chicken ginger congee

our family would eat this almost every weekend for breakfast.

chicken ginger congee
makes 6 servings

1 1/2 lbs bone-in chicken legs or thighs, skin removed and trimmed of excess fat
1 cup long grain white rice, frozen
6 cups water
4 cups chicken broth
1 (1 in.) piece ginger, skin on and sliced into 4 pieces
2 tsp salt
sesame oil or fish sauce, to taste
pinch ground white pepper
cilantro, chopped
scallions, chopped

Combine all the first 6 ingredients into a pot and bring to a boil. Turn heat to medium-low and continue cooking at a lively simmer for 1 hour.

Add a splash of fish sauce or sesame oil to the pot and stir.

Serve topped with cilantro and scallions.

nuomi fan

I've made this every Christmas for the last 3 or 4 years, making it our family's first real Christmas tradition. 

nuomi fan (sticky rice with Chinese sausage)
makes 8-10 side servings

3 cups Chinese or Japanese short-grain sticky ("sweet") rice
1 cup Chinese dried black mushrooms or dried shiitake mushrooms
5 Chinese sausages (6-8 oz total)
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions (1 bunch)
1 1/2 cups bottled peeled cooked whole chestnuts, coarsely chopped or raw peanuts
1/3 cup Chinese rice wine or Sherry
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp Asian sesame oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper
2 cups chicken broth

Cover rice with cold water by 1 inch in a large bowl and soak at least 2 hours. Drain in a sieve and rinse well under cold running water.

Soak mushrooms in warm water 30 minutes, then drain, squeezing excess liquid back into bowl, and keep liquid. Rinse mushrooms to remove any grit, then discard stems and coarsely chop caps. Quarter sausages lengthwise and cut into 1/2-inch pieces.

Heat a 4-6 quart heavy pot over high heat until just smoking. Add peanut oil and heat, swirling in wok, until just smoking. Add ginger and scallion and stir-fry 30 seconds. Add sausage and stir-fry 1 minute, then add mushrooms and stir-fry 1 minute. Add chestnuts and stir-fry 1 minute. Stir in rice wine, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, salt, and white pepper and remove from heat. Add drained rice and stir to coat.

And add broth (broth will not completely cover rice) and drained mushroom liquid. Bring to a simmer, stir once, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 25 minutes more, then remove from heat. Stir from bottom to distribute ingredients and let stand, covered, 10 minutes before serving.

plov

Plov is an Uzbeki dish that I first tried with my friend who lived in Kyrgyzstan for a couple years. He had just moved to the city and one of the first items on his list was to find and EAT some plov. So, we hopped on the subway and trekked out to Brighton Beach for some authentic plov. I'd describe it as a Central Asian version of lamb biryani.

Plov

2 cups basmati rice
4 heads garlic, whole (Wilbur says usually they just dump the whole head in there)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 lbs boneless leg of lamb, cut into 3 in pieces
2 large onions, thinly sliced
5 large carrots, coarsely grated
2 tbsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp coriander seed
1/2 cup fresh barberries (nowhere to be found, so subbed some dried sour cherries)
1 tsp whole black peppercorns
2 cups boiling water to cover
2 tbsp salt

1. Place rice in a large bowl and cover with warm water. Set aside. Wash heads of garlic. Set aside.
2. Heat vegetable oil in a dutch oven or large skillet over high heat until smoking, then add lamb, turning occasionally until the lamb is evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onions; cook and stir until the onion has softened and browned, about 10 minutes. Stir in the carrots; cook and stir until the carrots have softened, about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with cumin, coriander, barberries, and peppercorns. Drop whole garlic heads into the mixture, stirring to evenly distribute ingredients. Reduce heat to medium. Cover and cook for 30 minutes.
3. Wash and drain basmati rice with hot water. Pour cleaned rice over the lamb mixture in an even layer. Slowly pour in the boiling water. The rice should be covered with about 3/4 inch of water. Do not stir. Season with salt, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook until rice is tender, and the liquid has been absorbed, about 20 minutes. Stir rice and lamb together, and serve with the garlic heads on top.