Butter Chicken, or A Good Way to Start the New Year

We got an Instant Pot around Cyber Monday and have been loving it. 

(It helps to go in with super low expectations, like it's just* an electric pressure cooker. It will not make dinner for you or, sadly, wash the dishes afterwards.)

(*Alex: "It's just chicken and rice.")

David christened our IP with this Butter Chicken recipe. Then, for Friendsgivingmas, I tweaked the recipe and made it vegetarian. It was a huge hit and a couple of friends have since asked for the recipe so I'm posting it here with all my modifications. 

Instant Pot Butter Chicken (or Butter Vegetables)
adapted from Jo Cooks

6 tbsp butter
12-16 cloves garlic minced (1 to 1.5 heads) (see Note below)
5 T ginger minced (again, see Note)

4 tbsp tomato paste

1 28-oz can whole tomatoes, blended (yes, in your blender #sorrynotsorry) with liquid

2 t salt

2 T garam masala
2 T ground coriander 

2 T paprika, smoked if you have it.

2 t ground cumin 

2 t turmeric
3 lbs boneless and skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1.5 inch pieces OR equivalent amount vegetables (my favorite is a head of cauliflower, ~3 yukon gold potatoes, and a 10-oz package of frozen peas and carrots)
2 cups heavy cream (oh yeah, baby)
1 bunch cilantro, roughly minced

Note: Because of the large amount of garlic and ginger, I recommend using a food processor to grind together the ginger and garlic. First, peel the ginger and chop into smaller pieces, then add to processor. Slightly smash garlic cloves to remove peels, then add cloves to food processor. Process until you have a paste, scraping down the sides as necessary.

Turn on Instant Pot to saute setting. Add butter to pot. When melted, add ginger-garlic puree and saute for a few minutes until fragrant. 

Add tomato paste and saute together with ginger-garlic to impart a deeper flavor into the sauce. Then add blended tomatoes, salt, and spices. 

At this point, if you are making the chicken version, add chicken pieces, close and seal the pot and cook for 5 minutes on Poultry seasoning. Do 10 minutes of natural release, and then complete with a Quick Release. Stir in heavy cream and use the Saute mode to keep the sauce simmering. Stir in chopped cilantro before serving.

If you are making the vegetarian version, add cubed potatoes (large-ish chunks?) and cook on a pressure setting (like Meat/Stew? I'm still learning the IP, but I believe all the auto settings besides rice use the same high pressure setting) for 5 minutes. Do 10 minutes of natural release, then complete with a Quick Release. Switch to saute mode and add cauliflower cut into florets, and bag of frozen peas and carrots. Cook until tender. Then stir in heavy cream and chopped cilantro.

Serve over rice and/or naan. 

P.S. Don't forget my friend Kayla's tip to save leftover tomato paste. Scoop it into tablespoons onto a small sheet of parchment paper and freeze. When it's frozen (or at least par-frozen), add them to a little baggie and throw it in your freezer. Label the bag - you think you will remember what it was but you won't. The dollops come in so handy when you just need a tablespoon or two. 

Create/consume

Theo(logic)

We have been busy trying to soak up what I experienced as a short-lived summer.

(Yes, Kayla and Linnea, I suppose that exposes my non-nativeness to feel this way about the summer we had!)

At least, that is my excuse for why I haven't blogged in a while about anything, and it's certainly been ages since I've shared what Theo and Emilyn are saying lately.

As usual, I've tried to jot down things in my Notes app, so here is a collection since the last time I wrote about him in February. It's in chronological order so you can keep in mind the context of growing from 3yr1mo to 3yr9mo and through the seasons of winter, spring, summer and now fall. He started preschool last week!

Lol, I suppose I could have cropped this, and then captioned, "Is Theo wearing pants?"

--

After I muttered to myself, "When will it stop raining?" Theo said, "It will stop raining when you go to your nap, in your dreams."

