I love Mandarin Oranges and had recently had an Orange Chicken dish at a Chinese restaurant that was overcooked and not to my standards. So I made this. Like all entrée dishes, a wide variability in the amounts of any ingredient is possible, and you should doctor things to your taste. More sauce, less sauce, etc. Make sure that you use Chinese rice, and not something like Uncle Ben’s, or you can use noodles or potatoes.
Some notes about the chicken: Dark meat is more forgiving and tends not to overcook. I have used chicken breasts but make sure that they are not cut too thin, or they can dry out. I prefer boneless/skinless thighs. (If you choose bone-in, you’ll need 2 lbs.)
A note on the onion: I like them ¼ inch thick, but others like them as thin as possible. Do what you wish.
A note on thickening: the standard approach is to add flour to cold liquid and then mix it in. I like my cold liquid to be orange liqueur or, alternatively, orange juice
1 1/2 lb Chicken, thighs1/4 cup 1/4 cup Cornstarch (or flour) to coat Flour for thickening Peanut Oil plus butter (50/50) 1/2 cup Whipping cream (or save calories with regular cream) 1 Onion, large, sliced 1 lb Mushrooms, fresh, sliced 1-2 cans Mandarin oranges (save the sugary liquid) Broccoli or thin-sliced carrots Sticky rice or noodles Salt and pepper to taste 1tbs Hot cayenne pepper (optional). I like it spicy.
Coat the chicken with cornstarch/salt/pepper (shake in a bag).
Heat the oil/butter very hot in a wok or fry pan, and fry the chicken. This will take about 5 minutes and chicken should be turned. If there is a lot of chicken do it by turns. Don’t overcook the chicken. Don’t make the pieces too large or too small.
Remove chicken to a side dish.
Remove all but a few tbs. of the oil, and cook the onion. You may need to add some water to keep it from burning. Optionally, sprinkle the onion with the hot Cayenne pepper (flakes or powder)
Cut the carrots very thin or use a peeler and add in sliced mushrooms. Mushrooms can add a lot of liquid. Add at the very end, and it will take maybe 1-2 minutes to cook. Add in the orange slices (without their syrup).
Add 1 tbs flour to the ¼ cup cold Mandarin-juice (or orange juice or orange liquor) and stir well.
Add the cream and quickly bring to a boil so that you can add the flour to thicken
Return the chicken to the wok or pan briefly.
Serve over sticky rice (about ¾ cup per person) or noodles.
Enjoy!
BOLLI MATTERS food and tech feature writer John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked vegetables in boil-able packages.)
Many years ago, when we were first married, we bought (like all our friends) a crock pot. The theory was that we would set it up before going to work, and a meal would be ready when we got home. After a number of abortive attempts and lousy meals, we gave up. Eventually, we gave away that primitive pot.
Then, last year, we were at my daughter’s, and she made this wonderful meal in her high technology slow-cooker. It was great, and nothing like our decades-earlier attempts. So we went out and bought one and have made many dishes. The key now is adjustable temperature as in our Hamilton Beach Stay or Go.
You can double the recipe for company (or left-overs), and it will still fit in the cooker.
It is also important to understand that not all ingredients go in at the beginning. Adding, say, string beans, and cooking for 6 hours will result in green paste.
1½ lbs Beef (a tougher piece of meat with good marbling. I like chuck)
1 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
1 Onion, chopped
1/4 cup Water
1 can Cream of mushroom soup (I only use Campbell’s)
4 oz Cream cheese
8 oz Noodles (or alternative starch)
6 oz Mushrooms (optional)
Cut meat a bit (not too small).
Put all EXCEPT the cream cheese into the slow cooker on low for 5 hours. If using mushrooms, cook them separately as they will generate a lot of water. Add at the end.
Add the cream cheese and mix in. It is not necessary that it be perfectly mixed.
Serve over noodles, rice, or potato. My preference is Angel Hair noodles.
I like this with carrots, but it is tricky to know when to put them in so that they cook the right amount for your taste. So it is best to cook them separately and add them near the end. I also like large chunks of onion and I add them half-way through so that they are still somewhat crisp.
