Recipe of the Day: Perfectly Roasted Salmon Steaks

We all love Salmon. That’s that. If any of you comment saying that you don’t, you can just go right ahead and kill yourself, because you’re a waste of oxygen and resources.

As I’ve come to learn in recent months, perfecting any recipe - and ensuring it stays that way every time - is all about timing. Once you nail down the timing, you will never botch your soft boiled eggs, your pasta will never overcook, your rice won’t come out half-cooked, and more importantly, your salmon will come out tasting like chocolate sauce covered boobs (In this context, this is a great metaphor, just go with it)

So what’s the trick? Let’s get to it!

Goes without saying, you need to buy a legit salmon steak - Gourmet in Cairo actually sells 150-gram chunks in packs of two’s which go for under 85 EGP which is quite cheap if you consider the alternative in fish sections in Alfa or Metro for instance. Gourmet also sells a large salmon steak which weighs anywhere between 1.2 and 1.4 kgs for a price ranging between 270 and 310 EGP depending on the weight so you can buy that, chop it up into blocks in your size of preference and chuck in the freezer.

First of you need to make sure your salmon’s been taken out of the freezer and that it’s thawed out and currently sits at room temperature - albeit a tad cold in the center. At this point when your salmon is thawed out - and it should have been taken out early in the morning if you’re planning on having it for lunch - you should pre-heat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Second, you need to lightly coat the pan or pyrex container you will use for baking the salmon steak with coconut or olive oil. Don’t go overboard, you just want to coat it enough where the salmon steak will rest to avoid it sticking to the pan. You should also lightly grease the salmon steak itself from all four sides. Lay it down in the pan, skin facing the pan.

I personally like to whip up a dash of mixed herbs to really bring out my salmon, your herbs of choice ought to be Basil, Parsley, Rosemary, Oregano and cruched Mint. Sprinkle a dash of each across the fleshy top. You can also grind some black pepper and throw in a dash of ginger powder to taste.

Now that you’ve got this bad boy spiced up and ready to rock and roll - and now that your oven’s been pre-heated - you can tuck it in for EXACTLY 12 minutes on the motherfucking clock. Do this, and you will be treated to the most exquisite slab of fish meat ever to end up on a plate. I guarantee it. Make sure you’ve set an alarm doing a 12-minute countdown and click “Start” the moment you shut the oven door. When that thing beeps, take it out and serve immediately. None of this “Let it rest shit”. This ain’t a steak you classless fucks.

I usually have my salmon steaks with a side of mixed roased vegetables but you can pretty much have it with anything else. It doesn’t matter, the salmon is the center piece of the action.

That’s it for today, short and sweet! Hopefully more coming soon!

Let me know how yours turns out!

Recipe of the Day: Carrot Ginger Soup To Warm Your Deadbeat Heart

Winter’s been getting harsher and harsher as the years have passed by (Suck it, global warming advocates!) and we’ve been forced to become more creative in the way we deal with it. Be it setting the cat on fire for warmth, rubbing ourselves against our neighbors, or getting more creative in the kitchen to bring about some warmth from within.

Everyone likes soup. If you know someone or are yourself someone who said they don’t like soup, you’re lying pieces of shit with no soul.

I slightly digress.

Living rooms in Cairo circa 2014

Below is my favorite soup recipe that is 110% guaranteed to thaw out your icicles and help you to momentarily stop stuffing kittens down your underwear. It’s super easy to make, and I guarantee it’s one of the tastiest - and healthiest- soups you can gorge down on during the cold days. Let’s get to it!

Ingredients (Serves two people)

• 4 tablespoon - Olive oil
• 1 Onion -- peeled and chopped
• 2 Garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon - Chopped ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon - Mustard seed
• 1/2 teaspoon - Ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon - Cinnamon powder
• 1/4 teaspoon - Fresh hot pepper
• 6 to 8 Carrots
• 3 1/2 cups of water
• 2 cup - Labneh
• 1 tablespoon - Honey

Directions

1. Saute the onions and garlic in a pan with the olive oil.
2. Add the spices and cook for several minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Slice the carrots into discs.
4. Add to the pot and cook a few minutes longer.
5. Add 2 cups water, cover tightly and simmer for 30 minutes.
6. In a food processor or blender, puree the cooked carrots with the remaining 1 1/2 cups water.
7. Return puree to the pot and whisk in the labneh and honey.
8. Heat the soup, but do not boil.

There you have it! Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Chocolate Oatmeal Honey Cake: An Almost-Guilt-Free Dessert

99.99% of the time, desserts are usually the downfall of most people going on “diets”. The sugar tooth is simply too powerful to overcome. We are slaves to its whims. Like a poor man in a gimp suit forced to eternally lick the bottom of his BDSM mistress’s boots. T’is truly a shame.

