Asian Chicken & Mushroom Rotini

Directions:

1.      Boil water in a large steel container with lid. Throw in a few pinches of sea salt and some olive oil.  When water comes to boil, pour in the pasta and cook under lowest heat with lid on. Stir it occasionally to avoid pasta getting stuck to each other. Pasta should be done in 10 minutes under low heat, but it is a good idea to check one to make sure it is done. Do not overcook pasta because while sautéing later it can stick to the container. Also, since we already added salt while boiling the water, there will be no need to add more salt later for pasta. Once pasta is done (while cooking other ingredients), strain it in a colander and stop cooking the pasta by rinsing in cold water. Then strain further and keep it away for later.

2.      The chicken thighs (or breasts) can be either baked in presence of an oven or sautéed on a ceramic skillet. Thighs are preferred because they remain soft after cooking, whereas breast pieces tend to become tough. Soft pieces of cooked chicken in this dish will create the right balance in texture with other ingredients. Use garlic powder (or fresh crushed garlic), cumin powder, paprika, some black pepper and sea salt to season the chicken. Bake in an oven or sauté in olive oil. The chicken needs to be shredded after baking, or else sauté thinly sliced chicken pieces. These spices can be replaced or other kinds can be added to enrich the ultimate flavor. Red crushed pepper and black pepper can be added to spice it up as well.   

3.      Shiitake mushroom is commonly used in Asian cuisines. It is chewy and has a nice intrinsic flavor. Thinly slice the mushrooms and sauté in olive oil till it turns light brown. Other kinds of mushrooms can be used instead, but then the particular texture and taste of shiitake will be missing, which is a key component in this dish.

4.      Once chicken and mushrooms are sautéed separately, mix them together. Add in chopped onion, green onion and matchstick carrots and sauté further in sesame oil and soya sauce. Sesame oil provides its dark color and aroma into the dish. Add in cooked pasta and sauté the mixture for 5-10 minutes.

This Asian chicken & mushroom rotini dish can be served as it is or with leafy green salad, baguette and olive oil on the side. The tri-color rotini goes well and looks colorful in this dish. However, other kinds of pasta may also be used instead. Enjoy with more crushed red pepper and hot sauce depending on your heat index!