Laksa Lemak

Curry laksa is a spicy, coconut-curry-noodle soup from Malaysia and one our favorite weekend lunches. Lemak refers specifically to the addition of coconut milk, one of my favorite ingredients to create a rich, creamy, dish. Many traditional preparations of this dish call for tofu and mixed seafood, but I prefer a simpler style made with ground turkey, leftover roasted chicken, or even meatless. I paleo-ize the dish by using kelp noodles instead of vermicelli or rice noodles and also add cut, fresh vegetables; it's a great way to get rid of veggies in the fridge.

Serves 4

Note that many recipes exist for homemade rempah (laksa paste). I have also seen pre-packaged laksa paste, but have yet to find a paleo-friendly brand available locally. Since I always have Thai curry paste on-hand, I use that as the spice mixture for my laksa. Not authentic, but good enough.

Ingredients:

• 1 T coconut oil
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 "scoop" red or panang curry paste (start with 2-3 tsp)
• 1-2 cans coconut milk
• 4 cups chicken broth (rich, homemade broth is the best)
• 1 package kelp noodles, rinsed and drained 
• 1-2 T fish sauce
• 1-2 tsp lime juice
• chilies or sambal oelek for more kick (optional)
• 1 red or yellow bell pepper, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced diagonally
• 1 cup fresh green beans, trimmed and cut, if necessary
• 2-3 T fresh basil or cilantro, chopped (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a wok or pan over medium-high heat.
2. Add ground turkey and fry until cooked through. If using leftover chicken, add it to the pan and continue to the next step.
3. Add curry paste and mix well to distribute throughout the meat.
4. Add the coconut milk. I usually begin by adding one can of coconut milk. After everything else has been added, I test taste to see if I want to add more. I usually end up using half of the second can.
5. Add the chicken broth, kelp noodles, fish sauce, lime juice, and chilies, if using. Bring to a boil then reduce and simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Test taste and if necessary, adjust the flavor with more curry paste, coconut milk, fish sauce, lime juice, and/or chilies. I like to get the coconut gravy tasting "perfect" before moving the next step.
7. Add the vegetables and simmer until they reach a desired doneness.
8. Stir in cilantro, if using.
9. Serve immediately.

Asian Lettuce Wrap

Time was ticking away. The girls were complaining of hunger pains, despite the jumbo, protein-filled breakfast they had eaten only a couple hours before. And in reality, I didn't have much time to cook something up and still call it lunch. I had been immersed in the Share a Primal Recipe thread  at Mark's Daily Apple where hundreds of mouth-watering, paleo recipes have been posted.

With a couple of Asian inspired recipes fresh in my mind (and a nearly empty fridge), here is what I cobbled together: a messy, but tasty lettuce wrap filled with sesame-cucumber salad, Asian noodle salad, and bacon!

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• one serving of Sesame-Cucumber Salad (recipe below)
• one serving of Asian Noodle Salad (recipe below)
• 8 large, sturdy lettuce leaves
• 8 slices of bacon, fried

Directions:

1. Build wraps using the bacon and salads. Serve immediately!

Note: Other meat, such as roasted chicken could be easily substituted for the bacon.


Sesame-Cucumber Salad (inspired by Melissa at The Clothes Make the Girl)

Ingredients:

• 1 T tahini paste
• 1 T cashew butter, unsweetened
• 1 T coconut aminos
• 1 T rice vinegar, unsweetened
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 cucumber, sliced in thin strips by hand or with a  mandolin slicer

Directions:

1. Combine the tahini, cashew butter, coconut aminos, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. Mix until well blended.
2. Stir in the cucumber.

Asian Noodle Salad (inspired by Melissa at The Clothes Make the Girl)

Ingredients:

• 2 T coconut milk
• 1 T tahini paste
• 1 T cashew butter, unsweetened
• 1 T lime juice
• 1 tsp coconut aminos
• 1/2 tsp garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp ginger, grated
• 1 package kelp noodles, boiled for 10 minutes and drained
• 1 cup coleslaw mix or shredded cabbage

Directions:

1. Combine the coconut milk, tahini, cashew butter, lime juice, coconut aminos, garlic, and ginger. Mix until well blended. The sauce with thicken quickly, but thin out when combined with the noodles.
2. Stir in the noodles and cabbage.

Cool Tahini "Pasta"

Once upon a time, long long ago...(Like, mid-90's!) I copied two recipes onto a legal pad from one of Angie's cookbooks... Recipe # 2 I have never made, but the first one, "Cool Tahini Pasta" is a different story! Its been awhile since I've made it... pasta-schmasta... but while visiting with Angie recently she was telling me about coconut aminos and kelp noodles. Coconut aminos are a great substitute for soy sauce, and kelp noodles sounded like a cross between glass noodles and mung bean sprouts. I get back to Perth excited to try them both... and nada! Add 2 more things to the list of "Items you can't find in Western Australia." So I ordered some, and they came today. Lots of ideas came to mind, but this recipe allowed me to try both, and it turned out so good it was almost gone before it got photographed.

Cool Tahini Pasta

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

2 Tablespoons water

3 T coconut aminos

1 Tablespoon tahini

1 cloved garlic, pressed or diced beyond teeny-tiny

1 & 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

Mix all the above ingredients well. Add a 12oz bag of rinsed and drained kelp noodles.

Add:

2-3 small green onions, sliced thin

3 T fresh cilantro leaves

Stir and serve immediately. Serves 3 (If you let it set, the noodles loose their "pop." Which I personally like, but it still tastes good.)