For other refreshing cool summer recipes, check out my Easy Shrimp Ceviche.

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Easy Mediterranean Quinoa Salad

A refreshing and healthy salad of quinoa, garbanzo beans, feta cheese, tomato, cucumber, and herbs.

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Mediterranean

Keyword chickpea salad recipe, Mediterranean salad, quinoa salad

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Resting Time 2 hours hours

Servings 8 people

Ingredients

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1.5 cups water
• 1 8oz can garbanzo beans drained
• 2 ripe tomatoes finely diced
• 1 large cucumber seeded, diced
• 1/4 onion finely diced
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 cup feta cheese crumbled
• 1/2 bunch parsley roughly chopped
• 1/2 bunch cilantro roughly chopped
• 1 tsp red pepper flake optional

Instructions

• In a small pot, add in quinoa and water. Cover with lid and bring to a boil. Once water is boiling, reduce to low heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, combine garbanzo beans, tomatoes, cucumber, onion, lemon juice, lemon zest, oil, salt, pepper, feta cheese, parsley, and cilantro. Mix until thoroughly combined.
• Allow quinoa to cool to room temperature. Then combine with the rest of the salad. Mix well. Taste for seasoning and add salt, lemon juice, or oil to taste. Optional: add red pepper flake for spice.
• Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

How to Make the Perfect Crispy Home Fries

• Cut the potatoes into even pieces to ensure even cooking
• Boil in heavily salted water. Boiling the potatoes makes them fluffy on the inside. Salt water is essential to get flavor into the potato itself. Do not overcook the potatoes. They should be JUST cooked/tender when you take them off the heat and drain them.
• Shake the boiled potatoes vigorously to create a layer of soft potato fluff. When this is shallow fried in the oven, that will create a beautiful crispy crust.
• Use lots of oil so roast the potatoes in the even. You are essentially shallow frying the potatoes in the even so enough oil is necessary.

Serve these crispy home fries with my classic garlic herb prime rib or orange glazed miso salmon.

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Crispy Home Fries

Crispy on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside, the perfect crispy home fries

Course Breakfast, Side Dish

Cuisine American, british

Keyword british roasted potatoes, crispy home fries, home fries

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

• 4 Russet potatoes peeled and cut into 2 inch pieces
• 5 quarts water
• 1 tbsp salt for salting water
• 1/2 cup neutral oil
• 2 tsp salt for salting potatoes

Instructions

• Bring a 6 quart pot of water to boil. Then add in 1 tbsp of salt. Add in cut potatoes. Boil for approximately 8-12 minutes, or until just fork tender. Do not overcook the potatoes. You want them to stay intact.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil and add in 1/4 cup oil.
• Once potatoes are just tender, drain all the water from potatoes. Cover the pot with a lid and shake the potatoes vigorously for 10 seconds, or until there is a layer of fluff surrounding each piece of potato.
• Then place the potatoes onto one layer on the baking sheet. Make sure each piece of potato makes contact with the baking sheet and oil. The potatoes should be sitting in a shallow pool of oil. Add more oil if necessary as they will be frying in the oven.
• Roast potatoes for 40 minutes or until the underside of the potatoes are golden brown. Once the underside is golden brown, flip the potatoes to allow the other side to brown for another 15-30 minutes, depending on your oven. This is assuming your heat source is at the bottom.
• Once potatoes are golden brown on both sides, remove from oven and onto paper towels. Immediately sprinkle remaining 2 tsp of salt on the potatoes. Serve immediately.

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Garlicky Buttery Sauteed Corn

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword fresh corn, sauteed corn

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 7 minutes minutes

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

• 4 ears fresh corn on the cob
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp neutral oil
• 2 shallots thinly sliced
• 1 pinch red pepper flake
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• ½ tsp salt or to taste
• 1 tbsp black pepper
• 2 sprigs scallion finely chopped
• 1 tsp fish sauce optional

Instructions

• Cut corn off of the cob.
• Heat a skillet on high heat and add butter and oil. Once butter is melted and well incorporated with oil, add shallots and red pepper flake. Saute for 2 minutes on medium heat or until shallots are softened.
• Add corn and continue to sauté on medium heat for ~10 minutes or until corn becomes slightly golden brown. Stir frequently as it will stick.
• Add garlic and scallions and season with salt and black pepper to taste. Continue to sauté for another 3-5 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust seasoning to taste.
• Optional: add a little splash of fish sauce for extra umami.

