The Ultimate Rice Cooker (61 page)
1. In a small saucepan, combine the olive oil and vanilla bean. Warm over medium-low heat for 10 minutes. Do not boil, but let the oil get very hot.
2. Remove from the heat and let stand at room temperature for 8 hours or overnight, lightly covered.
3. Remove the vanilla bean and discard. Pour the oil into a cruet with a cover or cork, or a pint spring-top jar. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.
4. Drizzle the oil on hot or cold steamed vegetables, especially artichokes, or hot steamed rice.
Tofu-Miso Mayonnaise
This is such a wonderful sauce for vegetables. If you use the soft or silken tofu, the dressing will be pourable; if you use firm tofu, it will be more like regular mayonnaise. You can find miso at the supermarket, health food store, or Asian market.
YIELD: 1½ cups
½ small clove garlic, peeled
½-inch-thick coin-size chunk fresh ginger, peeled
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon white miso (light)
1 teaspoon honey
2 teaspoons Colman’s dry mustard
½ pound (1 cup) soft or silken tofu
2 tablespoons olive oil or Asian sesame oil
1. In a food processor with the motor running, drop in the garlic and ginger through the feed tube to mince. Stop the machine and add the vinegar, miso, honey, and mustard; pulse a few times to combine. Add the tofu and pulse until smooth. With the machine running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Process for 30 seconds; the mixture will be smooth and thick.
2. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to chill and meld the flavors. Store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.
3. Serve the mayonnaise spooned over hot or cold steamed vegetables.
Steamed Chicken Breasts on Wild Rice with Gingered Tomato Relish
Steamed Chicken Breasts with Warm Mango Sauce and Coconut Rice
Steamed Halibut Steaks and Scallops with Sweet Red Pepper Sauce
Steamed Salmon Steaks with Pineapple Salsa
Steamed Ginger Salmon and Asparagus in Black Bean Sauce
Steamed Shrimp and Jasmine Rice
Vegetable Pasta with Prosciutto and Olives
Steamed Flank Steak and Sweet Potatoes
Steamed Sausages and Sauerkraut with Champagne
Once you get comfortable using the steamer tray and baskets of your on/off rice cooker for vegetables, the next step is to create whole meals in the unit. Cuisines that utilize steam all have full-course steamed meals that are low in fat and quite quick to prepare. Rice (especially sticky short-grain
japonicas
) is traditionally steamed in a basket over hot water. Indian brass or tin steamers allow a full meal to be made at one time: the dal in the bottom bowl, the vegetables in the first level, and the basmati steamed on top. Our Steamed Ginger Salmon and Asparagus in
Black Bean Sauce
has the rice in the bottom layer and the salmon and vegetable above. The simplicity of it all is ingenious. It is an addictively convenient form of cooking and if you have limited space, you will adore it and end up creating your own versions. If you use the tiered plastic baskets, you can even carry them to the table (with the lid on!) and serve or eat directly from them.
Use the information in the previous chapter about vegetables and work within your seasonal availability to prepare meals that combine one or more mixed vegetables, Asian noodles, Italian pasta, or leftover cooked rice, and tofu, poultry, shellfish, or fish, all arranged in the steamer baskets.
First the vegetables, which usually take up most of the space. Think of it as a seasonal assortment—whatever was nice at the farmer’s market or produce section. You need only a few pieces of each (this method of cooking is very economical), so you can easily clean out the bottom drawer in the refrigerator. Spring is asparagus, green onions, the tiniest new potatoes, chopped ruby chard, and fresh peas, even some fiddle head fern fronds. Winter finds carrots, cauliflower, fennel bulb chunks, whole baby carrots, a turnip, or other roots. During the summer you can splurge on baby vegetables: zucchini with their blossoms still attached, the tiniest beets, baby spinach leaves, string beans the size of a baby’s finger. Remember that the harder the vegetable, the thinner the slice or wedge you want to cut, while softer vegetables can be in thick chunks or spears so that they all cook in the same amount of time. Balance not only the type of vegetable, but the color and different shapes to give the eye, as well as the palate, a delightful experience.
Then the protein. Four to eight ounces per person of fish, chicken, sausage, or turkey breast is all that is needed; less if you are dieting. You can mix and match here as well—a few ounces of chicken breast and a few large prawns or scallops, for example (a wonderful combination, by the way). Tofu, plain or one of the seasoned pressed varieties, is excellent steamed. Cut the poultry into thick strips rather than leaving it whole; it cooks more efficiently, with greater surface area for the steam to reach. Fillets of fish, such as sole and snapper, can be rolled up; a strip of halibut or sea bass fillet is perfect. You can steam them as is or soak for a short time in a light marinade first; our favorite for both fish and poultry is a bit of oil, lime juice and grated zest, and some onion or garlic powder.
You can certainly serve your basket meal with some plain fresh steamed rice, but steaming works well with other types of starch. Use partially precooked Asian noodles such as buckwheat soba or fresh udon; rice noodles (that soften by soaking in water for 30 minutes) or spelt noodles; or Italian pasta, such as fettuccine. Any leftover cooked grain fits well, from rice and couscous to quinoa and wheat berries. Mound the grains like a scoop of ice cream or make the pasta into a round nest, taking care to include only enough for the number of portions you are serving rather than letting it take over the whole basket.
