The bitter truth

Here's the truth -- the stuff coming out of my kitchen has stunk lately. Things just haven't been working out. I've had mediocre braises, a brine-job gone horribly wrong, sub par pasta dishes...we've gone out for sushi a lot instead. A stroke of bad luck? Maybe, but I need to get back in the swing of things. Instead of going for something exciting and challenging to get me back in the grove, I thought I'd start simple and ease my way back in.

We don't have Chinese often. Let me rephrase that, we don't have American-style Chinese food often (ever). Since the mouth I feed sees Cantonese cuisine as the only good Chinese food, I avoid that territory until I get further instruction from the family experts. This recipe comes from Gourmet and it literally takes about 15-20 minutes to make.


Cashew Chicken Stir-fry
Gourmet May 2007

Diced chicken breasts or thighs, trimmed (about 1 lb)
1 red bell pepper, diced
bunch of scallions thinly sliced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 inch knob of ginger, minced
1/2 C dry roasted unsalted cashews
1 - 1 1/2 tsp red pepper flake
3/4 C free-range low sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp cornstarch

Season the chicken with salt and pepper then brown in a skillet (or a wok if you have it). Cook it until it is barely cooked through, you'll add it to the pan later for another minute or two so you don't want to overcook it. Remove the chicken to a plate and add the garlic, ginger, red pepper flake and cook until fragrant. Add the red pepper and scallions. Cook until the pepper gets soft. Mix together the broth, soy sauce, sugar, and corn starch and add it to the pan. Let it cook for a minute or two until it thickens. Add the cashews and the chicken and stir to coat. Serve it up. This is a piece of cake and better than Chinese takeout.