Recipe: Firecracker Chicken & Garlic Roasted Butternut Squash
Ingredients:
Squash:
1 large (2 to 3 pounds) butternut squash
2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon Cajun seasoning
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Chopped parsley, for garnish
Chicken:
1/2 cup hot sauce (such as Frank’s Red Hot)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, grated
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon oil
1 pound boneless and skinless chicken breasts
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Please note, I made the chicken and squash at the same time. So I had to time it out pretty precisely. The below directions can work for cooking these two items simultaneously if you cook the squash at 400° instead of 420°.
Squash:
1. Preheat your oven to 420°. Cut squash lengthwise with a large sharp knife and scoop out seeds. Using a peeler, remove skin and white pith.
Brush with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange butternut halves cut side down in a prepared baking pan side by side and roast until softened, about 20 minutes.
Lo Note: I can’t stress enough getting rid of all the white pith. We accidently left a little and I ended up peeling it off of each slice I ate. It was still tasty, but more tedious than I like my meals to be.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine melted butter, oil Cajun seasoning, minced garlic and crushed black pepper. Set aside.
3. Remove squash from oven and transfer to a cutting board and allow to cool slightly. Using a sharp knife, cut slits 2 or 3mm apart in the squash, cutting almost but not all the way through. Transfer to the baking pan and brush with the Cajun garlic butter sauce. Make sure to coat well and between the slices.
4. Roast butternut squash halves, basting with the cooking juice every 8-10 minutes, for 25-30 minutes. You can broil the squash for a few minutes to slightly grill the top at the end of cooking.
Top with fresh chopped parsley and a sprinkle of kosher salt.
Chicken:
1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
2. Heat the hot sauce, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and chili pepper flakes in a small sauce pan until the sugar has melted into the sauce. Separate out 1/3 of the sauce for basting. Leave the remaining 2/3 sauce for serving.
3. Heat the oil in a large oven safe skillet over medium-high heat, season the chicken with the salt and pepper, add to the pan and brown, about 3-5 minutes per side.
Serve with remaining sauce.
Recipe Inspiration Found HERE and HERE.
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