By Kelli Prescott, Tail Fly Fishing Magazine Food Editor
(originally published in Tail #34 – March/April 2018)
I’ve been cooking these dishes for years and absolutely love them all. They are comforting crowd pleasers that you will come back to time and time again. Another awesome feature of these recipes is their destiny to be modified! If you don’t have an ingredient, sub it out. If you don’t have the particular protein on hand, make due with whatever is in the refrigerator. In each recipe I’ll give some tips and tricks to make dinner time easier, no matter what you have in the pantry.
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Skillet Seafood Paella
Ingredients:
1 medium yellow onion, halved and sliced thin
1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup frozen spinach, thawed, drained
2 lemons, sliced thin
1/2 cup parsley chopped finely
1 bunch green onions, cleaned, cut in half
1/2 lb chorizo crumbled, without casing (chopped bacon also works)
1 tsp saffron threads
3 cups short grain rice
6 cups shellfish stock (chicken or vegetable works)
1 lb large shrimp (9-12 count), whole
about 10-12 little neck clams (rinsed)
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1.5 tbsp smoked paprika
garlic powder, to taste
salt, to taste
cracked pepper, to taste
Paella is an awesome Spanish dish featuring bright flavors and fresh shellfish. It only takes about 40 minutes from start to finish. You’ll need a saucepan on a back burner to heat the stock with the saffron, and one large skillet to cook the paella. Saffron really gives this dish a fragrant pop of flavor and color, but if you absolutely must, just use paprika, it will still be delicious!
Add the saffron threads and stock to a saucepan and bring to a simmer, cover and keep hot until ready to use.
Take a large skillet and turn the burner on. Get it nice and hot! Cook the crumbled chorizo until crisp. Remove the chorizo and set aside, then add 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil into the pan with the chorizo fat.
Add your sliced onion, a sprinkle of garlic powder and the 1.5 tbsp of smoked paprika. It may seem like a lot of paprika at first, but remember, this is going to flavor the entire dish! Adding it now allows it to cook into the oil and infuse all of its delicious smokey flavor.
Once the onions become translucent, add spinach, tomatoes, and chorizo sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and cracked pepper. Cook about 1 minute, then add the rice. Continuously stir the rice mixture until the grains start to look opaque and a bit toasty, about 3-5 minutes. Add the stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat.
Let the rice simmer until it’s nice and tender. This will take about 15-18 minutes.
Next comes the fresh seafood and finishing touches.
This recipe also works nicely with 2 oz chunks of halibut or redfish. Mussels in place of clams will work as well. If you’re feeling adventurous, like I often am, you can even use octopus.
Feel free to use any kind of shellfish or seafood, don’t feel limited about the variety either. You can use one or two kinds of protein, or use them all!
Nestle the clams into the rice and cover for about 8-10 minutes or until most of them pop open. If any of them don’t open, you can toss them.
While your clams are popping open, take the remaining 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp oil and heat in a medium skillet. Once it’s sizzling hot, add your shrimp and green onions. Sprinkle with a good amount of salt, cracked pepper and garlic powder.
Don’t stir them!
You want nice color on the shrimp. Let the edges start to visibly build a sear before you give them a toss. After you toss the shrimp, take the lemon slices in your hand and give them a squeeze right over the pan. Drop the squeezed slices directly in the pan and add the parsley. (You can add one more pat of butter and ¼ cup of sherry wine to turn up the flavor even more, if you dare.)
The clams should be ready now. Take the lid off of the paella, then transfer the contents of your shrimp pan directly on top. Make sure you get every last drop of buttery lemon goodness that those big shrimp produced.
It should smells all kinds of good in the kitchen right about now! Grab a big spoon and dish up portions of the paella for dinner.
Garnish with lemon and a little more parsley if you care to. Enjoy.
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Asian Beef Street Noodles
Ingredients:
1 pack of vermicelli rice noodles (8-12 oz pack)
1 green bell pepper, sliced thin
1 red bell pepper, sliced thin
1 large medium yellow onion, halved and sliced thin
1.5 lbs chuck steak, sliced thin (1” thick, look for the most marbled cuts)
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp sesame oil
1/3 cup lime juice
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsp sriracha
1 tbsp grated ginger
garlic powder, to taste
salt, to taste
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup cilantro, chopped
Asian street noodles are always a hit at my house. They’re super craveable and make umami easy. In this recipe I call for chuck steak, a cheaper way to get the flavor of ribeye – but typically I use any leftover barbecue pork I have. Pulled pork or sliced rib meat off the bone work perfectly! Really, any protein in your refrigerator can be subbed in. The idea of street noodles is throwing together what you have and making it mouthwatering.
For instance, if you don’t have bell peppers on hand, don’t worry. If you’ve got carrots, snap peas, mushrooms, those all work too. Feel free to use those vegetables instead, or, in addition to the recipe I’ve provided.
First prepare the rice noodles according to the package. Get a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil and toss noodles in. Cook only a few minutes until al dente, then drain and rinse with cool water to stop the cooking. Set your noodles aside.
