Rib-Eye Steak Dinner

This dish serves with baked potatoes, or steamed rice along with a single serving of clam chowder on the side.

The steak comes in half-inch cut to an inch thick. The sauce is A-1, Worcestershire, red wine.

How it is Prepared: The bone-in roast is cut into half inch, or inch thick pieces. The steak is then marinated with salt, pepper, and rubbed with spices crush on the fat side. It is then refrigerated for a couple of hours before grilling.

Medium Well: Steak is grilled until reaching a center temperature of 160 oF on high, turning occasionally to avoid burning. Garnished with caramelized sweet onion and sauté mushrooms.

Well Done: Steak is grilled until reaching a center temperature of 170 0F on high, turning occasionally to avoid burning. Garnished with caramelized sweet onion and sauté mushrooms.

Crystals Link

Imperial Fried Rice

There are as many varieties of fried rice as rice itself! And then you have the New Crop, and the regular harvested rice. I stay with regular Jasmine rice, New Crop or not.

New Crop harvest and regular prepared differently. But the bottom line is rice has to be cooked just right, if good fried rice is to be prepared from it. Of course, wet and sticky rice cannot make good fried rice. But undercooked rice does not make the fried rice comes out right either!

Last but not least, good fried rice must have the added roast flavor to it. And I am talking about natural roasting aroma, not artificially flavored one.

This article is prepared for roast Pork flavored fried rice. Of course, you can have roast Chicken flavored, or seafood fried rice. Though not popular, I have also seen fried rice with just fried tofu.

Ingredients: Cooked rice, roast pork, garlic, onion, salt, sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce, ground black pepper, chives.

How It Is Prepared: Cooked rice is refrigerated overnight. Marinated pork country-style cuts are grilled to golden brown then chop into small pieces. Onion and garlic is sauté in butter until golden brown then added to the cuts up roast pork. Salt, sugar, ground black pepper is added.

The meat is then fried on medium to high heat in a large wok, before rice is added to it and mixes well. The roast pork rice mix is seasoned with soy sauce and fish sauce. Serving portions is then garnished with green chives.

Crystals Link

Beef Bourguignon

This dish is excellent marinated half day in advance of your next dinner gatherings. Leftover also goes well as hearty brunch with baguette, or toasted French bread.

Ingredients: Trimmed beef cubes, olive oil, sugar, salt, ground black pepper, garlic, tomato paste, red wine, home prep chicken stock, pearl onions, mushrooms, fresh herbs, spices and seasonings.

How It is Prepared: Meat is rubbed with some salt and ground black pepper then browned in hot olive oils; sauté with garlic, onions, herbs, spices and seasonings. Sauce is deglazed with selected red wine then added the mushrooms, following with chicken stock and tomato paste.

Sauté ingredients along with stock are added to meat then simmers on low heat. Choice garnishments which should included potatoes, carrots, tomato dices, and celery are added shortly before serving.

Crystals Link

Imperial Spring Rolls

Other names would included "spring rolls", "winter rolls", "lumpia", or "cha gio". This appetizer is actually a culinary treasure; a must-have entree for any party platter.

You can also purchase eggrolls in frozen packages of about 30 pieces each for $7.99, or $15.99 to $18.99 for 3.5 lbs (Pork Flavor) to 4.0 lbs (Seafood Flavor), and $13.99 for 2.5 lbs (Vegetable) in certain Asian markets. But of course these are cocktail-size - small, frozen, and could not be as fresh. And how long ago was it packaged other than the expiration date on the package, if it is shown? In addition, since these eggrolls are machine packed, they are shown cut open at both ends (freezer burnt stuffing); freeze-thaw thus must be done overnight in refrigerator to avoid possible stuffing spoilages. Deep frying these would still picks up more oils than the hand-roll traditional eggrolls where both ends are wrapping closed.

However, when our friends requested this item to stock up their freezers, they know that it is freshly packaged (less than a day old). And we use airtight double-guard freezer Ziploc to protect eggrolls against freezer burnt. And the package is always clearly indicated the date it was prepared, how long we think it would be good for along with cooking, and handling directions, etc. Last but not least, we always freeze these packages overnight, before they are picked up.

