INGREDIENTS

Making homemade brownies isn’t as hard as you would think. It starts with quality ingredients and the perfect blend of dry and wet ingredients. For this recipe, we will be using: flour, sugar, unsweetened cocoa powder, butter, eggs, chocolate chips, vanilla, salt, oil and baking soda. All items most, if not all, people have in their kitchen at any given time, so its perfect!

BROWNIE BATTER
In a large bowl, mix together warm melted butter and sugar. You want the butter to be warm to help dissolve some of the sugar crystals so you end up with a smooth batter. You will need two whole eggs and one egg yolk. As you are mixing, whisk in the two eggs one at a time, adding the egg yolk last. Next, stir in the vanilla extract and vegetable oil.

 Once incorporated, mix in the cocoa powder. This is when your batter will start to look delicious! The cocoa powder is the first dry ingredient you will add and has the most influence over the final taste of your brownies. A high quality cocoa powder will lead to a deeper chocolate flavor.

Mix the cocoa powder in until smooth.

Next, switch to a spatula to mix in the dry ingredients. Add in the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. Gently folding in the ingredients from the bottom. Be careful not to over mix at this step, you don’t want tough brownies! Remember, we’re aiming for soft and chewy!

Next, gently fold in the chocolate chips. Finally, transfer the brownie batter to a 9×9 baking pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Top with additional chocolate chips and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until the edges are set and a cake test is successfully performed at the center of the brownies.
TIP: A cake test is when you insert a toothpick at the center of the pan and it comes back clean or with pieces of cake attached. If there is any uncooked batter left on the toothpick, return to oven for 5 additional minutes. Be careful not to overcook at this point, since the brownies will continue to cook as they cool.

Let it cool completely before cutting and serving. They will last for up to a week in an airtight container.

But good luck keeping them around for that long, lol. They are perfect, chewy, moist, and chocolaty!

Thanks for stopping by! Drop a comment if you give this recipe a try! Don’t forget sharing is caring!

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*

See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!

Ingredients

The ingredients listed for this recipe are really easy to find! In Japanese cooking, the ingredients are usually simple with the method of bringing them together being the difference maker. For this recipe, the star is the potato flour. Fried chicken has got to have a nice crispy and light coating and that’s exactly what the potato flour does! Now if you can’t find potato flour, cornstarch is a great alternative.

The Marinade

In a large bowl, add the chicken pieces, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar (or sake), soy sauce, sesame oil, white pepper and salt. Today, we’re using boneless chicken thighs like most karaage recipes call for. Feel free to use skin-less chicken breast as well. Traditional, the recipe uses sake but today I’m using rice vinegar as a replacement. I’ve found that this blend comes together so well in the end. The flavors work in layers so one is not overpowering the other but working together. It’s amazing! Mix thoroughly, and marinate for at least one hour but no more than 24 hours since some of the ingredients are acidic.

The Dipping Sauce

for the bang bang sauce, in a bowl mix together the mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. Set aside until ready to serve. Really simple, but it’s mind-blowing! Goes well with pretty much anything that is fried. 

Crispy Coating

After marinating, sprinkle in the potato flour (or cornstarch) a tablespoon at a time until the chicken pieces are coated lightly.

The coating should be a really light batter, mostly dry but not saturated with flour like normal fried chicken.

Tip: if you notice the coating is more on the wet side, add a small amount of potato flour or cornstarch to balance it out. This is the most important step and the secret to making karaage chicken. So take your time to make sure you get the right coating. 

Let’s Get Golden

Today I’m using a small deep fryer and I highly recommend it! Easy clean up and you get that overall crispiness you’d get at a restaurant at home! I’ve also included how to cook the karaage on the stove in the recipe below!

Fill your deep fryer to max line with vegetable oil and get temperature to 300 degrees. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the frying basket and fry for 5-7 minutes.

Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to 350 and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.

Using the double fry method allows you to cook the chicken during the first fry at a lower temperature while still remaining juicy. The second fry at a higher temperature is solely meant to get the exterior golden brown and crispy.

Transfer to a cooling rake until you are ready to serve.
Garnish with green onions, lemon wedges and a side of dipping sauce.
There you have it, Karaage (Japanese fried chicken)!

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*

See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!

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Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)

My take on a Japanese classic! Flavorful and juicy bite size pieces of chicken fried golden brown. Served with a simple and amazing dipping sauce.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Japanese

Keyword Karaage (Japanese fried chicken)

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Marinating time 1 hour hour

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author kingcooks

Ingredients

Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)

• 2 lbs. boneless chicken thigh cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup potato flour or cornstarch
• 1 tbsp. ginger grated
• 1 tbsp. garlic grated
• 1 tsp. sake or rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• ½ tsp. white pepper
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 2 cups vegetable oil for frying
• 2 lemons cut into wedges

For Garnish

• 1/4 cup cup green onion chopped

Bang Bang Sauce

• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ¾ cup sweet chili sauce

Instructions

Bang Bang Sauce

• In a bowl mix together the mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce. Set aside until ready to serve.

