Time To Spice Things Up!

How many times a week do you and your family have fish for dinner?  We would like to have it twice a week but with the prices for good wild caught fish around here being so high, we're lucky to have it once a week.  I know many people who don't normally work fish into their week are more apt to during Lent. There's a fish fry special on every corner this time of year and the price is right because a fish fry dinner for one could easily feed two.  Keep in mind that one of these dinners with tartar sauce and french fries and coleslaw can easily run over 1200 calories and serve up a whole lot of saturated fat.  I thought I'd share a good fish recipe with you in case you want to switch things up this week and have a tasty and healthy Lenten meal. This Thai Fish Curry recipe from Food Network is full of flavor but is easy and does not require a bunch of random ingredients that you might not want to deal with (i.e. lemongrass stalks, tamarind paste, etc.).  Aside from a jar of green curry paste there is nothing crazy going into this one.

I like to start by getting the rice going.  You really don't need a rice cooker but it sure does make it easier. The rice never boils over on the stove, is always done perfectly and automatically switches to warm when it's done cooking.  For this dinner I'd choose a long grain basmati or jasmine rice (my fave).  What ever you like or have on hand will work just fine.

Once the rice is set, you can get to work zesting a lime.  I use this micro plane which works great but the fine side of a cheese grater works too.

I'm so glad I chose the lime green bowl to show you the lime zest.  That was brilliant.

This is what the curry paste looks like.  I'm sure you can find it in pretty much any grocery store in the Asian foods section.  This has a little kick to it but not over the top.  The red curry paste on the other hand...

Cut the mahi mahi into chunks and rub with the curry paste and lime zest.  (If you can't get mahi mahi or it's too expensive I'd go with swordfish)  Cover and pop it in the fridge while you chop the veggies.

Chop some butternut squash along with some red bell pepper and onion.  The recipe also calls for jalapeno but I left it out so it wouldn't be too spicy for the kids.

As long as we're chopping, might as well run the o'll knife through a handful of cilantro.  You'll need it before you know it.

OK, to start cooking, heat up some oil and cook the veggies over medium high heat until crisp-tender.  Then add a little curry paste to them stirring until starting to brown.

Next add the squash and some coconut milk and water and bring to a boil.  This will need to simmer for about 12 minutes, until the squash is tender.  Feel free to add some broccoli or snow peas to this (yum).

When the squash is fork tender, add the fish and cook until opaque, about 8 minutes.

Then stir in the cilantro.  You're kitchen is going to smell fantastic at this point!

The only thing left to do is spoon over some rice and enjoy.  I think you'll be glad you didn't opt for another greasy fried fish dinner (or your body will anyway).  Click here for the full recipe.

One Pot Wonder

You just can't beat a one pot meal.  Less clean up is always a good thing if you ask me!  I'd say in the past year or so I've really grown to appreciate chicken thighs.  They have slightly more fat than a chicken breast but they also have a lot more iron and zinc (good for the immune system and cancer prevention to name a few perks).  Better still, they are cheaper than chicken breasts.  I found this recipe on the Food & Wine website called Indonesian Coconut Rice with Chicken and Zucchini.  Sounds exotic but if you or your family members are not adventurous eaters, fear not.  This is pretty tame, very easy and a nice change from plain o'll chicken and rice.

To start, heat some oil in a large, deep frying pan or a Dutch oven.  Season 8 chicken thighs with salt and pepper.  I used boneless, skinless chicken.  Brown on both sides, about 8 minutes total.

Remove the chicken from the pot and add onion and cook until soft while stirring occasionally.  Then add the garlic and cook for another minute. 

Next you add coriander, cumin, 1 1/2 cups of long grain rice along with some salt and pepper and cook stirring for one more minute.

After that you pour in one can of unsweetened coconut milk and 1 3/4 cups of water.  Add the thighs back to the bot and bring to a simmer.  Cover and cook on low (stirring two or three times) until rice and chicken are almost done, about 20 min.

While that's working, dice up a pound of zucchini (this is where the kids come in handy).

Add the zucchini and cover.  Cook until done, about 7 minutes more.  Then stir in a little lemon juice and some chopped fresh cilantro.  Unless of course you're one of those people that thinks cilantro tastes like soap, if you're one of those leave it out.  I so love cilantro, I would never choose to leave it out.

There you have it my friends.  This is good stuff!  I didn't change anything in this recipe so just click on this Food & Wine link for the full recipe and enjoy!