Chinese chicken salad (in crispy tortilla bowls)

Now that I finally have a new laptop, here is the recipe for the Chinese chicken salad I promised you. Obviously you can serve it on a plate or in a regular bowl, but it's more fun when you serve it in a crispy tortilla bowl.

The first step is to make Oriental Poached Chicken. You can use pieces of roast chicken as well, but this poached chicken tastes sooo good! You can make it a day in advance and put it in your fridge, if you want.

Oriental Poached Chicken

• 125 ml soy sauce (not the sweet kind!)
• 125 ml orange juice
• 4 dl water
• 3 pieces of fresh ginger of approx. 2,5 cm, flattened with the back of a knife
• 1/2 five spice powder (or 2 star anise)
• 4 chicken breasts (without the skin)

- Bring all liquids and spices to the boil in a pot or big pan. 
- Turn down the heat so the liquid simmers and add the pieces of chicken.
- Cover and turn the heat even lower, simmer for approx. 2 mins, turn the chicken and simmer for 2 more mins.
- Leave the chicken in the broth to cool down. (You can also put it in the fridge this way if you want to use it the next day.)
- Remove the chicken once it's cold and cut it into small pieces, suitable for a salad for children.

Chinese Chicken Salad

• The pieces of oriental poached chicken made using the recipe above, or at least 2 cups roast chicken in small pieces
• 2 or 3 spring onions, chopped
• 1 very big carrot (or a number of smaller ones), in small pieces (julienne or similar)
• 2 stems of white celery, in narrow strips
• 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 2 or 3 handfuls of soy sprouts
• 1/2 cup roast sesame seed

Dressing:

• 2 tsp fresh ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar

If preferred:

• 1 package oriental noodles (you can fry them instead of cooking them if you like, so they become crunchy)
• 6 or 8 crispy tortilla bowls

- Put the chicken with all of the vegetables and the sesame seeds in a bowl. Add in the dressing and stir well.

- If you want to, you can add either cooked or fried noodles to the salad, otherwise serve it without noodles in crispy tortilla bowls.

Making Tacos Part 6: Chicken Tacos

This is another recipe with hard taco shells. Again, you can use other meat or even fish, or make vegetarian tacos. Also, if you have a little one who still has trouble with the hard taco shells, you can replace them with a soft corn tortilla. I simply buy a grilled chicken at the market to make these tacos, but you could obviously also fry or grill the chicken yourself.

Chicken Tacos

Serves 4

• 1 box of taco shells (12 taco shells)
• 1 small grilled chicken
• the juice of 1 lime, freshly squeezed
• 1 or 2 tbsp. taco seasoning
• a few handfuls of lettuce
• 1 or more salsas: guacamole, tomato salsa, sweetcorn & bell pepper salsa, ...
• sour cream

- Mix the warm grilled chicken meat with 1 or 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning (I use 2, but if you're not used to spicy food, you might prefer to use only 1. If you like very hot food, you could try 3 ;-)). Add the lime juice and stir well with a fork.

- Heat the taco shells in the oven according to the instructions on the box.

- Fill each shell with approx. 2 spoonfuls of spicy chicken, some lettuce and a spoonful of each salsa and the sour cream. Enjoy!

Making taco's part 5: Tacos with minced meat

After making the taco seasoning and one or several salsas, it's time to make tacos! The first recipe is for tacos with minced meat, but I'll also post one for tacos with chicken. Obviously you can use other meat or even fish, or make vegetarian tacos.

Tacos with minced meat (veal)

Serves 4

• 1 box of taco shells (12 taco shells)
• 250 g minced veal
• 1 or 2 tbsp. taco seasoning
• a few handfuls of lettuce
• 1 or more salsas: guacamole, tomato salsa, sweetcorn & bell pepper salsa, ...

- Mix the minced meat with 1 or 2 tablespoons of taco seasoning (I use 2, but if you're not used to spicy food, you might prefer to use only 1. If you like very hot food, you could try 3 ;-)). Then fry the meat in a pan until brown.

- Heat the taco shells in the oven according to the instructions on the box.

- Fill each shell with approx. 2 spoonfuls of minced meat, some lettuce and a spoonful of each salsa. Enjoy!

Making tacos part 3: Sweetcorn & red bell pepper salsa

This salsa is one that my children absolutely adore. They both tend to eat rather large quantities of it. It's very nice with tacos, but obviously also can accompany any other Tex Mex food you may want to serve.

Sweetcorn & red bell pepper salsa

- 1 cup sweetcorn, cooked (fresh or from a jar or can)
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 2 tbsp. fresh coriander, chopped (you could use fresh mint if you prefer)
- 1/2 tbsp. garlic, crushed
- a sprinkle of chili powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp. oil
- optional: 1 avocado

Mix all ingredients (except for the avocado). Keep the salsa in the fridge until you want to use it. You can keep it for 2 - 3 days. If you want to, you can add 1 chopped avocado to the salsa just before you serve it.

Omelette with champignons & grilled bell pepper

This omelette is a bit like a frittata (Italian omelette).  My 3-year-old daughter loves mushrooms, so she asked for a champignon omelette. This one does take up a bit more time since you have to grill the bell pepper, and removing the seeds and skin afterwards is a bit of a messy job. But it's worth it, since grilled bell pepper has a fantastic taste.

Omelette with champignons & grilled red bell pepper

Serves 4

• 250 g champignons, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper
• 2 garlic cloves
• handful of grated parmesan
• 4 eggs
• pepper
• (salt)

- Wash a red bell pepper and put it underneath the hot grill in your oven. When the skin turns black, turn it (obviously you need oven mitts) and keep doing this until (almost) the entire skin has turned black. Then put it in a plastic bowl and put on the lid, so it can 'steam' inside the bowl. Once it has cooled down, take it out of the bowl and remove the seeds and skin.

- Preheat the oven to 180°C or 160°C for a fan-assisted oven.

- Heat the olive oil and fry the garlic briefly then add the sliced champignons. Season to taste with pepper and/or salt. Don't fry them too long, as you still have to put them in the oven.

- Cut the fried bell pepper into strips.

- Beat the eggs with salt and/or pepper in a bowl, and add the champignons, grilled pepper and a handful of grated parmesan. Stir well.

- Grease a (silicone) pie pan with a little olive oil and pour in the mixture. Put it in the oven for 20 - 30 mins.

This can be served with rice, pasta, potatoes,... and also eaten cold on a picnic or day trip.

(Dutch recipe available on demand)