Moroccan-spiced Roast Chicken

 

I was inspired to make a Moroccan-style roast after having some super tasty barbecued chicken at Gladstone Park Bowling Club recently. They also served up the most amazingly crispy and delicious roasted potatoes. Best I've ever had. I'm still trying to figure out they made those potatoes, and if I do, you'll see it here first! Anyway, I came across this recipe for Moroccan-spiced roast chicken and thought it might be close to what I was searching for. Well, it turned out really good, and I loved the idea of tossing the cauliflower and sweet potatoes with the spice mix. This is a nice change from the usual lemon and herb roasted chicken I usually make for the family. And with summer just around the corner, this spice rub will be perfect for barbecued chicken wings and thighs.

 

 

Moroccan-spiced Roast Chicken

Adapted from Leite's Culinaria

 

Ingredients

 

One whole chicken (1.8kg / 4lbs)

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp sweet paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

3/4 tsp chilli flakes

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 lemon

4 tablespoons olive oil

2 small orange-fleshed sweet potatoes, unpeeled

1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into 2-inch florets

1 large red onion, cut into 8 wedges 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 430°F (220°C). Slick a heavy large rimmed baking sheet–preferably not a roasting pan, but if you do use a roasting pan, make it a big one–with a little oil.

2. Pull out and discard the fat and giblets from the cavity of the chicken. Pat the chicken very dry with paper towels. Starting at the edge of the main cavity, slide a finger under the skin over each breast half, making a pocket between the skin and meat. Rub a total of 2-3 teaspoons of salt over the chicken skin. Toss some extra salt inside the cavity. Sprinkle the chicken generously with black pepper. Tie the legs together, if desired.

3. In a small bowl, mix the paprika, cumin, chilli flakes, and cinnamon. Set aside 2 teaspoons of the spice mixture for the vegetables. The rest is for the chicken. Finely grate the zest from the lemon, cut the lemon in two, and mix the zest into the spices for the chicken. Gradually mix in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to make a paste. Spread a little of the paste inside the cavity, slather some of it under the skin over the chicken breasts, and rub the rest of the paste all over the outside of the chicken. Stuff the lemon inside the cavity. Place the chicken in the center of the baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it and if it browns too quickly cover it loosely with a sheet of foil.

4. Meanwhile, cut the sweet potatoes in half crosswise, and then quarter each half lengthwise to create wedges. Combine the sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and onion in a bowl. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and toss to coat. Add the reserved spice mixture, sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper, and toss to coat.


5. After the chicken has roasted for 30 minutes, remove it from the oven. Arrange the vegetables around the chicken. Return the pan to the oven and continue roasting until cooked (about another 40 minutes). (Note: the bird will take longer to roast if the legs have been tied together).

6. Transfer the chicken to a platter and let rest for 10 minutes. Carve the chicken and serve with the vegetables.

 

Oh so juicy!

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Garlic Fried Rice

In my previous post, I made a Miso Grilled Chicken which I served with garlic fried rice. The recipe for the fried rice is really simple, where I basically fried the chopped garlic until it's lightly golden and crisp before tossing the rice in with some eggs, soy sauce and scallions. Please find the recipe after the jump.

Garlic Fried Rice

Ingredients

Vegetable oil, for frying
2 large eggs, beaten
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1/2 tbsp butter
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups cooked white rice, refrigerated overnight
2 tbsp soy sauce
Dash of pepper
1/4 cup chopped scallions

Method

Heat 1 tbsp vegetable oil in a wok and swirl around to coat. Pour beaten egg into the wok, and when it's almost set, scramble it and chop it up with a spatula. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Heat 1 tbsp oil in the wok and fry the sliced garlic on medium heat until lightly golden. Remove the garlic chips and set aside. Leave the oil in the wok.

Add a little more oil to the wok if not enough, plus the butter. Fry the chopped garlic until lightly golden. Quickly toss in the rice (use a fork to scrape the rice into the wok if it's too hard and clumpy). Spread out the rice in the wok so that it heats and cooks evenly. Drizzle soy sauce on the outer edges of the rice and stir through. Add the cooked egg and pepper and toss through the rice. Finally add the scallions and fry for 30 seconds. Turn off heat and transfer to a serving plate. Garnish with garlic chips and serve.

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Grilled Miso Chicken

 

It's been a busy weekend in the kitchen. The kids have been waiting all year (since last Christmas) to make gingerbread men, and so we did that this afternoon and they had fun painting the gingerbread men, trees and stars pastel colours of blue, green and pink. They enjoyed them so much that I couldn't bear to eat any (maybe I will pinch a bit when they're not looking!). In the midst of the baking and cookie-decorating, I prepared a simple dinner of grilled miso chicken. With the leftover rice in the fridge, I made a garlic butter fried rice (click here for recipe) to serve with the chicken. And since there were bones from the thighs I had deboned, I made a chicken soup with carrot and corn. No waste!

