...Cajun Salmon and Pilaf a la Ara

Readers of my other blog will know that one of my hobbies is Overlanding - vehicle-based, self-reliant adventuring.  Basically it's what Car-Camping used to be, in the days before ubiquitous good roads, campgrounds, and RVs.  Get into a 4x4, and go someplace, away from other people whenever possible.  The main trade-show and annual center-of-gravity for this hobby in North America is Overland Expo.  I attended last year with the goal to "Get Outfitted. Get trained. Get inspired. Get going..." as their motto reads.

Mixed in with the training on how to safely recover a stuck vehicle using a winch, how to build your First Aid kit to avoid problems at border crossings, and how to get your wife to go with you, I took a great little class called "One Pan Cooking and Provisioning (No Fridge)".  The first half of the course title sounds like any one of hundreds of cookbooks for frustrated housewives, but the second half gives away the secret.  Ara Gureghian and his dog Spirit overland full-time on a BMW motorcycle and sidecar.  Ara is also a classically European-trained chef, so when presented a very tasty lesson on how to plan and provision for meals that don't require refrigeration, and are easy to prepare, I made sure to pay attention.

Like most great recipes, Chef Ara taught a method, more than a list of ingredients.  In fact, no recipes were ever provided for the class (although a few of his are available from his website.)  Upon returning home, I was anxious to try to replicate some of what I'd tasted - I think he'd be proud, and my wife certainly approved.

The "cajun" salmon is an ongoing favorite of mine because it's simple to prepare, packs a big flavor, and most importantly is an approved "go-to" protein for a meat-eater who has to cook for a Lacto-ovo-pesco-vegetarian every day.  I won't go into detail here but it's basically oil and some variant on a spice rub (Emeril's Bayou Blast, for example) in a hot pan.  I prepared it alongside this new side dish mostly as a hedge against culinary failure - you never want to go hungry because you blew the new side dish.  It turns out, I needn't have bothered.  Choosing a combination of quality fresh veggies and dry foodstuffs, adding some herbs, oil and a good hard cheese results in an easy one-pan meal that is filling and satisfying.  More often that not these days, I prepare this solo, instead of as a side dish, though I still usually need a standalone protein for the toddler as she has not yet latched on to the adult quality of these flavors.

As I've said, it's more of a method than a recipe, but here's my best attempt to present for those who'd wish to emulate.

Ingredients:

• ~1/2 Onion, white or yellow, coarsely chopped.
• Largeish handful or two of cherry or grape tomatoes, halved or quartered
• Handful of fresh or frozen peas
• Handful of diced carrot (when camping I just put a big handful of frozen peas & carrots mix into a zip back and toss it in the fridge, but fresh would be fine too)
• 1-2C of fresh zucchini, squash, or whatever else looks good
• At least 1/4c of a good cheese.  Hard cheeses survive w/o refrigeration, soft ok in a coldbox.
• Herbage.  I like chopped basil, but parsley or whatever else will work too.
• Whatever other sundries sound good to you: slivered Almonds, Olives, sun-dried Tomatoes, etc.
• 1C of your favorite dry starch.  I started with long-grain rice, and have also done Qinoa, but our current favorite is a wonderful "mix" from Trader Joes that includes, Rice, Orzo, Qinoa, Couscous, and some yellow lentils, IIRC.
• 1-2C of water or your favorite stock (appropriate volume for your selected starch, as this ratio varies)
• Appropriate Oil of your choice
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Method:

1. Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in your big pan and sweat (or saute) the onion and whatever other aromatics you're using. Sweat vs. saute depends on the flavors you're going for and what your heat control is like.  My Coleman white-gas camp stove really only runs well on "high", so I work fast in the field.
2. Add in any "hard" veggies if they'll need a while to cook.  Ripe zucchini or mushrooms cook fast enough that I tend to add them after the next step:
3. Add your starch and saute the grains/pasta until GB&D.
4. Add remaining ingredients except cheese, but reserve a small handful of herbs and sliced tomato for garnish.  Season to taste. Cook briefly.
5. Add appropriate volume of liquid for your starch.  Cover, reduce heat, and cook for the appropriate amount of time.  (Pasta ~10 minutes, Qinoa/Rice ~20 minutes, etc.)
6. When starch is cooked and liquid absorbed, grate in a hefty volume of hard cheese (or crumble in soft cheese), toss, re-season, and plate up.  Garnish with reserved herbage and tomato.

Makes more than you'd expect.  Enough for 2-4 as a main, or many more as a side.