Indonesian Chicken Tidbits

I have a large assortment of family recipes and every once in awhile I'll be thumbing through them to see if there's anything interesting and different to make for dinner.

I came across this recipe that had the name "Ray" written at the top of it. The whole recipe was actually handwritten and the writing looks very familiar but I'm not sure who, in my family, that it belongs to quite yet. But that's what I love, a hand written recipe, a name to attach to it and the stories just start to formulate in my mind as to when, where and how this recipe came to be in the file! Uncle Ray was my Mom's brother and he died many years ago. I love that I have this recipe to remember him by!

Indonesian Chicken Tidbits has an assortment of ingredients that sound very intriguing put together:  peanut butter, curry, honey, milk and the most shocking to me.... MAYO!?!?!

But I was game, especially with how easy it was to throw together and get this... you cook it in the house, in the oven, under the broiler in about 20 minutes!

The boys and I enjoyed this recipe and I hope you'll be adventurous and it give it a try as well! If you want to make it a bit more fancy/party presentable, thread the chicken onto skewers AFTER it's cooked and serve on a bed of rice.

Indonesian Chicken Tidbits

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts; cut into pieces (about 1 1/2 in)

1/3 c creamy peanut butter

1/2 tsp curry powder

dash or so of salt

2 Tbs honey

2/3 cup mayo

1/4 cup milk

Blend together all the ingredients except the chicken.

Line one large or 2 medium jellyroll pans with foil and spray with non-stick spray.

Add the PB mixture TO THE chicken pieces (not all of it, as you can save some of the sauce to dip the chicken into after it is cooked) and stir to coat.

Separate the chicken out onto the pan and broil for 10 minutes on one side. Watch closely, it may be a minute or two more or less depending on the strength of your broiler!

Take the pan out, flip the chicken pieces and then broil again for about 8-10 minutes- if you think they need it, you could brush more of the sauce onto the chicken before popping them back into the oven.

Serve on skewers or just like this!

We had ours with shelled edamame and pineapple.

Crisp High Roast Chicken with Potatoes ~ 5.20.11

Maybe you've figure this out about me, but maybe not. I love cooking shows. I'm a visual learner and when  I see someone make something- it brings the recipe to life and gives me the confidence to approach the recipe! Maybe that's why Ree is so popular? She shows you step by step. Well, that and her amazing recipes.

I digress.

I've always been a fan of Cook's Illustrated and more specifically the PBS show America's Test Kitchen. I find it fascinating to hear all the trial and error they put into testing these recipes. Makes me really believe that this is the best way to cook/bake something.

I thought this recipe for cooking a whole chicken was brilliant and doable. And the first time I made this recipe was back in 2006, right before I left for a week's vacation in California! Why do I find it necessary to try new things 24 hours before a big event? I dunno. It was my VERY FIRST time cooking a whole chicken! seriously! And I'm glad I started with this recipe because it was amazingly moist and those potatoes- WOW!

This time around, I skipped the brining and just split my chicken according to my How to Cook Everything cookbook. Not too difficult, made easier with kitchen shears. As with most of their recipes, there are many steps, but the result is well worth it. Just a lot of explaining. I promise it's not that difficult to prepare. I made this on a soccer night!
Here's the recipe:

Crisp-Skin High Roast Chicken and Potatoes
from America's Test Kitchen

For the brine (optional- but give it a go sometime so you can say, (Oh, yeah, I've brined a chicken")
1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 whole chicken, 3 1/2-4 lbs; giblets removed and reserved for another use, fat around cavity removed and discarded

Dissolve the salt in the sugar in 2 qts cold water in a large container. Immerse chicken and refrigerate until fully seasoned, about 1 hour.

2 1/2 lbs russet potatoes or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick (use a food processor or a nice, sharp knife)
1 1/2 Tbs olive oil
3/4 tsp salt

Compound butter- place in a bowl to schmear your chicken!-- OPTIONAL, but AMAZING addition
2 Tbs softened butter
1 med garlic clove, minced
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
1 tsp minced fresh thyme leaves
black pepper

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 500 degrees! HOT, HOT, HOT
Line the bottom of your broiler pan with heavy duty foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Remove chicken from brine (if you brined), and rinse thoroughly under cold running water (be sure to clean out your sink!). Butterfly chicken, flatten breastbone and apply the flavored butter (if using) under the skin of the chicken- all over! Thoroughly pat the chicken dry.
 And place on the top part of your broiler pan.

Toss the potatoes with 1 Tbs oil, slat and pepper in a medium bowl. Spread the potatoes in an even layer on the foil lined broiler pan. Place the top of the broiler pan over the potatoes- See picture above. Rub the chicken with the remaining olive oil and season with S&P. Put into the oven.

