Asian-Glazed Chicken Thighs

What was just a throw-together "Oh my god, dinner is coming up and I have no recipe!" moment turned into what Abe titled as One Of My Best Chicken Recipes, Ever.     Top 3, he said.  Sweet and slightly spicy and yum.

Hey, I'll let him think I carefully perused the recipes to find just the perfect one for him.  Sometimes, the best results come from accidents.

He had to stop himself from eating all 8 chicken thighs.  I had to pack them away for lunch, actually..lol.

I had to modify the recipe for what I had at home, so I'm going to post that recipe since it was the winner.

Base recipe found on www.allrecipes.com.

Asian-Glazed Chicken Thighs
Serves 4

1/2 cup rice wine vinegar
5 tablespoons brown sugar
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sesame oil

3 tablespoons Asian chili garlic sauce

3 tablespoons minced garlic

Salt to taste

8 skinless chicken thighs

Whisk the vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, chili garlic sauce, garlic, and salt in a bowl until smooth. Pour half the marinade into a large plastic zipper bag; retain the other half of the sauce. Place the chicken thighs into the bag containing marinade, squeeze all the air out of the bag, and seal. Shake a few times to coat chicken; refrigerate for 1 hour, turning bag once or twice.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

Pour the other half of the marinade into a saucepan over medium heat, bring to a boil, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring often, to thicken sauce. Remove the chicken from the bag; discard used marinade. Place chicken thighs into a 9x13-inch baking dish, and brush with 1/3 of the thickened marinade from the saucepan.

Bake 40 minutes, basting one more time after 10 minutes; an instant-read thermometer inserted into a chicken thigh should read 165 degrees F (75 degrees C).

 

Asian Grilled Salmon

No witty story behind this one.  I had salmon and needed to use it up before it followed in the footsteps of a few of my in-the-freezer-so-long-you-can't-pass-it-off-as-good proteins lately.  Once I first got a deep freeze, I sort of lost track of expiration dates and had a few "Um, what's with the chicken?" meals.  So, I wanted to make sure that didn't happen again. 
 

The recipe is super simple and delicious.  I used a grill pan instead of grilling it outdoors, but I'm sure it would be just as good in a skillet, too.

My salmon didn't have a skin, which didn't present with a problem on the grill pan.  I also didn't let it rest, like the recipe suggests (I didn't even see that part until writing this blog entry), so if you want it hot, go right ahead and serve that sucker up.

Asian Grilled Salmon
Serves 6

1 side fresh salmon, boned but skin on (about 3 pounds)
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons soy sauce
6 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

 Oil the grill or spray the grill pan with cooking spray and then heat the grill/grill pan (or skillet) on medium-high.

While the grill is heating, lay the salmon skin side down on a cutting board and cut it crosswise into 4 equal pieces. Whisk together the mustard, soy sauce, olive oil, and garlic in a small bowl. Drizzle half of the marinade onto the salmon and allow it to sit for 10 minutes.

Place the salmon skin side down on the hot grill; discard the marinade the fish was sitting in. Grill for 4 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Turn carefully with a wide spatula and grill for another 4 to 5 minutes. The salmon will be slightly raw in the center, but don't worry; it will keep cooking as it sits.

Transfer the fish to a flat plate, skin side down, and spoon the reserved marinade on top. Allow the fish to rest for 10 minutes. Remove the skin and serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

Filipino Chicken Adobo

I've never made Filipino food, nor eaten it.  This recipe seemed so simple and I could tell by the ingredients that it had the potential to be a hit.  Abe was a little hesitant when I told him what I was making, but man, did he eat his words (and the entire dish).  He LOVED it and couldn't stop complimenting the dish.

It's a recipe that is easy to put together with pantry ingredients. You just have to make sure you marinade it for the 18 to 24 hours, so some planning ahead is  needed. 

I served it with brown rice and a mixed salad.

I got the recipe from The Splendid Table.

Enjoy!

Filipino Chicken Adobo
Serves 4-6

1/4 cup soy sauce
10 large garlic cloves, coarse chopped
1 tablespoon fresh-ground black pepper
1-1/4 cups Filipino palm vinegar, or cider or white vinegar
1 cup whole canned tomatoes with their liquid
2 bay leaves, broken
3 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 8)
Good tasting extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, thin sliced
2 whole scallions, thin sliced (optional garnish)

The day before cooking the chicken, take a large glass or stainless steel bowl and combine in it the soy sauce, garlic, black pepper, vinegar, tomatoes (break them up with your hands as you add them to the bowl), and the bay leaves. Add the chicken, making sure it is almost completely submerged in the marinade. Lightly cover and refrigerate for 18 to 24 hours.

