Corresponding Thighs

It is quite possible that this might be one of my shortest blog entries ever. Perhaps you love it and perhaps not. We shall see and c'est la vie. This past week was splendid for a myriad of reasons but the piece de resistance of my Thursday was an ethereal lunch at North Carolina's talk of the town, Kindred in Davidson. A simple yet inventive menu, a magnificent hipster space and surprisingly economical prices, this spot is it. Added bonus is the gentleman maneuvering ingenious cocktails behind the bar, who is also instrumental in the Hex pop up bar coffee phenomena. (We saw Tanner at Craft on Saturday morning and had the utmost pleasure of sampling his famous waffles but more about that later.) We began our meal with the crispy oysters, which arrived on a generous dollop of creamy yoghurt with fresh dill and Calabrian chile oil. Briny, whispering of the ocean and just gorgeous, one plate was absolutely not enough. For lunch, I tucked into a generous heirloom tomato tartine with bacon lardon (my new best friend) and balsamico extra vecchio. The creamy cheese was enough to launch my taste buds into a galactic orbit. I selected the hearty kale salad for my side. I wanted a salad and it was superb. My dining partner toasted #nationalburgerday and went for the double patty skillet burger. Tucked in between two buns held together with what appeared to be a beautiful antique knife were onion, cheddar and aioli. To pair with this glorious feat, she ordered the grandfathers pickles. The fat pommes frites would have also been fitting. I think we both lamented not splitting the birthday cake but I like to leave stones unturned for future visits. Speaking of, I have dinner reserves there next week. The dinner menu and especially the milk bread are both calling to me in my dreams. Thanks again for the outstanding recommendation Bon Appetit. See you on the seventh perhaps? 

While the below does comprise a lot of ingredients it could not have been a simpler meal to prepare. Chock full of flavor, if you have a hankering for a proper curry, the below is your one way ticket to Flavor Town. Bon appetit.

Chicken Thighs in A Curry Coconut Broth

Ingredients

2 TBS coconut oil
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp coriander seeds (or ground coriander)
1 tsp cumin
Pinch of cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp turmeric
Ground black pepper
1 lb skinless, boneless, organic chicken thighs cut into chunks
1 large onion - thinly sliced
5 garlic cloves - chopped
Knob of ginger - peeled and chopped
1 jalapeño pepper - diced
14 oz can of lite coconut milk
2 cups of organic chicken broth
Juice of 1 lime
Handful of fresh basil
2 zucchini - spiralized

*Note you can make this vegetarian by substituting hearty vegetables or tofu for the chicken (think eggplant, butternut squash or sweet potato) and vegetable broth in lieu of the chicken broth.

Instruction

1. In a small bowl, add the salt, coriander, cumin, pinch of cloves, ground cardamom, black pepper and turmeric. Set aside.

2. In a deep pot (I used my Le Creuset), heat the coconut oil over medium to high heat. Once it begins to glisten, add the sliced onions and diced jalapeños. Let them sweat for approximately three to four minutes. When the onions are a golden hue, you're good to go.

3. Now add the ginger, garlic and spice mixture to the onions and jalapeño. Mix and cook for approximately one minute. Now add your coconut milk, chicken broth, chicken and cinnamon stick. Stir so that your chicken is submerged beneath the liquid. Bring to a roaring boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. 

4. Now you are ready to serve. Place your spiralized noodles in a bowl and pour the lovely broth with the chicken on top. All that awaits is a squeeze of the lime juice and a handful of basil. If you like, you can serve this over rice. We didn't. I made believe it was soup and devoured it with a spoon.

•