deliciousness

雞絲涼麵 - spicy cold noodles with chicken slivers

serves 4
adapted from fuchsia dunlop’s land of plenty: a treasury of authentic sichuan cooking

2 chicken breasts
pepper, soy sauce
1 lb fresh chinese noodles, shanghai-style
peanut of vegetable oil
2 large handfuls of bean sprouts
4 scallions, thinly sliced

2 1/2 tbsp sesame paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp chinkiang vinegar
1 tbsp + 1  tsp white sugar
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp ground roasted sichuan pepper
2-3 tbsp chili oil with chile flakes (or hunan chili paste)
1 tbsp sesame oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Season chicken breasts with pepper and soy sauce and roast for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through. Let cool and tear or cut into 1/4 inch thick slivers. 

Cook noodles in boiling water according to directions (usually 3-4 minutes) - make sure not to overcook. Rinse in cold water, drain, and mix with oil to prevent sticking (I didn’t really need the oil, just rinsed with enough water to wash off the starches that cause stickyness and consumed quickly).

Blanch bean sprouts for a few second in boiling water, then rinse with cold water and drain. Combine all seasonings into sauce - add water to dilute to desired consistency.

To serve, layer sprouts, noodles, chicken, and scallions. Pour sauce and toss.

NOTE: this is a spicy dish, thus the title. The measurements above, sans sichuan peppers, are for a less spicy sauce as I was making for my mom, aka does not like spicy. To make spicier, add more chili paste and sichuan peppers.

darling pasta

via use real butter

1/2 lb. chicken breast, diced
1 lb. rotini or cheese tortellini, cooked
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup sundried tomatoes, rehydrated and cut into strips
1 cup roasted red peppers, diced
1 cup pesto
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tbsp vegetable oil
parmesan, grated

Heat oil over high heat in a large sauté pan. Add garlic when oil is hot and stir until fragrant. Add the chicken and sauté until just cooked. Stir in the tomatoes and peppers. Mix in the pesto and pine nuts. Toss the drained pasta into the pan and stir together. Remove from heat and serve with grated parmesan.

Notes: Instead of adding the garlic in the beginning and very likely burning it, I added it when the chicken was almost done and sautéed them together before adding the tomatoes and peppers. Also used the oil that came with the sun-dried tomatoes instead of regular olive oil.

cashew chicken

8 boneless & skinless chicken tenders, cut into small pieces
3 tsp baking soda
2 tsp corn starch
splash of shaoxing wine
1 small green bell pepper, cut into same size as chicken
handful of cashew nuts
couple slices of ginger

sauce:
1/3 cup of water
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp brown sugar
splash of shaoxing wine
splash of sesame oil
salt & pepper

Marinate the chicken in baking soda for 10-15 minutes. Rinse, pat dry, then marinate in corn starch and shaoxing wine for another 10-15 minutes.

Mix together sauce ingredients and set aside. Meanwhile, stir fry chicken until outside is cooked; set aside. Stir fry bell pepper, ginger, and cashews for a couple minutes, then add chicken back in. Add sauce and cook until chicken is cooked all the way through.

picture via

hong kong pan-fried noodles

via sugarlens
serves 2

1 16oz pkg. Hong Kong Style noodles (I used a bit more than half)
1 small chicken breast, sliced thinly
15-20 small shrimps, peeled and deveined
1 king oyster mushroom, sliced thinly
1 stalk bok choy, cleaned and cut
2 cloves garlic, minced

Marinade A:
1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp oyster sauce
Salt/pepper to taste

Marinade B:
1 tsp corn starch
1 tsp sesame oil
Salt/pepper to taste

Sauce:
1 tbsp of oyster sauce
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 cup water
1 tsp of sugar
1 tsp of cooking wine

Thickening:
1 tbsp of corn starch
2 tbsp of water

Add oil to a heated pan. Add noodles. The noodles should brown very quickly. Use a pair of chopsticks or a spatula to make sure the noodles are getting browned evenly. If you need to, use the spatula to press the noodles against the pan or add some more cooking oil to make sure you brown most of the noodles. Plate the noodles and set aside.

