Crispy Chili Salmon with Chunky Winter Salsa

This is a two part recipe, first making a red chili salsa and then using the water that hydrated the chili peppers as the poaching liquid for the salmon. The combination is lovely.

The salsa is one of my winter varieties with lots of chili to make up for lackluster tomatoes. I blend a paste of chili peppers and tomatoes, then add some finally chopped ones for texture.

The salmon is cooked using my favorite methods, poached on the bottom and broiled on top for a silky fillet and crusty skin.

Ingredients

For the Salsa:

• Four tomatoes boiled until the skin cracks, then remove the skin
• Two New Mexican chili peppers, two anchos, and two serranos
• One onion cut into quarters
• Bunch of cilantro
• Lime
• Salt

For the salmon

• 1 1-1.5 lb fillet with skin on
• Small onion diced
• Cubano pepper diced
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Directions

To make the salsa, start by toasting the New Mexican and Ancho chili in a frying pan. When fragrant, add 1-2 cups of water and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the seeds from the chili peppers and add to a blender along with a few tablespoons of the liquid, the poached tomatoes, half the onion, squeezed lime, salt, and half of the cilantro. Blend until smooth, then pour into a bowl. Add finally chopped serranos, onion, and cilantro. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving.

To make the salmon, remove the chili water from the pan. Fry the onion and pepper in the olive oil for a few minutes. Meanwhile, scour the skin side of the salmon with a sharp knife. Rub the skin with olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste. Add the chili water back to the pan and bring to a simmer. Add the salmon, skin side up. Place the whole pan under the broiler and cook for 10-15 minutes depending on thickness of the fillet and desired doneness. 

For Technologists 

As this is my last post of 2014, please have a look at my posts on Big Data and Self Service BI Programs and on IT/Marketing (CIO/CMO) relationships.

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Spicy Turkey, Kale, and Potato Soup

Every year on Thanksgiving and after all the guests have departed I go into my yearly ritual of making a turkey stock. Smash the bones so that it fits into a stock pot, add onion, celery, carrot, bay leaf, salt, and pepper, bring to boil and simmer for two hours. Makes a great gelatinous broth that I use to make a variety of soups.

This soup is quick and easy to make. The potatoes and kale make it a hearty soup despite the lightness of the broth.

You'll notice that I am not including specific quantities of ingredients because it can be made for a single person or for a family. The quantity of ingredients used should be proportional to the volume of broth.

Ingredients

• Cumin
• Thai chili pepper (or any hot peppers will do)
• Olive or vegetable oil
• Chopped Onion
• Chopped celery and carrot, and fennel bulb
• Chopped Kale
• Turkey broth (can substitute chicken broth)
• Salt and pepper
• Baby potatoes cut in half
• Chopped bok choy

Directions

Bring broth to room temperature. In a separate stock pot, toast the cumin and chili peppers until fragrant. Add oil and onion and saute for five minutes. Add the celery, carrot, and fennel bulb and saute for five more minutes. Add kale and several tablespoons of the broth and cook for five minutes with the lid on. Add the broth, salt, pepper, and potatoes and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to simmer the soup for ten minutes. Add bok choy and adjust seasoning if needed. Cook and simmer for five more minutes.

Serve immediately in large bowls.

For Technologists

Good soups require balance of flavor and texture. Ingredients need to be added in stages so that they cook properly. A variety of spices and ingredients are needed to provide richness and depth.

Recently, I completed a different post on balance. In The Agile Data Organization - Balancing Responsibilities in Data Science Programs, I discuss the need to develop a balance of skills and responsibilities between data scientists, business managers, and IT personnel in developing data science programs.

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Agile Thanksgiving

I always look for a mix of crowd pleasing recipes mixed with some fresh ideas. With the ovens going at 400F and the turkey done, I have about an hour to cook four trays while I carve the turkey and make the gravy. Agile or just multitasking, it works for me. Today's feast included:

Roasted root vegetables

With the ovens going, it's easy to slice up carrots and turnips, mix with olive oil, salt, some broth, and herbs and roast at 400F for about 45 minutes.

Chili Garlic Potatoes

Crush garlic, new Mexican chili peppers, Thai bird chili peppers, kosher salt, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, olive oil, and chili water (water from hydrating the chili) in a mortar and pestle to make a paste. Spoon onto boiled potatoes. Roast for 45 minutes. 

