Double-Dipped Spicy Chicken

So these really aren't spicy. They have flavor. I promise. If you think Pico de Gallo is spicy, then you might have a problem with this but it's just spices in the breading...nothing overpowering...at all! I found the recipe here.

Ingredients

• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/3 palmful
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, eyeball the amount
• 1/4 teaspoon allspice, eyeball the amount
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 1 pound chicken breast tenderloins
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Heat 1 1/2 inches vegetable oil in a deep skillet over medium high heat. A cube of bread should brown in a 40 count when oil is ready.

Set out 3 disposable pie tins. Mix flour with paprika, poultry seasoning, cayenne, and allspice. Divide seasoned flour between 2 tins. Pour buttermilk into a tin. Line up tins as such: flour, buttermilk, and then flour.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Coat chicken pieces in flour, then buttermilk, then a second coating of flour.

Cook chicken 6 minutes on each side, until deep golden brown and firm.

Drain chicken on paper bags and cool before packing up for picnic basket (or on your plate!).

We ate this with our new favorite mashed potato recipe (coming soon!).

Red Chicken & Rice

This has become an Elders (my maiden name) tradition and must whenever we're all home.

If you read this blog much, you know that my dad & little (& by little I only mean younger) brother are VERY picky eaters. I'm a picky eater but those two: RIDICULOUS! Not kidding, they eat no fruits or vegetables. Ok, Dad eats potatoes. Bubba only eats potatoes in the form of French Fries. (apparently, it's a texture thing.) Thankfully, Pioneer Woman is really helping out in this area for my family. Both my Dad & brother enjoy things that come from her Marlboro Man (Cowboy) Approved recipes.

Anywho, whenever Bubba is home from college, we REALLY struggle to find food everyone will eat. Red Chicken & Rice is a quick go-to for Mom & I. Last night, Mom made this recipe & I was able to snatch some pictures. I can't believe that I haven't posted this yet!

Ingredients

Chicken tenderloins - get how ever much you think will be eaten. We never have enough. I think we made 2 pounds for the 5 of us. All of it was gone. All of it.


Marinade:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup white cooking wine
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil

Sauce:
Exact same as the marinade except substitute ketchup for the vegetable oil.

Directions

Marinate the chicken. 

The longer it marinates, the better.

Get rid of the marinade.

Grill the chicken.

My mom broils it.

This is as much of my mom that I was 

allowed to post on the blog...her hand. haha.

This is all of the chicken cooked!

This is the sauce heating on the stovetop.

The longer you let it heat, the thicker it gets! Wahoo!

This is my plate. Too much? No way!!

Please enjoy!

Cajun Shrimp and Rice

Living with my parents has really limited my desire to cook. It's not my kitchen, it's not my equipment (well I guess some of it is mine), it's not all mine. However, it has also really made me miss cooking. Jerome and I cooked a lot, hence most of the posts on this blog. This past week, my parents went on a trip and I really wanted to cook. I even went grocery shopping to cook for Jerome and I. Of course, after a long day of teaching and grading, I just want to come home and veg out. I bought a new cookbook a week ago and it has renewed my desire to cook. It's the Food Network Magazine Cookbook. It's 250 easy recipes that all look amazing. There is a picture for every recipe and even the table of contents is the pictures!

We took the time to cook this great meal on Friday. Do not plan on having leftovers!!!! Holy cow this was amazing. We changed the recipe slightly by using shrimp without tails for easier eating. We also used Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning instead of cajun seasoning. It had nice heat without making it too spicy where we couldn't eat however much we wanted. There were no leftovers, and this recipe was meant for 4 people. =)

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails intact
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 2 bunches scallions, chopped
• 3 cups cooked white rice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• Lemon wedges, for serving (optional)

Directions

Heat the butter, olive oil and garlic in a large skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the Cajun seasoningand shrimp and cook, stirring, until the shrimp begin to curl, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.

