Roast Chicken Two Ways

Is there anything better than the smell of a chicken roasting in the oven?

Lately, I've been trying to make the most out of each meal that I cook.  (What can I do with the leftovers? How can I get two meals out of this?)  I had a lovely organic, whole chicken and decided to roast it up using a technique from one of my favorite FCI courses: Poulet Rôti Grand-mère (Grandmother's Roast Chicken). I cleaned and trussed the bird, rubbed vegetable oil all over it, and then browned it on the stove in butter before transferring it to a 450 degree oven. After 10 minutes, I added some carrots, red onions and the neck, wings and heart, which I had also browned on the stove with a bit of stock and herbs. The pan went back into the oven to roast for about 45 more minutes, basting it with its juices every so often. I took it out to rest when the internal temperature was between 140-150 degrees and the juices were clear.

While the chicken was roasting, I peeled and diced some red potatoes and sautéed them with some bacon, wild mushrooms, herbs and diced apple. As soon as they were slightly tender, I stirred in a spoonful of chicken stock, a TBS of butter and a bit of salt and pepper and then placed the pan in the oven next to the chicken for the last 20 minutes to continue cooking. About 5 minutes before I took them out, I added in some baby peas for color.

When the chicken was ready, I placed it on a cutting board to rest and tented it with foil. Then, I strained and discarded the vegetables from the pan juices and then returned the yummy drippings back to the pan. I heated to a slight boil, then whisked in a bit of flour and a few splashes of chicken stock until I had a nice gravy.  I added some salt and pepper to taste, but it didn't need much.  I don't usually make gravy, but Chris loves it, and since I didn't make mashed potatoes, it seemed only fair. I'm glad I did...it was awesome.

I gave us each a nice portion of chicken breast drowning in gravy and a big spoonful of the potato mixture. The chicken was juicy, the gravy so tasty--and the roasted potatoes with apples, mushrooms and bacon, terrific.

A lovely, lovely meal.

But, I wasn't done. When we were finished eating, I went back to work.  I shredded the rest of the meat from the chicken and set aside.  I added some chicken stock and light cream to the leftover gravy until I had a lovely base for chicken pot pie.  Once the sauce was ready, I added in the chicken along with some thawed frozen broccoli, peas and carrots. I gently stirred it all together and adjusted the seasonings, then spooned it into four mini pie plates until they were close to overflowing.  I topped each with some pie dough (I always keep some in the fridge) and placed in the warm oven to bake at 375 for about 20 minutes.

I'll heat up the chicken pot pies for dinner later this week.

Yum and yum.
xoxoxo

Slow-Down Sunday

I was 32 when I started cooking; up until then, I just ate. --Julia Child

Chris and I had a crazy hectic week this past week.  We only had time to sit down to dinner together a few nights, and even then we were preoccupied with our Blackberry devices and reading for work, etc. I have been waiting all week for us to just slow down and just enjoy life a bit.

Yesterday (Saturday) was a hot one -- mid 80s and probably the last warm day of the year. I had some potatoes left from my organic box and wanted to make something homey for dinner.  Chris was working in the city all day, so I figured I could make a mess and heat up the already humid kitchen a bit more in his absence and make a roast or a gratin, or something that required using the stove and/or oven (I've been in a bit of withdrawal not having 3+ hours of cooking to do each day, now that I've finished my course).  But, the day got ahead of me and after running some errands, I realized I still hadn't settled on what to make--and it was late enough in the day that it probably would end up being for Sunday dinner instead.

I started to brainstorm, and then I glanced up to the shelf above our kitchen pantry and saw our slow cooker, and I knew what I wanted.  Roasted, lemony, garlicky, olive-y slow-cooked chicken with rosemary, baby carrots and those lovely fingerling potatoes: Fancy Chicken Stew. So, I covered the bottom of my slow cooker pot with baby carrots, some small potatoes, rosemary sprigs, half a dozen peeled garlic cloves, some sliced shallot and a couple handfuls of olives (use a nice briny kind). Then, I stuffed/tied a roasting chicken with more rosemary, about 12 garlic cloves (peeled) and 2-3 lemons, seeded and cut in wedges. The chicken went on top of the veggies (breast side down is best but either way is fine) and then I poured 2 cups of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of lemon juice over it, then sprinkled on some salt/pepper and Herbes de Provence, then dotted the whole thing with 1/2 a stick of butter and put on the lid. I put the cooker on the 6 hour setting, cleaned up the now semi-cooler kitchen and fixed myself a cocktail while I waited for Chris to come home.

