Homemade Chicken Nuggets (McDonald’s Style)

Who in their right mind would take perfectly good chicken breasts and toss them in the food processor with some “special” ingredients to make McDonald’s style nuggets? Me? Yes, me. I made these earlier this week because I was in the mood.

They are very similar to McDonald’s nuggets but not yet a perfect clone. The chicken needs to be a little more “foamy” texture. I don’t know how to achieve this. Maybe I should add a little flour and baking powder? Even with the lack of foaminess, the nuggets were really tasty.

3 large chicken breasts, slightly frozen but mostly defrosted and cut into chunks
½ teaspoon MSG
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon dried parsley
salt
pepper
Emeril’s Essence seasoning
2 eggs, beatened
1 cup flour
oil for frying

1. Add the chicken, MSG, onion powder, parsley, salt, pepper, and Emeril’s essence to bowl of food processor. Process until you get a nice paste. Refrigerate this paste until ready to use (but not more than like a day or so because it will get yucky.)

2. Heat a cast iron skillet and add enough oil for shallow frying. (Shallow frying is fine for this. You don’t need to get out a deep fryer.) In a flat-ish bowl, measure out flour. Prep the eggs in another flat-ish bowl.

3. Remove chicken mixture from refrigerator and roll into small balls about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Flatten the balls into McDonald-like shapes, dip in flour, then in egg and then again in flour. (This is called the three-step breading method.)

4. When oil is hot, add nuggets and fry until golden brown, flip and fry the other side until golden brown. Drain on paper towel lined platter. Serve with your favorite dipping sauce.

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Pumpkin Pie

I bought a few sugar pumpkins (or sometimes called pie pumpkins) a few weeks ago but was too lazy to make a pie. Since it was snowing this past weekend, I spent Sunday making a pumpkin pie and processing our two jackolanterns.

I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin pie but I will make it for other people because everyone seems to love the stuff. It is not the canned pumpkin that bothers me. Canned pumpkin is actually not bad. It is better than using a jackolatern pumpkin. Libby grows a specific type of pumpkin called Dickinson for their canned pumpkin. Dickinson pumpkins actually look more like butternut squash than a pumpkin pumpkin. (Does that make sense?) My grandmother grew pumpkins every year. She had seeds that she brought with her when she fled China. The pumpkins look very similar to cheese pumpkins. I used to make pumpkin pies using pumpkins from her garden but since I am so far away now, I find that sugar pumpkins or even butternut squash will make a pretty darn good pie.

The sugar pumpkins I bought were the perfect size and yielded enough flesh to make one 9-inch pie (or the equivalent of one 15 ounce can of Libby pumpkin which is 1 3/4 cups). The most time consuming part is cooking the pumpkin. After the flesh is cooked and collected from the shell, I simply blend everything up in the food processor and poor into a pie crust.


1 sugar pumpkin (about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups of cooked pumpkin)
1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 extra large eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (Use a good pumpkin pie spice mix. I get mine from our local spice shop.)
recipe for one pie crust or use a refrigerated or frozen crust

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cut pumpkin in half and scoop out the guts. Place pumpkin, cut side down on a foil lined baking sheet. Bake for about 45 minutes or until flesh is soft.

2. When pumpkin is soft, scoop out the flesh into the bowl of a food processor. Add sweetened condensed milk, eggs, and pumpkin pie spice. Process until pumpkin is smooth and pour into prepared pie crust.

3. Bake in oven for about an hour or until set in the middle.

The bf gives this his stamp of approval.

I also cooked our two jackolanterns. They were getting a little cold in the snow. Jackolaterns are not ideal for pies but works just fine for breads and soups. The flesh is very fibrous and watery. You definitely need a good food processor to help break up the long strands.

Look at the difference between the sugar pumpkin flesh (top) and the jackolantern flesh (bottom):

Anyone need jackolatern puree? I have about 9 quarts in the freezer.

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Hainanese Chicken and Rice

Hainanese chicken is a really simple dish. I don’t ever think about making it at home because back in San Diego, it was so easy to walk into almost any Chinese barbecue restaurant and order a half or whole chicken to go.

Most of the time when I walk into Sam Woo barbecue, I order the roast duck. When I’m not in the mood to mess with the boney duck, I will go for the soy sauce braised whole chicken instead. On very rare occasions, I will get the Hainanese chicken. (Sam Woo calls it steamed chicken.)

Initially I was planning on making soy sauce chicken but Hainanese chicken sounded a lot better to me. Maybe it is because I haven’t had much of an appetite so lighter (and blander) food is more appealing at the moment.

I know there are several versions of this dish in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and a few other Asian countries. I am making the Sam Woo restaurant style. This style is served with a different type of dipping sauce made with ginger and scallions. The ginger and scallion combination is very nice combination.

