Master BBQ & Grill - Belleville, NJ

It was another lazy Sunday night for us and we couldn't decide on what to have for dinner. We didn't feel like going out, so the only other option was to order in (yesssss, I'm too lazy to cook on weekends :P). After going through our stash of countless take out/delivery menus, I found the menu for Master BBQ & Grill. We actually picked that menu up from our apartment lobby quite some time back and have been meaning to check that place out but we never got around to doing so. It's been a while since we last had Portuguese BBQ (I know, it's hard to believe...considering the fact that we live in the Portuguese /Colombian BBQ mecca of NJ!), so Portuguese BBQ for dinner it is!
From our past experiences of ordering delivery with other Portuguese BBQ places, we were all ready for a long 'conversation' on the phone. Usually, when they find out that we don't speak Spanish, our call would be passed from one person to another. THEN, after finally getting to somebody who speaks English, he would most probably mess up our order or misunderstand we were are trying to say. Same goes for Chinese delivery places. However, none of that happened here. They spoke English and we managed to place our order without any problems. Yay! Another thing that surprised us was how fast the food arrived. I swear, it took them less than half an hour to get the food to our doorstep! Two huge party trays of piping hot food! Don't ask me why there was only ONE bun, we actually didn't even know that we are going to get a free bun :P
Before I say anything else, I must tell you guys that the amount of food that we got for the price we paid was crazy! There was just soooooooo much food! We ordered the Master BBQ Combo ($26) and that came with half a chicken, six huge pork ribs, four pieces of steak and slices Portuguese sausages. Look at the amount of food! It was enough for feed at least 6-8 people! All that for only $26! Not only was it affordable, it tasted awesome too! I dare say that this is the best Portuguese BBQ that I have had, to date! Since we live in Newark, there are a lot of Portuguese BBQ places here and trust me, we have gone through quite a lot of them. The BBQ from Masters definitely stood out. All the meat was marinated to perfection, really really delicious. They were also cooked just right, cos we all know, nothing is more sucky than overcooked or under cooked BBQ!
We also got a huge party tray of yellow rice and fries. We also had the option to swap either the rice or fries for black beans. Look at the amount of rice and fries! It's like enough to feed a small village in Asia! :P The fries wasn't soggy but really, there was nothing much to shout about. The rice on the other hand was simply awesome. There is this smoky taste to it, very very yummy! Overall, we had an awesome dinner! Good service, fast delivery, affordable prices, big portions and most importantly, uber yummy food. What more could a person ask for? We will definitely be ordering more food from Master BBQ & Grill in the very near future!

Master BBQ & Grill - Belleville, NJ
198 Union Ave
Belleville NJ 07109
Tel: (973)759 9200
Web: http://www.masterbbqgrill.com/

Southern Fried Chicken & Biscuits

If you are regular readers of this blog, you would know that both Kevin and I love fried chicken. We love all kinds of fried chicken, especially Southern Fried Chicken. I've never attempted to make any at home, cos it was so easy to just go to our favorite fried chicken place and pick up a bucket! However, it's been a while since we ate any (since we started our little "try to eat healthier' quest :P). Chicken thighs and drumsticks were on sale at our local grocery store not too long ago and I figured, why not? Let me try to make some Southern Fried Chicken at home. A few pieces of yummy fried chicken won't kill us. So, I googled Southern Fried Chicken recipes and found quite a few. I really like Paula Deen and The Neely Family's (I regard them both as gurus of Southern cooking!) recipe, so I took bits and pieces from each of that and came up with my own. Check it out!

