Monthly Archives: July 2019

Battered Onion Rings and Squash Blossoms with Potato Kimchi Filling Recipe

I saw these squash blossoms and I had to buy them. I knew that I wasn’t going to stuff them with cheese like everyone else does so I came up with a delicious tasty kimchi potato filling. when I got out the squash blossoms I saw that they were tiny and would be hard to stuff……but I stuffed them anyway. Then I looked around and thought that I can use the same tasty filling to stuff onions so I did. I played around with the batter…..I kind of like it better thinner on the blossoms and thicker for the stuffed onions…..I don’t want to confuse anyone but will give you the thin batter recipe here (very thin batter was 1/2 c flour, 1/2 c. corn starch, 1/4 t salt, 1/4 t pepper, 1 egg and 1 cup very cold seltzer but this is very thin but very crisp…only good for the blossoms) Down below is the thick batter recipe…I think if your picking one..then it’s the one to do. Also don’t worry about buying squash blossoms………Only use them if you have them because they are expensive and the onion rings add a nice taste and are tastier.

Ingredients for around 20 servings

12 squash blossoms (you have to remove the yellow thing in the back of the flower…see in picture below)

1 medium or small sweet onion – peeled – cut across around 4 times to make thick onion rings

1 lb potatoes – peeled – cut in quarters – boiled till soft and mashed

3/4 cup kimchi

1 Tablespoon gochujang

1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup corn starch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 egg – lightly beaten

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup seltzer (very cold)

canola oil to fry

Directions

Get your oil on 350 degrees F.

If you didn’t prepare the potatoes do that now. Peel and quarter the potatoes. Cover well with water and bring to a medium boil till the potatoes are fork tender. (usually around 15 minutes…could be more or less depending on size and boil) (((I didn’t worry about boiling with salt because the ingredients we are adding have lots of salt in them)))

While the potatoes are cooking remove the yellow things from the inside of the flowers by splitting the flower down the middle and removing the yellow thing. Put them to the side.

By now the potatoes are done so add kimchi, vinegar and gochujang to mashed potatoes and put to the side. When cool enough to handle stuff the flowers first till you run out of flowers. Only purchase LARGE flowers because these tiny ones are very hard to stuff.

Use the rest of the filling to stuff onion rings. (one I double stuffed)

When your oil is hot you can make the batter. In a small bowl add the flour, corn starch, salt, pepper, egg, baking powder and seltzer. Mix well. USE A TONG and dip stuffed flower or onion in the batter and shake off the excess. Fry until golden and repeat till you are done.

Battered Onion Rings and Squash Blossoms stuffed with Kimchi Potato filling

These are very tasty and really different! These have a lot of flavor and I don’t really think you need a sauce……..but if you want…….a little sriracha mayo, a mild mustard or a sweetened soy ginger sauce might be tasty here!

Enjoy!

The Forking Truth

NEW Restaurant Alert – Upper West Side of Phoenix – Matty G’s is Open in Glendale AZ – Burgers – Beer and Spirits*****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS

*****UPDATE NOW CLOSED*******Matty G’s Steakburgers and Spirits Restaurant recently opened in the upper west side of Glendale Arizona. This is a casual family restaurant with a sports theme atmosphere. You get full service at the bar or pick a table and order and pay at the bar. The menu is mostly burgers. They use grass fed beef. They serve most but not all burgers as two 4oz patties on a bun. They have a full bar and also offer milk shakes made with frozen custard.

I went for one of the non-burger options and got a “Birdie” combo platter.

I had my choice of fried or grilled chicken and went for grilled. They caramelized the chicken breast and it went on a soft toasted bun with fry sauce, lettuce and tomato. I picked onion rings as my side. The sandwich is tasty. It’s ever so slightly over cooked but not bad. The onion rings are very hardy with a heavy breaded coating. They serve the onion rings with a ranch style dipping sauce.

My husband got the “All Star” platter as a combo.

He got two nicely caramelized beef patties that were sandwiched with a slice of American cheese and a slice of bacon. The patties were topped with good sized pile of grilled onions and all this was on a toasted soft bun. His platter came with a mountain of garlic parmesan skinny battered fries and sides of fry sauce.

Matty G’s is NOW OPEN in Glendale

******UPDATE NOW CLOSED*********

I haven’t found a website for Matty G’s but they are on Facebook.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Agave del Scottsdale in Scottsdale Arizona

Agave del Scottsdale recently opened in the Mercado de Largo Plaza in Scottsdale Arizona. It’s difficult but not impossible to locate the entrance from the parking lot because the only sign is the one pictured above from the other side of the street. (at the moment subject to change) Agave del Scottsdale serves Mexican Cuisine. Everything is fresh made to order. They serve lunch and dinner and Mexican Breakfast on the weekend.

This is the entrance.

A few steps in here is what you see.

The main dining room features beautiful crystal chandeliers. Curio cabinets housing tequila, exposed brick, wooden tables and bright pinkish velvety looking benches.

A few steps latter you come across a tequila serving cart and a wall embellished with stone.

Around the corner is the bar, dining area and beautiful large patio with a nearby water fountain.

This is my view from my seat.

They started us off with three sauces and chips.

Theres tomatillo based salsa, in the middle is a warm bean sauce and on the end is a spicier sauce that’s made with Serrano peppers, habanero and chili de arbol peppers. The sauces seem like they have a slight creaminess or richness to them.

We started out by sharing the Tlacoyos (elongated masa ) de Huitacoche (corn smut also known as corn truffle).

How easy to share! They served us two!

We received TWO blue corn masa that was topped with beans, huitacoche, quest fresco, onions and cilantro. This is very flavorful and tasty. This huitacoche is the same as what I tried in Mexico. This is the real stuff. I think most places use bottled or canned….This is real. The blue corn is special…it’s a little sweeter than yellow..This really is a treat! This is excellent! All the flavors are marvelous. It’s better than how I ate huitacoche in Mexico…There most people just eat it in a tortilla…

For my main I had the Pescado Al Pastor.

I received three double shelled street sized tacos. The seasonal fish today was red snapper. It was marinated and served with pineapple, cilantro and onions. The tacos are well packed with food. The tortillas seemed like fresh made and ran sort of thicker than Mexican tortillas so I only used one tortilla. The tacos weren’t spicy but were tasty.

My husband tried the Huarache Con Carne Asada (elongated open faced masa tortilla).

It’s grilled beef on top of a masa tortilla with a little bit of beans, salsa verde, salsa roja, sour cream (left off at my husband’s request) and quest fresco. This is mildly seasoned. I think the beef would be more flavorful if it had a sear. This plate is for someone with a lighter appetite.

Our server was welcoming and friendly. She spoke English well and seemed well trained on the menu.

That was my trip to Agave Del Scottsdale in Scottsdale AZ.

www.AgaveDelScottsdale.com

Every THING is subject to change and your experience may indeed differ.

The Forking Truth