Dorito Chicken Strips

Dorito Chicken Strips

Sounds good, and easy, and only 4 ingredients! On my to make and taste list.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American
Servings 3 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
  • 1 bag Nacho Cheese Doritos, or any flavor you prefer, (200 grams / 10 oz for US)
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons milk

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 200 C (400 F) and line a baking sheet with foil.
  • Cut chicken breasts into 3/4 inch strips.
  • Crush the chips quite small but not into a powder, looking for texture on the chicken with these. In a shallow dish, mix together the egg and milk.
  • Using tongs (prevents clumpy fingers) dip a chicken strip into the egg mixture, then roll in the chips, use the tongs and pat the chips onto the chicken on all sides, then place on the baking sheet. Repeat for all the strips.
  • Lightly spray the strips with cooking spray or mist with some extra light olive oil. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until cooked through, you don't want to over cook the chicken, simply at 15 minutes, remove on from the oven and cut in half to check for doneness.
  • Serve with ranch dressing, sour cream, or my choice, Kewpie mayo. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving, chicken is low cost.
Variants: 1. Before cooking, cut the strips into cubes and you have nuggets. 2. Use thighs or even whole chicken breasts.
Inspired by Spend With Pennies and theĀ link to this recipe is here.
United States.
Chicken with Noodles & Gravy

Chicken with Noodles & Gravy

Just as you guessed it, it is that simple, chicken, egg noodles, and chicken gravy. This is a base recipe, tailor it to your liking and call it your own. I made this on 5 May 2019, perfect! Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 340 grams dry egg noodles, (12 oz)
  • 700 grams chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, cut into bite size pieces, (1 1/2 lbs, I used 3 breasts)
  • extra light olive oil, as needed
  • 3 packets chicken gravy, (yield is 1 cup gravy per packet), (Shortcut)
  • 3 cups frozen peas, thawed, (don't use canned peas!)
  • salt and pepper, black pepper or white pepper, as desired

Instructions
 

  • This is the gravy packet I use, Thai brand, Thai made, and it is quite good. And is low cost.
  • First thing we need to do is get the noodles cooking, so heat a pot of salted water to boiling, then add the egg noodles and boil until just tender. Drain.
  • I used a variant which adds a step here. I sauteed about 1 cup of sliced (Japanese Sogigiri or angle sliced) Shiitake mushrooms, and reduced the peas to 2 cups. After the mushrooms were sauteed, I just wiped out the pan and that is ready for the chicken now.
  • While the water is heating for the egg noodles, heat a non stick pan on medium heat with the oil, when hot add the chicken, season with salt and pepper as desired (I used white pepper), saute, turning them often.
  • When no pink is visible and they have released their water, as seen in the photo, remove and drain off the water, and set the pan aside. Don't over cook the chicken or you will have tough chicken. The will still cook when the pan is off the heat and you will have perfect tender chicken.
  • In a large sauce pan, prepare the gravy per the packet instructions, normally 1 cup water per packet, so 3 cups water and whisk in the 3 packets. When the gravy has thickened to your liking, reduce heat to a simmer and stir in the peas, and mushrooms if you prepared those.
  • Whens the peas are warmed through, takes just a few minutes, add the chicken and drained noodles, stir and let this simmer for a few minutes to heat everything through.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Shortcuts: Gravy Mix. Although I do list the shortcut here, for those in Thailand, Lobo has excellent gravy packets, which is what I primarily use.
Variants: 1. Use a combination of peas and carrots. 2. Use mixed vegetables in place of peas. 3. Reduce the amount of peas and add some sauteed mushrooms. (Highly recommended!)
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Chicken & Egg Curry

Chicken & Egg Curry

Adapted from an internet recipe.
Sounds like an excellent dish, and easy to make. Common ingredients are used, this recipe assumes you have hard boiled already. On my to make and taste list.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Indian
Servings 2 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless, diced
  • 2 hard boiled eggs, peeled
  • 3 tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 medium onions, grated
  • 2 tablespoons ghee, or cooking oil
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder, if using Thai, use ¼ teaspoon
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup water

