This is a reader recipe in the current issue of Everyday Food. I didn’t change that much — I just opted to cook it in a slightly less hot oven (down from the original recipe’s 475 degrees for 60 minutes) and I added an onion in the cavity and broth/carrot/onion half on the bottom of the pan, as I tend to burn roasting pans without some liquid down there. And once you add broth, you might as well add some veggies.

Oh and I doubled the curry paste because, dude, that is good. Extra for dipping seemed like a given. And the best part? With only two if us, there’s roast chicken for lunch the next day!

Remember to check it after the first 20-30 minutes and cover it up as needed. The curry paste/honey will burn. A little is good, smoke billowing from your oven is bad. I covered after the first 25 minutes, then uncovered for the last 10 minutes of oven time. My chicken got a pretty dark but all was completely fine under the skin — moist and tasty! But, if I could back and do it again, I probably would have not uncovered it so long at the end — so, there’s a lesson for you.

Thai Curried Roast Chicken
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 tbsp red curry paste
2 tbsp canola oil
2 tbsp honey
2 tsp roasted chili paste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 5-6 pound chicken
1 onion, halved
2-3 carrots, chopped into 2-inch pieces
salt & pepper
1-2 cups chicken broth
limes

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Add the cilantro through the garlic in a food processor and combine. Divide curry mixture in half and set one of the halves aside, to be used as a dipping sauce. You can also just mix in a bowl if you like.

Rinse and pat dry your chicken (inside and out). Salt and pepper it generously.

Place one onion half inside the cavity and tie the legs together. Loosen the skin over the breast meat and run some of the curry paste under there. Then, slather the rest of the paste over the chicken and put on an oiled rack set in a roasting pan. Add 1 cup of stock to the bottom of the pan to prevent burning. Add veggies if you wish.

Roast for about 30 minutes, then cover with foil so the top doesn’t get too dark. Roast 45 - 60 minutes more, checking a few times to see if you need to add more stock to the bottom of the pan or adjust the foil for optimal browning/non-burning.

When white meat is 165 and dark meat at least 170, remove from the oven and let rest for about 10 - 15 minutes before carving.

Serve with lime wedges and coconut rice. We also had some sauteed green beans on the side which were really, really good. Also, bring out the unused half of the curry past for a dipping sauce. Mmm!

So, the other day I realize that I have a whole bunch of basil that I need to use, like yesterday. A quick survey of the fridge also shows some ground chicken and a small container of roasted chili pepper flakes from pokpok (the little container that comes with the curry-noodle-chicken soup). Hmmm, I think to myself, I know what I could do — I could go online and find a recipe for Thai Basil Chicken and make that. Do you see where this is going?

I ended up at Thai Table and basically sort of followed the recipe there…well, except for a few things. So, I am in no way claiming that my version is authentic Thai cooking, let’s get that straight right now. If you want that, definitely use the Thai Table recipe!

See, I just used normal basil, way less chili pepper spiciness than called for and I added a bunch of halved cherry tomatoes that, like the basil, were crying out to be used. The result? Very tasty!

Kind of Like Thai Basil Chicken — Except Less Spicy, with Normal Basil and Some Tomatoes Thrown in for Fun
Adapted from a recipe at Thai Table
2 tbsp peanut oil
1/2 tsp Thai red chili paste (roasted if you’ve got it, make it spicier if that’s what you’re into)
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 cups basil leaves, loosely packed (If you can get actual holy basil, use that), if your basil leaves are really big, give them a quick chop
3/4 lb ground chicken
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbsp fish sauce
10 cherry tomatoes, halved

Heat the oil in a big pan and add the minced garlic and chili paste. Cook for a few minutes until you can really smell the spiciness and everything looks a little golden, about 2-3 minutes or so.

Add the ground chicken and break up with a wooden spoon. Stir while the chicken cooks. This part will take a few minutes and the chicken will produce liquid.

Just keep cooking and stirring until most of that is reduced. Add the sugar and stir that in, cooking for about 30 seconds. Next, add the fish sauce. Stir. Finally add all of your basil leaves and the cherry tomato halves.

Stir until the basil wilts down a bit, a minute or so, and serve over rice.

***

Wow. Today is a bonus day. The other night I sauteed up some spinach to go with some fish and I started the same way I always do — a little olive oil, brown some garlic, red pepper flakes (just a pinch), a bunch of spinach and some salt.

Then, I got the idea to add about a 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard right as the spinach was getting wilty. Oh my god, so good! Dijon spinach with toasted garlic is the best. Seriously.

PS: It’s frickin’ cold in here, Mr. Bigglesworth.

Like last night, I chose to watch 30 Rock (Liz Lemon!*) instead of doing a Super Foods Friday post. So, instead of that, enjoy some pictures I took at Whiskey Soda Lounge a month or so ago and never got around to posting about.

Grilled prawns — they were HUGE! The whiskey and soy marinated ribs are in the background, waiting to be devoured.

jwa’s Bloody Mary

My drink — the vodka plum collins.

Tom Saep Neua — Hot and sour Isaan style Cascade Natural beef soup (with a little coconut rice in it) it was really, really good.

Pok Pok Affogato — Condensed milk ice cream with Vietnamese coffee and a Chinese fried donut. Enough said.

* I find jwa’s TV-crush on Liz Lemon very comforting — 1. she’s fictional, 2. she’s at least 35, 3. she wears glasses and 4. she’s funny. Hooray!

