Tom, Author at Cookhacker

Chicken Fried Rice – Simple, Quick and Easy

February 12, 2023January 14, 2025 Tom

Craving for some takeout but don’t want to leave the comfort of your own home? This chicken fried rice recipe is a great way to satisfy your cravings for Chinese-American takeout. With fluffy rice, tender chicken, and your favorite vegetables, this recipe can easily feed a family of four. Not only is it delicious and easy to make, but it’s also a healthier option than takeout, as you can control the ingredients and portion size.

To start, you’ll need 3 cups of cooked white rice, preferably chilled. If you have leftover rice from the day before, it’s perfect to use in this recipe. You’ll also need 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into small pieces, 1 cup of frozen peas and carrots, 1 cup of sliced mushrooms, 4 green onions thinly sliced, 3 cloves of minced garlic, 4 eggs, lightly beaten, 4 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce, and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. You can also add your favorite vegetables to the dish, such as bell peppers, broccoli, or water chestnuts. Please click the Read More for the printable recipe. Read More …

Easy Pork Fried Rice with Edamame, Corn, Broccoli and Carrots

February 21, 2020April 3, 2022 Tom

This Quick and Easy Pork Fried Rice with Edamame, Corn, Broccoli and Carrots has quickly become one of my favorite go-to recipes. I love to make this when I have leftover pork, especially the day after I make my equally simple and delicious Sous Vide Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin. In fact, when I make the Sous Vide Teriyaki Pork (and I love my Anova), I cook up a batch of white rice, let it cool and stick it in the refrigerator so it’s ready-to-go when I make this stir fry a day or two later. This dish, like all stir-fries, is better when made with day-old rice. A fresh batch of warm (or even lukewarm) rice tends not to fry well and can result in soggy, mushy sticky clumps (doesn’t that sound appetizing!). So leftover, well chilled refrigerated rice is definitely the way to go when making fried rice. If you’re in a rush and you crave pork fried rice tonight and you don’t have any leftover rice in the frig, just cook up some rice, spread it out on a baking sheet and stick in the refrigerator for an hour or so to let it dry out and chill.

As for the vegetables, the combination of edamame, corn, broccoli and carrots really works well together, but you can use pretty much whatever you have leftover in the refrigerator. This is a great dish for cleaning out the leftovers in your vegetable drawer. Just make sure that you cut the vegetables to roughly the same size so they cook evenly. And don’t forget the broccoli stalks. Peel them (or not) and slice them in quarter inch thick coins (or if their really big, half moons). I think a lot of people tend not to use the stalks, but they add a tasty, crispy crunch to the stir fry, or any dish for that matter. And if you have some frozen peas in the freezer, you can just toss in a handful when adding the other vegetables…no need to cook separately. Read More …

Instant Pot Spicy Asian Pulled Pork Shoulder

February 19, 2020March 19, 2023 Tom

This Instant Pot Spicy Asian Pulled Pork Shoulder is my new favorite Instant Pot dish. I have to give all the credit to the fabulous Melissa Clark for this great recipe. I don’t think this is technically a Korean dish, but I’ve labeled it as such because it uses gochujang, the inexpensive Korean chili paste that adds an incredible depth of flavors, on top of the tasty heat it adds to any dish. If you like things spicy, gochujang is like sriracha…it’s pretty much good on just about anything and is now available just about anywhere. The recipe also calls for gochugaru, Korean chili pepper flakes, which might be a little harder to find, but crushed red pepper flakes work almost as well.

This is one of those recipes that’s fun and easy to make, really hard to mess up and seems to come out great every time. You can serve like I have it pictured here, on rice topped with the pickled cucumbers, but it is also incredible on a Hawaiian-type slider roll (or any soft slider roll) with the the pickled cucumbers on top. You can also freeze any leftovers for when you need a quick fix of spicy barbecued pork. What I do is take 4-5 oz. portions and wrap them separately in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag and freeze. When I want some spicy pulled pork, I just pull one out of the freezer, pop it in the microwave for about a minute or two, and it’s ready to eat on some leftover rice or as a quick sandwich when you’re on-the-go. I’ve even wrapped it in a tortilla (talk about multi-cultural dining) and it was fantastic!