To David, regarding some privilege: "Will you talk it over with Umma?"

"Don't cry Emi, we're almost home."

"Don't laugh; it's not a laughing game."

"Breathe in and out" to himself.

Earlier this year, he asked if he could use sidewalk chalk. Since it was raining a lot, I said, "when it's Spring, we can bring out the sidewalk chalk." One day probably in March, he noticed the pink camilias blooming on the side of the house, and so he said to me, "The camilias are blooming; can we have sidewalk chalk?"

To me, "You don't need shoes on; just your feet." He knows I'm a Berkeley girl.

"I took a picture with my eyes."

When he wasn't ready for me to kiss him goodnight, he told me "Go control your computer" because he knows I usual check my email between putting Emilyn to bed and then saying goodnight to him.

"Nuna is quite the baker."

One day when David was mowing the lawn, David asked him what he wanted to do, since he dislikes the loud noise of the mower. Theo asked, "Can I stay inside and dance?" Kathy, Emilyn, and I were out at that time, so when we came home, we just saw Theo dancing by himself in the living room, and we found out the rest of the story from David.

"Can I come to your house?" He started saying this a couple of months ago, to grandparents whenever we FaceTimed them. Of course they loved this.

Back in April when it was David's birthday, I asked Theo what we should get for his birthday. Without any hesitance, he offered, "Moss killer."

And first thing in the morning on that birthday, he said, "Can we have cake today because it's your birthday?"

Again, earlier in the summer, to one of my friends: "I'm ready for preschool. I go to preschool three times a week for an hour. I start in the fall." (Actually he goes twice a week for two hours.)

Referring to packaged seaweed, "No, don't throw away the silica gel, or else it won't be crispy!"

He started buckling himself into the carseat in April, at 3 years and 3 months. So nice that he can climb in and get buckled himself.

Sometimes before bed, David has all of Theo's monkeys warm up their singing voices for bedtime songs. When they say "mi mi mi mi mi", Theo sometimes says "me me me me mini mini me."

I love watching Emilyn copy Theo's dance moves.

Because Kathy calls Theo her "Chicken Heart" or "Chicken Thigh" etc., Theo started saying "chop chop chop" while he pretends to chop his arm into bite-sized pieces for her to eat.

"Appa, statch me." By which he meant, can you pray that prayer where you ask God to let me grow in wisdom and stature, in favor with God and man?

"I'm going to preach school."

Without prompting, he began a letter to Emilyn, which read, "I love you, I like to climb, I love playing with you."

There's a Vietnamese sticky rice coconut dessert which Theo calls squishy dessert, but the way he says it, it sounds like "kwishy dirt."

"I'm not a baby, I'm a Theo. Don't talk about babies; let's talk about big boys."

One day, I said, "I'm looking for the one who loves Jack Jack (Emilyn)" when I was trying to get Kathy's attention. Theo intervened saying "I love Jack Jack!"

One day he said "The storms of Jesus Christ" maybe because we told him that God controls nature?

"Don't cry Emilyn, I'm here, I'm not going anywhere."

"I want to trick Umma."

"Wake up so I can bother you!"

On a drive, "If I see a tractor, I will tell you."

"We can go on a date? What the??? Tractor??!!"

When I mentioned I needed to go to the pharmacy, he asked if there would be any tractors. At the Farm-acy, duh.

"I don't want cat cookies, there's sugar bugs."

"I'm organizing over there." He has started to "organize" things. Am I really happy about this? YAS.

"I'm sitting on this rice sock so that I don't cough or bless you."

"We have an appleseed tree and two maple trees."

He often mashes together two thoughts into one sentence: "I don't know how to do this?"

"I'm thirsty for salt. Savory."

When I started loosely and slowly weaning Emilyn I had to tell her once, "I'm not going to nurse you right now." Theo overheard and he asked, "Is it because you're growing, and you're a big umma?"

