Teriyaki BBQ Chicken

[zhemao]

I borrowed my roommate's George Foreman grill to try out this recipe. If you have an actual barbecue grill, that would work too. I was pretty happy with how this turned out.

Ingredients:

• Garlic powder


• Black pepper


• Ginger


• Soy sauce


• Sugar


• Rice wine


• Rice vinegar


• Boneless/skinless chicken (breast or thigh would work)

Directions:

1. Poke holes all around the chicken with a fork. This will help the marinade seep in deeper.


2. Make a bunch of finger-width parallel cuts halfway through the chicken.


3. Sprinkle garlic powder and black pepper onto both sides of the chicken.


4. Make a marinade out of soy sauce, a bit of rice wine, sugar, and grated ginger.


5. If you are using white meat. You may also want to add a bit of vegetable oil.


6. Put the chicken in a ziploc bag and pour in the marinade.


7. Seal the bag (pushing out as much air as possible), then marinade in the fridge for at least 2 hours.


8. Take the chicken out of the bag and shake off any excess marinade. Reserve the remaining liquid for later.


9. Start up the grill and put the chicken on. You want the grill lines to be perpendicular to the cuts.


10. Grill until the chicken completely turns color. It doesn't have to be completely cooked through, there's still another cooking step.


11. Pour the leftover marinade into a pan and add some water.


12. Add additional soy sauce, rice wine, and sugar if necessary.


13. Add a splash of rice vinegar.


14. Mix well and bring the liquid up to boil. Then add the chicken.


15. Cook on high, frequently turning the chicken, until the liquid is completely reduced.

And there you have it. In the end, the sauce should all be sticking to the chicken. It will have a salty, sweet, and tart flavor from the sauce, but also some smokiness from the grill.

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Curry Catfish Katsu

[zhemao]

I was originally planning on making tonkatsu (pork cutlet), but I couldn't pass up the opportunity for an alliterative title. This dish also looks really good on a plate, so I had to take a picture (but as always, there's a mildy infuriating drop of sauce on the edge ruining my perfect plating). I've split the recipe into two parts to make things easier to follow.

Curry

Ingredients

• Carrots


• Onion


• Mushrooms


• Curry powder


• Tomato paste


• Vegetable oil


• Curry block (S&B Golden Curry would be best)


• Sugar


• Ginger


• Garlic

Directions

1. Chop two carrots and half an onion into small chunks.


2. Mince a clove of garlic and two slices of ginger.


3. Put a pan on medium high heat and add a bit of vegetable oil.


4. Add the carrots and onions. Stir fry until the onion turns a golden color.


5. Add the ginger and garlic. Stir until aromatic.


6. Turn the heat to medium, sprinkle on some curry powder and mix well.


7. Add a cup of water and the mushrooms. Mix until evenly distributed.


8. Dissolve half a tablespoon of tomato paste in some warm water. Add to the pot and mix evenly.


9. Turn the heat to medium low and simmer for 5-10 min. until the vegetables are almost cooked. Keep adding water to make sure the mix doesn't get too dry.


10. Chop the curry block into thin pieces, then add to the mix along with several cups of water. Turn the heat back up to medium high.


11. Keep stirring until the curry block dissolves. It will thicken the mixture considerably, so make sure there's enough water.


12. Add half a spoonful of sugar and mix.


13. Check that the vegetables are fully cooked, then turn off the heat.

Katsu

Ingredients

• Salt


• Black pepper


• Catfish


• Tapioca starch (or corn starch)


• All-purpose flour


• Egg


• Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)


• Vegetable oil

Directions

1. Rinse the catfish in warm water to reduce some of the odor. Then pat dry with a paper towel.


2. Slice the catfish lengthwise down the middle, then cut into three sections.


3. Sprinkle salt and black pepper on both sides of each piece of fish.


4. Mix two parts flour to one part starch in one container.


5. Beat an egg in another container and mix in a bit of water.


6. Place a layer of panko in a third container.


7. Dredge the fish in flour/starch and make sure every part of the surface is covered. Shake off any loose particles.


8. Dip the fish in the egg and make sure it gets completely coated. Let any excess liquid drain off.


9. Roll the fish in panko and make sure it gets thorougly covered. For the thicker pieces, make sure to check the edges.


10. Place the breaded fish pieces on a plate to hold them for the next phase.


11. Pour oil into a pot for deep frying. Put it on the range on medium heat.


12. Wait for the oil to heat up. You can check if it's ready by dropping in a breadcrumb. If it starts bubbling, the oil is ready.


13. Gently lower the pieces of fish into the pot. If the pot isn't large enough to hold all the fish in a single layer, do it in batches. I recommend grouping pieces of similar thickness into the same batch so they all finish cooking around the same time.


14. Fry the fish, flipping occasionally, until the the outside turns a deep brown color. This should take 3-5 min. depending on the thickness of the fish. Pay attention to the temperature. If it seems to be cooking too quickly, turn the heat down a bit.


15. To remove, lift each piece above the pot and let the excess oil drip off. Then place on a plate covered with a paper towel to cool.

And there you have it. Plate the fish and curry along with some white rice, as shown in the photo. The fish should be crispy and flaky on the outside, but fluffy and tender on the inside. Covering it in curry makes it super delicious.

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