Easy Soy Ginger Chicken

One of my favourite summertime foods is chicken drumsticks that my dad would grill outside on the barbecue.  Now that it’s winter and cold outside, I decided to bake my chicken drumsticks indoors… and they came out great! The key is to marinate the chicken for 12-48 hours, turning once. This easy soy-ginger marinade makes for a yummy Asian-inspired meal.

Ingredients

• 3 lbs chicken drumsticks
• ½ cup soy sauce, low-sodium
• ¼ cup packed brown sugar
• ¼ + ⅛ tsp ginger  (or 3 Tbsp fresh ginger)
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp black pepper

Directions

1. Make the marinade by combining all ingredients except chicken.
2. Place the drumsticks in a large Ziploc bag, a glass bowl, or baking dish. Cover with the marinade.
3. Refrigerate for 12-48 hours. Turn the drumsticks at least once during the marinating time, to ensure they are all coated evenly.
4. When you’re reading to cook: Bring the chicken to room temperature (let it sit out on the counter for 30 minutes before baking). Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 475F with rack in the middle.
5. Arrange the drumsticks in a single layer in a broiler-proof baking dish or a pan.
6. Bake until the chicken turns a dark brown colour, about 40 minutes.
7. Set the oven to broil. Broil until the chicken skin is crisp, about 3-5 minutes.
8. Serve with Chinese vegetables like bok choy and enjoy!

 

 

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Carrot Ginger Soup

My boyfriend raves that this is his favorite soup so far! It might be because it’s made with coconut milk, which is pretty decadent. I like to make this soup in a slow cooker because it’s easy, but you can also sautée the vegetables and then add the remaining ingredients, to cook over a stovetop.

The nutritional info at the bottom of this recipe comes from the label on the can of coconut milk I used, and from http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php

Ingredients

1½ pounds carrots, chopped (about 10 carrots) 2 onions, chopped 3 cups vegetable broth or chicken broth 1 14oz can coconut milk ½ cup water ¼ cup orange juice 1½  tsp fresh ginger grated (or ¾  tsp dried) Spice Blend (see right) or 3 Tbsp curry powder sea salt to taste

Spice Blend: 1 Tbsp cumin 1½ tsp coriander 1½ tsp turmeric 1 tsp chili powder ½ tsp paprika ⅛ tsp nutmeg

Directions
1. Put all ingredients into a slow cooker. Stir.

A monkey and ingredients for carrot ginger soup

2. Cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or HIGH for 4-6 hours.

3. Purée using an immersion blender or regular blender. Serve. Makes about 10 cups.

See? I told you this was easy!

 

Nutrition Information
per 1 cup serving
Calories: 113
Total Fat: 9 g
Saturated Fat: 7.7 g
Sodium: 69 mg
Sugars: 4.9 g
Protein: 1.8 g

Nutritional info is approximate! A big takeaway here though is that the amount of sodium in a bowl of homemade soup is far less than what you’ll find in a store-bought can of soup.