Showing posts with label thai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thai. Show all posts

Monday, March 21, 2011

Simple Suppers: Beef Massaman Curry


After I had this curry at Pearl Bay, I really wanted to try making it at home.  After looking up recipes, it looked crazy simple - I just had to find the Massaman curry paste.  I checked with grocers all over town and damn near gave up until one of my lovely readers (Jan, I'm looking in your direction) hipped me to a place right down the road from Chez FvF called Far East Market. It's in the Airway Shopping Center, right by my beloved Big Lots.  We wandered around for almost 30 minutes looking for it and finally asked the cashier, who pointed to another half of the store that we didn't even realize was there.  They had every imaginable curry paste in all varieties of sizes, and for just over $1 per small can.  I can't recall the name, but I've experimented and the one in the yellow can has the best flavor.  

To feed two hongry people with one serving of leftovers, here's what you need: 

1 small (4 oz-ish) can Massaman curry paste
1 15 oz can coconut milk (I recommend using the light version, hoss)
1 lb sirloin, sliced thin or cubed*
1 large yellow onion, cut into large pieces
2 carrots, coined
4-6 small waxy potatoes, diced on the large side (red or baby gold work best)
red pepper flakes
crushed peanuts or cashews, for garnish
*You could really use about any cut of beef for this, but this is my preference because it cuts cooking time in half. For larger, tougher cuts, cook longer in the coconut milk mixture.  

In a dutch oven over medium heat, empty the entire can of curry paste and stir in the thick cream from the top of the coconut milk until blended.   Slow stir in the rest of the coconut milk and continue to cook until the fat of the milk starts to bubble and froth.  Lower the heat to a simmer and add your beef.  Add water little bits at a time, until the meat is just submerged.  Let this cook for at least 20-30 minutes.  If you have longer, take the time. The longer beef cooks in fatty liquid, the more tender it becomes.  

Add your veggies and red pepper flakes (to taste - this curry paste is surprisingly mild, even for me), stir and cook for another 30 minutes or so over mid-low heat.  Garnish with crushed peanuts and prepare for the shame of licking your bowl at the end.  

Monday, January 10, 2011

Simple Suppers - Thai Pork Lettuce Wraps

The holidays are way over, and all of the pants in the FvF household are way tight.  I'll remind you all that I used to be a real porker and worked like a champ after my divorce to lose almost 30 pounds.  I managed not to gain a single pound for nearly two years.  I did the whole lifestyle change thing and eliminated most simple carbohydrates.  Unless it was donut day at work or something.  Don't you judge me!  
Anycrap, after my brief match with Prednisone in October, about 8 pounds have crept back on, and I simply am not havin' that shit.  So, our lunches and dinners are going back to the lower end of the glycemic index, as to make nice with our waistlines again.  


A lot of South Beach recipes don't appeal to me that much, so sometimes I'll take Adkins recipes and cut a lot of the fat out of them.  Everyone loves the lettuce cups at PF Chang's, but i don't have the patience to dice chicken or the stomach to put it in a food processor and think it'll ever be clean enough again.  I really don't care for ground chicken, either, since I'm allergic to nasty.


1 lb lean ground pork 
1/2 yellow onion, finely diced
1 tbsp fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups coleslaw mix w(I used broccoli slaw)
1 tsp sesame oil
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp Splenda 
1 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 tbsp sesame salad dressing (optional)
8 lettuce leaves
Fresh cilantro and chow mein noodles, for garnish, optional


Brown the pork and onion in a skillet and drain the fat very well.  Add ginger, garlic and slaw until the veggies are crisp-tender - continue cooking over medium for about 2 minutes.  
Combine the next seven (or eight, if you're using the salad dressing) ingredients in a small bowl and add them to the pan, cooking another minute while stirring.  


