Orzo “Risotto” with Chicken, Sausage and Peppers

Orzo (also known as melon seed pasta, due to its shape) is one of my favorite choices for pasta salad. I really like the shape and texture, and it makes for a very interesting cold salad. Here, I had the idea of using it for a hot dish in the same way one would use an Arborio rice to make the classic Risotto. Instead of boiling the Orzo in salted water and draining, I thought it would be interesting to cook it the same way risotto is cooked, by adding small additions of flavorful stock until it’s tender (or al dente if you prefer). I made that flavorful stock by braising chicken and sausage as you’ll see.

This dish is really all over the place; most of the ingredients are kind of Spanish/Portuguese, there are techniques from India and Italy involved, and just to make things even stranger, I use a chili pepper usually found only in Mexican cuisine. But, none of that matters, this dish tastes great and is really not hard to make. The other good thing is, whoever you serve this to probably hasn’t had it before, so no matter how it comes out you can always say, “yeah, that’s how it’s suppose to be!”

I’ve had many requests for a risotto demo. The reason I haven’t done one is because who wants to watch someone stand at a stove and stir a pot of rice? Well, I tried to edit this to make it somewhat bearable, but the basic technique is the same; slowly adding stock and stirring until its almost absorbed and then adding more. This is a dish that will be great the first time you make it, and REALLY great the second time you make it, as you get the timing down. My orzo took about 15-20 minutes to absorb enough stock to become tender – but that’s just a very rough guide for you since there are so many factors; the heat, size of your orzo, shape of pot, etc. Be brave and enjoy yourself…you're cooking!

By the way, I didn’t mention it in the clip, but I removed the skin and bones from the chicken thighs once they were cool enough to handle, before I added them back into the final dish. Also, this is one of the VERY rare dishes I didn’t add garlic to. The sausage I used had a lot of garlic in it so I didn’t think it was needed. Enjoy.



Ingredients:
1/2 pound orzo pasta
6 chicken thighs (seasoned with 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp black pepper)
1 lb. Linguisa sausage (or any spicy sausage)
1 quart chicken stock
1 red bell pepper
1 green Pasilla or bell pepper
1/2 yellow onion
1 tbl paprika
1 tbl cumin
1 tbl Herb de Provence
1 tsp salt
1 bay leaf
fresh parsley

Braised Lamb and Eggplant Cous Cous – Easy, exotic, and a great case for gender bias!

Today’s post is perfect for the person that’s afraid to try anything that seems exotic because they think it’s going to be hard to prepare. Cous Cous has to be one of the easiest things on the planet to make. Can you boil stock and pour it into a bowl of Cous Cous? Then this dish is for you. This was a hard demo to edit down to a reasonable length, so I did go pretty fast with some of the steps and I thought I better give some additional info to help you follow along. So, I’ve put a few steps along with the usual ingredient list.

Cous Cous is a tiny, granular type of pasta that is as delicious, as it is simple to prepare. Usually considered Moroccan, this is also a staple in Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. The amazing thing about couscous is how fast it “cooks,” and how versatile it is. As long as you have some type of flavorful stock to prepare the Cous Cous, the meats and vegetables can be varied in countless ways.

Regarding the gender bias reference in headline; it has been claimed that female eggplants have more seeds than male eggplants. Those tiny white/grey seeds are what give eggplant it’s slightly bitter flavor, so Chefs are said to favor the male eggplants. Anyway, I show you how to “sex” an eggplant, and we also test the male vs. female theory. Wow, I feel like that “Myth Buster” guy. Enjoy the clip!



4 cups couscous
1 quart chicken stock
2 pounds lamb shoulder chops
2 eggplants
1/2 onion
1/2 cup diced tomato or sauce
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp dried Herb de Provence (or Italian herb mix)
1/4 cup olive oil
4 oz feta cheese (optional)
fresh herbs to garnish (mint, parsley, etc.)

Steps:
* Season lamb with half the salt and pepper, brown well on both sides in a bit of olive oil in Dutch oven, remove and set aside.
* Add onion, rest of salt and pepper, sauté for 5 minutes.
* Add eggplant and sauté for 5 minutes.
* Add tomato, garlic, red pepper flakes, cinnamon, cumin, Herb de Provence, sauté for 5 minutes.
* Add stock and lamb, bring to a simmer and cover. Simmer for 2 hours.
* Remove lamb.
* Strain braising liquid from eggplant and reserve (you should have about 4 1/2 cups).
* Remove meat from bones and add to eggplant mixture, keep warm.
* Bring reserved stock to boil and pour over “oiled” Cous Cous (see clip)
* Cover tightly for 5 minutes, fluff and serve as shown in clip.

Spicy Mediterranean Chicken with Sausage Stuffed Cherry Peppers

A culinary tour of the Mediterranean! Succulent Chicken thighs, artichoke hearts, olive, pepperoncini, and sausage stuffed cherry peppers! WARNING: This is an intense food experience, not for the bland palettes of the world.

As I mention in the clip, if you want this dish to be less spicy and intense, drain the pepperoncini before adding. This is great on top of rice or pasta. By the way, I got the inspiration for this dish from my Uncle Bill, who stuffs the “Peppadews” (a great brand of jarred cherry peppers from South Africa) with sausage and grills them as an appetizer.

Ingredients:
6 Chicken Thighs
1 Onion
1 Cup Sliced Pepperoncini
18 Cherry Peppers (Pepperdew if possible)
6-8 Oz. Italian Sausage
Herb De Provence
Salt And Pepper
Cumin
14 Oz Can Artichoke Hearts
1/2 Cup Greek Olives, Pitted
Olive Oil
Chicken Stock
Fresh Herbs to Garnish