Coconut Milk Roasted Chicken

Coconut Milk Roasted Chicken

I had a couple of whole chickens in the freezer that I wanted to cook now that fall is here and I need the space in the freezer for bags of foods from my summer crops.

This recipe follows in my goal to make tasty dishes even when “there’s nothing to eat in this house” so I opened the pantry and gathered leftover produce and made a roasted chicken with tons of Thai/Indian flavors that was a huge hit at my home.

I know roast chicken and white rice isn’t the easiest to photograph BUT, this was definitely a tasty dish that took about 20 minutes to prepare (plus roasting time).

Ingredients:

  • 5-6 pound whole chicken, washed under cool water and patted dry with paper towels
  • 1 tsp. each salt and black pepper
  • 3 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 Tbsp. finely chopped lemongrass
  • 1 Tbsp. grated ginger
  • 1 tsp. thyme
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 tsp. smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp. garam masala (use curry powder if you don’t have)
  • ½ tsp. cayenne pepper
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 13-ounce can coconut milk (I used light)
  • 1 cup chicken broth (or 14.5-ounce can)
  • Slurry – 1 Tbsp. cornstarch whisked with ¼ cup water
  • Squeeze of lime juice (optional)

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
  2. Rub the chicken all over with salt and pepper.
  3. In a small bowl, combine garlic, lemongrass, ginger, thyme and olive oil to create a paste.
  4. Rub half the garlic mixture on the chicken, reserving the other half. You can use the chicken right away or store it for a day, wrapped in the fridge.
  5. In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, allow the vegetable oil to warm for a minute. Add the chicken, breast-side down and brown for about 5 minutes then turn and brown the other side of the chicken for 5 minutes.
  6. Remove the chicken from the Dutch oven to a platter.
  7. To the hot Dutch oven, add the second half of the garlic mixture, the paprika, the garam masala and the cayenne pepper and cook for a minute until fragrant.
  8. Add the diced onion to the spices and cook until softened, about 4 minutes, stirring frequently.
  9. Add the coconut milk and the broth to the onion mixture and stir.
  10. Return the chicken to the Dutch oven, cover and place in the oven. Cook for 1 ½ – 2 hours, until very tender, basting the chicken with the broth periodically.
  11. Remove the chicken from the pot to a serving dish and place the Dutch oven on the stove over high heat. When the broth is simmering, add the corn starch slurry and whisk for 2 minutes until the sauce has thicken.
  12. Carve the chicken and serve with Easy Basmati Rice and the sauce. I love adding a squeeze of lime juice to this dish, but it’s optional.

Serves 6.

 

Inspired by this recipe.

Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

I love Indian food and the deep flavors of the various dishes I’ve tried thus far. Over the years, I’ve fine-tuned my recipe for Chicken Tikka Masala that’s slow cooked and delicious, but this past weekend, I decided to pull the old Crockpot out of the attic and make this comforting recipe in it. So perfect for a cold winter day!

Nothing could be simpler to make, as long as you have the necessary spices. All are easy to find at local grocery stores, but if you live very remotely, perhaps the Garam Masala might give you a bit of trouble to find. Luckily, there’s Amazon to the rescue!

There’s just one issue with this recipe – your house will smell intoxicatingly amazing all day long….it’s best to make this recipe on a day you’ll be out of the house or else you’ll be salivating (like we did) most of the day!

If you want to make this vegetarian – simply replace the chicken with a 29-ounce can of rinsed chickpeas! 

Long Simmering Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1½-inch chunks
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 Tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
  • 1 29-ounce can of tomato purée
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp. Garam Masala
  • 2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 2 tsp. ground coriander
  • 2 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. turmeric
  • ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp. cayenne pepper (if you don’t love spicy food, make this ¼ tsp.)
  • ½ tsp. ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 Tbsp. granulated sugar
  • 2 bay leaves

Finishing Ingredients:

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 Tbsp. corn starch
  • 2 Tbsp. lemon juice
  • Chopped cilantro, optional (could also use flat leaf parsley)

Directions:

  1. Coat the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray (or rub with olive oil).
  2. In the slow cooker, combine all the “Long Simmering Ingredients” and stir well to coat all the chicken pieces with the spices and tomato puree. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.
  3. In a bowl, whisk together the cream and the corn starch until smooth. Add to the chicken mixture, stir well to incorporate and cook for 20 minutes.
  4. Add the lemon juice, stir to incorporate.
  5. Serve with Easy Basmati Rice and chopped cilantro, if using.

