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Curry Simple Lets You Make Curry In a Hurry

YumSugar — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 11:01:39 -0700

A few weeks ago the folks at Curry Simple sent us a care package containing several of their curry sauces. At first glance, I was a bit skeptical. Unlike most food packaging, there are no luscious shiny food photographs staring back at you; instead it's simply packaged in all white with plain writing. In fact, they actually reminded me of rations, or sample packaging. However, because I love Thai food, I decided to put my judgmental notions aside and give it a try. I'm really glad I did, because it made dinner a snap. Thai food at home in less than 30 minutes without complicated ingredients?! To find out how it is, read more

I personally tried both the Tom Kha (coconut soup) as well as the Red Curry. I found the instructions to be wonderfully simple - sauté meat, add veggies, pour in the sauce, heat it all up and serve! - and the flavor to be aromatic and authentic. I can't say that it was my favorite Red Curry ever, but I must say it was definitely on par with and even better than several restaurants I've been to. However, given that the meal was whipped up in less than 30 minutes - with most of the time spent on the rice - it was definitely worth it. I've made Thai food at home before, and there's always a worry that you've either forgotten the curry paste, or the coconut milk, or any number of other ingredients needed - with Curry Simple it's all in there and ready for you to add.

The Tom Kha was also simple and easy. However, since it was lacking all the actual bits and pieces that a tom kha has (lemon grass stalks, etc.) - it seemed odd from a texture point of view. However the flavor was there, and again I almost felt bad by how simple it was. Also, it says to add equal amounts of the sauce and water, but mine was just too watery. In fact, that's the one complaint I had about both packets: The sauces come out a bit thin. To work around this, I'd say drain the juices off of the meat and veggies and then add in the sauce. Either way it's a simple way to get dinner on the table.

They're available online starting at $5.95 per packet and have recently been placed in the Atlanta Whole Foods.

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Ethnic Eating Out Tips: Thai, Indian and French

FitSugar — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 15:15:00 -0800

Navigating through a restaurant menu is often tough, but it's even harder when you're navigating through yummy food that you're not totally familiar with. WebMD has created an easy choose/avoid list for the next time you eat Thai, Indian and French.

THAI: My personal take out favorite, but it's definitely tough to sort through the often extensive menus.
Choose-
Sauces: lemon grass, lime, curry, sweet and sour, basil, chili, fish sauce
Stir-fried, sautéed, and braised dishes
Thai salads
Basil rolls
Broth soups
Any dish with lots of vegetables
Bean thread noodles
Seafood, tofu, poultry, lean meats
"Satays" -- skewered meat
Avoid-
Dishes made with coconut or coconut milk
Sauces with peanuts
Fried foods, including fried spring rolls
"Mee-krob" -- crispy noodles

To see what to choose/avoid when eating Indian and French, read more

INDIAN: Curry is the name of the game here, but there are also a lot of fried food land mines, so be careful.
Choose-
Basmati rice
Legumes (chickpeas and lentils)
Vegetable dishes
Yogurt-based sauces
Lean meats, poultry, and seafood
Mulligatawny or lentil soup
"Papad" -- baked lentil wafer
Tikki, tandoori, or kebab preparations
Avoid-
"Ghee" -- clarified butter
"Molee" -- coconut milk or cream
Any kind of fried foods
High-fat beef and lamb dishes
Creamy curry sauce
"Korma" -- cream sauce
(Limit portions of coconut and nuts)

FRENCH: French women could get fat if they stick to the foods on the avoid list.
Choose-
Broth-based soups
Plain vegetables
Vegetable salads with light vinegar-based dressing
Wine or mustard sauces without cream
Roasted or grilled lean meats, poultry, and fish
Avoid-
Cream soups
Cream or cheese sauces: au gratin, hollandaise, béarnaise, béchamel
Caesar salads or any with creamy dressings
Anything fried or seasoned with breadcrumbs
Pate, fatty meats, duck, and sausages

Monday's Leftovers: Thai Beef With Coconut Rice

YumSugar — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:15:44 -0800

Last night I made an Eastern European-inspired ground sirloin stew with egg noodles, and tonight I'm going to use the leftover beef to make something on the opposite end of the spectrum! I'm craving takeout, but - inspired by my recent successes - I'm going to continue my pattern of preparing Asian foods at home.

