Showing posts with label Chicken. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chicken. Show all posts

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Saving Money on Great Food With Classic Chicken Stock, Demi Glace, and Other Gourmet Sauces


Some of us are lucky enough to have professional culinary training. Then again, maybe luck is not really a factor. Good culinary schools are grueling. Anyone who knows a trained chef has probably heard the stories about how hard it is to make it through, and getting started in a professional kitchen is even harder. It can be a nightmare. It's not for everyone. But you don't have to go quite that far to make some really good meals at home. There are many reasons for learning some new cooking skills, including health factors, financial factors, and even some social factors. Here are a few things to consider when you want to make some great meals at home while you have fun and save some money.


Most cooks and chefs seem to agree that fresh ingredients are the key to good dishes. A few professional chefs have even confessed that they do not have to really do much to make a meal great when the ingredients are of the highest quality. They just let the ingredients speak for themselves. When it comes to buying foods and ingredients, it really is worth it to try to buy from local, privately owned businesses when you can. This is especially true with produce. Farmers' markets are popping up all over the place, and they are making it easier than ever to buy great, fresh produce at low prices. It may be easier to go out at 2am to an all-night grocery store chain, but some of them can be pretty pricey, especially if you are trying to get organic produce. If you can find a family green grocer who is a regular at a local flee market, farmer's market, or market district store, it's a good idea to become pals. Family owned produce businesses tend to provide great fruits and vegetables at really good prices. Once you get to know the owners, they usually give even better deals, especially if you tend to buy a lot at a time. While you are at it, it's not a bad idea to ask for advice on cooking the things you buy, and just on cooking in general. Many of these grocers have been in business for decades, talking with customers and exchanging ideas and recipes. They usually have some great recipes and advice for making everything from seasoned squash to a great chicken stock.


Another thing that you can do to take your cooking to the next level is to check out the gourmet sauces available on some websites. You can get everything, from hot sauce to barbeque sauce to the perfect demi glace sauce, bottled and ready to go, and usually at a reasonable price. These sound like they would be easy enough to make yourself, but they are usually not. Sauces usually have a lot to them, beyond the basic ingredients. Many chefs say it takes them years to really perfect certain sauces. It's really easy to mess up a sauce, but the ones that are done right can really make a dish. You can make an average chicken breast, brisket, fish fillet, or vegetarian dish taste like something from a five star restaurant with the right sauce. It's worth it to check out some of the sites, experiment, and see which sauces work best with your cooking patterns.


Another simple tip is to check out the internet for cooking sites and new equipment. You can find so many easy, fast, delicious recipes, and even videos to walk you through the cooking process. Kitchen appliances have also gotten less expensive, and a few new gadgets can save you tons of time and stress. A small investment now in some new cooking gear, sauces, and spices, can end up saving you a fortune when you consider what you would have paid to have a comparable meal at a restaurant. And, let's face it... bragging rights are pretty fun too. It's great to know that you can create a meal that will delight your family or guests. A little of online recipe research, a trip to a family green grocer, and a quick online purchase of the right sauces may be all you need to become the next culinary star in your circle of friends and family.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Spices For Chicken

Because chicken is relatively inexpensive and fairly easy to prepare there are a vast number of recipes available throughout the world. Chicken spices and herbs are abundant and are readily available in almost any market anywhere. Spices and herbs have become abundant thanks to the explorers of the 15th and 16th century.


Open your cupboards and you'll find a spice or herb, or both that can be the beginning of a very tasty recipe. Every chef has several ways of preparing and cooking their chicken and most have a secret ingredient for their wonderful signature dish. Of course, some of these recipes vary regionally and from country to country, depending on availability and prices at the market.


Aromatic herbs are also used along with spices, thereby adding that extra punch. Sage, thyme, rosemary and basil are a good example of the aromatics that I use. When using spices, remember that sometimes a little goes a long way. I have found that marinating the chicken is very helpful in distributing the flavors evenly. Gauge your addition of salt, especially if your recipe calls for butter; make sure that you use unsalted butter so that you don't overwhelm it with too much salt.


