Masa Harina is a common ingredient in Mexican cuisine, particularly to make soups, corn tortillas and tamales. This fine and powdery substance is a corn meal product and is the flour used to make Mexican dishes. It is ground from hominy, which is corn that is boiled in water and lye or lime — calcium hydroxide — to remove the kernel from the hull.
It can be pretty cumbersome to make Masa Harina, so if you’re looking for a substitute for it, you’re going to save a lot of time, for sure. In certain cases, you may have to sacrifice texture for taste.
After corn has been dried, cooked in water and slaked lime, ground and dried once more, you get Masa Harina. When water is added to this powder, you get a dough or “masa” from which corn tortillas are made. Here’s a video on how to make Masa Harina:
Take a look at the best pasta makers here.
There are food experts who will tell you that there can never be any substitute for Masa Harina. But if you’re desperate for something when you’re in the midst of cooking, you need to know what you can use. For those moments, here is a list of substitutes for Masa Harina:
Though fresh Masa is difficult to source, yet it is better than Masa Harina to make tortillas and tamales. To make tamales, it’s best to go with coarse Masa, while corn tortillas are best made with finely ground Masa. Since fresh Masa is already in dough form, all you need do is to roll it out and cook, while Masa Harina needs to be dried and then made a dough of.
Arrowroot is preferred because its extraction process is very organic and therefore it does not call for the use of harsh chemicals. There are also fewer chances of it having genetically modified ingredients. A point to be noted is that arrowroot should never be combined with dairy products or it will form an ugly mix.
These substitutes to Masa Harina are so many and so varied in their uses that any one of them can be of immense value to you in the kitchen. To use them, first experiment using a small quantity of it and improvise as you go along. This way, you can never go wrong with these substitutes.
Coconut shrimps are one of the most common starters for the parties. But confusion seeps in when you don’t know what to serve with coconut shrimp? Well, the simple answer is that you can choose to serve it as innovatively as you wish. Perhaps, you can serve it as a finger food, with or without side dishes. Else, you can serve it with a dip, side dish or drink.
As finger food: To serve it as finger food, you would need to bread it with coconut flakes, egg and breadcrumbs and then bake it or deep fry it for a crispy and crunchy taste. Thanks to the coconut flavour, your coconut shrimp will taste a little sweet. Eat it as it is or make a dip or side dish to go with it.
With a dip: Your coconut shrimp needs to be dipped into a sauce for that extra tingly taste. You can try making a sweet or a savoury dip. Here are some options: Mix together lemon and finely chopped mangoes or serve it with lime or chilli sauce. For a creamy texture, go with a buttermilk dressing.
Yet another option is pineapple salsa adds up. Serve it with a light mustard and honey sauce and make it creamy and rich. To bring an Asian flavour to your table, add lime juice, or ginger-garlic with soy sauce. Marmalade dipping sauce, sweet and sour sauce, tartar sauce, red curry sauce, duck sauce, apricot sauce or a salad with citrus fruit segments.
With drinks: Fortunately, there are certain drinks like tropical ones that go well with coconut shrimp. These include Pina Colada, daiquiris and mojitos and are just right for adults. Children could be given non-alcoholic drinks like flavoured juices, fruit smoothies, ice teas and skewer orange slices. These could be made more attractive with paper cocktail umbrellas.
With a side dish: You can pair coconut shrimp with a light side dish because a heavy one will subdue its natural taste. The flavour of coconut shrimp may also be undermined by creamy side dishes, so be wary of them. To bring out the fish’s natural flavour, go with a fresh green salad with grilled veggies or Caesar dressing and seasoning mix. Top it with grilled pineapple or just a generous scoop of ice cream.
Here are some more side dishes to serve with coconut shrimp for you to consider:
With risotto, you get a creamy texture, but with grass grain or wild grass, the dish only looks more appealing. Add mushrooms and shallots, if you prefer.
You can also serve cheesy potatoes, hash browns, mashed potatoes or potato salad. With hash browns, serve sour cream, cheddar cheese or cream of mushroom soup.
Conclusion
If none of the above are appealing enough, use your imagination and love for cooking and come up with something unusual. We’re sure your guests will love whatever you serve with coconut shrimp.
If you love seafood and are looking for something different, why not try crab cakes? A typically American dish, crab cakes can be made into patties with crab meat, mayonnaise, seasoning, bread crumbs and eggs. You may add in veggies or not.
You can have them for any meal–breakfast, lunch or dinner or serve them at a party, event or a company meeting. They are absolutely delicious and can be teamed up with a variety of side dishes, sauces and salads. Let’s see what goes with crab cakes best:
There are a number of dishes on the side that go with crab cakes. Here are the most popular among them:
If you prefer to start your day with crab cakes, you do have some exciting options as accompaniments. For instance, you could team up your crab cakes with Eggs Benedict, poached eggs, scrambled eggs, or with an over easy egg and cornmeal pancake. No matter which of these you choose, your breakfast is going to give you a head start to a hectic day.
If you like digging into crab cakes over lunch, why not choose interesting dishes on the side? If you’re thinking about what goes with crab cakes, choose from any of the alternatives given below and have a great lunch.
Perhaps, you want to have a quiet dinner with family or are having some friends over. Choose from any of these accompaniments to go best with your crab cakes:
Serve crab cakes for dessert along with a berry pie, creme brule, custard or tapioca pudding, mixed fruit or a light cake.
You aren’t restricted to the above accompaniments when you serve crab cakes, but there are a few sauces too that complement crab cakes well. Here they are:
Conclusion
Don’t ever think you’d be stuck for accompaniments when serving crab cakes. You can find any number of interesting options to eat it with, or just use your imagination. You’re sure to come up with something great.