Friends, I need your help. I am looking for a new (to me) way to prepare a nice chicken dinner for tonight.
OK, I’ve got some frozen boneless/skinless chicken breast fillets (package claims no need to thaw them, seems to work pretty well so far…of course right now I have time to thaw them, too) and I need some tasty ideas for cooking them. We have a pretty good selection of spices including fresh garlic that needs to be used soon (before it takes root…), and various other “typical” and not so typical sauces and spices.
Any ideas? I’m looking for something that’ll take less than an hour to prepare and will go well with simple vegetable side dishes like steamed broccoli. Thanks in advance for the ideas!
Ok, here’s a family favorite in the Tech household. Season and lightly bread your chicken by sprinkling breadcrumbs on each side and slighly pressing them in. Brown each side in some olive oil. Once each side is slightly browned, toss in your chopped garlic and onions, if you like, and pour in a bit of orange juice (a little less than half a cup ought to do it). Cover and reduce the heat to medium.
When your chicken’s done it’ll have a nice coating and the pan juices will be yummy.
Take a package of instant stuffing mix. Add a can of cream of chicken (or what ever other cream-of soup you like) and a can of water. Put in a greased pan.
Put the chicken breasts over the stuffing (frozen OR thawed).
Cover with foil, and bake at about 350 degrees until the chicken is cooked all the way through.
You might want to look in on it from time to time, if needed, you can always add more water to keep the stuffing from getting crunchy.
Idea #2:
pan fry or broil the chicken to cook it all the way through.
Line a baking pan with ham, then put down a layer of swiss cheese. On top of that place the cooked chicken. Then a layer of cheese on top of that, then another layer of ham.
Bake until it’s all hot, and serve! This is kind of a chicken cordon blue (sp) bake, instead of having to stuff the chicken breasts…
I’ve posted this before and I will post it again: Pan-Fried Noodles.
You’ll need a wok or large/deep frying pan for this, and:
Egg noodles (the short, thin kind work best)
1 lb. Chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 bunch green onions (scallions)
At least one clove garlic, more to your taste, minced
Fresh ginger, peeled & grated (about a thumb-sized piece, but again, more to your taste)
2 Tbs. Vegetable or peanut oil
1 Tbs. Red pepper flakes
Soy sauce
Lemon juice (fresh is best)
Directions:
Cook the egg noodles al dente, drain and set aside.
Heat about 2 T of oil in your wok/frying pan. When the oil is very hot, throw in the chicken and stir fry it until it’s golden. Push the chicken to one side of the pan.
Add a little more oil if need be, and in the clear side of the pan, saute the green onions, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes until the onions are tender (about 2 minutes), then mix in the chicken.
Dump the egg noodles into the wok and stir all the ingredients together. Add more oil if you’d like.
Cut a lemon in half and hand-squeeze the juice from both halves over the noodles.
Squirt noodles with soy sauce to taste (usually several tablespoons, for me). Stir everything one more time. This is also a good time to add more red pepper flakes, if you like your dishes spicy.
Eat with chopsticks. It’s like, my favorite recipe of all time.
Sorry, I should have included that you’ll need about a half-pound of noodles (half of a standard package), and that the onions should be cut into 1-inch slices.
Here’s one I’ve always liked, and it’s really easy, too…
Chicken Divan
Preheat oven to 350º
In a bowl, mix condensed cream of mushroom soup (you can substitute cream of chicken or cream of celery) with mayo or Miracle Whip (1/4 - 1/3 cup to each can of soup, to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
Steam broccoli until just slightly cooked (it should still be crunchy!)
Line the bottom of a glass baking dish with broccoli
Lay boneless, skinless chicken breasts on top of broccoli
Pour soup and mayo mixture over the chicken and broccoli to cover.
Bake uncovered for 30 - 40 minutes (until juices from the chicken run clear)
When done, sprinkle the top with seasoned Italian breadcrumbs and put under the broiler for a few minutes until the top is browned and crunchy.
Hmmm…keep the coming, these sound good! A couple of possibilities, but each of these so far would include a trip to the store, so there’s no clear-cut winner yet…
Boil the chicken until done all the way though. Remove from pot and shread. Put in frying pan, add salt, black pepper, chili powder, and hot tomato sauce. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Serve with tortillas, and sweet tea.
Cook up some Stove Top, or make your own stuffing if you are so inclined. Lay the breasts flat, drop some stuffing in the middle and roll it up like a doobie. Set them in a baking dish, seam down so they don’t unroll.
Open up a can of Campbells cream of chicken, maybe even two. Baste the rolled chicken breasts in the soup, drop the rest into the baking dish. 450 for 45 or somewhere in that neighborhood.
For a package of four breasts, there’s going to be leftover stuffing which of course can be served alongside the chicken. The extra soup in the baking dish is a good gravy-like substance, and it goes well with steamed brocolli, or peas, or asparagus, or just about any other vegetable side dish.
4 chicken breasts, cubed - brown in BIG skillet
add 2 cans Cream of Mushroom soup
1/2 can water
stir - heat till boils. Add cooked rice and raw broccolli. stir. Put in casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes (or until broccolli is done for you).
Mix well, add the chicken and marinate. The nice thing is you can mix and match and the oil help keeps the spices stuck to the chicken.
Cook on high heat until done. One thing I learned that if you simmer it and all those watery jickes come out, it means you’re drying out the chicken. Sear the chicken first so it’s nice and brown, then turn down the heat.
Another cream of mushroom recipe, but not exactly…
4 chicken breasts (thawed or not, though to cut cooking time I thaw mine and brown them in a frying pan first with some spices)
Cooked rice (I always make lots for leftovers)
2 small cans mushroom soup (or 1 family size)
1 half pint sour cream (as a replacement for milk or water)
1 pkg frozen broccoli (or other favorite vegetable)
Salt and Pepper to taste
9x9 cake pan or casserole dish (lined with foil for easy clean up)
Mix soup and sour cream together until smooth. Add frozen broccoli and salt and pepper. Put half the mixture on bottom of baking dish. Add chicken in single layer, and cover with remaining soup mixture.
Bake at 350 for (an hour at least if the breasts were frozen) 30 to 40 minutes until bubbly.
okay, this is totally easy and delicious. Sour cram chicken enchiladas:
1 lb cooked chicken, shredded into small pieces*
1 pint sour cream
1 lb. shredded cheese (Monterey Jack or Cheddar work best)
1 jar salsa, your favorite brand. Make your own of you like.
1 package flour tortillas
Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.
combine shredded chicken, half pint of sour cream and half pound of shredded cheese in bowl. Mix into a pasty white mess the consistency of soft ice cream. Spoon the mixture into a tortilla and fold into an enchilada shape. You may want to use a toothpick to keep them closed. Place in glass baking dish. Repeat until you run out of filling. Pour salsa over the top of the enchiladas in the pan. Sprinkle remaining cheese over that. Cover pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30-45 minutes.
*-shred chicken by holding chicken in one hand, taking a fork and scraping it through cooked chicken points first. It will peel away in threads and small chunks.
Pound chicken breasts out between pieces of saran wrap until the breasts are flat and about 1/2" thin. Salt and pepper them and saute them over high heat in a bit of butter and olive oil until just done. Remove the chicken, add a glug or two of dry white wine to the pan, and reduce for a minute. Swirl into the reduced juices, off the heat, a couple of big pats of butter until the butter is melted. Pour the juices over the chicken and serve with lemon wedges on the side. Optional: sprinkle with capers. Serve with crusty bread and more white wine. Yum.