Cooking Tips for Garlicky Buttery Sauteed Corn

• This garlicky buttery sauteed corn is best when you use fresh corn on the cob. However, frozen corn would also do the trick. You might need to add a tablespoon of sugar halfway into the sauteing process to add some sweetness that is often lost in frozen corn.
• I add garlic toward the end of cooking of this dish because if you add garlic too soon, it could burn before your corn has finished cooking. In general this is a good rule of thumb when you are doing sautes that do not include the addition of wines, broth, or any other kind of liquid. Stir-fries are an exception because the vegetables used often release liquid into the pan, which prevent garlic from burning during the cooking process.
• If you want to infuse your dish with a specific herb or spice, make sure to sauté it in your cooking oil for a minute or two before adding other ingredients. In this dish, I did this with both red pepper flake and shallot, as well as garlic toward the end.

This is a great side dish to a yummy prime rib dinner.

Why are my mashed potatoes gummy?

You’ve probably over-mixed or over-blended them. You can try adding more heavy cream or butter to thin it out.

Try this creamy cauliflower potato puree with my classic garlic herb prime rib roast.

Why do I have lumps in my mashed potatoes?

It’s very important to make sure that your potatoes are boiled and cooked all the way through so that they are easily mashed.

One way to make sure you have no lumps in mashed potatoes is to run them through a food mill or potato ricer. Blend only if you are adding cauliflower to it. Otherwise, you will end up with a gluey and gummy mess.

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Creamy Cauliflower Potato Puree

A cheesy creamy puree with potatoes and cauliflower

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword cauliflower potato puree, cheesy garlic mashed potatoes, pureed cauliflower

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 6 people

Equipment

• 1 blender

Ingredients

• 4 quarts water
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 bag frozen cauliflower
• 6 small russet potatoes peeled and cubed
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Parmigiano Reggiano grated
• 1/3 cup aged white cheddar grated
• 1/2 tsp garlic salt
• 4 tbsp butter
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup milk

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Put salt into the water.
• When the water is boiling, add in potatoes and allow to simmer on medium for 15-20 minutes until tender.
• When potatoes are almost tender, add cauliflower into the boiling water. Allow to simmer 3–5 minutes until softened.
• Drain water from potatoes and cauliflower and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
• In a separate small pot, turn heat on medium. Add in butter and garlic. Sauté garlic until golden brown about 3 minutes. Then add in milk and cream. When this mixture is almost about to bubble, turn off heat.
• Add cauliflower and potatoes into a blender. Then add in cream mixture. Add in grated aged white cheddar, Parmigiano Reggiano, and garlic salt. Blend on high until completely smooth but do not over-blend.
• Serve while warm.

Have you ever made a layered potato casserole using raw, but the potatoes took forever to become tender? The solution? Par-boil your potato slices before putting them in the casserole. This will cut down on oven time and let your mind rest at ease that the potatoes will come out tender and soft.

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Easy Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

Tender thinly sliced potatoes swimming in a cheesy sauce. The perfect side dish.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword cheesy scalloped potatoes, potatoes au gratin, scalloped potatoes

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes minutes

Servings 2 people

Ingredients

• 3 red potatoes peeled and thinly sliced
• 4 quarts water
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese grated
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

• Bring a pot of water to boil. Then add salt. Boil potatoes in salted water for 5 minutes. Remove from water and drain.
• Take out a small casserole dish and rub the surface with butter.
• Put 1/4 of the cream at bottom. Then lay down 1/3 of the potatoes. Season with black pepper and sprinkle 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat until all potatoes are used up. Top with cream and another layer of cheese.
• Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees F for 40 minutes.
• Then broil at 400 degrees for 5 mins until the cheese is golden brown at the top.

You can use either Japanese or Italian eggplant for this dish.

For other lightened Asian recipes, check out my tofu and snow pea stir fry.

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Spicy Garlic Eggplant

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Asian

Keyword eggplant stir fry, spicy eggplant

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

• 1 Italian eggplant cut into 2 inch matchsticks
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tbsp ginger minced
• 1 tsp spicy bean paste
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp Sambal chile sauce
• 1 handful spring onion chopped

Instructions

• Fill a large steamer pot with water. Steam eggplant for 15 minutes until softened. Then remove and set aside.
• Mix together spicy bean paste, soy sauce, sugar, and sambal chile sauce. Set aside.
• Heat sesame oil in pan. Add in garlic and ginger. Saute 1 minute.
• Add in eggplant and stir fry gently for 1 minute. Then add sauce mixture and stir fry for another minute. Add in green onion. Then remove from heat and serve.

How Do I Make a Stir Fry?