Karaage (Japanese Fried Chicken)

• In a large bowl, add the chicken pieces, ginger, garlic, rice vinegar (or sake), soy sauce, sesame oil, white pepper and salt.
• Mix thoroughly, and marinate for at least one hour but no more than 24 hours since some of the ingredients are acidic.
• After marinating, sprinkle in the potato flour (or cornstarch) a tablespoon at a time until the chicken pieces are coated lightly. The coating should be mostly dry but not saturated with flour like normal fried chicken.
• If using a deep fryer: fill to max line and get temperature to 300 degrees. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the frying basket and fry for 5-7 minutes. Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to 350 and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
• If frying on the stove: add about an inch of oil to a deep frying pan over medium heat. Working in batches, add in a few pieces of chicken, being careful not to over crowd the pan and fry for 5-7 minutes.
• Once all pieces go through the first fry, raise the temperature to high heat and fry for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown.
• Transfer to a cooling rake until you are ready to serve.
• Garnish with green onions, lemon wedges and a side of dipping sauce. 
Enjoy!

It’s What’s Inside That Counts
In a medium sized bowl, add in the cream cheese, sugar, and the crushed lady fingers.

Mix thoroughly until fully combined. To crush lady fingers, simply add the cookies to a food processor or a blender, and pulse until cookies turn into a fine powder.

Next, add 1 tbsp. of coffee and mix until the filling turns light brown. Sprinkle in 2 tbsp. of instant coffee crystals and fold into the filling.

The filling should feel solid in texture like cookie dough. The instant coffee crystals are the secret weapon for these truffles.

They spread throughout the filling adding little pops of coffee flavor in each bite.

Time to Chill
Refrigerate the filling for 10 minutes.
Once chilled, form filling into 1 inch balls and dip into the remaining coffee and set on a baking sheet.

Dipping it into the coffee ensures that the coffee flavor doesn’t get lost once the truffle balls are coasted with chocolate.
Repeat until all the filling is gone. You should end up with 10-12 balls.

Chill for 10 more minutes.

During this time, mix together ½ tbsp. of instant coffee crystals and 1/2 tbsp. cocoa powder and set aside.
This will create the perfect combo and aroma for the truffles right before taking a bite.

The Final Dip
Melt chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each interval until smooth.

Dip each chilled ball into the melted chocolate and transfer to a baking sheet.Repeat this until all the balls are coated with chocolate. Once done, chill for an additional 5 minutes.

Right before serving, dust each truffle with the cocoa powder/coffee crystal mix.

Enjoy!

Keep extras refrigerated, they should last up to one week.

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!

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Tiramisu Truffles

Creamy filling with a pleasurable hint of coffee and chocolate, known best from traditional tiramisu, rolled up into the perfect bite-size snack.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Keyword tiramisu, truffles

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Resting Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Author kingcooks

Ingredients

• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 ½ cups 12 ladyfinger cookies, crushed into fine powder
• 1 ½ cups milk chocolate melted
• 2 tbsp. coffee
• 2 1/2 tbsp. instant coffee crystals
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tbsp. cocoa powder

Instructions

• n a medium sized bowl add in the cream cheese, sugar, and the crushed lady fingers. Mix thoroughly until fully combined.
• Tip: to crush lady fingers, simply add the cookies into a food processor or a blender, and pulse until cookies turn into a fine powder.
• Next, add 1 tbsp. coffee and mix until the filling turns light brown. Sprinkle in 2 tbsp. instant coffee crystals and fold into the filling. The filling should feel solid in texture like cookie dough.
• Refrigerate the filling for 10 minutes.
• Once chilled, form filling into 1 inch balls and dip into remaining coffee and set on a baking sheet. Repeat until all of the filling is gone. You should end up with 10-12 balls.
• Chill for an additional 10 minutes.
• During this time, mix together ½ tbsp. instant coffee crystals and cocoa powder and set aside.
• Melt chocolate in the microwave in 30 second intervals stirring after each interval until smooth.
• Dip each chilled ball into the melted chocolate and transfer it to a baking sheet. Repeat until all the truffle balls are coated with chocolate. Chill for an additional 5 minutes.
• Before serving, dust each truffle with the cocoa powder/coffee crystal mix.

Notes

Keep extras refrigerated, they should last up to one week.

