Thai-Style Cookout

Well I have to be quick tonight, as I am going out with my friend of the female persuasion to see "My Life In Ruins"(looks great so check it out), so here we go. Tonight I am attempting Thai Turkey Burgers and really I have never eaten this before, as I have never been into Thai food very much and really it is not something you can easily get from a restaurant that is really authentic, not the Thai people eat a lot of turkey burgers anyway.

Ok, here are the ingredients.

Warm Pineapple Salsa ingredients

1 fresh, ripe cored pineapple(Ok, as you might guess, I do not have whole pineapples in the house, so yes i had to buy one and no it was not cored, I had to do it myself and damn near cored my hand off. On a lighter note, my little cat did not like the looks of the pineapple at all and gave it a wide birth on the kitchen table)

1 tablespoon sesame oil(had to buy it, got plenty of evoo lying around but no sesame)

1/4 tablespoon crushed crushed red pepper flakes(got plenty of this)

1/2 small red bell pepper, seeded and chopped(bought one and grabbed a couple more in case we need them over the next few days)

1/4 red onion, finely chopped(got lots)

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar(got like 8 pounds of this stuff)

10 to 18 fresh basil leaves cut into thin strips(Ok I had to buy this and then I chopped it up before I realized it was suppose to be thin strips but I think it will be ok)

Burger Ingredients

1 and 1/3 pounds ground turkey breast(Ok I bought this and got a Pound and a half, cause it just seems to throw the dude behind the meat counter off if I ask for something that is not at the pound or half pound weight reference. I once ask for 6 1/4 pound packages of ground beef and he almost had a stroke right there at the counter, so ever since then I have kept it simple)

1 inch fresh gingerroot, peeled and grated(i actually had some of this, so goodie for me)

2 gloves garlic minced(got it)

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce(I got it, but isn't all soy sauce dark? i have not seen a light shade of soy sauce, anyway just something i was thinking about)

2 teaspoons curry powder(had to by this and i looked forward to using it, as I have never cooked with curry before)

Coarse salt to taste(I prefer to use sea salt myself, I think it really releases foods full flavor)

2 scallions finely chopped(got them)

4 cornmeal-topped rolls or 4 toasted sandwich-sized English muffins, split(Ok, I bought English muffins cause, I could not find anything that was cornmeal topped and really have never even heard of such a thing)

Bibb, Boston or red leaf lettuce for topping(Could not find it and it seemed to girly to ask for help finding Bibb lettuce, so i got Romain instead)

On a side note, as i type this, on the DYI network i have on the 'Thirsty Traveler" and he is somewhere in one of those old eastern block European countries and they are making goulash and I'm like, too late boys, brad has already been there and done that last night.......plus theirs seems to be taking forever to cook

Ok, so drain pineapple and cut into pieces that will fit in a food processor. Place in processor and process to coarse, chunky texture. Heat sesame oil and crushed red pepper flakes in a skillet over medium-high heat until oil smokes. Add bell pepper and onions and cook 1 to 2 minutes. Add pineapple and heat through. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cook 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and toss in basil. Let salsa hang out in the warm pan while you cook burgers.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Combine turkey, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, curry powder, salt and scallions. Form into 4 patties and cook on skillet, 4 minutes on each side. Serve on rolls with lots of warm pineapple salsa and lettuce, with a chunk ed vegetable salad and your favorite chips.

The verdict.........well this was ok, but to be honest, thai flavor has never been a big thing for me. Yes, it taste ok, but for me it was one of those things that, had I got this at a restaurant, i would be like, "yea, it is ok but i would not order it again', but that is just me. My lady friend thought it was great and even my cats split a patty, so i guess it is "two paws up' from them.

It is full of flavor though and the sweetness of the pineapple, i was afraid would overpower the other various flavors, but it does not. They really seem to blend well together.

So, that is it for tonight,cause like i said before, I am going out tonight and have to take a shower, get all playered up and go get my freak on at "town center"

So until tomorrow.........keep it reelz y'all....:-)