Category: Chicken

Chicken

Chicken Hash

by WendiLeave a Comment on Chicken Hash

to post graphic

I’ve been digging around the junk drawer that is my draft folder.  In a concerted effort to clear out the mental clutter, I’m posting this drafts ‘as is’….

Chicken Hash

Adapted from Food to Die For

BAH Note: This recipe lived on my refrigerator door for a few months because I kept putting back in the menu lineup.  Fresh herbs can be stirred in just before serving.  Serve over rice or egg noodles or with biscuits for a hearty supper.

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
  • 4 cups chicken broth
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • meat from 1 small rotisserie chicken

Melt the butter in a dutch oven over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour and salt and cook, whisking constantly, for about 2 or 3 minutes until the butter mixture loses the raw flour smell.  Gradually add the chicken broth and whisk until the roux is completely dissolved into the broth.  Turn up the heat and bring the broth mixture up to a simmer. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the liquid thickens.  Turn off the heat, stir in the lemon zest and chicken, and stir to combine.

{printable recipe}

Chicken, Main Course

Sweet and Sour Chicken

by WendiLeave a Comment on Sweet and Sour Chicken

to post graphic

I’ve been digging around the junk drawer that is my draft folder.  In a concerted effort to clear out the mental clutter, I’m posting this drafts ‘as is’….

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Adapted from Alice Currah @ PSB Parents

BAH Note:  This dish is as elusive as a yeti with regards to having its picture taken.  I’ve made it a bunch of times and never managed to document its existence.  The only note I wrote down on the recipe was “omg yes”.

  • 10 ounce crushed pineapple in juice
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon ketchup
  • 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast or thigh (boneless, skinless)
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Drain the juice from can of pineapple into a small saucepan, leaving the crushed pineapple in the can.  Add 1/2 tablespoon (1 1/2 teaspoons) cornstarch and whisk together until the cornstarch is dissolved.  Whisk in the brown sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, and ketchup and cook over medium heat until the sauce begins to simmer.  Continue to cook for about five minutes, stirring, until the sauce thickens.  Move the pan off the heat while you prep the chicken.

Cut the chicken into one inch cubes and place them into a plastic bag.  Add the kosher salt and remaining 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.  Close the top of the bag and shake to coat the chicken.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat and cook the chicken in batches, adding additional oil as needed, until lightly browned and cooked through.  Return all the chicken to the pan and add the sauce and crushed pineapple.  Cook for about 3 minutes until everything is warmed through.

Serve over steamed rice.

{printable recipe}

Chicken

Roast Chicken with Dijon Sauce

by WendiLeave a Comment on Roast Chicken with Dijon Sauce

I’ve been digging around the junk drawer that is my draft folder.  In a concerted effort to clear out the mental clutter, I’m posting this drafts ‘as is’….

Roast Chicken with Dijon Sauce

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Not to be confused with Smitten Kitchen’s Buttermilk Roast Chicken, this dish requires a bit more hands on but is equally delicious.

  • 3 pounds chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 shallots, diced
  • 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup half and half
  • 1 tablespoon dry sherry
  • 2 tablespoons dijon mustard

Heat your oven to 450 degrees.

Heat the vegetable oil in an oven safe skillet over medium high heat.  Working in batches, place the chicken skin side down in the skillet and cook approximately 5 minutes or until nicely browned.

Once all the chicken has been browned, remove any excess fat from the skillet.  Return all the chicken to the pan and roast for 20 minutes.  Carefully remove the skillet from the oven, transfer the chicken to a plate and loosely cover to keep warm.  Add the chicken broth and sherry to the skillet, bring to a boil, and cook until the liquid reduces by about half.  Whisk in the mustard and then add the half and half.

Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the skillet and coat the chicken pieces thoroughly in the mustard sauce before serving.

{printable recipe}

Chicken, Main Course, Pasta

Chicken Marsala Casserole

by WendiLeave a Comment on Chicken Marsala Casserole

pasta bakeI’ve wanted to talk with you about what I’ve been cooking but I feel like I’m supposed to have a pretty picture to oooh and aaaah over before I post.  Which makes for a lot of radio silence here at BAH .

Clearly I’m still feeding my family.  I’m just not doing a great job of documenting what’s been on our plates.  Which is really a shame because I have been serving up some serious deliciousness.

Like Chicken Marsala Casserole.  I grabbed this one from Smitten Kitchen, as you can tell from my (not food) photo above.  If you’d like to see a pretty picture of baked pasta, clicky here to see the lovely photo Deb included in her post.  Mine looked remarkably similar.  And tasted good enough that I’ve made it again AND put some in the freeze for a future get-out-of-dinner-free night.

Here’s why this dish appeals to me:

Making a double batch = 2x reward and only 1x work.  (You do the math.)

