I have a huge confession to make. I miss North American Chinese Food over here in the UK. I have yet to eat any Chinese dish that even remotely resembles what I am used to and what I loved from back home.
Oh sure, I know that the dishes we are presented in Chinese Food Establishments on both sides of the pond are nowhere near like the real thing at all . . . but I like what I like, and what I have had in my experience, is what I am used to and what I enjoy, and what I consider to be Chinese, so all of you purists out there, mum's the word.
The few times I have eaten Chinese food here in the UK, I have to confess I have not really enjoyed it all that much. I do like the chow mien from our local chippy, but for the most part, what I have experienced is not what I grew up with or what I crave.
Where's the Beef & Broccoli? The Egg Rolls? Won Tons? I haven't seen any yet and I love Beef & Broccoli. even more than sweet and sour. And a crisp Egg Roll with plum sauce is probably one of the most delicious things ever.
I tend to make my own Chinese dishes here at home and if I don't say so myself, I do a rather good job of it. I love my Beef and Broccoli.
I also love my Sweet & Sour Chicken Balls. My sauce is perfection. And of course, I have always loved my Fried Rice. I've cooked a lot of fried rice through the years. I learnt how to do it from my ex MIL. She learnt how to do it from one of her neighbours back when she was a young bride living in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Its fed a lot of people through the years.
Another dish I make which we really love is General Tso's Chicken. Spicy and garlicky, this is a favourite of ours and I have downsized it to feed two people perfectly.
Tender pieces of chicken breast lightly seasoned and coated in corn flour are fried until crisp and golden brown, and then coated in a wonderfully flavour filled sticky sweet garlicky spicy sauce.
It goes together quickly and easily. Especially if you get all of your ingredients in place and ready to go before you start cooking.
I serve it very simply with some rice and I had a salad on the side. I got some of that Oriental Chopped Salad mix last time we went to Costco which we both love and which goes fabulously with this.
When I was younger I could have very easily eaten this along with some beef and broccoli and an egg roll. Now I am older I just don't have the appetite that I used to have when I was younger. I could never eat all of that. I expect we are all the same. In any case I think you will enjoy this chicken dish and if you are more than two? Well . . . . just double up on everything.
General Tso's Chicken for Two
Yield: 2
Sweet and spicy. An oriental favourite, downsized for the smaller family. I like to serve it with some rice and some salad.
ingredients:
For the chicken:
- 2 medium boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 heaped TBS corn flour (cornstarch)
- oil for frying
- 1/2 TBS minced fresh ginger root
- 1/4 tsp red chili flakes
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- sesame seeds to garnish (optional)
For the Sauce:
- 1 1/2 TBS rice wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 TBS soy sauce
- 1 1/2 TBS sugar
- 2 TBS water
- 1 tsp Hoisin sauce
- 1/2 TBS corn flour (cornstarch)
instructions:
How to cook General Tso's Chicken for Two
- Whisk all of the sauce ingredients together in a small beaker until smooth. Set aside.
- Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes. Toss together with the salt and the cornflour. Let sit for about 5 minutes.
- Heat cooking oil to 1/2 inch depth in a skillet until it bubbles with you add a drop of water. Add the chicken pieces and cook until golden brown on all sides and the juices run clear, working in batches if necessary. Scoop out to a paper towel lined plate to drain. Set aside.
- Drain off all of the oil in the pan, with the exception of about 1/2 TBS. Add the garlic, minced ginger and chili flakes. Cook for about 3 seconds until the garlic becomes fragrant without browning. Return the chicken pieces to the pan, tossing them to coat them in the garlic mixture. Give the sauce ingredients a quick whisk and pour them into the pan. Cook and stir for 30 seconds to one minute until the sauce has thickened and turned glossy, making sure the chicken is coated well. Sprinkle with some sesame seeds if desired.
- Serve the chicken immediately.
I probably won't be posting tomorrow. Its Doreen's funeral and we will be busy with that. I do have something very tasty to share with you on Saturday however, so stay tuned!
Oh but its a blustery, blustery day out there today. Its not fit for man nor beast. A cold wind is blowing and there is rain in it. This is a soup day for sure.
I had a large butternut squash that I wanted to use up, and so I decided to make a soup with it. I adore butternut squash soups.
I adore butternut squash full stop actually. It has such a beautiful flavour . . . sweet and earthy, rich . . . of all the hard/winter squashes, it is my favourite one.
Most Winter Squashes lend themselves beautifully to soup.
This is a very simple soup to make. You cut your squash in half down the middle and roast it (covered) on a baking tray along with a whole head of garlic. Don't worry, the garlic gets all sweet and mellow when it is roasted. You won't smell, but your kitchen will smell beautiful.
At the end of that time you add some red bell pepper and red onion to the pan, drizzle them with some oil and spice and continue to roast, uncovered this time, until everything is nice and tender.
Once everything it tender, scoop out and discard the seeds from the squash and scoop the flesh into a blender. Add the cooked onion and peppers and a knob of preserved ginger root.
