What to Cook this Week – Summer-Winter Mid-Week Meals from Thai Cobb Salad to Peanut Noodles. Copyright © 2022 Terence Carter / Grantourismo. All Rights Reserved.

What to Cook this Week – Summer-Winter Mid-Week Meals from Thai Cobb Salad to Peanut Noodles

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For this week’s What to Cook this Week, I’m sharing more summer-winter mid-week meal ideas, with options for readers in the sizzling northern hemisphere, currently experiencing one of its hottest summers yet, and readers in the wet and cold southern hemisphere, including a mix of versatile recipes for year-round dishes that can be easily adapted for your season.

We’ve a lot going on right now. On top of developing recipes for Grantourismo, I’m planning research trips for the Cambodia cookbook and fund-raising for those, as we have to try to wind that up this year; while Terence is still busy making enhancements to Grantourismo (have you noticed it’s faster?), developing a new site, and shooting recipes for Grantourismo in between.

That means that like a lot of you out there, we’re also looking for quick and easy mid-week meals – on the days that we’re not developing and shooting recipes, that is, which we’ll re-heat for dinner. I’m also digging into our archives, looking for recipes for dishes we can eat no matter what the weather, whether it’s hot or cool.

Because the weather here in Cambodia – like a lot of places – is weird right now: it might be hot and humid, which is normal this time of year, or so cool I’m getting a cardigan out of the suitcase with my winter gear. Which is why you’re seeing recipes for warming soups, such as this Basque garlic soup, which is one for paprika lovers, and this hearty corn chowder with potatoes, croutons and parmesan cheese, both of which have become two of my favourites.

Now before I share my ideas for what to cook this week, I have a favour to ask. Grantourismo is reader-funded. If you’ve enjoyed our recipes or other content on the site, please consider supporting Grantourismo. You could make a one-off donation to our epic original Cambodian cuisine history and cookbook on Patreon or buy us a coffee and we’ll use that money to buy ingredients for recipe testing.

Another option is to use our links to book accommodation, rent a car or campervan or motorhome, buy travel insurance, or book a tour on Klook or Get Your Guide. Or purchase something on Amazon, such as these James Beard award-winning cookbooks, cookbooks by Australian chefs, classic cookbooks for serious cooks, cookbooks for culinary travellers, travel books to inspire wanderlust, or gifts for Asian food lovers, picnic lovers and travellers who love photography. We may earn a small commission but you won’t pay extra.

You could also shop our Grantourismo store on Society6 for gifts for foodies, including fun reusable cloth face masks designed with Terence’s images. Now let me share some ideas for what to cook this week.

What to Cook this Week – Summer-Winter Mid-Week Meals from Thai Cobb Salad to Peanut Noodles

Monday – Thai Inspired Cobb Salad Recipe

I don’t know about you, but I still don’t like Mondays – despite the fact we work from home and it’s been 16 years since I worked in an office. Although there was that time I was hired to edit a Thai travel magazine. I became an Editor-at-Large for good reason!

Mondays are disappointing. I bounce out of bed with loads of energy and optimism about the week ahead, only for that to quickly dissipate when I realise I’m still tired because I worked until midnight, the cat jumped on me at 3.30am to feed her, and I have a lengthy to-do list to get through that exhausts me just looking at it. Know that feeling?

So all I want to do for dinner tonight is make a simple chopped salad, such as this Thai style Cobb salad recipe inspired by Thai chef Ian Kittichai’s Khao Yam Bangkok recipe for a ‘Bangkok Cobb salad’, which he serves at his beautiful restaurant, Issaya Siamese Club. Chef Ian’s salad is his take on a Southern Thai khao yam that he presents in the style of an American Cobb salad.

And my salad makes my take on Ian’s salad, which you can find in his Issaya Siamese Club restaurant cookbook, for sale at the restaurant but if you live abroad you can arrange to buy it via the Issaya Siamese club website.

Not warming enough for those of you in the southern hemisphere? Try this Thai fried egg salad, yam khai dao, of crispy fried eggs with sweet tomatoes, purple shallots, crunchy peanuts, fragrant coriander, Chinese celery, and chillies. In winter, I serve it with steamed jasmine rice or sticky rice to make a more filling and comforting meal.

Thai Style Cobb Salad Recipe Inspired by Khao Yam Bangkok by Chef Ian Kittichai

Tuesday – Mexican Grilled Chicken Tacos Recipe

If it’s Tuesday, it must be Taco Tuesday, which we like to use as an excuse to make Mexican food so tomorrow I’m planning on making Terence’s easy Mexican grilled chicken tacos recipe for tacos de pollo asado.

This recipe makes corn tortillas filled with incredibly delicious chicken pieces that’s moist and flavourful thanks to a marinade of chipotle and spices such as cumin and paprika. Delightfully smoky courtesy of the griddle pan, you can also cook the chicken on a barbecue or grill.

Most of the time we’re more than happy to hang out in the kitchen and slow-cook some carnitas, but when we don’t, for a quick mid-week meal, Terence makes this super-easy but incredibly delicious grilled chicken tacos recipe for tacos de pollo asado which we now top with our tasty Mexican corn salsa.

So what makes this grilled chicken tacos recipe so quick and easy? Pollo asado, which is simply chicken (pollo) that’s grilled, barbecued or roasted (asado) on an outdoor barbecue or grill. But who feels like firing up a barbecue on a week-night?

