Month: February 2022

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 2-26-22

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

February 26th, 2022: Sri Lanka Chicken Curry (Sri Lanka)

“Todays World Tour of Chicken dishes takes us to Sri Lanka where their version of spicy chicken curry seems to be the national dish! Exciting!

The curry is hot. The chicken falls off the bone. The sauce thickened and the flavors intensified. Definitely needed a dollop of sour cream to cut the heat. But even so, absolutely delicious!”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of Sri Lanka
Map of Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka Roasted Curry Powder

  • Prep Time: 20-minutes
  • Cook Time: 5-minutes
  • Total Time: 25-minutes
  • Serves: 4

Sri Lanka Roasted Curry Powder Ingredients:

  • 4 T. coriander seeds
  • 3 T. cumin seeds
  • 2 T. black peppercorns
  • 2 T. basmati rice
  • 1 T. black mustard seeds
  • 3 tsp. whole cloves, large about 15 cloves
  • 2 tsp. scant, cardamom seeds from green cardamom seeds from the pods
  • 1 tsp. fennel seeds

Sri Lanka Roasted Curry Powder Directions:

  1. Place the rice on a dry non stick pan. Heat over medium heat until the rice starts to turn light brown.
  2. Add the rest of the spices and pan roast for a further 3 – 5 minutes until the spices start to brown, toast and become aromatic.
  3. Keep moving the pan to prevent the spices from burning. Also adjust the cook times according to your stove and pan, to avoid burning the spices. Or your curry powder will be bitter.
  4. Remove from the heat and let the spices cool down.
  5. Once the spices cool down – use a spice grinder (or a mortar and pestle) to grind the spice mix into a powder in batches and mix well. Store in an air tight container.
  6. Use as needed.

Sri Lanka Chicken Curry Ingredients:

  • 2-3 T. coconut oil
  • 1/2 onion yellow or red, diced or sliced.
  • 4 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 inch ginger minced
  • 6 – 7 curry leaves or 2 bay leaves
  • 2.5 T. roasted Sri Lankan curry powder
  • 1 cinnamon stick or 1 small regular cinnamon stick
  • 1/2 tsp. salt plus more to taste
  • 1 tsp. cayenne pepper or chili powder (less if you like it less spicy.)
  • 1 T. paprika not smoked or sweet paprika
  • 8 chicken thighs
  • 2 serrano peppers (or regular green chili) cut length-wise, with or without seeds
  • 3 roma tomatoes cut into cubes (or 2 medium-sized regular tomatoes)
  • 2 tsp. brown sugar
  • 2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 c. coconut milk
  • 1/2 c. water

Directions:

  1. Add the coconut oil in to a large saucepan and heat the oil over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, ginger to the heated oil and cook until softened.
  2. Add curry powder, chili powder/cayenne pepper, paprika, cinnamon, curry leaves and mix to combine. Cook for a few minutes until you start to smell the spices.
  3. Add the chicken, serrano peppers/green chili peppers, salt, 3 roma tomatoes, 1 tsp sugar, and mix to coat. Cook for 10-minutes with the lid off, on medium high heat. Stir frequently to make sure the chicken or the spices don’t burn.
  4. Add coconut milk, water, vinegar, and bring the curry to a boil. If you want less gravy, add less liquid.
  5. Lower the heat, and let it simmer with the lid closed, for 15 – 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with salt to taste. The chicken should be completely cooked by this point. Taste the curry and season to taste if needed. You can add the rest of the sugar or more salt, or vinegar to your taste. Remember that curries can be adjusted to your taste!
  6. If the chicken curry gravy is too thin, or there’s too much of it, uncover and simmer the curry for a further 10-minutes or longer. This step is optional, but it will allow the water to evaporate and the gravy to thicken.
  7. Turn off the heat and let the chicken cool down slightly. Serve with rice or roti. You may add a side of yogurt to add as needed if the curry is too hot.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 2-19-22

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

February 19th, 2022: Martinique Coconut Chicken Curry (Martinique)

“Our world chicken tour took us to the Caribbean island of Martinique for tonight’s meal: Martinique Coconut Chicken Curry meal. It’s an interesting meal because I’m used to Indian and Korean curries but I’m excited to see how it turns out!

Pre-dinner drink to enjoy while cooking a Malibu Bay Breeze, basically equal parts rum, pineapple and cranberry juice. Yummy. We drank those then listened to Caribbean beach music while we cooked.

The most interesting part of the meal was the curry paste. A mortar and pestle were used to turn mustard seed, fresh garlic, coriander, sea salt and a habanero pepper (no scotch bonnet to be found) into a paste.

