Green Enchiladas

Green Enchiladas

This is our new favorite enchilada recipe. These are jer's favorite enchiladas ever.

2 cups shredded chicken
2 green onions, sliced
3 T. cream cheese at room temperature
1 1/2 C. grated montery jack cheese
1 bottle of green salsa verde (16 oz) - I like the Herdez brand
2 T chopped green chilis
1/2 C. fresh cilantro
2/3 C heavy whipping cream
1/4 C. vegitable oil
Corn tortillas

In a bowl:
combine cooked, shredded chicken (I stick frozen chicken breasts or tenderloins in the crock pot with a little salsa verde in the afternoon and it works perfect for these), green onions, cream cheese, and 1 cup cheese. set aside.

In blender combine salsa verde, cream, chilis, cilantro.. blend until smooth.

In small frying pan heat small bits of oil and cook corn tortillas one at a time for about 10 seconds each - set on paper towel

Place chicken mixture inside tortillas seam side down in baking pan. Pour salsa verde sauce over enchiladas and sprinkle remaining cheese on top.

Bake @ 350 for 20 minutes or so and bubbling..

I like to serve it with Mexican rice, and fresh avocado and tomato slices.

Enjoy!

Sweet Asian Flank Steak

Sweet Asian Flank Steak

Ingredients

            Ingredients

            1/2 cup Soy Sauce

            1/2 cup Worcester Sauce

            1/4 cup Honey or Brown Sugar

            2 Tablespoons Sesame Oil (I use olive oil if I am out of Sesame Oil)

            2 Tablespoons (heaping) Minced Ginger (I buy the tube of it from the produce dept)

            2 Tablespoons (3-5 cloves) Minced Garlic (again I buy the bottled minced Garlic)

            teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

            2 Flat Iron Flank Steaks

            Garnish: 2 Tablespoons Roasted Sesame Seeds and 2 Green Onions, slivered. OPTIONAL

Directions 

1. Gather all ingredients together – soy sauce, worcester sauce, honey/sugar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, and flat iron steak.
2. Whisk the ingredients in a bowl. Place the steaks and marinade in a ziplock bag and chill in the refrigerator for 3-6 hours.
3. Grill steaks on high heat for 4 minutes on each side for medium rare steaks. DO NOT OVER COOK steak,  it will be too tough.  I prefer Charcoal for this recipe instead of propane,  you get a more smoky candy crust.
4. Allow steaks to rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Sprinkle roasted sesame seeds and green onion slivers on top to garnish.

Kebobs

This recipe is from my amazing friend at KITCHEN ADDICTION

I use Beef  or Chicken usually because everyone seems to prefer it in my family.  I always get requests for this recipe when I serve it

Ingredients

1 beef tip roast, pack of Chicken breasts  or leg of lamb

            2 or 3 large white onions, chopped

            6 to 8 cloves garlic (or more), chopped

            olive oil (preferably extra virgin)

            Kosher salt

            freshly ground black pepper

            skewers (metal are best, otherwise soak your wooden skewers for 30 minutes before using them)

            charcoal grill

Directions

First, prepare the meat. Cut into cubes about 1 1/4" across, carefully cutting away any connective tissue and fat (you won't need the fat for the meat to be tender). You should create three piles while cutting the lamb: one for kebab, one for gristle you'll throw away, and one for larger pieces of fat and scraps of meat. This will take a good amount of time, so make sure you set aside an hour or so for this.

In a bowl, place the cubed meat with the onions, garlic, about 1/3 c. of olive oil, plenty of salt, and a generous amount of pepper. With very clean hands, mix all the ingredients together, being sure to spread the onions, garlic, and olive throughout and kneading as necessary to coat the meat completely. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least four hours, but probably not more than six. I'm sure it seems crazy, but this will tenderize the meat, as all of the acid in the onions go right to work. Note: if you're making chicken kebab, you'll only want to marinate for 30 to 60 minutes.)

As for the two remaining piles: throw away the gristle. Grind up the extra pieces of meat with some of the fat. (This can be done in a meat grinder or by whizzing it in your food processor.) Mix the ground meat with some diced bell peppers, diced onion, and diced flat-leaf parsley (known as keema). Season with salt and pepper and fry in patties.

Prepare your grill. While the charcoal is getting hot, skewer the marinated meat, leaving the onions and garlic aside.

Then, in a skillet, sauté the onions and garlic with a bit more salt over medium heat for 20-30 minutes, until caramelized. Serve alongside the kebab.

Once the grill is ready, set the skewers over the heat and grill, turning a couple of times to brown each side. Check a couple of pieces and cook to desired doneness, medium in my case.

Let the meat rest for just a couple of minutes, then remove from the skewers and serve. It should be tender, flavorful, caramelized and smoky from the grill, and addicting

Pei Wei Spicy Chicken Salad

Pei Wei Spicy Chicken Salad

I just found this recipe for Pei Wei Spicy Chicken Salad. It is the best make at home version I have tried.

Chicken Stock :

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Sauce:

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup white vinegar

Salad

1 1/2 pounds mixed greens

3 Roma tomatoes, diced

1/2 pound snap peas, cut into 1/2-inch slices

3 carrots, julienned

1/4 cup sliced green onions

1/2 cup thinly sliced cucumbers

Asian vinaigrette, to taste

1 cup rice noodles, for garnish

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish

Pan Fried Chicken:

2 pounds boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch cubes

2 cups all-purpose flour, seasoned with 1/2 teaspoon white pepper and 1 teaspoon salt

1 quart soybean oil

2 tablespoons Chinese Chicken Stock

1/2 cup Pei Wei Sauce

1 tablespoon chili paste

1 teaspoon cornstarch

1. In a saucepan, simmer Chicken Stock ingredients over medium-high heat a few minutes until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and cool. In another saucepan, repeat step with Sauce ingredients.

2. In a bowl, add salad ingredients (except rice noodles and cilantro) and toss to coat evenly with dressing.

3. Dust chicken cubes with seasoned flour and shake off excess. Heat soybean oil in a saucepan to 350 degrees, and fry chicken 2 1/2 minutes. When cooked through, arrange chicken on an oven-safe plate lined with paper towels and place in a warm oven.

4. In a wok or sauté pan placed over high heat, whisk together Chicken Stock, Sauce and chili paste. To thicken sauce, mix in cornstarch. Add chicken and toss until evenly coated with sauce.

5. Spoon hot chicken over salad, garnish with rice noodles and cilantro, and serve immediately.