Hi everyone and I hope you all are feeling great and inspired to cook a good meal soon!
I am coming off of a big cooking day. I did a little bit of planning last night, thought about what I had in the fridge and decided to make a Thai Chicken dish and a Tofu mushroom dish. I defrosted some chicken last night and in the AM, did some prep work, chopped vegetables and cubed up the tofu and the chicken that I had defrosted. I also prepared an Asian sauce from pantry ingredients that I put in a tupperware to use later when I combined the meat, tofu and vegetables.
I am telling you all of this not to overwhelm you, to freak you out or to brag. I simply want to show you how it IS possible if you do a little planning and make efficient use of your time. Granted, I had many food staples in my fridge and pantry
which is a hugely necessary component of maintaining your status as a Celebrity Home Chef. This, too, can be done if you get into a routine of shopping and keeping lists of foods that you like to have on hand in accessible places in your kitchen. When you are running low, you quickly write it on the list of your store/stores so you can replenish when you return to that particular store.
I did ALL my chopping of vegetables and chicken while my kids were eating their breakfast and dinner. We were all engaged in conversation and I was modeling cooking behaviors. Our children need to see us cooking so that they will integrate these skills into their own future cooking selves,or at least learn that cooking results in healthy, tasty meals. They also need to see that it is a valued way to spend your time instead of buying prepared foods and take out.
I made a Thai Chicken dish, a tofu, mushroom dish and a yummy dip, all in little pockets of free time and while my kids were eating their breakfast and dinner. The dip was a great appetizer but can also be served as a side dish since it is a protein puree made out of soybeans. My friend, Barbara served me this dip but uses canola oil whereas I prefer the olive oil flavor. It is surprisingly delicious.
Here it is and I hope you like it!
Edamame dip:
1 lb bag of frozen, shelled edamame beans (sold in most supermarkets but definitely in Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup rice vinegar (can get in any supermarket)
1 TBS sugar (if rice vinegar is seasoned-which means it has sugar in it, you may not need any sugar)
1 tsp salt
Boil water in a med. sized sauce pan. Add beans and when the water starts boiling again, cook for another 5 minutes. Drain beans and let cool until warm.
In a blender or cuisinart, add beans, rice vinegar, salt, sugar and oil. Blend until pureed to a creamy texture.
Kids love this and it is a beautiful light green color.
Enjoy! P.S. In response to Maddie’s comment: yes, you can pan sear the chicken from yesterday’s recipe and freeze peeled ginger in your freezer in small ziplocs.