No more chickening out, part II: chicken thighs with honey, soy, lime and "the secret ingredient"

You know, Annalena has been very clear that frequently, recipes aren't.  She continues to feel that way. A truly good recipe should let you know, for example, that there is no substitute for an ingredient, or that you CAN try other things.  Undoubtedly, the more adventurous and experienced among us will say that making the substitutions is what all the fun is about, and   indeed, it is.  But how does the old saying go?  Or if it doesn't it should:  "you have to learn the rules before you can break the rules."  And sometimes, following the rules will give you something that is really wonderful and you may not ever want to stray.

Annalena does try to provide you with that information  when she writes these things, but if you ever have a question about whether or not she thinks a substitution will work,  please ask her.

The recipe which follows, contains what Annalena thinks is an essential ingredient.  She has anise seeds in her pantry at all times.  Not everyone does.  If you want to make this recipe, get a small jar:  it won't be expensive.  Anise has a lot of uses, and the amounts we will be using here, will have minimal "overly licorice" flavor.  Indeed, Annalena was hard pressed to find the licorice in the recipe, but she can say that the dish had a truly wonderful kind of subtle "umami" to it.   And for those of you unfamiliar with the term, look it up.  (No jokes about, No, YOU mami please).

The original recipe called for four pounds of chicken thighs.  It gave no details on boneless, skinless, etc, which always irks Annalena.  On finishing the recipe, and seeing what the pictures of the recipe revealed, clearly thighs on the bone, and with the skin, were intended.  The recipe did NOT say that.  Use em if you got em.  Annalena had boneless thighs, with a little skin on them, and they were fine.

You need soy sauce and here, use low salt, shoyu, or any type you have.  And, finally, the lime juice.  Now here's a difficult one:  Annalena would call this essential, but she could be wrong (it does happen).  So if you find yourself bereft of limes, try a mix of orange and lemon. Pure orange is probably too sweet, and pure lemon is probably too sour (Hmmm... Is there a Goldilocks and the Three Bears out there for citrus farmers?  She invokes the  Bomb on this).    Finally, do use the honey.  But use a mild one.  No buckwheat honey here, ragazzi.  And if you are upset at what honey production does to bees, you could use rice syrup.  Now, let's get to work.


Get two teaspoons of whole anise seeds, and crush them.  The original called for toasting, but this is a step that is a little tricky, and not necessary.  Crush them, simply, by pressing on them with a rolling pin or another heavy object.  Put them in a cup container, together with a quarter cup of fresh lime juice, a quarter cup of soy sauce, and two tablespoons of honey.  Mix that all together.  Now, chop up four large cloves of garlic, or perhaps a small bunch of green garlic at this time of year.  Add that, too.  Put that all in a bowl.  Add your chicken thighs.  Use your hands, and mix this all together, wash  up, and then cover the bowl of chicken and refrigerate it for at least a few hours.  Overnight is better.


When you're ready to cook, line a baking sheet with tin foil (don't leave this out), and preheat your oven to 450.  Don't be afraid.  You want some carmelization.  If you do have skin on your chicken thighs, put the skin side down.  Let the suckers cook for about twenty minutes (if they are on the bone), or fifteen (if they are not).  Then, turn them over and cook for the same length of time.

Have a plate ready for the chicken, as well as a small pot.  Protect your hands here, ragazzi, because you're going to first, move the chicken to the plate, and then pour the juices off into a pot.  If you did use thighs with a lot of skin, you will get fat coming to the surface, and try to blot as much of that off as possible.  Then, bring the juices to a  gentle boil, for about 3-5 minutes.  You will wind up with a light syrup, that you pour over that chicken, to intensify the flavor.

The result of all of this, ragazzi, is a delicious,  distinctly Asian chicken dish that cries for plain rice, or glass noodles.  Get to it.  Don't be a chicken.

Yes, she had to say it.