Shantung Chicken

This is a wonderful way to cook a whole chook, it turns out so moist and tender and literally falls off the bone when it comes time to carve. I used less sugar in the sauce and also upped it to 2 chopped chilies instead of 1 and it was really good. I served ours over bok choy with red pepper and bean sprouts for an all round yummy meal. If you would like to view more photos of this recipe or read more reviews please click here.

If you have been keeping up with the progress of my beautiful Eco friendly, handcrafted camphor laurel chopping, cheese boards, platter boards and mezzaluna boards. My official site is finally finished and live so to see my full collection please click here.

Ingredients

1 Garlic clove (crushed)
10g Fresh ginger (2cm piece grated)
1 Tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 Tablespoon dry sherry
2 Teaspoons szechuan peppercorns (crushed)
2 Teaspoons peanut oil
1 5/8kg Whole chickens

Shantung Sauce

1/3 Cup caster sugar (75 grams)
1/2 Cup water
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 Fresh red Thai chile (chopped finely)

Method

1. Combine garlic, ginger, sauce, sherry, pepper and oil in large bowl; add chicken, coat in marinade and cover and refrigerate overnight.

2. Next day - preheat oven to 220C/200C fan forced (430F/390F fan forced).

3. Half fill a baking dish with water and place an oiled rack over the baking dish and place the chicken on the rack.

4. Roast the chicken uncovered for about 1 hour and 20 minutes or until cooked through (I would keep an eye on the water level and possibly replenish if looking at drying out).

5. While the chicken is cooking make the shantung sauce - Combine sugar and the water in small saucepan, stir over low heat until sugar dissolves and bring to a boil and let boil for about 5 minutes (uncovered) WITHOUT STIRRING until sauce thicken slightly.

6. Remove from the heat and stir in vinegar and chilli.

7. Remove chicken from the oven, when cool enough to handle, remove bones and chop meat coarsely and serve drizzled with the shantung sauce (do a gentle reheat of sauce if required).

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.

Pan Fried Steak with Sauce

This is a quick and easy way to prepare steaks with a really nice sauce to top them with.I did use cream instead of milk for this recipe and upped the amount of horseradish but that was just our personal preference. I served ours with a baked potato and also made bacon wrapped asparagus. If you would like to read more reviews on this recipe or view more photos please click here.

If you have been keeping up with the progress of my beautiful handcrafted camphor laurel chopping, cheese boards and Mezzaluna Boards. My official site is finally finished and live so to see my full collection please click here.

Ingredients

1/4 Teaspoon sea salt
1/4 Teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1lb Sirloin steak (I used fillet mignon)
1 Tablespoon butter
1/2 Teaspoon garlic, minced (I add extra)
1 Medium sweet onion, finely chopped
3 Cups small brown button mushrooms, sliced
1 Teaspoon thyme, dried
2 Tablespoons flour
1 Cup beef stock
1 Cup milk (I use cream)
1 Tablespoon prepared horseradish (I add extra our preference)
1/8 Cup parsley, fresh chopped

Method

1. Rub salt and pepper on both sides of steak.

2. In large pan melt butter and brown steak well on both sides.

3. (2-3 minutes per side-- do not cut down on browning time as this really contributes to the overall flavour of the dish) Remove steak and set aside.

4. Reduce heat to med-high add remaining butter, garlic, onion, mushrooms and thyme, (stir for 10 minutes) until mushrooms start to brown.

5. Add flour and cook for 1 minute.

6. Add in beef stock, milk and horseradish.

7. Reduce heat and simmer, stir for 5 minutes until sauce thickness.

8. Add steak and juice, simmer for 5 minutes.

9. Let steak rest for 5 minutes while you season the sauce with additional salt and pepper to taste.

10. Slice steak thinly across the grain, drizzle with sauce and sprinkle parsley on top.

All photos taken by me unless otherwise stated.