Sunday, December 20, 2015

Chicken Cacciatore Pronto for a Last Minute Holiday Recipes #SundaySupper

Chicken Cacciatore Pronto for a Last Minute Holiday Recipes #SundaySupper


If I could be candid for a moment. I was going to publish this dish separately until I saw this week's #SundaySupper theme of Last Minute Holiday Meals, hosted by T.R. of Gluten Free Crumbley and Wendy of Wholistic Woman. I think it fits in nicely with the theme because it's a braised dish which is perfect for the weather, but it's chicken so it's not simmering for hours which means it can be prepared quickly.

Inspiration Behind the Dish

I have become very familiar with this dish over the years. If memory serves me correctly, the first time I prepared it was for a dinner party I hosted. At the time, I was still a novice cook that only knew to follow recipe instructions, but kept coming back to it once I realized how well thought out the dish is. It ended up having a profound influence on the direction of my cooking style.

Dish Details

I have adapted it over time but the source recipe can be found on page 166 of Michael Chiarello's Casual Cooking By Michael Chiarello with Janet Fletcher.

Ingredients

1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
1 cup hot water
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
2 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped
1 cup tomato purée
1 cup chicken stock

Method

1. Finish the mise en place. Place the dried porcini in a small bowl and pour the hot water over them and set aside for 30 minutes so the mushrooms rehydrate. While you're waiting, I recommend puréeing the tomatoes, mincing garlic and chopping parsley. Once the mushrooms are rehydrated lift them out of the water with a slotted spoon and chop, then set aside to reserve. Pass the water in which the mushrooms were soaked through a double layer of paper towels, then set aside and reserve.

2. Sear the chicken. Coat the bottom of a large skillet with a thin layer of olive oil (approximately 1 teaspoon) and place over medium-high heat. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper, then place in the skillet, skin side down, to sear once the olive oil starts to smoke until well browned, approximately eight to ten minutes. Turn and sear on the second side, approximately two minutes, then remove from the skillet and set aside.


3. Layer flavor and simmer. Drain all but one tablespoon of the oil from the skillet and return to the stovetop over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir until it starts to color, then two tablespoons parsley and reserved porcini, stirring until fragrant. Add the tomato purée, chicken stock and reserved mushroom broth, scraping the bottom of the skillet to loosen any fond. Return the chicken to the skillet, skin side up and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat, cover the skillet and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked through, approximately thirty minutes. Remove the chicken from the skillet, then raise the temperature to high, boiling the sauce to reduce and thicken, approximately five minutes. To serve spoon the sauce on the plate and top with chicken and garnish with the remaining parsley.


Final Thoughts

The word cacciatore is Italian for hunter and is considered a rustic dish out of central Italy that is commonly made with onions, tomatoes mushrooms and bell peppers, as I've previously demonstrated, however I like this version for extracting such incredible flavor from basic ingredients and, as I said above, it cooks quickly. Possibly the only ingredient that might seem exotic is the dried mushrooms, however I have found that they are readily available at most supermarkets. Chef Chiarello notes in his book that thighs are the part of the chicken that is best for braising because they're moister and, therefore, don't dry out as easily as say breast meat, for example. This dish taught me how to layer flavors and opened my mind to the concept of a mirepoix. I also find the utilization of the water used to soak the dried porcini in the braising fluid quite innovative.

I've prepared an entrée here, but don't miss the many other last minute holiday recipes of varying courses prepared for this week's #SundaySupper, which are below.

Beverages
Breakfast
Appetizers
Main Dishes
Side Dishes
Desserts
Quick and Easy Holiday Recipes #SundaySupper by Sunday Supper Movement


Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It's easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

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Sunday, November 29, 2015

Butternut Squash Risotto with Crème Fraîche and Fried Sage Leaves for a #SundaySupper Where We Use Veggies As A Main

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For those of you in the United States, I hope you had a wonderful holiday this past Thursday. As I stated in my preview, I find this week's #SundaySupper theme of Veggies As A Main refreshing because it could have easily contributed to the noise of Thanksgiving leftover ideas.

I last made a point of addressing the topic of vegetarian dishes earlier this year when I had the opportunity to work with Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg to promote their most recent book, The Vegetarian Flavor Bible. In it, Ms. Page makes a strong case for those that have chosen to eat a plant-based diet be it environmental, medical or ethical reasons and I highly recommend it even for meat eaters because it is helpful in dish composition.

Inspiration Behind the Dish

As I looked over my previous posts, I have found many vegetarian dishes here. Many are salads but I would estimate more are Italian primi dishes, which is the case here. I actually find it difficult to incorporate meat into pasta dishes unless we're discussing fillings. Costs aside, flavor is considered first when choosing the ingredients to use in a dish, then whether or not the dish is in season before science (i.e. yeast to make bread, deglazing with fluid, etc.). Since butternut squash is in season, I decided to use it in a risotto dish. The Vegetarian Flavor Bible listed butternut squash as pairing well with risottos, sage and nutmeg which is how I composed this dish.

Dish Details

I adapted Ree's recipe to the fried sage leaves found on epicurious.

Ingredients

Vegetable oil for frying
1 bunch fresh sage leaves
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into a 1/2-inch dice
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup white wine
5 to 7 cups chicken stock, brought to a low simmer in a saucepan
1/4 cup crème fraîche
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons nutmeg

Method

1. Fry the sage. In a small saucepan or small skillet, add enough vegetable oil to achieve a depth of 1/2-inch and place over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, fry the sage in batches, 3 to 4 leaves at a time for 5 seconds each, removing them with a slotted spoon to a paper towel lined plate, then season with kosher salt. Set aside to cool. This can be done a day ahead. Once cool, store the leaves in an airtight container.


2. Prepare the squash. Melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet. Add in the squash cubes, then season with salt and pepper. Sweat the squash until lightly browned and tender but not falling apart. Remove the squash from the skillet to a bowl, set aside and reserve.


3. Apply the risotto method in the same skillet where the butternut squash was prepared by following the method in step two of a risotto I published previously.

4. Finish the dish. Once the rice is al dente, stir in the reserved butternut squash, crème fraîche, parmesan and nutmeg using more or less crème fraîche until the desired consistency has been achieved. Adjust the seasoning as needed with salt and pepper. Serve in warmed bowls garnished with the sage leaves.

Final Thoughts

With the holiday this week, I didn't get the opportunity to perfect the dish because the night I prepared it, I added too much crème fraîche. Mrs. Stuntman also thought the dish was too sweet so I'll need to play around with spices to balance out the flavors.

Meanwhile, please view these other dishes offered for this week's #SundaySupper:

Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It's easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.


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Tuesday, November 24, 2015

A #SundaySupper Preview Where We Use Veggies as a Main Dish


With the most well known foodie holiday occurring later this week, it would have been easy for the team at #SundaySupper Movement to contribute to the thousands of posts dedicated to the topic. It decided to go in a different direction, with all dishes published this upcoming weekend centering around produce. The theme this week is Veggies as a Main Dish.

For those of you in the United States, I wish you a wonderful holiday filled with family, friends, football and food. Until then, I offer this preview of dishes that will be published this Sunday.

Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It's easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

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