Worthy of a Repeat

I love to cook. I’m fairly certain Quinn and Logan wish I didn’t. Although I’d consider them non-fussy eaters, at this stage in their life they’d be happy to eat Goldfish crackers and meatloaf 24/7. My personal eating habits skew more toward ethnic and vegetarian. I am also an experimental and impromptu cook and will often select recipes for the evening meal based on the ingredients I have on hand. I rarely, if ever, repeat a recipe. I don’t do this intentionally, but I’m not an organized enough cook to bookmark recipes with notes that read, “Repeat.”  Again, I think the boys are relieved by this as they’d prefer not to repeat certain meals. Every now and again, though, I knock one out of the park that satisfies all of our eating needs in terms of quantity and flavor. I figured I should share it here, not only to remind myself to repeat this recipe, but also if two teenage boys liked it, then consider it somewhat vetted for your own family. This is a Thai dish from the cook book, True Thai by Victor Sodsook. I highly recommend this cook book if you enjoy Thai food. I’ve made a number of the dishes and they are all equally delicious, and surprisingly simple. The key, of course, is having access to a good Asian food market where you can find some more obscure ingredients. Once your pantry is stocked, this will be a cook book that you’ll reference time and again. The winning dish from the other night was “Sweet Pork (Mu Wan).”

3 Tbl. Vegetable oil

6 cloves garlic, pounded to a mash or crushed and chopped

¾ pound pork tenderloin, cut crosswise into thin medallions

2 Tbl. Thai fish sauce (nam pla)

4 Tbl. Golden brown sugar

½ tsp. white pepper

Crispy Shallots* recipe to follow

Place all of the ingredients within easy reach of the cooking area. Set a wok over medium-high heat. When it is quite hot, add the oil. Rotate the wok a bit so the oil coats the sids. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and stir-fry for a few seconds, then add the pork. Stir-fry for 4-5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and stir-fry until pork is just cooked through, approximately 3-5 minutes. Top with crispy shallots and serve hot or warm over jasmine rice.

Crispy Shallots

1 cup vegetable oil

2/3 cup thinly sliced shallots (about 5 or 6)

Pour oil into a wok or heavy saucepan set over medium-high heat and bring the oil to 360 degrees. (To test the oil temperature, dip a wooden spoon in the hot oil. The oil should bubble and sizzle gently around the bowl of the spoon.) Add the shallots and fry, stirring frequently, until crisp and brown, about 2 minutes (note: I’m not sure how the author achieved crispy shallots in 2 minutes, it took me closer to 12!) Remove with a wire skimmer or slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Cool to room temperature. Shallots will keep for up to two weeks if stored at room temperature in a tightly sealed jar.

The crispy shallots are essential to making this a 3-star recipe become a 4-star recipe. Also, I love, love coconut so I make our jasmine rice with coconut milk & water. It imparts a very subtle coconut flavor, without being too rich or sweet. Also, if you have leftover rice, then it makes a delicious breakfast the following morning with a little milk and cinnamon. Mmmmm.