Succulent Pineapple Chicken

If you thought I agonized over getting a gas grill, you haven’t heard me go on about getting a pressure cooker. On the one hand, I know that using a pressure cooker is a lot more green than having my stove turned on for 3 hours to braise pork shank. Could you imagine, pork shank done in less than 1 hour? Think of all the extra time I'd have to waste!

BUT...I’m scared of freak explosions. Please don’t roll your eyes! It could happen.

HOWEVER...I shoved my fear aside and just did it. Bought a pressure cooker. Yes, I did!

AND...I love it! I’ve made carnitas and a stewed pineapple chicken. The pork took less than 1 hour and the chicken took a little more than half an hour from prep to table. And no freak explosions! Seriously folks, this is the way to go!



This stewed chicken was so delicious. The chicken was fall-off-the-bone tender and the sauce had just the right amount of heat, sweetness and saltiness. Our family really enjoyed this dish and I think yours will too.

Succulent Pineapple Chicken
Feeds 3 or 4 adults

• 6 skinless chicken drumsticks or thighs (also works well with 1.5 lbs pork butt or country ribs)
• ½ cup fresh pineapple, chopped or crushed (canned pineapple in juice is also fine!)
• 1 healthy knob ginger, grated
• 5 to 10 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 shallot, finely sliced
• 1 tbs brown sugar
  
• ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce (or 3 tbs regular soy)
  
• 1 ½ cup chicken stock (water is also fine)
• whole jalapeno(s) sliced lengthwise, to taste (optional)
• salt, to taste
  

Rub a little oil on the chicken. Brown it well on a very hot pan. Once the chicken is browned, transfer it to the pressure cooker. Add the other ingredients. Give it a quick stir, lock the lid and following your manufacturer’s instructions for cooking. For my cooker, I ended up cooking for 13 minutes (after pressure built up) and let the pressure release itself, about 10 minutes. If you use pork chunks, the cooking time will increase. Follow your manufacturer’s guidelines.

You can achieve the same results by braising on your stovetop or in your oven (325 to 350F), but it will probably take over an hour.

To serve, I removed the meat from the bone into a deep serving dish. I concentrated the sauce a bit by simply reducing it over high heat, then poured it over the chicken.

Perfect served with steamed rice (and extra sambal oelek on the side!).

Soba Salad with Gochujang Vinaigrette

Hubby and I recently had an interesting conversation about food, things like what we're eating and spending on food. I think I'm fairly good at maximizing the food while minimizing the money, but we could definitely do more. For one thing, we can bring lunch and snacks to work. I usually already do this because my campus doesn't have any food options besides vending machines. Hubby works right next to a food court and a block of restaurants, so he's in the habit of going to lunch. I've always been willing to pack his lunch, but I think there was a lot of peer pressure from his coworkers to go out to eat. But now he wants to bring his lunch, and I couldn't be happier. I'm planning on getting some bento boxes and making it fun and interesting. Doesn't it sound like I'll be packing lunch for a kid? Who knows, maybe he can convince some of his coworkers that the cool kids bring their lunch to work?? How about you? Do you bring your lunch to work?

Since we've had access to so much lettuce lately, it's only natural we'll be bringing salad for lunch. One of the salads I threw together was a soba salad. I know that sounds a little strange, but I’ll tell you why it worked. The baby lettuce I've been getting at the farmers' market actually has flavor! Some taste like mustard greens, others taste subtly sweet, and some have a more familiar lettuce taste. They remind me more of herbs than lettuce. Tossed with the soba and a tasty dressing, it just worked. If you don’t have delicious baby lettuce available, try tossing the noodles with cabbage chiffonade, shredded carrot and finely sliced green onions. Another option is fresh asparagus thinly sliced on the diagonal or fresh sugar snap peas. I left ours "vegetarian" but you could throw in some meat or seafood. Whatever tickles your fancy.

The dressing I threw together is just a variation of my peanut vinaigrette. Yes, I know it’s cheating, but I’m lazy like that. I substituted the peanut butter with Korean hot pepper paste, and nixed the curry powder. Doing so little completely changed the flavor. The result is a little sweet, a little spicy (but not too much for Sonny to eat), a little salty and a little nutty from the sesame oil. If you like Korean flavors, I think you’ll enjoy this.

Gochu jang (Korean hot pepper paste) Vinaigrette
makes about 1/2 to 1 cup

• 1 to 2 tbs Korean hot pepper paste
• 1 tbs honey
• 1 tbs sesame oil
• 3 tbs rice vinegar
• 1 tbs tamari
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ¼ to 1/3 cup peanut (or a neutral oil)
• soba noodles, cooked according to package directions
• baby lettuce or other vegetables for the salad
  
• toasted sesame seeds for garnish
• cilantro for garnish
  

To make the dressing, combine everything in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth. Taste the mixture and adjust according to your preference (more tamari, honey, etc). If you're happy, start adding the peanut oil slowly all the while whisking to incorporate it. You may not need to add all of it.

To serve, toss the noodles in some dressing and set them atop your lettuce/vegetables. Top with your garnishes and drizzle more dressing on top, if desired.

I’m going to submit this to Weekend Herb Blogging , which was created by Kayln's Kitchen and is currently being hosted by maninas:food matters. It’s a weekly event, so there’s always a chance to participate! Click here to see who's hosting in the coming weeks.