at-home take-out.

yesterday was a stay-at-home kind of day. after spending the weekend with the parents, i just wanted to relax and do nothing. unfortunately, we didn't have any ready-made food at the house so i decided to delve into my cook books and see if i could make anything tasty.

this recipe caught my eye.

it looked quick and easy and i had mostly all the ingredients. some substitutions had to be made as i didn't have the chili paste but surprisingly the ketchup, chili flake, and garlic paste method didn't turn out too bad. i had to fiddle with the recipe a little, though, because it was initially kind of bland when i finished making it. after tinkering around with it for a minute, i ended up with something that's a little bit more flavorful with the added chinese five-spice blend and help from boosting the spices and seasonings. also, since i didn't have any rice, i decided to use the rest of my squid ink pasta to make it a noodle stir-fry. yay for add-ins! :D

 

Stir-Fried Ginger Shrimp Noodles
(barely adapted from Cooking Light)

1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 teaspoon chopped peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more for pasta
Dash of white pepper
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon mirin (sweet rice wine)
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon chile paste with garlic (such as sambal oelek or make a substitute)
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided plus more for pasta
1 cup thinly vertically sliced onion
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup diagonally cut celery
1/4 tsp chinese five-spice blend (or make your own)
4 portions squid ink spaghetti
sliced green onions for garnish

1. In a large pot, heat salted water to boiling (water should taste like the sea). Add canola oil to the water to prevent pasta from sticking then add the pasta. Let cook until al dente, drain, then set aside.

2. Place shrimp in a medium bowl. Sprinkle with ginger, salt, and pepper; toss well. Let stand 5 minutes.

3. Combine 1/2 cup water and next 6 ingredients (through chile paste) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk.

4. Heat 1 teaspoon canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shrimp mixture to pan; stir-fry 2 minutes. Remove shrimp mixture from pan; set aside. Wipe pan dry with a paper towel. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons canola oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; stir-fry 1 minute. Add celery; stir-fry 1 minute. Return shrimp mixture to pan; stir-fry 1 minute or until shrimp are done.

5. Add water mixture to pan along with chinese five spice. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Add the pasta to the pan and stir to coat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and top with sliced green onions. Serve immediately.

Makes four servings.

inky pasta.

squid ink pasta...oh what an amazing colored macaroni! when i first saw this in a pasta store in little italy, i was super excited to try it. i really love the blackness of it but i wasn't too sure how to make it. i had initially finally bought a package of it a few months ago but the boyfriend ended up using it in a plain meat-based spaghetti recipe. it ended up tasting funny and since then i've been on a hunt for a perfect recipe to highlight the slight squidy taste that it has. enter pasta nera from the daily catch. the first time i saw this was in an article about the restaurant's squid ink pasta dish. i took one look at the picture and knew that that was what i wanted to make.

after browsing through countless of websites and reading more about this particular dish, i finally found a replica recipe for pasta nera. i wanted it to look and, most importantly, taste as close as possible to the original dish (since i've never had it) so i added a couple of things to the author's recipe. what turned out was just fucking fantastic and exactly what i was looking for...squidy, salty, and definitely something worthy for those inky black macaroni!

 

Pasta Nera
(from Giusto Gusto)

1 lb. Fresh Squid-Ink Pasta (or dry if you cannot find fresh) (i used dry)
4 Large Cloves Garlic (sliced thinly) (i roughly chopped mine for more oomped)
1 lb. Fresh Squid (Cleaned, Rinsed and Patted Dry)
1 Handful Chopped Parsley
1/2 Cup Toasted Fresh Breadcrumbs (i used pre-made)
Salt, Pepper, Chile Flakes, E.V. Olive Oil
1/2 tbsp pecorino cheese
1 anchovy fillet, minced or 1/2 tsp anchovy paste

This all happens fairly quickly so while you bring a large pot of water to a boil begin prepping your pieces.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil with plenty of salt (as always, it should taste like the ocean). (if using dry, start this early enough that when you're cooking the calamari, the pasta should be done or close to done.)

Using a Meat Grinder or Mezzaluna (or a knife and a shit-ton of elbow grease) chop your calamari into small pieces, roughly 1/4″ big. Set aside. A food processor will work but be sure to pulse in short bursts so the squid doesn’t turn to squid juice…not good eats.

Heat a large sauté pan on medium high heat and add your sliced garlic and a large pinch of chile flakes (according to the article, you should also add the pecorino and the anchovy paste here as well. i did. :)). Fry until just lightly golden and then add your chopped calamari. Drop your fresh pasta in as soon as the calamari drops into the frying pan. Fry the calamari for 1-2 minutes seasoning to taste, in which time your fresh pasta will be done. (deviated from here: i seared and seasoned the calamari to a golden brown so that it made a thick frond at the bottom of the pan. since i used dried pasta, it should've already been started to compensate for the fast cooking time of the calamari.)

Using tongs, drain the pasta and add to the sauté pan with the calamari and garlic add enough of the pasta water to keep everything moist. Cook together on high heat for 1 more minute, add the chopped parsley, a little cracked pepper and serve topped with a generous amount of toasted breadcrumbs. (i basically did the same thing. when i added the macaroni, it deglazed the nice frond i had and coated the pasta in the little bits of tastiness! also, drizzled with a touch of extra virgin olive oil and a touch more pecorino on top.)