Thai Barbecued Chicken

Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts (if you are doing these on a barbecue why not go for 8 chicken wings or a few legs)
1/2 Teaspoon Dried Ginger
4 Shallots (finely chopped)
A Handful of Coriander Leaves (chopped)
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1/4 of a Can of Coconut Milk
2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce (optional, but authentic)
2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
6 Garlic Cloves (if you are allowed)
2 Stalks of Lemon Grass (chopped, if you cant get this, a dash of lemon juice will do, fresh of bottled will do)

Equipment
1 Sharp Knife
A Chopping Board
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Oven Proof Dish
1 Chefs Brush

The Good Bit

1. Preheat your oven to 200c 400f or gas mark 6, mix together all the ingredients in the bowl (including the chicken) and leave for at least 4hours so if you can do this before you go out to work or the day before your BBQ that'd be better) (obviously don't preheat the oven until you are ready!!!)
   
2. Cook in the oven for 20-30mins or until the chicken is cooked through and golden brown (similar time on the BBQ, skewer it to make sure the juices are clear and not red) turn over occasionally and brush with the marinade.
3. Serve with the rest of your BBQ or a dish of rice, add on slices of lime for looks if you want to impress.

Serves 4

White Chicken Curry

Ingredients
2 Onions (thinly sliced)
8 Long Green Chillies (thinly sliced)
1 Inch Fresh Ginger (grated)
1 400g Can Coconut Milk
4 Chicken Breasts (cut into chunks)
1 Lime (juiced)
A Splash of Oil
A Pinch of Salt
What About Nan Bread or Rice to Serve? (250g of rice in a large pan, 2/3rds full of boiling salted water for 10-15 minutes and follow the packet instructions for warming up nan bread)

Equipment
1 Large Frying Pan/Wok
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Spatula
1 Juicer

The Good Bit

1. Heat the oil in the pan then add the onions and cook until they begin to go soft (3 minutes) do not let them colour!!!
2. Add in the chillies, ginger, a pinch of salt and the coconut milk and stir well before adding the chicken and bringing to the boil.
3. Gently simmer the dish for 30minutes stirring occasionally (after this time cut a piece of chicken in half with your spatula and look to make sure there are no pink bits left, it should be perfectly white) don't be afraid to add a little water to the sauce if it begins to burn to the sides of the pan.
4. Once cooked, remove from the heat, stir in the lime juice and serve.
   

Serves 4

Spicy Chicken Masala

Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts
2 Lemons (juiced)
1 Inch Ginger (grated)
1 Teaspoon Dried chilli (flakes will do)
1 Teaspoon Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Clear Honey
A Good Handfulls Chopped Coriander
1 Fresh Green Chilli (finely chopped)
A Pinch of Salt

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Oven Proof Dish
1 Mixing Bowl
Paper Towel
1 Large Frying Pan (if you have no grill)

The Good Bit

1. Score the chicken breasts several times 1-2mm deep then wash and dry them with a little bit of paper towel and set them aside.
2. Mix the lemon juice, ginger (1 teaspoon of crushed garlic if you are aloud) dried chilli, sugar, honey and a pinch of salt and then place the chicken in this mixture for an hour.
3. Transfer the chicken to an oven proof dish, pour over the remaining sauce and add the coriander and the chopped green chilli, then place under a preheated grill (medium) for 15-20minutes or until the chicken is cooked through, or fry for 10 minutes on each side or until the chicken has browned off. For each method flip the chicken over a couple of times and try to recover it with whatever marinade you have left.
4. Serve COLD, this is wonderful with (cant believe I'm saying this) salad, or you could go with the old favourite, rice.

Serves 4

Kung Po Chicken

Ingredients
250g Chicken Breast (chopped into chunks)
1 Egg (split and only the white used)
1 Green Pepper (cored, seeded and chopped into chunks)
1 Spring Onion (chopped diagonally into inch long chunks)
1 Fresh Ginger (grated or thinly sliced)
4 Dried Chillies or 1 teaspoon chilli powder (take the seeds out and cut thinly)
2 Tablespoons Yellow Bean Sauce
1 Teaspoon Sherry
125g Nuts (not salted, peanuts, walnuts, cashew or almond)
250g Rice (cooked)
A Splash of Oil

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Small Bowl
1 Wok
1 Spatula
1 Large Pan 2/3rds full boiling salted water (for the rice)

The Good Bit

1. Get the rice on first then in the bowl mix in in this order the chicken, a pinch of salt, 1/3rd of the egg white and the cornflour.
2. Heat the chicken then in the wok until it browns, take out and set aside. Now stir fry the spring onion, ginger, chilli and pepper for about 1 minute then put the chicken back in along with the yellow bean sauce and sherry, stir well and cook for a further minute, lastly just before you serve up, chuck in the nuts.
   