Instructions
 

  • In a large non stick pan on medium heat, add the ghee or oil, when hot, add the diced chicken, cook, stirring often, until no longer pink. Use a slotted spoon and remove the chicken to a bowl.
  • To the pan, add the cumin and onion, stir fry until the onion is golden colored and soft, about 5 minutes or so.
  • Add the garlic, chili powder, coriander, turmeric, and salt, stir fry for 30 seconds.
  • Stir in the tomatoes, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes.
  • To the pan, add the water, eggs, and chicken, cover again and simmer on low heat for 20 minutes.
  • Serve with rice, enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie

Just A Pinch Recipe Club, Amy Whitford, United States.
This inspiration for this recipe comes from a friend and it is delicious. This takes some time to make the homemade version but it is well worth it, you will make a few homemade items, or you can opt for pre-made items, totally up to you. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Passive Time 5 minutes
Total Time 2 hours
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Oven
  • Pie Dish

Ingredients
  

  • 2 pie crusts, Shortcut
  • 2 cups chicken breasts, cooked, diced
  • 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup, Shortcut
  • 1½ cups frozen mixed vegetables, or 1 can of mixed veggies, drained
  • salt and pepper, as desired, to taste
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon milk

Instructions
 

  • For the pie crusts, feel free to use frozen and thawed, or make your own. I made olive oil pie crusts for this dish. Just before you plan to bake the pie, preheat your oven to 190° C (375° F).
  • For the chicken, feel free to cook the chicken your preferred way; such as boiling, baking, pressure cooking, or even use leftover chicken. Add the chopped chicken to a mixing bowl.
  • For the vegetables, feel free to use frozen (thawed) or canned vegetables. You can even use fresh veggies, peeled and diced that total 1½ cups, then boil them until tender, and drained. Add to the mixing bowl with the chicken.
  • Add the can of condensed soup, or homemade condensed soup to the mixing bowl with the chicken and vegetables. Mix together, season with salt and pepper as desired, and pour into your prepared pie dish. I was snap happy with the camera and took a photo before I spread the filling out evenly.
  • Cover the pie with the second crust, flute if desired, and cut 4 slits in the crust.
  • Mix together the egg and milk in a small bowl and brush the top of the pie with the egg wash. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown, then remove to a rack to cool for 5 minutes or so and the filling will firm up.
  • Slice, serve, and enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Shortcuts: Olive Oil Pie Crust, Pie Crust, Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup, Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup.
Variants: 1. Use cream of mushroom soup in place of the chicken soup. 2. Add sliced or chopped mushrooms to the filling. 3. Use 2 cans, drained, chicken breast (12.5 oz / 354 g each) in place of fresh cooked chicken.
Turkish Chicken Kebabs

Turkish Chicken Kebabs

Brian Colligan, Thailand.
This recipe comes from my good friend, Brian, who lives in northeastern Thailand, and is highly recommended by him. On my to make and taste list.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 30 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Turkish
Servings 4 servings

Equipment

  • Grill, Charcoal or Gas

Ingredients
  

For the Chicken

  • 1,250 grams chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, (2 1/2 lbs)

For the Marinade

  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2-3 tablespoons lime or lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons ketchup
  • 6 cloves garlic, smashed and finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon Aleppo red pepper flakes
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
  • ā…› teaspoon ground cinnamon

For Grilling

  • 2 medium onions, cut into big chunks
  • 2 bell peppers, your choice of color, cut into big chunks
  • 2 heads garlic, separated into cloves, peeled
  • wood skewers, as many as needed

