Thai style

I decided to surprise Lew tonight with a big dinner, originally I was supposed to have some of my good friends over to hang out but because of the snow we had to reschedule. So when Lew came home I had prepared a large dinner that he wasn't expecting! The menu was: Spicy Thai Chicken Skewers, Lemon Dill Rice, Spinach and Orange Salad, Thai Peanut Sauce, and Sweet and Sour Pineapple Sauce. The recipes are all pretty simple...and the nicest part...they can be prepared before hand, nice! They are also very colorful which makes for a nice display.
*Note some of them are spicy, but I think you could prepare them less spicy and they would still be tasty*

Thai Chicken Skewers:
1-2 lbs chicken breast
1/2 C sweetened condensed milk (I have used condensed milk or just skim milk, both turned out great!)
1-2 tbs peanut butter (optional)
3 tbs teryaki sauce
1 Tbs white vinegar
1 tbs. red curry paste (or curry powder with some cayenne pepper for same effect)
Skewers

Cut chicken into 2-3 inch long pieces. Mix all ingredients and add chicken. Marinate at least 1-2 hours (better overnight). Soak wood skewers in water at least 1 hour prior to cooking so they don't burn ( I was in a hurry and only did 30 minutes which wasn't enough and they did burn a little). Put chicken on Skewers (you can add extra stuff in between like pineapple, green peppers, onions etc...) Broil 2-3 minutes on each side (depending on your broiler) 4 inches from broiler until well cooked.

Spinach and Orange salad
This is so versatile you can pretty much use any ingredients for the salad part...I just like the dressing because it's simple and a little bit sweet and tangy...so you can make it however you want..
but here is what I did:
Baby Spinach
Blood orange cut into segments
Cashews
Dressing:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 Tsp. salt
1 pinch ground black pepper
(You can make this different ways...the original recipe calls for mandarin orange segments, red onion, and celery...that is also very good)

Lemon Dill Rice (in rice cooker)
1 cup jasmine rice (I actually used brown basmati which was very good)
2 cups water
Lemon rind and juice from 1/2 a lemon
1/2 tsp. dill weed
1 tbs dried parsley or 1 cup fresh
2 tbs. olive oil

Spray rice cooker pan with nonstick spray, add rice water and salt to taste. Stir in remaining ingredients. cover and cook 20 minutes. Allow to stand covered for 10 min. before serving. Serves about 4.

*Note about the sauces: These sauces are only good in the fridge for 5-7 days...we can usually never use them before then so they can be frozen and used for another meal*

Peanut Sauce:
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tbs. soy sauce
1 tbs. sugar
hot pepper sauce to taste (I just add 1-2 tsp. of cayenne pepper which is usually good)
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 cup cold water

Mix all ingredients except water into a bowl. Gradually add cold water until smooth and creamy (dipping consistency)

Sweet and Sour sauce:
2 cup water
2/3 cut distilled white vinegar
1 1/2 cup white sugar
1 (6oz.) can of tomato paste
1 (8oz) can of pineapple tidbits drained
3 tbs. cornstarch

In medium saucepan over medium heat mix water, vinegar, sugar, tomato paste, pineapple and cornstarch. Cook 15 minutes stirring occasionally until desired color and consistency.


That's all folks!