Chili and Garlic Take Over!

I wanted to see what can be done with one set of ingredients and a few different main ingredients. I decided to take the chili and garlic combination and apply them to vegetables, poultry and seafood. I served them all during dinner last night to see the reactions. They all work amazingly well together and apply to each of these foods. The chili paste is from the Asian supermarket and it is very strong and spicy. I do not use as much because I don’t want to burn my mouth. However, if you love the spice feel free to add more. It might seem that you are putting a lot of garlic, but it is indeed a chili and garlic dish so do not deny the garlic breath! Perhaps this isn’t a first date kind of meal, but once you all get over the garlic breath this is a delicious meal. With the shrimp, you want to try to serve it right away. Once it gets warm, it doesn’t have the same kick to it. It’s a very quick dish to make so once your guests arrive you can make it and in 15 minutes your meal is ready! I’d like to confess that I have NEVER ever cooked shrimp and it was an interesting experience. I didn’t know how to take the shells off, I wasn’t sure how to devein them and so I goggled it and saw a YouTube video which helped me a lot. So if you are a shrimp virgin like me, just goggle how to clean shrimp and it will take you some great information!

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Steamed Chili and Garlic

Cauliflower and Broccoli

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 15-20 Minutes
Serves: 4 People

Ingredients:

1 Small head of cauliflower (about 3 cups)
1 small head of broccoli (about 3 cups)
1 large pot
About 1 cup of water
1 tablespoon of chili paste
¼ cup of olive oil
2 tablespoons of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of paprika
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 tablespoon of salt to season steamed veggies
1 teaspoon of salt for sauce

Directions:

Cut off the stalks from both the cauliflower and broccoli. You want to leave very little to just hold the cali/broc together. Take these stalks and wash them and then cut them in even sizes. Layer them flat into a soup bowl. This bowl should be large enough to hold all the cauliflower and broccoli. Fill the pot up with water, enough to cover the stalks. Cut the cauliflower and broccoli into mouthful sizes. Wash the cauliflower and broccoli. Place them in the pot sprinkling salt over each layer. Cover the pot and put it on medium heat. Allow it to cook for about 15- 20 minutes. You will see the cover begin to sweat. This is a nice easy method to steam your vegetables if you do not have a steamer. If you have microwavable steam bags, you can use those instead but I like this method. I like mine very crisp so I don’t cook them for too long but if you don’t like them as raw, keep steaming them till you like the texture.

At the same time, in a sauce pan, heat up the olive oil. Once the oil is hot, about 4-5 minutes place the rest of the ingredients (chili paste, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper). Mix all of the ingredients well and keep on a low flame. When you are vegetables are steamed to your liking, place as many as you can into the put and turn them I the sauce and then place them in your serving dish. Repeat till you have coated all of the vegetables. Once you are done take the remaining sauce and drizzle it over the vegetables.

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Chili and Garlic Chicken Wings

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 45 Minutes
Serves: 4-6 People

Ingredients:

14-16 chicken wings, tips cut off, washed and paper towel dried
2 tablespoon of chili paste
1/3 cup of olive oil
5 tablespoons of garlic, minced
2 tablespoon of paprika
1 teaspoon of pepper
1 tablespoon of salt
Non-stick cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl mix all of the ingredients together. I would first put everything together and then throw in the chicken and mix the chicken wings in. Use your hands, don’t be afraid. I use disposable gloves to mix them so I don’t feel so icky. Take a flat baking sheet and spray it with non-stick cooking spray. Lay the chicken wings flat. Put in the oven and cook for 25 minutes. Flip them over and cook for another 20 minutes or until a little crispy and golden brown. Serve with some sticky white rice or some steamed vegetables (or both!)

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Chili and Garlic Shrimp

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20-25 Minutes
Serves: 4 People

Ingredients:

¼ cup of olive oil
1 pound of large shrimp, tail on
1 tablespoon of sweet paprika
½ teaspoon of smoked paprika
1 tablespoon of chili paste
6 tablespoons of garlic, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Wash your shrimp and pat them dry with a paper towel. Season them with a sprinkle of salt and pepper. In a large frying pan, heat the pan for 4 minutes on high heat, then lower the heat to medium and add the ¼ cup of olive oil. Give it another 3 minutes and throw in the garlic. Let it cook for about 4-5 minutes till they begin to get a little brown. Add the chili paste, sweet paprika and smoked paprika and stir. Let it simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes allowing all the flavors to infuse. Add the shrimp and stir constantly. You are not drying to fry them, but rather sauté them. The shrimps will curl up and turn a solid white/pink color. Flip the shrimp back and forth making sure to cook both sides. This will be quick, about 5-8 minutes. If you are not sure, take out one shrimp and taste the texture. If it is still a little raw give it another minute and it should be ready. Do not overcook it, because you can’t go back and you will have hard chewy shrimp that are not so great to enjoy.