Shish Taouk (شيش طاووق)

  1 year ago       690 notes
  food  chicken  lebanese food  shish taouk  food blog  cooking blog  recipe blog  photographers on tumblr  

Don’t worry, the recipe that contains the pistachio I posted earlier is still firming up in the freezer (any guesses?). This is simply something I made to distract me during the 5 hour wait. 

Growing up in Qatar food like Shawarma, Kofta and the Shish Kebabs are the epitome of summer. They’re served practically everywhere and is the go-to food for barbeques and/or picnics. Fresh off the grill and then wrapped in a warm and pillow-y pita; and let’s not forget the ritual slathering of lemon-garlic mayo or even toum; a traditional Lebanese dipping sauce that really packs a punch and goes perfect with everything from meat to bread. Serve it with a side of Fattoush or Tabouleh and you’ve got yourself an unforgettable meal.

SHISH TAOUK (شيش طاووق) (recipe adapted from Choosy Beggars) :

[ 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast + 1/4 cup of yoghurt + 3 tablespoons olive oil + 6 cloves of garlic + juice of 1 lemon + 1 tablespoon sweet paprika + 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme + 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin + 1 teaspoon of yellow mustard + 1 teaspoon salt + 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper, or to taste ]

OPTIONAL (but highly recommended): Vegetables to thread the chicken skewers with:

[ 1 each of a medium red and yellow or green bell pepper + 1/2 of a large sweet onion ]

Finely chop the garlic and put it  in a medium bowl along with the yogurt, tomato paste, olive oil and lemon juice.  Add in the dried spices, salt and pepper and stir or whisk until the mixture is uniform.

Cut the chicken into bite sized cubes, each about 1 – 1.5″ in length and as uniform in size as possible. You want the chicken to cook at a fairly consistent rate. 

Coat the chicken with the marinade and leave it to soak up those flavors in the fridge for 2-8 hours . 

The yogurt marinade will make the chicken decidedly juicy, but if you leave it in the marinade too long the meat will actually get soft and lose it’s texture because the acid from the lemon and yoghurt will start to break down the proteins in the chicken.

If you’re using bamboo skewers, be sure to soak them for at least 30 minutes in cold water before you start threading on the meat.

If you’re using vegetables, start by threading a piece of onion onto the bottom of the skewer, top with 2-3 pieces of chicken, more slice of onion and pepper, 2-3 more pieces of chicken, and so on until the skewer is full.  Tuck one more piece of onion or pepper onto the top and you’re done.

Grill the chicken over moderately high to high heat for about 5-7 minutes per side, flipping only once, until you see visible char marks and the chicken is cooked through.

Serve alongside buttery rice pilaf and braised vegetables or wrapped in a warm pita bread with some toum (garlic paste) and a side of salad.

SHISH TAOUK (شيش طاووق):

[ 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast + 1/4 cup of yoghurt + 3 tablespoons olive oil + 6 cloves of garlic + juice of 1 lemon + 1 tablespoon sweet paprika + 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme + 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin + 1 teaspoon of yellow mustard + 1 teaspoon salt + 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper, or to taste ]

OPTIONAL (but highly recommended): Vegetables to thread the chicken skewers with:

[ 1 each of a medium red and yellow or green bell pepper + 1/2 of a large sweet onion ]

1. Finely chop the garlic and put it  in a medium bowl along with the yogurt, tomato paste, olive oil and lemon juice.  Add in the dried spices, salt and pepper and stir or whisk until the mixture is uniform.
2. Cut the chicken into bite sized cubes, each about 1 – 1.5″ in length and as uniform in size as possible. You want the chicken to cook at a fairly consistent rate. 
3. Coat the chicken with the marinade and leave it to soak up those flavors in the fridge for 2-8 hours . 
4. If you’re using bamboo skewers, be sure to soak them for at least 30 minutes in cold water before you start threading on the meat.
5. If you’re using vegetables, start by threading a piece of onion onto the bottom of the skewer, top with 2-3 pieces of chicken, more slice of onion and pepper, 2-3 more pieces of chicken, and so on until the skewer is full.  Tuck one more piece of onion or pepper onto the top and you’re done.
6. Grill the chicken over moderately high to high heat for about 5-7 minutes per side, flipping only once, until you see visible char marks and the chicken is cooked through.Serve alongside buttery rice pilaf and braised vegetables or wrapped in a warm pita bread with some toum (garlic paste) and a side of salad.

Enjoy!

