CHICKEN PARMIGIANA, THE THRILLER

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

Phil doesn’t like to mess with a classic. He’s got his favorite pancake recipe, the oven-fried chicken with buttermilk biscuits and gravy, the Thanksgiving turkey, and the potato dumplings that his Grandma used to make. And, he is also adamant about my chicken parmigiana, which he professes to be “the best he’s ever had”. That’s why it took me so long to try Giada’s version, a streamlined, lightened up approach to this American-Italian goodie. I tried to hide my game, but he saw some of the regular actors in the plot: chicken breast filets, mozzarella cheese, and my tomato sauce simmering on top of the stove. He opened his brightest smile: “We are having chicken Parmigiana! YEAAAAH!” I replied with a sheepish smile: “Well, sort of, it’s a kind of Parmigiana, yes, but not really, maybe almost Parmigiana, but not quite. We’ll see if we like it.” Silence. A slight shudder of the shoulder, which I could not help but notice. His body language went more or less like “Why would she do this to me?” Why? For the simple thrill of it, of course! 😉

First, you must make your own tomato sauce, using good quality canned tomatoes. I saute’ a little shallot in olive oil until fragrant, season with salt and red pepper flakes, add the tomatoes and some dried thyme, and simmer for about 20 minutes. Then I use an immersion blender to turn it into a smooth sauce.

Next, you need to make a little seasoned oil. I used thyme from my friend Cindy’s garden (yet another gift from my very thoughtful friend), and rosemary from our own plant here in Manhattan. Chop them finely, and add to the oil with a little salt. And freshly ground black pepper.

Brush the chicken cutlets on both sides with the oil, keep in the fridge for half an hour or so, if you have the time. If not, move on to the next step.

Sautee the cutlets in a very hot skillet with just a tiny coating of olive oil. Once both sides are nicely golden, pour some tomato sauce around and over the chicken. Cover the pan and simmer gently for a few minutes. Uncover, add grated mozzarella cheese on top of the meat, cover the pan again and bake on a 400F oven for 10 minutes.
Open the lid, turn the broiler on for a little while if you like your cheese to get a nice tan. It’s not mandatory, though… at this point, you have already reached the desired level of yumminess.

Serve with some spaghetti with your home-made tomato sauce, sprinkle Parmigiano cheese on top, and ENJOY!

For Giada’s recipe, follow this link…

Comments: When I make my own version of this dish, I often omit the cheese in some pieces. I tried it with this recipe (you might be able to notice one small piece of cheese-less chicken on the first photo), but I advise against it. In this particular preparation, the cheese will act as an important blanket for the cutlets that otherwise will be a bit dry. What I love the most about this recipe is how easy it was to make it. No need to have those three trays with breadcrumbs, flour, eggwash, and the result is quite a bit lighter but still delicious. The herb oil adds a lot of flavor, don’t omit this step, and feel free to experiment with other spices and flavorings. Will it be the default Parmigiana in our home? I doubt it, but it’s definitely a great option for those evenings that pop up right at the end of a hectic day at work. 😉

One more thing before I forget: the pan I use is a Giada cast iron dish sold by Target. I cannot believe I’m saying this, but I like it better than Le Creuset. It is a lot cheaper, it works just as well, and the cleanup is a breeze! My Le Creusets got stained from the first use, and never cleaned well, even using diluted bleach. Giada’s pan still looks brand new, after many encounters with tomatoes, red wine, and soy based sauces. No, I don’t work for Target, and have no personal links to Giada. In fact, I have never accepted freebies from companies to write a review. I only endorse stuff I love. And I love, love, love this pan! 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Wild Mushroom Risotto

TWO YEARS AGO: Tartine Bread: Basic Country Loaf
(one of my most popular posts!)

