Garlic Sauce for Stir-Fry

I mixed up this easy brown garlic sauce from Martin Yan today. If you're not familiar with Martin Yan, he has a cooking show (PBS?) and has written several books that make Chinese cooking very non-threatening and easy.

ALL PURPOSE STIR-FRY SAUCE

2/3 cup soy sauce (use lighter soy)
1/2 cup chicken or veggie broth
1/3 cup rice wine
3 1/2 tbls. sugar
1 tbls. sesame oil
1/4 tsp. white pepper
2 tbls. cooking oil
1 tbls. minced garlic
1 tbls. minced ginger
2 tbls. corn starch
1/4 cup water

1. In a bowl , combine soy sauce, broth, rice wine, sugar, sesame oil and white pepper.
2. Dissolve the corn starch in 1/4 cup water.
3. Heat a pan over high heat; add cooking oil, swirling to coat; add garlic and ginger and cook
(stirring) until fragrant (15 secs.).
4. Add soy sauce mixture; bring to boil.
5. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 1 minute.
6. Add corn starch solution and cook; stirring, until the sauce boils and thickens.

Add to your favorite veggies and/or meat to a wok , and use this sauce to coat all. Serve over
rice or noodles. Enjoy!

Campfire Corn ( Mexican Style)

Last weekend I grilled some corn on the cob on the campfire, spread a little mayo to catch the grated cojito cheese, and sprinkled it with some Hungarian Paprika! mmmmmmmmmmmm! I'll never do grilled corn any other way !

Tried my my friend's grandmother's recipe for pancakes this morning. MMMMMMMMMMM! Very good! If you like that classic buttermilk pancake, it is similar, though no buttermilk is in the recipe. The key is cider vinegar and baking soda (not powder). Here it is! Of course , mix the dry ingredients first, beat the eggs, then add the liquids, but don't over stir!

GRANDMA ROSE'S PANCAKES

- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 3 TBSP. sugar
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- 2 eggs (beaten)
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 and 3/4 cups milk
- 1/4 cup melted butter

Cabbage is my friend

Cabbage beats lettuce on most days! An easy way to enjoy it is to mix a little red wine vinegar, some Dijon mustard, a little mirin, and some S & P. Toss it all together, and let it sit in the fridge for an hour. WALAH! mmmmmmmmmmmmm!

Chicken Basil - This is very good and fast to make!

Chicken Basil, or Gai Pad Gra Pow, is one of the classics of Thai food and is surprising easy to make. You know you've made Chicken Basil right when the heat from the chili peppers plays just under the flavor of the gra pow and the fish sauce. Don't be afraid to use what seems like an excessive amount of gra pow leaves - they make the dish.

2 Servings

---

2	tablespoons	vegetable oil
4-7		Thai chili pepper, minced
1	tablespoon	sugar
1-2	packages	holy basil
1/2	lb	ground chicken
1	tablespoon	garlic, minced
3	tablespoons	fish sauce

Tips and substitutions
You can substitute ground turkey or pork for ground chicken. Some people like the meat cut up in bite size piecesrather than ground.

In Thai restaurants in America, Sweet basil or Thai basil is usually used for this dish. While an acceptable substitute, it is not quite the same.

Mince garlic and chili pepper together. Clean and pick gra-pow leaves from their stem. It may appear like a lot of leaves, but the leaves will shrink when cooked and this dish's flavor comes from the leaves.

Fry the garlic and chili pepper in oil over high heat. When garlic starts to turn brown, drop the ground chicken in. Stir constantly. The juice will start to come out. Keep stirring until all the juice is gone. It might take a couple of minutes. Add sugar and fish sauce. Then add Thai basil. Quickly turn it over a few times to mix the leaves with the meat and then remove from the fire and put the gai pad gra pow in the serving plate or dishes. Serve hot with rice.

Photo by Emily Sterne Photography

Panko Crusted Eggplant Chips with Dijon-Sour Cream Dip

Episode 709: Panko/Dijon Mustard

Serves 4

Ingredients

All ingredients A-Z

1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 cup panko
2 Japanese eggplant, sliced on the bias into 1/3-inch chips, salted lightly for 3 hours and rinsed well. Pat dry
1 minced shallot
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 cup sour cream
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Canola oil for frying

Directions

Prepare a stockpot/deep wok with canola oil filled 1/3 way and heat to 350 degrees. Panier the eggplant, and fry until golden, brown and delicious. Meanwhile, combine the shallot, Dijon mustard and sour cream, season. Serve.

Yesterday I tried making some breaded chicken fingers with Panko (a japanese style bread crumb that is a little lighter and flakier than italian ). It was very good, with fresh herbs added! I got the recipe off of SimplyMing.com . I like to watch his shows on PBS, and try some of his recipes now and then.

The key is to get the oil very hot (350 degs.), and I used a ziplock bag to mix everything, then just toss the egged-up chicken in the bag to coat.
I haven't figured out how to paste the recipe on here yet, but I will when I figure this blogging stuff out.

Seeya!

First blog

Now and then I get the urge to experiment with my culinary abilities, and create some wonderful recipes from various cookbooks, websites, or shared recipes. I tend to lean toward Asian cuisine in the winter, and Barbecue in the summer. Check in to see my successes and failures.
I will try to update as often as I can, so please check once or twice monthly.
Here I go........................