  1 year ago       45 notes
  food  chicken  shish taouk  lebanese food  food blog  cooking blog  recipe blog  

This is probably one of the easiest and fuss-free food (aside from the kimchi, but that doesn’t really count because there isn’t really any cooking involved) in the list of Hansiks. Dak Kang Jung, or spicy candied fried chicken, is almost like the Korean version of buffalo wings, sans the hot sauce and bleu cheese accompaniment. I traded the wings for pieces of chicken breast because those were the ones I had on hand. I also halved the recipe and then further halved (therefore quartered) the amount of honey used because I was apprehensive that it might turn out a bit too sweet for my liking. So here it is, with just a tiny bit of trepidation, Super Junior member Kim Jong-Woon (Yesung)’s Hansik - fried pieces of chicken coated in sweet and spicy glaze/sauce.

Dak Kang Jung (original recipe from Maangchi) = Chicken Tenders + Sweet & Spicy Glaze

Chicken Tenders:

[1/4 cup flour + 1/4 cup cornstarch or potato starch + 1 large egg + 1 teaspoon salt + 1 teaspoon ground black pepper + 1 teaspoon ground red chili pepper + 4 chicken breasts, cut into strips or pieces + canola oil for frying]

In a large bowl, mix the  spices into the chicken until evenly coated. Add in the flour and cornflour and coat all pieces. 

Add in the egg and mix into the chicken pieces until they’re all coated in the batter.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the chicken pieces in batches.

**The original recipe called for frying the pieces twice - 15 minutes for the first fry and about 10 minutes for the second.

Drain the pieces well and set aside.

Sweet & Spicy Glaze:

[1/2 cup water + a 7 cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced + 1 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce + 1/2 cup packed brown sugar + 3 tablespoons rice vinegar + 1/4 cup light corn syrup or honey]

In a large pot or wok, bring to a boil the water, ginger, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, and corn or rice syrup.

Let cook until the mixture becomes syrupy and thick, and starts to foam. It should be about as thick as honey.

Assembly:

[fried chicken pieces + sweet & spicy glaze + 2 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds + 1/3 cup roasted peanuts] OPTIONAL: 1/2 tablespoon red chili flakes.

Keep the sauce on medium-low until it’s time to toss in the chicken pieces.

Stir in the cooked chicken, peanuts, sesame seeds, and chili flakes (if using), and toss until completely coated.

Enjoy!

  1 year ago       175 notes
  dakkangjung  chicken  korean  food  hansik  yesung  kim jongwoon  food photography  food blog  korean food  

This post is dedicated to Farhan, who has been nagging me to make this. Though the recipe looks good, I don’t really know the whereabouts of my skewers and grill, so I used a similar recipe that’s from Jamie Oliver’s 30 Minute Meals - it looked phenomenal when he made it on the show. Be as daring as you like with the peppers; I’m using bird’s eye chillies and another one I don’t really know the name of. I also substituted ingredients here and there because I didn’t have the ones required on hand. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs because, quite honestly, I hate chicken thighs. You can take the skin off, but it really is one of the best parts of this dish - I’d recommend an extra 10 minutes on the treadmill instead. 

Piri-Piri Chicken = Piri-Piri Sauce + Chicken + Pan Roasted Peppers

Piri-Piri Sauce:

[ ½  onion +  3 cloves of garlic +  10-12 chillies, or depending on your preference + 1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika +  juice of 1 lemon + 2 tablespoon vinegar +  a bunch of parsley + salt & pepper to taste ]

Blend all the ingredients in a blender or a liquidizer. Add 1/4 cup water into the mixture and set aside.

Chicken:

[ 4 large chicken breast, halved + 1 teaspoon fennel seeds + salt & pepper to taste ]

Put the chicken thighs on a chopping board and slash the meat on each side a few times.

Drizzle with olive oil and season, then put on the griddleor frying pan that is heating up, skin side down.

Cook until golden underneath, then turn over. Set aside when cooked.

Pan-Roasted Peppers:

[ 1 yellow bell pepper + 1 red bell pepper + 1/2 tablespoon olive oil ]

Cut the peppers into strip and roast in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Set aside.

Assembly:

Pour the piri piri sauce into a snug-fitting roasting tray or a casserole dish.

Add the chicken to the roasting tray with the sauce. Lay the roasted peppers on top.

Scatter over the sprigs of thyme (if using the original recipe - I didn’t have any so I scattered chopped parsley after it comes out of the oven), then put the tray into the middle of the oven at 200 degrees C for 10-15 minute, until cooked through and the sauce has reduced a bit.

Serve over rice or with french fries.

Enjoy!

  1 year ago       177 notes
  piri piri chicken  food  chicken  food photography  food blog  

See that? Looks pretty delumptious doesn’t it? [delicious + scrumptious; I got that from Zach in Goodnight Mr. Tom].