Instructions
 

  • Cut the chicken into ¾ inch pieces.
  • In a large mixing bowl, add the Marinade ingredients and mix to combine, slowly add the chicken pieces making sure all the chicken is coated. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or even overnight to full blend the flavors.
  • When you are ready to cook, light your grill then prep the Grilling ingredients, and soak the skewers in water. When the grill is hot, can be gas or charcoal, arrange the coals for cooking over partially indirect heat, or direct heat if less coals are used, no need to use a lid for this.
  • Now for grilling, you can make this a family event, set out the Grilling ingredients in bowls, drain the chicken and place in a bowl but retain the marinade in another bowl and stick a brush in that.
  • Let people build their own kebabs, just mixing and matching what they like, baste the kebabs with the marinade before placing on the grill, and again during grilling. Turn the kebabs every few minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
  • Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.
Chicken & Thai Basil

Chicken & Thai Basil

This is an easy Thai dish that goes together quickly and is delicious, spiciness comes from green Bird's Eye Chilies and Thai Basil, and is delicious!
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 2 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 chicken breasts, boneless, skinless
  • 20 green Bird's Eye chilies
  • 4-5 cloves garlic, peeled
  • soy sauce, as desired
  • 1 handful fresh Thai Basil leaves
  • cooking oil, as needed
  • cooked rice, for serving

Instructions
 

  • Slice the chicken breasts into small pieces, set aside. Add the chilies and garlic to a mortar and mash with a pestle.
  • In a large non stick pan (we use a marble wok pan) on medium to medium high heat, a tablespoon or so of cooking oil, when hot, add the chicken and chili garlic mixture. Saute until the chicken has mostly turned white, a little bit of pink here and there is no problem. Season with a splash of soy sauce as desired.
  • Add the Thai basil and stir into the chicken.
  • When the basil is wilted, cover the pan and turn off the heat. Now you can get the bowls and rice ready to serve.
  • Remove the lid from the pan, give the chicken a stir and pour the chicken into a serving bowl. Serve family style in the center of the table and people can just take and enjoy what they want.

Notes

Low cost per serving. Depending on the sides, this is 2-3 servings.
Recipe provided and cooked by my wife, Rrayada Thayer.
Thailand.
Lemongrass Chicken Wings

Lemongrass Chicken Wings

Adapted from an internet recipe.
Sounds tasty and easy. On my to make and taste list.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 4 hours 40 minutes
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Chinese
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 kilo chicken wings, tips removed, (2 lbs)
  • 1 stalk lemongrass, hard layers removed, beaten, minced, or 1 tsp powdered
  • 2 cloves garlic, smashed and minced
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 teaspoons ginger, minced
  • ¼ cup fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 ½ teaspoons soy sauce
  • fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish if desired

Instructions
 

  • In a mixing bowl, add the lemongrass, garlic, shallot, ginger, fish sauce, lime juice, oil, and sugar. Whisk together until the sugar is dissolved.
  • Place the wings in sturdy zip lock bag and pour the marinade into the bag. Squeeze out the air and zip the bag closed, then squish the wings around to coat them with the marinade. Place the bag in a large dish and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours and overnight for more flavor.
  • When ready to cook, preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F) and line a baking sheet with foil. Mix together the honey and soy sauce.
  • Remove the wings from the marinade and drain, discard the marinade. Place wings on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes.
  • 15 minutes into baking, baste the wings with the honey and soy sauce mixture. Continue baking, a few minutes before the 30 minutes are up, baste the wings one more with the honey and soy sauce mixture.
  • Remove wings to a serving platter and sprinkle with the cilantro if using.
  • Serve with sides of your choice.

