I have found a nice Italian<>English Android dictionary app. It is not on the level of the Larousse French<>English dictionary app I use or the Kabuto Japanese<>English app, but it appears to be the nicest of the Android Italian<>English dictionaries. It is the Berlitz Standard Italian<>English Dictionary by Langenscheidt KG and Paragon Software. It costs $29.95. (There is another Berlitz Italian<>English Android Dictionary app that is less expensive and not as good.)
This app allows you to search for a word by typing or by speaking. It also has the audio pronunciation of the words. It is very easy to use. I have it loaded onto both my Samsung Galaxy S II phone and my Archos G9 80 tablet.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
An Incredible, Free Japanese<>English Android Dictionary App
I have a number of Japanese<>English dictionaries in book form and separate electronic dictionaries. However, the best one I've ever used by far is an android app, and it's free. It's called Kabuto and it's produced by Gakusoft. I have it loaded onto both my Samsung Galaxy S II and my Archos G9 80 tablet. It works perfectly on both, but is nicer on the larger tablet.
Not only is it an extensive dictionary, but it allows the user to search for words in many ways - by:
1. Typing in the Japanese word
2. Typing in the English word
3. The Kanji radicals
4. The number of Kanji strokes
(Kanji are the Chinese-style characters which Japan adopted from China centuries ago. The Japanese use thousands of them. They are constructed from building blocks called "radicals.")
I previously used this dictionary on my Windows Pocket PC phone. That version cost $24.95. This free version is superior because it is much easier to read.
Not only is it an extensive dictionary, but it allows the user to search for words in many ways - by:
1. Typing in the Japanese word
2. Typing in the English word
3. The Kanji radicals
4. The number of Kanji strokes
(Kanji are the Chinese-style characters which Japan adopted from China centuries ago. The Japanese use thousands of them. They are constructed from building blocks called "radicals.")
I previously used this dictionary on my Windows Pocket PC phone. That version cost $24.95. This free version is superior because it is much easier to read.
A Nice & Easy Asparagus Side
I love asparagus, pancetta, and garlic, so this side turned out to be a perfect accompaniment for chicken piccata which I prepared recently. The recipe is from cookthink.com - http://www.cookthink.com/recipe/4058/Sauteed_Asparagus_With_Pancetta_And_Garlic It took a couple of minutes to prepare and a couple of minutes to cook. It serves 3-4.
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 3 ounces pancetta, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound), cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Instructions
1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the pancetta and stir to break it apart. Sauté until the pancetta starts to turn brown - 3-5 minutes.
2. Add the asparagus and toss to coat it with the pancetta and garlic. Sprinkle lightly with black pepper. Cook, stirring once or twice, until the asparagus turns bright green - 3-5 minutes.
3. Add about a tablespoon of water to the pan, scraping the bottom to release any browned bits. Cook until almost all the water evaporates and the asparagus is barely tender and bright green - 2-4 more minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 3 ounces pancetta, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 bunch asparagus (about 1 pound), cut into bite-size pieces
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Instructions
1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the pancetta and stir to break it apart. Sauté until the pancetta starts to turn brown - 3-5 minutes.
2. Add the asparagus and toss to coat it with the pancetta and garlic. Sprinkle lightly with black pepper. Cook, stirring once or twice, until the asparagus turns bright green - 3-5 minutes.
3. Add about a tablespoon of water to the pan, scraping the bottom to release any browned bits. Cook until almost all the water evaporates and the asparagus is barely tender and bright green - 2-4 more minutes. Serve with lemon wedges.
Lobster, Corn, & Bacon Chowder - We Love It
If you like lobster, bacon, and chowder, try this fantastic and relatively easy recipe at http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Corn-and-Lobster-Chowder-107469.
The recipe as posted at epicurious.com serves 8. Since there were only three of us, I cut the recipe in half except for the bacon. The following is the recipe for eight.
Ingredients
- Two 10-ounce, uncooked frozen lobster tails, thawed, or 1 pound freshly cooked lobster meat cut into bite-size pieces
- 8 cups frozen yellow corn kernels (about 2 & 1/4 pounds), thawed
- 3 cups low-salt chicken broth
- 8 bacon slices, chopped
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 3/4 cup peeled, finely-diced carrots
- 2/3 cup finely diced celery
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 cups bottled clam juice
- 1 & 1/2 cups whipping cream
- 6 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Directions
If using thawed frozen lobster tails, cook in pot of boiling water until almost cooked through, about 6 minutes. Drain. Cool. Using kitchen shears, cut lobster shells open. Remove lobster meat. Cut into bite-size pieces. Discard shells.
Purée 4 cups corn with 1 & 1/4 cups broth in food processor until almost smooth.
Sauté bacon in large pot over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer bacon to paper towels. Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons of drippings from pot.
Add onions to pot and sauté until light golden, about 5 minutes.
Add remaining 4 cups corn and sauté 3 minutes.
Add carrots, celery, and cayenne. Sauté until vegetables soften slightly, about 5 minues.
Add clam juice and 1 & 3/4 cups broth. Simmer 10 minutes.
Stir in corn purée and whipping cream. Simmer 5 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper.
