Baked Honey Chili Chicken Thighs

Honey Chili Chicken Thighs

Chicken thighs are a great item to cook for a crowd.  They're cost efficient, time efficient when baked or bbq-ed, and pretty forgiving since dark meat tends to be moist even if you overcook it a few minutes.  I was looking for a recipe for an 8 person potluck and found this one after browsing one my favorite food sites, The Kitchn.  The name is a bit misleading since it wasn't spicy at all, but that's probably because I used mexican chili powder instead of red chili powder.  The honey and beer caramelized while baking and added a subtle sweetness to the dish.  I couldn't really taste the beer, so just open up whatever you may have on hand.  The accompanying cilantro sauce goes great with the chicken, with vegetables, and even by itself over rice.  I made the sauce once with sour cream as the original recipe called for and once with plain yogurt.  I liked my yogurt version better since it's healthier and has more of a tang to it.  This reheats pretty well so if you're like me you'll make a big batch to send some home with your guests or have leftovers for lunch the next day.

Ad Hoc Buttermilk Fried Chicken @ Bouchon - Beverly Hills, CA

After hearing so many great things about Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc Buttermilk Fried Chicken, I was ecstatic to learn that the Beverly Hills Bouchon occasional served a Fried Chicken dinner.  With much planning and anticipation, we finally made it out there one 3-day weekend to try it.  The Fried Chicken dinner to-go even came in a white cardboard bucket, reminiscent of another common fried chicken joint.  

At $36/person, each order contained three pieces of fried chicken, a NY cheddar biscuit and gravy, mac and cheese, and fresh corn salad.  We picked up our bucket and ate at the tables in the adjacent park.  

The chicken was truly one of the best fried chickens I've ever had.  The buttermilk coating was crisp and flaky.  Both white and dark meat pieces were incredibly moist and full of flavor from brining.  The biscuits were buttery and soft, complete with a slightly crisp exterior shell.  There were salty cheddar bits sprinkled throughout the biscuit.  

I really enjoyed the fried strips of thyme mixed into our bucket contents.  The mashed potato and corn salad sides were also delicious and we gobbled it up before I was able to get a picture.  I would definitely come back again to have this as a treat.  The restaurant was nice but I think I preferred our method of getting a to-go bucket and enjoying it outdoors in the park.  Don't forget to visit the Bouchon bakery for some macarons for dessert! 

The special Ad Hoc Fried Chicken dinner is only available on select Monday nights.  Check Bouchon's events webpage for upcoming dates.

Bouchon

235 N Canon Drive

Beverly Hills, CA 90210

(310) 271-9910

The Playground - Santa Ana, CA

The food truck craze has come a long way.  Being first a fan of The Lime Truck, we were excited to hear that chef Jason Quinn started his own B&M restaurant.  Complete with daily changing menus using fresh ingredients of the season, the restaurant has garnered many rave reviews and now we can finally contribute to that. 

-- Food ---

The Playground Burger - This burger was not on the menu but ask your server and he/she will know.  After the first bite I immediately knew - this is one of the best burgers I've ever had. The patty is medium to medium-rare, extremely tender with an incredibly rich and juicy meat flavor.  Mustard by itself is not something I have typically seen in my recent burger adventures, but in my opinion I thought the mustard sauce paired very well with the burger.   This burger is a must have if it's your first time.

Dragon Roasted Broccoli - A roasted broccoli dish that wasn't very interesting. I would pass on re-ordering this dish next time.

Roasted Sunchokes - Sliced sunchokes browned in olive oil and a unique blend of seasonings.  It's not bad. 

Modernist Fried "Brick" 1/2 Jidori Chicken with San Marzano Tomato & Peas - Although the dish is listed as a half chicken, it is not your typical rotisserie sized "half-chicken" - it's a lot smaller.  The plate holds about three pieces of chicken with a rolled blend of white and dark meats together.  The chicken is amazing and the skin is wonderfully crispy.  The chicken and the off-menu burger were the standout favorites for me. 

---  Service ---

The service was prompt and friendly.  Our server's recommendation for the half brick chicken was spot-on.  I also really like restaurants that leave the carafe water bottle at the table to serve ourselves.  When we emptied the bottle, another bottle was placed on our table - like.  

On the menu they list a "Fun Fact".  A 3% gratuity is added to all food orders to thank the chefs who work hard in cooking and preparing the food.  Not too bad, but also not really that "fun" for the customer.

--- Environment ---

The red painted walls, eccentric paintings and art pieces give a unique feel to the place.  The large board of beer and wide selection of beer taps behind the bar is also a plus.  No TV's for watching sports, just a pretty cool open seating area to hang out and enjoy your food.

--- Parking---

Metered parking wasn't a problem for Saturday dinner around 5pm.  One quarter will give you 20 minutes in the meter..  There seems to also be some free street parking in the back streets behind the restaurant.

40 Clove Garlic Chicken

 

I've had this recipe bookmarked for years and finally got the chance to make it.  My one hesitation has always been that I didn't want to peel 40 cloves of garlic!  Alas, on a recent trip to Costco we decided to buy the huge bag of peeled garlic cloves and it's been a treat using garlic in everything and not having to deal with the stickiness of peeling it.  This recipe turned out great in the dutch oven - the chicken was nicely browned and even the white meat retained its juiciness.  The gravy really took on the herby flavor of thyme and went great over rice.  One great surprise was that although the dish looked very garlicky, it did not taste or smell overwhelmingly of garlic.  The garlic cloves when eaten individually boasted a lovely roasted garlic flavor, but the rest of the dish didn't resonate that flavor.  I'm not sure if I just got too used to the garlic smell and flavor or if this rings true for others who've done this recipe. 

