Category Archives: Poultry

GRILLED CHICKEN PAILLARDS

Posted on May 20, 2012 | 24 Comments

Even during my pre-blogging days, repeating a recipe more than twice a month was quite unusual. I’ve always enjoyed trying new recipes, and reserved the “oldies but goodies” for those extra-busy days in which I need something I can almost make in my sleep (chicken parmigiana is a good example). Having said all that, here comes the shocker: in the past month, I’ve made this chicken six times. Six. Obviously, this new found friend is on the fast track to become an “oldie but goodie”.

GRILLED CHICKEN PAILLARDS
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

3 chicken breasts, boneless, sliced in half lengthwise
1/4 cup lemon juice + zest
1/8 cup lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp red pepper flakes (or less)
1 Tbsp honey
salt and coarsely ground black pepper

After slicing each chicken breast in half, pound them carefully with a meat mallet (protecting the meat with some plastic wrap), until you have a thin filet, preferably less than 1/2 inch thick. You can see photos of the process here.

Mix all the ingredients for the marinade (lemon juice + zest, lime juice, olive oil, honey, ginger, and red pepper flakes), whisk well. No need to try and form a stable emulsion, just mix well and add the marinade to the chicken, coating the meat well. Place in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

When you are ready to cook it, remove it from the fridge and leave the filets in a single layer on a baking dish for 30 minutes to bring to room temperature. Right before grilling, season with salt and pepper on both sides.

Cook on a hot grill for 6-8 minutes total time, flipping the filets halfway through cooking time, and serve it with lime or lemon slices.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love many things about this recipe: the citric flavor, boosted by the ginger, the way the small amount of honey ensures gorgeous grill marks with a deep brown tone, how quickly it comes to the table, and how it shines next to many side dishes, from salads to pasta, from rice to couscous.

Since I use a high proportion of citric juice to olive oil, at first I was worried that a long marinating time could hurt the meat. This recipe was put to test when I had to change plans for our dinner, and my marinating chicken breasts stayed in the fridge for 2 days! No problem whatsoever, the meat turned out great, with a slightly more intense citric flavor, but no unpleasant “mushiness” from excessive interaction with acidity.

Leftovers are perfect as part of a high protein lunch, if you are into that sort of meal. I make my little yogurt-oatmeal pancake, a hard-boiled egg to go with it, and call it a day…

You can vary this recipe in countless ways. Use white wine as part of your marinade, use orange juice instead of lemon juice, or orange marmalade in place of honey. The idea is to have acidity plus sweetness (from honey or agave nectar, or even brown sugar), and a little oil to make sure the thin cutlets won’t end up all dry and tasteless. Of course, do not over-cook the meat, keep an eye on it, the temperature of grills may vary a lot, ours tries to mimic the surface of the sun.

Note added after publication: I just saw a blog by Greg for Asian Fusion chicken, and he adds Sriracha to his marinade. Genius! Check it out here. I’ll be trying it next time.

ONE YEAR AGO: Slow-baked Salmon

TWO YEARS AGO: Hoisin Explosion

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Posted in Poultry

Tagged chicken filets, chicken paillards, citrus marinade for chicken, filet de frango grelhado, grilled chicken, quick and easy dinner

BLOOD ORANGE DUCK: A WORK IN PROGRESS

Posted on April 9, 2012 | 24 Comments

For the longest time I admired photos of blood oranges, without being able to find any around. Now that they are available on a regular basis, I am a happy camper, bringing a few home with me whenever I spot them at the grocery store. What I love about blood oranges the most is their mysterious nature: you never know how red they will be inside. The skin tries to give you a hint, but… it can be very deceiving. For this particular recipe from Donna Hay, I needed a fairly large amount of their juice, so I went to work on my oranges, each with their unique shade of red. Gorgeous!

I had a few problems with the recipe, explaining why the “work in progress”. To start with, the orange juice must be reduced by boiling (together with orange marmalade, sugar and vinegar), for what Donna says it will be 12 to 15 minutes, until thickened. Since you must brush the skin of the duck with the resulting sauce, trust me: 15 minutes simply doesn’t do the trick. It took me over 35 minutes, and I had to watch the pan like a hawk, because it boiled over quite quickly.

