The recipe of the month is Spanish Tortilla de Patata otherwise known as a "Spanish Omelet." It can be served as a tapas (snack), a light meal or even between to halves of a baguette and enjoyed as a sandwich. It is found throughout Spain. The basic ingredients in the quintessential tortilla are simple; olive oil, potatoes, onion and egg. The choices you make with these basic ingredients will make a significant difference in the results. You can, of course, add whatever else that suits your fancy; cooked Spanish chorizo, green or red peppers, zucchini, eggplant, mushrooms, peas or diced ham. This recipe is the most basic form of the recipe but should yield amazing results if the ingredients are well chosen. Start with Spanish Olive oil, not all olive tastes the same, why not try something authentic like de Profundis. Light olive oil is better for cooking at higher temperatures, but this dish begs for extra virgin. Use white potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes, they won't get mushy and fall apart. Use yellow onions, which turn slightly sweet when cooked. Use good eggs; free-range and organic, for no other reason than they usually taste better. It is very popular to eat Spanish tortilla with some nice crusty bread. A bit of Spanish wine might help too.

Only one part of the preparation needs a bit of fine motor skills and there is a way to get around this in an acceptable manner. A Spanish Tortilla is much thicker than a French omelet and some are thicker than others. Halfway through cooking the Tortilla has to be flipped over. If you are extremely skilled you can do this with a wide spatula. If you are a little less skilled you can hold a plate over the pan, flip the pan over and then slide the tortilla back into the pan to finish cooking it. There is actually a plate made specially for this task called a

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 pounds large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, quartered, cut into 1/4" slices
• 1 yellow onion, quartered, thinly sliced
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 8 large eggs, beaten lightly to blend (don't whip)

* Feel free to experiment with the egg/potato proportions, if you want your tortilla to be more eggy or more potatoey.

Preparation:

1. Pour the oil into a skillet non-stick is helpful. Unless the pan has rather straight sides, you may have to use the broiler method.
2. Cook the onions and potato slices on medium. Turn and move pieces about. Do not brown either the potatoes or onion. A bit of patience is required, it might take up to 25 minutes to cook the potatoes fully.
3. When the potatoes are tender (not too soft!), remove them placing them in a colander or a big strainer.
4. In a big bowl gently mix the potatoes, onions, eggs and salt being careful not to break the potato slices up.
5. Return the mixture to a lightly oiled frying pan set on medium low heat. Some recipes call for starting out with a high heat. I respectfully disagree and believe that eggs combined with high heat are almost always a dreadful mistake. Next time you cook scrambled eggs try doing so on low heat, I guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised by the results. It takes a bit more time, but it's worth it.
6. Cook the tortilla until it is lightly browned on the bottom. Placing a lid on the pan will help if the tortilla is thicker. The thicker your tortilla is, the lower the heat should be and the more patience you will require. After several minutes you can lift up a side of the tortilla with a spatula to check doneness.
7. Now you have arrived that the 3 pronged fork in the road and a decision has to be made; to flip the tortilla with a big flat spatula, flip it and then slide it back into the pan with a plate (it's really not that hard), or simply brown the top under a broiler. I will leave this weighty decision to you!

Spanish Tortilla de Patata is traditionally eaten after it has cooled to room temperature. Even with so few ingredients, done right it's a culinary marvel.

Recipe by T. Johnston-O'Neill

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Relatively easy to make once you have all the proper ingredients, Japanese kare-raisu (Japanese Curry) is great for lunch and goes well with Japanese pickles and beer (tsukemono). Our intern from Japan, Kanako, brought this dish for lunch and we immediately knew it was worthy of "Recipe of the Month"! Enjoy. Douzo tabete kudasai!

Japanese curry is a thick, smooth and sweet curry that is quite different in texture and taste from Indian curries. Japanese curry is always served over a bed of Japanese short-grained rice and is consequently always called kare-raisu.

