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I love this recipe in late summer, when the farmer's markets are full of Japanese eggplants and Thai basil. It's a sweet, gooey, savory treat that's as spicy as you want to make it and I love eggplant far too much. You can use normal European eggplant too in a pinch.   Serve on white rice.      Ingredients 1-2 eggplants depending on size, in thin slices (Japanese and European work fine, Thai would be weird) 1 red bell pepper (cut into small squares) 4 cloves garlic (smashed and roughly chopped) Thai chilis, to taste (minced) Small quantity of shallots or onions (thin sliced, optional, I like the sweet they provide) Protein of your choice, pre-cooked - I've been liking baked tofu, but chicken or pork work well Thai basil (to taste), remove the bigger stems and chop roughly.  Sauce 4 Tbsp soy sauce 1 Tbsp brown sugar (+palm sugar if available) 1 tsp dark vinegar, or white vinegar 2 Tbsp fish sauce  Optional: 1 Tbsp corn starch dissolved in 2 Tbsp co...

Ages ago I bought some szechuan peppercorns for a recipe, and haven't tried many recipes with them since. They're very strange - they have what can only be described as a floral, citrisy taste, a bit like lychees (but less floral). In this dish, based loosely on authentic szechuan chicken recipes, they lend a really nice counterpoint to the chilies, but you don't want to add too much and overwhelm things. Note that this is a fairly dry stir fry. I made this with Japanese eggplants, but if you only have normal eggplant, cutting it into cubes might actually be nice, since they'd be a similar shape to the chicken chunks. Ingredients 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs (breasts reheat better for leftovers), cubed 5 Japanese eggplants, in slices 3+2 cloves garlic, sliced 1.5 teaspoons peeled sliced fresh ginger 1 heaping tablespoon szechuan peppercorn 3-8 Chinese-style dried red chilis, seeds removed 3 tablespoons dry sherry or rice wine 2 tab...

I received a request to share my fried rice recipe, written for a kitchen beginner. There are a lot of subtleties for making awesome fried rice, which would make it a lot easier to teach in-person; this step-by-step is the next best thing. I'm going to shout a bit in this post, but listen to me if you want your rice to fulfill your every hope and dream! TWO KEY THINGS YOU MUST HAVE: LEFTOVER rice (at least one night in the fridge, ideally a few days old). If you try to make it with fresh rice it will be mushy.  A BIG-ASS non-stick pan. Don't try to be a cowboy with cast iron or some other shiz. I am serious--if you are a beginner, DO NOT PASS GO without fulfilling those requirements or you will be disappointed and frustrated and never try cooking again. For rice I recommend a long-grain Thai jasmine rice, but other types will work. If you don't have a GOOD non-stick pan, I recommend Swiss Diamond . If you are concerned about carcinogens or whatever tin-foil hat b...

I don't know what to call this one. It's really just a good stir-fry, based on one they made on America's Test Kitchen. You can use any meat, really, and any vegetables, so it's hard to pin down. Here's how I made this batch. I used chicken thighs, but the original recipe was for beef (something lean, like top round). 6-8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (~2 lbs.) 2 Tbsp. fish sauce 1 Tbsp. brown sugar 2 tsp. ground coriander 2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. white pepper 2 heads broccoli, cut into florets 1 red pepper 1 red onion or 3-4 shallots 3 hot chilies 3 cloves garlic 3 Tbsp. fish sauce 1 Tbsp. rice vinegar 1/4 c. chicken broth (or water) 3 Tbsp. brown sugar 2 Tbsp. Chili Garlic Sauce 1 Tbsp. corn starch Begin by boiling a pot of water for blanching the broccoli. Meanwhile, slice the meat into small pieces and then toss them with the coriander, white pepper, salt, brown sugar, and fish sauce. When the water boils, blanch the broccoli for 1 minute, then cool immediately wi...

