Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Slow Cooker Coconut Ginger Chicken & Vegetables

I haven't been posting on this page for a while. I had some things happen.  My dad passed away in January and my son has been diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis.  I always have a hard time pleasing my son's palate which is why I first started this website. It didn't turn out the way I had hoped it would but at least I have the recipes recorded that he enjoys. I am also on a bit of a coconut kick lately because I read that it can help soothe the symptoms of UC.  I found this one recipe that the boy actually likes or at least he says he likes it. This dish is to be served over jasmine rice or brown rice. Another option would be to serve it over quinoa.  The original recipe comes from Simple Bites.net.

Slow Cooker Coconut Ginger Chicken & Vegetables

Ingredients:

4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 inch cube of ginger (about 30 grams), roughly chopped
1 small sweet onion, peeled, quartered (I used a Vidalia)
1 Tablespoon olive oil (or coconut oil)
2 Tablespoons butter
2.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into four (I used chicken breast)
2 cans coconut milk, not shaken
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 can of baby corn cobs
1 cup peas or frozen vegetables of your choice

For the spice blend:

1/2 teaspoons ground pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1-1/2 teaspoons ground tumeric
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

1.  Combine ingredients from the spice blend together and set aside.

2.  In a mini food processor, combine garlic, ginger and onion.  Pulse until a paste is formed.

3.  In the bottom of a slow cooker placed on a burner (or a heavy bottomed pan),  heat olive oil and melt butter.  Add pureed aromatics, stir well.  Cook for a few minutes, then add spice blend. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly.

4.  Move aromatics to one side of the pot and add chicken pieces to the pot. Cook chicken slightly on all sides, using a sturdy wooden spoon to move it around the pot. It should get thoroughly coated with the spice mixture.

5.  Open the cans of coconut milk and remove the cream from the top using a soup spoon. You should get about 1 cup. Pour the coconut milk over the chicken and with both cans, it should just barely cover the chicken.

6.  Drain the corn cobs and chop in half. Add to the slow cooker.

7.  Place the slow cooker in its base and cook on low for 4 hours.

8. Whisk cornstarch with coconut cream until smooth and add to the chicken. Stir well. Add frozen peas or other vegetables of your choice. Cook for another half an hour or until you deem the chicken cooked and the vegetables hot.

Enjoy!

The Creative Cook