But it doesn’t have to be. Over the course of the coming weeks I’ll be sharing a few “healthy” dessert recipes that ought to more than do a job of fondling your slutty sugar tooth without adding too many inches to your bulging waistline. Bare in mind that just because these are healthy alternatives to your average off-the-counter black forest slices, it doesn’t mean you ought to down the whole tray right after baking - also that’ll sting your tongue like a motherfucker cause things coming out of ovens are hot.

Let’s get down to our sticky business.

Ingredients:

• 1 large egg
• 2 cups oatmeal flakes
• ½ of a cooking chocolate bar (dark raw cocoa)
• Honey (at your discretion)
• 1 tbsp Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Coconut/Olive oil
• ½ liter Low fat/Skimmed milk

Process:

1. Pour the two cups of oatmeal flakes in a heat-proof container and empty a good half liter of boiling water on them, the oats will quickly suck all the water out and become fuller and more plump. Leave to cool down for 5 minutes then put in the fridge.
2. Grab your egg and break it into a small bowl. Whip it around like you’re Jayden Smith and you mean business. Seriously, that’s like the most crucial aspect of the whole process. Whip it continuously using a fork or an egg whip till that motherfucker has tripled in volume.
3. Add your tsp of oil, cinnamon and honey to the egg and mix well. The honey bit is up to your discretion, normally half a small jar would suffice but you could add less or more depending on how sweet you want the cake to turn out. Just don’t be too stingy with the honey otherwise the cake won’t turn out very soft and will most likely burn.
4. In a small pot, melt the chocolate bar in the low fat milk on low/medium heat till it’s perfectly mixed.
5. Add the egg/cinnamon/honey mixture to the chocolate. Mix well.
6. Bring out the oats from the fridge and dump on the mixture and mix well.
7. Dump it all in a pyrex or baking pan and make sure it’s evenly spread out all throughout the pan.
8. Place in an oven (which you had already pre-heated to 185 degrees Celsius) and put the timer on 30 minutes.

Depending on the thickness of your mixture and the type of pan you’ve used, it can actually take up to 40 - 45 minutes. Use the knife stab test at the 20-minute mark and if it comes out gooey and wet keep at it and monitor closely.

Usually I recommend that you only activate the heat in the oven from the bottom side only and activate the upper side along the bottom only in the last 10 minutes so the top of your cake doesn’t burn.

Once the knife confirms that it is indeed done, take it out and allow it to cool for half an hour. You can start slicing it into brownies sized squares or just digging a spoon right in. It does however taste 100 times better when it is refrigerated and consumed a few hours after being inside the fridge.

You can serve with bananas, strawberries or peanut butter on top for some added flavor. More experienced bakers and fitness enthusiasts can even add a couple of scoops of chocolate flavored whey protein in the mix before baking for an added nutrition twist and a hell of a lot more protein.

And remember, just because it's made using cleaner ingredients doesn't necessarily mean you can over-indulge. Everything in moderation.

Let me know it turns out!

Recipe of the day: Beet Hummus

Hummus is a great dip that’s quite popular in this piece of shit part of the world. What’s not to like? It goes great with virtually any meant, it even makes vegetables interesting! Not only that, it’s actually quite healthy for you as it’s loaded with healthy fats and antioxidants. But what if I told you that you could make it healthier and prettier at the same time? What sorcery do I speak of, you ask?

Why, beets!

You all now beets, otherwise known locally as “بنجر” that wonderful root vegetable that is notoriously hard to deal with without transforming your naked hands into what they would look like if they hate fist fucked a bear on its period.

So how exactly can we make hummus more interesting for the pallet and the eyes? We get experimental.

Ingredients:

• ½ a pound of steamed/boiled beets
• 2 tablespoons boiled chickpeas
• 4 tablespoons tahini paste
• ½ a glass of water
• juice from a full lemon
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon cumin powder
• salt to taste

Process:

1. The biggest hassle in this process is dicing and dealing with the beets, so I advise you buy some of those latex surgery gloves from any pharmacy or major chain supermarket so you don’t end up looking like a cheaper remake of Dexter.
2. You can either skin the beets before chopping them into cubes or cook them with the skin on and removing it afterwards before chopping them into cubes. The trick if you’re choosing the latter option is to scrub the shit out of them to remove the mud from the skin.
3. Steam or Boil the chopped beets for 20-25 minutes until they are soft but still retaining their firmness.
4. Boil the chickpeas for 20-30 minutes till tender.
5. In a blender or food processor, add the cooked beet cubes, the cooked chickpeas, tahini paste, water, lemon juice, olive oil and condiments.
6. Blend until smooth, stopping to stir occasionally the parts that get pushed away from the blades back into the center.
7. Keep blending until all ingredients have mixed well and the desired consistency has been achieved.
8. Try and stop yourself from licking the blender clean before so much as a teaspoon of this stuff touches a plate.