The chicken was browned in a little oil, and then onion, eggplant, butternut squash and potato were browned in the same pot. The curry paste was added, Eventually you add the chicken back along with coconut milk, tamarind paste, chicken stock and bay leaves.

It simmers for almost 40-minutes covered, then I took the chicken out, and cooked the sauce down to thicken it and concentrate flavor.

Then I added back the chicken along with fresh mango and papaya, lime juice and rum. You let the fruit warm up and the alcohol cook off.

We served it over coconut rice with some toasted dried coconut as a garnish.

It was a yummy meal filled with umami and flavor. And the curry was mild but quite good. I really enjoyed this.

I’m going to purée the sauce and run it through a sieve to try a variation.”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of Martinique
Map of Martinique
  • Prep Time: 25-minutes
  • Total Time: 1-hour 15-minutes
  • Serves: 6

Spice Mix

Ingredients:

  • 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
  • 1/2 to 1 hot red chile, preferably Scotch Bonnet, seeded (wear gloves)
  • 1 tsp. sea salt flakes
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • 1 tsp. yellow mustard seeds
  • 1/4 tsp. ground turmeric

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

  • 4 T. sunflower or groundnut oil (peanut)
  • 5 chicken pieces, preferably thighs
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 18 oz. butternut squash, peeled and diced into 2-inch cubes
  • 2 onions, coarsely chopped
  • 1 eggplant, diced into 1 1/2-inch cubes
  • 2 to 3 large white potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks
  • 3 small bay leaves
  • 1-3/4 c. coconut milk
  • 1-1/4 c. chicken bone stock
  • 1 T. tamarind paste
  • 1 large ripe mango, peeled and chopped into 2-inch chunks
  • 1 large ripe papaya, peeled and sliced
  • Juice of 1/2 lime
  • 1 1/2 T. rum or coconut rum (Malibu)

Directions:

  1. Using a mortar and pestle, combine the garlic, chile, salt, coriander, mustard seeds, and turmeric, and grind into a paste.
  2. Heat 2 T. of the oil in a large ovenproof casserole or heavy-bottomed saucepan. Season the chicken with salt, and black pepper, and brown the pieces on all sides. Remove the chicken from the pan, and set aside. Add the remaining oil, and cook the squash, onions, eggplants, and potatoes.
  3. Once the vegetables begin to soften and brown, sprinkle in the spice mix, and cook, stirring continuously, for 4-minutes to release the fragrance of the spices. Return the chicken to the casserole dish, and add the bay leaves, coconut milk, chicken stock, and tamarind paste.
  4. Bring the ingredients to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, and cover. Cook until the chicken is tender and cooked through, about 40-minutes. About 5-minutes before serving, stir in the mango, papaya, lime juice, and rum, if using. Stir the mixture to incorporate, then cover, and cook until the fruit is hot. Adjust the salt, and pepper, if necessary, and serve with some boiled rice.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 2-12-22

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February 12th, 2022: Tarteletter med høns i asparges (Danish Chicken and Asparagus Tartlets) & Agurkesalat (Danish Cucumber Salad) (Denmark)

“Our World Chicken Dish tour continues tonight in Denmark. What do people who live near the Arctic Circle do with chicken?

Turns out it’s Tarteletter and Agurkesalat!

Basically a chicken and asparagus open pie, and a cucumber and onion salad. One thing I’m present to is that they don’t use spice in Denmark! So we added some white pepper and peri peri to make it edible.

We used muffin tins to make the tarts with puff pastry. I pre-cooked them to give them a chance to be crisp.

The chicken was par-boiled in chicken stock before being cut up into bite size chunks.

We used canned asparagus given the time of year. The recipe called for white asparagus but we could only find green.

The sauce was made with butter, flour, milk and a little of the chicken stock. The sauce was seasoned with salt and black pepper.

The pies were filled with chicken, asparagus, and sauce, then chopped with parsley and put in the 350-degree oven till the crust browned, about 30-minutes.

The salad was a cucumber and sweet onion salad. It was marinated in a vinegar, sugar and salt bath in the fridge for about an hour.