 

 

For a fuss-free meal (and more time to do Christmas shopping...), let the oven do all the cooking and enjoy this oh-so-tasty grilled chicken with garlic and miso.

Grilled Miso Chicken

Ingredients

6 medium-large chicken thighs, deboned, skin on

Marinade:
4 tbsp Shiro Miso (white miso paste)
3 tbsp mirin
2 tbsp sake
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 tsp brown sugar

Method

Rinse the chicken and pat dry.

Combine marinade ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.

In a large bowl or a Ziploc bag, combine the chicken with the marinade ingredients. Seal the bowl/bag and refrigerate for 3-4 hours.

Preheat oven to 200C (400F). Arrange chicken in a single layer, skin side up, on a baking tray lined with baking paper or aluminium foil. Place in oven on the top rack and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, switch on the grill function and turn up the heat to 220C (430F). Use a brush to baste the chicken skin with the juices on the tray. Continue to cook the chicken for 15 minutes until the skin is charred and crisp. Watch it closely as it can burn quite quickly.

Remove the chicken from the tray and cut into slices.

Pour out the juices from the tray into a bowl. Skim off the oil and discard. The remaining makes a delicious sauce you can serve with the chicken and some steamed or fried rice.

For garlic fried rice recipe, click here.

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Okonomiyaki Pancake-style Gyoza

There are some things in life that just can't wait, like these beautifully charred pork dumplings (or gyozas) topped with okonomiyaki sauce, mayonnaise, spring onions and bonito flakes. I was getting my regular TV fix of Destination Flavour Japan last week, and as I watched Adam Liaw flip over a pan of crisp charred dumplings onto a plate, I couldn't help but imagine how tasty those gyozas would be if I could just have a bite. Gyozas are similar to Chinese potstickers (guotie), though their Chinese counterparts usually have thicker skins and are slightly bigger. Both are usually served with a soy and vinegar dipping sauce, sometimes with chilli oil and shredded ginger too.

By the way, check out these dancing bonito flakes below!

I've never made gyoza wrappers from scratch before, though they are really good because you can roll them out thinly and they get nice and crisp after frying. If you can't spare the time to make them, store-bought wrappers work fine too. In the show, Adam used Otafuku sauce, which is a popular brand of Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake) sauce. I decided to make my own sauce from scratch based on my Modanyaki recipe post.

 

These pancake-style gyozas are fantastic, especially with the tangy okonomiyaki sauce and the creamy mayonnaise. The best part are the burnt black bottoms of the dumplings, which gives it the extra oomph! Seriously. The addition of the potato starch solution during the last part of cooking gives the gyozas the wafer-thin crispy "wings" on the edges. A word of advice: please use a good non-stick pan, and by that I mean one that still has the non-stick coating over it. The pan I used was really old and worn, and so some of the dumplings got stuck to the surface, which made it tricky to pry them off without tearing the delicate skins. Nevertheless, I manage to salvage most of them to a reasonable extent. Most importantly, they tasted good!

I'm looking forward to making these again. Miss H was only too happy to help with rolling out the dumpling skins. Next time, I might teach her how to pleat them, neatly. And in a few more years, I'll be able to sit back and supervise her in the kitchen! Patience. Do try your hand at making these gyozas. It's fun to serve them okonomiyaki-style (we love Japanese mayo!).  They are equally delicious when simply served with a soy and vinegar dipping sauce.

Click here to continue to the Gyoza Recipe plus more photos! >>
 

Charred - mission complete!

 

 

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Beef Lasagne

 

As Mr G was clearing the dishes after dinner, he started whinging about how he's always clearing the dishes. I told him "I've always offered you the chance to cook while I babysit and clean up, but you always say that I'm the cook". Well, I knew he would rather "clean up" than cook anyway, and dare I say that I trust my cooking more? Haha. I have to give him credit for some of his culinary skills. Let's see now... Mr G's forte lies in his famous Hainanese chicken rice. Famous because anyone who is invited to our home for the first time is usually treated to this Singaporean favourite. Oooh...he bakes a good pineapple-glazed Christmas ham, and roast beef too. We'll be looking forward to that soon! And last but not least, he does a pretty good lasagne. I say "pretty good" because the recipe is in his head, and sometimes it can be a little inconsistent. The last lasagne he made had too much béchamel and mozzarella cheese in it. He blamed it on the brand of cheese he used. However, little H loved the cheesiness and sauciness of the lasagne.