After the Coq au Vin, I had a couple of drumsticks in the freezer. So what did I do? I went to the store, bought six more, then went to Trader Joe’s and got a container of pineapple juice. Why? Because I saw this recipe online (originally from Emeril) and I knew I had to try it. I only used eight drumsticks but made a whole recipe of sauce. Extra sauce is not a bad thing.

I also had some leftover Thai chili paste from PokPok takeout, so I made some coconut risotto to go with the chicken. Same recipe as the link, so I won’t bother reposting here. I’ll just say that the coconut risotto is becoming my favorite pan-Asian meal accompaniment at home.

Turned out awesome. I think we’ll definitely have this again. Oh and there was wok-seared asparagus with garlic, sesame oil and lemon zest on the side.

Spicy Chicken Legs with Assorted Fruit Juices & Asian Things
2 cups orange juice
1 cup pineapple juice
zest of 1 orange
3 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin (sweet rice wine)
1/2 cup sugar (the original called for 1 cup, but I halved it to that it wouldn’t be overly sweet)
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
12 chicken drumsticks
2 tsp salt
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. In a large pot set over medium-high heat, place the orange juice, pineapple juice, orange zest, garlic, ginger, sesame oil, soy sauce, mirin, sugar and red pepper flakes. Bring the pan to a boil and stir occasionally until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid has reduced to a thick syrup, about 20 minutes.

Season the drumsticks with salt. I also sprayed the dish with non-stick spray just to make sure there would be no crying over stuck chicken legs. ‘Cause that would be very, very sad indeed.

Place on a sheet pan or casserole and drizzle liberally with the glaze. I used about a half a cup for eight legs. Place the casserole in the oven, and cook until the chicken is cooked through and caramelized, about 40 to 45 minutes.

I took the dish out about halfway through and sort of rubbed the legs into the glaze and turned them over. To serve, garnish with chopped fresh cilantro, and the sesame seeds. Serve with the unbaked glaze for dippin’ on the side.

***
Valentine’s Night dinner was spent at Iorio (6pm seating ’cause it was a Wednesday night). Four course meal for $45/a person.

First course
Spinach and leek ravioli with consommé of tomato
very good, very spinachy

second course
Black pepper and wild mushroom gnocchi with shaved black truffles
these appeared to be almost deep-fried (or at least very nicely pan-seared) with a basily-oily pesto

third course (we both had this)
Alder smoked prime rib
with potato torta of goat cheese and thyme
lenta gratin and wild mushroom bolognese
torta was awesome, prime rib was very good but medium-rare was pretty damn rare. It had an almost bacony-tasting crust though, that was really quite delightful

fourth course
Ricotta fritters with chocolate
Mmmmmmm…fried cheese fritters…..chocolate….

Plus, we also had the three cheese tasting to start with with a glass of champagne each — Sample of cow, sheep and goat milk formaggio for $6.
Very good — a camembert, a gouda and a harder, chalkier cheese, along with some drizzles of sauces and their signature foccacia with squash dip

I enjoyed it quite a bit. Considering how dinner out on Valentine’s Day is typically a crap shoot, this was a good, solid choice. Yay for Iorio!

Coming Friday: Sweet Seduction with Sugar High Friday.

So far, I have made Turkey & Cranberry Ravioli, Turkey-Tomatillo Soup and Turkey Green Curry. I have one more zip lock bag full of diced turkey in the freezer and I am looking for ideas. Help!

Below are the recipes for the soup and the curry that I came up with. They were both sort of spur of the moment dishes, so I’ve recounted them to the best of my recollection. Should be close enough.

Turkey & Tomatillo Soup
12 tomatillos, husks and cores removed
1 1/2 cups diced, cooked turkey
1 tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 - 2 cups turkey stock (or chicken stock)
1 white onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed into bite-sized pieces
1 jalapeno, diced
1 can of black beans, drained
1/2 tbsp of your favorite Mexican spice blend (ideas — a mix of cumin, Mexican oregano, red pepper flakes & dried cilantro flakes)
2-3 tomatoes, diced
cilantro leaves and lime wedges for garnish

Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion, tomatillo, garlic and jalapeno. Let cook about 10 minutes until onions are nice and soft and the tomatillos start to break down. Add the stock and bring to a simmer.

Next, add in the turkey, black beans and sweet potatoes. Give it about 10 more minutes to let the potatoes cook. Stir in the tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with cilantro and lime and wedges. Eat with plenty of tortilla chips.

Turkey Green Curry
1 can of lite coconut milk
1 1/2 cups cooked, diced turkey
1 tsp tumeric
1 tsp cumin seeds
1-2 tbsp green curry paste
1 onion, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
1 tbsp canola oil
1/2 cup red lentils
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup turkey stock (or chicken stock)
1 cup frozen spinach, defrosted and drained of excess water
salt
cilantro leaves & plain yogurt for garnish
cooked basmati rice

For this one, sauté the onion, bell pepper and garlic in oil. Then I added the cumin seeds and the green curry paste. Let that cook for about a minute then add the coconut milk, tumeric and stock. Add the spinach and bring to a simmer and let cook for about 5-6 minutes.

Next, add in the lentils. Cook until lentils are soft — about 15 - 20 minutes. Mix in the diced turkey, the raisins and then a little salt. Taste and adjust salt and green curry paste content. Serve in bowls over cooked basmati rice with some yogurt and cilantro leaves for garnish.