Honey Soy Sauce Chicken Drumsticks

Today was gorgeous! It was so nice I even got to wear a dress after coming home from work! Major :) But on my way home, I was feeling lethargic, yet again, and I couldn't decide what to do for dinner (aka whether to buy or to cook). I could eat leftover salad (seen here and here), or I could eat something yummy but relatively healthy that would satisfy what I was looking to eat. This is where these drumsticks come into play.

Drumsticks are a very easy way to get juicy and tender meat on the table. You can eat them as is and serve them with a side dish, or cut them up and toss them into a salad. Generally speaking, I usually marinate my chicken with olive oil, fresh rosemary, fresh garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. But I'm always open to trying something new; I liked this recipe because of its flavors with a somewhat Asian flair by using soy sauce and garlic, mixed with the sweetness of honey.

Recipe (makes 2-3 servings):
6 chicken drumsticks
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon garlic, minced (about 1-2 cloves, depending on size)
1/2 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds, optional

Directions:
1. Combine the soy sauce, honey, garlic, and ginger in a Ziploc bag. Place the chicken into the bag, and seal the bag, removing as much excess air as possible. Refrigerate to marinate for at least one hour.

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

3. Lay chicken on a parchment-lined (or aluminum foil lined) baking sheet. Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until chicken is cooked thoroughly to 160 degrees. Every 10 minutes that the chicken is baking, take the pan out from the oven and brush more of the sauce on each drumstick, and then place back into the oven.

4. For the final 3-5 minutes that the chicken is baking, change your oven setting so that you broil the drumsticks, leaving the skin crispy. Top with sesame seeds and serve.

Double Crunch Honey Garlic Chicken

I love fried chicken. And I mean in the finger licking way. Fried chicken is so sinful, yet so delicious. It is absolutely worth breaking any diet for, especially if you can get your hands on the good stuff!

The recipe is very simple; the only tedious part is measuring and sifting together the dry ingredients. Other than that, this recipe is a piece of cake! (I suggest serving this with some veggies, so there's not too much guilt leftover at the end of the night *wink*)

Recipe:
4 Large Chicken Breasts
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons salt
4 teaspoons pepper
3 tablespoons ground ginger
2 tablespoons ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons ground thyme
2 teaspoons ground sage
2 tablespoons paprika
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Canola Oil
4 eggs
8 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Please note: The flour and spice mix is enough to make multiple batches of the chicken. I managed to only use a third of the batch for 4 pieces of chicken. If you have any leftover mix, stick it in a Ziploc bag and freeze it for the next time!

Directions:
1. Make sure that each chicken breast is roughly 1/2 inch thick. (This ensures that the chicken will all cook at the same speed) If not, place the chicken between two sheets of plastic wrap, and use a meat mallet to pound it to a 1/2 inch thickness. As an alternative, you can even slice the breast in half horizontally instead of using a meat mallet.

2. Sift together your flour, salt, pepper, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, ground thyme, ground sage, paprika, and cayenne pepper.

3. Whisk together the eggs and water to create an egg wash.

4. Season the chicken breast with salt and pepper on both sides before dredging in the flour mix. After dredging in the flour mix, dip the chicken in the egg wash, and dredge one more time in the flour mix. (Thus the double crunch)

5. Heat a skillet on the stove with about 1/2 inch of canola oil covering the bottom. You will want to carefully regulate the temperature as you do not want the chicken to brown too quickly. Just below medium heat works best. I kept the stove between 4-4 1/2 on a 10 dial stove and fried them gently for 4-5 minutes per side, until golden brown and crispy. 

Hint: Make sure that both sides of the chicken are still fully dredged before frying. Sometimes after dipping the chicken in the egg wash, the egg wash absorbs the flour. In that case,  just dip that chicken right back into flour mix, then into your pan.

6. Drain the chicken on a wire rack for a few minutes before dipping into the Honey Garlic sauce.

7. Heat a saucepan over medium heat and add the olive oil and minced garlic. Do not let the garlic brown.

8. Add the honey, soy sauce, and pepper and allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. Watch the sauce as it simmer because it can foam up over the pot very easily.

