365 More Ways to Cook Chicken (365 ways) (18 page)

1.
Season chicken with ½ teaspoon of pepper and ¼ teaspoon of salt, patting in pepper so it adheres. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan. Add chicken and cook over medium-high heat, turning, until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken from pan.

2.
Add shallots to drippings and cook 1 minute. Add wine and thyme and boil, stirring up browned bits in bottom of pan, until reduced to 2 tablespoons, about 3 minutes. In a small bowl, stir shallots and reduced wine into mayonnaise.

3.
Spread flavored mayonnaise over toast slices. Layer arugula, tomato slices, and chicken onto 4 toasts. Cover with remaining toasts. Cut in half to serve.

Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 15 minutes Serves: 4

If you’re from Philadelphia, don’t write. I know cheese steaks are beef, but please try this chicken version. I bet you will like it!

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  

• 1 large onion, very thinly sliced
  

• 1 garlic clove, crushed through a press
  

• 1 pound thinly sliced chicken breast cutlets
  

• ¼ teaspoon salt
  

• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  

• 4 Italian sandwich rolls, each 6 or 7 inches long
  

• 1 tablespoon butter, softened
  

• 1
  ½
  cups shredded mild Cheddar cheese (about 6 ounces)
  

1.
Preheat broiler. In a large frying pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook, stirring often, until very soft and pale gold, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Remove from pan using a slotted spoon.

2.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Thinly slice crosswise. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan. Cook chicken over medium-high heat, turning, until white throughout, about 3 minutes. Return onions to pan. Cover and keep warm.

3.
Split rolls lengthwise and spread with butter. Broil, cut sides up, about 30 seconds, until golden. Pile chicken and browned onion onto bottoms of rolls. Top with cheese and broil until cheese is melted and bubbly, 30 to 45 seconds. To serve, put tops on sandwiches and cut each sandwich in half crosswise.

Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 10 to 15 minutes Serves: 4

Quesadillas are usually grilled or fried on a griddle. These are baked, which is much easier and saves on oil, too.

• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken (about
  ½
  pound)
  

• 2
  ½
  cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese with chiles (about 10 ounces)
  

• 1
  ½
  teaspoons chili powder
  

• 1
  ½
  cups drained and rinsed canned black beans
  

• ⅓ cup finely chopped onion
  

• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
  

• 8 (7-inch) flour tortillas
  

• 1 cup bottled salsa
  

1.
Preheat oven to 375°F. In a medium bowl, toss together chicken, cheese, chili powder, beans, onion, and cilantro.

2.
Place 4 tortillas on an ungreased baking sheet. Divide filling among them, spreading to within ¾ inch of edge. Cover with remaining tortillas, pressing gently on edges.

3. Bake until cheese is melted and tortillas are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool slightly, then cut each quesadilla into quarters. Serve with salsa.

Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 15 minutes Serves: 4

Reminiscent of chicken a la king, this is also a fine recipe for leftover chicken. Simply heat it in the sauce. A mix of wild and domestic mushrooms makes the sandwich more interesting.

• ¾ pound skinless, boneless chicken breast or thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
  

• ¼ teaspoon salt
  

• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  

• 3 tablespoons butter
  

• ¾ pound thinly sliced mushrooms, wild or domestic or a mix
  

• 3 tablespoons flour
  

• 1 teaspoon dried tarragon
  

• 1 cup milk
  

• 1½ cups chicken broth
  

• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  

• 2 tablespoons dry sherry
  

• 8 homemade or heated frozen waffles
  

• ½ cup thinly sliced scallions
  

1.
Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook, stirring often, until white throughout, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon.

2.
Add mushrooms to pan, reduce heat to medium, and cook, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring, 2 minutes. Stir in tarragon, milk, and broth. Bring to a boil, stirring, until thickened, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and return chicken to pan. Stir in lemon juice and sherry and simmer 1 minute. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

3.
Spoon chicken and mushrooms and sauce over waffles. Serve hot, with scallions sprinkled on top.

Prep: 10 minutes Cook: 18 to 22 minutes Serves: 4

Pasties are Cornish pastry turnovers with savory fillings, often carried in workers’ lunch boxes. Pasties are just as good in American lunch boxes, especially if accompanied by a thermos of hot tomato soup.

