Cooking with Beer Challenge Update II

I promise not to turn this post into a Sir Bowie & Lucy Saunders cooking with beer blog…

But I have to add one more immediate update to yesterday’s update (update squared?).

I wrote Lucy Saunders at BeerCook.com to basically give her a beer-head’s up to what I was doing (sort of asking her permission to steal images and recipes from her website).

Lucy Saunders is the culinary craft beer commentator on Milwaukee's NPR affiliate, WUWM "Good Fermenetations". She's also the author of five cookbooks, including Cooking with Beer (1996) Grilling with Beer (2006), and The Best of American Beer and Food (2007).

The last thing I expected was for her to take the time out of her busy schedule (I assume that it’s busy) and comment. In case you missed it yesterday:

Lucybeercook said...
Thanks so much - I'm truly honored! And I'm a bit envious of your big Green Egg - have always wanted to cook on one of those since seeing one in action at the Ohio Brew Week festival of BBQ.

I'm very proud and happy about your noble endeavor - did you know that I catered a Medieval Feast in college instead of writing a final paper for my Middle English class? We ate off bread trenchers (bread dough baked over an inverted pie plate - made 80 of them)

Your project has inspired me to update the site with more recipes from the archives, cheers, Lucy
September 10, 2009 8:56 AM


Now for The Challenge Update II (no, I didn’t grill Sox the cat… yet):
What to make with leftover chicken?

Caribbean Fried Rice
prep time : 30 minutes to one hour
recipe type: side dishes and grains
ingredients: 3 tablespoons peanut or corn oil
1 lb. chicken breast, chopped into 1-in. chunks
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 green scallion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 sprig fresh thyme, finely chopped
1 Scotch bonnet chile, seeded and minced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and minced
1/2 green bell pepper, seeded and minced
3 celery stalks with leaves, chopped
1/2 teaspoon tomato paste
1/2 cup cooked green beans
2 carrots, peeled, cooked and diced
3 oz. light lager blended with 1 egg
4 cups cooked rice
Salt and pepper to taste

Place oil in a large wok set over medium heat and fry chicken until white and cooked. Add onions, garlic, thyme, peppers, chile, celery leaves and cook until onions are soft, about 5 minutes, stirring often, over medium heat. Add tomato puree, beans and carrots, and reducing heat to low, cook 3 minutes. Add rice, stir to blend, and using the spoon, push the rice up the sides of the wok, clearing a space nearest the heat. Pour in the egg and lager mixture into the well, and cook egg until just beginning to scramble, then blend in rice and heat through. Serve hot.


Then, what to do with MORE leftover chicken and now fried rice?

Orange Apricot Ale Sauce
Lucy Saunders

prep time : Less than 30 minutes
recipe type: BBQ, mops and marinades
ingredients: 1 cup sweet Vidalia onion, peeled and minced
1 cup dried apricots, chopped (use an oiled knife blade so they don’t stick)
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
12 oz. light lager
¼ cup cider vinegar
3 tablespoons honey
Juice of one orange
½ teaspoon ground white pepper
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a 2-quart saucepan. Simmer 30 minutes. Remove from heat; cool. Puree in a blender until smooth. Yield: just over 2 cups sauce.
Check out more of Lucy’s (and other great chefs) recipes at BeerCook.com

Sir Bowie “4 down 74 to go; 113 days” of Greenbriar