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Ponzu-Glazed Chicken
Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Ponzu, a Japanese sauce usually consisting of soy sauce, lemon juice, vinegar and a little sugar, can be a bit tricky to make. Too much of one ingredient can throw off the taste. That's why I was thrilled to find bottled ponzu in the supermarket--there's no trick to opening a bottle.
Take five minutes to add a few ingredients to the ponzu and you've got a great glaze for chicken. Serve this with stir-fried bok choy and steamed jasmine rice, and you've got a meal. The glaze also would work well on grilled shrimp or fish.
Plate and napkin from Windows, Pasadena.
Bottled ponzu is found in the Asian aisle of well-stocked supermarkets and at Japanese markets. While an outdoor grill or stove-top grill pan is best, the chicken can be cooked in a skillet.
- 4 boneless, skin-on chicken thighs (about 3/4 pound)
Salt, pepper
5 tablespoons bottled ponzu
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon minced ginger root
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 serrano chile, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons sugar
Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Rinse and dry the chicken thighs. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Combine the ponzu, lime juice, ginger, garlic, chile and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, just until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes.
Place the chicken, skin side down, on the grill. Brush the top of the chicken with the ponzu mixture. Turn the chicken over every 2 minutes or so, brushing with the sauce every time until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
2 servings. Each serving: 371 calories; 267 mg sodium; 132 mg cholesterol; 22 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 6 grams carbohydrates; 36 grams protein; 0.12 gram fiber.
COUNTDOWN
25 minutes before: Begin rice, slice bok choy.
20 minutes before: Make ponzu glaze.
10 minutes before: Grill chicken, stir fry bok choy.
Stir-Fried Bok Choy
Active Work and Total Preparation Time: 10 minutes
1 tablespoon oil
4 heads baby bok choy, sliced
Salt, pepper
Heat the oil in a skillet over high heat and add the bok choy. Cook, stirring frequently, until the bok choy is tender but crisp and slightly browned, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
2 servings. Each serving: 105 calories; 369 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 8 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 3.40 grams fiber.
--MAYI BRADY, Special To The Times