Chicken and Cabbage in Silky Egg Sauce

Do you like Chinese chicken and sweetcorn soup? This is a similar deal. Egg is stirred through the sauce at the last moment to create silky ribbons that hold all the flavour of the sauce. The ingredient list and instructions might look long but I just wanted to give you all the details so that it’s all ready to go when you get your wok on the heat. I’ve got a kick butt burner that hooks up to a gas bottle, once it’s going I can’t leave it alone so organisation is key (cue laughter from anyone who knows me!). If 4 tbsp of cornflour isn’t enough to thicken your sauce, mix more cornflour into cold water then add to your sauce. It might seem counter-intuitive to add more water but if you add the cornflour straight into the hot sauce it cooks into little lumps that are not fun to eat. I cooked this as part of a mid-week Chinese feast that included this Morning Glory Stir Fry, it takes about a minute to cook in the wok and is a great companion dish if you want to get some more veggies in.

Chicken and Cabbage in Silky Egg Sauce

Adapted from Chinese Cabbage With Chicken Slices In a Silky Egg Sauce over at 3 Hungry Tummies.

1/4 wombok cabbage, chopped

6 garlic cloves, minced

4 cm knob of ginger, grated

3 chicken breasts

dash of sesame oil

dash of  Chinese cooking wine

pinch of white pepper

1 tsp cornflour

6 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp caster sugar

1.5 L chicken stock

4 tbsp cornflour

3 spring onions, sliced

3 eggs

Place the cabbage in a bowl, set aside.

Place the prepared garlic and ginger in a bowl, set aside.

Slice the chicken breasts across the grain as thin as possible then place in a bowl with the sesame oil, cooking wine, white pepper, the first lot of cornflour and 1 tbsp of the oyster sauce, mix until the chicken is evenly coated then set aside.

In a large jug mix together the rest of the oyster sauce, soy sauce, caster sugar and chicken stock, set aside.

Mix the 4 tbsp of cornflour with 1/4 cup water, set aside.

Crack the eggs into a small bowl and whisk together, set aside.

Arrange all of your prepared ingredients near your wok.

Heat your wok until smoking then add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil, add the cabbage and half of the garlic and ginger, toss for 2 minutes then transfer to a bowl or platter large enough to hold the finished dish.

Heat up the wok again and add 1 tbsp of vegetable oil and the rest of the garlic and ginger, cook for a few seconds.

Pour in the stock mixture and bring to a simmer, add the chicken and stir slowly as it poaches, it should only take a few minutes (depending on how strong your wok burner is).

Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and place on top of the cooked cabbage in the serving bowl.

Add in the cornflour mixture and spring onions, simmer until the sauce reaches desired thickness then turn off the heat and pour in the eggs, stir gently to scramble it into thin ribbons.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and cabbage, serve immediately with rice.

Mexican Chicken

Or as it’s know at my house, Mohican chicken. Why? Because words are fun, that’s why. It also serves to describe the meal as a whole. It always includes grilled chicken, grilled capsicum and onion and guacamole. The seasoning for the chicken is super simple and was inspired by this recipe for Yucatan barbequed chicken. When I first came across this recipe I needed time to find the achiote paste, so I used my infallible logic to come up with a substitute. That chicken is red. What’s also red? Paprika. Bam. What spice is always used in Mexican food? Cumin. That’s it. It tastes so good that by the time I got around to using the original recipe I much preferred the simpler spice rub. This is my go-to meal when cooking for large groups or if I just want to feed a friend something delicious.

This guacamole recipe changed my life. I’ve had a long standing love affair with good old bastardised gringo guacamole, complete with sour cream and sweet chilli sauce. I would usually feel ill from eating too much of it because the sour cream makes it so heavy and rich. But this guacamole is fresh. Fresh and light and unbelievably, actually good for you. I pile on as much guacamole as I do chicken.

When cooking the chicken don’t be scared if the chicken gets really dark, almost black. It’s the spices burning rather than the chicken and it gives it a beautiful smoky BBQ flavour. I don’t give a cooking time for the chicken because I never time it, I just kind of poke it with my tongs. Cutting the chicken open is a sure bet to check that it’s cooked all the way through.

Mexican Chicken

Recipe by Ainsley Badman. 

Chicken:

5 chicken thigh fillets, skinless

5 tbsp smoked paprika

4 tbsp ground cumin

1 tsp sea salt

Place the chicken thighs between two pieces of baking paper and pound with a rolling pin until they are all of an even thickness.

Mix together the spices and salt in a bowl and coat each piece of chicken liberally.

Reserve leftover spice mix (or make more) to use on the vegetables later.

Heat a large grill or frying pan on medium-high, spray pieces of chicken with oil and cook on both sides until the chicken is firm and is white all the way through when cut (don’t be scared to get a lot of colour on the chicken).

Wrap in aluminium foil and rest for 5 mins, then cut into bite sized pieces.

Vegetables:

2 red capsicums

3 red onions

Chop the capsicum into small strips and slice the red onion into half moons.

Toss to coat in the reserved spice mix from the chicken.

Using the same pan that the chicken was cooked in, cook over medium heat in a little vegetable oil until capsicum and onion are soft and well caramelised.

To serve:

Guacamole

tortillas

corn chips

Pile the chicken, vegetables and guacamole onto the tortillas, crumble some corn chips on top and wrap up like a burrito.

The chicken and vegetables also make an awesome topping for nachos.