Bourbon Chicken

Bourbon Chicken w/cucumber salad

I used to eat lunch at a food court in the Arizona Center, a business and shopping complex at 4^th Street and Van Buren in Phoenix.  There was a Greek/Mid-Eastern themed outlet there that served this dish every day – once I had this for lunch it is all I ever ordered when we went there. It's gone now, along with the food court. This may not be exactly like their dish, but I think it must be pretty close. I always got it with a fresh cucumber salad.  So…

5 or 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
8 oz soy sauce
¾ cup bourbon
1 cup packed brown sugar (you could sub honey)
2 tsp ground ginger
4 TB dried minced onion
1 tsp garlic powder

Slice the chicken into pieces, not too small, not diced.  Make the marinade and divide in half.  Place one half of it in a Ziploc bag with the chicken and marinate in the refrigerator overnight.  Take the other half, simmer it for about 20 minutes to cook off the alcohol in the whiskey, then thicken with a bit of cornstarch mixed with a small amount of cold water. Store this in the refrigerator until time to assemble the dish.  Make your cucumber salad… (it needs to sit a while to develop its flavor).

Drain the chicken pieces somewhat, then stir fry them quickly in a bit of olive oil, just until done (toss out the marinade the chicken was soaking in).  Do not overcook the chicken.  Heat the 2^nd half of the marinade you prepared earlier.  Drench the chicken (after cooking) in the heated sauce.  Serve over rice with a nice cucumber salad on the side!

Cucumber Salad

1½ cucumbers, peeled and diced
½ small to med red onion, diced
¼ cup cider vinegar
¼ cup water
1/6 cup sugar (this is 34 grams, or one half of a 1/3 cup measure)
Salt/pepper
1 clove garlic, cut into pieces

Mix the dressing (everything except the cucumber and onion) and let it set for about 20 minutes.  Then toss it into the vegetables and refrigerate for several hours before serving.  A really nice addition at serving time is some diced ripe tomatoes.

Note:  This dish can be prepared with chicken breast, or tenders, but it is a better dish with the thighs.  If you use white meat, it just requires care not to overcook the chicken.  Cook only a few minutes -- just enough that the pink is gone.  Again, it is a better tasting dish when using the thighs!