9. Coat the chicken in the sauce and serve immediately.

Chicken Saute with Thyme, Lemon, and Chili

One of my favorite cookbooks (as pictured below) is full of simple and easy recipes. What's especially nice about the book is that it separates recipes based on seasonal fruits and vegetables. So, for example, during the summer season portion of the book, they'll share recipes using summer fruits and vegetables, and in the winter season, they'll share recipes using winter fruits and vegetables. In addition to the recipes, they give a few ideas for side dishes and desserts per season.

Continuing with the chicken dinner streak, I chose the recipe below because I had most of the ingredients already. In addition, I roasted some vegetables as a side dish.

Recipe (makes 2 servings):
2 tbsp      Olive Oil
3/4 lb       Chicken Breast Cutlets
1              Large Shallot, minced
2 tsp        Fresh Thyme, minced
1/2 - 1     Serrano Chile, minced
1/3 cup    Dry White Wine
2 tbsp      Fresh Lemon Juice
Coarse Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

Ingredients

Yum!

1. In a large frying pan over medium heat, warm 1 tbsp of olive oil. Season the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper and add to the frying pan. Saute until cooked through, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer chicken to 2 plates when finished cooking.

2. Add the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil to the same frying pan, and then add the shallot, thyme, and chile. Saute until the shallot begins to soft, about 1 minute. Add the wine and lemon juice, boil, stirring up the browned bits on the pan bottom, until syrupy, about 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. Add any juices from the plate holding the chicken to the sauce and stir well. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve right away. 

Roasted Vegetable Side Dish: 

Ingredients: Carrots, Parsnips, Red Potatoes, Cauliflower

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Marinate vegetables with whatever seasonings you like. I used kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, and fresh rosemary. Toss in bowl so vegetables are evenly coated

3. Prepare a roasting pan. Grease the bottom of a pan, or line with parchment paper.

4. Arrange vegetables. Place vegetables in a single layer in pan.

5. Once oven is preheated, slide vegetables onto middle rack. Roast for 10 minutes, then stir vegetables. Roast for another 10 minutes, then stir vegetables. Roast for another 10 minutes. 

Delicious!

Baked Balsamic Vinegar and Soy Sauce Chicken

I love making baked drumsticks. No matter the marinade. Reason being, you can really make any marinade, bake it at 400 degrees for 30-40 minutes, and end up with something tender and delicious. I was thinking about making my usual drumsticks (that will be for another day) for tonight's dinner until I saw this recipe for Baked Balsamic Vinegar and Soy Sauce Chicken.

The chicken turned out delicious! (I'm talking licking my fingers good) It was sweet and sticky and savory all in one!

INGREDIENTS: Black Pepper, Soy Sauce, Balsamic Vinegar, Brown Sugar, Honey, Garlic, Ginger, Drumsticks

Add all of your ingredients in a medium size bowl

Place drumsticks in a large Ziploc bag (I didn't have any available, so I used two sandwich bags instead) and then pour the marinade into the bag. I let the chicken sit in the fridge to marinate for a little over 7 hours, flipping the bag over every so often.

After the first 25 minutes of baking, before putting the second coat of sauce on top

40 minutes of baking and 3 coats of sauce later...

Garlic-Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables

Two weekends ago, I was lazing around watching the Food Network. On comes the episode where Giada de Laurentiis is cooking chicken three different ways, and I loved how simple it was to make her Garlic-Roasted Chicken with Root Vegetables recipe. What's great about the recipe is that you don't need a million ingredients, and for the ingredients you do need, they're things that you can easily incorporate into other dishes.

The ingredients

Getting ready to mix the herbed butter (at room temperature, of course)

Getting ready to toss the root vegetables together with the herbs/spices and olive oil

Right before putting the chicken and vegetables in the oven

An hour and a half later, we're left with crispy skin, succulent meat, and deliciously roasted vegetables! Bon apetit!