This is a picture of the Sam Woo version:

Ingredients for Chicken:

1 whole chicken (This dish is about the chicken so use a good quality chicken. I used a "Smart Chicken."
2 cloves garlic
6 inch knob of fresh ginger, peeled, cut into thick slices
handful cilantro stems
5-6 stalks green onions
2 teaspoon maggi sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
½ tsp peppercorns
salt
MSG

Ingredients for Rice:

3 cups Jasmine rice, washed and drained
2 cloves garlic, cut in half
½ inch knob or garlic, cut into four pieces
2½ tbsp chicken fat or vegetable oil
6 cups, poaching broth
salt
black pepper


To serve:
Cucumber slices
Ginger Scallion sauce (recipe below)



Directions for Chicken :
1. Thoroughly clean and drain chicken. Trim off any excess fat and reserve. Pat dry. Stuff garlic, ginger, cilantro steams and green onions into the cavity of the chicken.

2. Fill a large stockpot with water (just enough to submerge chicken. Add maggi sauce, sesame oil, peppercorns, salt and MSG and bring to a boil.
3. Carefully place chicken, breast side down, in boiling water and immediately reduce the heat to a slight simmer/poach. Poach chicken for about one hour. Make sure the water does not boil.

4. Fill a large bowl or pot with cold water and ice cubes. When chicken is cooked, submerged chicken in ice water for about 5 to 10minutes.
5. Now go prepare the rice.
6. Remove chicken from ice water, discard “stuffing” and drain the chicken well and set it aside.
7. When chicken is cool enough to handle, cut the chicken up using a sharp Chinese cleaver. (I don ‘t have one so I didn’t attempt this step. I’m not sure if the chicken bone or my knife would win the battle and I didn’t want to take the chance with my knife.)


Directions for Rice:

1. Wash the rice until water runs clear. Drain well. (Should probably do this at the beginning.)
2. Heat a heavy bottom pot, render chicken fat. You should get about ¼ cup, if not, add some canola oil to make ¼ cup.
3. Add rice, garlic halves and ginger. Cook until rice is translucent and slightly golden around some of the edges. Add liquid from poached chicken.
4. Bring rice to a boil and boil uncovered until the quid is absorbed. Cover, reduce heat to love and cook until grains are soft. Let rice rest, covered, at least 15 minutes and then fluff with a fork.


Ingredients for Ginger Scallion Sauce:

¼ cup canola oil
6 scallion (green onions), finely chopped
2 tablespoons ginger, grated
2 teaspoons salt

Directions for Ginger Scallion Sauce:
1. Heat oil in a small saucepan. When oil is hot, add the rest of the ingredients and remove from heat.

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Chicken Marsala

I posted Giada's Mustard Mascarpone Chicken Marsala recipe a while back. The recipe below is the way I learned how to make chicken marsala at Johnson & Wales. The class included dishes such as veal picatta and veal francese. These dishes are all very similar. You take a piece of meat, pound it a little to make it even so that it will cook evenly, lightly dredge it in seasoned flour, shallow fry and make a quick pan sauce using some sort of wine.

Ingredients:
5 slices bacon, diced
½ cup seasoned flour (flour seasoned with salt and pepper, to taste)
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4-6 tablespoons butter
1 pound cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
½ cup Florio brand marsala wine
1 cup chicken broth
¼ cup half and half
2 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley, chopped


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a shallow bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and pepper.

In a large skillet, render the bacon over medium heat, stirring often, until crispy. Transfer bacon pieces to plate. Do not pour out rendered bacon fat.

Turn the heat under the skillet to medium-high. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter.

Dredge chicken breast in seasoned flour. Working in batches, fry the chicken breast until golden. (You may need to add more butter between batches.) Transfer breasts to ovenproof dish and arrange in a single layer. (A rectangular baking dish works well.)

Place dish in oven to finish. (This is a method we used a lot in school. Burner space was always premium so most of the time we partially cooked our food and place them directly in the oven to finish. This method also produces better results.)

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in the skillet. Add the mushrooms and garlic. Season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring often until the liquid from mushrooms evaporates.

Add the bacon to the pan and cook until crispy.

Add the wine, bring the liquid to a boil and reduce by half. Add the chicken broth and return to a boil. Lower heat, add half and half. Adjust seasonings, turn off heat and add parsley.

Remove chicken from oven. To serve, arrange one or two breasts on a plate and nappe with mushroom sauce.

The bf LOVES chicken marsala and I always try to make it a little different each time. I ask him which version he prefers and he said that they are all very good. This version tastes slightly lighter than Giada's mascarpone version. I said slightly because this version relies on the flavor from bacon and bacon fat while the mascarpone version uses olive oil.

He seems to like it with simple creamy mashed potatoes and a vegetable. This time I decided on broccoli.