• 1½ cups chopped or shredded cooked chicken
  

• 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
  

• 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed
  

• 1 tablespoon chopped shallots
  

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  

• ¼ teaspoon salt
  

• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
  

• Pastry for a double-crust 9-inch pie or 2 refrigerated pie crust rounds
  

• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water
  

1.
Preheat oven to 400°F. In a medium bowl, combine chicken, cheese, peas and carrots, shallots, thyme, salt, and pepper.

2.
Roll out pastry to make two 9-inch circles (or unfold refrigerated crusts) and cut each circle in half. Mound filling in center of pastry half-circles. Brush edges with egg glaze. Fold over to make 4 triangular pasties and press pastry firmly around filling. Seal edges together by crimping with tines of a fork. Cut 2 or 3 slashes in crust of each pasty to allow steam to escape. Brush tops with egg glaze.

3.
Place pasties on an ungreased baking sheet and bake until golden brown, 18 to 22 minutes. Serve warm.

If your grandmother taught you that chicken soup is good for what ails you, she was right. A steaming, fragrant golden broth makes you want to breathe deeply, and the anticipation of a ladleful of tender chicken chunks and perhaps a gentle hint of herbs will bolster even the most flagging appetite.

Almost every chicken soup has a chicken stock as its base, and the quality of the finished product is dependent upon the sum of its ingredients. Consequently, I really like to make my own stock, whether it’s the quick version or the really grand Brown Chicken Stock on page 84.

But I’m also finding these days that canned broth is really quite good, especially the reduced-sodium versions. All of the recipes in this book work well with canned broth or homemade stock. Homemade stock should not be salted until you are ready to use it to be sure that the result will not be excessively salty. Since canned broths vary considerably in their saltiness (even the reduced-sodium types), most of the soup recipes here suggest that additional salt be added at the end to taste in order to avoid sodium overkill.

Soup serving portions also vary according to the richness of the soup, but don’t be afraid to make a lot. It’s just as easy, and most soups improve in flavor on reheating.

Prep: 5 minutes Cook: 1½ hours Chill: 1 hour Makes: about 2 quarts

Instead of throwing away all those extra chicken backs and necks, make this simple stock to use as the basis for a quick vegetable soup or to enrich a chicken gravy.

• 3 pounds chicken backs, necks, wing tips, or giblets (except liver)
  

• 1 large onion, quartered
  

• 1 celery rib with leaves, quartered
  

• 1 carrot, quartered
  

• ½
  cup parsley sprigs
  

• 1 bay leaf, broken in half
  

• 10 whole black peppercorns Salt
  

1.
Place chicken parts in a large soup pot. Add 3 quarts of water. Bring to a boil, skimming off foam as it rises to top. Add remaining ingredients except salt. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for about 1½ hours.

2.
Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve. Season with salt to taste. Let cool, then refrigerate 1 to 2 hours. Lift off and discard solidified fat.

Prep: 20 minutes Cook: 2¾ hours Chill: 1 hour Makes: about 2 quarts

Browning the bones and the vegetables gives a deep, rich flavor to the stock.

• 3 pounds chicken backs and wing tips
  

• 1 large onion, thickly sliced
  

• 1 celery rib with leaves, quartered
  

• 1 large carrot, quartered
  

• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  

• ½ cup parsley sprigs
  

• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  

• 1 bay leaf, broken
  

• 10 whole black peppercorns
  

• ¼ pound chicken giblets without liver
  

• Salt
  

1.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place chicken parts in a single layer in a roasting pan. Roast 20 minutes. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic cloves. Roast another 20 minutes, until bones and vegetables are lightly browned. Remove chicken and vegetables to a large soup pot. Add 2 cups water to roasting pan and return to oven for 5 minutes. Scrape bottom of the pan to stir up browned bits. Pour contents of roasting pan into soup pot. Add another 2½ quarts water, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, peppercorns, and giblets. Bring to a boil over medium heat, skimming off foam as it rises.

2.
Reduce heat, partially cover pan, and simmer about 2 hours, adding water if needed to keep bones and vegetables covered. Strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve. Season with salt to taste. Let cool, then refrigerate at least 1 hour. Lift off and discard solidified fat.