Sushi, Udon, Seared Ahi, Yakitori, cool new rig setup, and fun sauces- by centex

The Cen-Tex Smoker

Well, we finally broke in the new kitchen in a big way tonight. Kids wanted sushi, I wanted to grill something, and TFJ wanted to get creative.

We went and bought some A++ Sashimi grade Ahi and some Sashimi grade salmon as well. I have been jealous of Cparktx's yakitori cooks lately so I thought we could riff of those a little too. We also made homemade udon noodles and broth. So here we go.

First we made the caramel fish sauce and Brussels sprouts from Uchiko. They were amazing. TFJ says to cut the sauce recipe in half though. We had way more than we needed. This was my favorite thing on the table tonight and everything was really good.

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1164017/fish-caramel-sauce-from-uchiko-austin#latest



Next was the old standby of the seared sashimi grade ahi tuna:

http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1145144/seared-ahi-tuna-with-soy-ginger-dipping-sauce-credit-scott-leysath-and-hunt-fish-cook#latest



Then TFJ made a couple of killer rolls.

1) Tuna avacado, cucumber, panko, cilantro, shiracha, a lime zest infused finishing salt.

2) salmon, honey crisp apple, cream cheese, smoked jalaoeno sea salt and mint with a little sesame oil drizzled on top....boom



We also did a yakitori course with chicken thigh and pork (cut from a Costco bone in rack). This is where I took inspiration from cpark but used my adjustable rig instead of bricks. This was a great setup but you need metal skewers to pull it off. The metal on the rig was too hot for the bamboo skewers and 2 of them burned and fell through. Had to finish on the grid.



Udon:

anton

If I didn't know any better I'd say that was at a Japanese restaurant! Great job sir, that looks fantastic, in fact better than most restaurants.
:-bd

The Cen-Tex Smoker

El Plato Gordo:

theyolksonyou

Dude, that is so good. You could lay that slab of tuna in my plate by itself and I'd devour it in no time. If I could get sushi grade ahi here I'd be broke! All of that is simply awesome, what a great meal! Sorry for the ass kissing post, but I love that stuff.

MrCookingNurse

Amazing

SGH

Brother Tex, reading the title of this post, I was as confused as a hippy in a wind storm. A lot of long words in there. Nonetheless the grub looks phenominal.

Mattman3969

Unbelievably great looking meal. Kuddos to you sir!!!

pgprescott

Any chance your neighbors house is up for sale?

caliking

I'm nearly speechless. All I can say is - holy sh!t that's an amazing spread.

stemc33

Phenomenal. Skipping the two thumbs up and going straight to ^:)^ ^:)^ ^:)^

Great documented cook. Congrats on getting your kitchen up and running. Once again, phenomenal.

grege345

Nice.

Chubbs

Dayum.

CPARKTX

Wow man...that's a serious meal. Well done!

CPARKTX

Tell me more about those Brussels....definitely have to do those...

Botch

It all looks fantastic!  

sumoconnell

Wow! That's fantastic - great thoughts and innovation with the skewer setup. Those rolls are tight, great looking sticky rice.

Thanks for all the pics!

EggObsessed

Makes me want to cancel our reservations at Uchi this Thursday night,and pay you and Janell to cook for us!!  Absolutely beautiful food, Cen-Tex!  Hats off to the two of you.

NPHuskerFL

:-O ^:)^ Epic! The meal in its entirety is impressive! Love the Sushi especially. Nice work Cen-Tex.

hapster

Bravo!!! Nailed it from start to finish!

The Cen-Tex Smoker

CPARKTX said:

Tell me more about those Brussels....definitely have to do those...

click the link. It has the recipe for both sauces you use and step by step instructions are included. Highly recommend these.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

EggObsessed said:

Makes me want to cancel our reservations at Uchi this Thursday night,and pay you and Janell to cook for us!!  Absolutely beautiful food, Cen-Tex!  Hats off to the two of you.

you would probably save money going to Uchiko! Everything did turn out really good though. This was a fun one.

Brisket_Fanatic

Unbelievable, l can almost taste it!

The Cen-Tex Smoker

A couple of quick notes: for those in austin, Houston, DFW area, we found wasabi sesame seeds (the green seeds on the seared tuna) at the bulk spice area of central market. Get these. They are awesome. This is where got the sashimi grade fish as well. Also, we freaking love our new induction cooktop. We were torn between induction and gas but really glad we went induction. We were kind of forced to by city codes but really happy it worked out that way. We had the sauces simmering in 30 seconds and brought them down to reduce in under 5 seconds. It's so crazy responsive that any adjustment only takes seconds to take affect. Also, it holds exactly where you set it. A simmer is a simmer and you never need to adjust or watch it. It's like an egg- once you have it dialed in, no need to babysit. Lastly, #1 son informed me at 1 am that he would like to have friends over for BBQ...this afternoon. Thanks for that. Tito's infused pork butt went on at 1:15 (egg still warm from the Yakitori). I was smart enough to rig up the CyberQ. Woke up and the egg is pinned at 250. Toys are good.

mickstephen

Epic cook. Absolutely amazing.

tulocay

Great looking cook

DMW

I feel inadequate...

theyolksonyou

DMW said:

I feel inadequate...

Me too. This kind of post really make me realize how much I still have to learn....

The Cen-Tex Smoker

theyolksonyou said:

DMW said:

I feel inadequate...

Me too. This kind of post really make me realize how much I still have to learn....

There is nothing we made that is out of reach for anyone on here. The seared tuna takes 5 minutes to make and a 4 yr old could do it. You need to start with very good fish though- not the stuff you see at most grocery stores. We are fortunate to have access to better ingredients and to have a slew of progressive restaurants to eat at for inspiration. We did own a restaurant for a while and had some very talented (if not criminal) chefs that worked for us. We learned a lot from them but everything we made tonight is available with a quick google search. Go for it. Stretch yourself once a month and you will be amazed how much fun you have and how quickly you learn. We probably spend way too much money and time on food and drink and we don't mind spending 3-4 hours cooking and cleaning a few times a month. It's not for everyone but we both love it.

theyolksonyou

I don't doubt I could make this method wise. The problem is the creativity, ideas etc... I see your posts, @caliking‌ @Canugghead‌ and you guys put stuff out I've never heard of. I grew up eating country cooking, it's all we ever had. Learning to branch out. It's one reason I love this forum.

DMW

FWIW I really like posts like this. I've learned heaps from your posts Cen-Tex and I see myself trying at least some elements of this meal in the future. I'm not sure how to find Sashimi grade fish around here, but I'll be on the lookout.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

theyolksonyou said:

I don't doubt I could make this method wise. The problem is the creativity, ideas etc... I see your posts, @caliking‌ @Canugghead‌ and you guys put stuff out I've never heard of. I grew up eating country cooking, it's all we ever had. Learning to branch out. It's one reason I love this forum.

Im right there with you. I'm glad I can contribute from time to time but I still learn stuff and get inspiration on here from others almost every week.