Spicy Chicken with Peanut Sauce
You probably wouldn't believe the amount of cookbooks I have...they fill my cabinets and the bookshelves in the office. Why do I have so many? Well, I have a passion for cooking and although it's fun to make recipes up spontaneously, I usually really enjoy following a recipe and trying new things that other people create.
Lately I've been thinking I should start using my crock pot more often, so last week I made a roast and it turned out really yummy. But this week's recipe was something I've had my eye on for a while...spicy chicken with peanut sauce. I know the title of the dish says it's spicy, but actually I thought it was quite mild...so if you aren't into spicy foods, don't let the title scare you--you should still try this out sometime. And if you love spicy foods like I do, add some hot sauce or red pepper to give it that added kick!
Cooking the chicken slowly over 8 hours really made it extra delicious...fall off the bone good! (Literally!!)
It turned out really well...only a few minor adjustments I would make the next go around that I'll share with you here. But first, here's the recipe:
Cooking time: 8 hours Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. olive oil
8 large chicken thighs (about 3 lb), skin removed
1 large onion, chopped (1 C)
2 cans (14.5 oz each) diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 can (14.5 oz) crushed tomatoes, undrained
2 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 C. creamy peanut butter
2 C. hot cooked couscous
Directions:
1. In 12" nonstick skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook chicken in oil about 4 minutes, turning once, until brown.
2. In 4 to 5 quart slow cooker, mix onion, diced and crushed tomatoes, honey, cumin and cinamon. Add chicken. Spoon tomato mixture over chicken.
3. Cover and cook on Low heat setting 7 to 8 hours.
4. Stir in peanut butter until melted and well blended. Serve chicken and sauce over couscous.
Top with chopped fresh cilantro (I left that out because I didn't have any) and also dry-roasted peanuts. Serve with wedges of warm pita bread.
Now, here are some things I would change next time:
1. Add some spice to it, such as hot sauce and ground cayenne pepper.
2. I LOVE peanut sauce that you get at thai restaurants, so I was expecting a similar flavor here...since the peanut flavor was not very strong I would use extra peanut butter, perhaps even the crunchy kind. (Also, I didn't have any roasted peanuts to sprinkle on top, so I'm sure that had something to do with the lack of peanut flavor)
3. Both my husband and I decided we're not really fans of couscous...instead I think the recipe would be better with brown rice.
All in all, it was a good recipe, one that I'm likely to make again....then again I do have about 983,219 more recipes to try...but I'll get back to it--eventually.
Bon Appetit!
(This recipe was found in the Betty Crocker Cookbook: Bridal Edition.)
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