Senses in the Kitchen {Buttery Garlic Frog Legs over Crawfish Boil Mashed Potatoes}

Let's play word association.
I'll start.  Food.

Maybe you'll say hungry.  Eat.
Maybe you'll blurt out the name of your favorite food.
Chocolate.  Cheese.  Pasta.  Strawberries

I'm betting you won't say "frog legs."

Maybe it's because I made this the weekend before St. Patrick's Day, 

but these looked like little dancing (half) leprechauns to me.

I swear I didn't get into the Irish Whiskey.

Yes, we eat frog legs.  No, they don't taste like chicken.  They have a texture similar to chicken, but taste more like seafood.

Anyway, back to word associations.  If you were to pick a sense that goes with the word food, I'm guessing you'd pick taste.

Of course, when it comes to food, we also use our sense of smell.
Our sense of sight.
And our sense of touch when we prepare it.

I recently learned how important the sense of hearing is when it comes to food.  I've taken to popping in some earbuds and listening to music while I cook.

(I've even been caught "shakin' it" in the kitchen.)

I never realized how much I rely on hearing my food cook to tell me when to do certain things.  Often, I turn my back to the stove to wash dishes or start getting plates and glasses ready.  I can hear when the food starts to sizzle too much and needs to be flipped or starts to bubble too much and needs to be turned down.

So while I've been shakin' it in the kitchen lately, I've had a few pots bubble over and a few things stick to the bottom of pans.

I was careful with these frog legs, though.  They aren't cheap (unless you hunt them yourself) and they are one of my son's favorite things to eat.

Frog legs are most commonly eaten deep fried around here.  I didn't feel for that, so I lightly dredged them in flour and gave them a quick pan fry.  A quick and easy buttery garlic and lemon sauce went over the top.  Just for kicks...and because I'm anxiously waiting for the price of crawfish to come down...I decided to serve the frog legs over Crawfish Boil Mashed Potatoes with a green salad on the side.

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Buttery Garlic Frog Legs

8 pairs frog legs
1 cup milk
1 TBSP hot sauce
3/4 cup flour
salt and black pepper, to taste
1 stick butter, divided
2 TBSP olive oil
2 TBSP finely minced garlic
juice of half a lemon
1 TBSP chopped chives or green onion

Cut the frog legs apart.  Mix milk with hot sauce in a bowl.  Add frog legs and soak in refrigerator for 30-40 minutes.

Heat oven to 250 F.

Mix the flour, salt, and pepper together in a shallow dish.  Add half of the butter and all of the olive oil to a large skillet and heat over medium.  Once the butter is foamy, remove frog legs from the milk, letting excess drip off.  Dredge in flour.  Shake off excess and place in hot pan.  Cook until golden brown, turn, and cook on second side until deep golden brown.  Place frog legs on a baking pan and keep warm in the oven.

Melt remaining butter in the skillet.  Add garlic and saute for about a minute.  Squeeze in lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.  Serve over frog legs immediately.  Garnish with chives or green onions.

Serves 3-4


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Crawfish Boil Mashed Potatoes

2 1/2 lbs small red potatoes, cut in half
1/2 cup concentrated Crawfish, Crab, and Shrimp Boil
1/2 TBSP crushed red pepper
1/2 TBSP salt
1/2-3/4 cup milk
2 TBSP butter
salt and pepper, to taste (if needed)

Add potatoes to a large pot.  Pour in concentrated Crawfish, Crab, and Shrimp Boil.  Add red pepper and salt.  Add water to cover potatoes by about 1".  Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook until a sharp knife will pierce through the potatoes.  Drain, reserving 1/2 cup liquid.

Return potatoes to the pot and add the reserved liquid.  Add 1/2 cup milk and the butter.  Mash together with a potato masher, adding more milk if needed.  Season with salt and pepper if needed.

Serves 4-6

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