Showing posts with label Chicken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chicken. Show all posts

Crispy Sweet and Sour Pork

24 March 2009 Labels: , , , , , 3 comments

Sweet and Sour Pork

SWEET AND SOUR PORK
I tried a lot of recipes for the batter to use for the dish Sweet and Sour and let me tell you, there are a lot of recipes that doesn't hold up to the sauce. What you'll usually end up with is a soggy mess with the batter falling off the viand. The good news is, I found a batter recipe that stays put. It is a lot of work so if you don't like a recipe with a lot of steps, my advice is to order out from the Chinese restaurant down the road. The batter is deep fried twice for extra crispiness. (I know, some of you will cringe but hey, you're only supposed to have this dish once in a while, not every week.) In lieu of pork, you can substitute chicken, shrimps or fish. If you are diabetic, you can substitute splenda (just add it at the end of the cooking steps for the sauce.)



Sweet and Sour Shrimps SWEET AND SOUR SHRIMPS


SWEET AND SOUR
Serves 4-6
1/2 cup carrots, sliced
1 small bell pepper, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup pineapple chunks, drained
1/2 cup all prupose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp beaten egg mixed with enough water to make 1/2 cup
1 tsp cooking oil
1/2 lb pork, cut into 1-inch or smaller cubes
1 tsp dry sherry or cooking wine
1/4 tsp salt
ground black pepper to taste
Sauce:
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup catsup
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup cider vinegar
3 1/2 tbsp cornstarch dissolved in 1/3 cup water
cooking oil for deep frying

- Parboil carrots in boiling water for 1 minute. Add the bell peppers. When it comes back to boil, drain and rinse in cold water to stop cooking.

- Add the pineapple to the veggies and set aside.
- Combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, egg mixture and oil in a bowl. Mix until well-blended. The batter will be like a thick paste. Set aside.

- Mix the pork, sherry, salt and pepper. Set aside.

- In a deep pan, heat oil to a temperature of 375F to 400F. This is very important so the batter will not soak up too much oil.

- Dip the marinated pork into the batter and coat completely.
- Carefully drop the battered pork into the oil, a piece at a time.

- Fry until golden brown.
- Remove the browned pork and dry on paper towels and let cool.

- Mix the sugar, catsup, soysauce, salt and water in a saucepan.

- Bring to a boil and add the vinegar. Do not stir. Let boil for 10 minutes.

- Stir in the cornstarch/water solution. Cook until the sauce thickens.

- Add the vegetables and pineapples to the sauce. Add 1 tsp. of hot oil from the deep-fry pan to give the sauce a shine.


- While preparing the sauce, reheat the oil to 400F for the second frying.

- Add the cooked pork and fry until the pieces are heated and crisped.

- Drain on paper towels.
- Serve with the sweet and sour sauce poured on top.


TIPS:
- You can make the pork in advance. After the first frying, you can keep in the refrigerator or in the freezer for a few days. Thaw first before frying for the second time.

- The oil can be re-used if kept in the refrigerator.



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Thai Barbeque Chicken

25 February 2009 Labels: , , 4 comments

Thai Barbeque Chicken

THAI BARBEQUE CHICKEN

This is a recipe from a book Keo's Thai Cuisine by Keo Sananikone. He owns the Mekong and Temples of Thai Cuisine restaurants in Hawaii. This barbequed chicken is very good, you can detect a hint of coconut milk, lemon grass and ginger so it is important to marinate the chicken for more than an hour. To achieve crispy skin, I increased the temperature to 500 degF at the last 15 minutes of baking.

THAI BARBEQUE CHICKEN
1 whole chicken
2 stalks fresh lemon grass
1/2 tbsp coarsely chopped fresh ginger
3 large garlic cloves
2 shallots
1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp cooking oil

Rinse chickens and pat dry. Split chicken down the breast but do not cut all the way throug; press open. Place chicken in a large bowl. In a food processor or blender combine the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour this sauce over the chicken and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 350degF. Place chicken on a rack with the split side down. Bake for about 1 hour, depending on the thickness of the chicken, or until the juices run clea when the thigh is pierced with a sharp knife. I use a cooking thermometer to check the temperature of the thickest part of the thighs.

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Easy Chicken Cordon Bleu

14 February 2009 Labels: , , 4 comments


EASY CHICKEN CORDON BLEU

The original recipe for Chicken Cordon Bleu takes a lot of work. It takes a while to prepare it. It entails pounding the chicken breast, dipping it in flour, egg and bread crumbs, then you put it in the fridge to have everything set. This recipe is from Kraft Food and Family. It is very easy to make and prep time is less than 15 minutes (for me). Of course, nothing beats the original recipe but if you don't want to toil in the kitchen and still get the same taste (almost) then you should try this. It has become my family's favorite. If you're not a fan of mustard, you can omit this ingredient or use just a teaspoon like I did. This recipe used a lot of Kraft products (of course) but you can use whatever brand is available. You can also omit using stuffing mix, it doesn't make much difference. In the photo below, the serving on the left side is for my son who doesn't care for stuffing.