Allow the pork to cool a bit before serving so that the mixture doesn't completely wilt your lettuce.  Because no matter what KFC would have you believe, no one likes hot lettuce.*  I used red Boston Bibb lettuce for it's sweetness,but it didn't hold up very well. I think next time I'll try Romaine leaves.  Spoon the lettuce into the cups, top with fancy garnishes and get down on this.  



*Damn you, Lorne Michaels, for crushing my dreams every time I want to post an SNL clip. Nothing would have illustrated this point finer than the KFC Shredders clip. 

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Pearl Bay - Fairborn, Ohio


I never thought the day would come that my husband tired of Ticket's Pub and their delicious, carnivorous Greek Hot Plate. We've been known to make several excuses and maybe even get unnecessary hair cuts, just so we could say, "Might as well grab a bite at Ticket's. It'll be too late to cook once we get home." While I still have a Pavlovian response to the words "Greek Hot Plate," the magic seems to have faded for him. I suggested the usual post-haircut dinner there and he suggested trying something new instead.

After signing up for North/East Dayton's Sudden Values, I kept getting coupons for a Thai place called Pearl Bay, which was only about a mile from the salon we go to. Plus, I had a coupon for free crispy Thai rolls. I'm always on the hunt for solid Thai places, and I'm a sucker for a good coupon.

We walked in and the place was totally empty besides a table with two guys. We weren't really sure if we should seat ourselves, but no one came out right away, so we picked a spot. Shortly after that, the super-friendly and adorable waitress came out, apologized for missing us, and took our order for drinks and appetizers. From the outside, you can tell 100% that this place used to be another restaurant, but on the inside, they've done a fine job masking the fact that it's an old Lee's Famous Recipe. With a lot of warm burgundies and golds, the decor is classy without being stuffy.

These Crispy Thai rolls were great! Thinner and crisper than your average egg roll, and there was enough chicken present to taste it. But really, they had me at sweet chili sauce. I'm not above eating that sweet nectar off of a dirty sock. Love.

Our entrees got to the table pretty quickly, which wasn't surprising given their lack of customers. I have to admit, I was starting to wonder if this place was a hidden gem, or had really shitty food and their few customers were college kids who only came to flirt with the waitress.
It didn't take more than one bite to realize my first hypothesis was right.

My Beef Massaman Curry was so magically delicious. Quite a bit spicier than I'd normally go for, but it sounded so good that I was willing to step it up a notch. The flavors were rich and intense, the veggies all cooked perfectly and the beef was very tender. I think our server knew this was above and beyond my normal heat tolerance, so she was an absolute peach to bring me water and making sure it was kept full.

Mr. FvF ordered the Roasted Peanut Chicken at a spice level of 3. He claims that it wasn't very spicy, but that's coming from someone who eats and craves spicy food all the time. I think his dish and mine were probably at about the same heat range. More importantly, he did love it and remarked that it's a good way to get him to eat his vegetables.

Places like Pearl Bay and Bahn Mai really make me wonder why people continue to shell out loads more money to eat at Thai 9 and pretend it's the best Thai food ever. I'm starting to think those people have never had Thai food anywhere else.

5 out of 5 sporks!

Pearl Bay Thai & Asian on Urbanspoon

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Simple Suppers - Peanut Beef Satay


I found this recipe on Yahoo a couple of weeks ago, and my husband and I were both stunned at how good it was (not to mention easy). Here's what you'll need:


  • 1 small yellow or white onion, roughly chopped
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
    1 lb beef sirloin, cut into 1-2" cubes
  • -------------------------------
  • 1/3 C chicken broth
  • 2 tbsp peanut butter
  • 1 tsp molasses
  • 1 tsp soy sauce
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
Once your sirloin is cut and trimmed of fat, put it all in an airtight container or zippy bag, leaving room for the marinade. Then, toss all of the remaining ingredients in a food processor and give it a few pulses until well blended. Pour the marinade over the beef, seal tightly and let it mingle for at least 4 hours, but over night is better.

