Seasonal Ontario Food

Time for another outbreak of me attempting to cook some Indian dishes. This one caught my eye because it looks a lot like chicken marinated in a similar way to tandoori chicken, but cooked quickly and simply in a skillet. The name is a bit obscure; the most convincing reason I've seen for the name is that it started off as an item on a numbered menu. At any rate, there are now quite a few versions of this out there. 

We thought this was really tasty. It does need some advance prep, since it is marinated, but I don't mind that -it's always nice to break up the work a bit. Normally this would contain fresh curry leaves, but I couldn't even round up any cilantro - it got sprinkled with parsley. I picked the lettuce as more of a garnish but we ate it with the chicken; it was a nice accompaniment.

4 servings
20 minutes to prepare marinade
2 hours to overnight to marinate
15 minutes to cook

Make the Marinade:
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
2 teaspoons coriander seeds
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1/8 to 1/2 teaspoon ground red chile
3 tablespoon potato starch
3 to 4 clove of garlic
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
the juice of 1 lime OR 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup thick yogurt

Toast the fennel, cumin, peppercorns, and coriander lightly. Let them cool then grind well with the salt. Put them in a container that will hold the chicken and has a cover, and mix in the remaining spices and potato starch. Peel and grate the garlic and ginger into the container. Add the lime or lemon juice and yogurt and mix well.

Marinate & Cook the Chicken:
500 grams skinless, boneless chicken
1/2 medium red onion
lettuce leaves
1/4 cup mild vegetable oil
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro OR parsley
lemon OR lime wedges

Cut the chicken into large bite-sized pieces. Mix them into the marinade, and marinate in the fridge, covered, for 2 hours to overnight.

It's a good idea to have the onion peeled and sliced and the lettuce washed and dried before you start cooking; especially if, like me, you prefer to sprinkle your onion pieces with salt and let them soften and become milder flavoured with about 15 minutes of resting. (Rinse them and dry them before using.)

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, place the pieces of chicken into the pan individually, with the marinade clinging to them. Cook until brown and crispy on both sides, and cooked through to the middle.

While they cook, arrange the lettuce on a serving platter, chop the herb, and slice the lemon wedges. When the chicken is cooked, arrange it on the platter, sprinkle it with the cilantro or parsley and the onion slices, and pass it with the lemon or lime wedges.




Last year at this time I made "Stuffing" Dressed Cauliflower.

This is a pretty universal salad, eaten everywhere in the Middle East on into Iran, from whence comes the name Shirazi and the pull towards extra sourness from sumac and lemon juice. At its most basic, it consists of onions, cucumbers, and tomatoes, with a lemon juice and olive oil dressing. We saw it a lot in Turkey, where it is called Chopped Salad. In Israel it gets called Israeli salad, which is a bit of chutpah, given how everyone else in the region was already making it for yonks.

At this time of year I used green onions and threw in radishes, because they are around. I also still have some nice herbs. You don't have to use all of them; whatever you can get will be fine. You don't have to put in any of them really; the dried mint will be enough. You might want to apply it with a slightly heavier hand if you can't get any fresh herbs.

Lettuce does not officially go in this salad, but if there is one the garden is churning out right now, it's lettuce, so when this hit our plates it went onto a bed of chopped lettuce. Otherwise, I suspect this is too much dressing for the amount of salad and you may want to save some for another day.

4 to 6 servings
45 minutes prep time


Make the Dressing:
1/4 teaspoon cumin seed
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons sumac
3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
the juice of 1/2 large lemon

Grind the cumin and coriander well, and mix it with all the other spices. Mix in the oil. Add the lemon juice. Set aside to rest while the salad is made.

Make the Salad:
3 green onions OR 1 red onion
3 small greenhouse cucumbers OR 1 long cucumber
salt
8 to 12 radishes AND/OR 2 or 3 tomatoes
2 tablespoons minced fresh mint
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill
lettuce, optional 

Peel and finely chop the onions. Trim the ends from the cucumbers, and chop them in pieces just a bit bigger than the onion. Sprinkle them with about half a teaspoon of salt and leave them in strainer to drain for 20 to 30 minutes.

Wash, trim and slice the radishes. Core and chop the tomatoes. Wash, dry, and mince the herbs. Mix the radishes, tomatoes, and herbs in the salad bowl.

Rinse and drain the onions and cucumbers well, and add them to the tomatoes, etc. Toss with the salad dressing. Serve as-is or on a bed of lettuce.





