Chicken Nacho Baskets

I always get motivated to make something nice for dinner after watching Jamie Oliver on TV. The way he cooks is incredible, a true naked chef. Watching him reminds me to stop being so particular in the kitchen. Cook the way YOU like. Use the in ingredients YOU love. And always add a little extra of your favourite ingredient if YOU want to. Cooking should be enjoyable not stressful. When I'm in the kitchen I like to be in control, it's my space to play, my space to relax, and the decisions are always mine to make.

Tonight, after watching Jamie's 30minute meals of course, I decided to break almost every rule when it comes to nachos. I didn't feel like greasy mince or fatty nacho cheese crisps. I felt like something fresh, like the real deal when it comes to eating REAL food. 

I don't know, sometimes I just hate the thought of processed and genetically modified food. You know that feeling, right? So I found the freshest food I could find in my kitchen that could be used to create nachos and made these, Nacho baskets!

The bonus is, they were super easy and looked crazy cute. So, what did you have for dinner tonight? Want something fresh that feeds that greasy nacho craving you get every now and then? Chuck these together in the same amount of time it takes you to decide if you want supreme cheese or salsa crisps. 

This will serve two

You will need:

3 wraps of your choice 

1 chicken breast 

1 chopped onion 

1/2 green capsicum 

2 large tomatoes 

A few chopped jalapeños 

Fresh herbs such as origano, coriander and parsley 

1 teaspoon paprika

Chilli powder

Chilli flakes

1 tablespoon spoon of tomato paste

Sea salt

Oil (I use rice bran)

Garlic

1/2 can cannelloni beans

A sprinkle of organic golden sugar

Brown your chicken breast in an oiled pan and then bake for about 15 minutes at 180 degrees or till cooked so it's ready for shredding. In the same pan, fry the onion for 5 minutes and then add the herbs and spices. As for the chilli, add as much as you would like. I like it hot so I add a lot, about 1 heaped teaspoon of hot chilli. While this is all frying you may need to add a little more oil.

Take a moment to smell it, isn't it wonderful? The paprika adds terrific colour and smells amazing. Add the tomato paste, capsicum, jalapeños, beans, tomatoes, and then sprinkle over some sugar. Let it simmer. Once the chicken is cooked through, shred it using two forks and then add it to the mixture. 

For the baskets, get reasonable sized muffin tins and drizzle the oil over four of them. Warm the wraps up in the microwave for 20 seconds and place two in their own muffin tin, creating the basket shape. As for the other wrap, break it into triangles and place into the other prepped tins. Sprinkle with sea salt, chilli flakes, and some more oil. I baked mine for roughly 5-7 minutes in a moderate oven and then flipped them all over and baked for another 5 minutes. Or until the edges are browned and they are crispy. 

Fill your baskets up and top with some grated cheese and coriander. I love to have cottage cheese and natural yoghurt on mine too. As for Matt, he is happy with just yoghurt. Drizzle with a bit of lemon juice and chilli flakes and you are done.

-Sophea

Ta da! 

I do what I want in my kitchen and what I wanted was fresh chicken nacho baskets. What do you want in your kitchen? 

Japanese Inspired Spicy Chicken

I would gladly live in Japan just to be able to eat their glorious cuisine daily. 

About a month ago I went to what is now one of my favourite restaurants in Dunedin, Yuki. Located just near the octagon, Yuki has to be the cutest restaurant out. Its' cozy and authentic vibe makes for a sensational experience. Although, right now I'm not going to go off on a tangent about Yuki. I'll save that for another time.

Spicy chicken. It is unquestionably my most favourite dish from Yuki. Ever since my last visit to Yuki, those long four weeks ago, spicy chicken has been running through my mind. Delicious tender chicken covered in a hot spicy sauce. So simple but so satisfying. I love spicy food, it adds a kick of excitement to so many dishes. And to be honest, without the spice in that sauce it would not be worthy enough to write about.

I think I have made it clear how much I love Yuki and how much I LOVE the spicy chicken. And now that your mouth is watering just like mine at the thought of it, I'll share with you what I have done. Yesterday I spent a good couple of hours getting lost in Pinterest searching for 'spicy chicken sauce', 'spicy Japanese sauce' or even just 'spicy sauce'. Nothing made the cut. So I have made my own spicy sauce recipe and instead of just being for chicken, this sauce can be made to drizzle over your whole meal if you please. 

It might not be the most good looking of sauces but come on, just look at it, in all of its saucy sauciness. 

Here's what I did:

This recipe is for two people

1cup rice

1tblsp rice vinegar 

2tsp sugar

Green vegetables of choice

1 chicken breast

2 eggs slightly beaten

1/2 cup cornflour 

To make the sauce you will need:

1tblsp sesame oil

2tblsp good soy sauce

6tblsp chilli tomato (I use delmaine tomato sauce with chilli)

1tsp Honey

2 chopped spring onions

1/2 chopped medium red onion

2tsp (heaped) crushed garlic 

1tsp (heaped) finely chopped ginger

1tsp coriander 

1/2 tsp garam masala 

1tsp chilli powder

1/4 tsp turmeric 

Salt to season

The first thing I did was prepare the rice and broccoli. I wouldn't normally use broccoli in a dish like this but it was there and needed to be eaten. Snow peas or even just green beans would go lovely. Place your greens of choice in a steamer over a pot of cold water and put on a low heat (they should be ready to serve when everything else is done.) To make semi-sticky rice, put one cup of rice and 1 cup of water in a pot. Season with salt, add another two table spoons of water and then place on a low heat with the lid on. Keep an eye on your rice as you cook everything else, when all the water has gone turn the heat off pour in the rice vinegar and sugar and leave in the pot until you are ready to serve. It should be fluffy with a small amount of stick, none of that sloppy crap!

While the rice and greens look after themselves chop your chicken up into smallish slices. Cover each piece in corn flour and then dip into the egg mixture and put on a plate ready for frying. 

To prepare the sauce make sure everything is chopped up at your finger tips ready to use. While the chicken cooks you can make the sauce. Whisk the soy sauce, sesame oil, chilli tomato sauce and honey in a small bowl.

Now it's time to start your frying and your saucing. The reason I do these at the same time is to ensure the chicken stays crispy and the sauce stays hot and fresh when you serve. Oil a large pan and place on a medium high heat and oil a medium pan and place on a low heat. Once hot, place all the chicken into the large pan to start browning. Let it sizzle in the hot oil and take a moment to admire the delicious sound. Remember to keep checking the chicken when you make the sauce. It should take a few minutes on each side and should be brown and crispy. 

In the smaller pan fry the onions, ginger and garlic for a minute or so or until nice and soft. Add the sauce mixture to the pan and let it bubble for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally. Once it has bubbled for a minute or so, add the coriander and remaining spices. Salt to season. Now try your sauce, if it's too strong for you, you can always add some water to tone it down a little. I try to keep things rather exciting so I like it quite strong. It's quite a nudge to your taste buds. 

And your done! Serve your crispy chicken with the green vegetables and rice. You may just like to pour the sauce on your chicken, but I'm a saucy girl (pun intended), so I cover everything in the spicy treasure.

And when you serve food and beer at the same time, well that's one happy man. 

-Fee