In preparation for roasting, the duck’s skin is pricked with a skewer, and the bird is dropped in boiling water for 10 seconds. Think carefully about the whole strategy, because you will be placing a reasonably large piece of meat in boiling water, and removing it 10 short seconds later. The duck will have a very high tendency to slide. Boiling water. Slippery bird. Not a good match. Be prepared. Once that part is taken care of, you’ll brush its surface with the blood orange reduction sauce, placing it over a rack on a baking dish protected with foil, as you see here.

My next problem with the instructions was the roasting temperature and time. According to the recipe, roast at 350 F for about 1 hour, then cover the duck with foil and roast for a further 20 to 30 minutes. The photo in her book is a mouth-watering masterpiece of golden brown crispy skin. Not sure how she would get there in those conditions, I had to increase the temperature and cook my duck a lot longer, even though my duck was almost exactly the weight she recommends in her recipe. In the end, the meat was not very flavorful, and definitely not tender the way I would like it to be.

The best part of the meal was the side dish I chose to go with it: shredded Napa cabbage, very simply dressed with lime juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper, prepared 15 minutes before serving. Very refreshing, perfect to cut through the fatty duck.

So, it’s back to the drawing board on this one. I liked the flavor of the sauce, and feel that the recipe has the potential to be a winner. Knowing myself, though, I know it will take me a while to try it again. If anyone has suggestions, advice, tried and true methods, please post them in the comments or send them to me by email. I am all ears!

ONE YEAR AGO: Mahi-Mahi

TWO YEARS AGO: Memories of Pasteis (one of my favorite blog posts…)

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Posted in Poultry

Tagged blood orange duck, Duck, oranges, roasted duck

SPANAKOPITA MEATBALLS: NO SECRET!

Posted on February 10, 2012 | 23 Comments

Four months ago I joined “The Secret Recipe Club”, and my first assignment was making a recipe from the moderator of our group, Tami’s Kitchen Table Talk. I picked this recipe as my first choice, but her “Spanakopita Meatballs” were a serious contender. First, the meatballs seem perfect for a light dinner or even for an appetizer, if made small and served with toothpicks. Plus, I love the name spanakopita… spanakopita… a happy word, always makes me smile!
I combined Greece with Italy and enjoyed them with pasta in tomato sauce perfumed with orange zest.
SPANAKOPITA MEATBALLS
(adapted from Tami’s Kitchen Table Talk)

1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 onion, grated
1 clove garlic, minced
1 box frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 lb ground turkey
1/2 tsp fennel seeds, ground

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Defrost the spinach in the microwave, then place in a kitchen towel and squeeze to remove all the excess water. Place in a large mixing bowl with the rest of the ingredients and mix well, but don’t over mix, or the meatballs will get tough.

Roll into balls the size you prefer (I made 16 balls 1.5 inches in diameter), and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or foil lightly sprayed with olive oil). Bake for 12 minutes, turn them around and bake for 15 more minutes, or until cooked all the way through (it will depend on the size of the meatballs).

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I don’t even remember the last time I fried a meatball. Using the oven is soooo much easier, all meatballs are ready at the same time, there’s no extra oil added to the recipe, and clean up is a breeze if you protect your baking sheet with foil. Sometimes I use a rack like you see in this photo (these are pork meatballs with fennel, by the way), to encourage browning all around, but it’s not mandatory. I’ve been on a meatball kick lately, trying all sorts of recipes and improvising a bit too. But the “Happy Spanakopita” are still at the pole position. And, by the way, did you know that the term pole position originated in horse racing? Live and learn…

ONE YEAR AGO: Saturday Morning Scones

TWO YEARS AGO: Pain de Mie au Levain

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Posted in Poultry

Tagged ground turkey, meatballs, spanakopita, spanakopita meatballs, turkey meatballs

ORANGE POMEGRANATE CHICKEN: A WORK IN PROGRESS

Posted on January 6, 2012 | 31 Comments

This recipe, from a recent compilation in Fine Cooking called “One Pot Meals”, went from the page to a pot in the blink of an eye. It called for all kinds of goodies that I love: chicken, root veggies, pomegranate and the perfect spices to tie them together. The glaze roasted into a sexy ruby color, and the skin of the chicken will make anyone smile. So, why is it a work in progress, you might ask? Read on….

