Roasted Cornich Hen

How does cornich hen roasted the African way sounds like for dinner???

I really like cornich hen because of its natural flavor which is little coarser than this mechanically produced fatty chickens they sell us everywhere, and its taste and texture is closer to our naturally produced poultry which they call here "organic" to sound fancy and which is the norm for us back home. What I also really like about the hens is the fact that I can roast them without having the boil them forever before like our african "strong chicken". They will come out moist without falling apart. The other thing is that they are small enough for the serving size to be half of a hen per person.

I usually prep my hens the day before, I clean them and prepare my mixture of Maggi seasoning cubes, parsley, mustard, a little bit of oil, some crushed habanero peppers, garlic, a little bit of ginger and stick my seasoning inside the hen (I usually make holes with a knife) and also between the skin and the flesh and let it sit overnight in the fridge or if I'm in a rush I would do it in the morning to have it roasted in the evening.

When you are ready to put it in the oven, repeat the same process with your mixture of spices (adding about half an onion or a small onion this time), add a little more oil when you are done and rub the poultry all over with it. Put it in the oven at about 325 degrees Fahrenheit for about 2 hours, rubbing your hens with the mixture every now and then.

Serve with the side of your choice!

served with a side of salad, potato gratin and stuffing

Pof pof, beans and chicken gizzards

Does this look appetizing or what????

Chicken gizzard spiced up on a stick, with pof pof (our african doughnuts) and deliciously slow-cooked beans...

This takes me back to my days as a student, when my really close friend and then roommate, my sister and I, literally searching for pennies in all corners of the apartment we shared, our bags or the pockets of our clothes, would need to make happen lunch and dinner from whatever we had, as long as we didn't go to bed hungry. And you know what? It's one of these times of my life that I keep good memories of, despite the hard times...

You really do not need to dine out (or to budget long grocery list) to enjoy good food!!!!

Chicken Stir Fry

So on evenings like these ones when you don't feel like cooking and have no inspiration to make anything dishes like these are a lifesaver or rather an evening saver. I was roaming around in my kitchen not knowing what to cook yet craving for real food, no fast food, no pizza, no chinese takeout. 

I was looking through the cabinets when I realized I had this new stir-fry pan that I had never put to use so far. 

I had onions, bell peppers, garlic, spices and boneless skinless chicken (the only kind my husband really likes which is kind of weird for being a typical african man...). I decided to make a simple but tasty stir fry.

The pictures do not do justice to how appetizing it really looked but hopefully that gives you a little bit of a sense... and convinces you to make it one of these evenings when you just wanna relax and enjoy some simple, light, tasty food.

So here we go. I cut my chicken in cubes and boiled with a little bit of water until cooked through (about 10 minutes). I heated a little bit of oil, then added my pieces of chicken with some seasoning cube, ground black pepper and garlic paste. I let my chicken brown a little, taking in the flavor of the spices. I then minced onions, red/green/yellow bell peppers (I did all 3), and a habanero pepper, added them to my pan and kept stirring. That's it!!!

 Tada!!

And since I had some of my homemade wheat bread, decided to serve the chicken stir fry with it along with a very simple salad, just romaine lettuce, tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs and balsamic vinaigrette dressing which is really the only dressing that we buy (I usually make our own dressing).

My husband loved it!!! He said it was simple, healthy and very tasty and suggested that should be one of our main weekdays dinner meals. I agree!!

Hopefully you get inspired to make the same meal or modify it to your taste!