Theo wanted more Milo (an Asian chocolate malted drink), so I told him I would pick up more of it when I went to Evergreen. A week after I had told him that, I mentioned to David that I needed to go to Evergreen. Immediately, Theo said in a robotic voice, "Can-you-pick-up-my-Milo."

One time when David was merging on to the freeway and a car sped up at the last minute to overtake him, Theo yelled out, "Share the road!" (We honestly have never said that out loud so it was really funny.)

David likes to use the speaker/amplifier in the mini-van to imitate airplane pilot monologues (e.g., ":::ssssshhhhhhhhhh::: This is your captain speaking...") so Theo has started doing it as well, only he says, "This is your speaking captain..."

"If I can watch a show with front loaders and a backhoe, then I'll get my hair cut!" Talk about sentence construction.

"Mama, did you make grits for me? I'm hungry for grits."

"My tummy loves warm."

"Look at what happened to my waffle." (It's gone.)

One day when Emilyn was crying in the back of the van, Theo told me, "She wants everything. She wants a nap, she wants to go to the park, she wants her friends." I love how he asked himself a question in his head and then answered it for all of us.

"I know her full name. Ro Ro Ro Ro Emilyn Ro."

He took care of Emilyn's stuffed bunny and treated it like a baby.

When we got in the car one day, he asked for the "joy joy podcast", by which he meant the song "Down In My Heart."

In the middle of summer, "Don't wake me up to preschool!"

When I mentioned that I might pull him out of school to go to Richmond for a few weeks in late winter, he said, "I need my daddy and my nunu. That will be too much. Or I will go with just Emilyn." When I asked, "Then what will Mama do?", he said, "Mama will get a date."

One day Theo was arranging logs on the deck and he called it Silver Lake. I did not comprehend what he was saying until later that week we went to Silver Lake and the parking lake had logs arranged to mark off the parking spaces.

He uses the word "cantilever" and pronounces it "cant-a-leave-er." It's too much.

One morning when David was home during breakfast (it means either the weekend or a weekday he's working late), Theo could tell Emilyn was starting to feel anxious that I'd be leaving to take a walk. All of this was unspoken, until Theo asked me, "You can just walk laps around the kitchen, right?" He knew that she didn't want me to leave.

As soon as Theo gets home from school, he pulls his pants off and yells, "Free!"

And then just yesterday, when I pulled out grapes for dessert during dinner, he said "I want g-r-..." and proceeded to spell a couple of other (wrong) letters. "I want icecream for dessert. G-r-..." because we always spell out the good things.

We met one of Kathy's new floormates this year and her name is Erica. Theo later commented that her name is like "the America flag." Indeed, "Erica" is in America.

--

Alright, now I'm up to speed with Theo. Up next, Emilyn!

P.S. For my own record (since I'm no longer logging everything obsessively in an Excel file, ha! Although, Elizabeth, aren't you glad that I had? ;p), it appears that Theo is dropping his nap. I can't be totally sure, and I think he may still need it on school days, but I'm 90% sure this is happening right now. :'(

P.P.S. Marla, I am totally channeling the "and because it's due, this is what I will write."

"All you hungry people..."

Inspired by both a podcast episode and a book I recently read, I've started incorporating more routine into our meal planning. Instead of seeing that as giving in (i.e., not having the freedom to come up with whatever I want, and exploring new recipes), which I've felt in the past, I've had a mindset shift in seeing it as a way to love my family and love myself better.

Instead of waiting for life to feel less chaotic, I'm proactively injecting a rhythm to inspire margin and calm, something we can all count on. Fewer choices so that we can spend our energy on other things. Less decision fatigue.

I'm still tweaking the system but I wanted to share what has been working for us so far.

Lunches and dinner have a more varied routine, which I may share later, but breakfasts are pretty much set, which is what I really need, at a time of day during which I am not functioning at my peak, and when David is already at work so it's just me and the kids.

We use a mnemonic device for the weekdays, which helps the kids remember what we're eating, and gives them a sense of the pace of the week.

