Korean Grilled Chicken Breast

This is one of the family's favorite marinades.  It is inspired by a Kalbi (Korean BBQ) marinade and goes best with steamed Jasmine Rice.  The grilled chicken will have a light, sweet, and savory flavor.  I'll be using the leftovers for a salad tomorrow.  Let me know how yours turns out!

Ingredients:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup mirin (rice wine)
1 small onion, finely grated
4 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 green onions, thinly sliced (set aside 1/4 for garnish)

Directions:

1. Cut chicken breasts into 1 inch thick strips, set aside
2. Combine all other ingredients into bowl, mix well
3. Place chicken and marinade in gallon sized Ziploc bag
4. Marinade overnight
5. Remove chicken from bag, set aside
6. Place marinade in saucepan and bring to boil (baste chicken with cooked marinade while on grill)
7. Sear both sides of chicken breast on direct heat, approximately 1 min per side
8. Move chicken to indirect heat and close grill
9. The chicken cooks fast, about 5-10 min (watch closely to avoid overcooking)
10. Pour remaining cooked marinade over grilled chicken (if desired)
11. Sprinkle with green onions and serve with rice

Jasmine Delights

Roger and I were at the oriental supermarket stocking up on our usual items (Thai soy sauce, fish sauce, etc.).  We happened to stumble upon some really exotic flavorings and extracts.  Lined up neatly on the top shelf  were little glass bottles of jasmine, pandan, coconut, etc.  I thought to myself - what could I do with jasmine?  Many things came to mind - cookies, jasmine butter cream frosting, cake, etc.  I decided on cookies.  Jasmine, almond, and white chocolate chips.  The kitchen smelled like a mix of flowers and vanilla while they were baking - it was interesting, unique and comforting all at the same time.  Roger just inhaled one with his morning coffee.  It's a winner!

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp jasmine extract (can be found at your local oriental supermarket)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 bag fine quality white chocolate chips

1 cup sliced almonds

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Combine butter and sugar until light and fluffy
3. Add vanilla and jasmine extracts and eggs (one at a time), beat well
4. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt - 1 cup at a time
5. Stir in chips and almonds
6. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet
7. Bake 10-12 minutes

Filipino Chicken Adobo

I am an Air Force Brat.  I have had the opportunity to experience many cultures and live in different places.  I have to say that the time we spent at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines were some of the best years of my life.  My 7th grade Philippine Culture Teacher made this for us in class towards the end of the school year.  It is one of my favorite dishes, and easy to make.  This dish reminds me of my home away from home.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Ingredients:

Chicken Legs and Thighs (or half and half chicken and pork mix)
1 head garlic, minced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 cup vinegar
2 cups of water
1 tsp paprika
5 bay leaves
4 tbsp of cooking oil or olive oil
2 tbsp cornstarch mixed with 3 tbsp water
Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a large sauce pan or wok, heat 2 tbsp of oil and sauté the minced garlic and onions.
2. Add the chicken (and pork) to pan. Add 2 cups of water, 1/4 cup of soy sauce, vinegar, paprika and bay leaves. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or when meat is tender.
3. Remove the chicken (and pork) from the sauce pan and in another pan, heat cooking oil and brown the pork and chicken for a few minutes.
4. Mix the browned Chicken (and pork) back into sauce pan or wok, add cornstarch dissolved in water to thicken.
5. Add salt and/or pepper if desired
6. Bring to a boil then simmer for an additional 5 minutes.
7. Serve hot with the adobo gravy and rice.

MMM MMM MMM - SARAP!!

Bacon Wrapped Chicken

Tuesday nights are usually Taco Tuesdays - we opted for something a little different.  Bacon Wrapped Chicken with a Spicy Teriyaki Honey Glaze. 

Ingredients:

Chicken:
Boneless skinless chicken breast, cut in 1 inch thick strips
Center cut bacon
Salt and Pepper
Glaze:
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375F
2. Wrap bacon around chicken breast strips
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper
4. Place bacon wrapped chicken on large cookie sheet 1/2 inch apart
5. Bake for approximately 35-45 min (depending on thickness of bacon and chicken)
6. In saucepan combine glaze ingredients and bring to boil, remove from heat
7. In the last 5 min of cooking brush chicken with glaze
8. Cook for additional 5 min

I served this with a cabbage, broccoli, and carrot salad - topped with Asian Sesame dressing and crispy Chow Mein Noodles.

I'm off to help my eldest son with his Typhoid Fever Project (fun huh?)- so let me know what you think! 

Monday Night Chops

It's Monday and I had to figure out what I was going to do with the pork chops I took out of the freezer last night.  When I got home from work I realized that I was out of Adobo seasoning - and did not want to go to the grocery store.  So here's what I made - and it was household approved:

Ingredients:

5 pork chops, with bone

salt and pepper, to taste

1 tbsp garlic powder

1 tbsp onion powder

1 tsp dried rosemary

1 large onion

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 tbsp chopped chives

4 tbsp olive oil

Directions:

1. Sprinkle chops with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and dried rosemary, both sides
2. Heat olive oil in frying pan on medium-high heat
3. Pan fry chops until liquids run clear, turning chops half way through cooking (about 4-5 minutes per side, depending on thickness of chops)
4. Remove chops and place on plate, keep warm
5. Add chicken broth, more salt and pepper and 3/4 of chives to pan and bring to boil
6. Slice onions and add to pan, sautee until onions are softened
7. Pour onions and sauce over chops

After a long Monday at work - this was a really fast and easy recipe to make.  Enjoy!

Balsamic Glazed Chicken Breast

Roger and I purchased our first charcoal grill together about three weeks ago.  This is really exciting for us to share with you because we've used our grill about a half-dozen times.  Two bags of charcoal, 32 ounces of lighter fluid, and 5 pounds of burnt or undercooked meat later - we finally got it right!  We have come to realize through our smoke-filled trials and errors that it is best to keep it simple when it comes to grilling.  I present to you our FIRST grilling masterpiece:

Ingredients:

4 split chicken breasts, with skin

2 tbsp powdered garlic

1 tbsp salt

2 tbsp peanut oil, or any oil of your choosing

Glaze:

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup soy soy sauce, add more if desired

1 more tbsp powdered garlic

1 tsp dried rosemary

Directions:

1. Sprinkle chicken with garlic powder and salt.  Generously brush with peanut oil on both sides, set aside to begin glaze
2. Combine all glaze ingredients in sauce pan and cook over medium heat on stove, approximately 15-20 minutes
3. Sear chicken breasts on high-heat grill over direct heat, 2 minutes per side (please do not skip this step, it keeps the chicken nice and juicy)
4. Once seared move chicken to indirect heat and close grill
5. Turn chicken every 10 minutes, 4 -5 times (depending on size of breasts)
6. Brush glaze over both sides of breasts and cook for an additional 5-10 minutes

We plated the chicken and it looked great (much like our past failures).  We both looked at each other, trying to hold back our excitement for fear that we would once again be disappointed.  We brought the chicken into the kitchen, set it on the counter and plated up.  Roger grabbed a knife and delicately cut through the first breast while I held my breath.  It was like watching a movie in slow motion - his fork being brought to his lips... as he began to chew he closed his eyes and said, "BABY!  You have to try this!"  I was paralyzed (just kidding) - I dug in and we didn't speak for at least 3 minutes.  It was amazing.  It was so good that we ate dinner standing at the kitchen counter, staring at each other.  We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did.