Try this one out and let me know how you like it! Leave comments in the box below, or email me at john.rudy@alum.mit.edu
BOLLI Matters chef and tech expert John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked vegetables in boil-able packages.)
My parents found this recipe in the early ‘80s when staying at The Edgecombe-Coles House, a B&B in Camden, Maine. This recipe serves 3. I usually double the recipe for guests and put it in a 9” x 13” Pyrex which requires about 10 minutes additional cooking. It is similar to Bickfords’ Apple Pancake, though that one is cooked in an iron pan in the oven (and therefore is round). Of course you can use any other fruit. I like it with maple syrup (only the real, 100% kind), but it is also good with powdered sugar.
4 Eggs
1 cup Flour
1 cup Milk
¼ stick Butter
½ can Comstock apple pie filling (or equivalent) in heavy sauce, not water
Salt (optional)
Melt butter in 8” x 8” glass pan in the oven at 425 degrees until the butter begins to blacken. Turn/twist the pan so that the butter goes up the sides.
Blend milk, eggs and flour and pour into the hot pan. As with pancakes, a few lumps are OK. By the time the cooking is over they are gone.
Spoon in ½ can of apple pie filling, and spread it around the pan. Apples can be replaced with cherries, blueberries, etc. but be careful that it doesn’t introduce a significant amount of water. If it does, add a bit more flour to the mix. Comstock has two types of apple filling so I always get the one in the heavy syrup. Note that the recipe does not call for sugar, as that comes from the proper can of fruit.
Bake at 425ofor about 30 minutes. It will be done when the sides are crisp, the eggs are cooked, and the batter is rising out of the pan at the edges. Cook it over a cookie sheet in case it overflows. The larger pan (doubled recipe) will take a few minutes more.
Can be served alone, with melted butter, powdered sugar, or with maple syrup. I prefer real maple syrup.
Serve immediately after removing from the oven, before it falls.
This is easy to reheat in the microwave on a low setting. (If you reheat it on High, it becomes rubbery.)
CHEF’S CORNER Feature Writer John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked vegetables in boil-able packages.)
This recipe came from my Grandmother Helen Rudy in about 1965. She got it from her mother or grandmother. As is usual with that generation, nothing was written down, so what is here is a tuning of the recipe based on making it–a lot. Most commercial Noodle Puddings have a higher concentration of noodles, and that certainly can be arranged, but I like it softer and creamier. Others have raisins, pineapple, and other stuff I don’t like to put in my noodle pudding, but there is no problem adding other ingredients unless they either absorb a lot of moisture or generate a lot of moisture. If that is the case, moderate the milk to get the consistency you like. This recipe makes 8-10 portions in a 9” x 13” pan (117 sq in). A half recipe goes into an 8”x8” pan. With two of us, the half size works just fine.
9×13 pan8×8 pan
1 lb ½ lb Cottage Cheese (standard size container)
8 oz 4 oz Cream Cheese, softened
4 2 Eggs, Jumbo (adjust if using a smaller sized egg)
½ pint ½ cup Sour Cream
1¼ cup ⅝ cup Milk (note that 1/8th cup is 2 tablespoons)
2½ Tbs 1¼ Sugar
8 oz 4oz Broad Noodles. (Note: Some bags are 12oz, others are 16oz)
2 Tbs 1 Tbs Butter
½ cup ¼ cup Cornflake crumbs (just pour from box till it is enough)
shakes shakes Cinnamon-Sugar
Except for when there will be a crowd, make ½ of this recipe
Certain recipes require accurate measuring. A noodle pudding does not. And you might as well play with the ingredients to tune it to your taste.
Cook the noodles for 6-7 minutes, drain, and cool in water. Don’t make them too soft as they will continue to cook as you bake the pudding.
Beat the Cream Cheese, then add the eggs, Sour Cream, Cottage Cheese, and Sugar. If you use “lite” sour cream or cottage cheese it will affect the taste. Only you will know if you care.
