A little while ago, I was invited to some friends’ house for dinner. We had a wonderful turkey breast with Momofuku’s Chili Crunch - one of my favorite new things.
So when I saw they now carried a Black Truffle Chili Crunch, I had to start playing with it.
You could use any protein for this recipe I think, but chicken thighs are one of my favorite cuts - of poultry anyway.
Start the day before if you want the marinate to really permeate the chicken. But the dish itself is very quick to make.
INGREDIENTS
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 half jar Black Truffle Chili Crunch
1/4 cup black vinegar (or soy)
1/4 cup and 1/4 cup toasted sesame oil
1 cup jasmine rice
2-3 scallions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 red pepper, diced small
1 yellow or orange pepper, diced small
1 shallot, diced fine
1 tablespoon lemongrass paste
1 tablespoon red curry paste
salt & pepper
METHOD
In a large Ziploc bag, mix well the Chili Crunch, vinegar and 1/4 cup of the oil.
Trim the thighs of any extraneous fat and add the chicken to the bag. Squish the chicken around in the bag until it’s all coated.
Remove any extra air and seal the bag, refrigerating overnight or for at least a few hours.
When you’re ready to make the dish:
Rinse the rice in water and drain. Repeat this process 2 more times, until the water runs clearer. I used to think this was only done to remove impurities or foreign objects, but that’s not completely true. Rinsing the rice well lessens the sticky/starchy quality of the rice, and we’d like it a bit on the dry side for this recipe.
Add the rice and 1 1/3 cups water to a saucepan with a lid. Cover the saucepan and bring the water to boil. This should take only a few minutes.
Reduce the heat to low, and let the rice simmer for another 9 to 10 minutes, until all the water has been absorbed.
In a non-stick pan, dump the chicken and all the marinade, cooking on medium-high heat, about 10 minutes on each side. The internal temperature should be 165. There’s enough oil in the marinade that the chicken shouldn’t stick too much.
Turn off the heat under the rice pot, and leave the saucepan covered for about 15 minutes or until you’re ready to use it.
In another pan, add the second 1/4 cup of oil and on medium-high heat, saute the garlic, peppers, scallions and shallot until they’re soft and just starting to brown.
Add the lemongrass and chili paste to the pan and mix well, then add the cooked rice.
Taste the rice and add salt & pepper as needed.
Cut the thighs into slices and place the slices on top of a bed of rice.
Drizzle some of the cooked marinade on top.
Chili Crunch is a great product but the Black Truffle variety is even better - the bit of heat with the slight earthiness of the truffle is a great combination.
Try a Reisling to pair with this, but one that’s not extremely dry.
If you’d like to try any of the chili crunches, go to Amazon or Momofuku.com.
On a side note, David Chang, the chef who owns Momofuku Restaurant and these products, was asked once what Momofuku meant. Expecting to hear that it had some deep meaning, I was surprised to hear him say “It sounds ridiculous and I like words that sound ridiculous!” Man after my own heart.