This recipe was an improvised fusion between Szechuan spices, Korean japchae technique, and some rice noodles I had sitting around. I raided my cupboard and crisper for the ingredients and came up with deliciousness. It's another dish that uses Chili Black Bean Sauce, like Ma Po Tofu. (Amusingly, the last post in the blog features chilis and black beans, but in a completely different way). It's a true stir-fry, with each ingredient cooked separately and removed from the pan, so be prepared with a nice slotted spoon or 'spider'. In the end the ingredients are combined in a large bowl (pick one that you can cover with some kind of lid to keep things warm), so you don't have to worry about fitting the noodles into your wok or frying pan. 1 quart rice noodles, soaked in hot water until tender 1 lb protein, cubed (I used tofu) 2 c. stir-fry vegetables, cut into small pieces or slivers, such as: carrots blanched greens onions 1.4 c. water 3 Tbsp. chili black bean sauce 3 ...

I always keep a turkey kielbasa on hand for weeknight desperation dinners. The turkey kielbasa aren't as greasy as the regular ones, and they keep forever in the fridge or freezer. This recipe is more to serve as inspiration than as something to follow in great detail. You can add the noodles to the pan or serve them separately. I have also used potatoes or pierogies as a starchy substrate. For veggies just use what you have on hand. Adding fresh herbs at the end is a nice touch if you have some on hand. 1 turkey kielbasa, sliced 2-3 c. veggies, in this case: colorful bell peppers, sliced 1/2 lb. pasta, potatoes, or pierogies, cooked 1 c. broth (any kind) 2 Tbsp. cornstarch or potato starch 2-4 tsp. spices, in this case: sage, red pepper flakes, and and white pepper 1 handful fresh herbs, chopped (optional) oil for cooking Heat 2-3 Tbsp. oil in the skillet. Cook the noodles (or potatoes or pierogies) on medium high, tossing frequently, until the edges are crisp and browned. Remove...

Stir Fried Leftover Salad in Black Bean Garlic Sauce (If I had known how delicious this was I would have taken a picture) Saute in un-flavored oil: Onion, carrot sticks, green vegetables, pre-soaked shiitake mushrooms Stir in a heaping spoon of Black Bean Garlic Sauce, combine well Add the leftover salad that didn't get dressing on it: ours was spinach, green leaf lettuce, shredded carrots, craisins, walnuts, sunflower seeds, raisins, fresh parmesan cheese. Continue to stir fry at high heat until all ingredients are cooked approximately the same amount.  Serve with rice noodles or rice. Whenever I see weird combinations like this on menus at yuppie restaurants I make rude remarks and keep looking. But, by golly, it was really, really good! 

This recipe is great for when you want something really nice and simple, especially in hot weather. It's adapted from the "Sundays at the Moosewood" cookbook, where it's called Tauhu Goreng Kechap. The sauce is definitely more than the sum of its parts - I really like it. Sauce: 2/3 light soy sauce 3-4 cloves garlic 2 Tbsp minced onion/scallion/shallot(I usually use green onions) 1-2 small bird chilies 1/4 c fresh lime juice (I recommend more) 1/2-1 tsp. sugar Fry up some tofu, make some rice. I recommend adding some vegis - they recommend steaming some mungbean sprouts, but I personally skinned and seeded a cucumber, and blanched some thinly cut carrots. Put the vegis and friend vegis on the rice, then pour sauce over to taste. Depending on the season, it might go well with some miso soup or something. A picture of it made all fancy (served with a side of broccoli...and sake, even):

This is the 100th post on the blog! Good work, family--I think we've created something wonderful here. Keep on postin'! Now that I'm writing this 100th post, I feel like I should commemorate it with some kind of special recipe, but this is just what I made for dinner tonight. In the end I guess that's the most appropriate thing to post, since the only theme for our blog is "food the Magidows cook". I learned this recipe from my roommate, JiJY, and it's the 'dry' style of pad thai, rather than the saucier American style. You can use any meat and add vegetables as you like, though it's best kept simple. The most important trick is to keep the noodles undercooked, since you want them to stay robust at the end. Tamarind sauce can be a little harder to find, but most Asian stores carry it--unfortunately there are no substitutions for this and you need it to proceed. If the paste is very thick, thin it with hot water so that it pours readily but stil...