Slowly beat in the milk and then stir in the well drained noodles. It will be very liquid at this point but will thicken during cooking.
Heat the oven to 350°
Melt the butter in a Pyrex pan and make sure that the sides are also buttered. The amount of butter is approximate. Place the pan onto an edged cookie tray (to collect leakage). Pour in the pudding material. This can, in fact, be done hours before the cooking.
Sprinkle the top liberally but not thick with Cornflake crumbs, and then sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar.
Bake, uncovered, ~33 minutes until it browns on the top and it is reasonably solidified. It will not harden in the pan while hot. If covered it will boil, not bake. The smaller pan will take 28 minutes.
The pudding can be prepared a day before cooking.
The pudding reheats well in the microwave.
CHEF’S CORNER Feature Writer John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked vegetables in boil-able packages.)
This recipe was developed from a Chinese Cuisine site on the web, though I have made a lot of alterations. When buying the spareribs try to find those with a meaty back side (unlike what is typically found in a Chinese Restaurant where they remove that part to be used in other dishes).
The keys are to cook slowly, with the oven moist, to keep the meat tender. Then at the end cook them under the broiler to make them crisp.
6 Spareribs (meaty) ¼ cup Soy Sauce ½ cup red Chinese sauce (Ah So) 1½ Tbs Catsup 1½ tsp Mustard (I use powdered) 1½ Tbs Red Wine Vinegar (or other vinegar) 1 Tbs Brown Sugar 5 Garlic Cloves, well chopped 1/3 cup Honey (dissolved in some water)
Marinate the spareribs (turning occasionally) in everything but the honey. Best if marinated for a full day (or even 36 hours). A 10×14” pan works particularly well. You will probably have to cut the rack of ribs into 6” sections to fit, but don’t cut individual ribs.
Bake at 335◦ for about an hour, with the meat side up on a rack over a cookie tray. Put aluminum foil in the pan to catch the fat drippings.
Place a tray of water a few inches under the cooking tray. This generates steam and keeps the ribs moist. (Make sure that it doesn’t evaporate.)
Baste the ribs with honey every 15 minutes
Remove the ribs from the oven, get rid of the foil and the fat.
Put the ribs back in, under the broiler, about 6” from the element. Baste heavily with the honey and broil for 5-7 minutes to crisp the ribs. Turn over, baste the back side, and cook the back under the broiler for 5-7 minutes. A lot more fat may come off during the broiling process.
Individually cut apart the ribs.
Serve with Duck Sauce and lots of napkins.
Our “Chef’s Corner” feature writer John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked exclusively vegetables in boil-able packages.)
THE BEST BIG, FAT, CHEWY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES EVER
from John Rudy
It is hard to find chocolate chip cookies that have enough chocolate, the right taste (thus the brown sugar), and are chewy-soft. Do not stint on getting the proper chocolate. I use Ghirardelli 60% Cacao. For starters, they must be large because the outer edge will always cook faster, and if the edges are most of the cookie you have a problem. Second, the cookies continue to cook as long as they are hot and sit on a hot pan. So they must be removed from the oven when not fully cooked. My suggestion is to make a small pan first, do what you think is right, and then adjust from there.
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter (1½ sticks), melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat the oven to 325°. Grease cookie sheets
Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended. Beat in the vanilla, egg, and extra egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon.
Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart. They really should be that far apart or as they cook they will merge together.
Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
It is fine to freeze them for later–and they even taste great when frozen.
“CHEF’S CORNER” feature writer John Rudy
John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked exclusively vegetables in boilable packages.)
In 1998 we went to China, and I noticed that General Tso’s Chicken was never on the menu. I asked and was told that they never heard of it, and anyway, who was General Tso? Since then, I have done some research, and it seems that it was named after Tso Tsung-t’ang (1812–1885), a Qing Dynasty military leader who suppressed the 1862–1877 Dungan Revolt. Now you can impress your friends.
