Wings on a Mission, here's a first recipe excerpted from The Mission Chinese Food Cookbook (Ecco-Anthony Bourdain, November 2015) by Danny Bowien with Chris Ying.

Chongqing Chicken Wings

It’s well known that the sign of a great dish is its ability to silence a large group of noisy people, enraptured by what they’re eating. All you hear is slurping and crunching, silverware against plates, chopsticks clicking. When the dish in question is la zi ji, the predominant sound is a soft rustling, like dry leaves skittering across a sidewalk. It is the noise made by diners sifting through a monstrous pile of chiles in search of golden brown bits of chicken hidden in the sea of red.

I’ve encountered versions of la zi ji, a dish most commonly traced to the Sichuan city of Chongqing, that are 95 percent chiles, 5 percent chicken. Some people balk at the idea of going to a restaurant and paying for a plate of food that is mostly inedible. To serve la zi ji at Mission Chinese, I needed to up the chicken-to-chile ratio.

Chicken wings to the rescue.

I’ve been pursuing the ideal chicken wing for most of my career. I’ve dabbled in all manner of elaborate wing practices. I’ve cured wings, confited them in chicken fat, smoked them, and sous-vided them. I’ve been close a few times, but I’d never really settled on a method until I spoke to a friend whose mom worked at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo. The Anchor Bar is the supposed home of the original Buffalo wing. I prodded my friend, trying to get her to ask her mom for their secrets. Eventually I pried out of them that the key to a perfect chicken wing is to treat it like a French fry: parcook it, freeze it, and fry it. The freezing causes the liquid in the skin to expand and burst the cell walls, resulting in perfectly thin, crisp skin without any breading. Once I learned this technique, I never looked back.

This is how a lot of things work at Mission Chinese. We talk to people with a history of doing things right, and we learn from them. Then we consider how we can add something to what they’ve taught us, improve on it, make it our own. In this case, the addition of fried tripe to a plate of chicken wingsis giving your guests 110 percent. I like mixing proteins and layering similar textures. Here, on the same plate, you get the crackly skin of chicken wings, still juicy on the inside, as well as the crunchy chew of fried tripe. Plus the papery toughness of those chiles, which, I should mention, you don’t eat. Please stop coming to the restaurant and eating the chiles.

Note: You need to parcook the wings a day ahead, so don’t start this recipe on Sunday morning thinking you’ll have wings in time for football.

3 pounds chicken wings (either mid-joints or whole wings)

¼ cup kosher salt, plus more as needed

½ cup vegetable or peanut oil, plus 8 to 10 cups for deepfrying

½ pound honeycomb tripe

½ cup cornstarch, for dredging

4 cups dried Tianjin chiles or other medium-hot red chiles, like chiles Japones

About ¾ cup Chongqing Wing Spice Mix (recipe follows)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a large bowl, toss the wings with the salt and ½ cup oil. Spread the wings out on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Bake the wings for 15 minutes, or just until the skin appears cooked but not browned. Let the parbaked wings cool to room temperature, then lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze, uncovered, overnight.
3. The next day, clean the tripe thoroughly under cold running water, scrubbing vigorously to remove any grit. Put in a pot, cover with cold salty water by 2 inches, and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for 10 minutes, partially covered, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 2 to 3 hours, until the tripe is very tender. Drain in a colander, rinse under cold water, and cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, retrieve the wings from the freezer and allow them to thaw at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.
5. Slice the cooked tripe into strips about ½ inch wide and 2 inches long. Set aside.
6. In a deep pot or a wok (or use a deep-fryer), heat about 4 inches of oil to 350°F. Meanwhile, pat the tripe strips dry with paper towels, then dredge them in the cornstarch, shaking off any excess. Working in batches, if necessary, deep-fry the wings and tripe for 4 to 6 minutes, or until golden and crispy. They should cook in about the same amount of time.
7. Meanwhile, toast the Tianjin chiles in a hot, dry wok or skillet for about a minute over high heat, stirring continuously so the chiles cook evenly. Transfer to a plate.
8. Drain the fried wings and tripe, shaking off as much oil as you can (or let them briefly drain on paper towels). Then transfer to a large bowl and dust them generously with the spice mix, tossing to coat. Add the toasted chiles and toss well. The chiles will perfume the dish, but they aren’t meant to be eaten.
9. To serve, transfer everything—aromatic chiles and all—to a serving platter and present to your awestruck and possibly terrified guests.

