Tuesday & Wednesday we were on a trip to Dallas, and since Janda and the kids were along too, I thought I'd take them to a place I almost always eat at and really enjoy.
Pappadeaux (pronounced Pappa dough's) is a cajun restaurant chain that is pretty nice. The food is good, you normally don't have to wait for a table because their dining room is huge. I've only ever had two things here. The first thing I tried was the sampler platter. Everything you could ask for, all fried. It was good, back when I enjoyed food like that. Now, though, I prefer things a little bit healthier. The other dish I enjoy is the crawfish etouffee. I liked it so much the first few times I had it, that I was inspired to make this at home. Now, having made my version (I'll share that with everyone one of these days), this was a good opportunity to take a fresh look at a dish I had really liked before.
We were late getting to town, and got in about 8:30. The restaurant was pretty full, but we were taken right in and sat down. This place is kid-friendly, it is so loud that even if the kids aren't quite, no one can tell. It's not obnoxiously loud, just a lot of stuff going on. We sat down, and looked over the menu. A friend was eating with us, he got the catfish opelousas. Never tried that, may have to someday. Janda & I both got the shrimp and crawfish etouffee. The kids got the catfish dinners (Jayden added shrimp to his). While we waited for the main dish to arrive, they serve fresh french bread. Pretty good stuff.
When our food arrived, I was expecting it to knock my socks off like it had before. Although this is a good choice, one that I won't hesistate to make again, it wasn't as good as I had remembered. Perhaps it's my taste changing, but I'll bet I just prefer my recipe over theirs. Janda said hers was good, but she too preferred our homemade etoufee over Pappadeaux. The boys all liked their dinners, who doesn't like catfish?
Overall, I think I've matured out of liking this dish so much that I won't order anything else off the menu. Next time I come, I'll try the opelousas, or something vastly different. This place is expensive. Nearly $100 for six of us to eat, half of those were kids meals, too.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Tropical Chicken Surprise
Can't really find a name for this new dish, so we're going to call it Tropical Chicken Surprise. (If you think of a good name, shoot me a comment, I don't really like "surprise" food!)
Ever looked at a recipe and thought -- "What were they thinkin' when they made this?" Or, "Who would ever put THAT in a recipe like this?" I have a feeling many people will say that about this recipe...but rest assured, this is a keeper. Surprisingly good, in fact.
Tropical Chicken Surprise
4 - 5 Chicken Breasts (boneless, skinless)
3 T olive oil
1/4 - 1/2 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups pineapple, diced (if using canned, do not use the juice)
1 can diced tomatoes
1/3 c rice vinegar
2 T mustard
1/4 t dried chilies (could use cayenne pepper instead)
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Sear the chicken until golden brown on both sides. Season the chicken with salt & pepper. You can cook it all the way through. Set aside until later. Add the onions and bell pepper, and saute until soft. Add the garlic and stir frequently. Add the diced pineapple, and saute the whole thing until the pineapple is well heated (almost to the point of browning). Add the diced tomatoes and cook until hot. Add the rice vinegar, mustard and chilies, and mix well. Simmer for about 5 minutes. You can add the chicken back to the sauce mixture, or just spoon it on top when serving.
So -- weird? Yes. Mustard & pineapple, who'da thought. But -- it's really, really, good. Janda said this was awesome. One of her favorite dishes so far. I liked it a lot too. You'll have to try this and report what your family thinks.
Ever looked at a recipe and thought -- "What were they thinkin' when they made this?" Or, "Who would ever put THAT in a recipe like this?" I have a feeling many people will say that about this recipe...but rest assured, this is a keeper. Surprisingly good, in fact.
Tropical Chicken Surprise
4 - 5 Chicken Breasts (boneless, skinless)
3 T olive oil
1/4 - 1/2 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups pineapple, diced (if using canned, do not use the juice)
1 can diced tomatoes
1/3 c rice vinegar
2 T mustard
1/4 t dried chilies (could use cayenne pepper instead)
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Sear the chicken until golden brown on both sides. Season the chicken with salt & pepper. You can cook it all the way through. Set aside until later. Add the onions and bell pepper, and saute until soft. Add the garlic and stir frequently. Add the diced pineapple, and saute the whole thing until the pineapple is well heated (almost to the point of browning). Add the diced tomatoes and cook until hot. Add the rice vinegar, mustard and chilies, and mix well. Simmer for about 5 minutes. You can add the chicken back to the sauce mixture, or just spoon it on top when serving.
So -- weird? Yes. Mustard & pineapple, who'da thought. But -- it's really, really, good. Janda said this was awesome. One of her favorite dishes so far. I liked it a lot too. You'll have to try this and report what your family thinks.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Stuffed Chicken Breast Medallions
In keeping with the copy-cat theme, I've been trying to find a recipe for the stuffed chicken breast medallions served at Abuelo's.
I've tried making this a few ways with various ingredients, but today's test was the most successful by far.
4 chicken breasts
6 - 8 oz chorizo (pork is the best)
1 large (or 2 small) poblano peppers, peeled and chopped.
2 T fresh cilantro
grated cheese (cheddar)
Flour
2 eggs
milk
Peeling a pepper is made easier by following a few steps. By removing the skin, you help make the pepper softer and more flavorful. Broil the pepper, turning often, until it's blistered all over. Take it out of the oven, and into either a ziploc bag, or a tupperware container. What you want is for the pepper to "steam". Leave it in there for 5 - 10 minutes. If you've got it good and blistered, the skin should just peel off.
While your pepper is cooking, you can start cooking the chorizo. There will be lots of grease rendered, be sure to get rid of as much of this as you can. Greasy chorizo will make the rest of the process a lot harder. Chop the cilantro into a small mixing bowl. Add the cooked chorizo to the cilantro, and add the diced poblanos. Grate in cheese, I normally do 2 ounces or so, you really can't go wrong here. Mix well to combine. This will be your stuffing, so you want to be sure to get everything really mixed around.
Next, create a cavity instead each chicken breast by cutting a pocket. I start at the big portion of the breast, and swipe the knife around inside to create the void. You want the hole to be only slightly larger than the knife blade, but the caivty to be nearly as big as the breast. A large hole makes it more difficult to seal before cooking.
When the chickens have all been stuffed, you can either bake them (it's ok this way), or deep-fry them like fried chicken (much better). Baking takes about 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
To fry them, I mix two eggs with about 1/2 C milk. Dip the breasts into the egg mixture, then into flour, lightly seasoned with chili powder and garlic salt. Fry for about 5 minutes on each side -- turning only ONCE. You seriously dry out food by over-turning it.
