The Galley

Ahi Poke Bowls

Ready for a boat meal that checks all the boxes? Well, here it is… the Ahi Tuna Poke Bowl. This is a favorite because it is easy, cost-efficient, delicious, and exactly what you want to eat on a hot summer night. All of the ingredients, except the rice and avocado, can be prepared in advance. Fresh tuna should be eaten within the day of purchase. Now, let’s put it all together! This is how I build mine.

Ingredients:

  • Sushi grade Ahi tuna diced into one-inch cubes (a pound of tuna should serve 4 people)
  • 1/4 cup Soy sauce
  • 2 Scallions diced
  • Sesame oil (1 tbsp)
  • Edamame (one bag steamed and shelled)
  • English cucumber halved and sliced thin
  • Thinly sliced radishes
  • Avocado (one quarter per person)
  • Cooked white rice (one cup per person)
  • Sriracha Mayo (one cup of mayo to 3 tbs of sriracha with a squeeze of lemon. Adjust to personal taste. Sesame seeds and chopped green onions for garnish
Instructions:
This will be brief (isn’t that the best!)
  • In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise sriracha and a squeeze of lemon. Thin with a bit of water to drizzle if it is too dense.
  • In a medium bowl, combine tuna with scallions, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Gently toss to combine and set aside while you prepare the bowls.
  • In bowls, layer 1/2 the rice, 1/2 the tuna, avocado, cucumber, edamame and radishes.
  • Drizzle with spicy mayo, green onions, and sesame seeds.

Seafood Chowder

Yesterday we celebrated my sister’s birthday with the whole family. I asked her, beforehand, what she wanted me to make her and she quickly replied. My seafood chowder. Done! This is a perfect dish where you can prep everything ahead of time and just drop whatever fish and shellfish in right before serving and you are good to go. This is a fantastic boat meal because the base freezes beautifully and you then can purvey a local seafood market wherever you are and in a very short time you have a luxurious boat meal. Get creative and mix and match what is available and seasonal. Here is what I did today…

Ingredients (reprinted from Barefoot Contessa Cookbook)

  • 3 tablespoons good olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 small)
  • 2 cups large-diced small white potatoes
  • 2 cups chopped fennel (1 large bulb)
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups good white wine
  • 1 (28-ounce) can plum tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 quart Seafood Stock, recipe follows, or store-bought fish stock
  • 1 tablespoon chopped garlic (3 cloves)
  • 1 teaspoon saffron threads
  • 1 pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined (reserve the shells for the stock)
  • 1 pound each halibut and bass fillets, cut in large chunks
  • 24 mussels, cleaned
  • 3 tablespoons Pernod
  • 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
  • Toasted baguette slices, buttered and rubbed with garlic

Seafood Stock:

  • 2 tablespoons good olive oil
  • Shells from 1 pound large shrimp
  • 2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
  • 2 carrots, unpeeled and chopped
  • 3 stalks celery, chopped
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 1/2 quarts water
  • 1/2 cup good white wine
  • 1/3 cup tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black
  • 10 sprigs fresh thyme, including stems
Directions:
Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or stockpot, add the onions, potatoes, fennel, salt, and pepper, and sauté over medium-low heat for 15 minutes, until the onions begin to brown. Add the wine and scrape up the brown bits with a wooden spoon. Add the tomatoes with their juices, stock, garlic, and saffron to the pot, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. Add the shrimp, fish, and mussels, bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the pot to sit covered for another 5 minutes. The fish and shrimp should be cooked and the mussels opened. Discard any mussels that don’t open. Stir in the Pernod, orange zest, and salt, to taste. Serve ladled over 1 or 2 slices of toasted baguette.
 
Seafood Stock:
Yield: 1 quart
 
Warm the oil in the pan over medium heat. Add the shrimp shells, onions, carrots, and celery over medium heat for 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook 2 more minutes. Add 1 1/2 quarts of water, good white wine, tomato paste, salt, pepper, and thyme. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Strain through a sieve, pressing the solids. You should have approximately 1 quart of stock. If not, you can make up the difference with water or white wine.

Cobb Salad

We have been having some outstanding March days, making me want to put aside the heavy sauces and braised meat for a lighter meal that is easy to put on the table while everyone takes advantage of the weather and works on boats. All components of this dish can be made in advance and assembled more quickly than you can mix up your favorite libation to accompany it. I did not put down quantities of the ingredients as it can made for two people or a large group. Adjust as needed. 

Ingredients 

  • Hard-boiled eggs

  • Bacon

  • Grilled chicken breast ( or go ahead and chest and grab a rotisserie. I won’t tell!)