Chongqing Wing Spice Mix

MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP

2 tablespoons whole Sichuan peppercorns

2 tablespoons cumin seeds

2 teaspoons fennel seeds

2 star anise

2 black cardamom pods

1½ teaspoons whole cloves

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons sugar

1 tablespoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons Mushroom Powder (page 299)

2 tablespoons cayenne pepper

• Toast the Sichuan peppercorns, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, star anise, cardamom, and cloves in a dry skillet over medium heat, stirring continuously until fragrant. In a small bowl, combine the toasted spices with the sugar, salt, mushroom powder, and cayenne.

• In a spice or coffee grinder, grind the spice mix to a powder, working in batches if necessary. The spice mix will keep in an airtight container for about a week before losing much of its potency.

Mushroom Powder

This is the gentleman’s MSG. It’s umami incarnate, in powdered form. It makes dishes more savory, but since it’s made primarily of powdered dried mushrooms, it lacks the stigma—unwarranted or not—of MSG. You can find mushroom powder at Asian markets or online, usually from Taiwanese producers. But a slightly less potent, and less mysterious, version is easily made at home. I wouldn’t recommend making this in a large batch, as the flavor dissipates over time.

MAKES ABOUT ½ CUP

1 (1-inch) square dashi kombu ½ ounce stemmed, dried shiitake mushrooms

• Toast Use a pair of kitchen shears to snip the kombu into 4 or 5 smaller pieces, then grind it to a fine powder in a spice or coffee grinder or blender. Transfer to a bowl.

• Grind the mushrooms to a powder and combine with the kombu. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Like ground spices, this begins to lose its potency immediately.

( * Recipe excerpted from The Mission Chinese Food Cookbook -Ecco-Anthony Bourdain, November 2015- by Danny Bowien with Chris Ying)

A first and playful excerpt from  Mexico from the Inside Out by Enrique Olvera (Phaidon, $59.95, October 2015) , this first English language cookbook by chef from restaurant Pujol in Mexico City is worth buying just for its appetizing visuals.

DIVORCED CHILAQUILES

Chilaquiles divorciados 

Serves 4 

INGREDIENTS

Totopos

• 4 cups (about 1 l) corn oil
• 12 corn tortillas (page 214), eat cut into 8 triangles

Green Salsa

• 3 cups (600 g) tomatillos
• ¼ white onion
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 chiles Serrano
• 2 sprigs cilantro (coriander)
• 2 sprigs epazote
• 1 tsp kosher salt, or to taste
• 1 cup (240 ml) water

Red Salsa

• 12 plum tomatoes
• ½ white onion
• 1 large garlic clove
• 2 chiles Serrano
• 2 sprigs epazote
• 1 tsp salt, or to taste
• 1 cup (240 ml) water 

Pulled Chicken

• 1 skinless, boneless chicken breast
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp kosher salt 

Fried Eggs

• ¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil
• 4 large eggs
• 1 tsp kosher salt

Plating

• 1 cup (5 ounces/140 g) grated panela cheese
• ½ cup (120 ml) crema de rancho
• ¼ white onion, julienn
• ¼ red onion, julienned

INSTRUCTIONS

 Totopos 

In a pot, heat the oil to 355°F (180°C). Add the totopos and cook until browned. Drain on paper towels. 

Green Salsa 

Place all the ingredients in a pan and cook over medium heat for 25 minutes. Blend and adjust the salt.

Red Salsa 

Place all the ingredients in a pot and cook over medium heat for 25 minutes. Blend and adjust the salt. 

Pulled Chicken 

Place all the ingredients in a pot; add 2 cups (about 500 ml) water, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 25 minutes. Remove the chicken from the broth, cool slightly, and shred it with your hands. 