There you have it! My recipe of the day! Hope you like it...

You can have it with virtually anything on the side, it goes great with beef, poultry, seafood and vegetables all the same.

The Little Bean That Could: Foul Medamis (Fava Beans)

It’s a well documented fact that it’s practically part of religious dogma and a downright genetic fate for Egyptian to eat fava beans; more commonly known as “foul medamis”. Despite contradictory reports regarding its benefits or harms (many people cite obscure scientific articles which pinpoint the fava beans’ role in promoting lessened IQ, decreased sperm quality, etc.) I’m here to discuss the bigger picture on this iconic breakfast item consumed by tens of millions in Egypt, the Middle East and indeed across the globe.

First of all, it may come as a surprise to you that different blood types respond differently towards different types of food. For instance, people with type A blood are discouraged from consuming certain meat & poultry items, in addition to avoiding legumes, grains and certain fruits and vegetables whereas those with type B blood are more susceptible to corn and nuts while handling meat and dairy with fair efficiency.

That being said, that doesn’t mean you ought to necessarily weed out entire food items off of your potential menu just because your parents’ genetic combo told you that it’s not all that good for you. All that means is that you should aim for a minimal caloric input from such foods, i.e., don’t let it be your main source, i.e., consume sparingly.

So now that we’ve gone through our mandatory biology class of the day, let’s get down to sprucing that foul sandwich like it’s Mardi Gras. My personal favorite twist on the classic breakfast icon below:

Ingredients:

• Four tablespoons of roasted fava beans (foul medames) sans any additions
• Two to four pieces of whole/multi-grain toast/bread
• One tablespoon olive oil
• Two tablespoons concentrated lemon juice
• One tablespoon of finely diced onions
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ tablespoon mustard
• One whole soft-boiled egg (if desired)

Process:

• Add the fava beans into a fairly deep but small bowl (make sure they are still hot)
• Add the lemon juice and olive oil
• Crush whole beans using a fork and mash the mixture
• Add the onion slices, pepper, salt, paprika, cumin and mustard
• Continue whisking with the fork and mashing any remaining whole beans
• Layer up equally atop your bread
• Slice up your soft-boiled whole egg into four pieces laterally and add one slice per piece of toast (if desired)

Just because it’s healthy doesn’t mean it will look like it does on a menu

Enjoy this modern day twist on a classic breakfast item. Remember, you should generally limit your weekly intake of legumes - as per your blood type - so that it doesn’t contribute more than 30% of your total caloric intake. Add your own twist and share with me by commenting below!

Bonne appétit

Dala3 O'Clock: Grilled Salmon Salad For Pros

Is there anything better than grilled salmon? Don't answer that. It's a rhetorical question. To which there is an answer. And that answer is probably not.

It's easily one of the best foods in any fitness freak's arsenal for both workout recovery, muscle building, as well as adding a dose of healthy Omega-3 fats into your system. 100 grams of salmon can easily pack more than 20 grams of high quality grams of muscle-building protein and clocks under 200 calories for those 100 grams.

In Cairo, your best bet for "fresh" salmon is Gourmet who usually have nice chunky slices which come in a pack of two pieces running at around EGP 80 or you can opt for the big chunk running around the margin of EGP 240. (They deliver!) You can of course go to Metro or Alfa market's seafood sections but I can't promise that what you'll get is a fresh piece. Grilling can be done using an outdoor charcoal grill or an indoor electric grill (the charcoal one produces a more notable flavor but setup and post-cleanups are rarely worth the hassle unless you're throwing a BBQ)

Below is my personal grilled salmon salad (Most of the salad ingredients from Makar Farms - you can order to your doorstep by messaging their Facebook page!)

Ingredients:

• Frisee lettuce
• Lola Rosa lettuce
• Red cabbage
• Olive rocket arugula
• Cucumbers
• Tomatoes
• Grilled colored bell peppers
• Steamed Pak Choi
• Brussels Sprouts
• Chives

Process:

• Wash all vegetables thoroughly
• Chop lettuce, Pak Choi, cabbage, arugula, tomatoes and cucumbers into small slices
• Throw on the chives and brussels sprouts
• Toss well
• Add the grilled salmon (usually grilling unfrozen salmon between 6 - 8 minutes is more than enough depending on the thickness of the slice)
• Time to spice it up!