If you want some pulled pork that’s a little more American-style, try my Best Pulled Pork Sandwiches Ever!

Please check below for the Instant Pot Spicy Asian Pulled Pork Shoulder printable recipe. Read More …

Best Pulled Pork Sandwiches EVER! A Super Bowl Special!

January 31, 2020March 18, 2023 Tom

It’s that time of year and to me, Super Bowl means pulled pork sandwiches and a large batch of Oven Baked Chicken Wings…and oh yeah…almost forgot…an amazing football game (No Giants ’cause they sucked this year but I think it’s going to be a great game…Love Mahomes). I’m reprising this post (as I do every year about this time) because this is a great recipe for a Super Bowl party…slow-cooked, pulled pork sandwiches topped with my grandmother’s amazing Cole Slaw.

The best thing about this pork recipe is it’s done in a Crock-Pot slow cooker, so a lot of the cooking is hands-off, and it makes a ton of sandwiches for the party. The prep is really simple, the cooking is low and slow (it can be done overnight), the resulting flavors are incredible and, best of all, it makes dozens of sandwiches with very little effort…perfect for a party. And if any pork is left over (not likely) just divide it up into serving size portions (4-6 oz each), wrap in plastic wrap, stick in a freezer bag and freeze them. When you get that irresistible craving for a pulled pork sandwich, just pop one in the microwave for about 60 seconds, top it with some bbq sauce (I love Bullseye Original Flavor), put it in a lightly steamed bun, slap on some coleslaw and, in minutes, I guarantee you’ll be wallowing in the throes of pulled pork nirvana! It also works great in tacos, quesadillas and as a topping for nachos. And, if you still have room for dessert, you just gotta try these incredible Chocolate Chip Cookies…it’s the hand-chopped chocolate that sets them apart and makes them THE BEST!

Click here for Grandma Molly’s Legendary Homemade Cole Slaw recipe.

And just click Read More for this fantastic recipe!

Super Bowl Oven Baked Chicken Wings

January 31, 2020 Tom

Once again, It’s time for the annual repost of this great Super Bowl Oven Baked Chicken Wings Recipe (actually this is a much better version with updated recipe tips)…but first, the backstory. Back in 1976, I was working at The Foundry restaurant in DC and one of the waiters, Michael Murphy, who happened to be from Buffalo, told us of the amazingly simple way they prepared, of all things, chicken wings, up there at a place called the Anchor Bar. We started giving away the Buffalo Chicken Wings during Happy Hour and immediately the place became packed each day at around 4:45 pm with everyone waiting for the wings to come out of the kitchen…and the rest is culinary history. It seems that every bar today has chicken wings on the menu, and for good reason…when they’re made right, they’re incredibly and addictingly (if that’s even a word) good! They’re actually very simple to make…cut 12 wings into three pieces at the joints (discard the wing tips or keep them for preparing stock) and just deep fry the flats and drummettes for 10-12 minutes in 375 degree oil (preferably peanut) until they’re crispy and golden brown, toss them in Frank’s Red Hot Sauce and serve with celery and bleu cheese dressing…that’s it…nothing else is needed. The problem is that it’s really a pain (and a greasy mess) to deep fry at home, but there is a not-so-secret way to avoid that mess, while still getting that great Buffalo Chicken Wing crunch and flavor……just bake them in the oven.

But there are REAL SECRETS to making incredibly delicious Oven Baked Buffalo Wings, and here they are :

The Best and Easiest Chocolate Chip Cookies

December 17, 2019June 9, 2025 Tom

These simple, delicious cookies (from BraveTart) are not made with your standard, everyday chocolate chip morsels, but instead are chock full of coarsely hand-chopped chocolate bar pieces, so I guess technically, they should be called chocolate chunk cookies.They come out of the oven (which, by the way, is the best time to eat them) chewy with crispy crunchy edges. One of the best things about these cookies, besides the speed and simplicity of the preparation, is that you can use a wide variety of chocolates, any kind you like. For these, I chopped up a dark chocolate bar, a milk chocolate bar and milk chocolate with hazelnut bar. The cocoa butter in the chocolate bars thickens the dough and flavors it so the cookies don’t taste, and the dough doesn’t behave, the same as if store-bought chocolate chip morsels were used…and that’s a good thing because they end up tasting way better, with a great, but subtle, butterscotchy flavor. Read More …

