Spicy Honey Chicken

Tried a new chicken recipe the other week and this one has some potential.

The skin of this was awesome. Slightly sweet and spicy. The inside though didn't have as much flavor as I wanted. I think it was because I didn't let the meat marinate overnight. The next time I make this, I'm going to let it sit overnight and add in a bit more cayenne pepper. 

Recipe: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/spicy-honey-brushed-chicken-thighs-10000001591042/

Stir Fry Lemongrass Shrimp with Onions

Another shrimp dish just for you J!

Stir fry shrimp with lemongrass and onions. This is one of my favorite family dishes (bro cooks it the best) so I had to try to master it myself. My first attempt? Good but not great. I didn't get the flavor right and I overcooked the shrimp.

Will try this again soon though!

Chili and Basil Tofu

Thanks S for giving my this recipe. It's such a simple and semi healthy (?) dish to make.

This was my first time making this and I made the mistake of over frying (pan fried) the tofu. I could be wrong but I think if you cook your tofu too much, it will not be able to absorb the seasoning/sauce mix as well.The next time made this, I cooked it so that the tofu was just a tad brown on both sides and I felt like the tofu absorb my soy sauce/fish sauce mix much better.

Shrimp Scampi

I made this last spring so I don't remember the exact taste...I do remember it being good but not great. Still came out good for my first time making it though!

Salad with Broiled Chicken

I go through phases where I am really into salads (usually when I see the number on my scale go up...what a coincidence..). During my last phase, I decided to make some salad at home so that I can bring it to work instead of paying $8 for it.

Found a seasoning (link below) that I could use for my cutlets and made this!

I was really happy with the outcome the first time I made it. I never realized how easy and quick it was to broiled chicken cutlets! The one thing I would recommend is to go easy on the seasoning. Applying too much can make the chicken a bit salty. I made that mistake the second time I made this.

Spicy Chicken Breasts Recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/spicy-chicken-breasts/detail.aspx

Chicken Quesadilla

Been wanting to make a chicken quesadilla for quite some time now. As dumb as it sounds, I never made it because I was always afraid of cooking bland and dry pieces of chicken. After making some chicken cutlets for my salad a few months ago, I realized that a simple combination of seasonings can make a decent piece of chicken. So I decided it was time I make this simple classic dish.

For the seasoning, I used a taco seasoning mix (link to recipe below). I defrosted 3 thin skinless, boneless chicken breasts cutlets that I already had in my freezer. I put my newly bought Jaccard meat tenderizer into good use and applied the seasoning on the chicken via the zip lock bag method. I rubbed the cutlets in the bag until it had a good coating on it and put it back in the fridge for approx an hour so that the flavor could sink in.

Took the chicken out of the fridge about 45 mins before I wanted to cook so that the chicken was closer to room temperature (I didn't want the outside of the chicken to burn before the inside was cooked).

Used my cast iron pan and grilled each side of the cutlets for 2-3 mins. I removed the chicken from the pan, cut it into slices and put it aside. Took a paper towel and lightly oiled my cast iron pan. Put the flour tortilla on the pan, added a good layer of cheese (I decided to just buy the shredded Mexican cheese mix), added the pieces of chicken on one side of the tortilla and then added another layer of cheese. Took my fish spatula and folded the tortilla like you would when making an omelet. When the cheese started to melt, I flipped over the quesadilla and grilled the other side for another min (low to med heat).

When it was done, I cut it in half and voila!

(P.S. - I decided to make green sauce instead of salsa)

Overall, the quesadilla came out pretty good. The chicken cooked just right and with the right amount of flavor. The cheese was nicely melted and the tortilla was warm and crisp. It also went pretty well with the green sauce.

Next time, I think it will put some green/red peppers and onions in the quesadilla.

Taco Seasoning: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/taco-seasoning-i/detail.aspx
Chicken Quesadilla: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-quesadillas

Pan Seared Salmon with Mashed Potatoes and Asparagus

I think you guys should be proud of me. Yesterday evening I had decided that I was going to eat 5 guys for dinner tonight. After speaking to a co-worker (that does not eat meat) talk about the fish dishes she eats, I was inspired to cook fish for the first time tonight!

It came out pretty good! I followed a salmon recipe that I found online during lunch today and I am really happy with the results. It's really easy to cook. The hardest part is just skinning it and removing the bones from the fillet. The skining part just needs some practice and I think I need to get some tweezers for the deboning part.

I am happy that I no longer have to go to the over priced Malagueta to get my salmon dish!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/super-simple-salmon/

Peruvian Chicken with Roasted Potatoes and Green Sauce

This post is dedicated to a certain someone that has the same initials as me. Sorry you couldn't make it for dinner.

I was browsing some food blog sites and came across the recipe for peruvian chicken and the green sauce. The pictures looked really good so I decided to try out the recipe myself.

