looking for spice...in beer risotto with mushroom garlic chicken

Some people like to have drinks socially. Some like to have a drink or two at dinner. Then, there's my friends..the, ya know, functioning alcoholics. I assure you they are all relatively normal, they just happen to like their alcohol plentiful. What better way to entice my friends to stay in on a Saturday night than offer them alcohol and alcohol IN THEIR MEAL. Even better, I bought a six pack of beer and really only needed about a bottle and a half so the rest was my "mommy's little helper." I'm starting to sound like an alcoholic myself, which means I should really get to the dish before you choose to end your food blog experience. 

I seriously cannot put into words how amazing this dish was. If I could, I would personally hand deliver and feed every single one of you this meal. Even if you don't like beer, I'm sure you'd like this. The taste of the beer itself is fairly mild (especially depending on the beer you choose.) The chicken is tender and juicy, and is so well complimented by the ever so tasty beer/mushroom/garlic sauce. Paired together with the fluffy, cheesy risotto and you've just gotten a small taste of heaven. And have I mentioned the aroma that will permeate your kitchen? I'm getting hungry again...

For the chicken:

4 chicken breasts

2 Tbs. canola oil

1 Tsp. salt

1 Tsp. pepper

3 large shallots, thinly sliced

2 cups sliced mushrooms

6 cloves garlic (minced)

2 Tbs. unsalted butter (cubed)

8 ounces of beer (of your choice)

Preheat the oven to 375F, and in the meantime heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat and add canola oil. Once the skillet is well heated, add the chicken breast-side down and sear until golden brown (about 2 minutes.) Flip and cook for another 2 minutes. Add in mushroom, shallots and garlic, then pour the beer. Top with cubed butter. Reduce heat to low and cook for about two minutes, then place in the oven for 30 minutes. 

Once you've got the chicken in the oven, you're ready to start on the risotto.

For the risotto:

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 Tbs. unsalted butter

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 1/2 Cup arborio rice

12 ounces of beer

2 Cups chicken stock

1/4 Cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/4 Tsp. pepper

1/4 Tsp. salt

Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat, add olive oil and butter and then add the garlic. Stir for about thirty seconds, and then add the rice. Mix the rice constantly until it has been completely coated, and opaque (about 3-4 minutes.) Add in the beer, and stir every minute or so until the beer has been absorbed by the rice. Once the beer has been absorbed, add the chicken stock and continue the same process. Once the chicken stock has been fully absorbed, the rice will look a bit sticky - but go ahead and taste test the rice to make sure it is nice and soft. If it isn't thoroughly cooked, continue to add (a bit) more chicken stock until it is at a consistency that you like. Once it's at a perfect consistency, add the cheese, salt and pepper.

Once the risotto is ready and the chicken has reached the thirty minute mark, it's time to plate! Serve with risotto on the bottom, chicken on the top and a large spoonful of the beer/mushroom/garlic sauce. I wouldn't change a damn thing about this dish. It truly was phenomenal and I'll get to work on that hand delivery gig I discussed earlier. 

Oh, word to the wise - once you've taken the chicken out of the oven and are ready to plate, don't be stupid like me and instinctively grab the handle of the fresh-out-of-the-oven skillet. I never realized how useful my left hand was until it was out of commission. Another word to the wise, don't drink as much as I did while cooking. The second "word to the wise" might prevent you from experiencing my first "word to the wise." Typing one-handed has sucked. 

Until my next adventure...

xx,

ronit

looking for spice...in spicy peanut sesame noodles with chicken

A year after my roommates and I moved into our place, one of my roommates decided it was time to pack up and move out to live the suburban dream. After months of making fun of our little suburbanite, we quickly realized we'd need a replacement ASAP! After weeks of searching, we interviewed a quirky optometrist with a killer smile. And by interview I mean meet up at a diner in Jersey and ask all sorts of inappropriate questions. Yes, it's important that I know just how many chicks my new roommate will be bringing home per week, and if he can change a lightbulb. For the record, I've been blessed with two incredible roommates who have become my best friends, supporters, sous chefs, cleaner-uppers and co-parents to my amazing dog. Any way, Brandon (the killer smile kid) is a pescetarian. What's that mean, you ask? Well, he's vegetarian with the exception of fish. Not only is he pescetarian, but he's also lactose intolerant (lactarded, as he puts it.) This new cooking venture of mine took a turn for the interesting, when I realized I wanted ALL of my friends to try out my dishes and Brandon couldn't try most. I began researching to find interesting dishes that we could all enjoy. What'd I come up with? Spicy peanut sesame noodles........with chicken on the side (for the carnivores. and by carnivores I mean me.)

Now let me just say this dish should really be a staple recipe in everyones kitchen. People will love it! Unless you're allergic to peanuts, in which case...sorry, bro. 

What you'll need:

1 box of linguine 

1 large boneless chicken breast (carnivores)

1 Tbs. sesame oil

2 Tsp. chili oil

1/4 cup tahini

1/4 cup peanut butter

2 Tbs. soy sauce

2 Tbs. red wine vinegar

1/4 cup peanut or canola oil

3 Tbs. water

2 Tbs. minced garlic

3 scallions, chopped (about a cup) 

If you're using chicken in this dish, bring it to a boil in a large pot of water over high heat. When the water boils and the chicken is fully cooked, let it sit for 10-15 minutes and then remove from the water. In another pot, bring a box of linguine to a boil. Once it's thoroughly cooked, drain and rinse the pasta in cold water until cool. Throw the pasta back in the pot and add 1 Tsp. of sesame oil. 

In the meantime, add all of the ingredients except for the scallions in a mixing bowl. If the sauce is too thick, feel free to add more water to create a consistency that's perfect for you. 

As you can see in the above picture, once I mixed the ingredients together and gave it a taste, I realized it could use some more heat so I added another Tsp. of chili oil. Yes, this is what I see when I'm cooking (no, not the smiley face in my bowl. although how awesome is that!? not done on purpose!) Lucy, my kind of useless sous chef. 

Once you've tasted your sauce (don't worry if it tastes too salty, it'll balance out with the pasta) and found it to be absolute yummy perfection, go ahead and put it into your pot of pasta. 

Going back to the chicken, shred it and mix it into the pasta. 

Once you've done that, throw in the scallions and garlic.

Toss to combine and plate this baby, garnishing it with sesame seeds. Brandon ended up loving the dish and I've already packed some away for him to take to work tomorrow. We're cute, I know. I actually ended up doubling the recipe for the sauce, as I thought it was too dry at first. Once I added more sauce to the pasta, it came out to the perfect creamy consistency and was so, so good! 

Lucy won with this dish too, as I had leftover shredded chicken and not much to do with it. Now, as I look over at my sleepy dog and full-tummied roommate; I have to worry about the exceptionally evil looking pile of dishes in the sink waiting for me. 

Until my next adventure...

xx,

ronit