Well hello, Chicken
I've found recently that I'm getting back into the habit of cooking chicken (got a little carried away with pork for awhile), most likely because Safeway had a "Buy One Get One Free" deal and we ended up buying a massive amount of chicken thighs. Red meat rules. I don't care what all those "chicken breast is oh so holy" white meat people say - drumsticks and thighs are far tastier, most likely because they're fattier. I just wanted to jot down a few things I've cooked in California that I want to remind myself of in the future. I haven't cooked a lot, as I technically am supposed to be reformatting myself. Probably hasn't worked out so well, but I do feel like I took a break...which counts for something? Earlier in the month, I stuffed some chicken with dill and havarti, but that's about it. It tasted fine, but it was kind of messy, and I despise messy cooking - I have got to find a way to sew up a chicken while its cooking so I can keep the damn cheese inside and not all over the pan. Another obstacle for another day, I suppose. Regarding the recipes below. I'll try to add images, but as usual, these are split moment creations and I never remember to take pictures or proper measurements. Maybe the second time I make it, unless it's a complete failure, and then I'll probably forget again.
Shaoshing Baked Chicken
Chicken thighs, with or without skin
For the marinade:
1-2 C Shaoshing wine
3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 C minced garlic
1/4 C oyster sauce
1/4 C salt
For the rub:
*equal parts of paprika, chili powder, sugar, salt
honey
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees C. Than poke the chicken and slice crosshatches on the skin. I like to peel back the skins of the thighs and rub the salt into that location first. Marinate the chicken thighs overnierght in the liberally alcoholic marinade or for a couple of hours. Drunk chicken is tasty chicken. After marinating, lay the chicken out in a large roasting pan and pat dry. Honey is kind of difficult to work with, and to make it stick to the chicken, make sure it's as dry as possible or it will just leak down and burn on the pan. Rub the chicken down with the seasonings and dollop honey on the tops of the skin. Another option, instead of using honey, is to use butter and baste constantly.
If you want to braise it a bit and not have super crispy skin (maybe to avoid drying it out), then fill the roasting pan, 1/4 of the way up the chicken, with Shaosing wine. Then pop it into the preheated oven and let it cook for 45 minutes or so. I like to watch for the sauce to be boiling, and then let it go for awhile before taking it out. I hate it when you take meat out of the oven, destroy it's structure, and then discover it's not fully cooked. Maybe I should experiment with beef more.
PRETTY STANDARD CHICKEN CURRY
-CHICKEN THIGHS - seriously, if you don't use chicken thighs, I weep for your curry; if you do use breast, I'm still weeping, but you'll just have to be careful not to overcook it.
-carrots, onions, whatever vegetables and roots you like popping into your stew....hahhh.
-turnips and onions and white wine, blended these all into an equal parts puree, hurrah for magic bullet. Too bad I won't have one when I go back to Baltimore and will have to deal with that huge ineffective blender (brings back horrible memories of me trying to make hua sheng zi ma mi jiang). As for white wine, I used moscata....which is weird but that's all that was in the fridge. I'll probably go for a sauvignon blanc next time, or some other alcohol more oriented towards cooking, and just be more liberal with maybe add some sugar.
- (marinade for the chicken) after slicing and dicing the chicken into proper size chunks, I marinated it over night in a mixture of crushed and minced garlic (mucho) soy sauce, sugar, salt, and oyster/hoisin sauce. Standard braising stuff, but I was lighter with all the ingredients except for the garlic. I really just thought it would add a nice layer.
- miscellaneous: I also added some leftover soup, little more than a cup, from a pork dish I had braised (standard braising) a few days earlier. I don't like my curries so bright yellow, so I always add a little soy or braising sauce to give it a darker color (and also cause it adds a nice and subtle aniseed flavor).
- some milk (or cream) - I added a little too much this time, so the color was wonky before I extra-reduced it. So...don't do what I did with the milk. Just add a little.
