BAKED APRICOT PINEAPPLE GINGER SALMON

BAKED APRICOT GINGER SALMON serves 4

4 – 6 ounce salmon fillets
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon avocado oil

  • Preheat oven to 350°.
  • Heat oil in skillet over medium high heat.
  • Generously season fillets with FRESH ground salt and pepper.
  • Add fillets to skillet skin side up searing for 3-4 minutes depending on thickness.
  • Flip fillets over and cook 3-4 minutes more to get a crisp skin.
  • Pour sauce over fillets and place uncovered in the oven for 4-6 minutes until cooked through.
  • Remove from oven, foil tent and let stand 2 minutes.
  • Serve with rice pilaf and a fresh veggie.

APRICOT PINEAPPLE GINGER SAUCE
1/4 cup avocado oil
2 tablespoons raspberry vinegar
2 tablespoons apricot pineapple preserves
1 tablespoon QUALITY honey
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon ground ginger or 1 tablespoon FRESH minced
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained

  • Blend preserves, vinegar, honey, ginger, salt and pepper in a mini food processor.
  • Add pineapple.
  • Add oil and blend JUST until emulsified. It will refrigerate in an air tight container for a week, but it never lasts that long around here.

MISO GINGER CHICKEN

MISO GINGER CHICKEN
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon Sriracha
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon miso paste
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup Bragg’s liquid aminos
2 green onions, sliced
avocado oil
FRESH ground sea salt and black pepper

  • Wash and dry chicken breasts.
  • Heat pan over medium heat.
  • Add avocado oil.
  • Generously season chicken breasts with salt and pepper.
  • Sear chicken until cooked through, about 5 minutes per side.
  • Transfer chicken to a plate and keep warm.
  • Add green onions, ginger and garlic, cooking until fragrant and beginning to soften.
  • Add liquid aminos, miso paste, honey, vinegar and sriracha, whisking to blend well.
  • Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened.
  • Return chicken to sauce and turn to coat.
  • Serve over rice.

CARAMEL CHICKEN

I can’t say why this is called caramel chicken, but it doesn’t really matter since I can no longer eat sugar because of my health so anything with the name caramel in the name is A-OK by me 😀 In all honesty I assume it is the rich caramel sauce you start with, but the finished product tastes NOTHING like the caramel sauce you put on ice cream.

Now, while I can’t actually eat sugar, I can prepare it the normal way and then be sure let the sauce drain from my piece of chicken so hubby can still enjoy the REAL thing.

Most of the recipes I’ve seen call for using bone-in, skin-on chicken pieces, but I like to make it with boneless pieces for easier

CARAMEL CHICKEN
3/4 cup dry Jasmine rice
1 1/2 cups water
pinch of salt

  • Prepare rice per package directions.
  • Remove from heat.

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons Fish sauce
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1+1 tablespoons avocado oil
2 tablespoons FRESH minced ginger
1 SMALL shallot, minced
1 1/2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch green onions, angularly sliced
2 tablespoons torn Basil leaves

  • Over medium-high heat, melt sugar 5 minutes or so until the color of iced tea.  Keep the pan moving like a jiffy pop popcorn tin 😀
  • Whisk together chicken broth and fish sauce.
  • Add fish sauce broth to sugar whisking until smooth. BE CAREFUL – SUGAR is REALLY HOT and will spurt AND BUBBLE.
  • Remove from heat.
  • In a separate skillet add 1 tablespoon avocado oil to heated skillet over medium-high heat.
  • Sear chicken on ALL sides.
  • Remove chicken to plate.
  • Add remaining tablespoon of oil.
  • Add shallots, mushrooms and garlic, cooking until soft.
  • Add caramel sauce, stirring to blend.
  • Add chicken and turn to coat.
  • Add basil leaves.
  • Simmer until sauce thickens.
  • Serve over prepared rice.
  • Garnish with green onions.

MAPLE GINGER CHICKEN – plan ahead meal

MAPLE GINGER CHICKEN
4 bone-in chicken thighs
3/4 cup apple cider
1/2 cup PURE maple syrup
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 shallot, finely sliced
1 tablespoon finely grated ginger
4 sprigs FRESH thyme leaves (Rosemary works too in a pinch)
3/4 teaspoon FRESH ground salt
1/2 teaspoon FRESH ground pepper
3 medium apples or pears, peeled, cored and quartered

  • Place a large Ziploc bag in a large mixing bowl (just win case the bag breaks)
  • Combine the apple cider, maple syrup, vinegar, shallot, ginger, salt and pepper.
  • Add chicken, seal and refrigerate for 12-24 hours, turning once or twice to make sure chicken is well coated.

  • Preheat oven to 400°.
  • Remove chicken from marinade.
  • Arrange chicken pieces skin side up in a large baking dish.
  • Tuck apples and thyme sprigs among the chicken pieces.
  • Pour marinade over top of the chicken.
  • Bake 45 minutes – 1 hour, basting occasionally until chicken is cooked through and the meat is starting to pull away from the bone.
  • Serve chicken and fruit with sauce spooned over top.

Linking up to FULL Plate Thursday.