Greek Lemony Chicken Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 medium carrots, finely chopped
• 1 large leek, finely chopped
• 10 cups unsalted chicken stock
• 2/3 cup dry jasmine rice
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
• 4 cups spinach
• 1 rotisserie chicken, meat picked and shredded into bite-size pieces (about 14 ounces) or https://ykcirzeravla.blogspot.com/2018/09/velveteen-chicken-for-stir-fry.html
• 2 teaspoons salt
• Cracked black pepper, for serving (optional)

 

Directions

• Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat.
• Add garlic, carrots, and leek to pan; cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes.
• Add chicken stock to vegetables and bring to a boil.
• Add rice and reduce heat to medium-low; cook, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.
• Whisk together lemon juice and eggs in medium bowl.
• Slowly pour 1 cup of hot broth into egg mixture, whisking constantly
• pour egg mixture back into pan,  stirring.
• Add dill, spinach, chicken, and salt, cook for 10 minutes more.
• Sprinkle with black pepper

 

***

Chicken Afritada

Ingredients

• 2 lbs chicken, cut into serving pieces or https://ykcirzeravla.blogspot.com/2018/09/velveteen-chicken-for-stir-fry.html
• 1 large potato, quartered
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 1 large bell pepper, sliced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 1 cup green peas
• 1 can garbanzo beans
• 8 ounces tomato sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 pieces hotdogs, sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1¼ cups chicken broth or stock
• 2 pieces dried bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
• 4 tablespoons cooking oil
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Pour-in cooking oil in a cooking pot or casserole then apply heat.
2. Pan-fry the chicken until the color turns light brown (about 3 minutes per side).
3. Remove the chicken from the cooking pot.
4. On the same cooking pot, sauté garlic and onions.
5. Put-in the sliced hotdogs and pan-fried chicken then cook for a minute.
6. Pour-in tomato sauce and chicken stock then add bay leaves. Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes.
7. Add the potato and carrots then simmer for 10 minutes until the vegetables are soft.
8. Put-in the bell pepper, jalepeno pepper, green peas, garbanzo beans, salt, sugar, and ground black pepper then cook for 3 minutes more.

***

Velveteen Chicken (for Stir Fry)

Chinese restaurants use this trick to velvetize chicken for their dishes...

Ingredients: 

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken meat, cut into thin strips 

2 Tsp Rice Vinegar 

1 egg 

1 Tbs cornstarch 

1 teaspoon salt 

2 Tbs Oil  

Preparation: 

Whisk the egg white, cornstarch, vinegar, salt and oil in a medium bowl until smooth. 

Add the sliced chicken and mix until well coated. 

Refrigerate (marinate) 30 minutes or more

To cook:

slowly drop loosened chicken strips into boiling water

bring back to a boil, stir and cook for 1 minute

Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon or into a colander to fully drain

or you can drop loosened chicken directly into boiling soup , return to boiling, and cook for a minute more

***