Recipes of all kinds are available on the internet and in cookbooks, so not cooking chicken is a limitation that should not occur in your kitchen. For health reasons I prefer to bake and not fry chicken, although I enjoy fried chicken very much. There is one recipe for fried chicken that is very plain and simple. Use all white, all dark, or a combination of both. Wash the chicken and pat dry; add salt, pepper, and allspice. Deep fry in canola oil and pat dry with paper towels before serving.


A very exotic and tasty way to prepare your chicken is by using a fresh, wonderful homemade curry that you will use again and again.


Indian Curried Chicken Recipe:


Basic Curry Powder
6 dried red chiles
1 oz. coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp black peppercorns
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
10 fresh curry leaves
½ tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp ground turmeric


Remove seeds from chiles. Dry roast the whole spices over a medium heat until they darken, stirring or shaking the pan frequently to prevent burning. Leave to cool, then grind to a powder. Dry roast the curry leaves in the pan for a few minutes, then grind and add them to the mixture with the ginger and turmeric, blending well.


Rub your Curry Powder into the chicken, as needed, about half hour to an hour before roasting in the oven at 350 degrees. A full sized chicken should take twenty minutes per pound, so use your discretion. All things said, it is not what spice you use, but, how you use it. Spices should blend in and not overwhelm. They should never be so intrusive that the essential character of the dish is lost.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe - Buffalo Tried and True

This Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe is like eating a chicken wing, with a spicy kick from Frank's Red Hot Sauce, and a nice cooling effect of creamy Bleu Cheese and Cheddar, only without the mess. Scouring the internet for a perfect recipe, you come across quite a few variations, some are region specific, some just look down right awful. Some people prefer Ranch to their Bleu Cheese, some areas have no idea what Franks Red Hot Sauce is, even more, some people use canned chicken for their Buffalo Chicken Dip. Not exactly sure what planet these people live on, but if I am going to offer something while tailgating for an event, or for family members at a picnic, I am not using canned chicken. In a pinch I will purchase a rotisserie chicken from my local grocery store but I prefer to bake or grill my own chicken ahead of time and shred it prior to adding it to the mixture of cheese and spice that make up my buffalo chicken dip. This recipe contains many Buffalo, NY specific ingredients, one of which is Franks Red Hot Sauce. If you don't have access to Franks locally, buy some online. Franks is used in authentic Buffalo Chicken Wing sauces, and will really give your recipe a kick.


The other product is Rooties Blue Cheese dressing. This dressing is a little more difficult to find online, so if you do not have access to it substitute your favorite bleu cheese dressing. With football season kicking into full gear, this buffalo chicken dip recipe is perfect for your Saturday College Football or Sunday NFL parties with friends and family. If you are lucky enough to make your way to a game and get the full experience of tailgating, this buffalo chicken dip recipe is perfect. So without further ado, I present to you a Buffalonian's take on a dip that has been created and recreated by people everywhere. Please feel free to leave comments on the recipe, and please enjoy.


Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe Ultimate Tailgating Dip


Ingredients

24oz of Chicken, Shredded - I grill or bake 3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves which I have removed any fat from, then shred them. If you are in a pinch, I highly recommend buying a rotisserie chicken from your local food market and shredding it yourself.(2) 8oz packages of Cream Cheese softened1 cup of Frank's Red Hot Sauce1 cup of Rootie's Blue Cheese Dressing2 cups of Mild Cheddar cheeseOptional - Scallions for garnishServe with Tortilla Chips, Toasted Pitas, Celery or Carrots

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degreesIn a large mixing bowl, combine the bleu cheese, cream cheese, half a cup of the cheddar, and the hot sauce until mixed through.Fold in the chicken pieces and transfer to a 9'x11' baking dish or tin. Top with the remaining cheddar cheese.Bake the mixture uncovered for 25-30 minutes until the mixture is bubbly and somewhat browned on the top.