Abuelos serves this with queso sauce, so if you've got some time to do that, it'd be great, but not necessary. I've been trying to get this recipe as close to the original as possible, and enjoy making it each time, even when it doesn't come out quite so good.
Overall Rating: 89 (scale of 100)
I've tried making this a few ways with various ingredients, but today's test was the most successful by far.
4 chicken breasts
6 - 8 oz chorizo (pork is the best)
1 large (or 2 small) poblano peppers, peeled and chopped.
2 T fresh cilantro
grated cheese (cheddar)
Flour
2 eggs
milk
Peeling a pepper is made easier by following a few steps. By removing the skin, you help make the pepper softer and more flavorful. Broil the pepper, turning often, until it's blistered all over. Take it out of the oven, and into either a ziploc bag, or a tupperware container. What you want is for the pepper to "steam". Leave it in there for 5 - 10 minutes. If you've got it good and blistered, the skin should just peel off.
While your pepper is cooking, you can start cooking the chorizo. There will be lots of grease rendered, be sure to get rid of as much of this as you can. Greasy chorizo will make the rest of the process a lot harder. Chop the cilantro into a small mixing bowl. Add the cooked chorizo to the cilantro, and add the diced poblanos. Grate in cheese, I normally do 2 ounces or so, you really can't go wrong here. Mix well to combine. This will be your stuffing, so you want to be sure to get everything really mixed around.
Next, create a cavity instead each chicken breast by cutting a pocket. I start at the big portion of the breast, and swipe the knife around inside to create the void. You want the hole to be only slightly larger than the knife blade, but the caivty to be nearly as big as the breast. A large hole makes it more difficult to seal before cooking.
When the chickens have all been stuffed, you can either bake them (it's ok this way), or deep-fry them like fried chicken (much better). Baking takes about 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
To fry them, I mix two eggs with about 1/2 C milk. Dip the breasts into the egg mixture, then into flour, lightly seasoned with chili powder and garlic salt. Fry for about 5 minutes on each side -- turning only ONCE. You seriously dry out food by over-turning it.
Abuelos serves this with queso sauce, so if you've got some time to do that, it'd be great, but not necessary. I've been trying to get this recipe as close to the original as possible, and enjoy making it each time, even when it doesn't come out quite so good.
Overall Rating: 89 (scale of 100)
Mediterranean Chicken
Inspired by our recent trip to Johnny Carinos, I concocted this new recipe for chicken.
I made this last night, just a serving for one. You could easily increase the quantities to make as many servings as needed.
1 Chicken breast - boneless, skinless
2 T olive oil
1 T flour
2/3 C white wine
1 stalk green onions, sliced
1/2 can artichoke hearts
1 can sliced black olives
2 t capers
1/2 tomato, coarsely diced
1 t Italian seasoning
cayenne pepper
Start by browning the chicken in the skillet with the olive oil. As chicken finishes cooking, remove chicken to a spare plate. Add the flour, and allow to brown slightly while stirring constantly. Throw in the green onions, and allow to cook for about a minute. Add the white wine, artichoke hearts, olives, capers, and tomatoes. Mix well, allow to come to a simmer. Add Italian seasoning. Return the chicken to pan and allow to simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. When finished, top with cayenne pepper to taste, and give a final mix to distribute the pepper evenly.
If you need some extra liquid while cooking (especially for large quantities), you could throw in some chicken stock.
You can eat this as is, or serve on top of some pasta. Really good stuff.
Overall Rating: 90 (scale of 100)
I made this last night, just a serving for one. You could easily increase the quantities to make as many servings as needed.
1 Chicken breast - boneless, skinless
2 T olive oil
1 T flour
2/3 C white wine
1 stalk green onions, sliced
1/2 can artichoke hearts
1 can sliced black olives
2 t capers
1/2 tomato, coarsely diced
1 t Italian seasoning
cayenne pepper
Start by browning the chicken in the skillet with the olive oil. As chicken finishes cooking, remove chicken to a spare plate. Add the flour, and allow to brown slightly while stirring constantly. Throw in the green onions, and allow to cook for about a minute. Add the white wine, artichoke hearts, olives, capers, and tomatoes. Mix well, allow to come to a simmer. Add Italian seasoning. Return the chicken to pan and allow to simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. When finished, top with cayenne pepper to taste, and give a final mix to distribute the pepper evenly.
If you need some extra liquid while cooking (especially for large quantities), you could throw in some chicken stock.
You can eat this as is, or serve on top of some pasta. Really good stuff.
Overall Rating: 90 (scale of 100)
El Camino
Sunday, we went to one of my favorite Mexican spots --
El Camino
225 South 87
Tulia, TX
I may have mentioned this before, but one of my life goals is to find the best chili relleno in all the land. El Camino is at the top of my list. It's been several years since I've eaten here, it was a nice suprise to get to come here.
We came here with my brother and his family, there were nine of us all together. We came after church, and got there a bit late (about 1:30). The parking lot was very full, but that was expected. We hoped that most of the folks would be getting finished as we came in. We walked inside, there was another group waiting in the entry, but there was enough room for us to sit down. We were told we'd wait about 25 minutes, so we obliged and continued to sit.
While sitting there, we saw a bunch of old friends walk out. It wasn't too long of a wait, and all of the boys were getting along fine, not fighting, everything was good. We finally get seated, they combined a couple of tables near the kitchen. The decor in El Camino is pretty unique. The dark brown walls are decorated with lots of Kenneth Wyatt paintings, and most (if not all) are for sale. Mr. Wyatt is a fantastic painter, his works really come to life and are great western pieces. His studio is in Tulia, if you can arrange a tour, it would be well worth your time to go look. I can guarantee you'll find something you really want.
Our waitress was very attentive, refilling drinks as needed. El Camino does something that is a little frustrating to me, but it's simply because I'm picky. On soft drinks, they provide the first refill free, you pay extra after that. As I said, it's not a big thing, but something to mention. Most kids will down the first one before their meal gets there, and you might have to pay extra for that.
Time to order -- I got the #2, my favorite, which has a chili relleno, beef enchilada and a crispy taco. I got beans and rice on the side (extra again). While we waited our main dish, I filled up on chips. Their chips are pretty normal (good, but nothing special). The hot sauce, on the other hand, was very good. It had a nice spice to it. Hot enough the kids didn't eat a lot of it...and my kids like hot stuff. I ate way too much of it, but it sure was good.
