8 Chicken Dishes From Around The World
In terms of consumption, chicken is one of the most popular meats in the entire world. Its popularity is due to its mild flavour and ease of preparation. Chicken farming is inexpensive in comparison with other meats, making chicken a good budget food choice that is consistently available throughout the world. The white meat of chicken is also considered much healthier than the red meats such as beef which are linked to health concerns.
With chicken being so popular it is unsurprising that most cuisines around the world have a good selection of interesting and tasty chicken dishes. Here are just 8 possibilities that take you around the globe.
- Thailand – Chicken And Peanut Noodles
This dish is very versatile and can be cooked in the slow cooker in advance making it very convenient as an evening meal.
To make chicken and peanut noodles you simply need to combine salsa with peanut butter and black bean and soy sauces and add this to cooked mushrooms, cooked noodles of your choice and chunks of browned-off chicken. This will give you a tasty dish that is simple and mild and that embraces the flavours and textures of Thai food.
- Japan – Yakatori Chicken
Traditional yakatori chicken is cooked over small charcoal grills which give it a lovely smoky charred flavour. ‘Yakatori’ means grilled and yakatori chicken is often eaten as a side dish, it is a popular street food in Japan. It is served on skewers and coated in a marinade of teriyaki sauce. The skewers make it ideal for street food as it is convenient to serve and eat it.
Yakatori chicken can be served with rice, salad, or vegetables and eaten as a main dish or it can be added to wraps and pittas for an on-the-go snack.
- Italy – Chicken Risotto
Italy is known for giving us so many popular foods from pasta dishes to pizza, but risotto is perhaps one of the best dishes that Italy has given to the world.
Rice dishes originated in Spain and Italy during the middle ages and Italy takes some of the credit for rice becoming such a popular food item around the world.
Risotto is made with a specific type of rice that releases creamy starches as it is cooked in liquid. This is what makes risotto so creamy without the need for adding cream or dairy to it. Risotto rice is cooked slowly in a broth or stock, for a chicken risotto a chicken stock would work best. The rice needs to be agitated throughout the cooking time to encourage the release of the starch and help it cook through.
Chicken can be pre-browned and then added to the risotto where the flavour of it will soak into the risotto rice. Onions, garlic and other vegetables or meats can be added alongside the chicken making it a very versatile chicken dish.
- Spain – Chicken Paella
Whilst Italy is known for risotto Spain is known for Paella. Paella is especially associated with the Valencia region of Spain, and it takes its name from paellera, which is the pan that the whole dish is cooked in. The paellera is flat and round with two handles and the paella is both cooking and served from the pan.
Paella is typically made with rice, chicken, saffron and vegetables. The vegetables can be varied according to the season and what is available. The rice for a paella needs to be an absorbent short grain rice so that it holds its shaped while cooking and takes on the flavour with dissolving and become mushy in texture.
The flavour in chicken paella comes from the chicken itself as well as the added vegetables such as tomatoes and the added seasonings such as rosemary and saffron. Chorizo can be added with the chicken to give even more flavour to it.
- Mexico – Chicken Burrito
Many flavours and dishes involving tortillas and corn wraps are attributed to Mexican cuisine although some of these have been adapted to a ‘tex-mex’ style by the US.
Traditional Mexican burritos would usually contain refried beans, one type of meat (such as chicken) and some cheese. It is a more western thing to add rice and salad and other items to a burrito wrap.
Chicken burritos get their flavour from the spice mix that the refried beans and chicken is cooked in. Burrito spices often include cayenne pepper, chilli powder and cumin but can include a range of other spices and herbs such as oregano and garlic powder.
- China – Lemon Chicken
Chinese food is one of the most popular takeaway food cuisines and there are so many chicken dishes to choose from but perhaps one of the favourites is lemon chicken.
Lemon chicken is simple breaded chicken slices served with a pot of lemon sauce that is both sweet and sour at the same time with a citric tang to it. The almost syrupy taste of the lemon sauce helps balance the sharp lemon flavour with a sticky sweetness and makes the dish all the better.
- India – Butter Chicken
Butter chicken, or murgh makhani to give it its Indian name, is, as its English name suggests, a very buttery curry dish. The base of the sauce is a large quantity of butter with some added cream or milk, alongside a mix of mild but flavourful spices such as paprika, ginger, garlic, and fenugreek.
It is popular due to its rich taste and mild spice level and is best served with a generous portion of fluffy rice.
- UK – Roast Chicken Dinner
It would be hard to consider chicken without mentioning traditional roast chicken which has become a Sunday dinner favourite in the UK. Simply roasted whole in the oven with some vegetables and basted with its cooking juices it provides a comforting and familiar chicken meal that can be served with mash or roast potatoes, a pile of fresh vegetables and a good pouring of gravy.