#342: Thai Red Curry Chicken

It is probably too much of a generalization to say "everyone likes Thai food," but most of the time I really do believe that.  It's the type of cuisine people order for office lunches (once everyone gets tired of pizza), and it just seems to be what my friends and family can all agree to when we're making that difficult take-out decision.  Red Curry is this perfectly creamy Thai dish that when you ladle over warm jasmine rice, oh don't get me started! The aroma of the red curry paste cooking with coconut milk is incredible, you'll want to set that take-out menu aside and start making this easy dish at home.  

Thai Red Curry Chicken

Ingredients:

1.25 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces

2 tablespoons oil

4 oz can of red curry paste

8 ounces sliced bamboo shoots

13.5 fl oz. coconut milk + 1 can filled with water

1 green bell pepper, chopped into bite size pieces

1 onion, finely chopped

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons fish sauce

Directions:  

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken pieces, cook and stir for about 3 minutes.  
2. Mix in the onion, bell pepper and red curry paste.  Cook for 3-4 minutes.  
3. Add the coconut milk + water, bamboo and fish sauce.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. 

Serve over a warm bowl of jasmine rice.  

I bought the Thai ingredients below from my local Asian grocery store, but you can easily buy these from most grocery stores these days.  

#340: Vegetarian Pho

My mom recently went to visit my sister, N, in Santa Clara.  Yes, the San Francisco sister has moved a little further south toward San Jose!  In any case, while my mom was out there, she came across a dry spice mix that is the base for a vegetarian pho broth.  She excitedly brought it back to D.C. with her and we decided to try it out.  Also, while we thought this pho base was super unique, turns out you can get pho bases at Trader Joe's and of course, on Amazon. 

Our family loves pho, and during the cold weather months, it is the perfect dish to warm up with. Pho is a Vietnamese noodle soup that at its base is made of an incredibly delicious broth flavored with anise and ginger.  Then, once you get your bowl of this piping hot soup, you can top it with lime, jalapenos and all sorts of delicious toppings, which just add to the flavor of the soup.  The best part is, even though we all might have the same pho, we each turn it into its own unique soup with how much we add into our bowls.  For example, my mom loves adding extra limes to give the soup a tangy taste, while I love the heat from adding sriracha and jalapenos, and N loves the cool and crunchy texture you get from adding bean sprouts. 

Try making your own unique pho!

Vegetarian Pho with Shitake Mushrooms and Bok Choy

Ingredients:

6 green onions, thinly sliced

6 cups chopped bok choy

64 ounces vegetable broth or water mixed with a dry vegetarian pho spice mix (pho soup base)

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated

Shitake mushrooms, tough stems removed (I personally like keeping them in, but to each his own)

14 ounces rice noodles, cooked per package instructions

2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

hoison sauce, sriracha (rooster sauce), bean sprouts, lime wedges, jalapenos and Thai basil (to taste)

Directions:

1. In a large pot combine vegetable broth (or water + dry vegetarian pho spice mix) with grated ginger, soy sauce and green onion.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and let simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Add in the mushrooms.  Continue to simmer for 5 minutes.  
3. Add in bok choy.  Simmer for 3 minutes.  
4. Place noodles in a bowl and pour the broth and veggie mixture over the noodles. 
5. Top with a handful of bean sprouts, two lime wedges, jalapenos, cilantro, sriracha and hoison sauce to your desired taste.

#339: Ginger Bok Choy Quinoa with Roasted Carrots

Carrots + Ginger.  Somehow this combination works.  I had it in a soup once, and the flavor combination was perfect.  So, I wanted to take this same flavor base over to an easy quinoa recipe.  

With the cold weather upon us, and maybe sticking around (is anyone else as tired of this hot/cold back and forth we're feeling in DC?!), warm quinoa salads are the best.  You could easily add fish sauce and red pepper flakes to this dish, for a little more flavor, but I think the roasted veggies with a subtle hint of ginger and chilies in this dish works! I recommend serving this with grilled salmon or pork loin, mmmm enjoy! 

