Tuesday Recipe - Malaysian fried noodles

This recipe didn't turn out quite so well. Mostly, I think this was because I couldn't find either dried shrimp or shrimp paste, which would have added a much heftier flavor profile. I tried adding fish sauce to make up for it, but it just wasn't quite the same thing. But I'm still giving it to you here because I think that it might turn out really well if the appropriate ingredients are used.

The chili paste is definitely powerful, though take my word for it...you don't want to leave any of it in tupperware all week and then open it to check on it. Practically bowled myself over, and ended up throwing up the whole tupperware with it. Not that it wasn't a good chili paste (it was), but sitting and marinating in its own juices, it just got to be a bit much.

10 large dried chilis
5 shallots, peeled
5 garlic cloves, peeled
t shrimp paste
6T oil
5oz firm tofu, cut into 1" cubes
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
10 oz skinless chicken breast, sliced
10oz raw shrimp, peeled and deveined (or you can take the lazy route like me, and buy frozen cooked deshelled shrimp)
6 choi sum (or baby bok choy), cut into 1 1/4" lengths (if you buy too much and have leftovers, these are great cooked with a little olive oil and garlic, like spinach)
t tomato puree
T dark soy sauce (following the tradition of this recipe of not having stuff, I got home and realized I didn't have soy sauce (well, it was hiding, but I didn't find it til later), but I didn't want to go out, so I just tried to make do)
lb fresh thin yellow wheat noodles, cut into short pieces (I wouldn't used these next time, because they turned into big balls of doughy substance that wasn't very appetizing, I'd probably use rice noodles)
4 scallions, finely chopped
8oz bean sprouts
juice of 1 lime
salt and pepper

To make the chili paste - soak the dried chilis in boiling water for 20 minutes until softened. Seed and finely chop (unless you're paranoid of chili oil getting on your face, like me, and you just chop them up without seeding them because you don't want to risk the small chance that any tiny microdot of chili oil will get on skin). Using a mortar and pestle, pound the chilis, shallots (it helps to chopp these first, unless you have shoulders of steel), and garlic into a paste. Add the shrimp paste and 2T f water and mix. Heat T oil over medium-high heat and cook the paste 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly. Transfer to a bowl.

Heat the remaining oil and fry the tofu 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside in a bowl. Add the onion and garlic to the oil and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant. Add the chicken and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add the shrimp and choi sum.

Add T of the chili paste, tomato puree, 1/2 cup water, and soy sauce, and bring to a simmer. Add the noodles and cook for 3 minutes. Add scallion, bean sprouts and tofu. Adjust seasoning with salt, black pepper, and add a little lime juice.

Monday Recipe - Spicy Chicken Stir Fry

This week starts of Asian month on the Lethological Gourmet. This stir fry is Chinese with a touch of Thai in the lime juice.

It actually turned out pretty well. Whenever I make stir fry, it either seems to turn out really well or really badly, with no in between. Thankfully, it ended up quite flavorful and spicy (I added in some extra red pepper flakes, just in case). The cilantro is also my addition, just because I had a bunch extra fom another recipe that I didn't want to go to waste.

The recipe makes about four large servings, and I served it on a bed of quinoa.

Spicy Chicken Stir Fry
1/2t ground turmeric
1/2t ground ginger
t salt
t ground pepper
2t ground cumin
T ground coriander
t red pepper flakes (to taste)
T sugar
lb skinless, boneless chicken, cut into small pieces
1 bunch of scallions, sliced into small rounds
2 red bell peppers, cut into thin 2" strips
1 zucchini, cut into thin 2" strips
1 baby eggplant, peeled and cut into 2" strips
1 medium onion, cut into 2" strips
T lime juice
T honey
1/4-1/2C minced cilantro
oil

Mix the turmeric, ginger, salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes and sugar in a bowl and mix well. Add the chicken to the spice mixture and coat thoroughly.

Heat 2T of oil in a pan and stir fry chicken until cooked through and golden brown. Remove from the pan and keep warm. Add a little more oil to the pan and cook veggies until soft. Add chicken, lime juice and honey. Add cilantro just before serving.

Monday Recipe - Chicken Spinach Soup

I never was much a fan of spinach. In fact, I never was much a fan of vegetables in general, other then basic salad stuff, peas, and corn. Then, I discovered how to cook most of them in a tasty way, and yummm! (Kale, for example, is a vegetable I recently tried and was very surprised at how tasty it was). I learned that asparagus doesn't actually have to be gray after it's cooked (boiling the life out of it), and I actually do like broccoli as long as it's still crunchy. I always used to say that broccoli was the only subject I agreed with the elder President Bush on (he went on record to say he didn't like broccoli), but now I'm happy to say that I can cross even that off our similarities list.

I was a bit dubious about spinach soup, however much I'm a fan of spinach now (especially Jamaican spinach). Something about spinach floating in broth just didn't seem appetizing. But man was I wrong! Plus, this recipe gave me my first chance to use my handy dandy new food processor (woooohooo!), and I didn't slice my finger this time like I did when I was unpacking it (why oh why were we created to be curious beings? Reminder: when directions say NOT to touch the blade, DON'T touch it just to see how sharp it is...). And the food processor did about 20 minutes of work in about 20 seconds. I'm a convert, yes sirree.

The recipe below is slightly modified from the original. I doubled the amount of carrots, scallions, and broth, added chicken to give it protein, but kept the amount of spinach the same. It came out pretty well balanced, I think.

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Chicken Spinach Soup

.5-1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts (optional)
1.5-2 lbs spinach, washed and de-stemmed (I used baby spinach, not sure if it changed the flavor)
12C chicken broth (6-8C if you're not adding chicken)
2/3C scallions, chopped
2/3C carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
C quinoa (or barley, rice, pasta, etc)
2T butter
salt/pepper

Melt butter in a large pot and add scallions, carrots and garlic (you can also use olive oil instead of butter for a healthier base). Sautee 2-3 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add whole chicken breasts to the broth.

While chicken is cooking, de-stem the spinach. When chicken is cooked, remove the chicken breasts from the pot. Transfer on a plate to a cutting board. With two sturdy forks, tear chicken into small pieces (you can also cut it into small pieces, but for some strange reason I much prefer how the torn chicken comes out). Return chicken to pot along with the quinoa.

When quinoa is cooked (it will be slightly chewy but not crunchy), add in the spinach and cook until just wilted. Salt and pepper to taste. Be sure not to overcook at this stage or the spinach will turn an unappetizing color.

Depending how large your serving sizes are, I'd say it makes about 8 servings (if you're using the chicken and 12C broth).