Our order arrives, fairly quickly. I knew the relleno would be good, so I saved it for last. I started with the beans, which were seasoned very nicely. They had a bit of spice to them, a bit peppery, but they were not bland, which was good. The rice looked heavily spiced, but it tasted normal too me. I don't know if the exceptional beans took away from above-average rice, or if the rice was just average.
On to the taco, it was good, but again, nothing special here. Topped with the regulars -- cheese, tomato and lettuce. I could taste the beef, but it didn't have anything stand out. It tasted under-seasoned. Still edible, no doubt. The enchilada was very good. I haven't had too many bad enchiladas, and this was right up there. The sauce was not overpowering, and the relleno sitting beside it was imparting some if it's cheese sauce to it's neighbor which was very good. I was getting full about half way through the enchilada (due to over-indulgence on the chips!)
Now, the part I'd been waiting for -- waiting for what seemed to be years. It had been years since I'd had a truly awesome relleno. The first bite brought me back to the first time I had this. Little did I know at the time that it would be one of my very favorite things. It happened to be one of the first few rellenos I had eaten, how lucky was I? They relleno is stuffed with cheese. Lots of cheese, and that's it. No celery or other things that just don't belong in a relleno. Just good ole cheese. It's also topped with a different cheese sauce, it's fairly thin, has some spice to it, but it goes great with the relleno (and that enchilada got in on this sauce too).
The breading of their relleno is what I think sets it apart from most others. If I were comparing it, El Camino is comparable to the breading of fried chicken, but thinner. It's not really thick, but it is dense. Most other rellenos I try have a light batter coating, and you can taste all of the oil that gets sucked up by that light breading. I would love to figure out what this breading is, it really is the difference to me.
We enjoyed this trip to El Camino. The food was excellent, service was good, and the time we got to spend with our company was much needed and very nice. I'd come here again in a heartbeat. It won't be years before I'll be back here again.
Overall Rating: 93 (scale of 100)
Price $12.00
El Camino
225 South 87
Tulia, TX
I may have mentioned this before, but one of my life goals is to find the best chili relleno in all the land. El Camino is at the top of my list. It's been several years since I've eaten here, it was a nice suprise to get to come here.
We came here with my brother and his family, there were nine of us all together. We came after church, and got there a bit late (about 1:30). The parking lot was very full, but that was expected. We hoped that most of the folks would be getting finished as we came in. We walked inside, there was another group waiting in the entry, but there was enough room for us to sit down. We were told we'd wait about 25 minutes, so we obliged and continued to sit.
While sitting there, we saw a bunch of old friends walk out. It wasn't too long of a wait, and all of the boys were getting along fine, not fighting, everything was good. We finally get seated, they combined a couple of tables near the kitchen. The decor in El Camino is pretty unique. The dark brown walls are decorated with lots of Kenneth Wyatt paintings, and most (if not all) are for sale. Mr. Wyatt is a fantastic painter, his works really come to life and are great western pieces. His studio is in Tulia, if you can arrange a tour, it would be well worth your time to go look. I can guarantee you'll find something you really want.
Our waitress was very attentive, refilling drinks as needed. El Camino does something that is a little frustrating to me, but it's simply because I'm picky. On soft drinks, they provide the first refill free, you pay extra after that. As I said, it's not a big thing, but something to mention. Most kids will down the first one before their meal gets there, and you might have to pay extra for that.
Time to order -- I got the #2, my favorite, which has a chili relleno, beef enchilada and a crispy taco. I got beans and rice on the side (extra again). While we waited our main dish, I filled up on chips. Their chips are pretty normal (good, but nothing special). The hot sauce, on the other hand, was very good. It had a nice spice to it. Hot enough the kids didn't eat a lot of it...and my kids like hot stuff. I ate way too much of it, but it sure was good.
Our order arrives, fairly quickly. I knew the relleno would be good, so I saved it for last. I started with the beans, which were seasoned very nicely. They had a bit of spice to them, a bit peppery, but they were not bland, which was good. The rice looked heavily spiced, but it tasted normal too me. I don't know if the exceptional beans took away from above-average rice, or if the rice was just average.
On to the taco, it was good, but again, nothing special here. Topped with the regulars -- cheese, tomato and lettuce. I could taste the beef, but it didn't have anything stand out. It tasted under-seasoned. Still edible, no doubt. The enchilada was very good. I haven't had too many bad enchiladas, and this was right up there. The sauce was not overpowering, and the relleno sitting beside it was imparting some if it's cheese sauce to it's neighbor which was very good. I was getting full about half way through the enchilada (due to over-indulgence on the chips!)
Now, the part I'd been waiting for -- waiting for what seemed to be years. It had been years since I'd had a truly awesome relleno. The first bite brought me back to the first time I had this. Little did I know at the time that it would be one of my very favorite things. It happened to be one of the first few rellenos I had eaten, how lucky was I? They relleno is stuffed with cheese. Lots of cheese, and that's it. No celery or other things that just don't belong in a relleno. Just good ole cheese. It's also topped with a different cheese sauce, it's fairly thin, has some spice to it, but it goes great with the relleno (and that enchilada got in on this sauce too).
The breading of their relleno is what I think sets it apart from most others. If I were comparing it, El Camino is comparable to the breading of fried chicken, but thinner. It's not really thick, but it is dense. Most other rellenos I try have a light batter coating, and you can taste all of the oil that gets sucked up by that light breading. I would love to figure out what this breading is, it really is the difference to me.
We enjoyed this trip to El Camino. The food was excellent, service was good, and the time we got to spend with our company was much needed and very nice. I'd come here again in a heartbeat. It won't be years before I'll be back here again.
Overall Rating: 93 (scale of 100)
Price $12.00
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Skirt Steak With Cilantro Garlic Sauce
Tonight we had beek skirt steak on the menu, which normally means Fajita Salad or Beef Salad. We decided to try a new recipe we found on the internet for
Skirt Steak With Cilantro Garlic Sauce
- serves 6 -
Ingredients
For the sauce:
1 medium garlic clove
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
For the steak:
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 pounds skirt steak, cut to manageable grilling sizes (you may have to do batches)
Procedure
1. Combine the steak spices in a small bowl. Pat the steak dry so that the surface is tacky, then rub the spice mixture into both sides. Turn on the burner to high under the grill pan to get it heating.
