Perfect Moist Herb Butter Turkey

Tom Ka

Tom Ka.... mmmmmm good!

From Uncle Scott.....

Tom Kha Gai

This is my personal method for making this soup. There are MANY ways to do it, most of which I'll touch on as I go. It is a soup, but in many ways it is also a curry. The ingredients proportioned differently could easily be served over rice.

I'm a perfectionist - and like to individually cook ingredients then add them to create a finished product, rather than timing their addition to a hot fluid such that they all end up cooked “just right” as the same time. I'm not that coordinated.  It is a convention in much Asian cooking to present vegetables with even, identical cuts which have been quickly cooked so they still retain a crunch.

The base for the soup is an infused coconut milk/chicken stock broth.    Chicken, tofu, cabbage, carrots, and mushrooms make up the edible solids. Other vegetables can be added, but the real flavor of the soup comes from infusing the coconut milk. This is done with galanga root, ginger, lemongrass, lime zest, garlic, Kaffir lime leaves, and hot peppers. You can also add Cilantro, some recipes use Basil, or coriander seed. I stick with the first set.

I start with good coconut milk and use homemade stock usually, 2 parts coconut milk and one part stock. This can be varied to change the richness of the broth. Be aware that coconut milk wants to curdle when boiled, the higher your ratio of stock to coconut milk the less a danger this is.

Recommend

8C. Chicken Stock

8C. Coconut Milk

Mix in a large pot, using a thermometer - or mark one eyeball - bring it to a point just below boiling, keep it there as you add infusion ingredients, DO NOT ALLOW IT TO BOIL.

Infusion

I use ground fresh infusion ingredients usually, they infuse faster and there's less waste. Beware that it's also easier to overdo something this way. Most restaurant versions of this soup use big chunks slowly infused and served with the final product, the eater just leaves them behind when eating the dish. Some of these ingredients are inherent to a lot of Thai cooking and there are no good substitutes, do so at your own risk. The final product won't “wow” you if you use all ginger instead of galanga, or all lime zest instead of Kaffir lime leaves. Most of the exotic stuff can only be had at an Asian grocery. Buy a lot when there, and freeze it to make more Tom Kha another day. There is often a chopped frozen lemongrass product available in the freezer aisle.

Infuse the stock with these flavors to personal taste. This can be anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours depending on the strength, volume, and cut of the infusion ingredients. The heat of the fluid also affects the speed of infusion.

When it tastes right to you strain the stock and remove and discard the solids. Return the infused broth to the pot.  DO NOT LET THE FLUID BOIL.

Add to broth:

1/3-1/2C. Chopped Fresh Ginger

1/3C. Chopped Fresh Galanga Root

1/2C. Chopped Fresh Lemongrass

2T Lime Zest

10-15 Whole Kaffir Lime Leaves

10 Chopped or Crushed Garlic Cloves

1-4 Chopped medium-hot pepper(s) of your choice (cayenne, Serrano, jalapeno, Thai chili, etc.)

Seasoning

You'll notice the recipe has no salt. This is because fish sauce is a big player in this soup. Add seasonings to taste to get the salt balance where you want it to be. Be aware that fish sauce is often anchovy based but is usually made at plants that also process shellfish. Whether or not it says so - assume it contains shellfish and check for allergies in your audience. Also an ingredient that really makes the soup authentic is shrimp paste. It can be skipped (the fish sauce can't!).

Add these to the sauce in small increments until it's just a touch too salty.  The ingredients you add later will bring the apparent salinity down, and the lime juice (added last) will balance the fish sauce as a flavor.  I also like some sweetness, which rounds out the heat of the peppers.  Palm sugar is more traditional, but brown sugar is effectively identical.

1/3-1/2C. Fish sauce

1-3t. Shrimp Paste

1/4C. Palm Sugar

Poaching

Next add 4-5 pounds of boneless bite size chopped dark or white meat chicken to the fluid and parboil it to cook. This incorporates the flavors into the meat and adds the meat juices to the soup. I like dark meat, but both work well.  The restaurant version is usually white meat. I also like to add carrots for color. Depending on the chop size and intended final softness you might want to add them with the chicken. Sometimes I stir fry them separately to put some brown on the them and add them at the end.

4# Boneless Dark Meat Chicken chopped into 1” chunks

When the chicken is almost - but not fully - cooked you can add the mushrooms, tofu, and cabbage - which will cook to the desired state in less than five minutes. I add the mushrooms usually a few minutes before the cabbage and tofu.  Remove from heat as soon as the soup wilts the cabbage.

1 Large Head Napa Cabbage chopped to 1” squares

1# Mushrooms cut to large bite size. Crimini or standard horse mushrooms are

good. Shiitake sound good for an Asian dish, but I usually find them too

nutty - and they take much longer to soften/cook.

1# Extra firm tofu.

Lastly add the lime juice, the acidity and floral nature of the citrus is very important to the finished dish. You may want to add more to taste.  This is added last because the acidity of the juice can also induce the broth to curdle.

1/2C Lime Juice

Service

Garnish upon serving with fresh Cilantro. This is a must. The combination of fresh flavor with the soup is a peanut butter and chocolate type of synergy - not to be overlooked! Limes are standard.  Another convention is to float some red pepper infused chili oil on the top for color and flavor. If you like it hotter than your table-mates this is a good way to compromise.

