Kitchen Conundrum

Crispy, Sriracha Spiced Chicken Bites Recipe

by

20120223-photo-1I’m not gonna lie. I am addicted to Sriracha lately. Addicted! The spicy, sharp flavor combined with a bright, zesty lime and a hint of sweetness from either sugar or honey is one of my favorite taste combinations. My current favorite “snack” comes from Food 52- the Sriracha Fried Brussels Sprouts. I usually can eat the whole pint of sprouts by myself when made with this recipe. It’s that good. (Albeit, a bit of a mess to make- frying Brussels sprouts is dangerous and they splatter hot oil everywhere!!!! Use a very, very deep pot-like a stock pot with a screen on top! Just a warning!)

And since it’s a flavor I love,  I have been experimenting a lot with it to make the perfect sauce for dipping my crispy fried chicken bites into.

Here’s what I came up with and it’s now my ‘go to’ recipe. It makes more sauce than you need, but I like to use it on other things- like broccoli or cauliflower or even over fish.

 

 

Crispy, Sriracha Spiced Chicken Bites

For the Sauce:

Ingredients

½ cup rice wine vinegar

½ cup sugar

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1/3 cup Mirin

¼ cup Sake

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon dried crushed chili flakes

5 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce

1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in 3 tablespoons water

Juice of 1 lime

Method

In a large saucepan, over medium high heat, add the rice wine vinegar, sugar, fish sauce, Mirin, Sake, garlic, chili flakes and Sriracha in a sauce pan and bring to a rolling boil. Taste and adjust the seasonings to your likening. (I love the hot, but sometimes, it’s too hot- so I’ll add a dash more Mirin, Sake and Fish Sauce to balance.)

Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5-6 minutes.

Add the cornstarch-water mixture to the pan and stir until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat and let cool. Squeeze in the lime juice and mix to incorporate. Set aside until ready to use.

For the Chicken:

Ingredients

2lbs boneless chicken breasts, sliced into cubes

½ cup rice flour

½ cup Panko bread crumbs

½ cup cornstarch

2 eggs, beaten

½ cup milk

Method

Create your breading station by adding the dry ingredients into one bowl and the eggs and milk into another bowl.

Dip the cubed chicken into the egg and milk bowl then into the dry ingredients. Coat to cover.

Return the chicken to the egg mixture and then again to the dry ingredients to recoat.

Set all the coated pieces of chicken on a large plate and let stand in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes.

Heat the oil to 350 degrees in a deep pot or fryer.

Add a few pieces of the chicken at a time to the hot oil being careful not to splatter yourself! Don’t overcrowd the oil. Cook the chicken bites until golden brown. Remove to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain. Repeat until all the chicken is cooked.

In a large bowl add the cooked chicken and drizzle some sauce over the top to coat. You may not have to use all of the sauce, so coat with as much as you would like. Give the chicken in the bowl a quick toss around in the sauce and serve.

The remaining sauce will keep up to a week in the fridge tightly sealed.

Serve over your favorite rice with a side of steamed broccoli and you’ll have your own ‘take out’ for the night!

The bites also make a great appetizer or snack!

 

The Easiest, Easy Bread Recipe

by

photo(4)Enjoyed the easiest, easy bread the other day at a friends house. We were actually shocked at how easy it was to make. The base for her bread is just three ingredients- flour, beer and salt. From there you can add rosemary, scallions, garlic, thyme or any other herb or vegetable combination you desire!

We created a sun-dried tomato and basil version that would be amazing for any summer day!

This recipe has been adapted from Shari’s description. Thank you!

photo(5)

Ingredients

2 2/3 cups AP Flour

1 tbs Kosher Salt

1 3/4 tbs baking powder

12 oz. bottle of beer

2 large sun-dried tomato slices

4 large leaves of basil, washed and shredded

 

Method

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine everything in a large bowl. Stir until all the ingredients are incorporated, but don’t over mix. The mixture will be very wet and sticky. This is fine!

Prepare a loaf pan by spraying with a non-stick coating.

Pour the batter in and spread to fill the pan.

Bake uncovered for 55 minutes until lightly browned. Serve warm with a good butter and enjoy this dense, versatile and  savory bread.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Small Taste of Paris for the Rest of Us- French Onion Soup Recipe

by

French Onion SoupWith Renee off living the good life in Paris for the month, the rest of the family is home braving the New York winter.  My cooking while she has been gone has taken a much more kid friendly flavor, though I do try to slip in some more adult foods now and then.  With the snow falling today, I figured  it was a perfect day for a taste of France to warm us and at least be with Renee in spirit.  On a cold snowy day like it is here in New York today nothing warms better then a hot bowl of soup and no soup says France to me more than a steaming crock of French Onion Soup.

 

Ingredients

5 Medium Onions sliced thin

½ stick of unsalted butter

1 clove of garlic chopped fine

3 tbsp dry white wine

1 bay leaf

2 sprigs fresh thyme

4 cups beef stock

Salt and pepper

4 – 1/2inch thick slices French baguette

1 cup grated Gruyere Cheese (or Swiss)

 

Method

In a stock pot, melt the butter over low heat, then add the sliced onions and garlic and sauté till nicely browned (about 35-45 min).  Don’t rush this step; keeping the heat low will let the onions caramelize slowly and evenly without getting crispy.

Add the wine, and using a wooden spoon scrape the bottom of the pot for any bits and pieces that have stuck.

Add the thyme sprigs and bay leaves.

After about a minute, add the stock. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Its best to leave it a bit under salted as the soup will reduce while it is cooking and the final flavor can be adjusted before serving.

Let the soup simmer for about an hour.

While the soup is simmering toast the baguettes slices.

When the soup is ready remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs.

Ladle the soup into 4 oven safe bowls giving each a good helping of the onions at the bottom of the bowl.

Pre-heat the broiler in your oven. (If you don’t have an in-oven broiler, you could use a blow torch to melt the cheese.)

Place the bowls on a baking tray, and float a slice of the toasted bread in each bowl, then cover with the grated cheese.

Place the whole tray under the broiler till the cheese is lightly browned and bubbly.

Carefully remove the hot bowls from the oven,  serve and enjoy a small taste of Paris!