Velvet Chicken

You'll never think the same way about chicken again.

Chris and I are on our annual pre-vacation soup cleanse this week, but I wanted to share a technique for cooking a whole chicken with you: "Velvet Chicken." I tried it the week before Thanksgiving and have become a huge fan. It is amazing. And, if Chris and I can't enjoy it right now, at least you can.

I found the recipe for "Velvet Chicken" in a recent issue of the Wall Street Journal, but from the minimal amount of research I did, it seems that this has been a staple of Chinese cooking for eons. It leaves the meat juicy and velvety, all without turning on your oven, and with minimal output from your stove.

Just to be clear, this isn't a recipe to replace a lovely roasted chicken, all crispy and browned, right out of the oven.  Nothing can really replace that. However, this is a great recipe to use instead of buying canned chicken and rotisserie chickens from the grocery store (I usually use those to make quick salads, pot pies, etc.). The effort is minimal and you can do whatever you want for the three hours that the chicken is resting -- watch a movie, read a book, go shopping, clean out your closets, etc., and still end up with dinner.

You can find the WSJ recipe here. And, you can send me a thank you note for sharing this with you via the comments below. I'm serious. It is awesome.

Here's all you need to do:

• Take a 3-4 lb. whole chicken (innards discarded, feet tied) and place it in a large pot (about 8 quarts) on the stove and cover with water (about 5 quarts -- water should cover chicken by 1 inch or so), toss in about 2 TBS of kosher salt and put on the pot's lid.
• Turn the burner on high and heat the water to boiling, about 25 mins. DO NOT LIFT THE LID. You should hear it starting to boil rapidly -- when you hear a violent boil, turn off the stove and remove the pot from the heat. Let it sit, covered for 3 hours. DO NOT PEEK.

• After 3 hours, remove the chicken from the pot and break it down, reserving the meat, including the drumsticks and wings. Discard the skin and bones. You'll note that the meat will have a uniform, pale color and a smooth texture. You can use all that lovely soft meat for chicken salad, chicken pot pie, stir-frys, burritos, etc. Or, you can serve with the lovely Asian-inspired Ginger-Soy Vinaigrette included in the WSJ recipe.

I made the warm ginger-vinaigrette and tossed with the chicken and some sautéed baby bok choy. I served over brown rice and some grated fresh ginger. Luscious.

Don't forget to use the broth for soups and stews. It may need a bit of tweaking to the seasoning, but it definitely serves as an excellent stock. If you let it cool, you can easily remove any fat that rises to the top. You can also toss in aromatics with the chicken before you boil -- some garlic, ginger, orange peel, herbs, etc. to make the meat/broth even more flavorful. Just be sure not to remove the cover -- that's the secret to the chicken cooking through and to its texture.

It's so easy and tasty, that I might never buy a rotisserie chicken again...

Fun and yum.

xoxoxo

Thanksgiving Lasagna, Take 3

Dare I say it? It's time again for Thanksgiving Lasagna.

I'm not a huge fan of leftovers. I think most foods should be eaten immediately/soon after being made. A beautiful meal just doesn't look or taste the same the next day. There are exceptions -- some foods are even better after the flavors marinate/merge overnight, but for the most part, I hate eating re-heated food.

I'm not sure why I have such an aversion to leftovers, but I refuse to eat leftover Chinese food and our fridge has to be purged often of forgotten doggie bag containers that have been waiting all hopeful on the shelf for days...

But, since I adore Chris, we've made his idea for using up Thanksgiving dinner leftovers a bit of an annual event (I say "a bit" because we weren't able to do it this year).  If you still have leftovers from your Thanksgiving feast, check out Turkey Lasagna 2009 and Turkey Lasagna 2010.  

How will you use your Thanksgiving leftovers?

xoxoxo

Chris Bakes a Crisp

Chris took over the kitchen for a few hours this weekend.

He was reading a recipe in GQ magazine and started listing off the ingredients and asking me if we had them. (Of course we did -- the Gourmess lives here, silly.) He made me a cocktail and I sat by the fire with the kitties while he spent an hour in the kitchen making this tasty treat:

It's a Pear-Ginger Crisp and the secret ingredient (candied ginger) along with the toasted pecans really made it a dessert to wow at your next holiday dinner.  Top it with some whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and you have a winner.  It's a great alternative to pie, too.

Thus, here's one more thing to put on your Thanksgiving TO DO list:

• Follow the link above for the recipe and hand it off to the handsome guy in your house. Preferably whoever is sitting closest to the kitchen.  It's one less thing for you to worry about and trust me, you won't be disappointed.

xoxoxo

Thanksgiving Plans?

It's nearly Turkey Day!
One week from today we'll be stuffing ourselves with food, fun and family.

Here's a peek at what came in my latest organic CSA box -- the Thanksgiving Box:

• Apples 
• Celery
• Cranberries
• Garlic
• Green Beans
• Leeks
• Mushrooms
• Pears
• Red Romaine Lettuce
• Sweet Potatoes

We're going to be traveling for the holiday, but I will definitely be making some lovely dishes this weekend. I'm thinking sauteed  green beans with garlic and rosemary, roasted sweet potatoes with apple sausage and honey maple pecans, a salad brimming with pears, cranberries and goat cheese -- and perhaps an apple tart. After all, you can never start celebrating too early. Am I right?