Marinate chicken with Marinade A. Set aside. Marinate shrimps with Marinade B. Set aside. In a separate bowl, combine the ingredients for Sauce. In a smaller bowl, combine corn starch and water. Set aside.

Add oil to a heated pan and saute garlic until lightly brown. Add shrimps and cook thoroughly. Dish out.

Add oil to a heated pan and cook chicken until done. Dish out.

Add oil to a heated pan and cook bok choy and oyster mushroom. Add salt to taste. Cook until done. Add shrimps and chicken back to the pan. Stir well. Add the Sauce mixture. Bring it to a boil.

Add water/corn starch and give a quick stir. Bring it to a boil.

Pour gravy on top of the noodles. Serve immediately!

herb chicken tenders and warm potato salad

via avec eric and cook sister
serves 4

8 chicken tenders
oil, salt, pepper
herbes de provence
3 russet potatoes
2 eggs
1/2 pound green beans
less than 1/2 diced red onion
2 tbsp. mayonnaise
1 tbsp. whole grain dijon mustard
dill

Season chicken tenders with salt, pepper, and herbes de provence. Heat pan with oil and brown chicken over medium high heat. Take off heat and let rest.

Meanwhile, boil potatoes and eggs, then remove from heat until cool enough to handle. Blanch green beans in salted water. Peel and chop potatoes and hard-boiled eggs into bite-size pieces.

Dice chicken into bite-size pieces and combine with the other ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.

“asian” chicken noodle soup

adapted from mango&tomato

chicken, cut into bite-size chunks
oil, salt, pepper
chicken broth or stock + enough water to cover ingredients
1 in. piece of ginger
2 3-in. pieces of lemon grass (hit with back of knife)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
1 tbsp. soy sauce
chili sauce
flat rice noodles
2 carrots, thinly sliced on diagonal
cilantro
scallions

Heat oil, and salt and pepper the chicken. When the oil is hot, brown the chicken. Make sure not to cook it all the way through, since it will continue to cook in the soup. Remove excess oil. Pour in chicken broth or stock, water, lemon grass, ginger, and garlic and bring to a boil. Add soy sauce and noodles, lower the heat, cover, and let cook for 12 minutes. Skim off fat from top. Add carrots and cook for a few more minutes. Put desired amount of chili sauce into service bowl. Serve soup topped with scallions and cilantro.

shredded chicken tacos

via smitten kitchen
yield: 6-8 servings

2 pounds boneless chicken thighs
1 large white onion, peeled and quartered
5 cloves garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 ancho or other mild dried chili, optional
Salt and pepper to taste.

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and add water to cover. Turn heat to high, bring to a boil, and skim any foam that comes to the surface. Partially cover and adjust heat so mixture simmers steadily. Cook until meat is very tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from liquid and cool. Shred meat with fingers. Taste and adjust seasonings; use within a couple of days.

skillet chicken with mushrooms (and pasta)

four handfuls of brown mushrooms
half an onion or a couple shallots
1 1/2 pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs/breasts
butter
olive oil
flour
salt & pepper
sprig of thyme
chicken broth

clean and quarter mushrooms, and coarsely chop onion or shallots. cut chicken into bite-size pieces.

heat frying pan and add two pads of butter and same amount of olive oil. when butter stops foaming, add the onion or shallots. sauté onions or shallots, stirring occasionally. while vegetables cook, dredge chicken with flour and salt & pepper. add chicken to pan and cook until lightly browned.

add mushrooms and thyme (or herbs de provence), then pour in enough broth to cover everything. simmer until chicken are cooked through and mushrooms are soft about ten minutes.

time when pasta ended depends on pastas’ cooking time.

next time, use less broth, cover with cheese and breadcrumbs(?), bake until top is crisp. reminds jen of 奶奶’s cooking!