Guinness Fried Chicken

March 20, 2014 Sonte Leave a comment

St. Patrick’s Day has come and gone for another year. This year instead of the obligatory Shamrock Sugar Cookies with Green Icing I made Guinness Fried Chicken! And Bailey’s Irish Creme Cupcakes with Bailey’s Irish Creme Buttercream Frosting; I can’t vouch for the chicken but the cupcakes were splendid!

I used to see a lot of recipes containing Guinness but never tried any of them before now. Too bad because when we lived in Australia my dear husband often bought Guinness and would have regularly had some on hand; for this recipe I had to go to the Bottle Shop specifically to pick up a single can of Guinness. All good, whilst there I spotted the display for Bailey’s Irish Creme which inspired me to make the cupcakes. Anyway, I googled Guinness + Chicken and chose this offering from globalfoodfusion . Specifically speaking, I came up with Ursula’s interesting tale; how to ogle handsome firemen and make great tasting chicken! I made a few changes to her recipe simply because I used what I had on hand but feel free to head over to her recipe for Guinness Fried Chicken …who knows, maybe using her recipe will garner you an audience with handsome firemen too.

I grilled husband and son about the chicken; they were happy with the crunch factor, flavour – good. That’s as good as it gets around here. The lil grandson loved it, too; getting a finicky toddler to eat much of anything is always a victory!

guinness fried chicken — Guinness Fried Chicken

1 kg Chicken – I used Boneless, Skinless Thighs, pounded to 1/4″ thickness
Canola Oil, for frying, about 1/2 litre
Batter
1 3/4 cups Flour
2 Tablespoons Cornmeal
2 teaspoons Parsley
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Dry Mustard Powder
1/2 teaspoon Ground Coriander
1 teaspoon Dried Basil
1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
2 Eggs, beaten
8 ounces Guinness
Breadcrumb Mixture
1 cup Flour
4 cups Bread Crumbs
1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
1 teaspoon Dried Basil
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Parsley
1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Pound chicken thighs to 1/4″ thickness.
Pour Oil into a large (30cm) deep skillet; do not turn on yet.
Place a wire rack on a baking tray covered with L-Foil, for easy clean up; set aside.

In a large, shallow mixing bowl whisk together flour, herbs and spices.
Lightly beat eggs; add eggs and Guinness to flour mixture and stir with whisk until no lumps remain.

In large, shallow mixing bowl combine flour, breadcrumbs, Italian seasoning, basil, salt & pepper and parsley.

Turn oil on to Medium-High to heat while breading the chicken.Lightly coat a piece of chicken in the breadcrumb mixture.
Dip into batter, allow some of the batter to drip off.
Return chicken to breadcrumb mixture and coat again.
Place on a plate.
Repeat with each piece of chicken.

Place two or three pieces of prepared chicken into the hot oil.
Cook for 3 – 5 minutes, until golden and crispy – do not repeatedly turn over – just lift the edge of a piece of chicken to have a quick peak
Using long handled tongs, turn over and continue cooking for another 3 – 5 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.
Lift chicken out of oil and let drip for a few seconds.
Place cooked chicken on prepared wire rack to drain off excess oil.
Serve with your favourite dipping sauce.

Serves 6 – 8

Side Dishes, Vegetarian

Roasted Carrots

March 7, 2014 Sonte Leave a comment

One day I was being super lazy; I wanted to cook my entire meal in the oven…I already had the rice prepped and ready to go, tofu was marinating and waiting to get trayed and popped into the oven. What about some carrots to go with?
I just wanted to be sure on temps and times so I googled Roasted Carrots and came up with Ina Garten’s Roasted Carrots.
They were fabulous! I snuck in some Snap Peas that I had hanging around in the fridge which crisped up like crazy…it was like eating chips!

12 Carrots, scrubbed; if thick, cut in half, lengthwise.
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 1/4 teaspoons Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste
2 Tablespoon Fresh Dill or Parsley, chopped

Preheat oven to 400F.
Cover baking tray with aluminum foil or parchment paper for easy clean up.

Slice carrots diagonally in 1 1/2 inch thick slices – they will shrink while roasting so be generous.
Toss them in a bowl, to coat, with the olive oil, salt and pepper.
Turn out, in a single layer, onto prepared baking tray.
Roast in oven for 20 minutes, until lightly browned and tender.
Sprinkle with chopped fresh herbs, if using.

