Creamy Seafood Chowder

Following the tomato version that I made last month, Tezerina shared a creamy version with me. Her hubby prefers this to the tomato version. I had planned to try it this week but our friend D cooked us a very similar version when we went to their place for dinner last week. Anyway, I thought I would still give it a go and I loved it!

Creamy seafood chowder with homemade crusty garlic bread (in the background)

(Adapted from Taste)
1 onion, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
1 stick celery*, sliced
3 potatoes, peeled, roughly chopped
750ml chicken stock**
1 can corn kernels***
500g marinara mix****
200ml light thickened cream
half a handful of chopped fresh chives (dried chives is fine)
half a handful of chopped fresh flat-leafed parsley (dried parsley is fine)
bread of your choice - try something you have not eaten before

You can buy loose celery sticks that comes like that (in the photo). Buy how ever many you want, so you don't have to worry about having lots left over

Heat a large saucepan or soup pot. When the pot is hot, add a good drizzle of olive oil. (Take note NOT to add olive oil and allow it to heat up too long before you put in other ingredients. It is unlike asian cooking where you add the cooking oil and allow it to heat up) Add onion, carrot and celery and cook until fragrant. Add potatoes, water and chicken stock. Cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 10-15 mins until the veggies are tender. Cool the mixture slightly and blend (I used a convenient stick blender) until smooth. Return soup to the pot.

Add corn kernels, marinara mix and cream. Stir without boiling for about 3 mins or until seafood is cooked. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir through chives and parsley. Serve immediately with toasted bread. (I love garlic bread)


*You may buy loose celery sticks from supermarkets. However, the most common ones are whole celery or half celery. I bought the loose ones since I hardly use celery (I don't like them unless they are soft, cooked and tasteless). I did not want to have lots left over and end up not using them. They cost me A$2.67/kg at Woolies.

**I used 2 tsp of Massel stock powder and 1 L of water. Alternatively, use store-bought liquid stock. Use fish stock if you can get hold of it.

***I didn't have any corn at home and I didn't want to pop by the supermarket just to buy a can of corn. I used a can of cannellini beans which I had in my pantry. I also decided to throw in some frozen peas at the last minute to boost my vegetable intake.

****Marinara mix was on sale at 50% off of $7+/kg at Woolies last week.

What we had last week at D's place. Her recipe is very similar except that hers is thicker. I think I added a bit too much water in mine :p

Shopping in the UQ area & Easy Cooking Methods

 (anonymous contributor who lives in St Lucia)

Especially now that the Hawken Drive Coles has changed to a Foodworks (summer 2009-10), its prices won't generally be as competitive as Toowong Village Coles or Toowong Woolworths. Of course Foodworks' location makes it convenient to pick up some items - as does the location of Chai's convenience store and takeaway on the corner of Mitre St and Sir Fred Schonell Drv.

Chai's is a St Lucia institution (!) and sells almost everything the larger stores do, as well as some things that they don't (Asian groceries) - but you have to consider whether the cost of transport to Toowong balances out the mark-up you'll pay on Convenience store items.

Many students like to buy their perishables from the West End markets on Saturday mornings - and catch the bus, train, or City Cat (ferry) to do so.

The butcher and fruit and veg deli in Toowong Village foodcourt are also competitive.

Otherwise Toowong Woollies usually marks down meat and dairy products daily - more so than Coles seems to - so you can often grab a decent bargain.

Do respect the laws concerning NOT removing shopping trolleys from shopping centres though! It is illegal to do so, and ultimately this form of stealing results in price mark-ups within the supermarkets in order to recover the costs for retrieving stolen trolleys. This affects you (as well as your fellow shoppers) and is not a very thoughtful way to assimilate into living and studying in Australia!

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Grilling

Grilling is one of the simplest and easiest ways to cook a meal; it takes little preparation and is healthy (no extra oil needed) and quick.

Good cuts of meat to grill include chops (lamb and pork), cutlets, chicken breast fillets, and ribs - so yes, you'll end up with a western style meal - depending on what you marinate your meat in, and whether you serve it with rice or potatoes!

Marinate or season the meat with basically anything - sauces or spice / seasoning powders - whatever you have in the cupboard or fridge that takes your fancy, and for as many or as few hours or minutes as you can.

Line a baking tray with foil or baking paper (to make it easier to wash when you're done), stick your meat onto it, and grill! You can use the grill setting in your oven, a portable counter-top grill, or a BBQ grill plate - they'll all do a similar job. 180 degrees C is a good rule of thumb temperature, and you might need or want to turn the meat over half-way (especially chicken breast).

Take care to grill white meats till they're white through, and red meats to taste. Beware of over-grilling the meat though - a few minutes can turn it from succulent to dry and stringy.

Supermarket meat packs will often have grilling instructions (temperature and time) listed on them, otherwise ask the butcher at point of purchase.

Slice up veggies (zucchini, eggplant, capsicum, squash, mushrooms, beans are all good options) to grill also (on a different tray from your raw meat, with a hint of salt / seasoning / lemon juice) and add some carbs on the side if you really need them!

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Roasting

Cooking a roast is also exceptionally easy. It can literally be as simple as:
- buying a pre-marinaded cut of roasting meat (eg. beef, whole chicken or chicken pieces, lamb leg); Toowong Woollies often marks down roast cuts
- sticking it in a large baking / roasting pan
- surrounding it with chunks of roasting veggies that you've peeled, cut up, and coated (but not soaked) in vegetable oil (onion, potatoes of any kind, pumpkin, carrots, turnips, parsnips, peeled whole garlic cloves, etc)
- sticking the pan into a pre-heated oven (often 180 deg C) for as long as the meat packet or butcher says (often 60 minutes per kg of meat)
- carving the meat up, serving it with your veggies (you can add peas and gravy) and eating it!

If you want to be adventurous buy un-marinated meat and season it yourself - salt and pepper, herbs, chilli, garlic, lemon juice, etc.

Another option is to put all your raw ingredients in a roasting bag (look in the Cling Wrap / foil / baking paper section of the supermarket) which you tie up and pierce with steam-ventilation holes before placing into the pan. This keeps all the juices together, not to mention reducing the washing up mess a whole lot!

And leftovers can be re-heated, or used to make pies or soups.