Birthday Dinner for Chubbawubba....

So my homeboy celebrated his bday this past week so you know what that means....throwdown in the kitchen. Today's menu:

• NY Strip Steak
• Blackened Wild Alaskan Salmon
• Roasted Asparagus
• Roasted Yukon Gold and Red Potatoes w/ Fresh Herbs & Garlic

Blackened Wild Alaskan Salmon
Difficulty: 6/10
Prep Time: 10 min
Cook Time: 20 min

Tip: When buying fish, I always buy fresh from a reputable and busy market that always has a fresh rotation coming in. When it comes to salmon, I'm a wild guy. Wild salmon, compared to farm raised, will have a much deeper, natural orange color and more pronounced flavor. Also, wild salmon has higher levels of omega-3s and omega-6s due to their natural diet.  So get wild!

When choosing your piece from the display, you want a good 1 pound fillet. Be sure to select the "head end" of the fillet rather than the "tail end" of the fillet. The "head end" is flakier, more tender, thicker, and makes a better presentation.

• 1-1.5 pound wild salmon fillet, skin and pin bones removed
• Kosher salt
• Freshly cracked black pepper
• olive oil
• Cajun Spice Rub (see below)

1. Rinse the skin side only of the salmon fillet under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Season both sides with kosher salt, black pepper, and Cajun Seasoning.
3. Drizzle a little olive oil on both sides and rub in the Cajun Rub in to the fish, coating evenly.
4. Heat a nonstick frying pan under med-high heat and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
5. Add 1 tspn of EVOO to the hot pan and slowly place the fish into the pan SKIN SIDE DOWN.
6. Let the fish cook for about 7 minutes on each side until the ends begin to turn light pink. Do not pick, poke, or peek. Just let it do it's thing.
7. Carefully turn the fish using a spatula and let cook for another 7 minutes.
8. Turn the fish one last time so that the skin side is down and place in the over for approx 5 min to finish cooking.
9. Carefully remove the fish from the pan, plate, and serve.

Roasted Asparagus
Difficulty: 3/10
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 10 min

• One pound of fresh asparagus. You want the large, thick stems; not the skinny, pencil-thin asparagus.
• 4 cloves of fresh garlic, peeled and smashed
• EVOO
• Kosher salt
• Fresh cracked black pepper

1. Preheat oven to Broil Lo setting.
2. Using a vegetable peeler, peel around the bottom ends of the asparagus stems removing the fibrous outer layer on the bottom end. Peel about 1" up the stem exposing the light green flesh.
3. Rinse the asparagus under cool water and pat dry with a dish towel.
4. Place the asparagus on a foil-lined baking sheet and drizzle with EVOO.
5. Season w/ kosher salt and black pepper.
6. Add the smashed garlic cloves and place into the oven on top rack for 10 min.
7. Plate and serve.

Roasted Yukon Gold and Red Potatoes w/ Fresh Herbs & Garlic
Difficulty: 4/10
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 25 min

• 1/2 pound Yukon gold potatoes
• 1/2 pound red potatoes
• 4 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
• 4 springs fresh thyme, removed from stems
• 4 springs fresh rosemary, removed from stems and chopped
• EVOO
• Kosher salt
• Black pepper

1. Rinse potatoes under cold water and pat dry. Cut potatoes into quarters (lengthwise).
2. Heat a large frying pan under med-high heat.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
4. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, herbs, garlic, and EVOO. Toss to evenly coat the potatoes with the herbs and garlic and season well with SnP. 
5. Pour the potatoes into the heated pan and cook for approx 6 minutes. Try to make all the flat sides of the potatoes sit face down in the pan. This will give them a good, golden crust.
6. Place the pan in the oven and continue cooking for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender.
7. Remove the potatoes from the pan using a spatula. Plate and serve.

Not Your Typical Chinese Take Out....

I would say my two favorite cuisines to cook are Italian and Chinese. Both focus on complex flavor from simple ingredients. So I recently got The Chinese Kitchen by Eileen Yin-Fei Lo who is the proclaimed Julia Childs of Chinese cuisine (that's a strong statement). It's definitely not a book for beginner cooks, but it really focuses on Chinese techniques and ingredients in Chinese food. So this weeks dinner is Chinese and it's all seafood. This isn't sweet n sour pork and chicken fried rice. This is real Chinese food.

Starting: Boiled Edamame w/ Star Anise and Ginger
Main 1: Shrimp Lo Mein
Main 2: Panko Encrusted Sea Scallops w/ Citrus Salt
Main 3: Mussels w/ Black Bean-Garlic Sauce

Boiled Edamame w/ Star Anise and Ginger
Difficulty: 2/10
Prep Time: 5 min
Cook Time: 25 min

• 1 pound frozen edamame, still in pods
• 1 small ginger root, smashed
• 4 star anise
• 2 green onions, cut into 4" segments
• 3 quarts water
• 4 tbspn kosher salt

1. In a pot, bring water to a boil. Add salt, star anise, green onions, and ginger. 
2. Rinse edamame under cold water and add into boiling water.
3. Let edamame boil for about 20 min under med heat. After 25 min, taste and check one edamame for firmness and flavor. Boil longer if needed.
4. Drain and serve.

Panko Encrusted Sea Scallops w/ Citrus Salt
Difficulty: 6/10
Prep Time: 25 min
Cook Time: 20 min

• 20 large sea scallops
• 2 cups AP flour
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups panko breadcrumbs
• 3 tbspn water
• Canola oil

1. Clean the scallops and make sure the muscles on the side are removed. Most of the time, if you're getting the scallops fresh from your fish monger, they will already be removed. Pat scallops dry with a  paper towel.
2. In a bowl, combine both eggs and the water to create an egg wash.
3. Now, let's assembly the dredging assembly line: egg wash, AP flour, and panko. Dredge scallops in AP flour. Then coat in egg wash. Finally, coat with panko bread crumbs.
4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
5. Heat a frying pan under med-high heat. Pour the canola oil into a frying pan so that it comes about 1/2" from the bottom.
6. Place breaded scallops in hot oil. Let them cook for about 3 min on each side or until they are golden brown.
7. Remove them from the frying pan and pop them in the oven for about 3 min to finish cooking. Depending on the size of your scallops, they may not need to be finished in the oven. Pan frying might be all you need to cook them all the way through. You want to make sure that you do not overcook them!! Nothing sucks more than overcooked seafood...Fail!
8. Remove the scallops from the oven. Season with the Citrus Salt. Plate and serve.

Citrus Salt

•  2 tbspn kosher salt
• 1 tbspn orange zest
• 1/4 tbspn szechuan peppercorns, toasted and ground in a spice grinder
• 1/2 tbspn fresh cracked black pepper
• 1/2 tspn five spice powder