There’s something for everyone at my table.  If The Libster is feeling peckish, she can pick out the pasta and politely say no thank you to the porcini and poultry.  The Mistah and I aren’t quite so persnickity.  (Try saying this five times real fast.)

If I can’t cobble together enough time to get from start to finish in a single shot I can make the sauce and keep it in the fridge for a day or two until I’m pasta ready.  Come to think of it, I could probably make and freeze the sauce and then have it at the ready to spoon over cooked pasta anytime. (I just had an a-ha moment!)

Feel free to use any of my reasons, or come up with one of your own.  But get to know this casserole. (No aside necessary.)

Chicken Marsala Casserole

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

BAH Note:  Sturdier pastas like ziti, rigatoni, twists, and penne are well suited for this application.  I’ve used plain white mushrooms as well as crimini and they’ve both worked equally well.  I work on making the sauce while I’m waiting for my pot of water to boil and pasta to cook.

  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast or thigh, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 8 ounces pasta
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 pound mushrooms, sliced
  • 1/4 cup Marsala wine
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 can beef broth
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • kosher salt

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked through, working in batches if you need to.  Transfer the chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm.

Return the pan to the stove, add the remaining oil, mushrooms, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid released by the mushrooms is nearly cooked away.  Add the marsala and cook until most of the wine has cooked down before adding the butter to the pan.  Once the butter has completely melted and been stirred around once or twice, sprinkle the flour on top of the mushrooms, give the mixture a good stir so that all of the flour combines with the butter and mushrooms, and cook for about two minutes.

Add about a quarter cup of broth to the pan and whisk.  It might bubble up angrily and look pasty; just keep going.  Slowly add the remaining broth and continue to whisk until the sauce smooths out.  Keep the sauce on a simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens up slightly.  Add the chicken and any accumulated juices to sauce and stir to combine.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of well salted water for 10 – 12 minutes.  You want the pasta just a teensy bit underdone so it can finish cooking off in the oven.  Drain the pasta, add it back to the pot, and stir in the sauce and grated Parmesan.

Bake for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.

{printable recipe}

Chicken, Soup

The Secret to Homemade Chicken Soup

by WendiLeave a Comment on The Secret to Homemade Chicken Soup
chicken soup
my grandmother’s secret to chicken soup? her homemade noodles.
flour + egg is all you need.

Seems to me that the people who write recipes must have have some secrets up their sleeves, or a rabbit in their hat.  Because I can’t otherwise explain how they can possibly do things like caramelize onions in 30 minutes or get a really good sear on a cut of meat in 2 minutes per side.  It’s as though time is suspended in their kitchen.

Anytime I read a recipe I feel like I should start mentally marking up the cooking time that is quoted as guidelines.  I need to sweat onion and celery till soft and you say it should take about five minutes.  In my kitchen it’s more like ten or fifteen minutes.  Roast my veg for 30 minutes until tender?  Please, I’m giving that pan a shake every 30 minutes.

Am I responsible for some of the discrepancies?  Absolutely.  Am I using a large enough pan?  Maybe not.  Am I cooking over a high enough heat?  Maybe not.  Have I overcrowded my pan?  Possibly.  All of these differences could partly explain why it takes me longer to get from Point A to Point B than you say it will.  As far as the rest of the explanation…I will never know.

One thing I do know is that some secrets can be cracked.  Like the secret to homemade chicken soup.

The secret is simple, use a rotisserie chicken as both the base of the stock and the meat for the finished soup.  No more taking up valuable freezer space to save random chicken parts until you have enough for a soup.  And no more spending a whole day with a pot slowly simmering away on the stove.  Who has time for that?

One rotisserie chicken is all you need.  Simmering the stripped carcass and skin in chicken broth gives you a full and rich stock in no time at all.  Now, if you want to tell people that this soup took you all day so that you could sneak in some alone time, I can promise that your secret is safe with me.

Easy Chicken Soup

Adapted from Cook’s Country

BAH Note:  Use this as your guide and then fancy it up any way you like.  Add rice or noodles!  Don’t want to give peas a chance?  Substitute frozen corn instead.  Do what makes you happy.

I make a mess in the kitchen on my good days.  So when a recipe tells me to pour 8 cups of hot liquid through a strainer, I see danger signs.  Instead of tempting fate, and 2nd degree burns, by trying to pour steaming hot liquid out of the hot stock pot, I break the process down into a few steps.  I place a mesh strainer in a bowl large enough to hold all the liquid.  Then I use tongs to remove the chicken from the pot and place it in the strainer.  Using a big ladle, I run the stock from the pot through the strainer.  Lastly I scrape any bits from the bottom of the stock pot into the strainer.  Once all the liquid has drained off the chicken and vegetables, the strainer rests in the sink until the bones and veg have cooled enough to go in the trash.

