Grilled Shoyu Chicken

Chicken was on sale, so my freezer is full! Love getting just thighs rather than leg quarters. Fewer bones. Anyway, that meant I needed some good recipes! I've made this before, but not for a long time, and it was def a hit!

I was going to just throw it in the oven, then hubs came in and asked if I wanted him to grill it. Awww shucks! Ya twisted my arm!

The whole back yard smelled heavenly!  He said the neighbor, who was trimming some bushes, was sniffing our way the whole time, too!  Gotta love making something so good that just the smell has the neighbors jealous!

Made cheddar mashed potatoes and he threw some corn on the cob on the grill, too. I had my corn after the chicken and potatoes because I loveeee corn on the cob and didn't want chicken and potatoes on it.

Grilled Shoyu Chicken

Chicken pieces to feed everyone (bones in or out, but adjust cooking time for boneless), skin removed
1 C water
1 C soy sauce
1 C brown sugar
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves minced garlic
1 t pepper
1 T paprika
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 t ginger

Combine everything except the chicken in a ziploc or large bowl and mix well.  Add chicken, making sure the meaty sides are covered. Chill 1 hour.

Place meat on heated grill, turned medium low. For bone in chicken, cook about an hour, or until juices run clear.  For boneless, cook about 30 minutes, or till juices run clear.

This can also be baked at 350 for about the same cook times listed above.

Hubby brushed the marinade over the meat as it cooked. Just remember to never use marinade that has had raw meat soaking in it unless it is to baste meat that is still cooking or place the marinade in a pan and bring it to a boil, then let it boil 5 minutes, before using! Otherwise, you may well get food poisoning.

The potatoes in the pic were just mashed with milk and butter. Then I added some salt and 2 cups of shredded cheddar.

Hot...Fingers?

So I was wanting hot wings. Really, really wanting them! Of course it was like 11pm, I never do things the easy way. So o go to the grocery store. I believe I have already told you that I'm cheap, right? So when I see my choices, I got inventive.
See, they had small boxes of like 6 winglets (you know, not the whole wing, just half) for like $4. Seriously? So I move on. They have  4 pound bag of frozen winglets, plain, just cut and frozen, for $8. Better, but all I want is a snack, not a meal for the family! OK, let's look at the fresh wings. Now I remember when wings were all but free because nobody wanted them. Now they're as much as chicken breast! I. Don't. Think. So!

What to do? Hmmmm. Well, I *do* have a package of chicken breast thawing in the fridge. There's more than I'll need for dinner...yeah! That'll work!
Now these were bone in breast halves, so they included the tenders. They're not heavily breaded, either, but quick and pretty good!  Oh, and I don't do the butter in the hot sauce thing, but if you prefer it that way, feel free.

Hot Fingers

1 large chicken breast half, cut into strips
1/2 cup flour
1 T Cajun seasoning
Hot sauce
Oil

Combine flour And Cajun seasoning in a medium bowl. Add chicken strips and toss to coat.
Heat oil in a large skillet, then add chicken a little at a time so it doesn't clump together. Fry about 10 minutes or till cooked through.  Remove to paper towels to drain. In a bowl, add as much hot sauce as you like, add chicken, and toss to coat.
Enjoy! 
* there's really enough for 2 people for a snack or one for a meal, but...they really were good!

Chicken Parmesan

This is such an easy meal and sooooo good! It's nice when the store has chicken breast on sale and I can stock up. I actually prefer the bone in breasts. It's not hard to de-bone it and as a bonus, you get the tenders, too. Not to mention, the bone in is usually cheaper than the boneless even when the boneless is n sale.

So, they had the bone n breasts for 99¢ a pound, so I bought like 15 pounds. When your freezer is full of the all the same meat, you have to get creative! And I have, but this is a favorite.

Now, my husband is NOT a fan of chicken breast. In fact, if I cook them as is, he won't touch them. They have to be cut up or shredded in some kind of dish or pounded thin. So, I pound them down to about 1/2" thick before I use them. The also cook faster this way, so if you want to skip this step, you'll have to adjust the cooking time. Also, he doesn't like the meat smothered in the pasta sauce and baked, so that's another option.  We also like a lot of sauce, so if you don't, one jar will do.

Chicken Parmesan

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
3/4 C. Breadcrumbs
1/2 C. Grated Parmesan
1/2 C. Shredded mozzarella
16 oz. Pasta, whatever shape you like
2 jars pasta sauce

Heat oven to 250.

Place each chicken breast half between layers of plastic wrap and pound to 1/2" thick.
In a plate, combine Parmesan and breadcrumbs. Coat each breast in this mixture.
Heat oil in a large skillet and cook chicken until juices run clear and it is no longer pink.

While the chicken is cooking, heat a large pot of water to boiling and cook pasta according to package directions.

When chicken is done, place it in a baking dish, sprinkle with mozzarella, then with extra breadcrumbs and cover with foil. Place in oven.

In the same skillet, heat pasta sauce until heated through. You can pour some or all of this over the chicken if you like, cover, and return to the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Serve chicken with pasta and sauce.

Crispy Baked Chicken

That'll teach me.  Planning dinner without checking the forecast. Baking chicken when it's 90 and humid is not a good idea!  Still...dinner was pretty good!
Nothing fancy, but there's nothing left, so I guess it hit the spot.  I made green beans and fried potatoes with it.

Baked Crispy Chicken

4 chicken legs
4 chicken thighs
1 C. Bread crumbs
1 T. Oregano
1 T. Basil
1 t. Garlic
1 T. Onion powder
1T. Paprika
1/4 C. Parmesan cheese
6 pieces skinless chicken

Heat oven to 350.
Combine everything except chicken in s large zipper bag an shake to mix. Add chicken a piece at a time and shake to coat.
Arrange chicken on a baking sheet.
For bone-in bake 45-55 minutes, for boneless, 30-40 minutes.

Dinner for 4, less than $10

I don't know about you, but I'm always looking for ways to feed us without breaking the bank, especially since our oldest came home.  Who'd have thought one more mouth would raise the food bill so much!
So tonight I really didn't feel like cooking, but we'd already had pizza this week, so...*sigh* guess I was cooking. It's been hot today and my husband works in the heat, which is draining, so I knew he wasn't going to want to stop by the store, and I certainly didn't want to, so that left what I had on hand.
OK, I can do this. Here's what I came up with. There are a lot of similar recipes out there, but, here it is.  After eating it, I think it would be good with rice, too, as long as you used cooked rice. Using uncooked would take too long, and I know I never have any luck with that...there's always so much that doesn't cook either at all or not completely, and if ruins dinner.

Chicken and Stuffing Casserole

1 large or 2 small chicken breast halves (or thighs), cooked and shredded
1 box stuffing mix
1 stick butter, melted
1 can cream soup (whatever flavor you like)
1 C. Water
Salt and pepper to taste (and any other seasoning you like)

Heat oven to 350.
Mix butter and stuffing mix and set aside.
Whisk water and soup together and set aside
Spray a 8x8" pan with nonstick spray.
Remove 1/4 C. Stuffing and set aside.
Spread half the stuffing on bottom of pan. Top with half the chicken, then half the soup. Repeat. Sprinkle reserved stuffing on top.
Bake 30 minutes.

If you use rice, I would think about 3 cups would do, and I personally, would season it with salt, pepper, and maybe poultry seasoning, and cook it in. Chicken broth.