One-Pot Chicken & Potato Bake

Ingredients:
2 large potatoes, cut into wedges
3 pieces chicken thigh, cut into 1 inch strips
2 oranges, cut into wedges
3 tbsp melted butter or olive oil
2 tbsp dried oregano
6 clove garlic, crushed with the back of a knife
1/2 large onion, cut into large quarter-moon shaped pieces
6 strips bacon, cut into 1 inch strips (optional)
salt & pepper

Directions:
Toss and mix the ingredients well (except the bacon). place them on a baking tray in a single layer and bake in preheated oven at 400F for 20 minutes, toss again at half time. add the bacon strips 5 minutes before it is done. serve with buttered corn or salad.

* the orange can be ommited, i just really love the flavor of oranges.

* add carots if you'd like more variety of vegetables in the mix.

Baked Oregano Fries

Ingredients:
3 large potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut into 1 cm cube sticks
3 frankfurters, cut into 0.5 cm diagonal slices
1 large onions, cut into thick slices
½ bulb garlic, cut into thick slices
2 tbsp dried oregano
1 tbsp dried basil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
5 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp extra salt

Directions:
Place the potatoes into a large pot and fill with enough water to cover over the potatoes. Add the extra salt and place the pot over high heat to bring it to boil. Once boiling, reduce heat and let simmer for 10 minutes, stirring once half way through. Remove from heat and strain. Preheat the oven to 400F. On a large baking tray, mix well the strained potatoes with the rest of the ingredients, except the frankfurters. Bake for 10 minutes. Add the frankfurters and mix well before returning it to the oven for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 5-10 minutes before serving.

* Frankfurters: a.k.a. sausages (to Malaysians), and a.k.a. hotdogs (to Americans)

* For a vegetarian fare, just leave out the franks, but still remember to toss the potatoes 5 minutes before it's done.

* Alternatively, use 1 tbsp of grounded dried rosemary instead of the oregano and basil

* Serve with roast chicken, roast turkey, grilled fish... etc. etc. etc.

potato salad

here's the thing, potato salads doesnt have to be made up of potatoes only.

assuming that you're not providing this to a vegetarian party, this recipe is the ideal thing to bring to a port luck. easy to make and guranteed to taste good.

1. peel the skin off 3 large potatoes and give it a good rinse. cut them into large bite sized chunks and place them in a pot and fill it with water enough to cover over the potatoes. add 1 heap tsp of salt to the water. place the pot on the stove and bring it to boil. then, lower the heat and let it simmer for 12 minutes or until the the potato is cooked. (test by poking a fork or satay stick into the potatoes. it should penetrate it with ease). once cooked, drain the water off and let it cool.

2. in another pot of boiling water, cook 3 whole sausages for 3 minutes. remove the sausages and let cool. in the same pot of boiling water, cook 5 crab fillament sticks for 1 minute, remove and let cool. cut the sausages into little coin shaped pieces and the crab fillament sticks in approximately the same size.

3. (shortened instructions: boil 2 eggs (hardboiled), let cool, remove the shells, and cut them into rough chunks.)
place 2 eggs (room temperature. if you store your eggs in the fridge, it's advisable to let it cool to room temperature before cooking) in a pot with water enough to cover over the eggs. place the pot over medium heat and stir the eggs continuously until the water boils and cook for another 3 minutes, all the while stirring the eggs. remove the eggs and let cool. remove the shells from the egg and cut them into rough chunks.

4. in a large container, mix the potatoes, sausages, crab fillament sticks, eggs, with a pinch of salt, generous dashes of black pepper, 3 heap tbsp of mayonnaise, 2 heap tbsp of coleslaw sauce, 1 whole stalk (or more) of spring onion. cover and keep in the refrigerator until ready to be served.

serves 4-5 as side dishes. garnish with more fresh spring onion.

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(*the tedious job of constant stirring is to ensure that the yolk remains in the center of the egg, preventing it from overcooking on one side. overcooked hard boiled egg has a layer of greenish grey colour around the yellows. it's still edible, but if you taste it carefully, that part has a slightly sourish taste.)

(*if you like your yolk to be still a little runny in the middle (not recommended in this recipe), cover egg with water, bring to boil, continue to boil for another minute, remove from heat and let sit for another 2 minutes in hot water before removing the egg, all the while stirring the egg)