  • 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 celery ribs, chopped
  • 1 whole rotisserie chicken
  • 6 cups chicken broth
  • 4 cups water
  • 2 bay leaves
  • pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 2 carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 cup frozen peas

Break down the rotisserie chicken and shred the meat into bite sized pieces.  Keep the skin and bones for making the stock.  And be sure to scrape any gelled juices out of the chicken carrier.  That’s pure gold right there and it needs to go in your soup pot.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onion and celery and cook until the vegetables begin to soften about 10 minutes.  Add the chicken bones and skin, broth, water, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, and garlic to the pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes.

Strain your stock through a mesh strainer and press on the solids to get as much liquid out as possible.  Return the stock to your dutch oven.  You want to have about 8 cups of liquid by this point.  If you have less than 8 cups, add water till you get there.

While the stock cooks, take the diced carrot and onion and remaining 1/2 tablespoon (that’s 1 1/2 teaspoons) olive oil and microwave on high for approximately 5 minutes or until the vegetables soften.

Transfer the softened carrot and onion mixture to the chicken stock.  Stir in the frozen peas and chicken and cook for another 5 minutes.  Taste for seasoning and add kosher salt and pepper to taste.

{printable recipe}

Chicken, Main Course

Deb’s Buttermilk Roast Chicken

by Wendi1 Comment on Deb’s Buttermilk Roast Chicken

Buttermilk Roast Chicken

What is it about getting older that makes my bad memory even worse?  I freely admit that it’s not unusual for someone to tell me a story about a past event that I was part of and have absolutely no recollection of it.  Not a speck.  I just shake my head and mutter “if you say so”.  They could be making it up and I wouldn’t know the difference…not that I’m inviting them to test this theory or anything.

One of my college roommates has this disturbing power of recollection.  She can talk about something that happened years ago with exquisite detail….we did this and you were wearing this and he said this and blah, blah, blah.  It makes my head hurt to think of all that detail just swimming around in her brain waiting for a chance to be called upon. But good on her for being able to pull random facts out at will.

This forgetfulness of mine recently paid a visit to me in the kitchen.  See, I had been recommending Smitten Kitchen’s Buttermilk Roast Chicken to someone and realized that I couldn’t remember the last time I made it.  Not because I’m walking around like Guy Pearce’s character, Leonard, in Momento but because it had been months since this dish hit my table.  So I put buttermilk and chicken on the grocery list and when the time came to set up the chicken and the buttermilk on a blind date, all I could remember was that the two needed to hang out in the fridge for a day or so.  I forgot that they needed some sweet and spicy chaperones.  It wasn’t until I went back and looked at the recipe for the oven temp that I realized my mistake.

Thankfully, not even my crappy memory was able to break this recipe.  Because I seasoned the chicken with paprika, salt, and some chili seasoning after its milky date and it was every bit as delicious as if I had remembered to season the buttermilk in the first place.

Deb’s Buttermilk Roast Chicken

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

BAH Note:  Super delicious.  This might even become your weeknight go to chicken dish.  You could set your oven as high as 425 degrees and cook for 30 to 45 minutes.  It may sound foolish but that kind of heat makes me nervous….so you do what you’re comfortable with.   Either way you get delicious, moist chicken.

  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 2 cloves crushed garlic (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons paprika (sweet or smoked, whatever you have)
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 3 pounds bone in, skin on chicken (you use the parts you like best)
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil

Combine the buttermilk, garlic, salt, sugar, paprika, and pepper in a zip top plastic bag or a bowl large enough to hold the chicken.  Add the chicken and marinate in the refrigerator anywhere from 2 hours to 48 hours.

When ready to bake, heat your oven to 375 degrees and line a baking dish or sheet pan with foil.  Remove the chicken from the buttermilk brine and place in your dish or pan.  Drizzle the olive oil over the chicken and roast for 45 – 60 minutes until done.

{printable recipe}

Chicken

Weeknight Chicken and Mushroom Sauce

by Wendi5 Comments on Weeknight Chicken and Mushroom Sauce

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I mentioned how my friend Amber is responsible for my rather manic fascination with making strawberry shortcake crumb topping to recreate a childhood food memory.  I briefly mentioned how she readily shares the arsenal of tools that she has, sometimes having Amazon dropping an unexpected box of exactly what you need on your door step.  That’s how I came to have Weeknight Chicken and Mushroom Sauce.

No, Amber didn’t have dinner delivered to my house.  What she did was hear me say that I was overwhelmed by the struggle to be back at work (even if it was just one or two days a week at that time), take care of the Tater Tot, and cook dinner on a regular basis.  She heard me and she took action.  Thanks to Amazon’s freakishly quick ability to get product delivered, a day later there was a smiling Amazon.com box sitting on my doorstep.  Inside was a survival guide with recipes and strategies for how to keep The Mistah and I fed in spite of the crazy new demands on our time and attention.

