Tusko

just filling in gaps/suggestions etc.


1) Tiger-Tail Chicken

alright, this one is abit out there (everything i cook is...)

but, we all know tiger ail ice cream right? orange and licorice? I love it... great combination.

So, i figured that same flavour idea could be used for a savoury dish.



So, i figure marinade some chicken, i haven't decided if it should be in orange juice (im not sure whether to introduce this flavour "colour" yet...) or just a typical light marinade with some squeezes of mandarin orange (less acidic, more sweet)


going for a fairly typical grilled/roasted chicken recipe.

prepare a rub- i want this to be the "black" part of the combo. lots of pepper, some chili powder or something a bit spicy, and fennel. the fennel will offer a more savoury version of the "licorice" half of the tigertail. this should end up being very rich and savoury, but have that wonderful darkness of licorice types, as well as a bit of heat.

perhaps i'll grill 'em so they're nice and dark (but not burned)

then, i am thinking about making a nice cream sauce to go over the chicken. i've never been great with sauces, so this is where most help would be appreciated.

im thinking something thick, but light and sweet(ish) to counter the richness of the chicken. i want to make some sort of orange-cream sauce (probably using mandarins or clementines, or low acid OJ so it's not too sour) but, any ideas on making a good orange-cream sauce for a main course? this perplexes me a bit, as this is obviously a very risky dinner. but i see it in my head and it feels like it will be delicious if done right.



2)

again going with odd flavour combos, ive had this need to use chocolate in a main couse.

i have this idea of an appetizer or something, some sort of stuffed pasta, or perhaps dumpling.

fairly straight forward so far, but i want to put IN the dumplings something, im not sure what, some cheese and a bit of dark (very dark, rich) chocolate. im not sure what i should put in the dumpling aside from cheese (unless i should just leave it at cheese? perhaps spinach??? i foresee something green inside) and if then, what kind of cheese? mozzarella is the right consistency/colour etc, i want something white, a bit stretchy and such. and the chocolate, i wont add much, but just a bit to add a bitter taste and something "extra"... any ideas for this to help clarify/unify this?

this is also an odd combination of flavours, any ideas what kind of spices i might try?




yea, i'm away from my kitchen right now, so that's why these are all jumbly. but i've had these 2 ideas in my head and never gotten around to testing them, and their just not fleshed out enough.

any thoughts??

maleficent

Tiger Tail Chicken
Blackened chicken is pretty easy --
1/2 tsp paprika
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (more if you like heat)
1/2 tsp cumin
pinch dried thyme
several grindings of fresh black pepperpepper
pinch onion powder

2 boneless chicken breasts

Mix together all the spices (toast 'em a little bit in a dry skillet before hand to really bring out the flavor). Coat chicken breasts with cooking spray, and then sprinkle one side with spice mixture. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat until it is very hot.

Place chicken in hot pan, seasoned side down, and cook for 2 minutes. Turn, and cook 2 minutes on other side. Place breasts on baking sheet.

Bake at 350* for 10 minutes or until done.


Orange sauce (not a cream sauce -- but is very tasty)

1 tbs butter
1 tbs flour
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tbs orange zest (generally the zest of one orange)
2 tbs sugar (I'd consider this optional... but some people prefer it)
2 tbs cider vinegar
1 tbs lemon juice
a dash of Cointreau or brandy, optional
In a saucepan, melt butter; stir in flour until smooth and well blended. Add chicken stock, orange juice and orange peel. Continue cooking over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes. In another saucepan, combine the sugar and vinegar; cook until golden in color. Stir in orange juice mixture; remove from heat and stir in lemon juice and brandy, if using.

To give your licorice flavor, I'd add in some fennel that you've lightly sauteed in garlic and olive oil... (the bulb portion and garnish with the leaves)

serving the sauce over the chicken...



For your second recipe - Chocolate is an ingredient used in mexican cooking quite a bit, chocolate mole sauce is really good, and just a tbs or two of unsweetened cocoa powder thrown into chili gives it that hmmmmm.... that's tasty flavor to it... What spices go with chocolate.. i'd go with heat... chili, wasabi something that will give it some heat... or something with a strong flavor - as much as I love garlic, garlic and chocolate don't work for me... but rosemary or thyme might be an interesting combo

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Tusko

yea, thats pretty much what i was going for. perhaps i'll use cream in the sauce instead of chicken stock.

any ideas for what sort of cheese i should use in the 2nd recipe?

maleficent

If you are going with a mole sauce -it's got a really rich flavor, I'd leave the cheese out of it and just serve it with grilled pork or chicken satays.... (if you are going for an appetizer)

If you aren't using a mole sauce... then stick with a mexican cheese -- cotija's are lovely -- they are sort of a mexian parmesean cheese, I think it's an aged goat cheese with tons of flavor... Queso blanco is the opposite end of the spectrum - which is kind of a cross between ricotta cheese and mozarella.. it's a little bland and will take on the flavor of what you are serving with it... Manchego (a yellow cheese) is a cracker type cheese -kind of like monterey jack only with more flavor..

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Rodney

As for the pasta/dumpling thing; I know nothing about dumplings; in terms of pasta, you can stuff a canneloni shell (a bit on the large size for an appetizer, but your mileage may vary), a large shell (a bit floppy), or individual rigatoni.

For filling, I'd recommend a good ricotta cheese -- it's slightly sweet, but not too. It's not stretchy, but it'll give the filling the consistency of a ravioli filling, which I personally would prefer.

You could definitely mix the ricotta with some chopped spinach -- the amount is up to your taste. If I were to mix in chocolate to that, I'd probably go for a bit of shaved or chopped chocolate rather than cocoa -- the darkest you can get that isn't straightt, sugarless baker's chocolate -- something in the 70-80 percent cocoa range. As for the spice -- nutmeg (and some pepper, and of course some salt). Nutmeg will go well with both the chocolate and the ricotta.

Heat's not a bad idea, either; if I were doing that, I'd add some cayenne as well.

Tusko

bingo! i was definitely thinking canneloni, ricotta/spinach. i guess i'll go with this.

Rodney

My wife makes a "free range" version of this on a pretty regular basis, sans chocolate. She mixes together ricotta and spinach (and some olive oil and parmesan). Then we mix it up with butterfly pasta and eat it. Seasoning varies from pepper (and a little salt) to nutmeg to, occasionally, a little lemon juice. Delish.

In Italian cooking, ricotta and spinach together puts you into Florentine territory. So you could righteously incorporate "Florentine" into whatever you call your dish, should you so desire.