2. Meanwhile, mince the garlic and mash to a paste with the salt (the flat edge of a chef’s knife works well for this). Transfer to a blender or mini food processor with the rest of the sauce ingredients, and blend until smooth.
3. Rub the grill pan with a bit of oil, and grill the steak about 5 minutes per side for a typical cut (medium rare). Once it’s cooked and rested, slice thinly and drizzle with the sauce.
On the web site for this recipe, they had a good picture that looked delicious. We thought this would be a sure-fire good recipe. So, we tried it.
I think I can sum up this review a lot quicker than normal. This recipe is TERRIBLE!!! Never make this. The rub on the meat was overloaded with cumin and salt. The sauce tasted like rancid olive oil. No, our olive oil isn't rancid, but adding cilantro and garlic to it sure made it taste bad. In fact, there is way too much olive oil in this recipe. I will never make this again...it has seriously scarred me. It could be one of the worst meals I've ever consumed. Lesson learned.
Overall Rating: 0 (scale of 100)
Price: Too much -- it wasn't worth a penny.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Johnny Carinos
Sunday Janda and I went to an old favorite....
Johnny Carinos
8400 I-40 West
Amarillo, TX (806) 468-9375
Sunday after church, we had to run a few errands in town, so we thought we might enjoy some alone time (the boys were staying with the grandparents), with a nice meal out. Being a Sunday, a lot of places that we'd like to try are usually closed. So -- we opted to dine at our old faithful...Johnny Carinos. The place in Amarillo is usually pretty well, although we've had a few bad experiences lately. Well, maybe not bad, but just disappointing.
It was nearly two o'clock when we arrived Sunday afternoon, and the place was still busy. I don't like sitting in the middle at a table because everyone is walking by, it's noisy, and I just like to eat my meal and enjoy my company in relative peace. We requested a booth, but they didn't have any available, so, guess what -- we're stuck in the middle. This time was a bit different, just being the two of us. We both sat on the inside of the table (not in the aisle), so we didn't have to worry about folks walking behind and hitting us. I know this may sound picky, but it just feels cramped in this area, not enjoyable in my opinion. We always ask for someplace NOT in that middle room, most of the time they are very accomodating.
When we placed our drink orders, we got salad as well. This time, they informed us that it would be 99 cents extra for the salad. I think the economy is catching up to their menu prices. Last time we were here, they didn't charge for salad, but they really skimped on serving sizes. I think I prefer an add-on charge for the salad over cheating me out of entrees, but that's just something that will happen, I suppose. We got Ceasar salad, one of our favorites. The last few times we've had the Ceasar salad here, the dressing tastes VERY fishy. It's easy to pick it out, it's a bit overpowering. I don't really mind it, but I think Janda does. It's the first thing she said after tking a bite. We've had a lot of ceasar salads at home, and it may be that there's such a contrast in dressings that makes the fish stand out. I know it's supposed to be in there, I just think it should be a supporting player, not the main event.
Janda's favorite dish here is the Angel Hair with Artichokes (pictured above). It's angel hair Ben's Overall Rating: 88 (scale of 100)
Price $15.00
Janda's Overall Rating: 85 (scale of 100)
Price $13.00
Johnny Carinos
8400 I-40 West
Amarillo, TX (806) 468-9375
Sunday after church, we had to run a few errands in town, so we thought we might enjoy some alone time (the boys were staying with the grandparents), with a nice meal out. Being a Sunday, a lot of places that we'd like to try are usually closed. So -- we opted to dine at our old faithful...Johnny Carinos. The place in Amarillo is usually pretty well, although we've had a few bad experiences lately. Well, maybe not bad, but just disappointing.It was nearly two o'clock when we arrived Sunday afternoon, and the place was still busy. I don't like sitting in the middle at a table because everyone is walking by, it's noisy, and I just like to eat my meal and enjoy my company in relative peace. We requested a booth, but they didn't have any available, so, guess what -- we're stuck in the middle. This time was a bit different, just being the two of us. We both sat on the inside of the table (not in the aisle), so we didn't have to worry about folks walking behind and hitting us. I know this may sound picky, but it just feels cramped in this area, not enjoyable in my opinion. We always ask for someplace NOT in that middle room, most of the time they are very accomodating.
When we placed our drink orders, we got salad as well. This time, they informed us that it would be 99 cents extra for the salad. I think the economy is catching up to their menu prices. Last time we were here, they didn't charge for salad, but they really skimped on serving sizes. I think I prefer an add-on charge for the salad over cheating me out of entrees, but that's just something that will happen, I suppose. We got Ceasar salad, one of our favorites. The last few times we've had the Ceasar salad here, the dressing tastes VERY fishy. It's easy to pick it out, it's a bit overpowering. I don't really mind it, but I think Janda does. It's the first thing she said after tking a bite. We've had a lot of ceasar salads at home, and it may be that there's such a contrast in dressings that makes the fish stand out. I know it's supposed to be in there, I just think it should be a supporting player, not the main event.
Janda's favorite dish here is the Angel Hair with Artichokes (pictured above). It's angel hair Ben's Overall Rating: 88 (scale of 100)
Price $15.00
Janda's Overall Rating: 85 (scale of 100)
Price $13.00
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Yam Nua -- Beef Salad UPDATE
A lot of times, we'll try a recipe and not be completely satisfied with it. Such is the case with our previous beef salad recipe. While it's pretty good, I was never really satisfied with it. It just seemed to be too...something. I think it was too sour for my tastes, although Janda likes sour things, so she really liked it.
After a brief search on the internet, I had some new ideas to try. Armed with pen and paper, I started out making lunch with the intentions of making a new sauce for this beef salad. Here's what I've come up with.
Beef Salad
1/3 C fish sauce
1/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C lemon juice
1/4 C Rice vinegar
1 t basil
1/2 t mint
1/3 C water
1/2 t ground dried hot chilies
1/8 t ground ginger
2 lbs beef skirt steak
I started marinating the skirt steak in Red Creek marinade. I try to do this at room temperature, and let it go for about 30 minutes. While it was marinating, I mixed the sauce ingredients above in a large skillet, whisking to combine. I started heating the sauce on low heat, just to get it warm, mixing occasionally.
I broil my skirt steak on HI, five minutes per side. In our oven, I put the steak on a cast iron griddle, with the oven rack as close to the top of the oven as possible. Just five minutes per side will get the steak up to about a medium-rare, depending on how thick your steak is. Don't worry about getting it too done, we'll finish it off later.
