Tangy Thai Cucumber Relish

For the last 5 years we've lived in condos and apartments, so when we moved into a house this past year I was excited to finally have a yard where we can have a garden again. We went to the farmers market early in the season to buy herbs and vegetables to plant. One of the vegetables I was excited to grow was zucchini, I grew it a few years back and was rewarded with more zucchini than I could handle.

As the plants began to grow my anticipation also grew. Finally one day I saw a baby zucchini growing. A few days later it was ready to pick! I brought it in the house put it in on the cutting board and...wait a minute, what the... this is a cucumber! So instead of six zucchini plants I have six cucumber plants, they must have been mislabeled at the farmer's market. Don't get me wrong, I like cucumbers, but just not as much as I like the versatile zucchini. An when is the last time you cooked a cucumber?

So now I have 6 cucumber vines producing an average of 6-10 cucumbers a week, I needed recipes! I was thinking about making gazpacho, which would be great, but how much gazpacho could one family eat before revolting? Thankfully my friend Robin came through with a great recipe for Tangy Thai Cucumber Relish. This sweet and sour tasting relish is a great compliment for most Thai dishes. I served it with red curry chicken, the cool sweetness provided a great contrast for the hot spiciness of the curry dish. This recipe also makes a great cool side dish for just about any summer meal.

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Tangy Thai Cucumber Relish

1/2 cup white vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup white sugar
1 tsp. salt
2-4 (depending on the size ) cucumbers -about 1 lb.
3 Tbsp. thinly sliced shallots
1 carrot, sliced into thin rounds
2 tsp. thinly sliced fresh hot red or green chilies, seeds removed
3 tsp chopped Thai basil

• In a medium saucepan, combine the vinegar, water, sugar and salt, Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the sugar and salt dissolve, 3-4 minutes
• Remove from heat and let the dressing cool to room temperature.

• Peel cucumbers (optional)and cut them lengthwise into 4 long strips. Slice each strip crosswise into small triangles; you should have about 3 cups
• Place in a bowl, toss with chopped shallots, carrots and chilies and pour the cooled dressing over the mixture
• Cover and refrigerate, serve cold, best after 24 hours

Tangy Thai Cucumber Relish

Ginger Lemon Chicken

I've been playing with variations of this recipe on and off and finally found the right combination of flavors. This dish is Thai inspired, except that instead of using lemon grass, (which I can't find locally) I've used lemon, which isn't as subtle, but merges well with the ginger to give this dish a light citrisy taste which is characteristic of Southeast Asian cuisine.
This recipe calls for a peeled and julienned broccoli stalk, which some may find unusual. When I first started cooking I would cut off the florets and throw out the rest, but then I learned that the stem not only has nutritional value, but also provides a great taste and texture when prepared correctly. I recommend cutting off off the florets and save them for another dish, then peeling off the tough exterior of the stalk and slicing the rest into thin julienned (also called a matchstick) slices.
I've served this dish as a light lunch over a bed of lettuce and some fresh vegetables, and over basmati rice for dinner.


Ginger Lemon Chicken
serves 2-4

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast half's
Salt and pepper to taste
@2 tsp powdered ginger
1 lemon, cut into quarters

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion - chopped
@2 inch piece of fresh ginger root, julienned
3 cloves garlic- minced
1 Thai chile pepper or jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp fish sauce
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
1 broccoli stalk, peeled and julienned
sprig of fresh basil, or parsley (optional)

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• Place the chicken breast in a bowl, sprinkle it on all sides with salt pepper and the ginger powder, then squeeze the juice from one quarter of the lemon over it, place in a bowl, cover and refrigrate for at least 30 minutes (an hour or more of marinade time is preferable)
• Heat a large frying pan to medium high heat with the vegatable oil
• Saute the chicken breast in the hot frying pan, for about two minutes on each side, remove the chicken to a plate or cutting board and cut the chicken into bite sized pieces, set aside
• Using the same hot frying pan, drop in the onions and saute until translucent
• Next stir in the ginger, garlic and chile pepper
• Squeeze in one half of the lemon, taking care not to get any seeds in the pan (try squeezing over a fork)
• Next mix in the chicken broth, sugar and fish sauce (warning: the fish sauce may smell a bit strong at first, but don't worry it won't taste nearly that strong once it cooks a bit blends with the other flavors)
• Let this mixture heat up for a few minutes to almost boiling, then add the chicken (that we set a side earlier), broccoli and carrots, mixing all together well
• Continue cooking on medium high heat until the chicken is cooked through, stirring frequently
• Serve over rice or a bed of lettuce, squeeze the remaining lemon over top, garnish with chopped fresh basil, or parsley (optional), enjoy!

Ginger Lemon Chicken

Ground Chicken with Basil

I Love Thai Food! After my first few times experiencing the fresh, spicy and intense flavors of Thai cuisine I couldn't understand why anyone would want to settle for typical Chinese food. If I remember correctly ground chicken with basil is the very first Thai dish I ever tasted. Back in the mid-nineties a co-worker was raving about a little Thai restaurant in Greensboro, NC. She would go every Wednesday to get the ground chicken basil lunch special. Finally I went and tried it and I was instantly hooked.

Cooking Thai food at home is not very difficult, but you have to have the right ingredients. Fortunately, Thai cuisine is one of those traditions that doesn't use wheat, except for in the soy sauce that is used occasionally. One of the reasons that Thai food tastes so fresh is because of an emphasis on fresh ingredients. Another characteristic of Thai food is that it is often cooked quickly at high heat. Typically it is not something you can walk away from while your cooking.

This recipe calls for ground chicken, I actually used whole chicken breast and chopped it into tiny pieces. Thai holy basil (bai gka-prow), is also called for in this recipe, but it is somewhat obscure and especially hard to find in winter time, so feel free to use whatever fresh basil you can find and this dish will still come out tasting fabulous.


Ground Chicken with Basil
Serves 2

2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 lb. boneless, skinless chicken- ground (or chopped small)
1/2 cup chopped Thai chili peppers-seeds and stem removed (other hot peppers can be substituted)
2 cloves garlic- minced
@ 1 cup of loosely packed fresh Thai holy basil, chopped (or fresh sweet basil)
3 Tbsp fish sauce
2 Tsp palm sugar, (or 1 Tbsp granulated white sugar)

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• Heat a frying pan to medium-high heat, add vegetable oil
• Stir the garlic and peppers together in the hot pan, cook until garlic begins to brown.
• Mix in the chicken and continue to stir non-stop for about 3-5 minutes, until all of the moisture from the chicken is evaporated.
• Stir in the Fish sauce and sugar, and basil.
• Mix all together well and remove from heat.
• Serve over rice, enjoy!

Ground Chicken with Basil