This recipe came off the net many years ago, though I have fiddled with it. It tastes exactly like the best version I’ve ever had out. Remember that the Cayenne pepper powder can be very hot. Presumably dried peppers can also be used, but I couldn’t find them. Make sure that you use Asian sticky rice, and not something like Uncle Ben’s. If you haven’t used Sticky Rice, be careful with the amount of water. It usually takes about 50% more than what the bag says, so check it periodically as it cooks the 20 minutesm to make sure that it doesn’t burn.
This recipe is for a small amount of chicken. White meat dries out, so always make it with boneless, skinless thighs. That also makes it possible to reheat it without turning it into cardboard.
1 lb Chicken (best with dark meat)
3 tbs cornstarch (for coating)
1 egg, beaten
1 tbs cornstarch (to thicken)
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tbs sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1 small onion, sliced thin and in half
spicy red pepper, as desired
1 tsp ginger, minced
1 1/2 tbs water, cold (for cornstarch)
1/4 cup pineapple juide
1 clove garlic (sliced thin)
peanut oil (about 3/4 cup, add more as needed)
broccoli
sticky rice
Note: If tripling the recipe (to serve 6-8) you need only double the egg/cornstarch mixture, but triple the sauce.
Depending on where you buy the thighs, there might be some tough strands attached that you have to remove with a sharp knife. Cut the chicken into chunks. One thigh might be 4 pieces, but it depends on the size of the thigh.
Mix cornstarch and egg and coat the chicken. Once mixed, it will separate after about 5 minutes, so you might have to re-stir it.
Heat oil very hot in a wok, electric fry pan, or regular fry pan and fry chicken. This will take about 5 minutes and chicken should be turned. If there is a lot of chicken, do it by turns. The pieces of chicken should not be touching, or they will attach to one another. Don’t overcook the chicken.
Remove chicken to a side tray, keeping it warm in the oven at 200° which will not continue to cook it.
Remove all but a few Tbs. of the oil and cook the onion, covered, along with the pepper. You may need to add some water to keep it from burning. I like the onions to be soft but not mushy, and certainly not blackened. The best way to slice an onion is to cut it in half, from north to south pole, and then using a very sharp knife, make the slices.
Mix the juice, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, garlic and ginger and add to the onion mixture. Cook until it boils and the sugar is dissolved. This takes 1-2 minutes.
Add the cornstarch/water mixture to thicken the sauce, and add the chicken, stirring constantly. Serve immediately. Reduce the cornstarch if you want a thinner sauce.
Serve over sticky rice (about ¾ cup per person) with steamed broccoli on the side.
Though I have never seen it in a restaurant, I like to cut celery stalks ½“ thick and cook in butter about 5 minutes (in a separate pan) and add them in.
BOLLI Chef John Rudy
THE CHEF’S CORNER: John says that it was his mother who inspired his love of cooking and baking at an early age. (She cooked exclusively vegetables in boilable packages.)
We discover all sorts of interesting aspects as we get to know our BOLLI colleagues–who knew that John Rudy is not only a knowledgable “techie” but an accomplished “foodie” as well?! We at BOLLI Matters are pleased to introduce our new FOOD FEATURE–
TIRAMISU
When in Italy for our 20th anniversary (1988) we had Tiramisu, a tasty creamy dessert, made from dozens of different recipes–including Tiramisu ice cream! When we returned, we scoured the Italian cookbooks looking for a Tiramisu recipe but didn’t find anything that sounded right. Then, for our daughter’s Bat Mitzvot, we asked our caterer to make one. It was excellent, exactly what we wanted, but he refused to divulge any recipe details.
After continuing to look, in a casual way, over the years, we started to see tiramisu recipes, but, again, none were really quite right. So, I decided I’d try modifying a recipe I found–I omitted the wine and used sponge cake instead of lady fingers. I contacted a local gourmet shop to find the Mascarpone cheese. They asked if I was making Tiramisu. When I said “yes” and that I wasn’t happy with my recipe, the fellow said that he was teaching an Italian cooking course and would be teaching Tiramisu the following week. What follows is an amalgam of my recipe, his recipe, some things found in cookbooks, and a number of personal changes. There are hundreds of different recipes available. Many use brandy, Marsala wine or Amaretto, none of which taste right to me. Very few use chunks of chocolate.
