Cart de Frisco Chicken Sandwich Imitation

This sandwich was a mainstay of my childhood. Anyone who grew up in my hometown knows this sandwich, and misses it. It was legendary and the true meaning of iconic. This chicken sandwich WAS our hometown in food. The chicken man stand has been missing for years, and this is the closest I have come to replicating the sandwich I remember. He was in business for 40 years and when I posted a picture of my version to a hometown facebook page, everyone knew exactly what I was trying to re-create. Long live the Chicken Man Sandwich!

P.S. Most of this is preparation and assembling. The original sandwich had the scallions in one inch strips, but I prefer them cut more finely. Do as you like. You can use 1/2 a cup of hoisin sauce and add a tablespoon of brown sugar, and skip the plum sauce, rather than the mix I use below. Try it both ways and see which you like better.

Marinade:
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup lime juice
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons garlic ginger paste
1 tablespoon sesame oil
4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs

Peanut Sauce:
1/3 cup natural peanut butter (if you use commercial, sweetened peanut butter, omit the brown sugar)
3 tablepoons lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sambal oelek
1 - 2 tablespoons hot water
2 teaspoons brown sugar

Hoisin Sauce:
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
2 tablespoons plum sauce

Slaw:
3 cups finely shredded cabbage (I like 2/3 green and 1/3 red, no more than half and half)
2 LARGE carrots, peeled and shredded
2 bunches scallions, cut in thin 1-inch strips or finely chopped
1 bunch cilantro, minced

8 onion or sesame buns

Mix the marinade incredients in a large bowl and coat the chicken with it, cover and turn chicken over in marinade a few times an hour for one to two hours (or overnight in the refrigerator).

Whisk together the peanut sauce until smooth, if it seems too thick, add another tablespoon of water. Set aside.

Mix together hoisin sauce in a small bowl and set aside.

Toss cabbage, carrots, scallions, and cilantro in a bowl, and set aside.

Grill chicken until just cooked through. Allow to rest for 5 minutes. While chicken is resting, grill the insides of your buns. Spread about a tablespoon of the hoisin sauce on the bottom bun, top with chopped chicken and a heaping scoop of the slaw, spread about a tablespoon of the peanut sauce on the top bun and cover the sandwich. Serve with extra sauce on the side, along with loads of napkins.

Sujuk

Sujuk is a sausage eaten all around the Arab world, and other parts of Southwest Asia and North Africa. It is made in bulk, as I am doing here, and in casings as fresh sausage, as well as in casings and smoked. It is delicious. If you are there, don't get the imitations of Western Sausages. Eat this instead. It is generally made with lamb, but can be made with beef, as well. It is wonderful pan fried, grilled as kofta, or baked.

1 pound ground lamb or beef
3 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon smoked hot paprika
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander 1 teaspoon flake salt
1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (Ceylon, or true, cinnamon, if you can)
1/4 teaspoon ground clove
4 cloves garlic, grated or crushed

Place meat in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, place cold water, and bloom spices in the water. Scrape into the meat. Add the garlic to the meat. Mix all ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Cover and let rest in the refrigerator overnight, then either package for the freezer or use.

Arabian Nights Chantilly Cream

This is the whipped cream Rich and the kids used on my Mother's Day cake. It is light and delicious and can be used on many desserts, or to top your coffee desserts.

2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons rosewater
1 tablespoon orange blossom water

Combine all the ingredients and either whip by hand or machine to soft, fluffy peaks. Eat with pleasure.

Labels: Homemaking, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

// posted by Ranee @ Arabian Knits @ 6:57 PM