Category: chicken

Sweet & Spicy Orange Chicken

Tired of the same old chicken recipes?  Try this Sweet & Spicy Orange Chicken. It’s easy to make and it tastes exactly like your favorite take out version. The marinade smells amazing from the scent of the fresh orange and ginger.
My family loves Chinese take out so this was a big hit last night. Enjoy!

Ingredients for Chicken:

2 pounds of skinless boneless chicken breast (cut into 1 inch cubes

1 and 1/2 cup corn starch

2 eggs beaten with 2 tablespoons of water

Vegetable oil for frying

Sesame seeds

Chopped Scallions

Ingredients for Marinade:

1 large orange

zest of 1 large orange

1/2 chicken bouillon cube

1 cup of warm water

1/2 cup  sugar

1/2 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup soy sauce

2 cloves garlic (finely minced)

1 tablespoon fresh ginger (finely minced)

1 teaspoon of Sriracha hot sauce or more to taste

1 or 2 tablespoons of corn starch

I used fresh squeezed orange juice which gave the sauce a fresh taste.

Instructions:

Place all of the marinade ingredients in a large bowl and mix well to incorporate all the flavors. Place the chicken in a ziploc plastic bag and add 1/2 of the marinade.

Let the chicken marinade for at least 30 minutes shaking the bag once in a while.

Place the eggs in a large bowl and beat with 2 tablespoons of water. Place the corn starch in a large bowl.

Remove the chicken from the marinade, shaking off any excess. Discard the marinade. Add the chicken to the eggs and mix well to coat.

Remove about 10 pieces of the chicken at a time while shaking off excess egg and place in the corn starch. Toss each piece of chicken with the corn starch coating it well.

Place the coated chicken onto a plate. Heat the oil in a large wok, or skillet on high heat. Shake off excess corn starch from each piece of chicken and begin frying in batches of about 10 pieces of chicken. Cook for about 2 minutes until each piece is golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinade with 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and cook for a few minutes to thicken. Add more water if you find it too thick.

Taste and add more hot Sriracha sauce if you like it spicier.

Discard the oil and place the chicken back into the skillet on low heat. Drizzle the warm sauce over the cooked chicken.

Sprinkle with sesame seeds and sliced scallions.

Serve over rice. Enjoy!

Lemon Rosemary Paprika Chicken

lemon rosemary chicken

Lemon Rosemary Chicken is typically not a Portuguese dish, but I add paprika to give it a smoky flavor and a beautiful golden crust!

I like my chicken very well done with a crispy skin so I let the chicken cook for about 2 hours. Serve with sweet potatoes or roasted potatoes.

Roast Potatoes recipe

Portuguese roast potatoes

I recommend you cook 2 chickens so you can have the leftovers all week. Just double the recipe and make my easy Chicken Pot Pie Recipe!

Ingredients:

1 roaster chicken

2 lemons

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

2 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon salt

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon paprika

1 tablespoon rosemary (finely chopped)

lemon rosemary chicken prep

Instructions:

Butterfly the chicken in half or cook whole if desired. Place in a roasting pan.

Slice the lemons in half and squeeze the juice from 1 lemon over the chicken. Cut remaining lemon into slices.

In a small bowl mix the salt, garlic powder, paprika and rosemary. Rub the seasoning mix over the chicken and add lemon slices.

Bake at 400 degrees for 1 + 1/2 – 2 hours until the chicken skin has become golden and crispy.

Note: You may notice your timer has popped up, but let the chicken continue to to cook longer to obtain a crispy golden color.

Remove the chicken from oven and cut into the thigh joint. If you find the juices clear, the chicken is cooked. If you have a meat thermometer, the temperature should read 180 – 190 degrees.

Let it rest for about 8  minutes before carving! Enjoy!

In this photo, I cooked the sweet potatoes along with chicken and left out the lemon slices. It was outstanding!