The Consumption: Wah-Wah Thai Coconut Chix Soup

BEFORE

This attempt at slow cookin' proved, I still have a lot to learn!

Notice my before pic above...It may appear delish at first, but look closer and you will notice a big mistake!

This week, I invited my Mom to join me on my Crock-n-Roll mission, giving me the opportunity to prepare her first slow cooked meal, EVER!

I sliced the chicken, peppers, onions, carrots and shrooms with pure perfection.  Then I added the lemon grass (FYI:  Do NOT eat this alone!), garlic, ginger and crushed red pepper; covered and crocked on HIGH for 3 hours. 

I decided to create a nice outdoor setting, allowing us to really enjoy this meal. Unfortunately, our first bites tasted like pure fire!

I began sweating and turning red right away, quickly motioning for everyone to move inside.  The A/C felt great, but I was still breathing fire! 

My Mom kept asking, "What did you add to make this so spicy?"  I started listing the ingredients:  cilantro, garlic, ginger and crushed red pepper.  As we reviewed the recipe I instantly knew what happened.

The recipe calls for only a teaspoon of crushed red pepper and I added a tablespoon (you may recall I did this once before, preparing the Asian Chicken Soup)!

Although the veggies tasted amaz, this soup was a hot mess. 

I'm not going to let this get me down...I loved experimenting with the coconut milk and can not wait to perfect this recipe.  Next time I will make sure to pay closer attention to the measurements.

AFTER

Tips & Tricks:

• Turn the heat up!
• What the heck is lemon grass?

- Chef Mimi

The Recipe: Thai-Style Coconut-Chicken Soup

Prep:  20 mins
Cook:  Low 6 hours, High 3 hours
Serving Size:  6
Category:  Soups & Stews

Ingredients:  

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts; cut into 3/4-inch pieces
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 cups bias-sliced carrots 
• 1 large onion; sliced
• 2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
• 3 cloves of garlic; minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons lemon grass paste
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 1/2 cans unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 medium red pepper, orange pepper and yellow pepper; sliced 
• 2 cups fresh mushrooms; cut in half
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro; chopped

Preparation: 

Combine chicken, broth, carrots, onion, ginger, garlic, lemon grass, crushed red pepper, mushrooms and sweet peppers in the crock. 

Cover; cook on low-heat for 6-7 hours or on high-heat for 3-3.5 hours. If necessary, skim off fat. 

Stir coconut milk and the fresh cilantro into the soup. Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Ladle into bowls and top with more fresh cilantro. 

So GOOD!!!

- Chef Tiffany


Tips & Tricks:

• How to Grate Fresh Ginger Root
• Cooking with Lemon Grass Paste
• How to Chop Cilantro 

The Ingredient: Coconut Milk

Chef Tiffany has suggested to use this next ingredient in the crock.  She is notorious for loving Thai food.  I remember the first time I ever ate Thai food was with Tiff.   I had no clue what anything was on the menu, and she made great suggestions!  I remember trying the coconut soup.  It sounded so bizarre to me becuase when I think of coconut, I do not think of Thai cuisine, I immediately think of island foods from Hawaii or rum drinks like Pina Coladas.  The flavors from my dinner with Tiff are still stuck in my memory because I never knew a soup could taste this amazing!  It had two main flavors, milky sweet and spicy hot.  I can not wait to try the next recipe!

Tip & Tricks

• What is coconut milk?
• Coconut Milk Health Benefits
• About Thai Cuisine

- Chef Mimi

The Consumption: Slow Cookin' Chili Tacos

This recipe could not have worked better for my needs!  I have been relaxing in St. George, FL with my family from Atlanta.  I do not get to see them very often so, I am spending as much quality time with them as I can.  For my night to cook, I chose Mexican cuisine using the slow cooker.  My whole family supports Crock-N-Roll, and was anxious to see how tacos turn out in the crock.  My sister-in-law, Brooke, is an expert at slow cookin'.  She suggested that I use a crock pot liner to make clean up even more simple.  She made pulled pork sandwiches in the crock the night before and demonstrated how easy it was to use a liner.

