Chinese Orange Chicken (authentic P.F Chang's, in my own style) with Egg-Vegetable Fried Rice

Rice, Chicken and then Chinese, the combination of these three is enough to get me hooked on it! :D I'm passionately addicted to rice and Chinese is one of my favorite cuisines plus, anything with chicken is delicious! well that last bit is not entirely true; let me rephrase it, anything with chicken cooked well is delicious esp Biryani! :D (spicy chicken gravy layered with half-cooked aromatic rice and then cooked together- shall do a post on it soon, In Sha Allah (God Willing))

Lets not get distracted now! So coming back to the combination of my favorite ingredients in a Chinese way. I've literally grown up eating Chinese rice that my Mom so well makes. She not only adds some seasonal vegetables and eggs to it but tiny meat balls as well (another post promised) Oh, how I still drool over the memory of that luscious goodness of rice that doesn't need any gravy with it and is so del-i-ci-ous on its own! Should ask my Mom to make them soon and then share with you all (virtually) to see that what an amazing cook she is 'too'! (hehe :P)

Egg-Veggies Fried Rice prepared with leftover rice and some cooked and shredded chicken

Once I got into cooking, whenever I cooked Chinese, had always made Manchurian or Shashlik with the fried rice. During my stay in The U.S.A, I got introduced to various Chinese dishes as I got the experience of eating from different eateries that specialized in Oriental cuisine including Panda Express, P.F Chang's, Noodle & Company and Pei Wei Asian Diner etc but the options there were limited for me cause of their Chicken/Beef dishes not being Halal (meat slaughtered and prepared according to Islamic law) Therefore, I used to opt for seafood (shrimps/fish) dishes while my friends would indulge themselves into chicken ones and Orange Chicken was one of them. 

Since I've never had Orange Chicken in my life before at that time and forgive my ignorance, but never even had heard of it before that's why I was quite curious to know that how this glossy, tangy and spicy looking dish tasted. One of my friends then shared this recipe of the Orange Chicken which is served at P.F Chang's and is truly an authentic recipe but I recreated it with a bit of my own personal touch :)

The spicy and citrusy, battered white chicken cubes are deep fried and then added to this, sweet, zesty, hot orange sauce which is not only so easy to make but also very quick too. You can literally cook it under 30 minutes and if you have leftover or pre-boiled and cooled rice on hand, a wonderful meal is prepared under an hour and ready to be served! isn't that great? :D 

Now, you can easily make it at home and do not have to worry about not being able to eat at these non-Halal places anymore. But that doesn't mean those who can, shouldn't try making it at home. In fact they should to believe that how similar it is to the original and is economical too :)

Cooks, let the love of Chinese get Unleashed! :D

Chinese Orange Chicken

Ingredients:

Chicken (breast fillets): 4 (skinless and cut into small cubes)
Salt: 1 tsp

Garlic Powder: 2 tsp.

Ginger Powder: 1 tsp.

Onion Powder: 2 tsp.

Black Pepper: 2 tsp.

Red Chili Powder: 1 tsp (decrease for less heat)

Creole Seasoning*: 2 tsp

Orange Zest: 1 tsp. (grated) 

White Vinegar: 1 tbsp.

Soy Sauce: 1 tbsp.

All-Purpose Flour: 1/2 cup
Cornflour/Starch: 1/4 cup
Egg: 1 (beaten)
Vegetable/Canola/Corn/Sunflower Oil: for deep frying

For the sauce:

Orange Juice: 1 cup/250 ml (fresh or packaged) 

Chicken Stock: 1 cup/250 ml (make with bones or use a stock cube)

Tomato Ketchup: 1 cup (chili-garlic sauce can be used instead)

Chili Paste: 1 tsp. (if using chili-garlic sauce then omit adding it)

Brown Sugar: 2 tbsp.

Soy Sauce: 1 tbsp.
Sriracha Sauce: 1 tbsp.
Black Pepper: 1 tsp.
Salt: 1/2 tsp.
Garlic: 1 tbsp (finely chopped)

Ginger: 1 tbsp (finely chopped)
Orange Zest: 1 tsp (grated)
Vegetable/Canola/Corn/Sunflower Oil: 2 tbsp.