ORANGE POMEGRANATE CHICKEN
(adapted from Fine Cooking magazine)

1 large orange, zested and juiced
1 cup pomegranate juice
1-1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon
Freshly ground black pepper
6 tsp. olive oil
Kosher salt
3/4 cup chicken broth
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 medium parsnips, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 leeks, white part only, cut in 1/4 inch slices
4-lb. chicken, cut into 8 serving pieces
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Heat the oven to 400°F.

In a medium saucepan, Combine the orange juice and pomegranate juice in a saucepan, bring to a boil and reduce it to 1/4 cup (about 20 minutes). Add half of the thyme (eye balling is fine), all the cinnamon, and black pepper (about 1/4 tsp or according to your taste). Divide the mixture between two small bowls. To one bowl add 2 tsp. of the oil and 1/2 tsp. salt. To the other add the chicken broth, all but 1 tsp. of the orange zest, and 1/4 tsp. salt.

Scatter the sweet potatoes, parsnips, and leeks over the bottom of a dish that measures about 10 x 15 x 2 inches. Toss with the remaining 4 tsp. of oil and the rest of the thyme. Arrange the chicken pieces, skin side up, on top of the vegetables and brush with all of the juice-oil mixture. Roast for 30 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and reduce the temperature to 375°F. Pour the reduced pomegranate-chicken broth mixture around the chicken pieces and scatter the walnuts around them. Return the pan to the oven and roast until the vegetables are tender and an instant-read thermometer registers 165°F in several pieces of chicken, 20 to 30 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a serving dish. Remove the veggies and walnuts with a slotted spoon, season them lightly with salt, sprinkle the remaining orange zest all over the meat and veggies. Pour the liquid from the roasting pan in a pyrex type container, remove as much fat as possible. Season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper and pour into a pitcher to serve with the food.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Make sure you use pure pomegranate juice (yes, it is expensive compared to blends, but worth it in this case, because you will concentrate it quite a bit). I’d love to give this recipe two thumbs all the way up, but it had some problems. Many of the pieces of sweet potatoes and parsnips were not completely cooked: their centers were still hard. I tested some with a fork before removing from the oven, but as Murphy’s Law would have it, those were perfect… (sigh). Next time I’ll cover the dish with foil during the first 30 minutes, then pour the liquid all over it and roast it uncovered, perhaps adding a little more water if the veggies dry up during the final roasting. I suspect that with this minor change it will be a winner.

One pot meals are such life-savers for a busy cook, and this recipe, apart from reducing the pomegranate/orange juice, doesn’t require much work. Even better, the reduction could be made a couple of days in advance. With a nice loaf of bread or a green salad, dinner is ready!

ONE YEAR AGO: A Message from WordPress

TWO YEARS AGO: Turkish Chicken Kebabs

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Posted in Poultry

Tagged baked chicken, chicken, Fine Cooking, one pot meal, orange, parsnips, pomegranate, root vegetables, sweet potatoes

A HIGH PROTEIN LUNCH

Posted on December 13, 2011 | 23 Comments

I could call it “my secret weapon” to counteract usual over-indulgences. Back in June, I bought the book “The Dukan Diet” and tried that nutritional system for a while. I found out that I really like his oatmeal galette, a nice source of protein and complex carbs that became part of my weekday lunches. The galette can also be adapted for breakfast by omitting the salt, pepper and spices, and adding a little Splenda or the sweetener of your choice.

