Food Minia

During my stint as a vegan (which became vegetarianism and then pescetarianism until I finally gave up this year and became an omnivore again), I would often crave Bon Chon chicken.  That gloriously crispy, thin-skinned chicken with the amazing soy garlic glaze would haunt me, and I'll admit that I sometimes gave in.  It was just too good to give up. I wish I had had this recipe for Korean fried cauliflower back then, but to be honest, this substitute is so good, I might even prefer it over the real thing.  I adapted the recipe from Serious Eats' well researched recipe and just reduced the amount of vinegar and upped the garlic in the glaze according to my own taste preferences.  If you don't have the sesame seeds and/or finely shredded coconut to add to the batter, you can omit them, but they add some great texture to the cauliflower. Even though they're meant to be an appetizer, I ended up eating them with rice like I would with sesame chicken.  And if you wa...

This is one of the original recipes in the cookbook that I made for my mom's Christmas gift 8 years ago.  I would've shared it earlier, except I thought I'd shared it already!  It's a classic dish to order from a Chinese restaurant--velvety strips of marinated beef stir fried with tender crisp broccoli in a flavorful brown sauce--and perfect served over steamed white rice. To keep the beef tender and not chewy, it's important to slice the strips against the grain.  The addition of cornstarch in the marinade further helps improve the texture of the beef.  Since the broccoli takes a lot longer to cook than the beef, it is cooked separately while the beef is marinating and then added back in at the end.  You'll want to use a large pan with a lid so that you can steam the broccoli after a quick stir fry. My favorite part about this recipe is the marinade which ends up becoming the sauce upon stir frying with the beef.  It is already quite fragrant due to the s...

What's the point in making tikka masala if you don't have any naan to swipe up the leftover sauce?  If I had known how easy it was to make naan on the stovetop, I would've made it a long time ago!  Since I had some garlic and scallions lying around, I decided to make the garlic version, which let's face it, is so much better than the plain version. I found the dough to be on the wetter side, so make sure you work it on a floured surface and use a floured rolling pin or else it'll end up sticking everywhere and to everything.  Sadly, naan does not keep well so I would suggest eating it the same day it is made. Garlic Naan (adapted from Saveur ) makes 4 pieces 6 tablespoons water heated to 115°F 1/2 teaspoon honey 1 heaping teaspoon active dry yeast 1 cup all-purpose flour 1⁄4 cup plain, full-fat Greek yogurt 1 tablespoon canola oil 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for sprinkling 1 tablespoon minced garlic 1 tablespoon chopped scallions Melted ghee or butter, for ...