Once You've Gone Asian...(Thai Chicken Skewers and Broccoli Slaw)

Thai Chicken Skewers

I've spoke before about cooking what you love, and loving what you cook.  I truly believe that you cook best what you love to eat best.  I happen to love Asian food.  Not really traditional Asian food--my stomach gets nauseous just thinking of Chinese take-out--but I love Asian-fusion dishes, and my culinary credo just keeps going up by adding Asian-inspired dishes to the menu.

If you haven't yet tried one of my dishes but love healthy Asian dishes, please consider giving these (as well as the recipes I'm about to share) a whirl:

• Cold Asian Noodles
• Amber's Spicy Asian Noodles
• Coconut Lemongrass Rice
• Asian Salmon with Wasabi Mashed Potatoes and Sesame Green Beans

So...these recipes rock.  However, there's a new Asian-fusion recipe to add to your reportrois.  I found it while digging through a stack of torn magazine pages that I had cut out and saved in hopes of giving them a try "one day."

I was hosting Elf Bowling night, and I needed an easy way to feed a ton of people with a recipe that was as far away from the holiday classics as possible.  Here's the menu I came up with.  Call it Asian Persuasion but...now I'll never go back.

Thai Chicken Skewers with Lemongrass

Thai Chicken with Lemongrass

Ingredients:

2TBSP Fish Sauce
3TBSP Soy Sauce, divided
1TBSP Brown Sugar (or lighten it up with Splenda)
1TBSP Minced Garlic
1TBSP Lemongrass (if using dry, soften in a bowl of water for a half hour first)
2 Green Onions, in 1/2" pieces 
2Lbs Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (cut into large 2" pieces)
2TBSP Rice Vinegar
1/4C Vegetable Oil
2TBSP Ginger
1TBSP Garlic Chili Sauce (less if you don't like spicy)

Instructions:

Combine fish sauce, 2TBSP soy sauce, sugar, garlic, lemongrass, green onions, and chicken in a bowl. Toss to coat and let marinate 30mins to 6 hours.

Whisk remaining soy sauce, rice vinegar, oil, ginger, and chili sauce together.

Remove chicken from marinade and skewer using grill-save skewers. Grill chicken on the BBQ, bashing it as it cooks using the soy sauce/vinegar mixture.

Serve with Coconut Lemongrass Rice (follow link for recipe).

Citrus Broccoli Slaw

Ingredients:

2TBSP Sugar or Splenda

Thai Broccoli Slaw

1/3C Rice Vinegar
1/3C Olive Oil
1 12oz Can of Mandarin Oranges
1-2C of Shredded Carrots
1-2C Broccoli (cut into slivers)
2 Green Onions (sliced into 1/2" pieces)
1C Cabbage (optional)
1/4C Cilantro (fresh)
Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

In a mason jar, combine sugar, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Shake to mix.

In a large bowl, add oranges, carrots, broccoli, onions, and cabbage.  Pour dressing over top and mix well.  Top with cilantro.  Add salt and pepper to taste. 

PF Chang's-Style Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce Wraps (like PF Changs) (follow link for recipe).