Grilled Garlic Chicken (issahn style)

Right, so as I was saying, chicken has been boring me. I've been on a terror trying to find decent chicken recipes that are 1) efficient to make, 2) relatively inexpensive, and 3) good.  Last night the Thai Style Chicken was a nice change to boring old chicken.

But....let me tell you...THIS recipe will be a standard at Chez Jenn's.

Your nose knows.  The smell of this marinade spoke volumes of how good it was going to be.  Tons of garlic, so what's not to like, right?  Seriously though, this recipe was fantastic.

This gets the Jenn 5 stars.

Grilled Garlic Chicken
Serves 4-6

• 3T cilantro
• 3T garlic
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2T soy sauce (I generally use low sodium and add just a touch of salt. That way I control my sodium intake)
• 1T fish sauce
• 3T water (or more if needed)
• 3 lbs chicken pieces (again, I used chicken breasts. Cut them into chunks to skewer later)

Get out your little food processor. If you don't have one, that's fine just cut every really fine.
Put everything BUT the water into the food processor. Give it a chop.  Slowly add water in a tablespoon at a time. You're looking for a loose paste here - sorta the consistency of sour cream - that type of  loose.  Once you get the desired consistency, toss the chicken into a zip loc. Toss in the marinade. Make sure all the chicken gets some goodness on it. Toss it into the fridge to marinate minimum 1 hour - up to 4.

Bake, broil, or grill. I grilled again on a skewer and ...man.  I'm sure I'll smell like garlic for days.

Thai Style Chicken

Update June 20, 2022

I made this again tonight. I noticed in my notes that I recommended blending the ingredients together to allow it to combine better. I'm not sure that was the right choice. The cilantro was overwhelming. Good, but overwhelming. 

Chicken is boring to me. Its the main meat that I eat for many reasons, one of which it's supposed to be healthier than red meat.  Not that I don't eat my red meat, I am just trying to eat less of it.

Thus chicken has become boring.  I have hundreds of chicken recipes that all seem to be slight variations of each other and usually include, well chicken, cheese, rice/pasta, cream...in other words, nothing healthy.

No, I'm not on some health kick, but I figured every now and then eating better for me might be a good thing.

So this recipe.  Flavorful! Took chicken to a different level of goodness.  I'm a fan of curry which could be why I thought it was so good. There is a strong curry presence, you've been warned.

This also appeared to be a very close cousin to the Chicken Satay I did last week.  I think I'm a chicken / curry phase.

Thai Style Chicken
Recipe from Martin Yan
Serves 4

• 3T fish sauce
• 3T finely chopped cilantro
• 2T minced garlic
• 1T grated ginger (I forgot this in my version. With it I'm sure it would be 10X better)
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp white pepper (i used black pepper because that's what I had)
• 8 chicken thighs (yah not so much. I used chicken breasts)

Combine everything but the chicken.  I did mine by hand, but if I did it again I'd put it in a food processor to make it nice and paste like.  Put the marinade and the chicken into a zip loc bag. Let sit for AT LEAST 4 hours - over night if you can. I did 5 hours and it was fantastic.

Bake, broil or grill the chicken. I cut my chicken into big chunks and put it on a skewer and grilled it. See my theory here is if you cut a chicken breast into chunks, 6 sides gets marinade. Where as if you just leave the chicken breast alone only 4 sides (top/bottom/2 sides) gets marinade.  I think you see what I'm saying.

Mojo Marinated Tacos

I've recently reintroduced pork back into my diet. It wasn't agreeing with me for years, and suddenly it is. So I've been collecting pork recipes.

I'm also a big fan of just about anything in a tortilla.  It's such an easy envelop that holds so much great flavor.  This recipe combined my new found like for pork and tortilla. 

The overall flavor of this wasn't so great.  The caveat is I didn't use fresh squeezed orange or lime juice.  I am not convinced that would make a difference, but there it is.

I made a quick pica de gallo with tomatoes, an onion I had and some lime juice.  I tossed in a dollop of sour cream for good measure. I gotta tell you...this pica de gallo was way better than the pork.

So here's the recipe...try it if you like, but I am betting there are some better recipes on this blog to try.

Mojo Marinated Tacos
Makes 8 tacos

For the pork -

• 3 T fresh orange juice
• 2 T vegetable oil
• 2 T fresh lime juice
• 2 T minced garlic
• 2 T chopped fresh oregano (I should also add I'm not an oregano fan  so I omitted this. Perhaps this is where all the flavor comes from)
• Salt and pepper
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 lb pork tenderloin, trimmed

For the tortillas -

• 8 six inch corn tortillas
• 1 cup low fat refried black beans
• 1 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese

(Note: It should also be mentioned I didn't do the beans either. I thought I had a can and only when I was home did I find out I did not.)

