Stylish, Stealthy & Healthy.

Tag Archives: Thai


by 37 Comments

Oh Hi, Thai Stir Fry.

After my zucchini post the other day, I realized that a lot of you are way better than me at using things in your fridge before they go bad.

stir fry 2

That’s a big deal, you guys.  And by that I mean me admitting I’m not the best at something.  Or wait…maybe I am the best at wasting produce!  That doesn’t sound as good as I thought it would.

stir fry 3

So begins Operation Use It Before You Lose It.  I am going to do my very best to not only stop my wasteful habits, but I will also be a more conscious shopper.  No more buying random items just because I have a moment of inspiration at the store.  If I buy something, I have to go home and immediately formulate a plan of action.  This can not include a recipe for “Corner of the Refrigerator Squash”.  Because that just gets bad for everyone.

stir fry 1

My first dish after kicking off Operation UIBYLI (catchy, no?) was inspired by a questionable head of cabbage (probably on it’s last day) and a bottle of spicy Peanut Thai sauce I bought from Tarjay, approximately 3 months ago.  I’m a big fan of their Archer Farms products and have yet to be disappointed.  My favorite is their pine nut hummus which I ate in about 13 minutes from opening it.  No, I have not bought it again since.  Anyways, I also had some frozen veggies and whole wheat linguini that wanted to dance, and from that magical combination, Peanut Thai Stir Fry was born.

stir fry 4

Peanut Thai Stir Fry
You’ll Need:
1 T coconut oil
1/2 head of cabbage, finely chopped
1/2 cup mixed pepper strips (I used frozen)
1/3 cup frozen chopped kale
3 carrots, cut with a vegetable peeler into thin ribbons
1 T minced garlic
1/4 – 1/2 bottle of peanut Thai sauce (depending on your preference)
1/2 box of whole wheat linguini


Directions:  Cook pasta according to box.  In a large sautee pan, heat oil over med-high heat, add cabbage, peppers, kale and carrots and cook for about 8 minutes or until veggies are tender.  Add garlic and sautee another minute.  Mix in cooked pasta and toss with sauce.

Printer-Friendly Recipe

stir fry 5

You know how I feel about stir fry.  Easy?  Check.  Quick?  Check.  Delicious?  Check check and check.   By the way, this sauce is awesome.  It was spicy, but I still added some Sriracha sauce for an extra kick, and had a lot of flavor.  You really don’t need a whole lot either, especially because of all the flavor you get from the vegetables.  So not only was my belly full and happy but my refrigerator had more room for things like wine and leftover pizza.  You know, in case those things were to need somewhere to go…hypothetically.  I wonder how pizza would taste dipped in peanut Thai sauce…

You didn’t hear that.


by 13 Comments

Dining Out Vegetarian: Part II (More Everything)

If you haven’t read part one, you can do so here.

While part one was filled with disappointment and poor customer service, part two….well part two is filled with these:

Light refreshing summer rolls stuffed with fresh basil and grilled tofu all wrapped up in a bundle of love.  Or rice wrappers, whichever.

This is how it should be.


Delicious and flavorful ingredients that you don’t have to haggle with your server to order.  And this was just the appetizer.

Chalit's Thai bistro on Urbanspoon

My experience at Chalit’s Thai Bistro was the exact opposite of my Friday’s encounter.  There were choices out the wazoo (and for the record, you can fit a lot of choices in a wazoo) and each one more appetizing than the next.
You want tofu?  No problem.
Grilled veggies?  It would be our pleasure.
Oh and why don’t you just bring the wine you like and pay whatever the liquor store charges?  We’ll even open it for you.  Don’t mind if I do.  (BYOB is just the icing on the cake here.)

But let’s not forget the feature of this tasty voyage.  The star of this mouth-watering mission, if you will:

Omg, you guys.  Green curry loaded with vegetables and a side of the most wonderful brown rice I have ever come in contact with.  Spicy enough that I drank two whole glasses of water while I inhaled ate it, but not so spicy that I couldn’t enjoy the soiree of delightful flavors that was going on in my mouth.  Dee. Licious.


If you shrunk me down and gave me a raft I would swim in there.

So as you can see, there is a vast difference between experience A and experience B.  And come to think of it, most ethnic restaurants fall in line with the practice of offering a variety of vegetarian choices.  Whats up with us, America?  Why haven’t we embraced the fact that not everyone wants to order a meal that at one point moo’ed or clucked?  Why can’t the T.G.I. Friday’s and Red Lobsters of the world add one or two dishes (other than a salad) that would offer some sustenance of the vegetarian persuasion?
Well friends, I can’t answer that.  But if you ask me, it’s pretty clucked up.
Oh, vegetarian humor…

Thanks for joining me for this two-part expose on Dining Out Vegetarian.  Tomorrow we will return to our regularly scheduled programming.  <Insert old-timey music here>


by 6 Comments

Coconut Curry Chicken Soup (Take 2)

I love experimenting.  A new lipstick color, a new moisturizer a different pair of running shoes… (I’m sorry I ever left you Nike, Under Armor was just a phase.)  And I especially love experimenting in the kitchen.  Not like Katy Perry experimenting (although I do love cherry chapstick), but like concocting wonderful flavor notions in my mind and seeing them come into fruition.


Lately I’ve had this obsessive thought to make a coconut curry chicken soup, Thai style.  I had the most amazing Thai dinner a few weeks ago and I knew I had to attempt to recreate it.  Kind of like the first time I saw Gwen Stefani and painted on bright red lipstick and sang “I’m Just a Girl” into a hairbrush in front of the mirror.  Ok, maybe that’s not the same thing but you see where I”m going.


So despite how great of an impression this Thai curry made on me, I couldn’t remember the exact ingredients.  So I put my little creativity chef’s hat on and threw some things into a sautee pan and got to work in my lab kitchen.  And somehow I ended up with almost exactly what I had hoped for.


A smooth, creamy and spicy soup with just the right amount of bite.  Oh, did I mention I curdled the coconut milk the first time I attempted this creation?  Because I did.  I cooked it at too high of a temperature and bought myself a one-way ticket to Curdlesville.  So what did I do?  I strained my almost perfect soup through a colander, marched my butt back to the grocery store and recreated my broth, only this time at a lower temperature and with much better results.  Determined, that’s what I am.

Coconut Curry Chicken Soup
You’ll Need:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken tenders
1 tbsp curry powder
1 large white potato, diced
3 carrots, diced
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced green pepper
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2  – 1 full packet red curry paste (depends on your desired spiciness)
14 oz can light coconut milk
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
15 oz can diced tomatoes*
1 cup whole grain wild rice mix
Salt and pepper

Cook rice according to directions on packaging.  In a large skillet over med-high heat, sautee potato and carrots in olive oil, covered, for about 5 minutes.  Add pepper, garlic and onion and sautee for another 5 minutes, then add diced tomatoes.  Coat chicken in curry powder and sautee in a separate coated pan for 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through.  Heat coconut milk on low-med heat and whisk in curry paste.  Once combined, add chicken broth and continue to heat slowly.  Add the vegetables and chicken, along with cumin.  Once rice is cooked, add to pot.  Salt and pepper to taste.

*I added the decided tomatoes after eating it for a day or two and realizing it was missing something.  They definitely added more flavor and consistency that made it more satisfying.

Printer-Friendly Recipe

This really turned out better than I expected, as it was quite a random experiment.

But then, I’m no expert.  I’m just a girl.
(My Gwen was spot on.)

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 724 other followers