Chicken Cubes with Pears from China

 Chicken in cubes with Pears is a typical dish from Yunnan, a province in southwest China.

Legend has it that in 1657, Li Dingguo, who was named Prince of Jin for his services to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, fled to the city of Kunming (in Yunnan) to escape the attack of Qing troops. There, a peasant woman learned of Li Dingguo's arrival and wanted to make him a delicious dish. She killed her best chicken, diced the meat, and to enhance the flavour, she also diced some pears. The prince liked the dish so much that it became a traditional dish of the region since then.

It is a fairly simple dish to prepare, and the combination with pears and hamprovides the typical umami flavor of Asian cuisine, easily ending up in a spectacular dish.

Yunan

Ingredients:

- 250 gr. chicken breast.

- 1 beaten egg.

- 30 gr. cornstarch.

- 150 gr. pears.

- 50 gr. ham.

- Chives.

- Ginger.

- A dash of sesame oil.

- Lemon.

Method:

1- Beat the egg, add cornstarch and mix well.

2- Cut the breast chicken into 1 and a half cm thick cubes, add the chicken to the bowl where you have the egg, mix well and let stand for 15 minutes.

3- Meanwhile peel and cut the pears into cubes the same size as the chicken breast, add a dash of lemon to prevent it from oxidating.

4- Put the chicken breast in a strainer, let the excess of egg pour in a dish under the strainer.

5- Take a Wok, pour some oil, fry the chicken for some minutes until you see the color begins to change, add the pear and cook for half a minute, take everything out and put it in a striner to get rid of the excess of oil.

6- Fry half of the chives and the ginger for 1 minute, add the ham and cook for 1 more minute, add the chicken and pear, mix well and cook for 1 more minute.

7- Now put on a dish, sprinkle the rest of the chives over the chicken and a dash of sesame oil.

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Here you have my  favourite cooking tools: https://viaja-en-mi-cocina-english.blogspot.com/2023/05/shop.html

Receta en Español

China

Map:  De <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:TUBS" title="User:TUBS">TUBS</a><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:TUBS" title="User talk:TUBS"></a></span> <span typeof="mw:File"><a href="http://toolserver.org/~daniel/WikiSense/Gallery.php?wikifam=commons.wikimedia.org&amp;img_user_text=TUBS" title="Gallery" rel="nofollow"></a></span> - Esta <a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/imagen_vectorial" class="extiw" title="es:imagen vectorial">imagen vectorial</a> incluye elementos que han sido tomados o adaptados de esta:, CC BY-SA 3.0, Enlace

Flag: De Drawn by <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:SKopp" title="User:SKopp">SKopp</a>, Vectorización: <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Denelson83" title="User:Denelson83">Denelson83</a> and <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Zscout370" title="User:Zscout370">Zscout370</a> Recode by <a href="https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:-xfi-" class="extiw" title="cs:User:-xfi-">-xfi-</a> (code), <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Shizhao" title="User:Shizhao">Shizhao</a> (colors) - <span class="int-own-work" lang="es">Trabajo propio</span>, <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.npc.gov.cn/npc/gqgggh/202012/7ac70d3a4cfb480ea9edc872bdc85578.shtml">National Flag Image for Online Usage, National People's Congress of PRC</a>, per Article 9 of the National Flag Law of PRC., Dominio público, Enlace

Chicken Saloona from Qatar

 Saloona is a meat stew typical from Middle East, here I present to you the recipe from Qatar.

Chicken is the most popular ingredient for the Saloona, but lamb meat can also be used and there is also a vegetarian version.

It is said that the dish has a Bedouin origin. It is very often consumed in Ramadan.

Ingredients:

- 3 cinnamon sticks.

- 4 green cardamom seeds.

- 3 dried lemons.

- 6 cloves.

- 2 onions.

- 1 teaspoon garlic.

- 1 kg chicken.

- 2 tomatos.

- 2 teaspoon ground coriander.

- 1 teaspoon turmeric.

- 3 teaspoon Arabian masala.

- Salt.

- Oil.

- 300 g potatoes.

- 300 g zuchinni.

- 2 carrots.

Method:

1- Put some oil in a casserole, add the cinnamon, cardamom, dry lemon and cloves, Heat until you smell the scent of the spices.

2- Cut the onions and sautée until it gets golden.

3- Add the garlic and the chicken (in pieces), cook for 5 or 6 minutes.

4- Cut the tomatos into pieces, add to the casserole and cook for 5 or 6 minutes with the lid on.

5- Add coriander, turmeric, salt and Arabian masala, mix well and cook for some more minutes.

6-  Cut potatoes, zuchinni and carrots into pieces, add them to the casserole , add also two glasses of water and cook for 40 minutes with the lid on.

7- To know if the potato is well done, use a knife as you see in the photo.

8- Use rice as a side dish.

Chicken Saloona

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Here you have a link to my favourite cooking tools where you can find my spices grinder:  

Favourite cooking tools

Receta en Español

Qatar

Sancocho

Sancocho is a staple dish in Colombia, it is also very common in Venezuela, Panama ,Ecuador ,Cuba, Puerto Rico, Dominican Replubic.

This is a stew made from meet or fish and different types of tuber.

I present you the meat Sancocho, with a mix of different types of meat.

Ingredients:

- Spring onion or chive.

- 1 plantain.

- 2 onions.

- Garlic.

- 1 cob of corn.

- 1 yucca.

- 1 potato.

- 1/4 de pumpkin.

- Coriander.

- 3 tomatos.

