On a blistery cold winter's night soup becomes my comfort food and this Thai Curry Chicken Soup with sweet potato surely did the trick. I consider this an easy recipe with one caveat--you may need to invest in an array of Asian spices that you might not typically find in your pantry such as Thai Curry Paste, Nam Pla or Nuoc Nam Fish Sauce, and all kinds of chilis. But trust me, once you have these exotic flavors as part of your repertoire you will search for more Thai recipes to explore the seductive flavors of this cuisine. 

Spicy Curry Noodle Soup with Chicken and Sweet Potato
Bon Appetit Best of the Year (2008)
Recipe from MAI PHAM of Lemon Grass restaurant Sacramento
Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons chopped shallots
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons minced lemon grass (from bottom 4 inches of about 3 stalks, touch outer leaves discarded)
• 2 tablespoons minced, peeled fresh garlic
• 2 tablespoons Thai yellow curry paste
• 2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon hot chili paste (such as sambal oelek)
• 2  13.5 - 14 ounce cans unsweetened coconut milk, divided
• 5 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 2 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam)
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 3 cups snow peas, trimmed
• 2 cups 1/2-inch cubes, peeled red-skinned sweet potato (1-2 potatoes)
• 1 pound dried rice vermicelli noodles or rice stick noodles
• 3/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced red onioin
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 3 red Thai bird chilies or 2 red jalapeno chiles, thinly sliced with seeds
• 1 lime, cut into 6 wedges

Directions

1. Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add next 4 ingredients; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to medium low.
2. Stir in curry paste, curry powder, and chili paste.
3. Add 1/2 cup of coconut milk (scooped from the thick liquid at top of can). Stir until thick and fragrant, about 2 minutes.
   
4. Add remaining coconut milk, broth, fish sauce, and sugar: bring broth to boil. Keep warm.
5. NOTE: This can be made 1 day on advance. Refrigerate until cold, then cover and keep chilled
6. Cook snow peas in a large pot of boiling salted water until bright green, about 20 seconds. Using a slotted spoon, remove peas form pot, place in a strainer, rinse under cold water to cool. Place in a small bowl and set aside.
   
7. In the same large pot, using the existing salted water, add sweet potato and cook until tender, about 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove potatoes and rinse under cold water to cool. Place in a small bowl and set aside. 
8. Bring salted water to a boil (add a little more water if need be) and cook noodles until just tender, but still firm to the bite, about 6 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold water to cool. Transfer to a microwave-safe bowl.
   
9. NOTE: This can be made 1 hour ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
10. Bring both to simmer. Add chicken, simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
    
11. Add sweet potato, stir in to heat through about 1 minute.
    
12. Head noodles in microwave in 30-second intervals to warm. Cut noodles with a scissor if too long.

Plating the Dish

1. Divide Noodles among bowls
2. Divide Snow peas and hot soup among bowls
3. Scatter red onion, green onion, cilantro, and chilies over soup.
   
4. Garnish with lime wedge and serve.
   

Check out Pleasures of the Vietnamese Table Cookbook for more enticing Thai recipes by Mai Pham

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My first time making home-made dumplings inspired me to look into Asian Cooking and I am now on an adventure to find a great cookbook - easy Asian cooking for beginners so if you have any suggestions please send me the info.



Fried Mushroom Dumplings

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 1 lb of mushrooms (any combination will work)
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1/2 cup of finely chopped water chestnuts
• 1/4 cup of finely chopped scallions
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon rice wine
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 2 teaspoons rice wine
• Round Dumpling Wrappers or Wonton Skins
• small bowl of water
• Sesame oil for cooking
• 3 stalks of scallions, cut into rings
• Dipping Sauce

Mushroom Filling

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat add oil and cook until hot. Add mushrooms and cook for about 10 minutes until the liquid has evaporated.
• Add garlic and mix together cooking for another minute or two
• Remove from heat. Stir in ginger, scallions, soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine and water chestnuts. Set aside to cool.
  

Making the Dumplings

1. Place a small bowl of water next to your assembly spot.
2. Place a dumpling wrapper or wonton skin on a flat surface.
3. Add 1 teaspoon of the shrimp mixture in the center.
4. Dip your fingers in the water bowl and run it along the outer edges of the dumpling wrapper.
5. Fold over the two edges of the round dumpling to create a 1/2 circle. Pinch the center together, sealing together. Continue to seal the edges of the entire dumpling by making small pleated folds from the outer edges to the center - two on each side.
   