A. Freaking. Men.

Better than a casserole that freezes beautifully (but that won’t fit in my poorly chosen side by side), Amber gave me the tools to fit cooking back into my routine.  I still have days where I struggle with it.  But I also have days where I thaw some chicken breasts, chop some mushrooms, and call it dinner.  Amber, I hope I can return this act of kindness to you because it’s made a world of difference to me.

Weeknight Chicken and Mushroom Sauce

Adapted from Parents Need to Eat Too

BAH Note:  This is what I scribbled on a piece of paper and tucked into the book at this recipe’s page – “easy weeknight supper  can cook chicken 3 minutes / side then cook 5-10 min @ 350 degrees”  In my scribbles, capitalization and punctuation seem to be optional.

If the idea of having to wash two frying pans makes you want to cry, once you remove the cooked chicken breasts from the oven (carefully, that handle is going to be HOT), wrap the chicken in a bit of foil to keep it warm and use that pan to make the sauce, omitting 3rd tablespoon of oil.  You’ll get to the same place, it will just take a little longer.

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 pound mushrooms, sliced
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1/2 cup dry sherry
  • 2 teaspoons agave or honey
  • 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon butter

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Pat the chicken breasts dry with paper towels and season with a pinch of kosher salt and some black pepper.

Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in an oven safe frying pan over medium heat.  When the oil shimmers, add the chicken breasts to the pan and cook for three minutes on each side.  Transfer the pan to the oven and continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes until the chicken is done.

While the chicken finishes cooking in the oven, add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to another skillet and heat until it shimmers.  Add the mushrooms and thyme and cook until the liquid released by the mushrooms is mostly evaporated.  Add the sherry, agave (or honey), and vinegar to the pan and raise the heat to high.  Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes.  Reduce the heat to low and add the butter to the sauce, whisking to combine.  Taste for seasoning and add kosher salt to taste.

Add the cooked chicken and any accumulated juices to the pan and serve the chicken topped with mushrooms and sauce.

{printable recipe}

Chicken, Main Course

Crock Pot Mole Chicken Chili

by Wendi6 Comments on Crock Pot Mole Chicken Chili

Crock Pot Mole Chicken Chili

Adapted from Slow Cooker Revolution

BAH Note:  My note in the margin says to “reduce adobo and make a double batch”.

  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons chili  powder
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 can chicken broth
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter
  • 3 tablespoons Minute tapioca
  • 2 teaspoons minced chili in adobo sauce
  • 2 pounds chicken thighs, skinned

Combine the onions, vegetable oil, chili powder, cocoa powder, cinnamon and cloves in a microwave safe bowl and heat on high for 5 to 10 minutes, until the onion softens.  Transfer the onion spice mixture to the crock pot.

While the onion and spices microwave, season the chicken with salt and pepper.

After transferring the onions to the crock pot, stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes with their juices, peanut butter, tapioca, and chipotle.  Add the chicken, cover and cook 4 to 6 hours on low until the chicken is done.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board to cool slightly then shred it into bite sized pieces.

Allow the juices in the crock pot to settle and skim any fat from the surface before adding the chicken back to the pot.

Chicken, Main Course

Parmesan Chicken Breasts

by Wendi1 Comment on Parmesan Chicken Breasts

Parmesan Chicken Breasts

Adapted from Bon Appetit

  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (5 to 7 ounces each)
  • 1/2 cup grated parmesan (use the good stuff here)
  • 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil (a herb infused olive oil is lovely for this)

Heat oven to 450 degrees and line a half sheet pan with foil.  Place chicken breasts on the prepared pan.  In a medium bowl, combine the parmesan, panko, salt, and olive oil. Pat the panko topping onto the chicken and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the topping has browned.

Chicken, Main Course

Bruce and Mark’s Honey Chicken

by Wendi1 Comment on Bruce and Mark’s Honey Chicken

Bruce and Mark’s Honey Chicken

Adapted from Cooking Light The Complete Quick Cook

  • 6 to 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 6 tablespoons honey
  • 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Heat the oven to 475 degrees and line a sheet pan with aluminum foil.

While the oven heats, combine the chili powder, cumin, paprika, and salt in a small bowl.  Place the chicken thighs in a large bowl and coat completely with the spice mixture.  Transfer the thighs to the prepared baking pan.

Bake for 10 minutes then carefully turn the thighs over and cook on the other side for another to 10 minutes.

While the chicken cooks, combine the honey and vinegar in a small bowl.  After the chicken has cooked on both sides, baste with the honey mixture.  Cook for 5 minutes before turning the chicken over, basting with the remaining honey mixture and cooking for another 5 minutes