Last year at this time I made Haskap-Raisin Pie.

Almost every June, when the peas first start, it seems I make some sort of salad with them, some kind of grain, and plenty of herbs. This year it was bulgur, heavy on the parsley, and I'm sorry I waited so long - it's really good. Quicker than grains that need to be cooked, too. The whole thing is delicious and yet you can somehow feel how healthy it is as you eat it; a very happy combination.

You could add feta or goat cheese to this - it's pretty close to a meal in itself now, and that would take you there - but I served it with some cold sliced ham and that was enough to round it out nicely. 

4 to 6 servings
1 hour prep time


Prepare the Peas & Bulgur:
1 1/2 cup shelled peas
1 1/2 cup snow OR snap peas
1 1/2 cups bulgur
1/4 teaspoon salt

Shell the peas, and trim the snow or snap peas, also slice them in half if they are large.

Put a pan of water on to boil. Measure the bulgur and salt into a bowl (or leave them in the measuring cup, if it is big enough). Pour boiling water over the bulgur to cover it by at least an inch and leave it to soak for 5 or 10 minutes. Meanwhile, use the remaining water in the pan to cook the peas (all of them) for 2 minutes.

Rinse the peas in cold water until cool, then drain well. Drain the bulgur well then allow to cool as well.

Make the Dressing:
the juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Measure it all into a small bowl or jam jar and stir or shake to combine.

Finish the Salad:
1 small head leaf lettuce
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
1/2 cup (2) finely chopped green onions
2 to 4 tablespoons dill, mint, or cilantro, finely chopped

Wash, trim, and chop the lettuce (or use the leaves whole under the rest of the salad). Wash, trim, dry, and finely chop the remaining herbs.

Mix the peas, bulgur, herbs, lettuce (if chopped) in a salad bowl and toss with the dressing. Transfer onto a platter of the whole leaves if that is how you are serving it.




Last year at this time I made Sour Cream Pancakes with Strawberry Maple Syrup.

Oh look; more chicken. Had to buy a fairly large package, so there it was. Oh look; more asparagus. It's early June; of course there's asparagus. And lettuce. So it's salad again, is what it is.

This basic little Japanese-inspired salad dressing really went over well. Like a lot of Japanese dishes, it relies on a simple ensemble of not-too-strong flavours that really worked well with the chicken and asparagus. I'll be using it again on other salads quite often, I think. I actually used Kewpie (Japanese) mayonnaise for this, as it's one of the few commercial mayonnaises out there that does not contain any sugar.

I regret to say that our stupid weather this year has been very hard on the lettuce. It all LOOKS absolutely perfect, but it's starting to go bitter already, even though I've been watering it daily in fear of just this outcome. Phooey. 

4 servings
45 minutes prep time


Cook the Chicken & Asparagus
450 grams (1 pound) skinless, boneless chicken pieces
2 tablespoons mild vegetable oil
salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
450 grams (1 pound) asparagus

Grill or sauté the chicken with salt and pepper to taste, in the oil, until cooked but not dry; about 4 to 6 minutes per side depending on thickness. I prefer chicken thighs for this, but then I always prefer chicken thighs. Set aside and cool completely once done.

Of course, you could use leftover cooked chicken, including from a purchased rotisserie chicken, if you like and have it.

Wash, trim, and cook the asparagus. Cut it into bite sized pieces, before or after you cook it; I don't care much but tend to think cutting it first is more convenient. It too should be well drained and cooled completely. Both the chicken and asparagus can be prepared up to a day ahead and kept refrigerated until wanted.

Make the Dressing:
1 tablespoon very finely grated fresh ginger
1 to 2 tablespoons miso
2 tablespoons apple cider OR rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1/2 cup mayonnaise

Peel the ginger and grate it to a pulp, and put it in a small mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon miso, the vinegar, and sesame oil and mix well. Taste and add a little more miso if you think it needs it - keeping in mind that this both an unfinished dressing and that the finished dressing must be fairly intensely flavoured to provide coverage to the other ingredients - and so it should be fairly strong. I did use 2 tablespoons and was completely happy about it, but in addition to the fluctuations in personal taste, miso can also vary quite a bit in strength so it's worth being a little cautious. You can also add more after the mayonnaise is in; it will be easier to tell if needs it but harder to mix smoothly.

