Spice & Nice

I got a message yesterday morning from one of my former cooking class students. She said she had some hot chili flakes that she wasn’t going to be using and thought of me.  She left them on our front porch. 

Whenever I begin a 6-week class, I like to tell everyone what they can expect.  Each week I try to cover a different theme, cooking style, preparation, or some hacks and kitchen tricks.

The biggest thing I wanted them to get out of the class was to learn to enjoy cooking. To not be stressed out when cooking. I showed them my tricks to make cooking more enjoyable. To not be afraid to try new things. That it was ok to tweak a recipe for your own taste or diet. 

We would prepare and make 4 or 5 dishes each week and everyone sat down to a family-style dinner at the end of class. 

We started off with week one which was braising.  When I got to week 5, ethnic foods I saw the look of fear on the face of MJ one of the students in the class. I continued to tell them about a couple of the dishes, one Indian and one Thai.

I knew MJ before our class, but I didn’t know her well at all. I asked her what was up, she said she didn’t like spicy food. I assured her it didn’t have to be spicy. 

One of the biggest things I like to drill into people’s heads is to season the food as you go and to taste it!  It’s easier to correct the seasoning while making it than to wait until it’s done cooking. 

We had a great time week after week. I really try to teach people different items to cook. Even before class begins I ask everyone what dishes they would like to try making or ones they found intimidating.

Everyone liked all the food we made, and were excited to try to make these recipes for their families. 

When we began week 5, MJ had a very skeptical look on her face even though I  haven’t steered her wrong yet. 

As we went through each recipe I showed everyone that you didn’t have to add as much spice as the recipe calls for.  In most cases, you don’t have to add any at all. 

Now if you are talking about Nashville Hot Chicken….this is not something to make if you don’t like spicy food. You can’t leave the hot out of Nashville hot or Asian Spicy crab because they are supposed to be ass burningly hot!

We were making Indian Butter Chicken & Thai Red Curry Chicken. We also made Coconut Rice as a side dish. 

A lot of people in the class hadn’t tried either of these dishes before, so it was exciting to watch their reactions while they tried them. MJ had that skeptical look on her face again. LOL

Then I asked them what they thought. It wasn’t what many of them were expected. They were better than they thought they would be and thought their families would enjoy them too. 

At the end of the meal, MJ announced that’s she has been nervous for 5 weeks thinking about eating Indian and Thai food. And….she liked them!!  This made the whole class more worthwhile than I was hoping for. 😃

At the end of the 6 weeks, I asked everyone what their favorite dishes were. MJ said her favorite was the Butter Chicken and Coconut Rice! She was as surprised as I was.  She told everyone that she went to the store and bought all the ingredients to make it that week for her wife. She was going to leave the spicy stuff out of her recipe. I was so excited for her. 

Since then I’ve run into MJ and her wife Stephanie at the farmers market right here in our town. When they would stop and get our spätzle MJ would tell me things she has tried making and planned to make. She said she liked cooking now. Hurray!

MJ will comment on some of my Facebook dishes I share and will tell me she made another one of our class dishes.  The best comment ever came from Stephanie who thanked me for turning her wife into a really good cook, who now likes to cook. Success! Mission accomplished! 

Yesterday after I wrote about my food memories I thought about me and that Spicy AF Shrimp Curry…and MJ who still doesn’t like spicy food.  You can have really flavorful ethnic food and it doesn’t have to be spicy! 🌶 

Here are my recipes from class for the dishes mentioned in this blog post. I hope you try making and enjoy them. 

Indian Butter Chicken

6 Tbsp butter

2 lbs boneless/skinless chicken thighs or chicken breasts cut into pieces

1 onion diced

3 cloves garlic minced

1 Tbsp garam masala

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

½ tsp cayenne pepper (more or less depending on your spice level)

1 14 oz can tomato sauce

1 14 oz can coconut milk stirred

¼ cup heavy cream

Salt & pepper

Lime & cilantro for garnish

Steamed basmati or jasmine rice

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Using 2 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the pieces of chicken so each side is browned. They do not have to be fully cooked they will finish cooking in the sauce. Work in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan. Remove from pan and set aside.

Melt another 2 Tbsp butter in the pan over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until it begins to soften about 3 minutes. Add the garlic, garam masala, ginger, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne. Stir to combine and cook for about 45 seconds stirring constantly not letting it burn before adding the tomato sauce. Add the tomato sauce and stir to combine.

Bring the mixture to a simmer and let cook for 5 minutes. Combine the coconut milk & heavy cream in a measuring cup and add to the tomato sauce all at once. Stir to combine. Bring the sauce back up to a simmer and add the browned chicken. Simmer covered on low heat for 15-20 minutes stirring occasionally. Do not let the sauce boil use low heat.

Stir in remaining 2 Tbsp butter and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with rice and garnished with chopped cilantro and a lime wedge.

Coconut Rice 

1 Tbsp butter

1 onion finely chopped

1 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger

½ tsp curry powder

1 cup jasmine rice

1 14 oz can coconut milk

¼ cup water 

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

½ cup sweetened shredded coconut

In a large saucepan over medium heat melt the butter. Add the onion, ginger, and curry powder. Sauté for 5 minutes or until the onion is soft and translucent. Stir in the rice and cook for 2 minutes. 

Shake the can of coconut milk. Add the coconut milk and water to the rice and stir to combine. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on low for 20 minutes. 

To toast the coconut…While the rice is cooking put the shredded coconut in a dry skillet. Cook on low heat stirring frequently until the coconut is golden brown. You really need to watch the coconut since it can burn very quickly. As soon as it’s toasted, remove it from the pan and set it aside. 

When the rice is done fluff with a fork and season with salt and pepper. Serve in a bowl topped with the toasted coconut. 

Thai Red Curry Chicken

1 Tbsp vegetables canola oil

1 Tbsp Thai red curry paste ( more or less depending on your spice level)

1 13.5 Oz can coconut milk stirred

2 cloves garlic minced

1 tsp fresh ginger finely minced

1 onion cut into crescents 

1 red & 1 green or yellow sweet bell pepper cut into strips

2 carrots sliced thin on a diagonal 

**1 ½ cup of your choice broccoli florets, cauliflower, snap peas, sliced zucchini 

1 lb boneless & skinless chicken breasts sliced into bite size pieces

1 cup chicken broth 

1 Tbsp fish sauce

1-2 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp soy or tamari sauce

1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

¼ cup fresh chopped cilantro

In a large skillet over medium heat add the oil and red curry paste stirring for 1 minute. Add ¼ cup coconut milk and mix to combine with the red curry paste.

 Add the onion, bell peppers & carrot to the pan. Stir fry the vegetables in the red curry paste mixture for 2-3 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic. Cook for another minute stirring constantly not letting it burn.  Add the rest of the vegetables, the rest of the coconut milk & the chicken broth. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.

Add the sliced chicken and stir.  Simmer on low covered for 15-20 minutes stirring occasionally until the chicken is cooked and the vegetables are tender. Uncover and add the fish sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce & lime juice. Stir to combine and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes. Stir in the cilantro. 

Serve with jasmine rice and garnish with additional cilantro and a thinly sliced lime wedge if desired. 

** You can add whatever extra vegetables you like or have on hand

You can replace the chicken with any protein including drained tofu.