How to Bury a Post

Thursday, June 28, 2007

Let's bury the Angry Veteran's post (and his stopwatch) with a recipe for Ginger Chicken, requested by Hojo. Okay, it's not a drink recipe, but it was a request. I see only one spot where someone can mistakenly get all flamed up and bust my nuts about being a whiny recovering bitch and deserving every sarcastic jab I get even though I'm the one who's suffering while they sit back and manipulate people and lie and play fake doctor... um... nevermind.

By the way, get that Erotic Clown Guy on here. Not that I really have a vote being voted off the blog and everything.

Anywho, recipe for Murk's Ginger Chicken:

SERVES 2-4
INGREDIENTS:

2-3 boneless chicken breasts, or 4-6 chicken thighs, chopped into bite-size pieces

handful of fresh shiitake mushrooms, or dried (if dried, be sure to soak in hot water for 2 or more hours until soft)

1 package snow peas, OR approximately 2 cups bok choy, su choy, or other Asian cabbage

1 red bell pepper, de-seeded and sliced

1 small cooking onion, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

4 thumb-size roots of ginger, 2 sliced into matchstick-like pieces, and 2 grated

1-2 red chillies, minced

1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 4 Tbsp. soy sauce or tamari

SAUCE:
1 Tbsp. soy sauce or tamari
1 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 Tbsp. brandy (don't worry, alcohol evaporates out)
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar (or other type of vinegar)
1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 2 Tbsp. water

OTHER:
2-3 Tbsp. oil for stir-frying
about 1 cup fresh basil for topping

PREPARATION:
Place chopped chicken in a mixing bowl together with the cornstarch dissolved in soy sauce. Stir well, so that chicken is covered in this quick marinade. Set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.

Make the sauce by mixing all the sauce ingredients together in a cup.

Have all other ingredients ready to stir-fry. Begin by warming 2-3 Tbsp. oil in a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat.

When oil is hot, add the onion, garlic, chillies, mushrooms, chicken (together with the soy sauce/cornstarch), and the ginger matchsticks. Stir-fry for 5-10 minutes, or until chicken is cooked. Add a little water when wok or pan becomes dry (1 Tbsp. at a time).

Add the snow peas, bell pepper, and the grated ginger. Stir-fry for another 3 minutes, or until snow peas have softened. Again, add a little water as needed to keep ingredients frying nicely.

Add the sauce, stirring well to incorporate.

Finally, add the cornstarch dissolved in water, stirring quickly to dissolve in the sauce. When the sauce in the wok becomes thick, remove from the heat.
Do a taste test for salt, adding more fish sauce if not salty enough. (If too salty, add a squeeze of lime juice.)

Slide onto a serving platter, top with the fresh basil sprinkled over, and serve with plenty of Thai jasmine rice. This dish goes especially well with a cold Light Murk Perk.