Sesame Chicken December 3, 2010

Every recipe that I looked at for Sesame Chicken required you to batter and fry the chicken pieces. Since this is typically the traditional way you would have Sesame Chicken served to you in a Chinese restaurant. I don’t like frying, so I just marinated and then cooked the chicken. Come out great!

 

Asian Sesame Chicken:

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts, cut in bite size pieces
• 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame or peanut oil
• 1 teaspoon Chile paste
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds

Directions:

In a ziplock bad add the chicken, 1/4 cup soy sauce and 3 cloves of crushed garlic. Toss around a little so the soy sauce covers all the chicken pieces. Place bag in fridge for about 20 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth, sugar, vinegar, remaining soy sauce, sesame oil, chile paste and garlic to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir frequently so the sugar doesn’t burn.

Dissolve 1/4 cup cornstarch into 1/2 cup of water and then stir into the sauce. Stir in the red pepper flakes. Simmer until the sauce thickens and starts to turn more clear. Reduce heat to low and keep warm.

In a fry pan add the chicken pieces and stir fry until all the chicken is cooked through. Add the sauce and stir well to insure all the chicken is coated with the sauce.

Serve over rice and top with the sesame seeds.

Adapted from allrecipes.com.

Cashew Kung Pao Chicken October 4, 2010

Asian stir fry’s are quick, easy and taste delicious. It is a easy weeknight meal to make. You can add all different kinds of vegetables and  have endless varieties.

Kung Pao Chicken:

Ingredients:

• 1 package boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or tenderloins, cut into 1/2″ pieces
• 6 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons red wine
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar or rice vinegar
• 1/3 cup water
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil  plus 2 teaspoons
• 2/4 cups cashews
• 1/4 cup peanuts
• 4 scallions, white bulbs and green tops cut separately into 1/2″ pieces
• 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

Directions:

In a zip lock bag, toss the chicken with 2 tablespoon of the soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of the wine and 2 cloves of garlic. Allow to marinate in the fridge for a couple of hours. Remove from fridge and then toss chicken with 1 tablespoon of the cornstarch.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar, vinegar, peanut oil, water and the remaining 4 tablespoons of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of red wine and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch and remaining garlic. Combine well.

Prepare scallions, white bulbs and green tops cut separately into 1/2″ pieces.

In a wok or large frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over moderately high heat.  Add the cashews and peanuts and stirring until light brown, about 30 seconds.  Remove from the pan.  Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil.  Add the white part of the scallions and the red-pepper flakes to the pan and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.  Add the chicken with its marinade and cook, stirring, until almost done, 1 to 2 minutes.  Add the soy sauce mixture and the scallion tops and simmer until the chicken is just done, about 1 minute longer.  Stir in the cashews and peanuts.  Serve over steamed rice.

Adapted from Noble Pig.

Mac n Cheese Please September 14, 2010

Found this recipe on Noble Pig’s website the other day and thought it sounded quite interesting and yummy. Figured I would give it a whirl. There are a couple of things I would change for next time though. One being, I would use mild cheddar instead of the sharp cheddar. I feel that sharp cheddar is too over powering and I just don’t like the flavour of it. Second change would be using less cheese. I did use less macaroni  than the recipe called for so maybe that was my problem. Overall I think this would be a good dish to take for a family or work pot luck.

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese:

Ingredients:

• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for the dish
• Kosher salt
• 1 pound elbow macaroni
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 1 pound chicken breast, chopped in bite size pieces
• 5 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3/4 cup Frank’s Buffalo Wing Sauce, divided
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons dry mustard
• 2-1/2 cups half-and-half
• 1 pound extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 8 ounces pepper jack cheese, shredded
• 2/3 cup sour cream
• 1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
• 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil; add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 7 minutes.  Drain.

Melt 3 Tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the chopped chicken breast and brown. Add the onion, celery and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup hot sauce and simmer until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in the flour and mustard with a wooden spoon until smooth.  Whisk in the half-and-half, then add the remaining 1/4 cup hot sauce and stir until thick, about 2 minutes.  Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, then whisk in the sour cream until nice and smooth.

Spread half of the macaroni in the prepared baking dish, then top with the chicken mixture and then the remaining macaroni.  Pour the cheese sauce evenly on top.  Put the remaining 2 Tablespoons butter in a microwave safe bowl and microwave until melted.  Stir in the panko, blue cheese and parsley.  Sprinkle over the macaroni.  Bake until bubbly all over, about 30 to 40 minutes.  Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Add more wing sauce, parsley and blue cheese on top if you desire.

Adapted from Noble Pig.

Buffalo Pizza August 30, 2010

I was craving Buffalo Chicken pizza really bad. So here is my version of it. Pretty easy to make and it tasted wonderful. Definitely hit the right spot and satisfied that craving of mine.

Spicy Buffalo Chicken Pizza:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound skinless chicken breast, chopped in small pieces
• 1 pizza dough (I used the one in the can)
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• ½ red onion, chopped
• Handful fresh cilantro leaves
• 1 ½ cups Buffalo wing sauce
• 1 cup Colby Jack cheese
• 1 cup Shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven according your pizza dough directions.

Brown chicken with garlic. Add 1 cup of buffalo wing sauce and stir to combine well.

Prepare pizza dough on a greased cookie tray. Depending how spicy you want your pizza add the rest of the buffalo sauce to the dough and spread out evenly. Top with 1/2 cup of the Colby jack cheese. Add chicken, onions and then cilantro. Top with the rest of the Colby jack cheese and then the mozzarella cheese.

Bake according to the pizza dough instructions.

Lettuce Wraps August 4, 2010

Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb chicken breast meat, cut in small pieces
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 2 tablespoons ginger, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup shredded cabbage and carrot mix
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 1/2 cup plum sauce
• 1 cup basil leaves, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• Iceberg lettuce leaves separated

Directions:

Heat a large skillet. Add oil, then chicken and cook for about 2 minutes. Then add ginger, garlic, peppers, cabbage/carrot mix and green onions. Stir fry for another 2-3 minutes. Add plum sauce and mix well. Then add basil leaves and fish sauce. Toss for 1 more minute.

Place spoonfuls of chicken into a piece of lettuce and fold over like a taco and enjoy.

Adapted from foodnetwork.