Fried Eggs

Heat the oil in a large pan over low heat. Crack the eggs, one by one, into the oil. When the egg whites begin to turn opaque, cover and cook for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and season with the salt. 

Plating 

Divide the chips among 4 bowls. Cover half of them with the green salsa and the other half with the red salsa. Top with the chicken and the fried eggs and finish with the cheese, crema de rancho, and onions. 

(* Recipe excerpted with permission from 'Mexico from the Inside Out -Phaidon Press, October 2015- by Chef Enrique Olvera...Photo by Araceli Paz))

To celebrate Chinese New Year 2015, i direct you to Kung Po (Palatial Guardian) Chicken Recipe from Sichuan by Ching-He-Huang for Year of the Goat or is it Sheep.

I originally shared this recipe from Ching's Everyday Easy Chinese (William Morrow) by Ching-He Huang, the host of Chinese Food Made Easy on Cooking Channel for 2012 Lunar New Year...

(* Recipe from Ching's Everyday Easy Chinese (William Morrow, October 4, 2011) byChing-He Huang, Photography by Jamie Cho, reproduced by permission of the publisher)

In contrast to Vegan Jalapeno Pesto Potato Tamales from Tamales, Fast and Delicious Mexican Meals (Ten Speed Press, October 2014) by Alice Guadalupe Tapp, here's a meat filled recipe from same book.

Chicken Sinaloa Tamales

This is a great version of Sinaloa-style tamales. Sinaloa is a state in Mexico where my father was born—Mazatlán, Puerto Vallarta, and Acapulco are all in located in Sinaloa. These tamales are simple to make with the Super Easy Red Pasilla Chile Sauce. We offer these tamales in our shop at Christmas, as it is a traditional Christmas tamale in my father’s birthplace and a family favorite.

Makes 18 Tamales

1/4 cup olive oil
1 small to medium onion, diced
1 medium potato, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 zucchini, diced
2 pickled jalapeños, minced
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 medium tomato, diced
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup finely chopped green olives
3 or more cups Super Easy Red Pasilla Chile Sauce (page 36)
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
31/2 cups Basic Fresh Masa (page 22)

Heat the oil in large pot over medium heat, add the onion, and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the potato, carrot, zucchini, jalapeños, and salt and stir to combine. Sauté for 15 minutes or until the potato and carrot are barely soft. Remove from the heat and let cool. Add the tomato, raisins, olives, chile pasilla sauce, and chicken. Fold well.

Taste and adjust the salt.

Assemble the tamales (see pages 5-6), using 1/4 cup masa and 1/4 cup filling for each tamale.

Transfer to a steamer and steam for 50 minutes.

Super Easy Red Pasilla Chile Sauce

A simple version of the famous red chile sauce, this recipe cuts the preparation time down from 2 hours or more to 45 minutes. If you have leftover sauce, make enchiladas or chilaquiles. If the sauce is too hot, add 16 ounces of tomato sauce. If you want more heat, use New Mexico hot dried chiles instead of the pasilla chiles, which are milder.

Makes 7  Cups

1 (2-ounce) package dried pasilla chiles, stemmed and seeded, or 4 tablespoons prepared chile paste
2 (28-ounce) cans enchilada sauce
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Place the cleaned chiles in a medium bowl and pour boiling water to cover, place a dish on top to keep the heat in, and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes, until the chiles are completely soft. Place the chiles into a food processor or blender and process until you have a smooth paste, then add the enchilada sauce, oregano, sugar, cumin, salt, and pepper and process or blend until well combined, about 5 to 10 seconds.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan and add the sauce, cover, and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, checking and stirring occasionally to make sure the sauce doesn’t burn. Set aside to cool. The sauce can be refrigerated or frozen for future use.

Basic Fresh Masa

To make this type of masa dough, my grandmother used lard, and my mother used vegetable shortening or a combination of both. I switched to butter. Traditional cooks use even more fat than what is called for here, but I think this 1:5 ratio of butter to masa is perfect. Feel free to use your preference of lard, shortening, butter, or margarine.