Now, take a large saucepan and get it hot! Medium heat works perfectly. Add 1 tbsp of sesame oil and 1 tbsp butter, then add onions and peppers. Cook a couple minutes. Add your slices of chuck steak, grated ginger and season with a good sprinkle of salt and garlic powder. Cook until beef starts to brown.
Add remaining butter, sesame oil, honey, sriracha, lime juice and sesame seeds. Stir until sauce combines.
Toss in your noodles and stir to coat.
Cook until noodles are hot, then finish with green onions and cilantro.
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Crispy Lemon Herb Fish and Green Bean Salad
Ingredients:
4 salmon portions (6-8 oz) (any thick fish fillets will work)
1.5 cups panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan, grated
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
2 lemons, juiced
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and cracked pepper, to taste
for salad:
3 cups green beans, whole, cleaned
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 red onion, halved, sliced thin
1/2 cup parsley chopped
1/2 lb bacon, chopped, cooked until crisp
for vinaigrette:
1/3 cup olive oil
2 tbsp whole grain mustard
2 tbsp honey
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
garlic powder, to taste
salt, to taste
cracked pepper, to taste
This recipe is so easy and refreshing. It’s a perfect lighter meal option that’s flavorful and healthy.
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
While the oven is heating, take your salmon portions and place them in a bowl and add olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
In another small bowl, mix panko breadcrumbs, parmesan and parsley. If you don’t want to use another bowl, you can use a ziplock bag or just sprinkle each on top separately.
Put your green beans in a bowl with a damp paper towel and microwave six minutes. This will steam them just enough to get a head start on the cook time.
For easy clean up, line a sheet tray with parchment paper (foil also works). Parchment paper has a tendency to curl around the edges. Simply take a little cooking spray and hit the bottom of the sheet pan before lining it. Now it will stick!
Place the salmon portions on one side of sheet tray. Top each portion with the breadcrumb mixture and press down lightly so that it forms a nice layer. This will become a yummy crust once cooked.
On the other half of the sheet tray, place the green beans, season with salt and cracked pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil.
Pop the sheet tray in the oven and cook until fish is done. (About 12-15 minutes)
While the fish and green beans are cooking, you can prep the rest of the ingredients for the green bean salad.
In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette – olive oil, honey, whole grain mustard and apple cider vinegar. Be sure to add a few pinches of salt, garlic powder, and cracked pepper as well. Whisk to combine.
Add the halved cherry tomatoes, cooked bacon pieces, red onion and parsley to the bowl with the vinaigrette.
When the salmon is ready, pull the sheet tray from the oven. Add the green beans to the bowl with the vinaigrette and toss to combine, taste for seasoning levels, then you’re good to go!
Serve up salmon portions right on top of the salad and enjoy.
Leftover green bean salad will become one of your new favorites! It’s awesome to eat room temperature or cooked in a skillet until tomatoes are tender.
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Southwest Chicken Pasta Salad
Ingredients:
1lb of dry orecchiette pasta (any type of shell or orzo works)
2 ears of yellow corn
3 poblanos, roasted, deseeded/peeled and diced
1 jalapeno, roasted, deseeded/peeled and diced (2 or 3 if you like it spicy)
2 red bell peppers, diced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1.5 cup of mayo
1 cup of sour cream
1/3 cup lime juice
10 oz crumbled queso fresco (any fresh crumbly cheese, feta works)
3 cups shredded chicken (leftovers or rotisserie)
garlic powder, 2 tsp
cumin, 3 tsp
salt, to taste
cayenne, to taste
Pasta salad is one of my all time favorites – easy, delicious and always customizable. It’s great to eat the next day, room temperature or cold, and it’s awesome to take along on the boat for a hearty lunch.
Using rotisserie chicken makes this version extremely stress-free and quick to put together. Another great protein option is sautéed shrimp, but use whatever you have on hand, or feel free to make it with just the vegetables.
First of all, we need to get the oven hot to roast the peppers, so set it to 450 degrees.
While the oven is getting hot, bring a large salted pot of water to a rolling boil.
Cover a sheet tray with foil and place the poblanos and jalapenos on top, pop them in the oven to roast and remove when tender. Once the peppers cool off, you can slice them down the middle and scrape the seeds out. Then dice ‘em up and set aside!
Add your pasta to the boiling water, cook until al dente, then drain and let cool.
While the pasta is cooling, you can prep the rest of the veggies and shred the chicken.
Start by microwaving your corn in the husk. 3 minutes per ear. Then clean and slice it off the cob. Chop your red bell peppers, cilantro, and green onions.
In a large serving bowl add mayo, sour cream, and lime juice. Stir to combine.
Add all of the chopped veggies, corn, cilantro and peppers to the bowl. Add the chicken and pasta. Mix it all up so that the creamy dressing coats the noodles. Season with garlic powder, cumin, salt and cayenne.
Taste as you season to make sure the flavor is right where you want it.
Crumble the queso fresco right on top and gently stir once more to combine. That’s it!
Serve up portions in bowls and enjoy!