1 Large bunch cilantro broken down into sprigs.

2 Limes, cut into wedges

Chili Oil Drizzle over finished bowls

Butter Herb Roasted Turkey & Mixed Mushroom Homemade Stuffing with fresh Turkey Stock Gravy

Tips & Tricks:

what way a turkey should lay

how to make an infused herb butter

different meat thermometers and how to use them and what temperatures different meats are considered done at

how to tell when a turkey is done

how to prep a turkey and all the things to look for and how to use them

how to make a turkey stock and gravy 

how to clean/prep a portabella mushroom

how to stuff a turkey and the variety of things to stuff a turkey with

how to prep a turkey, things to leave in or on

how to make a stuffing from scratch and the many varieties of stuffing 

how to brown hot Italian sausage 

how to tell when vegetables are tender 

how to tell when stuffing has enough liquid added- specific things to look for

how to get a moist turkey

different parts of mushrooms to keep and to remove- mushroom specific 

how to carve a turkey

Tom Kha Gai

Tips and Tricks

How to infuse flavors
How to garnish
How to create lime zest
How to make a soup stock
Lesson in peppers
How to bring salinity down in recipes
Quality of zest
How to poach chicken
Curdling lessons
How to prep citrus fruit
Tofu lesson
How to bias cut chicken

Risotto - gourmet multi mushroom with sauted jumbo shrimp

Multi Mushroom Risotto with Sauted Prosciutto Wrapped Jumbo Shrimp

Tips and tricks:

How to prep, cut and pick out mushrooms
How to prep and peel shrimp
History of risotto
Reason for white wine and alcohol uses in food-  (alcohol lesson in food)
How to saute
How and why to pick cheese for risotto
Why and how you add liquid at specific times
How to tell when risotto is done
Why you add boiling chicken broth
How to pick cheese for risotto
How to de-vein shrimp
How to brown rice (arborio rice specifically)
Infusing butter with garlic
How to tell when shrimp is cooked

Chicken Pot Pie Part 2-

Chicken Pot Pie the Filing - Part 2

Tips & Tricks...

How to use a broiler pan
How to roll out dough and use for a pot pie
Several ways to cook chicken for this recipe
How to judge the size of vegetables you put in recipes
How to simmer and why
Textures and the importance of them in food
How to do pie crust tops for a finished look - esthetics
How to sliver carrots
How to dice potatoes
Reasons for mixing "like temperature" ingredients
How to cook/brown flour and why
Version two of a roux (pronounced rooooo)

Chicken Pot Pie - Part 1 the crust

Chicken Pot Pie & Pie Crust - Tips and Tricks

Pie Crust:

You will learn:

The importance of chilled ingredients
How to make flaky crust vs bad crust
How to kneed dough (in this recipe you only kneed twice, unlike bread which is over and over and over)
Strategies in mixing ingredients
Yeast and its roll in setting up
How to ball up dough
How to store dough and why

Irish Beer Cheddar Soup in a Bread Bowl

Happy Saint Patricks Day!!! Our third Irish dish! Our Whole family helped!!!

*The bacon was forgotten in video, you can crumble (break apart) or put one strip in as a stir stick

Irish Bread Beer Cheddar Soup - HAPPY SAINT PATRICKS DAY

Tips and Tricks:

Importance of textures in soups
Shaving textures of carrots with knife
Explanation of chemistry of melting like ingredients  and the importance of that for soup
How to make a crouton
How to cook bacon and how to tell when its done - rendering meat
Importance of steps on soup making
A little history of St. Patricks Day
How to cut a bread bowl for soup
Making a roux

Shepherd's Pie - Happy St. Patricks Day!!!

This information on this blog is priceless.... I am so excited for the future...

Shepherd's Pie - Tips & Tricks

In the video you will learn:

The history of Shepherd's Pie

How to dollop

C - cutting method

How to boil water and why you use salt

How to simmer and what simmer means

Conductivity of pans and why that is important 

Fastest way to get rid of moisture 

Food processor uses 

Metal in food when using non stick pans

How to cut a potato to boil it

Disposing of grease 

Why you boil a potato

How to brown ground beef

Draining ground beef

The difference of a raw and translucent onions

2 methods of "mashed" potatoes 

Non stick vs other pans and why you use them or not- 

Why you drain the ground beef after browning & why you keep some

How to make a roux (pronounced  roooo) why you make a roux

How to grate cheese, why you use different size graters, and what cheeses are meant for specific  graters

How to cut and trim onions for this recipe 

How to use a broiler pan to make gravy

CLEANING UP AFTER USING RAW MEAT 

HAPPY SAINT PATRICKS DAY! 

Corned Beef and Cabbage

We have some fun St. Patrick's Day recipes coming soon!

Blugogi Chicken Our first Video- super proud of this project

*Please remember this is our first video and video editing, it will only get better.
*These recipes are our version, cooking is an art and very personal, follow along, pause, fast forward, and remember you can always make it your own! 

Most important - HAVE FUN

~Namaste

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Tips and Tricks include:

How to peel a potato
How to cube a potato 

How to cut an onion for this specific dish

How to sear meat

How to quarter and trim a cabbage 

A lesson in how and why to use salt

Oil flash temperatures- when and how to use specific oils
How to cut celery stalk in a bunch

Tips and tricks from Bulgogi Chicken- The first Video

From our first video you will learn:

Garlic life hacks
How to reduce marinade
How to prep rice
When and how to use a broiler
Trimming and cutting chicken breasts