Chicken About Chicken

I'm not crazy about dealing with raw meat. It's one of those weird things, kind of like how I used to gag while washing dishes because I couldn't take the cold bits of someone else's uneaten congealed food on the plates. Motherhood cured me of that fear. I actually think my mom thought it was an act to get out of washing dishes but I tell you now, Mom, that was no act! I totally would have lost my pot roast in your Dawn dishwashing bubbly sink if you had made me do it. Thanks for not making me, love you mom. (xoxo) Note to kids: I emptied the dishwasher everyday instead.

So, birthing babies cures you of many of your irrational childlike fears (and sometimes makes new ones) but it did not cure me of my irrational fear of touching, smelling and dealing with raw meat. If I wasn't so lazy, I may have been a vegetarian. Raw chicken is the worst for me and I make my husband cut it. Always. I have probably had to deal with the stuff five times in our ten years of marriage. (love you too, honey...xoxo).

Last week I made two chicken recipes, Chicken Korma (pg.74) and Chicken Fajitas (pg. 38) For the Korma, I suffered through it, and it took forever. For the Fajitas, I made husband cut up the chicken. While standing at the island prepping for the fajitas, husband confesses that he had really hoped this little project would cure me of my fear of raw meat.

I hate to say it but, no such luck just yet.

That being said both the Chicken Korma and the Chicken Fajitas (recipe below) were fabulous!

Promise me you'll try it?

Recipes cooked: 66
Recipes left: 107
Days left: 137

Chicken Fajitas
Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution
page 38

Ingredients
For the Fajitas:
-1 red pepper
-1 medium red onion
-2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
-1 teaspoon smoked paprika
-1 small pinch of ground cumin
-2 limes
-olive oil
-sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
-4 flour tortillas
-1/2 c sour cream or natural yogurt
-4 oz. cheddar cheese

For the Salsa:
-½ to 1 fresh red chili, to your taste
-15 ripe grape or cherry tomatoes
-1 small bunch fresh cilantro
-sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
-1 lime
-extra virgin olive oil


Directions

Put your grill pan on a high heat.

Halve and deseed your pepper and cut it into thin strips. Peel, halve and finely slice your onion. Slice your chicken lengthwise into long strips roughly the same size as your pepper strips.

Put the peppers, onion and chicken into a bowl with the paprika and cumin. Squeeze over the juice of half a lime, drizzle over a lug of olive oil, season with a good pinch of salt and pepper and mix well. Put it to one side to marinade for 5 minutes or so while you make your salsa.

Make the Salsa: Finely chop your chili. Roughly chop your tomatoes and the cilantro, stalks and all.

Put the chili and tomatoes into a second bowl with a good pinch of salt and pepper and the juice of 1 lime. Add a good lug of extra virgin olive oil, and then stir in your chopped cilantro. Set aside to use when the fajitas are done.

Use a pair of tongs to put all the pieces of pepper, onion and chicken into your preheated pan to cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the chicken is golden and cooked through. As the pan will be really hot, keep turning the pieces of chicken and vegetables so they don't burn - you just want them to lightly chargrill to give you a lovely flavor. Give the pan a little love and attention and you'll be laughing. Halve your remaining lime and squeeze the juices over the sizzling pan.

Warm your tortillas in up the microwave or in a warm dry pan. Divide your warmed tortillas between your serving plates.

At the table, carefully help yourselves to the chicken and vegetables straight from the hot griddle pan. Just be sure to put it down on top of something that won’t burn, like a chopping board.

Serve with bowls of sour cream and guacamole alongside your cheddar and your lovely fresh salsa.