When the steak is finished broiling, take it from the oven and slice into bite sized pieces. Normally, I split the steak lengthwise, then cut into half-inch strips. Place the sliced steak into the skillet with the sauce mixture, and bring up to a simmer. This can cook for a while, let it continue to warm as you assemble the salad.
As with our previous recipe, take regular rice and salad -- including cucumber, tomato, onion, or whatever else you'd like.
I really liked this recipe a lot more than our other one. It wasn't too sour, and the spice was a bit more than the previous method. Something else I should mention -- a lot of these ingredients, especially the fish sauce and soy sauce, differ in intensity between brands, but also between bottles of the same brand. It isn't like sugar where one tablespoon always has the same sweetness as another brand. What I do is start here, and adjust accordingly. My fish sauce is pretty strong, so I had to add the water to tone it down a bit. It just takes some tasting to get an idea of how much of each ingredient will make your recipe shine. That's part of the fun of cooking, I think. Don't you think?
Overall Rating: 86 (scale of 100)
Price $1.00 per serving
After a brief search on the internet, I had some new ideas to try. Armed with pen and paper, I started out making lunch with the intentions of making a new sauce for this beef salad. Here's what I've come up with.
Beef Salad
1/3 C fish sauce
1/4 C soy sauce
1/4 C lemon juice
1/4 C Rice vinegar
1 t basil
1/2 t mint
1/3 C water
1/2 t ground dried hot chilies
1/8 t ground ginger
2 lbs beef skirt steak
I started marinating the skirt steak in Red Creek marinade. I try to do this at room temperature, and let it go for about 30 minutes. While it was marinating, I mixed the sauce ingredients above in a large skillet, whisking to combine. I started heating the sauce on low heat, just to get it warm, mixing occasionally.
I broil my skirt steak on HI, five minutes per side. In our oven, I put the steak on a cast iron griddle, with the oven rack as close to the top of the oven as possible. Just five minutes per side will get the steak up to about a medium-rare, depending on how thick your steak is. Don't worry about getting it too done, we'll finish it off later.
When the steak is finished broiling, take it from the oven and slice into bite sized pieces. Normally, I split the steak lengthwise, then cut into half-inch strips. Place the sliced steak into the skillet with the sauce mixture, and bring up to a simmer. This can cook for a while, let it continue to warm as you assemble the salad.
As with our previous recipe, take regular rice and salad -- including cucumber, tomato, onion, or whatever else you'd like.
I really liked this recipe a lot more than our other one. It wasn't too sour, and the spice was a bit more than the previous method. Something else I should mention -- a lot of these ingredients, especially the fish sauce and soy sauce, differ in intensity between brands, but also between bottles of the same brand. It isn't like sugar where one tablespoon always has the same sweetness as another brand. What I do is start here, and adjust accordingly. My fish sauce is pretty strong, so I had to add the water to tone it down a bit. It just takes some tasting to get an idea of how much of each ingredient will make your recipe shine. That's part of the fun of cooking, I think. Don't you think?
Overall Rating: 86 (scale of 100)
Price $1.00 per serving
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Aldaco's Tacos
Today I went to a new place I've never tried before -- Aldaco's Tacos.
Aldaco's Tacos
3623 West 6th Avenue
Amarillo, TX (806) 374-4945
Aldaco's is a small hole-in-the-wall place on 6th street (Route 66). It's got just a few booths and a handful of tables. It's got some pretty funky decorations, from road signs to paper money taped to the fluorescent lights (which were off at lunchtime). They have a soundboard in the corner, and their menu advertises live music on the weekend.
I got water and the waitress (on her first day on the job) brought out my drink and some chips. These chips were those ones that are really thick (as far as chips go). They were alright, but I much prefer thin chips. Just a personal preference, I guess, but I like the crunch of a thin chip, and Aldaco's didn't do that for me. The hot sauce was good, it was home-made for sure. With large chucks of onion floating aroundin the thin sauce, it was tasty. It was not hot at all, but did have good flavor.
I decided to go with the Aldaco's Plate, which comes with a cheese enchilada, a beef taco, and a beef relleno. If you know me well enough, you know that if I go to a Mexican restaurant, I'll try the relleno to try to find the "Worlds Best". I'm still on the hunt, so I keep trying. So far, the best relleno I've had (the two best as a matter of fact), are down in Tulia. Tied for the best relleno is El Camino, the older, more famous Tulia mexican place, and the newer kid in town, El Burrito.
The kitchen is small, but my food was served quickly and smoking hot. The beans were so hot they nearly scalded my mouth. The plate looked skimpy -- a large plate with the relleno crunched to one side, the taco along side that, and the enchilada all alone on the other side of the plate. The beans took up most of the plate, nearly half! Rice & lettuce filled the holes between the enchilada and the taco. As usual, I started with the beans. They were fine, nothing bad, but nothing notable, either. Rice was normal, nothing special.
Moving on the the enchilada brought a bit more character, though. It was quite good, tasting more like a "homemade" enchilada than most restaurants provide. I'm not sure if the sauce is homemade, but it has a nice zip to it, and to be honest, I think it's from CANNED enchilada sauce. I guess I just like it that way, though. It had a reasonable amount of cheese in it.
Next, I tackled the taco. It's their namesake, so I hoped it was good. The beed was not seasoned much, if at all. The taco did have a lot of meat, and was topped with plenty of lettuce, tomatoes and cheese, but the blandness of the beef consumed any other flavor that might have been there. Their taco shells were the same variety as the chips, being quite thick. It worked well in the taco, because all of the "juice" from the taco didn't loosen up the shell as much as you'd expect.
Finally, it was relleno time. I took a bit of the little end, and got a taste of the batter by itself. It tastes like overcooked egg in too much grease. Not a good taste by any means. As I moved up the pepper, I got to taste the chili itself, and it was ok, but the batter still overpowered the slight pepper flavor you expect to taste. Towards the top of the relleno, I ran into the meat stuffing, which was just the same unseasoned meat that was used in the taco. I did get some seeds mixed in, but it wasn't enough seasoning for my taste to make a recovery.
Overall, I thought the enchilada was the best part of the dish, with it being just about average, maybe a bit above. The rest of the meal was disappointingly bad, not what you expect to find in a small local place. If I ever go back, I'll try their fajitas or something very different than what I got today.
