Cooking chicken on a pig

The idea of attempting to operate a real grill intimidates me, so when I saw this cute little Terra Cotta Pig at World Market, I thought it was right up my alley. Combined with a $10 off coupon I couldn't really say no.

I made my first attempt with it the other day, and confirmed my fears of the grilling world. After a lot of lighter fluid and several dangerous pyrotechnics, I managed to get the coals lit. Needless to say, the food was the easiest part, I went with the simple route and made some Hawaiian Chicken Skewers, with chicken, pineapple, and green peppers. The ones that I had put on the pig first were a little smokier, but had a questionable taste from what I am assuming was the lighter fluid.... but the rest were good! Just put the skewers over some white rice and made it a meal. The leftovers made a really delicious and fresh tasting lunch the following day as well.

Next time I make this I will:

1. Wait until my boyfriend is around to start the charcoal for me. I could learn myself and practice, but why do it myself when I can get him to do it?
2. Not wait until last minute to start making this. It does take a couple of hours total to make (a lot of it is just waiting, maybe only 20 min of actual work), so this is not a good dish to make if you're hungry RIGHT NOW.

This recipe is really flexible depending on how much you want to make (so I won't put amounts), and its easy to get creative with! Make more or less marinade depending on how much chicken you make. Read More for the recipe!

Pan-Asian night

So tonight I wanted to cook something a little bit different, so it was coconut-curry chicken and a vegetable stir fry. Yes, I realize that those two really aren't supposed to go together since they're from two different countries, but I needed to vegetables and I wanted an excuse to have baby corn.

This was my first time doing any real (at least from scratch) cooking with curry, and lets just say I had a slight learning curve at the beginning. I was tossing around whether or not to use curry paste or curry powder, and the first time around I made the big mistake of heating the oil BEFORE adding in the curry paste. My white wall next to the stove is now tinged a little bit orange. After sufficiently burning the paste while trying to mix it with the oil, I gave up, washed the pan, and started over... this time heating the oil with the curry powder at the same time. Much better, and virtually no splattering. Unfortunately I found other ways to make a mess, flinging the curry sauce between the crack next to the stove top, and spilling coconut milk everywhere (let it be said, that if you get the Thai Kitchen coconut milk, you're supposed to open it from the bottom end). Otherwise it went seamlessly once everything got added in. I only put in about 1 lb of chicken, and I let it simmer for a little while longer (hourish?) because I prefer a thicker sauce, and the results were pleasing. Even my roommate who tends to prefer bland flavors really enjoyed it. I think the tomatoes created a fantastic bridge between the curry and the coconut flavor.

Next time I make this I will:

1. Open more windows (and subsequently annoy the neighbors in my apartment)
2. Possibly invest in a splatter guard
3. Add some fresh tomatoes and/or add a little more 'kick' to it.
4. MAYBE try again with the curry paste, since word on the street says it makes curry dishes all the more delicious.

As for the stir fry, the consistency and the vegetable flavors were great (carrot, broccoli, green pepper, baby corn, water chestnuts), but I'm starting to realize not owning oyster sauce is going to cause me to run into some problems as I cook some more Asian dishes.  Putting that on the shopping list for next time. Sauce for the stir fry was okay, but without any oyster sauce and using soy sauce and teriyaki sauce as a substitute, it didn't really have much character. Since I didn't really follow a recipe, I won't write one until its a little better tasting. Read More for the recipe!

Clicker training

Began clicker training with Charlie today. Just got one of the cheap $2 ones at Petco and so far it's working fantastic. I think he's really starting to get the point of it. Started working him with the basic commands he already know (sit, down, ote, okawari) and introduced some hide and seek to him. For right now I'm just using his regular food for treats, but I suppose since he's got such a love affair with food it's working fine. Had a couple of short sessions, and to finish the day off I took him out to the park to try and work on some recall (something he has become notoriously bad about). Got a 50' lead that he seems to really enjoy because he's got a little more freedom to explore. Tried a few recalls with little to no issues until he got too hot and bored to care. For the first day I think it was pretty successful. Only way to go is up from here! Tommorow well work on the same stuff, and hopefully I'll do some kind of Asian cooking for dinner. Friday Im thinking a day out volunteering at Passion Horse Rescue and fried chicken with collards for dinner. One more day and its three day weekend!

GENESIS

So, this will be my first time to do any kind of blogging! Mostly my goal is just to have something to write stuff since facebook tends to be my arch enemy in terms of productivity, this way I won't have to lurk around to feel like I'm doing something. Looking forward to seeing how this will turn out...