Chicken Avocado Green Curry

Whenever we order Thai food, which in Portland is one of the only abundant take out options, I often order this dish.  I love the warm but not mushy avocado and the spice level of the green curry is perfect for me.  And although it's not soup it sure is close enough and provides the same comforts.

I was brainstorming what to make for dinner a few nights ago and whenever I want tasty but healthy I usually veer towards a stir fry with lots of veggies and chicken or pork.   But then I saw that DP had stocked up on avocados over the weekend and those avocados were all perfectly ripe at the same time. So I immediately thought of one of my favorite Thai food take out dishes.  I went in search of a recipe and didn't come up with a whole lot for this dish.  So I found a green curry recipe and made up the rest on my own using my mad stir fry skills.  What I turned out was extremely good, and dare I say, better than the take out we usually get.  All the more reason to start making my own Thai food and probably spending a whole lot less.

I hope you enjoy this!  It would be a fun take on a St. Patrick's Day meal as it has loads and loads of green in it.

Chicken Avocado Green Curry
curry sauce adapted from here

• 4 tablespoons green curry paste
•  2 cans of coconut milk
•  1 tablespoon soy sauce (or I use Bragg's liquid aminos)
•  4 cloves of garlic, crushed
•  1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 4 oz of fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons Sriracha, give or take depending on your desired spice level
• 2 tablespoon canola or other light oil
• 1.5 lbs of skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into 1" pieces
• 1 yellow onion, medium dice
• 2 medium carrots, cut into 1/2" coins
• 1 bunch asparagus, fibrous ends discarded and cut into thirds
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1" pieces
• 1 bunch of kale, stems discarded and chopped thin slices
•  3 small avocados, cut into medium dice
• cooked jasmine rice, for serving

First make the green curry sauce.  In a blender add green curry paste, coconut milk, soy sauce, crushed garlic, brown sugar, basil, and 1 tablespoon of Sriracha.  Blend until smooth and the basil is thoroughly blended.  Set aside. At this point you can start your rice, if using.

In a wok or large skillet, heat oil to almost smoking and add the chicken.  Cook until pieces are lightly browned, about 5 minutes.  Remove chicken from pan and set aside to add back in later.  Add some more oil to coat the bottom of the pan, turn down heat to medium high and add onion to pan.  Allow to caramelize and then add carrots.  Cook for 3 minutes.  Add in asparagus and bell pepper, cook for another 3-5 minutes until they start to soften.  Add kale and cook for 2 minutes until it starts to wilt.  Then add the cooked chicken and the green curry sauce.  Allow the sauce to come up to temperature.  Taste the curry sauce for desired spiciness and salt level.  Add more soy sauce or Sriracha if you'd like.  Last but not least, add in the diced avocado and allow to warm up, about 1-2 minutes.

Serve with jasmine rice if you'd like.

Burmese Noodles

When I saw this recipe I am pretty sure I squealed with joy.  There used to be this fantastic Burmese restaurant in The Castro District of San Francisco where I ate noodles on a magical jungle patio as often as possible, and I was dying to try this recipe immediately and slurp delicious noodles in a nostalgia haze.

The recipe was easier than I expected it to be, with the payoff of a very flavorful sauce at the end.  The hardest part was probably finding shrimp paste (belachan), which I admittedly did not try too hard to track down, assuming it would be anywhere.  I was wrong, and so instead of trekking to an Asian market, I googled to find a substitute and it worked out fine. Blending up the spice mixture as the base of the soup is different, but it was a lot faster than dicing and sauteing everything separately.

These noodles are hearty and delicious, not quite a soup, but still a bit saucy, with sort of a mild curry flavor (though it did not have the exact right flavor that I was dreaming of).  I will probably make this again but I will try to track down the shrimp paste and see if it hits closer to home.  I loved the chicken in this dish, it was super tender and delicious from cooking in the coconut broth, and next time I may add some mushrooms and spinach, which probably wouldn't be considered Burmese at all anymore, but I just think they would taste good with this delicious sauce!

Burmese Noodles
Slightly adapted from Food52
Serves 4 - 6 hungry people

2 medium yellow onions, chopped roughly
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp shrimp paste (belachan) or 2 Tbls fish sauce or 2 Tbls anchovy paste
1 Tbsp water (if using fish sauce, omit this ingredient)
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 tsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 Tbsp chili powder (plus a little extra to serve)
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into bite-sized pieces.
1 can coconut milk (14 oz)
2 tsp salt
12 oz packet of rice noodles
1 shallot, thinly sliced and fried to a crisp
3 eggs, boiled and chopped
2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped fine
2 limes, quartered
sambal olek chili sauce (optional)

Place the chopped onions, garlic, ginger, shrimp paste, and water (or fish sauce)  in a blender or food processor. Pulse well until you have a smooth paste.

Heat canola and sesame oils in a Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onion/garlic/ginger blended mixture and saute for about 5 minutes to get the rawness out of the onions.

Add 1/4 tsp turmeric and 2 Tbsp chili powder, stirring to distribute throughout the onion mixture.

Add the chopped up chicken to the pot along with the salt.  Cook the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring well to coat with spice mixture.