- bay leaves
All right, that's pretty much it. I got a huge pot, slightly sauteed (or is it browned?) the marinated chicken thighs in grapeseed oil and curry powder; then I added the bay leaves and leftover braising soup and let it simmer for awhile. In went the turnip/wine/onion puree, and then I added my excess milk (next time I'll add milk and then water). All that went on low heat and simmered/boiled until it was reduced to the consistency I liked. Adjust the flavors accordingly, but this one turned out pretty well without me adding anything extra. Then I added the chopped carrots and put the lid over to let them slow cook (turning off the heat after awhile). Curry finished.
Back to Baltimore on the 24th. I have some things I do want to try cooking while I'm back there though. Kalbi Beef, cause the marinade just smells fantastic, and some Blue Cheese Potato Scones. Hope I remember.
Shaoshing Baked Chicken
Chicken thighs, with or without skin
For the marinade:
1-2 C Shaoshing wine
3 cloves minced garlic
1/2 C minced garlic
1/4 C oyster sauce
1/4 C salt
For the rub:
*equal parts of paprika, chili powder, sugar, salt
honey
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees C. Than poke the chicken and slice crosshatches on the skin. I like to peel back the skins of the thighs and rub the salt into that location first. Marinate the chicken thighs overnierght in the liberally alcoholic marinade or for a couple of hours. Drunk chicken is tasty chicken. After marinating, lay the chicken out in a large roasting pan and pat dry. Honey is kind of difficult to work with, and to make it stick to the chicken, make sure it's as dry as possible or it will just leak down and burn on the pan. Rub the chicken down with the seasonings and dollop honey on the tops of the skin. Another option, instead of using honey, is to use butter and baste constantly.
If you want to braise it a bit and not have super crispy skin (maybe to avoid drying it out), then fill the roasting pan, 1/4 of the way up the chicken, with Shaosing wine. Then pop it into the preheated oven and let it cook for 45 minutes or so. I like to watch for the sauce to be boiling, and then let it go for awhile before taking it out. I hate it when you take meat out of the oven, destroy it's structure, and then discover it's not fully cooked. Maybe I should experiment with beef more.
PRETTY STANDARD CHICKEN CURRY
-CHICKEN THIGHS - seriously, if you don't use chicken thighs, I weep for your curry; if you do use breast, I'm still weeping, but you'll just have to be careful not to overcook it.
-carrots, onions, whatever vegetables and roots you like popping into your stew....hahhh.
-turnips and onions and white wine, blended these all into an equal parts puree, hurrah for magic bullet. Too bad I won't have one when I go back to Baltimore and will have to deal with that huge ineffective blender (brings back horrible memories of me trying to make hua sheng zi ma mi jiang). As for white wine, I used moscata....which is weird but that's all that was in the fridge. I'll probably go for a sauvignon blanc next time, or some other alcohol more oriented towards cooking, and just be more liberal with maybe add some sugar.
- (marinade for the chicken) after slicing and dicing the chicken into proper size chunks, I marinated it over night in a mixture of crushed and minced garlic (mucho) soy sauce, sugar, salt, and oyster/hoisin sauce. Standard braising stuff, but I was lighter with all the ingredients except for the garlic. I really just thought it would add a nice layer.
- miscellaneous: I also added some leftover soup, little more than a cup, from a pork dish I had braised (standard braising) a few days earlier. I don't like my curries so bright yellow, so I always add a little soy or braising sauce to give it a darker color (and also cause it adds a nice and subtle aniseed flavor).
- some milk (or cream) - I added a little too much this time, so the color was wonky before I extra-reduced it. So...don't do what I did with the milk. Just add a little.
- bay leaves
All right, that's pretty much it. I got a huge pot, slightly sauteed (or is it browned?) the marinated chicken thighs in grapeseed oil and curry powder; then I added the bay leaves and leftover braising soup and let it simmer for awhile. In went the turnip/wine/onion puree, and then I added my excess milk (next time I'll add milk and then water). All that went on low heat and simmered/boiled until it was reduced to the consistency I liked. Adjust the flavors accordingly, but this one turned out pretty well without me adding anything extra. Then I added the chopped carrots and put the lid over to let them slow cook (turning off the heat after awhile). Curry finished.
Back to Baltimore on the 24th. I have some things I do want to try cooking while I'm back there though. Kalbi Beef, cause the marinade just smells fantastic, and some Blue Cheese Potato Scones. Hope I remember.
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