Chicken Parmigiana

I did a lot of driving back and forth today, and barely had time for lunch. Caught up in traffic I looked up to see a McDonald's billboard, which showed their newest offering, which they called Chicken Italianna. 'Our signature chicken fillet with meaty tomato sauce,' it said. I decided to make a quick drive-through to give their new dish a try.

It was good. Or baka gutom lang ako. :)

Anyhow, that inspired me to make Chicken Parmigiana for dinner.  My mom wanted Afritada, but all I had in my freezer were chicken fillets, and I was really gunning for Parmigiana. :)

CHICKEN PARMIGIANA

What's In It?

1 kg chicken thigh fillets, pounded to 1/4" thick
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper


Breading:
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
1 pack Aji Crispy Fry breading mix
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Sauce:
1/4 cup butter
1 can Del Monte Diced Tomatoes
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 
1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs (parsley, thyme, basil and oregano)
2 Tablespoons brown sugar (optional)

Topping:
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Others:
2 cups + 3T cooking oil, for deep frying and sauteing
a few stalks of parsley, chopped, for garnish

Kitchen Conjugations:

In a small wok, heat oil over medium heat.

In a bowl, marinate chicken fillets in salt and pepper.  Set aside and assemble the ingredients for breading:
In a shallow plate, pour flour.  In another bowl,  beat eggs.  In a third bowl, mix bread crumbs, breading mix and parmesan cheese.

When the cooking oil is hot and ready, start breading the chicken fillets-- coat them with flour, dip them in the beaten egg, then coat with the bread crumb mixture. Drop 3-4 pieces at a time into the hot oil and deep fry until golden brown.  Do the same for all the chicken fillets.

As the chicken cooks, prepare sauce-- in a wok or shallow sauce pan, melt butter, then saute onions and garlic. Stir fry for about two minutes or until the onions are soft and translucent.  Pour in the diced tomatoes and press the tomatoes to the sides of the pan to release the juice. Stir in salt and pepper, and allow the sauce to simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.  Add in sugar if using, then allow to simmer for 1 or 2 minutes more. Stir in herbs, check seasonings, simmer for 30 seconds more.  Remove from fire and set aside.

In a baking dish, pour some of the sauce to line the bottom of the pan. Arrange chicken pieces on the pan, top them with some of the sauce and the shredded mozzarella.  Bake for 15 minutes at 200C or until cheese melts.  Garnish with chopped parsley or other Italian herbs and serve.

Great with any pasta, baked potatoes, even steamed rice. :)


Notes: 

1. The baking gives the dish a new dimension in terms of flavor and texture, but if you do not have an oven, you can skip the baking part and serve the Chicken Parmigiana after topping it with sauce, cheese and herbs. 

2. Quickmelt cheese can be substituted for the mozzarella.

3. Clara Ole Three Cheese Spaghetti Sauce is a good alternative for the diced tomato sauce I used here.  I just like my sauce to be a bit chunky kasi.  I think the 250 g pack will do.

4. Vegetarians can use sliced eggplants in place of the chicken.  

5. Pork cutlets and fish fillets can also be used in place of the chicken. 

6.  In place of the Crispy Fry breading mix, you may use 1/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 cup cornstarch + 1/4 teaspoon salt + 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper + 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder + 1/2 teaspoon onion powder + 1/4 teaspoon paprika + 1/2 teaspoon sugar

Chili Garlic Squid

This dish was inspired by a dish we ate at a Chinese restaurant somewhere in Quezon City last year. That one didn't have carrots and green beans, though. :)

I always turn to seafood whenever I need something quick, because it is the quickest-cooking things on the planet. :) Last Wednesday, having been preoccupied with general cleaning, I lost track of time and didn't have much time to prep for dinner. So, we had New Zealand Greenshell Mussels in soup, and this dish.

I love how the knifework done on the squid to make it look this fancy, and the fact that they're available at the frozen goods section of Shopwise.  Alternatively, you can use squid rings, squid heads, squid wings, frozen or fresh (as long as they've been gutted and the ink sac removed), even baby octopus.

CHILI GARLIC SQUID

What's In It?

