Squid Surprise!

Thursday, June 28th, 2012 | posted by mike

The other day I had a very pleasant surprise! Every so often one of our suppliers, knowing what we buy and what we like, will see something come in that they know would really excite us. Nick Alfiero from Harbor Fish in Portland, Maine called and said, “I know you didn’t order these but we just got in some small local squid that were still alive and I put em in the box”. Oh yeah, Christmas in June!

Unloading our order I came upon a bag of small, shiny, gorgeous squids with big bright eyes still showing colors of ivory, blue and turquoise. There was no question about what was for dinner that night, the only question was how to prepare them. When cleaning them, I was amazed at how creamy and tender they felt. Normally we cut squid into rings or triangles so that quick cooking will keep them tender, but I knew these little guys would do just fine being kept whole.

squid ingredientsSearching around the kitchen for recipe ideas, I found everything for a nice squid dinner. A Café Japon baguette was a great start, now a great sopping sauce was all that was needed. Ahh, Palacios Spanish chorizo in the fridge and some Spanish Mas Portell Piquillo Pimientos. Next to those beautiful wood roasted Pimientos were some Ortiz anchovies from Vizcaya in the Basque region. It was time to pour a glass of crisp Albariño, put on the flamenco music and get cooking. There also just happened to be some fresh garlic and onions that my wife had picked up at the farmer’s market. Some of the world’s greatest ingredients right here in my little kitchen and I’m ready to have some fun!

Fast, easy and absolutely delicious this dish makes a fine dinner but it would also be great served as an appetizer or tapas. Manila clams and shrimp could be added to this dish also, for an over the top touch. Enjoy!

Posted in Blog | Comments Off
Tags: ,

Baby Squids with Chorizo and Anchovies

Thursday, June 28th, 2012 | posted by mike

Serves 4

Olive oil

1/12-2 lb. baby or small squid, fresh if possible, or previously frozen North Atlantic, cleaned and cut into 1/2 inch rings (save tentacles)

6-8 oz. cooked Spanish chorizo, we used Palacios brand; angle cut 1/4 inch thick

4 oz. wood fire roasted Spanish pimientos; we used Mas Portell brand, cut into strips

1 med onion sliced

4 or 5 cloves garlic, chopped

50 grams anchovies, I used super fancy Ortiz brand (worth it!), available at Monahan’s

5 sprigs thyme

Heat large heavy pan or skillet over med – high heat

When pan is hot, add enough olive oil to cover bottom of pan

Add onion for a min. then the chorizo, toss for a couple minutes till they start to brown

Add garlic until it just starts to brown then add pimientos, anchovies and thyme, toss for one min.

Add squid tentacles and bodies and toss for another 2 min. (add more olive oil at this point if sauce is cooking down to much)

Serve with crusty bread for dipping and maybe an arugula salad

Posted in Recipes | Comments Off
Tags: , ,

1st Annual Monahan’s Low Country Shrimp Boil

Friday, June 22nd, 2012 | posted by mike

shrimp boilOn a steamy evening last Tuesday we had a few friends and mongers (like 50) over for a little low country fun. It was in celebration of our daughter’s return from living in Texas for the last couple of years and she told me about some gulf shrimp parties that sounded amazing.

Summer is here and the time is right to have a good old southern style shrimp boil! Just good time, eating with your fingers, sucking shrimp heads, spicy sausage, corn, potatoes, lots of ice cold beer all served outdoors on sheets of newspaper or butcher paper, then wrapped up and tossed out between batches. Great for serving large groups, lots of fun and flavor with minimal cleanup. You don’t really even need plates or utensils, the entire boil is dumped on the table and everyone just picks away.

We combined a Georgia /South Carolina low country boil with a Louisiana shrimp boil. We used our big 8-10 per lb. head-on Texas shrimp, cornshrimp boil on the cob, redskin potatoes, Andouille sausage, onions, garlic and thyme. Old bay seasoning, the classic Baltimore crab seasoning, and Louisiana’s Zatarains shellfish seasoning were combined for our party. The old bay is subtler with a nice celery seed and bay leaf flavor and Zatarains has the hot pepper kick to it. For those who like it really hot, we had Tabasco and Frank’s hot sauce on the table along with cocktail sauce, drawn butter and remoulade sauce. Like the New England lobster or clambake, the Louisiana crawfish boil, the Wisconsin fish boil or the Maryland crab boil, these are best prepared outdoors and preferably over a propane burner with a large pot with a strainer insert. You can use a hand strainer if you don’t have an insert. The main thing is to have a large pot with lots of room for the ingredients.

shrimp boilAbout as informal as it gets, it’s an easy, fun way to serve a few or a whole lot of people. We’ve got the shrimp and seasonings, all you need are some friends and a little equipment (propane and a burner that you can rent or shrimp boilbuy) and you can do it in the yard or take it on the road, to the beach, park, the lake or a field- instant party time! Click here for the recipe.