- Cow meat and chicken .

- Thyme.

- Cumin.

- Oregano.

- Ground garlic.

Method:

1- Cook the meat with some water and salt using a pressure cooker, cook for 15 minutes.

2- Cut the onion and garlic in little pieces, fry until they are soft.

3- Cut chive and coriander.

4- Cut pumpkin and tomato into pieces.

5- Put inside one cooking pot, add meat, salt and the spices thyme, cumin, oregano and ground garlic. Pour some water until all the ingredients are covered. Cook on a medium heat, cover with a lid.

 

6- Cut the plantain in pieces, do not use one knife, use your hands.

7- Cut the potato and yucca, cut the corn cob into two pieces. Put inside the pot , cook until the tubers are soft.

Now the sancocho is ready, serve with white rice or avocado.

Receta en Español

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Colombia

Lettuce Burritos

 Eating healthy can be eating tasty and fun, this recipe is a healthy version of burritos.

Instead of corn tortilla we use lettuce filled with chicken, mushrooms, pears and cheese. This is a tasty mixture to create a nutritious dish.

Ingredients:

- Lettuce.
- Chicken breast.
- Mushrooms.
- 2 pears.
- Salt.
- Ground garlic.
- Parsley.

- Thyme.

- Rosemary.

- Cheese to melt.

Method:

1- Cut the chicken breast in little pieces.

2- Add salt, ground garlic, parsley, thyme, rosemary over the chicken and mix well.

3- Fry the chicken until it is half done.

4- Clean the mushrooms with a paper and cut into slices.

5- Peel and cut the pears into little pieces.

6- Add all the ingredients in the pan with the chicken, cook at low heat until all the ingredients are well done.

7- While the mixture is hot, put some of the filling on every lettuce leave.

8- Put some cheese over the filling, the cheese will melt thanks to the heat of the chicken.

Eat while it is still hot.

Receta en Español

You can also watch the recipe at my Youtube Channel:

Arroz con costra (arròs amb costra)

  Arroz con costra (arròs amb costra) is considered the most ancient recipe of rice from Spain. This recipe appeared in 1490 at the book 'Lybre de doctrina per ben servir, de tallar y el art de coch' from Ruperto Nola ,the cook of the king of Naples, this book was so successful that it was translated into spanish some years later.

This rice is typical from Elche and the regions of Vega Baja, Bajo Vinalopó. 

This is a strong dish, with chicken, rabbit, sausages, rice and chickpeas.

The costra is made from a layer of beaten eggs over the rice cooked in oven , it provides the rice with softeness and a special taste.

Dependig on the region the ingredients vary a little, the recipe I bring today is the variety from Elche.

It is better and traditional if you use a clay cooking pot.

Ingredients:

• A clay pot (I used one with 30 cm of diameter).
• 4 or 5 ripe tomatos.
• 6 or 7 litle white sausages.
• Red sausige.
• 1/2 blanquet (or white butifarra).
• 1/2 black butifarra.
• 5 or 6 tablespoons of cooked chickpeas.
• 250 grams of  chicken meat in little pieces and without the skin.
• 250 grams of rabbit meat in little pieces and without the skin.
• 2 and a half  cups of rice.
• Some saffron threads.
• 2 eggs per person plus one additional egg.
• Salt.
• Sugar.

 

Method:

 

1-  Put the tomatoes, oil, salt and sugar in a frying pan. Put the fire on a low heat and cook until the tomatoes are soft and the meat is clearly separated from the meat.

Pass the tomato through a ricer to gt rid of the skin and seeds.

 

2- Cut into slices black and white butifarras.

 

 

3- Put some oil in a large clay cooking pot, fry at medium heat the white butifarra 1 minute by every side, put aside.

 

 

4 - Fry at medium heat the black butifarra 1 minute by every side, put aside.

 

 

5- Cut white sausages in little pieces , add some salt and fry with the same oil until the meat is done.

Put aside.

 

 

6 - Cut red sausage in litle pieces, add salt and fry until the meat is done.

Put aside.

 

 

 

7 - Add salt to the chicken and rabbit, and fry until the meat is done.

 

 

8 - Add the tomato you made at step 1, add chickpeas and safron threads. Cook at medium heat for 2 or 3 minutes.

 

 

9 - Add water until de chicken and rabbit are covered, bear in mind that the quantity of rice that you will add later should be half of the quantity of water that you are adding now, cook at medium heat for half an hour.

 

 

10 - Add the rice, put on a high heat, once it reaches boiling point , put on a low heat and add all the sausages well spread all over the surface. Cook 12-13 minutes until there is no water and the rice is well done.

 

 

11- Meanwhile add salt to the eggs , beat them. Preheat oven at 220 ºC heat over and below.

 

 

 

 

 

12- Once the rice is done, add the eggs over the rice. Put the pot inside the oven at the same temperature for some minutes until you see the 'costra' , it is the eggs are done.

 

Where to buy the ingredients:

The white and black sausages can be bought at the butcher shop.

The blanquet, white and black butifarra from Alicante you can buy them in Madrid at Mantequería La Gloria , plaza Prosperidad 5. 

You can also use catalan butifarra , maybe it is easier to find out of Cataluña, in Madrid I found it at La Garriga, en Serrano 93 http://www.lagarrigacharcuteria.com/

 

 

 



Alicante

«Alicante (provincia)» de Ulaidh & HansenBCN - Trabajo propio. Disponible bajo la licencia GFDL vía Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alicante_(provincia).svg#mediaviewer/File:Alicante_(provincia).svg