Another weekend, another slow-cooker recipe. Another from delicious magazine, this rich, soupy casserole certainly packs flavour. But is it too intense? A little oily, but certainly filling.
Creamy pot-roast chicken:
6 rashers streaky bacon, cut into lardons
8 chicken pieces (I used a mixture of thighs and drumsticks)
2 tablespoons flour
1 onion, sliced
200g baby onions, peeled
3 garlic cloves, sliced
200g button mushrooms
300ml white wine
Handful thyme leaves
Handful parsley
100ml double cream
Fry the bacon and chicken in a frying pan to brown everything. Put these into the slow cooker.
Fry the leeks, onions, garlic, mushrooms and flour in the same pan for 5 mins to allow some colour to develop. Add these to the slow cooker too.
Add the remaining ingredients and slow cook for 6 hours. Serve with potatoes (I boiled thick potato slices in water infused with garlic and thyme).
Yet again another Jewish recipe from the Gentile! There’s an honesty and heartiness to the Jewish kitchen that I keep coming back to. I was in part spurred on by Comedinewithcathy’s recent attempt, though I luckily had no such genuine benchmark against which to be measured. My version, like hers, comes from Jamie Oliver’s recent book Jamie’s America which he refers to as Jewish Penicillin. Matzo isn’t something I’ve ever knowingly had before, nor found easy to obtain from my local Tesco’s. I used cream crackers pounded to dust instead, so I hope I at least captured the essence of the staple soup dumpling.
I’d already used the breasts and wings of a whole chicken for a tray bake earlier in the week among other dishes, so the remainder of the carcass and went in a pot of cold water for half an hour. I skimmed off a great deal of scum then piled in chopped carrot, celery, garlic, thyme and bay. After an hour there was golden chicken fat floating to the surface, so I skimmed that off too for the dumplings later. After anhour and a half I strained off the contents to police for skin, bones, thyme stalks and lacklustre veg, and tore the meat from the bones before returning it all to the pan.
Then came the matzo balls (Jacob’s balls, I guess I should call them): powdered crackers, 2 beaten eggs, water, salt and pepper and a little of the skimmed chicken fat beaten together until thick, then left for a few minutes to firm up. I then scooped into balls and added to the bubbling soup. After twenty minutes they had doubled in size, then for a final ten minutes I added broken up vermicelli, parsley and dill.
I can see why this would be a great meal when you’re down – it’s dense with robust flavour, and the tender vegetables give you a warming feeling inside. The herb lend a freshness while the ‘noodles’ and dumplings give you sustenance. It’s very filling, and easy to see why it can be a family favourite. Another time I’d be tempted to pull it in another direction – with little fiddling it could end up as a lhaksa, and a dash of tabasco or fish sauce, topped with spring onions could really give it a final zing.
This is yet another delve into Jamie Oliver’s latest book, Jamie’s America. I’d bought a whole chicken at the weekend to wanted to portion it up for use throughout the week. Here the wings and one breast went into a soupy, veggie oven-baked dish, browning off while leaking their savoury juices into the broth. I made a few of my own tweaks, leaving out sweet potatoes (not a favourite of mine since the rancid ‘Barefoot Contessa’ destroyed it in a recipe of hers I recreated) and substituting carrots. Otherwise it’s essentially sliced carrots and sliced potatoes baked in chicken stock with some oregano for half an hour, then chicken pieces added on top for another half hour. The other great touch here was brining the chicken; something I’ve always contemplated but never tried. The meat was left for three hours in a mixture of water, salt, garlic, honey and sage. It left the meat tasty and juicy and something I will definitely return to. I know for example Heston Blumenthal’s perfect roast chicken requires a few days’ brining… watch this space.
The whole dish was very tasty though next time I think I’d add an acidic twist with perhaps a splash of white wine.
Yet another risotto, I can’t get enough of them. Following a lovely roast chicken, I’m left with a gorgeous carcass with which to make glorious stock; and chunky chicken bursting with potential. I made a typical risotto bianco and towards the end added shredded chicken. Whilst I love a creamy, unctuous risotto it can be a touch bland so thinking about the garnishes of a Japanese Yaki Soba I set to a punchy, salty kick to round out the mouthful. I blitzed up streaky bacon and breadcrumbs to make a ruby powder that provides crunch and interest to every spoon.
Chicken risotto with bacon breadcrumbs:
1 onion, diced
A handful of risotto rice per person
Chicken stock, as required
100ml white wine
Shredded cooked chicken
25g butter
For the bacon breadcrumbs:
50g breadcrumbs
2 streaky bacon rashers
For the breadcrumbs, blitz the bread and bacon together until powdery, then fry on a high heat until browned. Drain on kitchen paper until needed.
Fry an onion in olive oil until softened.
Add the rice and toast for a minute. Pour in the white wine and cook over a high heat until reduced to a slight trickle.
Add the boiling stock a ladleful at a time. At each ladle wait until the liquid has almost disappeared before adding the next.
After 20 mins or so taste the rice and check that it is tender. If not, keep adding more stock.
When tender, add the butter and stir vigourously. Add the chicken and warm through.