(Lobster, bacon, and soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill lobster and bacon separately. Cool soup slightly. Chill uncovered until cold. Then cover and keep chilled. Before continuing, bring bacon to room temperature and bring soup to simmer.)
Remove soup from heat. Stir in sour cream.
Melt butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add lobster meat and sauté just until heated through - about 2 minutes.
Ladle soup in bowls. Garnish each serving with lobster pieces, bacon, and chives. Serve.
The recipe as posted at epicurious.com serves 8. Since there were only three of us, I cut the recipe in half except for the bacon. The following is the recipe for eight.
Ingredients
- Two 10-ounce, uncooked frozen lobster tails, thawed, or 1 pound freshly cooked lobster meat cut into bite-size pieces
- 8 cups frozen yellow corn kernels (about 2 & 1/4 pounds), thawed
- 3 cups low-salt chicken broth
- 8 bacon slices, chopped
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 3/4 cup peeled, finely-diced carrots
- 2/3 cup finely diced celery
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3 cups bottled clam juice
- 1 & 1/2 cups whipping cream
- 6 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
Directions
If using thawed frozen lobster tails, cook in pot of boiling water until almost cooked through, about 6 minutes. Drain. Cool. Using kitchen shears, cut lobster shells open. Remove lobster meat. Cut into bite-size pieces. Discard shells.
Purée 4 cups corn with 1 & 1/4 cups broth in food processor until almost smooth.
Sauté bacon in large pot over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer bacon to paper towels. Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons of drippings from pot.
Add onions to pot and sauté until light golden, about 5 minutes.
Add remaining 4 cups corn and sauté 3 minutes.
Add carrots, celery, and cayenne. Sauté until vegetables soften slightly, about 5 minues.
Add clam juice and 1 & 3/4 cups broth. Simmer 10 minutes.
Stir in corn purée and whipping cream. Simmer 5 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper.
(Lobster, bacon, and soup can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and chill lobster and bacon separately. Cool soup slightly. Chill uncovered until cold. Then cover and keep chilled. Before continuing, bring bacon to room temperature and bring soup to simmer.)
Remove soup from heat. Stir in sour cream.
Melt butter in medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add lobster meat and sauté just until heated through - about 2 minutes.
Ladle soup in bowls. Garnish each serving with lobster pieces, bacon, and chives. Serve.
Delicious & Easy Crab Salad
I recently made an easy-to-prepare crab salad that we loved. It was from one of my go-to recipe sources - allrecipes.com (http://allrecipes.com/recipe/crab-salad/) While the recipe was tasty with crab claw meat, the next time, I'll make it with lump blue crab meat. While the recipe says it serves 4, I think it would easily serve 6. As an appetizer, it would serve more. Also, I used one pound of crab rather than the two pounds called for in the recipe.
The author of the recipe suggests serving it on crackers, on lettuce, or in puff pastry shells.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds crab meat
- 2 & 1/2 cups of chopped celery
- 8 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons of celery seed
- 1 pinch paprika
- 2 & 1/2 tablespoons of white sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 2 teaspoons of dried parsley
Directions
In a large bowl, combine the crabmeat, celery, mayonnaise, celery seed, paprika, sugar, pepper, Old Bay, and parsley. Mix well, and refrigerate until chilled.
The author of the recipe suggests serving it on crackers, on lettuce, or in puff pastry shells.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds crab meat
- 2 & 1/2 cups of chopped celery
- 8 tablespoons mayonnaise
- 2 teaspoons of celery seed
- 1 pinch paprika
- 2 & 1/2 tablespoons of white sugar
- 1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
- 2 teaspoons of dried parsley
Directions
In a large bowl, combine the crabmeat, celery, mayonnaise, celery seed, paprika, sugar, pepper, Old Bay, and parsley. Mix well, and refrigerate until chilled.
Friday, May 4, 2012
Maemi Peruvian Cuisine - Edible, But Forgettable
After reading a review of Maemi Peruvian Cuisine (http://www.maemiperu.com/) at 1535 Main St. in Sarasota, we decided to give it a try. While our meal was decent, we would not return. The appetizer and a side dish were terrific, but our entrées were unexciting.
Our meal started out with a free amuse-bouche of large, crisp kernels of corn with a spicy mustard sauce. It was delicious.
We then shared an appetizer that was wonderful - Tamales - crushed Peruvian corn stuffed with pork and covered with a sauce of tomatoes, onions, and lemon juice for $5.99. It can also be ordered with chicken rather than pork. These tamales are very different from Mexican tamales.
My wife thought she was ordering an entrée called, "Tacu Tacu con Seco," which was described as "slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce, over mixed rice and beans." She asked for "the slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce." It turns out that there is another entrée called, "Seco de Cordero," which is also described as "slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce." The latter description does not include the mixed rice and beans. Are you confused yet? She received the latter dish which came with sticky white rice and steamed potatoes. The lamb was very tender, but the sauce was tasteless and the flavor of cilantro was undetectable. The dish cost $15.99.
She had a side dish of Platanos Maduros (ripe plantains). It is a dish that she loves, and this version met her expectations.
