Category: meats

Chicken in Spicy Thai Peanut Sauce

spicy thai peanut chicken - trust in kim

Recently I had a craving for a Thai peanut chicken I remembered making many times a few years ago, but for the life of me I couldn’t find the recipe. I finally realized that it was in a cookbook I gave away in one of my purges of my book collection before moving apartments.  Thankfully I was able to find the book at the public library and I able to make the recipe once again.  It was as good as I remembered it; a little spicy, and the chicken tender and tasty.  I made a lot more broccoli than the original recipe called for, and I served it on brown rice.

This recipe comes from Charlotte Solomon’s Thai Cookbook.

What you need:

1 kg chicken breasts and/or thighs

1 teaspoon crushed garlic

2 teaspoons grated fresh or frozen ginger

1 tablespoon red curry paste

2 tablespoon peanut oil

1/2 cup spring onions, cut into 5cm lengths

1/4 cup roasted peanuts, finely chopped, or 2 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter

2 teaspoons brown sugar (or palm sugar, if you have it)

1 tablespoon fish sauce (optional)

1 cup coconut milk

3 cups broccoli florets

What you do:

1. Cut each chicken breast in half. If you are making brown rice you can start it now.

2. Combine the garlic, ginger and curry paste and coat each piece of chicken with it.  Let the chicken sit for at least 20 minutes.

3. Heat the peanut oil on medium-high heat, and add the spring onions to the pan. Stir them for a few seconds, then remove them from the pan.

4. Add the chicken to the pan and cook until each side has browned.

5. Add the peanuts, sugar, fish sauce and coconut milk.  Cook until the chicken is cooked through and tender.

6. Steam the broccoli.

7. Serve the chicken over rice with broccoli and top with sauce and spring onions.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

 

Brown Rice, Veggies and Ground Turkey- Meal in a Bowl

I made way to much rice the other day, so I bought a bunch of veggies to cook up with the leftover rice to make a great new meal.  I love making a big meal and then having leftovers for lunch for a few days, and this works perfectly for that.  It’s easy to make, and the only part that takes a bit of time is letting the onions brown, which is key to the flavour in this dish.

I took this picture before adding the kale; it’s really good without kale too, but I added it because it’s so good for you.

What you need:

leftover brown rice, about 2 cups (okay, you can use white if that’s what you’ve got)

400 or so grams of ground turkey (or not, for a veggie option)

one large sweet or red onion, sliced

1 leek, thinly sliced

3-4 garlic cloves, sliced

red bell pepper, thinly sliced

carrot, grated

a bunch of kale, finely chopped

olive oil

pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne, unless you like it really hot, in which case add more

soy sauce

What you do:

1.  Slice the onion into strips that are just less than 1cm wide.  In a large frying pan, heat the oil on medium high, then add the onions and cook them until they are slightly browned.

3.  Cut peppers into strips similar in size to the onions.  Add to the onions, along with the sliced garlic and leeks, and cook for a few minutes.

4.  Grate the carrot and add to the other veggies.  Cook for 5-10 minutes, until the peppers are soft and the onions are quite brown.

5.  Place the veggies in a bowl, then cook the ground turkey until it’s not pink any more.

6.  Add some olive oil to the pan, then add the cooked rice to the turkey and stir, scraping the bottom of the pan, for several minutes.  Now add the veggies, the chopped kale and some soy sauce to taste, and cook for a few minutes.  Season with lots of pepper.

Chorizo and Lime Appetizer

This idea comes from my good friend, Sarah.  It’s so simple and so delicious.  I bought the chorizo at Oyama Sausage at Granville Island; I particularly love the red wine chorizo.

What you need:

chorizo

lime

toothpicks

paper towel

What you do:

1.  Slice the sausage.

2.  Heat a frying pan.  Put the sausage in it.  Fry on each side until slightly browned.

3.  Use the paper towel to soak up the fat.

4.  Squirt lime over the sausages, then put a toothpick in each one.  I served them right out of the cast iron frying pan so they would stay hot.

Turkey and Hot Italian Sausage Meatballs

Looking for an appetizer and wanting to make something for the meat-lovers coming to visit, I decided meatballs were the perfect thing.  I thought about what I would love in a meatball, and decided to improve on what I’ve done in the past.  I combined some favourites that I thought would work well together – the spice of the hot Italian sausages, the lightness of the turkey, a punch of flavour from the sun-dried tomatoes, and then some pistachios for a twist.  I put it all into a homemade tomato sauce, which is so easy, and I cooked them for a long time to make the sauce really thick and to give the flavours time to mingle.

