Spicy Tomato Sauce

The whole house smelled wonderful...

...I've had my spicy tomato sauce on the stove overnight.

Shelby said we need to go through the freezer and get rid of anything that's been hanging out in there too long. When it was around dinner time last night I thought I'd take a look and see what we had in there:

Bag of venison cut into stew meat.

Three clusters of snow crab legs.

Clam stock.

Two slices of pork loin (these will be marinating in some mojo this week.)

Bags of cheese rinds.

Frozen egg rolls that really need to be friend up soon.

Some prepared tomatoes from several months ago...

There is a bunch of other stuff in there but it would take up a couple of pages to list. There is even a bag of mystery meat labelled "Chayce". No worries, I can assure you our son Chayce is alive and well in Hawaii. He's even married now! Here's proof from a Facetime we did last month, he wanted instructions on how to cook steak and potatoes.

Ok, for dinner I didn't have time to thaw out much so the crabs legs are pretty much cooked already and will be easy to prep. I had a head of broccoli I wanted to try a recipe on so there's the green. Easy!

I figured while I was making dinner I might as well take out the frozen tomatoes get those simmering. Tomato sauce is easy to make and this bag of tomatoes, about 3 lbs. worth, have been neglected for so long.

Since I wasn't using the sauce last night I planned on letting it stew overnight. While I was awake I had it set on a low simmer, stirring occasionally and scraping the sides. Shelby was out and when she walked in she said, "Mmm...what's that?" Told her what the deal was and unfortunately there would be no tomato sauce eating on this night. At bedtime I add some extra water and set it on low, barely a bubble here and there, covered the pot (to halt reduction), and then went to sleep.

Woke up and like the title of the post says, the whole house smelled wonderful. Checked on the sauce, stirred it, uncovered it, and turned it back up to a very low simmer. I'll check on it later at lunchtime when I'm on break. Reason I'm cooking it for so long is to let the tomato flesh breakdown on its own. I'm stirring it to keep it from sticking to the pot and to help break up the tomatoes that way too. If I'm here to tend to the sauce I'll keep it uncovered to concentrate and thicken. I'll probably store it in the fridge and have it Thursday night, we're going to my mother's house for dinner tonight.

Here's my recipe so you can make this spicy sauce at home. You'll notice I put onion down as optional, but I always add onion to everything! Love them. I had to adjust the recipe a tad bit since I didn't use the 4 lbs. of tomatoes I usually use.

Spicy Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds tomatoes, prepared
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 6 cloves Garlic, smashed
• 1 small Onion, diced (optional)
• 2 teaspoons Salt
• 1 teaspoon Pepper
• ½ cup of White Wine, Dry
• 1 tablespoon of Fennel Seed
• 2 tablespoons Dried Basil
• 1 tablespoon Dried Thyme
• 1 tablespoon Dried Dill
• 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
• 1 tablespoon Paprika
• 1  tablespoon Red Pepper Flake
• 2 teaspoons Cumin
• 2 tablespoons Light Brown Sugar
• 2 medium Bay Leaves

Before you Start:

• Some people use whole tomatoes, pulp, skin, and all. I blanch and squeeze mine before I freeze them. The tomatoes used in this recipe were prepared this way.
• I used an 8 qt. pot to keep spatter from making a mess and keep the heat even.
• If you don't want to wait hours for sauce, just cook it all thoroughly then use a immersion blender to smooth it out.

Directions:

1. Add heat oil to a large sauce pan at low-med heat.
2. Add garlic, onions, salt, pepper. Cooke till translucent.
3. Add the wine and scrape any bits from the pan, cook for 3 minutes.
4. Now add the rest of the ingredients and turn stove down to a low simmer.
5. Let simmer for 4-6 hours, stir occasionally to prevent sticking and to help break up the tomatoes.
6. Mangia!

Tom Kha

Tom Kha is something I've been around my whole life - that's not the same thing as saying I've been eating it my whole life mind you. If you keep up with me and have read stuff I've written in the past, I wasn't into Thai food much when I was a kid. I do remember how the house would smell when my mother, who is Thai, was using the mortar and pestle to crush Thai Chilis, garlic, and lemongrass.

Delicious!

Those peppers though...the heat could kill you! Seriously. My mom would grow them by the acre and you better believe she was using them too. My first experience eating her beautiful food made me gun shy for years. Then before you know it, Shelby and I were married and off on our own. Boxes of Potato Au Gratin, cheap cuts and that nice Army E-4 pay had us on a affordable diet for years. I'm not knocking it, seriously. I go to Ollie's and pass the rows of boxed spuds, pasta, and Hamburger Helper and think about the good ole lean years. I wouldn't trade a minute of them.

I was talking about soup right?

Anyway...Tom Kha is good. You'll like it and I'm going to show you how to do it. The photo up top has seafood in it obviously. You can do that if you like, the seafood version of this dish is called Tom Kha Talay. Tom Kha is usually made with chicken though, that version (below) is called Tom Kha Gai.

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Tom Kha Gai

The recipe I put together isn't so much different than most you'll find out there. It's primary components consist of this: Galangal, Kaffir Lime Leaves, Lemongrass and Coconut Milk.

Galangalangawhat?

Galangal has nothing to do with that M.I.A. song, it is a root known as the Thai ginger. You might see it sold in the stores as "Baby Thai Ginger" but please don't confuse it with ginger. Galangal and ginger taste totally different and if you make this soup without galangal it's not really Tom Kha (which translates into "galangal soup" basically.) That being said, you can make it with the ginger we're familiar with if you're in pinch, it just won't taste exactly as it should. It'll be still be good, but different. Galangal can be bought fresh or frozen in your local Asian market. Ask the someone behind the counter to help you out if you're having a hard time finding it.

