Daring Cook's Challenge - January 2010

The January 2010 DC challenge was hosted by Cuppy of Cuppylicious and she chose a delicious Thai-inspired recipe for Pork Satay from the book 1000 Recipes by Martha Day.

Satay (or sate) is very often served as “street fare” all over the world, and you dip your cool little meat skewer into any variety of dipping sauces.

The challenge:

Use any meat or tofu you like.  I chose to use Chicken breats and a lamb's leg

Serve satay as an appetizer, side dish or main course.

Skewer or no skewer, your call.

Pan fry, grill, or broil, also your call.

Alternative recipe below for faster marinade.

Alternative recipe below for peanut allergies.

You don’t have to use turmeric if you don’t have it. In the case of satay, turmeric just makes it yellow.

Marinate (verb) – to steep (to wet thoroughly in or with a liquid; drench; saturate; imbue) in a marinade before cooking.

The required part of this challenge is to marinate. Marinades serve two purposes, to: 1) add awesome flavor and 2) tenderize tougher meats.

Satay Marinade

1/2 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 T ginger root, chopped (optional) (2 cm cubed)

2 T lemon juice (1 oz or 30 mls)

1 T soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)

1 tsp ground coriander (5 mls)

1 tsp ground cumin (5 mls)

1/2 tsp ground turmeric (2-2.5 mls)

2 T vegetable oil (or peanut or olive oil) (30 mls)

1 kg meat

I made it a little bit more Thai, as suggested: I added a tsp of chopped green chili, an extra tablespoon of ginger root, and 1 tablespoon (0.5 oz or 15 mls) of fish sauce.

Directions:

Chop the onions, garlic and ginger really fine then mix it all together in a medium to large bowl.If you have a food processor or blender, dump in everything except the meat and blend until smooth.
Cut the meat into 1 inch strips (as the chicken breats were too thick, I cut them into 2.And I decided bake my lamb as it was, in one big piece). Cover it with marinade, seal and chill.

Depending on the ingredients you select, time table:

                          Prep      Marinate         Cook

Pork                30 min.     4 – 24 hrs      20 min.
Beef/Lamb      30 min.     6 – 24 hrs      20 min.
Chicken           30 min.     2 – 12 hrs    10 – 15 min.
Vegetables   5 - 10 min.     2 hrs           5 - 10 min.
Tofu             5 - 10 min.     2 hrs           5 - 10 min.

The Marinade

 Lamb's Leg, Left and Chicken Breats, right

Cooking Directions

If using wooden or bamboo skewers, soak your skewers in warm water for at least 20 minutes before preparing skewers.

Gently and slowly slide meat strips onto skewers. Discard leftover marinade.*

Broil or grill at 290°C/550° F (or pan fry on medium-high) for 8-10 minutes or until the edges just start to char. Flip and cook another 8-10 minutes.

*If you’re grilling or broiling, you could definitely brush once with extra marinade when you flip the skewers.

Peanut Sauce

3/4 cup coconut milk (6 oz or 180 mls)
4 Tbsp peanut butter (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 Tbsp soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp brown sugar (5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground cumin (2.5 mls)
1/2 tsp ground coriander (2.5 mls)
1-2 dried red chilies, chopped (keep the seeds for heat)

Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add soy sauce and lemon, mix well.
Over low heat, combine coconut milk, peanut butter and your soy-lemon-seasoning mix. Mix well, stir often.
All you’re doing is melting the peanut butter, so make your peanut sauce after you’ve made everything else in your meal, or make ahead of time and reheat.

Pepper Dip (optional) - As my children don't like anything hot, I skiped this.
4 Tbsp soy sauce (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp lemon juice (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 tsp brown sugar (5 mls)
1-2 dried red chilies, chopped (keep the seeds for heat)
1 finely chopped green onion (scallion)

Mix well. Serve chilled or room temperature.

Tamarind Dip (optional)
4 Tbsp tamarind paste (2 oz or 60 mls)
1 Tbsp soy sauce (0.5 oz or 15 mls)
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 finely chopped green onion (scallion)
1 tsp brown or white sugar, or to taste (about 5 mls)

Mix well. Serve chilled or room temperature.

Peanut Sauce at left and Tamarindo Dip at right

Those two sauces are really great. The sweetness of the peanut butter mixed with the coconut milk made me eat it alone, several spoons. But I must say that the Tamarindo dip sourness worked perfectly with the chicken. What a wonderful combination!

Everybody here at home, loved this dish. As you can see on picture 1, I "diced" the meat and served with sticks. Gooooood!

The Lamb. Well I have just placed it into the oven. I belive it will be ready for lunch, 2 or 3 hour ahead. I promise you to post the pictures later today, ok?

I want to thank Cuppy for this amazing challenge. I always say I love asian food and this tiome it was not different.

See you!