Eye for a Recipe

This delicious recipe from NYT Cooking flavours chicken with berbere spice, which originated in Ethiopia. Brown the chicken and set aside. Add onion and garlic, spices, stock, orange juice and brown sugar. Return the chicken to the pan and simmer for about 15 minutes or until cooked through.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Make sure the spices don’t contain colour or anti-caking agents. I used Better Than Bouillon for the stock and freshly squeezed orange juice.

Berbere brown sugar chicken

Ingredients:

Berbere spice mix

8 teaspoons (40 ml) pure chile powder (ground dried red hot peppers) or 2 tablespoons (30 ml) cayenne pepper

5 teaspoons (25 ml) sweet paprika

1 tablespoon (15 ml) salt

1 teaspoon (5 ml) ground coriander

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) ground ginger

3/8 teaspoon (1.8 ml) ground cardamom

3/8 teaspoon (1.8 ml) ground fenugreek

¼ teaspoon (0.6 ml) ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon (0.6 ml) ground allspice

1/8 (0.3 ml) teaspoon ground cloves

Chicken

1 ½ pounds (680 g) boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil or ghee

1 large red onion, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons (30 ml) berbere spice

½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) dried oregano

1 cup (250 ml) chicken broth

1 large orange, juiced (about 1/3 cup/83 ml)

1 tablespoon(15 ml) brown sugar

Cooked rice (optional), for serving

Preparation:

For spice mix, combine all ingredients.

Season both sides of the chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high. Once hot, add the olive oil and place the chicken in the skillet in a single layer. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, until golden brown on the bottom. Turn the chicken and cook for another 3 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium. Add the onion and garlic to the same skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add berbere spice and oregano and lightly season with salt. Stir until spices are fragrant, making sure they don’t burn.

Add the chicken broth, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Then add the orange juice and brown sugar, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Adjust the salt to taste, then return the chicken and its juices to the pan, nestling it into the sauce.

Simmer for another 15 minutes, turning the chicken occasionally, until the chicken is tender and cooked through and the sauce has reduced by half. Serve over rice if desired. Serves 4.

From NYT Cooking

This stir-fry recipe from Bon Appetit combines tender pieces of chicken with bok choy, mushrooms and snow peas in a ginger-garlic flavoured sauce. Marinate the chicken briefly in soy sauce, mirin and cornstarch. Pulse scallions, garlic and ginger in a food processor until finely chopped. Stir fry the chicken and set aside. Stir fry scallion mixture briefly and then add bok choy, mushrooms and snow peas. Cook for a few minutes and then return the chicken to the pan. Add soy sauce, mirin and water and stir fry for a few more minutes. Top with scallions and serve with rice.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

I used tamari instead of soy sauce and Shirakiku brand mirin. Both are free of additives.

Ginger-garlic chicken and vegetable stir-fry

Ingredients:

1½ lb. (680 g) skinless, boneless chicken breasts, sliced on a diagonal ¼ inch (0.6 cm) thick

5 tbsp. (75 ml) soy sauce, divided

2 tbsp. (30 ml) mirin (sweet Japanese rice wine), divided

1 tbsp. (15 ml) cornstarch

4 scallions, white and pale green and dark green parts separated, thinly sliced

6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

1 2-inch (5-cm) piece ginger, scrubbed, coarsely chopped

4 tbsp. (60 ml) vegetable oil, divided

8 oz. (227 g) baby bok choy, halved lengthwise

8 oz. (227 g) mushrooms, trimmed, sliced

8 oz. (227 g) snow peas, trimmed

Kosher salt (optional)

Cooked rice (for serving)

Preparation:

Toss chicken with 2 tbsp. (30 ml) soy sauce and 1 tbsp. (15 ml) mirin in a medium bowl. Sprinkle 1 tbsp. (15 ml) cornstarch over; toss to coat.

Pulse white and pale green parts of scallions, garlic cloves and ginger in a food processor until very finely chopped.

