Chicken Congee with Soy Sauce Mushrooms

Believe it or not I found another bag of rice in my closet which calls for, you guessed it, another easy pre-pesach recipe with ingredients you may or probably do not have. The great news is, that you can also make it after pesach, which despite what it feels like right at this very moment, makes up 357 of the other days of the year. Good news for these Jews!

So about this recipe. It’s called congee (Khun- Gee) and its basically the Chinese version of porridge. It’s basically made by taking that teeny tiny bit of rice you have left in the bag (because companies like to send you uneven amounts just to give themselves a extra little spring in their step- sadistic beasts) and boiling it with an insane amount of stock- which lets face it- we all have leftover from Shabbos anyway- and letting it simmer low and slow until its basically a delicious silky porridgey consistency. And then you top it with an egg to make all the more breakfastey and silky. Yes, the Asians just know how to make everything better.

(Unless of course you want to argue that the best rice dish is risotto, a similar concept but revolutionary in that it adds an obscene amount of butter.)

So do you have to eat this for breakfast? Um, no! There are no rules! Especially this time of year when lately my kids wonder what dinner used to look like before eggs and frozen pizza. This is a dish for whenever you have just a second to add everything to a pot and forget about it for a nice long while. Okay, not really forget completely. The greatest part about this dish is the more you stir the more it breaks down the rice and the more silky your congee will become but if you only have a minute or two every once in a while it’ll still come out great. That’s the power of low and slow my friends.

I give some basic options for toppings here but feel free to go crazy. My kids decided sprinkles and maple syrup was the way to go and though I’m not suggesting that be your first choice of topping, feel free to try it out. Or better yet, Google Image some photos of congee for real creative inspo or just some drool worthy pics when you reach the end of your Instagram feed

This is kind of a one pot meal going on here cause you are set on carbs, got some protein running through there from the chicken and egg, and vegetable toppings are totally up to you. So one pot meal with a cup of rice and about 3-4 other ingredients is a definite win in my book. (I’ve even included a link to a slow cooker version just in case it’s the only pot you have out right now)

Thank you Seasons for sponsoring this post.

Congee:

1 c sushi rice

4- 6 chicken thighs you can use boneless and skinless thighs for a shortcut

6 c chicken broth

3 thin slices peeled fresh ginger

Salt and pepper to taste

Optional toppings:

Sliced Scallions

Poached/ Soft Boiled Egg

Sliced Cucumbers

Sliced Fresh Ginger

Sriracha

Soy sauce mushrooms (recipe below)

Adapted from @thekitchn

Place the rice in a colander and rinse the rice until the water runs clear or slightly milky. Drain.

In a large pot add the rice, chicken stock, ginger and chicken thighs. Bring the contents to a boil stirring to ensure the rice does not stick to the bottom

Reduce the heat to a simmer and partiallycover the pot. The congee will get creamier the more you stir it but it's not necessary to stir more than 2-3 times just to prevent sticking.

Cook the rice for about 1 1/2 hours or until it resembles a thick porridge with most of the liquid absorbed. Remove the chicken from the pot and shred it before returning it to the pot. Discard any bones, skin or cartilage.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon into bowls and top with desired toppings.

Recipe can be made up to 5 days in advance and stored tightly sealed in the refrigerator. You may need to add more stock when heating it up.

For a slow cooker version add 2 cups of stock and use the directions here:

Soy sauce mushrooms:

7 oz shiitake mushrooms, destemmed and thinly sliced

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp soy sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

In a large frying pan, heat the sesame oil over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and stir until they begin to wilt, about 5 minutes. Add the soy sauce and continue to stir the mushrooms until they brown and the salt sauce is absorbed, about 3 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste and use on top of the congee.

Easy Peasy Chicken Freezy

I've been posting a couple of my secret dinners a.k.a. The stash of pre-marinated chicken and meats that I keep in the freezer for a rainy day. It makes my life so much easier knowing that when all else fails and we don't really want to have frozen pizza for the third night in a row, I have a back up plan. Now don't get me wrong, I'm usually super organized about menu planning and shopping, but we all know those weeks, those times where it's already Wednesday and we are scraping whatever we can together with the last box of pasta and that can of whole tomatoes that's about to expire. It's the weeks where things just popped up and you couldn't go shopping or sit for 5 minutes to clear your head and think about what you could possibly want to eat for the rest of the week or a new season of (fill favorite show in here) was just released on Netflix and the world stops until you finish. The weeks where it's 6:30 and the kids are cranky, the husband walked through the door and all you've got is a pot of water that hasn't yet begun to boil. It's for this reason that I have an emergency stash of stuff.

