Sichuan chicken |
So I got back
from a trip and all I had were 3 chicken thighs in the freezer, an onion, 3
cloves of garlic, half a bell pepper, half a carrot, a tomato and some beans. This is what I did:
First I sliced
the vegetables and garlic – all pretty finely – the carrot in little julienne
strips, same with the beans. I like to
do all the vegetables first before cutting up the meat to avoid any cross
contamination.
Julienned carrots |
Then I cut up
the chicken into half inch or so cubes.
I put it in a bowl with a generous splosh of both soy sauce and fish
sauce together with about a dessert spoonful of a hot chilli jam I had in the
fridge (you could substitute any other sort of chilli sauce or even a few
chilli flakes). Then I added 2 teaspoons
of Sichuan pepper and 2 teaspoons of white peppercorns ( I pounded it all up in
my small mortar and pestle I use for spices) It sat there only for about 15
minutes before cooking – but you could leave it for a couple of hours in the
fridge if you wanted the flavours to meld more.
If you don’t like things too peppery – maybe this isn’t the recipe for
you! Or you could halve the quantity of
pepper.
So to the
cooking. Vegetable oil in the pan – then
a quick fry of the garlic slices, add the meat, once it has coloured a bit, add
some golden syrup or brown sugar (say 1-2 tablespoons). Then add the other vegetable in order from
hardest to softest – ie carrot and onion first followed by the beans and bell
pepper - with the tomato going in only
at the last minute. Right at the end I
added about a spoonful of limoncello (a lemon liqueur which I bought at duty
free) – but a bit of lemon juice or lemon zest would work just as well.
Limoncello |
While this is
all cooking – and it only takes about 15 minutes all up – cook some noodles or
rice. I did noodles this time.
Serve by
putting the roughly drained noodles into a large bowl, add the chicken mixture,
sprinkle a bit of chopped parsley (or any other fresh green herb) on top along
with some crispy onion (you can buy this from Asian stores – an optional extra
would be fine without it). The photo of
this dish was taken before I put the crispy onions on because I almost forgot
them. It turned out really delicious
which is why I thought I would share it with you.
You might also be interested in this post on making jam (or jelly). If so, click here
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You might also be interested in this post on making jam (or jelly). If so, click here
If you liked this post, it would be great if you shared it with your readers. You just have to click on one of the buttons underneath the post. They make it easy for you to email, blog, tweet, Facebook or Google +1. Thank you so much for reading my post.
Looks delicious! :)
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it. Thanks for taking the time to comment
DeleteThank you for your comments to my post. Your chicken recipe sounds lovely and I am copying it to try soon.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds amazing, I am definitely going to have to try it.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and commenting on the Pineapple Pork Ribs.
Thanks for stopping by my blog. Your food looks and sounds amazing. I'll have to give this a try. I love just about anything with chili sauce. :-) I'm off to read more of your blog now.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you stopped by. Hope you enjoy my posts.
DeleteLooks delicious, such great flavors in the dish, love peppery food! and I love how you finished it with limoncello!
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it. Thanks for popping by to comment.
Deletewill definitely try this one carole...
ReplyDeletehttp://downeystummyjourney.blogspot.com.au/
Thanks for stopping by
DeleteThanks for dropping by my blog, Carole :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a vegetarian, so I can't comment on this dish - but I like your addition of lemon liqueur instead of lemon juice; I think I must do more of this stuff ... secretly, haha ;)
Sorry about sending you a link to a non vege dish. Tonight we had a little Limoncello and Prosecco cocktail - Yum - but strong!
DeleteCarole, thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting. You do have a very tasty chicken dish that we would love. I chuckled when I saw you were from New Zealand. We have been talking about selling our home, putting everything in storage and spending 1/2 year in France and then the rest of the year in New Zealand. Have not been there, but my husband is a fly fisherman, and you know what that means. Maybe, we will see you someday. smiling.......
ReplyDeleteWell, how aout that? Thanks for stopping by
DeleteHope you enjoy the chicken and the blog
Thanks for stopping by and giving me the link to this. It looks tasty
ReplyDeleteLooks lovely, the limoncello would add a luxurious twist to a classic Chinese dish x
ReplyDeletethanks for your comment. I tried the limoncello with some Prosecco last night - very nice but a bit strong!
DeleteAwesome use of leftovers! I have never bought limoncello... But can only imagine how much taste this adds!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. Much appreciated.
DeleteSounds amazing, I'll need to give this a try!
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it. Thanks for commenting
DeleteDelicious looking and wonderful dish with lots of flavors..Limoncello sounds an interesting,can imagine the flavor of this dish..will surely try this.
ReplyDeleteDelicious looking dish with lots of flavors..Limoncello sounds interesting,can imagine the flavor..will surely try this.
ReplyDeleteThank you for linking to this in your comment! I'm always looking for new recipes and this sounds easy/delicious!
ReplyDeleteThank you,too.
DeleteMmmm... this looks very delicious and I love the adding of lemon liqueur. Will get one soon.
ReplyDeleteThank you for visiting to my blog. :)
Thanks for stopping by
DeleteThis looks delicious. I love these sorts of demonstrations of how to cook whatever is on hand. Great job!
ReplyDeleteLimoncello is an interesting addition to your recipe. I love how you put together a tasty dish with just what you had in the frig.
ReplyDeleteThanks. You are a star for stopping by to comment.
DeleteHi Carole- Isn't it great when you just whip something up and it turns out great?! It looks professional and tasty. It sounds nice and peppery too. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment
DeleteThat is one heck of a gourmet on the fly last minute recipe! I'm impressed! Delicious! :)
ReplyDeleteYou are a star for taking the time to comment. Of course I don't post when things don't turn out that well ...
DeleteLOL! I don't either.. ;)
DeleteIn fact I tried to do tofu last night - an abject failure!
DeleteWow looks so beautiful! Here's my recipe for Chewy Granola Bars
ReplyDeletethanks, Peggy Ann. I looked at it earlier today via Beth Fish.
DeleteI love this kind of meal -- putting together something fabulous with what I have on hand. Good job. Oh, and thanks for the limoncello tip. Funny that I cook with a lot of liqueurs but I'm not sure I ever reached for my limoncello. I will next time. :)
ReplyDeleteMarg, I accidentally deleted your kind comment - sorry. Am having to use my new iPad to do comments since my pc failed yesterday - hard disk error. And I don't quite know how to do things right on the iPad yet. Hopefuully, I will get a new laptop today!
ReplyDeleteHopefully you do get you new computer soon!
DeleteThe sooner the better. I shoulld't moan though I had had it for about 8 years. And I was pretty well backed up.
DeleteLooks delicious! Thanks for sharing the link. we love homemade Chinese food at our house.
ReplyDeleteAndrea
www.piebirds.org
I know it takes time to comment, so thank you very much.
DeleteSounds just like the szechuan chicken I make...except I've never tried limoncello in it!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your comment
Deletelooks good! saw you on a blog hop! come visit if you get a chance
ReplyDeleteLove Limoncello good thinking for this meal.
ReplyDelete