• Use a large frying pan. Avoid non-stick because stir fries require high heat, which will release toxic chemicals in a non-stick pan. A wok is nice, but a cast iron pan works really well.
• Use high heat. I mean the highest heat your stove can produce. A proper stir fry has some level of smokiness from the pan. In Cantonese, we call it “wok hei” or the breath of the wok.
• Use enough oil. Plan to use 1 tbsp of canola or vegetable oil per pound of vegetables you are stir frying
• Use steam: Add 1/4 cup of water and cover with a lid to partially steam veggies and finish cooking. For harder veggies such as broccoli, or green leafy veggies, it is helpful to blanch them quickly and draining them before stir frying. If you do this, then you can skip the step of adding water and covering with a lid to steam.
• Add lots of aromatics: garlic, ginger, shallots, serrano chiles, fresh basil
• Add lots of umami: soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, fermented bean sauce

Keep Your Veggies Crunchy

One of the biggest mistakes in stir fries is to overcook your vegetables. A proper stir fry keeps a slight crunch in its vegetables for some texture. When in doubt, try to undercook your vegetables by a few minutes. The carryover heat should help to do the rest of the softening.

For my other quick and easy stir fry recipes, check out my steak stir fry and sesame ginger chicken stir fry.

The Case for Cast Iron Pans

With the recent body of research showing the health risks of Teflon and non-stick coating when heated to high temperatures, I’ve gotten rid of all my non-stick cooking pans. It might be fine to keep some non-stick items around that you do not plan on heating up to high temperatures. But if you do any kind of high flame cooking like the kind that is usually involved in stir fries and Asian cooking, I would suggest switching to cast iron skillets. Cast iron skillets can hold heat well, so they are a great substitute to using a wok with high flame.

What is Tofu?

Tofu is essentially bean curd made from soy beans. Soy beans are boiled, then ground into a fine paste with its water. After adding some chemicals to help with curdling (similar to cheesemaking), it is then filtered to remove the excess liquid, and then shaped. You are left with a jiggly bean curd.

Types of Tofu

• firm tofu
• medium firm tofu
• soft tofu
• silken tofu 
• stinky fried tofu
• fried tofu puffs
• dessert silken tofu (usually served with ginger syrup)

What kind of tofu do I use for a tofu and snow pea stir fry?

Ideally, use fried tofu puffs. All other forms of tofu will be too wet and will fall apart in the stir fry. You can use a firm tofu, but you should pan fry it ahead of time to give it structure and make it hold its shape before stir frying.

For other quick stir fry recipes, check out my mapo tofu and steak and green onion stir fry.

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Tofu and Snow Pea Stir Fry

A healthy stir fry with yummy fried tofu puffs and sweet crunchy snow peas

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian, Chinese

Keyword healthy stir fry, snow pea stir fry, stir fry, tofu stir fry

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 7 minutes minutes

Total Time 17 minutes minutes

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 3 cups snow peas deveined
• 1 cup fried tofu puffs
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 tbsp ginger minced
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions

• Prep snow peas by removing the tips and pulling to remove the vein from the side.
• Heat a large frying pan on high. When pan is hot, add in oil. Add in garlic and ginger. Saute for 1 minute. Then add in snow peas and tofu puffs. Stir fry for 1 minute.
• Add in water to the snow peas, then cover with a lid. Allow to steam for 1 minute. Then add in oyster sauce. Continue to stir fry until sauce is well incorporated into the snow peas, about 1 minute.
• Remove immediately from the pan and serve. Snow peas should still retain a crunch.

Southern greens are typically made with collard greens or sometimes even turnip greens. They are slow cooked to break down the fibers of the greens, usually with ham hock or bacon.

Can I eat kale stems?

No. I would not recommend eating kale stems. They are very fibrous and hard, and would probably interfere with the texture of whatever dish you are making.

What do I eat with bacon braised kale?

It is a lovely accompaniment to pulled pork or barbecue chicken, roasted chicken, or whatever protein you are making. You can also insert it into a grilled cheese for a little acidic pop of flavor.

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Bacon Braised Kale- Southern Greens Style

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword bacon braised kale, Southern greens

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8 people

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb bacon roughly chopped
• 1 onion diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 4 cups fresh kale stems removed, chopped
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 2 cups water
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper

Instructions

• Heat a large Dutch oven on high heat. Add in bacon and cook fo 5 minutes, rendering fat. Then add in diced onion. Saute for 3-5 minutes until onions are light brown. Then add in garlic. Cook for 1 minute.
• Add in chopped kale, brown sugar, vinegar, water, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Then put on lid and simmer on low heat for 1 hour.
• Taste for seasoning and add salt, pepper, sugar, and vinegar as needed.
• Serve hot.