2015 Cooking Club Week 20: Good Bad food

Before I post up details of my recipe, there is something I need to get off my chest.

It is something that happened some time back, but has heavily influenced my choice for today. It's not something that I am particularly proud of, though it is something I look back on with fond memories. I think it is something that defined me, made me the man that I am, something that changed me - for good. While my brothers were a little suspicious of me,
my sister just accepted me as I was.

My wife too was always supportive. She had was ok with me doing it on my own, sometimes she would join me, and on occasion, we would even invite friends along. You have to remember at the time, we were young, in love, and experimenting. We were living in the US at the time, a place known for it's liberal thinking, a place where you could do this without people judging you.

I know that by airing this dirty little secret people will be shocked, horrified and embarrassed for me. I even know that one regular here on the F&D forum will probably never speak to me again (yes, Des, I'm talking about you). All I ask is that you remember the context and enjoy the food.

So what is this dirty little secret that I have been harbouring for all these years?

I used to drink light beer.

Yup, Bud Light, Coors Light, Miller light - I've tried them all. Hell, I even tried Michelob Light.

So, you may be asking, what has this got to do with today's recipe?

Essentially, it stems from my love fried food from your typical American Bar & Grill - chicken wings, potato skins, quesadillas and all that good stuff. Food that tastes disturbingly good with light beer (the bit about living in the US is actually true, all the rest is, um, well, I'll let you decide).

What I present below is a healthier (ok, less bad) version of these dishes that taste incredibly good and are not deep-fried. They are a bit
involved to make, but I usually make them over an evening when we have guests over. To me, they are the ultimate finger food. I had toyed around with others such as chicken wings (I don't think dumping chicken wings into an airfryer or oven and then covering them with hot sauce warrants a recipe, and I never quite got fried mozzarella sticks right), but the three presented below work well and are very tasty.

And if you want to crack open a Bud Light with them, well, what you do in the privacy of your own home is your own business. I won't judge you.

Round 1: Boneless buffalo wings
These are essentially chunks of chicken, breaded, cooked and served with hot sauce. Hence the boneless bit. No buffalos were harmed in the making of these.

Ingredients (for 2-3 people)
2 x large chicken fillets
2 x eggs beaten
1 x large bag of very fine breadcrumbs
1 x bottle of hot sauce, such as Franks
Optional:
2 x stalks of celery
1 x bottle of blue cheese dip

Method:
1 - chop the chicken into bite-sized chunks of approx. 4 cm. You really don't have to be particular here, just make sure that they are not too small as
they tend to shrivel and go rubbery

2 - taking one chunk of chicken at a time, dip it a number of times in the egg to ensure it is well covered

3 - immediately drop it into the breadcrumbs and turn a number of times to ensure it is coated well. See picture below for the process:


4 - I usually put these in the airfryer for about 10-15 mins max, but they will also cook well in the oven for around 15 mins. Make sure to turn occasionally

5 - As they are nearing completion, put your hot sauce into a microwaveable dish and heat up. The trick here is not to scald the hot sauce, just have it warm enough

6 - place the cooked chicken into a large bowl and spoon over the hot sauce, ensuring they are covered completely

7 - serve the remaining hot sauce in a small dipping bowl, along with the (optional) blue cheese in a similar bowl and the celery sticks. As you can see from the photo, I don't bother with the celery or blue cheese (these are to suppress the spicy sauce - no thanks, spicy all the way for me)




Round 2 : potato skins
There is something about the combination of potato, melted cheese, bacon and sour cream that makes these a perennial favourite

Ingredients (for 2-3 people)
3 x large potatoes, washed thoroughly (don't ask me the type, not floury, just large spuds that you are willing to eat the skin of)
2 x smoked rashers
4 x scallions
250g of grated cheddar cheese (ideally cheddar, but mozzarella will also do)
1 tub of sour cream

Method
1 - Slice the potatoes lengthways, leaving the skin on

2 - Using a large tablespoon, scoop (or scrape) out a cavity in the potato-half, while leaving sufficient potato around the edges. See photo:


3 - Put four of the potato halves onto a microwaveable plate and nuke for about 7-9 minutes until they become soft/edible (depends on the size of the potatoes)

4 - meanwhile, grill your rashers, towards the crispier side, but not cremated. Leave the grill on for later.

5 - chop your cooked rashers into small pieces and set aside

6 - chop your scallions into small pieces and set aside

7 - once the spuds are soft (and essentially edible), carefully remove them from the microwave

8 - generously lavish the hot potatoes with the chopped rashers

9 - immediately sprinkle the chopped rashers with the cheese and place under the grill for 1-2 minutes, or until the cheese has melted

10 - once they are ready, take them out from under the grill, sprinkle with chopped scallion and server on a plate with the sour cream dip.




Round 3 - Quesadillas(pronnounced Kay-sa-dee-aahs)
These are another favourite, combining the joy of melted cheese with seasoned chicken. This recipe is essentially a derivative of fajitas

Ingredients (for 2-3 people)
Buy one Old El Paso Fajita dinner kit to get:
4 x flour tortillas
1 x Old El Paso fajita seasoning kit
Other ingredients:
1 x small yellow pepper (this makes a surprising difference - don't use red or green, trust me)
1 x onion
250g of grated white cheese (I usually use Mozzarella, just not heavy, flavoured cheese like Cheddar)
2 x chicken fillets

Method

1 - chop the chicken into small strips (much smaller than for the buffalo wings above)

2 - fry the chicken and when cooked add some of the fajita dinner seasoning kit (don't use it all - that packet is for larger quantities of chicken)

3 - set the cooked chicken aside, clean out the pan with some kitchen roll and fry the yellow pepper and onion together. The trick is to cook them so they retain some of their crunchy texture.

4 - again, wipe down the pan until it is totally clean, DO NOT add any oil and heat it back up again to a medium-high heat

5 - place one cold tortilla on a plate and arrange some chicken, peppers, onion and cheese on one half of the tortilla

5 - fold the other half of the tortilla over, holding it closed, and place on the pan

6 - fry these quickly (again, important that there is no oil on the pan), until the cheese melts. Keep an eye on them as they burn easily. You may need to initially hold them closed, but once the cheese starts melting, this shouldn't be necessary. Flip them over onto the other side for a few seconds to ensure the cheese has melted properly inside.

7 - When the cheese has melted and the tortilla has gone slightly crispy, remove cut in half (so you essentially end up with quarters) and serve with
salsa for dipping

(no photos of the quesadillas, sorry)