Chicken & Turkey | Jaden's Steamy Kitchen

Grapes and Grappa, Figs and Olives + Free Cooking Light Cookbooks!

Since I've been working on my cookbook, which is all about modern Asian cooking, almost everything edible that comes out of my kitchen has been Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian or Korean. Yes, it can be tiring and I'm considering starting a new blog called "Steamy Kitchen, UnAsian" just to break the monotony. Gimme some Brazilian! Moroccan! Australian!

My family has been begging for something different, and everytime that I ask the kids, "so what do you want for supper tonight?" They chime excitedly, "McDonald's HAPPY MEALS! Hip, hip, HOORRAYYYY!"

Which is fine. I give in. Because I do love me some McD french fries dipped in soft serve ice cream. I know, You're groaning. It's a leftover habit and craving from my pregnancy days.

Please tell me that I'm not alone in this craving! Please tell me that you, too have strange culinary cravings and secret flavor combinations that just make other people squirm uncomfortably in their pants.

Tell me and I'll enter you in the drawing to win one of three gorgeous Cooking Light The Complete Cookbook - this baby is MASSIVE, weighing in at 4.4lbs with 1,200 recipes, 630 color photographs and a companion DVD. Plus I think there is an offer for 1 free year of Cooking Light magazine subscription inside.

OHOHOH! And there's a bonus...at the end of this post.

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April 25th, 2008 in *MY FAVORITE RECIPES*, Chicken & Turkey, Fast, Feel Good, GF-Adaptable |

Turkey Congee (Rice Porridge)

On Thanksgiving, we packed the kids in the minivan and headed to Orlando to my brother-in-law's for a "Boston Market Takeout Thanksgiving." Oh, don't groan, it really wasn't bad at all. While you were all scrubbing layers of grease off your pans, all we did was crumple up take out containers. The best part of celebrating the holidays with people who don't cook is knowing that the entire turkey carcass is MINE.....ALL MINE.

Such a silly thing to be smug about, but I consider the endless potential of leftover bones just as exciting as the roasted turkey itself. And since we only have turkey once or twice a year, I act like Tom of Tom & Jerry with icons of turkey flashing in my eyes. I could make stock (freeze and use throughout the year), gumbo, casserole, soup and my favorite....Turkey Congee (rice porridge)

Normally, when I spend holiday dinners with other cooks and chefs, it's a silent game of strategy. But how would you politely and tactfully be the first to lay dibs on the turkey bones if you are a guest? Since many of you will have turkey again for Christmas dinner, I'm going to share my secrets with you. But if you click through to read...you've just waived away your right to use these tricks against me. Deal?

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November 24th, 2007 in Chicken & Turkey |