Spice up the sirloin with the help of minced garlic, lime, and Asian fish sauce, and wake up your senses with freshly-torn basil and julienned chiles. Complement the fiery protein with a soothing side of milky coconut rice. The result, which is healthier and cheaper than takeout, after the break.

Would You Rather Eat Thai Food or Tacos?

YumSugar — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 08:00:00 -0800

We're spoiled here at the Sugar HQ; on Thursdays we're usually on the receiving end of a giant taco bar. However, some of the folks are getting a little tired of tacos and so this week we decided to order up Thai food. Unfortunately there was a snafu, and both Thai and tacos were delivered. I mean we could have always eaten two lunches, but most of us made a choice. Which would you have chosen?

Sunday Dinner: Drunken Noodles

YumSugar — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 06:30:52 -0700

For this week's Sunday night chicken dinner, I can't wait to apply the mainstream meat to a home-cooked Southeast Asian meal.

I love preparing ethnic foods at home, and this spicy noodle stir-fry, with its complex flavors, comes together in mere minutes, thanks to quick-cooking (and inexpensive) ground chicken.

Craving Thai takeout, sans the grease? For the recipe, read more.

Monday's Leftovers: Thai-Style Steak Salad

partysugar — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 08:12:41 -0700

Giving leftovers a whole new taste - with seasonings from another culture - is a great way to make last night's meal more appetizing. For example, turn leftover African inspired harissa crusted tri-tip into a Thai-style steak salad.

The sliced steak is tossed with a lime soy oil. Then, the steak is mixed with shaved carrots, romaine lettuce, and fresh mint for a scrumptious and filling salad. To take a look at the recipe, read more.

Thai-Style Steak Salad
From Everyday Food magazine

Ingredients

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 boneless rib-eye steaks (each 8 ounces and 3/4 inch thick)
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1/2 pound carrots (3 to 4 medium)
1 medium head romaine lettuce, cut crosswise into 1-inch ribbons
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves
1 cup fresh bean sprouts (optional)
1/3 cup salted peanuts, chopped (optional)

Directions

Make marinade: in a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together lime juice, soy sauce, sugar, red-pepper flakes, and oil.
Season steaks generously with salt and pepper; place in a baking dish. Pour 1/4 of marinade over steaks (reserve remaining marinade); turn steaks to coat. Let steaks marinate up to 30 minutes.
In a large skillet, cook steaks on medium-high heat, turning once, 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium-rare.
Transfer to a cutting board; tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest, 5 to 10 minutes. Slice steaks across the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices; halve slices crosswise.
Transfer to a large bowl, and toss with reserved marinade.
With a vegetable peeler, cut carrots into long ribbons. Add to steak in bowl, along with lettuce and mint; toss to combine.
Divide salad among four shallow bowls. Sprinkle with bean sprouts and peanuts, if desired.

Serves 4.

Print recipe with images | without images

Malaysia's Saturday Night Market Is a Foodie Paradise

partysugar — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:15:55 -0700

Recently reader FinnLover traveled to the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. While visiting the vast city, she spent one Saturday night hitting up Little India's weekly street market. With its incredible diversity - there are stalls that serve Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, Western, and Indonesian cuisine - Finn describes the event as the "biggest food celebration ever." It took her two hours to walk from one end of the market to the other, but along the way she snapped an amazing array of photos.

