I’m a real sucker for sauces, salsas, and dips. I can’t say that everyone else in my family is the same that way. So as I typically do, I scavenge through my refrigerator looking for things that can be used up, or things that I can come up with in terms of new ideas. I remember this clearly. It was taco Tuesday night at my house. Who can forget taco Tuesday’s right? This is when I found some cilantro and some sour cream that needed to be used before it went bad. Are you like me when it comes to sour cream? You use a tablespoon or so, then it sits there only for you to keep looking at the expiration date? Well, no more!
Garlic Cilantro Lime Dip Recipe
This recipe is way too simple to put together and lasts a handful of days in the refrigerator. It’s great on tacos, baked potatoes, and drizzled probably on anything that sour cream would lend a hand to.
Let’s get started.
1 cup of sour cream
1/2 bunch cilantro, washed and chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 whole lime, juiced
salt to taste
That’s it! What is not to love about that!
Add the cilantro, garlic, and lime juice to a food processor. Pulse and spin that baby until everything is nice and fine.
Garlic and Cilantro Lime Dip Ingredients
Add the sour cream to a bowl and fold in the garlic, cilantro, and lime mixture. Give it a good stir until everything is nice and smooth. Give a taste, and season with salt.
Many of you may or may not have heard of Nam Prik Kapi. I was introduced to this funky Thai spicy shrimp paste dip years ago so I thought I would share it with you. Some of these ingredients may be foreign to you, especially the Thai shrimp paste (and trust me this stuff is funky but awesome).
Nam Prik Kapi Recipe
The ingredients are minimal, but the flavor impact is something out of this world. A pestle and mortar works best for this, and I have not tried using a food processor, but feel free if you decide to make this recipe.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
15-20 Thai bird chili peppers, stems removed
1 head of garlic, skin removed
3 limes, juiced
2 tbsp palm sugar (or light brown sugar if you do not have any)
3 tbsp Thai shrimp paste
2 whole shallots, skins removed, lightly chopped
As with many Thai dishes, you need to balance out the sour, spice, and bitterness. This one uses 20 Thai chilies, which if you can imagine is going to make it pretty spicy, but that’s how I like it. The goal here is to come up with a light and loose paste, nothing majorly thick.
Start by pounding your garlic, chilies, and shallots in a mortar and pestle. Your goal is to make a paste. This is the labor intensive part, as it takes about 10-15 minutes and will use some arm strength. Once you have a paste, add the shrimp paste and palm sugar, and continue pounding. I find it best to use a spoon along with the pestle to lift from the bottom and keep pounding.
Nam Prik Paki Recipe
The final step is to add the juice of the limes. Add enough lime juice to ensure a loose paste. Add more lime juice if you have to.
Now taste and adjust. It will be spicy. It will be tangy. It will be a bit funky.
Serve this alongside fried fish, omelettes, or lightly steamed vegetables. This stores nicely as well, and a little goes a long way. If you are looking for something new to try, give this one a shot. It’s probably one of Thai’s more famous dipping sauces. Hope you enjoy!
Enfrijoladas. What the heck are enfrijoladas? I know this is something you probably never see on a menu, but these are essentially enchiladas, that have the corn tortillas dipped in a black bean puree, stuffed, rolled, and baked and are they ever so good. This is comfort food at its finest, and is not only easy to put together but super delicious. I’m always on a mission to get my wife and kids to not only try something new, but to also affirm that they really do like an ingredient whether they refuse to or not, and in this case, black beans. The picture is not the prettiest, but the flavor makes up for it. I stuffed mine with cheese and chicken, but you can roll them anyway you so desire.
Enfrijoladas Recipe
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
15 oz can of black beans, rinsed
1 cup of chicken stock
2 chipotle peppers in adobo (use 1-2 more if you like it spicy)
2 cloves of garlic
generous pinch of salt
2 chicken breasts, poached, and shredded
1 whole onion, diced
1 whole jalapeno, seeds removed, diced
3 cups of monterray jack cheese
12 corn tortillas, warmed and covered
1 avocado, diced
Mexican crema, optional
Cilantro, choppped, optional
1 lime, quartered, optional
Start by making your black bean puree. This is the real deal for this particular enfrijoladas recipe. To a blender, or food processor, add the beans, chicken stock, chipotle peppers, garlic, and salt. Blend until you have a smooth mixture that is not too thick, and not too thin. You want it to be almost like a thicker soup like a pea soup.