Whisk together the ingredients for the pork.  Drop it into a zip loc bag. Add the pork tenderloin. Let it marinade for 2 hours. (Note: I also didn't give it 2 hours. I gave it one. What? I was hungry.)

Preheat grill to medium high heat.  Grill pork covered until meat registers 150F with a meat thermometer.  Remove and tent with foil. Let it rest while preparing the tortillas.

Top tortillas with 2 T beans each and 2 T cheese.  Place them on the grill over medium low heat and cook until the cheese melts.

Cut tenderloin into thin slices. Top each tortilla with sliced pork.

Pan-Roasted Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Prosciutto, and Marsala Sauce

So you all may know I call my Keurig my boyfriend. But did I ever tell you I have a "husband" too? Yah, Tyler Florence.  If only he were available.

I've watched Tyler on Food Network for years and subsequently bought a couple of his cookbooks.  Yet never cooked from them. Last night, that all changed. I'm not longer a Tyler Florence Cookbook Virgin.

I mad pan-roasted chicken with porcini mushrooms, prosciutto, and Marsala sauce - which is a mouthful instead of just saying chicken Marsala.  This recipe was easy, quick and quite delicious.

Pan-roasted Chicken with Porcini Mushrooms, Prosciutto, and Marsala Sauce
Serves 4

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1-1/2 total)
• 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour, for dredging
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into ribbons
• 8 ounces fresh porcini or cremini mushrooms (or whatever mushrooms you find in your supermarket), wiped clean, stemmed and halved
• 1/2 cup sweet Marsala wine
• 1/2 cup of chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1/4 cup of chopped, fresh flat-leaf parsley

Put the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board and lay a piece of plastic wrap over them. Pound to about 1/2-inch thick with a flat meat mallet, a heavy-bottomed saucepan or a bottle. Put the flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper. Mix with your fingers and then taste to make sure it's well-seasoned.

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. When the oil is nice and hot, dredge the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour and shake off the excess. Slip the cutlets into the pan and fry for 5 to 7 minutes on each side, until golden, turning once. (Do this in batches if the cutlets don't fit comfortably in the pan.) Remove the chicken to a large platter (arranging it in a single layer) and cover with foil to keep warm.

Now you're going to make a quick sauce. Lower the heat to medium and add prosciutto to the pan. Add a drizzled of olive oil (about 2 teaspoons) and sauté for about 1 minute to render out some of the delicious fat. Add the mushrooms and another drizzle of oil and sauté until the mushrooms are nicely browned and their moisture has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Pour the Marsala into the pan and boil down for a few seconds. Then, add the chicken stock and simmer for a minute to reduce the sauce slightly. Stir in the butter and return the chicken to the pan. Simmer gently for 1 minute to heat the chicken through.

Season with salt and pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving

Chicken Satay Skewers

I'm a big fan of chicken satay. Some of the best I've had is at a restaurant in Seattle called Thai Siam on Lake Union.  I've also had some pretty marginal chicken satay. 

Chicken satay is pretty simple. Chicken, some spices, and a nice peanut butter dipping sauce. This recipe, while good, needed a ride to flavor town. If you're not a spicy person, or don't like curry, this recipe most likely is just fine for you.  I was sure chicken satay had curry in it, so I made a special trip to get curry. When I got home and saw it didn't, I used the curry anyhow! Cuz that's how I roll.

This is traditionally an appetizer too, though it was my main course last night.

Chicken Satay Skewers
Recipe from Everyday Food

Photo by Everyday Food

Serves 8

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (6 to 8 ounces each), thinly sliced lengthwise into 12 strips
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon soy sauce
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• Vegetable oil, for pan

JW Notes: I added:
a dusting of curry powder to the chicken seasoning a tsp of cream to the peanut butter dipping sauce (cuz it was too thick, you could just as easily add water) and a touch of curry to the dipping sauce. Hey, I told you I made a separate trip for this curry dang it! I was going to use it.

Oh and I didn't bother to skewer my chicken because it was just me and why waste a good skewer!
Directions

In a bowl, toss chicken with sesame oil, soy sauce, garlic, and teaspoon red-pepper flakes. Season with salt and pepper. Thread each chicken strip lengthwise onto a skewer.

Make dipping sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes, and 2 to 3 tablespoons water.

Heat grill pan over high. Working in batches, brush pan with oil, and cook chicken until opaque throughout, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Serve chicken skewers with dipping sauce.

Quick Coq Au Vin

Coq au Vin...I'm a big fan. There's something about this simple dish that generally takes hours to make that just makes my mouth water.  I've tried several recipes and many of them I like, but they take hours.  Then I stumbled onto this recipe.  A "quick" version.

