HAWAIIAN CHICKEN?

An article in Mishpacha magazine gives a recipe for 'Hawaiian Chicken', which is a beloved Ashkenazi staple that originates with Moses coming down from Mount Sinai, or with the crowd of idol worshippers at the foot of the mountain. Or the Erev Rav. Or even the Egyptians, gottenyu. In any case it's ancient. Nineteen seventies or something.


HAWAIIAN CHICKEN
Recipe by Rivky Kleiman

1 medium onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 yellow pepper, cut into large chunks
1 red pepper, cut into large chunks
1 14-oz (400-g) can jellied or whole-berry cranberry sauce
1 20-oz (570-g) can pineapple chunks
1 cup orange juice
¼ cup brown sugar
6 chicken thighs
salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika, to taste
¼ cup water
2 Tbsp cornstarch

Place onion, garlic, and peppers on the bottom of the slow cooker. Whisk together cranberry sauce, pineapple chunks with liquid, orange juice, and brown sugar. Pour mixture over the vegetables and mix well.

If you can, brown the chicken thighs on both sides for 3–5 minutes in a frying pan set over high heat. (This step is optional but recommended, as it will yield less oil accumulation.) Lay the chicken thighs over the vegetable mixture. Season to taste with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. Baste with the cranberry-pineapple mixture. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 3 hours.

Combine the water and cornstarch in a small cup and mix well. Add to the slow cooker and cook an additional 30 minutes.


[SOURCE: SLOW COOKER HAWAIIAN CHICKEN - MISHPACHA]


I am not a fan of cranberry sauce, and pineapple chunks have their place in Vietnamese soup, or on late night pizza for drunkards (though frequently served at office get-togethers when many suburbanites work for the company), and also in Ananas Ka Muzaffar.
And nowhere else.

But I do have an abiding love for freaky food from the past. So I am torn. Much like with 'Flygande Jacob', a Swedish casserole dish that also dates from the long-haired period (featuring bananas, chicken, bacon, and peanuts), I am fascinated.

The sheer amount of sweetness included in the recipe above is cause for worry, though. Diabetes much?


Confession: Often I add a generous splash of orange juice to stews and braised dishes when a touch of citrus seems called for. It's easier than stocking lemon or lime.

Traditional Ashkenazic cuisine, like Swedish and other Scandinavian food, is somewhat frightening. What they do to herring is sheer heresy. About which we shall not speak.



Cranberry sauce, like sugar and bellpepper, is a traditional Hawaiian ingredient.
It belongs on pizza.




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