I served them on skewers for appetizers, and the leftovers made a great topping for spaghetti squash.  Of course you could always go with the standby comfort food, spaghetti and meatballs.

What you need for the meatballs:

400 grams ground turkey thigh

400 grams hot Italian sausage, removed from casings (or chorizo)

1 egg

1/3 cup fine breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes (or oven-roasted)

1 tablespoon fresh basil, finely chopped

2 teaspoons fresh oregano, finely chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted pistachios,  finely chopped

1/3 cup finely grated parmesan

1/4 cup onion, finely chopped

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

What you need for the sauce:

1 small onion

1 large can pureed tomatoes

3 tablespoons butter

a little red wine (optional)

a rind from parmesan cheese (optional but amazing! save your rinds for this purpose!)

salt and pepper to taste

fresh basil, optional

What you do:

The sauce can be made ahead of time and refrigerated or frozen until you need it.  The whole recipe can be made ahead of time and reheated.  I think it`s even better the second time around.

1. Start the sauce first by simply emptying the can of tomatoes into a pot, then adding the butter and the cheese rind.  Put the whole onion into the pot – it will simmer to add flavour, and you will remove it at the end.

2. Bring the sauce to a low boil, and simmer for 40 minutes to an hour.  Add a little red wine or water if it`s getting too thick.

3.  Remove the rind and the onion, and add salt, pepper, and the optional basil to taste.  If you think it needs it, you can add a little brown sugar to the tomato sauce.

4.  If you made the sauce ahead of time, heat it up in a large pot.

5.  Combine all the meatball ingredients together in a bowl. I mix it with my hands because I’m going to use my hands to make the meatballs anyways.  Don’t mix the meatball mixture too much, just until it is combined.

6. Drop the meatballs directly into the sauce, on a low simmer.  Try not to stir them until they’ve had some cooking time, so they solidify and won’t break as easily.  Spoon some sauce over the tops of the meatballs, so they are all covered.  Cook for at least half an hour, but preferably longer, until the sauce is nice and thick.

Serve on pasta, spaghetti squash, or on toothpicks as an appetizer.

My Mom’s Mennonite Borscht – the best!

I absolutely love my mom’s borscht, and yet I have never tried to make it. (Update – oops, this isn’t actually her recipe! This one is good too, but here’s the link to the real deal.) There’s something special about having her make it, and then give me some in a jar to take home.  But I thought I should figure out how to make it, because one day, in a long long time, she’s not going to be making it any more.  Her recipe is from the old “Mennonite Treasury of Recipes,” in which the Mennonite ladies from across Canada contributed recipes.  The first printing was in 1961, and reprinted every year after. Until at least 1975 when mine was printed.  I had it handed down to me by a great-aunt.  The original recipe is called “Cabbage Borscht,” and it includes potatoes, which I left out.  I wanted to freeze some, and I don’t think potatoes freeze well.  I also prefer the taste  it without them. I also use yogurt for putting on top, rather than the cream the recipe calls for.  I added, like my mom, dill.

This borscht has no beets in it! I know, you might think this isn’t even borscht, but trust me, it’s the best kind.  I prefer it with beef, but you can use chicken if you want.  A combination of both is good, too.  I made the broth a day ahead so I could skim the fat off once it cooled, so you’ll want to factor the extra day into it.

What you need:

2 pounds beef bones with some meat on them

8 cups water

2 carrots, sliced into rounds

1/2 head green cabbage

1 medium onion, minced

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 star anise

3 allspice, whole

1 bay leaf

1 & 1/2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

2 tablespoons fresh or frozen dill (not dried! ew, it hardly tastes like dill!)

dash of pepper

1 -1&1/2 cups chopped tomatoes

plain yogurt

What you do:

1. Boil the bones in water for at least 1 & 1/2 hours. Add more water as it boils away. Remove the bones and meat, keeping the meat to add to the soup later.  Let the stock cool, then remove the fat from the top.

2. Bring the beef stock to a boil, then add the veggies and spices – everything except the salt, pepper, tomatoes and yogurt.  Cook until the veggies are tender.  Add the tomatoes and bring to a boil.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

3. Spoon some yogurt on top to serve.

My mom (the little one being held) with her cousins in Paraguay. My grandparents moved there from Russia, and then to Canada.

