Crockpot recipe: Thai Chicken Thighs

One of my best friends, named Dave, recently told me that he got a new crockpot (his first) and needed some good recipes. I had intended on getting him started with some very simple recipes like chili, but I got inspired to try something a little more advanced tonight, so I'll post this recipe:



Spicy Thai Crockpot Chicken

Now Dave, I know you're a beginner, but I just finished making this dish and I assure you that there is nothing difficult involved. The only thing that might scare some people away is that some of the ingredients are a little unknown. Dave, I promise you that if you try this recipe, you'll totally impress your girlfriend and you'll have absolutely NO trouble with it whatsoever. Have faith!

Ingredients:

10 boneless skinless chicken thighs (I bought with skin and removed it myself)
1 red pepper sliced in thin slices
Juice of 1 lime
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 scallions (green onions), sliced thinly
1/2 bottle (about 1 cup) of peanut sauce (or 1 cup of real peanut butter)
1 cup chicken stock (I used water and chicken powder....yeah yeah...the fake stuff!)
1 skinny red chili pepper, diced finely
2 stalks of lemongrass, hard outer skin and bottom 2 inches of white bulb removed and minced finely (don't kill yourself with this, just do your best)
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup of good soy sauce (not the cheap American stuff...invest in a good bottle for $1.50 extra!)
2 tablespoons of fresh ginger, minced

Method:

1. Place chicken thighs in the crockpot,

2. Mix all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and stir together, then pour on top of chicken,

3. Cook in crockpot on low for 6-8 hours.

That's right, ONLY 2 EASY STEPS, AND THEN TURN ON THE CROCKPOT!!!

If you really want to impress, sprinkle chopped peanuts and chopped cilantro (just a little of each) on each plate once served, and serve with wedges of lime. This can be served with steamed rice of Asian noodles.

Now, one feature of this blog which I like to offer my readers, is a list of the ingredients that I believe can be left out altogether without completely ruining the recipe. Some people may be happy to know that, for this recipe, some of the more 'scary' (read: unknown) ingredients are the ones that are somewhat optional. In this case, I'd say you could still make a really great dish if you left out the lemongrass and red chili (in fact, you SHOULD leave this out if you don't like spicy food).

What about possible additions? I think I might try this recipe again and use fresh mushrooms, green pepper, broccoli florets, coconut milk and/or cashews.

Dave, call me if you need any help, oh, and make sure you have a good knife to do all the cutting!