Serves 4

Chicken Jalfrezi

Ingredients
675g Chicken Breast (cubed)
1 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
1 Onion (finely chopped)
1 Green+1 Red pepper (cubed)
1 Clove Garlic (crushed)
1 Inch Ginger (finely chopped)
1 Tablespoon Curry Paste
1 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1 Teaspoon Ground Coriander
1/4 Teaspoon Chilli Powder
1 400g Can Chopped Tomatoes
250g Rice (cooked)
A Splash of Oil

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Large Frying Pan
1 Large Pan 2/3rds full boiling salted water

The Good Bit

1. In the frying pan add the oil, and fry the cumin seeds for a couple of minutes until they splutter then add the onion peppers garlic and ginger, fry for 6-8 minutes.
2. Add in the curry paste and fry for another 2 minutes before adding the chilli powder, coriander, cumin, a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of water, fry this lot for 2 minutes.
3. Put the rice on at this point. Chuck the chicken into the mix and fry for 5 minutes until it begins to colour then pour in the tomatoes stir well and cover and leave to cook for 15 minutes.
4. Serve with rice.

Serves 4

Chicken with Coconut Milk

Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts (cut into strips)
6 Cardamom Pods
6 Cloves
2 Inch Cinnamon Stick
1 Onion (finely chopped)
1 Inch Ginger (chopped)
3 Green Chillies (de seeded and thinly sliced)
4 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
1 Teaspoon Turmeric
200ml Coconut Milk
1 Red Pepper (thinly sliced to garnish)
Oil

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Blender
1 Frying Pan
1 Spatula

The Good Bit

1. Quickly fry the chicken off in the pan in a splash of oil until it begins to brown, remove and set aside. Add a splash more oil to the pan and fry the cardamom cloves and cinnamon for 1 minute.
2. Turn down the heat and add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, whilst this is doing, blend the garlic, ginger, chillies and lemon juice into a smooth paste, add into the frying pan along with the turmeric and cook for another 5 minutes.
3. Pour in the coconut milk, season and bring to the boil, add in the chicken and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Serve when done, with a garnish of red pepper strips, these can ever be raw or quickly fried.
   

Serves 4

Flavoured Chicken and Sweet Mash

Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts
1 Onion (thinly chopped)
100ml Sherry
1 Tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
1 Inch Fresh Root Ginger (thinly chopped)
Pinch of Cumin
Pinch of Coriander
1 Teaspoon Dried Mixed Herbs (always useful to have in your spice rack)
for the mash
2 Sweet Potatoes
2 Tablespoons Fromage Frais
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Grill Pan
1 Masher
1 Large Pan 2/3rds full boiling salted water

The Good Bit

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, excluding the mash ingredients, drop the chicken in, set aside and leave for at least 2 hours, preferably over night to get the flavour in the chicken, for speed if you only have 2 hours score the chicken breast lightly with your knife.
2. Grill the chicken under a medium grill for 20 minutes, turning once half way through, meanwhile boil your potatoes in the large pan for 20 minutes.
3. Drain the large pan, mash the potatoes and drop in the fromage frais, season and mix well (add a bit of butter if you want to be really naughty). Serve a scoop of mash with a breast on top and finish off with a sprig of parsley.
   

Serves 4

Flavoured Chicken and Sweet Mash

Ingredients
4 Chicken Breasts
1 Onion (thinly chopped)
100ml Sherry
1 Tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
1 Inch Fresh Root Ginger (thinly chopped)
Pinch of Cumin
Pinch of Coriander
1 Teaspoon Dried Mixed Herbs (always useful to have in your spice rack)
for the mash
2 Sweet Potatoes
2 Tablespoons Fromage Frais
Salt and Pepper

Equipment
1 SHARP Knife
1 Chopping Board
1 Mixing Bowl
1 Grill Pan
1 Masher
1 Large Pan 2/3rds full boiling salted water

The Good Bit

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl, excluding the mash ingredients, drop the chicken in, set aside and leave for at least 2 hours, preferably over night to get the flavour in the chicken, for speed if you only have 2 hours score the chicken breast lightly with your knife.
2. Grill the chicken under a medium grill for 20 minutes, turning once half way through, meanwhile boil your potatoes in the large pan for 20 minutes.
3. Drain the large pan, mash the potatoes and drop in the fromage frais, season and mix well (add a bit of butter if you want to be really naughty). Serve a scoop of mash with a breast on top and finish off with a sprig of parsley.
   

Serves 4