Much like with cornstarch or other thickeners, mix arrowroot with cold water until completely dissolved. Then add mixture to sauce or liquid to be thickened, stirring constantly with a wire whisk (if adding to liquid only) or a wooden spoon (if adding to liquid with chunks) until it reaches desired consistency. Generally speaking, the real thickening happens when boiling temperatures are reached. Keep in mind it will continue to thicken slightly even after removed from heat, so keep stirring for a couple of minutes to be safe.

Ingredients:

6 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
8 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ground sirloin
1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 bay leaves
1 1/4 cups Merlot or other fruity red wine
2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
2 (15-ounce) cans kidney beans, drained
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese

Procedure:
Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Remove casings from sausage. Add sausage, onion, and the next 4 ingredients (onion through jalapeño) to pan; cook 8 minutes or until sausage and beef are browned, stirring to crumble.Add chili powder and the next 7 ingredients (chili powder through bay leaves), and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in wine, tomatoes, and kidney beans; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Uncover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Discard the bay leaves. Sprinkle each serving with cheddar cheese. Makes 8 servings.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup chopped cabbage (boiled)
2 tbsp. chopped green onion
1/2 pound ground pork
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
20 gyoza wrappers
1 tbsp. vegetable oil

Procedure:
Combine all ingredients other than oil in a bowl and mix well by hands. Place a teaspoonful of filling in a gyoza wrapper and put water along the edge of the wrapper by fingers. Make a semicircle, gathering the front side of the wrapper and sealing the top. Heat oil in a frying pan. Put gyoza in the pan and fry on high heat until the bottoms become brown. Turn down the heat to low. Add 1/4 cup water in the pan. Cover the pan and steam the gyoza on low heat until the water is gone. Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb. boneless chicken breast
1 tsp. whole coriander seeds
1 tsp. whole cumin seeds
1 tsp. ground turmeric
3-4 shallots, peeled and sliced thin crosswise
1 stalk fresh lemon grass, sliced thin crosswise
1/4 inch piece of fresh galangal
1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
1/2 tsp.sea salt
2 tsp. sugar
20 bamboo skewers
2 tbsp. cooking oil, canola or peanut

Procedure:

Slice chicken into long thin slices, approximately 1/4″ thick and 2″ in length. Pat dry with paper towels.Dry roast coriander seeds for a minute or two in a wok over medium heat to roast lightly, stirring often. Grind the coriander seeds in a mortar and pestle or electric coffee grinder (reserved for spices). Combine all the spices with the shallot, lemon grass, galangal and garlic together in a bowl. Add chicken pieces to the marinade and mix well to cover meat. Allow to marinate for at least an hour or up to overnight. Before cooking, soak bamboo skewers in water for at least 10 minutes, so that they will not burn. Skewer 2 to 3 pieces of chicken onto each stick. Grill over a hot fire until cooked through. Baste with cooking oil after turning. Serve with MaeSri Peanut Sauce, Sticky Rice and a simple Thai Cucumber Salad. Instead of chicken you may also use pork, beef, tempeh or tofu in this recipe.

Ingredients:

2 lb Pork neck bones
1/2 qt Boiling water
6 Peppercorns
1 small Bay leaf
1 cup Oatmeal
Salt
1 Onion; diced
Cayenne
1 tsp. Allspice

Procedure:

Cook meat in water with peppercorns and bay leaf until meat falls away from bone. (I prefer to put the pot in refrigerator all night and skim off fat in the morning). Grind meat. Cook oatmeal in liquid with rest of ingredients and ground pork (You may have to add more water). Cook to consistency of mush. Pour into loaf pans which have been rinsed in cold water. When ready to serve, remove from pan, slice and fry in a little melted butter or drippings until brown. Good for breakfast served with toast. Since I make a large batch, I remove the goetta from the pans when they are firm enough to hold their shape, wrap in plastic and freeze.

Ingredients:

1 big head of white cabbage.
500 g minced meat
300 g rice.
3 tomatoes.
salt and pepper to taste.

Procedure:

Boil the whole head of cabbage in a salt water during 20 minutes. Then peel off the leaves accurately. Boil rice in a salt water until it is almost ready. Grate carrots and chop tomatoes. Mix rice with minced meat and carrots and tomatoes. Don’t forget about salt and pepper. Put each leaf the inner side up. Place one tablespoon of prepared meat
stuffing in the center of each leaf. Roll leaves, covering stuffing from sides like an envelope. Put stuffed cabbage leaves with seam down close to each other on a frying pan. Add two tablespoons of tomato sauce or ketchup to 0.5 liter of water or broth. Add it, covering the bottom of the pan. Spread butter on top of each piece. Heat oven to 140 degrees Celsius (250 degrees Fahrenheit). Bake golubtsy for an hour. Served with seam down, in a deep plate. Garnished with sour cream or sauce in which golubtsy were cooked. Makes 2-3 servings.

Ingredients:

8 Artichokes
150 g of ham or salami, cut into cubes
1 egg
1 loaf
100 ml of milk
50 g of parmesan
1 Lemon
30 g of Parsley
1 clove garlic
Salt
Pepper

Procedure:

Prepare a bowl with water and the juice of the lemon. Wash the artichokes, cut the stem (that you can use in the filling), the tips of the remaining leaves that are prickly and remove the tough outer leaves at the base. Then force the center leaves slightly open in the middle and place them in the bowl with water and lemon as shown in the picture below. Place the loaf in a bowl with the milk in order to soften it. Cut in small pieces the stems of artichokes. Prepare a chopped garlic and parsley, put it in a bowl, and add in it the loaf crumbled, the egg, the pieces of stems, the ham or salami, the parmesan, salt and pepper. Mix all together and with this mixture fill the artichokes. Place the stuffed artichokes in a pan with a drizzle of oil and some water and cook on a low flame for about 30 minutes. Makes 4 servings.