medium heat until fragrant. Take spices off heat; add bay leaves and fennel seeds. Put all spices in a piece of cheesecloth, tie cloth with twine and add to pot. When onions are charred and caramelized, peel skin off cut into pieces and add to pot. Cover pot and simmer broth over low medium heat for about an hour or until liquid is concentrated into about 8 cups. Add Bragg’s, powdered cinnamon, powdered allspice and salt to taste. Strain broth; remove mushrooms and discard of rest of vegetables and spices. Slice mushroom and save for soup. Put broth back in pot.

Soup

4 carrots, peeled and sliced thin

1 broccoli florets cut into bite size pieces

4 celery stalks, cut into 1” pieces

4 baby bock choy, chopped

1 package thin rice sticks, Maifun

Baked tofu (optional)-Recipe below

Steam vegetables until tender crisp; about 10 minutes or until tender crisp. Shock vegetables in cold water then strain. In a pot bring 8 cups of water to a boil, cook rice sticks for about 5 minutes or until tender. Strain noodles and plunge in cold water to stop cooking. Strain noodles and set aside

Condiments and Garnishes

1 Lb. bean sprouts

1 cup chopped cilantro

1 white onion, sliced very thin

1 scallion, chopped

4 Thai basil sprigs

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced (optional)

2 limes cut into eighths

Hoisin Sauce

Chili Garlic Sauce

Soup Assemblage:

Bring broth to a boil, put a serving of noodles in a bowl, add vegetables and tofu then top with broth. Garnish with sliced onions and cilantro. Serve with bean sprouts, Thai basil, lime wedges, jalapeno, Hoisin sauce and chili sauce.

Baked Tofu with a Ginger, Tamari Glaze

This is a very versatile recipe that can be used in different dishes like stir fries or as an appetizer with a dip.
Ingredients:
1 14 oz. package extra firm organic tofu
2 Tbs. canola oil
Glaze:
3 cloves of garlic, mashed
3” ginger, peeled and grated
1 tsp. dark roasted sesame oil
6 tbs. tamari
¼ tsp. Asian garlic chili paste
2 tbs. canola oil

Directions:
Set oven at 400 degrees. Slice tofu block into ½” slices. Place slices in one layer on a kitchen cloth and cover with a second cloth. Place a flat plate and a heavy pan on top of covered tofu to release excess moisture. Set aside for about 20 minutes. In the meantime mix all the glaze ingredients. Brush a sheet pan with canola oil and place tofu slices in one layer. Brush top layer of tofu slices with oil. Bake in oven for about 15 minutes or until starting to firm up. Pour glaze over tofu slices making sure tofu surface is covered, turn slices and spread mixture on other side. Bake another 10 minutes or until firm and caramelized.