Kitchen3N

Recipes and food fun from Apt 3N

Turkey Korma

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I woke up the morning after Thanksgiving like I imagine a runner feels the morning after a race: like I got hit by a truck.
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A whole week of groceries, prep, planning culminating in an evening with loved ones and good food. It was EXHAUSTING and I was happy to do it.
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But even after the last doggy bag was packed, we had quite a bit of turkey left over. It’s been our breakfast, lunch and dinner. Then last night, I recalled my friend Biny of #binyskitchen saying how she’d use her leftovers for turkey pot pies. Now, pot pies don’t fly here, but South Asian flavors do. I thought I’d cook some of the leftover turkey in a cream sauce with spices and frozen peas (to make it the slightest bit healthy) and the gang inhaled it!
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So here’s how I created it. Don’t be intimidated by the long list of ingredients. If you ever want to make South Asian food at home, you need these in stock. Fine to use a “garam masala” mix if you don’t have the last 5 spices. I wouldn’t use a curry powder to sub the first few spices, as that has turmeric and chili powder and would change the flavor of the korma.
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What is korma? Any meat/seafood/veggie dish cooked in a cream or yogurt or nut paste sauce. Simmered with warm spices (not the spicy spices) and slightly sweet. Chicken korma was my favorite dish growing up, but only reserved for special occasions, like Eid or birthdays.
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Hope you enjoy this recipe!

Ingredients

  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 1 tbsp ghee or butter
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp garlic/ginger paste*
  • 1 cup turkey/chicken broth or water
  • 2-3 cups cubed turkey breast
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 1/8 tsp nutmeg
  • 1/8 tsp clove
  • 1/8 tsp cardamom
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1/4 cup half & half

Directions

  1. In a large saute pan, heat ghee or butter over medium high heat and add onions. Cook until onions are translucent and lightly browned around the edges. Add the cumin, coriander and garlic/ginger paste. Stir, then slowly add the broth or water. Scrape all the browned bits from the bottom of the pan and allow mixture to simmer for 2-3 minutes.
  2. Add the turkey, peas and remaining spices. Stir to combine then add the milk and half and half. Let simmer for 5 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat and serve with rice or quinoa.

*You can sub garlic/ginger paste with 1 clove of garlic AND a small (maybe 1/2inch) piece of ginger minced or pressed through a zester.

Mexican Chicken Noodle Soup

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The first thing I do when someone sneezes in the house, is submerge a chicken in a pot of boiling water to make chicken stock for soup. That’s a normal, knee-jerk reaction, right?

Ok, perhaps I exaggerate. But there’s just something about the thought of clear, warming chicken noodle soup that makes me feel like it will banish all the ickiness of a cold away. And while the classic has a special place, this tomato paste and spice spiked version will carry you over from your sick days to your top o’ the mornin’, heel clickin’ days. Because for some reason, the weather is still dipping below freezing here in NYC in the middle of spring and the kids have caught strep throat while the hubby and I work our way through the common cold. Un-believable.

Back to the soup. It was the perfect dish for my crusty-bread obsessed husband to dip his baguette into. It was the only thing my preschool aged son has ever declared his love for, apart from trains and well, me. And it was one of the few items I did not have to struggle to finish from the fridge as a leftover.

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If I make my own chicken stock, I usually boil away chicken with veggies (onion, garlic, carrot, celery), aromatics (parsley, dill, thyme, bay leaf) and seasoning (salt, whole peppercorns). However, unlike most, I take the chicken out about an hour into the process, strip the meat off the bones, and re-submerge the carcass. That way the bones continue to flavor the stock for about 2 more hours and I don’t have to waste the meat. Does that make me crazy?

If you are using store bought stock, it comes together SO fast. When I don’t have homemade on hand (which is quite often) I use Saffron Road Halal Artisan Chicken Stock. Awesome flavor and deep golden color. You can tell it’s not just one of those salt water in a box chicken stocks. And if you want to make this vegetarian, use vegetable stock and chickpeas in lieu of the chicken. The tomato paste and spices are magical in how they liven up pretty much anything.