Overall Rating: 25 (scale of 100)
Price $8.95 ($12 with tax & tip)
Aldaco's Tacos
3623 West 6th Avenue
Amarillo, TX (806) 374-4945
Aldaco's is a small hole-in-the-wall place on 6th street (Route 66). It's got just a few booths and a handful of tables. It's got some pretty funky decorations, from road signs to paper money taped to the fluorescent lights (which were off at lunchtime). They have a soundboard in the corner, and their menu advertises live music on the weekend.
I got water and the waitress (on her first day on the job) brought out my drink and some chips. These chips were those ones that are really thick (as far as chips go). They were alright, but I much prefer thin chips. Just a personal preference, I guess, but I like the crunch of a thin chip, and Aldaco's didn't do that for me. The hot sauce was good, it was home-made for sure. With large chucks of onion floating aroundin the thin sauce, it was tasty. It was not hot at all, but did have good flavor.
I decided to go with the Aldaco's Plate, which comes with a cheese enchilada, a beef taco, and a beef relleno. If you know me well enough, you know that if I go to a Mexican restaurant, I'll try the relleno to try to find the "Worlds Best". I'm still on the hunt, so I keep trying. So far, the best relleno I've had (the two best as a matter of fact), are down in Tulia. Tied for the best relleno is El Camino, the older, more famous Tulia mexican place, and the newer kid in town, El Burrito.
The kitchen is small, but my food was served quickly and smoking hot. The beans were so hot they nearly scalded my mouth. The plate looked skimpy -- a large plate with the relleno crunched to one side, the taco along side that, and the enchilada all alone on the other side of the plate. The beans took up most of the plate, nearly half! Rice & lettuce filled the holes between the enchilada and the taco. As usual, I started with the beans. They were fine, nothing bad, but nothing notable, either. Rice was normal, nothing special.
Moving on the the enchilada brought a bit more character, though. It was quite good, tasting more like a "homemade" enchilada than most restaurants provide. I'm not sure if the sauce is homemade, but it has a nice zip to it, and to be honest, I think it's from CANNED enchilada sauce. I guess I just like it that way, though. It had a reasonable amount of cheese in it.
Next, I tackled the taco. It's their namesake, so I hoped it was good. The beed was not seasoned much, if at all. The taco did have a lot of meat, and was topped with plenty of lettuce, tomatoes and cheese, but the blandness of the beef consumed any other flavor that might have been there. Their taco shells were the same variety as the chips, being quite thick. It worked well in the taco, because all of the "juice" from the taco didn't loosen up the shell as much as you'd expect.
Finally, it was relleno time. I took a bit of the little end, and got a taste of the batter by itself. It tastes like overcooked egg in too much grease. Not a good taste by any means. As I moved up the pepper, I got to taste the chili itself, and it was ok, but the batter still overpowered the slight pepper flavor you expect to taste. Towards the top of the relleno, I ran into the meat stuffing, which was just the same unseasoned meat that was used in the taco. I did get some seeds mixed in, but it wasn't enough seasoning for my taste to make a recovery.
Overall, I thought the enchilada was the best part of the dish, with it being just about average, maybe a bit above. The rest of the meal was disappointingly bad, not what you expect to find in a small local place. If I ever go back, I'll try their fajitas or something very different than what I got today.
Overall Rating: 25 (scale of 100)
Price $8.95 ($12 with tax & tip)
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Pepito's - Shrimp Enchiladas
For today's review, I'm checking out a new place. Pepitos started out in Canyon, on 23rd Street. I've eaten at that location only a handful of times, and it's been probably at least 10 years since I've eaten there. They opened this new place in Amarillo within the last few years.
Pepitos Mexican Restaurant
2909 W Interstate 40
Amarillo, Texas
(806) 356-8244
As I normally do, I walked in after the big noon rush, arriving about 1:30. The large dining room was almost empty. I was seated at a booth, and the waiter took my drink order and brought a big bowl of chips and salsa. As I looked over the menu, I tried their salsa, which was pretty good. Most places give you "tomato sauce"...which only resembles real hot sauce in color. I like some spice in it, don't you? They also had shakers of seasoning salt on the table, something I've grown to like a lot.
The menu is rather large, it took me a few minutes to decide on what I wanted to eat. They have daily lunch specials that are different each day. Today, they had three tacos for $4.99, or taco salad for $5.99. I'd thought about getting the taco salad, but I'd had big salads the last few nights and was ready for something else. I found Shrimp Enchiladas. Never heard of that before. The description indicated it was their grilled shrimp, stuffed inside and enchilada, and covered with their sour-cream sauce. You get three of them, plus beans & rice, for $9.99.
My booth was near the front door, where they have a large waterfall. There was a big concrete barrier between me and the water, but it was still pretty loud. The floor is brick, so there is lots of "hard" space to bounce sound around. I can imagine it being hard to hear your company when the place is really busy. I was talking on the phone to Janda, and it was difficult for her to hear me over the water & the "elevator music". They've also got a little bar, surrounded by a few flat-screen TV's for watching the game. The booth had a wall-sconce for lighting, giving off a nice glow around the eating area, but leaving it fairly dim everywhere else.
The food was served very fast, taking just seven minutes from the time I ordered. The enchiladas were presented to the left of the plate, topped by slices of avacado. To the right was beans and rice, and both were portioned generously. I tried the rice first, it was your regular restaurant spanish rice. To me, it's pretty bland and doesn't have any real flavors. The beans first bite of beans was surprising, it had a smoky character that was really nice. After the initial taste, however, the unique flavor I got was gone, and I was left with normal old beans.
Next, I tackled the enchiladas. I cut into the first one, and the shrimp popped out and onto my plate. What an opportunity to sample the shrimp all by its lonesome. It wasn't overcooked and rubbery, but didn't taste like it was grilled at all. In fact, it tasted like it was simply boiled in water, without spices. Don't get me wrong, I like shrimp, even plain, but I was expecting the smoky grilled flavor to really pop out in the shrimp, and it didn't come through. Periodically through the meal, I would pull a piece out and examine it for those tell-tale grill marks, but never did find any.
Still, this was a really good dish. The avacado was a nice compliment for the cheese and shrimp. I enjoyed the uniqueness of the shrimp instead of plain ole chicken or beef. I think this had a lot of potential, but wasn't truly captured today. The non-lunch menu is a bit on the high side for an everyday visit place, I like to go places where I can eat for under $10 a meal. If you stick with the lunch special, it would be easy to do, but your options are severly limited. The portions are large enough to warrant the price tag, so you're not going to feel cheated by the amount of food you get for your money.
