Jessica's Journey: The Food Chronicles

Beer Can Chicken

2011-09-01T12:21:00.000-07:00

Today was my first attempt of beer can chicken. It's a unique way to roast a whole chicken on your grill and beer keeps the chicken nice and flavorful. I usually roast a whole chicken in the oven and stuff the inside with garlic cloves but I decided to try something different today.

Ingredients:
A whole chicken (about 4 lbs)
Garlic cloves
Lemon
Basil
1 can of beer
Butter or olive oil
Your favorite rub or chicken seasoning

Rinse and pat dry your chicken. (If you leave the skin wet it will not crisp.) Season the chicken with salt or your favorite rub. Open a can of beer so the opening is completely open, take 2 large gulps so you are left with about 1/2 a can. Throw in garlic, lemon, basil or whatever flavors you like infused into your chicken. Brush on butter or olive oil on the chicken.

Preheat the grill (gas) to about 350 degrees. Carefully insert the beer can into the butt of the chicken and stand it upright using the chicken legs as part of the tripod holding it up. Make sure the wings are tucked in since they cook very fast. Cook with the grill covered for about 1.5 hours or when internal temperature is at least 175f degrees.

When chicken done carefully remove the hot beer can and let it rest for 5 minutes before cutting. Amazon and other retailers sell special kits for beer can chicken. I'm using one I bought at Macy's with a vegetable grill pan attached to it. This makes it convenient to cook veggies along with the chicken and the can is attached to the pan so it prevents the whole chicken from tipping.

So my verdict after 2 hours of prepping and cooking, I think I will stick to my oven method. Cooking the chicken on the grill wastes a lot of propane. If you have a charcoal grill is may be better and will get that nice smoked taste. Maybe next time I will add some wood chips.

Easy Fish

2011-07-25T19:06:00.000-07:00

Today my boyfriend and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary. When I asked him what he wanted for tonight's special dinner he immediately replied "Chilean Sea Bass". This is probably my favorite fish. The meat just melts in your mouth. The only downside is Chilean Sea Bass cost anywhere from $15 - $30 a pound. Since this was a special occasion I didn't mind splurging. Often times I use the same recipe below but steam whole rockfish or wild sea bass which cost 1/2 the price. Now before you try out my recipe I have to put out a disclaimer: I don't really have a recipe. I estimate the quantity of the ingredients. I don't use measuring cups or spoons unless I'm baking or making dessert. The measurements below are rough estimates.

You will need:
1 to 3 pounds of white fish (sea bass, cod, rockfish) For best results get it with bone and skin still on it. Whole fish or a center-cut fillet will work. All the flavorful juices and nutrients are in the skin and bone of the fish.
3 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoon sesame oil (no substitution)
2 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon rice wine (optional)
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (optional)
3-4 scallions thinly sliced 3 inches lengthwise
1 2 inch piece of ginger thinly sliced lengthwise
aluminium foil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Mix soy sauce, sesame oil, water, sugar, wine, red pepper in a small bowl.
3. Place the fish on a large piece of foil. Place ginger and scallion around and underneath the fish. If you are steaming a whole fish, place some ginger and scallion inside the fish.
4. Pour the soy sauce mixture on both side of the fish. (Also inside if whole fish)
5. Create a steam pouch with the foil.
6. Let the fish steam in the foil pouch for about 20-35 minutes. Time will vary depending on the thickness and size of the fish. The 1.5 inch fillet pictured above took about 30 minutes to steam.
7. Fish is done when the flesh easily flakes. The juices in the pouch is great mixed with steamed white rice.

*The photo above was taken before I placed the fish in the oven. The finished fish will be swimming in about 1/2 of inch of flavorful juices. Use caution when opening the foil steam pouch.*

Coming soon...

2011-07-17T05:00:00.000-07:00

It's been awhile since I've kept up this blog. I just spent 2 years getting my MBA but now that I'm back to a normal work schedule I can finally start blogging again. Coming soon I will be posting some of my experiences in the kitchen and local Baltimore restaurant reviews. Stay tuned!

