Looking into the kitchen can be scary, especially if it is your first time. Now I’m here to make it easier for you to cook, so welcome to Congrats You Can Cook for your first recipe. I’m helping you find a source of protein that’s more than just bland chicken and rice. Let’s elevate this recipe by making it hot honey chicken instead of simple chicken. First, you will obviously need the ingredients, so I hope you are ready for your first lessons in the kitchen. 

First, you are going to need the following ingredients to actually make this meal 

• Chicken breast or any part of the chicken, since it will be cut
• Garlic powder, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, red chili flakes, paprika, lemon pepper, onion powder
• Honey 
• Some form of oil (olive, avocado, vegetable, etc.) 
• Yellow onion 
• Minced garlic (1-2 cloves) 
• Rice 
• Any other side you may want (broccoli, asparagus, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, etc.) 

So now that we have everything, let’s start on the meal. Please remember that cross-contamination exists, so please be cautious when handling raw chicken!

First, let’s start with seasoning the chicken. When I made it, I used two medium-sized chicken breasts and let them marinate for a bit. Pat the chicken down with a paper towel, then cut it into bite-sized pieces before adding seasoning. Note: It is always easier to add more seasoning at the end rather than the opposite. If this does occur, do not worry, you are only learning how to cook, and it is okay to try again and do better next time. 

Place the cut-up chicken into a bowl along with the following seasoning amount. Note that these are just the ingredients I used; if you want to substitute other options, a recipe is only an outline. Adobo is an ingredient that can substitute a lot of the seasonings in this list. 

• 1tsp of paprika 
• 1 tsp of black pepper
• 1 tsp of onion powder 
• 1 tsp of lemon pepper
• 1 tsp of salt 
• 1 tsp of garlic powder 
• 1 tsp of cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp of chili pepper flakes or powder (whatever you have in your kitchen) 

Allow the chicken to marinate in the seasonings while in a pan on medium heat, add whatever oil you plan to use, and diced yellow onion, and minced garlic. Allow this to cook till the onion is transparent and there is an aroma of garlic. While waiting, you can make some rice for the side. Once this has happened, add the chicken to the pan and allow it to cook until it is fully cooked. Once cooked, add ⅓ cup of honey. If you want it less spicy, add more. Once this is added, allow the honey to bubble a bit and allow it to incorporate into the chicken for a bit, then remove the chicken from the pan and put your cooked rice in it instead. This allows for the rice to incorporate the same flavor as the chicken and elevates the simple white rice.

Finally, plate yourself a serving of the meal, and enjoy it. As the real world approaches many of us, it is time to stop relying on fast food and our parents’ cooking and take control of the kitchen. I hope this first recipe makes the kitchen less of a scary place for some and allows others to learn something new to make. While first-time may be disastrous for some, never give up. This is the best time to learn what to do in the kitchen. Please come back, not next week, but the following week, September 20th, for your next recipe.