EASY CHICKEN CORDON BLEU
1 pkg (6 oz) stuffing mix
6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves
6 slices ham
1 can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
6 slices Swiss cheese


Preheat oven to 400 deg F. Prepare stuffing mix as directed on package. Set aside.
Place chicken in 13x9- inch baking dish; cover with ham. Mix condensed cream of chicken soup and mustard; spoon over chicken. Top with prepared stuffing.
Bake for 25 min. or until chicken is cooked through (the internal temperature should be at least 165 deg F). Top with cheese slices and bake an additional 5 min. or until cheese is melted.
Makes 6 servings.

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Chicken, Chorizo and Shrimp Paella

16 December 2008 Labels: , , , , 8 comments

This is one of my favorite dishes. It is simple and easy plus you only need one pan to cook it, less washing for me. :o) The secret to a great Paella is the Saffron. It gives this dish an exquisite flavor in my opinion. Saffron is quite expensive but is essential for a real Paella. I also have a Paella pan to cook it in. If you don't have one, you can use any saute pan that is big enough. You can also cook it in a regular wok and transfer it to a baking dish. I took this photo while the Paella was still cooking so it has some liquid left.

The recipe I used didn't call for shrimps but I added it anyway since I love it and I'm the cook. LOL If you are adding shrimps, do it at the last 5 or so minutes of cooking, depending on the size of your shrimps. If you'll notice in the photo, only one half of the Paella has green peas, that's because my husband hates it while I like it. LOL The recipe also calls for roasted chicken but if you don't have left-over chicken, you can use fresh chicken. I put salt and pepper on fresh chicken and fry it it a little oil.

Here is the recipe I used from Epicurious.


Quick Chicken and Chorizo Paella
Epicurious September 1999

Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
14 ounces chorizo, cut into 1/2 inch slices on the diagonal
1 small onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 teaspoon pimenton or paprika
2 cups short- or medium-grain rice
1 pinch saffron threads
2 bay leaves
4 cups chicken stock
1 1/4 pounds roast chicken (meat from 3-pound chicken skinned, deboned, and torn into chunks)
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 tomato, chopped
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400°F. Heat oil in a large casserole or paella pan over high heat. Add chorizo and cook until browned and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add onion, red bell pepper, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, about 3 minutes.

Add rice (medium or short grain rice), pimenton, saffron, and bay leaves. Stir to combine and coat the rice, about 1 minute. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Add roast chicken, frozen peas, and tomato; stir to combine.

Transfer skillet to oven. Cook uncovered until rice is tender and no liquid remains, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven. Fluff with a fork and serve immediately.

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Wokna What? It's Woknatoy!

29 May 2008 Labels: , , 7 comments

Woknatoy

This is a dish I learned from my mom and as you can see, it has a funny if not weird name. 'Woknatoy', what does it mean? Beats me, I don't know either. This dish was a concoction of a cousin who is in the catering business. It has a tomato-based sauce just like the Menudo or Afritada. The main difference is the addition of sweet pickles and it's juices.
WOKNATOY

1 whole chicken, cut up into pieces
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small onion, quartered
1 small can Tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 medium carrot, cut into bite sized pieces
1/2 Red Bell Pepper
1/2 Green Bell Pepper
4 potatoes, quartered
6 pieces Sweet pickle, quartered
1/8 cup pickle juice
Fish Sauce or Salt
Pepper

Saute garlic and onions in oil until limp. Add chicken and some salt, saute until juices comes out. Add the tomato sauce and water. Bring to boil and let simmer for 15 minutes. Add the potatoes and carrots, cook until fork tender. Add the rest of the ingredients. Let simmer for another 5 minutes. Season with fish sauce or salt and pepper.

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My Filipino Comfort Food - Nilaga

16 February 2008 Labels: , , , , 21 comments

Beef Nilaga

Nilaga

This has been my favorite since I was a child in the Philippines. It is called 'Nilaga' which translates to 'boiled' in English. This is made with either beef, chicken and sometimes even pork. My fave is beef nilaga but we try to eat healthy so I used chicken instead.




It is a very easy dish to make, if you mess it up, I suggest you stay out of the kitchen. LOL



Put the meat in the pot with water and some peppercorns and boil until tender. For veggies, it is preferable to use Bokchoy (also known as Pechay) or cabbage with some potatoes and string beans. For seasoning, I use fish sauce (what can I say, I'm Tagalog. LOL).



How about you? What is your favorite comfort food?


Nilaga


Cooking time: 1 to 2 hours

1 lb. beef, cut into 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" cubes

3 potatoes cut the same size as the beef

1 bundle Bok choy, cut in halves

1/2 small cabbage, cut in 2

fish sauce, to taste

8 peppercorns

6 cups water


In casserole bring water, beef, peppercorns and potatoes to boil. Take out the potatoes when it is fork tender and set aside (after about 10 minutes). Simmer for 1 hour or until the beef is tender. Add the cabbage and the bokchoy. Do not over cook the vegetables. Add fish sauce.


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