The post Tiramisu Truffles first appeared on kingcooks.]]> 2928 https://www.kingcooks.com/easy-garlic-parmesan-knots/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=easy-garlic-parmesan-knots Sat, 05 Jan 2019 23:56:02 +0000 http://www.kingcooks.com/?p=2854 Back at it again with another keeper! This time we are making the easiest garlic knots in 30 minutes, using only 2 ingredients to make the dough. Once baked to golden brown deliciousness, the knots are smothered with garlic parmesan butter…Sounds crazy, but it’s all […]

Back at it again with another keeper! This time we are making the easiest garlic knots in 30 minutes, using only 2 ingredients to make the dough. Once baked to golden brown deliciousness, the knots are smothered with garlic parmesan butter…Sounds crazy, but it’s all facts!

Ingredients
Simple enough, the dough only takes 2 ingredients to make! It consists of self-rising flour and Greek yogurt. You only need garlic, parmesan, butter, parsley, and salt to make that amazing garlic parmesan butter.

Making the Dough
Set oven to 400 F.
In a large bowl, combine the flour and greek yogurt. Mix with a spoon or fork until the flour and yogurt are incorporated. Transfer to a lightly floured surface. With dry hands, knead into a smooth ball.
If the dough is sticky, sprinkle with a bit of flour as you’re kneading or rub some flour on your hands. It’s going to come together fairly quickly!

Tying the Knot
Once you’ve kneaded the dough into a smooth ball, divide it into 8 equal pieces and roll each piece into strips and tie them into individual knots.
 Be careful during this step – the dough is soft, so slow and steady will get you the best results!
I opted to just make 8 because I wanted them to be on the larger side but this will work with different counts as well.

Place each the knot into a lightly greased baking dish or on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle a little olive oil over each knot.
I like to use a baking dish just so I get that pull apart goodness when it’s time to serve. But the recipe will work great either way.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Liquid Gold
While the knots are baking to golden perfection, add the melted butter and garlic to a small bowl.
Next, mix in the parsley, parmesan cheese, and add a pinch of salt. Whisk ingredients together and set aside until you’re ready to serve.

Meet The Garlic Knots
Once the knots are golden brown and out of the oven, brush with the garlic parmesan butter and top with additional parmesan cheese.

Serve immediately and enjoy!

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*
See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!

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Easy Garlic Parmesan Knots

Garlic knots in 30 minutes??? That's right! The dough is made with just 2 ingredients and smothered with garlic parmesan butter. Guaranteed to please even the pickiest eater.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Author kingcooks

Ingredients

2 Ingredient Dough:

• 1 1/2 cup self-rising flour
• 1 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt

Garlic Parmesan Butter:

• 1 stick of butter
• 2 tbsp. garlic minced
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
• ½ tbsp. parsley chopped, dry or fresh
• Salt to taste

Instructions

2 Ingredient Dough:

• Set oven to 400 F.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour and greek yogurt. Mix with a spoon or fork until the flour and yogurt are incorporated. With dry hands, knead into a smooth ball. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and divide into 8 equal pieces.
• Tip: if the dough is sticky, sprinkle the dough and the surface with a bit of flour as you’re kneading.
• Roll each piece into strips and tie into individual knots.
• Place the knots into a lightly greased baking dish or baking sheet.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

Garlic Parmesan Butter:

• As the knots are baking, add melted butter and garlic to a small bowl.
• mix in the parsley, parmesan cheese, and the salt. Whisk ingredients together and set aside until you're ready to serve.
• Once the knots are out of the oven, brush with the garlic parmesan butter and top with additional parmesan cheese.
• Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by! Drop a comment if you give this recipe a try! Don’t forget sharing is caring!

The post Easy Garlic Parmesan Knots first appeared on kingcooks.]]> 2854 https://www.kingcooks.com/creamy-bacon-green-bean-casserole/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=creamy-bacon-green-bean-casserole Sat, 17 Nov 2018 00:05:21 +0000 http://www.kingcooks.com/?p=2963 Hi everybody! So, here I am thinking… hmmm? How can I put an imprint on thanksgiving this year? Then it hit me! How about I take a classic side dish that’s somewhat boring and turn it into something memorable. That’s when my deep rooted love […]

The post Creamy Bacon Green Bean Casserole first appeared on kingcooks.]]> Hi everybody! So, here I am thinking… hmmm? How can I put an imprint on thanksgiving this year? Then it hit me! How about I take a classic side dish that’s somewhat boring and turn it into something memorable. That’s when my deep rooted love for all things bacon came into play :). So I took boring ol’ green bean casserole and dressed it up with crispy bacon, fresh green beans, mushrooms and my own cream sauce and made it a hit! Let’s dive into this one; you’re going to love it!
Ingredients

So to get started, I wanted to get away from the canned goodness that is cream of mushroom soup and share how easy it is to make your own cream sauce! When you decide to use fresher produce, you get to adjust the taste to your liking and make things taste even better. And it’s just as convenient! I used fresh green beans and mushrooms as well, to add a vibrant bite to the dish. Once you make the switch you will never go back! And last but not least: Bacon! You can never go wrong with crispy and delicious bacon. Adding some protein gives this casserole legs to stand on its own.

