When Christine and I first started cooking together, she was a “follow the recipe exactly, no matter what” type of chef. My senior year of college, I even wrote a short story (heavily Murakami influenced) that had that discord as the central theme (where in she was abducted by a squid and held captive at the Aquarium). Totally different approaches in the kitchen, but hey, there were worse philosophies to be in disagreement on.
She’s since gotten much better at improv and much to my delight, she made a chicken stir fry last night, totally off the cuff. I didn’t watch, but I imagine it went something like this.
Cut up some chicken breasts into small-ish pieces, and toss them in a bowl with some soy sauce, minced garlic, grated ginger, sesame oil, and chili flakes (or sriracha). Let that sit, and dice an onion. Heat some sesame oil in a large pan (preferably a wok), and when it’s just about smoking, add in the onions. Throw in the chicken, and allow to cook through, adding soy sauce or more oil as needed. When the chicken is cooked, add a few cups of rice and stir with some more soy sauce. After a time, move the mixture to the side, and crack 1-2 eggs in the pan, and allow them to just set. Mix the whole mess together and allow the egg to coat the rice and chicken. Remove from the heat, mix in some spinach if you have it, and maybe even top with some green onions. Put it in a bowl and enjoy.
Again, here, you can mix and match as your fridge allows. Some peppers or corn would be good, as would any other green (bok choy would be killer, or cabbage). You could change up the marinade to include mirin, or Chinese cooking wine, or miso, or teriyaki. No one is judging this put you. This is also a perfect candidate to top with a fried egg or two.
Try it out this weekend, or next week, or whenever. Meanwhile, here’s some stuff to read:
Outdoor brands, military gear, and who uses it [Backpacker]
The wolf that discovered California [Smithsonian]
The economics of surfing [Monster Children]
The Iditarod, for teens [NYT]