Makes about 60 Tamales

1 pound butter or margarine, softened
5 pounds stone ground fresh masa (unprepared)
2 to 3 cups stock (chicken, pork, beef, or vegetable)
2 tablespoons salt (or less to taste)

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and whip until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add one-third of the fresh masa alternating with one-third of the stock, then add the salt. Beat until well mixed, adding more stock if needed, turn the mixer to high, and beat for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the dough resembles spackling paste.

Take a small piece (about 1/2 teaspoon) of the dough and drop it into a cup of cold water. If it floats, it is ready; if it sinks, whip for another minute and test it again. Repeat this process until the masa floats.

Note: The fresher the masa, the faster it will become light and fluffy enough for use.

(*Reprinted with permission from Tamales, by Alice Guadalupe Tapp, copyright © 2014. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Random House LLC. Photographs copyright © 2014 by Sara Remington)

Belgium meets India's Portuguese flair (with British twist) in this third excerpt from Beer and Food ( Ryland Peters & Small, Dog & Bone imprint, Spring 2014) Mark Dredge of Pencil and Spoon ...

Gueuze Chicken Vindaloo

In the United Kingdom, Vindaloo comes with a firehazard warning: Eat one of these curries and part of your body will burst into flames. Vindaloo's reputation for being fearsomely spicy is a British development on a dish that has Portuguese roots. It was originally meat cooked with wine and garlic, which then evolved (when the Portuguese took it to India) into meat cooked with vinegar and the addition of chili and other spices. The beer evolution is to take out the vinegar and use Gueuze for the acidity instead (this also adds some peppery depth). I serve mine with Pale Ale and Garlic Naan bread on the side.

FOR THE MARINADE

1 tsp each cumin seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, and cardamom pods
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp granulated sugar
A thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
½ tsp ground cinnamon
6 garlic cloves
3 fresh green chili peppers
¼ cup (50ml) Gueuze
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE CURRY

4 skinless and boneless chicken thighs, chopped into large chunks
2–3 tbsp olive oil
1 large white onion, finely sliced
3 plum tomatoes
2⁄3 cup (150ml) chicken stock
1⁄3 cup (100ml) Gueuze
A few cilantro (coriander) leaves, to serve

SERVES 4

1 Dry-fry the cumin, coriander, and mustard seeds, and the cardamom pods in a saucepan for a few minutes. If you are using ground versions of the spices, then just use ½ teaspoon of each and mix them straight into the marinade.

2 Add the dry-fried spices to a food-blender with all the other marinade ingredients and blitz into a paste—this might take a couple of minutes.

3 Cover the chicken with the marinade and leave in the refrigerator for 4–8 hours, reserving any excess marinade.

4 Heat the oil over a medium heat in a large saucepan and fry the chicken. When the chicken has colored, add the onion and tomatoes, and then fry for a couple of minutes until they soften.

5 Add the remainder of the marinade liquid, the stock, and about half of the beer. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Add the other half of the beer just before serving and decorate with a few cilantro (coriander) leaves.

6 Don’t drink this one with Gueuze—it may be cooked in it, but the beer doesn’t taste great with it. Instead, you want a Dark Lager or Witbier.

(*Recipe reproduced with permission from Beer and Food by Mark Dredge- Ryland Peters & Small, Dog & Bone imprint, Spring 2014- Food photography: William Lingwood)

Off to the Islands with Trinidadian Chicken from Caribbean Potluck (Kyle Books, May 2014) by Two Sisters and a Meal Suzanne Rousseau and Michelle Rousseau...

Trinidadian Chicken and Rice (Pelau)

Pelau will always remind us of our time living in Trinidad. This one-pot dish of chicken, rice, pigeon peas, coconut milk and vegetables is so good that you will keep eating it for days after it is made. This recipe calls for the quintessential “green seasoning” that is the basis of all Trini cooking; this amazing seasoning blend can be used as a marinade for many meats and as a flavor enhancer for many dishes.

