Books for Cooks

Barbara Burke

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"Cooking at Home with the Culinary Institute of America" (John Wiley & Sons, 2003, $40, hardcover)

A tart tamarind marinade
readies seafood for grill

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The Culinary Institute of America is one of the world's premier culinary colleges.

Graduates come away from this rich experience knowing that it isn't enough to simply follow the steps in a recipe. They must also learn how to look at, touch, smell and taste a dish to judge whether it is coming together. Professional chefs watch closely for changes in appearance, texture, color and shape at every stage of cooking.

"Cooking at Home with The Culinary Institute of America" gives the home cook an opportunity to learn these same basic cooking fundamentals, leading to greater confidence and creativity in the kitchen.

Developed for the serious novice and experienced cook alike, this book offers more than 200 stylish recipes, 250 full-color photographs and detailed instructions for making a variety of appetizers, soups, salads, poultry, meat, fish and shellfish, pasta and other starches, vegetables, eggs and desserts.

Tart and refreshing tamarind pulp gives this dish a distinctive flavor. Look for jars of tamarind concentrate at Indian or Asian markets.

Tamarind Mixed Seafood Grill

1 pound sea bass or yellowtail fillets, cut into 2-inch cubes
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on
1 pound sea scallops
12 clams
>> Marinade:
4 green onions, minced
1/2 cup tamarind concentrate
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons minced basil
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon toasted cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Whisk marinade ingredients together in a baking dish. Reserve 1 cup for a dipping sauce.

Add sea bass, shrimp and scallops to baking dish, turn to coat, cover and refrigerate least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.

Prepare a grill for a hot fire. Soak 8 bamboo skewers in water 30 minutes.

Thread shrimp and scallops alternately onto skewers. Place skewers, sea bass and clams on grill, discarding clams that do not close to the touch. Grill skewers until scallops are barely opaque and shrimp is pink, turning once or as needed to mark them evenly on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes total.

Grill clams until they open, 5 to 6 minutes, being careful to reserve their juices when removing from grill. Discard any that do not open.

Grill sea bass on first side until marked. Gently turn and continue cooking until barely opaque, 5 to 6 minutes.

Serve grilled seafood with reserved dipping sauce. Serves 4.

Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (will vary according to amount of dipping sauce consumed): 550 calories, 19 g total fat, 3 g saturated fat, 260 mg cholesterol, 70 g protein, 23 g carbohydrate, 540 mg sodium.

Rating Scale: Best in its class / Highly recommended / Recommended / Not recommended

Barbara Burke is a Hawaii-Pacific University instructor who teaches and writes about food and nutrition. Contact her at the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu 96813; or e-mail her at: features@starbulletin.com