Baby, It's Cold Outside: Friggin' Hot Curry Chicken

Friggin' Hot Curry Chicken Served w/ Rice and Cornbread

It's cold as hell outside!  (Why do people say that, anyway?  Isn't it proven true that hell is pretty tropical?... Kinda like Barbados or somewhere exotic like that.)  According to weather.com, the temp is exactly 21 degrees.  That makes today the perfect day to whip up the spicy goodness that is my chicken curry!

I tried to think of some fancy bread to serve with it, but you know what?  I'm not that fancy.  So, cornbread (I pronounce it "cone-bread" for fun) it is!  I know you're saying, "Seriously?  Cornbread?" But just imagine placing a sweet slice of fluffy, cornbready perfection on your plate and watching it seductively slurp up all that spicy awesomeness from the curry chicken.  Mmm hmm... I think I drooled a little bit.

Before I post this recipe, I want to point out the obvious and say that if you're not in the mood for HOT chicken curry, you can just omit the hot pepper sauce.  Even without it, this is a stellar dish.


Side note: Have you ever listened to the lyrics of the song "Baby, It's Cold Outside"?  I mean really listened?  It's really creepy.  Seriously.


On to the food!


Ingredients:
4-5 lbs. Chicken Thighs (About 10)
2 Cups of Chopped Yellow Onions
1 Large Red Bell Pepper, Chopped Into Chunks
2 Tablespoons of Minced Garlic
¼ Cup of Chopped Cilantro
1 Tablespoon of Freshly Grated Ginger
1 Can of Diced Tomatoes
3 Tablespoons of Hot Madras Curry 
2 Teaspoons of Salt
½ Teaspoon of Cayenne Pepper
½ Stick of Unsalted Butter
¼ Cup of Coconut Cream
2-3 Teaspoons of Hot Pepper Sauce

(Makes 6-8 servings)

 

HERE'S WHAT YOU DO:

Melt 1/2 stick of butter in a large pot over medium heat.

Add onions, garlic, bell peppers, and ginger; saute until onions are translucent.

Add curry, cayenne pepper, and salt, saute for about 2-3 mins. 

Add chicken, skin-side down, stir to coat; simmer for about 5 minutes. 

Pour in tomatoes along with juice, coconut cream, hot pepper sauce, and cilantro.
Stir, making sure that all chicken is covered in liquid if possible (This way the chicken will be tender and will cook evenly)

Simmer for 40 minutes or until chicken is done.

Occasionally stir; but stir gently because chicken will be falling off of the bone.

When you're ready to serve, make sure to pour lots of yummy gravy over your chicken and top with a little cilantro.  I also like to drizzle a little lime juice over the chicken to give it a zing!  Enjoy.  :-)

Things That Make You Go "Mmm": Shrimp, Crawfish, & Grits

Shrimp, Crawfish, & Grits

I can see that I'm going to have a hard time coming up with clever names for my blog posts.  I was trying to think of another name for comfort food without saying comfort food and this is all I could come up with.  Not as corny as my first idea, "Comfy Cuisine", but I've still got a long way to go.  With more posts, I'm sure I'll get more amusing and less corny... that's how it works, right?

On to the foooood!

Tonight, I'm making Shrimp, Crawfish and Grits.  I originally planned to make plain ol' shrimp and grits, but Wal-Mart had crawfish and I love crawfish so I made an executive decision.

I have to pat myself on the back and say that this dish does in fact taste like love.  I might even go as far as saying it tastes like making love.  Yes, it's that good!  The garlicky, butter grits smothered with shrimp and crawfish taste so good I almost didn't want to swallow.  I wanted to chew all night until I just couldn't chew anymore.  Ahh... to dream.

Before I post this recipe, it's only right that I be completely honest and admit that the reason I'm cooking this dish is because it calls for white wine.  I bought all the ingredients about a week ago and I've been trying my best not to pop that thing open and guzzle it straight from the bottle, but the time has come...  Sauvignon Blanc, you are mine tonight!  I can't wait to sit down and have a inappropriately huge glass.  And then another.  Enough about my drinking problem...

Let's get to the food!

Ingredients:

14 oz. of Shrimp (Tail-On)

12 oz. Crawfish Tail Meat

1 Cup of Yellow Corn Grits

1.5 Cups Water

1.5 Cups Heavy Cream

1.5 Cups Chicken Stock

1 Cup of Dry White Wine

1/4 Cup of Lemon Juice

3/4 Cup of Butter

1/2 Cup of Canned Finely Diced Stewed Tomatoes (Set Juice Aside)

1/4 Cup of Finely Diced Red Bell Pepper

1/4 Cup of Finely Chopped Green Onions

2 Tablespoons of Minced Garlic

1/4 Cup of Parsley Flakes

1/4 Cup of Chives

1/2 Tablespoon Dried Thyme

Salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste.

(Makes 6-8 servings depending on how hungry you are.)

Here's What You Do:

Shrimp:
Season shrimp and crawfish with salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to taste.

Melt 2 tblsp butter in a large skillet.

Add 1/4 cup green onions and 1/4 cup red bell better; sauté 30 seconds.

Add shrimp and crawfish, and cook for about 7-10 minutes.

Remove shrimp/crawfish mix from skillet with a slotted spoon.

Add 1 cup dry white wine and cook over medium heat until you have a nice glaze in your pan.

Reduce heat to low; whisk in remaining butter, 1 tblsp at a time.

Stir in 1/4 cup lemon juice, 1/2 cup diced tomato, 1/4 cup chives and 1/4 cup parsley.

Add shrimp/crawfish mix back to skillet.
(If you need to thin out your sauce, you can pour the tomato juice you reserved into your skillet.)

Keep this on low/medium heat, stirring occasionally, while you prepare your grits.


Grits:

Melt 2 tblsp butter in a large saucepan.

Add 2 tsp garlic and 1/2 tblsp thyme; sauté 1 minute.

Add 1.5 cups stock, 1.5 cups cream, and 1.5 cups water.

Turn heat to med/high and let this liquid get very hot, but not boiling; gradually whisk in 1 cup of grits.

Reduce heat to low; cook 10 minutes or until done, stirring frequently.

Season with salt and pepper.

When you're ready to serve, pour grits into a shallow bowl and top it with your shrimp/crawfish mix.  I like to sprinkle it with more parsley to make it pretty.  :-)

Well, hello there...

Some pictures of my food... actual words, sentences, and maybe even paragraphs (if you're lucky) coming soon!

:-)