ROASTED GARLIC CHICKEN

ROASTED CHICKEN

Chicken tastes better when marinated overnight. Sometimes I roast them without marinating overnight, all I do is just let it sit in the fridge for couple of hours.

Here is how I do it!

Ingredients

Fresh thyme

Black peppercorns

2 medium onions

Lemon

Sea salt/table salt

Knorr Aromat/all purpose seasoning

Olive oil

Garlic granules

Preparations

Using a fork, poke the chicken skin. Put a tablespoon of knorr aromat, 2 tablespoons garlic granules and olive oil into a small bowl. Using your fingers, mix together and rub on the skin. Sprinkle salt and lemon. Cover with a cling film, put in the fridge for 2 hours or more.

Preheat oven…After 2 hours, sprinkle the black peppercorns on the chicken, put the thyme and drizzle olive oil on the chicken. Cut the onions into wedges and put by the side of the chicken. Half the lemon, sprinkle about a tablespoon on the chicken and put by the side of the chicken.

Put the chicken into the oven and turn down the heat to 200 degrees/gas 6 and roast for 1hr30mins. After 40 minutes bring out the chicken and use foil to cover the breast {this helps keep the breast moist and not dry up}.

Always drizzle olive oil on the chicken when it’s drying up. When cooked, transfer the chicken to a board and allow cooling.

Serve and enjoy!

The stock from the chicken could be used for gravy.

Garlic granules - Lidl

Knorr aromat - African shop

 

SIMPLE COCNUT RICE N BEANS

I am an expert when it comes to rice dishes. Rice is actually one of favorites and my obstacle to losing weight. I prepare two rice dishes every week. This recipe is simple really.

SIMPLE COCONUT RICE BEANS

 
Ingredients
2 cups of long grain rice
½ cup Nigerian sweet beans
2 knorr cubes
Salt
Whole chicken or beef or fish
Coconut milk
Crayfish
Pepper – optional
Olive oil
Green pepper
Onions
Ginger

Butterfly Chicken

I watched a Youtube video to learn this. Watch here  http://video.about.com/bbq/How-to-Butterfly-a-Chicken.htm

Blend green pepper, small ginger, onions, and 1 cube of knorr and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Put the chicken in a bowl; pour the mix on the chicken. Cover and put into the fridge to marinate overnight.

Roast in the oven for an hour 25 mins 170 degrees the next day.   

Beans

Cook the beans as directed here  http://labelle-afrilight.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/bean-n-stew.html

For the rice

In a medium pot, add water and bring to boiling. Once boiled, add the rice and boil for 5 mins, drain with water with a sieve and set the rice aside.

Wash the pot, pour the coconut milk in, add 100mls of water and bring to boiling. Wash the crayfish with warm water and blend with the onions and pepper.  Add 2 cubes of knorr and salt. Taste, add more salt if you need to.

Cover the pot and allow boiling, so the ingredients all mix together. Add the rice, allow boiling for 2 mins, and then turn the gas to the lowest so the rice soaks up the water. Turn the rice time and again so to ensure the heat goes round evenly. This could take about 15mins.

Turn and serve hot with the Roasted chicken

Enjoy.

Grilled Chicken Thighs served with Salad!

Juggling school and family life is like trying to juggle two bags of cement all on your own. One of my friends in school said the other day, "It feels like I'm ignoring my hubby and kids. I don't even cook for them anymore...that's so bad school work has affected our lives! My new best friend is my PC...so much course work! In fact Belle, any day you don't see me in school, just know that I finally quit school".

I've refused to let the stress interfere with my giving quality attention to my man and his stomach. The way to a man's heart is through his stomach after all! So I came up with this plan of stocking as many chicken thighs as possible, spiced and left in the fridge over night to marinate after which I pack them, as I want to use and preserved up in the freezer. It really comes in handy especially when an unexpected friend pops in to visit…

                               Here's my recipe for spicing the thighs, and the salad that goes with it. 

 

Ingredients         
 
Meat seasoning                                           Salad

Chicken                                                   Bristol salad {from Iceland or Lidl}
Beef                                                         Avocado
Knorr                                                       Cherry tomatoes
Salt                                                          Carrots
Ginger                                                     Cucumber
Garlic
Lemon or vinegar
Curry
Thyme


The seasoning process.
 

• Remove the skin of the back of the chicken
• In a bowl, put in the meat, be it chicken or beef
• Add the Knorr, curries, a pinch of salt, ginger, fingers of garlic, squeeze in quarter of a medium lemon and thyme
• Massage the spices into the chicken
• Put in the spiced protein into a freezer bag
• Put in the fridge to leave to marinate for 2hrs
• for the steak...fry with little olive oil and butter until browned

If you want to grill immediately, that’s fine. It’s up to you how you want it.  I usually freeze them and bring out the portion I will be using about 4 hrs before I use them so as to defrost.

For the Salad

• Empty the Bristol salad into a bowl
• Grate in your carrots
• Cut the cucumber and avocado and chunk into the bowl
• Wash the cherry tomatoes and add in
  Mix together and serve with any cream of your choice. I love my salad cream.

                                                       Made this for my friend and her son.

                                                                     Shiela and her Son

                                                                

                                                     Made this specially for him...Lazy friday.