So basically, this recipe is super duper simple but never fails to impress. It's also pretty hard to mess up because even when the skin is slightly burned it just adds depth and crispy skin- faves! It can be frozen for about 6 months or prepared just a half an hour in advance (or you can cut the marinade time to 2 minutes if you are in a real pinch.) The ingredients are probably already in your pantry and fridge but here's one caveat, get some good quality honey and try if you can to use fresh lemon juice, not the bottled stuff. Quality matters here because it's so simple and the ingredients need to shine. To make this into a meal just cube some potatoes and stick them under the chicken while it bakes.
Seasons carries some good quality lemons and honey. Check it out here:

• 8 chicken thighs
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• A couple of good turns of fresh black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, plus more to garnish
• 2.5 tbsp. light good quality honey
• 1/3 c lemon juice (2 large lemons)
• Lemon slices to garnish

Instructions

1. In a large ziploc bag, add all the ingredients and shake to distribute. Marinate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 450F
3. Spread the chicken over a baking sheet skin side up.
4. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the skin is golden brown and juices run clear
5. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste Serve with lemon slices and fresh thyme leaves.

Chicken may be stored uncooked and frozen for up to 6 mo in a large sealed Ziploc bag.

Thank you Seasons for sponsoring this post.

Sticky Ginger Chicken aka. The Second Time Around

It's been waaaaay too long since I posted here folks. I know, I know, there was a baby involved in this giant delay. But actually my excuse for not getting back to this blog was simply I was lazy (GASP!). Lucky for you though, yes you, I enjoy this writing stuff. and cooking stuff. Just the whole technology thing kind of throws me off. It's probably safe to say I am somewhere in between Old Granny level and Totally Inept. Think, got Facebook six months ago and is still trying to figure out how it works type.

During these past few months dinners have been kind of boring. I haven't been experimenting that much, mostly cause getting used to two kids has been a handful. A good handful, but a handful just the same. What I have been doing is going back to old recipes I created a while back and seeing how they taste, fixing them up and making them better. In a way its like me being my own tester for a cookbook I wrote. It's only possible because I have the memory of a goldfish. It's only possible because I have the memory of a goldfish. It's only possible because I have the memory of a goldfish, which is about three seconds btw. Fun little fact there for ya. Anyway, one of my favorite recipes was this Sticky Ginger Chicken. It's great because it fills my weirdly obsessive obsession with Asian food, allows me to candy coat a chicken and call it healthy because well, its chicken and it has green stuff on top, and also it tastes good which is always a plus.

(BTW. This is for you grammar geeks out there. Yes, my grammar is terrible. So is my spelling but luckily there is spell check. I just decided to write this little aside to you so you know I am not trying to annoy the pants off of you with my misplaced commas and run on sentences. If any of you is volunteering right now to be my editor step right up for the challenge of a life-time. Please note, you will not be paid if you take this position. The only reason you would take this position is because you are so annoyed at this grammar you have to fix it. END RANT)

Back to chicken: The other night I tried this recipe again but I doubled the spices and halved the marinade, thereby making it even healthier *insert thumbs up emoji here* and making it taste even better *double thumbs up emoji* (Good thing I don't totally stink at math otherwise I would be in a real bind.)I then patted myself on the back for a job well done and proceeded to devour the entire pan (Because I was hungry and also because as I mentioned earlier, this chicken tastes good!)

For your viewing pleasure, I have included the recipe before and after. And no, these recipes are not actors, they are real recipes! And these are real results! (As a side note, I should probably stoop watching the infomercial channel....) Either way, I thought it would be fun for you all to see how even when a recipe looks and tastes great, theres always room for improvement the second time around. The work of a blogger is never done. 

PS. To make this recipe Kid Friendly remove the chilies before baking and cooking down the marinade.

New Recipe

Sticky Ginger Chicken

• 1/2 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 inch piece of ginger julienned
• 1 red chili sliced
• juice of 1 medium lemon
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 garlic cloves, minced or grated
• 8 chicken thighs
• 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• 2 scallions thinly sliced
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped

1. Mix together the spices and sprinkle on top of the chicken.
2. Combine the lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce and garlic cloves, red chilies, and ginger in a large resealable bag. Add the chicken to the bag and seal. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 12 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Remove the chicken from the bag, reserving the marinade, and arrange the thighs on the baking sheet. Bake until the skin is caramelized and dark in spots, about 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, place the leftover marinade in a small saucepan, uncovered. Bring the marinade to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook over low heat until thick, about 15 minutes. Use a pastry brush to brush the cooked marinade on the chicken.  Return to the oven for 10 more minutes.
5. Place the chicken on a serving platter and sprinkle with the sesame seeds, sliced scallion and cilantro.
     

Old Recipe

Sticky Ginger Chicken

• 1/4 tsp ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp mustard powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 inch piece of ginger julienned
• 1 red chili sliced
• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 chicken legs cut by the joint to separate thigh and drumstick
• 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• 4 scallions thinly sliced

1. Mix together the spices and sprinkle on top of the chicken.
2. Combine the balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce and garlic cloves, red chilies, and ginger in a large resealable bag. Add the chicken to the bag and seal. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
3. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Top with a cooling rack. Remove the chicken from the bag, reserving the marinade, and arrange the drumsticks on the cooling rack. Bake until the skin is caramelized and dark in spots, about 30 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, place the leftover marinade in a small saucepan, uncovered. Bring the marinade to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook over low heat until thick, about 15 minutes. Use a pastry brush to brush the cooked marinade on the chicken.  Return to the oven for 10 more minutes.
5. Place the chicken on a serving platter and sprinkle with the sesame seeds and the sliced scallion.
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