The Dilemma - How do I make this boneless, skinless chicken breast interesting QUICKLY

Pictured above is the face, or type of face as I admittedly have never cooked for Simon Cowell, that I get pretty much every time I tell my lovely wife, Danielle (pictured above), that we are having grilled chicken (also pictured above, and I think fairly tasty looking) for dinner. As a side note, I don't think I'd want to cook for Simon because 1)I hate his show and everything to do with it 2)He probably wouldn't have anything nice to say about the food anyway, and 3)I don't need that kind of negative aura in my life, but that's really neither here nor there.

Back to task, Danielle usually says something like "AGAIN?" or "Really, chicken?", at which point I get huffy and tell her she's more than welcome to cook for herself, but I don't know if the microwave is currently operable. Just to define this, I don't condone microwave use, but to suggest that she use anything more culinarily challenging would be foolish. I cook, but can't organize anything more complex than the silverware drawer. She is a disaster (literally fires, explosions, unplaceable smells) in the kitchen, but can plan/organize our entire life on our Mac. What can I say, we play to each others strengths, and happily. My God, I'm rambling today. Anyway, this post is to help you avoid such disparaging remarks when you inform your dining companion that you are having grilled chicken. Below are five delicious marinades for chicken. Simply follow the instructions, and let the bird marinate overnight, ie think a little ahead. If you want chicken tomorrow, marinade it tonight and you will have something flavorful. Try to do it for only 3 hours, and you're really just wasting your $$$$. Last tip before the recipes, when ready to cook, let most of marinade drip off of chicken breast, and season with kosher salt, and FRESH ground black pepper. If you throw it right on the grill, slathered in marinade, it'll probably burn or char, and all of your hard work will be for naught. Not to mention, you will probably hear more disparaging remarks about your chicken, which is exactly what we're trying to avoid. So now, with no further ado:

All recipes are for 2 Lb chicken
#1 The Greek
1 cup plain yogurt, i like greek
1 tblsp toasted cumin seeds, cracked (to toast any dried spice, just put it in a dry pan over medium heat until you can smell it)
2 lemons, juiced
4 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tblsp oregano or marjoram, chopped rough
1 jalapeno, chopped - you could sub dried chili flakes here, but I prefer the fresh chile taste
2 tblsp tahini paste - you could just sub toasted sesame seeds, but as above
1 tblsp caper, chopped

#2 The Far East
2 tblsp corn oil
1 tblsp sesame oil
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 stick lemongrass, whacked - lemongrass is hard to chop through, but just give a good whack and bruise it, and it'll release it's oils
1.5 tblsp ginger, grated - use a microplane
1/4 c rice wine vinegar, unseasoned
1 tblsp thai chile paste, srirachi is the best, but I don't know what's available on your pond side
1 tsp SWEET soy
1 tsp miso paste
1 bunch of scallions, sliced thin

#3 The Middle East
2 tblsp olive oil
2 tblsp fresh chili paste - make your own, just grab a blender, or coffee grinder, and mix fresh red chiles and a handful of garlic cloves with enough oil to puree them. Cheaper and better than store bought, just keep it thick
1 tblsp toasted cumin seeds, ground
1 tblsp toasted coriander seeds, ground
1 tblsp toasted mustard seeds, black or yellow, ground
1 tblsp toasted cardamom, green or black, ground
2 lemons, juiced
1 tsp turmeric

#4 The Italiano - possibly the easiest, and also, possibly my fave
3 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp white wine vinegar
6 garlic cloves, chopped
1 stick fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tblsp fresh thyme, chopped
2 tblsp fresh oregano, chopped
2 tblsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp chili flakes
zest of 2 lemons

#5 The South
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tblsp molasses or cane syrup
1 tblsp tomato paste
1 jalapeno, chopped
1 tblsp fresh thyme, chopped
6 oz coca-cola, or your preferred soda
3 oz apple juice or cider
2 tblsp mustard, i use whole grain, but your choice
1 tsp paprika

Give these a try, and see if they lessen the groans next time you say "grilled chicken tonight".

As a disclaimer, please use all-natural chicken. I have been to poultry plants, and seen the horror of hormone and other insanity pumped chicken. Not only is it not good for you, but it's not right to do this to an animal. Also, if you don't have a grill, you could easily pan-sear these, or even broil them in a pinch.