 

Posted in Blog | Comments Off
Tags: , ,

Low Country Shrimp Boil

Friday, June 22nd, 2012 | posted by mike

Serves 8

shrimp boil5 lbs. Jumbo (8-10) per lb. head-on wild gulf shrimp; deveined with shell on. To devein cut down back of shrimp with scissors or serrated knife and remove vein under running water

1/2 cup old bay seasoning

I bag Zatarains crawfish boil

1 T salt

2 large onions, peeled and quartered

3 lemons, halved

6 cloves garlic, crushed

1 bunch thyme, tied with butcher string

8 large (halved) or 16 small redskin potatoes

8 ears corn shucked and halved

21/2 lb. Andouille sausage, angle sliced 1/2inch thick

In a large pot (5 gal. or so) bring water to boil (remember it will take up to 1/2 hour to boil) use 2 pots if you have to, its important to have lots of water or cooking times will lengthen

Add seasoning, Zatarains, thyme and potatoes, garlic, onions, lemons (squeezed) and boil for 10min.

Add corn and Andouille for 5 min.

Add shrimp for 3-4 min. or until just opaque in center

Lift out insert or take a large strainer and dump everything over newspaper or butcher paper (free at Monahan ‘s)

Serve with hot sauce, cocktail sauce, remoulade sauce and drawn butter

Attack! And enjoy

Posted in Recipes | Comments Off
Tags: ,

It's Shrimp Gazpacho Time!

Thursday, June 14th, 2012 | posted by mike

Every summer, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, something very special takes place at Monahan’s Seafood. Bernie serves up one of his most famous concoctions. Folks beg for it all winter, but no, they have to wait. There’s only one season that’s really right for this treat. Pure health and a cool, refreshing burst of flavor is what Bernie’s shrimp gazpacho is all about. Loaded with tomatoes, veggies and big chunks of wild gulf shrimp, it’s truly a meal in itself!

shrimp gazpacho signAnother culinary gift from Spain, gazpacho has Moorish origins from the Andalusia region. There are many types of gazpacho but the most common type is tomato based, especially here in the states. Adding shrimp gives Bernie’s gazpacho an almost ceviche type of flavor and it serves as the main coarse of this liquid salad. People love this recipe. Even those who claim to hate cold soups give it one taste and they’re hooked. Light, healthy summer meals, picnics; this gazpacho is a one pot, portable, square meal!

Posted in Blog | Comments Off
Tags: ,

Monahan's Shrimp Gazpacho

Thursday, June 14th, 2012 | posted by mike

Makes 3-4 qts.  Serves 8-10

1 lb. medium shrimp (preferably wild caught); peeled, deveined, boiled & cut into 1/2 in pieces

1 seedless cucumber; peeled, cored, diced

1 green pepper; seeded, diced

1/2 lb. zucchini grated

1/2 lb. onion diced

1/2 lb. fresh tomatoes diced

1 28 oz. can diced San Marzano tomatoes

1 46 oz. can V-8 juice

1 46 oz. can tomato juice

1/4 C olive oil

1/2 C red wine vinegar

1 T basil pesto

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

dash of tabasco

In a large bowl whisk together the olive oil, red wine vinegar, pesto, salt, pepper, and tabasco

Mix in the remaining ingredients and add the shrimp at the end

Serve well chilled

Posted in Recipes | Comments Off
Tags: , ,

Rehashed Salmon Hash

Thursday, June 7th, 2012 | posted by mike

We all know that sometimes leftovers are better than the original meal! There’s not a better leftover food out there than salmon and with a summer full of delicious, healthful Pacific wild salmon along with great quality Atlantic farm raised  ahead of us we should have lots of fantastic leftovers to work with!

grilled salmonI like the smokiness of grilled salmon, but baked, broiled, pan seared or steamed work just fine to top a salad, make salmon cakes, quesadillas, salmon salad sandwiches, let your imagination go wild!

My all time favorite Sunday morning breakfast is poached eggs over salmon hash! The richness of the salmon, the tartness of vinegar and capers with a little sweet purple onion and pimentos makes a fantastic and healthy start to the day. When the wild salmon are running, I always make sure to bring extra home just so I can stretch it out for a couple more meals.