 

I decided that I would have a go at making lasagne this time, and I have made it in the past before. The only thing was that I forgot which recipe I used, and it wasn't on my blog either. Basic lasagne recipes are quite similar, with differences in the amount of meat it contains, and whether béchamel sauce is used.  I love mine with the creamy béchamel, and so here's a simple recipe for delicious lasagne that you can try at home.

 

Beef Lasagne

Serves 8

 

Ingredients

 

1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, chopped

120g bacon, diced

600g beef mince

1 large carrot, diced

4 tbsp tomato paste

800g canned diced tomatoes

1 cup red wine

1 bay leaf

2 tsp dried oregano or Italian herbs

2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp sugar

Salt and black pepper

 

250g lasagne sheets

1/2 cup grated parmesan

1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

 

Béchamel sauce:

80g butter

1/3 cup plain flour

3 cups milk

3/4 cup grated parmesan

Salt and black pepper

 

Method

 

In a large deep pan, heat oil and fry the onions until softened. Add garlic and bacon and fry for 2 minutes. Add the beef mince and break it up with the spatula. Mash it up if you can so that it doesn't form large clumps when cooked.

Next, add the carrot, followed by tomato paste, diced tomatoes, red wine, bay leaf,  herbs, vinegar and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 2 hours until it's slightly reduced but not runny. Add sugar, salt and black pepper to taste. By then, it should taste rich and aromatic, so you know it's ready. Turn off heat and set aside.

 

Preheat oven to 180C (350F).

 

Prepare béchamel sauce. In a saucepan, melt the butter and then stir in the flour. Continue stirring for 2 minutes until it's cooked. It shouldn't smell of raw flour. Gradually add milk and stir to mix into a paste, until you get a smooth white sauce. Continue stirring for a few minutes until it starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. Stir in parmesan and season with salt and pepper. Don't let the sauce get too thick, as it will continue to thicken upon standing. Turn off heat and set aside.

In a large deep rectangular casserole dish, spoon a thin layer of the meat sauce over the bottom. Place a layer of lasagne sheets on top. Ladle some meat sauce over, followed by a layer of béchamel. Repeat layering with the lasagne sheet, meat sauce and béchamel until you reach the top. Finish off by scattering the grated parmesan and mozzarella over the béchamel layer.

 

Cover the dish loosely with aluminium foil, and bake in oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for another 15 minutes until the top of the lasagne browns.  Serve immediately with a side of salad and garlic bread.

 

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Lamb Kofta Kebab

 

In my previous post, I wrote about my first time dining at a Lebanese (or Middle-eastern) restaurant, Al Aseel. I had ordered the "Mixed Plate", comprising an array of dips and a three types of grilled meats on skewers - chicken, lamb and kafta. I wasn't a fan of the chicken as I found it a little dry. The lamb was not bad, but my favourite was the kafta.

 

Kofta generally refers to savoury balls of ground meat (or vegetables, potatoes, lentils etc) mixed with spices, herbs or other ingredients. In Lebanese cuisine, it's called kafta and is usually made with ground beef, allspice, parsley and onions. I decided to make a lamb kofta kebab instead by placing the lamb mince on skewers and then grilling them on the barbecue. You can use either beef, lamb or a combination of both.

You may serve this with some Lebanese bread (or any flatbread), hummus and tahini sauce with tabouli as a salad.  I also made some beef kebabs which is simply taking some good quality beef steaks (I used scotch fillet), cut into chunky cubes and skewered with alternating onions (or use bell peppers). Brush with oil and season with salt and pepper before grilling them on the barbecue. Serve together with the bread, dips and salad.

 

Lamb Kofta Recipe

Ingredients

500g lamb mince
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 tbsp chopped coriander
1 1/2 tbsp chopped parsley
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or substitute with chilli powder), or more to taste

Vegetable oil for brushing
6 metal skewers

Method

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients (except oil) and mix well using your hands until it becomes pasty and sticks together. Refrigerate for an hour until firm. This makes it easier to skewer the meat without it falling apart.

Take a handful of the mixture and "mould" it onto the metal skewer to form a long sausage-shape. Try to do this in one go and not move the mixture around the skewer too much. Otherwise it might not stick onto the skewer properly. Repeat until you finish the mixture.

Prepare a barbeque grill. Brush some oil over the lamb skewers and place them on the grill. Cook, turning occasionally until it's charred outside. Once cooked, transfer onto a serving plate. Serve immediately with pita bread, dips and tabouli.

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