Hawaiian Style Shoyu Chicken Recipe

ALOHA! Welcome to Hawaii! If only.... 

But shoyu Chicken is a Hawaiian dish! Shoyu means soy sauce in Japanese, but in Hawaii soy sauce is referred to as shoyu also. It requires some marinating, but that's the most time consuming thing about this recipe. You can grill this for the true island BBQ, or bake it in the oven, as I did. It is typically served over rice. There's many different versions of this, but this is the one I used because it was simple and flavorful. This is a super easy DELICIOUS dish. You can buy skinless thighs to be healthier, but personally, I think that's where the best flavor is! If you are missing the tropical islands (like I am), try this for a taste! And now, I'll let the photos speak for themselves...

INGREDIENTS 

1 cup soy sauce 

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup water 

4 cloves garlic, minced 

1 onion, chopped 

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger root

1 tablespoon ground fresh pepper

1 tablespoon dried oregano 

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (optional) 

1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper (optional) 

1 teaspoon ground paprika (optional) 

5 pounds chicken thighs 

INSTRUCTIONS 

Whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, water, garlic, onion, ginger, pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, and paprika in a large bowl. Add the chicken thighs, and toss to evenly coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. The longer you marinate this, the better the flavor in the chicken. 

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

Place chicken pieces in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish. Brush chicken with the sauce. Turn pieces over, and brush again. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Turn pieces over, and bake for another 30 minutes, until no longer pink and juices run clear. Brush with sauce every 10 minutes during cooking. 

MAHALO!

Sandy

Photos from Hawaii 2012 

Stuffed Chicken Divan with a Sherry Dijon Sauce

In my college years, I used to love to eat this frozen package of broccoli and cheese stuffed chicken by Barber Foods. I never liked to eat many frozen meals, but as a college student, this was a staple!  It's better than ramen and pizza diet, right?  I wanted to recreate this - but fresh - and assumingly, healthier.  I found this great recipe from Food Network that is similar to my college memory.  You can create own variation to this, such as stuffing it with spinach, skipping the dijon sauce or the cheese, etc.  Any variation will taste amazing. Overall, I am very happy with this recipe.  And yes, it's much tastier than the frozen version I loved in college.  However, stuffing the chicken was more time-consuming than I realized. So if you want to give this recipe your best, just make sure you're not in a rush.  Bon Appetite! 

Total Time: 60 min

Prep : 30 min

Cook: 30 min

Ingredients

Cooking Spray 

2 cups (4 ounces) fresh broccoli florets

1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Gruyere Cheese

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

4 (6 to 8-ounce) boneless skinless chicken breast halves

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup low-fat evaporated milk (I skipped this) 

1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth 

1/4 cup dry sherry

1 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

Instructions

1) Preheat the broiler and we will begin cooking broccoli first. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook until bright green and crisp tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well and run under cold water until cold. Drain well again and squeeze dry in paper towels. Chop the broccoli and toss in a bowl with the Gruyere and garlic. 

2) Stuffing the Chicken - there are 2 methods to doing this. I choose the 2nd version, which I pulled from another recipe. Either way works!

• Insert a paring knife into the thickest part of each chicken breast to make a 3-inch deep pocket. Stuff each chicken breast with equal amounts of broccoli. 
• Pound the chicken thin without creating any holes. Stuff each chicken breast with equal amounts of broccoli and then sew it closed with a toothpick. 

Rub both sides of the chicken breasts with oil and thyme and season with salt and pepper.

3) Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, about 5 minutes. Put the chicken in the pan and cook until golden brown and just cooked through, about 6 minutes per side. If the chicken begins to brown too quickly, turn the heat down to medium to finish cooking through. Mist a shallow rectangular baking dish with cooking spray. Transfer to the baking dish and put in broiler.

4) Meanwhile, combine the milk and stock in a small pot, season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir the sherry and cornstarch until smooth and pour, whisking constantly, into the sauce. Cook until just thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan. Top each chicken breast with 2 tablespoons of sauce and place under the broiler. Broil until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes.

5) Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes and then cut each breast in half on an angle. (I served mine whole)

Nutritional analysis per serving

Calories 347; Total Fat 11g (Sat Fat 5.1g, Mono Fat 3.9g, Poly Fat 1.1g) ; Protein 50g; Carb 10g; Fiber 1g; Cholesterol 126.5mg; Sodium 433.5mg

Sprinkled with Parmesan Cheese

Topped with the Sherry Dijon Sauce

Served over Brown Rice

Turkey Ratatouille

Ratatouille originated in the area around present day Occitan Provença (French: Provence) and Niça (French: Nice). The French touiller means to toss food. - Wikipedia

Although one of my favorite animated movies is Ratatouille, its not why I cooked this! I was in the mood to eat something really healthy with lots of vegetables and lean protein. I started browsing various online recipes and I found one for ratatouille. It seemed like Divine Intervention! Below is a little variation of my own recipe.

