Category Archives: Techniques

Karl’s Chinese Steamed Ginger Chicken

Dong quai steamed chicken is one of those dishes that I had in Chengdu and reconstructed from the memory of the taste. You steam the chicken for hours until the meat is falling off the bones. I remember that it had ginger and Chinese broad beans and was finished off with pea top. Pea tops are the tender leaves at the ends of the pea plant.

Karl’s Chinese Steamed Ginger Chicken

Karl’s Chinese Steamed Ginger Chicken

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Filed under Beans, Chicken, Chinese, Main Dishes, Poultry, Steaming

Karl’s Barbecued Chili Burgers

Jan decided that she wanted a traditional Labor Day barbecue with sausages and “plain” hamburgers. Sunday, just as I was forming the patties, she passed along the information that the kids wanted “doctored” hamburgers.  It was time to get creative—this was a no recipe, what do I have on hand at the last minute idea.

Karl's Chili Burgers (close up)

Karl’s Barbecued Chili Burgers
(close up)

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Filed under Barbeque, Beef, Main Dishes

Karl’s Chili Barbecued Squash

Jan brought home a large squash from the university garden. I think I have identified it as a Ronde De Nice summer squash, a variety of zucchini. I decided to add it to my Labor Day barbecue.

Karl’s Chili Barbecued Squash

Karl’s Chili Barbecued Squash

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Filed under Barbeque, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

It’s Not a Tuna Casserole! It’s not! It’s not! It’s not!

Jan received some green beans and cherry tomatoes from the SJSU Environmental Studies garden [correction]. There were not enough green beans or tomatoes to make a separate dish. I started to think of ways I could add them to a main dish. I finally decided to use them in a seafood noodle casserole.

It’s Not a Tuna Casserole! It’s not! It’s not! It’s not!

It’s Not a Tuna Casserole!
It’s not! It’s not! It’s not!

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Filed under Casserole, Fish, Main Dishes, Pasta, Seafood

Karl’s Deconstructed Bedouin Mansaf (braised lamb in aged yogurt sauce)

Miriam and Chris went to Dishdash and had mansaf, lamb in aged yogurt. They asked me to replicate this dish for Sunday dinner. This is originally a Bedouin dish that is claimed by the Jordanians as a national dish. One site even claimed that mansaf is what Abraham served the angels.

Karl’s Deconstructed Bedouin Mansaf (lamb in aged yogurt sauce)

Karl’s Deconstructed Bedouin Mansaf
(lamb in aged yogurt sauce)

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Filed under Barbeque, Lamb, Main Dishes, Sauces and Spices

Karl’s Jordanian Cauliflower

Adapted from Oh.She.Cooks description of Nadira’s recipe

Karl’s Jordanian Cauliflower

Karl’s Jordanian Cauliflower

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Filed under Broiling, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian

Karl’s Greek Dolmas

Eilene trimmed our grape plant—it was starting to overrun the fig tree. I looked at all of these fresh grape leaves and thought dolmas! I have made them with bottled preserved leaves, but I am sure they are even better with fresh leaves. When you say “dolma” you have only said “stuffed thing.” What is stuffed and what you stuff it with can cover a world of possibilities.

Karl’s Greek Dolmas

Karl’s Greek Dolmas

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Filed under California Fusion, Lamb, Main Dishes, Rice, Steaming, Vegan, Vegetarian

Karl’s Barbecued Moroccan Tri-tip

Jan and Chris both asked me to do another barbecued tri-tip. The last time I did a tri-tip I used a Californian-Mexican seasoning.  This time I thought I would jump to another continent and do North African.

Karl’s Barbecued Moroccan Tri-tip

Karl’s Barbecued Moroccan Tri-tip

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Filed under Barbeque, Beef, Main Dishes, Sauces and Spices

Karl’s Moroccan Barbecued Corn and Peach Salad

I am doing Morocco this week and Miriam said she had seen a recipe for Moroccan corn and stone fruit salad. She really liked my last corn salad and wanted something similar. I was not able to find the recipe she had read, so I did what seemed right to me.

Karl’s Moroccan Barbecued Corn and Peach Salad

Karl’s Moroccan Barbecued Corn and Peach Salad

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Filed under Barbeque, Salads, Side Dishes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Karl’s Portuguese Steamed Clams

Adapted from a Leite’s Culinaria recipe

Happiness for Jan is a pot of steamed clams and/or mussels. Since I am doing a Portuguese feast with a salt cod dish and caldo verde, I thought clams would go very well. The first dish I looked at was roast pork smothered in steamed clams. Jan was quick to reject this. She does not mind a little pork in her clams as a flavoring, but in her mind it is all about the clams.

Karl’s Portuguese Steamed Clams

Karl’s Portuguese Steamed Clams

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Filed under Main Dishes, Seafood, Steaming, Stews