The spices for Japanese curry often come in powder form or flat bricks that you break apart, much like one would a bar of chocolate. The brand names are sometimes quite cross-cultural, like Java, House, and Vermont. Other brands found in the U.S. include Kikkoman, S&B & Kokumaru. Spice (and thickener) mixtures come in mild, medium and hot versions. Spiciness is not the only difference between these brands, as each of these spice mixtures have their own unique taste and some cooks even mix the spice concoctions in varying proportions to achieve the taste they desire

Other than the thickening spice mixture, basic ingredients are potatoes, onions, carrots and meat. Dark-meat chicken is used frequently, however chicken breasts, beef or pork can also be used. The type of meat being used is often related to regions of Japan: pork is used in the north, beef is preferred in central Japan and chicken is most popular in the south, but all can be found throughout Japan. Individual cooks achieve variety by adding additional ingredients, including apples, coffee, peas, caramelized onions, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, ketchup, Tonkatsu sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and whatever else pleases the cook's palate. Regional curries have ingredients as diverse as scallops, pears, mackerel, oysters and bitter melon. The important goal when cooking kare-raisu is that vegetables and meat be soft yet firm, so the cooking time and temperature are important in order to achieve best results.

Japanese curry can also be bought pre-packaged, which is quite popular in Japan, but varies in quality. Kare-raisu is the main course served to members of the Japanese defense forces every Friday and is a popular food to eat while camping.

Even though Japanese curry is thick and Japanese rice is somewhat sticky, kare-raisu is typically eaten with a large spoon rather than hashi (chopsticks). It is often served with tsukemono vegetables pickled in vinegar such as fukujinzuke (a pickle made of daikon, which is Japanese radish, eggplant, lotus root, cucumbers and a variety of other ingredients) or rakkyo (scallions pickled with vinegar, salt, soy sauce and sugar). The importance of tsukemono should not be underestimated because the crunchy acidic tartness contrasts nicely with the sweet thick taste and feel of the kare-raisu.

Kare-raisu is thought to have been introduced to Japan by English sailors during the Meiji period, at the end of the 19th century.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 package Kokumaro curry
• 1/2 lbs of your choice of meat, diced or sliced thickly (this recipe uses beef).
• 1 large potato
• 1 medium carrot
• 1/2 Fuji apple, grated
• 1 medium-sized white onion, half finely chopped, half cut in wedges
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed or grated
• 1 cup of Red wine (secret ingredient!)
• 2 tablespoons instant coffee
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 1/2 cups water
• Salt and pepper
• Canola or Peanut oil

Preparation:

1. Dice the potatoes and carrots into half-inch cubes or pieces (not too small!).
2. Finely dice half the onion and then cut the remainder into small wedges.
3. Sprinkle a moderate amount of salt and pepper on both sides of beef.
4. Combine red wine, curry powder and grated garlic in a bowl (marinade).
5. Place beef in a small container, pour marinade over beef and then refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
6. Slice the beef into small strips.
7. Sauté the chopped onion in 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan. Use low heat for up to 30 minutes until the onions are caramelized.
8. Remove beef from marinade, drain and reserve the wine.
9. In a fry pan set on high, brown the beef in a tablespoon of oil.
10. Transfer beef to the pot with the caramelized onions.
11. Add the vegetables and water and simmer for 5 minutes.
12. Add grated apple and marinade sauce and simmer for another 10 minutes.
13. Add water (preheat to boiling) and gently simmer until potatoes are just soft. If foam forms on the top, skim it off.
14. Add the curry seasoning and gently mix well until completely dissolved. Slicing the curry roux first helps it dissolve faster. If curry is too thick, add some extra water.
15. Turn off the heat.
16. Add instant coffee (or real coffee) and oyster sauce for added taste.
17. Serve on top of rice in a bowl. Don't forget the tsukemono!

Recipe submitted by Kanako Masubuchi
Photographs by T. & S. Johnston-O'Neill

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Normally (there have been exceptions) we only publish one recipe at a time, but we cooked all three of these Thai specialties to see which might be the best for the recipe of the month and they all were so good we decided to publish all them all together. All these recipes are modified versions of recipes found in The Ultimate Thai and Asian Cookbook by Deh-Ta Hsiung, Becky Johnson and Sallie Morris. The book has a very nice section on ingredients. It is quite common in Thailand and other Southeast Asian cultures to serve several dishes at a time for a meal, not in courses. Even Thai soups are served with other dishes and not before a meal. Many dishes from this area of the world are based on a harmonious blend of sweetness (often palm sugar), sourness (vinegar, limes, lemons and tamarinds), saltiness (salt, soy sauce, fish sauce) and spiciness (hot chilies). Chicken, pork (except in Muslim households), fish and shellfish are the most common protein sources.

