PA Eating: Thai-Inspired Grill-Out

There are some foods that cause rifts between even the closest of hearts. Foods like mushrooms, olives, capers, and even celery can bring an otherwise lovely dinner to the brink of disaster.

For me, that thing is cilantro. But my reaction is more complicated than I hate cilantro! – and I don't have that genetic 'cilantro tastes like dishwater' thing. My problem: I only like cilantro in Asian-inspired food. Just one leaf in something Mexican, and I'm scrubbing my tongue with a napkin. But cilantro chopped and blended with coconut milk or thrown into  a marinade with lime juice? Sign me up!

My parents? They like the stuff by the bushel-full... which is why my dad had to make three batches of guacamole: one with no cilantro (me), one with no jalapeno (my niece), and one fully-loaded (for Mom and Dad). People and their preferences are endlessly fascinating, aren't they?!

Anyway. One night, we built a dinner around a green been recipe I found online that, yes, includes cilantro... but also coconut milk, almonds, and cumin. As usual, I had to monkey with it a little and the results were luscious. (So luscious, my parents had me make the beans twice!)

Here's what our feast looked like: green salad, lime-ginger marinated shrimp and scallops, and coconut-almond green beans.

The beans, ready for their close-up; recipe below. (We played the "You Know How That Would Be Good? Game" with the beans, but couldn't come up with any veggies that we thought would work as well.)

The salad, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. Note the cilantro. Mom made the salad. (Love you, Mom.)

The shrimp and scallops, mid-grilling...

Ginger-Lime Marinade
Makes enough for approximately 1.5lbs. of seafood.

Ingredients:
juice of 1 lime
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
2 teaspoons minced ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro, minced (optional)

Directions:
1. Mix all ingredients together in a glass container.

2. Add seafood and marinate for 20 minutes. Grill three minutes each side over high heat.

Coconut-Almond Green Beans
The leftovers, should there be any, are delicious mixed with cooked protein and stir-fried 'til hot.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil or coconut oil
2 tablespoons sliced almonds
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon red chili pepper flakes
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk
1 pound green beans, trimmed
1 teaspoon lime juice
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (optional)

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add almonds and cook until lightly browned. Keep an eye on them – they brown quickly! Transfer almonds to a plate for later.

2. In the same pan, sauté the onion, garlic, cumin, coriander, paprika, chili pepper flakes, and salt. Cook until the onion is soft and beginning to get brown bits, about 4-5 minutes.

3. Add the coconut milk to the pan and mix well, then add the green beans. Make sure everything is blended, then bring the pan to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook covered until the beans are tender.  This is a judgement call. I like mine pretty well-done. If you like them crisp, it's about 6 minutes; if you like them softer, go longer but keep an eye on them.

4. When they've reached the desired doneness, take off the lid and let the sauce cook down 'til it thickens a little. Remove the pan from the heat and mix in the almonds, lime juice, and cilantro. Dig in!

Are you a cilantro hater? Leave the cilantro out of the last step... and  check out this 'I hate cilantro' haiku... and more cilantro-hating fun.

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I'm excited to once again join the punk rock foodies on Fight Back Friday at Food Renegade.