Pour over some vegetable stock and blitz until smooth. It shouldn't take too long. Because the stock isn't hot, you don't have to worry about the lid popping, but if you are concerned, place a towel on it and hold it in place just in case.
You can push it through a sieve to remove any little bits if you want, but they don't bother me, so I just leave them in. I don't mind a bit of texture. Add the remaining stock and gently heat through.
While the soup is heating through, you can make your croutons. I do so love a crisp crouton on top of a hot bowl of soup, don't you?
These are especially tasty. Baguette slices are tossed with an olive oil and honey mixture, sprinkled with crumbled cheddar cheese and baked . . .
Until golden brown and crisp edged . . . the cheese melted and starting to turn golden as well . . .
This is truly a most delicious combination. I promise. If you aren't fond of honey and cheese, you can just do garlic butter ones, but trust me when I say the honey and cheese ones are magnificent.
With a splash of sour cream, this went down a real treat! Just the ticket on a cold Winter's day.
Spiced Butternut Squash Soup with Honey & Cheddar Croutons
Yield: 6
A delicious bone and belly warming soup that is very simple to make.
ingredients:
For the Soup:
- 1.5kg butternut squash, halved and unpeeled (about 3 1/2 pounds)
- 1 bulb of garlic, whole and unpeeled
- 2 small red peppers, halved and trimmed
- 2 medium red onions, peeled and quartered
- 1 knob of preserved ginger root
- olive oil to drizzle
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp dried chili flakes
- 1.25 litres vegetable stock (5 1/2 cups)
- sea salt to taste
For the croutons:
- 2 TBS liquid honey, warmed slightly
- 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small rustic baguette, sliced thinly
- a couple of tablespoons of crumbled strong cheddar cheese
To garnish:
- dairy sour cream (optional)
instructions:
How to cook Spiced Butternut Squash Soup with Honey & Cheddar Croutons
- Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Line a baking tray (with sides) with baking paper. Cut your squash in half down the centre and place cut side down on the baking paper. Place the garlic bulb beside it on the tray. Cover the whole thing tightly with foil and place in the preheated oven to roast for 1/2 hour.
- At the end of half an hour add the peppers, cut sides up and the onion wedges. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle with the ground cumin and the chili flakes.
- Return the baking sheet to the oven, uncovered, and roast for a further 30 minutes or so until the butternut squash is tender.
- Scoop out the seeds from the butternut squash and discard. Scrape the flesh into a blender. Add the peppers, onion. Cut the garlic in half and squeeze the soft flesh into the blender. Add half of the vegetable stock and the knob of preserved ginger. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large saucepan. Add the remaining stock and gently heat through. Taste and adjust seasoning as required.
- While the soup is heating, whisk together the oil and honey for the croutons. Toss the baguette slices in this and place the slices in a single layer on a paper lined baking tray. Sprinkle with the crumbled cheddar and bake for 10 minutes in the heated oven until golden brown.
- Ladle the hot soup into heated bowls, garnish with some sour cream, swirling it through. Float a couple of croutons on top and serve immediately.
What is your favourite thing to eat on a cold Winter's Day? What is your favourite kind of soup??
Some people think that because I am a trained Chef that I cook fancy meals every night, that everything I put on our dinner table has to be something spectacular or stupendous. I don't mind pulling out the stops for special occasions, but on ordinary week days and weekends for that matter, I am just like everyone else. The food around here can be quite simple.
I have busy days also, even though I am retired. In fact I have days when I wonder how I ever got what I got done when I was working full time. I would cook at work and then come home and cook again at home. My husband always had a delicious cooked meal prepared by myself.
I think I am slowing down with old age because I am not sure that I could do that now. Cook all day at work and then come home and cook some more. Oh to be sure I can still pull out the stops when I really want to and when we have guests coming for dinner, and I can't wait until my kids are over here in April and I get to spoil them a bit.
Most of the time however. We do eat rather simply. And sometimes I get downright lazy. Sometimes . . . like today.
Cheesy Chili Jackets for Two. Over here in the UK they call baked potatoes Jacket Potatoes . . . meaning they are still wearing their outdoor clothes/skins. Jacket potatoes are big sellers at most cafes actually. I can remember my first meal here (20 odd years ago, right after I arrived) being a Jacket Potato at a Cafe at Euston Station while we were waiting for the train up to Chester.
I think I just had it with cheese, but to be honest I was so tired from having flown all night I can't quite remember . . . I remember only that I had a baked potato, and thought it most unsual that they had restaurants that served only baked potatoes.
You will see them served hot and loaded with cheese. Amazingly copious amounts of cheese. You will see them served hot and loaded with tuna mayonnaise with sweet corn as well. To be honest, that doesn't really appeal to me.
You will see them loaded up with baked beans . . . yes, from a tin, and sometimes you can get cheese on top of that. Interestingly enough, its quite good.
At Costco in the cafe you can buy them with chili ladled on top. Todd enjoys those. Today I thought I would do something similar at home, but I didn't have homemade chili to put on top, and I wanted something really quick so I used tinned chili.
