Peruvian-Style Chicken

My son is currently serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Peru.  We were so excited to try this new recipe, and taste something similar to what he normally eats!  It's so flavorful and aromatic!  My sister-in-law shared the recipe with me.  It's from Danielle Walker's book "Against All Grain."

Spice Rub:

1 teaspoon butter

1 ½ tablespoons paprika

1 tablespoon ground cumin

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon pepper

½ teaspoon oregano

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons vinegar

Chicken:

4 lbs chicken pieces*

3 sweet potatoes, diced

3 small sweet onions, quartered, then quartered again

2 yellow bell peppers, sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 lemon, sliced

handful of fresh cilantro

1.     Preheat oven to 425º

2.     Combine the ingredients of the spice rub in a small bowl.

3.     Rinse and dry the chicken pieces, then generously rub them all over with the spice rub.

4.     Place the sweet potatoes, onion, bell peppers, and garlic in a roasting pan or 9-by-13 inch baking dish.  Drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables, season with the salt and pepper, then toss to coat.

5.     Arrange the chicken skin side down over the top of the vegetables. Place the lemon slices on top.

6.     Roast for 20 minutes, then turn the chicken pieces over and stir the vegetables.  Continue roasting for 20- 25 more minutes, until the chicken skin is crisp and the vegetables are cooked through.  Garnish with cilantro.

Note:  I used 8 chicken thighs - bone in, with skin on

Pressure Cooker Pot Roast

The pressure cooker is my new favorite way to make pot roast!  It's so tender and delicious!  The seasonings in this recipe are spot on and the flavor of the gravy comes out perfect!

3 - 3 1/2 lb beef roast
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 - 2 small onions, quartered
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon GF Worcestershire sauce
2 cups water
2 GF beef bouillon cubes

Mix together salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion power and pepper on a plate.  Roll roast into seasoning mixture.  Turn pressure cooker on to the saute setting and heat 1 tablespoon olive oil until hot.  Sear roast on all sides for 30-60 seconds.  Remove roast and set aside.  Deglaze bottom of pan with butter and add onions.  Saute onions.  Add balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, water and beef bouillon cubes.  Turn off pressure cooker.  Place pressure cooker trivet on top of onions and put roast on trivet.  Cook on meat/stew setting for 70 minutes.  Let it natural release for at least 20 minutes.

My family likes carrots cooked with pot roast, so at this point I pull out the pot roast and cover it with tinfoil.  I add a large bag of baby carrots to the liquid and set the pressure cooker to cook on high for 4 minutes.  Release manually and remove carrots.

Use the juices to make gravy.  Remove the onion pieces.  Turn pressure cooker on to saute.  Make a cornstarch slurry with corn starch and water.  Add slurry to the boiling liquid until the gravy is the consistency you like.  Salt and pepper to taste.  (I make the gravy by taste and will add salt, pepper, beef bouillon, and water according to taste.  If it needs more flavoring I add beef bouillon.  If it's too strong I add water, then possibly more cornstarch slurry to get it back to the thickness I like.)