Banstyle: Sappys Curry

You need all of your senses to cook. I'm sure rudimentary science could tell me this, but I think all of your senses are connected. Cooking with headphones on is strange - suddenly your nose doesn't work. Your ears can't tell you how hot the oil is in the pan where the chicken is frying, and later, your nose can't tell you if the sliced shallots are starting to burn. Luckily the cook is dancing to Underworld and the whole operation is choreographed like a ballet. I was not making curry, as the name of the Underworld song might suggest, but something hot nonetheless.**

The recipe: from Homemakers magazine. Homemakers, which can make a young woman such as myself momentarily flinch at the grocery store counter, and a young man never glance twice. The magazine's cheery yellow cover had me though, and its promise of a healthy future in homemade energy bars. Anyway, this recipe for Thai-style chicken looked good, and for 2.99 it was a go. So, senses dulled with a half bottle of wine and large headphones at 10:30 PM I'm making the recipe. Am I here to talk about the recipe? I don't know. It was delicious.

**I don't know what the name of the Underworld song suggests. Well, I have an idea that I couldn't really put into words, except that, like Underworld, it makes sense without having to really think about it. It makes so much sense that it seems inevitable. It seems like it took the step you were about to take, before you took it - and the one you took before. It's deja vu, it's the future laid out in a musical mathematical equation. If that makes it sound dry, I would also like to add that it's so full of feeling and pictures that I can literally feel the sheets of a bed in a hotel room in Korea, in which I have never stayed. I can see the traffic through the window of a skyscraper, which I've never been to. I can feel the weight of the humid air as I part it, lurching through the streets, drunk. It is a fantasy, showing me all the things my life might be like if I were with it and knowing they wouldn't really ever be real.

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Alright, that was January 25, 2011. Here is the actual recipe.

Vietnamese Spicy Chicken with Mango and Herbs

Serves 4. Per serving: 288 calories.

2 boneless skinless chicken breast or 12 to 16 oz/375 to 500 g chicken thighs, cut in 1-inch/2.5 cm cubes

4 tsp  (20 mL)  cornstarch

1 tbsp  (15 mL)  sodium-reduced soy sauce

2 tsp  (10 mL)  finely minced fresh ginger

1 tsp  (5 mL)  ground coriander

1/2 tsp  (2 mL)  black pepper

1/3 cup  (75 mL)  chicken stock

2 tbsp  (30 mL)  fish sauce

1 tbsp  (15 mL)  lime juice

1-1/2 tsp  (7 mL)  granulated sugar

3 tbsp  (45 mL)  peanut oil or vegetable oil

1/2 cup  (125 mL)  sliced shallots

Half red bell pepper, cut in bite-size pieces

1 tbsp  (15 mL)  finely sliced Thai bird's eye chilies

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 firm, semiripe mango, peeled, seeded and cut in bite-size pieces

Fresh Thai basil leaves, mint and/or coriander leaves

1 green onion, chopped

Preparation

Toss chicken with cornstarch, 1 tbsp/15 mL water, soy sauce, ginger, ground coriander and black pepper. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes.

In separate bowl, stir together stock, fish sauce, lime juice and sugar until sugar is dissolved.

In wok or skillet, heat 2 tbsp/30 mL of the oil over high heat. Stir-fry chicken mixture until golden on outside, about 3 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon.

Reduce heat to medium-high; add remaining oil. Fry shallots, scraping up sticky bits, until golden, about 2 minutes. Add red pepper, chilies and garlic; stir-fry for 1 minute. Add mango; stir-fry for 20 seconds, then add stock mixture.

Increase heat to high; bring to boil. Return chicken mixture to wok; stir-fry until sauce coats chicken. Add a handful or more of fresh herbs and green onion; stir-fry just until lightly wilted, about 10 seconds.