Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

Ha. I bet you thought with my last slow cooker recipe that I was done with this whole crockpot business. Nope. I have one more for you, then I promise, I'm done. For a while anyways.

The slow cooker really shines when it comes to cooking meats "low and slow". Unfortunately, it can make for some fairly repetitive meals. Pulled pork seasoned with this, shredded chicken sprinkled with that. Again. And again. My goal in the hunt for slow cooker recipes was to find ones that weren't your everyday recipes. Sure, I had a few of those too, but was far more interested in things such as the Slow Cooker Lasagna.

You may roll your eyes and point out the fact that um, yeah, this recipe is essentially just seasoned shredded chicken -- and I would agree with you on that. But, the flavors in this dish are not your everyday flavors. At least in our household. Indian rarely makes it to our table, and we really have to be in the mood to eat it. Not only do a lot of Indian dishes call for coconut (which is a no-go from both of us), but the curry presence can tend to be very strong and pronounced at times. It's not that we don't like it, we just like it in small doses. This dish definitely settles those Indian cravings, and is super easy to throw together.

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

Adapted from: The Family Kitchen

1 onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2-3 tablespoons tomato paste
4-5 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2-3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 (4 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, fresh or frozen
4 cups fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
1 cup plain fat-free greek yogurt
2 tablespoons roughly chopped cashews

Cover a slow cooker with a liner. Combine first 8 ingredients (through chicken) in the slow cooker. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Using two forks, shred or cut the chicken into chunks. Stir in the yogurt until fully combined, then stir in the spinach until it wilts. Serve over white rice.

Serves: 6

I think "easy" is another requirement for a good slow cooker recipe. If you have to brown a bunch of meat, or pre-cook/prep a bunch of other ingredients, all you're really saving is the waiting time to eat from the time you walk in the door -- basically about 30 minutes to an hour. On those recipes, I'm not 100% sure it's worth it. I like the kind that involves dumping the ingredients and going. Period. This recipe definitely falls into the latter category (although you do have to wait about 20 minutes or so for the rice...) . While it may be ridiculously easy to throw together, this is one of those recipes that needs those extra few hours of TLC to get those spice flavors really melded together. Definitely a keeper for those random times we crave Indian food.

Nutrition Facts - does not include rice
Serving Size 279g
Amount per serving
Calories 146	Calories from fat 29
% Daily Value
Total Fat 3.2g	5%
Saturated Fat 0.0g	0%
Cholesterol 32mg	11%
Sodium 286mg	12%
Total Carbs 13.8g	5%
Fiber 3.1g	12%
Sugars 7.3g
Protein 18.0g
Vitamin A 65%	Vitamin C 44%
Calcium 13%	Iron 13%

Chicken Tikka Masala

I have kitchen issues. And no, this time it doesn't involve my fridge (although I did get that business cleaned out). I have a small tendency to buy things (or ask for them as presents) I don't have room for in my kitchen. Such as a second bowl for my stand mixer, or a dutch oven, or... well, you get the idea. It's not that I don't use these items, I just don't really have a place to put them. It's so bad that we don't have any actual food in our kitchen cabinets. Only dishes. That's what our little stand-alone pantry is for.

Except then I did this:

And that doesn't even include the little turn-style-thing-a-ma-jig I have on the counter. I counted them this morning... 63 different spices. This doesn't even include extracts and doubles of spices I have. Who on earth needs that many spices? Apparently I think I do.

Send help.

Or better yet, you can follow in my footsteps and buy some spices you normally wouldn't use and put them to work in this fantastic popular Indian British dish. (What, don't believe me? Wikipedia it.)

Chicken Tikka Masala
Adapted from: Eat Live Run

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 cup plain yogurt
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced into one inch cubes

wooden skewers
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground ginger, minced
1 tablespoon garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
3/4 cup cream (heavy or whipping cream will work)
2 tablespoons lime juice

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Once it is hot, add coriander and cumin seeds and toast for 3-4 minutes.

Transfer seeds to a blender and pulse for 30 seconds or until mostly ground. Add yogurt and next 9 ingredients (through ginger) to the blender. Blend for 30 seconds, or until the mixture is smooth.

Place the chicken in a medium bowl, and cover with the marinade. Stir until all the chicken is coated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours (up to overnight).

Preheat broiler. In a large bowl or pan, immerse wooden skewers in cold water for at least 30 minutes. This is to prevent burning while the chicken is cooking. Line a pan large enough to accommodate the skewers with foil and set aside.

Once skewers have be soaked thoroughly, slide on 3-4 pieces of chicken onto each, then place in the foil-lined pan. Broil the chicken for about 6 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, warm 1 tablespoon of canola oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté about 5 minutes, or until starting to soften. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 1 teaspoon ginger, 1 tablespoon garam masala, 1 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne and sauté another 30 seconds. Stir in the tomatoes and cream. Reduce heat slightly, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir the cooked chicken and lime juice into the sauce. Serve over hot rice.

