It’s been awhile since I’ve taken requests from friends on what to write about so I figured it was about time. This one comes from my sister’s friend Rose who spent quite a bit of time teaching English in Korea and still pines for the spicy, pungent comfort food that is kimchi fried rice.

Most often made as a way to use up kimchi that is on the border of being too ripe, this is a stick-to-your-ribs and clear-out-your-sinuses kind of dish that’s great for spring evenings where it’s just a bit too chilly to have the windows open. Plus like any great fried rice, it comes together in a flash. Just be sure to use day-old rice that’s been refrigerated – it needs to be as dry as possible so it really crisps up once it hits the hot pan.

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Kimchi Fried Rice 

Serves 4

Ingredients 

• 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 small white onion, finely chopped
• Gochujang or red chili paste of some kind
• 2 cups drained kimchi, chopped
• 4 cups cooked white Jasmine rice, chilled overnight
• 1 bunch scallions, sliced
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 4 eggs
• Nori or dried seaweed

Directions

1.) Heat sesame oil and vegetable oil in a large wok over high heat. Add garlic and onion and cook 30 seconds or until toasted and fragrant. Stir in kimchi and as much gochujang as you can handle. Cook 2-3 minutes or until heated through.

2.) Add rice and toss with kimchi. Press down gently on rice, pushing up the sides of the wok so you create a thin, even layer. Let rice cook and get crisp, stirring only occasionally. Continue to cook until very crispy and fragrant, about 10 minutes. Stir in scallions.

3.) While rice cooks, cook eggs sunny side up in butter in a skillet over medium heat. (I prefer to do this in a separate skillet because a wok isn’t the easiest way to cook 4 eggs sunny side up at once.)

4.) Once ready, dish out fried rice into bowls. Top with sunny side up eggs and crumbled nori.

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Post tags: asian, korean, pork, salty, spicy, vegetables

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I can hardly believe it but jonesing for… turned 3 years old last week! Looking through all my recipes and photos was a wonderful little trip down memory lane until I realized I was missing something huge. Quite possibly one of the most important recipes I’ve ever written.

When I was a senior in college every weekend (well, it felt like every weekend) I would make carnitas at my friend’s apartment on Saturday afternoon so it would be ready and waiting for the weekly party festivities that evening. We’d eat tacos, drink margaritas, keep reheating the microwaveable queso, and devour our bodyweight in tortillas chips. Most of my fondest memories of college revolve around those nights, and thus, revolve around carnitas.

I’ve shared this recipe with my college friends but realized I’d never shared it on my blog, which is just a shame! It seems so fitting I would finally share one of my all-time favorite things in celebration of my blog turning 3, so here it is. It’s dead simple and just takes a little time and patience in the end. Just be sure to get a bone-in pork butt (it could also be labeled pork shoulder roast) – it makes all the difference in the world. I hope you create as many fond memories of this dish as I have. And here’s to 3 more years of jonesing for… !

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My Carnitas 

Serves 8-10

Ingredients 

• One 7-8 lb. bone-in pork butt
• 8 peeled garlic cloves
• Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Tbsp. ground cumin
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 3 green bell peppers, seeded and cut into thick slices
• 1 large onion, cut into thick rings
• Tortillas, fresh cilantro, lime wedges, sour cream (to serve)

Directions 

1.) Trim as much fat from the pork butt as you can. There is enough marbling in the actual cut of meat so don’t worry about losing the fat on the outside.

2.) Using a small, sharp knife, cut 8 slits in the pork butt, aiming for the thickest parts of the roast you can find. Carefully insert a garlic clove into each slit.

3.) Sprinkle the entire roast very liberally with salt and black pepper on all sides. Sprinkle cumin over entire butt and gently pat the spices into the pork.

4.) Heat oil over medium-high in a very large skillet. Sear pork on all sides until very brown, about 5 minutes total. Transfer pork to slow cooker.

5.) Place green peppers and onions all around and over pork. Cover and cook on low 8-9 hours or on high 7-8 hours or until meat is falling off the bone and fork tender.

6.) Transfer roast to cutting board. Using two forks, gently pull meat from bone and transfer to a serving dish. Using a slotted spoon, remove green peppers and onion from slow cooker and serve alongside pork. Pour some of the juice accumulated in the slow cooker over the pork before serving.

7.) Serve carnitas in warm tortillas with fresh chopped cilantro, peppers, and onions. Squeeze a fresh lime wedge over each taco and devour.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: crock pot, mexican, pork, salty, slow cooker

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Oh come on, you didn’t think I’d let St. Patty’s pass without baking something outrageous and booze-filled did you?

I’m heading to a house party tonight for libations and the hostess is preparing some savory main dishes, so I figured a dessert would be a good idea. I didn’t want to do cupcakes or anything too overly sweet, and then I remembered this stout gingerbread I made a couple years ago and how perfect it could be.