Ingredients: Eggroll wrapper (enriched wheat flour), choice stuffing (pork, chicken, seafood’s, vegetables), Vegetables (cabbage, carrots, garlic, onion, mushrooms), Seasonings (salt, sugar, ground pepper), Natural Flavorings and Extracts (soy sauce, sesame oil, five spices, seafood seasoning), other (vegetable oil, vermicelli noodles, whole eggs).

How It Is Prepared: Each eggroll is hand rolled to perfection then deep fried to golden brown in fresh vegetable oils. Frying oils is first heated to an initial range of no less than 195 oF to a max range of 270 oF, before a batch is dropped in. The eggrolls are then deep fried to a surface temperature of 190 oF until golden brown. It is then removed to drain off any excess oils and randomly checked for a target internal temperatures of 165 oF using a commercial-grade Thermistor.

Crystals Link

Grilled Lemon Grass Chicken

This wonderful dish goes exceptionally well with steamed rice.

The lemon grass is freshly picked, so its citrusy aroma is intense. The chicken is grilled on even heat to cook well on the inside reaching a center temperature of no less than 165 oF. Then the sauce mix is basted frequently to seal in the flavorful juice.

When the chicken is grilled to golden brown, the skin becomes crusty sweet. And the chicken breasts center stays moist and delicious.

Ingredients: Chicken Halves Marinated in selected white wines, Soy Sauce, Chai Siu Sauce, Lemon Grass, Garlic, Black Pepper, Spices and Seasonings. Honey Grilled to Perfection.

How it is Prepared: Chicken halves are cored to marinate well overnight with selected white wines. It is then drained and rubbed with lemon grass, soy sauce, and other spices a couple of hours in refrigerator before grilling. It is then grilled skin-side first until golden brown then turns over a few times until it is done. The honey and cha siu sauce mixes is brushed on both sides and in between turns until it turns deep golden brown.

The pieces are then transferred to a covered deep dish and simmered at a center temperature of no less than 165 o F until ready to serve.

Crystals Link

Seafood Bouillabaisse

This dish is, perhaps, my most favorite. Especially on cold rainy days. It serves well with steamy white rice; a little bit too spicy to go alone as soup.

How It Is Prepared: There are two parts been prepared for this dish. The frying of seafood’s, and the making of its broth. The final dish then combined the two with added herbs, spices and seasonings; and simmered until it is ready to serve.

The fish and seafood’s can be any selections you like. We use whole canary, or catfish, and baby octopuses, along with fresh clams, and shrimps.

Except for the fish which fries separately, all seafood’s is blanched first in boiling water. Then it is fried with herbs and seasonings.

Ingredients: Seafood selections, Olive Oil, Garlic, Tomato Paste, Salt, Sugar, Chile, Red Wine, Beef Stock, Seafood Stock, Bacon, Herbs (Lemon Grass, Thyme, Oregano, Chives), Spices and Seasonings.

Crystals Link

Baby Back Rib

Many cuts of ribs are available: St. Louis, Baby Back, Spare Ribs, Country Style, Loins and Tips, etc. And depended on your cuts, a preferred type of cooking technique is guaranteed as best. Ours is grilled Baby Back ribs.

I’d marinate the whole slabs in good Cabernet Sauvignon for a couple of hours, turning over the meat occasionally. After that, the meat is rubbed down with selected spices blend and set aside for grilling.

Allow a hot bed of charcoal to evenly spread. Make sure the briquettes burnt through visibly with a white thin coat of ash. Grill the whole slabs, bones side down first for about twenty minutes then flip it over. Set it on its side to avoid flames that may char the meats.

Once it turns golden brown, coat the meats with one layer of barbecue sauce. Then flip the meats over for no more than ten minutes. After that, let it sits on the bones side while adding more sauces on top. One slab of Baby Back takes about a cup of sauce. Keep in mind that barbecue sauce can get caramelize to char, and burnt very quickly. Cut the meats into two-finger size pieces then place inside a deep dish well covered.

At 20 Ranch Deli, we made our own barbecue sauce. Some of the ingredients we use included red wine, mustard, honey, Worcestershire, and tomato paste, etc.

Leave the ribs cook covered on burning out coal. An additional thirty to forty minutes will ensure the meat is well done, yet tender and juicy to taste!

Cane Manna