Making Chicken Teriyaki

Chicken teriyaki is one of the easiest dishes that you can create in your own kitchen. All you really need is some fresh chicken breast, sea salt, roasted sesame seeds and a high quality teriyaki sauce. You can add a few herbs and spices to the chicken breast as well but just sea salt will do the trick. Feel free to add other ingredients to the dish as well like crimini mushrooms, onions or scallions, snow peas, broccoli, string beans or other veggies of your choice. They will only add to the flavor of the dish. 

I always add onions and roasted sesame seeds to my chicken teriyaki dish that I prepare time and again. Sometimes I add snow peas or crimini mushrooms, which are a favorite of mine as I am a mushroom lover. 

Making chicken teriyaki couldn't be easier as chicken breast cooks very quickly. I'd say about 3 minutes on each side is just about perfect. Be sure to keep an eye on the chicken to make sure it is not pink anywhere. As soon as there is no trace of pink on the chicken pieces turn off the heat. If you over cook it the chicken will be too dry and may even taste rubbery. 

There are two ways to make chicken teriayki. One is to slice up the chicken breast before cooking it and another is to just prepare the chicken breast whole without cutting it. I do it both ways so it's really up to you how you want to prepare it. Before cooking the chicken breast always smell it to make sure it is not spoiled. We all assume that things we buy in the supermarket whose expiration date has not yet expired are fresh. But just because the stamped date hasn't yet expired doesn't mean what you buy is necessarily fresh and unspoiled, especially when it comes to meat.  After making sure the chicken breast is good, wash it and pat dry with a paper towel. Also cut off any fat from it as no point to consume it. You are welcome to leave it of course but I prefer to get rid of it. 

Once you've washed the chicken breast and patted it dry, cut it into slices of your choice, place into a bowl and sprinkle with sea salt (and other spices if you prefer). Sea salt alone will do as you will use teriyaki sauce, which is flavorful itself, so no other spices or herbs needed, but you are welcome to add any other herbs you like. Take a bit of teriyaki sauce, I'd say a few tablespoons at least, and pour it over the chicken breast slices, turning them over in the bowl to make sure each piece is coated in the sauce. Let sit for a few minutes or so to let the teriyaki sauce penetrate the chicken breast slices. Then heat a skillet with some canola oil (or whichever oil you use for cooking) and fry the chicken breast until it is no longer pink. Then sprinkle with roasted sesame seeds and enjoy. 

When it is time to serve the chicken teriyaki you can pair it with some steamed or boiled basmati rice (or rice of your choice) and your choice of veggies like snow peas, broccoli, string beans, or mushrooms. Be sure to prepare the veggies before hand. Enjoy!

Chicken Teriyaki with Snow Peas and Basmati Rice

Chicken Teriyaki with Crimini Mushrooms

Freshly Baked Pastry with Farmer Cheese, Apple Filling

I hate cakes, mousses, puddings, and other such desserts. When it comes to danishes, pies, tarts, turnovers and such baked treats, I am a fan. I love eating them for breakfast with a cup of coffee or a cup of chamomile tea. And I enjoy eating them for supper as well with a chilled cup of kefir or a glass of goat milk.

I have always wanted to try baking pastries but have never done it before. This time around I decided to give it a try. I have yet to master rolling the dough into a perfect shape but  I am sure with practice I will get there. The taste is more important anyway.

Making and baking the pastry was easy to make and it tasted delicious. I made the pastry similar to a turnover using the same filling that I use to make blintzes - farmer cheese, apple, and cinnamon. I also drizzled some clover honey on top of the pastry when it was done baking. The baking took about 30 minutes though I think the roll pastry took just a little bit longer to be done.

I made the pastry in two different shape varieties. One was a long rectangular shaped pastry with thin pieces of dough on the top and the bottom. Another was a roll. This one had thicker dough and was much smaller in size than the rectangular one. Both had the same farmer cheese, apple, cinnamon filling. I have to say that I prefer the rectangular pastry more because I am not a fan of too much dough. Pastries taste that much better when the dough is thin. Same goes for pizzas in my opinion.

Rectangular-shaped pastry with farmer cheese, apple,
cinnamon filling

Pastry roll with farmer cheese, apple, cinnamon filling

Making Vietnamese Style Beef Soup

Vietnamese style beef soup

Vietnamese style beef soup is a healthy addition to your meal. You can enjoy it from the comfort of your own home without having to go to a Vietnamese restaurant.

To make the Vietnamese style beef soup you will need three different stocks - vegetable, shrimp, and beef. You can make them simultaneously but you will need three pots. If you don't have three pots you can make them one after the other. But if you do that make sure to rinse the pot each time.

To make the vegetable stock:

Add the following ingredients to a pot filled with water - medium onion, large carrot, few stalks of celery and some Napa cabbage leaves. Add sea salt and place over medium heat. When the water comes to a boil simmer for about 40 minutes. Once done, remove the vegetables from the pot. You can discard the onion but keep the rest of the veggies for the soup. If you feel they are too soft you can throw them away and add fresh ones when you eat the soup but keep in mind that carrots and celery won't be soft.

To make the shrimp stock:

Take shrimp in its shell (at least 1/2 a pound), wash it and place into a pot filled with water. Cook the shrimp until it turns pink. When done remove the shrimp onto a bowl. Remove the shells from the shrimp, place back into the pot of water and let it cook a little bit more to bring in more flavor to the stock. When done remove the shells from the pot. You can use a skimmer to do that or drain through a colander. 

To make the beef stock:

Take a handful of thin slices of beef fat, rinse under running water and place into a pot of water. When the pot comes to a boil cook the beef fat for about 4 minutes.

To make the soup:

Combine the three different stocks in a large pot. Add the cooked slices of beef fat, and the cooked shrimp. Then add slices of carrot, Napa cabbage and celery - from the stock and/or fresh ones. Stir everything. Add some sea salt if you think the soup needs more salt. Then heat and enjoy!

You can also add some Enoki mushrooms. Before adding the Enoki mushrooms to the soup you need to cut off about an inch from the bottom of the stem, separate the strands and rinse under running water. Enoki mushrooms can be eaten raw so you don't have to cook them but they are a bit hard. To soften them, simply add them to the soup when you are heating it up on the stove. If you prefer you can place them into boiled water, cover, and hold for about 3 minutes, then drain, before adding them to the soup. This will make them softer.