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Grilled Garlic Chicken

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Since about mid January we’ve had mild weather here in Calgary. It’s very unusual for this time of the year as we typically have tons of snow on the ground. I kid you not. In my world we would have 2-3 months of cold winter and snow with the rest of the year sunny and green.

With warm weather comes serious spring fever. Last weekend we did yard work and cleaned up the yard in preparation for planting and Spring. My rhubarb is popping up and I’m ready to start seeding the lawn and eager to start planting. The kids have already advised they will each be having their own pepper and tomatoe(s) plants again this year. Sun and warmth feels so good. With this warmer weather we find we want to grill all the time. Fish and soy sauce are always on hand here and since we are die hard grillers (we will grill in any weather unless it hits -20), it’s not the first time we fired up the BBQ this year. We served up this chicken with our Green Rice.

I prep the food, my husband tends the grill. We make a good team. The longer this chicken can marinate, the more flavour you get.

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Grilled Garlic Chicken
Serves: 4
 
The flavours in this chicken shine when allowed to marinate up to four hours or overnight. If you do not have the time, give the chicken at least 30 minutes to get cozy with the marinade.
Ingredients
  • 6 bone in/skin on chicken thighs
  • ½ cup fresh cilantro
  • 2 tbsp garlic
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp water
  • salt and pepper
Instructions
  1. Loosen the skin on your chicken thighs with your hand keeping skin intact. Put into plastic storage bag & set aside.
  2. In a small food processor or blender, combine cilantro, garlic, fish sauce, soy sauce and a pinch of salt and pepper. Puree until you have a smooth liquidy paste.
  3. Pour marinade into storage bag with chicken and smooshie the bag to combine. Close and store in refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.
  4. When ready to cook ,preheat your grill to medium high. Cook thighs over high heat until brown then move over to indirect heat and continue to cook 20-25 minutes or until cooked through (juices run clear).
  5. Remove to plate and set aside to rest.

 

Grilled Garlic Chicken
Grilled Garlic Chicken

Whiskey Marinated Flank Steak

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My man loves his whiskey. But only once in a while. Our liquor cabinet holds quite a few bottles of liquor that rarely gets touched. Especially those little ones. You know how sometimes you buy a bottle of something and it has a little mini me bottle attached, well there are several mini me bottles in the cabinet that are taking up space. So I used one.

And it came down like this….I picked up not one, but two mini bottles of whiskey and set to make a marinade. One I used in the marinade and the other (a Spiced Whiskey Vanilla to be exact) I consumed over ice because it sounded amazing. And it was.

A few more things went into the Ziplock bag followed by the flank steak. We marinated this bad boy for a couple hours and then grilled it up to perfection (rare and tender). The outcome was simple but flavourful. Here’s how I did it.

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Whiskey Marinated Flank Steak
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Recipe type: Dinner, lunch
Serves: 6
 
Ingredients
  • 1 Flank Steak
  • ⅓ cup whiskey
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp sweet red chili sauce
  • ¼ cup brown sugar
  • ziplock bag
Instructions
  1. Pour whiskey, mustard, soy sauce, sweet red chili sauce and brown sugar into ziplock bag. Squishy to combine.
  2. Add steak, shake and swoosh it around so steak gets covered in marinade. Close bag.
  3. Place in refrigerator and let marinate for about 2 hours.
  4. Over medium high heat grill steak for approximately 5 minutes per side. 10-12 minutes will get you a rare steak. Remove and let rest for 5 minutes before carving.

 

 

Hoisin Ginger Pork Tenderloin

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Pork Tenderloin is a delicious & lean cut of meat you can cook and prepare several ways. Try grilling it with this sticky honey hoisin sauce and end up with a moist, flavourful dinner. We double the recipe making extra for leftovers the next day. Use it in a Vietnamese style sub adding in fresh bean sprouts, cilantro, cucumber, carrots and the leftover sauce, slice it thin and add it last minute to hot broth, or warm it in some leftover BBQ sauce.

