A Quickie

I really wanted to start this blog off with a really flashy meal but let’s face it- on a Monday night sometimes you just want to make something quick and dirty. These days I’m really trying to build my “weeknight meal” repertoire- you know what I mean- the type of food where you get maximum bang from minimal effort. My trick lately is to choose a recipe like this one, where a simply prepared meat is served with an easy sauce made from a few zingy ingredients (GINGER! JALAPENO!) simmered in an effortless base (Crushed tomatoes! Coconut milk!
We come in cans!). The original recipe calls for grilled chicken but this would also be delicious with fish or tofu (SEE? My cooking blog is totally inclusive). This is also a great little dish to whip up when you live in a freaky part of the country where it’s been in the low 50s and constantly drizzling despite the fact that it’s mid June. I felt like I was in sunny Brazil for a few seconds. I have a great imagination. (the unappetizing looking pile of brown glop on the plate is refried beans. Shuttup- I love things that come in cans.)

I also wanted to quickly mention the wine that we had with this meal: L'Ecuyer de Couronneau 2005 Bordeaux Supérieur (the one with the horsey head guy on the front). This has been a recent favorite of ours since Wade picked up a bottle ($13) at Market Time several months ago- it was so peppery and delightful that we bought 3 more bottles, even though we knew that they all had moldy corks. Yeccchh. (EDIT: Wade wants me to let you guys know that the outside of the cork was moldy- not the inside. Never drink moldy wine, kids!!!!).But seriously- if you like spicy earthy reds without too much fruit this is the wine for you. Also it's organic so now I feel like a big fat jerk for announcing at the lunch table in my office that there are no good organic wines (that's what I get for parroting everything that Wade reads to me). And if you know what Bordeaux Supérieur means, let me know.