GINGER AND PEPPER COCONUT CHICKEN

Asian|Chicken

Ingredients

The Marinade:

6 cloves garlic, peeled and rough chopped

1, 3” x 1” piece ginger root, peeled and cut into thin slices

2 jalapeno chilis, rough chopped including seeds

½ cup brown sugar, packed

½ cup white vinegar

¼ cup soy sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

¼ cup sweet Thai chili sauce

4 pounds chicken thighs, bone in – skin on

The Stir Fry:

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped

6 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon ginger, minced

8 ounces shitake mushroom caps, sliced

2, 15 ounce can unsweetened coconut milk

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into thin strips

1 ½ cups pea pods, stringed

½ cup scallions, chopped

4 cups cooked sushi or jasmine rice, cooked to package directions

1 lime, cut into wedges

Instructions

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Cut any excess fat off the chicken thighs and place them in a large bowl (or a ziplock bag works as well). Pour the marinade over the chicken and massage to make sure everything is well coated. Gently lift the skin on each thigh and push some of the marinade between the skin and the meat for maximum flavor infusion. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or overnight.

Heat the oil in a large deep skillet over medium high heat. Remove each thigh from the marinade and let the excess drip off (reserve the excess marinade for the sauce). Place the thighs skin-side-down in the hot skillet – NOTE the marinade will spatter when it hits the oil, so watch your eyes! Cook for 5-7 minutes until the skin is mahogany brown in color and caramelized – watch them closely, checking occasionally with tongs, because the sugar in the marinade can burn. Flip them over and cook for 3-4 minutes on the other side. Remove to a plate – they do not need to be completely cooked through and will continue cooking in the sauce.

Add the onions to the pan drippings from the chicken and cook until soft, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and mushrooms to the pan and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes until the mushrooms soften. Add all of the reserved marinade from the chicken to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 3-4 minutes, using a spatula to scrape all of the brown bits off the bottom of the pan.

Add the coconut milk to the pan along with the fish sauce and sesame oil. Bring back to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce is smooth and thickened so that it coats the back of a spoon.

Add the peppers to the sauce and toss to coat. Add the chicken to the pan along with any juices that have developed on the plate. Nestle the thighs between the peppers into the sauce. Increase the heat to a low boil and cook for 3-4 minutes until the thighs are just cooked through (140-145 degrees).

Add the pea pods and half the scallions to the pan and gently push them into the sauce in and around the chicken. Cook for 2 minutes more until the pea pods are bright green and crisp tender in texture.

Serve the chicken over rice with lots of sauce and veggies. Garnish with more scallions and serve lime wedges on the side for squeezing.