Singapore Noodles
Courtesy of Lu Lu Seafood and Dim Sum
Serves 2

1 lb. baby shrimp, peeled, deveined, rinsed and drained
1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into ¼-inch strips
2 Tbsp. thin soy sauce
¼ cup white wine
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
½ tsp. ground white pepper
Canola oil
1 Tbsp. freshly minced ginger
½ cup scallions, cut into 1-inch strips
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
½ lb. bean sprouts
1 red bell pepper, de-stemmed, de-seeded and julienned
1 onion, peeled and julienned
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 lb. thin rice noodles, soaked in cold water for 2 hours and drained
2 Tbsp. Madras curry powder

• Place the shrimp and chicken in a medium-size bowl. Add the soy sauce, white wine, cornstarch and white pepper and stir to coat. Let marinate in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
• Place a wok over medium-high heat and coat with canola oil. When the oil is hot, add the ginger, scallions and garlic, and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
• Add the shrimp and chicken (with their marinade) to the oil, and stir-fry quickly for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Remove the shrimp and chicken from the wok and set aside.
• Add the bean sprouts, bell pepper and onion to the hot wok. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and stir-fry for 1 minute. Remove from the wok and set aside.
• Wipe the wok clean and coat well with a new layer of canola oil. When the oil is smoking hot, add the eggs and rotate the pan so as to quickly spread the egg into a pancake shape. While the egg is still partially fluid, add the rice noodles to the wok.
• Stir and fold the noodles and egg into small pieces, so they are uniformly dispersed. Continue to stir to keep the noodles from sticking to the pan.
• Add the curry powder. When the noodles are steaming hot, add the shrimp, chicken and vegetables back into the wok, and stir until everything is steaming hot.
• Serve immediately.

Lu Lu Seafood and Dim Sum, 8224 Olive Blvd., U City, 314.997.3108, luluseafood.com

— photo by Carmen Troesser

Anyone can whip up a pint (plus a bit to spare) of this tart pantry perk, but it takes some serious willpower not to grab a spoon and eat the entire silky spread straight from the pan. Spread it on toast, scones, biscuits, pancakes, crepes or French toast, stir it into plain yogurt, or use it to spike your morning parfait.

Get the recipe for Lemon Curd, here.

— photo by Greg Rannells

Chicken pot pie doesn’t have to be an all-day affair. The secret to a bowl of creamy comfort in less than an hour: frozen puff pastry and a rotisserie chicken from the market. Find the quick and easy recipe for Rotisserie Chicken Pot Pie here.

Had no idea what that grocery store rotisserie chicken could do? Click here to find another reason to fall in love with this secret ingredient.

— photo by Jonathan Gayman

So you’ve danced the night away, and you’re hungry. Before you ruin a week’s worth of diet and exercise in a pepperoni-pizza binge, feast on shakshuka (shahk-SHOO-kah), a popular eggy Israeli dinner and the world’s most perfect drunk food. It’s fabulously fun to say, doesn’t require precise measuring and hits the spot when you’re craving some savory sustenance after a long, martini-laden night out. Traditional recipes call for sauteed chiles, but a teaspoon of Sriracha does the job with no extra effort. You can also simplify the entire dish by substituting jarred pasta sauce for the tomatoes and spices. Sober enough to really cook? Add chiles, diced red peppers, capers, olives or spinach. No matter how you prepare it, shakshuka is so good for you, you’ll have no regrets in the morning.

Get the recipe for shakshuka here.

Boozy Bonus: One skillet and one bowl means you won’t be cursing a sink full of dishes in the morning. Because who are you kidding? Clean up is so not happening tonight.

We love drinking Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day just as much as you do, but sometimes a cocktail is also a must. To keep with the spirit of the shamrock-shaded holiday, we recommend The Royale Food & Spirits‘ Subcontinental. Find the recipe here.

Don’t feel like making it? Start your holiday early and find a spot on The Royale’s patio this afternoon.

— photo by Geoff Cardin

We appreciate romaine for all its roughage, but we’d rather opt for a salad because it’s exquisite, not because it’s a dieter’s requisite. This lettuce-less salad – a feast for both eyes and appetite – is proof positive that a salad can be more than a mélange of rabbit food.

Find the recipe for this Orange and Beet Salad here.

— photo by Carmen Troesser

We appreciate romaine for all its roughage, but we’d rather opt for a salad because it’s exquisite, not because it’s a dieter’s requisite. This lettuce-less salad – a feast for both eyes and appetite – is proof positive that a salad can be more than a mélange of rabbit food.

Find the recipe for this Apricot, Coconut And Mint Salad here.

