Chicken á la Neigella

In the time before I did unsubscribe the satellite TV and went back to the listening to the radio, reading books or just a simple home atmosphere with kitchen and home creativity, my favourite TV channel was (i.a. CSI and news) the Food Channel.

Nigella Lawson was my favourite presenter and I would like to present to you one of my favourite chicken dishes – with a slightly modification to my own conservative taste and according to the availability of ingredients in a small western Canadian village.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken

2 bigger onion (cut into the quarters)

2 lemon

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

2 bay leaves

1 package of hot Italian sausages

 

Directions:

1. Into the ZipLock add quarters of onion, squeeze out lemon and add then the pericarp, salt, pepper, bay leaves and olive oil.

2. Close the bag and squeeze with hands into the consistency of mayonnaise.

3. Cut chicken into pieces (incl. bones).

4. Add chicken to the marinade and squeeze gently for couple of minutes between finger like a “massage”. Leave in the fridge for couple o hours or over night marinating.

5. Put chicken into the baking pan and spread the hot Italian sausages over the chicken. Bake in the oven (180°C/350°F) at least for an hour or until the chicken is done. Serve with baked potatoes with rosemary and garlic or with rice. Of course can be serve and eaten without side dishes – just how do like it best…

Plums stuffed pork tenderloin with plum brandy sauce

I created today a speciality from Dalmatia which I got from my pen friend Verunka from Holland. This speciality was made already in 16th century. Very tasty and very easy to make! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 pork tenderloins
about 30 soft dry plums without stones
piece of cold butter to stuff plums and piece to roast tenderloins on a pan
glass of white wine
little shot of plum brandy
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup sour cream
sůl, pepř

Directions:

1. Make a hole into each tenderloin with a help of a spurtle or rod – it is very easy.

2. Stuff plums with butter and then stuff the tenderloin with these stuffed plums – as much as possible.

3. Remain plums cut into a little strips and soak in a glass of white wine.

4. Roast the tenderloins from all sides on butter.

5. Add the soaked strips of plum in wine and roast for a while.

6. Then add both creams and let the liquid evaporate. Don’t add any flour, just take your time – the sauce turns nice creamy and think. Add some salt and pepper for taste.

7. In the end add a shot of plum brandy and turn the sauce off.


8. Serve with home made pasta or rice.

Old Czech Chicken on Sauerkraut

It is quite hard to say when I prepare this recipe for the first time. But I think it is couple of years – that is for sure. Anyway – probably because the cold weather, or winter generally generates craving for Vitamin C or just my craving for sauerkraut in these days – but try this simple and tasty recipe and review.

Ingredients:

1 chicken (divided into four) or 4 chicken legs or 4 chicken breasts
1 jar sauerkraut 
10 balls allspice
4 bay leaves
some strips of bacon

Directions:

1. Put sauerkraut to the frying pan (incl. liquid), add allspice and bay leaves.

2. Put the pieces of chicken on the top of sauerkraut.

4. Cover with strips of bacon and bake at least an hour or until chicken is done.

5. Serve with potato or regular dumplings (same as Chicken a la Duck) or with boiled potatoes – according to taste.

Ginger Beef (Geung Ngao Yuk)

Of course it does exist many variations on Ginger Beef recipes and according to Wikipedia Ginger beef was a common menu item in Chinese restaurants in the San Francisco Bay area as early as the 1960s. In modern times it has become quite popular in the western Canadian province of Alberta. Calgary-style Ginger Beef was invented in between the late 1970's to early 1980's by Peter Mang, a chef in Calgary's Yum Yum Tree.
The ingredients can depend on where it is featured, but generally consists of deep fried strips of beef coated in a dark sweet sauce that is reminiscent of other Asian sauces based on vinegar and sugar (e.g., the Japanese teriyaki). It also contains flavours of ginger, garlic and hot peppers.

Ingredients:

2 beef steaks
2 rhizomes ginger
4 tbsp dark soya sauce
1 clove garlic
2 eggs
4 tbsp rice or potatoes starch
1 large carrot
1 daikon
1 green onion
2 cups vegetable oil
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp water
1/2 tsp crushed hot peppers

Directions:

1. Cut the steaks into a strips.

2. Peel and shred one ginger, press the juice direct on the meat strips.

3. Mix well with mashed garlic and 3 tbsp soya sauce. Marinate for couple of hours or over night in the fridge. 
 
4. When the marinate time is over, beat eggs with starch and pour over the meat strips and mix well.

5. Deep-fry in parts in Wok or in a suitable frying pan, let the oil drip on paper-towel.

6. In a mean time prepare vegetable: carrot and daikon peel and with peeler slice into very thin long slices; green onion cut into thin rings and the second ginger peel and shred.

7. Sir-fry.
 
8. Add the sauce prepared with 2 tbsp white vinegar, 1 tbsp dark soya sauce, 2 tbsp sugar, 1/2 tsp crushed hot peppers and 4 tbsp water.
  
9. Add the fried beef strips and stir-fry shortly.

10. Serve with rice.

Orange Duck Breast

Winter has begun… and of course new tasks, duties and rituals too. The cooking and culinary activity didn’t stop and I’m still taking pictures and preparing recipes, but I have to admit that between my evening and morning runs behind the snowblower I didn’t have publication’s power any more. Of course I will continue and I would love to present you my well-tried recipes.
For today’s first Advent Sunday Lunch I prepared Orange Duck Breast.

Ingredients:

1 pack of duck breast (defrost before processing)
pitch of salt
pitch of caraway seeds
juice from 3 oranges
1/2 cube chicken broth
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small head cabbage
1 rhizome ginger
200g chicken liver
handful raisins
1 tbsp honey

Directions:

1. Cut skin on duck breast across, add salt and caraway seeds.

2. Roast (best direct in cast iron pot or roast pan) the skin side first on some vegetable oil (approx. 12 minutes on medium heat), turn over and roast for another 12 minutes. 

3. In the mean time squeeze 3 oranges and add the juice into the frying pan with 1/2 cube of chicken broth and peel form 1/2 orange. Cook for approx. 12 minutes.

4. After this time remove the peel form liquid (but keep it for final decoration) and on the medium heat evaporate remaining liquid to the jam consistency (for the next 12 minutes).

5. Shred (or cut into thin slices) cabbage.

6. Peel ginger and shred it on a fine screen.

7. Take the roasted breast from the pot and leave it on the plate aside. Put in chicken liver (chopped into small cubes or pieces). Roast for approx. 5 minutes.

8. Mix cabbage, ginger, raisins and honey with roasted liver, cook shortly.

9. Cut the roasted breast into two halves and put it on the top of vegetables. Cover and bake for 20 minutes in pre-heated oven (180°C/350°F).

10. Serve on the plate with vegetables, cover roasted duck breast with the orange glaze and decor with a strip of cooked orange peel.