Chicken Thai Yellow Curry

After looking into the fridge this weekend I didn't see much worth making. Luckily I remembered my favorite go to: Curry!

Curry is a very malleable dish. You can substitute or add more vegetables. Canned straw mushrooms, baby corn, and bamboo shoots can turn this from Thai to Japanese curry. And if you want to add some kick, feel free to add more chili powder or even some siracha sauce.

This time I even remembered pictures! Haha!

Chicken Thai Curry

Ingredients:
Homemade curry paste:
Half of a green bell pepper
Quarter of an onion
1 Green onion
2 tbsp Olive oil
1/2 tsp Ground cumin
1/2 tsp Tumric
1/2 tsp Paprika
1/4 tsp Fennel seed
1/4 tsp Mustard seed
1/4 tsp Cumin seed
1/4 tsp Freeze dried garlic
1/4 tsp Ground ginger
1/4 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Salt
1/8 tsp Chili powder
1 tbsp Lemon juice

Curry:
1/4 cup Carrots
1/4 cup Green bell pepper
1/4 cup Onion
1 Chicken breast
1 tbsp Olive oil
1 can Coconut milk

Equipment:
Cutting board
Knife
1 Medium skillet
1 Sauce pan
Blender
Spatula

Yellow Curry Paste:


Step One:
Chop the bell pepper, green, and yellow onion into chunks. They don't need to be perfect since they are going to be blended later.

Step Two:
Put olive oil in the skillet and place on cool burner. Add the vegetables and turn to medium low heat. You want to sweat the onions, which means cooking for a longer time but on a lower temperature. (Make sure you stir every once in a while) It will take about 5-10 minutes until the onions begin to turn translucent.

Step Three:
Once the onions are translucent add all the spices. Make sure to coat the vegetables thoroughly. Continue cooking for another 5 minutes.

Step Four:
Pour the skillets contents into a blender. Try not to spill any on yourself since it's still hot. Owie! Add the lemon juice and blend until a thick paste forms. Set aside.

For the rest of the curry:


Step Five:
Chop the vegetables into bite size pieces, about an inch squared. Set aside.

Step Six:
Slice the chicken breast into thin 1-2 inch strips.

Step Seven:
Place the chicken, curry paste, and olive oil into the sauce pan and turn to medium heat. Cook the chicken until no pink shows, about 7 minutes.

Step Eight:
Add the vegetables and coconut milk. Bring to a boil while stirring constantly. Another 5-7 minutes.

Step Nine:
Once it boils cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer the curry for 20 minutes.

Step Ten:
Serve and enjoy!

Eggs for one

Well it snowed last night, making it unwelcoming for travel this morning. I woke up grimacing out at the white blanket that covered the world. Ugh. But before I could go too deep into the world of self pity I remembered I had plenty of entertaining and edible things in the apartment. What is a better way to warm up than bacon and eggs?!

Ingredients:
3 pieces of bacon
1 tbsp chopped onion
1 tbsp chopped green bell pepper
1 green onion chopped
2 eggs
pinch of salt
pinch of garlic powder
handful of shredded cheese (optional)

Equipment:
1 small skillet
1 small spatula
1 fork (or tongs)
paper towels
knife & cutting board for chopping vegetables

Step One:
Place skillet over medium heat. While it's warming up cut bacon in half to make 6 pieces.
(It's easier to fit into the pan and faster to cook this way)

Step Two:
Once skillet is heated, fry bacon. It usually takes two batches about 1-2 minutes on each side. (If you like it crispy. Cook for less if you like it chewy, about 1 minute per side.) Use tongs to turn.

Step Three:
While bacon is cooking chop the vegetables. You want them big enough to absorb flavor but small enough to scramble with the eggs. About the size of your pinky nail is a good guide to go by.

Step Four:
Once bacon is done, place on paper towels to drain. Dispose of the grease from the skillet but don't wipe it out. Place the skillet back on the stove but turn down to medium low heat.
(Easiest way I've found to get rid of any left over grease is to make a small bowl out of aluminum foil. Place it in the sink and pour in grease. Make sure there are no holes or openings though or you will end up with a mess. Once the grease is cool wrap the bowl up into a ball and through away.)

Step Five:
Place vegetables in skillet and cook for 3-5 minutes until onions turn translucent. Make sure to stir them with spatula often. You don't want them to burn. They will turn slightly brown due to the grease and left over bacon crumbs, do not fear this just makes them tastier!

Step Six:
Once the vegetables are ready crack two eggs into the pan. They will cook quickly so make sure you are ready to stir continuously. Add the salt and garlic. Take them off the heat just before they are fully cooked and continue to stir until done. The pan will keep cooking the eggs even when taken off the heat so waiting until they are done over the heat can cause the eggs to become dry. Blech!
(If you have not heard, cracking eggs on the corner of the counter or edge of a bowl is poor form. The egg is more likely to leave shell bits when done so. One firm crack to a flat surface reduces the risk of having to fish out shell pieces. You don't have to get your fingers dirty or find an unpleasant crunch later. Everybody wins! [Everybody being yourself])

Once everything is done to tasty perfection, place on plate and put cheese on top of the eggs if desired. Enjoy breakfast!

(If you want to make this for friends just double everything for two people, triple for three, etc!)

Attempting the Impossible: Learning

Hello there! Please bare with me while I fumble my way through my first couple posts. I promise I will one day get the hang of this thing. Haha! My plan is to update each time (hopefully once a week) with a new recipe and helpful step by step instructions. Even pictures too!

You may be asking yourself HungryHarlie? Really? What type of name is that? Well first off, no that is not my name. That is the name of my best friend and fuzzy side kick of a cat. Whether she is sticking her paws where they do not belong (the bowl of cookie dough) or watching me frantically whisk egg whites through drooping eyelids, she is always at my side. Many a kitty related accident has turned out for the better (knocking the bag of walnuts into a spinach salad, simply genius).

I hope you find my ideas and recipes helpful in some way (even if it is learning from my mistakes). If you have any ideas or helpful hints, please feel free comment or contact me (that is if I figure out how to set that up correctly...) anytime.