  • Red onion

  • Cucumbers 

  • Avocados

  • Cherry Tomatoes 

  • Romaine lettuce 

  • Crumbled Blue Cheese

  • Balsamic Dijon Dressing (see below)

Dressing 

  • Three tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar 

  • One tablespoon of Dijon Mustard 

  • One head of finely minced or grated garlic 

  • 1/3 cup olive oil

  • Salt and pepper to taste 

Put all ingredients in a mason jar with a lid and shake like crazy! 

Paella

Paella is a classic Spanish rice dish, and outside of being unbelievably delicious, I love it because it is a one-pan dish that is perfect for entertaining. You can play with your proteins. I use chicken thighs,  shrimp, scallops, mussels, and a smoky kielbasa, but many other options can be used. I have had it with calamari, lobster, and chorizo. Play with it and find your favorite combination that would goes with the traditional base of rice, peppers, tomatoes, and saffron. This can be made in a conventional skillet but I purchased a paella pan from Amazon that was very reasonably priced, and I love using it.

  • 2 Peppers diced ( I mix my colors)
  • 1 Onion diced
  • 3 Tomatoes chopped
  • 1 head garlic diced
  • 3-4 boneless and skinless chicken thighs diced up
  • 1/4 pound each of seafood (cooks choice but stay away from flaky fish)
  • 2 cups of Bomba rice (Arborio rice can be substituted) * I purchase my Bomba from Amazon 1/4 cup of White wine
  • 1 Bay leaf Smoked paprika
  • Saffron
  • Olive oil
  • 5 cups Chicken broth
  • Salt and pepper
  • Parsley
  • Lemon

Sauté the peppers and onion until they begin to get soften and then add the tomatoes and aromatics. Cook for a few minutes, add the white wine, and simmer for 10 minutes. Now, you are ready to add your chicken and rice. Combine all the base ingredients. After the base has been melded together, gently add the chicken broth. Give the pan a shake so the ingredients form a single layer, bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to a simmer. Now, the important part…. Do not stir it! You want the bottom to develop a crust. Cook uncovered for 15-20 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice, and then nestle in your seafood. Cover with a lid or tinfoil and cook until the shellfish opens. If you get close to the end and don’t feel like your rice is ready, add more broth. Finish with parsley and lemon. Enjoy!

Caramelized Onions and Roasted Garlic

Not an onion fan? Well this post is not for you because I am going to wax poetically about the caramelized onion. These deep golden-brown gems, with the consistency of a loose jam are truly a thing of beauty. Are they a labor of love? Absolutely. But great things take time and a certain technique to achieve perfection. They have to be babied for about an hour or so but well worth it.

Here’s what you will need….

  • 6-8 Vidalia onions
  • Whole garlic heads
  • Fresh thyme
  • Butter
  • Olive Oil
  • Salt
  • A heavy bottom pot ( or two!)
  • Sharp knife
  • Tin Foil
  • Tissues. There will be tears!

Ok, here we go…

The first thing you need to get started is a really sharp knife. Rough cut onions release an enzyme that reacts to the water in your eyes. The sharper the knife, the fewer enzymes released. Another eye relief strategy is to freeze your onions for 30 minutes before cutting. While both of these strategies help, you still may tear up but it’s worth it. I like to use this time to tell my boys how much I love them with tears running down my face. It never gets old (for me).

So let’s grab those onions and get started. Peel and cut onions in half. Once prepped using that sharp knife mentioned above – slice your onions as thinly as possible while concentrating on the consistency of the slice so when you are cooking, they all caramelize at the same time. While doing this add the butter to your pan and let it melt. I do a stick per pan and have never been mad about it. On a medium to low heat start your onions by tossing them in with the butter to coat and add a generous amount of salt. The salt will release the water from the onions to start the process. Now you are good to go. Simple right? Caramelizing is easy.

Some important steps…

Do not leave your onions unattended. Toss them every 15 minutes. 

Adjust your heat. These have to be cooked low and slow so take in the variables. Are you cooking with gas or electric, what kind of power does your stove top put out, what is the thickness of your pan. All of these things will dictate how often you need to babysit them.

When the onions have softened do not walk out of the kitchen. The last step of this process happens fast as the onions’ sugars form. You can go from being almost beautiful to destroyed in a matter of minutes. I speak from experience.

When done, spread out on a sheet pan to cool.

Now what?

What are you going to use this jammy goodness for? The possibilities are endless. You can go with traditional French onion soup, which is always a favorite, or you can play with them.

My favorite recipes using the onions.

Baked French onion meatball
halfbakedharvest.com/baked-french-onion-meatballs

Caramelized Onion Dip
howsweeteats.com/2021/04/caramelized-onion-dip

French onion chicken
themodernproper.com/french-onion-chicken