Fatty Tuna

2009-03-24T16:08:00.000-07:00

Toro, fatty tuna, tuna belly... call it whatever you want. If you love sashimi this is the best of the best.

I'm not a huge tuna fan but I love toro. Lovely, pale pink, smooth, creamy, melts in your mouth. Sprinkled with a tiny amount of scallions and a small amount of wasabi.

Sorry, no pictures this time. I ate it too fast to remember to take a photo. :)

Strawberry Farm

2009-02-17T07:30:00.000-08:00

My Godmother took me to this awesome strawberry farm up on the mountains near Taipei. I don't really know why I have a Godmother since my family is not Catholic. Anyways, it's strawberry season in Taiwan now and this little farm has a cute cafe open to the public during the weekends. You can even go in and pick your own strawberries.

Strawberry smoothie and cake made from fresh strawberries.

Lunch in Hualien, Taiwan

2009-02-13T07:30:00.000-08:00

I had an interesting lunch with my family at my uncle's restaurant in Hualien, Taiwan. The restaurant was located on a small ranch with goats, chickens, and a wild boar. Everything was fresh but I learned that Taiwanese people LOVE garlic and vinegar.

Chicken, before and after. Plucked only a few hours before serving. Now that's fresh!

Fried gobo: sweet and crispy.

Pig skin marinated in garlic, vinegar

The most interesting dish featured bamboo tree grubs. I never thought I would be eating grubs unless I was starving in the jungle but my uncle assured that it was good. Since it's rude to reject a dish in the Chinese culture I was forced to eat at least a spoonful. Grubs are pretty much tasteless. These was sauteed with peanuts, hot peppers, and green onions. The texture reminded me of tiny fried shrimp... slightly crunchy.

Oysters and Stinky Tofu

2009-02-04T16:23:00.000-08:00

It's been over 8 years since I have been back to Taiwan and in those 8 years I have been craving for Taiwan's great street food. My favorite dish is the "Stinky Tofu". You can smell a Stinky Tofu stand before you see it. As the name suggests, it really stinks. The smell is comparable to rotten trash but the taste is sour and savory.

The best kind of Stinky Tofu comes deep fried with fermented cabbage on top. I like mine extra sour with a tiny bit of hot sauce.

Taiwan is also known for it's oyster dishes. This is a typical oyster "pancake". The first layer is made of sweet potato flour than topped with vegetables, fried egg, oysters, and a sweet sauce.

And the best part about food in Taiwan is that you can easily get a whole meal for less than US$3. A bowl of noodles with fresh oysters or beef can cost as little as US$1.50.

Japan

2009-02-03T00:27:00.000-08:00

I'm currently waiting for my connection to Taipei in Osaka, Japan. I love how wired this country is. They have laptop stations where you can plug in your computer with free ethernet connection. For awhile blogspot, google, and facebook were all in Japanese. I guess my one year of Japanese in high school didn't do much good.

My flight over here was exhausting. At least 1/4 of the Japanese passengers had SARS masks on. Don't worry, they don't have SARS, maybe just a cold. :)

Introduction

2009-01-28T13:32:00.000-08:00

This blog is a continuation of my previous blog on xanga. If you ask nicely, maybe I'll give you the link to my old blog. :)

As some of you know already, I will be traveling through 3 continents in February with New York as my take-off point.

Just looking at my schedule makes me exhausted. :p

February 1 : New York, NY, USA
February 2 - 3 : Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean
February 3 - 7 : Hualien, Taiwan
February 8 - 20 : Taipei, Taiwan
February 21 : New York, NY, USA
February 22 : Miami, FL, USA
February 23 - 25 : Somewhere in the Amazon Rainforest near Manaus, Brazil
February 26 - March 3 : Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
March 4 : New York, NY to Baltimore, MD

I'll try to keep you guys posted while I'm away (assuming I don't get eaten alive in the Amazon).