Anyways, nowadays whenever I have to cook something that requires a recipe, I always write it down on little post-its and stick it on the chopping board (or the side of the oven, or the rice cooker, or the knife holder…)
Pretty nifty right? It prevents them from getting lost (blown by the wind, eaten by your cat, the list goes on) and you don’t have to flip through pages to find out what to do next.

So today I’m making Chicken Achaari, a recipe I picked up from Sunil Vijayakar’s “30-Minute Indian” cookbook. The first time I tasted this dish was in Farhan’s house. Incidentally he was also the one who gave the me book, so that’s something positively providential for you. This one went through a view stages of modifications since not all the spices can be found, but the taste comes pretty close to the authentic one.

Chicken Achaari:

[2 tablespoons veg.oil + 1/2 tsp each of cumin, black mustard seeds, nigella (onion) seeds, fennel seeds, coriander + 1 tsp grated root ginger + 1 tsp chilli powder + 2 garlic cloves + 1 onion + 200 ml chicken stock + 2 tablespoons tomato puree + 250g of chicken  thighs/wings]

**When in spice crisis:

Like I was while I was making this, be clever. Use the internet and find yourself a spice substitution chart. For this recipe, spice modifications were as follows:

- Didn’t have any fennel seeds, so I “upped” the cumin to 1 tsp.

- Didn’t have any nigella (onion) seeds, so I used celery seeds (the one near the chilli powder)

- Completely omitted black mustard seeds

So I’ll admit that this will taste a little less authentic, but what can you do? I wasn’t about to run around looking for seeds that I wasn’t sure I’ll even find :\

So, moving on…

Chop garlic & onion finely

Grate the ginger

Get (or make) some tomato puree

Heat oil, add seeds, stir fry for 1 min

Add onion, garlic cloves and ginger (I added some chopped red chillies as well)

Add tomato puree

Add stock

Let sauce simmer

Add in chicken (I marinated my chicken pieces in the tomato puree for a bit, feel free to omit the marinating step)

Pop on the lid, simmer and let it cook for about 10-15 mins (depending on chicken size)

While the chicken was cooking, skim off the fat or oil that accumulates in the surface by using a spoon.

In the meantime, I made some puris to serve it with.

Puris:

[225 chapatti flour + 1 tsp chilli powder + 1 tsp sea salt + 1-2 tablespoons water]

When the time has elapsed, take off the lid and voila!

Plate them nicely and eat! (or in my case, take a picture)

Enjoy!

  2 years ago       8 notes
  achaari  chicken  puris  indian  cooking  food  food blog  food photography  

03-09-10

Supremes de Volaille aux Champignons (recipe via Darrel)

What you’ll need:

- 4 supremes (boneless, skinless chicken breasts)

- 1/2 cup lemon juice

- 1/8 teaspoon salt - Big pinch white pepper

- 5 tablespoons butter

- 1 tablespoon minced shallot (preferred) or green onion

- 1/4 pound thinly sliced fresh white mushrooms

- 1/4 cup chicken stock

- 1/4 cup Madeira

- 1 cup whipping cream

-1 tablespoon chopped French Tarragon

What you’ll need to do:

- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

- Remove the bit of tendon found in the part of the breast that lies along the breastbone.

- Between two sheets of waxed paper, press the chicken breasts with the flat side of a large butcher knife or pound with them with a wooden kitchen mallet until they are of uniform thickness. Don’t skip this part or the chicken will cook unevenly.-

- Roll the chicken breasts in the lemon juice (seals the meat keeping it moist and keeps the sauce from separating).

- Heat the butter in a heavy, oven-proof casserole, about 10 inches in diameter until it is foaming.

- Stir in the minced shallots or green onion and saute a moment without browning. Then stir in the mushrooms and saute lightly for a minute or two without browning. Sprinkle in the salt and white pepper.

- Quickly roll the chicken in the butter mixture and lay them in a single layer in the casserole, place a piece of buttered wax paper over the chicken, cover casserole and place in hot oven.

- After 6 minutes, press top of chicken with your finger. If still soft, return to oven for a moment or two. When the meat is springy to the touch and uniformly white it is done. Really, don’t over-cook it!

- Remove the chicken to a warm platter (leave the mushrooms in the pot) and cover while making the sauce (2 to 3 minutes).

- To make the sauce: pour the stock and wine in the casserole with the cooking butter and mushrooms.

- Boil down quickly over high heat until liquid is syrupy.

- Stir in the cream and boil down again over high heat until the sauce has thickened slightly, stirring constantly. When thickened, stir in the Tarragon Off heat.

- Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

  2 years ago       5 notes
  cooking  food  chicken  mushroom  cream  french food  pasta  whole-wheat  

01-09-10

Gai-Yang chicken with basil-lemongrass rice

  2 years ago       2 notes
  cooking  food  chicken  thai