Using fresh ginger is pretty inexpensive and much healthier, but we always had a problem of it going moldy before we could use very much of it. Our friend, Sarah Erwin, told us we could keep it in the freezer with the skin already peeled and wrapped in a bit of paper towel in a freezer bag. Then, when we needed it, the frozen ginger grates really easily on a small cheese grater.
2 chicken breasts
2 garlic cloves
¼ in. piece of fresh ginger, peeled (or approx ¾ t. ground ginger)
4+ T. chopped fresh cilantro
3 T. lime juice
2 T. light soy sauce
1 T. sugar
¾ c. coconut milk
Cayenne pepper to taste
Put slashes in the chicken breasts and place in a casserole dish. Put the remaining ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Spread the puree over the chicken. Cover and refrigerate about 1 hr.
Broil the chicken in the oven until cooked through, and cook the remaining marinade in a sauce pan. Allow to simmer for several minutes. (Or you can cook the chicken and sauce together in a covered casserole dish until it’s done. It's faster but cooking them together makes the sauce a little soupier.) Serve with rice.
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Peanut Sauce
Honestly, the best peanut sauce we've had is just made from a mix from the specialty store. Sometimes it’s called Thai Peanut Sauce or Peanut Satay sauce or something like that. You add coconut milk to it and sometimes one or two other things.
If you want to make your own however there are lots of recipes. We haven’t found one we like “the best,” but here is one:
8 T. peanut butter
½ small onion, grated
1 ¼ c. coconut milk
2 t. soft light brown sugar
½ t. chili powder
½ T. soy sauce
Put all ingredients in a saucepan and stir over medium heat until boiling.
If you want to make your own however there are lots of recipes. We haven’t found one we like “the best,” but here is one:
8 T. peanut butter
½ small onion, grated
1 ¼ c. coconut milk
2 t. soft light brown sugar
½ t. chili powder
½ T. soy sauce
Put all ingredients in a saucepan and stir over medium heat until boiling.
Amber Robbins' Spring Rolls
The Thai basil is the best part of this dish, and at least where we get it at Fooks Foods in Athens, it is much more affordable than regular fresh basil in the grocery stores.
Rice paper
Rice vermicelli noodles (cooked first by soaking in very hot water, follow package instructions—you’ll then keep this same hot water for wetting your rice paper as you are making the spring rolls)
Bean sprouts
Shredded carrot
Thai basil or regular basil, washed, destemmed and chopped
Small, diced, cooked chicken or pork or tofu
Put a little bit of everything in the rice paper that has been softened in the hot water for a few seconds (and it only takes a tiny bit of each thing!). Roll it up like a burrito, the tighter the better. Serve with peanut sauce.
Rice paper
Rice vermicelli noodles (cooked first by soaking in very hot water, follow package instructions—you’ll then keep this same hot water for wetting your rice paper as you are making the spring rolls)
Bean sprouts
Shredded carrot
Thai basil or regular basil, washed, destemmed and chopped
Small, diced, cooked chicken or pork or tofu
Put a little bit of everything in the rice paper that has been softened in the hot water for a few seconds (and it only takes a tiny bit of each thing!). Roll it up like a burrito, the tighter the better. Serve with peanut sauce.
Ben and Sarah Erwin's Coconut Rice
2 c. jasmine or regular rice, cooked up regularly in 4 c. water
1 T. salt
1 c. sugar
1-2 cans coconut milk
Add the salt, sugar and coconut milk at the end, doing the salt and sugar to taste and using the milk to make it as soupy or not-soupy as you want. Serve with fresh mango.
1 T. salt
1 c. sugar
1-2 cans coconut milk
Add the salt, sugar and coconut milk at the end, doing the salt and sugar to taste and using the milk to make it as soupy or not-soupy as you want. Serve with fresh mango.
Green Chicken Curry with Eggplant
Don't let the eggplant part scare you away--this is amazing and the eggplant texture and flavor is subtle and blends in nicely. You can use a regular eggplant or you can use Asian eggplant (long and skinny) or Thai apple eggplants (little and round) found at specialty stores—we like Fooks Foods in Athens.
2-3 chicken breasts
1 ¾ c. coconut milk
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 T. fish sauce
1-2 T. green curry paste (careful not too make it too hot—you can always add more later, and you can freeze whatever you don’t use from the can)
2-3 c. diced eggplant
A little lime juice, maybe 1 t.
4 T. chopped fresh cilantro
Bring the coconut milk to boil in a large pan. Add the chicken, garlic and fish sauce and simmer on low until the chicken is tender. Remove the chicken and add the green curry, eggplant and lime juice and simmer for 5 min (or until the eggplant is as tender as you want it). Return the chicken, add some salt and pepper if you want and garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice.
2-3 chicken breasts
1 ¾ c. coconut milk
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 T. fish sauce
1-2 T. green curry paste (careful not too make it too hot—you can always add more later, and you can freeze whatever you don’t use from the can)
2-3 c. diced eggplant
A little lime juice, maybe 1 t.
4 T. chopped fresh cilantro
Bring the coconut milk to boil in a large pan. Add the chicken, garlic and fish sauce and simmer on low until the chicken is tender. Remove the chicken and add the green curry, eggplant and lime juice and simmer for 5 min (or until the eggplant is as tender as you want it). Return the chicken, add some salt and pepper if you want and garnish with cilantro. Serve with rice.
