Seared Zucchini With Buttery Lemony Sauce

Sometimes it's hard and just don't enough time to put together a fancy side dish to please the crowd. Especially the case when you have to gather all sorts of ingredients, like to put together a colorful salad. So to tone it down a bit without sacrificing the taste, perhaps this seared zucchini with buttery lemony sauce can come to a rescue.

Seared zucchini with buttery lemony sauce - 

Ingredients?

• 2 medium zucchinis
• 25 grams unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 yellow lemon
• Some salt
• Some black pepper
• Some aged Parmigiano Reggiano (optional)

How?

Wedge the yellow lemon first. We are going to use about half during the cooking process, and save like one or two wedges for garnish in the end.

Trim-off both ends for the zucchinis then slice in half lengthwise. Score the cut-side to make a crosshatch pattern.

Bring out a stainless pan, use medium or medium high heat and wait till the pan gets hot. Drizzle a bit more olive oil than usual, I used 3 tablespoons here. 

Add in the zucchinis scored-side down. Once set onto the pan, do not move the zucchinis at all. Simply let them sear till the bottom turned slightly browned then flip and continue to sear the other side.

Meanwhile, add 25 grams of unsalted butter, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper to the pan. Also take the lemon wedges and squeeze in some fresh lemon juice, about 2 teaspoonful. 

Tilt the pan if needed, try to baste the zucchinis with melted butter and all that seasonings over and over again. Keep doing that till the top gets a glistening yet slightly browned coating, and the bottom has been seared alright.

Transfer the zucchinis to the serving plate with scored-side up. Spoon some of the remaining sauce to the top of the zucchinis. Serve with lemon wedge on the plate. Lastly, grate some aged Parmigiano Reggiano all over if preferred. I can guarantee you that the cheese will make the zucchinis extra delicious.

In the end, even without a fancy-looking salad or hard to find ingredients for the starter, I'm sure most people will still fall for this seared zucchini recipe. After all, these zucchinis were plump and juicy, not mentioning the umami added from the aged cheese grated on top.

To make it even better, this recipe only requires seven ingredients to make, including the most common things in the kitchen such as salt and pepper. So when you find yourself short-handed at a meal gathering at home, think about this seared zucchini recipe.

Other recipes using zucchini:

• Pasta all'ortolana
• Summer vegetable curry
• Zucchini and squash pasta with parsley and mint sauce
• Zucchini, corn kernels, and ground pork stir-fry

Shiso Shrimp and Pork Rolls (Using Flour Based Wrappers)

Do you know that there's a difference between a Chinese spring roll wrapper and a Vietnamese spring roll wrapper? Especially when describing such ingredient in English, it can be hard to tell what kind of wrapper do you actually need for the recipe.

But do not worry. Let me tell you that we are not going to use the "rice" based wrapper for this recipe. Instead, use "flour" based Chinese wrapper instead. It'll look somewhat white-colored and definitely not translucent at all. More so a sturdier wrapper for this pan-fried rolls.

Shiso shrimp and pork rolls using flour based wrappers - 

Ingredients (about 8 to 12 pieces)?

• 8 to 12 medium flour spring roll wrappers
• 300 grams medium shrimps
• 500 grams ground pork
• 1/2 teaspoon Chinese rice cooking wine
• Some salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sesame oil
• 1 small chunk ginger
• 1 garlic clove
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon potato starch
• 20 Japanese shiso leaves
• Some olive oil

How?

Peel and devein the shrimps then slice into medium small chunks. Mix the shrimps together with 1/2 teaspoon of Chinese rice cooking wine, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of white sesame oil. Let it sit under room temperature and marinate for about 10 minutes.

Bring out a big bowl and add in the ground pork. Use a chunk of ginger, scrape then grate the ginger. We will need about 1/2 teaspoon of grated ginger in the end. Also peel and grate the garlic, for that we need about 1/4 teaspoon of grated garlic. 

Add both the grated ginger and grated garlic to the big bowl along with the marinated shrimps, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper. Give it a rough mix then add in 1 teaspoon of potato starch last. Mix till evenly blended this time.

Trim-off the stems for the shiso leaves. Rinse then pat dry with paper towel.

Lay down one sheet of flour spring roll wrapper. Scoop some ground pork fillings and set on the wrapper, a bit closer to our end but do save some empty space to fold in. Also try to shape the filling into a somewhat log-form. Lay down two shiso leaves next to the pork filling, towards the inner side too.

Fold in the left and the right side of the wrapper. Fold in the bottom edge of the wrapper then start rolling up into a log. Towards the end, dip the edge of the wrapper with either some water or potato starch mixed water to help sealing the end. Set the sealed side down and repeat to make all other rolls.

It is totally normal that you won't get the shiso leaves at the correct spot, I mean the green leaves will be like semi see-through beneath the wrapper on the front side. It's hard to get the look right especially it'll also depends on how much pork filling added and the size of the wrapper used too. So just play around and test it out a few times, should get better and better after a few rolls.

Have a big pan ready and drizzle 4 tablespoons of olive oil along with 1 teaspoon of white sesame oil. Switch to medium heat and wait till it gets warm. Once hot enough, transfer the rolls one by one with sealed side down.

Don't move the rolls once set to the pan. Simply sear till the bottom turns slightly browned. Then you can flip and sear the other side till slightly browned too. 

Once all ready, it's up to you if you would like to transfer the rolls to a plate lined with paper towel in order to absorb excess oil, or just transfer onto the serving plate right away.

The wrappers I got were medium large in size, so I ended up with pretty huge pan-fried rolls. If possible, do go with the medium small sized wrapper instead. That way you should be able to get around 12 rolls, and the size will be perfect to serve as a light snack or side dish.

On top of that, my recipe should give you well-seasoned rolls, so no dipping sauce is required. However, if you would like to give it more depth or just offering more flavor choices on the plate, I would say Thai sweet chili sauce will be a great option. It's not as salty compared to other type of chili sauces out there, and can bring something sweet with just a wee bit spiciness to the table. 

Extended reading:

• Pan-fried chicken and Chinese basil rice paper rolls
• Shrimp and pork wontons in vinegar and chili oil sauce