Yogurt-Marinated Chicken with Tzatziki

You know how I came up with the name Love in My Belly for my blog and Instagram handle? It came to me 8 years ago when I lived in Hong Kong and I was homesick and craving a homemade meal. Most people ate out almost everyday. It’s part of the culture. Plus, kitchens in the average Hong Kong apartments are really small. Street food was not only delicious but was also fairly inexpensive. I had one friend there who loved to cook and often invited me over for dinner. Whenever she did, it made me so happy. I would respond to her Blackberry messages (back when Blackberries were a thing) with a heart emoji followed by “in my belly.” And the phrase Love in My Belly stuck with me ever since.

One of the meals she first made me was yogurt-marinated chicken. She never gave me the exact recipe (because she never measured anything) but she did give me a general idea of the ingredients. I made it a couple times in Hong Kong but haven’t made it since. It has been 8 years and suddenly I felt the urge to make it again. I altered the recipe a little bit and this time, I wrote everything down so that I could share it with all of you! I’m not really sure how to categorize it. This yogurt-marinated chicken recipe has Moroccan and Middle Eastern influences. But my friend originally made this dish with garam masala, a blend of Indian spices. I chose to omit garam masala from the recipe simply because I did not have the spices, but I did keep the ginger paste and the chili from her version and also added lemon and paprika. The recipe is not perfect yet but I thought it was pretty good! The spices are so fragrant and the chicken is so moist and tender.

Yogurt-Marinated Chicken (serves about 2-3)

Ingredients:

• 1¼-1½ lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (you can use chicken breast but I prefer dark meat)

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt

• ½ cup cilantro, chopped (and more for garnish)

• 6 small pearl tomatoes, cut into chunks (optional)

• 3 tbsp lemon juice

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced

• 1 tbsp grated ginger or ginger paste

• 2 tsp ground cumin

• 1 tsp paprika

• 1 tsp chili powder (½ tsp = mild, 1 tsp = a little spicy. I prefer 1 tsp)

• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

• 1½ tsp salt

• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Tzatziki (optional)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup or small package of full fat Greek Yogurt

• ½ cup cucumber, minced (squeeze all the water out before mixing with the yogurt)

• 1 tbsp lemon juice

• ½ tsp extra virgin olive oil

• ½-¾ tsp salt

• 1 garlic, minced

• 2 tbsp chopped dill

Directions:

Mix all of the ingredients (except for the tomatoes) in a bowl. Score the meat and then smother it with the marinade. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let meat marinate in the fridge for several hours or overnight. I marinated mine for 6 hours.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bake chicken for about 30-35 minutes or so. Half way through, add the chopped tomatoes. For the last 5 minutes, broil the chicken. Serve with rice and garnish with fresh cilantro. I served my chicken with garlic onion rice and a side of Tzatziki.

The Tzatziki is not necessary but it is definitely a nice addition if you end up finding the chicken to be a little too spicy for you. The yogurt in the Tzatziki helps tame down the spice. Plus, Tzatziki is a very refreshing and delicious side/sauce. If you choose to serve with Tzatziki, mix all the ingredients above and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving. When serving, drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil on top and some freshly chopped dill.

Asparagus & Mushroom Stir-fry

Stir-fry is a great way to use leftover vegetables. You can throw in whatever protein or veggies you have in your fridge and then there ya go—instant meal. I don’t make stir-fry very often because I feel like I can never get the flavor just right. But this time, I really liked it! There’s a lot of flexibility w stir-fry recipes, but here is what I did below:

ASPARAGUS & MUSHROOM STIR-FRY (serves about 2-3 w rice)

Ingredients:

• a bundle of asparagus, trimmed and cut into diagonal 2 inch segments 

• 10 oz mushrooms, sliced

• 1 can of sliced bamboo

• 3-4 cloves of garlic, diced

• EVOO

• 1 tbsp vinegar

• 1 tbsp oyster sauce 

• 1-2 tbsp water

• 1 tsp sugar

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1 tsp soy sauce

• 1/2 tsp black pepper

• 1/3 cup of scallions, chopped

Directions:

Heat a frying pan with olive oil. Sauté garlic until it is lightly toasted. Add asparagus and let It cook for a couple minutes. Add 1 tbsp water. Toss in mushrooms and bamboo shoots. Stir thoroughly. Sprinkle w salt and pepper. Sauté for a couple minutes. Pour in vinegar, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Continue to cook. Add 1 tbsp water and mix. Sprinkle w chopped scallions and cook for one last minute. Serve w rice. 

Kitchen Gadgets: The Pressure Cooker

Kitchen gadgets sometimes scare me. I own a slower cooker, which for me is fancy, but it doesn’t have all of the functions that the newer gadgets have, like the Instant Pot. I keep hearing a lot about the Instant Pot. I’ve only used my sister’s Instant Pot once but I used the slower cooker function because I was so overwhelmed by all the unfamiliar buttons. Recently, I was gifted my own Ninja Foodi Deluxe and got more of a chance to really test out the pressure cooker.

I used both the pressure cooker and the air crisp functions and I was very impressed! I made a tomato onion garlic rice with lemon herb chicken thighs and balsamic and honey glazed brussel sprouts. I made up the recipe on a whim so I don’t have all of the measurements. But here is what I did:

• Fill the bottom layer with rice, canned fire-roasted tomatoes, and chicken broth. Saute diced sweet yellow onions and garlic and set aside to add to rice later.

• Marinate chicken thigh with lemon juice, thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper. Place a lower metal rack into the pressure cooker. Line the chicken thighs on the rack above the rice.

• Set to Pressure Cook option and set time to 4 minutes

• Trim 1 lb of brussel sprouts and cut into halves. Toss with 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, 2 tsp honey, 3/4 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper

• When pressure cooker time goes off at 4 minutes, remove chicken thighs and set aside

• Add brussel sprouts. Set pressure cooker to Air Crisp option and cook for 5 minutes

• Meanwhile, coat chicken thighs with olive oil. Then add top rack over the brussel sprouts. Add the chicken thighs back into the pressure cooker, onto the top layer

• Keep pressure cooker on Air Crisp option and cook for another 10 minutes

All the juices from both the chicken and the marinated brussel sprouts drip onto the rice during this process, making the rice extra flavorful and delicious. When the air crisping completes, remove items from the pressure cooker. Add the sauteed onions and garlic to the tomato rice and then mix. The brussel sprouts should be perfectly crispy as well as the chicken and the rice.

Personally, I was very impressed at how easy it was to make this full meal. I was also really happy about how my brussel sprouts turned out. Whenever I roast them in the oven, they come out soggy. But these came out crispy like the ones you order at a restaurant. I think my chicken came out a little bland but I just need to experiment with different marinades and seasoning to keep it moist and flavorful. I might try making BBQ chicken next. My rice was absolutely delicious though!

I can’t wait to test out more of the functions. It not only pressure cook and air crisp, but it can also dehydrate, roast, broil, bake, saute, and steam. I look forward to roasting more veggies, such as cauliflower. I also want to try dehydrating lemon, orange, and lime slices for cocktails. Let me know what you like to make with your pressure cooker! Would love some more ideas!