Recipes

Here are some recipes that I cook regularly. More recipes will be added as I write them down and take photos of cooking with them.

Baked BBQ flavoured Chicken Thighs

Seasoning Rub

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons paprika
• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
• 2 cloves fresh minced garlic

Main Ingredients

• Approximately 8-9 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
• 1 tablespoons ground black pepper
• 1 tsp crushed dried thyme
• 1/4 cup olive oil

BBQ Gravy (Optional)

• a few tablespoons of Ketchup (or tomato paste)
• 1/2 cup dry white wine (substitute with cold water, if needed)
• 1-2 tablespoons arrowroot starch, corn starch, rice flower, or all purpose flower.

Special Cooking Equipment

• 1 Mortar and Pestle (if you don't have a mortar and pestle, replace the 2 fresh garlic cloves with 1tsp garlic powder, and mix the seasoning rub together in a bowl).
• 1 Large skillet, baking pan, or paella pan
• 1 whisk (if making the optional gravy)

Instructions

First, mince two garlic cloves and add them to your mortar and pestle.

Add the salt and mash the garlic and salt into a paste.

Next, add the brown sugar and paprika and mash until the ingredients are combined well.

Add the chicken thighs to your pan and rub them with olive oil. Then, rub around 3-4 tablespoons of the seasoning rub to the thighs, making sure not to leave many clumps of seasoning. The seasoning should mostly dissolve into the olive oil.

Once seasoned with the rub, place the chicken thighs in the pan, in a way that maximizes the space between each thigh. You want to keep them from touching, if possible.

sprinkle pepper and dried thyme over-top of the chicken and then bake in a 350F degree oven for approximately 45 minutes. If you're using a convection oven, bake at 325F.

As the chicken cooks, it will release water that will accumulate in the pan. The level of the water depends on the chicken, itself, and on how crowded your pan is. After about 20-25 minutes, you should take the pan out of the oven and check the water level. In the picture on the left, the pan is angled, so you can see the water in the right side of the pan. That's a less than average amount of water for me (I usually have more chicken crowding the pan, though).

Flip the chicken thighs over, to cook their backs, and fry the chicken over medium heat, on your stove-top. Stir very frequently, until most or all of the the liquid has been evaporated. This should take 2-5 minutes, depending on the liquid level and the frequency of your stirring.

After the liquid has been evaporated, place the chicken back in the oven for the remainder of the 45 minutes.

After the 45 minutes is complete, check the chicken for doneness, by cutting a few pieces or using a kitchen thermometer that's specially designed for thin cuts of meat. Place the chicken back in the oven for a few more minutes, if it's not done.

Gravy Instructions

Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pan and heat the pan, over medium head, on your stovetop. Combine the starch/flour of your choice with wine in a bowl or cup and stir it with a fork. In cooking terms, this is called a slurry. Pour half the slurry into the pan and whisk it furiously, to remove all cooked-on food from the bottom of the pan. This is called deglazing the pan. Add more of the slurry to the pan and repeat, until the gravy has come to a consistency that you enjoy. To add extra flavour to the gravy, you can add some ketchup or tomato paste and some of the seasoning rub to the gravy, as it's cooking.

Balsamic Garden Salad

Dressing

• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp crushed dried basil
• 1/2 tsp crushed dried oregano

Whisk together the mustard, basil, oregano, and vinegar. Next, slowly stream in the olive oil, while vigorously whisking the mixture, to create an emulsion. The lecithin in the mustard acts as an emulsifier, which combines the water (vinegar) with the oil (olive oil) to create a creamy, rich texture. For a large salad, double or triple this recipe.

Salad

• Green/Red leaf lettuce or Romaine lettuce
• 1/2 large red onion: slice into thin disks and only use the outer rings
• handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in halfs

Optional

• a few thinly cut radishes
• any other salad vegetable you enjoy and have lying around.
• grilled chicken or fish
• sliced almonds

tear or slice the lettuce into 1 inch squares, or a size that you prefer. Then, add the onion, tomato and any other salad ingredients that you enjoy. Just before serving, add as much of the dressing as you'd like and toss the salad repeatedly in the dressing, to coat all of the ingredients well.