Start off my cleaning the chicken pieces (I used thighs and drumsticks but you can pretty much use anything you like) and patting them dry with a paper towel. Season them with some freshly ground black pepper, garlic powder and seasoned salt. Make sure that you season both sides of the chicken. Then, set it aside.
Next, pour in a quart of buttermilk into a large bowl.
Then, add in some hot sauce. It doesn't matter what kind of hot sauce you use but if you are Paula Deen fans, you would know that she swears by Texas Pete. I personally like Texas Pete too, but it's entirely up to you. You can put in as much or as little as you like. The Neelys used about 2 tablespoons where else Paula Deen used half a small bottle!
After mixing the hot sauce into the buttermilk, add in 1 tablespoon of crushed cayenne pepper. You gotta be careful with this, cos it really packs a punch. If you don't like it to be so spicy, you should just use half a tablespoon.
Now, place the chicken pieces into a deep casserole dish. Then, pour the buttermilk mixture over it. You should allow your chicken pieces to sit for at least 15 mins after you season them before soaking them in the buttermilk mixture. If you do it any sooner, the seasoning will just wash off. Soaking the chicken pieces in buttermilk is really important, cos not only does it give it flavor, but it also really tenderizes the chicken. Cover the dish with an air tight lid and allowed it to soak for at least 2 hours. I allowed mine to soak overnight, it's better that way.
Once you are ready to fry the chicken, you can start preparing the flour mixture to dredge the chicken pieces. Combine some all purpose flour with some black pepper, garlic powder and cayenne pepper. You can also add in some corn starch if you like. The corn starch actually helps make your fried chicken really crispy! Mix it all together and you are all set to go.
Gently remove a piece of chicken from the buttermilk mixture and allow all access buttermilk to drip off. Then, slow dredge it in the flour mixture. Make sure you coat the entire piece of chicken well.
Then, place the chicken pieces in hot peanut oil. Make sure that it is hot enough before you place the chicken in. It should be around 350F. Also, do not over crowd the pan. If you put in too many pieces, it would lower the temperature of the pan and the chicken would not turn out right. Unless you have a really big pan or a deep fryer, stick to a few pieces for each batch.
Once the chicken turns golden and crisp, it's done! It should take around 8 to 10 minutes for white meat and 13 to 15 minutes for dark meat to fully cook through. Allow the oil to drain and then place the chicken pieces on some paper towels before serving.
While I was frying up the chicken, I also popped in some instant biscuits (yes, I know...it's cheating!) in the oven. It should be nice and ready by the time we are done with the chicken. How did this recipe turn out? Well, I think it turned out awesome! Nothing beats some spicy southern fried chicken and freshly baked biscuits. I would have to say that this recipe is a keeper. Try it....I think you will like I too!

Boston Market - North Arlington, NJ

It was one of those nights where we felt like eating a nice home cooked meal but didn't really feel like cooking. Sure, there are many nice restaurants out there that serves really good home style cooking but we wanted something quick and affordable :P So, it was off to Boston Market we go.
We have always love the food from Boston Market. We can choose whatever main we want and pick our favorite sides. It feels like Thanksgiving (minus all the hours in the kitchen) everyday! :D When we arrived, we saw a huge poster on the window advertising their 25th Anniversary Specials. Prices start at only $4.99! For $4.99, you get a 1/4 dark meat rotisserie chicken, cornbread and your choice of two sides. I remember them offering three pieces of dark meat chicken for $4.99 earlier this year but 1/4 a chicken is fine too, I guess.
We both decided to go for that special. Kevin ordered the 1/4 dark meat rotisserie chicken with stuffing and mashed potatoes ($4.99). As usual, the mashed potatoes, stuffing and chicken tasted great! However, we were quite surprised at the size of the 1/4 chicken. Look at it..it's tiny!!! Let me note that the plate is just a regular size plate (not some over sized platter), so yeah, the chicken was really really tiny.
I also had the $4.99 special. For my sides, I chose the Creamed Spinach and Mediterranean Green Beans. I found the spinach to be a tad bit too salty but totally loved the green beans. Yummy green beans tossed in garlic butter with roasted red peppers, dill and crunchy almonds. Mmmm mmmm mmmm really yummy. The cornbread was also very very good. Again, the downside was the size of the chicken. I still cannot get over the size of the chicken. Sooo tiny. I guess we would need to order the 3 pieces dark meat chicken the next time around.
We added on two Iced Tea ($1.89 each) to go along with our meal. Overall, it was a good meal. However, the size of the chicken made it little disappointing. Also, I wonder why they changed the promotion from getting 3 pieces of dark meat chicken to only a 1/4 chicken for $4.99. That kinda suxs :( Oh well, with that said, we still love Boston Market. Where else can you get home style cooking (with so many different side choices) for such an affordable price? :D

Boston Market - North Arlington, NJ
491 Ridge Road
North Arlington, NJ 07031
Tel: (201)997 1006
Web: http://www.bostonmarket.com

Oven Roasted Split Chicken with Vegetables

All kinds of chicken cuts were on sale at our local grocery store last week. I managed to pick up 6 pieces of split chicken (3 whole chicken in total) for less than $5!!! Mind you, they were not tiny. Those are regular sized (I would even dare say that they rather large) chickens. I wanted to make something simple and quick for dinner, so I just roasted one chicken (2 pieces of split) with some vegetables. It turned out to be really good. Here's the recipe.

