Tonight I made Blackened Savory Teriyaki Chicken, Mustard-Crusted Roast Red Potatoes,  Steamed Broccoli, and a hearty salad.

The salad was Romaine lettuce, celery, carrots, red peppers, and mushrooms. Homemade ranch dressing. The steamed broccoli– you had better know how to steam broccoli. Honestly.

The amounts are approximate. (I feed 6 semi-picky kids and two food-loving adults)

Mustard-Crusted Roast Red Potatoes :

• About 5 medium to large red potatoes, washed and cubed.
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1/2 Tbsp mustard seeds
• Several generous dashes of pepper

Pulverize the mustard seed until they are chunky powder. Combine all of the ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl. Combine really well. Microwave on high for 6 minutes. Stir very well. Microwave again for 5 minutes. Heat oven to 450 degrees, put a tablespoon (maybe a little less) of olive oil on a baking pan that is big enough to hold the potatoes in one (1) layer. ( I use a very well seasoned Pampered Chef stoneware pan.) Put the pan in the hot oven for a couple of minutes. When the potatoes are done with their second microwave cycle, spread them out on the heated pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes until browning nicely.

Remove from oven, let them sit for a minute on the pan. Serve nice and warm. Sully with ketchup at will.

Now for the chicken recipe.

Blackened Savory Teriyaki Chicken

This is savory teriyaki because teriyaki sauce is usually way too sweet. Mine is sweet and savory just right. But I didn’t measure a thing.

• 2+ lbs of cleaned chicken (use breast AND thigh meat!), cut into 2-3 surface inch squares.

Marinade:

• 1/2 cup rice vinegar
• 1/4-1/3 cup of soy sauce
• 1/2- 1 Tbsp of garlic powder
• 1-2 Tbsp corn starch
• 2 Tbsp dumpling dipping sauce (can be found at most Asian markets)
• A dash or two of black pepper

Clean and cut the chicken. Put it in a tough gallon ziploc bag. Combine the marinade ingredients, mixing very well. Pour marinade over chicken in bag. Squeeze air out of the bag and seal it. Put the bag on a cutting board with a tough paper towel over the top. Take a wooden food mallet (or a good rolling pin) and whack the bag, doing your best to equalize the thickness of the chicken pieces.

Let the chicken marinate for up to 2 hours.

Cooking this is best done in a tough stainless steel, large skillet, or in a cast iron skillet.

Put a few Tbsp of olive oil in the skillet, turn heat high. When the pan is hot, use tongs to place several pieces of chicken in the pan. Keep pan on high! Move the chicken around a little to spread the flavorings and oil. Let the bottom of the pan blacken a little, then cook all of your chicken in batches, only one layer of chicken at a time. The oil will spit like crazy; wear an apron.

Take the chicken off before it is overcooked. If your chicken is about 1/3 to 1/2 an inch thick, it only needs a couple of minutes on each side. Place hot chicken in a serving dish, cover tightly in tin foil while you cook each batch. When the last batch is in the serving pan, cover tightly with foil and let it sit for at least 3 minutes– up to 5. This will equalize the temperature and let the chicken absorb the juices.

Serve hot.