Tiramisu has a cake portion (I use home-made sponge cake; traditionalists use lady fingers which are dry), a coffee-liquor mix, and a cheese mix. Make Tiramisu at least a day before so that it has time to sit. Remove it from the refrigerator 1 hour before serving.
The following is enough for a Pyrex 8”x8” pan plus a Pyrex 9”x14” pan. I use glass pans. It takes ~2½ hours to make this dessert. (If you want to use only the larger pan, use two-thirds of the following ingredients.)
The Cake
8 Eggs, separated, at room temperature
2 cups Flour, sifted BEFORE measuring
2 cups Sugar, granulated
2 tsp. Vinegar, white (it causes the sponge cake to rise; but leaves no taste)
Beat egg whites in a large bowl until fluffy; slowly beat in sugar.
Separately, mix yolks and vinegar; beat slowly into whites.
Sift flour, then measure, and sift into batter while slowly beating the egg-sugar mixture.
Pour half of the mixture into the two pans. Do not flour or butter the pans. Pour the other half of the mixture into an11x17x1 cookie sheet, which has been lined with wax paper. This will later be used for the top layer. If you use a smaller pan, it will not cover both surfaces.
Bake at 350° for about 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick poked into the cake’s middle comes out clean. Do not be surprised if the pans take different amounts of time.
Cool the glass pans upside down so that the sponge cake does not shrink.
Soaking the Cake
2 cups Cold Coffee (the stronger the better)
¾ cup Crème de Cocoa (you could use another liquor)
As evenly as possible, pour half (or a bit less) into the two cake pans, onto the sponge cake. This will be the lower half of the cake. Save the remaining liquid.
Cheese Mixture
24 oz Marscapone cheese. (room temp). Can use the microwave to soften but not for more than 15 seconds for an 8 oz container
6 Eggs, separated
8 oz Chocolate, bittersweet, coarsely chopped (Guittard semi- sweet Super Cookie Chips or Nestles Chunks work well).
2/3 cup Sugar, granulated
Beat egg whites until fluffy.
Whisk egg yolks in double boiler with very hot, but not boiling, water. Whisk in the sugar. Cook for a few minutes. Ensure that the yolks do not turn hard by whisking constantly.
Mix in the egg whites and then stir in the softened Marscopone cheese. This will be very tight in the double boiler! You may find it easier to add these ingredients to the larger egg-white bowl for blending, and then return the mixture to the double boiler for about 5 minutes.
I use the extra large chocolate pieces for chocolate chip cookies and might chop some pieces. Fold the chocolate into to the mixture and remove from the heat. Otherwise the chocolate will melt. Or could sprinkle the chocolate after pouring the cheese mixture.
Spread the cheese mixture over the soaked sponge cake.
Finishing it off
1 pint Cream, whipping (beat cold, in cold bowl)
¼ cup Sugar, granulated
1 tsp Cocoa, un-sweetened (can use regular cocoa or flaked chocolate)
Take the waxed paper off the other piece of sponge cake and cut it so that it fits over the cheese mixture in the two pans.
Pour the remaining coffee-liquor mixture over the cakes so that it soaks in.
Whip the cream and sugar and, using a rubber spatula, spread over the two cakes covering any cracks in the sponge cake and also keeping in the moisture. Use a sponge to clean the edges.
Sprinkle the cocoa over the cakes for decoration. This is done most easily by putting the cocoa into a fine-mesh sieve and tapping the sides while moving it over the cake. Use a sponge to wipe the sides of the pans, removing any extra whipped cream and cocoa. Cover carefully with Glad Wrap
Let sit, covered, refrigerated, for at least 24 hours before serving. Remove from the refrigerator 1 hour before serving. This dessert can be frozen
It should really be covered, but plastic wrap can damage the top. Sometimes I just put wax paper over it–it is usually eaten before it dries out.
Chef John Rudy says that his mother inspired his lifelong love of cooking and baking. (She cooked vegetables in boilable packages.)
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