Saturday, April 25, 2009

Eat-N-Shoot



Today I did something a bit different. Inspired by my own laziness when it comes to studying photography from a book or cooking lunch on the weekends, I signed up for an Eat-N-Shoot class through a Photography Meetup group that I have recently joined. It was hosted by Chef Naveen of Rasoi. He invites small groups of people into his home and throws a party where you can take pictures, help him cook and meet new people interested in the same stuff as you. It was a blast. Its funny how technique and creativity will develop almost on it's own when you're forced to take a bazillion pictures every minute of everything that goes on around you. Or when you're NOT forced to do the dishes :)


I will share one of the recipes at the end of this post because it was the perfect thing to make for a crowd. The Lemongrass Shrimp was absolutely delicious, easy and very flexible and doesn't it look pretty?

We also made the super easy Spring rolls. Pretty much it's just julienned carrots and cucumbers, bean sprouts, cilantro, minced ginger marinaded in some sesame oil and chili sauce mixed with some blanched asparagus and wrapped in a spring roll wrapper. So easy, so fast, so healthy but still absolutely delicious.



There was also some tandoori style chicken, chicken kebabs, and yummy yellow rice, but by that time I was really getting into the picture taking craze and I didn't pay as much attention to the recipes, which was fine since he gave us handouts to take home, so I'll be making these again for the next dinner party I throw...when I am not insanely busy that is.


Did I mention how wonderful it was not to worry about doing the dishes?



Lemongrass Shrimp recipe, by Naveen Sachar of Rasoi

1lb raw shrimp, tail on, peeled and deveined
1 medium onion, sliced
2-3 tbs fresh cilantro, chopped
1-1.5 cups chicken broth
1/2 inch piece fresh ginger, minced
4 inch piece of cleaned lemongrass stalk, sliced
1 fresh lime cut into wedges
Thai Chili sauce, to taste
Fish sauce, a few tsps
Freshly ground pepper

You will need to cook everything in batches to make sure that the shrimp cook properly.
Bring 1/3 cup of stock to a rapid boil in a hot wok. Add 1 tbsp of the lemongrass, some of the chopped onion and some of the ginger and bring to a boil again.
Add about 10 shrimp, chili sauce, fish sauce and pepper. Cook for 2-3 min until the shrimp is cooked through and remove onto serving platter. Repeat till all the ingredients are gone.
Squeeze lime juice, garnish with cilantro and serve with sliced bread for soaking up all the wonderful juices.
Yum.

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