Mix in the mayonnaise until the dressing is smooth.

Make the Salad:
6 cups chopped lettuce OR mix of lettuce, spinach and other salad greens
8 to 12 small red radishes
1 cup peeled and grated celeriac OR chopped celery
1/2 cup whole hazelnuts

Wash, dry, and chop the salad greens. Wash, trim and slice or chop the radishes and celery or celeriac.

Toast the hazelnuts in a dry skillet until browned in spots. Transfer them to a cutting board or plate to cool. Chop them roughly; or I found that bashing them with the base of the vinegar bottle did a good job in breaking them up. A fair bit of the skins will come off and that's all to  the good - discard them.

The chicken pieces should now be cut up into bite-sized strips. 

You can toss everything together in the dressing at this point; I spread out the greens and other raw salad ingredients (minus hazelnuts) in the serving dish, then mixed half the dressing into the chicken and asparagus which were then spread over the salad and sprinkled with hazelnuts. The remaining dressing got passed for more to be added if people wanted. I thought there was a fair bit of dressing but apparently people did want all of it, so this was a bit of a wasted effort, although it probably did look a little nicer than the just-mix-it option. 




Last year at this time I made Greek-Style Pork Loin Medallions.

Really, this is more than vaguely Thai - it's Laab (or Larb) Gai, only I've removed the traditional roasted and ground Thai sticky rice - which I didn't have - and replaced it with bulgur, which I did have. I'm sure it changes both the flavour and the texture, but that's just how it goes sometimes, especially when you live in the boonies and are avoiding rice. I'd also say that made it faster and easier to make, and I never complain about that. If you are even more driven to avoid carbs than I am, you could replace even the bulgur with some very finely chopped/ground nuts or seeds.

Not sure this is traditionally served in lettuce cups as a Thai dish either, but it seems to have become a popular way to present it in North America, and since I didn't want to eat it with rice, it's a very convenient way to have it. I thought it needed a touch of colour so I wedged up a tomato which did the job and added a nice element to it. 

Served by itself, the two of us ate all of this and still wanted some dessert, but as ever with different eaters and more dishes served with it, it would go further.

2 to 4 servings
1 hour - 30 minutes prep time


1/4 cup bulgur
450 grams (1 pound) ground chicken OR skinless boneless chicken thighs
the juice of 1 large lime
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 or 2 fresh OR 6 dry makrut lime leaves
2 cloves of garlic
2 shallots
1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes
2 tablespoons mild vegetable oil
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
1/3 cup finely chopped green onions
1 small greenhouse cucumber
OR 3 or 4 red radishes
12 or 16 large, slightly cupped lettuce leaves

Boil some water to cover and soak the bulgur. Meanwhile, chop the chicken very finely, or if it is already ground, jut put it in a mixing bowl. Add the lime juice, fish sauce, and makrut lime leaves - whole if they are dry, very finely shredded if they are fresh. Mix well and set aside to marinate as you proceed.

Peel and mince the garlic and shallots, and set them aside with the chile flakes.

Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the chicken, with the marinade. Drain the bulgur well and it as as well. Cook over medium heat, stirring regularly, until the marinade has evaporated and the chicken is sizzling, lightly browned, and cooked through. Add the garlic, shallots, and chile flakes and mix in well; cook for another minute or so longer. Remove the mixture from the pan to cool, if you think it is hot enough that it will keep it cooking for too long; but the main point is that it should be cooled to room temperature or near it. Remove and discard the dry makrut lime leaves, if used.

Wash, trim, and mince the herbs and green onions. Trim and chop the cucumber or radishes finely. Wash the lettuce leaves and drain and dry them well. They should be as even in size as you can manage, which means it's best to have 2 heads of lettuce at hand and put the remains away for a more conventional chopped salad.

Mix the herbs, onions, and cucumber or radishes into the chicken once it is cool. Divide it evenly in little mounds amongst the prepared lettuce leaves, and pick 'em up and eat them like little tacos, which is to say that it's a good idea to have plenty of serviettes on hand. 




Last year at this time I made Rhubarb Ile Flottante. 

Our asparagus is actually slowing down a little bit; we spent a week pulling out over a pound of it every day, but it seems to have dropped below that. Cooler temperatures again, coupled with very little rain - not enough, at any rate, to really soak the warm, dried out soil. Still, we are getting some.