THREE YEARS AGO: Pugliese Bread

20Nov2012

500 POSTS AND THE BEST THING I EVER MADE

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

Yes, folks, this is my post number 500! Five hundred times that I’ve hit the PUBLISH key, and sent my words and images into the blogosphere! I wanted this post to be special, but at the same time I had to go with life’s flow, which lately has not allowed me to indulge into fancy cooking. But one cannot go wrong with a recipe described as “The best thing I ever made”. If you are familiar with the FoodTV, you may know they have a show with that exact title, and it’s actually pretty interesting: chefs describe their favorite recipe in a particular category. This was Alton Brown’s best take on chicken. Chicken thighs are de-boned, and roasted with an olive stuffing under the skin, and a smoked paprika rub. They cook over thin slices of Yukon gold potatoes. I could have those potatoes on a daily basis. For breakfast. For lunch. For dinner. For a late night snack. Oh, yes, the chicken was awesome too! 😉

SMOKED PAPRIKA CHICKEN THIGHS WITH POTATO AND ONION
(from Alton Brown’s Best Thing I ever Made)

6 ounces pimento stuffed green olives, chopped
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 cloves garlic, grated
3 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 + 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled
1 medium yellow onion, cut in small pieces

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Combine the olives, lemon zest and garlic in a small bowl, and set aside. Mix the smoked paprika, olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon of the salt and pepper into a paste in a large bowl.

De-bone the chicken thighs using a pair of kitchen shears: make a cut down the length of the bone to expose it, then cut the meat away from the bone. Discard the bone. Add the boned chicken thighs to the paste and massage well to coat. Let it sit for half an hour or so.

Thinly slice the potatoes on a mandoline, about 1/4-inch thick. Arrange the potato slices and onion pieces in an even layer on a foil-lined half sheet pan and sprinkle with the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt.

Stuff about 2 tablespoons of the olive mixture under the skin of each chicken thigh. Arrange the chicken thighs, skin-side up, on a cooling rack and set the rack over the potatoes and onion in the half sheet pan. Bake until the skin is crispy and the potatoes are tender, 55 to 60 minutes. If you prefer the potatoes crispy, remove the rack with the chicken and return to the oven for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The only tricky part of this recipe was de-boning the chicken thighs, but it’s not that hard. I normally cook chicken thighs on the bone, but there’s something special about cutting through those pieces of meat, all juicy with the stuffing, without having to work around the bone. It is a technique that could be applied to other types of stuffing. The liquid that drips during roasting infuses the potatoes with incredibly rich flavor.

In typical Sally fashion, onion and garlic were omitted, but I gave you the recipe the exact way Alton made it in the show. I never thought very highly about pimento-stuffed olives, but they are simply perfect in this dish. Alton Brown had a moment of inspiration when he conceived this recipe, everything works together extremely well. Since it’s a reasonably heavy dish, you won’t need anything else to round the meal.

Five hundred posts published and no special celebration? Well, stay tuned, my friends. A special milestone is waiting around the corner, and for that one I’ll have a little giveaway to my readers! 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Back in Los Angeles

TWO YEARS AGO: White House Macaroni and Cheese

THREE YEARS AGO: Korean-Style Pork with Asian Slaw

29Oct2012

THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB: CASHEW CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS

Posted in Appetizers, Poultry, Secret Recipe Club by sallybr

Drum roll please….. This is my first anniversary as a member of The Secret Recipe Club! One year! Obviously, I was counting the days for this Reveal Day, and jumped on my assigned blog the very minute I got the email notification. This month I am cooking from Loving Life, a fun blog hosted by Kirstin, the super busy Mom of two teenage daughters, who also home schools them. I get tired just thinking about it. The mystery is how does she find the time to cook and blog? Superpowers? Probably. I chose a recipe from her blog quite quickly, because it is one of the favorite dishes we used to order at a place called BJ’s in Oklahoma. Light, refreshing, flavorful, Phil and I would share that as an appetizer almost every single time, but I had never made it at home. Great opportunity, which I grabbed right away! 😉

CASHEW CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS
(adapted from Loving Life)

for teriyaki sauce:
2 Tbs. soy sauce
1 Tbs. rice vinegar
1 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. Sesame oil

for chicken:
3/4 lb. chicken breast or tenders, diced in small pieces
6 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup diced baby-bella mushrooms
3/4 cup chopped cashews
1 tsp. soy sauce
canola oil
6-8 butter lettuce leaves

for topping:
2 carrots, peeled & julienned
1/2 Tbs. Sesame Seeds

Mix all sauce ingredients, making sure the brown sugar dissolves.