Add coconut milk and 1 cup of water. Stir well and bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat and reduce soup to a simmer.  Cover and let the soup simmer for 20 - 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the other components are ready.

While the soup is simmering, juggle these other tasks:

Cook the rice noodles to the package directions.  Drain well and set aside.

Fry up some crispy shallots by heating enough canola oil over medium heat to cover your sliced shallots. Toss the shallots in and stir them around until they are golden brown and crispy.  This took about 15 minutes or so. Remove from the oil with a slotted spoon to drain on a paper towel.

Boil a few eggs, peel them, and chop them up.

If the chicken is cooked through by now, taste your broth. Adjust salt if needed.

Assemble by scooping a large helping of rice noodles into a soup bowl. Top with ladlefuls of soup. The noodles should swim in coconut broth. Add pieces of chicken. Top with crispy shallots, chopped egg, a sprinkling of chili powder, some cilantro, and a large squirt of lime juice.  I also added some sambal olek which was really good with this dish if you like a bit more spice!

Jalapeno Corn Soup with Seared Scallops

After getting back home from a two week long trip overseas I was dying to cook, bake, clean.  Basically all things domestic were calling my name.  I was also expecting to get home to some chilly fall weather here in Portland.  But as it turned out it's still fairly sunny and hot here so I decided to milk a little bit more summer fare out of the dwindling days.

As you can see here; I'm pretty into corn.  Especially summer corn.  So I saw this recipe and decided to go for it.  I also am such a novice when it comes to scallops.  I'd never even eaten a scallop until probably 3 years ago and I've never cooked them - until now.  Turns out they are super simple and the satisfaction you get from searing one off and seeing the caramelization is deeply gratifying.

I changed a couple of things on this recipe.  Mainly I used coconut milk instead of cream and subbed olive oil for the butter to make it dairy free.  I also cut down on one of the jalapeno peppers thinking it'd be too spicy but in retrospect that was a mistake so I've listed it back to the original two.  I hope you enjoy this, be it these last weeks of summer, or maybe save it for next year!

Jalapeno Corn Soup
adapted from Food 52

• 9 ears of corn, kernels removed and 4 cobs reserved
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
• 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 3 tablespoons oil
•  Salt and pepper

Melt the oil over medium heat in a large heavy pot or dutch oven. Add in the onion and jalapeño and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until soft but not brown. Add in the garlic and the corn kernels and cook for another minute or until fragrant, making sure that the garlic doesn't burn.  Pour in the chicken stock and coconut milk and add the corn cobs. Season with a few large pinches of salt and pepper. Bring soup to a boil, lower to a simmer, and cook for about 45 minutes.  Discard the cobs and blend the soup until smooth. Check for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed.  Ladle the soup into a shallow bowl and top with seared scallops. Soup can also be cooled and refrigerated for a few days or frozen for a couple months.

Seared Scallops

•     12 large sea scallops, preferably fresh and/or dry-packed
•     1 tablespoon olive oil
•     1 tablespoon neutral oil, like canola or grapeseed
•     Salt and pepper

Melt the butter and oil together in a large heavy skillet until very hot, but not smoking.  Rinse the scallops, pat very dry, and season generously with salt and pepper.  Add the scallops to the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until caramelized on the outside and just slightly translucent in the center.

Curried Vegetable and Chickpea Stew

When that first fall chill hits the air, out comes my dutch oven for a big pot of stew.  

This was a crockpot recipe, but I wanted to do it on the stove top because I was worried it would turn into a big pile of curry mush. I am glad I did it my way because all the vegetables turned out perfect!  The curry gives it a warm comforting vibe, like a big hug from the inside. 

If you use vegetable broth, this would be vegan!  If you don't like one of these veggies, just leave it out or sub something else that you do like--green beans, mushrooms, zucchini, cabbage, etc.  Add some shrimp or shredded cooked chicken if you have some on hand.  If you like things spicy, add more cayenne or top it with hot sauce when you eat it.  We ate this as a soup but it would also be delicious over rice or cous cous.
Curried Vegetable and Chickpea Stew
Adapted from TheKitchn
Serves 8 - 10

1 teaspoon coconut oil
1 large onion, diced 
2 medium sized red potatoes
1 small sweet potato
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 of a medium head of cauliflower, cut into bite-sized florets
1 small head of broccoli, cut into bite-sized florets
10-ounces baby spinach
1 cup frozen peas  1-inch piece ginger, peeled and grated (about 1 tablespoon)
4 garlic cloves, minced 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes with their juices
2 cups chicken stock
2 (16-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon salt 
2 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup coconut milk 

Heat the oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.  Saute the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the diced red potatoes and sweet potato and a tablespoon of salt.  Saute until the potatoes are slightly translucent around the edges.  Add the broccoli, cauliflower, red and green bell peppers and saute for another 5 minutes.

Stir in the curry, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, and black pepper.  Cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant.

Pour in the stock and the tomatoes with their juices and stir to combine.   Bring to a boil and then reduce to a low simmer.  Let simmer for 45 minutes until the vegetables are just barely soft.  

Add in the chickpeas, spinach, frozen peas, and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender, the spinach is wilted, and the chickpeas and peas are warmed through.   Stir in the coconut milk, taste, and adjust seasonings.  Fall comfort in a bowl!