httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lz9EqWrF08M

Hey, Foodies,

We had to bump up the release of this episode as I am heading out of town on business and won’t be able to properly post during the week due to expected complete and utter exhaustion (I’m sure Helenka is going to insert something witty commenting on my predicament [And Helenka does not disappoint: Oh, poor Brian, see him jetting off and having lovely meals and, yeah, meetings all day long, so he’ll be a very tired camper by the end of each day, I’m sure! With a side order of yadda-yadda-yadda.]).

So, we are collaborating as I write this while she is sitting next to me on the couch, making wise-ass comments on what she is going to write in conjunction with what she believes I am actually putting down in this document. [Helenka sees Brian’s lips moving and fingers flying, but hears only, “Wah, wah, wah.” If you’ve seen any episode of Charlie Brown, it’s how the adults sound to the gang.]

Truth be told, this is all a game for her amusement (hmm, note that she’s not disagreeing), but now I shall return to our show….

I love Indian food (well, it’s no secret that I love many different kinds of food), so I thought I would make something quick by using a prepared cooking sauce, one that I personally find excellent, namely Patak’s Vindaloo Sauce which is quite spicy. Normally, one would use plain and boring chicken breasts with it, but that was not to be the case; when I went shopping, looking for said plain and boring chicken breasts, I found a box of frozen Tandoori chicken breasts which were cheaper (on sale) than the plain and boring chicken breasts. So, I said to myself, “Self! Perhaps we should try a variation and see what happens when I use these as a replacement for the PaBCB™.” I’m going to use this acronym from now on, as her Editorialshipness has stated that I am in danger of going over the word count for this post.

We decided to call this dish Tandoori Chicken Vindaloo – a funny fusion! Of course, I do hope that we do not annoy any food purists out there who believe that only PaBCB™ should be used to make Chicken Vindaloo.

At the end of another post, I just wanted to remind our viewers:
We love playing with our food.

Have yourselves a great week and don’t forget to have fun with your food, too!

Enjoy!
B&H =;)

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Helenka’s Notes:

Wasn’t it only yesterday (okay … 30-odd episodes ago, in fact) that Brian was clearing all sorts of jars and packages out of his kitchen cupboards and cooking with whatever he found? Yes, indeed. But the jar of Vindaloo Sauce must have been hidden really well (most likely by those mischievous kitchen pixies). Because … Brian found this jar recently. And, then, I found my jar of home-made Lime Pickle Relish, so we just had to (really had to) make something up.

First of all, I was confused at the beginning of the epi (if you remember, I had no recipe in front of me), as I couldn’t see Brian playing with the chicken, so I actually thought he had bought both kinds of chicken, the PaBCB™ and the Tandoori. I loved seeing the deeper colour of the raw meat and couldn’t wait to taste the final result, further transformed by the cooking. I was not disappointed. One of the best side effects of eating Tandoori chicken cooked in a moist heat was the fact that it was so amazingly tender. The other thing that amused me was that this was such a meat-and-potatoes (and don’t forget those peas) dish and yet the swirling flavours made it anything but predictable!

I’m also struck by how over-indulgence prior to cooking (aka Brian’s eye-balling measurements) doesn’t necessarily lead to an unpleasant outcome. In this epi, Brian went to town with the amount of chopped garlic (he really, really did); and, yet, when I tasted the dish, there was no in-your-face garlicyness. During the simmering process, the garlic was able to disperse among all of the other spices (from both the Tandoori and Vindaloo sources) so that we couldn’t even tell the difference that we’d gone overboard (if there even is such a thing between the two of us) with one of our fave flavour-enhancers. But, despite the splendid taste of the dish, oh, how I missed being in an Indian restaurant and crunching Indian pickles. [Stern note to self: Self … find Indian pickles in a specialty shop … and stop whining already!]

Variations:
I’m not going to suggest variations to the dish itself, as it was already a fusion to begin with. Though, yes, one could add all sorts of other ingredients such as chickpeas or lentils to up the fibre content while remaining true to Indian cuisine (and beans are terrific for absorbing all that lovely sauce). Or slicing okra or baby eggplant to add different textures. But I’d like you to look at these and other similar cooking sauces in a different light – and not only as the foundation for a traditional “Indian” dish.

Brian’s not the only one with a way-back-in-the-pantry situation. When I moved last summer, I kept finding all sorts of jars of stuff (so … not only the jams and jellies from antiquity). Many of them were Asian-influenced. Such as the spicy peanut sauce that found its way onto my plate of scrambled eggs. And, then, wanted to make friends with a whole bunch of other foods. Gee! Even my food is sociable!

Apparently (because I had so many jars of it, lol), one of my fave Patak’s sauces is Korma Cooking Sauce, a mild curry sauce full of delicate spices as well as coconut, ginger and coriander flavours. I’ve used it with different shapes of pasta (including delightful radiattore), potatoes or veggies, so you don’t even need to use a meat product with it.

There’s also nothing wrong with preparing your fave dish the traditional way (no matter what its heritage is) and then incorporating a sauce from the other side of the globe. Exercise your imaginations and pique your taste-buds. It’s especially fun to do during the winter time, when your mouth can feel as blah as the weather. We’re doing our best to banish boring winter eating and encourage you to do so, too. Happy fusions, everyone!