Friday, September 26, 2008

"Cheaters" Thai peanut chicken

I love cooking, but there is no way I am going to make my own peanut sauce from scratch. Since the jar sauce means I lose Martha Points (MP's), I made up for it by using chilies from the garden. Mild when raw, HOT when cooked!

-About 1 pound of chicken breast
-1 c shredded carrot
-1 small onion, diced
-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
-2 tbsp olive oil
-salt and pepper
-4-5 small chilies, diced (seeds optional)
-1/4 c sesame seeds
-1/4 c chopped parsley (I used it because that is what I had on hand, but I bet cilantro and basil would be fantastic)
-1 jar of store-bought Thai peanut sauce (I like the Archer Farms brand from Target).
-1/4 c crushed peanuts

To prep the chicken, remove any fat and wrap in plastic wrap. Use a rolling pin or something similar to flatten out the chicken, and then cut in to medallions. Or, just buy the pre-cut stuff from the grocery store and save yourself the work. Salt and pepper generously.

Heat up the oil in a deep pan or wok over medium heat, add the garlic and onion. Sautee until the onion is translucent. Add the chicken and cook on both sides. Add the carrots and chilies, and the peanut sauce. Stir it all together over medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes. Toss in the parsley (or basil, or cilantro, etc) at the last minute.

Serve over rice or noodle, and top with the sesame seeds and peanuts (bonus MP's if you toast them!).

2 comments:

Nicolle said...

Thai is my favorite, next to Mexican food. This dish sounds wonderful!

We just went to Cheesecake Factory the other night while shopping in Southlake for a friends' wedding....anyway, I got the Thai Chicken Pasta and it was TO DIE FOR!

Since you're so good with recipes, do you know any for making homemade baby food or know any resources?

Emily said...

Unfortunately, I do not know much about baby food. I know that there is a big trend in getting all-in-one steamer/food processors that are specifically designed to make baby food, you should look into it! Also, Central Market and other "fancy" food stores sell really good, organic, frozen baby food.