Quick and Easy Tuna Pasta

With our crazy schedule this past few weeks, I can no longer afford to cook food that takes an hour or more to prepare. Rudel was also in no mood to wash the dishes. But after living on Kopitiam food for two straight weeks i couldn't take it anymore. I'm cooking!

And since we have no time to go to the grocery either i ransacked our pantry and found 1) chili corned tuna, 2) a can of chopped tomatoes and linguine. Hmmm... Tuna Pasta it is!

Side story: I've been on a hunt for canned tomatoes that isn't too sour. I've tried popular brands like Del Monte, Hunts, Heinz but all failed my taste test. Then i finally tried Cirio which i found in Fair Price Plus, Tampines. I've  never heard of this brand before but it said on the label that it was from Italy so it's worth a try i figured. 

It was indeed. It wasn't too sour and has a hint of natural sweetness of the tomatoes. Bingo!



I sautéed about a tsp. of garlic in a tsp of olive oil until lightly brown then added the tuna.  Finally, add the tomatoes then stir. Add about 1/4 cup of hot water (i reused the water from the pasta) and a some salt and pepper. Simmer for about 5 minutes and you're done. Easy peasy


Here's how it turned out. And oh I got to use some fresh basil from my mini garden (kilig!).

Dinner: Grilled Salmon with Fettuccine in Agli Olio

Last week, I finally bought my dream cooking tool—a grill pan! I’ve always wanted to buy one but kept on stopping myself because I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to use it that often. But finally I gave in.  I my want food to have grill marks on em for a change. I know, silly hehehe.

Before going to the cashier and paying for it, I quickly googled ‘grill pan worth it?’ just to really really make sure that the thing is worth my money. This site came first in the search results. According to the users, although the pan doesn’t give that smoky flavor it still gives the food a grilled texture. So there, JUSTIFIED :)

Excited with my new toy, I made ‘grilled salmon topped with mango salsa and fettuccine with Agli Olio (garlic and oil)’ for dinner .

Here’s how I did it:

First make the Mango Salsa. In a bowl, mix diced mango, tomato and red onion. Add 1 tbsps. each of lemon juice and lime juice. Season it with  salt then refrigerate, covered for an hour.

To make Agli Olio, fry minced garlic and red pepper flakes in extra virgin olive oil  (don’t burn the garlic please).  When the garlic starts to turn brown, quickly remove the pan from heat. Set aside. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions.

  
Rudel loves garlic so much and I love the heat, that's why....

Meanwhile, brush the salmon with olive oil then season it with salt and pepper. Set the grill pan over medium-high heat. Place the salmon, skin-side up on the grill and cook for 5 to 7 minutes each side.

And finally, pour Agli Olio over pasta. Mix well until the pasta is well coated with the oil. Season with pepper and top it with lots of freshly (it must be fresh!) grated parmesan cheese. Serve it with the grilled salmon and mango salsa.

Trust me, these threesome go so well together.