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Crockpot California Chicken (or Non-Crockpot California Chicken)

One year we decided to donate the money we budgeted for our holiday lunch to an organization helping hurricane Katrina victims. We decided to have a potluck in the office instead. My contribution to the potluck was a 26 pound turkey with homemade mole sauce. My boss brought a delicious crockpot dish called Crockpot California Chicken. I asked him for a copy of the recipe. (I believe it came from a slow cooker cookbook.) The recipe is very simple and very un-gourmet but I really like it so it finds it way on the table every once in a while.

I don’t own a crockpot (and probably never will) so I make this in a dutch oven. My boss said his family usually make this using drumsticks or boneless skinless thighs instead of the whole chicken.

I tried serving with different sides. I prefer to serve it with brown rice. This particular night I served it with brown jasmine rice.

Ingredients
3 lb. chicken, quartered or 2 pounds boneless skinless thighs)
1 cup orange juice
1/3 cup Heinz chili sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons molasses
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 tablespoons chopped red peppers
1 (13.5 oz) can mandarin oranges , drained

Crockpot Method:
Arrange chicken in slow cooker. In separate bowl, combine juice, chili sauce, soy sauce, molasses, dry mustard and garlic salt. Pour over chicken. Cover. Cook on low 8-9 hours. Stir in green peppers and oranges. Heat 30 minutes longer. Serve 4-6.

Stovetop Method:
Heat a dutch oven on medium heat. Add a few tablespoons canola oil. Working in batches, brown the chicken pieces. Add the oj, chili sauce, soy sauce, molasses, dry mustard and garlic salt. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer. Simmer until chicken is cooked through. Add peppers and mandarin oranges.

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Giovanni's Garlic Shrimp (Oahu's North Shore Shrimp Truck Garlic Shrimp)

When visiting Oahu, you might want to spend a day away from Waikiki. The first time I visited, I spent the entire duration of the trip in the Waikiki area (mainly Waikiki beach and Kalakaua Avenue).

On a recent trip to Oahu, one of my dear friends from high school gave me a grand tour of the entire island. He moved to Honolulu to attend U of H and he is now officially an island boy. He wanted to take us to the Haiku Stairway but I was too chicken to sneak in and too chicken to climb the almost vertical stairway.

He took us to Turtle Bay and the North Shore one day. The North Shore of Oahu is famous for its roach coach shrimp trucks. The most famous is Giovanni’s but there are actually several different vendors. We stopped at Fumi’s. They had their own shrimp bog right next to the truck.

I wanted to recreate the dish so I searched for a recipe. I found this: http://www.tasteandshare.com/video/garlic-shrimp-recipe

I had to make a few minor adjustments to get it just right. First, I decided to use 20-30 shrimp instead of the U-15. I think the 20-30 extra large shrimp were about the same size that were used at Giovanni’s. I doubled the amount of shrimp to 20 but didn’t double the garlic. One head was plenty. I also decreased the amount of flour. One cup was way too much waste.

Ingredients:
20 shell-on extra large shrimp, deveined (The recipe specified 10 U-15 shrimp but I used extra large 26-30 shrimp. I think U-15 is actually considered jumbo.)
1 head (10 cloves) garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
½ cup flour
2 tablespoons paprika
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ stick unsalted butter (I didn’t bother to clarify the butter)
½ teaspoon salt
1/8 cup white wine
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

To begin, rinse and thaw your large shrimp in cool running water. Lightly pat dry and season with salt. In a wide dish, place the flour, paprika and cayenne pepper. Mix lightly with your hands and coat each piece of shrimp on both sides.
Heat saute pan over high heat.

Add butter and garlic. Stir for 1 minute, then add all of the shrimp, which has been coated in the flour mixture. Saute 3 minutes on each side.

After 3 minutes on the second side, add the 1/8 cup of white wine and 2 tablespoons butter. Saute, turning shrimp occasionally, until it reaches a caramel brown color.

Remove shrimp immediately and serve with two mounds of sticky steamed calrose rice and a lemon wedge, spooning extra garlic butter sauce over the rice and shrimp. Add extra salt and cayenne pepper to taste if desired.

Chef's Note: You leave the shell on only during the cooking process. This keeps the shrimp tender and moist. Afterward, you peel and eat them, topped with the buttery garlic sauce and

Fumi’s served their shrimp with a side “salad.” Many of my plated lunches were served with an iceberg side “salad” and a scoop of ono mac salad.

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Boba Milk Tea

I used to have a major addiction to boba milk teas. I would stop by Sam Woo every single day before class. As with any of my addictions, they seem to slowly disappear. I recently rediscovered this yummy drink and I've been drinking it almost every single day since.