Makes 6 servings.

Enjoy!

Veronique

 

Recipe inspired by this.

Healthy Chicken Fiesta Bowls

Healthy Chicken Fiesta Bowls

chicken-fiesta-bowlsIt’s a new year and I’m making all efforts to use meal prepping more so I can cook on Sundays and have delicious, healthy lunches during the week. I did pretty well with this in 2016, but since I travel over 50% of the time, meals at home weren’t very frequent. This recipe makes four lunch since bowls that are easy to take to work and reheat in the microwave. Corn would be a nice addition to this recipe, so feel free to add if you’re not trying to cut down on carbs a bit. Ingredients:

  • 2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into three pieces each (6 pieces total)
  • 2 red bell peppers, julienned
  • 1 large onion, chopped in medium pieces
  • 1 Tbsp. creole/blackening seasoning (could use taco seasoning)
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper
  • 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 2 cups cooked brown rice
  • 1 cup canned black beans, drained and rinses
  • 1 cup fresh salsa (don’t want to make your own, check out the produce section of your grocery store for fresh salsa)
  • 4 Tbsp. cilantro leaves (optional)
  • 1 lime cut into 4, optional

Directions: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

  1. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (to make cleanup easy). Place the chicken, peppers and onions on the baking sheet then sprinkle with blackening seasoning, salt and pepper. Drizzle the oil on the veggies and chicken and toss to coat with oil and spices evenly. Bake for 25 minute then turn oven to broil and broil for 3-4 minutes, until lightly charred. Allow to cool, then chop the veggies and chicken in bite size pieces.
  2. To assemble, divide the rice, black beans, salsa, chicken and cooked vegetables among 4 microwave-safe storage containers. Refrigerate until ready to eat, up to 5 days.
  3. When ready to eat, microwave partially-covered for 3 minutes. Garnish with cilantro leaves and, if using. Can also serve with additional salsa and lime juice.

Makes 4 lunch entrees.  

Chicken in Tarragon and Riesling Sauce

Chicken in Tarragon and Riesling Sauce

Chicken in Tarragon and Riesling SauceLast night, I made this dish using a combination of chicken and rabbit and received rave reviews on my pictures on social media…except for a couple people upset at the use of rabbit in the dish. I get it, it’s easy to associate rabbit with Bugs Bunny and get sensitive about it.

Me, I don’t see much of a difference between a cute rabbit and a cute chicken, so I used both in the recipe. It’s easy to use one or the other or both, it’s up to you and also how easy it is to source rabbit where you are.

Veggies and Bacon

Veggies and Bacon

This is such a delicious, easy-to-make recipe that you can make in the morning and reheat when your guests arrive. It’s also great for leftovers.

Ingredients:

  • 6 bacon strips, diced
  • 1 medium Spanish onion, sliced
  • 1 8-ounce package fresh sliced Cremini mushrooms
  • 8 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1/3 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 2 tsp. tarragon
  • 2 bay leaves
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper
  • 1-750 ml bottle dry Riesling (or other dry white wine)
  • 1 tsp. flour
  • 1 tsp. softened butter
  • ½ cup heavy cream
Chicken Simmering

Chicken Simmering

Directions:

  1. In a large Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium heat until browned and crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the onions, coat in the bacon fat and cook until tender, another 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 3 minutes. Transfer the cooked vegetables and bacon to a plate keeping some of the bacon fat in the pot.
  2. Place chicken in a bowl and coat with mustard. Add the oil to the Dutch oven and raise the heat to high. Brown chicken on all sides for about 5 minutes. Add tarragon, bay leaves, salt and pepper and cook for an additional minute. Add the wine and scrape any browns bits from the bottom of the pot, this is where all the awesome flavors come from.
  3. Return the vegetable and bacon to the pot and stir gently to combine. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes, stirring gently, occasionally.
  4. Raise the heat to high and bring to a simmer. In a small dish, combine the flour and butter to create a paste and add to the bubbling cooking liquid. Stir gently to ensure the butter paste is fully incorporated and sauce is slightly thickened. Lower the heat to low and cook for 5 minutes. Add the cream to the sauce and simmer for 2 minutes.
  5. At this point, the dish can be served over fluffy white rice or cooled and kept in the fridge for up to a day. To reheat, place the chicken and sauce in a Dutch oven, add ½ cup chicken stock and reheat for 30 minutes in the oven at 300 degrees.