 

Start with Bacon
First things first, you want to start with the bacon so you can use the natural grease instead of having to add oil to the pan.

Preheat oven to 350F. In a large skillet over medium heat, add in the chopped bacon and cook until crispy. Once cooked, transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside. Reserve half of the bacon grease in the pan.

 

Taste the Difference

Then you will add into the pan the diced mushrooms, garlic, and butter, and sauté until golden brown. Next, add in the flour and stir to combine and allow to cook for 30 seconds or so, while continuously stirring to prevent burning. By adding the flour you’re making a roux to help thicken and keep your cream sauce together while it bakes.

Add in the green beans and salt and pepper to taste and mix thoroughly. Cook for 6-8 minutes. This helps wilt the green beans a little before baking. You can also cut the green beans into small pieces if you’d like.

Fresh green beans give this casserole dish body and a nice chew when it’s done baking. At times, canned green beans can turn a little mushy after baking. So you can avoid that altogether by using fresh green beans :).

Finally, add in the cream and half of the cooked bacon. Mix thoroughly and transfer to a baking dish.

 

Baked Goodness
Top with mozzarella cheese, the rest of the cooked bacon, half of the fried onions, oregano, and top it with a drizzle of olive oil.

Allow to bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and bubbling.

Once it’s out of the oven, top with remaining fried onions. 

Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

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Creamy Bacon Green Bean Casserole

A thanksgiving staple and classic! This is my twist on green bean casserole, which proves that adding cream, bacon and cheese to anything makes it 10x better!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 10

Author kingcooks

Ingredients

• 1 ½ lbs. green beans
• 1 cup bacon chopped
• 2 1/2 cup mushrooms diced
• 1 cup French fried onions
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
• 1 tbsp. butter
• 1 tbsp. flour
• 1 tbsp. garlic minced
• 1 tbsp. oregano dried
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 F.
• In a large skillet over medium heat, add in chopped bacon and cook until crispy. Once golden, transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside. Reserve half of the bacon grease in the pan.
• Add in the diced mushrooms, garlic, and butter, and sauté until golden brown. Next add in the flour and stir to combine and allow to cook for 30 seconds or so, while continuously stirring to prevent burning.
• Add in the green beans and add salt and pepper to taste, mix thoroughly. Cook for 6-8 minutes.
• Add in the cream and half of the cooked bacon. Mix thoroughly and transfer to a baking dish.
• Top with shredded mozzarella cheese, the rest of the cooked bacon, half of the fried onions, oregano, and top with a drizzle of olive oil.
• Allow to bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and bubbling.
• Once out of the oven, top with remaining fried onions.
• Let it cool for a few minutes before serving and enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by! Drop a comment if you give this recipe a try! Don’t forget sharing is caring!

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*
See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!

The post Creamy Bacon Green Bean Casserole first appeared on kingcooks.]]> 2963

Creamy Yogurt Sauce

In a bowl, mix together the greek yogurt, green onion, 1 clove of garlic (grated), salt and pepper to taste.

Set aside. The longer it sits, the better it is! so make it first and let the magic happen.

Dried Herb Oil

In a bowl, mix together 2 tbsp of olive oil, dried oregano, 1 clove of garlic (grated), dried rosemary, dried parsley, and dried thyme.


Stir and set aside.

Smashed Potatoes
In a large stock pot, add all the potatoes and fill with water until the water is about an inch above the potatoes. Bring to a boil until the potatoes are easily pierced with a fork. That should take about 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of your potatoes.

Once done, drain and set aside on a plate lined with paper towels to remove additional moisture. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

Using a flat bottom object (such as a plate or cup), one at a time, press down gently on each potato until they are about 1/4″ and transfer to a baking sheet. Be careful not to push to far so the potatoes stay intact.

Brush the top of each potato with the dried herb oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook in the oven at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.
Once done, carefully flip each potato and brush the other side with the dried herb oil, and return to the oven for an additional 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are crisp and golden brown.

Once golden brown, serve immediately. Top with the creamy yogurt sauce and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, or serve as a dipping sauce.

Enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by! Drop a comment if you give this recipe a try! Don’t forget sharing is caring!

*On Pinterest? Click the pic below to pin!*

See how easy that was?!? Until next time, cook like a king!