On Sunday we made hash out of Copper River king salmon leftovers from last week’s Friday Fish Report recipe. Now you might be thinking that using the richest and most expensive salmon of the year to make hash is an extravagant waste of good ingredients, but I’ll tell you, if it turns out to be the best breakfast you’ve ever eaten it’s nothing but delicious decadence!

Posted in Blog | Comments Off
Tags: , , ,

Salmon Hash

Thursday, June 7th, 2012 | posted by mike

Serves 4

3/4 – 1 lb. cooked salmon fillet, leftovers are great

1 1/4 cup Idaho potatoes cut into 1/2 inch squares (good in this recipe but optional)

5 T roasted red pepper or Spanish piquillo pimientos, cut into 1/4 inch square pieces

Olive oil

2 T capers

1/2 cup coarsely chopped purple onion

2 1/2 T white balsamic or champagne vinegar

salt and coarse ground pepper

Fry the potatoes over med. heat (around 300º) for one min. Drain on paper towel or paper bag then fry in same oil at med.- high (around 360º) for another min. or until golden brown, drain again. You could use the boil then fry method but they won’t be as brown, crispy and tender

Next, heat a large heavy-duty pan or skillet over med- high heat, add enough olive oil to coat the bottom

Sauté onions until transparent, add roasted red pepper, capers and toss around the pan for 1 min., or until onions just start to turn brown

Add salmon, potatoes, vinegar salt and pepper and gently but constantly flip until hot (add a little more olive oil if hash doesn’t look moist enough)

Serve with poached eggs on top or on top of toast

Posted in Recipes | Comments Off
Tags: , ,

Copper River Salmon Update

Friday, June 1st, 2012 | posted by mike

Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend with family and friends and was able to enjoy a nice cookout with some delights from the seas or lakes! We planked some lovely Copper River sockeye, basted with our Irish whiskey maple glaze, and it was the easiest, most delicious crowd pleaser that you could imagine.

copper river king salmonLast week we reported that we would be seeing lots of Copper River sockeyes but that kings would be scarce for the holiday weekend. Well that’s exactly what happened. It seems that not many kings are being taken yet. There are two openings this week, both 36-hour, on Monday and Thursday. The Monday opening was light on kings. I’m writing this on Wednesday the 30th and we have both gorgeous kings and sockeyes in the house and we’re hoping to have more for this weekend.

The Copper River salmons are truly the kings of the grill but of course these fish will probably be the best salmon you’ve ever tasted in any other cooking method that you’d use on other salmon; poached, baked, broiled, steamed and, as in this week’s recipe, pan seared are all excellent choices.

Today’s recipe has a light fresh sauce with oyster mushrooms, leeks and fresh herbs that really lets the salmon shine. We picked up the oyster mushrooms from Tantré Farm at our farmer’s market (they will have more this weekend) but you could use shitake or chanterelles as well.

Posted in Blog | Comments Off
Tags: ,

Copper River King Salmon with Oyster Mushrooms and Leeks

Friday, June 1st, 2012 | posted by lisa

Serves 4

4 6-8 oz. salmon fillets scaled skin on center cut

4 cups leeks, white part with a little of the green, sliced 1/4 inch, rinsed well in a colander

1 clove garlic, minced

11/2 cups oyster mushrooms, sliced

1/2 cup chicken stock

1/4 cup dry white wine

1T olive oil

2 T butter

1 t chopped fresh oregano or 1/2 t dried

1 t chopped fresh savory or 1/2 t dried

1 chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 t dried

Salt and pepper

Pre heat oven to 375º

Season salmon portions with salt and pepper

Heat a large pan over med-high heat; add butter and sauté leeks and garlic for about 5 min., reduce heat to med., add mushrooms, stock, wine and herbs and simmer until leeks are tender and most of the liquid is absorbed (15 to 20 min.), keep warm under lowest heat. I add a splash of olive oil if sauce gets too dry

Dust top and bottom of fillets with Drakes batter mix or seasoned flour

Heat a large heavy pan or skillet over high heat; add olive oil and when oil is hot add salmon fillets skin side up

Sear for 2-3 min. or until fillet forms a golden brown crust

Flip and pop into oven for another 8-12 min. (follow the Canadian rule- 10 min. per inch of thickness)

Since these Copper River salmon fillets can be very big and thick be careful not to over cook. Check after 10 min. cooking time by gently cutting into thickest part of fillet.

As soon as fillet is barely opaque in center, serve on top of sauce

Posted in Recipes | Comments Off
Tags: , , ,