Fifteen Minutes Fridge to Fork - Poached Eggs on Cheddar Polenta with Mushrooms



Fifteen Minutes from Fridge to Fork - Poached Eggs on Cheddar Polenta with Mushrooms

Lil dude decided to get up half an hour early today so I decided I was going to need a nice hearty breakfast to get through the morning. It was Saturday as week. I like to reserve hot breakfast to weekends. I don't know why while I'm on Mat Leave. After he'd had his Brekkie of Organic Pears and Apples (w dash of Carrots) with Oatmeal, I dove I to a majesty of engineering in the kitchen. I made my Poached Eggs on Polenta with Mushrooms in 15 minutes from fridge to fork on the fly.

Poached Eggs on Polenta with Mushrooms - 15 Minutes Fridge to Fork

1. Take out medium saucepan, small saucepan and a small nonstick pan. Fill the medium saucepan with Water and add 2 T White Vinegar + 1/2 t Salt turn on high heat. Add 1 T Olive Oil to the pan.
2. Goto fridge and fetch 2 Eggs, Milk, 1 c Crimini Mushrooms (leftover from Risotto on Thursday so already cleaned, woohoo. I would have grabbed whatever), 1 Scallion/Green Onion, and White sharp Cheddar if you have it
3. Turn on heat to frypan to medium. Throw in Mushrooms spread out and leave.
4. Measure out 3/4 c Milk and 1/2 c Water into small saucepan. Add 1/2 t Salt, dash fresh Nutmeg if you have it. Pepper to preference. Bring to boil. Measure out 4 T Cornmeal/Polenta Medium/Fine. Ours is in dry good jar on the counter :-). When Milk is boiling, turn down to Medium. With a whisk in one hand and the Corn in the other, whisk the Milk constantly and vigorously as you sprinkle in the Corn. Mix until it thickens. Taste to season. Cover and leave on low heat.
5. The water in Medium saucepan should not be boiling but steaming and with small bubbles on the bottom like it wants to. Break 1 Egg into the bowl you had the Corn. Stir the Water until you get a funnel in the centre. Stop stirring and drop the Egg in. The White should close in on itself like a chocolate kiss. Leave for 2 minutes. Toss the Mushrooms.
6. Slice the Scallion
7. Break the second Egg into the small bowl. Lift the first Egg out with a slotted spoon and place in a shallow dish on the side. Swirl the water again and drop the second Egg in for 2 minutes. Add back the first Egg. Toss the Mushrooms.
8. Stir the Polenta. Add some small pieces of 2 T Cheddar or grate it. I used the rasp I used for the Nutmeg. Finish with 1 T of Butter or Olive Oil. Dollop on to your plate.
9. Drain your Eggs with the slotted spoon. 4-5 minutes for Medium yolks. Place on the Polenta.
10. Top with the Mushrooms and garnish with the Scallions. Salt and Pepper.

15 minutes max. Lil Dude was in his high hair in the kitchen and that's the maximum amount of time he will tolerate sitting there. He'll sit contentedly watching me eat though. :-).  Another hour and a half of terrorizing the living room and he's napping now.

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Portland Soup Company - Okay food and Not-so-okay company

Portland Soup Company Food Truck

I dragged D and lil T to the Portland Soup company.  I'd seen them on the Eat St. or Diners and was impressed how this young guy was making his own food from scratch.  I am a sucker for homemade soup.  D was not as excited and less so when we discovered it was in the cluster of foodtrucks out by the University.  Portland is a haven for foodtrucks.  They are everwhere and not just downtown.  You will mostly find them in clusters and semi-permanent sites in a sort of strip mall set up in parking lots and empty lots.  Sounds awesome but then as a local told us, it becomes harder to distinguish the good from the 'me-too'.   Well, I thought from the sounds of this one, that this was going to be one of the better ones with a guy who cares about good food and his patrons. Well, I regretted dragging D away from the downtown cluster and the Frying Scotsman for this one.  

Portland Soup Company Menu

First thing to note is that the soup was sold out by shortly after lunch as the Pork Butt he wanted.  Okay.  D looked at me, unimpressed and asked if I wanted to go elsewhere since I seemed so fixated on Soup.  I said no, undaunted since he was also known for his fresh Sandwiches and Salads.  So I ordered the Fresh Mozzarella Sandwich and D ordered a large Arugula Salad.  

Portland Soup Company - See the Salad titled ARUGULA?!?!

D then proceeded to take lil T and the stroller away to find a shady spot to eat.  I paid and waited.  After already running my creditcard, the dude behind the counter said he was out of Arugula.  I said, rather sarcastically and incredulously, "What!?".  He said again "We're out of Arugula.  Would you like to replace it with Spinach?"  I said "well, it was my husband's order and he's rolled away.  He really wanted Arugula."  I hemmed and hawed and said "Okay, give me the Spinach."  Dude turned around and exchanged words with dude#2 and cameback to me to say "we're out of Spinach.  Is mixed greens okay."  I said, emphatically "No. That's ridiculous."  He said to me, rather nonchalantly and exasperated "It's the same thing" To which I said "If that were true you wouldn't have felt it important to title the salad "Arugula Salad".  Then Dude#2 muttered, audibly, "What time is it?  Let's get out of here."  Arse!

Portland Soup Company - Arugula Salad without Arugula!