Ginger Bok Choy Quinoa with Roasted Carrots

Ingredients

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons grated ginger

5 cups of bok choy

2 celery stalks, split down the middle of each stalk and chop into 1/2 inch pieces

1 medium-large carrot, peeled and cut in half

two green chiles, split down the middle

1 shallot, peeled and cut in half

2 teaspoons olive oil 

2 1/2 cups of raw quinoa (cook it according to the box’s directions)  

Directions:  

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. Place your prepared carrot, chilies and shallot in a foil pouch.  Coat with the olive oil and cover into foil packet.  Cook for 20 minutes.  Take the top foil cover off and cook for 10 more minutes.  (Typically to have it completely softened you would cook for 30 minutes in the packet, but 20 minutes is perfect for having it not too softened, but just right for this dish)
3. In the meantime, on high heat add your oil and grated ginger.  Let it splutter a bit and then add in the bok toy.  Cook until the leaves get wilted - for 3 minutes.  Add in the chopped celery, cook for 1 minute, just to heat through.  I like to keep things crunchy :) 
4. Once the chilies, shallot and carrot have cooled.  Chop them up.  The shallots and chilies can be chopped fine, and the carrots can be copped into half inch pieces.  
5. Mix everything together and salt + pepper to taste, and go for it.  

SF Eats: Shizen

Shizen is such a gorgeous restaurant, but I'll warn you it's hard to find, you might just walk right by it.  With no obvious signage, you kind of have to pay attention and have the address on hand.  We had to make a quick call to the restaurant to confirm where it was, we kept walking up and down the blog, passing the restaurant.  In any case it was a cold night, so when we got inside we were more than happy to warm up!

My sister and I decided to share some sushi and hot delicious ramen.  Now, one thing I should mention about Shizen is that everything is vegan.  This was my first time trying vegan sushi and vegan ramen and it certainly did not disappoint.  Admittedly I was skeptical at first, excepting a cucumber roll and avocado roll and that be it, but I was in for a surprise.

We ordered The Candlestick and Open Invitation.  The Candlestick of course came to the table with a small flame in the rightside of the plate - totally awesome.  You're told to let the flame die out on its own.  The roll itself contains spicy bean curd, avocado, tapioca, cucumber, and seaweed pearls.  So delicious!  Open Invitation was the start of the show though.  Sweet potatoes in a sushi roll - incredible idea.  The sweetness was absolutely fantastic.  The restaurant also had a roll with roasted eggplant, we ended up getting that later (sorry, no picture), and it was also incredible.  I love the idea of roasted veggies inside of a sushi roll.  Anyway, Open Invitation had a tempura sweet potato (umm fried tempura, yes please), spiced burdock, shredded tofu, tapioca, and renkon chips (lotus root chips).   The lotus root chips on top looked so cool - the lacy form the chips take is just beautiful, and the added crunch to the roll gives it a great and complex texture.  

Then we went for the Spicy Garlic Miso Ramen.  It was so good.  Hot and delicious broth with pieces of tofu and bamboo slices floating around.  And, a huge deep fried tempura mushroom.  The flavor and creaminess of the broth was phenomenal.  I definitely did not miss the meat in any of this!  The noodles absorbed the delicious flavorings in the broth.  Fabulous and you can request Gluten Free, people.   Not that that really matters to me either way, but still, helpful for some of you to know I'm sure.  In any case, go. to. Shizen. now.  

Rating:  A

#334: Grilled Eggplant Pita Banh Mi

Banh Mi is a Vietnamese sandwich made on french bread, and topped with cilantro and pickled daikon.  Falls Church, Virginia is home to a shopping center, Eden Center, filled with Vietnamese grocery stores, shops, restaurants and bakeries.  The bakeries there are home to some of the most delicious french breads perfect for a banh mi.  Most of these bakeries and sandwich shops offer banh mi sandwiches filled with pork, beef or chicken, with the obligatory vegetarian option - tofu.  

We took a twist on the traditional banh mi sandwich, by first using a whole wheat pita pocket, and my swapping out the tofu, for grilled eggplant.  While a cucumber sauce is also atypical of most banh mi sandwiches, I like how our version is sort of a Mediterranean take on what is a traditional Vietnamese (influenced by the French) sandwich.  This Grilled Eggplant Pita Banh Mi, is the perfect lunch dish for meatless mondays, or just when you want a lighter option, but one that is still full of delicious flavor.  

Grilled Eggplant Pita Banh Mi

Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds
5 whole wheat pitas
lettuce and cilantro, chopped

For the Marinade:
2 tbsps soy sauce
2 tbsps lime juice
1 tbsp honey 
1/2 tsp crushed red chili flakes
1/2 tsp ginger paste (or grated ginger)
1 tbsp lemongrass, chopped fine and crushed
1 tsp fish sauce (optional)

 In a small bowl whisk together the ingredients for the marinade.  Set aside. 