4 Servings.

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Creamy Chicken SoupI fell in love with creamy chicken soup at our local St Hubert restaurant in Quebec while I was growing up. It was pure comfort in a bowl and since then, I often order creamy chicken soup when I see it on a menu.

While on Pinterest last week, I saw Cooking Classy’s gorgeous photos for her Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup and knew I’d need to make it someday. That day’s today and I love how it turned out with my modifications!

Creamy, velvety texture, slightly crunchy wild rice, moist chicken and hearty veggies – heaven in a bowl!

Ingredients

  • 5-ounce package of Carolina Long Grain & Wild Rice, cooked according to package directions
  • 7 Tbsp. butter, divided
  • 1 cup chopped yellow onion
  • 1 cup diced carrot
  • 1 cup diced celery
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1/2 tsp. each dried thyme, sage, rosemary, salt and pepper
  • 2 cups diced roasted chicken
  • ½ cup flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream, divided

Directions

  1. In a large pot, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook an additional minute.
  2. Add chicken broth, thyme, sage, rosemary, salt and black pepper.
  3. Add chicken and cooked rice and cook for 10 more minutes.
  4. In a separate medium saucepan over medium heat, melt remaining 6 tablespoon butter. Add flour and cook for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Add the milk and ½ cup of cream to the butter/flour mixture, whisking vigorously. Cook mixture, whisking constantly until thickened. Add the milk mixture to the soup and cook for about 10 minutes.
  5. Stir in remaining ½ cup heavy cream and serve warm.

Serves 6 generously.

Joyce Farms – Poultry Heaven

Joyce Farms – Poultry Heaven

Joyce Farms ChickensWhen Ron Joyce contacted me a few weeks back to comment about a recent chicken recipe I’d posted and to say it would have been better if I had his Poulet Rouge Fermier on hand, I admit, I was curious. Chicken just isn’t at the top of my list of proteins so I thought “how good could his chicken really be?”. The answer – fantastic.

Chicken on RotisserieRon, of Joyce Farms in Winston-Salem, N.C., is a second-generation producer who raises heritage chickens lauded in France. The breed of chicken is called cou nu – “naked neck”, considered by many top chefs to be the best tasting chicken in the world.

At Joyce Farms, the chickens live for 80 days, almost double as long as “commercial” chickens, in a spacious indoor-outdoor environment that lets them exercise their muscles, break down their fat, resulting in succulent, almost gamey meat.

I decided to make a butterflied Poulet Rouge on the grill with a bit of spice and cooked another on the rotisserie after marinating it in my ginger concoction. This was by far the juiciest, most flavorful chicken I’ve ever made and perhaps tasted. The skin was paper-thin and crispy, almost like a crackling, and the meat with moist and succulent. I’m thrilled I have two others in the freezer.

Grilled ChickenJoyce Farms’ prices start at $16 for a fresh, 2 ½ – 3-pound broiler and products are available at www.Joyce-Farms.com.

Give them a try and replace that dry, flavorless turkey with a couple of these amazing chickens for Thanksgiving, I know I plan to.

Cheers,

Veronique

5 Easy Labor Day Weekend Dishes

5 Easy Labor Day Weekend Dishes

labor-day-clipart-2014-2I love a reason to BBQ and have friends over, so Labor Day is one of my favorite foodie holidays. Labor Day weekend is also a reminder that summer’s coming to an end and a perfect time to fire up the grill.

Here are 5 easy recipes ideal for any Labor Day weekend BBQs:

1.      World’s Best BBQ Sauce (slather it on everything!)

2.      Easy Baby Back Ribs (slather that BBQ sauce on these!)

3.      Slow Cooker Pork Shoulder (not technically for the grill, but tasty!)

4.      Ginger Marinated Whole Grilled Chicken

5.      Grilled Brined Pork Chops

A very safe and happy holiday weekend to all my friends and fans.

Cheers,

Veronique

2nd Annual FryFest

2nd Annual FryFest

Fried Mac & Cheese

Fried Mac & Cheese

The second installment of FryFest is behind us. Much like the 2013 FryFest, this year’s all-fried event was held on a beautiful late summer day.

