Rice is Nice - My Recipe Rotation - Arroz Con Pollo

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Only serendipity can explain how this treasure made it from Latin America to my permanent recipe roster. About a decade ago I was asked to participate in a cooking demonstration for folks receiving food stamps. The dish, obviously, had to be inexpensive and easy to prepare, but I also wanted to come up with something that fell outside the pale of the usual "101 Ways to Cook" recipes. I was thumbing through an unfamiliar magazine looking for inspiration when I stumbled on this recipe by Sarah Jay. It is a no longer buried treasure, and that unfamiliar magazine went on to become a must read --- Fine Cooking. I've served this dish to friends and family for years now, and chances are if you've eaten at my table you've had this at least once. One caution - be sure to remove the skin from the chicken. While the bones help define the shape of chicken pieces, exposure to steam and stock will cause the skin to become limp and unappealing. Arroz con Pollo stole the show at the demonstration and it has remained a favorite of mine. All the ingredients are readily available and it is still inexpensive to prepare. I know you'll like this one. It's great family fare.

One Pan Wonder - My Recipe Rotation - Teriyaki Chicken

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This recipe has been in my rotation for years now. It is safely ensconced because this chicken is nearly effortless to prepare and makes it from the stove to the table in near record time. It would be faster still if I used a commercial sauce, but I prefer not to do that. I use a simple homemade sauce that, while not a heat and eat special, comes together quickly. "Teriyaki" is actually a word that identifies a method of cooking in which meat or poultry is brushed with a sauce made from soy sauce, mirin, sugar and saki. Food historians believe that teriyaki, along with other types of roasted and grilled meats, was first made by Japanese cooks in the seventeenth century. It was, however, the sauce that set teriyaki apart from the other dishes developed at that time. Traditionally, the sauce is made by boiling the four ingredients we've already mentioned until they are reduced to the desired thickness. The luster or shine of teriyaki comes from the mirin or sake, and from the caramelization of the sugar in the sauce. Cooks are not bound to the 4 ingredient formula. I also add lemon and ginger to the sauce I make for my family. I serve this chicken with steamed rice and pass any extra sauce at the table. I never have to deal with complaints or leftovers. This is another recipe that was added to the blog in 2008. Here is what I had to say about the dish at that time.