Orange Chicken

My husband LOVES orange chicken. It seems like no matter where we eat "Chinese" or get "Chinese" take out, Orange Chicken is what he orders. I feel like that is probably one of the worst dishes you can order off the menu -- the chicken is fried, the sauce has something obviously sweet in it and there aren't even too many vegetables. I always scold him about his choice, but alas, it really does NO good. So, I decided to try to make some myself. Since this was my first try at making a "fried" Chinese dish, I figured I better follow a recipe. I saw "The Pioneer Woman" do it on the Food Network, so I used her recipe. Here's how mine turned out:

I must say that the dish was absolutely delicious, but it honestly was kind of a pain to make. Frying up the chicken thighs which had been soaked in egg white and corn starch was not easy. I don't know if my oil wasn't hot enough or if it wasn't deep enough, but the pieces of chicken kept sinking to the bottom of my pan and sticking! That made the pan a mess to clean up. On the plus side, you could absolutely make this dish ahead of time, like way early in the day and then just put it together at meal time. I used the orange zest as she suggested and it added a lot of flavor. The sweetener that I chose for the dish was honey, since that's what I found first in the cupboard! I also halved the recipe to make just enough for the two of us. I added broccoli, which is sometimes included when you order take-out, to make things a little more balanced and healthy. I also used a 50/50 mixture of brown and white rice, with that same interest in mind. If you feel like experimenting in the kitchen, go for it. The taste was absolutely wonderful!

Here's the recipe I used :  Pioneer Woman Orange Chicken

Let me know how it goes, I'd love to hear. Maybe I can figure out what I can do to keep the chicken from sinking and sticking! I'd make it again if I could!

Not just any Spring Chicken!

Spring has finally sprung in the Richmond, VA area, and it couldn't be any prettier around my neighborhood. Redbuds and phlox are blooming, azaleas and dogwoods are budding up. Every yard is showing off some jonquils and maybe a few tulips or early iris. All this flora makes me want to cook in a spring like fashion, even though we are not exactly spring chickens anymore!



Phlox out by my mailbox

This dish was a little more complicated than I sometimes attempt on a weeknight, but the smells and fresh tastes that it produced made it worth the extra trouble. Purchasing boneless, skinless thighs sped things along a little, and having rosemary on hand in the yard makes for easy inspiration. It grows so abundantly, I've just GOTTA' use it, right? If you haven't got rosemary growing in your garden, get some -- it's easy to grow and will even thrive in a container. The one that grows in my yard was transplanted here after living in a pot on the deck at my last house. I first put it in my little bed around the patio, but it outgrew that spot and currently resides over by the fence. It's now about 13 years old and spreading with abandon. It's even got little light purple flowers on it!

Rosemary by the fence



Lemon Rosemary Chicken with Spring Onions and Rice Pilaf

4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs

10 green/spring onions, ends trimmed, halved lengthwise

1/4 c. flour, seasoned with a little salt and pepper

2 T. + olive oil

4 sprigs rosemary

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lemon, divided use

1/3 c. dry white wine

1/2 c. chicken stock

salt and pepper

Rice Pilaf (recipe follows)]

Zest the lemon so that you have about 1 T. of zest. Cut the lemon in half, and thinly slice it. Cut 2 of the slices in half, so that you have 4 small quarter pieces. Wash and dry your rosemary. Put the flour mixture into a pie plate or something similar for dredging. Lay one chicken thigh on the cutting board you use for meat (or a clean plate) and spread it open carefully. You can tell that there is a top to it and a bottom, where the bone was removed. Open the "bottom" and lay a sprig of rosemary and a quarter slice of lemon into the cavity. Close the "flap" back over this and carefully roll the thigh in the flour mixture. Set aside. Repeat this with the other 3 thighs. You can secure them with twine or an uncolored toothpick, but I found that the lemon and rosemary stayed inside when I made this without the trussing. (Plus I'm kind of lazy about things like that, especially on a weeknight!)

Get your pan ready on the stove -- you'll need an ovenproof skillet that all 4 thighs will fit into. Preheat the oven  to 350 degrees. Heat the pan a little. Pour 1 T. of the olive oil into the pan. Drop the halved onions into the olive oil and saute' quickly, until they just begin to wilt. Remove them from the pan and set them aside. Add the other T. of oil to the pan. Heat the pan until the oil begins to shimmer, and add the thighs to the skillet. You may need a little more oil. Cook them for about 5 minutes, so that the flour browns. Turn them over carefully -- I used a fork along with a small spatula - make sure that the lemon and rosemary remain in the cavity. Let the thighs cook for another 5 minutes to brown the other side. Remove the chicken to a plate and add the garlic, wine, and stock or broth to the pan. Add the 6 lemon halves to the liquid. Sprinkle in a pinch of salt and a little fresh ground black pepper. Cook for 5 -7  minutes over medium to high heat, reducing the sauce by about 1/2.

