Let's go Retro..although, if this item has been
continuously served at a restaurant for the last 35 years, is it Retro??  Possibly not, unless you haven't been to said
restaurant for over 25 years.  This is the case with a dish I made today which is simply called Chicken Wrapped in
Tin Foil...because...it is chicken wrapped in tin foil and cooked in the package. A hacked piece of chicken meat,
usually thigh, marinated in a party of Asian ingredients, wrapped in a foil triangle, sealed, then cooked.  It's an es-
sential choice on the fabulous (and retro, yes I said retro again) Pu Pu Platter..An invention possibly from the ori-
ginal TraderVic's in California to introduce the American diner to a panopoly of Asian tidbits...those items which
are starters in America's Chinese Restaurants.  They can also be ordered as an appetizer on their own.  Is this
truly a Chinese food item?  Yes, and No. Prior to posting on Facebook tonight I thought this was an American
version of something vaguely Cantonese and tailored to American tastes.  But, some Asian friends of mine all
began to wax with nostalgia, saying they used to get these treats at home, or when they went to Chinese restau-
rants.  So, is it an authentic Chinese dish?  I will venture a guess, and say, NO, but it is a dish that was most
likely invented by frugal Chinese cooks who after trimming the chicken piece for the other menu items saw that
it would be sinful and not very economical to throw those bits of meat out.  Hack them to mask all the trimmings
and make them tender and toothsome, marinate them in aromatics and Asian ingredients, then wrap them in
Aluminum foil, hey, maybe a pretty triangle shape! and cook them in the package..serve as an appetizer.  Now
that chicken has really been stretched by the chef and cooks and everyone wins!


Enter my little tryst with nostalgia...Tomorrow night I'm meeting (via the magic of Facebook) for a little reunion with a few
people whom I went to school with from Kindergarten til the 8th grade, which, was...let's just say more than 5 years ago.
Ok, we're all friends, it was 1972.  One of the friends I did see thru the 70's then lost touch with in the 80's.  Mark Zucker-
berg has masterminded another reunion, and tomorrow night we will be meeting somewhere on Staten Island, where
we all grew up and now are living in other states.  My first choice was Jade Island...a restaurant frozen in time, but I
haven't been to since I moved off of the Island.  However, one of the reunioneers was going there tonight...so I'm not
the only one who thinks it would be a good place to go!  We'll decide where to go tomorrow (maybe Jade Island still
has a shot!!) but it got me thinking...CHICKEN IN FOIL.  Funny how my mind plays connect the dots.  Today's dinner
choice in the house then became the kitchy, salty, tasty, sentimental Chicken in Foil.  Easy to make, let me show you
how, and yes, there are probably a million variations on this..this is my memory fueled version of it.
For 12 foil packets, hack up (mmm..maybe that;'s not really how I should phrase that), chop up, 2 full trimmed bone-
less breasts of chicken, or 6 trimmed boneless thighs. 


In a large stainless steel bowl, whisk together  1 tsp. Sriracha sauce, 1/2 tsp. ground White pepper, 2 tbs.
sherry or Rice Wine, 2 finely chopped green onions, 1/2 tsp. fresh grated ginger, or 1 scant tsp. ground
ginger, 2 tsp. dark brown sugar, 4 tbs. good soy sauce. blend well and toss the chicken into the bowl
coating well with the soy mixture.  Add 1/2 tsp. sesame oil and toss.  Let this sit in the fridge for 1 hour.
Now make 12 strips of foil, about 2 1/2 inches wide.  Begin the wrapping by adding a good spoonful of
chicken to the bottom of the foil strip and fold up in a triangular fashion like you would a flag ( or in my case
a Spanakopita).  Keep folding until you have used up the strip and crimp and seal the edges.  When done
lay them out on a sheet pan and bake in a hot oven for 10-13 minutes, about 375- 400 degrees.  Or you
can dry fry them in a hot pan for 6 minutes on one side, 4 minutes on the other.  Do not serve immediately.
Let them sit for a good 8 minutes. 


Serve as an appetizer or as part of a noodle (lo mein) based meal..I paired them up with lo mein which
I sauced with a peanut chile honey sauce..garnishing both with lots of sliced green onions.
 The aroma that escapes when you open the
packet brings me right back to those booths where spiked dried blowfish hang over your head...the
snap of sizzling pepper steaks and that odd odor that comes off of Lobster Cantonese swirl around
your nostrils...fruity rum drinks, flashy umbrella and goofy colorful monkeys hanging off the glasses...
and a small stainless steel cup will hold a single scoop of pistachio ice cream with a fortune cookie
on it.  I'm not sure if Mr. Chow or Ming Tsai would approve of such Americanized displays of their
cuisines, but it brings me back to that youthful time, when Chow Mein was as exotic as it gets...