"GRILLED CHICKEN AND SAUTEED ASPARAGUS"

Been busy lately, sorry haven't been updating as frequently as I used to ha.

Anyway, here's what we had last night... simple, quick and of course tasty.
The chicken, I just marinated with the classic "quick" barbecue mix of soy sauce, sugar(splenda) and lemon juice (ok, kalamansi will always be better), and the asparagus are the leftover stems that some would normally discard after cooking the tips and thinner spears.
I peeled the thicker end of the asparagus spears and cut it into thinner slices, and sauteed it. Still taste good, and it surely feels good not to put them to waste.

-CHICHAY

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"GRILLED CHICKEN"

What You Need:

• 6 pcs of chicken legs

marinade:

• 3 tbsp lemon juice


• 1 tbsp soy sauce


• 2 tsp sugar (or 1 packet of splenda)


• 1 clove garlic, minced


• 2 tbsp olive oil

How To:

-Whisk together the marinade mix in a bowl.

-Marinate the chicken legs for at least 2 hours.

-Drain the marinade from the chicken and grill this over medium-high.

-When the chicken are done, transfer to a dish and cover with foil until ready to be served.

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"Sauteed Asparagus"

What You Need:

• 1 bunch of asparagus stems (use the tips for another dish)
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced thinly
• 2 tsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
  

How To:

-Peel the asparagus stems and cut them into thin sticks. Set aside.

-Saute the garlic in a hot pan with olive oil.

-Add the asparagus sticks and saute for a bout 2-3 minutes.

-Season with salt and pepper.

-Serve the chicken and asparagus with rice or with mashed or baked potatoes.

"STEAK WITH MUSHROOM AND WINE SAUCE"

This "Mushroom and Wine Sauce" is similar to "Marsala Sauce", and the difference is that here I used red Shiraz wine (my favorite) instead of Marsala wine. You can use any wine that you have/like for your sauce.
For the steak, you can use beef steak cuts, or boneless pork chops. You can cook the steak any way you like it: over the stove, on the grill or in the oven (broil). The steak is cooked separately from the sauce anyway. But I suggest you season it witl salt and pepper only, since the Mushroom and wine sauce is tasty enough to add more flavor to your steak.

[CHICHAY TIP: If you do not like using fresh garlic in your sauce, then use garlic powder instead of using the fresh garlic that is in the recipe here. When reducing the sauce, be careful and alert, as the sauce may dry out easily. In the recipe it says 3 minutes, but it really depends on how quick your sauce will reduce.]

-CHICHAY

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"STEAK AND MUSHROOM AND WINE SAUCE"

What You Need:

• 2 pounds steaks, well trimmed
• salt and pepper to taste 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 cup red wine of your choice ( I use Shiraz.)
• 1/2 cup broth (beef, chicken or vegetable) or water
• 1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms of your choice
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

Prep:

-Heat up a large, heavy skillet over high.
-Season steaks with salt and pepper to taste.

How To:

-Place steaks in the hot skillet, turn down the heat to medium high, and cook this for 3 minutes each side, or depending on your preference on steak doneness.
-Remove steaks from skillet to a platter and cover with aluminum foil.
-Remove skillet from heat. Quickly saute the garlic for 1 to 2 minutes in the skillet using residual heat.
-Return skillet on medium-low heat and stiir in the mushrooms, and cook for about 2-3 minutes
-Add the red wine and broth or water (if using water, add a 1/2 tsp of salt). Stir, and bring this to a boil.
-Once this boils, lower the heat, and let this simmer/reduce for about 3 minutes.
-Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter and rosemary.
-Serve mushroom and wine sauce over steaks.

"STEAK AND MUSHROOMS SALPICAO"

This twist to the "Salpicao" is so delicious...I added a lot of mushrooms and garlic! I remembered having some garlicky button mushrooms at a buffet restaurant, and since then I couldn't stop thinking about it, so I just had to make this garlicky Steak and Mushrooms Salpicao...wonderful with rice and a fried egg!

Try this with recipe with chicken meat cut in cubes and any mushrooms that you can find...you won't miss the great taste.

-CHICHAY

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"STEAK AND MUSHROOMS SALPICAO"

What You Need:

• 1 lb beef tenderloin, cut into 1/2 inch chunks (tender-cut strips are ok too)


• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms of your choice (shiitake, portabello, cremini, oyster...)


• 2 tablespoons olive oil


• 8 cloves garlic, minced (more if you like)


• 1/2 tsp Koshers salt


• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper


• 1/4 tsp paprika


• 1 tsp garlic powder


• 3 tbsp oyster sauce


• 3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce


• 2 tbsp juice of lemon


• 3 tbsp unsalted butter


• extra 4 cloves garlic, cut thinly, like strips (optional - for toppings only)

Prep:

-Combine olive oil, oyster sauce, soy sauce, the minced garlic, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika in a bowl.

-Marinate beef chunks in the mixture for a minimum of 2 hours in the fridge.

-Before cooking, add the lemon juice to the marinated beef, mix well, and then strain the marinade from the beef.Now that the marinade is separate from the beef, dilute it with 2 tbsp water and mix well. Set aside.

How To:

- Heat some oil on a pan, and saute the beef pieces.
-Keep stirring for a 2-3 minutes until beef pieces are browned evenly.

- Remove from heat and transfer to another dish, set aside.

-On the same pan, heat up the butter and sautee the thinly sliced garlic until golden brown (not burned), and set aside in a separate container, leaving the garlic

-flavored butter on the pan.

-Sautee the mushrooms on the heated pan, until softened, maybe for about 2-5 minutes.
- Add in the marinade, and simmer for 3-5 minutes
- Stir in the cooked beef for 2 minute and turn off heat, and transfer to the serving dish immediately.
-Top the salpicao with browned garlic strips.
-Serve with rice and fried egg, or a side of sauteed bell pepper and onions.
[CHICHAY TIP : Cooking time should be about 10 minutes or less to keep the beef tender.]