I also started another batch of bread -- this time, I used bread flour (you can use all purpose, too) and added in 1/4 cup of dried rosemary to the dry ingredients.  By 10 p.m. the house smelled lovely from the slow-cooker, and this morning, after I made the bread -- it was heaven on earth. Rosemary is under appreciated, I do believe.

Today, about 40 minutes before we wanted to eat, I took the chicken out of the slow cooker insert, separated the meat from the bones and put the rest of the stew and chicken in a big pot on the stove. The slow-cooker does marvels for a chicken -- it literally just slides off the bones and becomes almost instantly shredded once you gently stir it. It's also unbelievably tender and juicy. I slowly re-heated it to a low simmer, then ladled it into bowls and served with the fresh-baked rosemary bread and some white wine. Chris and I took our time as we savored some lazy Sunday evening conversation and this lovely chicken stew.  Terrific.

Life is good.

xoxoxo

Update 16, Part 1: New Year's Goal: Become an "official" Gourmess by August 2010

I was 32 when I started cooking; up until then, I just ate. --Julia Child

Sorry for the delay but it has been unseasonably warm here this week and, as they say, "If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen." I know real-life restaurant kitchens are very hot-broiling, probably, but I didn't feel up to roasting a chicken in the oven when it was over 85 degrees outside, plus have been  working late, so that was a factor too. But now we're back to reasonable, seasonable April weather, so I got started on Session 8: Working with Poultry.

I first took a stab at trussing the 3.5 lb. chicken (organic, young, giblets removed but reserved) with twine via the book's instructions -- pretty slick. Just start under the tail, bring it up and over the drumsticks, cross, slide under the ends of the drumsticks and pull tight. Then, bring it along both sides of the bird, between the legs and the breast, then turn the bird onto its breast and bring one end above the wing and under the bone of the neck, securing the loose neck skin as you go. Tie tight and you're done!

My first Poultry Demonstration was Poulet Rôti Grand-mère (Grandmother's Roast Chicken). Once I had cleaned and trussed the chicken, I then browned it on top of the stove in its roasting pan in vegetable oil and butter (of course!) until all sides were well browned and the breast was lightly browned. It was a bit tricky to do this without messing up the skin -- I think plastic or wooden tongs would be ideal. I then put the browned chicken on its back and added the neck, gizzard, and heart into the pan and then placed it in a 450 degree oven for 10 mins. Then, I added the carrots and onions mirepoix and tossed them around the pan until they were coated with the fat.  You then put it back in the oven for about 40 minutes, or until the skin was golden brown and juices are running clear. (Temp should be about 140-150 degrees F). Mine took about 45 mins. The bird was all golden and lovely -- browning it before roasting really is something I will do from now on.

During that 45 minutes, I was busy preparing the garnish. I sautéed lardons, then removed them and sautéed mushrooms in the bacon fat. Then, I cooked pearl onions à l'étuvé with some salt and sugar and made potatoes Pommes Rissolés style (both from Session 2: Working with Vegetables). I had to tournée the potatoes -- I'm really not that good at it, but I don't think I've ever eaten a potato that shape in my life and I've been to some of the best restaurants in the country, so maybe there's hope for me yet. When I took the chicken out of the oven to rest, I combined the mushrooms, lardons, potatoes and onions in a bowl and added fresh chopped parsley and salt/pepper. I kept warm in a bowl in the oven.

Also, while the chicken was resting, I put the roasting pan on the stove and scraped up all the sucs and deglazed the pan, adding white wine and some of my very own stock and simmering for about 10 mins. I used my chinois to strain the liquid and set aside.

Then, I carved up the chicken (the twine came off easily) into equal portions of drumsticks, breasts and wings, and I even used the Manchonner technique on the ends of the drumsticks and wings to make them look pretty (basically scraping the top and cutting off the cartilage). While I was waiting for Chris to get home, I put everything in a dutch oven in the oven to keep it warm. (The pic below was before I carved the bird.)

I served a thigh and a breast on each plate along with the veggie garnish and the gravy. Chris said it was really light and good and "comforting."

Just like Grandma.

xoxoxo