Slow Cooker Asian Pork with Soba Noodles

October 11, 2019July 23, 2020 Tom

Spicy Slow Cooker Asian Pork with Soba Noodles…If you love Asian food like I do, but shy away from making it because you think it’s difficult and time-consuming to prepare, give this delicious Slow Cooker Asian Pork recipe a try. It’s very simple and comes together really quickly once the pork has cooked low and slow for about 4-7 hours, depending on if you use the low or high setting on your cooker. You can get the pork started in the morning and when dinner time comes around, you just quickly cook the soba noodles, heat everything together in a skillet and in 15-20 minutes, it’s ready to go.

Click Read More for the recipe!

Spicy Honey Sesame Chicken…An Instant Pot Miracle

March 31, 2019May 20, 2020 Tom

Instant Pot Spicy Honey Sesame Chicken…I’m becoming obsessed all over again with the Instant Pot and this recipe is as good as it gets. It’s a miracle because I can’t believe how easy it is to prep, how fast it cooks and how delicious it is. I’m still amazed how efficient this pressure cooker can be and how it can turn out great tasting dishes in a matter of minutes (not including the time it takes to get to pressure) with minimal prep…and clean-up is so easy.

The prep time on the Spicy Honey Sesame Chicken was about ten minutes and the actual cooking time was only 3-5 minutes. All-in-all, from start to finish, this was on the table in 30 minutes. It was as good as any take-out chicken I’ve ever had…just click the Read More below for the printable recipe.

And if you like quick and easy spicy chicken dishes with minimal clean-up, you’ll love my Easy Chicken Fajitas in Foil Packet.

One-Pan Chicken, Sausage and Brussels Sprouts

March 29, 2019May 20, 2020 Tom

This amazing One-Pan Chicken, Sausage and Brussels Sprouts recipe from SeriousEats, a fantastic one-skillet dish, is reprinted exactly as it is on Seriouseats because there was absolutely no need to change anything…it’s perfect as-is. If it’s not an original recipe I’m writing about, and I get it from someone else, I’ll give them credit and then I’ll usually tweak it, make some changes or substitutions to try and improve it, but I can’t imagine anything that would make this any better than it is.

The prep was easy, the chicken was moist with a crispy caramelized skin, the sausages were spicy (I used hot Italian sausages), the brussel sprouts had a savory, crunchy exterior, the shallots were perfect and clean-up (one pan!) was a breeze. Give this one a try…I can pretty much guarantee it will end up as one of your go-to dishes.

And if you own an Instant Pot you will want to try my Delicious Instant Pot Chicken Adobo…it’s another awesome quick and easy chicken dish.

Homemade Valentine’s Day Gift of Chocolate Love…Easy, Fun and Very Cool Chocolate Goody Bags

February 6, 2019December 17, 2019 Tom

This is one of the all-time great Valentine’s Day homemade gifts (and it’s not really a recipe…more like a veryÂ impressive technique). Although it might look like it’s hard to prepare, it really isn’t…and it’s a lot of fun to make.

Easy, fun and really impressive…the trifecta in homemade gift preparation!

1. Grab a few bulk coffee-bean bags from your grocery store (they are by the bulk coffee..and they’re FREE!). You need bags that are lined with a plastic coating so after being painted with chocolate, you can peel them off easily. Cut the coffee bags so they are about 3-5 inches tall.

2. Then, in a double boiler over low heat, melt 2-3 cups of semisweet chocolate morsels.

3. Lay a bag on its side, and with a pastry brush, start at the bottom and paint the melted chocolate over the entire interior of the bag. Use plenty of chocolate to get a nice thick layer coating the inside of the bag, which will make it less likely for the chocolate to break when peeling off the bag later. Repeat with additional bags.

4. Stand the bags up and place in the refrigerator to harden for at least 30 minutes and…. Read More …