Malaysian Chicken Curry ~ Instant Pot

We very rarely eat out at restaurants, but when we do, it is most often Asian restaurants of one variety or another,  One of our favorite places to have a meal is in the food court of the Atlanta Chinatown Mall.  While we enjoy food from many of the different restaurants, and have our favorite dish from each, when Mama wants comfort food, it's usually the chicken curry from Hong Kong BBQ.   (It's not listed on their online-menu, but it's always available on their whiteboard menu.)  They have a Malaysian chef who creates the most flavorful and creamy curry and we just had to attempt to make it at home.  We also wanted to be able to replicate the curry in a healthy and fast way, and using the Instant Pot, we have.  Though this recipe contains quite a bit of chili pepper, it is not overly hot, closer to low-medium heat, and we leave in the seeds from the fresh Thai chilis.  If you're worried about heat, leave out the fresh Chili but we'd advise using at least half, if not all, of the red chili powder.  We serve this over Toasted Cauli-rice, but whatever you choose to serve it over, it's delicious!!  



Malaysian Chicken Curry ~ Instant Pot

• 3.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 14 oz. can coconut milk
• 2 medium sweet onions, cut into 8ths
• 1 tsp. red chili powder
• 2 tsp. ground cardamom
• 2 tsp. Chinese five spice powder
• 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp. ground cumin
• 2 tsp. ground turmeric
• 4 tsp. ground coriander
• 2 fresh Thai red chilis (optional) diced, seeds left in or out
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Add the coconut milk and all the dry spices to the Instant Pot liner.  Stir to combine.  Add the chicken, onion & Thai red chilis and stir to coat everything well.  Close the lid and move vent to closed.  Set high pressure for 10 minutes.  After the 10 min. cook time, quick release the pressure. Stir in the fresh cilantro.  Serve over Toasted Cauli-Rice.

Enjoy!!

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

It’s Secret Recipe Club time again, so you know I’m excited, I love this time of month!  This month I was assigned Jessie’s blog Vanderbilt Wife.  I really loved reading her blog, seeing her adorable children and all her wonderful recipes, of which there are many so be sure to click on over and check them out.  I debated back and forth as to which recipe to make but in the end I decided on her Toddler Thai:  Noodles in Peanut Sauce with Chicken.  Jessie’s son is lactose intolerant and she makes this recipe for him and as my Maisie is allergic to wheat, egg & dairy, it was just a simple change of pasta to also make it gluten free and safe for my girl. 

I sautéed up two chicken breasts as I had them defrosted and thought that I would use the second one in a chicken salad…but Maisie had other ideas.  Somehow between the time I started cooking this recipe and the time Maisie started eating it, she decided that she no longer liked the taste of peanut butter…but that of course could change tomorrow…and can we say finicky little girl???  She ate a little of the noodles and then asked for plain noodles with some of the chicken and ketchup…OY!!  I think she’s seven going on tween and definitely has become much more opinionated and picky.  Oh well, all was not lost with this recipe as I spiced it up a little with some Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce and a bit of Sriracha and what was to be Maisie’s, became Eammon’s dinner.  Maisie’s loss was Eammon’s gain as he absolutely loved the pasta and all the flavors.  And little Miss Picky enjoyed her plain bean thread noodles, chicken and ketchup…oh well at least she ate and got some protein and calories into her…even if she did miss out on a delicious meal!

Thai Peanut Noodles with Chicken

• 3 oz. bean thread noodles or noodles of your choice 
• 1 boneless, skinless chicken breast
• five spice powder
• ginger
• sesame oil
• peanut oil
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/4 cup soy sauce 
• 2 TBS. honey 
• 1 TBS. sesame oil
• 1 TBS. Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce
• Sriracha to taste 
• 1/2 cup julienned carrots
• Cilantro for garnish

Prepare the noodles according to package directions.  Drain, rinse and set aside.

Season the chicken with the five spice powder and ginger.  Heat a large cast iron skillet and add a thin layer of half sesame oil and half peanut oil.  Once the oil is hot, add the chicken and sear on each side, then cover the pan and remove from the heat.  The residual heat in the cast iron pan will continue to cook the chicken and it won’t get over cooked and dried out.  Once the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the pan and slice thinly.  To the now empty pan, add the the peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, 1 TBS of sesame oil, Thai Garlic Chili Pepper Sauce, Sriracha and carrots and heat, stirring to blend well.  Once hot, stir in the noodles and the sliced chicken breast.  Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Enjoy!

My previous Secret Recipe Club Recipe Posts:

Baked Buffalo Chicken Wings 
Fried Green Tomatoes 
Chicken Satay Noodle Salad 
Double Chocolate Mousse Cake 
Candied Popcorn
Fruit, Nut & Poppy Seed Chicken Salad 
Broiled Sushi 
Health(ier) Peanut Brittle 
Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites 
Texas Chicken with Lime Butter 
Pork Belly Soup with Collard Greens 
Thin Mint Irish Coffee 
Levain Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookies 
Welsh Cakes 
Nutella Crêpes 
Cilantro Lime Chicken 
Holy Guacamole 
and
Home Style Chicken Curry

Chinese Five Spice Wings with Labneh & Cilantro Dipping Sauce

We adore hot and spicy wings and these with the combination of Chinese five-spice and cayenne are right up our alley.  They are easily made in the oven, which is great as I really don’t like frying, but they still come out nice and crispy.  The dipping sauce is a nice cool foil and because it’s dairy it helps cut the capsicum.
Chinese Five Spice Wings with Labneh & Cilantro Dipping Sauce

• 20 whole chicken wings, cut into flats & drumettes, tips discarded
• 4 TBS. Chinese five spice powder
• 2 TBS cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt 
• 1 tsp. fresh ground pepper 

For dipping sauce:

• 1/2 cup labneh*
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup Mayonnaise 
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
• 1/2 cup of finely minced cilantro
• sea salt & ground pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 500F.

In a large bowl mix together the five spice powder, cayenne, salt & pepper. Add wing pieces and toss to coat until all the spices are attached to the wings. Lay the wings skin side up on an aluminum foil lined baking sheets and bake for 25-30 minutes.

While the wings are cooking, mix together all the dipping sauce ingredients and allow for the tastes to blend.

Serve the spicy wings with the cooling sauce.

* you can substitute 1/4 cup sour cream mixed with 1/4 cup cream cheese for the labneh.
Enjoy!