Curried Chicken Stew

I created this recipe only because I love, love, love Indian food soooooooo much. I tried to use a lot of spices and ingredients I could readily find in my local supermarket. In my opinion it's a nice substitute but really does not completely satisfy my Indian food cravings. My favorite Indian dishes are Mattar Paneer, Chicken Tikka Masala, Curried Chicken and of course NAAN!

If anyone out there knows how to prepare these dishes really well at home or knows someone who can please comment. I would love to try the recipe and post it.

Alright, on to my rendition:

1-2 lbs. Chicken (preferably thighs)
1 medium onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
4 celery stalks, diced
Kosher salt
Fresh ground black pepper
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp ground tumeric
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp curry powder (yellow)
Dash of nutmeg
½ cup honey
32 oz carton of chicken stock
3 tbsp flour
3 tbsp olive oil

Season the chicken with 1 tsp of each, salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder. Place a large deep pot over medium heat, allow pan to heat adequately. Add 1 tbsp of olive oil; once the pot is sufficiently heated add the chicken skin side down, brown chicken on both sides. Do not fully cook the chicken, just brown it. Place chicken in a separate dish. Add another tbsp of oil to the pot, add the onion, garlic and celery to the pot season with salt and sauté until the onions are translucent. Add the ground coriander, nutmeg, curry powder, cayenne pepper, ground tumeric, paprika, crushed red pepper, flour and remainder of the onion powder and garlic powder to the onion sauté. Allow the seasonings to combine with the onion mixture, stir constantly. The mixture will become slightly thick this will take approx. 10 minutes. Return the chicken to the pot, coat the chicken well with the sautéed mixture. Slowly add the chicken stock to the pot until the stock is just covering the chicken, add the honey and stir. Place the top on the pot and cook over medium heat until the chicken is fully cooked, 30-40 minutes. Stir and salt to taste and serve over rice.


-Diva

Diva's Whimsical Whiskey, Drop It Like It's Hot Toddy

Hey Pookies!!!

Okay, Diva is feeling a little under the weather (severe understatement) and so tonight’s recipe will be a hot toddy. It’s going to be a pretty traditional recipe with a little bit of flair. Y’all know I have to add some flair; I wouldn’t be Diva if I didn’t.

So my suggestion to anyone out there that is going to attempt this recipe is to first… This is a very important step so please pay attention. First, have yourself and everything ready for bed before you make this concoction, because afterward you will be fit for only one place…La La Land!

On to the recipe:

2 oz bourbon whiskey
1 oz lemon juice
1 oz honey
1 slice lemon
1 clove
Dash of nutmeg (fresh if you have it, it’s so much better than the bottled stuff, shout outs to Kitty for that tip) [BTW- If you read the comments and postings you should know who this is]
Dash of cinnamon
4 oz hot water
Cinnamon stick (for garish and to stir)


This is not rocket science, however, I suggest you heat the liquids a certain way. Heat the water in a medium saucepan over medium heat; add all the ingredients except for the whiskey. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil. Turn off the heat and add the whiskey to the heated mixture. Stay with me now…

Pour the Toddy into a coffee cup or a heat safe drinking container. Now please, please, please allow the Toddy to cool a little (come on, you really don’t want to burn your lips off, do ya?) Serve with a slice of lemon for added pucker. Enjoy the slightly comatose state you will be in directly after :-)

I have a cinnamon stick in there, but it wasn’t tall enough for you to see it.


- DIVA

Diva's Beef Stew

This recipe is great for a cold night in with friends, because it serves so many. It’s hearty, delicious and full of veggies an awesome well-rounded dish.

I don’t know about everybody else, but I love to come in from the cold to be greeted at the doorway by a delightful aroma that takes hold of you and pulls toward the kitchen to find out what is cooking. This recipe definitely does not disappoint, the cumin plays nicely with the coriander and the cayenne pepper adds a nice bit of heat in the background.


1-2 lbs. of beef, chuck, cubed
3 tbsp of olive oil
3 tbsp Kosher Salt
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
Freshly ground pepper
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
6 tbsp of flour
5 tbsp of cold water
16 oz can of diced tomatoes

8 oz can of sweet corn
2 medium carrots, sliced into bite sized pieces
5 red potatoes, cut into bite sized cubes
1 medium onion, sliced into wedges
5 cloves of garlic, rough chopped
4 stalks of celery, sliced into 1 inch pieces
32 oz carton of beef stock


Combine in a large bowl beef, kosher salt, 1 tbsp of olive oil, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, onion powder, freshly ground pepper and ground cumin. Toss everything together, make sure all the beef is coated well. Place the beef in a zip lock bag or airtight container and place in refrigerator to marinate at least 3-4 hours.

Remove beef from the refrigerator; drain as much olive oil from the beef as possible. Place beef in a large bowl, add 3 tbsp of flour toss and coat well.

Heat a large deep pot over medium-high heat, add the remainder of the olive oil and add the beef. Cook beef until brown, approx. 15 minutes.

Add the tomatoes w/ the juice, onion, garlic and celery. Cover and reduce heat to medium, cook for 15 minutes.

Add the carrots, corn and potatoes. Pour the beef stock to just cover the beef and veggies; you will use most of the carton. Cook for 20-25 minutes, just until the potatoes are fork-tender. In a separate small bowl mix the remaining flour and cold water together, make sure all the flour is incorporated in the water, add the flour mixture to the stew and continuously. Cover and remove from heat, allow to sit for 5-10 minutes so the stew can thicken. Serve over rice and ENJOY!