Crowd Pleasing Potatoes

For those that don't like the heat, just sprinkle herbs and salt on boiled potatoes. Drizzle on olive oil and roast for 45 minutes.

And finally, Awesome Green Beans

 

Saute garlic. Add French beans with the ends chopped off. Salt and saute about five minutes. Add slivered almonds and saute one more minute

What about the Turkey?

Sorry folks. Forgot to take the photo. But I always follow Alton Brown's Good Eats Turkey Recipe and it always comes out awesome.

 For Technologists

Check out my post from last year, A CIO Top Ten Guide To Preparing a Thanksgiving Feast.

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Late Night: Sauteed Broccoli Rabe and Chicken

This is one of my favorite weekday meals because it is healthy, easy to make, and can be made with a variety of ingredients. The star is the broccoli rabe which holds up well to the garlic and chili flakes.

I prefer doing this with chicken, but you'll see Italian restaurants follow a similar recipe without protein, with chopped up sausage, with potatoes, or with a combination of ingredients.

Many recipes call for dunking the broccoli rabe in an ice bath after blanching in order to stop the cooking. Personally, I find this step unnecessary so long as you are going from blanching to sauteing right away.

Ingredients

• Bunch of broccoli rabe, cut into one inch chunks
• Chicken breast chopped up into bite sized pieces
• Olive oil
• 5-10 cloves of garlic sliced thin
• Chili flakes
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Boil water for blanching the brocolli rabe. Saute chicken in olive oil until brown and cooked. Remove from the pan.

Add the broccoli to the boiling water. Meanwhile, saute the garlic. Let it brown, but not burn and remove the pan from the heat if it is burning. Blanch the broccoli rabe in the boiling water for about two minutes, then strain. Shake out as much water as you can before.

Add chili flakes and broccoli rabe to the pan and saute 2-3 minutes. Add back in the chicken. Add salt, pepper and saute 2-3 more minutes. Serve hot.

For Technologists

This is a back to basics recipe with few ingredients, easy preparation, and quick cleanup. Sometimes you just have to go back to the basics, which is what I was reminded of when I visited my daughter's first grade classroom. Afterward, I wrote about What Agile Teams Can Learn From a First Graders.

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Grilled Chili Spiced Pork Loin

I usually don't like making a large cut of meat and prefer grilling an array of vegetables such as grilled cauliflower or kale. But sometimes, you can't beat the convenience of cooking a large cut and using it in multiple ways during the week.

I'm not a big fan of beef roast and find them somewhat limiting in terms of the flavor profiles that you can use in a marinade or spice rub. Instead, I prefer a turkey breast or a pork loin.

I tend to use a basic barbecue rub. The meat stands up on its own and with this rub, can be used in tacos, a dirty rice, or a sandwich later in the week.

Ingredients

• 3-4 lb Pork Loin
• 4 tablespoons of ancho chili powder
• 2 tablespoons of smoked paprika
• 2 tablespoons of granulated garlic
• 2 tablespoons of ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon each of salt, chipotle pepper powder, and coriander
• Soaked wood chips

Directions

Mix together the spice rub and spread generously over the meat. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate 6 hours or overnight. I like doing this last thing in the evening so that it is ready to bbq anytime then next day.

I use a gas grill and set it up for indirect cooking with one site heated for the wood chips and the other side for the meat. I put the soaked wood chips in a low aluminum pan, cover it with foil, and puncture holes it. I place this on the heated side of the grill. I fill a second pan with water and place it underneath the grill on the non-heated side. Use a remote meat thermometer and insert the probe into the center of the meat. The grill burner should be on low and once I start seeing smoke, I put in the pork.

Every 30-45 minutes add wood chips to the pan and rotate the meat.

Don't ask me how long to cook it. On the grill, it will depend on the grill temperature, the size of the meat, and the location of the meat relative to the flame. Guidelines now require pork to cook to 145F, so I just monitor the thermometer and wait till the meat is ready.

Let the meat settle in a covered pan for 15-20 minutes before slicing.

For Technologists

As I said a BBQ pork roast can be used in a lot of different ways. It is an "agile platform" for many other recipes that require a spicy protein.