1 kg squid, flower-cut (thawed if frozen)
150 grams green beans, ends removed, sliced diagonally into 2" cuts
1 carrot, peeled and sliced into strips
a pinch of salt
6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 medium scallion (red onion), peeled and sliced
5 T cooking oil
2 T Lee Kum Kee chili garlic sauce
2 T Lee Kum Kee Hoisin sauce
1 t brown sugar (optional)


Kitchen Conjugations:

Heat cooking oil in a wok over high heat.  Stir-fry carrots and green beans with a pinch of salt until half-cooked. Remove from the wok and set aside.

In the same wok, saute scallions and garlic for one minute, or until scallions are soft and transparent. Stir in hoisin sauce, then add in squid. Stir in chili garlic sauce (and brown sugar, if using) and stir-fry the mixture for one minute. (No need to add any water as squid is watery and will leak out water during cooking.)  Add in the carrots and green beans and stir fry for another minute or until the veggies are cooked but still crunchy.

Serve with hot steamed rice.  Enjoy!

Notes:

1.  These squid have been parboiled, already cooked, that's why stir-frying time has been limited to 2 to 3 minutes to prevent them from getting tough and rubbery.  If you're using fresh squid, cooking time will take about another 2 minutes (over high heat).

2. Shrimps, chicken breast strips, firm fish fillets and mushrooms can be used instead of the squid.

Spicy Floss Bun

Rain, me, coffee and this floss bun. Splendid!

Couldn't believe how much floss is on this one considering it cost only P25.00 each, much less than what one would shell out at BreadTalk. Hurray for Shopwise bakery!

(Another favorite of mine is their Spanish Bread, which costs only P5.00.  If you're lucky you can get the freshly baked, hot off the oven ones.. so yummy! Or have them warmed for you for free.)

Since I ate my floss bun three days after purchase, I found the bun wasn't as soft as it was. But that 'issue' was quickly resolved  by a few minutes of warming in a preheated oven toaster. :)
 

 

Thai Spring Rolls

I love Thai food. Can't explain why, but whenever possible, I'll eat Thai. <3 p="">
My first taste of Thai food was in 1990 in the Flavors and Spices restaurant in Alabang Town Center. We had Chicken in Pandan Leaves, Seafood with Hot Basil, Tom Yum Goong and Thai Spring Rolls.

Since then, I've tried replicating what I ate in our kitchen.  Since basil and the ingredients of Tom Yum weren't readily available back then, my first replication success was with Thai Spring Rolls.

PS:  I think, now that I have eaten Vietnamese Spring Rolls, that the two are very similar, if not one and the same. :)

THAI SPRING ROLLS

What's In It?

100 g sotanghon (vermicelli) noodles
20 g taingang daga (woodear) mushrooms, soaked in warm water until soft

100 g togue (mung bean sprouts), washed and drained
1 small carrot, peeled and julienned
100 g ground pork
3 cloves garlic, mashed
1 small onion, peeled and sliced
2 T oil for sauteing
2 t brown sugar
2 t fish sauce
pinch of ground black pepper

20-30 lumpia (spring roll) wrappers
cornstarch slurry
2 c oil for deep frying

Kitchen Conjugations:

Soaked sotanghon in water for 15-20 minutes or until they become soft. Drain water and cut sotanghon into 4-inch lengths.  Set aside.

Over medium heat, saute onions and garlic in oil. Add in pork and stir fry for 2 minutes or until pork loses its pinkish tint.  Add in sotanghon, taingang daga, carrots and togue.  Stir fry for one minute. Season with brown sugar, fish sauce and ground black pepper.  Remove from fire.

To the ingredients, add in the sotanghon.  Stir.  Check and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Now, assemble the spring rolls.

1. Put a tablespoon of the filling at the center but about three inches from one of the edges of the wrapper.  Spread the filling out to form a small log.

2. Fold the edge nearest to the filling over it, ensuring there is no gap between the filling and the fold.
Then fold over the right and the left edges over the filling, again keeping the roll tight..

3. Roll the folded edge towards the other end of the wrapper, making a cylinder, stopping about two inches from the other edge. 

4. Brush the space/gap with a little cornstarch slurry to moisten it then continue to roll the cylinder over it to close the roll.

5. Do this for the rest of the filling and wrappers.

Time to fry!

Heat the cooking oil in a wok or deep fryer. Fry the rolls in batches of 5-6 to ensure they are fully submerged. Cook until they are golden brown. Remove from the pan and stand rolls over a cooling rack or colander to drain oil.

Serve immediately with sweet chili sauce as dip.