Notes

Chicken wings will cost about 84 Baht/kilo (2 lbs), for 4 servings, this is about 65 cents per serving.
Chicken Satay

Chicken Satay

Nancy Kennison, United States.
This is an original satay mix for chicken provided by a good friend. Her and her husband follow no recipes when they cook, so they had to endure two days in a row of this tasty sounding satay in order to write the rough measurements down so I can share her 'recipe' here. From the author of this, "this is a guide, feel free to increase, decrease amounts of items, tailor it to make it your own." And as I like to say, a recipe is not set in stone.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 23 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Thai
Servings 0

Ingredients
  

  • 1/3 cup coconut milk
  • 5 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon lime juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon lime zest
  • 1 teaspoon sugar, or to taste
  • 500 grams chicken breast, boneless, skinless, (1 lb)
  • wood skewers, as needed
  • vegetable oil, as needed

Instructions
 

  • In a mixing bowl, add the coconut milk and peanut butter and mix together. If it is too stiff, add bit more coconut milk, and if too thin, you guessed it, add a bit more peanut butter.
  • Now add the cumin, cayenne, lime juice, and zest and mix together. Taste and add mix in the sugar to counter the lime if the lime is too strong.
  • Slice the chicken breasts lengthwise into 1/2 inch thick strips.
  • Add the chicken strips to satay mix, and mix together until all the chicken is coated. Cover the bowl and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour, and over night is highly recommended.
  • When you are ready to cook, light your grill (charcoal or gas), you will be direct cooking over medium heat, about 350-450 F. Soak the wood skewers in water for about 30 minutes.
  • Remove the chicken from the satay mix and brush off excess satay mix. Thread the strips onto skewers. Brush the chicken with vegetable oil.
  • Grill the skewers for about 8-10 minutes, turning once, with the lid closed.
  • Serve with sides of your choice.

Notes

Chicken is low cost.
Variants: 1. Use half of the mix (marinade) mixed with the chicken, and the other half heated in a small saucepan for a dipping sauce, OR, what I will do, is make one batch for the marinade, and another batch for the dipping sauce, problem solved). 2. This marinade works well on pork, shrimp/prawn, and even rabbit. 3. This works well on very dense/firm fish, on salmon it is excellent. This does NOT work well with average white fish and is NOT recommended. 4. For shrimp/prawn, clean as you would, remove shell, tail, devein, marinate in the mix.
Baked Coconut Chicken

Baked Coconut Chicken

Peng's Kitchen, Singapore.
Good tasting chicken, subtle flavor of coconut, next time I make these I will make some shallow cuts on the chicken.
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Passive Time 8 hours
Total Time 9 hours 5 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Malaysian
Servings 5 servings

Equipment

  • Oven
  • Baking Sheet with Rack

Ingredients
  

For Marinating

  • 5 chicken quarters
  • ā…” cup coconut milk
  • 1½ teaspoons paprika
  • 1 teaspoon lemon pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dried parsley
  • 1 teaspoon salt

For Baking

  • ½ cup all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • extra light olive oil, as needed

Instructions
 

To Marinate the Chicken

  • Separate the quarters into legs and thighs (there is a line of fat to follow). Trim off and discard any excess fat. (I used 4 quarters)
  • In a mixing bowl, add the rest of the marinade ingredients, whisk together.
  • Place the chicken pieces in a sturdy zip lock bag, then pour in the coconut mixture. Squeeze out as much air as you can and seal the bag. Squish the chicken around to get everything coated with the marinade. Place the bag on a plate and place in the fridge overnight.

To Bake the Chicken

  • Remove chicken from the marinade and drain, discard the marinade.
  • In a mixing bowl, add the flour, baking powder, and baking soda, and whisk together. Pour a little bit of extra light olive oil in a small bowl. Line a baking sheet with foil, lightly oil a baking rack and place the rack on the backing sheet.
  • Coat the chicken pieces in the flour mixture and place on the rack. Leave the chicken to rest for an hour.
  • About 15 minutes before you are going to bake, preheat your oven to 200° C (390° F). Brush or spray the chicken with olive oil and place the baking sheet with the rack and chicken in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, turn the chicken pieces over and bake for another 25 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. To check if cooked through, sacrifice a thigh and cut into one to verify it is cooked through.
  • Serve with sides of your choice.

