It's back to the grill for part 5 of my "Grillin' n' Chillin'" series. So far, I have made brisket, fish, pizza and burgers. Tonight, I am trying my hand at a Thai, surf and turf menu that includes three, grilled dishes (a portion of my salad, squid and steak) and two that I made on my stovetop (rice and vegetables). I will start with the stovetop dishes and then move to the grill thereafter. Here we go:
Rice
Rice with Thai Spice
On the extremely, simple side of the spectrum, I steamed some rice, sprinkled it with a few, Thai, chili flakes and garnished it with cilantro.
Vegetable
Gai Lan with Oyster Sauce and Garlic Two-Ways
Next, I moved to the vegetable dish, made with gai lan, or Chinese broccoli. I placed the gai lan in salted, boiling water, until it achieved a bright green color, then removed it and plunged it into an ice bath to stop the cooking process and preserve the vibrant, green color and crunch. This cooking method is called blanching.
In a separate pan, I placed some minced garlic and olive oil and sautéed the garlic until it was fragrant. I then added a little bit of chicken stock for flavor. Just before serving the dish, I tossed the blanched, gai lan in the warmed, garlic-chicken stock mixture for about a minute, to add another layer of flavor, and bring it back to temperature.
I plated the gai lan, and then added a drizzle of oyster sauce and some thinly, sliced garlic that I had baked on a sheet pan until crisp. The sliced and minced versions of the garlic had different flavors and textures, bringing some added dimension to the dish.
Squid Preparation
Marinated Squid
Next, for the "surf" portion of my Thai surf and turf dinner, I experimented with a dish that I hadn't made before. Many years ago, I had a grilled, squid dish at a Malaysian restaurant in Seattle, and absolutely loved it. Inspired by the memory, I tried to create a Thai version.
I purchased a whole squid from the fish counter at my local, grocery store and took it home with excitement and confidence. My confidence was misplaced. Lesson One: have the fishmonger clean the squid before you bring it home.
I got home, realized my mistake and then watched YouTube videos on how to clean a whole squid. I did not enjoy removing the ink sack, beak (yes, squid have beaks, which I learned the hard way), membrane etc. It was not time well spent and it definitely delayed dinner. That said, I learned a new skill (that I hopefully won't have to use again).
Once the squid was cleaned, rinsed and patted dry, I rubbed it with some turmeric and then marinated it in light, soy sauce. I let it sit in the soy bath while I prepared other parts of the meal.
Appetizer
Grilled Oysters
With that, it was time to move to the grill, which had been preheated. I threw some raw oysters on the grate (also a part of the "surf" theme), so we could snack on something while I prepared the rest of dinner. I heated the oysters until the shells opened up, which took about two to three minutes.
Salad
Grilled Plums and Nectarines
For my salad, I chose to incorporate stone fruit, because it's in peak season here in California. I chose fruit that was ripe, but still a little firm, so it would not fall apart on the grill. I oiled the grate a tad, so the fruit wouldn't stick, and then added sliced, white nectarines and halved, Moyer plums.
Grilled Stone Fruit
Once the sugars in the fruit caramelized with the heat, and I achieved some nice grill marks, I removed the nectarines and plums from the grill and let them cool. This is an important step. If you put warm fruit on your lettuce, the lettuce will wilt and turn your salad to mush. Yuck!
Grilled Stone Fruit Salad
Once the fruit cooled, I placed it over some mesclun (mix of lettuce), added a pinch of salt and then drizzled everything, very lightly, with olive oil. I thought about adding other ingredients, but refrained.
One bite of the salad, and I knew my restraint had paid off. The bright, sweet, smokey and tangy flavors of the grilled fruit dazzled, because there was nothing to compete with them. Sometimes, (honestly, most times) I find that less is more.
While the salad didn't incorporate any Thai elements per se, the sweetness was a nice balance to the other savory and spicy elements of the meal.
Surf
Grilling the Squid
Now, it was time to turn back to my experimental, squid dish. I increased the temperature on the grill, laid the marinated squid directly on the grate, so it could come into contact with the flames, and closed the lid.
I let it cook for about 6 minutes, flipping it half way through.
Then, I let it rest for a bit. It was almost ready, but for one thing.
It needed a dipping sauce. (I'll share more about how I made that in the next section.) I drizzled some of the sauce over all of the grilled squid, for flavor enhancement and uniformity, and left the rest in a bowl, so guests could dip individual pieces for stronger flavor and spice, if so desired.
Two other noteworthy points about this dish:
First, I intentionally omitted salt because the salt in the soy-based marinade, and the dipping sauce, is plenty.
Second, you may have been surprised that I left the calamari wings or fins attached. You won't often see this in U.S. restaurants because Americans are accustomed to eating only the calamari tentacles and tube or body (usually cut into rings). In other places in the world however, the wings, which are perfectly edible, are not discarded as waste.
Turf
Grilling Steak
For the "turf" portion of the Thai surf and turf menu, I made Crying Tiger steak. Crying Tiger steak is a classic, Thai dish that comes from Isaan, the Northeastern part of Thailand.
It is made by marinating steak in a mixture of soy, fish and oyster sauces, garlic, and brown sugar, (some people add a few other ingredients, but these are the fundamentals). The steak is marinated in the refrigerator for 1-5 hours and then grilled.
Here, after marinating the steak for a few hours, I placed it on a searing plate, on the grill. If I haven't already introduced you to my searing plate in previous posts, say, "hello." I love this thing! Here's why:
First, the searing plate creates better caramelization and a phenomenal crust. Second, when marinade, food, or fat, falls onto the searing plate, the drippings create smoke and steam that further deepen the flavor of the meat. This is preferable to losing all of those essential morsels to the burning charcoal below a standard grate.
Crying Tiger Steak
Crying Tiger steak has two "musts." The first, is that the steak must be grilled. If it's cooked in a pan, you will lose that smokey element, that is a hallmark of this dish. The second, is that the steak must be served with Nam Jim Jeaw, a spicy, Thai dipping sauce.
The sauce is made by combining tamarind sauce, khao kua (toasted rice powder), fish sauce, lime juice, Thai chilis, sugar, garlic and herbs (I used cilantro). This sauce is served in a bowl, alongside the steak, for dipping. This is the same sauce I used to finish the squid and it worked nicely.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, is a video worth more? I don't know. You be the judge. How do you think the steak turned out?
With every dish completed, we finally sat down to eat, (behind schedule because of the squid cleaning), and deeply grateful for it all -- the blessing of the food, the weather, the companionship and the moment.
Bye for now. I'll see you back at the grill again soon.
Comments