Overall, I thought it was pretty good meal. However, I will definitely make some adjustments the next time I cook this. The chicken was moist and packed with flavor. It might have been packed with a little too much flavor, especially since I had the green sauce. I did think that the combination of the chicken and green sauce did conflict with each other. I feel like if you are going to use the green sauce, you should use it with a lightly seasoned chicken. The next time I make the chicken, I will cut back on the salt and see how it goes.

I liked the roasted potatoes as well. It was simple to make and tasted good. Soft on the inside and somewhat crisp on the outside (well, at least the thin slices). The next time I make this, I will make sure that I cut the potato into thinner slices.

The green sauce was really good. I think it is just as good as the one from pio pio. I am super happy I found this recipe. I definitely don't have to go out to pio pio as much anymore.

The salad was a nice complement to the meal. The chicken, potatoes and green sauce was very hearty. The light and crisp greens was a nice way to balance things out.

I can't wait to make this again with my adjustments!

Recipe for Chicken and Green Sauce
http://tasty-eating.blogspot.com/2013/03/lunch-week-10-peruvian-chicken-with.html

Recipe for Roasted Potatoes
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/oven-roasted-potatoes/Detail.aspx

*Notes*
For the Roasted Potatoes recipe, I used 5 Yukon Gold Potatoes. I also did not put every ingredient listed on the recipe. I only added the following ingredients: Olive oil, minced garlic, oregano, salt, black pepper and a 1/2 teaspoon of paprika. I baked it for about 45 mins (@425-450F)  and then broiled it for 10 minutes. At the 30 mins mark, I would check on the potatoes to see their progress and adjust the timing according.

For the chicken I had baked 7 chicken thighs. I found that it needed to be in the oven (@ 375 F) for about an hour before the thickest part of the chicken reached about 180-190F.

Since I didn't know how to adjust the temperature and timing to cook both the chicken and potatoes in the oven at the same time, I decided to cook them separate. I cooked the potatoes first (for approx 45 mins) and then cooked the chicken. Once the chicken was done, I took it out to let to rest and then broiled the potatoes for 8-10 mins.

Chicken Parmigiana

I made chicken parm again tonight and it came out...much better than last time! It wasn't 100% the way I liked it but I would say I'm 90% there.

Here is what I did differently:

1) Pounded the chicken even more than the last time and with the spiky side of a meat tenderizer.
2) Used a paper towel dry the chicken.
3) Seasoned the chicken cutlet with salt and pepper before I placed it in the flour.
4) Put some salt and pepper in the flour.
5) Press the chicken into the breadcrumbs.
6) Deep fried the chicken

I really like the deep frying method. It made the chicken crisp with a nice golden color.

These sites, along with some advice from a coworker, helped me:


http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/chicken-parmigiana-recipe/index.html

http://screen.yahoo.com/chicken-parmesan-30468888.html?pb_list=372289b1-ad1f-4816-8461-4c05591f3a0e

Stir Fry Eggplant with Garlic Sauce/Fish Fragrant Eggplant

So...since I had to already deep fry the chicken for my General Tso Chicken dish, I figure I would make this dish as well! Yes, the recipe called for deep frying the eggplant.

Tip: Invest in a splatter screen. It will save you from those oil popping accidents!

All I can say is that this came out really good. I think it even tastes better than any restaurant that I've been to. The eggplant was flavorful, slightly sweet and perfectly cooked. Well, it might have been cooked a little too long because it was a bit soft but I didn't mind it at all.

For anyone that likes eggplant with garlic sauce (also known as Fish Fragrant Eggplant), definitely get this cookbook and try it.

Cookbook: Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop

*The recipe is actually listed here: http://andrewzimmern.com/2013/03/28/fuchsia-dunlops-fish-fragrant-eggplant

General Tso Chicken

I bought a new cookbook last month and when I saw that they had a General Tso Chicken recipe, I was super excited!

The recipe called for deep frying the battered chicken and then stir frying it with sauce. Overall, it was a pretty simple recipe. The only thing that was slightly annoying was the deep frying part. I only have one wok so I had to fry the chicken first, wait for the oil to cool and then transfer it to the bowl before I was able to use the wok again.

When I took my first bite, I was very surprised...in a bad way. It tasted nothing like I expected. I was looking forward to the general tso chicken taste from your typical chinese take out. What I made was something totally different. It was on the salty side instead of sweet. Yes, I've heard that authentic general tso chicken taste nothing like the take out version but for some reason, I had the take out version in my head while I was making this. You would think that not having any sugar in the recipe would ring a bell...but it didn't!


Ah well, it was a good experience. The deep fried chicken (pre-sauce) was actually pretty good. All I have to do now is look for a good sauce recipe and I should be set.

Cookbook: Every Grain of Rice: Simple Chinese Home Cooking by Fuchsia Dunlop

Chicken Parmigiana

Made chicken parm tonight...

I used two chicken cutlets and it ended up being too much for two people. I should have stuck with 1 and 1/2 cutlets. I would have had just enough for dinner and lunch tomorrow.