Notes

Low cost. I used 4 chicken quarters on 3 Feb 2019, that was 1 1/2 kilos (quarters are larger than the already separated thighs and legs), for 49 Baht/kilo, for a total cost of 73 Baht. For 5 servings, this is about 46 cents per serving.
Variants: 1. Use all thighs or all legs. 2. Make cuts in the meat to allow the marinade to soak into the meat.
Sesame Chicken Rolls

Sesame Chicken Rolls

Peng's Kitchen, Singapore.
This is a twist on spring rolls and was brought up by a friend who has eaten sesame chicken rolls in Hong Kong, so with the help from another friend, in Singapore, I modified a spring roll recipe to reflect the changes for the sesame chicken version. I have not tested this yet, but I will in the near future. Not all the ingredients will have quantities, I will figure that out when I make these. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Course Appetizer, Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Asian
Servings 0

Equipment

  • Oven
  • Baking Sheet
  • Parchment Paper
  • Pastry Brush

Ingredients
  

  • spring roll wrappers, refrigerated
  • chicken breasts, or fillets
  • Cheddar cheese, sliced
  • 3 tablespoons tahini, aka sesame paste, Shortcut
  • 3 tabelspoons water
  • 1½ tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • white sesame seeds
  • olive oil, as needed
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch

Instructions
 

  • Cut the chicken into strips lengthwise and about ½ inch square, and the strips about 3 to 3½ inches long. Maybe start with one chicken breast and test the recipe before making more, I will estimate 2-3 strips of chicken per roll.
  • In a non stick pan on medium heat, add a tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the chicken strips and stir fry until no longer pink and just cooked through, this goes quickly as the chicken is thin strips. Don't over cook the chicken or it will be dry. Remove the chicken to a plate lined with paper towels to cool. Allow the chicken to cool completely.
  • While the chicken is cooling, prepare the other items you need. The reason for letting the chicken cool is you never fill a spring roll with hot filling as they tend to break apart doing that, so let the filling cool completely.
  • In a small bowl, mix together the tahini, water, and brown sugar until smooth.
  • In another small bowl, add the egg yolk and lightly mix with a fork. Get a pastry brush ready.
  • Slice the cheese into strips about ½½ inch wide, I am estimating 2-3 strips of cheese per roll.
  • In another small bowl, mix together the 1 tablespoon of corn starch and the 2 tablespoons of water, this is your glue.
  • When the chicken has cooled, now we are going to warp the rolls, and it is good if you have two people do this, one to pull the wrappers apart and one to roll. If there is only one person to assemble the riolls, Keep in mind there is a smooth side and a rough side to spring roll pastry wrappers.
  • Place a pastry wrapper, smooth side down, on your work surface with one corner pointed towards you. Place 2-3 strips of chicken near the corner nearest you, so that it is closest to you without overhanging the pastry. Two strips on the bottom and one strip on top would be perfect.
  • Spread some sesame paste mixture over the chicken.
  • Top the chicken with 2-3 strips of cheese.
  • Preheat your oven to 180°° C (350° F), line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.
  • Now fold up the corner nearest you, over the chicken, and roll tightly away from you until you almost get near the widest part (the left and right corners). Now at this point, dip two fingers in the corn starch slurry and rub your fingers along the two edges that are pointing away from you.
  • Tightly fold the left side towards the middle, then the right side towards the middle. It should look like an open envelope now.
  • Continue to tightly roll away from you, ending up with the point end away from you, nicely sealed to the wrapper, and you just made a chicken spring roll. Place the roll on the prepared baking sheet.
  • Repeat the process for as much chicken you have ready. Continue placing rolls on the baking sheet and keep them evenly spaced apart.
  • Once your rolls are completed, brush the rolls with the egg yolk, then sprinkle with the sesame seeds.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
  • Serve with a small bowl of tahini for dipping, enjoy.

Notes

Low cost.
Shortcut: Homemade Tahini (Sesame Paste).