Italian Wedding Soup

After a gorgeous summer of vacationing in very hot climates, I was a little shocked to come home to Vancouver’s fabulously moderate climate.  So shocked that in early September I had to make some soup to warm me up a little.  I started with a great homemade chicken stock, which makes all soups fabulous, then made up my version of Italian Wedding Soup.  I always thought it was called that because it was served at weddings, but I recently read that it is called that because greens and meat marry well together.  My version has turkey meatballs, because it seemed like a healthy thing to do.

Although I am lactose intolerant, I find the hard cheeses like parmesan aren’t too hard to tolerate, because they actually contain very little lactose.

What you need for the soup:

6-8 cups chicken stock

1 medium onion, chopped

olive oil

3 carrots, peeled and chopped into thin rounds

1 bay leaf

1/3 cup orzo pasta

1 bunch spinach, washed and roughly chopped

What you need for the meatballs:

400 grams ground turkey

2 tablespoon onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, finely diced

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup bread crumbs

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

salt and pepper

a pinch of nutmeg

1 egg

What you do:

1. Heat a little olive oil in a large pot on medium heat, then add the onion and cook it for a few minutes until it is softened.  Add the garlic and cook for another minute.  Add the carrot and cook for a minute or two.  Add the broth and the bay leaf.  Bring this to a boil – you will add the raw meatballs to this broth.

2. Combine all the meatball ingredients and mix them together a little with your hands – don’t over-mix.  Form the mixture into small meatballs with your hands, about a teaspoon or smaller in size.  Drop the meatballs into the soup as you make them, making sure you keep it on a low boil as you go. Once all the meatballs are in, allow the soup to cook for about 10 minutes.

3.  Add the orzo to the pot of boiling soup, stirring from time to time.

4.  When the orzo is cooked through, season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.  Now add the spinach and cook it briefly, until it wilts.

Buon appetito!

I had some of this soup for leftovers, and it was yummy, but the spinach wasn’t very green after the first serving.  If you plan to use it for leftovers, you might want to leave the spinach out, and add it when you reheat.

Confit de Canard avec les Pommes de Terre et Legumes

 

In France this summer I enjoyed eating duck on many occasions.  One night Corey and I made our own confit de canard dinner at a B&B.  We had this gorgeous outdoor space to cook and eat our meal in.  Duck confit is cured in salt, then cooked in its own fat.  And is amazing!  In France it is readily available, but not so much at home.  If you’re in Vancouver, I’ve heard you can buy it at Oyama Sausage at Granville Island.  The excess fat can be saved in the fridge to cook potatoes in the future.

What you need:

two legs of confit de canard

potatoes

1 zucchini, sliced about 2 cm thick

butter

2 tomatoes

salt and pepper

What you do:

1. Heat a frying pan on medium high and put the duck legs in it.  Cook them until they are nicely browned.

2. To cook the potatoes you can begin by either boiling them, or pierce with a fork and pop them in the microwave.  Then cut into thick slices.

3. Remove the legs from the pan and keep them in a warm oven.  Remove some of the fat from the frying pan, then add the potatoes.  Fry them until they are browned on each side. (If you want to make Perigord style potatoes, add some garlic and lots of parsley.  We didn’t get to try this, but our B&B host told us it was amazing, so that is how I’ll try it next time).

4. In another pan, heat a tablespoon or so of butter, then add the zucchini slices.  Brown them slightly on each side, then add salt and pepper.

5. Cut the tomato into slices and salt and pepper them.  If you have some balsamic reduction you can add some of that too.

Plate the duck, potatoes, zucchini and tomatoes and enjoy a gorgeous meal with a glass of red wine.  Ours was a Bordeaux.

 

The French countryside

Le Croissant Quebecois de Kim

Image

This summer I am staying in a college dormitory for three weeks as I attend French classes at the College Merici. Our kitchen is equipped with just a pot and a pan and a few plates, cups and cutlery.  Not wanting to equip an entire kitchen, my roommates and I have been challenging ourselves to make delicious meals using few ingredients and cooking utensils.

For Saturday brunch I walked to the patisserie to buy the croissants, and then came home to whip these up.  Et voila!  Les Croissants aux oeufs, avec bacon et des tomates!

