~ E-Z Ginger-Chicken Pizza w/Spicy Peanut Sauce ~
T.G.I.F. "Oh Baby -- It's Cold Outside"!!!
In case you haven't heard, here in Central PA, we're in the middle of an Artic-esque freeze. The snow began to fall about two hours ago, which is great for the skiers up on Tussey Mountain this evening, but for me, "not so much". It's about 5:30PM and this is the view from one of my kitchen windows!
This is one of those "don't go out of the house, build a fire in the fireplace, put a great movie on, mix a drink and flop down on your favorite chair kind-of nights." Because of the weather, Joe decided to come home from the office a bit early (4:00 PM). On his way here, he stopped at the Weis market to pick up a couple of store-bought items that I am going to use to "throw together" one of our favorite "don't cook tonight" meals -- which is going to be full of Asian flavor and heat!
A few days ago, I posted my recipe for ~ Love Me Tender(s), Peanut-Crusted Chicken Tenders w/Coconut-Peanut Sauce ~. You can find it by clicking into Categories 1, 2, 11, 13 or 19. Because of that recipe, I have leftover, uncooked, chicken tenders, as well as a jar of peanut sauce in my refrigerator. As for the chicken tenders? They'll take me less than 10 minutes chop up and stir-fry!
Note: Peanut sauce takes 5 minutes to make, but, feel free to substitute store-bought peanut sauce if that is easier!
Sweet chili sauce is another Asian condiment you'll need for this recipe. It too takes less than 5 minutes to make and you can find my recipe for ~ "Would You Like Sweet Chili Sauce With That?" ~ in Categories 8, 13 or 20. Buy a bottle of that too if it's easier!
Let's Crank Out Some Friday Night, Happy-Hour Pizza!
For the chicken (for 2 pizzas):
1-1 1/4 pounds large, meaty chicken tenderloins, about 6-7
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon Thai seasoning soy sauce
1 tablespoon Thai fish sauce
2 tablespoons minced ginger
~ Step 1: At the wide, meaty end of each tenderloin you will notice a little white nub. This is a harmless tendon. Using a pair of kitchen shears, clip/remove the visible piece of tough nub. Using a chef's knife chop the chicken into small-ish, bite-sized 1/2"-3/4" pieces.
~ Step 2. In a large nonstick stir-fry pan or skillet, heat the sesame oil, soy sauce, fish sauce and ginger over medium-high heat, until ginger is bubbling. Add the chopped chicken, cook, stirring constantly, until the chicken is just cooked through, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
Note: I didn't invent this recipe. I did improve upon others that are "out there". Most instruct to use "cooked or leftover chicken". Cut me a break. This is an Asian pizza and I want my chicken to have Asian flavor. Trust me when I tell you, the 5 minutes it takes to cook the chicken MY WAY is well worth the effort. I refuse to dumb it down to the point of compromising authentic Asian flavors!
For the cheese (for 2 pizzas):
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, or regular mozzarella cheese, shredded
Note: Every pizza needs cheese, but, when making Asian pizza, it's my opinion it be used for texture, not taste: it should be mild-flavored. Fresh mozzarella is perfect!
~ Step 1. Using a hand-held cheese grater, shred the cheese.
Note: If you are using fresh mozzarella cheese (which contains a lot of moisture), place it on a paper-towel lined plate and set it aside, to allow the paper towels to absorb excess moisture from the cheese, about 15-30 minutes.
For the dough and the toppings (for 2 pizzas):
your favorite recipe for homemade pizza dough, enough for 2, 10" pizza crusts, or, 2, 13-ounce containers of store-bought pizza dough (Note: I consider using store-bought dough a compromise in flavor and texture because: nothing is better than homemade dough. Having said that, I also realize that not everyone has the time or inclination to make their own pizza dough, so, to assure you store-bought dough will work in this E-Z TGIF recipe, I am using it today. If you are using store-bought dough, remove it from the refrigerator about 1 hour prior to using it, so it can come to room temperature, prior to opening it and working it into the pans.)
1 cup peanut sauce (from above)
cooked chicken tenderloins (from above)
1-1 1/2 cups store-bought matchstick carrots
1-1 1/2 cups bean sprouts
1 cup very thinly-sliced green onions, white and light green part only
grated fresh mozzarella cheese (from above)
3/4 cup peanuts
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
1 cup sweet chili sauce, for drizzling over individual slices of pizza, about 1 tablespoon per slice (Note: If it an extra-spicy pizza you're looking for, feel free to substitute, or add, a drizzle of Sriracha 'rooster' sauce to your slice!)
2 tablespoons peanut oil, for preparing pizza pans
~ Step 1. If you have a pizza stone, place it on the center rack of your oven. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Using a pastry brush, paint the bottom of two pizza pans with peanut oil.
With whatever kind of pizza dough you have decided upon, using your fingertips, pat and press the dough into the pans to form a standard, 10"-round crust.
~ Step 2. Spread 1/2 cup of peanut sauce over each crust. Evenly distribute all of the chicken over both pizzas, followed by the carrots, bean sprouts and green onions. Top with the grated mozzarella cheese and peanuts.
~ Step. 3. One-at-a-time, place each pan of pizza, on the optional pizza stone (or directly on the oven rack), in the oven...
... Bake until the pizza, with the aid of a metal spatula, will easily slide from the pan onto the pizza stone (or directly onto the oven rack), about 5-6 minutes...
Continue to bake until bottom of crust is golden, 3-4 more minutes.
Place a cooling rack in the bottom of the now empty pizza pan.
~ Step 4. Using the spatula, slide the pizza from the stone (or oven rack) onto the cooling rack in the pizza pan. Cool for 3-4 minutes.
To serve, slice each pizza into 6-8 wedges.
Garnish each slice with a sprinkling of fresh cilantro and a drizzle of sweet chili sauce (&/or Sriracha):
E-Z Ginger-Chicken Pizza w/Spicy Peanut Sauce: Recipe yields 2, 10" pizzas, 6-8 slices each.
Special Equipment List: pizza stone (optional); kitchen shears; cutting board; chef's knife; 12" nonstick stir-fry pan or skillet; cheese grater; 2, 10"-round pizza pans; pastry brush; metal spatula; small cooling rack
Cook's Note: I've posted several recipes for wonderful, easy-to-make pizza dough and pizzas here on Kitchen Encounters: Chicago-Style, St. Louis-Style, Preschutti-Style, Pioneer Club-Style and even my grandson David's Pita Pizza. They can all be found by clicking into Categories 2, 5, or 19. Want to make someone happy? Make a pizza -- or two!
"We are all in this food world together." ~ Melanie Preschutti
(Recipe, Commentary and Photos courtesy of Melanie's Kitchen/Copyright 2013)
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