Overall Rating: 81 (scale of 100)
Price $10 ($13 with tax & tip)
Pepitos Mexican Restaurant
2909 W Interstate 40
Amarillo, Texas
(806) 356-8244
As I normally do, I walked in after the big noon rush, arriving about 1:30. The large dining room was almost empty. I was seated at a booth, and the waiter took my drink order and brought a big bowl of chips and salsa. As I looked over the menu, I tried their salsa, which was pretty good. Most places give you "tomato sauce"...which only resembles real hot sauce in color. I like some spice in it, don't you? They also had shakers of seasoning salt on the table, something I've grown to like a lot.
The menu is rather large, it took me a few minutes to decide on what I wanted to eat. They have daily lunch specials that are different each day. Today, they had three tacos for $4.99, or taco salad for $5.99. I'd thought about getting the taco salad, but I'd had big salads the last few nights and was ready for something else. I found Shrimp Enchiladas. Never heard of that before. The description indicated it was their grilled shrimp, stuffed inside and enchilada, and covered with their sour-cream sauce. You get three of them, plus beans & rice, for $9.99.
My booth was near the front door, where they have a large waterfall. There was a big concrete barrier between me and the water, but it was still pretty loud. The floor is brick, so there is lots of "hard" space to bounce sound around. I can imagine it being hard to hear your company when the place is really busy. I was talking on the phone to Janda, and it was difficult for her to hear me over the water & the "elevator music". They've also got a little bar, surrounded by a few flat-screen TV's for watching the game. The booth had a wall-sconce for lighting, giving off a nice glow around the eating area, but leaving it fairly dim everywhere else.
The food was served very fast, taking just seven minutes from the time I ordered. The enchiladas were presented to the left of the plate, topped by slices of avacado. To the right was beans and rice, and both were portioned generously. I tried the rice first, it was your regular restaurant spanish rice. To me, it's pretty bland and doesn't have any real flavors. The beans first bite of beans was surprising, it had a smoky character that was really nice. After the initial taste, however, the unique flavor I got was gone, and I was left with normal old beans.
Next, I tackled the enchiladas. I cut into the first one, and the shrimp popped out and onto my plate. What an opportunity to sample the shrimp all by its lonesome. It wasn't overcooked and rubbery, but didn't taste like it was grilled at all. In fact, it tasted like it was simply boiled in water, without spices. Don't get me wrong, I like shrimp, even plain, but I was expecting the smoky grilled flavor to really pop out in the shrimp, and it didn't come through. Periodically through the meal, I would pull a piece out and examine it for those tell-tale grill marks, but never did find any.
Still, this was a really good dish. The avacado was a nice compliment for the cheese and shrimp. I enjoyed the uniqueness of the shrimp instead of plain ole chicken or beef. I think this had a lot of potential, but wasn't truly captured today. The non-lunch menu is a bit on the high side for an everyday visit place, I like to go places where I can eat for under $10 a meal. If you stick with the lunch special, it would be easy to do, but your options are severly limited. The portions are large enough to warrant the price tag, so you're not going to feel cheated by the amount of food you get for your money.
Overall Rating: 81 (scale of 100)
Price $10 ($13 with tax & tip)
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Fajita Salad
Another one of our new diet dishes if beef fajita salad. We usually use up the rest of our skirt steak on this recipe. It's easy to fix as well. Starting with lettuce, we top it with tomatoes, onions, refried beans, meat, cheese, and bell peppers. Finish with hot sauce, sour cream, and guacamole. The nice thing about this dish is that everyone gets to make it just like they want it. Kids don't like onions? No problem....leave them off of their plates. Like lots of sour cream? Pile it on!We usually marinate our beef to Red Creek all-purpose marinade. It's quick and good. Just throw it in a ziplock bag, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. This time, we tried Claudes Fajita seasoning. The taste of this marinade was similar to Red Creek, but there was a noticeable difference. We did marinate the meat today overnight, so I'm not sure if that made a big difference, but I liked the change of pace the Claudes offered. We'll try Claudes again next time, then go back with Red Creek, but use a longer marinating time to see the effect.
Overall Rating: 83 (scale of 100)
Price $1.50 per serving
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Beef Salad
Continuing the Thai theme today, we're having Beef Salad. In restaurants, this is usually called "Yam Nua". We've enjoyed beef salad at a few restaurants, and have found a recipe that we like very much. It seems to be our favorite, even over the restaurant versions made by the pros.
Beef salad is a regular green salad -- usually iceberg lettuce -- with tomatoes, onions, meat (beef skirt steak in this case), served over rice with a spicy, tangy dressing. The best way to describe the way that this dish tastes is that you have four "feelings" happening in your mouth at the same time. You've got the saltiness from the fish sauce, the tangy tart zip from the lime juice, a sweet taste from ginger, and spicy hotness from the chili paste. The combination of these flavors is crucial to the dish, as it is in most Thai dishes. If you overload on any one sensation, your tastebuds will suffer.
Here's our recipe:
Beef Salad
Salad
Beef, we use skirt steak, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds.
Broil the steak, seasoning with salt & pepper.
Start rice cooking.
Cut up your lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers. Keep in separate bowls so each diner can choose how much of each item they want.
Mix the sauce together. I usually put the ginger in first, then all of the wet ingredients, then the garlic & onions. Whisk together to combine.
Slice the beef into small strips.
Assembling the dish
Start each serving by placing some lettuce in the bowl. Add tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers around the edge. A neat trick is to alternate the tomatoes & cucumbers, this makes a really nice presentation. Next, add pieces of beef, and follow by sprinkling rice over the lettuce, and finish by adding a helping of dressing.
This recipe keeps well in the refrigerator, keeping the ingredients separate. This keeps the lettuce from wilting, and if you prefer the meat warm, you can re-heat it before serving.
Overall Rating: 70 (scale of 100)
Price $1.75 per serving
Beef salad is a regular green salad -- usually iceberg lettuce -- with tomatoes, onions, meat (beef skirt steak in this case), served over rice with a spicy, tangy dressing. The best way to describe the way that this dish tastes is that you have four "feelings" happening in your mouth at the same time. You've got the saltiness from the fish sauce, the tangy tart zip from the lime juice, a sweet taste from ginger, and spicy hotness from the chili paste. The combination of these flavors is crucial to the dish, as it is in most Thai dishes. If you overload on any one sensation, your tastebuds will suffer.