Cornflour/Starch: 2,3 tbsp (dissolved in 1/4 cup of water at room temp.)
Sesame Seeds: 1 tbsp. (for garnishing)
Spring Onion: 1 stalk (green part only, for garnishing)

Method:

1. Add all the seasonings to the chicken cubes along with the orange zest, vinegar and soy sauce. let them marinate for a few minutes.
2. Now add the beaten egg, all-purpose flour and corn flour/starch to the cubes and toss them so that all the cubes are well coated.
3. Heat oil in a wok and deep fry the chicken cubes in batches over low-medium heat till crisp, golden brown and cooked through.
4. Take them out on a kitchen towel lined platter with the help of a slotted spoon and keep aside.
5. In another pot, heat 2 tbsp. of oil and saute' chopped ginger, garlic and grated orange zest in it for a minute.
6. Add all the liquids, seasonings and brown sugar to them and let it come to a boil.
7. Once boils, lower the heat and add the fried chicken pieces.
8. Now pour the dissolved corn flour/starch to thicken the sauce.
9. Cook till the sauce thickens and coats all of the chicken pieces.
10. Serve immediately with/over plain/fried rice garnished with sesame seeds and chopped green onion stalks. 

Add fried chicken pieces only at the time of serving. Preps can be done beforehand though. Prepared Orange Sauce (without cornflour/starch added) can be made ahead and kept refrigerated for several days) The original dish is cooked a bit on the dry side but I like to have a little gravy on my rice hence, I increase the amount of liquids when I cook but I've shared the original amounts here. 

*Creole seasoning is a blend of different seasonings and spices and is used to season any kind of meat, rice, vegetables, soups, stews e.t.c. since it is not available everywhere therefore, you can easily make it at home.

Just blend together 2 tbsp. of Onion Powder, 2 tsp. of Garlic Powder, 2 tbsp. Dried Oregano, 2 tbsp. Dried Basil, 1 tbsp. Dried Thyme, 1 tbsp Black Pepper, 1 tbsp. White Pepper, 1 tbsp Cayenne Pepper, 5 Tbsp. Paprika, 3 tbsp. Salt and put everything in an airtight jar.

(recipe adapted from allrecipes.com)


Egg-Vegetable Fried Rice

Ingredients:
White Rice: 2 cups (boiled and cooled down completely. Leftover rice can be used too)
Cabbage: 1/2 cup (shredded) 

Bell Pepper/Capsicum: 1/2 cup (chopped)
Carrots: 1/2 cup (grated or chopped)
Peas: 1/2 cup (boiled)
Or use any seasonal/frozen vegetables of your choice.Eggs: 4 

Garlic: 1 tbsp. (finely chopped)
Soy Sauce: 3,4 tbsp.
Salt: 1 1/2 tbsp.
Pepper: 1 1/2 tbsp.
Oil: 1/4 cup+2 tsp. 

Method

1. Crack eggs into a bowl, add 1/2 tsp. of salt and 1/2 tsp. of pepper, beat well with the help of a egg whisk/fork.
2. Heat a tsp. of oil in a frying pan (lesser oil can be used, if using non-stick pan) and pour some of the beaten eggs into the hot frying pan. Cook from both the side like you'd cook an omelette or simply scramble the eggs as soon as they start to set a bit. 
3. Break them into small pieces if cooking like scrambled eggs and let them cook completely. If cooked like an omelette, then take out into a plate, roll and cut into strips. Cook rest of the eggs by using other 1 tsp of oil and Keep aside.
4. In a wok or large pot, heat oil and saute' garlic till the aroma releases.
5. Add carrots and stir-fry them for a min. Now add rest of the vegetables, mix and stir fry for another minute or two over high heat.
6. Add, seasonings, soy sauce, fried eggs and mix well.
7. Now slowly add rice to the rest of the ingredients that are cooking and mix well.
8. Lower the heat and keep mixing till all of the rice, vegetables and eggs are well combined and rice are heated through. 
9. Cover and let stand for a few minutes before serving so that all of the flavors are well infused into the rice.
10. Serve with Orange Chicken or any gravy of your choice (I'll be sharing more recipes of Chinese gravies in my upcoming posts) or eat on its own (will still taste divine! trust me :D)
    
    Cooked shredded/pieces of chicken can be added too to make it a full meal to have it on its own.
    
    Serves: 4-6

That's all friends! :) the amount of ingredients and seasonings can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and having it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you! 

Punjabi Chicken Pulao

When you think of Comfort-Food what comes to your mind? To mine, a rice dish, specially at the time when hunger pangs don't leave me in solace; it certainly has to be Chicken Pulao! :D I'm sure most of you will agree with me. 