Place some canola oil in a non-stick pan and cook chicken till cooked through and lightly browned. Add green onions, mushrooms, cashews and 1 tsp. soy sauce. Cook until mushrooms soften. Add teriyaki sauce. Cook stirring often on medim-high heat until sauce began to caramelize a bit on the chicken. Lower heat to “low” and continue to cook a bit longer or until your desired consistency is reached.

Serve on lettuce cups, adding julienned carrots and sesame seeds on top.
.
ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

We absolutely loved this recipe! Next time I might just up the amount of sauce a little bit, but other than that, no changes… This post gives me the opportunity to share with you a very special gift we received from our friend Cindy. She probably got tired of me complaining about the electric stove in our new home, and one day I got this box delivered with an induction-type single burner cooktop! Not only it works great, but it is a life-saver for me, due to another small problem in our kitchen: no ventilation. I had pretty much given up on frying or sauteing fish or meat. With this cooktop, I was able to install a cooking area on our patio, and voila’: no more offensive odors! Plus, it’s is such a nice setting, don’t you agree?

Cindy, thanks so much for such a thoughtful gift!

For the full round-up on the Secret Recipe Club, click on the cute blue frog. To see which recipe was chosen from my blog this month click here to visit Lindsay’s blog…

Kirstin, nice to “meet” your blog! Have fun with today’s reveal day!

ONE YEAR AGO: Clay-pot Pork Roast

TWO YEARS AGO: Panmarino

THREE YEARS AGO: A Classic Roast Chicken

1Oct2012

THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB: A TRIBUTE TO DANIEL

Posted in Poultry, Secret Recipe Club by sallybr

Food bloggers love to organize group events. You have Yeastspotting, World Bread Day, Sourdough Surprises, In My Kitchen, Daring Bakers, Meatless Mondays, Black and White Wednesdays, and of course, The Secret Recipe Club, of which I am a participant. Unfortunately, sometimes tragic events take place, and a cloud of deep sadness contaminates what until then was all about fun. Recently we learned that one dear member of The Secret Recipe Club passed away. Daniel, a young father of two kids, married for only 6 years, died shortly after cooking a nice barbecue dinner for his whole family. You can read the heart-breaking tribute written by his wife Meredith (who is expecting their third child) by clicking here. A couple of beautiful articles written by his brother can also be found here and here.

To celebrate Daniel’s life, SRC members picked one recipe from his blog (The Haggis and the Herring) to cook and blog about. As we always do on this group event, everyone publishes the article at the same time. Here is my contribution, a cider-glazed chicken with the colors and the taste of Autumn.

CIDER-GLAZED CHICKEN THIGHS
(adapted from Daniel’s recipe)

6 chicken thighs
salt and pepper
3 Tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 shallot, finely diced
1 Tablespoon mustard
3 Tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
1 cup apple cider

Trim excess fat and skin from the chicken thighs. Dry them well and season with salt and pepper. Heat the oil on a cast iron pan or other large skillet with a lid, and brown the chicken pieces, skin side down first. Make sure they are golden brown before flipping them over. Remove the pieces as they brown, discard excess fat from the skillet, leaving one tablespoon behind. Saute the shallots until translucent. While they are cooking, mix the mustard with the cider vinegar and the herbes de Provence in a small bowl. Add the mustard mixture to the skillet, cook with the shallots for a minute or two. Add the cup of apple cider, return the chicken to the skillet and cook for 45 to 55 minutes, until very tender. Flip the pieces occasionally, but keep the pan closed and with very gently heat.

To serve, remove the chicken pieces to a platter, and reduce the cider cooking liquid until it forms a glaze. Spoon over the chicken.

to print the recipe, click here

It is a strange experience to go on someone’s blog and look for a recipe, when you know that person is no longer with us. Daniel was so full of projects and so excited about his family, about raising his kids, it’s very difficult to accept that a life could end so abruptly, with so much yet to experience and enjoy. The truth is, we never know how much time we have, so we must try to make the best of each day.

My profound condolences to Meredith and Daniel’s whole family.

(comments are shutdown for this post)

To see other recipes from Secret Recipe Club members made in Daniel’s memory, visit the links below.

20May2012

GRILLED CHICKEN PAILLARDS

Posted in Poultry by sallybr

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