This delicious recipe comes courtesy of our Trini friend Cree, who has saved our lives
with her incredible pelau on many occasions during Trinidad Carnival, when we roll in exhausted from a night of debaucherous behavior—and one too many glasses of rum. Thanks, Cree.

Serves 12

For the Trini-Style Green Seasoning

4 stalks scallion, chopped
1 bunch fresh thyme
2 bunches fresh chadon beni (culantro) or cilantro
1 bunch fresh parsley
12 cloves garlic, peeled
1 large yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped
1 Scotch bonnet (optional)
6 pimiento peppers
3 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon ketchup
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (3-pound) chicken, cut into parts
2 cups dried pigeon peas
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 cups canned coconut milk
2 cups parboiled rice, washed and drained
3⁄4 cup chopped onions
1 cup peeled and chopped calabaza pumpkin
1⁄2 cup peeled and chopped carrots
1 whole Scotch bonnet
1⁄2 cup sliced scallions

Method

1 To make the Trini-style green seasoning, puree the scallions, thyme, chadon beni, parsley, garlic, onion, Scotch bonnet, pimiento peppers, vinegar and oil in a blender. Remove to a baking dish and season with salt and pepper.

2 Add the soy sauce, ketchup and 1 tablespoon of the oil to the green seasoning. Season with salt and pepper, add the chicken and set aside while you cook the peas.

3 In a small pot, cover the peas with salted water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 30 to 35 minutes, until the peas are cooked. Drain the peas and reserve the cooking liquid.

4 Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a pot on medium heat; when the oil is hot, sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the base of the pot. Let the sugar melt and when it starts to bubble, add the chicken and sear it, turning often, until browned and coated with the “burnt” sugar, about
8 minutes. Add the peas and stir. Add 1 cup of the reserved cooking liquid and the coconut milk and cook for about 30 minutes.

5 Stir in the rice and up to another cup of the reserved cooking liquid as needed and bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 minutes, then add the onions, pumpkin, carrots and Scotch bonnet. Season with salt and pepper and simmer until much of the liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes. Cover
the pot and cook until all the liquid has evaporated, 30 to 40 minutes.

6 Serve garnished with the scallions.

(* Recipe excerpted from Caribbean Potluck by Suzanne Rousseau and Michelle Rousseau -Kyle Books, May 2014- Photography by Ellen Silverman- all rights reserved)

Happy New Year, Bonne Annee 2014!

Making banana resolutions will we easy to stick to with these Banana Recipes we shared in past 13 months.

Start with Breakfast on a Budget, Peanut Butter and Banana Muffins or Cake from 'Cook on a Shoestring' (Kyle Books USA, September 2013) by Sophie Wright.

For lunch, have some Cuban Rice with Banana, Chicken and Eggs from 'The Perfectly Roasted Chicken' (Kyle Books, June 2013, paperback edition) by Mindy Fox .

For a treat Lush Fried Sesame Seed Bananas, Sweet Snack from Burma, Rivers of Flavor (Artisan Books, October 2012) by Naomi Duguid .

Kicking off 2014 with easy fare.

First taste of The Perfectly Roasted Chicken (Kyle Books, June 2013, paperback edition) by  Mindy Fox    was Curried Chicken Salad with Golden Raisins, Lime and Honey let's move from India to Cuba.

Cuban Rice with Chicken

Serves 4

Some say this dish is from Cuba, others claim Spain. Either way, it’s one of the best brunches I know. The combination of sweet (from the skillet-cooked banana) and savory (chicken, rice, tomato sauce, and egg) may seem unusual, but, in fact, it works brilliantly. Serve this with a pot of café con leche. 

1 cup long-grain white rice

Fine sea salt

1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)

1 garlic clove, peeled

Sugar (optional)

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin

olive oil

2 large scallions, or 4 skinny ones, trimmed

and thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

Heaping 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin

11/2 cups small shreds roast chicken

2 large firm-ripe bananas

4 large eggs 

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the rice and 1/2 teaspoon salt, reduce to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Let the rice sit, uncovered for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. 