Lucky for us, she shared the images in the Savory Sights group on the community page. Want your mouth-watering images to be featured on YumSugar? Join the group and start participating in the YumSugar community. To check out all of FinnLover's deliciously visual Malaysian market experience, keep reading

Happy Hour: Sabai Sabai

YumSugar — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:18:09 -0700

A friend recently returned from Thailand with tales of lush beaches, charming fire dancers, and fragrant food. She fondly recalled extravagant full moon parties on the beach, where the country's official spirit, an amber-hued liquor known as Mekhong, flowed freely.

At this point, I can only dream of an escape to Ko Samui - but I can get a tiny taste of Thai nightlife through Mekhong, which became available Stateside last year. The spirit ($16.99), which is 35 percent alcohol, is made from distilled sugarcane and rice, then infused with a blend of Thai herbs and spices. When it launched in 1941, Mekhong was Thailand's first domestically branded alcohol - and remains the most popular brand in Thailand to this day.

Mekhong's slightly sweet flavor and distilling process might be reminiscent of rum, but it also channels whiskey, with its burnt-red color and slightly smoky bouquet. It adds balance in the Sabai Sabai, a Thai cocktail with fresh lemon juice and sweet Thai basil. See the recipe.

McDonald's: Serving Burgers and Families For 50 Years

LilSugar — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 09:00:10 -0700

Many children have gazed up at Mickey D's famous golden arches on their way in to grab a burger, chicken nuggets, french fries or a sundae with their parents. Today the company celebrates its 50th anniversary. Who doesn't remember sitting on the swivel chairs with school friends and biting into the crunchy sliced pickle that was always perfectly centered in the sandwich? McDonald's aptly titled Happy Meals put a smile on tots' faces while their moms and pops noshed on a Big Mac or Filet-O-Fish. Sometimes even Ronald McDonald or the Hamburgler made an appearance and then it was time to hit the brightly colored playground that was attached to the establishment. Children were so smitten with the fast food joint that they threw their birthday parties there but is the love affair with drive through and paper wrapped entrees a thing of the past? To see why I ask, read more.

As a parent raising two youngsters in a foodie city, I've never taken them to McDonald's. Fast food isn't really in the cards when we consider our meal options. For about the same price we would dole out at a pull up window, we can pick up burritos made with fresh ingredients from a local taqueria, Middle Eastern pita sandwiches or Thai noodles. I wouldn't pitch a fit if a friend or family member took my children to a fast food joint, but for reasons of nutrition and taste - it isn't my preference.

What are your thoughts on feeding kids fast food?

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Obamas to Plant White House Garden Today

YumSugar — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 03:30:53 -0700

Today is the day that Alice Waters and other Slow Food supporters have been waiting for: the Obamas will begin planting a garden on the White House lawn, the first such victory garden to be created since the one Eleanor Roosevelt planted during World War II.

The garden, which will be overseen by Sam Kass, the Obamas' former private chef from Chicago, will provide food for the first family's meals and formal dinners. White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford will write menus based on what's available in the garden.According to First Lady Michelle Obama, the biggest reason for growing a garden is to educate children about the benefits of growing fresh produce locally. She said:

There’s nothing really cooler than coming to the White House and harvesting some of the vegetables and being in the kitchen with Cris and Sam and Bill, and cutting and cooking and actually experiencing the joys of your work.

The first lady, who will dig up soil for the 1,100-square-foot plot of land with fifth graders from a local elementary school, has stressed the significance of healthful eating ever since entering the White House. Last month, she opened up the White House kitchen for a press tour, and recently spoke about the importance of fresh, local eating.

Advocates of farm-to-table eating have been campaigning for a White House edible garden for months now, and there is little doubt that many eat-local proponents consider this to be a huge step in the right direction. To see what fruits and vegetables will be in the White House garden, read more.

Arugula
Spinach
Chard
Black kale
Red romaine
Green oak leaf
Butterhead lettuce
Red leaf lettuce
Spinach
Cilantro
Tomatillos
Hot peppers
Berries
Thai basil
Bees, for honey

What do you think of the project? What would you plant if you were Michelle Obama?