the thin chef

In my last post, I mentioned that I could eat Tex-Mex all the time and not get tired of it. I have to say I feel the same way about Asian food. The flavors are all so vibrant—you can’t help but feel good after you eat it.

I must admit I rely heavily on one tried-and-true dish in my limited Asian repertoire—stir-fry. It’s easy and quick, and when you can get half of your daily veggie intake in one sitting and love every bite, I find it hard to break outside the box. Plus you can pair it with any starch for a hearty meal with or without meat. Pretty much any vegetable works well for stir fry—whatever you like, toss it in. Broccoli, bell peppers, carrots sliced thinly, cabbage, green beans, peas, edamame, even tomatoes are delicious flash-cooked.

The secret is knowing when to put each ingredient in so nothing gets mushy and nothing’s too crunchy. Think hardest to softest—carrots would go in before green beans; tomatoes would go in last. And everything should be served piping hot. There’s a Cantonese term, wok hay that loosely translates as the “breath of the wok.” I love this term, because it captures the essence of truly fresh, steamy-hot food. (Note to self, get a proper wok…I don’t think there’s any such thing as skillet hay.)

I always like to experiment with a different sauce. I’ve done Thai curry, spicy chili, teriyaki, carrot-ginger, ginger-lime…I don’t usually make the same one twice. But there’s one in particular Jason really loves, so I’ve done it a few times.

Lightly peanut-y without being overwhelmingly so, this sauce makes brilliant use of two of my favorite flavors in the world: lime and ginger. Soy sauce and a touch of honey round out this oh-so-simple topper for a veggie stir-fry, or in this case, a noodle bowl. I didn’t have any, but a healthy squeeze of sriracha garlic-chili paste would be a fabulous addition.

Chicken and Veggie Noodle Bowls
with Peanut-Lime Sauce
serves 2 big eaters

If you don’t like peanut sauce, you can definitely omit the peanut butter here and still get a tasty sauce. You may want to add a touch more honey and/or oil to thicken and sweeten it. If you don’t already have natural-style peanut butter on hand, just use the regular kind. Taste it before you add the honey, as regular peanut butters tend to be sweeter than the natural kind.

For the noodle bowls:
½ pound broccoli
¼ pound angel hair pasta
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 chicken breast, cut into thin, bite-size pieces
1 red bell pepper cut into matchstick-size pieces
Handful snow peas
Two of the following:
½ cup shredded or thinly sliced carrots
¼ head red cabbage, shredded
Handful English peas
1 large tomato, seeded and cut into bite-size chunks

¼ pound angel hair pasta

For the sauce:
1 2-inch piece of ginger, grated
1 lime, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon natural-style peanut butter
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
½ tablespoon chicken broth
2 teaspoons honey

Garnish: Green onions, sliced thinly on the bias
Crushed peanuts

Remove tops of broccoli from stems and cut tops into bite-size florets. Peel off the tough outer layer of the broccoli stems with a vegetable peeler and cut stems into matchstick-size pieces.

Make the sauce: In a blender, combine all ingredients and process until combined. Alternatively, in a large bowl, combine all ingredients and whisk vigorously until combined. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, about 30 seconds being careful not to burn it. Add chicken in one layer and sear each side for 1 minute (2 minutes total). Add broccoli to the skillet and a tablespoon of water or chicken broth. Toss to make sure garlic does not stick to bottom and burn. Cover skillet and cook 3 minutes. Uncover and add red peppers, snow peas, and (if using), carrots, and cabbage. If using peas or tomatoes, toss in at the very end.

While veggies are cooking, cook pasta per package directions. Carefully drain pasta and add it directly to the skillet with the chicken and vegetables. Add half of sauce and toss to coat. Add more sauce a bit at a time until it’s sufficiently coated to your taste. Garnish with sliced green onions and crushed peanuts, if desired.

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Have you ever grilled lettuce? Sounds kind of strange, but it’s actually surprisingly tasty. And, as you probably know by now, I have been kind of obsessed with grilling these days. Grilling takes romaine lettuce from plain and flavorless to tender and smoky. Crisper, crunchier lettuces lend themselves better to grilling, like romaine, radicchio and endive.

Jason and I love Asian flavors, so we decided to try an Asian-style marinade I read about in Bon Appetit (it calls for tuna, but we went with shrimp). On the side, since we’d already fired up the grill, we threw the lettuce on next to the shrimp. Topped the salad with a light Asian vinaigrette and made some sauteed sweet corn on the side. Lovely.

Grilled Lettuce with Asian Vinaigrette
serves 4
For the lettuce:
2 hearts of romaine
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat (indoor or outdoor, gas or charcoal) grill to medium-high. Cut a thin slice off of the root end of the lettuce if brown, making sure to keep most of the root intact. Cut each heart in half lengthwise and brush each cut side with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and lay each half, cut-side down, on the hot grill. Grill about 2 minutes, covered. Remove and cut into strips or leave whole, serving one half per person.

For the dressing:
Juice and zest from half a lime
2 teaspoons unseasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 to 3 teaspoons soy sauce
2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and grated
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil

In a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine all ingredients. Shake vigorously until everything is well combined. Store leftovers in jar up to one week.

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I have a confession to make: I am a sucker for marinades. I love the way the full-flavored ingredients translate into a tastier version of plain-old chicken (or shrimp or beef…) It’s the easiest and simplest way to add tons of flavor and extra moisture and, at most, requires the use of a whisk or blender and a zip-top bag.

I’ve been on an Asian kick lately. Since wild American shrimp were on sale at the grocery store (I never buy any other kind), I decided to make a marinade that incorporates all of the Asian flavors I was craving.

I started with a little inspiration from a Bobby Flay marinade and then pared it down. Soy, lime zest and juice, ginger, garlic and shallots went into the blender with some peanut oil and voila! a perfect marinade was born. It tasted so good on its own I debated saving some to drizzle on the cooked shrimp, but then realized that would be taking my marinade-love a bit too far. The shrimp came out tender and full of flavor. I imagine the marinade would be delicious for a meaty fish like tuna or mahi, and might make for a tasty flank steak marinade, as well.

I thought a slaw-like salad would be a good accompaniment with the shrimp, so at the market, I picked up a head of Napa cabbage, a red bell pepper, a jalapeno and some cilantro. To dress, I made a simple, Thai-inspired peanut dressing. It was a light but satisfying dinner that came together pretty quickly.

Asian-style shrimp and slaw
Serves 2
For the shrimp:
1 3-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
2 shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup peanut oil
Zest and juice of one lime
1/2 pound of medium or large shrimp

Place everything except shrimp in a blender and puree. Pour marinade in a zip-top bag, place shrimp inside and put bag in refrigerator to marinate for 30 minutes.

Preheat a large skillet over high heat. Remove shrimp from bag, shake off excess marinade, and sear, two minutes per side, or until shrimp are opaque.

For the slaw:
1/4 cup unsweetened peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Zest and juice of one lime
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 1-inch piece of ginger, finely grated
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
1 small head Napa cabbage, thinly sliced
1 bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno pepper, thinly sliced
3 scallions, thinly sliced on a diagonal
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

Whisk together peanut butter, soy, lime zest and juice, vinegar, oil and ginger. If thick, add a tablespoon of water. Set aside. In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast sesame seeds until light brown and fragrant, about 3 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine cabbage, peppers and cilantro, and add dressing until lightly coated. Garnish with sesame seeds.

To serve, mound a pile of slaw in a large bowl and top with shrimp.

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