Thai Gourmet Restaurant

Storefront
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo

Thai Gourmet Restaurant is minutes from my house and we frequently get take out and occasionally eat in. There are always several tables occupied when I go in which makes me happy, keeping the restaurant busy and patronized gives me hope that they will be succesfull and remain so close. The staff and owner are very friendly and accomodating. I went for lunch with my wife and where once again very happy with the food.
We ordered the steamed pork dumplings



Very savory served with a thick dark soy sauce.
Also the Nuamtoc



Grilled sliced beef with chilies, lime juice and cilantro, over a bed of lettuce. (I love the Salad section of this restaurant, really dishes to be shared, but could double as a main for anyone)
My wife also ordered the Spring Rolls with Shrimp, served with an outstanding peanut dipping sauce (missed the pic)
I had the Tom Kha



Coconut soup with mushrooms, onion, cilantro and spring onion with tofu. This is really our go to restaurant in our family. The owner runs the front of the restaurant is pleasant and accomadating of tastes and strange requests (I bought a small bin of spring roll dipping sauce from him for a party once.)
chech out the RTD write up

Kenn-Tico Cuban Bar & Grill

Yuca
Originally uploaded by EatingVideo

My wife and I went to Kenn-Tico for lunch today. We had seen the write up in the RTD, and I've walked by the food cart at VCUHS many times noticing the cuban accent of the owners, so we decided to try it. My wife grew up in South Florida (Ft. Lauderdale) and loves cuban cuisine, and is something of a black bean connoisseur, so I was excited to have her try the food and tell me what she thought. We arrived at 11:30 and had the place to ourselves, but by 12:30 a nice crowd had filled the restaurant. There was only one server/waiter, which was fine when we were alone, but it took him a bit to get the check as he was much busier at the end, but he was not harried and was always pleasant.

We had a very hard time picking a dish to order as everything sounded appetizing, we decided finally on an appetizer of fried yuca with mojo dipping sauce to start. The yuca was very tasty my only complaint would be that it was cut rather generously, maybe smaller strips would be easier to handle but even as a handfull they were delicious.



I ordered the chicken chunks (Chicharron de pollo)



My wife ordered the pork chop



we both had white rice and black bean soup as sides (plenty of others to choose from!)



Both dishes were excellent, the beans where very good, not the best she has ever had, but some of the best she has had in Richmond. (she ordered a side of chopped raw onions to eat with the rice and beans, which was graciously provided)
I can't wait to go back with the kids as both of them would enjoy the varied accesible menu. Check it out.

http://www.kennticocubanbargrill.com/
204 E. Grace St.
Richmond VA 23219
804 225 9216

R-Home photo shoot

We had a great dinner and great fun with great friends.
Check it out!

Shrimp stir fry - Date Night

Shrimp stir fry
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

For this week I stir fried some shrimp with noodles and vegetables

12 large shrimp (for two) peeled and the skins reserved
1 one small onion diced
about a cm knob of ginger
2 cloves of garlic
Olive oil
tablespoon of flour
soy sauce
oyster sauce
half of one chinese pork sausage
Very thin rice noodles
mong bean sprouts
handful of fresh basil

I set the noodles to soak for 5 min while I started the cooking



I toasted the shrimp shells along with the flour till the shells turned pink and the flour dark brown.



with the pan hot I added about a cup and a half of water, a dollop of oyster sauce and a shot of soy sauce and let it reduce by half. The broth becomes dark and slightly thick from the flour (but also the soy and oyster sauce). I then drained it setting the stock aside and discarding the shells.

In the same pan back to temperature I added olive oil and the onions and ginger with a pinch of salt.



Then I added the sausage chopped in bits, the mong beans, and half the basil chopped. when the onion just began to brown I removed and set aside.



