Attempt #1 at Thai Food

I awoke Tuesday morning CRAVING Thai. Like, I had been dreaming about it and then it was all I could think about. Mmmm, Thai food. I had some extra lean ground turkey in the fridge and I thought it could potentially make some kick ass gai pad gra pow.
I found a couple of recipes that inspired me, and ruminated for a couple of days, and finally, tonight (Thursday), I went for it. It was okay, but it tasted NOTHING like the pad grapow you'll get at a Thai joint. Not even a little bit. It was probably way healthier, but. . . . I think if I hadn't been thinking about and craving the real deal, I may have been able to appreciate it a little more.
Did I need more fish sauce? More Tamari? I don't think I needed more oil, I used way more than I normally do. Do I need to go sit at the counter at Bang San and watch those ladies make it?
In any case, if you have some ground bird meat and some basil, and you're craving something spicy, give this a whirl, but don't expect it to replace your favorite takeout - deal?

Spicy Basil Chicken
4 - 5 tbsp oil; I wanted to use peanut oil but only had veg
7-8 cloves of garlic
2 shallots
6 peppers (I used 2 jalapenos, 2 serranos, and 2 uh, red ones) - if you can find Thai chilies I'd go for those though you'll probably need several more (the first recipe calls for 12-20!)
1 lb of bird meat - either finely chopped or ground
A generous drizzling of Tamari (maybe 2-3 tbsp)
Fish sauce to taste (and I have no idea what the correct amount is; I used maybe 1 tbsp)
1 cup of basil (again, go for Thai basil if you can find it, or holy basil if you're lucky enough to run across it - this is, after all the gra pow this dish is named for!)
brown rice
Sriracha
Gewurztraminer or other sweet white (Riesling or maybe a Pinot Gris if you don't like your wine quite as sweet)

Get your mise en place ready to go -
pulverize your peppers with your garlic (we tried the mortar and pestle route and failed, so it went into the food processor or got smashed on the cutting board) and set aside. Finely chop your shallots and set aside. Prep your basil (wash and remove stems). Get out your bird meat.

Heat a large pan or wok until it's smoking hot, then get ready to move quickly. Add the oil and swirl to coat the pan and heat the oil quickly. Stir in the garlic and pepper mix just long enough to get it coated and spread around and then add the shallots. Stir for 10-15 seconds to combine and then add the chicken. Stir fry (breaking up the larger slab if you dumped a container of ground meat into your pan like I did) until the meat is "browned" on the outside. I say "browned" because it doesn't really go brown so much as it goes. . . I dunno, less pink.

Sprinkle 1 tbsp or so of Tamari and stir in. Season "to taste" with fish sauce. I have no idea what this means even for my own tastebuds as this was my first time being brave enough to deal with fish sauce on my own because, hello, ew. I suppose it was about a tbsp.

Add in the basil and keep stirring and cooking until the basil is wilted. Give the meat a taste - add more Tamari or fish sauce as needed. We added another tbsp or 2 of Tamari.

Serve over brown rice if you're trying to be healthy. Taste before dousing in Sriracha - your chilies might be plenty hot. Maybe a squeeze of lime juice over the top would be lovely as well.

Drink with a nice cold, sweet white wine. Enjoy the fact that your entire house smells amazing (way better than dinner tasted if you ask me) for the rest of the evening. I really wish I had a fan/vent in my kitchen.

This would serve four if you were serving with other dishes or apps (or all skinny chicks watching their waistlines); or maybe three if it was the only course or you're sharing with boys.

Pork Satay

This one goes out to all my homies that think satay can be way too sweet sometimes. Also to Duane, who I think would come over to my house for dinner every day if I promised to make this for him (despite being reluctant at first). It's another South Beach Phase 1 recipe. Proof yet again that this diet does not SUCK, you naysayers!

Pork Satay
1/4 trans-fat-free peanut butter
1/4 c water
1 tbsp plus 1 1/2 tsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
1 1/2 lbs pork cutlets (about 3/4" thick), cut lengthwise into 1/2" strips
4 metal skewers (if you don't have metal you can use wood, just be sure to soak them really well in water so they don't burn in the broiler)

Heat oven to broil.
Whisk together peanut butter, water, vinegar, soy, garlic and red pepper flakes in a mixing bowl. Place pork in a separate mixing bowl and add 1/4 cup of the dipping sauce, toss to coat. (I may have added more than that to coat all my pork - use your judgment). Reserve the remaining sauce for dipping or to spread onto the satay once it's cooked.
Thread pork onto skewers and broil 4 minutes per side. Coat with reserved sauce or put sauce in dipping cups and serve alongside pork.

A garnish of cilantro or sesame seeds would be good if you're cooking this for guests or you like cilantro. Mmmm.

To go alongside, I planned to make Sesame Green Beans, but realized too late that I didn't have any more sesame oil. What else was there to do but douse my cooked beans in Sriracha, soy sauce and garlic powder? They were good and went really well with the skewers.

Sloppeh joe, slop, sloppeh joe

No, this is not my first sloppy joe entry. Seems I'm obsessed. In any case, I got the fixins for the most part (except the Sriracha which I really wanted to include, boo, though I guess I could always go to one of those "grocery store" things I've been hearing so much about lately) and I need to cook this meat up asap. Now who wants to come over for dinner tomorrow?

Here's what I'm thinking of pulling together:

2 lbs ground beef (lean thanks)
1 diced onion (but I may not use all of it depending on how big it is)
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 cup ketchup
1 small can tomato sauce
1/2 can tomato paste
1 tbsp vinegar
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 -2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
celery powder or celery salt
salt and pepper to taste

(If I had Sriracha I'd hold off on the garlic, tomato paste and vinegar until after I had added the Sriracha and then tweak from there, maybe going with garlic powder at that point rather than fresh.)

I'll start the onions and garlic (mmmm, I can almost smell it) and once soft I'll add the meat, cook til almost all the pink is gone and drain off the fat. Then I'll stir in all the rest of the ingredients, and let it simmer, stirring frequently til it's heated through.
Served on buns or in pita pockets with shredded cheese and crispy sweet potato fries on the side . . . yum. Just like Lunch Lady used to make.

** update **
So I had no celery anything, and threw in 1/4 tsp of Italian Seasoning and maybe 1/8 tsp of red pepper flakes, just because. I only used about 1 1/2 tsp of brown sugar and didn't need to add any salt or pepper. Alas, while tangy and "fine" it was completely flat and one dimensional. I think it really needs the veg aspect of green peppers and/or celery. Next go round I'll do the meat and veggies, and I'll work on the sauce separately to give it some time to meld and deepen, and then I'll mix it in to the meat and veg. Perhaps some ancho chili powder to add a smoky layer with the spice instead of the flakes. It won't be an easy clean up one pot meal anymore, but hey.
I'm also thinking of Mexican variations with some corn and black beans mixed in with more Mexican seasonings rather than Italian; maybe even a kick of cocoa powder.

** Delicious coworker update **
Thanks Denise!!!

1 pound ground chuck (or whatever kind of ground beef you use)
2 tbl oil to brown the meat
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced celery
1/4 of a large green bell pepper, chopped fine
1 clove minced garlic
1/4 cup chili sauce
1/4 cup catsup
1 cup water
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 tbl Worcestershire sauce
2 tbl white vinegar
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tbl parsley, minced

Brown meat, onions and celery. Spoon off the leftover and grease.
Combine all of the rest except parsley.
Mix well and pour over the meat.

Simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.