Peanut butter is a precious commodity to me here at $7 a pop at the grocery store or  part of a my 50 lb. weight limit flying back from the US.  So despite my love of combining peanuts with meat, I've resisted flagging many recipes that would use a 1/2 c. of pb in one fell swoop.  It's just a little more tempting to wait and combine it with something chocolate instead ...

But this recipe stated "preferably a natural variety" and natural peanut butter I can DO here.  That stuff doesn't have nearly the price tag or nearly the great taste of classic American Skippy.  And by the time it was combined with the coconut milk, soy sauce, and lime juice and then cooked on the grill no one knew the difference.  And I was able to enjoy one of my favorite favorite combinations.

Perfectly tender and juicy pork with a nice crispy, crust of sweet peanut flavor.

...  And a little extra drizzled over for good measure!

Grilled Asian Pork Tenderloin with Peanut Sauce

From Fine Cooking

1 cup light coconut milk
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, preferably a natural variety 
1/4 cup soy sauce 
3 Tbs. fresh lime juice 
3 Tbs. dark brown sugar 
2 large cloves garlic, minced (2-1/2 tsp.) 
2 tsp. ground coriander 
2 small pork tenderloins (about 2 lb. total) 
Vegetable oil for the grill 

In a large bowl, whisk the coconut milk, peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, garlic, and coriander to make a smooth sauce.

Trim the pork of excess fat and silverskin. Butterfly the tenderloins by splitting each one lengthwise almost but not quite all the way through, so the halves remain attached.

Open each tenderloin like a book, cover with plastic wrap, and pound to an even 1/2-inch thickness with a meat mallet or the bottom of a small skillet. Put the pork tenderloins in the bowl with the marinade and turn to coat. Let marinate for 10 to 20 minutes (or up to several hours in the refrigerator).

While the pork marinates, heat a gas grill with all burners on high. Clean and oil the grate. Remove the tenderloins from the marinade, letting excess marinade drip back into the bowl (don’t discard the marinade). Grill the tenderloins, covered, turning once, until just cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes total (cut into one to check). Transfer to a carving board and let rest for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, pour the marinade into a small saucepan and add 2 Tbs. water; bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. If the sauce seems too thick, thin it with 1 or 2 tsp. water. Slice the pork and serve with the sauce on the side.

Stir-fry is generally not my thing.  Half the battle is in the fact that I find rice utterly boring to eat.  The other half of the battle might be that Nate is not a big fan of soy sauce.  If we're going to willingly eat stir-fry, it almost always involves noodles instead of rice.  And the good crunch of a nut is added incentive.

I don't even generally eat red peppers and yet this caught my interest.  I guess those cashews got to me and then I imagined how delicious a touch of cilantro would make this. 

It did make it delicious.  So delicious that I found myself shoveling red peppers into my mouth in great quantities.

Chicken and Cashew Stir-Fry

Originally from Gourmet, May 2007

1 bunch scallions
1 pound skinless boneless chicken thighs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon dried hot red-pepper flakes
3/4 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup salted roasted whole cashews

3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped (my addition)

Remember that Asian-Orange Chicken I told you about a few weeks ago, the one that was my debut into Asian cooking on this blog?  Well, it's back again, kinda, sorta.

These Orange and Soy Glazed Chicken Thighs are the rich man's version of orange chicken.  They are the solution to a dinner party where you want to impress but know your guests would be just as happy with some chinese takeout.  Many of the same flavors are married together in a different presentation, leaving you with all the flavor you wanted without the accompanying soy sauce packets and crumbly fortune cookies.

Orange and Soy Glazed Chicken Thighs

Originally from finecooking.com, Fine Cooking 103, p. 89

Serves 4

Vegetable oil for the broiler pan

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, trimmed

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

16 small to medium shiitake mushrooms, stemmed

3 medium scallions (green parts only), cut into 3-inch lengths

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup granulated sugar

2 Tbs. mirin * I subbed this with half honey, half corn syrup since it's not an ingredient I need often

1/2 tsp. finely grated orange zest

2 Tbs. fresh orange juice

1-1/4 tsp. cornstarch

2 tsp. toasted sesame seeds

Position a rack about 7 inches from the broiler and heat the oven to 450°F. Line the bottom of a broiler pan with foil and lightly oil the top of the pan.

Season the chicken all over with 1 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. pepper. Arrange the shiitake in 8 pairs, gill sides up, on the prepared broiler pan and season with salt and pepper. Arrange 2 or 3 scallion pieces on top of each mushroom pair, then put a chicken thigh, skin side up, on top. Press with your hand to flatten. Roast until the edges of the chicken begin to brown and an instantread thermometer inserted in a thick part of the biggest thigh registers 165°F, about 20 minutes. Turn the broiler to high and broil until the skin is crisp and deeply browned, 5 to 6 minutes, rotating the pan once for even browning.

While the chicken is cooking, combine the soy sauce, sugar, mirin, and orange zest in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

In a small bowl, stir the orange juice and cornstarch; add this mixture to the saucepan. Return to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and glossy, about 1 minute.

To serve, transfer the chicken, scallions, and mushrooms to dinner plates, drizzle with the sauce, and sprinkle with the sesame seeds.

I believe this is my first-ever Asian-inspired post.  About four times a year I get a craving for Chinese food, but that usually means a run to the local Chinese take-out place.  Nate, on the other hand, loves Chinese and considered this a roaring success.  "Tastes just like real take-out," he said.  I'm not sure whether that is a particularly good thing or not, but I'll tell ya what - the leftovers are long gone.

I appreciated being able to control the freshness of the vegetables and the amount of oil that went into this dish, unlike when we order take-out.  I also enjoyed being able to pair it with some simple noodles with a dash of soy sauce instead of the usual fried rice, which always ends up in our garbage can.

Asian Orange Chicken

Adapted from allrecipes.com

Yield: 8 servings