Jane Stingel's Masaman Curry
2 T. masaman curry paste (to taste)
2-3 chicken breasts, diced
1 ¼ + c. coconut milk
1 c. water
2-3 potatoes, any kind, cubed
2-3 carrots, sliced
3-5 T. fish sauce (to taste)
½-1 T. salt (to taste)
¼ c. sugar (to taste)
Cashews (optional, but yummy! Don’t add these until closer to the end.)
Chopped cilantro to garnish at the end
Saute chicken in curry paste in large pan until chicken is most of the way done. Add all remaining ingredients and allow to simmer until vegetables are tender and sauce is somewhat thickened. Serve with rice.
***As you can see, this is a very flexible recipe. I add the minimum amount of several of the items and then add more as I think they need it, just because too much salt or fish sauce or sugar can ruin the recipe. Usually too much curry paste makes it too hot but masaman is more sweet than hot so you don’t have to worry about that.***
2-3 chicken breasts, diced
1 ¼ + c. coconut milk
1 c. water
2-3 potatoes, any kind, cubed
2-3 carrots, sliced
3-5 T. fish sauce (to taste)
½-1 T. salt (to taste)
¼ c. sugar (to taste)
Cashews (optional, but yummy! Don’t add these until closer to the end.)
Chopped cilantro to garnish at the end
Saute chicken in curry paste in large pan until chicken is most of the way done. Add all remaining ingredients and allow to simmer until vegetables are tender and sauce is somewhat thickened. Serve with rice.
***As you can see, this is a very flexible recipe. I add the minimum amount of several of the items and then add more as I think they need it, just because too much salt or fish sauce or sugar can ruin the recipe. Usually too much curry paste makes it too hot but masaman is more sweet than hot so you don’t have to worry about that.***
Emily Morrise's Homemade Tomato Soup
1 (29 oz) can diced tomatoes or crushed tomatoes (not tomato sauce)
OR comparable amount diced fresh tomatoes
1 ½. c. chicken broth
2 T. butter
2 T. sugar
½ onion, chopped
¼ t. baking soda
1 bay leaf
2 c. heavy whipping cream
Combine everything except the cream and simmer for 1 hour. Remove bay leaf and puree with a hand blender or in a blender. Add the heavy whipping cream.
Tip: The soup is awesome if made completely out of fresh tomatoes. Also, we substitute half the whipping cream with milk to reduce the fat.
OR comparable amount diced fresh tomatoes
1 ½. c. chicken broth
2 T. butter
2 T. sugar
½ onion, chopped
¼ t. baking soda
1 bay leaf
2 c. heavy whipping cream
Combine everything except the cream and simmer for 1 hour. Remove bay leaf and puree with a hand blender or in a blender. Add the heavy whipping cream.
Tip: The soup is awesome if made completely out of fresh tomatoes. Also, we substitute half the whipping cream with milk to reduce the fat.
Chicken Broccoli Casserole
2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 (32 oz.) package frozen broccoli
2 (10.5 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
1 c. mayonnaise (or less)
½ c. evaporated milk (or regular)
1 to 2 c. grated cheese
1 t. lemon juice
½ to ¾ c. bread crumbs
2-3 t. butter, melted (optional)
Heat oven to 350. Layer chicken, then broccoli in a 9x13 in. pan. Mix soup, mayo, milk, cheese and lemon and pour over chicken and broccoli. Sprinkle bread crumbs and pour melted butter over mixture. Cover with foil. Bake 45 min. Uncover last 10-15 min.
1 (32 oz.) package frozen broccoli
2 (10.5 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
1 c. mayonnaise (or less)
½ c. evaporated milk (or regular)
1 to 2 c. grated cheese
1 t. lemon juice
½ to ¾ c. bread crumbs
2-3 t. butter, melted (optional)
Heat oven to 350. Layer chicken, then broccoli in a 9x13 in. pan. Mix soup, mayo, milk, cheese and lemon and pour over chicken and broccoli. Sprinkle bread crumbs and pour melted butter over mixture. Cover with foil. Bake 45 min. Uncover last 10-15 min.
Thai Sweet Potato Chicken
3 T. red curry paste (pretty hot, start with 1 T. for milder flavor and then add as you can take it)
6 chicken thighs (or 3 chicken breasts)
3+ c. diced sweet potato
2 c. chicken broth
1 ½ c. coconut milk
¼ c. chopped cilantro
Saute the chicken and curry paste in a pan until cooked. Add next three ingredients and cook until sweet potato is soft, stirring occasionally so it won’t burn. Add cilantro before serving. Serve with rice.
Tip: Microwave the sweet potato with a little water beforehand so that it cooks faster in the pot.
6 chicken thighs (or 3 chicken breasts)
3+ c. diced sweet potato
2 c. chicken broth
1 ½ c. coconut milk
¼ c. chopped cilantro
Saute the chicken and curry paste in a pan until cooked. Add next three ingredients and cook until sweet potato is soft, stirring occasionally so it won’t burn. Add cilantro before serving. Serve with rice.
Tip: Microwave the sweet potato with a little water beforehand so that it cooks faster in the pot.
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