There is much debate on how to make a traditional ratatouille. One method is to simply sauté all of the vegetables together, which is what I did here. Some cooks, including Julia Child, insist on a layering approach, then baked in an oven. This recipe calls for the vegetable cubed, although you can do slices also. I think its a great summer dish because there's so much fresh vegetables involved. But at the same time. its also hearty. It is almost a stew - packed with flavor! Its so easy, you have to try it!

Total Time: 40 minutes

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutess

INGREDIENTS

3/4 pound turkey breast tenderloin, cut into 3/4-inch pieces

1/2 pound ground turkey 

1/8 teaspoon pepper

Red pepper flakes (I like a lot)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 cups stir-fry bell peppers and onions

1 small eggplant cubed (2 cups)

1 medium zucchini, cubed (1 cup)

1 large potato, cubed (1 cup)

1 can (14 1/2 ounces) Italian-style stewed tomatoes, undrained

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Handful of fresh parsley leaves

INSTRUCTIONS

Sprinkle turkey with pepper.

Heat oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook turkey chunks in oil 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until brown. Saute ground turkey meat. Break it up when cooked.

Stir in stir-fry vegetables. Cook 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in eggplant and zucchini. Cook 2 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender. Season with red pepper flakes.

Stir in tomatoes; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 3 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sauce is desired consistency.  Sprinkle each serving with cheese and parsley.

Bon Appétit!

- Sandy

Chicken & Chilli Tacos

Bienvenidos a Mexico! Tonight was an easy night - made chili over grilled chicken. Had some hard-shelled tacos to keep with the theme and steamed some broccoli. This is an easy dinner idea for a Mexican theme night. You can serve with some guacamole and tequila! 

Japanese Style Chicken

Hello again! 2 days of blogging in a row! Is it too early to be excited about this? Well dinner tonight was a recipe called "Japanese Mums Chicken" that I found online at food.com. And let me tell you... it definitely earned its 4.5 star review from all 834 people. Its delicious and needed minimal ingredients, preparation, and expertise. It actually reminded me of the teriyaki chicken at your local mall's food court, you know, the one that ALWAYS suckers you in with the samples!! Yes. That good. This was made with chicken thighs instead of drumsticks, a little garlic, and was cooked in the oven to make it a little more healthier. Served it up with a side of brown rice and kale.

INGREDIENTS

8 chicken drumsticks, skin on (the skin is important for flavour, and is so tasty to eat!)
1 cup water
½ cup balsamic vinegar
1⁄3; cup soy sauce
2 ½ tablespoons sugar
1 garlic clove, peeled and bruised
1 small hot chilli pepper slit open, seeds removed

INSTRUCTIONS

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan over a high heat.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes.
Increase the heat, turning the drumsticks frequently, and cook until the liquid has reduced to a sticky glaze.
Arrange the chicken on a serving platter, remove the garlic clove and chili from the liquid, and spoon the glaze over.
NOTE It's a glaze rather than a sauce, so there's not a whole lot of it.


Enjoy! 

Happy (Chinese) New Year!

I love how my last blog entry was in 2009 saying that I'll start a blog! Boy am I a procrastinator! Well since Dec'11, blogging has been on my mind again and as one of my new year resolutions, I am going to dedicate my time to writing on this. 

Well today is Chinese New Year and what better day to start blogging! For those of you that aren't familiar, Chinese New Year refers to the beginning of the year in a lunar calendar, so the date changes every year. This year, it fell on January 23 and its the year of the dragon. 

The celebrations began the day before at dim-sum with delicious traditional little dishes. For dinner, to continue the theme, I made kung-pao chicken with broccoli and fried brown rice. I've recently discovered my love for cooking so most of my plates are fairly simple, but very delicious. I've posted the recipe below. I promise you wont be disapointed if you try it! 

Ingredients

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into chunks
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil, divided
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
• 1 ounce hot chilli paste
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 4 green onions, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• Head of broccoli

• Directions

  1. To Make Marinade: Combine 1 tablespoon wine, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oil and 1 tablespoon cornstarch/water mixture and mix together. Place chicken pieces in a glass dish or bowl and add marinade. Toss to coat. Cover dish and place in refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
  2. To Make Sauce: In a small bowl combine 1 tablespoon wine, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon oil, 1 tablespoon cornstarch/water mixture, chili paste, vinegar and sugar. Mix together and add green onion, garlic, water chestnuts and peanuts. In a medium skillet, heat sauce slowly until aromatic.
  3. Meanwhile, remove chicken from marinade and saute in a large skillet until meat is white and juices run clear. When sauce is aromatic, add sauteed chicken to it and let simmer together until sauce thickens.