6. The sealed edges are the top of the dumpling the bottom will be flat.
   
7. Continue to prep all dumplings and cover with a lightly damp cloth or saran wrap to prevent from drying.

Cooking the Dumplings

1. Over medium-high heat, add sesame oil to a large non-stick pan or wok and get pan nice and hot. Reduce to medium heat.
2. Add the dumplings flat side down and fry for 1-2 minutes until the bottoms are a golden brown.  Remove from pan and place on paper towel to drain.
3. Serve immediately with dipping sauce

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When I decided to try my hand at home-made dumplings I headed to the best source in New York for the ingredients---China Town. I spent a day there with my dear friend Gemma, who guided me in and out wonderful shops, markets and restaurants. We had the best day visually devouring all that Chinatown has to offer, and of course we tasted many delicacies along the way. With all my ingredients in hand, I headed home to take on my dumpling mission.

My first time making dumplings started out with a minor glitch as I burned the first batch of nine. However, once I got the hang of it, making home-made dumplings is a breeze. For me, the tricky part was frying the dumplings. It really depends on how hot your stove/pan gets; and the type of oil you choose--should you deviate from the recipe. Needless to say, the first batch completely burned- and to be honest it was my fault for I was watching a TV show that pulled me away from paying attention-my bad! From that point on I stayed in the kitchen lovingly frying each dumpling and getting in sync with the heat of my pan. I do need to work on getting a beautifully even golden fried look. Next time I would like to experiment with steaming the dumplings; perhaps even steaming and then frying the bottoms for soft and crunchy bite. All in all, we really enjoyed my first try at Asian Dumplings. I made two batches, Fried Shrimp Dumplings and Fried Mushroom Dumplings (my next post).

Shrimp Dumplings & Dipping Sauce
While it may appear as a long list of ingredients, once you have everything in place, measured, cut, minced and mixed, it is a very easy recipe to manage. 

Ingredients

• 1 lb of peeled shrimp, deveined
• water and ice-cubes
• 1 heaping tablespoon of baking soda
• 1 egg white
• 2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon rice wine
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped chives
• 1/2 cup canned bamboo shoots, finely chopped
• 1 package of Round Dumpling Wrappers or Wonton Skins
  
• Sesame oil for cooking
• 3 stalks of scallions, cut into thin rings

Dipping Sauce

• 1/4 cup Light soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped or minced
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely chopped or minced
• 1 teaspoon Asian Chili sauce
• 3 scallions, cut into thin rings

Mix together all ingredients, except scallions. Set aside.  Just before serving add scallions.

Prepping Shrimp Filling

1. Clean shrimp and rinse. Place shrimp in a large bowl and cover with very cold water. Add a tray full of ice cubes. Add baking soda and message/work into shrimp. Let stand for 1/2 hour.
2. Drain the shrimp, coarsely chop and Set aside
3. In a bowl, whisk together the egg white, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, rice wine,  ginger and cornstarch. Stir in the water chestnuts and chives.
4. Add shrimp and place in refrigerator, marinate for 30 - 60 minutes.

Making Dumplings

1. Place a small bowl of water next to your assembly spot.
2. Place a dumpling wrapper or wonton skin on a flat surface.
3. Add 1 teaspoon of the shrimp mixture in the center.
4. Dip your fingers in the water bowl and run it along the outer edges of the dumpling wrapper.
5. Fold over the two edges of the round dumpling to create a 1/2 circle. Pinch the center together, sealing together. Continue to seal the edges of the entire dumpling by making small pleated folds from the outer edges to the center - two on each side.
   
6. The sealed edges are the top of the dumpling the bottom will be flat.
   
7. Continue to prep all dumplings and cover with a lightly damp cloth or saran wrap to prevent from drying.

Cooking the Dumplings

1. Over medium-high heat, add sesame oil to a large non-stick pan or wok and get pan nice and hot. Reduce to medium heat.
2. Add the dumplings flat side down and fry for 1-2 minutes until the bottoms are a golden brown.  Remove from pan and place on paper towel to drain.
3. Serve immediately with dipping sauce
   

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Monday, the 15th of November 2010, marked the launch of Marja's Dumpling Academy at the newly-opened "2nd floor on Clinton" on the Lower East Side.


  
During the evening Marja shares her dumpling secrets as she prepares, fries and serves up each dumpling dish; you get to wrap a few dumplings at your table, and you are given a recipe to take home to try this on your own. While the invitation states this is a "hands on cooking class", I found this a bit misleading. This is not a cooking class, rather it is a food & sake tasting where you listen and watch as Marja prepares her dumpling dishes.  You do not have a food station, a frying pan and learn how to cook on the spot, which to me is more "hands on". Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed each course and watching Marja do her "thing".

