Roast Chicken with Herb Butter and Veggies

A while ago, I randomly bought a whole chicken because it was dirt cheap at the Teeter.  I put it in the freezer, where it stayed until a few weeks ago when I decided I wanted to roast it.  I haven't posted about it yet because I've had so much other stuff to post about, but I figured I needed to go ahead and write about it now since its kind of a winter-y recipe and spring is all of a sudden upon us. 

I looked at a whole bunch of recipes and techniques for roasting chickens, and decided to kind of blend a bunch of techniques.  To start with, I made a butter with lemon zest, garlic, and rosemary, and spread it under the skin.  I stuffed the cavity with half an onion, half a lemon, and some rosemary sprigs.  I decided to truss it because so many people said it helps the chicken cook more evenly.

Interestingly enough, I also found out that some people swear by preheating the roasting pan with the oven.  This helps the thighs get a head start, which keeps them from being underdone when the breast is ready to come out.  So, I decided to give it a try, and preheated the pan in a  425 degree oven.  When it was ready, in went the chicken.

The skin was kind of torn, so that pin is kind of holding it in place. My mom taught me this trick.

In the meantime, I got the veggies ready by cutting them all down to about the same size. I decided to go with fennel, carrots, pearl onions, potatoes, and whole garlic cloves.  I lightly tossed them in some EVO, salt, and pepper.

 

After about 20 minutes at 425, I took the chicken out, laid the veggies down (yes, I used a rack), and replaced the chicken. Turned the temperature down to about 375, and added some more butter on top.

I roasted the chicken about another hour ( I can't remember exactly how much time it took).  Don't forget to baste periodically.  I also turned the pan around halfway through the cooking time to make sure it cooked evenly.  When a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 165 degrees, or when the juices run out clear instead of cloudy, the chicken is done. 

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and let it rest 10 -15 minutes before carving. 

Although the veggies were done, I thought they needed to brown a bit more, so I put them in a Pyrex dish and put them under the broiler for a minute or two.

I made a quick, easy gravy with the pan juices, and sauteed some blanched broccoli rabe with some garlic and lemon juice, and that's it!

 

Daring Cooks January Challenge: Satays!

 

This challenge was hosted by Cuppy from Cuppylicious, and it was actually really fun to plan out.  I decided to make 2 different marinades, one for beef and one for chicken, and 2 different dipping sauces.  I marinated the beef in the Daring Cooks' recommended recipe, and for the chicken I decided on a coconut curry inspired marinade.  I made the peanut sauce posted on Daring Cooks, and decided on an herbed cucumber Raita-style sauce as well.  I know I kind of blended Thai and Indian flavors, but the recipes seemed really tasty, and well, I can do what I want!

So, here are the recipes:

Beef Satay Marinade 

 

1/2 a small onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, finely diced

2 tablespoons ginger root, finely diced

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

I chose to use a top sirlion steak- it was much cheaper than even a flank steak or a skirt steak

Mix ingredients well.  Cut beef into 1 inch strips, against the grain.  Cover and chill.

Chicken Satay Marinade

Adapted from allrecipes.com 

1/2 cup coconut milk

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon chili powder

salt and pepper to taste

2 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, lightly pounded, and cut into 1 inch strips

Mix marinade until brown sugar has dissolved.  Toss marinade with the chicken, cover and chill.

Herbed Cucumber Raita

I looked at several different Raita/chutney recipes, and kind of took elements from all of them to make this sauce.

10 ounces plain Greek yogurt

1/2 cup minced mint leaves

1/2 cup minced cilantro leaves

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely diced

1 jalapeno, seeded, minced

1 teaspoon curry powder 

1 tablespoon lime juice

1 tablespoon tarragon vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 teaspoons cumin 

salt and pepper to taste

pinch paprika

Blend all ingredients, and adjust components to your liking.  Chill.  Before serving, sprinkle with paprika.

 

Peanut Sauce

3/4 cup coconut milk

4 tablespoons peanut b utter

1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

2 dried chilies, finely chopped

Sriracha to taste

Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Add soy sauce and lemon, and mix well.  

Just before you are getting ready to serve, combine coconut milk, peanut butter, and your soy-lemon-seasoning in a small pan.  Warm over low heat, stirring well.  Add Sriracha to adjust heat. 

Cooking Instructions

Just before you're ready to cook the satays, soak your wooden skewers in warm water for 20 minutes.  This keeps them from catching on fire.  Thread the meat onto the skewers, accordian-style.

You choose whether to grill or broil them.  I used a grill-pan because I don't have an outdoor grill.  Cook over medium-high heat until done.

I served mine with some simply steamed baby bok choy and jasmine rice with coconut milk.  Both sauces were good, but I loved the cucumber Raita.  It had a nice cooling effect against the heat of the satays.  These were pretty easy to make, but there was a lot of prep involved.  They would be a good weeknight recipe if you had the forethought to get the marinade going before work.  Overall, this was a fun, tasty, and slightly unusual dinner!

 

Chicken Pasta Soup

The last few weeks of '09 have not been very kind to me.  I've had food poisoning, a root canal, and now I've come down with some kind of yucky flu-ish illness.  So, I'm kind of depressed because I haven't really felt like eating like usual.  Nothing really strikes me, but I need energy because these next couple days are the busiest days of the year in the food and bev industry.  Even if I wanted to call in sick, there would be no one to cover the shifts for me!  Plus, I'm broke, and its all about the mon-ay.


