Dinner and a Movie

Today I was reading about what Susan over at 29 Black Street had for dinner, and I said to myself, “I gotta get me some o’ that.” Since she and I both live near the ocean, but on opposite sides of the world, I wasn’t going to be able to show up at her house with a spoon in hand and a napkin tucked into my shirt, ready for dinner.

So I did the next best thing. I riffed on her recipe and came up with my own version. The beauty of the recipe Susan used is that you could vary it almost endlessly – it’s the flavor profile that you’re after. And what stood out for me was the combination of coconut milk, ginger, garlic, chilis, and chicken. So here’s what I did:

1. I sliced up some fresh ginger and put several slices in my cast iron skillet (I use that thing for everything!).

2. I put several garlic cloves in too.

3. Added a can of coconut milk, the leftover chicken broth in my fridge, and some water until I thought it looked right. Stirred it together and set it all to boil and then simmer.

4. Meanwhile, I chopped up some previously cooked chicken thighs and added them right in with the broth they had made while cooking. At this step you’re also supposed to add fresh chopped chilis, but I didn’t have any. So I sniffed my chili powder (organic, no yucky stuff), sniffed the simmering skillet, and figured they’d mesh, and dumped some in.

5. I don’t have any fish sauce I can use right now, but a friend gave me a gift bag of limes from her yard (I kid you not, a gift bag, heehee). So I quartered a lime and squeezed it in, and then put the peel in to simmer with the soup.

So at this point I have a nice broth made with coconut milk, storebought chicken broth, homemade chicken broth, and water; flavored with fresh ginger, fresh garlic cloves, a bit of lime juice and the lime itself, and some chili powder. The broth has some chicken thighs chopped and simmering in it.

6. I didn’t have cherry tomatoes (though I loved Susan’s idea on that) so I just chopped a large tomato in big chunks and added it in.

7. I decided I wanted both greens and carbs with this dinner, so I chopped up some red chard to simmer with the soup toward the end of cooking time; and pulled out some previously roasted pumpkin to serve it over.

To get the original recipe and Susan’s very authentic riff on it (complete with shrimp!) click on over to her blog. As for my results? I don’t think mine came out nearly as beautifully as Susan’s – but the TASTE? Oh my gosh. It is out of sight. I had planned for this to be a big batch that I’d eat from all week. Thaaaaat’s not gonna happen.