Here's our recipe:
Beef Salad
Salad
- Green Leaf Lettuce
- 1 cucumber, sliced
- Sliced Tomatoes (1/2 per person)
- 1 Onion, sliced (Red or white)
- 3 T fish sauce
- 3 T lime juice (lemon is fine, too)
- 1 T soy sauce
- 1 T water
- 3 T minced garlic
- 1 t ginger
- 1/4 c green onions
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 T chili paste
Beef, we use skirt steak, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds.
Broil the steak, seasoning with salt & pepper.
Start rice cooking.
Cut up your lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers. Keep in separate bowls so each diner can choose how much of each item they want.
Mix the sauce together. I usually put the ginger in first, then all of the wet ingredients, then the garlic & onions. Whisk together to combine.
Slice the beef into small strips.
Assembling the dish
Start each serving by placing some lettuce in the bowl. Add tomatoes, onions, and cucumbers around the edge. A neat trick is to alternate the tomatoes & cucumbers, this makes a really nice presentation. Next, add pieces of beef, and follow by sprinkling rice over the lettuce, and finish by adding a helping of dressing.
This recipe keeps well in the refrigerator, keeping the ingredients separate. This keeps the lettuce from wilting, and if you prefer the meat warm, you can re-heat it before serving.
Overall Rating: 70 (scale of 100)
Price $1.75 per serving
Bangkok-Tokyo: Spicy Peanut Chicken
To start off this blog, I thought I'd try a new dish at an old favorite restaurant.
Bangkok-Tokyo
2413 S Western St
Amarillo, TX 79109 (806) 353-4777
I came into Bangkok today for lunch. It was about 12:45, and the dining room was nearly empty. This place seats 36 when full, but I was one of about 6 folks eating at the time. My waitress was courteous and quick, getting my drink order within a minute of taking my seat. Of course I got water. As I looked over the menu, I was trying to find something that suited my mood today and was also something new. I've had the beef and seafood salad here, as well as pad thai and a few other things. So far, my favorite by far has been the seafood salad.
I settled on the "Spicy Peanut Chicken". The menu says this is a spicy dish (which I always like), with chicken, onions, bell peppers in a spicy peanut sauce. From the description, I'm thinking creamy peanut sauce, like you might find with some appetizers. I place my order, with steamed rice.
Bangkok is a pretty small little restaurant. The tables are fairly small, with most of the seating reserved to 2-person tables. They do have two big tables, each seating 8. My table was clean, the walls look a bit dingy, but not dirty enough to alarm me. The chairs here are comfortable, though I usually don't have to sit in them for extended periods of time. After a short wait of about ten minutes, my food arrives.
Upon first glance, I thought, "Wow, this is gonna be GOOD!". Presentation was wonderful. The green bell peppers contrasted well with the fire-red peppers. Onions and chicken filled the plate. I noticed the "peanut sauce" didn't look very peanuty. I did pick out some peanuts, but it didn't appear that the sauce was made with them.
I dumped my bowl of rice onto the spicy chicken, and mixed it around to get thoroughly coated. As I began to eat, the first thing that hit my palette was salt. This was a very salty dish, I think the sauce has way too much soy sauce. I'm not a fan of soy sauce, either. I think it's a fine ingredient, but think it should help build a sauce, not provide the backbone for it.
Besides the high sodium feel I'm getting, it's decent. I would figure it would be a bit more "spicy"....it's part of the name, after all. The only time I feel the slightest bit of heat is when I start chewing on one of the whole red-peppers. Most of the peppers themselves weren't hot, but one I got near the end gave a little bit of tongue-tickle.
While this wasn't a bad meal, I probably wouldn't order it again, opting to choose something else from the menu. The soy sauce was way too overpowering for me, taking away lots of flavor from the dish. I couldn't taste any of the peanuts, it just tasted like stir-fried chicken and was pretty bland.
Overall Rating: 42 (scale of 100)
Price $7.50 ($11 with tax & tip)
Bangkok-Tokyo
2413 S Western St
Amarillo, TX 79109 (806) 353-4777
I came into Bangkok today for lunch. It was about 12:45, and the dining room was nearly empty. This place seats 36 when full, but I was one of about 6 folks eating at the time. My waitress was courteous and quick, getting my drink order within a minute of taking my seat. Of course I got water. As I looked over the menu, I was trying to find something that suited my mood today and was also something new. I've had the beef and seafood salad here, as well as pad thai and a few other things. So far, my favorite by far has been the seafood salad.
I settled on the "Spicy Peanut Chicken". The menu says this is a spicy dish (which I always like), with chicken, onions, bell peppers in a spicy peanut sauce. From the description, I'm thinking creamy peanut sauce, like you might find with some appetizers. I place my order, with steamed rice.
Bangkok is a pretty small little restaurant. The tables are fairly small, with most of the seating reserved to 2-person tables. They do have two big tables, each seating 8. My table was clean, the walls look a bit dingy, but not dirty enough to alarm me. The chairs here are comfortable, though I usually don't have to sit in them for extended periods of time. After a short wait of about ten minutes, my food arrives.
Upon first glance, I thought, "Wow, this is gonna be GOOD!". Presentation was wonderful. The green bell peppers contrasted well with the fire-red peppers. Onions and chicken filled the plate. I noticed the "peanut sauce" didn't look very peanuty. I did pick out some peanuts, but it didn't appear that the sauce was made with them.
I dumped my bowl of rice onto the spicy chicken, and mixed it around to get thoroughly coated. As I began to eat, the first thing that hit my palette was salt. This was a very salty dish, I think the sauce has way too much soy sauce. I'm not a fan of soy sauce, either. I think it's a fine ingredient, but think it should help build a sauce, not provide the backbone for it.
Besides the high sodium feel I'm getting, it's decent. I would figure it would be a bit more "spicy"....it's part of the name, after all. The only time I feel the slightest bit of heat is when I start chewing on one of the whole red-peppers. Most of the peppers themselves weren't hot, but one I got near the end gave a little bit of tongue-tickle.
While this wasn't a bad meal, I probably wouldn't order it again, opting to choose something else from the menu. The soy sauce was way too overpowering for me, taking away lots of flavor from the dish. I couldn't taste any of the peanuts, it just tasted like stir-fried chicken and was pretty bland.
Overall Rating: 42 (scale of 100)
Price $7.50 ($11 with tax & tip)
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