chicken Archives - Page 3 of 5 -

March 10, 2015

Easy Baked Ginger Chicken

I started feeling a little under the weather a few weeks ago and made this ginger chicken so I could pack in as much immune-boosting, antioxidant-rich ginger into my diet as possible. The amount of ginger in this recipe might seem excessive (see recipe below for a tip on mincing large amounts of ginger), but the baking mellows out any bite and it all melds together nicely. I usually use chicken thighs since they are virtually impossible to overcook, but chicken breasts would also work well if that’s your preference. The overnight marination is essential to deepen the ginger-soy-sesame flavors, but the slight effort in early preparation pays off the next day when all you need to do is place the dish in the oven. As the chicken bakes, a savory sauce develops and is wonderful when accompanied with a bed of brown rice or whole-grain noodles. The ginger scallion garnish adds a nice touch at the end, but it is certainly optional and fine without. This dish is also great leftover and can be served warmed or at room temperature.

Easy Baked Ginger Chicken

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

12 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, about 4½ pounds
¼ cup honey
⅓ cup tamari or soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons minced garlic, about 6 garlic cloves (see note)
3 tablespoons minced ginger, about 3-inch piece ginger (see note)
extra ginger and scallions for garnish, optional

Instructions

Arrange chicken thighs skin-side down in a 9x13 baking dish.
In a small saucepan over low heat, whisk together the honey, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger until honey is melted and well blended. Pour mixture evenly over the chicken thighs. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 350. Take chicken out of refrigerator while oven is preheating. Bake covered for 30 minutes. Raise temperature to 375. Remove foil and turn chicken thighs to skin-side up. Bake uncovered for another 30 minutes, until juices run clear.
To serve, garnish with finely julienned ginger and scallions, if desired.

Notes

To quickly mince garlic and ginger, coarsely chop and pulse garlic and ginger separately in a mini-prep food processor.

adapted from Barefoot Contessa

February 18, 2015

Chicken and Green Olive Taquitos

It was large batch taquito making this past weekend with turkey spinach taquitos and also these chicken and green olive taquitos. Taquitos make great freezer meals and I try hard to always keep a supply handy for busy days when there’s no time for cooking or for when I need a quick last minute meal. Unlike casseroles, it’s easy to take out just what you need, whether it’s just a few or the whole batch. Every so often I’ll make a meal I know my husband and I will really enjoy, but not necessarily the kids and while I always encourage the kids to try whatever is being served, sometimes I’ll take a couple taquitos out for them as back-up. These particular taquitos are inspired by some green olive enchiladas that I used to frequently make years ago, but had somehow forgotten about more recently. Enchiladas are great, but taquitos are a bit less messy and more kid-friendly so I made a taquito version of those enchiladas with all of the same great flavors. Lots of warm spices in these- chili, cumin, oregano, and a hint of cinnamon. Secret ingredient here is a little dark chocolate that is melted into the sauce at the very end to give it some complexity and depth. In the past, I’ve always struggled with natural corn tortillas falling apart and crumbling any time I tried to work with them. I finally discovered these corn tortillas at Whole Foods however and they are much more pliable and easy to work with. If you can’t find a good corn tortilla, any flour or multi-grain tortilla would be a good substitute. Happy taquito-making!

Chicken and Green Olive Taquitos

Serves: makes 24 taquitos

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1½ teaspoons dried oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoons ground black pepper
4 tablespoon chili powder
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
½ ounce dark chocolate, chopped
4 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts, about 3 breasts
1 cup green olives, sliced
8 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
24 6-inch corn tortillas
olive oil for finishing
coarse salt for sprinkling

Instructions

In a large saucepan or heavy pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Sauté until onions soften and start to become translucent, about 5-8 minutes. Add chili powder and flour and stir constantly for another 2-3 minutes. Gradually whisk in the broth. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring mixture to a boil. Continue to boil for 30 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 3 cups, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.
Preheat oven to 400. Lightly oil a large baking sheet.
In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken, olives, shredded cheese, and 1½ cups of the cooled sauce.
Spoon about 3 tablespoons of filling onto the middle of a tortilla. Roll up taquito and place seam side down on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.
Use a pastry brush to brush a light coating of olive oil onto each taquito. Sprinkle with coarse salt to finish.
Bake at 400 for about 25 minutes, until taquitos are lightly golden brown. Serve with the remaining sauce on the side for dipping.

Notes

To freeze, place each taquito on a baking sheet, making sure that taquitos are not touching one another. Freeze the whole tray for a few hours and then transfer the taquitos to a gallon-sized ziploc bag for storage.

inspired by Green Olive Enchiladas from Colorado Colore

February 6, 2015

Pesto Chicken Lasagna

We reorganized our basement chest freezer a few weeks ago (always feels so good to get that done) and I discovered six containers of pesto from late summer. Simple surprises like that totally make my day. While the rest of the family would be completely content using the rest of the pesto for everyday pasta and pizza, I wanted something more than that for myself. Cooking feels like so much less of a chore when it’s an exercise in creativity and I’m not repeating the same meals over and over again. Not that there’s anything wrong with repeating meals (sometimes my kids complain that I don’t repeat their favorites enough), but I selfishly think it’s important to keep things interesting for the cook.

This pesto chicken lasagna is a refreshing twist on the more traditional lasagna. It still has the rich layers of ricotta, parmesan, and mozzarella, but a creamy pesto chicken sauce replaces the tomato meat sauce here. If you already have pesto and cooked chicken, this assembles fairly quickly and is one of those great make-ahead of time meals. I hope you give this lasagna a try- it will definitely hit the spot with any pesto-loving crowd.

Pesto Chicken Lasagna

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

Creamy pesto sauce

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 teaspoons flour
1¼ cup whole milk
1¼ cup pesto
kosher salt and ground black pepper to taste

Lasagna

2 split bone-in chicken breasts, about 1.5 pounds
1 tablespoon olive oil
9 lasagna noodles, cooked according to package directions
15 ounces ricotta
1 large egg, lightly beaten
½ cup + 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, divided
2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 pound mozzarella, grated

Instructions

Creamy pesto sauce

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk for 2-3 minutes. Gradually add the milk and continue to whisk until thickened, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in the pesto and season to taste with salt and pepper.1. Preheat oven to 350. Rub olive oil over chicken breasts and season with kosher salt and pepper.

Lasagna

Bake chicken skin side up for 30-40 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Cool. Discard skins and use hands or 2 forks to shred chicken into bite-size pieces. Increase oven temperature to 375.
In a medium bowl, use a fork to mix together the ricotta, egg, ½ cup grated parmesan, parsley, and ½ teaspoon salt.
Spread a thin layer of creamy pesto sauce on the bottom of a 9x13 lasagna dish, about ⅓ cup. Add the shredded chicken to the rest of the sauce and stir until combined.
Layer 3 lasagna noodles, half of the ricotta mixture, one third of the chicken pesto mixture, and one third of the mozzarella. Repeat. Finish with remaining 3 lasagna noodles, chicken pesto mixture, and mozzarella. Sprinkle the top with 2 tablespoons of parmesan.
Bake 25 minutes covered with foil, then an additional 5-10 minutes uncovered, until cheese is melted and edges are bubbly. Allow lasagna to set for 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

2½ -3 cups cooked shredded chicken can be used instead of roasting the bone-in chicken breasts.