— photo by Carmen Troesser

In decades past, uncoated cast iron stayed in the kitchen while its prettier, enameled cousin got to take the esteemed trip out to the dining room. But chef Justin Haifley likes the rustic look of the skillets on his tables at The Tavern Kitchen and Bar, where cozy, comfort food is given a contemporary bent. In fact, individually sized cast-iron dishes replace shiny white plates for all of the side dishes and most of the desserts at the Valley Park restaurant. Like Haifley’s truffle mushroom mac-n-cheese – a rich combination of a basic roux to which Haifley stirs in half-and-half and a little Parmesan, followed by cremini mushrooms, sharp green onions, a little fresh thyme and a glug of Madeira wine. This ultimate carb indulgence gets capped with an ode to the decadent: deeply earthy, garlicky truffle oil.

Click here to read the rest of March’s feature “The Iron Lady: When it comes to kitchen affairs, this grande dame rules.”

Get the recipe for Haifley’s Truffle Mushroom Mac-N-Cheese here.

— photo by Carmen Troesser

February is a time of love and laurels. This Sunday, we’ll celebrate our country’s love of passing the pigskin and the sport’s ultimate accomplishment: raising that golden football high in the sky. A week later, with the sounds of whistles still ringing in our ears, we’ll gather for the music industry’s mecca, squealing with delight (and sometimes dismay) as new kings and queens of pop are crowned. But who can concentrate on Lady Gaga’s latest spectacle when our Oscar ballots (and worst-dressed predictions) have yet to be filled out?

All this crowd-gathering hoopla means February is a time for appetizer-filled parties – that tricky segment of entertaining which calls for quick-to-make, easy-to-grab snacks that all too often lack excitement, imagination and, well, flavor. But the buck stops here. This month, we’re taking the classic pizza roll we all know and love from childhood (and our penniless college days) and breaking it down into ingredients we can actually pronounce – and flavors you actually salivate over.

The most challenging part of making (or remaking) this beloved after-school snack wasn’t trying to make a suitable substitute for those tongue-tying ingredients. That was fairly simple. The stumper was finding a way to do so that could compete with the original’s prep convenience: i.e. just popping them in the oven. The solution? Wonton wrappers. Though these delicate sheets yield a slightly bigger and longer version than the little bundles pulled from a cardboard box, they also lend a crispy crunch around the edges that is a nice complement to the ooey, gooey center. But be warned: Sealing the edges can be a bit tricky, so make sure you use plenty of egg white and pinch together firmly. You might even seal the edges with a fork.

Then again, what’s a pizza roll without a little cheesy spillage on the foil? That was always my favorite part.

Click here to find the recipes for pizza rolls made with pepperoni, pepperoni and sausage, mushroom and cheese, and sausage and broccolini fillings.

— photo by Kristi Schiffman

Eaten a dish at an area restaurant that you’d do just about anything to make at home? Send us an email at pr@saucemagazine.com to tell us about it. Then let us do our best to deliver the recipe and make it one of your New Classics.

Gnocchi de Patata Alla Romagnola
Courtesy of Trattoria Marcella’s Steve Komorek
6 Servings

For the sauce:

4 lbs. boneless pork shoulder, cleaned of excess fat and cut into 2- to 3-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup all-purpose flour
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 Tbsp. freshly minced garlic
2 lbs. cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 cup red wine
2 28-oz. cans plum tomatoes, crushed
5 cups chicken broth

For the gnocchi:

2 lbs. russet potatoes, scrubbed
¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more as needed
¼ cup egg (1 to 2 large eggs), lightly beaten
Kosher salt to taste
Pecorino cheese, grated

• Season the pork with salt and pepper. Dredge it in flour and shake off the excess.
• Coat a large saucepot with olive oil. Working in batches, brown the pork on all sides and transfer to a plate.
• Add the onions, carrots and celery to the pot and saute until tender. Add the garlic and mushrooms, and saute until the mushrooms are soft. Add the red wine and reduce the heat.
• Add the tomatoes, chicken broth and browned pork to the pot. Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover and let simmer for 1 hour, or until the pork is fork-tender. Season to taste and set the sauce aside.
• To make the gnocchi: Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook until they’re fork-tender, about 45 minutes. Remove the potatoes from the pot and peel while they’re still hot.
• Use a ricer to shred the potatoes, or use a towel to shave them over the large holes of a box grater.
• Dust a clean workspace with flour. Create a mound with the potatoes and season lightly with salt. Create a well in the middle of the mound.
• Inside the well, place the beaten egg and ¾ cup of flour. Using your hands, slowly and gently fold the potato into the flour and egg. Once the mixture is well-blended, gently knead the dough. Dust more flour on top as you knead if the dough feels sticky. The dough is ready when it’s slightly moist but firm.
• Divide the dough into 8 equal sections, and roll each section into a strand the width of your index finger. Gently cut each strand into pieces slightly less than 1-inch long. To texture the gnocchi, roll it over a fork and press down gently.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Drop no more than 2 handfuls of gnocchi into the boiling water at a time. The gnocchi will float to the top when they’re finished. Remove from heat. Once all of the gnocchi have been removed, toss them in the sauce* and top with grated pecorino cheese.

* You will likely have sauce leftover, as this recipe yields 6 quarts of sauce. It will keep, refrigerated, in an airtight container for 1 week.

— photo by Jonathan Gayman