Thai Chicken Curry

Yesterday was ugly. Rainy and grey. A take-out Thai day. I always think of Thai food on gloomy, wet days. The days where the humidity in the air is far more chilling than the actual temperature itself. Thai is my rainy day stew. It is completely satisfying, without making you want to settle down for a long winter's nap. So yesterday, Mother Nature decided; I was having Thai. Since I am still quite new in town, I have yet to find my local, dependable Thai Restaurant. However, I happened to have a refrigerator full of nearly expired vegetables; so it actually worked out in my favor to make my own! Not to mention, it gave me another last minute recipe to post! :)
Thai is one genre of food that tends to be intimidating for the home cook to attempt. But if you think about it, it really should't be. For the sole reason that even if it's not very pretty to look at, chances are it will still be pretty tasty! Admittedly though, I too was once afraid. Until a friend passed on a recipe that was very similar to this one and was the perfect building block for any coconut curry. Feel free to do the same by increasing or decreasing the spices or substituting the chicken out for beef, shrimp, or all vegetables. They will all work wonderfully!

Ingredients:
2 tsp vegetable oil
1 large onion, julienned or sliced thinly
1 carrot, julienned
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 of a red bell pepper sliced thinly
13.6 oz can of coconut milk
1 tbs red curry paste
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tbs roasted red chili paste
3-4 small chicken breasts, cut in half and sliced into thin strips
large handful chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add vegetables and cook until onions are golden and carrots have soften.
Stir in coconut milk, curry paste, fish sauce and red chili paste. Add chicken, bring to a simmer and cook about 8 mins until chicken is done. Stir in cilantro and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve over rice or vermicelli noodles.

Pour a pint and dig in!

Simply Delicious Roasted Chicken

Friends are always asking me for quick and easy weeknight dinner recipes. One of my favorite go-to recipes is a Roasted Chicken from acclaimed chef Thomas Keller of Napa's French Laundry. The idea of store-bought rotisserie chickens sitting under heat lamps for hours has always grossed me out. I was convinced I could make a chicken that was not only fresher, but also better tasting. I found this recipe on one of my favorite food sites, epicurious.com and not only was it incredibly easy but it was also the best tasting roasted chicken I had ever had! The salt rub assures incredibly moist meat with perfectly crispy skin that even my children ask for! That would never happen with a precooked rotisserie bird, now would it??? I usually serve this dish with a simple side of roasted fingerling potatoes that can roast in a separate pan along side the chicken; getting dinner prepped, cooked, and on the table in just over an hour! How easy is that??!!

Ingredients:

3-4 pound organic whole roaster chicken
Kosher or freshly ground sea salt
Freshly ground pepper


Preheat the oven to 450°F. Rinse the chicken, then dry it very well with paper towels, inside and out. The less it steams, the drier the heat, the better.

Salt and pepper the cavity, then truss the bird and place in a roasting pan.

Now, salt the chicken so that it has a nice uniform coating that will result in a crisp, salty, flavorful skin (about 1-2 tablespoons) Season to taste with pepper.

Place the chicken in the oven and roast for 50 to 60 minutes. Baste the chicken with the juices and let it rest for about 15 minutes, then dig in!!!  Yum!