This is some srs bsns gingerbread. One of those types that clears out your sinuses and fills your entire kitchen (apartment, house, street…) with the pungent smell of ginger and clove and spices. The taste is intoxicating and so malty rich from the stout. Just divine for your Irish celebration.

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Stout Gingerbread 

Borrowed from Grammercy Tavern’s recipe

Makes 1 10-inch bundt cake

Ingredients 

• 1 cup stout beer of choice (I always choose Left Hand’s Milk Stout)
• 1 cup dark molasses
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 tablespoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• Pinch of ground cardamom
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• Confectioners sugar for dusting

Directions 

1.) Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter bundt pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess.

2.) Bring stout and molasses to a boil in a large saucepan and remove from heat. Whisk in baking soda, then cool to room temperature.

3.) Sift together flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl. Whisk together eggs and sugars. Whisk in oil, then molasses mixture. Add to flour mixture and whisk until just combined.

4.) Pour batter into bundt pan and rap pan sharply on counter to eliminate air bubbles. Bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs adhering, about 50 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack 5 minutes. Turn out onto rack and cool completely.

5.) Serve cake dusted with confectioners sugar.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: baking, bread, dessert, spicy, st. patrick's day, sweet

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It’s time for… Oscar Oscar!

That’s right folks, it’s Oscar night. Normally I’m all aflutter and excited but this year… not so much. Honestly, I don’t care much for almost anything nominated this year but that doesn’t stop me from getting in the spirit. I’m attending an Oscar shindig at a friend’s and of course volunteered to bring snacks. And what’s more appropriate than popcorn?

This popcorn has an amazingly deep, rich nutty flavor. Sesame oil can be an ingredient people love or loathe but I really think it adds a wonderful depth of flavor here. The ground mustard adds just a bit of kick and the sesame seeds bring it all together. You’ll want to eat handfuls and handfuls of this stuff.

Happy watching! (and eating!)

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Sesame Mustard Popcorn 

Based on the recipe from CHOW.

Makes about 10 cups

Ingredients 

• 1 Tbsp. sesame seeds, toasted
• 1 tsp. ground mustard
• 1 tsp. table salt
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup popcorn kernels
• 3 Tbsp. butter, melted
• 1 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil

Directions 

1.) In a small bowl mix together sesame seeds, ground mustard, and salt. Combine melted butter and sesame oil in a separate bowl. Set both aside.

2.) In a very large pot with a tight fitting lid, heat vegetable oil over medium high heat. Add a few of the popcorn kernels and cover with lid. Once a kernel pops, add the rest of the kernels and replace the lid, slightly ajar, so the steam can escape. Shake the pan gently back and forth until all the popcorn is popped and the pops are more than 3 seconds apart.

3.) Pour hot popcorn into a VERY large bowl. Toss with butter, sesame oil, and reserved spice mixture. Devour immediately.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: oscars, salty, snack

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During a hair cut yesterday my stylist asked what I was working on lately at work. “Christmas cookies” I replied. She groaned “Oh my Goddd, how do you not weigh 800lbs? Being surrounded by all that all day?” This is something that comes up occasionally when people first find out what I do. I am by no means a skinny girl, but I’m also not that overweight. My answer: lots of working out, everything in moderation, and cutting as many corners as I can during my non-work hours eating.

This light banana bread is a great example. Cue Sunday morning: lazily waking up and brewing a pot of coffee, seeing I have a bunch of overly ripe bananas on my counter. Banana bread is the #1 solution, but I always try to eat super healthy at home, so I start to backpedal. But reconsider, and attempt to make it healthy..er.

Starting with a Cooking Light recipe is a great foundation. But theirs was portioned out to 20 slices. 20 slices? They would be paper thin. I need a REAL slice, thank you. So I futzed. I played. And this bread slices into 12 pieces at 155 calories a piece. Victory! Plus it tastes delicious to boot. Fragrant and spicy from the cinnamon and unbelievably moist considering the low amount of fat and dairy in it. It’s all about cutting corners in everything but flavor in the end. And this does it perfectly.

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Light Banana Bread

Makes 12 servings

Based loosely on the recipe from Cooking Light.

Ingredients 

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• ½ tsp. table salt
• ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2½ Tbsp. light butter, at room temperature (the stick kind, not the tub kind)
• 1½ cups mashed ripe bananas (about 4-5 small bananas)
• 3 Tbsp. 1% milk
• 3 Tbsp. low-fat sour cream
• 2 large egg whites
• ½ tsp. pure vanilla extract
• Cooking spray

Directions 

1.) Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside.

2.) In a large mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. In another bowl whisk together sugar, butter, bananas, milk, sour cream, egg whites, and vanilla.

3.) Pour liquid mixture into dry. Using a rubber scraper, fold together ingredients until just mixed. Pour into prepared loaf pan.

4.) Bake 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan and then remove loaf. Move to wire rack to cool completely before slicing. c

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2012. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: baking, banana, breakfast, healthy rethink, sweet

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