When ready to cook the chicken, turn the mixture into a heavy 4-quart pot. Bring it to a gentle bubble, cover and cook 25 minutes, or until the center of a chicken thigh registers 175 degrees F on an instant reading thermometer.

With tongs, remove the chicken to a plate. Skim as much fat as possible from the cooking liquid, increase the heat, and start briskly boiling it down by half. While the liquid reduces, film a straight-sided 12-inch sauté pan with the olive oil. Heat it over medium high. Arrange the chicken pieces skin down to brown, standing back because they may spatter. Adjust heat so chicken doesn't burn.

When the chicken pieces are a deep rich brown on one side, turn the pieces and scatter the onion around them. Continue browning the chicken, and move the onions around so the pieces don't burn. Then, with a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken and onions to a serving bowl. Pour the boiled-down pan juices over them and serve. You could garnish the adobo with a scattering of thin-sliced scallions.

Honey-Hoisin Pork Tenderloin

A quick and easy way to make Asian-style pork. It was not only devoured by Abe, but Jimi had 2 helpings.

I served it with garlic mashed potatoes and green peas.

Recipe (and picture) are from Cooking Light, which means that it's easy on the waistline (it's only 195 calories and 4 grams of fat per serving!).

Enjoy!


Honey-Hoisin Pork Tenderloin
Serves 4

2  tablespoons  sliced green onions
2  tablespoons  hoisin sauce
2  tablespoons  low-sodium soy sauce
2  tablespoons  sage honey
1  tablespoon  hot water
2  garlic cloves, minced
1  (1-pound) pork tenderloin, trimmed
1/4  teaspoon  salt
Cooking spray
1/2  teaspoon  sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine first 6 ingredients in a small bowl. Pour 1/4 cup honey mixture into a large zip-top plastic bag; reserve remaining honey mixture. Add pork to bag; seal and marinate in refrigerator 30 minutes, turning bag occasionally.

Remove pork from bag; discard marinade. Sprinkle pork with salt. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add pork; cook 2 minutes, browning on all sides. Brush 1 tablespoon reserved honey mixture over pork; sprinkle with sesame seeds. Place skillet in oven. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until a thermometer registers 160° (slightly pink) or until desired degree of doneness.

Place pork on a platter; let stand 5 minutes. Cut pork across the grain into thin slices. Drizzle with the remaining honey mixture.

Pad Thai

 

I love Thai.  Spicy, tangy, noodles... what's not to like?   It's pretty simple to make, so you can have a great Thai dish whenever you want it!

This recipe is the vegetarian version; the real version has fish sauce in it.  You can add chicken or tofu to it if you want to get a little protein in it.

It's spicy, so if you don't care for the spice, decrease the amount of chili sauce or omit it completely.  You can find mung sprouts in the produce section with the Asian noodles.

Make sure the noodles soak long enough to be white.  If they seem like they aren't soft enough after adding to the wok, add a teaspoon of water to let them soften a bit more.  The noodles should be el dente, but not hard.

I got this from The Big Book of Vegetarian.

Enjoy!

Pad Thai
Serves 4

8 ounces dried rice noodles
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons tamari or reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 to 2 teaspoon hot chile sauce
1 tablespoon water
2 teaspoon peanut oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 2 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger (bottled fresh is ok)
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into narrow strips
8 to 10 green onions, halved lengthwise and then cut into 2-inch lengths
1 cup mung bean sprouts
2 tablespoons chopped dry-roasted peanuts
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
1 egg, scrambled (optional)
1 lime, sliced (optional)

In a large bowl, soak the rice noodles in warm water to cover until limp and white, about 25-30 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the lime juice, tamari, brown sugar, chile sauce and 1 tablespoon water.

In a wok or deep skillet over high heat, heat the oil.  Add the garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 30 seconds.  Add the carrot and green onions and stir-fry for 1 minute.  Stir in the lime juice-tamari mixture.

Drain the noodles and add to the wok, tossing with tongs until softened and curled, about 1 minute.  Add the sprouts and toss to mix.  Divide the mixture among 4 serving plates, sprinkle with peanuts and garnish with cilantro, egg and slices of lime, if desired.