Each and every dumpling served was delicious. My favorite dumpling and sake pairing was the Salmon Tartare/shiso cucumber pickle that was paired with Nanburyu Sake, and the dessert dumpling of Fig & Chocolate - just divine!  At the end of my evening I left fully inspired to add dumplings to my list of Seduction Meal recipes to try, and I bow down to the much deserved title bestowed upon Ms. Samson--the Dumpling Diva!

Marja's Mushroom Dumpling Filling

Ingredients:

• 1 box of bottom mushrooms, chopped in a food processor
• 4 pieces of medium sized dried shitake mushrooms, soaked until soft, then chopped
• 4 whole water chestnuts, roughly diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, grated
• 1 small knob of fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• sweet butter to flavor (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat canola oil in a 9" skillet
2. Add chopped bottom mushrooms and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated
3. Add grated garlic and ginger
4. Add chopped shitake mushrooms, heat thoroughly
5. Add water chestnuts
6. Flavor with soy sauce
7. Add a lump of sweet butter to your taste
8. Your dumplings are ready to stuff

Marja's recipe card ends here. Having done some research and hopefully remembering correctly the details of the night here is how to assemble and fry the dumplings.

Filling the Dumplings

1. Take one won ton skin at a time and place 1 heaped teaspoon of the mixture in the center of each.
2. Then moisten the four edges of the won ton skin
3. Fold the dumpling in half to form a triangle, pressing down on all edges to enclose the filling. Or you can gather or four corners and bring them to the center and pinch to form a pouch.
4. Deep-fry them for 15-20 minutes until the bottom is crisp. You can slightly push down on the dumpling as it fries.
5. Drain on paper towel and serve while still hot with your favorite dipping sauce.
   

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Looking for a appetizer that is delicious, easy to make and a great choice for your Seduction Meal? It doesn't get better than this...Kobe Beef Dumplings. Crispy, beefy, tangy--100% heavenly. Pair this dish with a medium bodied Japanese Lager such as Kirin, Asahi or Sapporo and you'll be king or queen of your next romantic meal for two.

Kobe Beef Dumplings
Recipe Courtesy of MarxFoods

Ingredients: (Makes 4 servings)

• 8oz Kobe Beef (sirloin, tenderloin, skirt or hanger)
• 2 tsp Brown Sugar
• 1 tbsp Red Wine Vinegar
• 1 tsp Thyme
• 8 Wonton Wrappers
• 1 Egg, whisked with a little water
• 2-3 tbsp All Purpose Flour
• Canola oil for pan frying

Directions

1. Finely chop the kobe beef.
2. Heat some oil in a frying pan, add the beef, sauté until browned.
3. Remove beef, drain excess oil.
4. De-glaze with the vinegar, add the sugar and thyme almost immediately.
5. Toss the beef in the sauce.  Let the mixture cool.
6. Lay out each wonton wrapper and fill the middles with a teaspoon of the filling.

7. Moisten the still exposed portions of the wrapper with the egg wash.  Gather the corners up and gently press them together to create bundles.

8. Dust the dumplings in a little flour.

9. Get a quarter inch of oil hot in a frying pan, until it starts to bubble when you touch it with the corner of a dumpling.
10. Carefully lay three to four dumplings in the pan, taking care not to overcrowd the oil.  Fry them on each side until golden brown and crispy.

11. Serve with low salt soy sauce, with your favorite Asian dipping sauce or in a bowl of pureed soup.

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One of the most alluring aspects of Asian food, beside the exotic flavors and spices, is the elegant presentation that chefs skillfully employ to seduce our senses, even before taking a first bite. The Asian theme allows you to have fun when crafting your romantic soiree.  Go for bold colorful serving platters, soft lighting, and lots of color. And my all means aim for creative presentations of each dish that have that "wow" factor. Select music that will complement the desired tone of the night; dim the lights, bring out candles or Japanese paper lights, go for exotic flowers, and be sure to have on hand chop sticks and saki serving vessels.

For our Asian Valentine's Day Menu we have chosen to rely on the skills of your local Japanese restaurant for the main course and an appetizer. An hour before your meal is to be served, after you have taken care of everything else: the ambiance of the room, setting the table, putting together your music play list, cooking the dishes you have selected, and selecting the cocktails you will serve; go to your favorite Japanese restaurant (or have them deliver) a serving of edamame and a selection of your favorite sushi so you can create a sushi/sashimi platter. When ordering out, be sure to get plenty of soy sauce, wasabi and extra ginger.   Serve each course with your choice of Hot or Chilled Saki, Prosecco, Champagen or Asian Beer.

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