Serves 4 – 6

Soup, Vegetarian

Mushroom Barley Soup

March 7, 2014 Sonte Leave a comment

Just another RAINY Winter day in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia! We have more than our fair share of them! Cold, blustery Winter days call for hot soup!
I had a bit of pot barley feeling all lonely in the back of the pantry, a bounty of lovely green kale in the fridge along with some mushrooms that I wanted to use up. I googled Mushroom Kale and Barley Soup and found myself at Taste Food’s recipe for Mushroom Barley Soup with Miso and Kale. I only had BC White Mushrooms on hand and will definitely make this recipe again using a variety of mushrooms!

www.aysontespli.ca — Mushroom and Barley Soup with Miso and Kale

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Onion, diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
8 ounces Mushrooms, assorted variety, sliced
4 Fresh Garden Carrots, scrubbed and thinly sliced
1 cup Barley
1 teaspoon dried Thyme
8 cups (2 litres) Vegetable Stock
*I use 8litres of water and 4 McCormick All Vegetable Stock Cubes
1 Bay Leaf
1 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
3 cups Kale leaves, stem removed and leaves chopped
1 Tablespoon Red Miso Paste

Heat oil in a large pot over med-high heat.
Add onion and sauté for a few minutes.
Add minced garlic, mushrooms, and carrots; sauté for another 2 – 3 minutes.
Add barley and thyme; stir to coat.
Add stock, bay leaf and pepper.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until barley is tender – about 30 minutes.
Stir in kale.
Continue cooking until kale turns bright green and wilts, about 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in miso paste.
Serve hot.

Serves 4 – 6

Side Dishes, Vegetarian

Fried Rice Edamame

March 7, 2014 Sonte Leave a comment

I had made some Baked Brown Rice a few days ago and left with quite a bit leftover; had a scour through the fridge to see what I could make using the rice. hmmm…let’s see: celery, onions, carrots, edamame…Fried Rice! Minus the typical fish sauce and eggs you find in most Fried Rice offerings. Yum!

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/2 Onion, diced
2 cloves Garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons Ginger, grated or 1/2 teaspoon dried Ginger powder
2 stalks Celery, sliced on the diagonal
2 Fresh Carrots, scrubbed and sliced thinly on the diagonal
8 ounces Frozen Edamame
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons Sesame Oil
2 cups cooked Brown Rice
Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste

In a small bowl or a measuring cup combine soy sauce, sesame oil and ground pepper; set aside.
In large (12″ or 30cm) deep skillet, heat olive oil over med-high heat.
Add onions and cook for about 3 minutes.
Increase heat slightly and add minced garlic, ginger, celery, carrot and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add rice, the soy sauce mixture and edamame; stir constantly until heated through.
If desired, garnish with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and a bit of sliced green onion.

Serves 4

Vegetarian

Clean Chop Suey – No Fish Sauce here!

March 2, 2014 Sonte Leave a comment

Oh, sometimes I just crave Chinese Food. I have long since learned that I can’t eat the stuff in the restaurants due to a long list food insensitivities. Good thing I can cook up my own version of the stuff in my own clean kitchen! I used to own an electric wok but that has long since vacated my appliance storage cupboard; I now just use a large, deep skillet on the stove top.

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Onion, sliced
2 cloves Garlic, mashed
1 teaspoon Ginger Root, grated
2 stalks Celery, thinly sliced on the diagonal
3 Garden Fresh Carrots, scrubbed, thinly sliced on the diagonal
2 stalks Broccoli, cut into reasonable sized chunks
1/2 head of Cauliflower, cut into reasonable sized chunks
1 teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
1 McCormick’s Vegetable Stock Cube
1 can (796ml) Bean Sprouts, drained – can use Fresh Sprouts
1 can (227ml) Sliced Water Chestnuts, drained
1 Tablespoon Water
1 1/2 teaspoon Corn Starch

Cashews or Peanuts, to garnish

In large, deep sided skillet, heat oil over med -high heat.
Add onion and cook for about 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add garlic, cook and stir frequently for another minute.
Increase heat to High, add ginger root, celery and carrots; stir frequently.
Add broccoli and cauliflower; stir and cook for a minute.
Drizzle sesame oil and soy sauce over all, stir well and continue cooking.
Add vegetable stock cube, bean sprouts and water chestnuts – mash stock cube onto bottom of pan; cook and stir constantly for a few minutes.
Quickly combine the Tablespoon of cold water and the cornstarch in a small bowl; add to skillet and stir continually until liquid thickens and goes clear.

Sprinkle with blanched, unsalted cashews or peanuts.

Serves 6

Key to cooking Chop Suey is to have all the ingredients prepared and ready to hit the pan!

Aysontespli's Kitchen

Guinness Fried Chicken

Roasted Carrots

Mushroom Barley Soup

Fried Rice Edamame

Clean Chop Suey – No Fish Sauce here!

Welcome to my Kitchen where the most important ingredient is Love.