Chicken Tikka Masala

Spices. They were originally used to add flavor but they also help to preserve food. In my own cooking, I don't generally use a ton of spices. I like to let the natural flavors or fresh, quality ingredients speak for themselves. However, I am not opposed to them in any way. This chicken Tikka Masala may not be authentic, but this dish is full of flavors and is an easy dinner to make for friends.
The Ingredients
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs and/or breasts
For the Marinade:
1.5 cups plain yogurt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons turmeric
2 teaspoons black pepper
.5 teaspoon chili flakes
1.5 tablespoon grated ginger
4 teaspoon salt
For the Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
1 large yellow onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 teaspoons ground cumin
1.5 teaspoons ground coriander
1.5 teaspoons ground cayenne pepper
1 28oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup cream
3/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 lemons, juiced and zested
The Method
Mix the marinade together in a large bowl, and put the chicken in.Make sure that all part of the chicken are coated. Place in the fridge for at least 4 hours, overnight is even better.Traditionally, the chicken is cut into bite sized pieces and skewered and then grilled. I opted with the non-traditional way of take the whole pieces and grilled them. They can also be broiled in the oven. Brown the chicken on both sides on high heat, until the chicken is half cooked. It should still be pink and juicy...mmmmm. It will continue to cook in the sauce. Set the chicken aside.In a large pan, melt the butter on medium high heat. Sweat the onions with a little salt until they start to brown. Add the garlic, and all the spices and cook for another minute or so until aromatic. Pour in the tomato sauce and let it simmer for about 10 minutes on low heat until thick and hearty.In the mean time, cut the chicken into bite sized pieces. Throw in the chicken, cream and lemon zest and juice into the sauce. When the sauce starts to bubble add the cilantro and give it a quick stir.Serve this flavorful stew over basmati rice. This will feed about 4-6 hungry college kids.

Cantonese Chicken Claypot (without the claypot)

So I decided to ditch the claypot, mainly because I didn't have one, and chose to make it in a rice cooker instead. The results are about the same; although with the claypot, you can get a crunchy layer of rice at the bottom. But what college student has a chinese claypot on hand? Not this one. This Chinese dish takes many flavors and combines them to create a very homely dish.
The Ingredients
3 cups of rice (I used medium grain, but adjust water for long grain)
1.5 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts
3 stalks green onion, chopped
2 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
10-12 dried shitake mushrooms
3 chinese sausages (lop cheung), sliced
.25 cup cilantro, chopped
cooking oil
for the chicken:
3 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1.5 teaspoons cornstarch
.5 teaspoon sesame oil
.5 teaspoon sugar
.25 teaspoon pepper
for the rice:
4 cups of water
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
pinch of salt

The Method
Chop the chicken into large chunks and mix it with the chicken seasoning. Let this marinade for at least 3 hours or overnight. Soak the dried mushrooms in water for at least half an hour until soft. Cut them in half. Slice the sausages, and chop the green onions, cilantro and the ginger.Mix the water and rice seasonings in the rice cooker. Press the cook button.
Put a large pan on medium high heat and pour some vegetable oil to prevent sticking. When the pan is hot, place the chicken and mushrooms in a single layer. Brown the chicken and make several batches if you need too. Throw in the ginger and chinese sausages. Take the chicken out when it is about half cooked and place in a large bowl. When the rice has about 7-8 minutes left and is dry, add the chicken, mushrooms and sausages. Close the rice cooker and let it cook. When the button pops up or beeps sprinkle the green onions and cilantro on top, and set a timer for 12-15 more minutes. This will continue to cook the chicken and let the flavors mix. Serve with additional cilantro and green onion. This recipe feeds 4-6.

Baked Chicken Macaroni and Cheese from the Pantry

Mac and Cheese is always good. I admit to eating the stuff from the blue box with hot dogs on a late night of studying. I was really hungry one night and evaluated what we had in the fridge and this was the outcome. If I were to buy the ingredients, I would use a sharp cheddar cheese or another hard cheese with lots of developed flavor in it. But my method of cooking is taking ingredients I have on hand and making something. You might call it being lazy, I prefer to think of it being adaptive. Anyway, here is the dish...I bet you always have this stuff in your pantry right now.