The heat seems to have been enough to get the lettuce to size up without making it bitter so the month of Salad, I mean June, has begun. This one was very tasty and if you used a tin of chick peas as quick and easy as any.

I don't often use tomatoes with asparagus, because I feel like they are the vegetables of different seasons and as such have nothing much to say to each other, but I had a few I ordered for putting in sandwiches without thinking that I practically never eat sandwiches anymore, so I tossed one in. I have to say I do think it added good things to the salad, so there. 

2 to 6 servings
45 minutes prep time, NOT including cooking the chick peas


Cook the Chick Peas & Asparagus:
1 cup dry chick peas
1 teaspoon salt
450 grams (1 pound) asparagus

Rinse and pick over the chick peas. Put them in a pot with water to cover well, and bring to a boil. Let boil for a minute, then cover the pot and turn it off. Let the peas soak for several hours.

To cook them, drain them and return them to the pot or Instant-Pot. Add the salt and cover well with water. Simmer them steadily until tender; 1 to 2 hours, stirring regularly in the pot, or cook on high (regular) pressure in the Instant Pot for 12 to 14 minutes. Let the pot de-pressurize for about 1/2 hour before opening. In any case, cool the cooked chick peas completely. You could also avoid all this by using a 540-ml (19 ounce) can of chick peas.

Wash and trim the asparagus. Cut it into small (chick pea sized) pieces, except for the tips which should be left whole. Bring a pot of water to a boil and boil them for 3 to 4 minutes before rinsing them in cold water until completely cool, then draining well. 

Make the Dressing:
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons finely minced fresh dill weed
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
the juice of 1/2 large lemon

Mix the mayonnaise, mustard, dill, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Mix the lemon juice in a bit at a time in order to keep the dressing smooth and lump-free. Add the chick peas and asparagus, and then the other salad ingredients listed below as you prepare them. 

Assemble the Salad:
2 to 3 cups finely torn or chopped fresh lettuce and/or spinach
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
1 large or 2 medium greenhouse tomatoes
225 grams (1/2 pound) smoked trout

Wash, trim, and chop the lettuce or spinach and drain it very well. Wash, trim, and mince the parsley. Wash, core, and chop the tomato(es).  Remove and discard the skin and any bones from the trout, and flake it into small bite-sized pieces. Add it to the salad and toss well.




Last year at this time I made Sorrel Pakoras.

All the greens came from the garden! Here it is, the May long weekend, and as usual the weather has turned and we are into a different season. I was not convinced it was going to happen this year, but right on schedule! We are now very busy in the garden.

I'm calling for 3 eggs, but yes; I used 4 eggs. They came from hens who were plainly just learning their trade and were very small - eggs, not hens. No idea about them. With the wild rice and eggs, this is a reasonably substantial although not heavy salad, and makes a complete meal in itself. I think it is flexible enough that it could be served as part of a larger menu, in which case it would, of course, go further.

2 to 6 servings
45 minutes to cook the wild rice, not including cooling it,
with about 15 minutes of that time to cook the asparagus & eggs
15 minutes to assemble the salad


Cook the Wild Rice, Asparagus & Eggs:
2/3 cup wild rice
2 1/4 cups water
1/4 teaspoon salt
450 grams (1 pound) asparagus
3 large eggs

Put the wild rice, water, and salt into the rice cooker, and turn on. Remove it as soon as it is cooked and allow it to cool. It is not a bad idea to do this the day before.

Meanwhile, wash and trim the asparagus, and steam or boil it until just tender; about 4 minutes. Rinse in cold water until cool, then drain well. Chop it into bite-sized pieces.

Put the eggs in a pot with plenty of water to cover them and bring them to a boil. Boil for 1 minute then cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Rinse in cold water until cool then peel them.

Make the Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon horseradish
juice of 1/4 lemon, optional, see below
salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste

Whisk together in a small bowl or shake together in jar.

Assemble the Salad:
2 cups chopped lettuce
1cup chopped sorrel, if available
1 or 2 cups chopped spinach
2 or 3 tablespoons finely minced fresh chives

Wash, pick over, and dry the greens, and chop them. Use more spinach if you cannot get any sorrel, and also add the lemon juice to the dressing - if you have the sorrel, then omit it.

Toss the greens with the cooked wild rice and asparagus pieces, then toss in the dressing. Slice or quarter the eggs and arrange them over the salad, and serve.




Last year at this time I made Russian Fish & Spring Greens Pie.