Peer Advisor: DIY Dinner Party

Sure, you might be on a shoestring budget, and the idea of dicing raw tuna might induce chills. But if you’ve got a kitchen, try out Weinberg junior and cooking connoisseur Harley Langberg’s tips for throwing a dinner party. While in high school, he attended the nearby School of Culinary Arts at Kendall College, then did a summer at the swank Lacroix restaurant in Philly’s Rittenhouse hotel. He’s spent the last three summers  catering in the Hamptons, did a stint at Kim’s Kitchen on Noyes, and is now flexing his filleting prowess by teaching cooking lessons. Eventually, Langberg wants to launch a cooking organization for high school and college kids. “Everyone should be able to use the kitchen without fear,” Langberg says. Spice up your Saturday night with Langberg’s sophisticated yet simple Asian dinner party. It’s a step up from whatever you’ve probably been munching on, and it’s a lot easier on the wallet than Koi.

SHOP SMART
When you’re throwing together an Asian fusion shindig, Whole Foods probably comes to mind as the go-to place to pick up the goods. Think again. “Definitely go to Jewel if you can for their variety of ethnic foods,” Langberg says. If you know where to look, the humdrum supermarket is a foodie’s nirvana, running the gamut from egg roll wrappers to an array of specialty soy sauces. With Langberg’s menu suggestions, the focus is bound to be on the food, but for a touch of décor head to World Market. The quirky depot of edibles, trinkets and apartment spruce-ups also carries absurdly cheap libations. Multitask and grab some bargain bottles of white wine, as per Langberg’s beverage advice: “Asian foods go well with a light drink.”

“BOK” TO BASICS
Get some greens on the menu with Langberg’s Shanghai Sauteed bok choy, a ginger-laden preparation of the vitamin-packed Chinese cabbage. And it’s simpler than you’d expect. “A lot of people are scared to make bok choy, the same way people avoid cooking eggplant because they’re afraid it’ll be too complicated,” Langberg says. Not sure if you’re saute-savvy? Just be sure to heat the pan before sparingly adding oil. “You don’t want to just have something laying in oil,” Langberg says.

MOUSSE-ED TO PERFECTION
To cap off this festive Asian feast, try out the chef’s riff on a venerable dessert classic: chocolate mousse. “Everyone thinks of a chocolate mousse as heavy and rich, and I wanted to make a light version,” Langberg says of his frozen creation. His recipe includes a bit of coffee to bring out the chocolate’s flavor, and can be served with warm raspberry sauce for zing and a touch of temperature contrast. “It’s not that complicated at all, it just involves some mixing,” Langberg says.

TRY THIS AT HOME

SHANGHAI SAUTEED BOK CHOY
* 1 (2-inch) piece ginger, peeled
* 3/4 lb Shanghai bok choy or other baby bok choy (5 to 8 heads)
* 1/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
* 1 teaspoon Chinese rice wine
* 1 teaspoon soy sauce
* 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon sugar
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
* 1/2 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

1. Cut half of the ginger into very fine matchsticks and reserve. Grate remaining ginger and squeeze pulp with your fingers to yield 1 teaspoon liquid, then discard pulp.

2. Remove any bruised or withered outer leaves from bok choy. Trim bottom of bok choy and then cut each head into quarters. Wash bok choy in several changes of cold water and dry.

3. Whisk together ginger juice, chicken broth, rice wine, soy sauce, cornstarch, salt, and sugar in a small bowl until cornstarch is dissolved.

4. Heat wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact. Pour oil down side of wok, then swirl oil, tilting wok to coat sides. Add ginger matchsticks and stir-fry 5 seconds. Add bok choy and stir-fry until leaves are bright green and just limp, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir broth mixture, then pour into wok and stir-fry until vegetables are crisp-tender and sauce is slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and drizzle with sesame oil, then stir to coat.

FROZEN CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
* 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
* 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
* 1 teaspoon instant coffee powder
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced,
* 8 extra-large eggs separated, at room temperature
* 1⁄2 cup sugar plus 2 tablespoons, divided
* kosher salt
* 1⁄2 cup cold heavy cream

1. In a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, melt the two chocolates, coffee powder, and vanilla extract. Cool to room temperature. Beat in the softened butter.

2. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks and the 1/2 cup of sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle (use a whisk if you don’t have a paddle) attachment. Beat on high speed for about 5 minutes, until pale yellow; when you lift the beater, the mixture will fall back on itself in a ribbon. With the mixer on low speed, blend in the chocolate mixture. Transfer to a larger mixing bowl.

3. Measure 1 cup of egg whites. Combine the cup of egg whites with a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of the remaining sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk on high speed until stiff but not dry. Mix half of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture; then fold the rest in carefully with a rubber spatula.

In the same bowl of the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the heavy cream and the remaining 1 tablespoon of sugar until firm. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Pour the mousse into a 2-quart serving dish. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a few hours or overnight and up to a week.

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