What you need:

croissants, 1 per person

eggs, 1 per person

bacon, 1-2 slices per person

tomatoes, 1 small tomato per person

salt and pepper

olive oil

What you do:

1. Fry the bacon until crispy, then drain it on paper towels. Remove most of the bacon fat from the pan.

2. Slice the tomatoes, then fry them in a little bit of the bacon fat.  Add salt and pepper, and cook a little on each side.

3. Crack the eggs into a bowl, add a little salt and pepper and mix them up with a fork.  Add a little water, about a tablespoon, and mix it in.

4. Remove the tomatoes from the pan and set aside.  Add some olive oil to the pan, then cook the eggs. I like to have the pan on medium high, then add the eggs.  I don’t stir them until they have cooked a bit on the bottom, stir a little, then let them cook again, stirring maybe once or twice more before they are done.

5. To prepare the croissants, slice them open, then put in some eggs, then add the tomatoes and bacon on top.

Bon apetit!

Lamb Chops with Pistachio Tapenade

These little chops are so easy and tasty – I’ve fallen in love with them.  I don’t cook lamb very often, so I wanted to find an amazing recipe, and after much searching I found it at Smitten Kitchen.  Olives and nuts, well right there you’ve got an amazing combination that works so well with the lamb.

If you want to try out this recipe on someone, feel free to invite me over!

I served them with tiny baked potatoes roasted with some duck fat, rosemary and salt, along with a green salad with vinaigrette, strawberries and toasted slivered almonds.

What you need:

1 rack of lamb or 6-8 chops

1/3 cup unsalted pistachios, toasted

1/3 cup pitted green olives

1 & 1/2 tablespoons capers

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 teaspoons fresh oregano

1 & 1/2 tablespoons parsley

olive oil

zest of 1 lemon

salt and pepper

What you do:

1.  Cut the rack of lamb into chops, the salt and pepper each one.  Let these sit while you prepare the tapenade.

2.  To make the tapenade, place the pistachios, capers, garlic, oregano, parsley and lemon zest in a food processor.  Add a little olive oil at a time to make it into a thick paste.

3.  Preheat the oven to 425 F.  Heat a frying pan to medium-high, then add some olive oil.  Cook the lamb chops for 2 minutes per side, or until they are browned.  Remove the chops to a baking pan and smear some of the tapenade on each.  Place the chops in the oven and cook for 4-5 minutes, which will give you lovely rare chops.

4.  Remove the chops from the oven and let them rest 5 minutes before serving.  Savour!

Coq au Vin Blanc

I’m in love with this recipe.  It takes a bit of planning, but it is so worth it – so much flavour!  The chicken needs to be marinated, and it really does taste so much better when you use homemade chicken stock.

You’ll want a nice crusty loaf of bread to go with this, to soak up the delicious juices.  And a nice glass of wine can’t hurt.

The recipe is from Country Living’s One-Dish Country Suppers book, and I’ve adapted it a bit.

What you need for the marinade:

3 cups dry white wine

1 cup chopped onion

1 carrot, sliced

1 stalk celery, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh parsley

8 whole black peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 pounds of bone-in, skinless chicken pieces (breasts might be a little dry for this one)

What else you need:

4 slices bacon, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large sweet onion, cut into large chunks

5 medium carrots, but into 1 inch chunks

2 stalks celery, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 shallot, chopped

1/4 cup  flour

3 cups chicken broth (homemade is best!)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

3/4 lb small potatoes

What you do:

1. To marinate the chicken, cook all the marinade ingredients (except the chicken!) for about 5 minutes.  Let it cool to room temperature, then pour it into a container with the chicken and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

2. Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry.  Strain and save the liquid.

3. In a large pan, cook the bacon until crisp.  Remove the bacon, then brown the chicken in the bacon fat.  Remove the chicken and most of the fat.

4. Add the olive oil and onions, cooking until lightly browned.  Add the carrots, celery, garlic and shallot, and cook for 5 more minutes.

5. Meanwhile, in a bowl stir a little of the marinade liquid into the flour, mixing so there are no lumps.  Add the rest of the marinade liquid and mix, ensuring there are no lumps.

6.  Add the flour and marinade mixture to the pot with the chicken.  Then stir in the chicken broth, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper.  Reduce the heat and cook for about 45 minutes

7.  Add the potatoes, then cook for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.

8.  After a long-deserved wait you have a fabulous dinner to sit down to.  Top each portion with a little of the bacon, and enjoy a nice glass of wine with it!