Elana's South Sea Chicken Salad

I normally cannot stand chicken salad, tuna salad, or anything of a wet salad nature. Elana's recipe for her curry chicken salad is the one exception. It is light, tangy, and a perfect lunch for those on a diet. You can also make it ahead and enjoy all week. Seriously yum...

Ingredients:

• 3 cups cooked chicken breast, shredded
• 2 mangoes, cubed
  
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 3 scallions, minced
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 1 head romaine lettuce, shredded
• 1/4 cup cashews, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt
• 1/2 cup nonfat mayo
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• S & P

Directions:

• In a small bowl mix together the yogurt, mayo, olive oil curry powder, cumin and s&p
• In a big mixing bowl combine rest of ingredients.
  
• Pour dressing over and stir.
• Serve over salad or in sandwich form.
  

Vietnamese Phở

Phở (pronounced "fa") is the first thing that comes to mind when talking about Vietnamese cuisine. For those who are unfamiliar, it is a hearty noodle soup normally with chicken or beef that has a load of delicious extras to pile on (think bean sprouts, mint leaves, lime, chili, etc).

We were in Ho Chi Minh City last week for work and got a good dose of all things Phở. There are the fast food chains carrying the soupy treat (notably Phở 24 and Phở 20) and the mom and pop shops serving it up out of a big cauldron. Now I know eating off the street is generally not advisable but if you happen to be in the area go visit the famous Phở Le sidewalk eatery for the best in town... just make sure not to look at the mass pile of questionable meat in the corner. Just take a couple of Pepto on the way in.. you will be fine. It's worth it!

For those who want to make this at home I have included a basic Vietnamese recipe for phở gà (with chicken). Of course, it always tastes best if you have a stock pot on the go but for those who live real lives just use the best stock you can get a hold of.

Phở Gà
serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 Litres of high quality chicken broth.
• 1 inch knob of ginger, grated very finely
• 1 Tbsp fish sauce
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken
  
• 1 lb thin rice noodles, fresh or dried
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped finely
• 1 Tbsp rock sugar
  
• 3 scallions, green part only, chopped

to garnish (optional):

• beansprouts
• mint leaves
  
• fresh cilantro, chopped
• lime wedges
• fresh chopped chilis or chili paste to mix in.
  

Instructions:

• Cook rice noodles according to instructions. Set aside.
  
• Heat the broth, ginger, onions, fish sauce, and sugar over the stove.
• Simmer away until onions are tender.. should be about 15 min.
• Add the shredded chicken, scallions, and rice noodles and heat through.
• Add salt if necessary.
  
• Serve with whatever extras you like on top!
  

Sweet Chicken Pie

Roast chicken and sweet potato; who can argue with that combination? Now put them in a pie and make the top nice and fancy and you've just made that combination even better. I happen to use chicken thighs on the bone and roast them at the same time as the sweet potato, it means that the chicken stays more flavourful and that the potato soaks up anything that might escape from the chicken whilst cooking. If you have already roasted a chicken and you are looking for something to do with the leftovers then this is a good use of them too, it just means roasting the sweet potato separately. The puff pastry top gives a little bit of excitement as well as having a wonderful flavour. You can experiment with the nuts and herbs that go in the top (if using rosemary be sure not to go over board and make sure it is finely chopped). I have broken it down into three components: white sauce, filling and pastry, just to make the method clearer. Serve with some cabbage or tender stem broccoli.

White Sauce:

30 g butter

1 1/2 tbsp plain flour

375 ml whole milk

2 bay leaves

Add the bay leaves to the milk and heat through so it is just about simmering. Turn the heat off and let the bay steep into the milk. When the rest of the filling ingredients are ready, transfer the milk to a jug and remove the bay leaves. Melt the butter in a sauce pan, when it is bubbling add the flour and whisk vigorously until it forms a paste. Very slowly, and at first, bit by bit, add the milk whisking constantly until thickened, about 10 minutes. Add some salt and pepper for seasoning then pour over the chicken and potato in the pie dish.

