Thai Chicken Soup

I'm such a fan of Thai food.  I love me some red curry, coconut milk, and lemongrass.  Yum yum yum!  So, last week, while I was flipping the pages of a food magazine, I became completely mesmerized by a photo of Thai soup.  Gone were my plans to post a recipe for delicious Southern style black-eyed peas, ham, and collard soup. Gone were my plans to try out a soup made creamy by the addition of hummus.   Every other recipe just seemed so boring by comparison.  { insert dramatic sigh here}

Fast forward a few days, and I'm happy to report that this recipe was deserving of my fixation; it's just so, so good!  We loved it, and I couldn't stop sneaking spoonfuls of the broth when I was putting the leftovers away.  Once you have the veggies and chicken sliced up, it goes together pretty quickly, so this recipe would make a great weeknight dinner.

Enjoy!






Thai Chicken Soup
adapted from Food Network Magazine


1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbps. red curry paste
6 c. low-sodium chicken broth
13-15 oz. can light coconut milk
1 Tbsp. fish sauce, plus more to taste
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced 
1 c. mushrooms, sliced
6 oz. rice noodles, broken into pieces
1 Tbsp. lemongrass *
1 medium boneless, skinless chicken breast (about 1/2 lb.), thinly sliced crosswise
juice from 1/2 a lime
1/4 c. cilantro, roughly chopped, optional

Heat the vegetable oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and curry paste and cook, stirring, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, coconut milk and fish sauce; cover and bring to a boil.

Add the bell peppers, mushrooms, and noodles and simmer, uncovered, until the noodles are al dente, about 3 minutes. Add the lemongrass and chicken, and simmer until chicken is just cooked through, about 3 more minutes. Stir in the lime juice and cilantro, and add more fish sauce, if desired**.


* Note 1:  My grocery store doesn't carry fresh lemongrass, so I bought a tube instead.  It measures tablespoon for tablespoon the same as fresh lemongrass, and it will keep in my fridge for a lot longer.


** Note 2:  When you taste the broth at this point, if it tastes like it could use more salt, try adding 1/2 Tbsp. fish sauce.  I did, and it tasted just right.  My total fish sauce for the entire recipe was 1 1/2 Tbsp.


*** Note 3:  Rice noodles tend to get mushy if you leave them in broth in the fridge.  When you package up your leftovers, keep the noodles and broth in separate containers.  Add the noodles back in to reheat.

Ingredient Lineup:

(MIA: the chicken and cilantro)

Remove the noodles from the broth before storing leftovers.

Yummy in my tummy.

Saucy Mama Stovetop Stew

Hi, everyone!  As you may have noticed, all of the ladies here at From Blah to Ta-Daa are doing a Saucy Mama theme week with our recipe posts.  Saucy Mama sent us a sampler of her products so that we could create a recipe to enter her contest!  Each of us also gets to give away that same sampler on our individual blogs, so make sure you come visit to enter!

I'd been trying narrow down which recipe to post for the Saucy Mama contest (I've made 3 so far!), when we got a tiny glimpse at Fall weather last weekend.  That 10 degree temperature drop (and 20% humidity drop) was all it took for me to settle on making stew.  But I didn't feel like lugging out my crock pot and making a big, planned-out ordeal of a meal.  I wanted a simple stew, and I wanted it done within the hour.  So, I made it in a heavy saute pan, right there on my stovetop.

Some tips for making a quick stew:  Use only tender cuts of meat.  Cook the potatoes in a separate saucepot while you make the stew and add them in at the end.  Chop your veggies and meat into smaller pieces than usual so that they cook faster.  Use a sauce - like the Saucy Mama marinade - with lots of flavor.

We both loved this stew, and Bo didn't hesitate before going back for seconds.  I rate it a 4 Spoons, he gives it a 5 Spoons (but we've always known that he's a meat and potatoes kinda guy).  I also made a roast chicken with a Saucy Mama marinade that was honest to goodness amazing.  I didn't have time to photograph it for you, so I'll try to make it again and get it posted in the next few weeks.

Enjoy!




Saucy Mama Stovetop Stew

2 c. potatoes, cut into 1" pieces

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 lb. beef tenderloin tips (or tenderloin cut into 1" pieces)
1/2 c. flour

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 c. carrot, diced
2 Tbsp. minced shallot
8 oz. mushrooms
1/2 c. red wine

1/2 c. low-sodium beef broth
1 c. water
1/2 c. Saucy Mama Cracked Pepper Marinade

Fill medium sauce pan with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add pinch of salt and potato pieces to the pan and cook over a low boil for 8-10 minutes, just until fork-tender. Drain and set aside.

Meanwhile, heat oil and butter in a heavy saute pan over medium-high heat. While the pan is heating, toss tenderloin tips in the flour to lightly coat. Add meat to heated pan and saute until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove to a plate and set aside.

Reduce heat to medium and add the additional tablespoon of butter to the pan with the carrot, shallot, and mushrooms, and saute until softened. Deglaze the pan with wine, scraping up any bits on the bottom of the pan, and reduce until nearly evaporated. Add in the meat and cooked potatoes, and then stir in the broth, water, and Saucy Mama Cracked Pepper Marinade. Simmer over medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes.

Ingredient Lineup:

After browning the tenderloin, saute the veggies until tender.

Add in the liquid ingredients and Saucy Mama Cracked Pepper

Marinade, and simmer until thickened.

I love Autumn!!

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Hawaiian Chicken Stir Fry

Two weeks ago I introduced you to one of my recipe staples, Hawaiian Chicken.  I decided I wanted to try something a little different with it and jazz it up a bit so I decided to attempt turning it into a stir fry.  It is simple, one dish cooking!

Ingredients:
3 chicken breasts cut up into bite size pieces
1 Tbsp oil
1 package stir fry veggies
1 bottle Honey BBQ sauce
1 can pineapple chunks in its own juice
2-3 packs of Ramen noodles (3 oz. each).  Discard season packet.

Directions:
Heat oil in pan.  Add chicken and cook approx. 5-6 minutes until chicken is no longer pink.

Add bag of stir fry veggies and cook until crisp tender.

Add 2-3 packs of ramen noodles, can of pineapple chunks with juice and BBQ sauce.  Stir well to mix together.  Cook a few more minutes until noodles become soft.

Serve and enjoy!

Rating:

The hubby gives is 4 spoons.