Sriracha shrimp

Posted on by aurorameyer

I have a new food crush on SheSimmers. Not only is the author’s website drool-worthy, the recipes are easy to follow, delicious and good enough for company. We recently tried the Sriracha shrimp recipe with a few modifications.

Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons Rooster Sauce
  • 1 teaspoon of sugar
  • one pound of shrimp
  • one medium onion (we used Vidalia Onions), sliced
  • 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
Instructions
  1. Saute the onion in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat until the onion is tender-crisp. Mix the Rooster sauce and the sugar, set aside. Add one pound of large peeled and deveined shrimp (21-25 count) to the pan and add the Rooster sauce mixture, stir, cover, and reduce heat to medium for 6-7 minutes or until the shrimp is cooked. If the liquid is thin or there is too much liquid, remove the shrimp from the pan and reduce the sauce down to desired consistency. Serve over warm jasmine rice (this part is important!). This makes enough for two hungry people.

My Opinion: Just the right amount of sweet heat. Honestly, the onions were the best part. This dish is a sure-fire way to kick a summer cold.

Thai Chicken Fried Rice with Basil

Posted on by aurorameyer


If you can’t already tell, I love Asian cuisine. Since we’ve been eating at home more often, J has tried to recreate my favorite dishes at home. He finally got my favorite Thai dish down. I won’t say it’s as good as my favorite Thai restaurant in town, because it might be better!

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Vegetable oil (or peanut or sesame, whatever you have on hand)
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh Thai red chili pepper chopped (or if you can’t find fresh, rehydrate dry, or just use your favorite rooster sauce)
8 ounces boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces and velveted (again this is the secret!)
2 cups cooked rice cold (cooked and cold, really cold. Like from the refrigerator cold. Also, use Jasmine, You’ll thank me.)
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 tablespoon Fish sauce
1 tablespoon Soy sauce (if you want to be adventurous try golden soy sauce if you can find it)
2 tablespoons shallots chopped
1/3 cup Thai holy basil (regular basil or Thai purple is also delicious)
1 tablespoon Fresh Cilantro, chopped (we’ve occasionally accidentally left this out, opps!)

Directions:
First velvet the chicken by bringing a large pot of water to a boil. Stir the chicken to separate and stir again. Simmer for about 2 minutes until the chicken turns white. Drain the chicken. In a wok or large skillet, stir-fry garlic in oil until golden; then add chilies and chicken and stir-fry until chicken is cooked. Add rice, sugar, fish sauce, and soy sauce, and stir-fry, mixing gently. When well mixed, add shallots, basil leaves and cilantro; cook another minute or so, and serve. If you desire, serve with lime wedges, chile sauce, fish sauce, or soy sauce at the table.

My opinion:
Could I really say more than I said above? I. love. this. dish. LOVE.

Saffron Rice

Posted on by aurorameyer


If you’re looking for an excellent side dish to accompany the Lamb Kofta with Harissa Yogurt, I cannot recommend this dish enough. After a few tweaks, I think the rice recipe is prefect! Even better, we’ve consistently made it the last few times.

Ingredients:
1 cup jasmine rice
1 teaspoon saffron threads (we actually used a little more, about one and a half teaspoons)
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions (if you like green onions, add more!)

Directions:
Cook rice to package directions and stir in saffron threads. If you bought a giant bag, you might want to double the recipe. The prepared dish will keep in the fridge for a few days (assuming you can wait that long to eat it!). Your goal is to get an even yellow color throughout the rice. You may want to stir a few times. When rice is cooked sprinkle on the sliced green onions and serve.

My opinion:
This is an excellent basic rice dish. It goes well with grilled chicken too.

Growing hint: When you’ve trimmed all the greens from the green onions, plant the roots in your garden. I was shocked to see them actually re-growing! In about a week, we’ll have more green onions!