Found Food: Spiced Kuri Squash and Chicken Stew

When one impulse buys a 4-pound Kuri squash, it then behooves one to find a recipe that uses it.  This is the recipe that I found--and since I have a habit of finding food before I find the recipe, I'm creating a new tag.  

The amazing Red Kuri Squash

All of the vegetables and the chicken are local; the broth, while not homemade, has made use of leftover broth from my roomie's fabulous pilaf that she made me two nights ago.  I placed the onion, garlic, and ginger ends and peels in my freezer bag o' stock scraps. 

ETA: This recipe was originally posted in September 2010; it's now 2 October 2011, and I made this again deboning 2 lbs of leg quarters--NOT for the timid but an excellent way to get bones for the freezer hoard for future broth--to get 1.25 lbs of meat.  I also took photos!  Next time I make this, I may use coconut milk in place of the broth, since I bet that's worth the calories.

Scavenged Chicken to Javanese Chicken Curry

It took me a long time to find a recipe to use for 3 pounds of scavenged chicken legs and thighs I bought on Labor Day at GIANT (Original price: $6.26  Reduced price: $4.20).  It seems I only cook whole chicken and boneless, skinless breasts, so buying bone-in pieces is a real departure for me (it also doesn't help that I didn't eat any chicken at all from 2000-2008, so I have little experience cooking it relative to other meat).


This recipe for Javanese Curry Chicken that I downloaded in 2006 from the NYT is the one I finally chose.  I will use dried kaffir lime leaves that I brought home from a Belfast Marks and Spencer back in May, and I got frozen chopped lemon grass and whole knobs of frozen galangal from the Asian grocery around the corner.  I have cut the oil down from 3 to 2 tablespoons, subbed light coconut milk for regular, and removed as much skin and fat as possible from the chicken.


Note to self: cook more Asian food to use that grocery more extensively!

Javanese Chicken Curry (Opor Ayam) Adapted from NYT

Time: 1 hour

Serves 4 to 6
Per serving (@ 5 servings):  318 calories, 37 g protein, 1.2 g carbs, 16.8 g fat

1/2 tablespoon ground coriander

2 fresh cayenne or other hot pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped

6 shallots, peeled and cut into chunks

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1 piece galangal, about 11⁄2 inches long, peeled and roughly sliced (optional)

1 piece ginger, 2 inches long, peeled and roughly sliced

2 tablespoons sunflower oil (or other oil suitable for high heat)

2 tablespoons chopped frozen prepared lemongrass

2 pieces cinnamon stick

5 dried kaffir lime leaves

21⁄2 to 3 pounds skinless chicken legs, thighs or both (if possible, have thighs cut in half and knuckle cut off legs), patted dry

1.5 cups unsweetened light coconut milk (1 can)

3⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste

1. In a small food processor, combine coriander, chili, shallots, garlic, galangal and ginger and process to a smooth paste, adding a tablespoon or so of water if needed. (Ingredients can also be chopped finely, then pounded together in mortar and pestle.)

2. Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. When oil is hot enough to gently sizzle a pinch of paste, add all the paste and cook, stirring often, until golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Reduce heat as needed to prevent browning.

3. Add lemongrass to pot with cinnamon and lime leaves. Cook 1 minute more, until cinnamon is fragrant.

4. Scrape paste to one side and add chicken to pot. Raise heat and brown chicken lightly on both sides, about 10 minutes total. Add 1 cup coconut milk, 1 1⁄4 cups water and salt, stirring well and scraping up browned bits from bottom of pot. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered 40 to 50 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened. Do not boil.

5. Add remaining coconut milk and heat through. Taste for salt. Let cool slightly and serve.

Chicken Tortilla (Free) Soup: Healthy Tex-Mex

I often miss the Tex-Mex I enjoyed as a grad student in Texas. Since I am on a diet (and constantly seeking recipes that hit the trifecta of easy-healthy-yummy), I had to find a healthy option--my fellow queso lovers know just how heartbreaking that search can be!

A baker at heart, I normally cook recipes as is or tweak them slightly. This recipe, on the other hand, is really my own. The pico de gallo recipe comes courtesy of Cindy Haenel's Knife Skills cooking class at Central Market, and the soup is a fresher take on Allrecipes' Chicken Tortilla Soup V.

The tortilla chips are optional in the recipe, and the soup is excellent with or without them. Needless to say, cut the salt if you add the chips. 

Chicken Tortilla (Free) Soup with Homemade Pico De Gallo
Serves 3
Per serving (without tortilla chips):  247 calories, 37 g protein, 12.7 g carbs, 6.6 g fat

For the Pico De Gallo:
4 ripe tomatoes (in winter sub 8 heavy-for-size ripe Romas), cored and diced ¼”
1 cup finely diced onion (sweet yellow onion if possible)
1 or 2 large jalapenos, stemmed, seeded, and finely diced
½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ cup lime juice (2-3 limes)
1 tsp salt (or to taste)

1. Combine tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, cilantro, and lime juice in a non-reactive bowl (glass or stainless steel) and mix gently.

2. Add 1 teaspoon salt, mix and taste. If mixture is sour, add more salt till flavor is balanced.

3. Serve or store covered and chilled up to 2 days (best made fresh, however). 

For the soup:
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (can sub leftover cooked meat)
4 cups chicken stock (homemade = best)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tsp cumin (or to taste)
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup frozen corn kernels (use fresh-picked corn if available)
4 cups tortilla chips (NOT fritos), crushed (optional)

1. Poach chicken breasts in chicken broth in medium-sized saucepan. Pull out breasts and set aside till cool enough to handle, and then shred by hand. Keep broth lidded in the meantime.

2. Heat olive oil in skillet. Add onion, then garlic and cumin, and sauté till tender. Add to broth.

3. Add corn and chicken to broth and bring to a boil (faster if lidded). Lower heat and simmer 20 to 30 minutes.


To Assemble:
In a deep soup bowl, place a generous amount of pico and 1 cup of the chips, if you're using them. Ladle a generous amount of soup on top.