Filling:

Four chicken thighs (bone in and skin on)

Four large sweet potatoes - peeled and diced into 1 in cubes

Preheat the oven to 180C. Prep your potato whilst you're waiting and scatter them into the bottom of a baking dish. Season the chicken thighs well, on the top as well as the bottom and snuggle them in with the potato. Roast everything for 40-45 minutes (cooking times will vary depending on the size of your chicken thighs as well as your oven). After 20 minutes give everything a stir to keep things browning evenly. When you take it out, let the chicken sit for about 5 or 6 minutes. When ready to use, take the skin off and remove the bone. Shred into bite sized pieces and put in a pie dish along with the potato.

Pastry:

Half a packet of puff pastry

2 tbsp fresh thyme, picked from woody stalks or finely chopped if soft stemmed

50 g toasted hazelnuts, chopped

1 medium egg, whisked

Roll the pastry out so it is very thin. Roll it out so it is double the width of the pie dish you are using. Scatter the chopped hazelnuts and the thyme on half of the pastry. Brush the egg wash in a square around the nuts and herbs and fold the pastry over on itself. Press down on the edges to make sure they are sealed, I also pass a rolling pin back and forth to make sure it is thoroughly compressed. This may lead to a few holes so try and be careful to keep these to a minimum (size wise at least). Once you have all of the filling in the pie dish, brush more of the egg wash around the rim and press the pastry lid on top, you may need to gather any excess pastry bunched on the side. Take the rest of the egg and brush over the top of the pastry to give it a lovely crisp as well as a beautiful sheen. This needs to bake for 25-30 minutes.

Kim's Wok On Stir-fry!

Here is one of Kim’s favorite quick and easy dinners. Kim notes that, “the great thing about stir fry is that it is quick, easy, affordable, and colorful. Anything will work. There isn't a wrong ingredient for your creation. This is also a great meal for beginner as a one bowl meal makes prep and clean-up so easy!”

Wok On Stir-fry
serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of short grain organic rice, cook ahead following directions
• half a red pepper, chopped into slices
  
• 4 oz/115g sliced mushrooms
• 3 boneless chicken breasts, sliced into thin strips
  
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 4 oz/115g extra firm tofu, cubed
• 1 stem of broccoli, small florets only
  
• 1 cup snow peas
• chopped green onion (however much you like)
  
• 1/8 cup oyster sauce
  
• 1/8 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup sesame, punpkin, or sunflower seeds
  
• 1 package natto, thawed (see below), optional
• 1.5 cup of chicken broth
  
• Olive Oil
  

*natto: fermented soy beans. They originate in the mountains of Japan and were used as the main source of protein as the terrain was too steep for cattle to graze and they were too far from the ocean. It is power food that is loaded with goodies and is apparently an aphrodisiac. Saucy. You can find them at most specialty Asian markets.



Directions:

the operated word is “stir” .. keep the food in motion.

• Defrost natto.
• Chop veggies and put carrots, onion, mushrooms, pepper, and broc into a big bowl.. keep snow peas out because they cook faster.
• Thinly slice chicken breast into strips.
• Heat oil (1 Tbsp) on high in the wok. Cook chicken for 3-5 min until just cooked through.
• Take chicken out and put aside.
• add another 2 tbsp of oil and add veg
• add chicken broth and soy sauce
• cook 2 min.
• add natto, tofu, and snow peas. Stir to incorporate
• add 1/8 cup oyster sauce.
• everyone has a taste level. adjust sauces to your taste.
  
• Throw chicken back in .. stir and sprinkle with seeds.
  

To Serve you can:
A. throw rice in with it
B. use rice as a base and put your creation on top.
Either way, serve with chopsticks for that authentic feel.