Start off by cleaning the chicken under cool water and pat it dry with a some kitchen towels. Then, spray on some cooking oil onto the chicken and rub on your favorite chicken marinade. No prize for guessing what I used. Yes, of course I used Chef Paul Prudhomme's Magic Poultry Marinade :P Once you have seasoned the chicken on both sides, place it onto a deep baking dish. You can see from the picture that I placed the chicken on a rack that I set up inside the baking dish. This is to allow all the fat to drain to the bottom of the pan, so that the chicken doesn't sit in fat, while cooking. If you do not have a rack, you can just place it inside a deep baking dish. It might be a little bit more greasy but it still works.
Set the chicken aside. Now it's time to work on the vegetables. Peel and cut up one large sweet potato into small chunks. Depending on the size of your sweet potato, you might need two.
Then, place it into a big bowl together with some red potatoes (also cut into small chunks) and some fresh mushrooms (half them if they are too big). You can also add in some carrot if you like.
Next, pour in some balsamic vinaigrette followed by some lemon juice. Mix it all in with all the vegetables. You do not need a lot, just enough to coat the vegetables.
Once you have mixed the dressing with the vegetables, sprinkle in some dried thyme and rosemary followed by some freshly cracked black pepper. Give the vegetables another good stir and it's done.
Arrange the vegetables around the sides of the chicken. Then pop it into a preheated 400F oven for about 40 minutes.
After about 40 minutes, take out the chicken from the oven. Baste it with some melted butter. This will help to brown the chicken nicely as well as help make the skin crispy. Return the chicken into the oven for another 20 minutes or so and it should be done! Allow the chicken to rest for about 5-10 minutes before serving. I just love this recipe. It's so easy to make! Just prepare everything in one dish and pop it all into the oven. You should try it out, it's yummy!

Oven Roasted Beer Can Chicken

Remember me blogging about getting a beer can chicken roaster from CSN Stores a while back? Well, there was a sale for whole chickens (only $5 for a huge chicken!!) at our local grocery store, so we figured we will try making Beer Can Chicken for dinner last week. Traditionally, Beer Can Chicken is cooked over an open grill but since we live in an apartment, we just made ours in the oven. It turned out to be be really good. It's so simple to make, you just have to check this recipe out!

Start off by removing all the giblets from inside the chicken. You can save the giblets to make gravy for the chicken if you want to but I just threw mine away. Rinse the chicken in cold water and then pat it dry with some paper towels. Next, spray on some vegetable oil onto the chicken and then put on your favorite dry rub. There is no prize for guessing what I used, since I use it all the time in most of my cooking. Yup, Chef Paul Prudhomme's Poultry Magic Rub. It's the best! :D
Make sure you rub on the seasoning on both the outside as well as the inside of the chicken. Once you have done that, place the chicken in a large Ziploc bag. As you can see from the picture, our chicken was way too large, so we had to use two...LOL! Allow the chicken to marinade for at least a few hours but we left it to marinade in our refrigerator for about 24 hours.
Now, it's time to set up the beer can chicken roaster. It's fairly simple actually. All you need is a deep baking dish and the beer can roaster. If you do not have a beer can roaster, you can use an actual beer can. Just cut open the top of the beer can, pour out about 1/3 of its content and set it in the middle of the baking dish (just like how I placed the roaster).
Next, pour in your favorite beer. I used Yuengling cos Kevin happened to have a six pack of that sitting in our refrigerator. I am not a huge beer drinker but I find Yuengling to be pretty decent :D Yeah, so just fill the beer can roaster up. You would need probably about half a bottle of beer to fill it up. If you are using an actual beer can, you can of course skip this step (since the beer can is already filled with beer :P).
The next thing you need to do is to place your chicken onto the roaster. Just set it upright, just like how you see in the photo. If your chicken is too large (like ours), it might be a little bit tricky to get it to stand upright properly. It's all about balance. Try moving it around a little, it should stand relatively well after a few tries.
Then, pop it into a 350F oven and set the timer for 2 hours.
Remove the chicken from the oven when it's about half way through it's cooking time (around the 1 hour mark). Baste the entire chicken with melted butter. This is to give it color as well as to make the skin extra crispy. Yummmy stuff!! This is the only time you would need to baste the chicken. Your chicken won't dry out because of the beer that is keeping it all juicy and moist. Pop the chicken back into the oven for another hour. While you are waiting for the chicken to be done, sit back, relax and enjoy the remaining half bottle of beer :P
We bought Perdue's Oven Roaster Chicken, so it comes with a built it thermometer. Once it pops up, you know that it's done. If your chicken doesn't come with a built in thermometer, all you need to do is stick a thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh. When it reads 180F, you know that its done! Allow the chicken to rest for about 10 minutes before removing it from the beer roaster. Be extra careful when you remove the chicken cos the beer will be really really hot. Carve the chicken and it's ready to be served! Doesn't it look yummy? The skin was really crispy and the meat was oh so moist. I cannot believe something so simple can turn out to be so good. You should try it, it's totally awesome!