Heat your oven to broil, thread the sirloin cubes onto skewers and place on a broiler pan prepped with a little baking spray. Broil close to the heat source for about 8 minutes total for a nice mid-well. You could also easily translate this to grilling, just use high heat and cook quickly.

For the sauce, combine the last 6 ingredients and heat in a saucepan until it's warmed through.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Thai Stir Fry Salad

Anytime I get an inkling of something new Mr. FvF discovers that he likes, I try to find a way I can create a meal around it. I can't remember how, but he realized he liked Asian-style sesame, dressing - so I figured I could make a spinach salad of it. But, just any regular spinach salad wouldn't do. Unlike lettuce, green leafies like cabbage and spinach are sometimes even better when they wilt under a bit of heat, so I thought I might try putting a chicken stir fry on top of a bed of it.

Here's what you'll need (serves 2):

2-3 tbsp oil
1 lb chicken breast, cut into 1" chunks
1 zucchini, juilenned
1 carrot, shredded or cut into matchsticks
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped or julienned
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
2 cups fresh spinach, or cabbage if you prefer
crushed dry roasted peanuts
chopped cilantro


You could really use about any kind of stir-fry veggies that you dig, like baby corn, peppers or water chestnuts. This is just stuff that I know we both like.

Start the oil over medium-high heat in a skillet, and add the diced chicken. Cook it all the way through (til no longer pink), then add all of your veggies and pepper flakes, stir and cook about another 4-5 minutes until they're tender, but not thoroughly soft.

Serve over the spinach, then top with dressing (we used sesame ginger, but you any Asian-style dressing would do), peanuts and cilantro. As you can see, it plates beautifully - plus it's ridiculously healthy.

Here's my one big caveat, so you don't ruin the dish like I did. DO NOT eyeball the red pepper flakes. I'm pretty sure I ended up getting a lot closer to a full teaspoon on my dish, and it was so face-meltingly hot that I couldn't bare to finish it. You all know I'm a sissy about heat, but even my husband was sweating buckets and didn't finish his, either. Otherwise, this would have kicked some serious ass. I'll definitely be making it again with some different veggies (probably a mixed frozen bag, to be honest - julienning is for chumps) and a measured 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes.


Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Bahn Mai Thai Cafe - Centerville, Ohio


This was the second stop on my free-food extravaganza for the week. I met a colleague here for dinner before a class we were taking. I'd always wanted to try it, and no better time than when someone else is picking up the tab.

My dinner buddy ordered the cashew stir fry with shrimp...

And as much as I wanted to try the Drunken Noodles, I went for the Tamarind Beef.

The portions are huuuuuuuge, considering the price. You could easily order one dish between two people, like most Asian-fare restaurants. I only tried a nibble of the stir fry, since I was trying to avoid the shrimp, but what I had was great. Crisp veggies, light sauce, and beautifully plated.

My tamarind beef was top notch. Tamarind is an odd, sour flavor that not everyone is into - but this gal is into it. I can't withstand that much heat in my food, but I'll put tamarind in everything from sauces to cocktails. I think I ordered my dish on a 1 or a 2, just for safety's sake, but probably could have gone just one notch higher and managed. The veggies were all perfectly cooked, the beef was soooo tender - I encountered not one piece of fat or strange chewiness. I had so many leftovers that there was enough to snack on later that night and take for lunch the next day.

We also ordered some of their award-winning garlic rangoon sticks for an appetizer. They came with a sweet chili sauce, which we all know I'm a sucker for - but the sticks could definitely stand on their own. I'd gladly eat them for every meal, including breakfast.

Our server, Amanda, couldn't have been more pleasant - not to mention helpful. My colleague had never eaten Thai food before, and knew very little about the dishes. Our server was glad to help explain things to her and get an idea of the kind of foods she liked, as to make the best recommendation.

The joint is small, but big on ambiance. Plus, with only a few tables, you won't have to worry about talking over 30+ tables of people during your dinner.

5 out of 5 sporks!


Bahn Mai Thai Cafe on Urbanspoon