Boba is really easy to make at home. The first thing you need is tea (or another beverage base). Most boba shops use powdered drink mixes from companies like lollicup. I like the taste of the milk tea powder but you can use one of the other flavored powders or even brew your favorite tea. You can get your boba supplies from here or here.



The second thing you need is the boba balls. The boba balls below are the most awesomest. They are 5-minute boba balls. Regular boba takes about 30 minutes to cook. These cook in five. I've been cooking them in small batches. I like my boba fresh. Fresh boba is slighly chewy and elastic. Boba balls are also available in a delicate green tea flavor but many shops stick with the dark brown ones.

The last thing you need is a big fat straw. This is very essential to suck up the boba balls while drinking the tea.

You can enjoy your boba either hot or iced. I had it iced a few days ago. I am having it warm today since it is a snow day and I see three-foot snow drifts outside my window.

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Vietnamese Chicken Curry (Ga Ca Ri)

I made this before leaving for California. I typed up a recipe but can't find it on my computer. I was a little distracted. I received bad news around 1:00 PM on Thursday afternoon and then spent the rest of the day trying to figure out how to get everything ready so that I could leave for California. When I got home, I was a little numb. I had boneless chicken thighs defrosted in the refrigerator for the Vietnamese Chicken Curry.

As I was cooking, I was making plans on when and how to get to California. I told the bf what to expect. I said I was leaving for California as soon as I can get everything ironed out. I even planed out his meals for the next week.

As I was going through my pictures folder, I realize I did not post this before leaving last week. I had to rewrite the recipe since I can't locate it. I probably saved it under an ambiguous name in my music folder.

I remember an ex-friend's mom used to make this curry. It was very soupy and she served it with fresh baked french baguettes from the Vietnamese grocery store. One Thanksgiving she made it with turkey. She also used pearl onions. The pearl onions made the curry really pretty but I don't think it makes a huge difference in taste.

Below is my version of this curry.

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds boneless skinless thighs
1 tablespoons curry powder (many people recommend D&D Gold Product brand with three bells on the label. I used the Sing Kung brand Ca Ri Ni An Do Madras Curry powder)
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 onion, diced (or pearl onions)
4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
I can coconut milk
Water to cover
salt
black pepper
MSG
1 teaspoon sugar
½ stalk lemongrass , cut into 2 inch pieces
1 bay leaf
2 carrots, cut into 1 inch slices

1. Heat a large dutch oven, add oil. When oil is hot, add chicken and cook until browned. Add curry powder and allow to toast for a minute. Add garlic and onions. Cook until onions are soft. Add potatoes and cook another minute.
2. Deglaze pot with coconut milk. Add water to cover. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the carrots. Bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer.
3. When potatoes are cooked, add carrots and cook until carrots are slightly tender.

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Vietnamese Vermicelli Noodle Bowl (Bun Dac Biet)

I'm finally back in town. Actually I've been back since Saturday night but I am still in an emotional rut. If I don't think about it too much, I'm okay but once I start to think about it...well I get really sad. Life is just not fair sometimes.

Everyone at work thought I took a week long vacation. It wasn't exactly what I would call a vacation. I flew back to San Diego to attend my dear cousin's funeral. She was way too young but I guess I am comforted by the fact that she is no longer suffering. It was a tough week for everyone.

Tonight I decided to make Vietnamese vermicelli noodle bowl aka bun (pronounced boon). I marinated some boneless skinless thighs and shrimp last night. Today I grilled the chicken and shrimp, reheated the frozen egg rolls, made the sauce, cut up the veggies and boiled the rice vermicelli.

- Grilled Lemongrass Chicken (Use same recipe for the chicken found in this post for com ga nuong sa recipe here)
- Grilled Shrimp (marinate shrimp with the chicken and then grill)
- Egg rolls (I had frozen fried egg rolls. They are really handy. I just reheat them in the oven and they crisp up nicely.)
- Vermicelli noodles, boiled

Garnish:
Lettuce
Bean sprouts
Green onions, sliced (I also like to grill them when I use a grill pan or George Foreman)
Cilantro, sliced
Carrots, julienned
Mint leaves
Peanuts, chopped
Fried shallots, onions or garlic

Nuoc Cham (recipe here)

Assemble everything in a large pho bowl. (The bowls are from my mom. I brought back two dozen pho bowls when I drove to California.)

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Coleslaw

I'm posting a recipe for coleslaw that I made last week. I won't be posting for at least the next week. I'm on my way to California for the funeral of a loved one whose life was cut way too short.

½ cup mayonnaise
¼ cup milk
¼ cup buttermilk
juice of 1 lemon juice
1 ½ tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper
½ head cabbage, finely sliced
1 carrot, shredded
2 tablespoons onion, minced

1. Mix together mayo, milk, buttermilk, lemon juice, vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper.
2. Add cabbage, carrots and onions and toss. Cover and refrigerate at least three hours.

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