Monday Mush - we alternate between this oatmeal and "grits" (Bob's Red Mill 10-grain cereal that we usually stir shredded cheddar into). Theo loves to tell me he's "hungry for grits."
Tuesday Tacos - breakfast burritos with scrambled eggs, cheese, salsa
Wednesday Waffles - frozen waffles and breakfast sausage
Thursday Toast - sourdough toast with soft-boiled eggs (British-Malaysian style with soy sauce and white pepper) which Theo calls "soup eggs"
Friday Fried Eggs - fried eggs (either over-easy or scrambled) and polish sausage, toast is optional
Saturday - pancakes and bacon (David makes everything)
Sunday - bagels with smoked salmon and all the fixins' (red onion! cucumber! tomato!)

What I love about this is:

• I'm excited about every day because we're never eating the same thing twice in a row, and I get to look forward to the next time we have it.
• Similarly, there's something to anticipate every new day; we're not just living for the weekends.
• I always know what we need to add to our grocery list since we're have staple breakfasts.
• We can incorporate cheats like frozen waffles without guilt because it's just once a week.
• I can prepare the night before where needed.
• The kids eat well because they know that what's in front of them is the option for the day. And if they don't like it, they know they'll get something they like better on a different day. But honestly I think they love everything because I've chosen seven things we all love.
• There are intentional days where we're not stuffing ourselves with gluten, but then there are days we get to enjoy bread.
• I get to have smoked salmon every week! Talk about living your vacation life!

We've been doing this for a month and I'd say it's working well for us. My guess is that when we get tired of one thing, we can swap out that day with something else, and we won't have to toss out the whole plan. The template is there to serve us, not the other way around.

Another ritual we practice during breakfast is to listen to a hymns station on Pandora. It seems to provide us with a soothing way to start the day.

If any of this helps encourage you to incorporate more rhythm and peace into your life, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Pho-sho!

Life is full and life is good right now.

The sun is finally here and while we're still making tons of popsicles (these and these currently encompass our repertoire), we are true Asians who can enjoy hot soup even during the summer.

I already loved Andrea Nyugen for her Into the Vietnamese Kitchen, so I was delighted to discover that she had written a book dedicated entirely to pho.

In Pho, she offers three levels of complexity for entering the world of cooking your own pho: quick weeknight pho, pressure cooker pho, and the real deal pho. I appreciate the backdrop of authenticity with shortcuts to make a daunting meal slightly more accessible.

Kayla had no idea I had just checked the book out from the library when she surprised me with this notebook at church on Sunday!

Classic pho with beef is an all-day (if not more) affair, so it's rare that I will endeavor to make it, though I'm always so pleased with myself when I do. When the older kids started living with us, I figured out a cheater rotisserie chicken pho, where I boiled the leftover carcass, added fish sauce, and served it with simple garnishes. I wasn't sure it was a thing (faux pho?) but when I saw Nguyen's inclusion of it in her cookbook I felt vindicated.

Chicken has such a light flavor compared to beef, so it can handle a lighter broth without all the spices that normally accompany the standard beef broth.

I've mentioned before how we love to do noodle bowl (bun) and spring rolls with rotisserie chicken, and this is what we usually do with the carcass and any meat if there is some leftover! You can't beat a cooked chicken for $4.99 (at Costco) that can be stretched into two meals.

I'm including my oversimplified recipe here, even though Nguyen's version is simple enough. I don't even bother to char ginger and onion for the base.

Super basic rotisserie chicken pho

Depending on what we have done with the chicken, we don't always have enough meat for the soup, so I supplement with other proteins like tofu or egg, and I love serving this with broccoli as well, which I blanch in the broth.

