Month: January 2022

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 1-30-22

On By Heather HoustonIn 2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken)Leave a comment

January 30th, 2022: Mussakhan (Roast Chicken With Sumac and Red Onions) (Jordan)

“This is a really great dish! The flavors are unusual, sweet, savory, fragrant, floral, citrusy and just yummy with the parsley and pine nuts offering a lovely texture and flavor to the dish! Highly recommended. It’s simple, easy to make and yummy!”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of Jordan
Map of Jordan
  • Prep Time: 1-3 hours prep and marinating
  • Cook Time: 1-hour
  • Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
  • 1 large lemon, juiced (about 4 tablespoons)
  • 4 T. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
  • 1 ½ T. sumac, plus more for serving
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • ½ tsp. ground cumin
  • ½ tsp. ground allspice
  • ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
  •  Sea salt and ground black pepper
  • 1 large red onion (about 1 pound), halved and thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoons pine nuts
  • parsley, chopped
  •  Naan bread, for serving

Directions:

  1. Slash the flesh of each piece of chicken diagonally a few times, around 3/4 inch apart, and then place the meat in a large bowl or plastic container. Add the lemon juice; 3 tablespoons olive oil; 1 1/2 tablespoons sumac; the garlic, cumin, allspice and cinnamon; and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Rub the mixture into the meat. Add the red onion and toss to coat. Cover and transfer to the refrigerator to marinate, 1 to 3 hours.
  2. When you are ready to cook the chicken, heat the oven to 400-degrees. Transfer the meat, onion slices and any juices to a baking sheet and roast until the juices run clear when the chicken pieces are pierced at their thickest part, about 40 minutes. Once the chicken is cooked finish under the broiler. Then cover the baking sheet tightly in foil and set aside while you prepare the toppings.
  3. In a small skillet, cook the pine nuts in the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over low heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a paper towel to drain.
  4. To serve, heat the naan bread in the oven until toasted and warmed and transfer to a platter. Arrange the chicken and red onion on top. Finish with a smattering of pine nuts, sumac and chopped parsley. Drizzle any remaining roasting juices so they soak into the bread, then drizzle with a little more olive oil.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 1-22-22

On By Heather HoustonIn 2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken)Leave a comment

January 22nd, 2022: Singapore Chicken (Republic of Singapore)

“The flavor is amazing mostly due to making homemade kekap mantis sauce. This sauce is made up of soy sauce, molasses, oyster sauce and brown sugar all of which give the chicken it’s lovely color. The rest of the flavor comes from the shallots, ginger, garlic, red pepper, mint leaves and lemon juice. It’s a super easy dish to cook in the wok. 5 stars!”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of the Republic of Singapore
Map of Morocco
  • Prep Time: TBD
  • Cook Time: TBD
  • Serves: 4

Kecap Manis Sauce:

  • 1 c. dark soy sauce
  • 1/4 c. molasses
  • 1/3 c. brown sugar

Directions (Kecap Manis Sauce)

  1. Place all ingredients in a small pot.
  2. Heat until sugar dissolves.
  3. Store extra in an airtight jar.

Ingredients:

  • 2 T. oil
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 8 boneless chicken thighs, cut into thirds
  • 1 red chili, sliced
  • 2 T. brown sugar
  • 1/3 c. kecap manis sauce
  • 1/2 c. water
  • 2 T. lemon juice
  • 1/2 c. mint leaves

Directions (Main):

  1. Heat the oil in a wok until hot. Add the onions and stir for 1-minute or until they are slightly browned. Add chicken and chili and stir-fry for a further 2-minutes until the chicken starts to brown.
  2. Add the sugar and stir through for 30-seconds, then add the kecap manis sauce and water and continue to cook for 5-8 minutes until chicken is cooked and the sauce starts to thicken.
  3. Stir in the lemon juice and mint.
  4. Serve with steamed coconut rice and a steamed snow peas.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 1-15-22

On By Heather HoustonIn 2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken)Leave a comment

January 15th, 2022: Moroccan Chicken (Morocco)

“I was wanting a chicken and rice dish, but I wanted to explore a new set of flavors. I have always heard about Moroccan flavors, so we went with a simple dish. The bone in chicken thighs were prepped with sea salt and black pepper (I added a little dusting of peri peri because that’s my jam). The sauce prep was surprising. It included chicken stock (I use bone stock), paprika, cumin, fresh ginger root, turmeric, cinnamon and the zest of a lemon. Once the chicken skins were browned in the rosemary infused olive oil I had left over, they are kept in the warm oven. An onion was caramelized, I added a finely chopped garlic and sautéed together till the onion was soft and opaque. The sauce was added and the pan deglazed before adding the chicken back. The chicken was then returned to the pan, covered in sauce, and set to bake in a hot oven 30-minutes. I had made Jasmine rice to serve it on. The chicken was finished on the plate with lemon juice, pimento stuffed olives and fresh parsley. It was absolutely delicious. The amount of spices in the recipe surprises a me, but we both cleaned our plates.”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of Morocco
Map of Morocco
  • Prep Time: 10-minutes
  • Cook Time: 70-minutes
  • Serves: 4