Sauce reducing in pan

Put the chicken back into the pan and place into the preheated oven. Bake for 20 - 30 minutes until the juices run clear when thighs are pierced with a fork. Taste the sauce and add a little salt and pepper if needed. Put the spring onions back into the sauce, garnish with a little more fresh lemon and serve over rice pilaf.

Chicken thighs ready for the oven

Rice Pilaf with Artichokes

2 c. chicken stock or broth

1 tsp. butter + 2 tsp. Olive oil

1/3 c. brown rice

1/2 c. white rice

1/3 c. orzo or broken vermicelli

2 T. minced onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 8 oz. pkg frozen artichokes, thawed and well drained

salt

2 heaping T. Parmesan cheese

In deep saucepan, heat the oil and butter together until the butter melts. Add the garlic and olive oil and saute a few minutes until they begin to soften. Add the vermicelli or orzo and saute' this mixture until the pasta begins to brown, at least 10 minutes, over medium heat, stirring often. Add all the rice, stir into pasta mixture and then add the stock. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, bring this up to a boil, cover the pan and turn it down to a lower heat, so that the mixture just barely bubbles. When all the liquid is absorbed, add the artichokes and Parmesan cheese. Stir them into the pilaf and cover to warm the artichokes through, about 5 minutes. Serves 4 - 6. Good leftover, just heat in the microwave.

Lemon Rosemary Chicken Thighs with Rice Pilaf

Jambalaya -- Fabulous one skillet meal!

Assorted Peppers from my garden, cayenne and jalapenos

I've got peppers coming in, am loaded up with tomatoes and herbs, so I decided to make a pot of jambalaya. My nice neighbor gave me a bunch of green and orange banana peppers, and I've been growing these!

I always begin my jambalaya with by chopping up some veggies -- 3 cloves of minced garlic and the trifecta of taste, peppers, onions and celery, about a cup of each, diced like below.

Always remember the trinity, here's the garlic, onions and celery ready for the pot

The picture only shows the green pepper, but I used 1 each of the orange and green banana peppers, as well as a minced cayenne and a finely chopped jalapeno (seeds removed).

Next, slice your favorite smoked sausage (1 12 - 16 oz. portion). For this dish, I used low fat polksa kielbasa. Put a little olive oil in the bottom of a deep, heavy skillet and cook your sliced sausageit till it starts to brown along the edges. Remove it until a little later. Next, saute' your veggies, in a BIG skillet, with a about a T. each of butter and olive oil. That seems like a lot, but you are going to be making a lot! When the veggies start to soften, add one cup of rice ( I like a mixture of 2/3 c. white to 1/3 c. brown) and stir this around with the vegetables, coating the grains, with the oil and butter mixture. Sprinkle the rice with 1 T. chili powder, 1/2 tsp. celery salt and 1 T. fresh thyme and a pinch of saffron if you have it or can afford some! I did not have any, so I substituted 1 1/2 tsp. of smoked paprika and 1/2 tsp. of cumin. The flavor profile is different, but you'll get some smokey flavor and the orange color, like you would from the saffron. Next, add one can of diced tomatoes or 1 pint of cherry tomatoes, halved.

Stir in 2 cups of chicken stock, and 1/2 cup of dry white wine and bring this to a boil. Lower to a simmer and put on the lid. Sprinkle in a little salt, maybe 1/2 tsp. and some freshly ground black pepper. Let this mixture cook for at least 30 minutes, stirring periodically to make sure nothing sticks. If it starts to dry out, as mine did, add more stock, 1/2 cup at a time. After 30 to 45 minutes add the sausage back into the mixture along with 1 - 2 cups of your favorite seafood, or whatever you have in your freezer. I used 1 cup of raw, peeled and deveined shrimp and 1 cup of frozen bay scallops. Here's a picture of my big, ol' skillet of yumminess!

Big ol' pan of Jambalaya!

The only thing left to do, is dig in! This will make 5 adult sized portions. We had it with a green salad and some crusty bread for sopping up the spicy drippins! Laissez les bon temps rollons! (Pardon my french, very rusty!)

Sure wish you could taste it! Yummy Jambalaya!

Here's a list of ingredients to help you shop:

1 32 oz. box chicken stock
1 smoked sausage or polska kielbasa
rice
1 large onion
1 medium green pepper, plus a few other assorted ones for color and texture
fresh garlic cloves
seafood - 1 1/2 cups asst. such as shrimp, scallops or clams
dry white wine
1 can diced tomatoes or 1 pint cherry tomatoes
Fresh thyme, celery salt, chili powder, saffron if you feel rich, otherwise use smoked paprika and cumin