Serve with a simple salad, roasted potatoes or fresh veggies.

hoisin-ginger-pork-v3

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Hoisin Ginger Pork Tenderloin
Author: 
Recipe type: Dinner, Lunch, Main,
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1 Pork Tenderloin
  • 1-2 tbsp oil
  • ¼ cup hoisin sauce
  • 1 tbsp ginger, fresh & minced
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp red wine vinegar (or sherry)
  • 2 tsp honey
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
  • salt & pepper
Instructions
  1. In a bowl mix together hoisin sauce, ginger, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, honey and garlic. Set aside.
  2. In a skillet, heat oil over high heat. Season pork with salt & pepper. When the oil is ready quick sear your pork tenderloin on all sides.
  3. Brush pork with your sauce and grill over low heat on natural gas BBQ for about 15 minutes turning and basting as you go with more sauce. Grill for about 30 minutes or until a thermometer registers 170F (and a hint of pink remains).
  4. If you have leftover glaze discard.
  5. When done put your pork on a platter and tent it for at least 5-10 minutes before serving.

 

Maple Soy Pork Chops

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When kids come into your lives you have no idea how busy life will become. Schedules, routines, activities, eventually school, playdates, family time, and somewhere in there we need to eat right? As my kids started to get older, and several weekly activities became the norm, we were running like chickens with our heads cut off several times a week trying to grab something healthy to eat and go.

Quick meals solutions were needed. Pork chops are one of those quick, easy and healthy meal ideas that can be grilled, fried, or broiled quickly. Once cooked and cooled you could slice thin and add to sandwiches or wraps if you do not have time for a sit down meal. A bowl of pasta, pork chops and fresh veggies are really that easy to get on the table in 30 minutes or less.

These pork chops are a family favourite, in fact anything that includes Chinese five-spice powder is a favourite here.

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Maple Soy Pork Chops
 
Ingredients
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1-2 tsp ginger, freshly grated
  • 3 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 4 boneless pork chops
Instructions
  1. Add all ingredients except pork chops into a ziplock style bag. Mush it up to combine. Add your pork chops, seal bag and squishy bag to ensure chops are coated evenly.
  2. Marinate for a minimum 30 minutes. Longer is better.
  3. Remove pork chops from bag and grill over low heat on BBQ until done, about 30 minutes for thicker chops.
  4. In the photo I paired my pork chop with balsamic & basil grilled veggies. Will post that recipe soon.

 

 

Sticky Hoisin Orange Chicken

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The flavour profile in our Sticky Hoisin Orange Chicken is outstanding.

We prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe but you can use bone in and skin on, or drumsticks if you prefer for this dish. Whatever you decide, you will love it I’m sure.

Do not overcook and continue to baste chicken throughout cooking time. We served ours with noodles (kids), sometimes coconut rice, and steamed broccoli.

5.0 from 1 reviews
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Sticky Hoisin Orange Chicken
Recipe type: dinner, entree, lunch, chicken,
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 4 - chicken breasts
  • ½ cup - hoisin sauce
  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce
  • 2 tbsp - toasted sesame seeds
  • 1.5 tbsp - soy sauce
  • 2 tsp - sesame oil
  • 1 tsp - grated orange rind
  • ¼ cup orange juice
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 425F degrees.
  2. Mix all ingredients (except chicken) together.
  3. Put your chicken onto a greased and foil or parchment lined baking sheet (rimmed).
  4. Brush mixture onto chicken reserving some for basting.
  5. Bake in oven, turning and brushing with reserved glaze halfway through cooking time approx. 20-25 minutes depending on your oven or until no longer pink inside.

Hamburger Soup

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Here’s another delicious soup for a cold day. Burger Soup has been done before so this is just a slight variation of an original recipe. Cooked in a slowcooker it makes for a lovely meal to come home to. We have this a couple of times a month during the winter as my family loves it. Top it with a good helping of Parmesan cheese & some croutons.

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Hamburger Soup
Author: 
Serves: 4
 
Ingredients
  • 1lb lean ground beef
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 cup celery, chopped
  • 1 cup carrots, sliced
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ½ tsp dried oregano
  • ½ tsp dried basil
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 package dry onion soup mix
  • 3 cups boiling water
  • 1½ cans tomato sauce (8 oz)
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1-2 cup macaroni (or any small pasta), cooked & drained
  • ¼ cup Parmesan cheese (or more)
  • croutons
Instructions
  1. Over medium high heat brown beef and chopped onion. Cooked until beef is nicely browned. Toss into crockpot and add remaining ingredients except pasta, cheese & croutons. Cook on low for up to 8 hours or on high for 3-5 hours.
  2. To serve add cooked pasta to soup bowls and ladle hot soup over top. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and croutons.