Chicken Enchiladas Suizas

The word enchilada comes the Spanish word enchilar meaning to "season with chilies." Usually enchiladas are covered in a red chile sauce. Enchiladas Suizas  however are a variation that resulted from the influence of Swiss immigrants to Mexico.  Enchiladas Suizas are covered in a white sauce like béchamel or sour cream.  They are delicious and something a little different.

Servings: 4-6

Time:  Prep: 15 minutes; Cooking:  40 minutes
Hardware:  A cutting board and knives, measuring cups & spoons, a skillet, tongs, sauce pot, whisk, a plate, paper towels, and a 8 x 11.5 glass baking dish

Ingredients

• 1 large yellow onion (1 cup)
• 1 ½ pounds chicken breast
• 1 small, mild, green chile (I use a Poblano)
• 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
• 2 teaspoons chipotle pepper sauce
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• Olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1 ¼ cups sour cream
• 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack (or Pepper Jack) cheese
• Cooking spray
• 8-6 inch corn tortillas
• Salt
• Chopped tomatoes and green onions for garnish

1. Slice the onion.  Dice the chicken and liberally salt it. Dice the chile, removing the seeds.  Chop the cilantro.  Set everything aside
2. In the skillet, heat enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan on medium. Add the onion, chicken, chile, cilantro, pepper sauce, and cumin.  Cook until the chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 7-8 minutes.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
3. While the chicken is cooling, heat the butter in the sauce pot over medium heat until it is completely melted.  Add the flour and whisk constantly until there are no lumps and the flour is a nice toasted golden color.  This should take about 1-2 minutes. (This is called a roux.) Slowly add the broth.  Whisk often, scrapping the sides and bottom of the pan.  When the sauce is completely mixed together, stir in the sour cream. Taste and adjust the amount of salt in the sauce. Remove the sauce pan from the heat.
4. Pre-heat the oven to 350°.
5. Spray the baking dish with cooking spray. Spread about 2 tablespoons of sauce in the bottom of the glass pan.
6. Mix 1 cup of the cheese with the meat.
7. Place the tortillas on the plate and cover with a damp paper towel.  Heat these in the microwave for 30 seconds.
8. Put about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture into each tortilla and roll up.  Place rolled tortillas, seam side down, in the glass pan. Pour the sauce over the enchiladas.  Bake for 25 minutes.
9. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the enchiladas and cook for another 5 minutes or until the cheese is melted. If you want you can turn on the broiler on for 1-2 minutes to brown the cheese.  Just make sure to watch the dish closely so nothing burns.
10. Serve warm topped with chopped tomatoes and green onions or with warm tomatillo sauce. I served mine with a salad of sliced tomatoes and chopped avocado tossed in lime juice.

Basil Pesto Wings

More wings.  I am not a fan of wings, but my husband, Jeff, could eat his weight in them.  So whenever I know I’m going to be out, I make them for him.  And even though I am not a big fan of eating them, making wings gives me the chance to experiment. So win-win.

Jeff loves basil and I have a bunch of it on hand, as it grows like a weed.  So I decided to make some pesto and give my love (Jeff) two of his (wings and basil.)  When I first made them, I did not toss them in any sauce.  Jeff said they were a tad dry, so I tweaked the recipe a little.  Success.

Servings:  Dozen wings

Hardware:  Kitchen scissors, measuring spoons and cups, a large plastic container with a lid, tongs, a baking sheet, a cooling rack (or foil), a sauce pot, a garlic press, wooden spoon
Time: Prep-10 minutes, Marinate-4-6 hours, Cook-50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 dozen wings
• ¼ cup basil pesto
• 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons light olive oil
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan
• Cooking spray

Basil Pesto Wings

1. Use the kitchen scissors to separate the flaps from the drummettes.  Also snip the points from the flaps.
2. Place the chicken in the plastic container.  Add the basil pesto and Italian seasoning.  Shake like crazy to coat the wings.
3. Preheat the oven to 400°
4. Place the cooling rack over the baking sheet.  If you don’t have a cooling rack, just line the baking dish with foil.  Spray liberally with cooking spray.
5. Lay the wings in a single layer on the cooling rack place in the oven.  Cook for 20 minutes. Flip and roast for 20 more. If you prefer crispier wings turn the broiler on for 5 minutes or so. Make sure to monitor them so they don't burn. Turn the oven off and leave in the warm oven for 10 minutes.
6. Discard the pesto.
7. While the chicken is cooking, place the butter, olive oil, and pressed garlic in the sauce pot.  Heat on medium, stirring until the butter is completely melted.
8. Remove the wings from the oven and drizzle with the garlic mixture. Sprinkle with grated parmesan.  Serve warm.