Portland  Soup Company Bland Mozzarella Sandwich

So left with no alternative and knowing D would have not been happy if I returned without his salad, I accepted the Mixed Greens. It was not the same thing.  The Salad had about as much personality as one of those plastic clamshell salads from McDonalds.  I guess that was why the chef had chosen Arugula!  The Sandwich was fresh enough but the Mozzarella was bland and the whole thing was not seasoned enough.  It tasted thrown together.  Disappointing food and experience.  Should have had the Mexican a few carts down.  Oh well, at least the Bangkok Duck&Chicken Thai (just the name, not what I ordered) and the Frying Scotsman the nextday was good and friendly.  

Service: Snotty

Ambiance: It's a foodtruck but University zone offers lots of alternative seating in shade. 

Cost: $$

Food: Mediocre and offered substitute was not par

                        

The Portland Soup Company (Food Truck)

(541) 968-1230
University area
SW 4th and Hall Map
Portland, OR 97201

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Awase Miso Clam and Mushroom Chowder - Fusion Comfort

Awase Miso Clam and Mushroom Chowder

It's hard to have Deng Jang in the house when you don't eat Korean food everyday.  Deng Jang is Korean Miso.  It is more pungent and spicier.  Like Miso, store bought Deng Jang is very perishable.  If it isn't, it has preservatives like MSG.  Homemade Deng Jang lasts longer as there is more time and care taken in preserving it.  I remember as a kid, mom would be sat in the kitchen beating the basic version into loaves to ferment.  They would age and develop a sort of patina that looks like aging Cheese.  You won't find that sort of quality in the shops so if you're going to buy in the shops, you want to look for non GMO (not only organic) Soy and no MSG.  Soybean farming is quite dominated by the evil chemical empires that have GMO'd the crap out of much of the production but the regulation on GMO labelling is only for raw ingredients and not products containing GMO ingredients.  Tofu can be Organic but still be GMO.  Be aware.

But I digress.  So when we do buy Deng Jang, or Miso, D likes to find various ways of using it so we are sure to go through it.  To confess, D does prefer Miso over Deng Jang.  He finds Deng Jang too pungent for his palate.  When used in very small quantities, it needn't dominate a dish.  It can be used to add what is commonly known as 'Umame'.  The term is used to describe a depth of flavour.  It's the difference between a well developed broth and a limp watery one.  Literally, it means flavour or savoury in Japanese.  It was the objective for the discovery of MSG which has been associated with though not proven to be linked to health issues.  That aside, it doesn't taste very good as many shortcuts don't.  You'll find that 'flavour' in lazy Korean or Japanse restaurants in their broths, i.e. Royal Seoul House on Broadway, blech. So you can use Deng Jang or Miso in smaller quantities to create that flavour in things like Risotto, Salad Dressings, Soups, Marinades/Rubs, Dips.....or Chowder.

Awase Miso Clam and Mushroom Chowder

serves 4 as a main

3 lbs Manila Clams
1 c Dry White Wine (or 1/2 c Wine and 1 1/2 c Water)
1 c Water
1 c Water (2nd cup, or Clam Juice from a bottle, in addition to the juice from the Clams in the Chowder)
1 T Olive Oil
3 T Unsalted Butter
1 small Onion, diced
2 ribs Celery, finely diced
1 pack (1 c) Enoki or Brown Clamshell Mushrooms, brushed and roots trimmed
4-5 sprigs fresh Thyme, length of your index pinky finger
4 cloves Garlic, minced
2 Bay Leaves
3 T Awase Miso (light Miso paste, but not the lightest. Look for non GMO, no MSG)
1 1/2 Yukon or White Potatoes (not Russet) 1" cubes
1 c Cream
Fresh Parsely, optional
Salt and Pepper

Scrub and rinse the Clams.  Use live.  They can stay in the fridge covered in a moist towel for upto two days but try to use them within 24 hours of getting them home.  We buy ours at TnT in their live Fish section.  We can pick our own Clams and Mussels. Throw any open ones away.  To double check, knock on them and they may spring closed. If they do not,  they are dead.

In a dutchoven or heavy pot, add the White Wine and the first cup of Water on High Heat and bring to boil.  You can reduce the amount of Wine to 1/2 a cup here if you want and increase the Water.  Dry White means not Sweet.  As well, do not use anything too Oaky.  American Chardonnays are too Oaky for this application.  Add the Clams when the liquid is boiling.  Cover and shake occasionally for 6-10 minutes.  After cooking, throw any closed ones away.  Lift the Clams out with a slotted spoon into a large bowl and set aside.  Strain the liquid through a fine sieve and reserve. Stop short of pouring when you reach the sand at the bottom of the pot.  You should have about 3-4 c.  Throw the sand away and rinse the pot.

Add the Olive Oil and the Butter to the pot in Medium heat.  Sautee the Onion and Celery until soft, ~5 minutes.  Add the Potatoes, Thyme, Bay Leaves and Garlic and sautee briefly.  Add the Miso and spread around.  Add the Clam liquid back and the Water/Clam Juice.  The Miso can be salty so only season after you've added the liquid.  Add the Cream and simmer for at least 10-15 minutes until the Potatoes are tender.  Add the Clams back and the Mushrooms.

Garnish w Parsley and serve with Toast. Soooo Yummo!  I would have added another Tablespoon of Miso and D would have liked to add Bacon.  He crumbled some Bacon he cooked on the side on top.  I think the Bacon would dominate the dish and think it is nice left out.


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