Category: Poultry

Ma Po Tofu

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Ma po tofu is ubiquitous on Chinese restaurant menus, but I never sampled the fiery, peppery dish until last year. It was mouth-numbingly hot, and it’s since become one of my favorite all-time dishes. As if to make up for lost time, I’ve spent the past few months eating ma po tofu constantly in restaurants and more recently, at home.

This homemade version of ma po tofu is just as delicious as what I’ve eaten from professional kitchens, and easy to cook. Ma po tofu is traditionally cooked with ground pork, but I substitute with chicken or turkey at home. The Sichuan peppercorns, however, are important to seek out as they’ll lend this dish that extra heat. It’s worth the pain (and slightly numb lips).

Ma po tofu

Ingredients:

3 dried shiitake mushrooms
6 ounces ground turkey
3 teaspoons soy sauce
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons hot bean paste
1/4 teaspoon toasted Sichuan peppercorns, ground
1/4 cup chopped water chestnuts
3 green onions, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 14-ounce package soft tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1. Pour enough warm water over the mushrooms in bowl to cover them completely. Soak until softened, about 20 minutes. Drain, discard the stems, and coarsely chop the caps.

2. Marinate the turkey: stir the ground turkey, 2 teaspoons of soy sauce, and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch together until evenly mixed. Let stand for 10 minutes.

3. Prepare the sauce:: stir the water, remaining two teaspoons soy sauce, and sesame oil together in a small bowl.

4. Heat a wok over high heat until hot. Add the oil and swirl to coat the sides. Add the garlic and stir-fry until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Add the turkey, hot bean paste, and Sichuan peppercorns and stir-fry until the turkey is crumbly, about 3 minutes.

5. Pour the sauce into the work, then stir in the mushrooms, water chestnuts and green onions. Slide the tofu into the work and stir gently to coat the tofu with the sauce and heat through, about 2 minutes.

6. In a small bowl, dissolve the remaining 2 teaspoons cornstarch in 2 teaspoons water. Pour the dissolved cornstarch into the wok and cook gently, stirring, until the sauce boils and thickens, about 1 minute. Spoon the tofu and sauce onto a serving platter and serve hot, alongside cooked rice.

Classic Hot Wings

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I know, I know. Hot wings are overdone. They’re on every party menu and come in a million variations. But these are baked! And taste like they’re fried! I guess you could call these healthy hot wings, except that they’re doused in their fair share of butter. Still, they’re tried and true, and I’ve been getting requests to make them for nearly every casual gathering lately.

Hot Wings

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 pounds chicken wings
3 tablespoons red hot sauce, preferably Frank’s Red Hot
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 500°. Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with vegetable oil. In a bowl, mix the flour with the salt. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Spread the chicken on the baking sheet in a single layer.

2. Roast the chicken for 45 minutes, turning once at the halfway point, until browned and crispy. In a bowl, whisk the hot sauce with the butter. Add the chicken wings and toss. Serve warm.

Sesame Chicken

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Karaage is a Japanese-style of frying where meats are lightly dusted with starch before deep-frying. The result is a wonderfully crispy coating that also works to seal in moisture. It also absorbs very little oil so this isn’t nearly as greasy as most deep-fried foods.

This sesame chicken dish, adapted from a Martin Yan recipe, employs karaage-style frying and amazingly, when I reheated leftovers of this dish the next day, the chicken was still crispy. Served atop a bed of steamed spinach and alongside rice, it’s a complete and easy to make meal.

Sesame chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sake
1/2 cup dashi stock
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
2 teaspoons cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 bunch spinach, stems removed, rinsed and coarsely chopped
1 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2-by-2-inch pieces
cornstarch
vegetable oil
steamed rice

1. Combine soy sauce, sake, dashi, sugar, garlic, and ginger in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring once or twice, until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add cornstarch solution and cook, stirring, until sauce boils and thickens. Keep sauce warm.

2. Cook spinach in boiling water for 1 minute; drain well and set aside.

3. Dredge chicken in cornstarch; shake off excess. Place a wide frying pan over medium heat. Add oil to a depth of 1/4 inch. When oil is hot, add chicken and pan-fry, uncovered, until no longer pink in center, about 4 minutes on each side. Lift out and drain on paper towels.

4. Place rice in 4 individual bowls; top each serving with 1/4 of the spinach. Cut chicken into 1/2-inch-wide strips, dip in sauce, then arrange over spinach. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve with rice.

Gyoza

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Gyoza, or Japanese potstickers, differ from their Chinese counterparts in that they have a thinner wrapper. They have a richer garlic flavor too, and are usually served with a soy-based rice vinegar and chili sauce. Sometimes I make a double batch as I’m wrapping the gyoza and stick the extras in the freezer – they make for a quick, delicious meal later on, and they’re much healthier than the store-bought frozen version.

Gyoza

Ingredients:

2 cups finely chopped cabbage
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound ground chicken or turkey
1/2 cup chopped water chestnuts
4 green onions, minced
3 tablespoons sake
1 tablespoon oyster-flavored sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon chili garlic sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 package potsticker wrappers
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup chicken broth

1. In a bowl, toss cabbage with salt; let stand for 10 minutes. Drain and press cabbage to extract excess moisture. Add ground chicken, water chestnuts, 3 minced green onions, sake, oyster-flavored sauce, 1 tablespoon ginger, garlic, and cornstarch; mix well.

2. In another bowl, combine rice vinegar, soy sauce, chili garlic sauce, sesame oil, remaining minced green onion, and remaining 1/2 tablespoon of minced ginger to create dipping sauce. Set aside.

3. To shape each potsticker, place a teaspoon of filling in center of one wrapper. Brush edges with water; fold wrapper over filling to form a half-moon. Press and pleat edges to seal. Set filled potsticker down firmly, seam side up, so that it will sit flat.

4. Place a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add 1 tablespoon oil, swirling to coat sides. Add half of potstickers, seam side up, and cook until bottoms are golden brown, about 4 minutes. Add 1/2 cup broth, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook until dumplings are tender and liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes.

5. With a spatula, remove potstickers from pan and place them on a serving platter. Repeat to cook remaining potstickers. Serve warm with dipping sauce.

Crispy Chicken and Kimchi Potstickers

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anyone who knows me knows of my affinity for korean cuisine. and of my affinity for kimchi. and more specifically, my affinity for all things banchan. i can think of nothing better than an array of small plates to complement a plate of bulgogi or japchae. naturally, i relish the taste of kimchi in my dumplings.

Kimchi and chicken potstickers

recipe:

1 t toasted sesame seeds
1/3 c + 1 T soy sauce
1/4 rice vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 lb ground chicken or turkey
1/2 lb kimchi, drained and finely chopped
1 egg, beaten
2 t cornstarch
1/2 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 pepper
gyoza wrappers
2 T vegetable oil
1 c water

1. in a small bowl, stir 1/3 cup of the soy sauce with the vinegar, water, garlic, 1 green onion, and sesame seeds.
2. in a large bowl. combine and mix the ground turkey with the kimchi, remaining green onions, egg, cornstarch, sugar, remaining soy sauce, salt and pepper.
3. place gyoza wrappers on a work surface and lightly moisten the edges of the wrappers with water. place a spoon of the filling on one side of each wrapper and fold in half to form half moons. press the edges of the wrapper firmly to seal. repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.
4. in a large, nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. add half of the potstickers to the skillet. pour in 1/2 cup of the water, cover and cook over moderately high heat until the water has evaporated, the filling is cooked through and the bottoms are browned, about 10 minutes. transfer to a serving platter and repeat with the remaining oil, potstickers, and water. serve with the dipping sauce on the side.