Saké Hoisin Pan-Asian Wings

I am not a big fan of saké, a Japanese wine made from rice.  I was given some as a hostess gift and was trying to think of something to do with it besides re-gifting it.  I also had some hoisin sauce in the fridge. Hoisin sauce is sometimes called Chinese BBQ sauce and is used in much the same way, to glaze meats.  So I dreamed up this pan-Asian snack.  Jeff really liked this dish and asked me to add this to the rotation.

Servings:  Dozen wings

Hardware:  Kitchen scissors, measuring spoons and cups, a large plastic container with a lid, tongs, a baking sheet, a cooling rack (or foil), a sauce pot, wooden spoon
Time: Prep-10 minutes, Marinate-4-6 hours, Cook-50 minutes

Ingredients:

• 12 wings
• 1 cup saké + 2 tablespoons saké
• ½ cup low sodium soy sauce
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ¼ cup hoisin sauce
• ½ stick of butter
• Cooking spray
• A chopped green onion for garnish

1. Use the kitchen scissors to separate the flaps from the drummettes.  Also snip the points from the flaps. (Save the snips for chicken stock.)
2. Mix 1 cup of the sake, the soy sauce, and the vegetable oil together in the plastic container.  Add the wings and marinate in the fridge for 4-6 hours.  Shake the plastic container up a few times while marinating.
3. Remove the wings from the fridge about ½ hour before cooking. Preheat the oven to 400°
4. Place the cooling rack over the baking sheet.  If you don’t have a cooling rack, just line the baking dish with foil.  Spray liberally with cooking spray.
5. Drain the wings and discard the marinade.  Lay the wings in a single layer on the cooling rack and place in the oven.  Cook for 20 minutes. Flip and bake for 20 more. If you prefer crispier wings turn the broiler on for 5 minutes or so. Make sure to monitor them so they don't burn. Turn the oven off and leave in the warm oven for 10 minutes.
6. While the chicken is cooking, place the hoisin sauce, butter, and remaining saké in the sauce pot.  Heat on medium high, stirring until the butter is completely melted.
7. Remove the wings from the oven and toss in the hoisin sauce. Sprinkle with chopped green onion.  Serve warm.



Saké Hoisin Pan-Asian Wings

Shrimp Fried Rice

Making stir fried rice seems easy.  Well, it is if you know what you are doing.  I have tried for years to make the delicious stir fried rice that I’ve had as take-out.  My rice was gloopy, or sticky, or the flavors came out as a muddled mess.  So I started reading recipes and asking around. 

The secret?  Leftover rice. Refrigerating the rice dries it out a little.  I have found that Jasmine rice works best.  The grains are long and the rice itself isn’t starchy. Another trick is to premeasure the ingredients and cook them separately.

You can add any veggies or cooked meat you might like.  I often toss in defrosted frozen peas with the shrimp at the very end.

Serves: 6-8

Time:   Prep: 20 minutes; Cook: 15 minutes
Hardware:  measuring spoons and cups, a cutting board and knives, 3 small plates, 2 small bowls, a whisk, a large heavy skillet, tongs, no powder latex gloves

Ingredients:

• 1 pound large shrimp (31-35 count) cleaned
• 3 cups cold, leftover cooked rice
• 3 green onions
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger 
• 1 large carrot (¼ cup)
• 1 jalapeño (optional)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar 
• 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon + 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon + 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• Salt & Pepper

                             

·2 tablespoon Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided

·12 peeled deveined small shrimp, thawed if frozen

·Kosher salt

·8 scallions, whites chopped, greens thinly sliced

·2 cloves garlic cloves, chopped

·1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled ginger

·3 cups cold cooked white rice

·2 large eggs, beaten to blend

·½ cup frozen edamame, thawed

·½ cup frozen peas, thawed

·3 tablespoon reduced-sodium soy sauce

·2 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar

·1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil



1. Cut the shrimp in half, salt & pepper it, and set aside.  Slice the green onions, separating the green from the white.  Mince the garlic, chop the ginger, shred the carrot, and seed and mince the jalapeño.  Always wear gloves when handling peppers.  Mix the eggs. In another bowl whisk together the vinegar, hoisin sauce, and soy sauce. Set everything aside.
2. Heat 1 teaspoon of the sesame oil and 1 teaspoon of the vegetable oil in the skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp.  Toss it regularly, until it is just opaque in the center, about 2 minutes.  Transfer to a plate.
3. Add the eggs and scramble for 1 minute until very soft set.  Transfer to a plate.  Wipe the skillet out.
4. Heat the remaining oils.  Add the onion whites, garlic, ginger, carrot, and jalapeño. Sauté, tossing constantly, for about 1 minute. Add the rice and toss to make sure everything is incorporated. Sauté for about 2 minutes. Add in the shrimp and cook for another minute. 
5. Toss in the eggs and soy sauce mixture.  Sauté, tossing constantly, until the eggs are broken up and the sauce is thoroughly mixed in. 
6. Sprinkle the onion greens on top of the shrimp fried rice.  Offer your guests soy sauce.