The tacos fed everyone in my family!  While browning the meat, I added salt, pepper, and diced jalepeno.  I have read that cooking fresh jalepenos relieves the heat.  I noticed the serving size varied based on how much meat filling you want to use in your taco.  The taco seasoning I used flavored the meat like chili.  I think for my next attempt I will use taco seasoning I have tried before.  St. George, FL is a tiny island in the Gulf and grocery stores are extrememly limited so I had slim pickins.  Other than the flavor of the meat, the tacos were delish!  I don't think you could really go wrong with a Mexican recipe (since it mainly consists of tortilla, meat, cheese, and vegetables) just monitor your flavor and use fresh veggies.

- Chef Mimi

I have to share a great photo from St. George Island, FL.  This pretty much sums up the vibe on our trip:

     

The Recipe: Slow Cooker Tacos

Prep:  15 - 20 mins

Cook:  LOW 6 hours

Serving size: 6-8

Category:  Beef

Ingredients:

• 2lbs ground beef (or turkey)
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1 pkg of taco seasoning
• 18 oz can of tomato sauce
• 10 oz can of Rotel with cilantro & lime
• 2 cups shredded cheese
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 jalepeno
• 1 can sliced black olives
• soft or hard tortilla shells

Preparation:

Place a crock pot cooking liner in the crock.  In a skillet, brown meat over medium flame.  Drain and add to crock pot.  Add water, taco seasoning, tomato sauce, and Rotel.  Cover and cook on low 6 hours.  Serve with soft or hard taco shells with toppings like shredded cheddar cheese,  sour cream, diced jalepeno, black olives, and other desired toppings.

Tips & Tricks:

• 
  
  This can also be served as a taco meat dip using tortilla chips.

- Chef Tiffany

The Ingredient: Ground Beef

I chose ground beef this week because I am constantly finding Mexican recipes for the crock pot.  Mexican food is an all time favorite of mine, and I am anxious to try this cuisine in the crock.  Some of my favorite recipes I want to try include ground beef.  Seasoned ground beef adds substance to these meals.  Most Mexican dishes are different variations using similar ingredients.   

Jim Gaffigan, a great comedian, said it best:  All Mexican food is made up of 4 types of ingredients tortillas, meat, cheese and vegetables. 

My family and I are about to travel to St. George Island, FL.  Each night my siblings and I rotate making dinner for everyone.  I wanted to make something that would feed a lot of people, but take no time to make. I did not want to lose any beach time with the fam.  Check out the next recipe!

Tips & Tricks:

• Pick your meat

• Ground Beef Nutrition

- Chef Mimi

The Consumption: Veggie Boats of Flavor

The zucchinni dream boats were delicious!  Most Italian meals I have cooked in the past consisted of dough, spaghetti sauce, lots of cheese, and pepperonis.  For this meal, I had to research how to "hollow" out a zuchinni before I began preparation.  I imagined it being something like carving a pumpkin.  To my surprise, it was relatively easy to make each zuch in the shape of a boat using a long narrow spoon.  The pulp scooped right out.  I filled each boat with the mixture of tomato sauce and placed in the crock.

Before the zuchinni was finished slow cookin', I decided to toast the pine nuts.  I placed some tin foil on a small baking pan and scattered the pine nuts.  Then I placed in the oven on the highest rack, making sure they would toast nicely.  Unfortunately, within 10 secs, they all caught on FIRE.  Yes, burning flames burst out of the stove when I opened the oven.  I have learned pine nuts contain oil (like most nuts), and when heated to a very high temp, they can catch on fire.  Luckily, the flames dissipated immediately when I removed them from my oven.  I wish I had a live-in photographer to capture the terror on my face when my first small kitchen fire erupted.

I served the Veggie Boats with some angel hair pasta and garnished with blackened pine nuts, fresh mozzerella, parm, and garlic bread.  The meal was a simple Italian dish that was easy to make on a busy weekday.  The flavors were all familiar and delicious, except for the burnt popcorn taste of the toasted pine nuts.  For my next attempt, I will use black olives.

Don't BURN your nuts!

Tips & Tricks

• I hollowed out zuchinni for this? (Chef Tiffany, this one's for you!)

- Chef Mimi