This year, we fried a few of last year’s favorites along with new items. Here’s what my brother-in-food, Danny Chin of Eat with Dan, and me served our 13 guests:

Finger Food

Corn Dogs – Veronique

Arancini (Rice Balls) – Veronique

Spring rolls -Danny

Fried Ravioli – Veronique

Poutine – Veronique & Danny

Fried Onion Rings – Veronique & Danny

Danny Chin Making Spring Rolls

Danny Chin Making Spring Rolls

Entrée

Fried Chicken – Danny

Fried Mac & Cheese – Veronique

Dessert

Fried Oreos – Veronique & Danny

Fried Candy Bars – Veronique & Danny

Zeppolis – Veronique

The corn dogs were super with a light batter of flour and corn meal giving the dogs a slight crunch with a hint of sweetness.

The Arancini might have been my favorite with a creamy risotto interior and golden brown crunchy exterior. Perfect way to use up leftover risotto.

Danny’s spring rolls are always a hit and I loved watching him roll over 60 rolls in less than 30 minutes.

Fried raviolis, or as my St Louis friends call them, toasted ravs, were a nice munchies, especially with homemade tomato sauce.

Fried Chicken

Fried Chicken

For my poutine, I know this will be sacrilegious to my folks in Quebec, I ordered cheddar cheese curds from Ellsworth Cooperative Creamery in Wisconsin. More on those folks in a future post. My handcut fries were double-fried for a perfect balance of creamy inside and crispy outside – yum.

Fried onion rings were a bust this year, bad revision to last year’s yummy rings.

THE fried chicken – absolutely delicious. My pal Danny smartly chose drumsticks, thighs and some tenderloins. For me, it’s all about dark meat and the overnight buttermilk bath combined with the seasoned flour coating made for a juicy, flavorful and crispy delicacy – well done my friend!

Fried mac & cheese – yes, it’s slightly irresponsible, health-wise, but so darn tasty. I made my extra cheesy macaroni and cheese recipe for this and will do full instructions in a future post. Guest at the dinner who works with local restaurants told me I should help out some restaurants with their version after tasting mine!

Fried Oreos and bite size candy bars went into a simple, slightly sweet batter. Super tasty and a recipe will come soon – I promise.

Fried Oreos

Fried Oreos

I’d made my super easy Zeppolis last year and made them again as they were a hit. For a fun touch, I used brown paper sandwich bags, added powdered sugar to them and place 2-3 hot Zeppolis inside for each guest to shake and eat without sharing.

It was a fun night which is now followed by tons of dieting and exercise, of course. I couldn’t have done it without Danny and my friend Lisa who was a huge help with the a la minute frying.       

Have you liked Eat with Dan on Facebook? Have you followed him on Twitter? Do it now for drop-dead gorgeous food photos.

Cheers,

Veronique

Easy Chicken Tarragon

Easy Chicken Tarragon

Chicken TerragonThis is a recipe I grew up with as it might have been my mom’s signature dish. Simply a comforting meal with lots of flavor.

Ingredients:

  • 6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
  • 2 tsp. tarragon
  • 3 ½ cups ( 1-750 ml bottle) white wine
  • 1-8 ounce pkg. fresh sliced mushrooms
  • 2 tsp. vegetable oil
  • ½ cup yellow mustard
  • 1 tbs. corn starch
  • ¾ cup heavy cream
  • salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

  1. Place chicken in a bowl and coat with mustard.  Heat oil in a large saucepan on medium-high heat.  Brown chicken on all sides.  Add tarragon, mushrooms, and wine and bring to a boil.  Lower heat to medium, salt and pepper to taste and simmer for 45 minutes.
  2. Remove chicken pieces from pan and add cream to the sauce.  Simmer 5 minutes.
  3. In a glass, mix water and cornstarch and add to the sauce. Let mixture thicken for 3 minutes.
  4. Return chicken to the sauce and re-season with salt and pepper if necessary.

Serve over white rice.

4 Servings.

Easy Chicken Piccata

Easy Chicken Piccata

Chicken PiccataPiccata originated in Italy using veal. While I enjoy the veal version, I’m partial to chicken. This recipe is simple to make any night of the week and is fancy enough for a dinner party. I like to serve mine with a side of angel hair pasta.

Ingredients:

  • 2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half to create 4 half breast portions
  • 1/2 tsp. each sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 cups all purpose flour, for dredging
  • 6 Tbsp. butter
  • 5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock
  • 1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed
  • 1/3 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

Directions:

  1. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.
  2. In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes. When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to a plate.
  3. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat (don’t clean) and add chicken to the plate.
  4. Reduce heat to medium and add the lemon juice, stock and capers to the skillet. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter.
  5. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.

4 Servings.