Chicken Banh Mi

When I saw this recipe in Sunset magazine, I knew I had to make it!  Anything involving chinese five-spice is always good in my opinion.  Plus adding on all the condiments - there's no way it could be bad.

This is a super easy meal to make! But when the recipe says to matchstick cut your veggies, don't do that unless you feel ambitious and not very hungry yet - it's not necessary. Just cut, grate or slice them in whatever manner sounds easy and appetizing to you. Also, I used chicken tenders instead of full breasts which made the cooking time even faster. And I also subbed out the mayonnaise on the bread for Sriracha. Yummy in the tummy!

Pho!

Oh my goodness this is my new favorite soup to make. SO fragrant and fresh and really easy. Any time I get to cook with whole cloves, star anise, peppercorns and cinnamon stick, my little tail starts wagging... And anything that's served with loads of fresh herbs and lime and Sriracha in a build-it-yourself type fashion really makes me happy. I've always loved ordering Pho when at a Vietnamese restaurant, and now I'm super psyched to add this quick and simple version, adapted from a Williams-Sonoma recipe, to the repertoire.. Enjoy!

VIETNAMESE BEEF AND NOODLE SOUP

Makes 4 servings

7 oz rice stick noodles
8 cups beef stock
5 whole cloves
4 thin slices fresh ginger
3 star anise pods
1 cinnamon stick
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 yellow onion, sliced
S&P
1/4 cup peanut or canola oil
8 shallots, sliced
1/2 lb eye of round beef, very thinly sliced by the butcher, cut into 2-inch pieces
leaves of 1 bunch fresh cilantro
leaves of 1 bunch fresh mint
leaves of 1 bunch fresh basil (preferably Thai - I had regular)
1 cup bean sprouts
2 small red Thai chiles, seeded and thinly sliced (I had a green one)
1 lime, quartered
hot sauce for serving, such as Sriracha

In a soup pot, combine the stock, cloves, ginger, star anise, cinnamon, peppercorns, onion, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the broth is fragrant, about 10 minutes. Strain the soup into a large bowl through a fine-mesh sieve, discarding the spices. Return the stock to the pot, and set aside.

In the meantime, boil water for your noodles. While the stock is simmering and the noodles are cooking, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the shallot slices and fry, turning with tongs, until evenly browned on both sides, about 4 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Have large, deep soup bowls ready. Reheat the seasoned beef broth over high heat. Drain the noodles and place in soup bowls. Divide the beef slices among the bowls, then ladle over the boiling broth (the hot broth will cook the thin beef slices). Serve with abundant fresh cilantro, mint, and basil, as well as the bean sprouts, chiles, fried shallots, lime wedges and hot sauce.

Soy-Ginger Chicken

Over my birthday weekend, Gayle & Andrew were so generous to give me a slow cooker.  So yesterday I decided to make the inaugural meal in it. I found this Soy-Ginger Chicken recipe on Martha Stewart's website which sounded very appetizing.  I always like these sweet and savory Asian flavors together.  All I had to do was combine the sauce right in the dish of the slow cooker.

Then I added the chicken and sliced carrots.

Then I just let it cook for 6 hours! So simple! And here is the final product with some freshly chopped cilantro and sliced scallions on top. 

Making this recipe in a slow cooker was super easy, and now I am so excited to make more yummy stuff in it! Thank you Gayle & Andrew for this awesome present!

Jitlada Thai

I have been wanting to go to Jitlada Thai Restaurant for some time now.  It is always on everyone's list for best Thai in LA.  So I finally went and it was very good!  Carlinhos and I ordered the Pad Thai, the Massman Curry and Thai Iced Tea.  This was a last minute, starved brain, indecisive decision, after staring at their gigantic menu; and after I ordered, I wanted to trade the Pad Thai out for another dish, but it was too late.  That was not because I didn't want the Pad Thai, but because I felt I should've ordered something a little more exciting.  And it was also because after we ordered I noticed that there was a dish that was featured on Food Network's The Best Thing I Ever Ate: Hot & Spicy. (I will have to try that next time).
Nevertheless, the food was very good, unwanted Pad Thai and all!  The Massaman Curry was REALLY good!  If you have never had Massaman Curry, you must order it next time you eat Thai food.  It is a Muslim dish from the South of Thailand.  The flavors are so interesting and are like a party in your mouth - such strong and distinct flavors working perfectly together.  It is usually a mix of coconut milk, peanuts, potatoes, cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, chili, sugar and tamarind.  So it's spicy and sweet, and beautifully aromatic.  I will definitely be trying to make it myself at some point.

Chinese Five Spice Pork

For those of you who are not familiar with Chinese Five Spice, you must check it out.  It is a mixture of ground star anise, cloves, cinnamon, fennel, and Sichuan pepper.  It gives such an amazing flavor any meat but is traditionally used with pork and duck. It can be used in marinades and to season meats, or even to flavor stirfries. I used it in a marinade for a pork loin roast.

Here is a link to a similar recipe.  The flavor is awesome with so many notes, and it is definitely something I will use a lot!

I served the Five Spice Pork with brown rice and broccolini.

Stir-Fried Chili Scallops with Baby Bok Choy

This was my first time stir-frying scallops. I've been a little afraid of cooking scallops since I got food poisoning from them several years ago. It took me a while to even eat them again. Man, those little guys really are delicious though aren't they. This stir-fry was a really good way to have them too. It's another one from my favorite stir-fry cookbook, but I found the recipe online here for you. Enjoy!