Chicken Tikki Masala

Last night I took on my own kitchen stadium to make Chicken Tikki Masala. This came at the request of a sister missionary when we fed her in July. She, Sister P, was in culinary school prior to serving her mission. I asked what her favorite dish was and she said it was Chicken Masala.

I had never heard of it. In fact, I thought it was Italian when she said it (it's an Indian dish). But I was not daunted. I googled it.

Now, I am not a cook. So pictures with recipes are a must. And if the picture looks gross, I don't preview the recipe. Luckily, I found a good looking picture and a good looking recipe, here.

But I changed it a bit. Here's what I did:

chicken tikka masala

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, cut in half and thinly sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons good paprika

2 teaspoon chicken curry masala  regular curry powder

1/2 teaspoon garam masala cumin, 1/4  teaspoon chili powder, 1/2 teaspoon paprika, 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 crumbled bay leaf, and a dash of cloves

1 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 4 ounce can tomato paste
3  4 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch piece of fresh ginger, minced
1/2 serrano pepper, thinly sliced, with ribs and seeds removed
1 tablespoon fenugreek leaves maple syrup and a whole bay leaf
1 tablespoon sugar

In a skillet set over medium-heigh heat, cook onions in the oil until just beginning to brown on the edges.  Stir in spices and cook for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.  Add in tomato sauce and tomato paste. Stir to deglaze the pan and transfer to a crockpot.  Stir in garlic, ginger, hot pepper, maple syrup, bay leaf, sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Cover, and cook on low for 4 

hours.  While it cooks, prepare the chicken.

1 pound chicken tenders, cut in 1 inch pieces (I used 5 chicken breasts)
1/2 teaspoon good paprika
1/2 teaspoon chicken curry masala regular curry powder
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
pinch red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Toss chicken and spices together and let marinate in fridge for 2 hours.  Stir 1/2 cup plain yogurt in and allow to marinate for another hour.

*I probably mixed 3 or 4 batches of the spices to make sure I covered all my chicken pieces. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Stir chicken, 1 cup of yogurt, cream, and cilantro into the crockpot.  Allow to cook for about 30 minutes more.  Served with brown basmati rice.

Here is the result:

Looks tasty, eh? Well it turned out delicious. Just spicy enough but not too spicy. I'm going to eat some more for lunch today.

The sisters were sure excited for it. Can I just say that I love feeding people who appreciate good food? 

We also made peach stacks, again. Here's the results: (And here is the recipe)

The only casualty from the evening was I got a steam burn from my thumb while making the bastami rice. But I prevented a blister, it's just sore today. Well! Until the next adventure in the kitchen....

Wasabi Almonds

This is a recipe from my mother-in law, Bonnie (she's the best, in case you didn't know). I made these last week, but I think I used more than 1 pound of almonds. The result of this is that the wasabi taste was very subtle. Some people loved it (Hilary, missionaries) and some people wanted more wasabi (Russ, Craig, myself). Either way they are a great snack, really good for your skin! Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Roasted Wasabi Almonds

1 egg white

1 tablespoon water

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 pound raw almonds

2 teaspoons cornstarch

2 tablespoons wasabi powder (in the oriental section of the grocery store)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

Use a 2-quart slow cooker (you can use a big one, but stay close by and stir often to ward off possible burning). 

In a bowl, whisk together the egg white, water, and soy sauce until it's foamy. 

Toss the almonds in this mixture until they are wet. Set aside.

In a zippered plastic bag, combine the wasabi powder, kosher salt, and cornstarch. 

Drain any additional liquid from the almonds, and then dump the wet almonds into your zippered bag. Close well and shake until the almonds are nicely coated.

Pour these coated almonds into your slow cooker and cover. Cook on low for 2 to 4 hours, or until toasty (the almonds will brown a  bit and you'll definitely smell them. They will NOT be crunchy, but don't worry, they will be later!) 

Spread out a layer of foil or parchment paper onto the countertop and dump out the nuts. Let the almonds dry completely before munching. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Rainy day in the kitchen

I started by making a giant marshmallow in the shape of Texas.

Then I decided that I might as well make cheese.

It turned out quite nicely.

Nothing goes with marshmallows and cheese like bread.

I used the whey from the cheese, it worked very well.

Now who's going to clean up the mess?

Russ a fait quelque fromage

I am lucky to be married to someone who loves to cook. Which is great because I couldn't care beans if I ate every day or not. I normally just forget about food, seems like other things are more important.

Well Russ likes to eat, well. He likes to cook. A few posts back he made homemade marshmallows (they were good, and I HATE marshmallows).

His latest kick is making his own cheese. In Russell's fantasy land, he opens up a fine cheese and bread shop in Wimberley.

He made his first step today by making mozzarella cheese. It was delicious, better than the store (like his bread) and better than marshmallows. Perhaps my favorite thing he's made yet.

-Chow

No rest for the wicked

Sunday is the day of no rest. I get to church at 630 and stay until
the bishop is done. After church we fed the Elders, I fried pork chops
and Chow made brownies.