I'm literally obsessed with rice and if I could, I would've had rice everyday and this type of Chicken Pulao that's called Punjabi for its cooking style/origin, is most certainly on top of my all-time favorite dishes! So naturally my 1st post on a main course dish had to be of rice besides, my best friend requested for it so, Fayee, this ones for you :D

This one-pot meal was introduced to us by my Khala (maternal aunt) while we were vacationing in Pakistan during school holidays. To be honest with you, my mom always made different type of Pulao before in which she prepared Yakhni (stock) and cooked rice in it (I shall be sharing the recipe of my mom's Pulao in the future posts) so, when she prepared a large pot of Punjabi Pulao, and dished out steaming hot rice while I was witnessing her culinary skills in the kitchen, which is my favorite task, the aroma that filled the kitchen and entered my nostrils, was enough to make me salivate (the memory still managed to do the same at this very moment :D)

The dinner was served and that day onward, I got hooked on it! My Mom got the recipe from her and switched to cooking it her way. I learnt to make it from my Mom years later naturally and just by watching her and asking her questions like always, as she busily gets on with the cooking. She even succeeded in turning my Dad into a devout fan of this delectable dish who's not very fond of chicken meat. I hope that should be evident enough to prove that what a beautiful meal it is :)

This hearty meal is not only served at Dawats (dinners,feasts etc) but is widely prepared for regular everyday meal as well. The blend of good quality Basmati rice, juicy tender chicken pieces, some vegetables to prepare Masala and aromatic spices creates such an amazing flavor that it is almost impossible to not love this succulent dish! (have I achieved the desired aim of making you fall for it yet or not? hmmm let me try some more) 

Punjabi Pulao with chilled Raitha (a dip made by using yogurt and fresh vegetables) is simply an oh-so-divine combo! But it can be paired with some Salan (curry) or Shorba (thin gravy) preferably made with meat, such as, Koftay (meatballs-both cooked as Salan or Shorba) Palak Gosht (spinach curry made with chicken or mutton/lamb) Aloo Gosht (Potatoes and meat cooked in thin gravy) to turn it into a rather grand meal (don't worry, you will find the recipes of all the aforementioned dishes in my upcoming posts, just stay tuned)
Mm-mm I'm drooling now so shall we see how this luscious dish is prepared? :)
So here we go, Let the cook be unleashed! :D 

Punjabi Chicken Pulao


Ingredients: 

1 kg chicken pieces (without skin)
4 cups of Basmati rice (soaked for an hour before cooking)
2 large onions (sliced)
2 medium tomatoes (chopped)
1/2 cup yogurt (beaten) 
2 tbsp. ginger garlic paste 
2 Green chilies 
1 tbsp. salt 
1 tsp red chili powder 
1 tsp coriander powder 
1 tsp Garam Masala powder 
1 tbsp of whole Garam Masala (black pepper corns, cumin seeds, cloves, cinnamon stick, black cardamom pods, green cardamom pods, bay leaf, star anise all mixed together)
1/2 tsp of nutmeg, mace and fennel seed powder (mixed) 
3/4 cup of oil. 
5 cups + 1/2 cup of water 
Fresh coriander leaves and chopped green chilies for garnishing 

Method:

1. Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pot and fry onions in it till light golden-brown. 
2. Add ginger and garlic paste and the whole Garam Masala and fry for a few seconds. 
3. Now add 1/2 cup of water and cook till onions turn pasty. 
4. Add chicken pieces to it along with half of the salt and fry well till the chicken changes its color to golden-brown. 
5. Keep on frying for a few minutes more and add chopped tomatoes, chopped green chilies and all the spices to the chicken and mix well. 
6. Now add the beaten yogurt, give another mix and let this cook, covered over medium flame for 10 minutes.
7. If chicken is not cooked after 10 minutes, add a little water to cook it completely. 
8. Add 5 cups of water and the other half of the salt after all the moisture has been evaporated, chicken is cooked, gravy is formed and the oil added has been separated. 
9. Once the water starts boiling, add the drained rice and mix gently. 
10. Let the rice cook covered for 5 minutes over medium flame. 
11. Check after five minutes and if the water has been partially evaporated, mix again gently and sprinkle some chopped coriander and green chilies on top and turn the flame to the lowest possible. 
12. Cover the pot with a tea towel, place the lid back on and let it simmer for 10 minutes. Once the rice is done, turn off the flame, fluff the rice very gently and take out in a serving platter. Serve with chilled Raitha
    
    Serves: 4-6

That's all my dear readers! :) Seasoning can always be adjusted according to your taste and desire. I hope you enjoy making and eating it. Until next time, keep sharing the goodness of this greatest blessing, that has been bestowed in abundance upon us the lucky ones, with the less fortunate ones.
Thank you and please remember in your Du'as/prayers! :)

*Not be duplicated, rewritten or published without permission- Thank you!