1 rotisserie chicken carcass
any leftover meat you have
broccoli or other vegetables (optional)
fish sauce
cilantro, green onions, sliced yellow onion (soak in cold water for 10 minutes)
Thai basil, and limes for garnish
black pepper
sriracha

Boil the carcass in a pot of water (use some or all stock if you have some), at least 1 hour but for as many hours as you have time for. I often add 1/2-1 t of salt, but not too much, as you will season with fish sauce later.

Soak 1 16oz package of banh pho noodles in a pot of (cool) water. I use the same pan that I will later boil them in. (In case you didn't know - which I didn't when I first started making Viet food in 2011 - you want to boil rice noodles in separate water from your broth because of all the starch. Also, the pre-soak is not necessary, but I do find that if I can remember to soak them, it creates a more chewy texture, emulating the fresh version.)

Prep all your garnishes. Before serving, boil the noodles until tender (it takes less time if you've done the pre-soak), and divide the noodles into the diners' bowls. Add chicken, cooked broccoli (if using), cilantro, green onions, yellow onion, and a few grinds of black pepper to all the bowls.

Taste the broth, adding 1-2 T fish sauce to season. Bring it to a good boil and ladle into bowls. Serve with Thai basil and limes, and any of your other favorite garnishes. (I'm not a huge bean sprout person, so...)

Enjoy! :)

A bit of both

Hi!

When I start to slip off the blogging bandwagon sometimes it's hard to tell if it's because I'm feeling bummed about life or if it's because I've been busy trying to make a great life.

Lately it's been a bit of both.

This (and having my sister-in-law close by) saved me last week during the Week From Hell. (Alex, Wednesday night was the highlight of my week (maybe year haha!), but somehow it made Thursday and Friday just that much more unbearable!)

I could use a Vacation from my Problems!

But my Real Life is also pretty sweet.

And here are some random paradoxes/tensions I've been thinking about lately:

accuracy vs. precision
self-hood vs. community
submission vs. autonomy
being like everyone vs. being unique
feeling content vs. striving for improvement
grief vs. gratitude/pleasure
being conservative vs. having an abundance mentality
feeling hopeful vs. being realistic

Finally, interesting article and cute item.

And also, I need this. But not at that price. It's not OK.

Even easier

I've been dragging my feet with regards to posting these days, but I think I have a good excuse.



It's finally (finally!!!!!!!) summer!

I have had big plans to tell you about rediscovering one of my favorite Chinese cookbook authors, and about The Glory That Is Laundry Day, and of course, we are more than overdue on a Theo update.

But the days are getting brighter, longer, and lazier, and so all I have to offer you today is these.

After finding some winter refuge at the computer, I feel the tug to spend more of my time unplugged and outside. We have too many popsicles to eat and too few days.

Ever since I saw Molly Orangette write about these I have been dreaming about making them. For some reason I thought they were more complicated than they really are. But in fact they are really easy, like boozy pudding (something else I need to tell you about later*) but even easier.

(*ehhh, if you're new around here, I've talked about it plenty on the old food blog with Stephie. You're welcome. So embarrassing.)

Anyway, without further ado, and so that I can get back to laying out on the deck, here are the fudgsicles you need in your life today.

Fudgsicles
adapted from Orangette

If you're fancy, you should definitely read up on Molly's recipe to get all the details about chocolate, because she's obviously thought it through. I've tried to keep it simple and easy here, and it's more for my reference to make it again. She also called for heavy cream and milk; I had lots of half and half so I've simplified it here. Obviously, you can use your brain and do things differently.

8 oz chocolate chips (preferably mixed in with some bittersweet, but don't go all dark)
2 1/2 cups half and half
2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
2 t vanilla extract, or (spiced) rum since vanilla extract costs a million dollars these days

Heat up half and half on the stove with cocoa powder, whisking to dissolve. Remove pan from heat, and after a minute, dump chocolate chips into the pan, whisking until it's all incorporated. Add in vanilla extract and then pour into popsicle molds. Freeze until hard.

P.S. Comment below with a caption for the second picture in this post. The winner gets a fudgsicle!