Redang Curry

This Malayan  curry can be done with chicken, beef for stew or beef short ribs. 

Ingredients:

1 cup coconut milk

2 tablespoons canola oil

2 tbsp of chopped lemongrass

1 onion, peeled and quartered

4 garlic cloves

2 1/2 inches galangal or 2 1/2 inches ginger

1 -3 red chile, depending on how hot you like your curry (de-seeded if less heat is desired)

1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon dark soy sauce

1 tablespoon tamarind paste

5 tablespoons fish sauce

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1 tablespoon coriander powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon clove

1 1/2 teaspoons shrimp paste

2 whole star anise

-Place all sauce ingredients with a little bit of the coconut milk in a food processor and blend until a paste is formed.

- Put a small amount of canola oil in a dutch oven sear the meat until it gets a golden color

-Then fry the curry paste  in the bottom of the dutch oven, then add the rest of the coconut milk

-Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover, let the sauce reduce until it almost covers the meat for about 40 minutes, check constantly and add chicken broth if the meat is not yet tender but there is not enough liquid. (Be careful because the curry has sugar so it can burn easily)

-Serve with rice.

Chipotle Chicken Stew

• Ingredients:
• 
  
• 4 tablespoons canola oil.
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 4 large cloves garlic, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsps of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (or 2 pickled jalapeno seeded and sliced)
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried cumin
• 1 (28-ounce) can chopped tomatoes
• 5 chicken thighs (or 3 cups shredded cooked chicken)
• Few dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup of red wine
• 3 to 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 lime
• 1 cup cooked brown rice (optional)
• Kosher salt
• Sour cream, for garnish
• Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. If using chicken thighs, season well with salt and pepper brown them until they have a golden color. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside. Add onion and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic  and sweat until soft and translucent, Add spices and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant and aromatic. Deglaze the pan with the wine. Then mix in the chipotle peppers, tomatoes, chicken, Worcestershire, and stock. It's better to add half of the chipotle peppers first to see how spicy it is and then you can add more. 

Bring to a simmer and cook 20 minutes if using cooked chicken or 40 to 50 minutes if using chicken thighs.

Cut the lime in half, squeeze juice into the pot, and then add the juiced halves as well.

Add cooked rice and cook 5 minutes longer to warm rice through. (If using chicken thighs, you can add uncooked rice to the pot , 15 after you put the chicken back in, so it has enough time to cook) Season, to taste, with salt.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with sour cream and cilantro and pickled red onions (optional)

Bed of Roses Lamb Tagine

Ingredients

1 1/2 pound of lamb shoulder (or stew meat)

15 prunes pitted

6 dates pitted (optional)

1 big red onion, sliced

2 tbsp of tomato paste

1 teaspoon of brown sugar or agave

1/4 cup of roasted almonds

1 zucchini cut in moon shapes

1/4 cup of pomagranate seeds (optional)

1 tbsp of parsley (optional)

3 tbsp of Morrocan Tagine Spice or :

1 cinnamon stick
1 tbsp of ginger
1 tbsp of saffron
1 tbsp of turmeric

Wash the prunes and cover them with 2 cups of water.  Let them sit. Season the lamb with salt and pepper.  Put olive oil in a dutch oven or Tagine dish and brown  the lamb pieces until the have a nice color. Remove the lamb and fry the spices in the oil for a few seconds then add the copped onion, cook until translucent and add the tomato paste, the brown sugar or the agave. Season with salt and pepper. Take the prunes out of the water and put them aside. Keep the water.  Pour it into the pot, add  the lamb pieces and the cinnamon.  Add more more of needed to cover the meet by 2 inches. Let the meat cook for 1 ½ hours (or however long it takes to cook) on a medium flame. You can also leave it on a low flame and let it cook longer. Add the prunes, zucchini, dates and roasted almonds in the last 15 minutes and season with salt and pepper. Take the vegetables and meat out of the pot and let the sauce reduce by one third. Adjust salt and pepper, serve the meat with sauce over couscous  and decorate with parsley and pomagranate.