The Ingredients
1 lb chicken breast
1/2 yellow onion
4 cloves garlic
4 Tablespoons butter + 2 Tablespoons more
4 Tablespoons flour
4 cups milk
1/4 cup cream
1 lb elbow macaroni or other small pasta
1 cup grated cheese (Cheddar)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon paprika
olive oil
salt
pepper

The Method
Start by prepping the ingredients. Cut the chicken into small cubish pieces. Mince the garlic and finely dice the onion.

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Salt the water and add the pasta. Drain when the pasta is done.
In a large pan, saute the chicken in some olive oil on medium high heat. When one side is brown, add the bay leaf, onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the chicken is done and the onions are translucent.

In a saucepan, melt the 4 tablespoons of butter and then whisk in the flour. Whisk constantly to get lumps out. Add the heated milk in small increments when the roux turns very slightly brown. Think white beach sand. Keep whisking until the bechamel sauce returns to the boil.

Take off the heat. Add the cream, cheddar cheese, half the Parmesan cheese, paprika, thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Combine the pasta, chicken mixture, and cheese sauce in the large pan. Mix well and check for seasoning again.
Take out a 9 x 13 pan and grease with a little butter. Pour in the pasta and smooth with a spatula. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Then covered the pasta with the panko bread crumbs. Dot with 2 tablespoons of butter.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for 25 minutes or until golden browned and delicious. Resist the temptation and let it cool for 10 minutes.

Thai Basil Chicken

The cuisine of Thailand is definitely one of my favorites. The flavors are so fresh, flavorful and leave that certain taste in your mouth, that once you have tasted it only makes you want bowls the size of kiddie pools full of the stuff. Thai food has a few key ingredients that make it distinctly unique in my book: limes, chilies, Thai basil and fish sauce. I know, I know...fish sauce. It doesn't have the appeal or allure of let's say Thai basil. However, it is one of those ingredients that by itself, wouldn't taste so great, but a dash of it makes the dish come alive and brings everything together. So don't skip on that.
This may seem like a complicated dish, but it's worth it. Try it and let me know what you think.

The Ingredients
1.5 pounds of chicken breast
1/3 pound green beans
1 red bell pepper
1 red onion
3 cloves garlic
1 lime
2 Thai chiles
1.5 cups of Thai Basil leaves
.5 cup chicken broth
1-2 teaspoons fish sauce
2 teaspoons soy sauce
vegetable oil
pepper
salt

The Method
The first step is to put the chicken breasts (wrapped in plastic wrap) in the freezer for 30-45 minutes. Take the chicken out of the freezer and take a sharp chef's knife out. The freezing will make the meat more firm and easier to cut. Take the breast and turn it so that you can cut it against the grain. Cut into thin pieces. Put into a bowl and mix with half the fish sauce and half the soy sauce to marinade for a while.
Then wash and prep all the vegetables. Cut off the stem side of the green beans and cut them into thirds. Cut open the bell pepper, remove the seed core, seeds, and ribs. Then cut the pepper lengthwise into 1.5 inch strips, and then cut those strips into small julienne. Next, the red onion lengthwise, cut off the ends and remove the skin. Make radial cuts following the natural curve of the onion to get long thin strips. This is called frenching an onion. Peel and mince the garlic.
Heat up a large pan on medium high heat with some oil. Toss in the garlic, and chicken and cook until it turns opaque. Remove and put it into another dish. Heat the pan up again and put some more oil into it.
Next, throw in all of the vegetables: bell peppers, green beans and onions. Sprinkle some salt and crack some pepper into the pan. Saute until the vegetables are slightly crunchy still but have loss the initial crispness about 4-5 minutes.
Zest half the lime with a micro plane and then juice the whole lime. Wearing latex gloves, unless you want burning hands and/or eyes, cut the chilies lengthwise and scrape out most of the seeds and rib. Cut the chiles into very thin strips.
Return the chicken into the pan. Put the sugar, remaining fish sauce, remaining soy sauce, chilies, lime zest, and juice into the pan. Cook for another minute, check for taste. More fish sauce or salt? Finally, add the heap of Thai bail leaves and toss to wilt. (Thai Bail is sweeter than normal basil) Another 30 seconds of heating and this dish is game, set, and a match for fluffy steamed jasmine rice.