How To Prepare Chicken At Home

By Sheryl Ingwer

Whenever I'm looking for a really delicious chicken recipe, I make a marinade with honey. Fill a large plastic freezer bag with two tablespoons of honey, four tablespoons of soy sauce, a half teaspoon fresh grated ginger, a half teaspoon fresh minced garlic (about one clove) and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper to give it an extra kick. Mix your marinade together and put the boneless skinless chicken breasts into the bag.

If you like the item to be free of salt, just substitute soybean sauce with cider vinegar or employ soy sauce that contains low amount of sodium. I keep it in the refrigerator for approximately one hour before placing it on the grill. I prefer to perform this with the George Foreman grill, but, you can grill it on the oven if you like. I notice that the murky savor from the grill really goes well with this drench.

The secret to this recipe for Chinese Chicken is Rum. Many Chinese restaurants use a similar recipe for both Chicken and Shrimp.

Start with your favorite vegetables which are suitable for stir fry, wash, cut up and set aside. Next, you will need boneless, skinless, chicken breasts cut into thin slices. You should allow approximately one breast, or one cup, for each person.

The vegetables can be precut, frozen or you can prepare them as fresh (e.g. broccoli, carrot) or canned (water chestnut, bamboo, etc.). I usually slice them into uniform pieces. Drain any canned vegetables well before using in the stir fry. Now comes the fun part. You need some garlic and some good peanut oil, as long as you are not allergic to nuts.

Coat the chicken strips with a combination of flour and any spices of your choice. Add a small amount of corn, canola, or olive oil to a wok or fry pan, coating the bottom and sides.

Heat up 2 tablespoons of oil in your pan and then add the chicken strips. Keep an eye on them - you want to brown all sides evenly and lightly, and this does not take long! Once you've done that, use a slotted spoon to lift the chicken out of the pan and into a paper-lined bowl. Set that aside for a while. Then saute 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic in your pan, being careful not to burn it.

Once the garlic is sauteed, add the vegetables and saute them also. Don't overcook them. Firmer vegetables like broccoli or carrots should be just barely soft enough to split with a fork. Now put your chicken strips back in and lower the heat. Then we get to the fun part - add two or three tablespoons of soy sauce, two or three tablespoons of garlic-infused rice wine vinegar, and about 1 inch of peeled and finely chopped ginger root.

You should add about 3-4 tablespoons of warmed water as well, cover, simmer for about 5 minutes; stir frequently to avoid burning. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Just prior to serving, add about 1/4 cup of the best rum you have, but do not use a flavored rum. Stir frequently to avoid a flare.

One of the best and easiest ways to cook chicken is in a crockpot. There are hundreds of different recipes for chicken using a crockpot. You can use any, or all, parts of the chicken. You can even use a whole chicken. The best part of cooking with a crockpot is that you put your ingredients in, cover, and come back hours later. Just add salad, maybe some rice or potato, and dinner is ready!

Put about 14 ounces or chicken broth or stock into the pot. Swansons chicken broth is a good choice because it is low-sodium. Cook the chicken over low heat for around 8 hours. You can also add your favorite vegetables like carrots, potatoes, and celery. When the chicken falls off the bone, it's ready to eat.

Serve with buttered noodles, rice or mashed potatoes. The chicken will be very juicy and soft. You can also purchase a packet of brown gravy and make to serve over the chicken for added taste and texture. - 30289

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