Since I have given you 5 recipes, a wine pairing is a touch difficult, but I would say that for most of these a citrusy New Zealand or South African Sauv Blanc would be a good choice. If that's a little boring, try a gavi or maybe a greek assyrtico. Play around with it, these are pretty versatile flavors.

ENJOY

Stock - the easiest way to cook like a pro

Hello again all,
Today we're going to be talking about stock. It really is a simple process, and is the quickest route to add a "restaurant" flavor to your home cooking. I think one of the main differences between home cooks and chefs is that home cooks use bouillon. It is easier, it is quicker, but it just doesn't come close to the depth of flavor, or the delicacy that stock has. For one, most of them, even "low sodium" ones, just taste like seasoning salt. No offense knorr, but I can just buy lawrys if that is my goal. Stock should add a layer of delicate flavor to whatever you are cooking. It should be savory, complex, deep, rich, and delicious. Combine that with the fact that it's absolutely simple to make, and it's a no brainer to add it to your culinary arsenal.

First off, there are many types of stocks, but we, today, are going to be outlining the basics of three: shrimp, poultry, and vegetable. Let's start by talking through a few principles.

1)There are two types of stock when you really break it down - roasted and unroasted
These variations exist because, in my mind, there are two end goals to using stock. One is to add that deep, roasted, savory, umami flavor to a dish. The other is to just add the essence of something, or just some extra flavor to the dish. For a braise, you want all the flavor you can pack in there, so roasted. To make a shrimp bisque, if you roast everything, the flavor and color may be too aggressive, so unroasted. Just think of your end goal and it should answer which one you should use.

2)I will give a recipe for each of the stocks below - for roasted, simply place all the vegetables, and the bones/shells in the oven at 400 degrees for one hour, or until nicely caramelized. We want a lot of color, just don't burn them. For unroasted, simply combine the ingredients in the pot.

3)Whatever the recipe is, follow the above instructions, then these:
1)place all ingredients in large deep stockpot, cover with COLD WATER (I even add ice, doing this ensures that your stock comes up to temp gently, and won't be cloudy), add wine (if you decide to use it), bring just to a boil, reduce till barely bubbling, and cook for a minimum of four hours. You don't need to stare at it, so don't feel this is a huge commitment. Just get it at the right simmer, and let it be. Following this, strain it through a fine sieve, or chinois if you want to be fancy. Store in freezer in 1 qt containers, and pull as you need it. I promise, your soups, braises, sauces, and risottos will never be better once you ditch the "cubes" and make it "in house".

4)TIP - Do you roast chickens once a week? Do you make scampi, or peel and eat shrimp ever? Just wrap your carcass or shells tightly in plastic, and freeze until you build up enough in the freezer to make a stock. Saves you money, and improves your flavor. WIN WIN. By the way,
have no fear, the below picture is not meant to suggest K9 stock. It is a picture of Houser, formerly my, now my parents dog. She eats two rotisserie chickens from Costco/Kroger a week, thus my mom makes a LOT of stock. Just thought I'd give House her 15 minutes.


OK, now to the recipes

CHICKEN STOCK
4-6 chicken carcasses
4 onions
3 carrots
1/2 head celery
1 head garlic
2 sticks rosemary
3 bay leaves
1/2 c wine (red for roasted, white for unroasted)
2 large tomatoes, only use for roasted
1 tblsp peppercorns
water to cover

SHRIMP STOCK
Shells from 3-5 LBS of shrimp
1 head of fennel, optional
1 head of garlic
1/2 head celery
3 white onions
1 parsnip
1 head parsley
1 tblsp peppercorns
3 lemons
1/2 cup wine, always white
2 bay leaves
water to cover

VEGETABLE STOCK
5 carrots
5 onions
1 head celery
2 head garlic
1 head parlsey
3 tomatoes
1 head fennel
3 lemons
1 tblsp peppercorn
3 bay leaves
1/2 cup wine, always white
water to cover

I know it sounds a little simplistic, but you'd be amazed at the difference this will make to your cooking. You can get all of these made on one rainy Sunday, freeze them in qt containers, and just pull them as you need them. It will have a huge impact on your cooking, just make one risotto, and then try to argue with me. :) ENJOY