Here’s your chance to talk nothing but food. What are you eating this weekend? What would you eat if you had the budget for it? What was the best thing you’ve eaten this week? Tell us a story.
To start things off, here’s something that’s gotten me through this stretch of hot weather. It’s actually the perfect hot weather crutch, because it takes less than 10 minutes to make and the variations are endless.
And let’s face it – summer’s finally here in all of its sticky and humid glory.
To quote Gus from Psych: “You know that’s right.”
Heat doesn’t mean that I shy away from spice, and this salad – with its subtle, sweet and spicy Asian flavor – is an excellent dinner for a 9 p.m. twilight. Also, when I’m on deadline and stressed it’s comforting to just have an easy fallback dish when we’re both tired.
(Scene: Mr. K. walks in the door hot, tired and dirty at 8:45 from work.)
Launie: “5-Spice Chicken Salad again?”
Mr K.: “You know that’s right.”
Chinese 5-Spice Chicken Salad
- 4 thin boneless chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon of Chinese 5-Spice Powder (we used homemade)
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Salad greens
- 1 red pepper, diced
- ½ of a small red onion, sliced
Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Cover both sides of the chicken breasts with the 5-Spice. When the oil shimmers and is hot but not smoking, gently drop the chicken breasts in the pan and cook for 5-7 minutes a side until brown. While the chicken cools, assemble the salad, make the vinaigrette and then slice the chicken and serve it on top of the greens.
Horseradish Vinaigrette
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon minced red onion
- 3 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons of horseradish
- 1 ½ teaspoons Dijon mustard
- Salt and pepper
Whisk all of the ingredients together and pour over the salads.
Serves 4.
Photo by LaunieK.
