Friday, January 25, 2008

Poached Eggs with Steamed Broccoli and Nippy Carrots

DISCLAIMER: When I categorize dishes "Vegetarian", I standardize it on the absence of poultry and meat such as chicken, duck, turkey, beef, or pork. I don't consider ingredients such as eggs which come from poultry or seafood vegetarian because I know many vegetarians who eat these ingredients without complaint.

I'm a little low on groceries. It's been pouring unpredictable, and I haven't had a chance to stop by the bank. I'm out of poultry, meat, milk, and most vegetables and fruits. So, basically every essential staple. I barely just picked up butter. I have miscellaneous spices and herbs (basil, BBQ grill seasoning, cardamom, chili powder, cumin, ground ginger, lemon pepper, mustard powder, whole nutmeg, extra-virgin olive oil, etc.), various condiments and pantry staples such as fish sauce, Maggi seasoning, a variety of vinegar, wasabi, baking soda, baking powder, all purpose flour, vanilla extract, sugar, salt, pepper, etc. I have eggs, butter, an Asian pear, a bag of baby carrots, Hot Pockets, pot stickers, instant noodles, frozen broccolis, and only one batch worth of rice. I can pretty much only make instant noodles, eggs, glazed carrots, roasted carrots, pan-fried carrots, other types of carrots, pancakes, basic yellow cake, steamed carrots and broccolis. My choices are a little limited right now. For dinner tonight, I managed to enjoy Poached Eggs with Steamed Broccoli, Nippy Carrots, and a bowl of rice, in spite of the paucity of ingredients. The eggs were poached in the most basic way, nothing special about the broccolis, either, nor the rice, but I followed a recipe for the Nippy Carrots. It came from my friend's cookbook, The Good Housekeeping Illustrated Cookbook.

Poached Eggs

2 eggs
Water
A Splash of vinegar
Fill a sauté pan with an adequate amount of water (3 inches worth) and a dash of vinegar. Crack the eggs into a bowl beforehand. Bring the water to a simmer and add eggs into the water one at a time. Poach until the whites are no longer translucent. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain thoroughly.

NOTE: The vinegar is added to keep the egg shape in place. I was surprised by how easy it was. I vaguely remember my first time being unsuccessful, but I'm not sure how accurate my memory is. The image I have in mind reminds me of something I saw in a video. In order to prevent the egg whites from separating and swirling into a big mess, I read that a splash of vinegar helps and gently using a fork in a circular motion to hold it in place. For people who have continually failed to poach eggs in the traditional way, here's another method I've tried with success: Crack an egg into a bowl lined with plastic wrap. Securely tie it in place, and follow the original recipe but omit the vinegar. Once it's done, simply unwrap the plastic and enjoy!

Steamed Broccolis

I simply followed the instructions in the back of the bag.

Nippy Carrots

1 lb. medium carrots
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup vinegar
1 tbsp mixed pickling spice
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/8 tsp pepper

1. Cut carrots diagonally into thin slices. In 12-inch skillet over medium heat, in hot oil, cook garlic. Add carrots and vinegar. Loosely tie pickling spice in a square cheesecloth; add to carrots with salt, dry mustard, and pepper.

2. Simmer, covered, 5 minutes until carrots are crunchy and crisp; discard spice bag. Pour mixture into shallow dish. Cover and refrigerate, tossing occasionally.

I used one pound worth of baby carrots. The recipe also called for chopped onions and onion slices for garnish, but I DESPISE ONIONS!!! So, I left them out. I didn't dislike this recipe, but I wasn't that impressed. It tastes like a weaker, inferior version of pickles. I wouldn't mind eating it, again, and the recipe is easy to follow, but it is what it is.

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