A couple of cooking tips: Some of the ingredients, fish sauce, Thai chilies, roasted sesame seeds and galangal root might require a visit to an Asian grocery store like 99 Ranch Market. It's up to you whether you use coconut milk or the thicker coconut cream. Authentic Southeast Asian curries are cooked in "first pressing" coconut milk that is boiled until it is thicker than canned coconut milk. Coconut oil (now available at Costco!) and peanut oil are perhaps the most used cooking oils. Some people use other oils, so if you are dead set on using olive oil, use light olive oil as it has a lighter taste and can be cooked at a higher heat which is required in stir fry cooking. Smoke coming off of cooking oils is quite toxic, so don't heat oil to the point past its smoking temperature. We were quite curious about the cherry tomatoes in the Shrimp curry, turns out they were surprising (you will see what we mean when you try them) and delicious!

Yellow Curry Shrimp Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups coconut milk or cream
• 2 tablespoons yellow curry paste
• 1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce (the lighter the color, the better)
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1 pound of large shrimp, peeled and de-veined
• 1/2 pound of cherry tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons of lime juice
• 3/4 of a red pepper cut into to 1/2 inch squarish pieces
• 1/4 of a red bell pepper, sliced into very thin strips for garnish
• the leaves from several sprigs of coriander (cilantro) for garnish

Preparation:

1. Boil water in a large pot.
2. Add noodles to boiling water and then immediately turn off heat.
3. Let noodles stand in the hot water for 5 minutes and then rinse and drain.
4. Add 3 tablespoons of oil on medium high heat until hot (before it smokes!)
5. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
6. Immediately add pork and chicken and cook while tossing everything about.
7. When the pork and chick become lightly browned, add shrimp and cook for another 2 minutes. Keep everything moving with your spatula.
8. Add sugar, fish sauce and lemon juice, and mix everything until the sugar dissolves.
9. Add remaining oil and then the drained noodles mixing everything very gently as the noodles might break if you are too vigorous.
10. Pour beaten eggs all over everything and mix gently, cooking until the egg is just about set.
11. Gently mix in chillies, bean sprouts, 1/2 the peanuts, 1/2 the scallions and 1/2 the cilantro leaves.
12. Cook for another 2 minutes, gently keeping everything moving.
13. Transfer fried noodles to a serving dish and garnish with remaining peanuts, scallions and cilantro leaves.

Serve with Jasmine Rice Spicy Thai Fried Noodles>

Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons cooking oil (coconut or peanut oil are best)
• 1/2 package (8 oz) of thin Asian egg noodles (rice noodles can also be used)
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed, grated or finely chopped
• 1/2 pound of pork sliced into very thin strips (can be bought presliced in Asian groceries)
• 1/2 pound of white or dark meat chicken, cut into thin strips
• 1/2 pound of shrimp, peeled and de-veined
• 2 eggs, beaten but not whipped
• Juice from one lemon
• 3 tablespoons of fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons of palm sugar or brown sugar
• 1 - 10 fresh red Thai chilies, seeded and finely sliced (adjust amount for tolerance)
• 1 cup of fresh bean sprouts
• 3 scallions (green onions), white portion cut into 2 inch pieces and then hand shredded
• the leaves from several sprigs of coriander (cilantro)

Preparation:

1. Boil water in a large pot.
2. Add noodles to boiling water and then immediately turn off heat.
3. Let noodles stand in the hot water for 5 minutes and then rinse and drain.
4. Add 3 tablespoons of oil on medium high heat until hot (before it smokes!)
5. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
6. Immediately add pork and chicken and cook while tossing everything about.
7. When the pork and chick become lightly browned, add shrimp and cook for another 2 minutes. Keep everything moving with your spatula.
8. Add sugar, fish sauce and lemon juice, and mix everything until the sugar dissolves.
9. Add remaining oil and then the drained noodles mixing everything very gently as the noodles might break if you are too vigorous.
10. Pour beaten eggs all over everything and mix gently, cooking until the egg is just about set.
11. Gently mix in chillies, bean sprouts, 1/2 the peanuts, 1/2 the scallions and 1/2 the cilantro leaves.
12. Cook for another 2 minutes, gently keeping everything moving.
13. Transfer fried noodles to a serving dish and garnish with remaining peanuts, scallions and cilantro leaves.