A comfort food sort of meal. Something I would expect north of the Arctic Circle!”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of Denmark
Map of Denmark

Tarteletter med høns i asparges (Danish Chicken and Asparagus Tartlets)

  • Prep Time: 40-minutes
  • Cook Time: 10-minutes
  • Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

  • 3 boned, skinned chicken thighs
  • 6 c. water
  • 3/4 c. chicken bone stock
  • 3/4 c. milk
  • 5.5 T. butter
  • 4 T. flour
  • salt & black pepper, to taste
  • 2 tsp. white pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. peri peri
  • 14 oz. canned green asparagus or fresh asparagus; preferably white asparagus
  • frozen puff pastry for 6 tartlets (Used large muffin tin)
  • parsley, chopped for garnish

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees
  2. Boil the water and add the chicken bone stock.
  3. Add the chicken meat and cook for 20-minutes.
  4. Take out the chicken and cut into smaller pieces, preferably in small squares.
  5. Save the water from the cooked chicken.
  6. If using fresh asparagus, cook it until tender and cut into smaller pieces.
  7. Grab a saucepan and add butter and flour stirring until the butter has melted.
  8. Add milk and some water from the cooked chicken into the sauce to thin sauce slightly.
  9. Add salt, black pepper, peri peri and white pepper to the sauce and let simmer for a few minutes.
  10. Add the asparagus and chicken to the sauce and make sure everything is heated through.
  11. Fill 6 muffin tins with puff pastry and bake for 10-minutes to pre-bake crusts for crispness.
  12. Now it’s time to fill the tartlets.
  13. Bake tartlets for 40-minutes or until the shell was crisp and golden brown.
  14. When finished, chop some fresh parsley and garnish on top of the tartlets.

Agurkesalat (Danish Cucumber Salad)

  • Prep Time: 1-hour 25-minutes
  • Serves: 6

Ingredients:

  • 1 English cucumber
  • salt, to taste
  • 1 c. water
  • 1 c. white vinegar
  • 4 T. sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. black pepper
  • sweet onion; thinly sliced

Directions:

  • Wash and peel cucumber. Cut cucumber into very thin slices and place in medium bowl, salt lightly, and let stand for 15 minutes.
  • Pour off all liquid from cucumber. In a small bowl mix together the water, vinegar, sugar and pepper. Thinly sliced sweet onions can be placed in the salad also according to taste and this is optional. Pour mixture over the cucumbers and place in the refrigerator for one hour or until chilled. Drain off liquid again or serve with a slotted spoon.

2022 World Cuisine Tour (Chicken) 2-5-22

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

February 5th, 2022: Herb & Miso Chicken With Creamy Polenta (New Zealand)

“Next on our exploration of chicken dishes the world over, the randomizer selected New Zealand so we will be making Herb & Miso Chicken With Creamy Polenta which we found on a New Zealand chicken dish list.

The randomizer choosing New Zealand had me underwhelmed. The dishes were largely Western with a few thst had some Eastern influence. We selected this one because it promised a blend of East and West.

ou start by crusting the chicken with a paste made from miso, chives and rosemary salt and pepper. The chicken is surrounded by a quartered onion, a bulb of garlic, and sliced lemons. Chicken stock and white wine finish the prep. It bakes in the 200c oven for almost an hour before being covered. For the last 10 minutes or so.

To make the polenta, I buzzed the corn meal in a blender and passed it through a fine sieve and made it with chicken stock, a little bacon fat, a little butter and Parmesan cheese.

The chicken is served on the polenta with some onion and garlic, and finished with chopped chives.

The meal was lovely, we both finished every bite, although the flavors were very mild. It reminded me of the subtlety of Japanese cooking.

I think that it could be improved if the miso paste was in the sauce and if the sauce would be blitzed and reduced. Then I think the flavors would meld better and be more intense. We’ll try that next time.”

Chef Chasan Recipe Notes
Flag of New Zealand
Map of New Zealand
  • Cook Time: 1-hour
  • Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

  • 6 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
  • 1/4 c. miso paste
  • 2 T. rosemary, chopped
  • 1 T. chives, chopped
  • salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 onion, peeled and cut in quarters
  • 1 bulb garlic, halved
  • 2 lemons, cut into wedges
  • 1 c. chicken bone stock
  • 1 c. white wine
  • 200 g. polenta
  • 2 T. butter
  • 1/2 c. grated parmesdan
  • Garnish: 1 T. chives, chopped

Directions:

  1. Preheat and oven to 180C/356F.
  2. Wash and dry the chicken. Place it on a lined roasting dish of a size that will have the chicken surrounded by the juices. In a small bowl mix the miso, rosemary and chives. Smooth over the chicken skin. Season with salt and pepper.
  3. Around the chicken place the onion, garlic, lemon, stock and wine. Place into the oven for 50 minutes to 1 hour until the juices run clear. Cover if the chicken is getting too brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
  4. Cook the polenta according to the packet instruction. To this add the butter and parmesan. Season with salt and pepper.
  5. Place the hot polenta on a serving dish. Using two forks pull the chicken apart and place onto the polenta along with the juices, onion, garlic and lemon wedges.