Heat 2 tbsp. (30 ml) vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Arrange chicken in skillet in an even layer and cook, undisturbed, until golden brown underneath, about 3 minutes. Turn chicken over and cook until golden brown on other side, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Heat remaining 2 tbsp. (30 ml) vegetable oil in same skillet. Add scallion mixture and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add baby bok choy, mushrooms and snow peas and cook, tossing, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Return chicken and any accumulated juices to skillet. Add remaining 3 tbsp. (45 ml) soy sauce and 1 tbsp. (15 ml) mirin and ¼ cup (60 ml) water, scraping up any browned bits stuck to bottom of pan. Cook, tossing, until vegetables are tender and sauce is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; taste and season with kosher salt if needed.

Divide stir-fry among plates; top with dark green parts of 4 scallions. Serve with cooked rice alongside. Serves 4.

From Bon Appetit

You can use any mix of canned and fresh or frozen beans in this recipe adapted from Greta Podleski’s Every Salad Ever. Although the recipe calls for red kidney beans, chickpeas and green beans, I used black beans and cooked fresh yellow beans and it was delicious. Just mix the beans with diced celery, green peppers, onion and parsley and combine with a tangy vinaigrette. Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving or make a day ahead. Cook’s note: I omitted the celery.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Look for canned beans with no added preservatives, such as Blue Menu. For the dressing I used Allen’s apple cider vinegar and President’s Choice Old-Fashioned Dijon mustard. Make sure the dried spices don’t contain colour or anti-caking agents.

Bean salad

Ingredients:

Salad

1 can (19 oz/450 ml) no-salt-added red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can (19 oz/450 ml) no-salt-added chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 ½ cups (375 ml) fresh or frozen green beans, cooked

1 cup (250 ml) diced celery

¾ cup (187.5 ml) diced green bell peppers

2/3 cup (165 ml) diced sweet onions

1/3 cup (82.5 ml) chopped fresh parsley

Dressing

¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil

¼ cup (60 ml) apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp (30 ml) granulated sugar

1 tsp (5 ml) Dijon mustard

½ tsp (2.5 ml) celery seed

¼ tsp (1.25 ml) each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Combine all salad ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Set aside

Whisk together all dressing ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup until sugar is dissolved. Pour dressing over salad and mix until all ingredients are coated with dressing.

This salad tastes better when refrigerated for at least 4 hours before serving. Making it a day ahead is even better. Makes 8 cups (2 L) salad.

From Every Salad Ever

This recipe from NYT Cooking is a good way to use up end-of-season tomatoes. Marinate the steak in Worcestershire sauce, oil, salt and pepper. Combine tomatoes, shallot, capers, brine, Worcestershire sauce and oil and set aside for up to an hour. Grill the steak and serve sliced with the tomato tartare, topped with chives. Cook’s note: I grilled a strip loin instead of a skirt, flank, flatiron or bavette steak and omitted the chives.

Avoiding Additives and Preservatives

Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce is free of additives, as are Unico capers.

Grilled steak salad with tomato tartare

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons (30 ml) plus ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) Worcestershire sauce

5 tablespoons (75 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

1 ½ pounds (680 g) skirt, flank, flatiron or bavette steak, patted dry

Salt and black pepper

1 pound (454 g) tomatoes, chopped into bite-size pieces

1 large shallot, thinly sliced and rinsed under cold water

2 tablespoons (30 ml) capers, chopped, plus 1 tablespoon (15 ml) brine

¼ cup (60 ml) thinly sliced chives

Preparation:

Heat the grill to high. In a container that fits the steak, stir together 2 tablespoons (30 ml) Worcestershire and 2 tablespoons (30 ml) oil. Season the steak lightly with salt and generously with pepper, then toss to coat in the marinade. Let sit while you make the tomatoes (or up to 24 hours in the refrigerator).

In a medium bowl, stir together the tomatoes, shallot, capers, brine, remaining ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) Worcestershire and the remaining 3 tablespoons (45 ml) oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside (up to 1 hour ahead).

Shake the marinade off the steak. Grill the steak, flipping every 3 minutes, until well-browned and medium-rare, 6 to 15 minutes, depending on the thickness of the steak. If using a gas grill, cover grill between flips. Transfer to a cutting board to rest for at least 5 minutes.

Slice the steak and top with the tomatoes and all the juices in the bowl, followed by the chives. Serves 4.

From NYT Cooking