Add the tomatoes and scallions to the skillet and cook, stirring, about 1 minute. Add the rice and 1/4 cup water and continue to cook until the rice is warmed through and the shrimp are opaque, about 3 more minutes. Stir in the parsley and serve with lemon, if desired.

Per serving: Calories 357; Fat 11 g (Saturated 3 g); Cholesterol 176 mg; Sodium 537 mg; Carbohydrate 40 g; Fiber 3 g; Protein 23 g

Stir-fried Dungeness Crab with Sweet Chili Sauce and Bok Choy

Sorry, no picture again. I should have taken a picture after I plated the food. It looked so cool!! I was a proud mamma. =) One thing this recipe calls for is live crab. I got scared and then excited about this. I've never cooked with live seafood. Well, H.E.B. didn't have live Dungeness crab. It ended up working out. I would really recommend the change I made to the recipe. I bought 1 section of Dungeness crab legs for each person that look like the following picture:

It ended up being the perfect amount of crab for 1 person. There is a ton of meat in the section connecting all the legs together, and the legs themselves. Plus, the meat is so rich that it tends to fill you up. Another plus to making this change, no dealing with cleaning a crab after it's boiled. So I still have to find a recipe that I can use live seafood, weird I know. So I'm going to paste the original recipe in its entirety, including using live crab. However, I will add in bold font what I did with my alteration when it occurs. Please feel free to ask any questions or voice any concerns. It really is a very, very simple dish that tastes great!

Ingredients

• 2 live Dungeness crabs, 1 1/2 pounds each
• 1/4 cup peanut oil
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1-inch piece fresh ginger, grated
• 2 fresh red chiles, sliced
• 4 heads baby bok choy, halved
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1/4 cup sake
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water
• Butter lettuce Intended for garnish under the crab but it tastes great with the sauce. Eat it too!! =)
• 2 chopped green onions, white and green part
• 1/4 cup chopped unsalted peanuts
• White rice, for serving

Directions

First thing to do is "dismantle" the crabs before you wok-fry them. Toss the live crabs into salted boiling water for 2 minutes. Next, place the crabs top-side up, and stick your thumb under the edge of the top shell, pull forward and lift the shell up and off, and reserve. Scrape out the gills that are found on top of the body. Now, turn the crabs over and on the underbelly you will find the "apron," a slightly-lifted triangular flap, pull this off too. Finally, rinse the crabs of all the grey or green spongy stuff (the soft yellow matter is fat or crab butter and considered desirable by many, keep it if you wish.) Divide the crabs into quarters with a big knife, leaving the legs attached to the 4 sections. I ignored this entire section.

Heat the peanut oil in a wok over high heat until almost smoking. Add the garlic, ginger, chiles, and bok choy. Stir-fry for 1 minute, then remove to a side platter. Toss in the crab pieces, including the top shells. Take the top shells out after 1 minute, continue to stir-fry the crab for 3 minutes. I didn't have top shells so I just stir-fried the leg sections for 3 minutes. With a big spoon or spatula, remove the crab pieces to the side platter. Now on to the sauce, pour 1 cup of water into the wok, along with the brown sugar, soy sauce, lemon juice, and sake. Stir for 2 minutes to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the cornstarch slurry and cook another minute until the sauce thickens. Return the crabs and bok choy to the pan, toss everything together to coat. Cover, and cook for 3 minutes.

To serve, line a large platter with butter lettuce leaves, and arrange the crabs with the top shell back on top so it looks roughly like a whole crab again - cool right?! Again, no shells. I just placed the crab leg sections on the butter lettuce. Put the bok choy around the crab and pour the sauce all over the top. Garnish with the green onions and peanuts. You'll need crab crackers, mini forks, a side bowl for the shells, a stack of napkins, and bowls of warm lemon water to clean your hands. Serve with steamed white rice. Our white rice was on the side due to lack of space on the plate. We poured some of the extra sauce on the rice, fantastic.