Drain the tomatoes, reserving the juices for another use. Combine the tomatoes and garlic in a blender and purée until the salsa is smooth. Add a pinch of sugar to sweeten, if desired. 

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add the scallions, oregano, and cumin. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 minute, then add the chicken and a pinch of salt, stir well, and cook for 1 minute more. Add to the rice and stir to combine. Adjust the seasoning, then cover to keep warm. 

Peel the bananas and cut them in half crosswise, then cut again in half  lengthwise. Wipe the skillet dry with a paper towel, then add 2 teaspoons oil and heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the banana pieces, flat-side down, and cook until browned, 2 to 3 minutes, then turn and cook for 30 seconds more. Transfer to a plate. 

Wipe the skillet dry and fry the eggs in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Season with salt and pepper. 

Spoon the rice onto 4 individual plates and top each with an egg. Serve with the bananas and salsa.

(* Recipe from 'The Perfectly Roasted Chicken' by Mindy Fox, published by Kyle Books, June 2013- photography by Ellen Silverman)

After sharing recipes for a few years, I thought it was time to find a way to allow visitors to the site to narrow their search.

We started today with 15 categories listed with their respective links in right column of 'Serge the Concierge' after mother category Recipes.

The 15 categories (listed in alphabetical order using model Recipes: Appetizers) are Appetizers, Baking, Chicken, Chocolate, Cocktails, Fish and Seafood, Gluten Free, Ice Cream and Sorbet, Lamb, Non Alcoholic Drinks, Pork, Salads, Soups, Vegan and last Vegetarian.

Some recipes like Chilled Tofu with Crunchy Baby Sardines are referenced in 2 (or more) groups for Tofu with Sardines both under Appetizers and Fish and Seafood.

So far about 40 to 50 recipes have been updated to reflect this friendlier way.

We will add the rest as quickly as we can and hope to be done by September 1st, 2013.

Let us know how you like the change.

(* Illustration is photo from Panelle, Sicilian Fritters, Gluten Free recipe from The Country Cooking of Italy by Colman Andrews- Chronicle Books, Fall 2011- reproduced with permission of the publisher- all rights reserved- Photography by Hirsheimer and Hamilton)

Spice up your Fathers Day with Ethiopian rooted recipe from The Hot Sauce Cookbook (Ten Speed Press, May 2013) by Robb Walsh.

Doro Wat 

Serves 4

¼ cup lemon juice

2 teaspoons salt, plus more as needed

4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs 
(about 2 pounds)

3 cups chopped onions

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon peeled, minced fresh ginger 
(½-inch piece)

Water (optional)

¼ cup butter

2 tablespoons paprika

1 cup berbere paste (page 115)

¾ cup chicken stock

¼ cup red wine

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled

Injera bread or hot cooked rice, to serve

Combine the lemon juice and salt in a large, nonreactive mixing bowl and stir until slightly dissolved. Add the chicken thighs, one at a time, dipping both sides of each piece in the marinade to coat. Cover and allow to marinate in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

While the chicken is marinating, purée the onions, garlic, and ginger in a food processor or blender. Add a little water, if necessary, to get the blades moving.

Heat the butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat and stir in the paprika to color the oil. Stir in the berbere paste and cook for 3 minutes, until heated through. Add the onion mixture 
and sauté until most of the moisture evaporates and the mixture reduces, about 15 minutes.

Pour in the stock and wine, add cayenne to taste, and season with salt and pepper. Remove the chicken from the lemon juice and discard the marinade. Add the chicken to the pot and cover with sauce. Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes, flipping the chicken halfway through. Add water, if necessary, to maintain the liquid level.

Add the whole hard-boiled eggs and continue 
to cook until the chicken is very tender, 10 to 
15 minutes. Adjust seasoning and serve hot 
with injera bread or rice.

Sik Sik Wat: Substitute cubes of beef stew meat for the chicken and cook until tender, which can take up to 45 minutes.

(*Reprinted with permission from The Hot Sauce Cookbook by Robb Walsh, copyright © 2013. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc. Food Photography credit: Todd Coleman © 2013)