My son Collin found this recipe and asked if I would cook it for him. Of course! I will share it with you.
He found it on the internet and it's called Lemon-soy Skewered Chicken with Hot Dipping Sauce. It's really good! When I get my food truck, I will serve this and call it Chick-on-a-Stick... well, maybe not.
Here's the recipe:
1 stalk fresh lemon grass, tough outer leaves removed, finely chopped
juice of 1 lemon
1 T. soy sauce
1 t. sugar
4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
vegetable oil
salt and pepper
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 fresh hot red chile peppers, seeded and finely chopped
1 T. rice wine vinegar
pinch of sugar
juice of 1 lemon
1. Combine lemon grass, lemon juice, soy sauce, and sugar in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Cut each chicken breast lengthwise, and add to lemon grass mixture. Let marinate while you prepare dipping sauce.
2. To make the dipping sauce, combine garlic, chiles, vinegar, and sugar in a small saucepan. Add 2 T. water, and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved--do not boil. Allow to cool, then stir in the lemon juice.
3. Thread the chicken lengthwise onto skewers, allowing two for each serving. Heat grill pan until hot. Brush lightly with oil, and grill for 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked through and lightly charred. Serve with dipping sauce. So good!
Yes, I do love Asian food, to eat and to cook. The flavors are unique and can be spicy, pungent, garlicky, salty, soy-saucy, sweet, gingery, and fiery hot. The food can also be simple or complicated to cook--and can be very satisfying in your tummy and healthy, too. I've experimented over the years with different dishes, sometimes trying to duplicate a restaurant recipe, or just learn how to cook it all right! So not long ago, I took an Asian cooking class on how to stir fry. It was lots of fun and I learned a thing or two!
This is Peng Jones of Asian Cookery teaching us how to cook delicious Asian food. I learned about "velveting" (a technique using cornstarch to make meat tender and succulent), the correct way to cut vegetables and the importance of uniformity in their sizes, and proper heating of the wok and timing of adding ingredients to insure that the quality of the food is perfect.
Okay, so I tried cooking Cashew Chicken at home after my cooking class. The meat was juicy, soft, succulent (am I being redundant?) and just plain good! Thank you Peng for showing me how to do it the right way. I first got the wok screaming hot; then added a little oil, then added minced garlic and fresh ginger. I added the carrots next, then the broccoli and celery. I took the vegetables out of the wok and kept them warm on a plate; then I stir fried the chicken and added the veggies back to the wok. The sauce was last. Oh, did I miss telling you about velveting? This is really important so don't skip it! It's what makes the meat deliciously... well... velvety.
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." ~ 1Cor.13
I woke up this morning to a beautiful display of Jack Frost everywhere! Freezing fog, snow white all over the trees, roads, bushes. No mountains in view, just a beautiful whitish gray foggy landscape. So pretty! And I'm glad I don't need to go outside, so I will stay in, enjoy the warmth of the fireplace, and COOK!!
A hearty pork roast surrounded with white potatoes, sweet potatoes, and stuffed with a delicious apple, onion, bread stuffing! This will make your house smell so good as it cooks away in a slow oven. What could be better on this freezing cold day?
Mmmmm, hot beefy stew with potatoes and peas served with homemade yeast rolls!
The term "comfort food" conjures up all sorts of delightful memories, good smells wafting from the kitchen, laughter, merry company, and of course all sorts of really good food--maybe simple fare, easy to make, sometimes long cooking times on top of the hot stove, or roasting in the oven, braising... "picture" memories of my Goggy always wearing her handmade apron over a simple dress and always with high heels on, candy in her pocket, and a spoon in her hand!
Old-fashioned fried chicken, yum! Nothing fancy here. I do like to buy a really good chicken from an all natural foods market, cut it up myself (that's why there's that little tiny piece right in the middle), and dust with a well-seasoned flour, and drop in hot oil in the skillet. If you don't hear that bubbling, sizzling noise and see it popping all over, then you've not waited long enough for the oil to get hot. The skin is perfectly crunchy, light, and well seasoned. The meat is juicy and satisfying. Yes, comfort indeed!
One Easter my sisters and I were given baby chicks as gifts. They were so cute and we had such fun watching as they scampered all over the grass. And oh so cuddly if one would let you hold him. I liked to snuggle mine. He was cute and I named him BooBoo. Well so much for this story... just doesn't end happily. Life goes on.
Oh this is making me hungry! Nothing says comfort like a big ole pot of spaghetti--yum yum! This is a meat sauce I make using ground beef. First, I cook the beef, drain, and add chopped onions and lots of freshly minced garlic. After that cooks awhile, I add oregano, basil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. I stir it around until the herbs smell very fragrant, and then I add my tomatoes plus sauce and a bay leaf or two. I let it all meld together for a good amount of time and then I add lots of good, dry red wine. Mmmmm, can you smell it simmering away on the stove? Then after I cook the noodles, I add them to the pot along with some of the pasta water. Eat Time!!
Okay, I know, more fried food. But these panko fried eggplant are out of this world! I slice the eggplant first into about quarter-inch pieces, dredge in seasoned flour, dip in egg, coat in panko crumbs, and then fry in hot oil. They're just delicious and not greasy at all if you fry them just right.
.jpg)
.jpg)
.JPG)
.JPG)