Cook until the chicken is spotty brown, about 20 minutes. Rotate the pan and continue to roast until skin has crisped and turned a deep brown and an thermometer registers 160 degrees in the thickest part of the breast, 20-25 minutes longer.

Transfer chicken to a cutting board and with pot holders, remove top of broiler pan. Using paper towels, soak up the excess grease from potatoes. Remove foil liner with potatoes and invert foil and potatoes onto a cookie sheet. Peel back foil and scrape off remaining potatoes with a spatula. Pat off remaining grease with paper towels.
Cut chicken, arrange pieces on a serving platter and transfer potatoes right beside them. Voila- dinner is ready.
Serve with fresh steamed green beans or a crisp garden salad!

Fave Go-To super easy dinner #3 ~ 3.4.11

I have been loving chicken lately. Especially with all the germs and colds and illnesses flying through our door, chicken soup has been in constant rotation. It's my "go-to" medicine next to chamomile tea with local honey. ;) And when you have chicken, you probably have some leftover chicken! Well, at least I always do, especially if I'm cooking one in a pot and roasting the other (that's a really good idea by the way), double duty meals, Roast chicken one night and chicken soup another night. And by all means, you should always save your bones to make stock! Let me know if you don't know how...

So this is a quick and easy recipe that my kids love and I know they'll eat it without any complaints! Gotta love meals like that.

I think I have each of the steps in pics for you and then I'll post the recipe at the end, got it?

Start by tearing your chicken apart and putting it in a bowl. Add enough BBQ sauce to make yourself happy. If it's not warmed already, warm it up for a couple of minutes.

While you've got the BBQ chicken warming up, heat up your griddle and throw your tortillas on to warm them through, making them pliable. As you warm/toast each one, slide it into a packet of foil (fold the foil in half to fit your tortillas and keep it closed so they don't dry out).

Get your cheese ready. I used smoked gouda b/c I had it and love it. You could sub out cheddar or Monterey Jack or colby jack or mozzarella if you have those.You will also need a little canola oil (not more than a Tbs), some salt, and a pastry brush.

see this night I only had so much gouda and I used some mozzarella!

Now, brush one side of your tortilla with a little oil, sprinkle it with some kosher salt and lay that side down on the griddle. Add a bit of cheese and some of the chicken mixture. Fold the top over and start another one right beside that. You could add a little more cheese on top of the chicken, too, if you really love cheese. It also helps it all stick together!

Now let these cook for a few - think of it as a variation on the grilled cheese. You just want your cheese to melt and your bottom of the tortilla to be a little browned before you flip it. Okay, looks like it's ready to flip!

Keep repeating until you're out of chicken and cheese (I know, so exact). and then cut them into wedges and serve! We like to eat these with fresh fruit and veggies.

BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

cup to cup and a half of leftover roast chicken

fave BBQ sauce

6-8 oz of cheese of your choosing; smoked gouda is really good

8 tortillas

canola oil

kosher salt

1. warm tortillas on a griddle and keep warm

2. pull chicken off bones and add BBQ sauce to it. Warm up in microwave

3. Shred your cheese

4. Brush a little oil on one side of tortilla and sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt. Lay the oiled side down on a hot griddle.

5. Lay cheese and some chicken mixture on the tortilla. Fold over the top. Cook a few minutes until bottom is golden. Flip and cook until top is golden and the cheese is melted.

6. Keep repeating until all the chicken and cheese has disappeared into a tortilla

7. Slice into wedges and serve with fresh fruit and veggies!

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas ~ 11.9.09

(Enchiladas just do not photograph well... I tried this in a few different places and this will have to suffice.)

This recipe was posted over at The Sister's Cafe and I've made it twice now. The kids wouldn't touch it the first time and the second time... they gobbled it UP! Love the sweet and spicy combination of these and that they do not contain any condensed soups. So many enchilada recipes are just heavy and laden with those soups (sorry if you like that type). These are more my style. I added cilantro to my chicken mixture  because it just works well with all the flavors and because I had some in the fridge that I needed to use up.

Honey Lime Enchiladas
via The Sisters Cafe with my creative license added

about 2 cups of cooked chicken - pulled/shredded (or pork)

Marinade:
Mix together:
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup lime juice
1 Tbs chili powder ( may need to use less for my weaklings next time)
1 tsp garlic powder

2 cans green enchilada sauce or 1 can and some green salsa (it worked and I had some salsa to use up)
1/2 cup heavy cream 

shredded monterey jack- some for inside and lots of ON TOP!
(the Sisters use a combo of mozzarella and cheddar)

flour tortillas - I like the wheat ones

Directions:
Mix together your sauce ingredients and add them to the chicken (or pork). Let marinate for about 30 minutes. I've let mine sit overnight.