Stag Chili with meat and beans . . . I quite like it actually, when I'm not making my own from scratch. Today was not a from scratch kind of a day. I do the potatoes in two steps.
I nuke them first in the microwave until they are soft and then I bang them into a hot oven while I am heating the chili so that the skins crisp up.
I spooned the hot chili over top and then some cheese and garnished with sour cream and chopped spring onion. It was hearty and filling and it tasted good and was on the table in about 20 minutes tops. Nobody complained.
Yield: 2
Cheesy Chili Jackets for Two
Quick, easy and delicious. You can't ask for more than that on a night when you are lacking in both time and inspiration but want a tasty meal on the table pronto.
ingredients:
- 2 large baking potatoes
- 1 (400g) tin of chili with beans (14 1/2 ounce tin)
- 4 TBS grated strong cheddar cheese
- 2 TBS sour Cream
- 1 spring onion, trimmed and chopped
instructions:
How to cook Cheesy Chili Jackets for Two
- Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7.
- Wash your jacket/baking potatoes. Dry well and prick all over with a fork. Wrap up each one individually in paper towels. Microwave on high, one at a time, for 5 to 6 minutes, or until just soft. When you have done this to both of them, pop them into the preheated oven right onto the oven rack.
- Open your can of chili and heat it gently over medium/low heat for about 6 to 8 minutes until heated through and bubbling.
- Remove your jacket potatoes from the oven and place each one on a serving plate. Break open with a fork or knife and carefully push the sides to fluff up the insides. Divide the hot chili between each. Sprinkle each with 2 TBS of cheese. Let the cheese melt. Serve each with a dollop of sour cream and some chopped spring onion if desired.
A tossed salad goes well on the side to complete the meal and get in some veg. Guilty secret here . . . I love a baked potato with Caesar salad spooned over top, with croutons, bacon and plenty of Parmesan flakes. Its so good. I just love baked potatoes I guess. Just don't give me one with tuna and sweetcorn mayonnaise on it.
😝😝😝😝 Quadruple yuck.
Chicken is one of our favourite things to cook and eat here in my English kitchen. No small wonder as it is not only economical, readily available but also very versatile, not to mention delicious.
It makes for a wonderful canvas for just about anything you want to add to it. I thought it would be fun today to showcase ten of my favourite chicken recipes.
I am pretty positive you will find something in this list that your family is sure to love and I hope that these will become favourites of yours also.
This is by no means all of my favourites. With over 300 chicken recipes on here it would have taken me a long time to do an extensive list. Lets just say that if it made this list, you can be pretty sure that its an excellent recipe!
Swiss Style Chicken. Filled
with lovely flavours. This is a very simple dish. Tender moist chicken
topped with a creamy mushroom sauce and gruyere cheese.
Delicious served with baby peas and homemade roasted oven wedges.
Chicken & Corn Chowder. We love this easy and delicious recipe which has been pleasing my family for years and years.
It makes for a really wonderful supper on a cold day, served with some buttered bread on the side.
Sweet and Sour Chicken Balls. Light and crisp battered chicken chunks and flavourful with a beautiful sauce, I could eat these lovely sweet and sour chicken balls every night of the week.
This
may seem a bit convuluted and lengthy, but if you are organized, it
happens quite quickly and it worth every ounce of effort. These are as
good as any you might find in a restaurant. You can make the sauce the
day before and just reheat it when you need it.
Garlic Chicken & Rice. This dish
is soft of like an oven baked pilaf. Nice and garlicky and filled with
lots of bits of chicken . . . . and don't hate me . . . cheese.
Yes, I
DO love my cheese, and so does Todd. I will not apologise for that.
Street Cart Chicken and Rice. This might look like a lot of work, but this goes together very easily
and deliciously! I promise you. Put the chicken in to marinade before
you do the rice, etc.
Once you have everything ready, the final dish
goes together lickety split and is oh sooooo delicious!
Smothered Chicken. This
delicious chicken dish only tastes high in fat and calories. This is
the ultimate in comfort food, but its actually low in fat, calories and
carbs.
Diabetic friendly. Serve with brown rice if you are diabetic,
otherwise it goes very well with mashed potatoes
Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad. With crisp romaine lettuce, flavourful grilled chicken, garlic croutons, plenty of cheese, bacon and that fabulously rich Caesar dressing, this always goes down a real treat!
BBQ Chicken Sandwich. Tangy sauced tender chicken served in a toasted Brioche Bun with plenty of coleslaw. It doesn't get much better than this!
Chicken & Sesame Noodles. A variation on my Simple Sesame Noodles recipe with a slightly sweeter, tangy spicy sauce . . . and the addition of
chicken.
I've also added red peppers for some colour. In truth I
could eat this every day of the week. I do sooooo love pasta.
Roast Chicken with Lemon & Garlic. I have a lot of roast chicken recipes on here, but this is my absolute favourite one. Juicy and tender with a flavourful gravy. Chicken, lemon and garlic are the holy trinity of good taste!
And there you have it, ten of my all favourite chicken recipes. I could have picked a bazillion of them, but this is the creme de la creme of the crop!
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