Udon with Tamarind~Teriyaki Chicken

 

Udon with Tamarind~Teriyaki Chicken

and scallions and eggs

These days families are super busy, especially if you have school age children involved in every sport possible under the sun, also including music lessons, dance, cheer (my awesome spouse is an award-winning cheer coach), drama (aren't they all at some point?) and then some.  I'm exhausted just writing that sentence!  My point is:  families sometimes require a dish that is easy to prep, easier to cook and everyone may be happy to devour it.  This is a dish that you can sub chicken with tofu, sub scallions with whatever veg you like.  The beauty of cooking is that you can make a recipe your own. 

My amazing previous spouse is Japanese-American, we had two sons together and so we were exposed to a lot of delicious Japanese food.  Her mother and father, both, were exceptional cooks. Grandpa's expert dish was curry chicken (look for that dish coming soon!). Grandma could do no wrong cooking Anything.  Udon quickly became a favorite when days were long and dinner needed to be fast, or it was going to be late.  A particular ramen noodle company was also a favorite back in the 80s and 90s but then the ramen boom happened.  Taking a drive to San Francisco's Japan Town and having udon for lunch was a real treat. I have never stopped enjoying ramen and udon noodles.

These are dried udon, or soba noodles, so you do not need a lot to boil. 

Let's get to it, shall we?

The recipe for My Tamarind-Teriyaki Chicken over Udon with scallions and eggs:

Ingredients

For two people:  2 packages of Udon noodles 

3 scallions:  half greens chopped for garnish/ half stalks halved and halved again (from root to half stalk)

2 - 4 eggs

1 package of 4 or 6 boneless/skinless chicken thighs (four feeds two well, or three nicely)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil 

3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

4 cloves fresh garlic, finely chopped (or from a jar, 2 tablespoons)

1 rounded tablespoon Garam Masala

1 rounded tablespoon smoked Paprika

1 rounded teaspoon black pepper

*optional sauces, but I use these:

I use soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, vegetable oil, and this time, I used Tamarind-Teriyaki sauce from the store; it was awesome!  Hoisin sauce will do very well. For fun, I added Garam Masala spice blend and smoked Paprika and black pepper. All of those flavors, the spices, sauces, fresh scallions and garlic married and caramelized onto the chicken. The kitchen aroma was fantastic!

If you want to marinate the chicken, you can easily mix the garlic, the quartered scallion stalks, the spices, oils  and sauces in a large bowl.  I recommend marinating them two hours before cooking, even overnight would be great. I did not have that much time last night, so I added all of it a little at a time, one after the other, starting with the oils, spices over medium-high heat, adding the chicken when the oil began to ripple. I then added the sauces and stirred vigorously the coat all of the chicken which I had sliced into large bite-size chunks. I then reduced the heat to medium-low and let it all simmer, allowing the spices and sauces to caramelize on the chicken without burning.  Delicious!

I added the quartered scallion stalks continued simmering, about twenty minutes in all. 

I start boiling the water when I start cooking the meats I use when making udon/ramen dishes. I add a tablespoon or two of soy sauce and a crushed garlic clove to season the noodles. That's just me; I know there those out there who'd condemn me for it. You know what I say, though, right?  Make it your own!

As the noodles are boiling, add the eggs, separating them around the pot you are using. You can stir them to scramble the eggs throughout the noodles, but I like them whole; they are just poaching in the noodle water, absorbing the flavors. 

So after about thirty minutes in, the chicken is done, and the noodles are finishing.  Prep your serving bowls.  My spouse likes it when I add a few drops of toasted sesame oil to the bottom of the bowl. I had a surplus of scallion greens for garnish, so I threw a few extras into each bowl. The one with the hashi/chopsticks, is mine. 

I add the noodles first, as usual with noodle based dishes. I try to scoop out the eggs evenly between the number of people eating (two in this case) while scooping out the udon. I try to place the chicken in a semi-circular way but sometimes, it gets messy. There is no shame in messy.  I add the scallion garnish last.  You can add whatEver you want to the your bowls. Fish cake crescents, vegetables, sesame seeds, Nori (seaweed).  Add what You like!  That's the big idea, here. Now, time to enjoy!

With that, Thank You for your visit, your time and consideration.  I hope you have enjoyed this recipe and its variations. You can use leftover meats or veggies in these fast dishes.  You can make it vegetarian, adding or eliminating items to make it the way you would want it.  There is no exact right or wrong with this. It is meant to be a family fun favorite. Hopefully. 😀

Now!  Go cook for someone you love!