An ode to rice noodles! Today I had fun exploring the international grocery stores in Rochester. Rice and Spice, an Indian place, is great and I got excellent service there. The shopkeeper helped me find everything on my list and even gave me some recipes. The Asian Food Store was really seedy and kind of freaked me out a little bit (especially the half-wit working the meat counter), but I found some amazing glazed pork and was inspired to make this meal. I love Singapore noodles, even though they have nothing to do with Singapore, but they are hard to find. I've been meaning to figure out how to make them and today was the perfect chance. The dish is a lot like fried rice in that you use little bits of vegetables and meat, whatever you have on hand, except that it's made with rice noodles and seasoned with curry powder. I used chicken thighs and some glazed pork, and left out the traditional shrimp. Feel free to improvise and conduct Operation Icebox. Update: Check out t...

This is a super easy stir fry with an unforgettable flavor. In Thailand, 'Holy basil' is typically used, but in the US most people make it with 'Thai basil'. (Now that I've tried the holy basil, I think that Thai basil is better.) You can use any mild meat, like chicken or pork, and either chop it small or buy it coarsely ground. It's traditionally served with an egg that's been fried until crisp in a fairly deep pan of oil, though eaten simply with rice it makes a respectable meal. 1-2 bunches Thai (or Holy) basil, stems removed 3-4 Tbsp. stir fry oil (less if using nonstick) 1.5 lbs chicken or pork, ground or chopped finely 3 cloves garlic, minced 2-5 hot chilies (to taste), sliced thin 3 large shallots (or substitute 1 large onion), sliced into thin strips 2 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. fish sauce 4 Tbsp. black soy sauce* OR 3 Tbsp. regular soy sauce + 2 Tbsp. brown sugar Heat the stir fry oil in a large pan until it's really hot. Add the garlic and stir, cooking j...

So I can't vouch for the authenticity of the recipe, but this is turns out more or less like the deliciousness of a Lao-Thai restaurant back in Madison. I based the recipe heavily on this recipe , though I didn't follow it exactly. The reason for the name is something of a dispute. Some say that it's a pre-drinking/hangover meal, others say that its spiciness causes people to drink lots of cold beer. Also called Pad Kee Mao. Quantities are given as I made it yesterday, YMMV: 1 large white onion (cut into thin slices) 1 large green bell pepper (thin slices) 3-5 cloves garlic a lot of thai basil (leaves separated from stems) 4 large tomatoes, preferably peeled then chopped in large chunks. 1 bulb shallot Thai bird peppers(I used like 4, but they were green and of varying sizes. It should be spicy) 1 pound chicken boneless skinless chicken thighs(cut into thin slices) Wide rice noodles Sauce (I just eyeballed this): Oyster sauce Rice Vinegar Lime or Lemon juice Fish Sauce Suga...

You can use any hearty vegetable for this. It cooks pretty quickly, so start some rice first. I was going to take some cool pictures with one of the fancy cameras around here, but I couldn't figure out how to work the dang thing :P so you'll have to use your imagination. Basically it looked like this picture that I ganked from Epicurious , but with lots of tasty beef: You will need: 1-1.5 lbs beef: tri-tip, blade steak, or flank steak work best A lot of hearty greens, such as bok choy or broccoli 3-5 shallots or 1 red onion 2 cloves garlic fish sauce ground coriander white pepper brown sugar soy sauce rice vinegar sesame oil red pepper flakes chicken broth or water Slice the beef into thin, bite-sized strips and coat with with 1 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tsp brown sugar, 1/2 tsp white pepper, and 1/2 tsp ground coriander. Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes. If you're using bok choy, slice the larger specimens into quarters and the smaller ones in half, lengthwise. Clean as thoro...

Another yummy recipe to check out is Maangchi's jobchae video-recipe. I link to her Blogger page on the right-hand panel, and she has a number of great recipes, but I will also insert the video here: I had no idea how easy this delicious recipe is, and it uses yam starch noodles, which are perfect for mom's gluten-free diet. These are the grayish/purplish ones that come in large packages, called "dang myun". (I made it with some other Asian noodles I had, and it still turned out fine) . Jobchae can be made with chicken rather than beef, for Jeff. Since the recipe is relatively inexpensive to make it will hard to pay restaurant prices for this dish in the future. Mmm...now I want to make some more!