I am allergic to tilapia and catfish.
I hate coconut and pinenuts.
Pistachios are my fav.
I hate coconut and pinenuts.
Pistachios are my fav.
As mentioned a bit in an above post- try zapping toasted cashews, toasted macadamias, or smokehouse almonds in the Cuisinart until they are coarse, then mix w/ just a wee bit of seasoned flour.
Dip a raw fish fillet, or a raw boneless chicken breast (whole, half or tenders) into seasoned flour, then egg-wash, then press into chopped nuts/seasoned flour mixture, and saute in hot oil- or in some cases, baking works well too.
These nuts add a wonderful crunchy crust to foods, and a huge dimension of flavor!
Dip a raw fish fillet, or a raw boneless chicken breast (whole, half or tenders) into seasoned flour, then egg-wash, then press into chopped nuts/seasoned flour mixture, and saute in hot oil- or in some cases, baking works well too.
These nuts add a wonderful crunchy crust to foods, and a huge dimension of flavor!
Not just fish and chicken, Kevin. Nuts can be used as the final coating for anything that's going to be breaded and fried or baked. Shrimp, for instance. Or veal roulades.
Ya have to be careful with chopping nuts in the food processor. Work with the pulse button in short bursts. Overdue it and you wind up with a paste, because the meats grind too small and combine with the natural oils. Really overdue it and you have nut butter.
In addition to a little flour (which serves more to keep the nuts from clumping) I sometimes mix the ground nuts with grated Parmesan. This adds an additional flavor layer. Plus the cheese melts as soon as it hits the oil, forming a great crust. The fish or whatever then cooks through without drying out or turning greasy.
Ya have to be careful with chopping nuts in the food processor. Work with the pulse button in short bursts. Overdue it and you wind up with a paste, because the meats grind too small and combine with the natural oils. Really overdue it and you have nut butter.
In addition to a little flour (which serves more to keep the nuts from clumping) I sometimes mix the ground nuts with grated Parmesan. This adds an additional flavor layer. Plus the cheese melts as soon as it hits the oil, forming a great crust. The fish or whatever then cooks through without drying out or turning greasy.
Terrific ideas everyone! I love the recipe Mama gave for the cashew and date cookies, and bu the way cookie I make those chocolate chip cookies with coconut that you make, great tasing cookies:p I want to try KYH and Kevin's chopped cashews on some fish or heck maybe even chicken, oh my that really sounds delicious, thanks for so many ideas!Now in honor of Janie's pistasio love let's play around with some ideas for pistachio's!!!
Actually, Cathy, I like pistachios as a breading ingredient even more than cashews.
I'd posted, somewhere at SpicePlace, a great recipe for a pistachio/cranberry biscotti. I'm sure it's available with a search.
Pistachios are very popular in many Mediterranean cusines. The best are grown in Sicily, where they are larger and sweeter than the Turkish type we are used to (which, btw, are grown in California). I wish I could find an American dealer.
Although we tend to think of them as used more for sweets, they're in integral part of savory dishes as well, and are often found in pates and terrines.
Persia and Turkey both have long histories of using pistachios, in both sweet and savory dishes. So you find them used, too, in all the cuisines heavily influenced by those two. Because the Turkish influence didn't stretch that far is one reason that almonds play a greater role in Morrocan cookery than pistachios.
I will post some recipes. But I need to work off-line to do so.
I'd posted, somewhere at SpicePlace, a great recipe for a pistachio/cranberry biscotti. I'm sure it's available with a search.
Pistachios are very popular in many Mediterranean cusines. The best are grown in Sicily, where they are larger and sweeter than the Turkish type we are used to (which, btw, are grown in California). I wish I could find an American dealer.
Although we tend to think of them as used more for sweets, they're in integral part of savory dishes as well, and are often found in pates and terrines.
Persia and Turkey both have long histories of using pistachios, in both sweet and savory dishes. So you find them used, too, in all the cuisines heavily influenced by those two. Because the Turkish influence didn't stretch that far is one reason that almonds play a greater role in Morrocan cookery than pistachios.
I will post some recipes. But I need to work off-line to do so.