Instead, Terence cooks the chicken pieces on a griddle pan to get that smokiness we love from cooking on an outdoor barbecue – with means far less effort and mess – after marinating the chicken to ensure it is moist and full of flavour.

You could keep it simple, or serve some homemade guacamole on the side. We use corn tortillas when we can get them (and wheat flour tortillas when we can’t) and green tomatillo salsa (not red tomato salsa), just as they do in Mexico. Wash it also down with micheladas or margaritas.

Mexican Grilled Chicken Tacos Recipe for Tacos de Pollo Asado for an Easy Mid-Week Meal

Wednesday – Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles Recipe

We’ve spent the last few days testing authentic Thai peanut satay sauce and chicken satay skewer recipes, which we’ll be sharing with you this week. If last week ended up being an unscheduled Japanese Food Week here on Grantourismo, this week is shaping up to be a Thai Food Week.

So after making David Thompson’s satay sauce recipe from his Thai Food cookbook, which saw Terence pounding a spice paste and peanuts on the mortar and pestle late Friday night – yes, the days of Friday nights spent at cocktail bars and dining out are apparently over – I like the idea of making this quick and easy peanut butter noodles recipe again this week.

We used to make a peanut butter sauce satay way back in the mid-late 1980s. The first we made was saus kacang from The Complete Asian Cookbook by the ‘Queen of Asian Cooking in Australia’ Sri Lankan-born Charmain Solomon. Then we each developed our own recipes.

We were both working full-time jobs, going to classes at uni 3-4 nights a week, plus Terence was in a band, and we were making films on weekends, so we were busy and quick and easy recipes dominated our repertoire in those days before Thompson wrote Thai Food.

It is by no means an ‘authentic’ Thai recipe, but if you’re time-short, it makes a speedy dish of delicious peanut butter sauce noodles that are perfect for a fast lunch or mid-week dinner. It won’t satisfy any Thai satay cravings, but we’ve got other recipes scheduled this week which will do just that.

Spicy Peanut Butter Noodles Recipe for a Quick, Easy and Tasty Bowl of Noodles

Thursday – Japanese Fried Chicken Karaage and Cucumber and Cabbage Salad Recipes

I can happily tuck into some finger-linking fried chicken any time of year, no matter what the weather, as long as that fried chicken comes with a big refreshing salad on the side. How about you?

One of my favourite fried chicken and salad pairings, is this Burmese fried chicken, which is a beloved street food snack in Myanmar, and this Shan tomato salad, or Burmese raw cabbage salad.

But I’m completely addicted to this Japanese fried chicken called karaage that Terence has been making, so I’m going to try my hand at his Japanese chicken karaage recipe this week, and I’m going to make our Japanese style cucumber and cabbage salad recipe, again, as I can’t get enough of it.

If you cooked with us last week, and it’s too soon for you, try my Japanese potato salad recipe instead.

But before you put the fried chicken on your meal plan this week, note that you’ll need a good food thermometer to check the temperature of the chicken so it doesn’t go dry.

Japanese Fried Chicken Recipe for Crispy Juicy Karaage Chicken Pieces

Friday – Japanese Fried Rice Recipe for Yakimeshi

While I’ve long loved the idea of Friday night being Curry Night, I think I’m going to change Friday night to Fried Rice Night. Apart from having a nice ring to it, come Friday we always seem to have leftover steamed rice in the fridge, along with a bunch of other leftovers to use.

If you made our Japanese fried chicken recipe, Japanese cucumber and cabbage salad recipe, and you steamed some rice to go with that and have leftovers of everything, then you’re perfectly placed to make this on Friday.

If you didn’t and you don’t have leftovers, and you’re up for a Friday night cooking project, open a bottle of wine, turn on some music, and you can make the lot in a couple of hours, and make this fried chicken rice bowl with jammy eggs for breakfast or brunch tomorrow and the fried rice tomorrow night.

Japanese Fried Rice Bowl Recipe with Soft Jammy Eggs and Karaage Chicken

If you’re not and you just want to turn on Netflix and tuck into a big bowl of comforting rice, then browse our compilation of fried rice recipes for loads of easy fried rice dishes you can make. And if you’re in the blazing-hot northern hemisphere and really can’t face a few minutes stir-frying rice over a hot wok, then how about a big bowl of rice salad? You’ll need to check back for that one; I’ll be adding a rice salad recipe in a few days.

Japanese Fried Rice Recipe for Yakimeshi with Bacon, Egg and Cabbage

Please do let us know in the comments below if you make any of our What to Cook this Week recipes as we always love to hear how our recipes turned out for you.

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A travel and food writer who has experienced over 70 countries and written for The Guardian, Australian Gourmet Traveller, Feast, Delicious, National Geographic Traveller, Conde Nast Traveller, Travel+Leisure Southeast Asia, DestinAsian, TIME, CNN, The Independent, The Telegraph, Sunday Times Travel Magazine, AFAR, Wanderlust, International Traveller, Get Lost, Four Seasons Magazine, Fah Thai, Sawasdee, and more, as well as authored more than 40 guidebooks for Lonely Planet, DK, Footprint, Rough Guides, Fodors, Thomas Cook, and AA Guides.

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