Wednesday, June 15, 2005

Thai Food and Summertime Grilling

The phrase “grilling for dummies” is a bit harsh. “No brainer” grilling is also too unflattering. But if you’re one of the many people in this country who hesitate to cook outdoors due to a lack of experience, or even due to a lack of nerve, then your problems are now officially solved.

The Ginger People produce a wide variety of marinades and grilling sauces that can be used with fish, poultry, beef, pork, and veggies. Some of these sauces are also excellent when used with sushi, or other Asian dishes such as potstickers. While all of them contain ginger, the flavors vary from Ginger Jerk – a Jamaican style marinade – to Ginger Hickory, Ginger Lemon Grass, Ginger Lime, Ginger Peanut, Ginger Sesame, Ginger Sweet Chili, and Ginger Wasabi. Use one of these excellent quality products to marinate your shrimp, chicken, or beef, and take the guesswork out of grilling. You’ll consistently produce excellently flavored dinners that will have you waiting eagerly for the next meal.
All of these marinades and sauces are available right here on the Earthy.com website.

On the other hand, if you’re in the mood to whip up one of your own marinades, then you may be interested in any of a variety of delicious Thai recipes. Thai cuisine combines excellently light flavoring with the tang and zip of lime, garlic, chiles, lemon grass, and coriander.

It’s been very hot here in Southwestern Michigan. Though there’s been a steady breeze, the mercury has been hovering at close to 90 degrees. No one wants to turn on the oven or even turn on the range top. On days like this there’s something especially refreshing and enjoyable about sipping a cold glass of iced lemonade and lolling in a hammock under the shady branches of the locust trees in our front yard.


At about 6:00 you hear the first telltale sizzle of the skewered chicken as it chars slightly over the coals. Within a short time, the first wafting scent of charcoal cooking reaches your senses. It carries a hint of lime, a hint of red pepper, and the unmistakable smell of al fresco dining. Here, a dense cluster of dropmore scarlet honeysuckle climbs in a tangle over the pergola on our deck. Underneath the hanging blossoms, Tara and Spencer have arranged a selection of fresh fruits and cheeses on a crisp white linen tablecloth. Derek has mixed up his favorite dipping oil and spices and placed it next to a baguette of Italian bread. Sometime around mid-October we may get back to indoor dining, but for now we’re right where we want to be.

Earthy Delights carries a full range of marinades and grilling sauces for anyone (myself at the front of the line) who would like to prepare a gourmet meal without any of the muss or work typically associated with fine dining. In addition to the excellent quality products generated by the legendary chefs Charlie Trotter and Dean Fearing, Earthy Delights also carries a wide variety of Thai marinades and sauces produced by the Ginger People that are all the rage among the al fresco set. And, for those of you who enjoy playing in the kitchen, Earthy carries a very wide assortment of typically hard-to-find ingredients so that you can whip up practically any recipe you want to – right at home.

This includes an assortment of products such as achiote paste, rice paper spring roll wrappers, wasabi paste and powder, white miso paste, white sesame seeds, yuzu juice, tamarind, Thai rice sticks, and nori sheets. If you want it and it involves cuisine, there’s a good chance we can help you.