Spicing:

• Two tablespoons of Mustard (my favorite brand is Maille)
• One tablespoon of Balsamic vinegar OR apple cider vinegar (Both from Wadi)
• One tablespoon of Extra virgin olive oil (Wadi)
• One teaspoon of Paprika powder
• One teaspoon of Cumin powder
• One teaspoon of Black pepper
• One teaspoon of Ginger powder
• One teaspoon of Black seeds

You can easily twist around your choice of vegetables (you can even add some roasted sweet potato, avocados, onions or anything else you fancy in that nice little combo)

Give it a try and let me know how it works out for you. It might be a bit on the spicy end but I love me some hot food.

Bonne appétit 

Can Salad be Sexy? Why yes, yes it can.

One of the biggest qualms a lot of folks have with the general concept of "going healthy" is that they understand that a natural part of it involves munching on obscene amounts of fruits, vegetables and other foods otherwise deemed suitable for bunnies.

In fact, most people view salads as a bland collection of leafy cardboards that's meant to act as a filler in place of that long missed double Big Tasty burger with extra sauce. (Don't deny you drooled a little bit and contemplated dialing 19991 - you weakling)

Why is that so? Because you're afraid to experiment! Most of us have a standard concept of salad as consisting of equal parts, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, carrots and the occasional colored pepper or onion thrown in for good measure. Luckily for you, you couldn't be farther from the truth.

One of the good - and few - things about living in Egypt is that we enjoy seasonally shifting vegetables that are - believe it or not - much less hormonally altered than their counterparts in the West. Seriously, Google "cucumber" images and gaze at the ridiculous gargantuan size of those thing in the States. I have it on good authority that the majority of fruits and vegetables over there are somewhat tasteless as well. Undoubtedly on account of decades of genetic manipulation to achieve the desired size over flavor.

Recommended Basic Salad Ingredients:

• Lettuce (various types exist)
• Frisee lettuce
• Lola Rosa
• Asparagus
• Endives (Grilled)
• Pak Choi (Steamed)
• Green beans
• Zucchini
• Cherry tomatoes
• Cabbage (red or white)
• Cucumbers
• Tomatoes
• Colored bell peppers
• Onions
• Carrots
• Chives
• Parsley
• Sprouts
• Arugula
• Spinach
• Mustard leaves
• Basil
• Mint

You can add numerous items to this pot of green and colors to add fat and protein which can include the following:

• Avocados
• Olive oil
• Balsamic vinegar
• Apple cider vinegar
• White vinegar
• Grape vinegar
• Tuna (in brine not in oil!)
• Salmon (Steamed/Grilled/Roasted/Pan seared)
• Roast beef
• Sirloin steak
• Roast chicken
• kidney beans
• Eggs
• Mixed nuts

You get the idea. Salad doesn't have to be a standard roll-out product which you have to chew through while indulging in some serious self-loathing. You can spice it up, mix it up and twist it around. Think of you salad bowl as your creative playground in the kitchen. The possible combinations are endless.

You might be already wondering about half of the salad ingredients listed above, citing having never seen them in even the fanciest of Egyptian supermarkets; and you wouldn't be mistaken. You see, aside from the basic elements, I've stumbled onto a treasure chest right here in Egypt which can help me get my much sought after exotic - and more importantly - organic vegetables right here in Cairo!

I recently stumbled upon Makar Farms (https://www.facebook.com/MakarFarmsEG) and you can place orders for their amazing weekly baskets (worth EGP 100 + EGP 20 for delivery charges) to your doorstep by liking their Facebook page and sending them a message with your details and order. They also showcase their fresh produce every Saturday at NUN in Zamalek if you're keen to take a closer look!

Their baskets' content changes every week as the seasons progress and can include various types of exotic lettuce such as Frisee lettuce, Lola Rosa, as well as colored Broccoli, multi-colored tomatoes, asparagus, endives and others. It's well worth the investment to get into that!

But getting the right salad isn't just about a successful mix and match, spicing up your salad needs the right spices as well!

Off the top of my head, these are the must-have spices which are always on my kitchen rack and always in my salad!

• Paprika
• Chili powder
• Black seeds
• Chia seeds
• Flax seeds
• Powdered ginger
• Black pepper
• Powdered garlic
• Cumin
• Sea salt
• Five spices
• Italian seasoning

Obviously you aren't meant to use all the above concurrently, the combination of all of them could prove disastrous, but they do serve as a pretty handy guide for starters. You can select the right ones based on your choice of salad, the type of protein present and many other factors such as taste. Again many of these may not be readily available in Egypt (flax or Chia) but if you know anyone coming from the States or Europe or even Dubai they can easily fit a nice 1kg bag in their suitcase for you.

Don't be afraid to experiment with your salad. Trust your salad. Take your salad by the hand. Let her guide you. Let her show you how to do her good. 

Become a salad freak.