Overall, it came out good but not as good as I would have liked. I was just telling SJ earlier that I still prefer Olive Garden's version. I have two problems with my version. (1) I don't like the texture of the chicken. The chicken was tender and juicy but something was off. I can't quite describe it... and (2) The breading doesn't stick to the chicken as much as I like. I want to be able to scratch the chicken with a knife without having the breading slide off. I'm starting to think it's not possible to make breaded chicken cutlets like that at home.

The pasta was great. I picked up a pound of fresh fettuccine from Leo's Ravioli for $3.75 and I only used about half of it. The place is 15 mins from my house so it wasn't really out of the way at all.

The alfredo sauce was from a bottle (Bertolli). Not bad. I've never had any other brand so I'm not sure how it compares with others.

The strings beans was a nice touch. I think it goes really well with the chicken and pasta. Thanks SJ and M for the idea! I squeezed some lemon juice on it and it was yummy ;)

Note: I haven't given up! I'm going to try a different breading technique the next time I make this and see if it gets me closer to my goal.

Update (03-18-13):

Don't laugh at me but on my way to work and back, I was thinking about what could have went wrong. I decided on the following:

I didn't pan fry the cutlets long enough. Even though I had my heat on the low side, my chicken cutlets browned very easily. I would say the chicken got brown within 2 mins or so. Because I didn't want to burn the breading, I took out the chicken once it was browned. I think this cause the chicken itself taste the way it did...like it was steamed. I think I'm looking for that "fried" taste if that makes any sense.

Maybe I should invest in a bigger pot and really deep fry my cutlets next time? Maybe this will make the inside of the chicken to taste differently? Hmmm....

Blueberry Muffin

My first homemade blueberry muffin. Came out pretty good. Too bad I can't take all the credit since I made it from a box.

Next step will be to make it from scratch! I have a recipe already.

Stir Fry Chicken with Ginger & Stir Fry Chinese Broccoli with Chicken

It's 11:12pm. I should be sleeping or at least in bed. Instead, I am uploading pics and posting on this blog. Shame on me. I'm sure I will regret it tomorrow when I am dozing in my meetings.

Well, I hope you enjoy the pics (maybe not so much since I cooked these).

I honestly don't know how people do it..wake up early, go to work, come home and cook a good meal. When I do that, it's about 9pm after I'm done cooking, cleaning and showering. That's too late for me to start relaxing!

Thinking of ways to cut down my cooking time, I decided to learn how to cook my mom's dishes. The below are dishes that I've eaten so many times at home, I can't even count.

Stir Fry Chicken with Ginger

My first attempt came out pretty good. The chicken could have been more moist but I can't complain too much. I've done worst. I'm always so scared to have under cooked chicken so I tend to overcook it usually. Overcooking chicken leads to dryness right?

Stir Fry Chinese Broccoli with Chicken

 My first attempt was actually good. The chicken again came out a tad dry but I'm sure I will learn how to cook it just right one day.

The best thing about cooking these dishes is that I usually have enough to bring to lunch the next day!

Chick Fil-A Fried Chicken Sandwich Copycat

I saw this recipe online a few months ago and stored it in my recipe folder right away. I love chicken sandwiches and this recipe looked so simple and easy. After being lazy for a few months, I finally decided to cook it today...and here it goes!

First of all, this was indeed very simple to make. The only tool you need is a meat tenderizer. I finally got to use mine for the first time after buying it over two years ago (I bought one after not realizing I needed it to make good chicken parm). The other ingredients are common and the coating was pretty simple to do. I was worried about not being able to get the coating to stick but as you can see from the picture, it stuck pretty well. Frying it was a piece of cake as well.

The sandwich came out pretty good. The chicken was moist (for the most part at least...I overcook some of the pieces) and flavor was good but not great. I think I need leave the chicken in the pickle juice longer next time (I left it for one hour exactly) and make it a bit more spicy.

Overall, I am super excited I made my very own fried chicken sandwich! I can't wait to improve on it and perfect it.

Here is the recipe I used: http://hilahcooking.com/chick-fil-a-copycat

Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Take 2..with ham this time.

Much better. Next time, I'll try it a different type of cheese...maybe spicy jalapeno cheddar...

Grilled Cheese

Had extra bread so I made this for lunch today.

It's a tad overdone but it didn't affect the taste much. One thing I learned today is that I don't think I am a grilled cheese fan. It's just too plain. Next time, I will put a slice or two of ham...then it will taste very yummy!

Pork Fritters

I am so happy I am able to make one of my favorite dishes that my mom makes. It's a fairly simple recipe but it took me awhile to cut up the ingredients and mix it all together.

I dip this in my mom's homemade fish sauce and yum yum yum! The next step will be to make that fish sauce myself!

Preserved White Carrots

First attempt at making preserved carrots. It came out pretty good.

Pork Belly

The dinner I made tonight. 

Not bad for my first try. I liked it so much I had two servings of it. Once before I left the house and a little bit more when I got home. I also liked it better the second time around. This is one of those dishes that taste perfectly good in room temperature.