40 Clove Garlic Chicken

Serves 4-6

Adapted from smittenkitchen

1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces, at room temperature

Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
40 large garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup chicken stock or canned broth

10 sprigs fresh thyme 

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

1. Season chicken with salt and pepper.  Place a deep skillet or Dutch oven on high heat and add oil and butter.  When butter has melted and oil is hot, add chicken pieces skin side down and brown until golden brown.  Flip chicken pieces over and brown the other side, about 5 minutes on each side.  Work in batches if necessary so pan does not get overcrowded.  Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.
2. Reduce heat to medium.  Add garlic cloves to the pan and saute for about 10 minutes.  Add white wine and stock, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan.
3. Return chicken to the pan.  Add thyme.  Cover and continue cooking about 30 minutes until juices run clear when chicken thigh is pierced. 
4. Remove chicken from the pan and place on a serving plate.  Cover with foil.  Ladle out about 1/2 cup of the sauce that remains in the pan.  Stir cornstarch into the reserved sauce until no more clumps are seen.  While stirring the sauce in the pan, slowly pour the cornstarch mixture into the pan.  Remove from heat and continue stirring until sauce thickens.  Pour sauce, garlic cloves and all, over the plated chicken.  Serve with rice and veggies.

Chicken paprikash

Looking for a way to use up paprika (somehow I ended up with an excess of paprika from the bulk spices section), I came upon this recipe for Chicken Paprikash, a traditional Hungarian dish.  The sauce from this dish is slightly creamy and slightly smokey from the paprika.  It was great over rice and would be just as wonderful over pasta.  Though I used chicken tenders instead of skin-on chicken pieces per the original recipe, the chicken remained moist and flavorful.

Chicken Paprikash
adapted from Simply Recipes
serves 4-6

2 lbs of chicken tenders
Salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large yellow onions
Black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1-2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup sour cream

1. Let the chicken come to room temperature and salt well.  Meanwhile, slice the onions lengthwise.
2. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat.  When pan is hot, add the butter.  Pat chicken pieces dry with a paper towel and place them into the pan.  Cook for 4-5 minutes on each side until well browned.  Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.
3. Add sliced onions to the saute pan and cook until lightly browned.  Be sure to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.
4. Add paprika, cayenne pepper and black pepper to the onions and stir to combine.  Add 1 cup of chicken broth.  Return chicken to the pan and nestle down into the onions.  Add more chicken broth if it seems like the liquid is not enough.  Cover pan and cook on a low simmer for 20 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked and the juices run clear when you pierce the thickest piece.
5. When chicken is cooked, remove the chicken from the pan and remove the pan from the heat.  Slowly stir in the sour cream and add salt to taste.  Add chicken back into the pan and cover with the sauce.  Serve over rice or pasta or starch of your choice.

Spinach pesto chicken pasta

We had some friends over for dinner and made a quick pesto chicken pasta, using ingredients from my definitively favorite store: Costco!  I included a package of frozen spinach and it added a good flavor while boosting the veggie content.

Spinach Pesto Chicken Pasta
6 servings

1 lb pasta (preferably short-cut pasta like rotini, farfalle or penne)
1 10oz. bag frozen chopped spinach
1/2 white or brown onion, diced
2.5 cups grape tomatoes, quartered
2 cups shredded chicken (we used Costco rotisserie chicken)
1/3 cup pesto sauce (homemade or from Costco)
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Cook frozen spinach according to the directions on the package.  Drain spinach and set aside.  In a saucepan on medium-high heat, saute the diced onions until soft and translucent.  Add spinach and grape tomatoes, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes and then remove from heat.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook pasta until al dente, according to the directions on the package. When draining the pasta, reserve 1 cup of the pasta liquid.  Rinse pasta with cold water to stop cooking and return pasta to the large pot.
3. Stir the spinach, tomatoes and onions into the pasta.  Add shredded chicken and pesto sauce and stir to combine.  If the pasta is too dry, add some of the reserved pasta liquid until desired consistency.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve warm.

Chicken enchiladas

With leftover chicken, corn and tortillas, all I needed was a quick stop at Trader Joe's to get everything else for these delicious enchiladas.  What a great way to use up leftovers and also have enough for a second meal!  It's easy to substitute ingredients in this recipe, making it ideal for cleaning out the fridge.

Enchiladas
4-6 servings


2 cups leftover meat of your choice (shredded chicken, ground beef, etc.)
1 can corn
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can diced green chilies
2 tsp chili pepper
12 flour tortillas
1 16oz jar salsa of your choice (I used TJ's Chipotle Salsa and it gave it a good level of spiciness)
2 cups shredded  cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend
1 can sliced olives

1. Preheat the oven to 400F.  Stir-fry the meat, corn, black beans, tomatoes, green chili and chili pepper in a saucepan over medium-high heat for 5 minutes.  Remove filling from heat and let cool slightly.
2. In a 9x13 baking pan, spread 1/3 of the salsa into the bottom of the pan.  Spoon 1/3 cup of the filling evenly down the center of a tortilla.  Roll tortilla tightly around the filling and place seam side down in the baking pan.  Pour remaining salsa evenly over the top of the enchiladas.  Spread cheese and olives evenly over the top of the salsa.
3. Bake for 25 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.  Remove from oven and let sit 10 minutes before serving.