adobo potochop

In Filipino cooking the word adobo refers to some sort of protein or vegetable stewed in vinegar, garlic, and pepper. What potochop means, I haven't been able to figure out, but I'll extrapolate and guess it refers to some preparation of chicken. Essentially, you cook your chicken in its own sweet, tangy marinade and it makes its own sauce. Seriously one pot cooking.

Lifted from Smarticus, here's my take on a super fast, flavorful dish. This marinade would work great with chunks of firm tofu or maybe pork.

Adobo Potochop

3 lbs. chicken parts - bone-in is nicer, though boneless cooks super fast
1/2 cup each soy sauce, rice vinegar, and water
3 tbsp brown sugar
2 bay leaves
5 (!) cloves of minced garlic
1/2 tsp of ground black pepper
lime slices

In the pot you're going to cook in, throw in everything but the chicken. Mix. Throw in chicken. Let sit for 30 minutes.

Bring to a boil, stir gently. Knock the heat down to a simmer, and cook for 45 minutes or until the chicken is tender. If using boneless meat, this is more like 15 minutes. Watch it!

If using bone-in chicken bits, you can crisp up the skin on a hot skillet with positive results. Squeeze some lime over finished product and serve up with rice.

If you want to be fancy, you can make a reduction sauce with the leftover cooking liquid. Heat a cup of the liquid and cook it down in a skillet till it thickens up and gets saucy. The thickness will cling to the meat nicely. Drizzle sauce over chicken and you're done.

yeasted waffle love

Yeasted waffles are pretty much the reason waffle irons were invented. Fact. Crisp on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside of course. The cornmeal gives it a nice texture, and the yeast adds that subtle complexity to the flavor that makes bread yummy. Prep time 5 minutes. There's really no reason not to bring a little waffle into your life.

P.S. - Maple syrup. Use the real stuff. It wasn't meant to be dispensed out of bottles shaped like old southern women.

Yeasted Cornmeal Waffles

2 cups milk, warm (110F)
2 tbsp melted butter

1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup cornmeal (polenta)
1 pkg (2 1/2 tsp) active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 large egg

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, yeast, salt, sugar, and baking soda. Stir in milk, butter, egg, and maple syrup. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Cook batter in waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions. Serve with berries, toasted walnuts, yogurt, maple syrup, and/or honey.

Waffles freeze well. Reheat in toaster.