The only down side to this dish were the grapes.  Not sure what grapes are doing in coq au vin, but I could have done without them in this dish. Otherwise, the rest was glorious.  I didn't have pearl onions, so I chopped up a half of a yellow onion and it worked just fine. Enjoy.

Quick Coq Au Vin
Makes 5 cups (it really doesn't - it makes enough to serve 4 people)

• 1 1/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into 2" chunks, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 1/4 c flour
• 4 strips bacon, diced
• 2 T olive oil
• 6 oz button mushrooms, quartered
• 1 T tomato paste
• 1 c dry white wine
• 1 c chicken broth
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• 1 c frozen pearl onions
• 1 c red grapes, halved

Dust the seasoned chicken with the flour. (I put the flour in a plastic bag with the salt and pepper and dusted the chicken that way - seemed easier). Fry bacon until it's crisp. Remove and set aside.

Pour off all but 1T of the bacon drippings from the pan add 2T olive oil. Add chicken and brown it on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Saute mushrooms and tomato paste in 1 T oil over medium-high heat. (Note: I put the mushrooms and my chopped onions in together here. Once they softened THEN I hit them with the tomato paste). Cook for 3 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and chicken broth; simmer until reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Add thyme and cooked chicken, simmer for 5 more minutes.

Stir in pearly onions, grapes and bacon. Simmer 5 minutes or until onions are heated through.

I served mine over mashed potatoes, but I suppose a pasta side dish wouldn't be bad here either. Or polenta if you're the type that likes polenta! Blech! I'll stick to my mashed potatoes.

Swedish Meatballs

I've not had Swedish Meatballs too often in my life. In fact, the only real memorable ones are from IKEA...OMG those are good.

These weren't as good. Don't get me wrong, they were good (a little salty - but that was my fault).

The recipe was simple and really could be adjusted for more than 4 people or less than 4.  The meatball recipe is very basic. If you weren't cooking for 4 people, you could make the whole recipe and freeze half the meatballs (uncooked) for another day.

Swedish Meatballs
Recipe from Rachael Ray
Serves 4

• 1 3/4 lb ground sirloin
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/4 c plain bread crumbs
• 1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
• A healthy dash or grating of nutmeg
• 1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
• ground pepper
• 2 T extra virgin olive oil
• 2 c beef stock (here's where I made mine too salty, I used bouillon powder from Maggi and it was WAY too salty)
• 1 T red currant or grape jelly (i used more like 2 T)
• 1 c heavy cream (I used milk because that's what I had)
• 1/2 lb wide egg noodles (OMG these are awesome..they cook up soooooo fast)
• 2T butter
• 8 cornichons or 6 baby gherkins, chopped for garnish (I didn't even bother)

Place the ground beef in a large mixing bowl.  Add the egg, bread crumbs, onion, nutmeg and 1/2 of the parsley. Salt and pepper to taste.  Mix up the meatball ingredients, careful to not overmix.  Make meatballs of about 1" to 1.5" rounds. 

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat with the olive oil.  Add the meatballs and brown on all sides, about 5 minutes.  Add the stock, jelly, and heavy cream.  Bring it up to a bubble, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 8-10 minutes.

Make your egg noodles according to the package directions. Drain them.  Put the noodles back in the pot add the remaining chopped parsley and butter; season with salt and pepper.  Stir until butter is melted.  Top the noodles with the meatballs and their sauce (and pickles if you're using them).

Shanghai Chow Mein

I'm a big fan of Chinese food. And I believe you can make good Chinese food at home, for less $$ and less calories.  Not that I'm watching what I eat or anything...but when I can cut back I try to.

This recipe was super easy and very adaptable to other elements being added. For example, you'll see the recipe calls for leeks and bell peppers.  Well I couldn't afford leeks and we all know what I think about bell peppers, so I improvised and added julienned carrots and asparagus.  As we were enjoying it last night I thought, broccoli or zucchini would be good in it too. Really any vegetable combination.

Shanghai Chow Mein
Recipe from Martin Yan
Serves 6

Marinade:

• 1 T soy sauce
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced

Sauce:

• 3 T soy sauce
• 1 T Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 2 T sweet bean sauce (if you can't find this, hoisin would work)
• 2 T black vinegar or balsamic

• 4 tsp sesame oil
• 16 oz fresh shanghai style noodles or Chinese egg noodles (I used spaghetti)
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 leek, white part only, cleaned and julienned
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and julienned

Combine the marinade ingredients into a bowl. Add chicken and stir.  Let stand for 10 minutes.

Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl.  In a large pot, cook your noodles according to the packaged directions.

Place a wok on high heat until hot. Add oil and swirl to coat the sides. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 10 seconds. Add chicken and stir fry for 2 minutes until cooked. Add leek and bell pepper and stir fry for 2 minutes.

Add sauce and noodles; gently toss.

If you're using other vegetables, I'd add them when the leeks and bell pepper are added above.