Welcome to week 13 in my kitchen…Lots of rain mixed with the sun this week which means lots of puddles to play in with little Lily… Songkram is only a few weeks away so we can get out our water pistols .

The market is full of lots of new fruits and vegetables which have just come into season, Durian is everywhere as is Jackfruit and Asian pears, the trees are laden with keffir Limes and tamarind there is not much young tamarind around now as it is maturing but much dried tamarind is to be found  and the mango season is in full swing they are ripe and lovely which means lots of smoothies everywhere…

Easter is nearly here and in case you missed it…The recipe for Hot Cross Buns….

Thai Mango Chicken …One of our favourite dishes when mango is in season…

For the Mango Sauce:

• 2 fresh ripe mangos, fruit scooped out (or substitute 2 cups frozen or canned mango)
• 1 red chilli, de-seeded and diced, or 1 tsp chilli sauce or 1/2 tsp dried crushed chilli
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar.
• 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 thumb-size piece ginger, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1/4 tsp turmeric
• 2 kaffir lime leaves, Take out the vein and roll and finely shred.

For the Chicken:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour (or rice flour)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 to 3 chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch-long pieces or you can cook the chicken breasts whole and slice..I have tried both ways and think I prefer to slice first.
• 1/4 cup oil for pan-frying
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 to 1 mango, cut into chunks (to finish the dish) optional.
• 3 to 4 tbsp coconut milk or water.
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup fresh coriander, chopped. 

Let’s Cook! 

Place the 2 ripe mango cut into chunks, red chilli, rice vinegar, soy sauce, fish sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, turmeric and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or blender. Blitz well, until more or less smooth.

Taste the sauce.

You should have a balance of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty. Add more sugar if you find the sauce too sour (this will depend on the sweetness of your mangoes). If not spicy enough, add more chilli. If not salty/flavourful enough, add more fish sauce. If too salty or too sweet, add more lime juice. Play with your flavours add a little at a time and keep tasting as you can always add more it is harder to adjust the balance if you have put too much of one thing in…Just keep tasting…

Set to one side.

Then In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the chicken pieces and turn or gently stir them to coat evenly.

Heat a wok or frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the oil, then begin frying the chicken pieces, 3 to 5 minutes per side, or until light golden brown and cooked through. Remove chicken from pan and set on a paper towel.

Lastly, put a pan over medium-high heat and add the mango sauce plus red pepper. Bring to a gentle rolling boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the peppers have softened but are still a little crispy

If the sauce becomes too thick, add 3 to 4 tablespoons water.

Add the fried chicken pieces, gently stirring them into the sauce. If desired, add chunks of mango (fruit of 1/2 to 1 ripe mango). Simmer briefly, just until everything is hot.

Do a final taste-test for salt (tasting the sauce together with the chicken). Add a little more fish sauce or chilli if desired.

Transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle with fresh coriander or some lightly pickled vegetables or deep fry some julienned vegetables and serve with  Thai jasmine-scented rice or rice of your choice.

Enjoy!

Next week I will bring you some recipes using Asian pears…

Asian pears although similar in texture to an apple have the nutritional benefits of pears. These fruits are high in fibre, low in calories and contain a number of micronutrients that are important for blood, bone and cardiovascular health. Although delicious on their own, the light sweetness and crispy texture of Asian pears make them a unique addition to any salad or stir fry.

Durian…The king of fruits… This beautiful fruit is very nice to eat although many do not like the smell and indeed it is banned in many places…Airlines being one of them…

Durian is a very nutritious fruit rich in fibre, B-vitamins, vitamin C and various healthy plant compounds…It also makes for beautiful creamy ice cream…

Chef Anthony Bourdain once described it as “French-kissing your dead grandmother.”

Have you eaten or cooked with Durian? What are your thoughts?

Love it or Hate It?

