In the mood for Asian

I've been thinking a lot about how my cooking styles have changed lately. When I was first learning to cook, I was very unsure of myself and only tried very easy dishes. You know the type, the ones in which a can or two of cream soup are involved. It didn't take too long for the foodie gene to hit me, and I started trying many more types of recipes.

I think that most of the time what we cook is in direct relationship to how much time we have to devote to the kitchen. Although, I am rethinking that since I have all the time to cook that I may need or want, and yet I haven't felt the creative urge to do something time consuming like baking bread like I used to. There are so many recipes and techniques that I would love to master, and yet... I find myself doing something else. Is it all in one's frame of mind?

All of this thinking made me remember how many Asian -inspired meals I used to make. At least a couple of times a month, if not once a week I would cook something, whether it be Thai, Korean, Chinese or an Asian fusion meal. That stopped when we lived in Italy. I remember trying to cook Pad Thai on a warm summer day in our small kitchen in Italy, and it just didn't feel right. There is a reason why a certain food or wine tastes exceptional in one geographical area but only just okay in another.

Even though we have been back in the Continental U.S. for some time, I have only prepared Asian meals occasionally. Which is such a waste because there are some wonderful reasons to cook Asian food. It can be very quick and easy to prepare and healthy as well!


Both of us have been craving some Asian inspired food, and so last night I decided to dust off my cooking skills and try some easy dishes. Like many of my favorite dishes, I have several recipes for Szechuan Chicken. This is my lower fat version and is from Canyon Ranch Cooks by Barry Correia and Scott Uehlein. Because I did not feel like getting out my indoor grill, I sliced the chicken into bite sized pieces before placing them in the marinade and stir fried them in a large skillet. To make your next day's meal easy, you can double the recipe for Chicken, and make extra rice in order to make stir-fried rice, which is what I am doing for dinner tonight!

I have had this recipe for Sweet and Sour Carrots for more than 10 years, and I cannot remember where I found it. All I know is that I started cooking it for just about any Chinese inspired meal I would make when we lived in Korea.

Szechuan Chicken

From Canyon Ranch Cooks by Barry Correia and Scott Uehlein


For the marinade:
3 tablespoons low sodium tamari sauce
1/2 tablespoons white wine
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1teaspoon peeled and minced fresh ginger
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1 tablespoon chili sauce
pinch of black pepper
1 tablespoon sesame oil

4 skinless chicken breast halves, boned and de-fatted

Combine marinade ingredients in a baking dish. Place chicken breasts in marinade and turn to coat evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Prepare coals for grilling, preheat broiler or heat up an indoor grill. Remove chicken from marinade and grill or broil 3 to 4 minutes a side. Chicken is done when juices run clear when pierced with a fork.

Sweet and Sour Carrots

1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons chicken broth
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound carrots, cut on the bias into 1/4" slices
1 small onion, cut in half, then into thin slices

In a small bowl, stir together the 1/4 cup broth, vinegar, sugar and cornstarch. Set aside. Place the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat and when it is hot add the carrots and onions. Stir- fry for approximately one minute. Add the 3 tablespoons broth and reduce the heat to medium; cover and cook until the carrots are crisp tender.

Increase the heat to high and stir in the cornstarch mixture. Let sauce boil to thicken. Season to taste with salt and serve.

For Tammy and Marvin - Part 1

Tammy and Marvin are getting married this weekend!

I think I may be the only person who always sings the song from "My Fair Lady" when someone is getting married. The song is going through my head right now -"I'm getting married in the morning. Ding - Dong the bells are going to chime..."

I became friends with Tammy while Patrick was on a six month deployment to Germany. It was July 4th when we first went out to dinner, and it felt a little strange because she is a lot younger than I am. It wasn't long before she became a very good friend. And now, well, she is one of my closest friends. After Patrick came home, he soon realized that she was a fixture at our house, and there were even certain days of the week that were dedicated to Tammy. She loves White Russians, and if it wasn't 10:30 in the morning right now, I would toast you with a White Russian!

We have a lot in common. Even her relationship with Marvin is very similar to my relationship with Patrick. They are both the same age that we were when we started dating, and they dated the same amount of time that we did before getting married! I will never forget when I asked her about their first date, her response was almost identical to the response that I had after my first date with Patrick! I'm trying to think of a way to describe the response, but I can't seem to put it into words. It was the look in her eye, and the way that she said it was - nice. I knew then that she was a goner! So, it was no surprise to me when he asked her to marry him right before they took a cruise to Alaska this past summer.

It feels like just yesterday that we were looking through Bridal magazines and talking about her wedding. I am sad to say that I'm not going to be in Corpus Christi smiling (with tears running down my face) as they say their vows. I'm not going because Patrick doesn't have vacation time yet, and I feel uncomfortable going alone to the wedding. But I want both Tammy and Marvin to know that I love you both very much and wish you only the very best.

A few weeks ago, I told Tammy that I wanted to do something for the special occasion on my blog, and I asked if she had any special requests. She said that she has always wanted my Chicken Adobo recipe. I learned this recipe from my friend Tara, but this is not exactly her recipe because in her family they never put garlic in the adobo. Sorry Tara!

This is not every one's idea of wedding celebration food, but it's what she wanted! I like to serve Chicken Adobo along with Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice. In order to get as many vegetables as I can, I use whatever I have on hand, fresh, frozen or canned. You can make this with only the rice and the garlic, if that is all you have, but I do recommend at least using the carrots - they add a certain something to the dish.

Chicken Adobo

4 lbs chicken thighs

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup rice vinegar (or regular white vinegar)

1 bay leaf

1-3 tablespoons sugar, to taste

3/4 cup water, or more to cover

Place the chicken, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf, and one tablespoon of the sugar in a large dutch oven. Stir to combine all ingredients. Place over medium high heat and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cover until the meat is tender. Season to taste with a little more sugar if needed, pepper and even a little adobo seasoning (this is a Latin spice mix that you can find in the ethnic aisle at the supermarket, but be careful for it is very salty).

Garlic Vegetable Fried Rice

2 cups rice, cooked according to the package directions

1/4 cup vegetable oil

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 carrots, chopped

1 can French style green beans, drained (optional)

1 can corn, drained (optional)

salt, pepper and red pepper flakes

Add the oil to a large pan over medium high heat and fry garlic until lightly browned, stirring constantly. Add onion and carrot, stir and cook until the onion is translucent. Stir in the rice, breaking up any clumps with the back of the spoon. Season to taste with salt (or soy sauce), pepper and red pepper flakes.