Itadakimas'!

Banjo napping with me.

Roasted Chicken Thighs on Cheesy Cannellini Bean Puree

 

Roasted Chicken Thighs on Cheesy Cannellini Puree

Plus marinated cucumber salad (see recipe at the end)!

Hello Friends!  It has been at least five months since I last blogged.  We moved from the city to a most beautiful property out in the country.  We are truly blessed to have been granted this lovely opportunity live, love and grow. The one thing that I let slide since moving to this extraordinarily beautiful piece of perfection is, my cooking fell into a true slump. I fell into a rut of cooking easy, bland, rather boring dinners.  My spouse likes pasta, chicken everything, rice and ramen with whatever, and potatoes that can be simply microwaved. There is and has been nothing too wrong with that, but I made the decision last week to "doctor up" these plain meals and change things up, challenge myself like I used to.  When I started this blog back in May 2012, I challenged myself to cook with the skills and knowledge I had learned each week to make something wonderful;  to celebrate the successes and include in my blog the lessons I learned in my "area of opportunity" (aka disasters) dishes. To me, both in cooking and in life, areas of opportunities are lessons to learn from and adjust.  That is what this dish is all about:  start with something old and "doctor it up" with something new and, hopefully, improved.  Tell me what you think!

This dish is very simple. Let's get started, shall we?

Ingredients

1 package 4 - 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (though bone-in skin-on works perfectly well)

3 scallions, chopped

2 cans Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons garlic + 2 tablespoons garlic, separated

1 1/4 cups balsamic vinaigrette (homemade or store bought)

1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese or Pecorino-Romano cheese blend

4 + 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, separated

salt and pepper

This photo belongs with the cucumber marinated salad but I wanted you to see my homemade balsamic vinaigrette.

Now, open the two cans of Cannellini beans and empty them into a colander 

Two or more hours before cooking, add the chicken to a large bowl along with one cup of the balsamic vinaigrette, submerging them or turning them repeatedly to coat them. Place the bowl in the refrigerator to marinate.  Take the bowl out thirty minutes before you start cooking the chicken.  

I'm bossy, I know!  Sorry. 😉

Now, add the rinsed beans to a blender or food processor.  To that, add the remaining olive oil (evoo), garlic, one coarsely chopped medium-large scallion or two small stalks, the 1/4 balsamic vinaigrette, 1/4 tablespoon salt and 1/2 tablespoon black pepper (more or less, as your prefer).  Blend or puree the beans until smooth but thick. You're looking for the consistency to be just softer than a mash. Leave the puree in the blender or processor. 

Time to cook the chicken!  Although the thighs have been marinating for a good bit, add a little salt and pepper to each side. In a skillet, drizzle evoo four times around the skillet over medium-high heat.  When the oil begins to ripple, add the chicken cut side down (where the bone was removed).  Allow it to sear unmoved about four minutes.  The thigh should turn without sticking. If it sticks to the skillet, let it be for another minute or two until it releases from the skillet. Repeat on the other side.  Remove the thighs once done (165 degrees fahrenheit) and set aside.  Now, reduce the heat to medium-low and add the cannellini bean puree.  Allow the mixture to warm up but low and slow and stir often. This will allow the mixture to absorb the chicken renderings, which is delicious, intense flavor! Beware! If it sits too long, the cheese may caramelize and become a patty, so stir often! The heat brings out the flavors in the mixture. Allow the bean puree to warm up about four or five minutes. 

To plate, add the puree as you wish, a lump, a swoop, however you wish, and then add the chicken stop that and add any vegetables you plan to serve, as well.  

This can be served in a bowl, as I have, here, but honestly, it looks better on a plain white plate. Garnish with remaining scallions.

****

Now for the balsamic vinaigrette marinated salad! I know that just about Every grandma and Mom have their own family versions of this, but this one is my own.  Here's what I use, but you make it your own way:

1/2 or 1 whole red onion, sliced into slivers

1 cucumber, sliced into discs as thin as you can slice them

small mozzarella balls, halved

scallions for garnish

1+ cup balsamic vinaigrette (depends on how many servings; 1.5 cups is good for 2 servings)

I wish I'd had banana peppers, aka pepperoncini, to add to this!  Next time!

I hope you have enjoyed reading this recipe. It was fun and satisfying to prepare. If you make it, make it your way and have fun!

With that, Thank You for your visit, time and consideration!  Now, go cook for someone you love!