Chicken & Brown Rice Pilaf

I found this recipe behind a box of Minute Instant Whole Grain Brown Rice and decided to try it out. It looked simple enough and I was pretty happy with the outcome. Not only was it really simple and fast to make, it turned out to be really yummy too. So, I figured that I should share this recipe with all of you.
Start off by cutting up about 1 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast into large cubes. I marinated them with some Chef Paul Prudhomme's Poultry Magic Seasoning (boy, I love this stuff!) and allowed it to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours. Of course you could marinade the chicken breast with pretty much any marinade that you like. Even some basic salt and pepper will do. Once your chicken is fully marinated, heat some oil in a large skillet. Then, add your chicken breast and allow it to cook for about 4 mins on each side (or until cooked through). Remove chicken breast pieces from the skillet and set aside.
Using the same skillet, add in 1 can (10.5 oz) of low fat chicken broth and 1/2 cup of water. Mix it together and bring it to a rapid boil.

Then, add in about 2 cups of instant brown rice followed by 1 cup of diced green and red peppers as well as 1 cup of diced onions.

Next, add in about 2 cups of fresh mushrooms that has been cut into cubes. Mix everything together and allow it to cook for a bit.

After allowing it to cook for a few minutes, add in the cooked chicken breast that we browned a little earlier. Cover the skillet and allow it to cook for another 5 minutes or so.

After 5 minutes, stir everything together and allow it to sit for an additional 5 minutes. There you go! A nice large skillet filled with yummy chicken and brown rice pilaf. It's just so easy and quick to make. The best part is, everything is cooked in ONE pan, so I only have to worry about washing up one pan after our meal. How nice is that? :D

Simple Chicken & Mix Vege Stir Fry

Here is something really simple and fast that I made for dinner a few days ago. It's an Asian style inspired stir fry that can be whipped up in less than half an hour (yup, that includes prep time too!) Not only is it really yummy, it's pretty healthy too! Check it out.

Start off by adding some minced garlic to a few splashes of oil. I used olive oil but you can pretty much anything that you have in hand.
Once the garlic starts to turn slightly brown, add in some slices of chicken breast. I sliced the chicken breast into thin strips and pre marinated it with some soy sauce, pepper and some corn flour for a few hours.
After stir frying the chicken for a bit til it's almost cooked, add in some shitake mushrooms and some fresh mushrooms. You can pretty much add in any type of mushrooms that you like. If you don't like mushrooms, hey, just leave them out! It's a matter of what you have in your fridge at that time. Remember to cut out the stems from the shitake mushrooms and you can cut the caps into half if they are too big.

Then, stir fry the mushrooms for a bit. When they have soften a lil, you can add in the rest of the vegetables. I added a mix of broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and Italian green beans. Mix them up well with the mushrooms. You can add in a little bit of chicken stock if it's a little bit dry.

Once all the vegetables are almost cooked, it's time to add in the sauce. The sauce is really simple to make. Just add in some teriyaki sauce (some people prefer oyster sauce, it's up to you) with a few dashes of soy sauce and some chicken stock. Then, add in some corn flour to thicken the sauce up. Mix everything together really well and you have the sauce. Pour the sauce into the vegetable mixture and stir fry for a bit.

There you go. A nic big wok of chicken and vegetable stir fly! Now, wasn't that really simple to make? I served it up on top of some brown rice and dinner was ready! A simple home made dinner in less than half an hour :D

Pan Fried Balsamic Chicken Breast

Since I had the Balsamic Chicken Breast at Farm 2 Bistro last month, I have been searching for a good Balsamic Chicken Breast recipe. At last, I think I found it! The original recipe is actually for oven roasted whole chicken but I changed it up a little and it worked out great! I was really happy with how it turned out. I'm proud to say that this recipe is definitely a keeper.
First things first. We need to make the marinade. It's a pretty simple marinade actually. Start off by adding 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to 1/4 cups of Balsamic Vinaigrette. Then, add in 2 tablespoons of mustard followed by 2 chopped up cloves of garlic. Add in some freshly cracked black pepper and mix everything up. Voila! The marinade is done.
Next, chop up about 1 and a half lbs of chicken breast into small pieces.

Place the chicken pieces into a zip loc bag and pour in the marinade. Allow it to marinade for at least 4 hours. It is best to let it sit in the fridge and marinade overnight. I allowed my chicken breast to marinade over 24 hours. The bag on the left is the before and the one on the right is after 24 hours. You can definitely see the difference.

Spray on some non stick cooking oil into a frying pan. Pour in the chicken breast from the zip loc bag. Put it on high until the starts to get bubbly. Then, turn it on simmer and allow it to cook and for the sauce to reduce.

After about 20 minutes on simmer, your Balsamic Chicken Breast is ready to be served. Just make sure that the chicken is cooked by checking to see if the juices run clear. Let me tell you something. The smell of this dish while cooking is just amazing. Kevin could even smell it from the living room. So so so good! It's really simple to make but super yummy to eat! I served it up with some of the Caprese Salad that I made earlier on.