Lightly spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. Pour in some enchilada sauce- just enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
Fill the tortillas with an ice cream scoop of filling and cheese (oh, I mixed in the cheese with my marinated chicken mixture right before I filled the tortillas). Roll them up and line them up in your pan. I had to squeeze one along the side, but I believe I wedged 10-12 of them in there. You can always carry over to another pan if you need to do so.

Mix remainder of the green enchilada sauce with 1/2 cup whipping cream. Pour over the enchiladas and top, generously, with more cheese! I also sprinkled some chopped cilantro on top.
Bake uncovered at 350 for 30 minutes. Turn on the broiler and let the cheese get all brown and crispy on top- just a few minutes should do the trick!

Serve with a side of Lime Cilantro Rice with pineapple!

another not so photogenic shot of these delicious little treats!

Chicken Crescents and bonus dessert! ~9.23.09

I might be exaggerating to say that my life changed quite a bit when I discovered this recipe, but not by much. The entire Costain crew loves these Chicken Crescents and that makes for a very happy momma. They don't even pick out the "red things" anymore! I know that crescent rolls might not be the healthiest of foods, but they are, in fact, the coolest food invention in my book and I depend on them for quick meals/appetizers/desserts often.

The original recipe can be found in the Three Rivers Cookbook III (known in our family as the "blue one") on pg 111.

Ingredients:

• 1 can crescent rolls
• 3 oz cream cheese, softened
• 2 Tbsp butter, melted
• 2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed/shredded (whatever you want)
• 1 Tbsp chopped pimento- I do not stress if I don't have this in the house, optional
• 1/2 red pepper, diced and sauteed
• 1/2 pound mushrooms, diced and sauteed
• 3-4 green onions, chopped and sauteed
• S & P
• 2 Tbsp milk
• 1/2 Tbsp chopped parsley

After I preheat the oven to 350 degrees, I start by putting the cream cheese and butter in a bowl and popping them in the microwave a few secs to soften. I mush them together with a fork with the chopped parsley.

Then I saute up the peppers, green onions and mushrooms. I season them with Salt and Pepper, to taste, at this junction, too. The amounts for this vary in my house depending on what I have. The original recipe calls for green pepper (only 1 Tbsp sauteed) and only 2 Tbsp chopped sauteed mushrooms. I use A LOT more than that, prefer red peppers and these are still stellar and filling! Don't they look delish all sauteed up...

And the star of this dinner... most versatile food invention evah... CRESCENT ROLLS! AND I'm not brand specific either. I prefer pillsbury, but I've bought store brand, "wally world" brand and others. Whatever floats your pocketbook's boat, in my opinion. If you are using these, don't forget to snip off the box tops and send them to a school you love!
You'll need to keep these in rectangles. So open the package and put them on a greased or silpat lined baking sheet. Smoosh the perforated edges together to form 4 rectangles.
Now, let's get the filling ready to go...

So, after you sautee the veggies, let them cool for a few in the pan or in a bowl. Then if you need to cut up your chicken, do that now. I almost always use leftover rotisserie chicken for this. However I have poached chicken to use specifically for this recipe and if I do this, I do double and freeze the other half for a day when I need cooked chicken in a recipe. (do you know how to poach chicken? I'll teach you if you'd like... Sarah Moulton taught me, she used to be on Food Network, I've learned a lot from that channel).

Okay, chicken's ready, put it in the bowl with the cream cheese, butter and parsley.
Add your sauteed veggies and the 2 Tbsp of milk. The milk helps it all to go together nice and smooth. It should be creamy looking- you're ready to fill those crescents.
Spoon about a 1/2 cup of the mixture on each crescent (if you have more, save it or open up another can of crescents- I can tell you what to do with "leftover crescents" later).
If only I took pics of this next part- you bring the four corners of the crescent roll together in the middle and twist... can you envision that? I hope so. It will look like a little purse, of sorts.

Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes. You'll want them to look like this... all golden and delicious!

BONUS DESSERT:
If for some reason you have leftover crescent rolls b/c you have more than enough filling... consider yourself lucky!


Grab some chocolate chips or cinnamon chips or butterscotch chips or nutella-- something sweet that melts. And put a little bit in the large end of a crescent triangle. You want to roll it up in a crescent roll shape and make sure that the chips are hidden inside... they may oooze out while baking. Bake for about 9-13 minutes and you'll have chocolate crescents (or whatever flavor you put inside there). Nutella rocks, by the way.

Serve with rice and a salad! Buon Apetito!