Bon Appetit Recipe Test: Chicken, Asparagus, and Wild Mushroom Stir Fry

In the latest edition of recipe tire kicking, here's another from Bon Appetit's "27 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Recipes That Are NOT Boring."

The original recipe can be found here: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/chicken-asparagus-and-wild-mushroom-stir-fry#recipe-ingredients

This one is great--the only clean up is the sautee pan, a plate, and a few utensils--and it goes from ingredients to table in less than 30 minutes.  It's a fantastic weeknight meal full of fresh veggies, and when made without the heavy cream, it's light.

The main change I made to this recipe was substituting chicken broth for the heavy cream.  I'm lactose intolerant and I don't carry my Lactaid around often.  I'm looking for ways to keep my cooking fresh and light.  Heavy cream doesn't fit the bill, especially when it's 90 degrees outside.  I also didn't have Piment d'Espelette.  Frankly, I had to Google what it is--a smoky, mild pepper grown in southwest France.  I learned this from The Perfect Pantry--you can check it out here.  To substitute, I mixed some paprika and cayenne pepper from my spice rack.

You'll need:
olive oil
1lb. boneless chicken breast
1 lb. thin asparagus
1 package shiitake mushrooms (2 if you like mushrooms!)
minced garlic
shallot or onion
white wine
chicken broth
Piment d'Espelette (or cayenne pepper and paprika)
water
salt and pepper
optional--a squeeze of lemon juice for brightness

Here's how I made the magic happen:

Wash all produce.  Trim ends from asparagus.

Heat one tablespoon olive oil in large sautee pan.  Once pan is hot, add asparagus, salt, and pepper.  Sautee for one minute, then add a splash of water and put lid on sautee pan, allow to cook 3-4 more minutes.  I like my asparagus crisp, so I cooked it a total of four minutes.  Remove asparagus.  Leave the remaining liquid in pan.

Add another tablespoon of olive oil, add the shiitake mushrooms and a pinch of salt.  Sautee 8 minutes, remove and add to plate of asparagus.

Add last tablespoon of olive oil, sautee a tablespoon of minced garlic and, either 1/3 cup minced shallot or I added what I had on hand--1/2 cup of minced red onion for two minutes.  Then add the chicken, Piment d'Espelette (or the cayenne and paprika).  Instead of measuring the cayenne and paprika, I just added a pinch of cayenne and dusted the contents of the pan with the paprika.  After chicken was beginning to turn white on outside (about 5 minutes), I added 1/3 cup white wine and half a can of chicken broth.  In the Bon Appetit recipe, this would've been when the heavy cream was added.

Starting to cook the chicken while the sauteed asparagus and shiitake mushrooms wait to return to the pan.

Bring contents to a boil.  At this time, I removed the chicken so it wouldn't get overcooked, then let the contents boil in the pan until they reduced to a sauce that would coat the back of a spoon.  Taste sauce, adjust salt and pepper as needed.  I also added a little more cayenne pepper and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for a hint of brightness.

The broth-based sauce reduced enough to coat a spoon.  The paprika darkened the color--it isn't burnt.

Turn off stove, add the asparagus, chicken, and mushrooms back to pan to coat in the sauce, then serve.

The well-liked final product.

My husband ate his plate of food before I was halfway done, then returned to the kitchen and ate the contents of the container I prepared for him to take as lunch the next day.  Curiously, he asked what the seasoning was, which makes me think that if I'd used real Piment d'Espelette, it may have been even more intriguing.  I can't say I used the paprika in my pantry often--mainly just for deviled eggs!

The only change we would make next time is to toss in two containers of shiitake mushrooms.  We both enjoy mushrooms, and the container we used was only 3.5 or 4 ounces worth.  If you're going to be missing a starchy element, some grilled or crusty bread will make this dish more satisfying.  I didn't miss the starch--I actually enjoyed having something light.

As an aside, this recipe seems like it would be more aptly named "Chicken, Asparagus, and Wild Mushroom Sautee."  Nevertheless, this recipe (with the broth substituted for cream) was another hit at my house.  Enjoy!

Bon Appetit Recipe Test: Thai Chicken Soup

I'm kicking the tires on another recipe for you today.  I found this one in a Bon Appetit magazine Tweet--27 ways to make boneless chicken not boring.  This recipe is a hit!

