Italian Seafood Salad with Calamari, Scallops and Shrimp

Actually this easy to make salad is delicious year round, but  what I really want you to grasp is that your Combi Steam Oven is ideal for steaming multiple foods at one time and makes prep for salads so much easier. All you have to do is prep the vegetables, steam the seafood, chill them altogether and toss with a nice lemony olive oil dressing….and of course some red chili flakes.

Ingredients

1 - 1lb bag assorted seafood medley, calamari, shrimp & bay scallops (TJ’s or Costco)

2 - small lobster tails, optional, removed from the shell and cut into ¼”  thick slices

½ - fennel bulb, thinly sliced

½ - red onion, thinly sliced

¼ - cup Italian parsley, finely chopped

3 - cloves garlic, pressed or minced

Potato Artichoke Salad

2lbs - small golden potatoes, cut into quarters or rounds

¼ - red onion, finely chopped

½ - cup artichoke hearts, drained and quartered

1 - cup small tomatoes, halved

2 - handfuls arugula or other greens

Preparation

Heat the Combi Steam Oven in the Steam Mode 212 degrees + High Humidity. 

Place the seafood in the solid pan with ½ a cup of water, a splash of white wine and some lemon slices.  Steam for 4 minutes then remove from the oven.Transfer the cooked seafood to a stainless steel bowl and set over ice to stop it cooking and quickly cool it down.

Combine with the chopped vegetables and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Before serving, toss with some fruity olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice and a dash of red chili flakes and  freshly ground pepper.

Potato Artichoke Salad

I always say once you have tasted a potato steamed in the steam oven you will never boil a potato again. There are so many great potato varieties available now and cooking them in steam really brings out the flavor.  Remember never to add mayonnaise to hot potatoes, they must cool first, to hasten the cooling process you can spread them onto a rimmed baking sheet.

Preparation:

Heat the oven in the Steam Mode, place the potatoes in the perforated pan and slide into the oven. Set the timer for 20 minutes and check for doneness, before removing.  Set aside to cool them.

Combine with the onion, artichoke hearts and tomato.  Gently toss with the vinaigrette of your choice then fold in the greens.  Season with salt and pepper before serving.

Larissa Taboryski

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BBQ Pulled Turkey

Turkey pieces slowly braised in a homemade BBQ sauce then pulled off the bone and served with cornbread or soft rolls is a delicious easy dish to prepare and a perfect dish for entertaining. This dish can be cooked covered in Convection or uncovered in the Steam oven.

The homemade BBQ sauce is also key to achieving great flavor with this recipe so begin by preparing the BBQ sauce and let it simmer for about 30 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, season the turkey pieces and set them aside to absorb the flavors. Even though the skin is discarded when shredding the turkey, braising the turkey with the skin on does add to the fat content but most importantly it adds great flavor.

Larissa Taboryski

Ingredients

For the BBQ sauce

2 tbsp butter + 1tbs oil

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine the following ingredients

3/4 cup of apple cider vinegar

¾ cup ketchup

1 Tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp dry mustard powder

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 cup water

For the turkey

2 bone-in turkey thighs or a combination of bone-in  leg and thigh or leg and breast

1 tsp smoked paprika

2 tsp Kosher salt

1 tsp pepper

1 Tbsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce (optional)

Preparation

A large oven-safe pan or Dutch oven is ideal for preparing the sauce then you can just put the turkey pieces into the sauce and transfer the pan to the oven. Otherwise, prepare the sauce in an oven safe casserole, and add the turkey pieces.

Saute the onions in the butter and oil over moderate heat until softened. Stir in the garlic and cook gently for a few minutes then add the remaining sauce ingredients that you have combined. Simmer over a gentle heat for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, season the turkey pieces with paprika, salt, and pepper and set aside.

Heat the oven, Convection Bake 325F (163C) or Steam Braising 325F (163C). 

Add the turkey pieces to the BBQ sauce and stir in the Chipotle Chili pepper if using. These peppers add a wonderful touch of smokey heat to the sauce. Place the pan in the oven (covered if using Convection) and cook for 1 ½ - 2 hours until the meat is very tender and easily falls off the bone.

In order to “pull” the turkey remove the pieces from the hot sauce and set aside to cool. Remove the skin, discard the bones and shred the meat by hand or with a fork and knife. Return to the pulled turkey to the sauce and reheat if needed before serving.

Serves 4 - 6

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