Thai Chicken with Mushrooms and Basil with Scheid Gewürztraminer

This is one of my favorite recipes and does remind me of Thai dish I used to get at my favorite Thai restaurant in Athens, Georgia. With that said, I honestly can’t say if this is an authentic Thai dish. However, this is what we call it our house. It is a very clean and fresh tasting meal that is also full of flavor and low on fat. It is also very versatile and can easily be adjusted to fit personal tastes. I have made this successfully with shrimp a couple of time, but prefer it with boneless skinless chicken thighs. Of course, you can make it with chicken breasts. I personally am a big fan of using chicken thighs or legs in chicken dishes when I am not marinating the meat for at least 24 hours. The thighs have more flavor, are harder to overcook and cheaper. I also believe that the texture feels more authentic in Asian dishes.

I wrote the recipe to use 1 tbsp of Sriracha, a chili hot sauce. If you do not like things spicy, do not fear. When mixed in with the other ingredients this adds flavor not heat. If you like it spicy, add more. I like things pretty mild, so I add about 1 ½ tbsp. My husband then squirts at least another tablespoon or two over his plate. So, put what you are comfortable with into the sauce and more can be added to taste later. The Sriracha and fish sauce should be readily available in the Asian section of your supermarket. I have never had a hard time finding either. The rice vinegar is sometimes with the vinegars and sometimes with the vinegars. On the off chance, your grocery store doesn’t carry these items, an Asian Market or Whole Foods will have them.

Another way to customize this meal is to add a veggie for more nutrients. My favorite is haricot verts, but I have added regular green beans, snow peas, sugar peas, and broccoli before. I just steam the veggie and stir in at the end. I encourage you to try other veggies and let me know what you think.

WINE: Scheid 2008 Gewürztraminer
http://www.scheidvineyards.com/

I have wanted to write this recipe up for a while as I usually make it twice a month. However, it is one of those dinners that we usually don’t drink wine with. When I first starting drinking wine, I really enjoyed Gewürztraminer, but it had been a while since we’d purchased one. A couple of weeks ago while doing a wine tasting at Scheid, I sampled this bottle and decided I had my wine for this meal. This off-dry Gewürztraminer’s nose is dominated by pear but includes floral and spicy aromas. The pear and nutmeg notes continue on the palate and mingle with the slight sweetness of the .7% residual sugar. The spicier you make this dish the nicer the hints of sugar complement the meal.

RECIPE: Thai Chicken with Mushrooms and Basil

Ingredients:
Servings: 3-4

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar
• 1/2 cup fish sauce
• 1 tb. Sriracha (this is not spicy…add more if you want it spicy or add to individuals plates of food to taste)
• 1 tbsp. peanut oil
• 1 medium onion, cut into slivers
• 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into strips
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp. finely chopped gingerroot
• 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 4-8 oz shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced ( I usually use a lot but can get fresh shitake mushrooms cheap at our farmers market)
• 1 cup (loosely packed) fresh basil, cut into strips
• OPTIONAL: Haritcort vert, snow peas, green beans broccoli (~6 oz)
• OPTIONAL: steamed jasmine rice or udon noodles

Directions:
1. Heat oil in large skillet (or wok) over medium heat.
2. In a small bowl, mix together sauce: rice vinegar, fish sauce, Sriracha and brown sugar until brown sugar dissolves; set aside.
3. Heat oil in wok and stir-fry onions, garlic and chicken for 2-3 minutes or until onions are becoming translucent.
4. Add soy sauce, ginger, and mushrooms cook until chicken and mushrooms are done.
5. OPTIONAL: Steam vegetables while chicken finishes.
6. Add basil.
7. Add sauce (rice vinegar, brown sugar Sriracha, and fish sauce) mixture to chicken and take off the heat.
8. OPTIONAL: Stir in steamed veggies
9. Serve over steamed jasmine rice or udon noodles.
10. Add more Sriracha if desired.


CAUTION: If you double this recipe, I would be cautious with the soy sauce. Perhaps try 2-3 tbsp and then add more to taste.