Let it sit for a few minutes to cool down, you don't want your guests burning their mouth on extremely hot Buffalo Chicken Dip. After serving this Buffalo Chicken Dip recipe, you will surely be asked how you made it, so feel free to share the recipe, or keep it as a secret if you want to remain the talk of the block or your tailgating group. That is entirely up to you! I have actually used this recipe to make a pizza if you somehow wind up having leftovers.

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Is A Roasting Bag The Secret To Having Oven Baked Chicken Breasts For Dinner On A Workday?

Have you ever felt that everyday food has a tendency to get boring after a while? I have!


On any given workday I'll get up at 5.20 AM. I'll get breakfast ready and prepare everybody's lunch boxes. Then it will be time to get the kids dressed and ready for kindergarten (the big boy will be starting school next summer). After driving the kids to kindergarten it's time to go to work. As much as I love my job after 8-9 hours (if we're not approaching a deadline) energy levels will be pretty much depleted. Thankfully, my wife will pick up the kids, but when I get home there's still dinner to prepare. More often than not there is neither time or energy to create a great culinary experience.


In the end it's usually a quick fix like pasta.


I love pasta, but even that gets old.


I would love something like oven baked chicken, a roast or something along those lines. That takes time, and a bit of dedication. That's without mentioning all the stuff you need to clean when doing a project like that.


The fact is, after dinner there are more chores. Even though we do our best to get the laundry done during the weekend we do have two active boys who (thankfully) don't think about how the dirt magically gets off the clothes overnight. The dishes also needs to be done. And there are a dozen other chores that simply need to get done on a daily basis.


Add the fact that we do like to occasionally like to do things that aren't related to chores and that definitely takes oven baked chicken out of the equation.


On the other hand, good food is one of the things that adds much needed spice (pun intended) to life. On the weekends we definitely go for what I have coined "project food". The stuff that adds that much needed spice to life.


The question is - do you have to make "project food" a weekend only thing?


Under normal circumstances the answer is definitely yes! With a full day, spending at least one hour making dinner and potentially an equal amount of time cleaning up ain't happening.


This has been nagging me for ages. As I said I don't mind pasta, but I do like a bit of variety in my diet. Sometimes the solution is pretty simple. And the solution to oven baked chicken breast on a weekday came from my oldest son.


There was an ad on TV about roasting bags for chicken with a spice mix. I realize all the professional chefs will be horrified by the thought, but I have a busy day and as such don't mind using premade spice mixes once in a while. My son really wanted us to try this product, so we did. The chicken breasts were juicy and tasty. Best of all though, there was very little cleaning to do.


For me, cleaning is the real killer. And I hate doing dishes with a vengeance!


So, any method that reduces the amount of cleaning I need to do gets a big thumbs up in my book.


Naturally you should still clean the dish you use to cook the chicken, but because you are using a roasting bag it will be much, much easier to clean. The real problem, from a cleaning perspective, when you cook food in the oven is that the pots, pans and dishes you use to prepare your food will be really hard to clean. Anything that makes that easier is something you should seriously think about implementing in your cooking.


Time spent cleaning is less time available to create delicious meals.


Having reduced the time I need to spend cleaning by using roasting packs to cook chicken breasts in the oven it is now actually something we consider doing even on a work day.


Because the chicken breasts are really tender and juicy when cooked in a roasting bag the kids really love to eat it. At times I find it difficult to get the boys to eat anything else than ground meat. These chicken breasts have proven to be a great solution to that problem.


We like to serve on chicken breasts with roast potatoes, carrots, celery and other vegetables. The vegetables can actually be prepared in the roasting bag alongside the chicken breasts. Or you can fry them in a pan with some garlic and thyme. I have found that my two boys, who are not fond of vegetables, love potatoes and vegetables fried in a pan with garlic and thyme as described above.


If there is a lesson to this story it is how important it is to listen to your kids suggestions when it comes to cooking. If my son had not insisted that we try baking chicken breasts in the oven with roasting bags cooking chicken breasts in the oven would still be something we would only dare attempt during the weekends. In my opinion, that would have been a huge loss.


The next time you're thinking about a cooking project during the workday and decide to scrap it due to time concerns do me a favor and rethink your decision. I'm happy that I did just that!

 
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