Again in the same pan I added the shrimp and drained noodles. (this may not be the best way to do this, as the noodles are difficult to toss, well at least in my pan, likely a wok would work much better)



when the shrimp where about half done I deglazed with the shrimp stock and returned the vegetables to the pan. Most of the liquid either evaporates or gets sucked in by the noodles.
I served it with some fresh basil over top and Siracha on the side.



Turned out very good, cooked in about 40 minutes total prep and cook time.

squash empanada

squash empanada
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

This is not a traditional side dish but it turned out very tasty. In many latin american cuisines the fried empanada is prevalent. I made the kids some beef and pork meat empanadas for dinner, but decided to make some less traditional side dishes for our date night dinner. I figured to use some leftover squash to fill the empanadas.

I started with some store bought Goya empanadilla shells



I cooked some butternut squash with corn, butter, salt, pepper and nutmeg in a sauce pan till soft.



I then overstuffed the pastry with the filling



The empanada was then fried and kept warm in the oven





The result was a very mild flavor, with a good crunch from the pastry. It was served with a grilled steak, heavy on the seasoning to balance the mild squash empanada. We thought it was very good.

Solomillo - Date Night

solomillo Date Night
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

Another quick dinner. Breaded thin cut beef with butternut squash in brown butter.

I cut some beef about 1/4 inch thick, (I think this was a london broil)




I marinated it in sofrito (sauteed onion, garlic, pepper, cilantro, parsley, oregano, achiote, salt pepper) with extra lime and garlic.

I took some saltine crackers (or as known in PR galletas rovira)



and ground them to a meal consistency



I cut some medallions of butternut squash and browned them in a nob of butter on both sides





I added water to deglaze the pan then set them to rest with the sauce.



I breaded the beef with the crackers and pan fried it till golden brown.



then served it with chopped onions and the squash.



Again total time under one hour.

braised pork and Veg - Date night

braised pork and preserved vegetables
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

This was a very prep and cook abbreviated date night, as I ran late at work. I went with a braised country style pork rib cut with preserved vegetables leek and fingerling potato.
The ingredients

3 country stile pork ribs
marinated in 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
tablespoon of sugar
teaspoon of salt
pinch of turmeric
tablespoon of oregano
teaspoon granulated garlic

The pork marinated in the mix of all of the above for 15 minutes.



I browned the pork on both sides on high heat. Then I chopped and cleaned some leek. I boiled the top green part with the potato, and sauteed the white with the pork.



I bought a selection of marinated vegetables, sweet peppers, olives, onions, artichokes and stuffed grape leaves to serve alongside.



I quickly boiled some fingerling potato in salted water (around 10 minutes) then transfered them to the pan with the pork and the marinated vegetables, this all went into a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes then served.



The portions where distributed and plated



Turned out great, once again served with a spanish wine Tricia picked out

Date Night - Lamb + Gnochi

Date Night - Lamb + Gnochi
Originally uploaded by chuborupert

The temperature unexpectedly improved with an 80 degree day after a week covered in snow. We decided to cook and eat outside. I bought some lamb chops and quickly marinated them in garlic, salt, pepper, oregano, olive oil and lime.



I seasoned some corn with olive oil salt and grated parmesan cheese and tied it closed again.



I then went outside to greet an old friend.



We neglected it all winter so far, but it is forgiving.
I Roasted the corn till the husks started to catch fire (first dried then browned then ignited)



and grilled the lamb.



I took the lamb and corn back inside covered it with foil and let it rest while I made the gnochi with a rustic pesto. I boiled some premade gnochi (only takes like 2 minutes)



I chopped some basil, parsley and this nice black rind pyrinees cow cheese. I think from the french side. It is mild but with a little acid bite, background peppery.



Another shot of the cheese



I toasted some pinenuts on a skillet and when the gnochi was done added some butter and all the ingredients, very little salt and combined.





The cheese tended to clump a bit but still came out well.
I plated our dinner and we headed back outside. Tricia opened a bottle of red wine (I can't remember which, I think a cabernet/merlot blend) Total cook and prep time around 50 min.