katallison (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
katallison) wrote2005-04-10 11:28 am
katallison) wrote2005-04-10 11:28 am
More food pr0n
Since my earlier food entry seemed to be well-received, I thought I'd type up last night's supper,
You need:
some chicken breasts (boneless, if boning them is something you dislike)
one of those little six-ounce jars of marinated artichoke hearts
small onion
olive oil
This is one of those things that works best when prep is done well before cooking (in the morning, or the evening before), but even an hour or two in advance will be fine. Bone the chicken if necessary (saving the bones for stock--just stick in a ziplock and shove in the freezer if you don't have the time or disposition for stock-making at the moment), and then cut the meat up into medium chunks (inch-sized cubes or thereabouts). Put them in a ziplock baggie (my cooking style does, I acknowledge, demand an environmentally-unsound supply of ziplock baggies, but if you are insane, as I am in my more madly-environmentalist moments, you can always save them, wash them out, and reuse). Open the jar of artichoke hearts, and pour most of the liquid into the baggie; squeeze out as much of the air as possible, and seal, working the meat around so that every bit is well coated with liquid. Re-cap the artichokes, and bung everything into the fridge, allowing the chicken to sit and marinate until you're ready to cook.
When that moment arrives, heat some olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat (if possible, use one that is not non-stick--I never get particularly good results trying to brown things in a nonstick skillet). Dump in the chicken + liquid, and let the chunks sear on all sides, stirring as often as needed to keep things from sticking. Most of the water in the marinating liquid will cook off in the process, leaving a nicely thickened flavorful sauce. Chop the onion finely while this is going on.
When the chicken is browned, scoop it out and set aside, add a little more olive oil, turn down the heat to low, and toss in the onions. Let them cook for some time, stirring every so often, scraping up and mixing in any nice browned bits from the chicken-cooking part of the programme. You want to let the onions cook to the point where they're almost carmelized, golden brown and very tender, but by no means burned. If things get dry, add some more of the liquid from the artichoke jar (or white wine, if you've got any sitting around).
While this is going on, take the artichoke hearts out of the jar, and slice each chunk longwise into 2-3 smaller pieces. When the onions are done, throw into the skillet the artichokes (along with any remaining liquid in the jar) and the chicken (along with any liquid that may have collected in the bottom of whatever vessel it was reposing in). Turn the heat very low, clap the lid on, and let everything stew gently for anywhere from five to thirty minutes, while you pull the rest of the meal together (or, as I did last night to celebrate the lovely summery day, have a nice preprandial dry martini).
I served this with fresh green beans, steamed and tossed with butter and a few drops of sesame oil; Boston lettuce with an olive oil/sherry vinegar/garlic/tarraon vinaigrette; and a lovely loaf of sesame-semolina bread from the excellent local bakery. And martinis, whose fine junipery tang goes well with the citrusy herbaceous cast of the artichoke marinade. Mr. P and I were both well-pleased.
(Oh, and do wash and save the empty artichoke jar--these are very useful for storing herbs and spices, or loose tea, or paper clips, or any such small widgets.)
You need:
some chicken breasts (boneless, if boning them is something you dislike)
one of those little six-ounce jars of marinated artichoke hearts
small onion
olive oil
This is one of those things that works best when prep is done well before cooking (in the morning, or the evening before), but even an hour or two in advance will be fine. Bone the chicken if necessary (saving the bones for stock--just stick in a ziplock and shove in the freezer if you don't have the time or disposition for stock-making at the moment), and then cut the meat up into medium chunks (inch-sized cubes or thereabouts). Put them in a ziplock baggie (my cooking style does, I acknowledge, demand an environmentally-unsound supply of ziplock baggies, but if you are insane, as I am in my more madly-environmentalist moments, you can always save them, wash them out, and reuse). Open the jar of artichoke hearts, and pour most of the liquid into the baggie; squeeze out as much of the air as possible, and seal, working the meat around so that every bit is well coated with liquid. Re-cap the artichokes, and bung everything into the fridge, allowing the chicken to sit and marinate until you're ready to cook.
When that moment arrives, heat some olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat (if possible, use one that is not non-stick--I never get particularly good results trying to brown things in a nonstick skillet). Dump in the chicken + liquid, and let the chunks sear on all sides, stirring as often as needed to keep things from sticking. Most of the water in the marinating liquid will cook off in the process, leaving a nicely thickened flavorful sauce. Chop the onion finely while this is going on.
When the chicken is browned, scoop it out and set aside, add a little more olive oil, turn down the heat to low, and toss in the onions. Let them cook for some time, stirring every so often, scraping up and mixing in any nice browned bits from the chicken-cooking part of the programme. You want to let the onions cook to the point where they're almost carmelized, golden brown and very tender, but by no means burned. If things get dry, add some more of the liquid from the artichoke jar (or white wine, if you've got any sitting around).
While this is going on, take the artichoke hearts out of the jar, and slice each chunk longwise into 2-3 smaller pieces. When the onions are done, throw into the skillet the artichokes (along with any remaining liquid in the jar) and the chicken (along with any liquid that may have collected in the bottom of whatever vessel it was reposing in). Turn the heat very low, clap the lid on, and let everything stew gently for anywhere from five to thirty minutes, while you pull the rest of the meal together (or, as I did last night to celebrate the lovely summery day, have a nice preprandial dry martini).
I served this with fresh green beans, steamed and tossed with butter and a few drops of sesame oil; Boston lettuce with an olive oil/sherry vinegar/garlic/tarraon vinaigrette; and a lovely loaf of sesame-semolina bread from the excellent local bakery. And martinis, whose fine junipery tang goes well with the citrusy herbaceous cast of the artichoke marinade. Mr. P and I were both well-pleased.
(Oh, and do wash and save the empty artichoke jar--these are very useful for storing herbs and spices, or loose tea, or paper clips, or any such small widgets.)
no subject
Well, I know what I'm having for dinner tonight!
One caveat - I wouldn't under any circumstances save a baggie that has held raw chicken, no matter how well I washed it out.