For the pickled radishes and carrots: 

1/4 cup red radishes, sliced into long thin strips 

1/4 cup carrots, sliced into long thin strips

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup water

2 tbsps sugar

salt and whole black peppercorns

Boil the apple cider vinegar, water, pepper  and sugar. Turn off the heat, cool a little and

add the vegetables to make a quick pickle. Toss thoroughly.  Set aside.

For the cucumber sauce:

2 basil leaves, julienned  
4 tbsps sour cream
2 tbsps grated cucumber
1 tsp lime juice
salt and black pepper 

Mix the ingredients together in a small bowl.  Set aside.

Directions:

1. Marinate the eggplant slices in the marinade for 5-6 hours.
2. Heat the grill and grill the eggplant on both sides basting them with the extra marinade.
3. Grill until cooked, remove each slice from heat and keep aside.
4. Toast each pita and cut into two halves.
5. Apply the cucumber sauce a little and stuff each half with eggplant slices, lettuce and     cilantro.
6. Top with pickled vegetables and extra cucumber sauce before serving.

#332: Mushroom and Bok Choy Hakka Noodles

Large scale Asian grocery stores are increasingly becoming common place, and I am not complaining.  These stores always seem to have the freshest produce, lower prices, and aisles upon aisles of chili sauces and noodles...two things I love.  So, on a recent trip to Lotte Plaza, my local Asian grocery store, I stocked up on a ton of greens and these mushrooms which I added to a dried noodle mix I found at the store.  


The array of greens can be a bit overwhelming, but I'm always one to try them all out.  This time I picked up the Shanghai Bok Choy.  It's green from stem to leaf, but a more muted green than on the usual Baby Bok Choy we are all so familiar with.  The flavor is fairly similar, but with a little less crunch in the Shanghai version.  


Really this dish is just about incorporating the vegetables at your grocery store that are the most appealing, and making a great vegetarian dish for your "meatless Monday."  Or, in the alternative, add chicken (or a poached egg on top of the dish). 

Ingredients

2 tbsps coconut oil
1/2 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp ground all spice
6 cups chopped Shanghai Bok Choy(but seriously, any of these Asian greens would probably work just as well: A Visual Guide to 10 Varieties of Asian Greens)
8 cups sliced mushrooms (baby portobellos or shitake)
2 tsps fish sauce
2 tbsps soy sauce
Ching's Secret Veg Hakka Noodles

To top for added heat:  Sriracha (or Rooster Sauce)

Directions

1. In a wok on low heat add 1 tbsp coconut oil, ginger and garlic.  Let the oil melt and the ginger and garlic start sizzling a bit.  Turn the heat to high, add the all spice and stir into the oil.  Then add the mushrooms and mix into the spice mixture completely.  Let the mushrooms cook for 5 minutes.  Then add the other 1 tbsp of coconut oil and baby bok choy.  
2. Let the veggies cook until they are cooked through, this should take about 10 minutes after you've added in the baby bok choy.  
3. Then stir in the fish sauce and soy sauce.  
4. Break up the dry noodles in your hand right into the wok.  There should be enough liquid in the pan to cook the noodles through and take on all of the flavors from the vegetables and sauce.  Once the noodles are cooked and the liquid is gone turn the heat off and serve.

#315: Mini Chinese Meatballs, By: V

This has been the coldest winter Washington, DC has seen in over 20 years.  Needless to say, I  don’t think I’ve ever experienced frigid temps like we’ve been having.  This weekend we ‘spring forward’ into the next season, but we’re still seeing an on-and-off snow fall.  Crazy, right? 

Well, on Monday I met up with my friend R for a quick dinner, before a movie date she had that night.  R and I have been friends since high school, so it’s always great to meet up with her because we have that kind of comfort level where you can talk about anything.  We gabbed about friends and her new date over bibimbap bowls at The Mixing Bowl.  While neither of us had tried this small Tysons Mall spot, a friend of mine told me it offered super healthy option all in a convenient bowl.  I already love bibimbap, a convenient Korean rice bowl dish with meat, veggies and a deliciously spicy sauce, so this was a great option.  I ordered my bowl with brown rice, spicy chicken, radish salad, kale, kimchi (spicy pickled cabbage), cucumbers – all topped with gochujang (a spicy sauce made from fermented red chili, glutinous rice, soybeans and salt) and a fried egg.  When the egg breaks into the rice, trust me, you're immediately happy choosing this add-on!

