CHINESE NOODLES WITH SESAME SAUCE

I wanted to make a better dish for my wife ( compared to the one last nigh) when she got home. I made a recipe like this (below) which was from one of my cookbooks favorites (for variety) Hot & Spicy. She liked it! The only think I added was 1-2 tbls ponzo sauce. As it was good for me to.
9.7/10

CHINESE NOODLES WITH SESAME SAUCE
2 tbl sesame paste
7 tbsp. soy sauce
3 tbsp. sesame oil
I addeded 1 tbl honey
3 tbsp. peanut oil
3/4 tsp. sugar (did not use)
3 tbsp. rice vinegar
3 cloves crushed garlic
pinch 5 spice powder
1 lb. Chinese noodles
3 steak burgers grilled then chopped up to pieces

Mix together sauce ingredients. This may be stored in refrigerator for several weeks. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, rinse to cool. Toss with 1 tablespoon sesame or peanut oil to keep moist. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Sauce may be added to whole bowl or spooned onto individual servings. Mix together

Tangy Tkemali sauce Georgia's famsour plum condiment

I strolled into a Russian Food shop on Hope Street in Providence, RI a few days ago and found several interesting condiment on the shelf.

The Pomegranate sauce seemed fine but I was looking for something unique, a food/ sauce or condiment that I had not tried belong . For one its not only its colors but the ingredients. Plus the bottle also said that this is a national dish/ condiment was a national treasure sauce and is the universal condiment in Georgia which used to be part of the Soviet Union (where I was in 1989- more on blog and Russian food later in blog).

There were different colors however which one to select.? The main ingredients is sour plum and the other ingredient/spices made some of the bottle either yellow or green. I bought the green one as it looked so pretty with its unusual foliage green color.

Here is more about this tasty condiment
While it tangy taste was almost lemony the taste came from plums.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tkemali

Could I find a recipe to make my own, like I usually try to do. Well yes I could.
Want to make your own? here is a recipe from a website (there are also a number of other very interesting recipes at the rignt side of the website
http://www.astray.com/recipes/?show=Georgian%20plum%20sauce%20(tkemali)

http://www.astray.com/recipes/?show=Georgian%20plum%20sauce%20(tkemali)


Ge o r g i a n p l u m s a u c e ( t k e m a l i )


M e a s u r e I n g r e d i e n t
1 p o u n d s P l u m s ; ( n o t t o o r i p e )
2 t a b l e s p o o n s F r e s h l e m o n j u i c e ; o r m o r e , t o t a s t e
2 t a b l e s p o o n s O l i v e o i l
1 t e a s p o o n R e d w i n e v i n e g a r ; o r m o r e , t o t a s t e
3 C l o v e s g a r l i c ; m i n c e d
1 t e a s p o o n G r o u n d c o r i a n d e r
1 t e a s p o o n S a l t ; o r m o r e , t o t a s t e
1 t e a s p o o n H o t p e p p e r f l a k e s
1 t e a s p o o n B l a c k p e p p e r
1 t e a s p o o n G r o u n d c u m i n
2 t a b l e s p o o n s F i n e l y c h o p p e d c i l a n t r o
2 t a b l e s p o o n s F i n e l y c h o p p e d f r e s h d i l l
1 t e a s p o o n S u g a r ; i f d e s i r e d .

N Y T i m e s h a d 4 b b q s a u c e r e c i p e s f r o m v a r i o u s p l a c e s a r o u n d t h e w o r l d - - F r e n c h W e s t I n d i e s , S p a i n , G e o r g i a ( t h e o n e n e a r R u s s i a ) , a n d V i e t N a m .
T h e f u l l a r t i c l e i s i n t e r e s t i n g - - i t ' s the J u n e 2 n d e d i t i o n , p a g e 1 1 o f s e c t i o n F .
H e r e a r e t h e r e c i p e s :
T i m e : 2 0 m i n u t e s
1 . C o o k p l u m s i n b o i l i n g w a t e r t o c o v e r f o r 3 0 s e c o n d s .
D r a i n i n a c o l a n d e r , r i n s i n g w i t h c o l d w a t e r .
P u l l o f f s k i n s . R e m o v e s t o n e s .
2 . C o m b i n e p l u m s , 1 c u p w a t e r , l e m o n j u i c e , o l i v e o i l , v i n e g a r , g a r l i c , c o r i a n d e r , s a l t , p e p p e r f l a k e s , b l a c k p e p p e r a n d c u m i n i n a s a u c e
p a n . S i m m e r u n t i l p l u m s a r e v e r y s o f t , 5 m i n u t e s . P u r e e m i x t u r e i n a f o o d p r o c e s s o r . R e t u r n i t t o s a u c e p a n , a n d s t i r i n t h e c i l a n t r o a n d d i l l .
3 . S i m m e r s a u c e u n t i l t h i c k a n d f l a v o r f u l , a b o u t 5 m i n u t e s . I f d e s i r e d , a d d s a l t , l e m o n j u i c e o r v i n e g a r t o t a s t e . I f t o o t a r t , a d d s u g a r . S e r v e a t r o o m t e m p e r a t u r e . Y i e l d : 2 c u p s . ( P o s t e d t o b b q - d i g e s t b y " L o r e n D . M e n d e l s o h n " <> o n J u n 0 3 , 1 9 9 9 , c o n v e r t e d b y M M _ B u s t e r v 2 . 0 l ).