Serves: 6

Indian-inspired food is not typically something Adam and I eat, so this dish really kind of came out of the blue. I still don't know why I decided to put it on the menu for the week, but am I ever so glad I did. We typically tend to shy away from Indian and Thai foods as many of the recipes call for coconut or coconut milk. Lucky for us, this recipe didn't (although I'm sure you could easily sub out the cream for coconut milk if you wanted to).

Both Adam and I really enjoyed this random change of pace, not to mention the dish itself! The flavors are very warm, a little spicy with just a hint of almost sweetness and cinnamon. While I'm not sure this cuisine will be regularly making it to our table, it's definitely a good start.

Nutrition Facts - does not include rice
Amount per serving
Calories 315	Calories from fat 103
% Daily Value
Total Fat 11.4g	18%
Saturated Fat 3.0g	15%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 105mg	35%
Sodium 908mg	38%
Total Carbs 13.2g	4%
Dietary Fiber 2.2g	9%
Sugars 8.0g
Protein 39.3g
Vitamin A 26%	Vitamin C 38%
Calcium 13%	Iron 11%

Chicken Biryani

Okay, what the heck is Chicken Biryani? I had no clue when I picked this recipe out of a Cooking Light magazine. It was under the fast and easy section, and the ingredient list looked good, so I decided to give it a try.

Well, according to the handy-dandy Wikipedia, biryani is "a set of primarily Pakistani rice-based foods made with spices, rice (usually basmati) and meat/vegetables." (Muslims brought it to India, and it is a very popular dish in that region, so this dish gets classified under Indian -- that and I really don't want to have lables for every single country....)

Chicken Biryani
From: Cooking Light, January 2009

2 teaspoons canola oil
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup chopped onion
1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups chopped plum tomato (I just used a 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes)
1 cup uncooked basmati rice
1/3 cup golden raisins
1 (14-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup sliced almonds
4 lime wedges (I omitted this)

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Add onion and jalapeño; sauté 3 minutes. Add ginger, garam masala, cumin, salt, and garlic; sauté 30 seconds. Add tomato, rice, raisins, and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir in cilantro. Sprinkle with almonds; serve with lime wedges.

Serves: 4

For such a long ingredient list, it actually comes together pretty quickly. I thought it was just alright, but Adam really liked it (we're actually having it again this week per his request). Thus I rate it:

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 414	Calories from fat 77
% Daily Value
Total Fat 8.6g	13%
Saturated Fat 1.1g	5%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 66mg	22%
Sodium 672mg	28%
Total Carbs 57.3g	19%
Dietary Fiber 4.2g	17%
Sugars 11.8g
Protein 30.3g
Vitamin A 19%	Vitamin C 37%
Calcium 6%	Iron 9%

Curried Chicken and Cashews

When I started getting into cooking, my original goal was to try a new recipe each week. I wanted to "expand my horizons" (as my parents would say) and branch out with the different types of food I was eating.

Well, this recipe definitely goes into the "not typically what I eat" category. Actually, it goes into that category for both Adam and I. Upon coming across this recipe in the September issue of Cooking Light, I thought, why not? I'd give it a try.

Curried Chicken and Cashews

From: Cooking Light, September 2008

Sauce:
1/3 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons water
1 1/2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon rice vinegar

Remaining ingredients:
3/4 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1 1/2 cups vertically sliced onion
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon Madras curry powder (I used regular curry)
3 small dried hot red chiles, broken in half
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup dry-roasted salted cashews, chopped
3 cups hot cooked short-grain rice

To prepare sauce, combine the first 5 ingredients; set aside.

Cut chicken across grain into 1/4-inch slices; cut slices into 1/2-inch-wide strips. Cut strips into 3-inch-long pieces.

Heat a 14-inch wok over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to wok, swirling to coat. Add half of chicken to wok; stir-fry 2 minutes. Spoon cooked chicken into a bowl. Repeat procedure with 2 teaspoons oil and remaining chicken.

Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to wok, swirling to coat. Add onion, ginger, and garlic to wok; stir-fry 1 minute or until lightly browned. Add curry powder and chiles; stir-fry 30 seconds. Add sauce and chicken to wok; stir-fry 1 minute. Spoon into a serving dish. Sprinkle with cilantro and cashews. Serve over rice.

Serves: 4

I have to admit, it wasn't our favorite meal. It wasn't bad -- it's actually rated a 4 out of 5 stars on myrecipes.com, I just think that we don't really care for food with a strong curry flavor. If that type of food is up your alley, I'd say give it a shot. As for us... I think we'll pass on another round.

Nutrition Facts
Amount per serving
Calories 736	Calories from fat 126
% Daily Value
Total Fat 14.0g	22%
Saturated Fat 2.0g	10%
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 49mg	16%
Sodium 707mg	29%
Total Carbs 121.1g	40%
Dietary Fiber 3.2g	13%
Sugars 3.8g
Protein 29.9g
Vitamin A 2%	Vitamin C 7%
Calcium 6%	Iron 39%