Pineapple Cilantro Rice

When my Dad and Brother came to visit last month, it was a opportunity to try some recipes that I've been wanting to make. This rice was one of them. I paired it with the Crispy Coconut Chicken and it was the perfect side dish! And believe me, if Dad likes it... so will you!

The original recipe comes from the gals at Our Best Bites, but I changed it up a little. It's a recipe that is easily catered to fit your tastes. The rice can be any flavor, and you can add more or less of any of the ingredients.

Pineapple Coconut Rice with Lime and Cilantro

1 cup dry rice, cooked in 2 cups of water. I used Jasmine Rice- following the package directions, but you can use white, brown, neon pink... whatever you like the best!
2 TB butter
Juice from 1 large lime (You might need more. The rice absorbs the juice- taste as you go)
1-2 small cans crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 - 1 cup shredded coconut
1/4 - 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook your rice according to package directions. When done, add butter, and stir to melt. Add lime juice, pineapple, coconut, and cilantro. Stir to combine, tasting (a very important step!), and adding more ingredients if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

Because of the nature of rice, sucking in every kind of juice in comes in contact with, you will want to serve this right away. If you don't, you might need to add some more lime juice. Otherwise, cook the rice, add the butter, and then mix in the rest right before serving.

Enjoy!

Fragrant Thai Chicken Curry

This dish takes a little more time and effort, but is well worth it. It is great to serve at a party, because the chicken and sauce can be prepared in advance and combined and heated at the last minute. This is one of my families personal favorite Thai dishes.

I actually posted this recipe once before, but I didn't have any pictures. Now, I have pictures- lots and lots of pictures!! Enjoy!

Again, see my Thai Tips post if you need help explaining the different Thai ingredients! The * indicates ingredients that are best found at an Asian grocery store.

Fragrant Thai Chicken Curry

3 TB oil
1 onion, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 TB Thai red curry paste * (I would put 2TB in)
4 cups coconut milk (roughly 2-3 cans)
2 lemon grass stalks, coarsely chopped*
6 kaffir lime leaves, finely chopped*
2/3 cup Greek or Plain yogurt
2 TB apricot jam (I've made this w/out the jam, as no one eats the rest of the jar!)
3 lb cooked chicken breasts
2 TB cilantro
salt and ground black pepper
Kaffir lime leaves, shredded, toasted coconut, and fresh cilantro to garnish
Cooked Jasmine Rice to serve

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onion and garlic, and cook over a low heat for 5-10 minutes until soft.


Stir in the red curry paste. Cook, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes.


Stir in the coconut milk, then add the lemon grass, lime leaves, yogurt, and apricot jam. Stir well. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.




2. In the meantime start cooking your rice, following the directions on the package. See tips for cooking jasmine rice here.

2. Remove the pan from the heat, and allow to cool slightly. Transfer the sauce to a food processor or blender and process to a smooth puree. Rinse out your pan. Strain the mixture back into the pan, pressing as much of the pureed mixture as possible through the sieve with the back of a wooden spoon. Discard what is left in the sieve. Set aside while you prepare the chicken.

3. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and add to the sauce. ( I used chicken that I had previously cooked and frozen, and shredded it.)

4. Bring the sauce back to simmering. Stir in the cilantro and season with salt and pepper. Serve in warm bowls; garnishing with extra lime leaves, shredded coconut, and cilantro. Serve over Rice.


Enjoy the burst of flavor that is Thai cuisine.

Mussaman Curry

Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines. Thanks to my husband for getting me an amazing Thai cookbook, it is now easy to cook at home as well. Some of the ingredients can be hard to find though. For help with definitions of ingredients and how to use them, read this post. The * by an ingredient means you will have to go to an Asian store to find it.

Mussaman curry is amazing with any type of meat you like. Pork, beef, chicken; it can handle it all. I personally like chicken the best, but feel free to experiment!

Mussaman Curry

1Tb peanut oil

3-4 Tb Mussaman curry (Mae Ploy brand) * (Can use less for a milder flavor)

1 can coconut milk

1 cup of meat- cooked

1 potato, cut in small bite-sized pieces

1/4 cup diced onion

Handful of Cashews or Peanuts

1/2 cup of water

1/2-1 can Green Beans (optional)

3 teas sugar

2 teas lemon juice

Jasmine Rice

Start cooking your Jasmine Rice.

Rinse 1 cup rice in a colander until water runs clear. Put in pan with 1 ½ cups liquid. (Water is the most common, but coconut milk makes a wonderful rice as well!) Combine and bring to soft boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, let stand covered for 10 minutes.
Fluff w/ fork. Makes 3 cups cooked rice.

To make Mussaman:

Heat the oil in a large pan or Wok. When the oil is hot, add the curry. Heat.

Add 1 cup coconut milk, and whisk together until the curry is mixed. (picture above)

Add meat and another 1/2 cup of coconut milk, heat until boiling.

In the meantime, cook potatoes in the microwave until cooked.

Add cooked potatoes to soup. Add onion, nuts, 1/2 cup of water, and green beans. Cook until the vegetables soften.

Add 3 teas sugar, 2 teas lemon juice. Taste and season as required.

Serve over Jasmine Rice.

Serve the Mussaman over the Jasmine rice. Take a bite, close your eyes, and enjoy the flavors rolling over your tongue!

Thai Fried Rice with Beef and Jasmine rice

This meal is one of my families comfort foods. It's quick and easy to make, and full of flavor. Plus, it gets us to eat our veggies! This recipe also comes from the book featured yesterday.

Thai Fried Rice with Beef


7 oz Beef steak (cut out for vegetarian!)
1 TB Veggie oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 eggs
2 1/4 cups cooked jasmine rice (See below)
1/2 med. head broccoli, coarsely chopped
3 TB soy sauce
1 TB brown sugar (I forgot this last time and didn't miss it)
1 TB Fish sauce (does not taste fishy in the dish!)
ground black pepper
chili sauce, to serve (optional)

1. Trim the steak and cut into very thin strips

2. Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan and cook garlic over low to med. heat until golden brown. Do not let it burn! Increase the heat to high, add the steak and stir-fry for 2 minutes.


3. Move the pieces of beef to the edges of the wok and break the eggs into the center. When the egg starts to set, stir-fry it with the meat.


4. Add the rice and toss all the contents of the wok together, scraping up any residue on the base. Add broccoli, soy sauce, sugar and fish sauce, and stir-fry for 2 minutes more. Season with pepper and serve immediately w/ chili sauce, or eat as is!

Jasmine Rice


So, I talked a little about Jasmine Rice on the post for Chicken Satay, but I wanted to expand some, and include a basic recipe.

• A good thing to remember: 1 cup dry rice = 3 cups cooked rice!
• Use 1 1/2 cups water to every 1 cup of rice
• Always rinse thouroughly before cooking. This helps remove excess starch and any dust that may have accumulated during storage.
• If you want to add a little more flavor the the rice, simply add herbs or spices with the liquid. They will be absorbed into the rice!
• The rice must be cooked at a low heat. Otherwise, the water will evaporate before the rice is fully cooked

Place rice and water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, and turn heat to low.
COVER pan and simmer for 20 minutes.
Remove pan from heat, and let rest for 10 minutes.


The first tip above is very important. 1 cup dry rice = 3 cups cooked rice!
When I made this recipe, I put in 3 cups of DRY rice! So... for you lucky readers... you will get 2 recipes from one!

I took the extra rice and made Tropical Rice Pudding!
The post and recipe will be up tomorrow!