Category Archives: Thai Inspired
Pad See Ew (Thai Stir Fried Noodles)
This was yummy, yummy! We just got a new Asian store near our house and I am super excited to be able to buy all the yummy veggies like Chinese broccoli and fresh noodles, etc any time I want….
- 16 ounces rice noodles (any variety will do. I was able to find the actual wide rice noodles), cooked according to package directions. Drain well and drizzle with some oil to prevent sticking together. Be careful not to over cook.
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons sweet dark soy sauce (if you don’t have dark soy sauce, just add extra regular soy sauce with a bit of sugar)
- 2 tablespoons oyster sauce (eliminate if vegetarian)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons water
Mix together and keep aside.
- 2 to 3 chicken thighs (partly frozen so they can be sliced thin), sliced thin
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
Marinate chicken in soy sauce for 2 to 3 hours.
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 3 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 bunch Chinese broccoli, leaves separated and chopped/stems chopped separately
- 10 ounces Cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 3 green onions, chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
Heat a wok like pan with the peanut oil. Add the Chinese broccoli stalks and garlic. Saute on a high heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the chicken and sauté on high heat for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and repeat the process. Add the noodles and the sauce. Mix well and make room in the middle of the pan and add the eggs. Stir well as the egg cooks and coats all the noodles. Check for seasonings and add the green onions and cilantro. Serve warm.
4th Of July Recipes- Cole Slaw with Yogurt and Tamarind Vinaigrette
I am all for making things from scratch but I do like to use all the conveniences I can find at the store. For this recipe I bought packaged, shredded cabbage, carrots and broccoli slaw. It saved me a ton of time and made everything a lot easier.
To complete a well-balanced menu, I was going to make a coleslaw dish with the Thai style burgers and potato salad. The recent Bon Appetit issue had a whole article on tamarind and it’s virtues. I am quite familiar with tamarind as I use it for all different things including using it in drinks, dressings and as a condiment.
They talked about pairing yogurt with tamarind concentrate to make a delicious, tangy dressing. I added my own twist by adding roasted cumin to the creamy dressing which gave the dish a nice nutty flavor. Overall, the dish went well with the burger and the potato salad.
What else do you need? Yes, I know what you are thinking- where is the dessert??? Stay tuned for tomorrow and you will have a great recipe for a dessert as well…
read more …
4th Of July Recipes: Thai Style Mango Salsa
It is time to talk about fourth of July recipes. I can’t believe it is that time already. It feels like yesterday when we were complaining about the cold and wet weather and couldn’t wait for summer to begin. Well here it is and it is time to plan a delicious yet easy meal for your family and loved ones.
I came upon a Thai theme for this holiday. I find it a lot easier to come up with recipes if I have a central theme established. For this theme, mangoes came to mind. Usually for an appetizer, I like to do a salsa and chips. It is easy and delicious and not too filling. It also goes well with beer, wine and any other mixed drinks you may be serving.
I decided to make a Thai style salsa- what does that mean? Well, you essentially add Thai ingredients including fish sauce, sweet chili sauce, cilantro, lemon juice and you have a Thai style mango salsa! I served it with rice chips I purchased from Trader Joes.
Try it for the upcoming fourth of July holiday….
read more …
Coconut Rice
The rice dish goes really well with the kumquat chicken I posted yesterday. Since it had so much flavor, I wasn’t looking for a starch that would compete with the protein. I knew I wanted to serve the chicken dish with rice and coconut kept coming to mind- especially because Spice Market in NYC serves Thai inspired food.. and when I think of Thai, coconut comes to mind.
I saved all the lemongrass stalks and kaffir lime mixture from the dressing for the chicken and added it to the coconut milk. I let the milk simmer with the aromatic herbs till it reduced down to two cups. This ensured tons of flavor… yum!! I added jasmine rice to the delicious broth and cooked the rice.
It is amazing how delicious the rice was- I could make a meal out of it- just the rice. I obviously tasted amazing with the chicken dish. Try this rice dish with any Asian inspired dish- you will never make plain rice again…
read more …
Chicken Breast with Kumquats
This was a great dish to make. Someone mentioned kumquats a while ago and how the didn’t know what to do with them. Kumquats look like tiny little oranges. They are quite tart if eaten raw but provide a great tangy citrus flavor if cooked correctly. It reminded me of a chicken and kumquat dish I had at Spice Market in NYC. It was a very memorable and delicious meal- I am sure the yummy cocktails helped a lot.
I started thinking of that dish and decided to look it up online. After a lot of visualizing, I came up with this recipe. I first put the dressing together. I was able to get fresh lemongrass at whole foods. The kaffir lime leaves are available at the Asian stores. I bought a big pack and have them stored in the freezer. These two flavors are quite important to this dish.
I coated the chicken with a spice mix and marinated it for a few hours. All together, this dish has a few steps but it is very worth it.
read more …
Chicken Red Curry with Green Beans
I think I will do Asian dishes this week. Chinese New Year just passed. We love going into Chinatown to eat all the yummy food, especially during New year. Even our favorite local Chinese restaurant had some amazing dishes this year.
This particular dish is a fusion of Chinese and Thai cuisines. I used the prepared red curry paste and added coconut milk. I used the delicious, long green beans I got from a local Asian market. Overall, the dish was a tad bit spicy for my daughter, but she ate it, while sipping lots of milk.
I served the dish with a lime coconut jasmine rice- it was absolutely delicious.
read more …
Spicy Calamari Salad
This is my version of a spicy calamari I had at a new Thai restaurant in Chatham- Thai Passion. I reviewed it a couple weeks ago.
This salad got my attention- it was fabulous- although I realized it was a bit over the top with the flavoring. I really enjoyed it but while I was trying to decide how to replicate this salad, I decided to tone it down a bit. At the same time, I didn’t want to lose the essence of the dish- which was a lot of spicy, savory, tangy and a bit of sweet. Writing about it makes me want to eat some- my mouth is salivating. If you live in the area- you should go try it in Chatham. If you don’t live in the Jersey area, try the recipe I have created.
As I mentioned before, this version is a bit toned down. I used tamarind concentrate, lime juice,Worcestershire sauce, palm sugar, sriracha sauce, etc. Once the dressing was made, all I had to do was to cook the calamari. I will attach the video that goes with this recipe.
Try this salad- it is a great dish to make in the summer time…
- ¼ pound calamari, defrosted and cut into ½ inch rings
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Heat a non-stick frying pan and add the olive oil on high heat. Add the calamari and sprinkle salt. Saute on high heat for two minutes just until the rings turn opaque. Turn the heat off and drain on a paper towel.
- 2 cups mixed greens
- ¼ cup fresh basil, chopped
- ¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
- ½ cup green beans, blanched
- 1 medium tomato, cut into 1-inch squares
Toss the mixed greens with the basil, mint, green beans and tomato. Add the calamari and mix well.
Vinaigrette
- ½ teaspoon tamarind concentrate
- Juice of half a lime
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon tamari
- 2 teaspoons sriracha sauce
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon palm sugar
- 1 tablespoon extra light olive oil
Add the tamarind, limejuice, Worcestershire sauce, tamari, fish sauce, sriracha and palm sugar into a small bowl. Drizzle the olive oil while whisking the dressing. Pour the dressing on top of the salad and toss lightly before serving.