i'm still cooking...Thai Peanut Chicken

It has been a busy few months and I have been neglecting my cooking blog (mainly because I assumed no one actually reads it) but I have some new recipes that I want to post and not forget :)

Here is one of my most recent finds...Thai Peanut Chicken

Christian was skeptical, but I combined a few recipes I found on the Internet to come up with one that we both really like, (in fact he actually used his finger to get the last bit of sauce)so here it goes...

Thai Peanut Sauce

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup water

3 Tablespoons soy sauce

1 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar

5 minced garlic cloves

The juice of one large lime

2-3 Tablespoons brown sugar (to taste to balance out the acidity)

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2-1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (depending on how hot you want it)

Combine everything in a small saucepan and cook, stirring continuously, over medium heat until well combined.

Taste.

Adjust seasoning as needed. Sometimes I feel like it is too thick or too "peanuty" so I add a few more shakes of rice vinegar and soy sauce. Or it is too acidic, so I add a little more brown sugar. Or it doesn't have enough kick...add some more crushed red pepper.

AND, just in case you don't have rice vinegar, you can most definitely use all soy sauce and it tastes just fine. In fact you can barely tell a difference.

From here, things can get pretty versatile. We have always made this with chicken tenders or chicken breasts sliced into tender size pieces. Here are a few ideas we have tried...

- make this sauce the night before and marinate your chicken in half the sauce, then grill

-grill chicken on grill pan and baste with sauce until cooked through

-cook chicken in a frying pan or grill pan, then put in a pyrex with some sauce in a 250 degree oven to keep warm until ready to serve

-make chicken skewers and serve with sauce as a dipping sauce

Last night I grilled the chicken and threw it in the oven with some sauce, it turned out great, and it was way easier to get everything hot and to the table at the same time.

If you want to serve the chicken over something, you have a lot of options...

-rice noodles

-angle hair pasta

-rice

or our personal (CHEAP) favorite...

- ramen noodles!

Here is how I usually make the ramen...

boil water, throw in ramen. As soon as the ramen is almost done, I throw in a handful or too of shredded veggies (usually carrots, but you could do broccoli spears or zucchini shredded). Then I strain everything as soon as I stir in the veggies (they cook quickly and you want them pretty crisp) and throw it all back in the pot to stay warm.

To serve, throw the noodle/veggie mix in a bowl and top with chicken and sauce. Then serve with some (or all) of the following toppings...

- fresh chopped cilantro

- a slice of lime (to squeeze on top)

- bean sprouts

- thinly sliced green onions (green part too)

- chopped salted peanuts

- shredded cabbage

- extra red pepper flakes

My personal favorite combo is cilantro, fresh lime, and peanuts. Christian likes his plain with no add ins. So you can go all out or just basic and still have a great meal.

And did I mention it is even better the next day?!?

I hope you enjoy this adventure in "Thai" food as much as we do. I make it at least once a month, and my mouth is already watering anxious for leftovers today for lunch.