Technologists also need agile platforms to develop new products and applications. What is an agile platform? It is fast and easy to learn, built on standards, has an open and extendable architecture and other features that you can read about in Top Ten Attributes of Agile Platforms.

Other great recipes:

Check this one out for Aromatic Pork Belly Lo Mein

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Late Night Roasted Cauliflower

One of my favorite, easy to make, flavorful, and healthy late night dinners. You can do this in a toaster oven, your main convention oven, and even on the grill if you have a grill basket.

There are two keys to doing this well. First, make best attempt to have the cauliflower pieces cut to uniform size so that they cook evenly. Second, make best attempt to evenly coat the florets with the olive oil and spices.

Ingredients

• One head of cauliflower cut into uniform chunks
• Olive oil - 3-4 tablespoons to coat the cauliflower
• Spice mixture: A couple of options here
• Spicy - Mix of ancho chile powder, pinch of cayenne, cumin, salt
• Curry - Curry powder, garlic powder, coriander, salt
• Herb - Herb de Provence works great mixed with salt

Directions

Mix cauliflower with olive oil in a large bowl. Sprinkle on the selected spice mixture evenly. If cooking in an oven, spread on a cookie sheet in one layer and roast at 400F. If cooking on the grill, cook on medium-high heat shaking the basket every 10 minutes. Cook until florets are brown and charred in some places, 20-25 minutes.

For Technologists

Sometimes you just have to go back to the basics, like learning data science principals from fourth grade class rules or what agile teams can learn from first graders.

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Pork Bourguignon with Roasted Potatoes and Cauliflower

I love beef bourguignon and thought to give it a try with pork. In this case, I bought a pork shoulder, half that I used to smoke and half that I used for this dish. I made the classic dish, then added roasted cauliflower and potatoes as a bonus add on.

My only issue with the approach was the rendered fat from the pork made for a greasy sauce. You can see it on the rim of the plate in the attached photo. If I used a leaner cut of meat then I doubt it would stand up to the cooking time. Suggested improvements welcome!

Ingredients

• Four slices of bacon diced up
• Pork shoulder - about 2-3 pounds, cut into 1 inch cubes.
• Flour (whole wheat works fine)
• Large onion and three large carrots diced
• Tomato paste
• Cup of beef broth
• Bottle of pinot noir 
• Bouquet Garni of thyme, basil, and oregano
• Small red potatoes cut in half
• Cauliflower, cut into small florets
• Package of mushrooms
• Olive oil
• Salt, pepper, more basil, thyme and oregano

Directions

Put oven on 350F. Mixed the pork with flour, salt, and pepper until pieces are well covered. Warm up the dutch oven on low-medium heat. Cook the bacon until crisp and fat rendered, about 15 minutes. Remove the bacon and save for later. Remove all but one table spoon of the rendered bacon fat and save the rest for later.

Add the pork to the dutch oven and brown in small batches so that each batch has sufficient space to brown. About 5 minutes per batch, and add a tablespoon of bacon fat to fry up each batch.

Add a table spoon of bacon fat and render the onion and carrots for about 10 minutes. Add in the tomato paste and allow to brown. Deglaze the pan with the broth, then add the full bottle of pinot noir and the bouquet garni. Bring to a simmer, cover, and move to a middle rack in the oven. 

While the pork is cooking, slice potatoes in half and cut the cauliflower into small pieces. Mix with olive oil, bacon fat, salt, pepper, and herbs and spread one layer on 1-2 baking sheets. Bake on the top rack for forty minutes.

Saute mushrooms. About 75 minutes into the cooking pour into the dutch oven and mix. Cook for fifteen more minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to settle for 10-15 minutes. Remove the Bouquet Garni. Ladle into bowls and add potatoes, cauliflower, and bacon.

For Technologists

This recipe requires a little bit of planning to have things ready at certain times so that the dish can be completed efficiently. Have the pork ready to add to the oven after the bacon completes. Get the pork baking in the oven and leave you enough time to get the potatoes and cauliflower prepped and cooking.

My post, Defining the Agile Planning Sprint attempts to lay out a similar structure for developing and estimating stories in time for a development sprint. It is a defined, 5-day process starting with gathering business requirements and ending with a structured breakdown of story stubs (not fully defined stories) that can be reviewed and analyzed for software architecture and other considerations.
 

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