HIGH PROTEIN LUNCH
(from the Bewitching Kitchen)

for Dukan-type pancake
1 egg white
2 Tbs non-fat yogurt
2 Tbs oatmeal
salt and pepper
pinch of dried thyme

for chicken
chicken breasts, boneless
water to cover
splash of soy sauce
1 Tbs green tea
2 star anise
a few peppercorns
piece of ginger
salt
squeeze of lemon juice

Poach the chicken by bringing all ingredients to a gentle boil in a saucepan, cover the pan, turn the heat off, and allow the meat to sit in the liquid for 25 minutes. Remove from the pan, and keep in the fridge until needed (I usually cook 3 chicken breasts on the weekend, and save for lunches the following week).

Make the pancake by beating the egg white in a small bowl. In another bowl, mix the yogurt with the oat bran, salt, pepper, and thyme. Add the beaten egg white to the yogurt, and mix gently with a silicone spatula. Spray a very light coating of olive oil on a non-stick frying pan, heat the pan over medium heat, and pour the pancake batter on it. Fry the first side until the top seems to be getting dry, then carefully flip the pancake over. Cook the second side for a couple of minutes, and slide the pancake on a plate.

Cut the chicken breast in slices, add to the same pan you cooked the pancake, adding just a little more oil if necessary. Saute the chicken slices briefly just to warm them up and get some color. A squeeze of lemon juice at the end brightens up the flavor. Serve it with the pancake and a small bowl of non-fat cottage cheese, seasoned with salt and pepper.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

I love poaching chicken in green tea and soy sauce. The meat gets a delicate hint of color, and the addition of ginger and star anise imparts nice flavor. You can use chicken poached this way in other recipes, of course. Shredded for salads, filling of fajitas, or even incorporated in a sauce for pasta. As to non-fat cottage cheese, I admit it’s not very gourmet… The low-fat version is better, the full-fat truly delicious, but when I’m on my protein-only mission, I stick with the zero fat, and use it to build not only muscle, but character.

ONE YEAR AGO: Festivus Dinner Rolls

TWO YEARS AGO: New York Deli Rye

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Posted in Poultry, Rice and Grains

Tagged Dukan diet, Dukan pancake, high protein diet, high protein lunch, oatbran, oatmeal

WEDNESDAY’S SPECIAL

Posted on December 11, 2011 | 32 Comments

It wasn’t our wedding anniversary, nor his birthday, nor mine. Valentine’s Day won’t arrive for a couple of months. It was just a simple Wednesday, stuck in the middle of a frantic week with the usual extra-struggles after traveling for a while. But, I wanted a special dinner for us, just for the fun of it. Duck breast filets (maigret de canard sounds even better… ) are very easy to prepare, although potentially intimidating if it’s your first time to cook them. A recent issue of Fine Cooking had a recipe with plum preserves to form a saucy glaze, perfect with the duck meat, that shines with a little sweetness and a little spice.

PLUM-GLAZED DUCK BREASTS
(from Fine Cooking magazine, October 2011)

2 boneless, skin-on duck breast halves
Kosher salt and black pepper
1/2 cup plum preserves
1 Tbs. soy sauce
1/4 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes

Heat the oven to 425°F. Trim any excess skin and fat from the duck breast and, using a very sharp knife, score the skin and fat underneath in a 1-inch diamond pattern. Be careful not to cut all the way through the flesh, you want to just get the layer of fat underneath the skin to be exposed, so the fat renders more efficiently. Pat the duck dry and season with salt and pepper.

Heat an oven-proof skillet over medium-high heat. Put the duck in the skillet skin side down, reduce the heat to medium low, and render the fat until only a thin, crisp layer of skin remains. It will take 8 to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the preserves, soy sauce, five-spice powder, and red pepper flakes. Remove the duck to a platter, pour most of the fat off the skillet, and return the filets to the pan, skin side up. Brush the preserves mixture over the breasts. Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of a breast registers 135°F for medium rare, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the duck to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Heat the remaining plum mixture briefly, slice the duck diagonally and spoon the pan juice over.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

You won’t need much else to round out this meal. White rice and carrots with an agave nectar glaze were wonderful for us, next to the rich and flavorful duck. But the best part of this meal was the smile on Phil’s face when I said we were having maigret de canard for dinner… Sweet memories of Paris make any evening a special event!