This is an ‘Adobo’, a very tasty Filipino dish.  This item has its origin in Spain, where it was a chicken stew.  Requiring a marinade, remember to leave enough time for the flavor to permeate the meat.  Try putting the meat in a ziplock plastic bag with the marinade for two hours in the refrigerator, turning once.

Ingredients              serves 6-8 Chicken thigh fillets   1 kg White vinegar            1 cup Garlic crushed           6 cloves Black peppercorns crushed 1 tspn Salt                          1 tspn Stock (beef or chicken) ½ cup Thick coconut milk     ½ cup Vegetable oil             3 tbspns

Cooking Method

Cut chicken into 5 cm chunks.  Prepare the marinade of garlic, pepper, salt and vinegar and pour over chicken in ziplock bag.

Remove from fridge and in a large saucepan pour in meat and marinade and simmer over a moderate heat till all the liquid evaporates.

Now add the stock, simmering on low heat until again all the liquid has evaporated and the chicken is slightly tender.

Pour in the coconut milk and cook over a moderate heat until the coconut milk is completely absorbed by the meat.  At this stage add oil and fry until meat is light brown with a slightly crisp surface.

Serve with steamed jasmine rice.

This is a traditional Japanese dish, but all the ingredients are available here, even the sake. The chicken is BBQ'd several times, with steeping in a marinade in between. The sugar and ginger gives the chicken a very different taste, almost caramelizing the outer surface.

Ingredients                serves 2-3 Chicken thighs                 6 Sake                              1/2 cup Dark soya sauce             1/3 cup Sugar                             60 gm Powdered ginger             2 tspns Cucumber                      1 small Salt to taste Skewers                         6

Cooking Method

Wash chicken thighs, wipe dry and insert skewers along the bone. Cook over a charcoal BBQ or under the grill until partially cooked.
Mix sake, soya sauce and sugar and pour into a wide flat bowl. Lay chicken things in the marinade for 5 minutes, then turn over and leave for another five minutes.

Now return to the BBQ and cook for two minutes each side. After this, return to the marinade and repeat the marinade process. Now complete the final BBQ grilling while brushing the remaining marinade over the chicken thighs, to produce a dark shiny glaze. Sprinkle with the powdered ginger.

Shred the cucumber and sprinkle with salt and serve the chicken thighs on small plates and garnish each with a mound of cucumber.

This recipe came from a very talented Thai chef who worked in restaurants overseas. It is a very traditional Thai recipe and one that is easy to do. A true ‘wok’ dish, it has a tantalizing flavor that comes from the combination of so many items. By the way, it is important to crush the garlic and chilli together. As usual, if this is a little hot for your taste, you can reduce the amount of chilli and remember to remove the seeds before combining!

Ingredients         serves 4-6 Chicken breast fillets (sliced thin)                      500 gm Onion (sliced)                  200 gm Red capsicum                 100 gm Green capsicum              100 gm Basil leaf (chopped)          5-6 Garlic                             2 cloves Chilli (red)                       3-4 Vegetable oil                 4 tbspns Fish sauce                    4 tbspns Sugar                           1 tbspn Oyster sauce                1 tbspn

Cooking Method

Add oil to the wok and heat. Crush the garlic and chilli together and add to the oil and fry quickly. Now add the sliced chicken and stir fry until cooked (do not overcook). Add the onion and the capsicum until cooked, followed by the sugar, fish sauce and oyster sauce. Finally, add the basil leaf and stir for one minute and serve with steamed rice.

KHUN OCHA'S COOKBOOK

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