This week I made some “mini” Chinese Meatballs.  I’m keeping the “mini” in quotes, because lets be real, I may have every intention of making something “mini,” but some times what you plan for doesn’t exactly come to fruition, and you end up with “medium” meatballs.  Either way these delicious meatballs make a great addition to noodles, soup, or just as a protein-rich snack or appetizer. 

The options are limitless, you could add lemongrass, oyster sauce or green onions to these meatballs as well.  But, I kept my recipe fairly simple and worked with what I had right in my kitchen.  I mean with the freezing temperatures who wants to venture outside, am I right?

Mini Chinese Meatballs

Ingredients:

1/4 cup grated yellow onion

1/2 tsp five spice

1 tsp crushed red chili flakes

1 lb ground chicken

2 medium-large crushed garlic cloves

1 tbsp grated ginger

1/4 tsp fish sauce

1/4 tsp soy sauce

2 tbsps olive oil

Directions:

1. First prepare the onion, ginger and garlic.  Use a cheese grater to grate yellow onion and ginger.  Use a garlic press or finely chop the garlic cloves.  
2. Place your ground chicken in a bowl.  Add the onion, ginger and garlic to the meat.  
3. Then add the five spice, red chli flakes, fish sauce and soy sauce.  
4. Incorporate everything together with your hands. (yes, time to get in there!)
5. Form the mixture into meatballs - the size can be your preference.  If you have difficult forming the meatball shapes, you can add 1/4 cup breadcrumbs or panko to the mixture to help them form easier.  
6. Pour olive oil in a pan on high heat.  Once the oil is hot add the meatballs in one layer. Cook in two to three batches, if needed.  Make sure you don't overcrowd.  Cook on high heat on one side and flip over.  Cook on the other side for one minute.  Then lower the heat to medium and cover; cook like this for two minutes to be sure the meatballs are cooked through.
7. Once you've cooked all the meatballs, return them to the pan and add 1/4 cup Thai ginger broth (or any broth).  Turn to high heat and cook covered for about three minutes.  Remove the lid and continue on high heat for two minutes until the liquid evaporates. 

#314 Chicken & Kale Stir Fry for One, By: V

Most weeknights I want to head straight home after work and not have to pick-up or order-in take out.  I want to be able to whip up an easy hot meal and relax on the couch.  I mean, but really, don’t we all? 

Chicken Stir Fry can be a very easy and quick dish to prepare.  When I was in law school it was simple enough for me to whip up.  I would come back to my apartment after class and scrounge up any veggies from my freezer and refrigerator crisper, tossing them in a pan with a bit of olive oil and always adding in some sort of heat component – red chili flakes or Thai chili peppers. 

I’ve been on a big kale binge lately.  Throwing it into my morning green smoothies, salads, curries and stir-fry.  So, this week after work I came home and decided to make a quick kale and chicken stir fry.  The fridge was low on veggie, so kale became the major player of this stir-fry recipe. 

Prepping your ingredients before creating most dishes is such a helpful first step.  This is especially true for stir-fry recipes.  The cooking process is relatively quick and you don’t want your veggies over-cooked, so having everything by the side of the range, ready to pop into the wok or pan is really important, and a time saver.

You can even prep the night before if you have the time.  I washed my kale, cut the stems off and folded the leaves in half, before slicing them into ribbons.  I took the garlic clove and crushed it with the back of a knife, to easily remove the outer skin, before placing the clove in a garlic press and crushing the clove out into a delicious pile of fresh crushed and chopped garlic.  I took a piece of ginger root and peeled the outer skin with a vegetable peeler, or you can use a butter knife, then grated the ginger against a simple cheese grater.  The chicken was rinsed and cut into about 1 inch cubes.  

Chicken & Kale Stir Fry for One

Ingredients:

3 chicken tenderloins

1 garlic clove

2 tbsps olive oil 

1/2 tsp red chili flakes

1/2 tsp fresh grated ginger

2 cups chopped kale

1 tbsp stir fry sauce

1 tsp soy sauce

Directions:

1. In a skillet (wok or pan) add olive oil and red chili flakes to low heat.  Place garlic clove into a garlic press or chop up the garlic clove.  
2. Turn the heat up to medium and let the mixture splutter for 5 seconds.  Don't let the garlic brown. 
3. Add the chicken pieces and turn the heat to high  Cook on high until the chicken is no longer pink. 
4. Add the ginger and kale to the skillet. 
5. Stir everything together so the kale is coated with the oil.  
6. Then add the stir fry sauce (hoison sauce, oyster sauce, or any stir-fry sauce of your preference) and soy sauce.  Stir and cover with pot lid.  
7. Cook covered for 3 minutes.  Take the lid off, stir, and serve.  

