This week’s bounty includes cilantro, scallions, radishes, parsley, strawberries and u-pick English peas. I’ve never picked a pea; ChefBaby and I are positively pickled with excitement.
If you need an easy recipe to use some lovely cilantro and scallions – and heck, throw a few radishes in, why not; and the peas would also be a great addition – try this Chicken Biriyani we made last night. In place of the called-for onions, I used my lovely bunch of scallions, finely chopped. Substituting one (or 2, or 6) item for another in recipes is my favorite way to cook – nothing gives me greater pleasure than using up every last little morsel of tucked-away leftover what-have-you. A handful of chopped almonds gets tossed in the freezer, and used when I make a dish that would benefit from their crunch but I’m too lazy to chop. Half an onion, 6 grapes, a quarter cup of chicken stock – everything usually ends up as part of dinner, or the basis for a ChefBaby snack. The way I see it, it’s not just the food you’re saving, it’s the effort – you washed, peeled, chopped, ground, grated, boned or julienned that smidgen of goodness, why let it go to waste?? Then the terrorists win.
Chicken Biriyani
- 2 teaspoons olive, canola or other mild oil
- 1 pound skinless – boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces (I used a whole breast from our Chestnut Farms meat CSA, and just took it off the bone)
- 1 cup chopped onion (or a bunch of CSA scallions)
- 1 jalapeño pepper – seeded and minced (optional)
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger (I keep a jar of grated garlic on hand; it lasts forever, and it’s pleasant tasting and bright, unlike very gross jarred minced garlic)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 garlic cloves – minced
- 2 cups chopped plum tomato (about 2 tomatoes, or you can use a 15 oz can of diced & drained)
- 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
- 1/3 cup golden raisins
- 1 can (14-ounce) less-sodium chicken broth
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/4 cup sliced almonds
- 4 lime wedges