And your bird can sing…white wine braised chicken
Not to belabor the point but, this morning when I left the house it was frigging 15 below zero…yes, that’s right -15. Our high today was 5, practically balmy out there. It’s not all bad, there’s ample opportunity to get my braise on and it seems like when I’m not braising, I’m making soup…either way we certainly are eating well, despite the cold.
Yesterday I was distracted all day by thoughts of a chicken braised in white wine with pearl onions, cremini mushrooms, russet potatoes, and carrots. Once I got home I looked through a few of my books to find a recipe and I came up with nothing. I search the interwebs and again, nada. In my mind I imagined a bastardized white wine version of coq au vin…so I decided to forge ahead and make it up as I go…oh, you know how I detest winging it (wink, wink).
I cut up a whole chicken, pulled the skin off the legs, thighs, and breasts and browned them in butter in my large dutch oven. I seasoned well with salt and pepper and once they were caramelly brown I added 2 cups of white wine (chardonnay) and one cup of water. I threw in a bay leaf, a pinch of rosemary, a pinch of thyme, and 4 garlic cloves. I let this simmer, with the lid on, for about 90 minutes. I added a container of pearl onions that I peeled quite easily by blanching them for a minute or so in boiling water, 1 carrot peeled and sliced, one russet potato, peeled and diced, and 8 cremini mushrooms, halved. I brought the heat up when I added these and left the lid off.
After about 20 minutes it was finished and we ate a lovely bowl of chicken, veg, and stock…all of it very tangy, actually singing from the wine, yet full of chickeny flavor…it was really quite comforting and yet not at all boring. Oddly enough my favorite was a bite of chicken combined with a pearl onion swished through the broth…it was a divine taste sensation! Pearl onions are so oniony, yet a totally different onion flavor from a big yellow onion, it’s a fresh, almost crisp flavor that is tempered with just a smidge of mellow. Give them a try, they’re definitely worth the itty-bitty extra effort of blanching and peeling.
The best part is the leftovers, I’ll turn the leftover chicken and veg into chicken pot pies. The carcass, back, and wings go into the chicken stock box in the deep freeze…I’ve got quite a collection of bits and pieces in there, now all I need is a new chicken soup recipe (not noodle). Any ideas?
Totally naked, baby, totally nude
Let me clarify my position on potatoes…I adore them! However, I do not love mashed potatoes. I know, I know, you’re shaking your head right now and muttering “what is not to love?”. I can understand that, I get that salt, butter, and cream are an admirable and compelling addition to the common potato. But, when it comes to the potato I’ve been born again baby…I was lost but now I’m found! I like to start with a potato that is totally naked, totally nude. This truth has been revealed to me in stages over the past year.
First there was our trip to London where I ate the classic “Sunday Roast” and discovered a potato, peeled, and cooked whole, but not soggy. Instead it was almost flaky on the outside and waxy in the middle. The taste of the potato was complete potatoey perfection from both the flavor and texture. I’d never had anything like it and it was superb. Then upon my return I tried to replicate this potato and I just couldn’t get it right, the outer layer was always soggy. Then one day I was watching Nigella and she was preparing a potato dish. Her pan choice wasn’t a deep pan or pot but rather a shallow sauce-pan with only the barest minimum of water necessary to get the job done. Then she cooked the potatoes until they were almost done, drained them, and returned them to the heat to “fluff”…and fluff they did. Excellent! I finally had a method to work with.
Lucky for me not all local potatoes were lost in our late summer flood. There were the luscious purple potatoes from Jordandal Farm and then the perfect french fingerling’s and yukons from Vermont Valley. I’ve come to love potatoes cooked with this method and while I’m sure at some point I’ll end up mashing a potato again, I know it won’t be one of these perfect local gems. They are best with coarse, kosher salt and maybe a very slight puddle of butter or meat drippings to skate it through on the way to my mouth.
Last night I served the potatoes alongside braised beef, shallots, and sauteed mushrooms…each bite was a delight. For breakfast this morning I ate the leftover potatoes, heated gently, sprinkled with some seasoning, and topped with a dollop of garlic yogurt (left over from falafel night) and chopped parsley. I wanted more.
