Roasted potatoes

Sharing my friend, Francine's, recipe for roasted potatoes. Her recipe yields potatoes that are soft on the inside but with a maximized surface area for crispiness on the outside.

Ingredients

1. Potatoes
2. Vegetable oil, or olive oil (not extra virgin)
3. Salt 
4. Rosemary

Instructions

1. Boil skinned potatoes in a pot with salt.
2. (After 10-15 min) Drain the water after the potatoes are ~50% soft.
3. With the cover attached, shake the potatoes inside the pot. The collisions give the potatoes rough edges, which will maximize the surface area for roasting.
4. Place the potatoes on a fully oiled pan (oil should be around 1mm thick).
5. Sprinkle rosemary generously over the potatoes.
6. Bake for 30 min at 375 degF.
7. Flip the potatoes over, and bake for another 30 min, until a nice golden, crispy crust forms.
8. Ready to serve! Best eaten hot!

Look at that crust!!

Tea smoked chicken

Sharing a recipe for tea smoked chicken, that I received from my friend.

This recipe is super simple, takes minimal effort, yet yields a juicy, tender chicken with crispy pepper-crusted skin, yum!

Ingredients

1. One whole chicken, or chicken parts that you would like to cook
2. Soy sauce
3. Olive oil
4. Black pepper
5. 2 cups of tea at room temperature (any flavor of black or green tea, I used Constant Comment black tea, with some bergamot flavors)
6. (optional) Mushrooms, vegetables, etc.

Instructions

1. Generously rub the chicken all over with soy sauce and olive oil. This gives the chicken a nice golden brown crust after baking.
2. Sprinkle black pepper on the surface of the chicken.
3. Pour the tea into the pan, add the vegetables (optional) on the side
4. Place inside the oven at 375 degF for 1.5 to 2 hours.
5. Wait to eat!

You don't have to bast the chicken or do anything fancy! Because the steam from the tea will make sure the chicken stays moist, you don't even have to cover the meat with foil. Isn't it amazing??

The result:

And that's it!! Ready to serve to guests at a dinner party or for several yummy meals.

My friends commented that it tasted a bit like Chinese herbed chicken, though this was so so so much easier to make. And the skin! Heavenly.