Thai Chicken Skewers - 50 Women Game Changers In Food - Dorothy Hamilton

Thai Chicken Skewers Served With Millet and Baby Bok Choy

Quick and easy weeknight dinners are a must for our family during the school year, and since we've been having an Indian Summer this past week, I decided to uncover the grill and throw some Thai Chicken Skewers on. My kids love anything on skewers - they're fun to eat and quick to cook. I've been trying to plan our dinners ahead of time for the week ahead to make it easier to fit our busy schedule. There are some days when I feed the kids at 4PM, and other days, when I serve dinner after an hour of driving my kids around, so planning meals ahead of time helps a ton.

This week, a group of bloggers is celebrating Dorothy Hamilton, one of the 50 Women Game Changers in Food. According to Gourmet Live, Dorothy Hamilton is an "educator extraordinare." She founded Manhattan's International Culinary Center, formerly known as the French Culinary Institute. Elected Chairwoman of the American Institute of Wine and Food in 1994, Dorothy Hamilton was appointed Chairman emerita for life.

In an article entitled A Bon Vivant's Diet, Dorothy Hamilton talks about the struggles of trying to lose weight while eating out at restaurants, giving parties and cooking for her family. Although she flirted with fad diets like the Scarsdale and Atkins diet, she eventually altered the way she ate without giving up her love for food and her glass of wine at the end of the day, and squeezed in workouts on most days. For breakfast, she would have a piece of fruit, then a salad or a three-egg omelette.  She called her diet "very French...I like fresh foods, and I never snack." Another trick she picked up from Julia Child was to drink a diet cocktail made with club soda, bitters and a squeeze of lime.  Also, when traveling for work, she brings a few containers of Greek yogurt in an insulated bag. I love her emergency coping mechanism..."In tough moments, I sit on my hands."

Despite Dorothy Hamilton's busy business dinner schedule, she cooks dinner for her family often. One of the recipes she makes for her family is Thai Chicken with Garlic and Lime, a recipe given to her by Robert Surles, a.k.a. Chef Bobo, a French Culinary Institute alumni that works at her daughter's school. I've adapted this recipe into these Thai Chicken Skewers, adding some minced ginger and sambal oelek chili sauce.

The marinade for this chicken can also be used for a quick stir-fry chicken and pepper dish. I had some leftover bits and pieces of marinated chicken that I simply cut into smaller pieces and sprinkled on some cornstarch to help keep the chicken moist and tender. With a little chicken broth and soy sauce added, this made a nice dish for the next night.

Stir-Fry Thai Chicken with Peppers

Thai Chicken Skewers

Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs, trimmed of all visible fat
• freshly ground pepper
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon ginger, minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons minced cilantro
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon organic sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon sambal oelek chili sauce
• lime wedges for serving, optional

Directions:

• Cut chicken into 1/2 inch wide strips. Season with peppers.
• In a bowl, mix the garlic with 2 tablespoons of the cilantro, the fish sauce, sugar and sambal oelek chili sauce. Mix well with chicken strips, making sure chicken is evenly coated. Let stand at least an hour and up to overnight.
• Soak bamboo skewers in water for one hour.
• Skewer chicken strips.
• Grill until cooked through, about 3 minutes on each side.
• Serve with lime wedges if desired.

Serves 4.

If you're interested in joining our group as we cook our way through this list of 50 influential women in food, just ask Mary from One Perfect Bite.

Please stop by and take a look at what the rest of the group made this week in celebration of Maida Heatter:

Linda from There and Back Again

Val from More Than Burnt Toast
Joanne from Eats Well with Others

Taryn from Have Kitchen Will Feed 

Susan from The Spice Garden 

Heather from girlichef 
Claudia from A Seasonal Cook in Turkey 
Miranda from Mangoes and Chutney

Katie from Making Michael Poland Proud

Mary from One Perfect Bite

Sue from The View from The Great Island

Kathleen from Bake Away with Me 
Viola from The Life is Good Kitchen 
Barbara from Movable Feasts 
Kathleen from Gonna Want Seconds 

Amy from Beloved Green

Martha from Lines From Linderhof

Nancy from Picadillo