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced small
  • 2 carrots, diced small
  • 2 celery stalks, diced small
  • 2 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp each of cumin, coriander and paprika
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt plus more to taste
  • 1/4 to 1/2 tsp crushed red chili flakes
  • 14 oz crushed tomatoes (if you have a 15 oz can that’s fine)
  • 8 cups chicken broth
  • 1 cup shredded chicken
  • 1/4 lb spaghetti or noodle of choice
  • 1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Directions

  1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions, carrots and celery. Saute for 4-5 minutes, until the vegetables begin to soften. Add the garlic and spices (cumin, coriander, paprika, salt and pepper). Cook for 2 minutes more, allowing the vegetables to get more tender and the spices to toast up a bit.
  2. Add the tomatoes, broth, chicken and pasta. Cook for 9 to 10 minutes, depending on the package directions of your pasta.
  3. Add the cilantro and taste for seasoning.

Zesty Grilled Chicken with Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

IMG_2670 I’ve lusted after many versions of Tequila Lime chicken for ages but never got around to finding a good substitute for tequila (we don’t imbibe or cook with booze around here – except for teeny tiny amounts of vanilla extract or almond extract). I’ve thought about agave syrup, among other things, and thought some more. All that thinking got me nowhere until I watched Pioneer Woman make her tequila lime chicken the other day. Enough is enough. It’s time to give those chicken breasts in the freezer some cilantro/lime lovin’ (is that weird?). IMG_2675 Now I still haven’t found a good substitute for tequila, but I definitely compensated for the flavor in other ways. Along with super fruity EVOO, lime juice, salt and pepper, I added a touch of garlic and honey to the marinade. These days, I always add a bit of sweetness to chicken marinades. It seems to round out all the flavors. And the sauce just takes it over the top. It’s my go to sauce for dressing up any meat or fish. I don’t exactly measure things out these days, so I will attempt to provide the most accurate measurements I can! You really should taste as you go along though. If the flavor falls flat, add salt. If the tang of the yogurt overpowers, add a little bit more garlic. If it’s too pale green, add some more cilantro. If it’s not spicy enough, well you know what to do.

And since I find chicken breasts to be kind of bland, I cut them pretty thin. In this case, getting 6 cutlets from 2 chicken breasts. More surface area = more flavor. Trust me – I know my stuff. Hah!  IMG_2684I served this alongside another PW inspired dish: perfect potato salad. I swapped out pickles for capers. Reduced the mayo and added some cilantro yogurt sauce. Nixed the mustard. I just loved the idea of hardboiled eggs with my potato. And what’s best – my kids ate it! Sweet, sweet victory. You’d be suprised (or if you’re a parent, not surprised) that despite all the effort I put in the kitchen, their favorite food is mac and cheese from a box.

Sorry the pictures are out of focus – I was warding off two hyperactive toddlers while taking them. Good news though: my gorillapod is in the mail! Hopefully that means crisp pictures from here on out!

Ingredients:

For the marinade:

  • juice from 2 limes
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 heaping tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 garlic clove, peeled and minced or mushed through a microplane
  • 1 tbsp honey or agave syrup
  • 2 chicken breasts, sliced across to form 6 cutlets

For the cilantro  yogurt sauce:

  • 1 cup yogurt
  • 2 cups cilantro (loosely packed)
  • 1 large clove of garlic or 2 small
  • 1 green chili
  • 1/4 tsp salt or taste

Directions:

  1. For the sauce: add all the ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth.
  2. For the marinade: combine the first 6 ingredients in a bowl or large ziploc bag. Add the chicken and marinade at least 2 hours, or overnight.
  3. Heat a grill pan over high heat. For at least 2 minutes. Make sure it is screaming hot. There will be smoke when the chicken hits – that’s ok. It’s part of the process. Spray the grill pan with non stick cooking spray and grill the cutlets for 3 minutes on each side. Arrange them on a platter and tent with aluminum foil to let the meat rest. Serve with cilantro yogurt sauce.