those sauces are wild

On some nights there are specials for either chicken wings or even better the drumsticks (more meaty) for 50 cents a piece. There are quite number of sauce flavors ranging from mild to blazing hot. There are also mango, jerk and other fruity and other sauces and you can get the chicken the way you want. We came here with a friend to have pop/ tea and chicken drumsticks. The mango and the jerk ones were delicious. Good deal. The ambiance is not that great and it can get a little noisy (wild?) but its the sauces that spices things up. You can definitely walk on the wild side with these sauces.

PINEAPPLE-CASCABEL CHILE SAUCE

This sauce is good for mahi mahi or for other fish but I tried it on turkey (or you can try chicken). This sauce was good with turkey as a sandwich. 9.4/10

PAN ROASTED MAHI MAHI WITH ROASTED PINEAPPLE-CASCABEL CHILE SAUCE AND CARAMELIZED PINEAPPLE-GREEN ONION SALSA
Serves 4

Ingredients for Roasted Pineapple-Cascabel Chile Sauce
1 medium whole pineapple,
1/2 cup fresh pineapple juice
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
8 cascabel chiles, stems removed and soaked in hot water for 30 minutes until soft ( I used : guaiji chilies instead as they are easier to find and have a smokey flavor with mild heat like casabel)
2 teaspoons honey
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method for Roasted Pineapple-Cascabel Chile Sauce

1. Preheat broiler. Cut off the leaves and about a 1/2 inch of the top and bottom of the fruit. Do not peel the pineapple.
2. Place the pineapple on its side on a baking sheet and place under the broiler. Broil the pineapple until it is blackened on all sides, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove to a cutting board and let cool slightly.
3. When cool enough to handle, cut off the pineapple skin by slicing down from top to bottom along each row of eyes (as revealed by your first cut). Your knife should be behind the eyes at approximately a 45-degree angle. Don't try to cut off too much of the peel at once or you will take a lot of good fruit with it. Coarsely chop the pineapple and set aside.
4. Combine the pineapple juice, cider vinegar, cloves, allspice, ancho powder and cascabel chiles in a large non-reactive saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the fresh pineapple and cook until the pineapple is very soft and starts to break down.
5. Transfer mixture to a food processor and process until smooth. Strain through a strainer into a saucepan and return to the stove over medium heat. Whisk in the honey and season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes.

Casabel pepper- where do I find the pepper?

Bobby Flay has a recipe using Figand Casabel pepper. I usually don't use figs but I was interested in the pepper. I found he also had a Pineapple and Casabel pepper sauce. My first thought was to look for what was this pepper, how hot was it and where I could find a substitute for it or the substitute? I preferred to find a substitute in my recipe pantry.

I found it is roundish shaped and has a scoville rating of 4 so it is more fruity then hot. I found more information on websites particularly
http://www.recipetips.com/glossary-term/t--37661/cascabel-chile-pepper.asp
If no Cascabels are available, substitute 2 jalapeños are good but I think an even better one is the purplish black gaujillo which has a much more smokey and fruity flavor. I love gaujillo so check them out as well.

The recipe I found is here and I am posting it now because I don't know when I will get to it. Mahi and Mahi is a real ugly fish but it is a tasty one. This sauce is a real good one with pineapple. I could also see it being used for chicken or turkey or lamb etc .

If you try this recipe, the gaujillo or the sauce let me know.