So, I buckled down and made some feel-good chicken and pasta soup. This is my Aunt Loralee's recipe, which I fell in love with when I was like 10 years old.  I only tend to make it when I'm feeling really crummy, or have someone sick to care for.  It's super easy, and you can use any old vegetable-bin staples you have laying around.  There's no specific measurements- just a dash of this, pinch of that, little bit of this, handful of that, so you can tailor it to your liking.  Her recipe called for green beans, which I didn't have on hand, so I added a diced potato for some additional starchy energy.

Loralee's Chicken Pasta Soup

Rotisserie Chicken

2 or 3 bay leaves

Garlic/Cumin/Sage/Crushed Red Pepper/Salt & Pepper

Veggie Bouillon (2 or 3 squares, dissolved in soup broth)

Carrots, finely chopped

Celery, finely chopped

Potato, diced

Tomatoes (one can or a couple of fresh, finely chopped)

Dry White Wine

Soy Sauce

Worcestershire Sauce

Tabasco

Orzo, Pepini Noodles, or other pasta of your choice

Boil chicken in large soup pot of water.  (It doesn't have to be a full chicken- you can eat some for lunch and use the rest for the soup).  I let the chicken boil while I diced the rest of the veggies.  Take chicken out and cool in colander, keeping broth in pot.  While chicken is cooling, add remaining ingredients, except for the pasta, to the broth.  Pull chicken off bones and tear or cut into bite size pieces and add back to soup.  Let simmer for 1-4 hours, tasting and adding additional spices as desired.  

Twenty minutes before serving, turn up heat to boiling.  Once boiling, add pasta *I used half a box of orzo.*  Enjoy!

Have a happy new year!  Be careful tonight!

Chicken & Broccoli Stir Fry

We drank a crisp Viognier with this.

For some strange reason, I've been craving a good stir fry all week.  I'm not too experienced in the Asian foods department- I've always felt kind of intimidated making even the most simple dishes. So, I've kind of vowed to myself to try harder.  This craving got to the point where I went to the grocery store and picked out some ingredients that I thought would work well: broccoli, mushrooms, bean sprouts, a can of water chestnuts.  I looked at like 20 different stir fry recipes for inspiration, and just kind of threw one together.  Here's what I went with:

Chicken & Broccoli Stir Fry

2 boneless chicken breasts, cubed

chopped broccoli

quartered mushrooms

bean sprouts
1 can diced water chestnuts 

chopped basil

soy sauce
Worcestershire sauce
ground ginger
crushed red pepper
ground chili powder
toasted sesame seeds

white rice

chicken stock

butter

soy sauce

I cooked the rice using 1/3 part chicken stock to 2/3 part water.  Add a splash of soy sauce and some butter.

For the stir fry: Heat about a tablespoon of canola oil in a wok or skillet over fairly high heat.  Add chicken, a pinch of ground ginger, and a splash of soy sauce.

chicken

Cook until the meat is no longer pink. Remove from wok.

In the same pan, heat about a tablespoon of canola oil.  Add broccoli and saute until it starts to soften, about 3 to 4 minutes.  Add mushrooms;  season to your liking with soy sauce, Worcestershire, crushed red pepper, ground ginger, and ground chili powder. Cook an additional 2 minutes or so.  

  veggies

Add sprouts, water chestnuts, and basil.  Add cooked chicken.  Adjust the soy sauce and spices as you feel necessary. 

all the rest

Toss in toasted sesame seeds.  Serve over rice, with Sriracha chili sauce. This was easy, healthy, and delicious!

 

White Chili

Decorating the tree today!

I hate it when people start playing Christmas carols and decorating their house before Thanksgiving has even happened. I like to give Thanksgiving its own due time before moving into the Christmas spirit.  That being said, I probably should have gotten my tree up before now, but, whatever, its up now. 

Let me tell you, Bam Bam was a *huge* helper. 

If he were  human he'd be a gin drinker.

Anyway, I've been waiting for a nice blustery day to make Mom's white chili recipe, but finally gave up because, oh yeah, I live in Charleston. The weather keeps toying around with the idea of getting cold, and then changes its mind and turns warm again. I'm running around in short sleeves in the middle of December, for goodness' sake.

So, I gave up and made the chili.  I love this recipe, and its not as unhealthy as your usual beefy variety.  Here's the recipe:

White Chili

1 pound dried Great Northern beans

2 pounds boneless chicken breasts

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

4 cloves minced garlic

2 fresh jalapenos, chopped *the original called for canned chilies, but I think fresh probably work just as well. I actually felt like I could have added a few more*

2 teaspoons cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons oregano

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

6 cups chicken stock

3 cups (12 oz) grated Monterey Jack cheese

Sour cream, cilantro, corn chips, salsa- whatever  you like to garnish with

Place beans in heavy large pot.  Add enough cold water to cover by at least 3 inches.  Soak overnight.

Place chicken in heavy large saucepan.  Add cold water to cover and bring to a simmer.  Cook until just tender, about 15 minutes.  Drain and cool.  Cut chicken into cubes.

all chopped up and ready to go

Drain beans.  Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add onions and saute until translucent, about 10 minutes.

 

sauteing the onions

 

Stir in garlic, then chilies, cumin, oregano, cloves, and cayenne and saute 2 minutes.

 

 japs

Place saute mixture along with beans and stock into a large pot (or crock pot- this would be an easy recipe to make while you're at work) and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until beans are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 2 hours.

Add chicken and 1.5 cups cheese to chili and stir until cheese melts.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  

 

 My garnishes of choice.  Gotta have some Fritos scoops!

Ladle chili into bowls. Serve with remaining cheese and garnish to your liking.

 

 Mmm.  Goes well with a cold beer.

Did you think I was gonna leave you hanging without a final tree photo? I think not!

  

Bottom right hand corner is Tiger, the cat you haven't met yet :)

That pretty much does it!