What favorite dish(es) are you making for Thanksgiving this year?

xoxoxo

P.S. I am so THANKFUL to everyone who reads and shares this blog.

Hoisin and Red Wine Slow-Cooked Beef Roast

Take it slow...and it will be devoured quickly.  -Gourmess

There is nothing quite like a home filled with the smells wafting from a slow cooker. It just makes everything cozy immediately, and knowing a lovely meal will be ready in a few hours' time makes for a sense of giddy anticipation.  Take for instance, this lovely Beef Stew recipe that I tinkered with recently.

I browned a lovely Top Round Choice Beef Roast (3 lbs) in a bit of olive oil on the stove, then placed in my slow cooker along with some baby carrots, 1/2 a diced onion, some minced ginger, and about 3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled. I also tossed in 1/2 cup of mixed dried mushrooms. I added some salt and pepper too, knowing I'd have to adjust again when the roast was done. In a separate bowl, I stirred together 1/2 cup Hoisin sauce, 1 1/2 cups red wine (nothing too fruity) and about 1 cup diced tomatoes (with juice) and poured it over the roast. I set the slow cooker to low, and 8 hours later I had a lovely, well-flavored piece of meat that was cooked perfectly and falling apart.

I served it with some mashed potatoes and made a quick sauce on the stove by straining off some of the pot juices and whisking with some corn starch and water and cooking down until thick.  I also made some homemade applesauce and some popovers as fun additions to the meal. (Popovers: 2 eggs, 1 cup each flour and milk, 1/2 tsp salt. Grease 6 muffin cups, heat oven to 450. Beat eggs a wee bit, add in flour/milk/salt until smooth--don't over beat. Fill cups 1/2 full. Bake for 20 minutes at 450, then reduce heat to 350 and bake for 15-20 minutes more. Serve immediately.)  It was delish. By the way, it leaves a lot of meat for leftovers, which would be great in fajitas or sandwiches, so you'll get at least 1-2 more meals out of it.

It's a low-fuss lovely evening meal...so get to it!

xoxoxo

Roasted Garlic and Vegetable Meatloaf with Roasted Pepper and Tomato Sauce

Mmmm...Meatloaf!

I haven't made a meatloaf in ages, so when I saw a nice "meatloaf mix" at my supermarket, I thought, why not? Who doesn't love a big loaf of meat (pork/veal/beef mix) on a chilly autumn day?  Little did I know that a blizzard would be blowing outside while I was cooking up all sorts of loveliness inside. It turned out to be just the thing for a snowed-in dinner!


While I was looking up meatloaf recipes online, I came across this one from Emeril, and went from there. (I always like to tweak recipes and make them my own.)  It took some extra time, but adding the roasted peppers and garlic in the meat mixture gave it a wonderful flavor--and the sauce...I wanted to just scrape it off the top and spread it on bread. Terrific!


Ingredients

Meatloaf:
3 cloves garlic, peeled

1 red pepper, seeded and halved (stem removed, etc.)

1 green pepper, seeded and halved (stem removed, etc.)
Olive oil
2 TBS butter
1 large white onion, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried parsley
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 cup ketchup
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup breadcrumbs
2 lbs meatloaf mix (veal, pork, beef)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
4 slices bacon

Sauce:
1/2 red and green pepper (roasted)
1 roasted garlic clove
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato sauce (I used Four Cheese pasta sauce)
1 1/2 TBS tomato paste
2 TBS Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 TBS white wine vinegar

To Do:


Meatloaf:

• Place garlic cloves and peppers in the oven, drizzle with a wee bit of olive oil and roast at 400 degrees until 1) pepper skins start to bubble and brown, about 20 minutes, and 2) garlic is soft, about 30 mins.  Set one garlic clove and 1/2 of each pepper aside for the sauce.
• Keep oven heated to 350 degrees
• In a large pan, melt butter and cook onions, carrots and celery over medium-high heat until soft and caramelizing around the edges, about 5-10 mins.
• Add herbs and cook for a few minutes more, then remove from heat.
• When garlic is done, remove any hard ends and add the 2 cloves along with the 2 halves of the peppers to the veggies.
• Transfer this mixture to food processor and process until finely minced and set aside.
• In mixing bowl, add the eggs, mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, cream and mix until combined.
• Stir in the veggies and breadcrumbs, and mix gently.

• Add the meat mixture, salt and pepper, and mix with your hands until just combined. Don't over mix or squeeze through hands.
• Transfer the meat mixture to a loaf pan (9x5x3) and gently form into a loaf shape.
• Top with the slices of bacon and then cover with sauce (see recipe below).

• Bake for about 60-75 minutes, or until the bacon and sauce are slightly caramelized and a knife inserted into the loaf comes out clean.

• Remove from the oven, cover loosely with foil and let stand at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Sauce:

• In small pan, add the roasted peppers and garlic, ketchup, tomato sauce, tomato paste, Worcestershire, salt, pepper, and vinegar and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until thickened, about 5 minutes, then process in food processor until smooth.

I served this with my Butternut Squash Mac 'N Cheese and Roasted Broccoli, with Apple-Pear-Cranberry Pie w/Pecan Crumble for dessert.  Need I say more?

Yum...

xoxoxo