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Galangal

Let's make some soup! Here's what you need to make Tom Kha at home.

Ingredients:

• 1 Can of Coconut Milk
• 3 large Kaffir lime leaves
• 1 Lemongrass, large stalk, trimmed
• 2 Thai Chilis
• 1 Tsp Sugar
• 1/4 Yellow Onion, minced
• 1 Package of mushrooms shiitake/oyster preferred, approx 8 oz., chopped
• 2 Tbsp Galangal, slivered 
• 1 Lime, large
• 3 Tbsp Fish Sauce
• 3 Cups of Chicken Stock
• Cilantro to Garnish
• Optional: Thai Chili Powder

Before You Start:

• Important! Do not boil the coconut milk. If you boil the coconut milk at a high temperature, it will not remain emulsified and the fat will separate from the liquid. Just like what happens to butter when it is heated at high temperatures.
• You can use chicken or seafood (shrimp, mussels, squid, etc...) with this recipe. Eat what you like!
• Chop up everything you need to put in the soup. I like to cut my galangal up in small, thin slivers. I do this so it can stay in the soup and not be strained out. Most recipes will have you remove or strain the galangal after the first phase of their recipes, I like to keep it in the soup. Getting a little bite of the root, almost crunchy, almost nutty, is great. If you prefer not to have it in, just slice it in larger pieces then strain before you add your chicken or seafood.
• Trim the lemongrass taking off any rough or brown bits. It a lot of recipes you would only use the white, fleshy part of the lemongrass. The reason is because it it easier to eat, we're not eating the lemongrass it's being steeped in the broth essentially. I'll admit to finely cutting up some lemon grass and leaving it in the soup when the mood hits me.
• Crush the lemongrass, Kaffir lime leaves, and Thai chilis. Use your pestle, a muddler or back of a heavy spoon to open up them up to release flavor. Remove chili seeds if you don't want it too hot.
• I do not remove all of the aromatics from the stock pot before I add the meat, but I do before I add the coconut milk.
• Chili powder can be added for more flavor, this is optional.

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Directions:

1. Add the chicken stock, sugar, onion, Kaffir lime leaves, Thai chilis, lemongrass and galangal to a medium sized stock pot. Bring to a rolling boil for about 10 minutes.
2. Add mushrooms, continue to boil for about 8-10 minutes to cook mushrooms.
3. At this time if you wish to remove large pieces of aromatics (Kaffir lime leaves, lemon grass, chili, galangal) do so after the mushrooms are done.
4. Add your chicken or seafood now, cook for about 10 minutes in the boiling broth. Remove any foam that might float to the top of the broth.
5. After the meat is cooked through, pour in the coconut milk, fish sauce and lime juice, lower heat to a light simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Serve with cilantro and lime wedges and maybe have a little more fish sauce on hand.

This is pretty easy to make and after a couple of tries it'll be a breeze. We use leftover chicken sometimes, if we do it doesn't need boiling as long. Just lower the heat to a simmer, cook for the same amount of time as you would the raw. Continue to follow the directions.

Enjoy!

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Tuna and Spicy Couscous

I will usually make couscous with basil shrimp at home but it works well with the Genova tuna I was sent. The cool, refreshing tuna atop of the warm, paprika spiced couscous will be a crowd pleaser. We love Mediterranean and Anatolian food, give this a shot and you will not be disappointed. It's easy too! You'll need a few pots and two oiled ramekins to make what you see above. Do not overly oil the ramekins or else the couscous will stick! Approximately 2 servings.

Tuna

• 1 can Genova Tonno tuna
• ½ teaspoon fresh chopped Dill
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped Red Onion
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped Cucumber
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped Red Bell Pepper
• 1 tablespoon chopped Green Onion
• 1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Couscous

• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 tbsp Pine Nuts
• 2 large clove Garlic
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped Red Onion
• 1 teaspoon Cumin
• 1 teaspoon Turmeric
• 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar
• ½ teaspoon Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Paprika
• 1 cup Couscous
• 1 ½ cups Chicken Stock (heat in microwave before adding to couscous)
• Juice from 1 Lemon
• Grated rind of a Lemon
• 1 tablespoon minced Parsley
• Salt to taste

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Garnish

• Single parsley leaf and chopped tomato

Preparation

1. Prepare the tuna mixture and let sit in the refrigerator for an hour.
2. Heat olive oil in pot at medium heat for couscous.
3. Put pine nuts into oil and let toast for about 2 minutes, stir constantly to prevent burning.
4. Add garlic and red onion, sauté for 1 minutes till clear.
5. Pour in cumin, turmeric, brown sugar, pepper, paprika and toast seasoning for no more than 1 minute. Add a little salt to taste.
6. Add couscous and toast for 2 minutes.
7. Pour in lemon juice and let reduce. This will happen quickly.
8. Pour in chicken stock and cover pot. Remove from heat and let sit for 15-20 minutes.
9. After stock has been absorbed by couscous, fluff with fork.
10. Remove tuna from fridge and press half of the tuna into an lightly oiled ramekin.
11. Fill the rest of the ramekin with couscous, press firmly.
12. Flip ramekin onto plate and tap top until you hear a hollow sound. Gently remove ramekin.

Go back to Genova Tonno!