The Improv Pot

Have Camera, Will Cook

dsaxena — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 06:39:55 +0000

I haven’t posted an update to this blog in a very long time due to the fact that my camera died an untimely death. I’ve been cooking a whole lot since but didn’t feel compelled to post any updates w/o photos. I bought myself a camera for the holidays so will be updating [...]

Blueberries, Chicken, Pâté

admin — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 01:17:07 +0000

Blueberries were in abundance at the market this week and I picked up a whole flat along and my roommate also scored a large quantity. The best way to enjoy blueberries in my opinion is to simply eat them by the handful, but I really felt like doing something very different with them. [...]

Favas, Falafel, Flatbreads

dsaxena — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 06:46:42 +0000

The weather here in Portland was actually nice and summer-like for a few days and this called for meal that was not too spicy or multi-layered, just simple combinations of foods that are full of freshness and brightness. I had just received my brand new Vitamix the day before so soaked [...]

Strawberry-Cardamom Pork Chop and Accompaniments

dsaxena — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 04:52:11 +0000

I returned home from Saturday’s trip to the the Portland Farmer’s Market with a bounty of vegetables and a whole flat of strawberries to work with. My cooking style is based on mixing local seasonal ingredients with Indian flavors and spices and the strawberries definitely posed a challenge. There’s a passage in the [...]

Hazelnut Milk Braised Pork

dsaxena — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 00:49:58 +0000

Braising is one of my favorite techniques for cooking meat, imparting it with moistness and flavor from the braising liquids. I normally use wine as in this pork roast or a stock but had some hazelnut milk in the fridge that served as inspiration for this Indian-spiced meal.

I started out by mixing [...]

Citrus-Ginger Salmon & Accompaniments

dsaxena — Sun, 08 May 2011 10:12:37 +0000

New Seasons had some gorgeous bright-pink wild-caught salmon steaks on sale at an amazing price of $5.99/lb a few weeks ago so my roommates and I stocked up, picking up several pounds and filling up our little freezer compartment. I defrosted some the night before without any real idea of what I was [...]

On “Asian” Roasted Drumsticks, Immigration, Sustainability

dsaxena — Wed, 04 May 2011 22:12:17 +0000

Roasted Drumsticks, Sticky Chilli Rice, Roasted Carrots and Bok Choi

Dinner on Monday was inspired by some bok-choi I had picked up on a random visit to H-Mart, a small national chain specializing in Asian foods, particularly Korean food. I tend to avoid national chains and do all my shopping locally, but I [...]

Bagels, Board Games, Beer

dsaxena — Mon, 02 May 2011 04:32:48 +0000

Cheese Spread, Bagel, Chives

What an amazingly beautiful day in Portland! It was opening day for the King Famers Market, The mercury hit70F, and I had several friends over for a brunch potluck and board games. The day started off with a visit to the market and my bounty included amazing wood fired [...]

Broccoli Soup with Caramelized Broccoli “Pesto”

dsaxena — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 05:00:28 +0000

Cream of Broccoli Soup, topped with shaved Parmesan

I had an abundance of broccoli in my fridge between what I had from the market and a friend brought over from his garden plot, so I decided to buy even more at the co-op along with some shallots to make a nice rich soup [...]

Slooooow Roasted Chicken

dsaxena — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 03:13:50 +0000

Slow Roasted Chicken

I’ve been made a number of roasts the last few weeks including curried beef, chicken, and pork. Today felt like a chicken day, but instead of doing my normal roast of 475F for 15 minutes followed by 350F until done, I wanted to more of a slow roast, like I [...]