What Do You Feed a Sick Child?

Did I mention I'm exhausted?

At 4:30 last night Sonny crawled into bed with us. Ten minutes later, he threw up...on me. Miraculously, Hubby and his side of the bed were spared. After cleaning up, Sonny and I moved to his bed, where he proceeded to throw up about 10 more times. Luckily I had the foresight to put an empty bucket next to the bed and luckily we were able to contain everything in that bucket. Finally at 6:30 we gave up trying to sleep and turned on cartoons. He didn’t throw up again. But he didn’t really eat anything substantial all day, just crackers and toast.

What do you feed a child who seems to have a stomach bug (or any other ailment for that matter)? If you asked my mom, she’d probably say her cure-all hot and sour soup. But my own motherly instincts tell me hot and sour soup is not going to help Sonny’s stomach. I decided to make a milder rice soup instead.

When people think of an Asian-style rice soup, something like jook usually comes to mind. I love jook...the porridge texture with bits of shredded fried pork on top and dotted with chili-garlic oil, but Sonny won’t touch it because of the texture (did I mention he’s picky??). He prefers a soupier version with firm grains of rice and mini meatballs. Don’t forget the meatballs or the world might end.

Basic Mini Meatballs for Asian soups

• 1 pound ground pork, chicken or turkey
• ½ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 tbs grated or finely chopped ginger
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ½ tbs cornstarch
• 1 egg

Mix all the ingredients together and form into small balls. If you end up with more mixture than you need to use immediately, just freeze some of it (before cooking) for later use. I recommend poaching the meatballs in a separate pot from the broth, otherwise your wonderfully rich, clear broth will become cloudy. If this doesn't bother you, then by all means, poach them in the soup broth. If I'm feeling industrious, I will poach them then give them a quick saute to brown the outsides.

Some things to keep in mind:
Use a good broth for the soup. This goes without saying. The broth should be rich enough that if you don’t want to add any sauces or garnishes, it will still taste great. Starting with a bland broth will result in a bland soup, no matter what sauces or garnishes you add.

If you want to chance the world ending, you can use any other protein you like. Diced leftover roasted chicken, tofu, or a poached egg work well. I’ve even used leftover stir-fry from a previous meal (see picture below). It gives the soup some extra flavor.

To keep the rice firm, I use cold leftover rice. I don't even bother to reheat. The grains will warm through when you ladle the hot broth on top.

Enjoy!

Rice soup with chicken and stir-fried mustard greens.

My Best Friend in the Kitchen this Week

I am so exhausted. This week has been incredibly hectic at work and we’re only half way through. In case you don’t know, I manage a service laboratory at an academic institution. That means we are contracted by investigators to help with their projects. Normally I love my job. Except, of course, when I’m working for crazy-ass investigators who watch too much Star Trek and can’t tell the difference between science and science fiction.

But I’m sure you don’t want to hear me rant about work, do you?? This is a food blog and I do have a gastronomic point to make.

For a working parent and the family cook, the pressure is always on to get dinner on the table at a reasonable time. That’s why I like foods that can be stretched over a couple of meals. Do the real cooking once and whip up something quick with the leftovers the next time. What fits that bill better than oven-roasted chicken?

Everyone has a favorite way to roast a chicken. I like to use my Dutch oven. I get the pot very hot on the stove then throw in the chicken. After the bottom sears, I transfer the pot to the oven and roast uncovered for about 1 hour at 375º. The chicken skin gets browned while the meat stays moist and juicy.

This time, I decided to brine the chicken because I wanted to try this recipe before using it on my Thanksgiving turkey. I changed it a bit but it turned out great and I think I'll use it for our turkey.

Pineapple Chicken Brine (suitable for 4 to 5 pound chicken)

• 1 ½ quarts unsweetened pineapple juice (sold as 1 quart 14 oz)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2/3 cup soy sauce
• 6 tbs kosher salt
• 1-2 stick cinnamon
• 2 star anise (optional)

You can make the brine in a microwave or on the stove top. Heat all the ingredients, except the cinnamon and star anise, until the sugar and salt are dissolved. Take off heat and add the cinnamon and star anise. Cool completely before pouring onto the chicken. If the brine doesn’t completely cover the chicken, turn the bird so that the breast side is down and completely submerged. Before roasting, take the chicken out of the brine and pat it dry.

I was able to get three meals plus a rich stock out of a 5-pound chicken. Day 1 we had roast chicken. Day 2 we had chicken and mushroom sauté with creamy polenta. Day 3 we had a delicious Asian chicken noodle soup with bok choy.

So tell me, what’s your favorite way to roast a chicken? And what do you like to do with the leftovers?

Ulterior Motives

I didn’t spend 3 hours boiling the hell out of a piece of beef just to make sandwiches. What I really wanted to do was make corned beef hash. There are so many variations out there, but in its simplest form it’s leftover corned beef and potatoes. I like to add fresh herbs, such as thyme, oregano, parsley, cilantro or basil. I also add mustard or hot pepper sauce to give it a kick.

Corned Beef Hash:

• 2 cups boiled potatoes, roughly mashed
• 2 cups cooked corned beef, diced to your preferred size
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 tbs Italian parsley, chopped fine
• a few (about 4) sprigs of thyme (oregano or basil is fine too)
• 1 tbs Dijon mustard (or a few splashes of hot pepper sauce or Worcestershire to taste)
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
  

However you embellish this recipe, just remember to use a 1:1 proportion of corned beef to potatoes. Mix everything together and, if possible, let it sit for half an hour for the flavors to meld together. I mixed it the day before and let it sit in the fridge overnight.

The key to a good hash is patience. I like my hash to be crusty and “loose”, and that takes time. In a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, add enough oil to coat the bottom (about 1-2 tbs). When the oil is hot, add the mix and flatten it out in the skillet. Don’t be tempted to turn it. Give it about 4 or 5 minutes to form the first crust. Flip and spread the mix back out in the pan and wait another 4 or 5 minutes. Keep doing this until you get the level of crispiness you like. For me, it took about 20 minutes. Season with fresh cracked pepper. I like it served with fried over-medium eggs, but poached eggs work as well.

When I lived in Denmark, I would make hash with whatever leftover meat we had. Sometimes it was steak and/or sausages. I’ve even done one with salmon. And we never ate it for breakfast, just lunch or dinner.