Stir-Fried Chicken & Snow Peas

"Even a blind squirrel finds a nut now & then."

This was Mr. Vittles' comment when I told him I made rice tonight without burning it to the bottom of the pan.

Hmph.  Jerk.

But alas, it's true.  I. CAN'T. MAKE. RICE.

I do alright with the oven rice.  On the stove... not so much.

I know it's a very simple thing.   But for some reason I just can never get it right.

Tonight, however, the stars aligned and the food gods smiled down upon my kitchen.

My rice did not stick to the bottom of the pan...

...and I made this yummy stir fry with one of my favorite vegetables - snow peas!

Stir-Fried Chicken & Snow Peas

• 3/4 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts (tenders or thin sliced recommended)
• 6 oz. snow peas
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, as desired
• 2 T. canola oil 
• 1/2 t. minced garlic
• shredded carrots, to taste (optional)
• 2 C. cooked white rice, for serving
  

Marinade:

• 1 T. light soy sauce
• 1 1/2 t. rice vinegar
• 1/2 t. sesame oil
• 1/2 t. lime juice
• 1 1/2 t. cornstarch
  

Sauce:

• 2 T. water
• 1 T. light soy sauce
• 1 t. lime juice
• 1 1/2 t. rice vinegar
• 1/2 t. granulated sugar
• 1 t. cornstarch

Cut the chicken into strips. In a medium bowl, combine the marinade ingredients, adding the cornstarch last. Marinate the chicken for 30 minutes.

While the chicken is marinating, prepare the sauce and ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients, whisking in the cornstarch. String the snow peas, then rinse and pat dry with paper towels.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and add 2 T. oil.   When the oil is hot, add the chicken strips. Sautee, turning as necessary, until strips are cooked through.

Using tongs or a fork, remove chicken strips to a bowl or plate and set aside. Add garlic & salt to the skillet. Add the snow peas and stir-fry until the they turn bright green (about 2 minutes).

Add the chicken back into the pan.  Briefly whisk sauce and add to the middle of the skillet, stirring quickly to thicken. When the sauce thickens, stir all together to distribute evenly. Heat through and serve hot with rice.  Serves 2.

Recipe Adapted from About.com

Lemon-Spiked Basmati Rice

A long, long time ago I shared with you a recipe for Chili Lime Basmati Rice.  Since then, it has become my go-to rice recipe and to put it mildly - I'm obsessed with it.

Mr. Vittles calls it "Your Rice" (meaning mine) because every time I make it I can't shut up about how delicious it is.

I pile giant scoopfuls on my plate and sometimes go back for seconds.

I eat the leftovers without anything else as the 'main' dish (because it's really the main dish of MY meal anyway.)

Let me tell you why I love this rice.  First of all- it's made in the oven.  Which is perfect for someone like me, who always manages to completely ruin a pan of rice on the stoveptop.

Second of all, the citrus in the rice makes it smell and taste absolutely heavenly.  Nevermind the cream and the butter, which certainly don't hurt either!

The Chili Lime recipe was the result of minor changes to a recipe by Kathy Casey for Lemon-Spiked Basmati Rice but I recently decided that since I loved the lime so much, I should at least give the lemon one a try.

And while the lime version is still my favorite, the lemon is awesome. 

I beg of you - try one of these versions of this rice.  It will seriously change your life.

Lemon-Spiked Basmati Rice

• 1 C. basmati rice, rinsed and drained well
• 3 T. butter
• 3/4 C. 1/4-inch-diced onions
• 1 1/2 t. minced garlic
• small pinch cayenne
• 1 1/2 C. water
• 1 T. fresh lemon juice
• 2 t. minced lemon zest
• 1 1/4 t. salt
• 2 T. thinly sliced chives or fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 375°F. Place the very well-drained rice in a 1 1/2-quart baking dish.

Heat the oil in a nonstick or heavy saucepan. Add the onion and sauté over medium heat until the onions are soft, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the remaining ingredients, except the rice and chives, and bring to a boil.

Stir the mixture into the rice, being sure to scrape up and include all the goodies. Seal tightly with foil and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until the rice is tender and all the liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork before serving, then fold in the chives.

Recipe from Kathy Casey

Chili Lime Basmati Rice

Recently, Mr. Vittles' aunt Michelle Vittles was kind enough to share a recipe from one of her favorite cookbooks called "Lemon Spiked Basmati Rice."

This recipe sounded awesome, but I can't help but get a little nervous when I see "rice" in the title of a recipe.

Now here's a confession that's probably more embarrassing to me than being afraid of moths (which are vile creatures and I don't know why everyone isn't afraid of them?)

I can't cook rice.

I don't know what it is about the preparation of this silly grain that eludes me after all my time in the kitchen.  But somehow it either comes out too wet, or gets stuck to the bottom of the pan.

Or then there's my favorite scenario- where it comes out too wet ... and then I get impatient because it was timed perfectly with the rest of my meal which is now getting cold ... so I blast the heat to speed things up and end up burning it to the bottom of the pan.

Argh!!

I've tried rice all different ways, with all different cooking times and ratios of rice to water, yet somehow it comes out wrong 99% of the time. 

Nonetheless, I read on when I got this recipe and saw something miraculous - while the initial cooking is done on the stove, the rice itself is cooked in the oven.

This I had never tried.

So of course I had to give it a shot.  But I was making it to go with a Mexican dish, so I decided to switch things up a bit and use lime instead of lemon, chili powder instead of cayenne, and add some fresh cilantro.

I even cut the onions!

And let me tell you something.

I can do this.  It's amazing.  And it's delicious.

Chili Lime Basmati Rice

• 1 C. basmati rice, rinsed & well drained (uncooked)
• 3 T. butter
• 3/4 C. onion, diced to about 1/4"
• 1 1/2 t. minced garlic
• 1/2 t. chili powder
• 1 T. fresh lime juice
• 1 1 /2 t. minced lime zest
• 2 T. cream (or milk)
• 1 1/4 t. salt
• 1 T. chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 T. thinly sliced chives
  

Preheat oven 375 degrees.

Place well drained rice in a 1 1/2 quart baking dish.

Melt the butter in a nonstick or heavy saucepan.  Add onion & saute over medium heat until soft, about 2 minutes.  Add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds.

Add chili powder, lime juice, lime zest, cream, salt, and 1 1/2 C. water - bring to boil.

Stir entire mixture into the rice in baking dish.  Seal tightly with foil and bake for 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender & all liquid is absorbed.

Fluff with a fork, then fold in chives & cilantro before serving.

Recipe Adapted from Dishing with Kathy Casey