Slightly Orange Chicken

My kitchen is somewhat lacking. Think one place setting of dishes lacking. Thankfully, J's aunt and uncle had an entire place setting of my lovely Butler's Pantry dishes mailed to the Vegas apartment, so we have use of one supper plate, one salad plate, one cup and saucer, one bread and butter plate, one soup bowl, and one cereal bowl. We have got a lot of use out of these few pieces this past week.

J's company Romotive feeds their employees (and wives!) but they are currently between chefs, so the cooking was not happening consistently. I was recently inspired by this healthy version of chinese food from a hilarious cooking blog (seriously check it out),  but before I could cook, I needed to acquire food.  I had to work with what was available to me within walking distance (i.e. Romotive kitchen) because Vegas is definitely not a walking city and my car is still in Florida. Also I do not like beef, so we opted for chicken instead. J made hot and sour soup, but it was pretty terrible. I am not quite sure what went wrong. He used to be very good at making it, but it seems he gets worse with each attempt. I won't share his recipe with you because no one should have to eat that stuff. By the way, my recipe is very adaptable so use what you have on hand and avoid grocery shopping!

Slightly Orange Chicken

Serves 2

Ingredients:
2 pieces of boneless skinless chicken (I used thighs because it was available)
1 onion, sliced
1-2 handfuls of broccoli, depending on how much you like it
1 tbs chopped garlic
1 cup uncooked brown rice (I used white rice, but brown rice is better)

Marinade:
Juice from 1 orange, or 2 small orange colored citrus (again, whatever is on hand)

1/2-1 cup white vinegar
1/2-1 cup apple cider vinegar
Tobasco (or your favorite hot sauce)
Soy sauce
Chicken broth if you are not a vinegar person

Directions
1. Start cooking rice according to package
2. Cut off excess fat from chicken and slice into thin strips
3. Place chicken strips and marinade ingredients into a bowl so that the chicken is submerged. Adjust vinegar, hot sauce and soy sauce according to your personal tastes. Let chicken soak until you are ready to cook it.
4. Steam broccoli until slightly tender
5. Cook onion in a relatively large pan (helps if it is shallow, like a saute pan) until it begins to soften and turn translucent, then add steamed broccoli. You can also use a wok if your husband did not previously scratch the non-stick surface.
6. Remove broccoli and onion from pan once it has cooked almost sufficiently (I like slightly crunchy vegetables, J prefers them more cooked). Add in chicken (save marinade), cook until its pretty much done. Pour in marinade, broccoli, onion and garlic and cook on medium high until you see little bubbles. Make sure to stir occasionally so things don't burn.
7. Salt and pepper to taste, serve over brown rice and don't let your husband make hot and sour soup.

Pictured; Delicious "chinese" food and failed hot and sour soup
Also, my lovely dishes

As you can see in these pictures, I managed to use almost every Butler's Pantry dish I have in Vegas, along with my pretty chopsticks J picked up in China. He also brought me a set of black ones with gold tips that match my formal dishes. Isn't he sweet? You may also be admiring our beautiful table and the one chair in the apartment. I actually do own a real dining table, but it is currently chairless, so we have been using a small coffee table. I don't mind eating on the floor, but J feels the need to sit in his desk chair and lean over. Also, I'm sure you are also admiring the giant neon sign right outside our window. It is actually pretty fun - very Vegas to have a hotel casino next door. The apartment glows orange at night if the blinds are up.

Husband approved