Braised beef with naked potatoes, and shitake mushrooms
For the braised beef:
Beef roast, chuck is best
1 cup red wine
1 cup water
handful of peel shallots
2 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
1 carrot, peeled and chunked
salt, pepper, thyme
For the potato and mushrooms:
8 to 10 small potatoes
Shitake mushrooms
butter
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Brown the roast on both sides in a dutch oven. Add everything else, pop a lid on the pan and put it in the oven. Let it cook for 2.5 to 3 hours depending upon the size of the roast.
Then:
Peel your potatoes and place them in a shallow saucepan with about ½ inch of water and a good pinch of salt. Cook these on medium until they are almost done. When you knife them they should be tender but not fall off the knife blade. Drain the pan of water and return it, covered, to the burner on medium low. Remember to give them a shake every so often to keep them from sticking
Remove the roast and shallots from the pan and cover tightly to keep warm. Put the pan on a burner and reduce the remaining beef juices to a nice consistency…adding beef stock, water, or wine if necessary.
Sauté the mushrooms in the butter until tender.
Slice the beef about ¼ inch thick. Serve in a shallow bowl. First add the beef juice, then the beef, the shallots, the mushrooms, and finally the potatoes.
End of the month round-up
I’ll admit it, I’m happy to see this month recede. Don’t get me wrong, I usually adore October, brisk chilly mornings, sun drenched indian summer afternoons, leaves turning brilliant reds, blues, and oranges, and good food to eat. But my cooking hasn’t been that interesting and there was this, which seems to be lingering to some extent. Also my appetite betrayed me. For the longest time all I wanted to eat were delicious falafel, crispy brown and tucked into a warm pita lined with tomatoes, chopped parsley, and yogurt sauce seasoned with garlic, salt, and lemon juice. Actually, I just had one for dinner tonight and I don’t see this obsession of mine waning at all. You’ll notice there are no pictures of falafels, too busy eating. But we have enjoyed eating these lovely pears from our CSA fruit share.
This club sandwich brought me right back to a road trip vacation with my parents and my brother. I must have been 9 or so and we drove west. Whenever we’d stop and eat in a restaurant I’d order a club sandwich. I thought it was so cool. Also I had a pair of cowboy boots that I wore all the time, a bad perm, an overbite, and cat woman glasses as thick as a coke bottle. Yes indeed folks, I was quite a beauty. But this sandwich is the real thing, beautiful, totally local and tastee.
This herb encrusted Icelandic lamb with purple potatoes, both from Jordandal Farm, were lip smacking good with great lamby flavor, and so much fun to eat. Those potatoes are another one of my obsessions this month. The first time I bought the potatoes I only got a few because our CSA keeps us well stocked in taters. But these were not typical spuds…on no my friends, these were potatoes of the gods. When I went back 2 weeks later Eric didn’t have anymore with him. I explained how much I loved these potatoes and what fine and awesome taters they were, and poor Eric took pity on me and said he’d see what he could do. Sure enough he wrangled me a good sized bag of them and now it’s all I want to eat. I cut them into a 1/2″ dice, steam them, and then toss them with shallot butter, coarse kosher salt, and some coarse pepper…ummm, I’m in heaven. They’re perfect warmed up in the microwave with leftover whatever on top. Again no photos, too busy eating.
Beef, eggplant, and mushroom stir fry is one of my favorite combos. I sauce it with some soy, siriracha, and a dash of rice vinegar. I always use dried shitakes for this because they have such a bold flavor and a great texture.
This was a huge pot of soup featuring diced french fingerling potatoes, squash, chard, onions, and carrots. Totally local too.
Another sandwich…this is made on a ciabatta and filled with Brunkow’s pepper-jack cheese, Jordandal’s beef summer sausage, olives, and those beautiful sweet and spicy red peppers from Whole Foods’ olive bar…I have no idea what they’re called but I love, love, love them on everything. I made this into a panini using my new electric griddle and and a cast iron skillet as a weight.
Another easy-peasy obsession of mine…stir-fried rice noodles with egg, sriracha, and topped with ribbons of fresh basil. I know it’s ridiculous, but I like it.
I can already hear the humming of the interweb as it gears up for the gluttonous holiday season. I’ll get there…after a few more falafels.