Add some of the black bean mixture to the bottom of a casserole dish, much like you would if you were making a lasagna. Pour the remaining puree into a bowl and dunk a corn tortilla into the black beans. Lay the tortilla in the casserole dish, add some chicken, onion, jalapeno, and cheese, and roll, keep the seal side down. Repeat, and compact those tortillas to fit as many as you can. I have to feed five, so I always think 2-3 per person.
Ingredients for Mexican Enfrijoladas
Top with any remaining sauce (there should be plenty left over), and top with any remaining cheese.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 10 minutes.
Scoop out, the best you can, the enfrijoladas, shower with some lime juice, crema, avocado cubes, and some fresh cilantro and dig in. It looks like a black bean puree mystery but once you dig in you will find out what all of this mystery is about. It’s good, real good, and for those in my family that said they did not like black beans, well, they were shoveling this into their mouths. Hope you enjoy!
2 chipotle peppers in adobo (use 1-2 more if you like it spicy)
2 cloves of garlic
generous pinch of salt
2 chicken breasts, poached, and shredded
1 whole onion, diced
1 whole jalapeno, seeds removed, diced
3 cups of monterray jack cheese
12 corn tortillas, warmed and covered
1 avocado, diced
Mexican crema, optional
Cilantro, choppped, optional
1 lime, quartered, optional
Instructions
Start by making your black bean puree. This is the real deal for this particular enfrijoladas recipe. To a blender, or food processor, add the beans, chicken stock, chipotle peppers, garlic, and salt. Blend until you have a smooth mixture that is not too thick, and not too thin. You want it to be almost like a thicker soup like a pea soup.
Add some of the black bean mixture to the bottom of a casserole dish, much like you would if you were making a lasagna. Pour the remaining puree into a bowl and dunk a corn tortilla into the black beans. Lay the tortilla in the casserole dish, add some chicken, onion, jalapeno, and cheese, and roll, keep the seal side down. Repeat, and compact those tortillas to fit as many as you can. I have to feed five, so I always think 2-3 per person.
Top with any remaining sauce (there should be plenty left over), and top with any remaining cheese.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for about 10 minutes.
Scoop out, the best you can, the enfrijoladas, shower with some lime juice, crema, avocado cubes, and some fresh cilantro and dig in.
Scallions and ginger, oh my! OH MY is right. This stuff is something to be reckoned with. I normally have some sort of homemade sauce in my refrigerator, and it’s funny because we just upgraded our refrigerator, and kept our older one, primarily for all of my condiments and sauces. I swear I have an aisle of Asian condiments or ingredients, a variety of barbecue sauces, mustards, and ketchups, only to name a few. My wife is happy now that all of these condiments have their own home. But let’s get to the point. Scallion and ginger oil. Holy Moly this stuff is the bomb diggity. Super simple to make, and trust me, you will be using it on pretty much everything, well, besides chocolate chip pancakes or something along those lines, but that’s your game.
Scallion and Ginger Oil Recipe
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
2 bunches of scallions, cleaned, and thinly sliced
1 cup of grapeseed oil, warmed
3 tbsp fresh ginger, grated or finely minced
1 tbsp kosher salt, to taste
2 tbsp soy sauce, to taste
1 tbsp rice wine vinegar, to taste
I say to taste because once the mixture cools down and mixed, add more salt, soy sauce or vinegar to your liking.
Start by heating a pan on the stove over medium heat. Add the oil and let it come to a warm, if not hot temperature. Nothing smoking hot, but something you know is nice and warm.
During this time, get your other ingredients ready.
When the oil is hot, add the scallions, ginger, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar to a bowl.
Scallion and Ginger Oil Ingredients
Pour in the hot oil, and give a good stir. Let it come to room temperature, then taste a bit and adjust any seasoning if necessary.
Scallion and Ginger Oil
Trust me when I say this. This stuff rocks. It’s almost the hidden umami that everyone questions when I use it, either on potatoes, omelets, or on grilled meat. It’s that good, and it lasts for weeks in the refrigerator. Don’t judge me on the tomatoes, as I know they are not in season here, but we grilled some meat, had this as a side alongside some rice, and it was amazing. Simple and easy. Go for it and enjoy!