Naughty but Nice Greens

Now, I am not a fool and I know it's not easy to get people to eat cabbage with a little more cabbage. This is more for what to do with those Sunday roast left overs. I loath throwing anything out and this can be served as a side, or if you are like me and cooking for one this week, then you get the whole thing to yourself. 

There aren't really any measurements to this, just throw what you have together:

Brussel sprouts - cooked and halved

Savoy cabbage - cooked in strips

Chicken skin - use about one leg's worth of skin for every ten sprouts used - this should be taken from a roasted chicken or any left overs

Block of parmesan

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt and pepper

Cut the skin into thin strips. Heat a little oil in a frying pan and when hot add the skin. You want the pan to be quite hot so the skin will start popping and the oil will help render the fat from the skin.

When the skin starts to look crispy add the sprouts and cabbage (and any small shreds of chicken you didn't quite finish the first time around). Season according to how the veg were cooked originally, add a little more salt and pepper if you feel it needs it. Cook for a further 5-7 minutes until the sprouts start to get some colour and they have heated through nicely.

Serve immediately with some parmesan shavings and a good drizzle of extra virgin oil.

I'm Gonna Roast that Chicken in a Pan..

Roasting a chicken is simple and it makes for an elegant meal to serve friends any time of year. I recently got my paws on an amazing fresh chicken from Tuckahoe Plantation in Richmond. If you can afford the extra (its only a couple of dollars) for an organic free-range chickie, the difference in taste from their weirdo battery cousins is unbelievable!

Depending on the season, vary your sides. It is so easy to throw veggies into the roasting pan while the chicken does it's thing. I used typical vegg that I have laying around (i am currently the poorest of church mice): carrots, potatoes, and lots of garlic. I also made a quick gravy with the drippings left on the bottom of the pan. This was my first lesson at cooking school and is the best cooking basic to know.. get on it. x

ROASTED CHICKEN w/ VEGGIES & a MUSTARD GRAVY

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken, 2.5-3 lbs (1.1-1.4 kg)
  
• 1 lemon, cut into 4
  
• 5 sprigs of thyme
• 4 carrots, cut into bite-size chunks
• a bunch of tiny potatoes (as seen in pic) or 3 large baking potatoes, cut into smallish chunks
• 6 cloves of garlic
• lots of olive oil
• 2 glugs dry white wine, a cheapy is fine
• lots of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 spoonful Dijon mustard
• 2 large ladel-fulls of chicken stock
• a generous sprinkle of flour

Directions:

• 24 hrs before you plan on cooking the chicken, wash out the cavity. Dry with paper towel and salt & pepper the cavity and outside generously! This is kind of a pseudo-brine that makes the meat a lot more tender.
• When you are ready to cook, preheat oven to 450 F/230C.
• Stuff the chicken's cavity with lemon and 2 sprigs of thyme.
  
• Truss chicken. If you don't know how.. just tie the chickens feet together with some string so it doesn't fall apart when it is cooking.
  
• Look out a large roasting pan.. add cut veggies, garlic, s&p, and the rest of the thyme.
  
• Add a glug of olive oil.
• stir and make sure all veggies are coated.
• Push veggies aside and put chicken in the middle, breast side down.
  
• Rub a LITTLE extra oil over the chicken.
• Cook for 15 min.
• Reduce oven heat to 400F/200C
• Remove pan, turn chicken over (breast side-up), return, and cook for an additional 40 min. Use a meat thermometer to make sure the chicken registers 160 F/70C between the breast and thigh (the meatiest part). If you have a large bird keep it in longer and check every 5 min.
  
• When done, take the chicken out and let it rest for 15 min (as you make the gravy). Keep warm.
  
• If the veg needs some more time (they shouldn't), return them to the oven. If they are done, remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon and keep warm.
• Put the roasting pan over stove top at med-high heat.
• Sprinkle drippings in pan with flour.. stir and combine
• add mustard, white wine, and chicken stock.
  
• Simmer until thick.. season with salt and pepper.
  
• Serve with chicken and vegg! YUMMY!