cucumber – Buen provecho…2022

Salmon and Avocado Salad with Japanese Ponzu Dressing

If you have a nearby Costco, they usually carry Norwegian smoked salmon (the one with three rows of different smoked salmon). This comes in handy for pizzas, pastas, quiche, etc. You can buy “ponzu” soy, but I prefer making this dressing as shown. In place of the arugula I used baby romaine as a bed for the salmon.

Salmon & Avocado Salad with Japanese Ponzu Dressing

Ingredients:

8 oz. smoked salmon – thinly sliced
Large handful of wild arugulas
2 avocados – diced
1 English cucumber – cut in rounds and halved

Homemade Ponzu Dressing:

3 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
2 tbsp lemon juice or lime juice (or a combination)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tsp honey
2 tsp low sodium soy sauce or tamari
1/2 tsp of chili pepper flakes

Method:

1. In a large salad bowl, combine the ingredients for the ponzu dressing, and whisk well.

2. Add in the arugula, avocado, and cucumbers. Give it a good toss. Add in the smoked salmon and lightly toss again. Taste and adjust any seasonings if needed. Enjoy immediately!

Ahi Salmon Avocado Poke Bowl

In the last couple of years,”poke” bowls seem to be cropping up everywhere. Normally it is served with sashimi-grade salmon or tuna (both RAW). We first had these at a local Italian restaurant in the city and came to order it many times. I did find a recipe, where else but Pinterest, but finding the sashimi-grade salmon (raw and safe) proved more difficult until recently. Eureka! It turned out beautifully, well almost…details later.

Ahi Salmon Poke Bowl

Ingredients

1 Pound Sashimi-grade salmon, cut into 1/2-inch cubes or pieces
1/4 Sweet onion, sliced thin
1 or 2 thinly sliced radishes
1/4 English Cucumber, halved and sliced thin
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Grated ginger
1 teaspoon Sriracha
1 teaspoon Sesame oil
Black sesame seeds and sliced scallions for garnish
Steamed Cauliflower rice for serving OR Basmati rice

1. In a large bowl, combine the tuna or salmon, onion, soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, Sriracha, and sesame oil.

2. Serve topped with black sesame seeds, sliced cucumber* , sliced scallions, and sliced radish in bowls with cauliflower or Basmati rice.

Putting the cucumbers in at Step one resulted in a greenish gray cucumber as you can see in the foto.

Traditional Mexican Shrimp Cocktail

Happy New Year Bloggers! I am going to try something different this year now that so many of you are really setting the bar high with your wonderful blogs. This old dog is not that techie…LOL…but like John Glenn I can take small steps. Hence my New Years resolution to use actual photos of the recipes when I cook them.

I thought the cocktail looked quite nice in the ice cream dishes we got from our friends one Christmas. Here is the recipe –

Traditional Mexican Shrimp Cocktail (food.com)

Ingredients

1 (48 ounce) can V8 vegetable juice (spicy if desired)
2 avocados, chopped
2 cucumbers, seeded and chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
¹⁄₂ bunch cilantro, chopped
1 lb. large shrimp, peeled, de-veined and steamed or just buy frozen cooked and thaw
2 limes, quartered
4 dashes Tabasco sauce

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a large nonreactive container.

Chill and serve with limes and Tabasco sauce.

Do not over-cook the shrimp, as they will become tough!

Be careful when steaming the shrimp; you do not want it tough.

AND here is a BONUS..ta dah…if you do not use all of the mixture, put it into a blender and make…GAZPACHO…refrigerate for tomorrows meal!

Thai Jicama Salad

Pachyrhizus erosus, commonly known as jicama or Mexican yam, Mexican turnip, or Mexican water chestnut is the name of a native Mexican vine, although the name most commonly refers to the plant’s edible tuberous root. Jícama is a species in the genus Pachyrhizus in the bean family (Fabaceae). Plants in this genus are commonly referred to as yam bean, although the term “yam bean” can be another name for jícama. The other major species of yam beans are also indigenous within the Americas.

Chopped, cubed, sliced into fine sticks, raw or cooked, jicama is versatile and great in stir-fries, salads, slaw, soup, and with other veggies and fruits like oranges, apples, carrots, and onions, as well as meats and seafood. A favorite Mexican recipe is chilled jicama slices sprinkled with chili powder, salt, and lime juice.

Our friend Lynda is a great Thai cook, having lived there for many years. This salad is awesome. FYI…yes jicama is available in Canada and the United States.

Thai Jicama Salad
Ingredients
2 green onions finely sliced
1 jicama sliced match sticks (2 to 3 cups)
1 cucumber chunk or match sticks
1 red pepper sliced
1/2 cup cilantro
1/4 cup Thai basil (or any basil)

Salad Dressing
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tbsp. fish sauce
2 tbsp. soya sauce
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 tsp sugar
1 minced red chili or 1/2 tsp crushed chili flakes

Combine all dressing ingredients and stir to dissolve sugar.
Place all salad ingredients in a bowl. Pour dressing over & toss well.

Great for a potluck…

Cherry Tomato Salad (Found on Annie’s Eats)

What happens when you buy too many cherry tomatoes at Costco? You get desperate to use them up…LOL. This salad was great!

Cherry Tomato Salad http://www.annies-eats.com/

2 pints ripe cherry tomatoes, quartered (about 4 cups)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

2 cloves of garlic minced

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 medium shallot minced

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

ground black pepper

1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced into 1/2 inch chunks

4 ounces crumbled goat cheese (about 1 cup)

1-2 tablespoons parsley minced

Combine the tomatoes, salt and sugar in a medium bowl and toss. Let stand for 30 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a salad spinner and spin until the seeds and excess liquid have been removed (about one minute). SAVE 1/2 cup juice.

Return the tomatoes to the original bowl.

Combine 1/2 cup of the liquid with garlic, oregano, shallot and vinegar in a small saucepan and set over medium heat. Simmer until mixture is reduced about 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Whisk in the oil and season with pepper to taste.

Add the cucumber, goat cheese and parsley to the bowl of tomatoes. Toss with the dressing and serve.

Shrimp Ceviche

This recipe is from the Jicama Grill and can be found online at Food.Com, along with other great recipes. We made this for my son-in-law’s graduation from Law School and it was a definite hit. You could serve it in individual martini glasses!

NB..If you go to the website, you can adjust the quantities up or down in the event you are having a large group.

Shrimp Ceviche
1 -1 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 large tomatoes, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, diced
1/2 serrano peppers or 1/2 jalapeno, diced
4 limes, squeezed
4 lemons, squeezed
1 oranges, squeezed (preferably sour oranges)
1 large avocados, diced
1 large cucumbers, peeled and diced

Directions:
Prep Time: 30 mins Total Time: 4 1/2 hrs
1 Blanche shrimp in boiling water for about 5 minutes, then shock in ice cold water. Strain when cooled. (TO SIMPLIFY THIS I USE FROZEN COOKED SHRIMP WITH TAILS REMOVED)
2 Cut shrimp into 1-inch pieces and add to bowl.
3 Add citrus juice and marinate for 2 hours.
4 Add red onion, tomatoes, chilies and cilantro, marinate for 2 more hours.
5 Add avocados and cucumber before serving