This week’s Curry…Green Tomato and egg Curry…

There are lots of green tomatoes at the moment on the markets so I have experimented with this green tomato Curry… When I make a new curry or dish I always only make enough for 2/3 persons…Just in case…

Makes 2/3 portions

Ingredients:

• 5 medium green tomatoes chopped
• 3/4 spring onions sliced
• 1 tsp garlic finely cut
• 1 tsp fresh ginger finely cut
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 stem of curry leaves
• 1/3 cup chopped brown onion
• 2 tsp oil/ghee
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 3 green chillies chopped
• 1/2 tsp red chilli flakes (optional)
• 1/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp garam masala
• Salt to taste.

Let’s Cook!

Heat oil or ghee in a pan add the cumin and mustard seeds and cook for a few seconds stirring then add the chopped onions, green chilli and curry leaves cook until the onions are soft.

Add the ginger and garlic and cook for a minute and then add the tomatoes and spring onions then cook until the onions and tomatoes are soft.

 

Add the other spices and add water as the tomatoes soften as required if the sauce gets too thick…Taste and season with salt as required.

Meanwhile, boil your eggs. Once the tomatoes have softened add the eggs and stir gently to coat with the sauce.

Serve with rice or flatbread…

I would make this again it is a spicy little sauce but the chillies pack some punch here I tried it with brown rice but would have bread next time as the sauce would be lovely scooped and eaten with bread.

This week’s desserts have been mainly tropical fruits and durian...But Hubby loves a crumble so I had some lovely mulberries which I saw on the market so he got a treat my deconstructed crumble…

These berries which I have just discovered by chance are very similar to our Blackberries maybe not quite as juicy but they taste very similar called Mon Ton here. So I thought I would treat the men to an Apple and Mulberry crumble.

Yes, everyone from she who doesn’t cook desserts hardy ever…A dessert!

I  have always cooked dishes like crumble the way my mum always did but for once I thought I would try something new and deconstruct it!

The original crumble is lovely but you always get that bit between the fruit and the crumble which goes soggy…Don’t you??

Ingredients for the topping:

• 50 gm butter
• 50 gm flour
• 50 gm sugar
• 50 gm ground almonds.

Fruit compote.

• 2 apples peeled and cored, sliced.
• 2 cups of mulberries
• 1/2 – 1 tbsp sugar.

Let’s Cook!

Put the apples and mulberries in a saucepan with 1/2 tbsp sugar and gently heat until the juices start to flow add a little water if required cook gently until the apple breaks down and is soft. The apples I get here are dessert apples so are quite sweet so I don’t add very much sugar…If you are using cooking apples then sweeten accordingly… I would use Bramley Apples in the Uk…I miss my Bramley apples.

Rub the butter into the flour then add the sugar and the nuts. Spread the mixture out on a baking tray and pop in a preheated oven on 180 degrees for 10- 15 minutes.

Stir once or twice to get an even golden colour. Watch it carefully as I …Yes, I did! I burnt the first batch… Then break up any large lumps.

Then assemble the fruit and crumble mix in layers… This went down a treat with the men here… They love it when I do my little sample batches…hovering they were…lol

I am so pleased I tried the crumble mix this way and it can also be varied you can use brown sugar and any type of flour you like. I mixed almonds and a few walnuts in the second batch I made and I might add cinnamon when I make it next time especially if I  use just apples.

You can also make any amount as long as all the measurement are equal. Today I made 20 gm for each ingredient as I was only making a sample the other day I did the 50 gm( that) was the one I burnt…

The topping has a nice sort of soft crunch to it and the sample I made today.. I didn’t get a look in although I didn’t mind I got a teaspoon full to try and the menfolk ate the rest.

It would also be nice served with custard, ice cream…Or my dairy free topping…I just whip a carton of chilled coconut milk and viola I had some lovely cream which tasted just as good as whipped fresh dairy cream…But Dairy free…How good is that? xxx

Thank you for joining me for this week in my kitchen xx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then I bid you welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Carol is a contributor to the Phuket Island Writers Anthology: https://www.amazon.com/Phuket-Island-Writers-Anthology-Stories-ebook/dp/B00RU5IYNS

Connect to Carol

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Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all having a great weekend xx