Mushroom Risotto with Chicken and Turkey Sausage

I am really bad, not Michael Jackson bad but a bad human being because a very good friend Amna Raheel requested me to make Risotto and I did not make it until months later.

Reasons for not making it are :

1. I have never had Risotto so I did not have faith in someone else's selection.
2. Me being lazy.
3. Me being ignorant.
4. Me being lazy.
5. Me just not wanting to do anything with my life and being lazy.

After seeing how it is made I found out that it is not that hard but you just have to stand on the stove and have a constant eye on the stove because basically you are cooking rice BUT a very different type of rice not your usual basmati.

Mom used to say "The best rice are cooked when you stand over the stove and keep an eye on it." Do not even want to mention how much kilograms of rice I ruined and learn that the hard way.

INGREDIENTS:

1 and 1/3rd cup of arborio rice (you can also use jasmine rice)

6 Boneless chicken thighs (you can use breast as well)

Chunks of turkey sausage

A can of button mushrooms or 6 white mushrooms

Medium onion finely chopped

4 Garlic cloves finely chopped

1 Red bell pepper chopped

A can of diced tomatoes (400 grams)

2 Teaspoons of dried oregano

 2.5 Cups of chicken broth

Salt and black pepper to taste

Half a cup of green peas (mutter agar kisi ko english nahi ati)

Fresh parsley finely chopped

Parmesan cheese for garnishing and obviously taste

DISCLAIMER - most of my time was spen on dicing and slicing the vegetables and other things for this recipe so following are the pictures which are a proof of my SUGARHNESS. Also this was my first time that I cut so many things without cutting myself so that has to be an achievement like for people being successful in their life is an achievement but this is actually my biggest achievement so far.

Let's start off with melting some butter in a non-stick pan rather than melting someone's heart and breaking it later on and adding 2 tablespoons of oil in it.

Place the chicken thighs when the oil and butter is hot.

Season them with salt and pepper. Cook one side till golden brown, flip and cook the other one till golden brown.

Take them out on a paper towel plate.

LISTEN ! Silence of the chicken

Now in the same oil we will fry the chopped garlic and onion.

IN THE SAME OIL EVEN IF IT LOOKS BURNT WE WILL NOT THROW IT AWAY BECAUSE IT WILL HAVE ALL OF THE FLAVOR FROM THE CHICKEN.

Got it?

We will cook it until the onions are translucent and then add mushrooms to it.

Fry the onion for 2-3 minutes and add turkey sausage.

The sausage won't take long to cook you just go ahead and add the arborio rice. Give it a little stir and add the cooked chicken as well.

Add the can of diced tomatoes, dried oregano.

Mix it properly and add 2 and a half cups of chicken broth that you can make from chicken cubes.

Bring it up to a boil.

Cover with a lid and simmer (COOK ON LOW HEAT) for 20-25 minutes.

BUT keep a frequent check on the rice.

THIS IS EXACTLY HOW MY BLOOD BOILS WHEN I SEE YOUR FACE

Remove the lid and add salt, black pepper to the dish.

Add chopped parsley and give it a good stir.

Add half cup of green peas in it. Again give it a good mix and season the dish with salt and black pepper.

Put the lid on again and simmer for five minutes and the Risotto is cooked.

After five minutes things should look something like the picture below (if it is not something like that then congratulations you shouldn't be in the kitchen at all) and after you let it sit out for a couple of minutes it is time to plate it.

Top it with more fresh finely chopped parsley and grate some parmesan cheese on it.

Feast your eyes.

Stir Fried Chicken Cashew Nuts

It is winter season and I am having my first experience with negative temperatures. So, I keep two things close to me, one of them is sea food and the other one is nuts. My nuts are obviously attached to me but I am talking about almonds, cashew nuts, pecans, pistachio and various other types of nuts.

Craving Chinese food recently made me want to make one of my favorite recipes of all time which is Stir Fried Chicken Cashew Nuts.

I always have a love and hate relationship with Chinese food. Love it because it is delicious and hate it because it takes so long to prepare it and not so long to eat.

INGREDIENTS:

500 gram boneless chicken, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1/2 cup of cashew nuts, salted roasted preferred

4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1.5 tablespoons of chopped ginger

4-6 green onions sliced (keep the whites and the greens separated)

1 bell pepper of any color, cut into cubes

1/2 teaspoon of red chili flakes

1 cup chicken broth

2 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1.5 teaspoons of cornflour

Marinate the chicken in a teaspoon of salt and half a teaspoon of black pepper.

Finely chop the ginger and garlic.

Heat 3 tablespoons of vegetable or canola oil in a pan and stir fry the chicken, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes until the chicken changes it color like the people in your life and is properly cooked.

Take out the chicken once it is cooked and chop the rest of your vegetables.

Now in the same pan or wok add the mushrooms and the sliced white part of thegreen onion and stir fry for 1 minute. 

Add the cashew nuts and red chili flakes.

Let these fry for a 2-3 minutes.

Meanwhile in a bowl mix, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, chicken broth and flour.

Add bell pepper to the wok, fry it for a minute and add the chicken with the sauce you just made.

Fry until your desired thickness of the sauce.

I had a some bean sprouts in the fridge so I added them as well.

Give everything a good stir and by this point Stir Fried Chicken Cashew Nuts is ready to serve.

Serve this with steamed brown or white rice or boiled noodles or even fried rice or noodles. You can hank me later.