You have prepped everything; now, for assembly. This is the fun part, arranging everything in the baskets. It is different every time. When you take off that lid, you want a little work of art; there are only a few rules. The longest-cooking vegetables need plenty of space around them for steam to get at all sides; place them around the outside of the basket. Quicker-cooking foods, such as soft vegetables, tofu, shrimp, and noodles, can be mounded nearer to the center, getting the lesser amount of steam.
Fill the rice cooker bowl one-quarter full of hot water and close the cover. Set for the regular cycle to bring the water to a boil, which happens within 5 to 10 minutes; you can be arranging the baskets at this time. Line the steamer baskets with a single layer of chard or Napa cabbage leaves or just a piece of parchment paper. Place the filled baskets over the vigorously boiling water and cover immediately. The rice cooker will keep the water at a steady boil. Avoid peeking; you don’t want to disturb the buildup of the steam. Set a timer and steam for 10 to 20 minutes, depending on what you have in those baskets. When you do open the lid, open it away from yourself, so the steam won’t burn you. Check for doneness by first evaluating the color and look of the meat or fish; it should be plump, moist, and have lost that trans lucent raw look. If you are using shellfish such as clams or mussels, the shells will open. You know your preference as to how you like your vegetables, softer or more crisp-tender. Make notes as to combinations and timing so you can repeat your favorite meals in a flash.
You can serve a cold or hot sauce, salsa, spiced oil, compound butter, even fresh lemon mayonnaise (the vegetable chapter has lots of suggestions) with the meal, but this is purely optional.
steamed chicken breasts on wild rice with gingered tomato relish
Although this recipe employs two rice cookers, it is terribly simple, which is why it gets made so often. Originally a “gourmet-lite” recipe from former Sonoma Mission Inn chef Larry Elbert using broiled chicken breast, the recipe made the leap perfectly for the chicken breast to be marinated and steamed. A steamed chicken breast is wonderfully tender and juicy. Use this recipe as a basic one; if you don’t have time to marinate, just wash the breast in lots of fresh lemon juice and a tablespoon of olive oil. Serve on a bed of plain, fresh cooked wild rice, with a bit of the tomato relish on top.
MACHINE: Medium (6-cup) and large
(10-cup) rice cookers; on/off only
CYCLE: Regular
YIELD: Serves 4
MARINADE AND CHICKEN
⅓ cup Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, pressed
1½ teaspoons herbes de Provence or dried basil leaves, crumbled
⅔ cup olive oil or vegetable oil
4 boneless chicken breast halves, with skin on
RELISH
2 medium-size ripe tomatoes, blanched for a few seconds in boiling water, peeled, seeds squeezed out, and diced
3 tablespoons chopped green onions, white and green parts
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar
½ teaspoon peeled and grated fresh ginger
Splash of Tabasco sauce
Pinch of salt or nonsalt alternative, such as Vegit or Spike
RICE
1¼ cups wild rice
2¾ cups water
Pinch of salt
2 to 3 large chard leaves, stems discarded, or Napa cabbage leaves, for lining steamer basket (optional)
1.
Make the marinade:
Place the marinade ingredients in a shallow bowl; whisk to combine. Place the chicken, skin side up, in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
2.
Make the relish:
Place the relish ingredients in a small bowl; stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
3.
Make the rice:
Place the wild rice in the rice cooker bowl of a medium (6-cup) or large (10-cup) rice cooker. Add the water and salt; swirl to combine. Close the cover and set for the regular/Brown Rice cycle. When the machine switches to the Keep Warm cycle, stir with a wooden or plastic rice paddle or wooden spoon to dissipate the heat and prevent overcooking. Close the cover and let the rice steam for 10 minutes. This step will take close to 1 hour, so plan accordingly.
4. Fill a large (10-cup) rice cooker bowl one-quarter full of hot water, close the cover, and set for the regular cycle. Line one steamer tray or basket with a single layer of chard or cabbage leaves or a piece of parchment paper. Remove the chicken from the marinade and arrange on the steamer tray or basket. If you are having steamed vegetables with the chicken (like some zucchini), you can arrange them in the top tier if you are using baskets. When the water comes to a boil, place the tray or basket in the cooker and close the cover. Set a timer and steam for 20 to 25 minutes. Check the chicken for doneness; it should no longer be pink in the center.
5. To serve, divide the rice among 4 dinner plates, place a chicken breast on top, and spoon some relish in a mound on top. Serve immediately.
CLICK TO SEE OTHER GREAT MARINADES FOR STEAMED CHICKEN BREASTS AND FISH
steamed chicken breasts with warm mango sauce and coconut rice
This is a chicken recipe contributed by our local Mexican food expert and cooking teacher Marge Poore, the author of
365 Easy Mexican
Recipes
(HarperCollins, 1997) and
1,000
Mexican Recipes
(HarperCollins, 2001). She also leads very popular food tours of Mexico. Here Poore combines tropical mangos with steamed chicken breasts and we couldn’t be more excited about the com bination. Mangos, usually served as a sweet fruit rather than the savory version here, have become a popular mainstream fruit and are widely available just about everywhere. We serve this dish from the steamer baskets with coconut rice and steamed asparagus and/or chayote squash, a vegetable that often is served steamed or sautéed as a side vegetable in Mexico.