Friday, March 21, 2014

Arabian Nights Grilled Herbed Chicken

This is the main course to the middle eastern feast, Arabian Nights Grilled Herbed Chicken. When I found it on my search I thought it was a good recipe to experience Arabian herbs and cooking style. I found this recipe on http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Arabian_Nights_Grilled_Herbed_Chicken. I was very exited to begin.

Assembled Ingredients 
The ingredients were fairly basic and in small quantity. I was pleased when I found that I wouldn't have to go to twenty stores to find the right spices.

Butterflied Chicken 
I have never butterflied a chicken before and it was not an experience that I found entertaining. Using sharp kitchen scissors, I cut the spine and breast bone out of the chicken. It was a very messy and strange process.

Rub 
The rub was very simple, consisting of plain yogurt, fennel, flat leaf parsley, and black pepper. It did not have much of a smell but it tasted rather fresh.

Prepared Chicken
The rub was spread through out the chicken and in the skin as well. I have experimented with rubbing butter in spices and massaging it inside the skin, this allowed the butter to carry the spices through the chicken. I think a similar concept is happening here.

Cooked Chicken 
The recipe did not specify actually cooking the chicken so I put it in at 350 for 30 minuets and then checked it and raised it to 375 for another 30 minuets.

Dinner is Served 
The chicken was cooked well and it had a good moisture. My only criticism is that it had very little taste from the rub. It felt like it was missing something. I would've added salt and paprika, just something to give it an extra kick. I do think that the yogurt and herbs added great moisture to the chicken. I still think that this is a great recipe, just taste the rub and add your preference.






Thursday, March 13, 2014

Tabbouleh

I have had tabbouleh a few times before and loved it. The flavors in it come together quite well, I thought it a perfect dish to display classic Middle Eastern cuisine. I served this dish as a side to Arabian Nights Grilled Herbed Chicken. The recipe I used can be found at this address: http://www.food.com/recipe/tabbouleh-91403



Ingredients 
All of the ingredients were very common, the only slightly uncommon ingredient was the bulgar wheat, but it can be found at any local market.

Bugler Wheat Cooking
Cooking bulgar wheat is much like cooking rice. I put it in about 2 cups of water with about 1 cup of bulgar until the water was completely absorbed.

Minced Vegetables (parsley and tomato)
All of the vegetables in the recipe were minced which made it very different from all of the other salads I've made.

Mixed Vegetables 
Along with the minced tomatoes and parsley, I also added minced red onion. The mixture smelled very fragrant and fresh.

Finished project 
In the last step I added a dressing comprised of lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper. I also added the  finished bulgar wheat. The overall taste was very satisfying and light;  exactly what I was expecting. This dish is very easy make and can be served on pita bread, tortilla chips, or just eaten plain.






The Middle East

Instead of focusing on the individual countries of the Middle East, I decided to focus on the region as a whole. Although I do plan on exploring the cuisine of countries such as Turkey before I move on to European cooking. I could not find a good Middle eastern cookbook at the library so I had to look up some on the internet. This is a very broad topic for an entry I know but I just wanted to get a broad idea for the taste before moving on to specific countries in the region of asia.