Ingredients:

  • 8 bone-in chicken thighs
  • kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste
  • 1 ½ c. chicken bone broth
  • 3 T. Indian paprika
  • 3 T. ground cumin
  • 3 tsp. minced fresh ginger root
  • 3 tsp. ground turmeric
  • 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • zest of a lemon
  • 2 lemons juiced
  • 1 T. canola oil, or to taste
  • 1 T. rosemary infused olive oil
  • ½ white onion, chopped 
  • 1 c. pimento-stuffed green olives; sliced in half
  • 2 T. chopped fresh parsley
  • parsley for rice, personal preference on measure

Directions:

  1. Season chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Let come to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
  2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  3. Combine chicken broth, paprika, cumin, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, and 2 tsp. lemon zest in a bowl.
  4. Heat oils in a cast iron skillet until they begin to smoke. Add chicken thighs, skin-side down, and cook for 4-minutes. Flip thighs and continue cooking until skin is crispy, about 4-minutes more. Transfer to a plate. Sauté onion in the skillet until softened, 3-5 minutes. Pour chicken broth mixture carefully over onion; scrape up any browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.
  5. Return chicken thighs to the skillet. Spoon some of the liquid over the thighs.
  6. Transfer skillet to the preheated oven; bake until chicken thighs are no longer pink in the center, 25-30 minutes.
  7. Add olives to the skillet. Drizzle lemon juice over the thighs and garnish the whole dish with parsley.
  8. Serve with rice tossed with parsley.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 1-11-22

On By Heather HoustonIn 2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken)Leave a comment

January 11th, 2022: Singapore Chicken (Delhi, India)

“There is something magical that happens when you make a great curry. The flavors all come together and each mouthful leaves you swearing, in a cacophony of aromas and flavors. Just consider how many wonderful flavors are present. The chicken thigh meat was cut into bite size chucks, then marinated in plain yogurt, minced garlic, garam masala, turmeric, ground cumin, chili powder and salt overnight. The chicken was browned in a little olive oil before being set aside and kept warm. The curry sauce was made with onions, garlic, ginger, ground cumin, garam masala, ground coriander, crushed tomatoes, red chili powder, peri peri and salt. It was then put in a blender to puree. Once smooth, add heavy cream and dried fenugreek leaves. The flavors all came together as it simmered and it was served on Jasmine rice with ice cold beer. Heaven!”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of India
Map of India
  • Prep Time: 15-minutes
  • Cook Time: 30-minutes
  • Serves: 5-6

Chicken Marinade:

  • 8 boneless and skinless chicken thighs; cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1/2 c. plain yogurt
  • 1 1/2 T. minced garlic
  • 1 T. minced ginger (or finely grated)
  • 2 tsp. garam masala
  • 1 tsp. turmeric
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. red chili powder
  • 1 tsp. of salt

Sauce:

  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 2 T. clarified unsalted butter
  • 1 large brown onion, sliced or chopped
  • 1 garlic bulb, minced
  • 2-inches ginger, finely grated
  • 1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 tsp. garam masala
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 14 oz. can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tsp. red chili powder (adjust to your taste preference)
  • 1 T. peri peri
  • 1 1/4 tsp. salt (or to taste)
  • 1 c. of heavy cream
  • 1 T. sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. dried fenugreek leaves

Directions:

  1. In a bowl, combine chicken with all of the ingredients for the chicken marinade; let marinate overnight.
  2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When sizzling, add chicken pieces in batches of two or three, making sure not to crowd the pan. Fry until browned for only 3-minutes on each side. Set aside and keep warm. (You will finish cooking the chicken in the sauce.)
  3. Heat butter in the same pan. Fry the onions until they start to sweat (~ 6-minutes) while scraping up any browned bits stuck on the bottom of the pan. 
  4. Add garlic and ginger and sauté for 1-minute until fragrant, then add ground coriander, cumin and garam masala. Let cook for about 20-seconds until fragrant, while stirring occasionally.
  5. Add crushed tomatoes, chili powder, peri peri and salt. Let simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until sauce thickens and becomes a deep brown red color.
  6. Remove from heat, scoop mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. You may need to add a couple tablespoons of water to help it blend (up to 1/4 cup). Work in batches depending on the size of your blender.
  7. Pour the puréed sauce back into the pan. Stir the cream, sugar and crushed fenugreek leaves through the sauce. Add the chicken with juices back into the pan and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick and bubbling.
  8. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with Jasmine rice.