Thursday Food invites you to pull up a chair, open your napkin and chow down on: Steak Bites with Garlic Butter, Thai-Style Spare Ribs, Crispy Baked Scallops, and Crispy Cod Fillets. 

Steak Bites with Garlic Butter

These seared steak bites are cubes of sirloin steak cooked to perfection in a garlic butter sauce. An easy meal or party snack that’s ready in just minutes!

Ingredients:

1 1/4 lb sirloin steak cut into small cubes

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp butter

2 tsp minced garlic

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp minced parsley 

Method:

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over high heat. Season the steak with salt and pepper to taste.

Place the steak in the pan in a single layer; you may have to work in batches depending on the size of your pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. Repeat with remaining meat if needed.

Add the butter and garlic to the pan; cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring to coat the meat in the sauce.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve. 

Thai-Style Spare Ribs

Ingredients:

2 racks of baby back ribs, 3 to 4 lb, halved lengthwise to make 3-inch ribs

2 tsp kosher salt

3 tbsp honey

2 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp tamarind paste or hoisin sauce

1 tsp toasted sesame oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp ginger, grated

½ tsp crushed red pepper

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp cinnamon

Pinch of grated nutmeg

Pinch of cayenne

2 tbsp Shaoxing cooking wine, mirin or sherry

3 tbsp garlic chives or scallions, chopped for garnish

3 tsp cilantro leaves and tender stems, chopped for garnish 

Method:

Lay the ribs flat in a roasting pan. (You will have 4 long pieces.) Season lightly with salt on both sides.

Make the marinade: In a small bowl, combine honey, soy sauce, tamarind paste, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, red pepper, black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg and cayenne. Add the wine and 1/4 cup hot water and whisk well.

Pour marinade over ribs to completely coat. Marinate at room temperature for 2 hours, turning once or twice, or cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 250 degrees F. Transfer the roasting pan, uncovered, to the rack. Roast ribs for 1 1/2 hours, basting with pan juices and turning ribs over every 20 minutes or so. If pan juices seem to be drying out or burning, add a little water to the pan. (Alternatively, cook ribs over indirect heat in a covered charcoal grill, turning ribs every 20 minutes or so.)

Pour juices from the roasting pan into a small saucepan. Spoon off fat from surface of sauce, then simmer sauce for a few minutes until slightly thickened, then use the juices to paint the ribs.

Turn up oven heat to 400 degrees F. Return ribs to oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until nicely glazed. (Alternatively, return ribs to the grill to glaze.)

Use a sharp knife to divide ribs, cutting between the bones. Pile ribs onto a platter, sprinkle with garlic chives and cilantro, and serve. 

Crispy Baked Scallops

Crispy Baked Scallops are buttery and crispy with panko, Parmesan cheese, paprika, butter and olive oil baked in just 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

16 large sea scallops, (1 – 1 1/2 lb)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp coarse ground black pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

4 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

2 tbsp parsley, chopped

4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 

Method:

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Dry scallops well with paper towel and remove any attached side-muscle on the scallop by pinching and tearing it away from the scallop (the muscle is much tougher to eat than the scallop).

Combine the salt, pepper, paprika, cayenne, panko, Parmesan, parsley, olive oil, and butter in a bowl stirring well until combined.

Place the scallops into an 8×10 baking dish, then cover with the bread crumb mixture.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the topping is browned. 

Crispy Cod Fillets

Thick, tender cod fillets, a crispy, crunchy panko coating, and a from-scratch tangy tartar sauce take the mundane to simply marvellous in just about half-an-hour.

Ingredients:

Combine:

¾ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup minced dill pickles

1 tbsp each minced capers and fresh parsley

1 tsp minced lemon zest

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 tsp Dijon mustard

¾ tsp black pepper

½ tsp kosher salt

⅛ tsp cayenne pepper

Place:

1 ½ cups panko bread crumbs

½ cup all-purpose flour

Whisk:

3 eggs

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

4 cod fillets (6 oz each), seasoned with salt and black pepper

Heat:

Vegetable oil 

Method:

Preheat oven to 300°F.

Combine mayonnaise, pickles, capers, parsley, zest, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon Dijon, black pepper, salt, and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne for the tartar sauce.

Place flour and panko in two separate shallow dishes.

Whisk together eggs, 1 tablespoon Dijon, and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne in a third shallow dish.

Dredge each fillet in flour, dip into egg mixture, then dredge in panko.

Heat enough oil to cover the bottom of an ovenproof skillet over medium-high. Add fillets; fry until deep golden brown, 5–6 minutes. Gently flip fillets; transfer skillet to oven.

Bake fillets until a thermometer inserted into centres registers 145°F, 4-6 minutes; transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate. Serve fillets with tartar sauce. 

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