My entrée was seafood fried rice (Arroz Chaufa de Mariscos) for $16.99. The portion was large, but the taste was nothing special.
The chef/owner is a Peruvian whose heritage is partially Japanese. (There is a large Japanese-Peruvian community.) Consequently, the menu includes some items of Japanese origin, including edamame, tempura appetizers, spring rolls, miso soup, tofu salad, and seafood salad.
Two wines were available - merlot and chardonnay. We each had a glass of merlot for $6.99. It was decent.
There were only two desserts - dulce de leche and another which I don't remember. We passed on the desserts.
Our meal started out with a free amuse-bouche of large, crisp kernels of corn with a spicy mustard sauce. It was delicious.
We then shared an appetizer that was wonderful - Tamales - crushed Peruvian corn stuffed with pork and covered with a sauce of tomatoes, onions, and lemon juice for $5.99. It can also be ordered with chicken rather than pork. These tamales are very different from Mexican tamales.
My wife thought she was ordering an entrée called, "Tacu Tacu con Seco," which was described as "slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce, over mixed rice and beans." She asked for "the slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce." It turns out that there is another entrée called, "Seco de Cordero," which is also described as "slow-braised lamb with cilantro sauce." The latter description does not include the mixed rice and beans. Are you confused yet? She received the latter dish which came with sticky white rice and steamed potatoes. The lamb was very tender, but the sauce was tasteless and the flavor of cilantro was undetectable. The dish cost $15.99.
She had a side dish of Platanos Maduros (ripe plantains). It is a dish that she loves, and this version met her expectations.
My entrée was seafood fried rice (Arroz Chaufa de Mariscos) for $16.99. The portion was large, but the taste was nothing special.
The chef/owner is a Peruvian whose heritage is partially Japanese. (There is a large Japanese-Peruvian community.) Consequently, the menu includes some items of Japanese origin, including edamame, tempura appetizers, spring rolls, miso soup, tofu salad, and seafood salad.
Two wines were available - merlot and chardonnay. We each had a glass of merlot for $6.99. It was decent.
There were only two desserts - dulce de leche and another which I don't remember. We passed on the desserts.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Cape Malay Curry - A Fantastic South African Stew
Tonight, I prepared a fantastic South African curry meat stew - South African Cape Malay Curry (Bo-Kaap Cape Malay Kerrie). It is a wonderful mix of sweet and savory flavors. Although it has a lot of ingredients, it is very easy to make.
The dish originated with the ethnic Indonesians and Indians who were brought to South Africa as slaves in the 17th Century. They are known as Cape Malays.
I found two recipes for this dish:
1. From food.com. This one appears to be authentic. (http://www.food.com/recipe/bo-kaap-cape-malay-kerrie-south-african-cape-malay-curry-289231)
The version I made is a mix of these two recipes. There were a couple of items that I meant to include from the food.com version, but forgot - carrots and tomato paste.
I served the stew over long grain, saffron, yellow rice.
Below is a table that compares the ingredients of the three versions. Below the table are the directions for the way I prepared the dish.
Ingredients
|
Food.com
|
CL
|
Mine
|
Comments
|
Lamb
|
x
|
Not at supermarket
| ||
Beef
|
x
|
x
| ||
Canola oil
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Onions
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Garlic
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Fresh ginger
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Curry powder
|
x
|
x
| ||
Coriander
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Cumin
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Turmeric
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Cinnamon
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Salt
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Pepper
|
x
| |||
Chili powder
|
x
|
x
| ||
Cloves
|
x
| |||
Bay leaves
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Carrots
|
x
| |||
Dried apricots
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Bell pepper
|
x
|
x
| ||
Banana
|
x
|
x
| ||
Tomato paste
|
x
|
x
| ||
Wine vinegar
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Beef stock
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Water
|
x
|
I added more beef stock instead
| ||
Apricot jam
|
x
|
x
|
x
| |
Yoghurt
|
x
|
x
| ||
Buttermilk
|
x
|
Instead of yoghurt
|
My Ingredients and Directions
Serves - 3-4
Ingredients
1 lb stew beef, cut into small pieces
1 diced Bell pepper
2 cups diced onion
1 sliced banana
1 large garlic clove
1.5 tablespoons fresh ginger
1.5 teaspoons chili powder
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1.5 teaspoons ground coriander
1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon curry powder
1.5 teaspoons ground turmeric
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Canola oil
2 bay leaves
2 ¼ cups meat stock
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
1/3 cup apricot jam/fruit spread
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons plain yoghurt
Next time, I will add:
- 2 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon of fresh ground black pepper
Directions
Heat the oil in a large pot or saucepan.
Over high heat, fry the onions and garlic in a large pot, stirring continuously. Add the ginger, curry powder and all the spices and continue stirring for a minute. Season to taste with pepper and add the salt.
In a separate pan, fry the meat until it is browned on all sides.
Add the vinegar and stock, plus all the other remaining ingredients (except the apricot jam and yoghurt). Cover. Reduce heat. Simmer over a low heat, stirring occasionally, until everything is tender, approximately 1 1/2 hours.
Stir in the apricot jam and the yoghurt a few minutes before serving.
Serve this curry over yellow rice
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