My husband doesn't do ethnic food.  He has the stomach of a child sometimes--after a trip to an Indian restaurant, he ate something spicy and laid on the sofa for hours moaning and rubbing his tummy.  When I'm craving Vietnamese or Thai food, I call up girlfriends and have a girls' night out.  I didn't tell him this was Thai-inspired until afterwards.  He ate it up, proclaimed how fantastic the broth was, and didn't have a stomachache at all.  Then I told him it was Thai and he looked surprised.

By the way, I fully believe in "Jewish Penicillin"--chicken noodle soup--when you're feeling unwell.  This soup might replace the simple chicken noodle or matzo ball soup though.  It's that good.

I followed the original recipe closely, but not exactly.  The original recipe can be found here:
http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/thai-chicken-soup

My changes were mostly out of convenience and to cut down on miscellaneous leftover produce in my fridge.  For example, instead of measuring out the mushrooms or sugar snap peas, I tossed in a whole package.  The more veggies, the merrier, right?

Here's my rendition:

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 chive pieces (five bulbs, each with about four stalks of green onion on it)
4 teaspoons minced garlic
4 in. piece of fresh ginger (consider using more if you like more zing)
handful of baby carrots
1 jalapeno (consider using two if you like heat)
1 package of sliced white mushrooms (about 8 oz.)
1 package of organic, boneless chicken tenderloins (there were no 1 lb. packages so I used 1.3 lbs.)
1 can coconut milk (this can was 13.5 oz.)
1 quart organic chicken broth
1 package of sugar snap peas (I think it was about 8 oz.)
Fish sauce to taste (I used about 2-3 tablespoons)
2-3 oz. lime juice
2 handfuls of cilantro

Outside of all the washing and chopping, this is very easy to make and has minimal clean up.

Wash all produce.

Put large soup pot on stove on medium heat.  Add the oil and the garlic.  As garlic becomes golden, chop up the scallions and carrots, add to pot.  I used one handful of baby carrots, next time, I'll consider using two since I really like carrots.

Use carrot peeler to scrape the skin off the ginger, then grate into the pot.  I couldn't find out grater, so I was using a serrated knife.  My patience wore off at four inches of the ginger.  I wish I'd used more, so if you like zing, keep grating away.  The original Bon Appetit recipe calls for 1 inch.

Next, I added the a tablespoon of fish sauce, chicken broth, and coconut milk, then all the chicken tenderloins.  Just toss the chicken pieces into the soup pot whole.  Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce to simmer, and set timer for 20 minutes.

While the chicken is simmering, slice the jalapeno thinly.  I de-seeded it to keep the spicy level lower for my husband, but next time, I'll use two jalapenos.  Chop the sugar snap peas into small pieces--they'll look like over-sized rings of green onion.  I always chop mine across or slightly diagonally to make sure I cut across where strings could be.  I tend to find strings, even if the bag says the peas are string-less.

At the 20 minute mark, remove the chicken tenderloins and place on large plate.  Add the pea and jalapeno to the soup pot.  Using a fork and knife (it's hot!), pull the chicken into pieces that will fit on a spoon.  The chicken was really tender and came apart very easily.  Return the pulled chicken to the pot.  Add 2-3oz. of lime juice (I used half of a little green plastic reconstituted lime juice container).  Stir and taste.  At this point, I wanted more salt.  Instead of adding salt, I added another tablespoon or two of fish sauce to get that salty/umami taste I needed.

Taste it to check for the right balance.  Need saltiness or umami?  Add fish sauce.  Need zing?  Add lime juice and or grated ginger.

Remove the cilantro leaves from the stems.  Now you're ready to serve.

For best presentation, use a slotted spoon to scoop up the right balance of chicken and veggies.  Then ladle the broth around the chicken and veggies so you can see them peaking through the surface.  Top with fresh cilantro and serve immediately.

The delicious finished product--Tom Kha Gai inspired Thai Chicken Soup.

Don't add the rest of the fresh cilantro to the leftovers.  It will wilt when sitting in the liquid then during reheating.  Top each reheated bowl with fresh cilantro.