Asian Inspired Grilled Chicken

This recipe was inspired by the following recipe in Food and Wine. I didn't have any star anise so I decided to come up with my own marinade.

Ingredients

1 c tamari or soy sauce

1/2 c Asian fish sauce

1 c honey

juice of 2 limes

zest of 1/2 lime

1/4 c chipotle chili in adobo sauce

1 5" x 1" piece of ginger cut into matchsticks

5 chicken drumsticks skin on - approx 1 lb

2 chicken breasts with or without skin - approx 1 lb

4 chicken thighs skin on - approx 1 lb

Directions

Warm the tamari and fish sauce in a sauce pan. Add the honey and stir till the honey is fully mixed in. Add the lime juice, zest, and adobo. Stir to incorporate.

Let the marinade cool for a few minutes, add the ginger. Put the chicken pieces in a bowl and pour the marinade over the chicken.

Cover and put in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight. Turn the chicken pieces half way through to make sure all the chicken gets dunked in the marinade.

Grill for 40 minutes, 20 minutes each side, basting the chicken every 5 minutes with the marinade. I usually start with the skin side down. 

Indian Potato and Chickpea Soup

I got this recipe from cooking.com. It's a real nice, down to earth, hearty soup. It's easy to make and easy to eat. The popping mustard seeds are fun. It must be something about Denver, but I always have to cook soups like this longer so that the potatoes get soft. I usually substitute olive oil for the butter, but either way it tastes great.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 small serrano chili, sliced lengthwise
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small onion, diced
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 vine-ripe tomato, diced
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 1/4 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, cubed 1 inch
4 cups water
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

Heat the butter in a Dutch oven or large soup pot over medium-high heat. When the foam subsides, add the mustard seeds. Heat until they pop, 30 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on the age of your seeds. Add the chili, garlic and onion and cook until softening, 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle in the coriander, turmeric and salt; stir for 30 seconds. Add the tomato and stir to break down, about 2 minutes. Pour in the chickpeas, potatoes and water. Bring to a boil and then simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 12 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with cilantro.

Roast Chicken with Saffron and Lemons

This recipe comes from Saveur. Once again a real winner! I used more saffron because I love the stuff. I know a guy who travels to the Middle East regularly and he brings me saffron, so I am a bit extravagant with it. 

The lemon slices are the most important ingredient because they keep the chicken moist and tender. 

INGREDIENTS

1 tsp. saffron threads
2 tsp. kosher salt
¼ tsp. whole black peppercorns
1 (3½-4-lb.) chicken
6 sprigs rosemary
1 lemon, thinly sliced

Butcher's string, for tying

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat oven to 400°. Heat an 8" skillet over medium. Cook saffron until lightly toasted and fragrant, 1–2 minutes; let cool and transfer to a mortar and pestle. Add salt and peppercorns; grind into a coarse powder. Slide fingers under the skin of chicken breast to create a pocket. Rub spices over and under the skin, and inside the cavity. Place rosemary and lemon slices under the skin and inside the cavity. Tie legs together using butcher's string and tuck wings under back; roast until browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of thigh reads 165°, about 1 hour. Let rest 10 minutes before carving.

Barbacoa

This recipe is from Gimme Some Oven. Mmmm. Barbacoa tacos! As much as I liked the tacos, I had a problem with the recipe that almost ruined it. I don't have a slow cooker which turned out to be much more of an issue than I expected. I used my trusty dutch oven. So, the liquid burned off super fast and the meat almost burned. I had to add another 1 cup to save it and I should have probably even added another 1/2 c to bring the total to 2 cups of liquid. Other than that - the meat was fantastic, mildly spicy and juicy. 

PREP: 10 MIN COOK: 4 HOURS TOTAL: 4 HOURS 20 MIN

INGREDIENTS:

3 lbs chuck roast (fat trimmed), cut into 2-inch chunks
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 chipotles in adobo sauce, chopped (or more to taste)
1 small white onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 bay leaves
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 Tablespoon dried Mexican oregano (or regular oregano)
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup beef broth or water

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a slow cooker. Toss gently to combine. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours, or until the beef is tender and falls apart easily when shredded with a fork.

Using two forks, shred the beef into bite-sized pieces inside of the slow cooker. Toss the beef with the juices, then cover and let the barbacoa beef soak up the juices for an extra 10 minutes. Remove cover and use a pair of tongs or a slotted spoon to serve the barbacoa beef.

If not using immediately, refrigerate the barbacoa beef with its juices in a sealed container for up to 5 days. Or freeze it for up to 3 months.