PAN ROASTED MAHI MAHI WITH ROASTED PINEAPPLE-CASCABEL CHILE SAUCE AND CARAMELIZED PINEAPPLE-GREEN ONION SALSA
Serves 4

Ingredients for Roasted Pineapple-Cascabel Chile Sauce
1 medium whole pineapple,
1/2 cup fresh pineapple juice
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
8 cascabel chiles, stems removed and soaked in hot water for 30 minutes until soft
2 teaspoons honey
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method for Roasted Pineapple-Cascabel Chile Sauce

1. Preheat broiler. Cut off the leaves and about a 1/2 inch of the top and bottom of the fruit. Do not peel the pineapple.
2. Place the pineapple on its side on a baking sheet and place under the broiler. Broil the pineapple until it is blackened on all sides, about 4 to 5 minutes per side. Remove to a cutting board and let cool slightly.
3. When cool enough to handle, cut off the pineapple skin by slicing down from top to bottom along each row of eyes (as revealed by your first cut). Your knife should be behind the eyes at approximately a 45-degree angle. Don't try to cut off too much of the peel at once or you will take a lot of good fruit with it. Coarsely chop the pineapple and set aside.
4. Combine the pineapple juice, cider vinegar, cloves, allspice, ancho powder and cascabel chiles in a large non-reactive saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Add the fresh pineapple and cook until the pineapple is very soft and starts to break down.
5. Transfer mixture to a food processor and process until smooth. Strain through a strainer into a saucepan and return to the stove over medium heat. Whisk in the honey and season with salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes.

Ingredients for Pineapple-Green Onion Relish
1/2 fresh pineapple, peeled, cored and cut into small dice
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 green onion, thinly sliced (white and green part)
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Juice of 1 lime

Method for Pineapple-Green Onion Relish

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Place pineapple in a medium ovenproof sauté pan, add pineapple, season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Roast in the oven until golden brown, stirring occasionally, about 10 to 12 minutes.
3. Transfer pineapple to a bowl, add the green onion, cilantro and lime juice. Serve at room temperature.

PAN ROASTED MAHI MAHI

Ingredients
Four 8-ounce Mahi Mahi fillets
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Heat oil in a large nonstick sauté pan over high heat. Season fillets on both side with salt and pepper and place in the pan. Cook until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip over, transfer pan to the oven and continue cooking until the fish is just cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes longer.
3. Ladle some of the pineapple-cascabel chile sauce onto a large dinner plate. Top with a Mahi fillet and spoon some of the pineapple-green onion salsa on top.

Tomato BBQ Sauces

Tomato BBQ Sauces are ones I really like. They are traditionally thick and sweet barbecue sauces. Here is more about dos and don'ts in a good article I found
http://bbq.about.com/od/barbecuesauce/a/aa020798.htm?nl=1

Best BBQ sauces

Thumbing through Rachel Ray's Everyday magazine, I saw beside some nice recipes a listing of their ideas about the best bbq sauces. I happily see in the list ulls Eye Barbecue Sauce which I use all the time and love. But I gotta try this ones below too and try them out.

Best in Texas- Secret Recipes Salt Like Bar- B- Que Sauce
Best in Carolinas- Georgia's Original Barbeque sauce
Best in Kansas City- Kansas City Cowtown Bar- B- Q sauce
Best from outside the Barbecue Belt - Legends Southwest Thick and Smokly Barbecue sauce
Best in the Grocery Aisle- Bulls Eye Barbecue Sauce Sweet Homestyle Blend
Best Hot and Spicy- Curtis All American Bar-B-Q Sauce Spicy Southern Style

Pomegranate and Mango Barbecue Sauce and chicken wings

I love Mango, pomergranate and BBQ sauces. This smashing recipe was on one of the latest Ultimate food challenges for Chicken for the Food Channel . While the women was in the top 3 out of 9, she did not win the ultimate prize of the Chicken Challenge. It still sounded so great to me. I could not wait to try it. The original recipe is below. I decided to pour the sauce first over a chicken to roast. My recipe for this BBQ bird and photos etc are also included for your pleasure, discussion, feedback and more.

Battered Chicken Wings with Pomegranate and Mango Barbecue Sauce
Recipe courtesy Eboni Williams, Damascus, MD
Show: Ultimate Recipe Showdown
Episode: Ultimate Recipe Showdown: Chicken
Winner of the Fried Chicken category!

Pomegranate and Mango Barbecue Sauce:
1 1/2 cups pitted and peeled mango
1 to 2 tablespoons water
1 cup pomegranate juice
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup water
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

Chicken Wings:
6 to 10 cups vegetable oil
2 dozen chicken drumettes
3 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons black pepper