I like heating the oil on low or medium-low with the garlic and red chili flakes, to allow the flavors from both ingredients to permeate the oil slowly and without burning the garlic.

This dish can be served over quinoa, cauliflower rice, brown rice, jasmine rice (or any rice of your choosing), noodles or for a low-carb option, in lettuce wraps.

# 303 Goat Cheese Filled "Five-Spice" Chicken, By: V

On Friday night, my roommate and I hosted a group of twelve of our friends for a game night. The usual rules, we provide the food and two bottles of wine, everyone else was asked to bring dessert or a beverage of their personal preference.  

We hunkered down on this incredibly cold night with a gorgeous cheese plate.  The plate included parmesan, havarti and goat cheese.  I also took a brie and covered the top with a bit of thyme and honey, baked it till it was gooey and delicious.  We made a slow cooker queso recipe, which included canned tomatoes, green chilies, Velveeta cheese and ground chicken.  You simply place the mixture in a slow cooker and let it stay on warm during the evening, so everyone can enjoy the hot queso.  It's basically like your own personal fondue.  I think this was everyone's favorite!  It was warm, gooey and delicious to scoop the sliced French bread into.  Since we bought so much French bread we though we'd pair the bread with not just the cheese, but some bruschetta topping and olive tapenade.  Of course taking some assistance from the grocery store with some premade tapenade and bruschetta topping.  After a long day of work, you can't expect homemade everything! 

A few of our friends brought games with them to share with everyone.  We spent the night playing Scene It and Cards Against Humanity, but most of the night was spent talking.  The major topic of discussion was the Serial podcast.  If you haven't heard of it, it's definitely one to check out.  It involves the question of wrongful conviction, and is full of suspense.  A nice evening in, after a long work week :)  

A quick shot as we were getting the food ready...



The delicious queso...



In last week's post I made a  Pickled Carrot and Cucumber salad.  I mentioned pairing this with a "five spice" chicken.  Five spice is a spice mixture most commonly used in Chinese and Vietnamese cooking. There are many variations of the spice powder mixture which include licorice, orange peel, ginger root or cardamom, but the most common version includes: (1) star anise; (2) cloves; (3) cinnamon; (4) szechuan pepper; and, (5) fennel seeds.  I call my version "five-spice," because it is a variation of the typical powder, including nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, pepper and paprika.  It should really be "five spice +" for that matter, because of the addition of sriracha sauce (or rooster sauce) to the mix.  

In Vietnam the rub is most commonly used in cooking broiled chicken, and so I got the idea for this "five spice" rubbed chicken.  The goat cheese addition is certainly not traditional to Vietnam, but I thought this change would give an interesting modification to the dish and a surprise when you bite in.  Hope you all enjoy!

"Five Spice" Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts - Serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

2 chicken breasts
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
11/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 tsps coconut oil
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt 
2 tbsp goat cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Flatten out the chicken breasts by placing on cutting board with a sheet of plastic wrap over the chicken.  "Hammer" down with a can or rolling pin, in a "hit and roll" type of motion.  Do this until each breast is about 1/4 inch thick.
2. Place 1 tbsp of goat cheese on each breast and spread to cover one side of the breast.  Fold or roll the chicken over so that none of the goat cheese is exposed, and instead it is all held in the inside of the rolled chicken breast. 
3. Melt coconut oil in a microwave safe bowl on high for 20 seconds.  Then to the melted coconut mixture add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, salt, and pepper (the "Five Spices") and also add the Sriracha or Rooster Sauce.  Mix this together with a spoon until well blended.  
4. Place each stuffed chicken into the oil and spice mixture.  Roll around so the chicken is coated in the  mixture on all sides.  
5. Place the chicken on an aluminum foil lined pan.  
6. Bake the chicken in a 400 degrees Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes.  Turn the oven off and let sit in the heat for 5 minutes.  Then you are ready to serve.  

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!  I feel like I'm looking forward to it this year more than last, can't wait to gobble down all the turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed garlic potatoes, cornbread stuffing, and more :)  Of course, I'll have pictures for you all next week! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!