Thursday, September 16, 2010

Pickled tomatoes and Peanut Yam Tofu


Ok ok. It has taken me awhile to let go of this recipe, but I have been busy! After getting home from Oregon I had a garden full of veggies to can, crab to catch, and a trip to Vegas with my best friend! Priorities you know! Vegas was a blast and we'll see how my pickled green tomatoes turn out!
Here is the recipe for Peanut Yam Tofu. This is the "involved" from scratch recipe. It is amazing, but there is a short cut that I will post at the end. Serve this over steamed rice or fresh rice noodles! You can use the dried noodles as well. Some of the ingredients may be a tricky to find: kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass can be found in all Asian markets. If you can find Frozen minced lemon grass it is great to have on hand, just keep it in the freezer. It is fromGolden International Co. Also: beware of the fish sauce. If you have not used it before it is very potent. A little bit goes a long way. Funny story about fish sauce: when I owned my catering truck that we named Norm, (As far from normal as you could get), Dad built a spice rack along the edge of the Granny's Attic for me. I had a bottle of fish sauce, industrial size, stored on this shelf. Of course it wasn't really secure. It didn't survive a really big bump, I guess. It spilled all over the inside of the truck and leaked into the cab. We could never keep the windows closed for any long period of time after that as the smell would just about kill you! Don't spill the fish sauce.

Peanut Yam Tofu:

2 tablespoons canola oil : 1 cup chopped onion : 1 cup diced red & green peppers : 2 cloves garlic, minced : 1 tablespoon chopped lemongrass : 3 kaffir lime leaves or 2 tsp grated lime zest : 1 teaspoon Thai curry paste : 1/2 teaspoon curry powder : 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk : 1 cup chunky peanut butter : 1/2 cup milk : 1 cinnamon stick : 3 bay leaves : 3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce : 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar : 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice : 2 teaspoons tamarind paste : 1 large can unsweetened yams : 8 ounces firm tofu

Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add the onion, peppers, garlic, lemongrass, lime leaves, curry paste and curry powder: saute until tender. Stir in the coconut milk, penaut butter, milk, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, fish sauce, brown sugar, lemon juice, tamarind paste, yams and tofu. Heat through over meduim heat, smashing the yams as it cooks. It will thicken as it sits: serve over cooked rice noodles or steamed rice.

Ok: the shortcut: Saute your veggies and add 2-3 cups of Yoshida Gourmet Sauce and 1 cup coconut milk. (Gourmet sauce is available at most grocery stores or Costco). Add peanut butter and curry powder, yams and tofu. Cook until heated through, smashing the yams. Not the original thing, but it is quick and easy!

This recipe is great with chicken or shrimp in it as well. Have fun with this!

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