Kobe Style Dinner - Home Cooked Recipe 5

We have a couple of Kobe Steakhouse's in our area, and I know they are around the state of Florida as well.  It's a very popular place to go for birthdays and special events.  But it can get expensive, and I have learned how to make a similar meal at home, albeit without the theatrics.  In this recipe, I left out the rice and just did the noodles, but you could easily add the rice to this by cooking some white rice, then frying it on the griddle like I do the noodles. Adding some frozen mixed veggies, and an egg will produce a similar to Kobe's fried rice! Since I don't have the large hibachi grill like they do at Kobe's, I use a flat-top counter-top griddle, and cook the components in batches, but you can also use a wok and work in batches. (*Hint, you can get a a cheap, really good wok at Ikea for $5!)

Kobe's Signature "White" Sauce ***this recipe really does taste extremely similar to the restaurants, but warning, make it at least the day before you are planning to use it!

1 1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup water

1 tsp tomato paste

1 tbs melted butter

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp paprika

dash of cayenne

Stir all ingredients together.  Refrigerate for 24 hours before using - important, you must wait 24 hours for the best result!

Kobe Style Dinner - with chicken (you can sub beef, shrimp, or your fav protein for the chicken!)

1/2 lb of Lam's Chow Mein Noodles (these are most similar to Kobe's noodles)

1 cup broccoli florets

1 cup julienned carrots

1 cup julienned red bell pepper

1 cup mushrooms

1 large onion, large dice

***you can also use zucchini like Kobe, I just have an allergic member in my household

1 lb chicken breast, thinly sliced

Soy sauce

4 tbs butter

1 large lemon

Scallions and sesame seeds for garnish are optional

Preheat your griddle to 400 degress. Boil your noodles for 10 minutes.  While the noodles are boiling, add a tablespoon of butter to the griddle and begin to cook your chicken.  Cook on one side for 3 minutes then flip pieces over.  Sprinkle with lemon juice from a quarter of the lemon, and a tablespoon of soy sauce.  When chicken is cooked through, move to a plate.  Add another tablespoon of butter, then add the onions to the griddle. Cook until slightly translucent and remove from griddle.  Drain pasta.  Add 1 tablespoon of butter to griddle, then fry noodles lightly while adding lemon juice from a quarter of the lemon, soy sauce, and sesame seeds.  Remove from griddle.  Add remaining veggies, cook until softer, but still crunchy, adding soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of butter, and the remaining lemon.  Serve warm, with Kobe's "White" Sauce.  Enjoy!

Picture View - Asian Meatball Sandwiches

Asian Meatball Sandwiches - Home Cooked Recipe 4

I was looking for new ways to make meatballs online and came across this great recipe that incorporates Asian flavors into meatballs.  I had recently been to a local farmer's market and taste some Korean meatballs that I adore so I decided to go ahead and give Asian meatballs a try.

Meatballs:

1 lb ground beef

4 cloves of garlic, minced (I use a gralic press - much easier!)

3 scallions, finely chopped

1 tbs fish sauce

1 tbs sriracha

1 tbs sugar

2 tsp cornstarch

salt & pepper to taste

1 tbs sesame oil, 1 tbs canola or veg oil for browning meatballs

Mix all ingredients except oils together in a bowl.  With moistened hands (moisten with water), roll out golf ball sized meatballs.  Cover and chill at least 15 minutes.  It's very important to chill them before cooking!  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Heat oils in a large skillet and brown meatballs on all sides (you may have to do this in 2 batches depending on the size of your pan).  Place on cooling rack on top of baking sheet in oven for 15 minutes.

Veggies:

1 cup grated carrot

1 cup julienned cucumber

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 cup pickled jalapenos

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

Combine first 5 ingredients and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

Mayo:

2/3 cup mayonnaise

1 tbs sriracha

2 scallions, finely chopped

Stir all ingredients together.  Chill before serving,

Sandwiches:

Using your favorite sub roll, spread bread with a thin layer of mayo.  Add in 3 to 4 meatballs.  Top with pickled carrots and cucumbers.  Sprinkle with jalapenos and cilantro.  Enjoy!

Picture View - Making of Chicken Enchiladas

Chicken Enchiladas With Green Chile Sauce - Home Cooked Recipe 3

I have always made beef enchiladas with red sauce and cheddar cheese.  But as I was perusing through recipes on a few food sites and blogs, I thought it would be interesting to try my hand at chicken enchiladas.  Here is how I made them:

2 chicken breasts, poached and shredded - I will be posting my chicken poaching recipe soon!

2 small cans of Old El Paso Mild Green Chile sauce

8 oz block of monterey jack cheese

8 corn tortillas (plus oil for frying if you make them the way I did)

Scallions, chopped

Sour cream

Fresh salsa

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fry each tortilla for 2 seconds per side in oil that is preheated to 350 degrees.  You can use a pan to do it, but we have a deep fryer at home so that's how I fry mine.  Make sure to drain on plenty of paper towels. 

Shred your block of monterey jack cheese (you can buy this pre-shredded if you prefer to save time).  Pour half a can of the chile sauce on the bottom of a baking dish.  Mix a handful of cheese, all the chicken, and the other half of the can of sauce together. Put a tablespoon or two of the filling in each tortilla and roll.  Place seam side down in baking dish.  After all tortillas are rolled and in the pan, cover with the remaining can of green chile sauce.  Top with remaining shredded cheese.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Before removing from oven, you can broil on high for 1-2 minutes to get the yummy browned cheese that you see in my picture.  Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.  Top each serving with some chopped scallions, and put a dollop of sour cream and a spoonful of salsa on the side.  Enjoy!

Chicken Pot Pie - Home Cooked Recipe 2

2 9inch pre-made pie crusts (I use Pillsbury)

2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed

1 cup mixed frozen vegetables

1 med onion diced

1 tbs butter

1 tbs flour

1 cup heavy cream

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp garlic powder

salt & pepper to taste

*** You can make this recipe in to individual pot pies by dividing each crust in half, or you can make one big pot pie.

Preheat oven to 350. Saute onion in butter until translucent.  Add in flour and cook for 2 minutes.  Whisk in heavy cream, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and add thyme, salt, pepper, garlic, mixed veggies, and chicken.  Mix well, take off heat, and let cool for 15mins.

Place bottom crust in pie pan(s) - should be one crust for a whole pie, 2 crusts for individual pans.  Bake for 10 mins and then remove from oven. **In order to keep the crusts flat on the bottom, cover crust with foil or parchment paper, then fill with pie weights or dried beans (I use black beans - you can use beans multiple times!)

Fill the shell (shells with chicken/veggie/sauce filling.  Cover with top pie crust(s), and make a few slits in the top crust(s).  Crimp edges to seal.  Bake for at least 40mins, or until top crust is golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool at least 15mins before serving.  Enjoy!

***I use foil tins for the individual pies, and a glass pie pan for the larger version.  I'll post a picture of the large version soon, these are the individual pies