Avocado Fries with Chipotle Aioli

My amazing boyfriend Ben moved to Mississippi 1 year ago. His one big complaint about Mississippi is not the weather, not the bugs, not the fact that I now live across the county...his biggest complaint is: the terrible avocados. Since I plan on moving to Mississippi in less than a year, I figured I should prepare myself by eating as much avocado as humanly possible so as to somehow make myself tired of one of the most delicious fruit on the planet before moving. The plan hasn't worked yet...I'll keep you posted on when it does.
















So, tonight's super easy and simple avocado fry recipe is this:

Ingredients:
Canola oil for frying
1 cup flour
1 egg
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper (white pepper preferred, but black works just fine)
1 -1 1/2 cups beer (add until desired consistency)
1 1/4 cups Panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
2 firm-ripe avocados, pitted, peeled, and sliced into 1/2-in. wedges

Directions:
In a medium sauce pan, heat 1 1/2 inches of oil until it reaches about 375°.
Meanwhile, mix flour, egg, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Whisk in beer. Set beer-batter aside. Pour Panko into a shallow plate.
Dip avocado slices in the beer-batter, then coat with Panko.
Fry a quarter of the avocado slices at a time until deep golden brown, approx. 60 seconds. Transfer slices to a plate lined with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and paprika to taste.
















Chipotle Aioli (for dipping):
6 Tbsp. mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. Chipotle chilies in Adobo sauce
2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp. cumin
4 tsp. fresh lime juice

Put all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.

I chose to make the Chipotle Aioli from scratch. I made home-made mayonnaise instead of store-bought mayonnaise.
Whisk 1 egg yolk and 1 Tbsp. white vinegar until well-mixed. Start whisking briskly, then start adding the oil a few drops at a time until the liquid seems to thicken and lighten a bit, (which means you've got an emulsion on your hands). Once you reach that point you can relax your arm a little (but just a little) and increase the oil flow to a constant (albeit thin) stream. Once half of the oil is in add the rest of the lemon juice mixture. Continue whisking until all of the oil is incorporated. Leave at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours then refrigerate for up to 1 week.

Thai Green Curry!!

Katy Heatherington (my amazing 4'11" Korean friend from Fresno) came to visit me this weekend! She came here to SLO things down a bit :-p

My favorite ethnic food thus far in my journey is Thai food. Katy loves curry, and we decided to attempt to make green curry.

We started our search for Thai ingredients at the SLO Oriental market (1255 Monterey St).

The market is small, but offers a wide variety of Oriental goods from countries including but not limited to: Thailand, Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan.

My favorite find of the market: lemongrass!!!

Lemongrass is native of India, but it is commonly used in Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. I've just recently come to realize how incredibly fragrant and flavorful the grass is.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, cut in 8 wedges

1 green bell pepper, cut in 8 wedges

1 stalk lemongrass, white bulb only

1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh ginger

3 tablespoons Thai green curry paste (purchased from an oriental market of sorts)

2 Kaffir lime leaves (I used Bok Choy instead...I’m a college student on a budget)

1 (13.5 ounce) can bamboo shoots

3 cups unsweetened coconut milk, 2 (13.5 ounce) cans

1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut in 1-inch strips

Salt

1 lime, juiced

Fresh Thai basil leaves

Fresh cilantro leaves

Lime wedges, for garnish

Directions:

Place a large, deep skillet over medium heat and coat with the oil. Saute the onion and green peppers for 3 minutes to soften. Split the piece of lemongrass down the middle and whack it with the flat side of a knife to open the flavor. Add the lemongrass, ginger, curry paste and lime leaves to the skillet and stir for 2 minutes. Pour in the coconut milk. Lay the chicken pieces in the mixture to poach; add a pinch of salt. Stir together and simmer over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Be careful not to let it boil as the coconut milk can easily separate. Squeeze in the lime juice and shower with basil and cilantro; serve in dinner bowls with lime wedges.