Thai Asparagus

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of asparagus, tough parts removed
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1 garlic cloves, crushed, grated or finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds (can be bought from a Japanese or Asian grocery)
• 1 inch piece of galangal root, finely grated (can be found in an Asian grocery, otherwise substitute with ginger)
• 1 - 3 fresh red Thai chillies, seeded and finely sliced (adjust amount for tolerance)
• 1 tablespoon of fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce (light if available)
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon of palm sugar or brown sugar

This recipe is also good with broccoli, bak choi or green beans (if using green beans, parboil for 2 minutes before using).

Preparation:

1. Snap or slice off and throw away the tough parts of the asparagus stalks.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until it is very hot but not smoking.
3. Add garlic, grated galangal and sesame seeds to the wok and fry for 10 seconds.
4. Add all of the remaining ingredients (asparagus, chillies, fish sauce, water and sugar).
5. Toss ingredients and cook for 2-3 minutes until the asparagus is tender. Using two big spoons for this task works well (grab and lift).
6. Transfer to a plate or serving dish and serve immediately.

Recipe by T. Johnston-O'Neill
Photo by Shari K. Johnston-O'Neill

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Zapallo and Lentil Stew with Matura Twice Fried Plantains are very popular among the Embera and Waounan indigenous people of Panama. The Embera and Waounan people live in the Darien region of Panama. The Pan-American Highway transects Darien in half, sometimes also dividing and separating entire communities. Both Embera and Waounan cultures have been heavily influenced by contact with Latinos. Sadly, some of the indigenous culture has started to disappear. Recently there have been local efforts to preserve indigenous culture and traditions. Tourism has played an important role in this cultural conservation as local culinary specialties and traditional handicraft items are being produced for tourists. These efforts have not only helped to preserve some of these traditions, but they have also provided some increasingly important cash for families and communities. Locals have even created websites and tours for visiting and potential tourists.

Most Embera and Waounan food uses ingredients that are locally collected, farmed, fished or hunted. Traditional cuisine has been augmented by spices introduced by Latinos. Usually cooking is done on an open fire fogon stove that either sits on the ground or on top of wooden legs. Daily food is usually simple faire, but special celebrations call for more elaborate meals. Zapallo resembles a pumpkin or calabaza squash; for this recipe you may substitute banana, butternut or other squashes. Zapallo and Lentil Stew is a common daily dish, which is sometimes eaten along with fried fish or meat. This stew is often served over rice. In Panama rice is a staple crop and comprises nearly a quarter of the protein consumed by the average Panamanian. Plantains, a close relative of the banana, are eaten throughout South and Central America. They are usually fried in some manner and seasoned with salt.

Ingredients

• 1 Zapallo pumpkin, butternut or banana squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks.
• 1 pound package of brown lentils (check for small stones)
• 1 14-ounce can of coconut milk
• 2 14-ounce cans of chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon cayenne chili powder (or to taste)
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A large onion, diced
• 4 or 5 cloves of garlic, chopped or crushed
• Several sprigs of cilantro or cilantro leaves
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Fresh lime juice

Preparation

1. Fry onion in oil over low heat until translucent.
2. Add garlic, curry powder, ground coriander and cayenne and fry for another 30 seconds.
3. Add squash, lentils, coconut milk, stock (or water) to pot.
4. Add water to bring liquid above all the ingredients. Bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat and simmer for 30-40 minutes, until the squash and lentils are tender.
6. Serve over rice and garnish with culantro (or cilantro) and a healthy squirt of lime juice.

Maturana (Twice Fried Plantains)

Ingredients:

• 4 plantains
• Salt to taste
• Oil for cooking

Preparation:

1. Slice Plantains into 3/8 inch thick rounds.
2. Fill a fry pan ¼ deep with cooking oil (peanut oil works fine). Note: if you use a 9-inch frying pan you should be able to fry one plantain at a time.
3. Heat oil to medium high heat (350 degrees F.).
4. Fry plantain slices, turning once to lightly brown both side.
5. Remove plantain slices and drain on rack or paper towels.
6. When the slices are cool enough to handle, press them flat with a flat-bottomed glass or bottle. Press them until they are about a ¼ thick.
7. Refry the plantain slices, browning them further on both sides.
8. Remove fried plantain, drain on rack or with paper towels. If you can store the plantains on their side, they will remain crisper longer.
9. Salt the plantain chips before serving.

Recipe by T. Johnston-O'Neill
Photo by Heidi Adams

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