Tag: main course
Smoked Orange Five Spice Chicken
Smoked Orange Five Spice Chicken
Orange and five spice is a popular combination to rub and roast whole geese during the holidays. I decided to change it up and do it to a chicken. But I also brined and smoked the chicken. Before the chicken gets smoked, it is stuffed with orange wedges, garlic, ginger, and green onions. These aromatics will permeate throughout the chicken; adding to the multiple layers of flavor.
Equipment
- Electric Smoker
Ingredients
- 4-5 lb whole chicken
- 1 orange quartered
- 1” ginger sliced
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 green onions
Brine
- 1/2 gallon water
- 1/2 cup salt
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 shallots sliced
- 5 garlic cloves sliced
- 1” ginger sliced
- 1 tbsp black peppercorns
Rub
- zest of an orange
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp five spice powder
- 2 tsp light soy sauce
- 2 tsp shaoxing cooking wine
- 4 garlic cloves minced
Wood Chips
- 1/2 pecan
- 1/2 cherrywood
Garnish
- orange slices
Instructions
- Mix together all of the brining ingredients. Brine the chicken for 8 hours in a gallon sized storage bag.
- Mix together the rub ingredients.
- Stuff the inside of the cavity with the quartered orange, garlic, ginger, and green onions. Massage the outside with the rub. Let rest at room temperature for an hour before smoking.
- Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees. A 4lb chicken will take about 3 hours. A 5lb chicken will take 4 hours. Take the temp in the thickest part of the thigh with a probe thermometer. It should read 180 degrees.
- Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before carving.
Tiniim na Manok (Braised Chicken in Pineapple Gravy)
Tiniim na Manok (Braised Chicken in Pineapple Gravy)
Tiniim, meaning “to absorb”, and Manok meaning “chicken”, is an easy go to meal that requires very minimal prep. Bring all of the braising ingredients to a simmer and braise the whole chicken for an hour. Then you create a pineapple soy gravy with the braising liquid in the same pot. I also created a recipe with all of the leftovers; utilizing the rest of the chicken and gravy. I made a stirfry out of onions, bell peppers, jalapeños, pineapple, and diced chicken. I tossed all of that with gemili pasta and used the leftover gravy as the sauce.
Ingredients
- 4 lb whole chicken
- 4 cups pineapple juice
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup pineapple tidbits
- 2 shallots sliced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 2” ginger sliced
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/3 cup cornstarch
Leftover Pineapple Chicken Pasta
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 medium white onion diced
- 2 jalapeños thinly sliced
- 1/2 medium red bell pepper diced
- 1/2 medium green bell pepper diced
- 6 green onions chopped
- 1 lb leftover pineapple chicken diced
- 1 cup pineapple tidbits
- 2 cups pineapple gravy
- 1 lb dry pasta (penne, gemili, bowtie) cooked al dente according to package directions
Instructions
- Dissolve the brown sugar in the pineapple juice and soy sauce in a large pot. Bring to a boil.
- Add in the garlic, shallots, ginger, pineapple tidbits, salt, and peppercorns.
- Lower the chicken breast side up into the pot. Place a cover on the pot. Lower the heat to medium low. Simmer for 30 minutes.
- Flip the chicken over. Cover. Simmer for another 30 minutes. Remove the chicken and place on a platter.
- Strain the sauce of the aromatics. Bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.
- Make a slurry with the cornstarch and water. Whisk it into the sauce. Simmer for a minute or two until thickened.
- Spoon the gravy over the chicken and serve.
Leftover Pineapple Chicken Pasta
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions, bell peppers, jalapeños, and green onions for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the chicken and pineapple. Cook for 3 more minutes.
- Add in the cooked pasta. Sauté for 2 minutes.
- Pour in the leftover pineapple gravy. Simmer for a couple of minutes.
- Let rest for 5 minutes before serving
Belecan Stir Fried Noodles
Belecan Stir Fried Noodles
There’s a little bit of everything in these Indonesian stir fried noodles. Jumbo shrimp, fish balls, pork liver, water spinach, eggs, and tomatoes are stir fried with Chinese egg noodles in a sweet/spicy/umami flavored sauce made from belecan shrimp paste, chili paste, kecap manis, and soy sauce. You can simply just use shrimp with the noodles if you aren’t “adventurous” enough to add fish balls and pork liver. But I think they’re an important part of the flavor.
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tbsp belecan shrimp paste
- 3 tbsp chili paste
- 6 jumbo shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1/4 lb pork liver cubed
- 5 fill balls sliced
- 1/2 lb water spinach or regular spinach
- 1 tomato sliced
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tbsp kecap manis
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1/4 cup hot water
- 12 oz Chinese egg noodles prepared according to package directions
- 1 cup bean sprouts
Instructions
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan or wok over medium high heat. Sauté the garlic for 30 seconds.
- Add in the chili paste and belecan. Cook for 3 minutes.
- Add in the shrimp, fish balls, and pork liver. Cook for 30 seconds.
- Add in the spinach and tomatoes. Cook for a couple of minutes until the spinach starts to wilt.
- Push everything to one side of the pan. Crack in the eggs and let set for 30 seconds. Fold the protein and vegetables over the eggs and break up.
- Stir in the soy sauce, kecap manis, and water. Toss in the noodles. Cook for 1 minute.
- Turn off the heat. Toss in the bean sprouts.
