Chicken & Poultry Archives - Page 8 of 9

Baked Chicken with Honey and Soy

June 15, 2024October 24, 2014 by Emily

This recipe combines my three favorite things. It’s fast, it’s cheap and it’s delicious. And easy. I know that’s four but I don’t have time for semantics. I’m in a rush here! (I’m not really, but one of the best things about this recipe is that, other than mixing the sauce ingredients together and throwing in the chicken, there’s really not much else to do. That’s why it’s perfect for a weeknight dinner). Bung it in the oven, throw on some rice and by the time you’ve opened a bottle of wine and cycled through your Netflix options, dinner is ready.

It’s pretty much the bastard child of our two most popular recipes, Baked Chicken Thighs with Lemon and Garlic, and Crispy Pork Belly with Soy Honey Glaze.

Chicken Baked with Creamy Mushroom Sauce

June 15, 2024October 3, 2014 by Emily

If you’re anything like me, you start the week with grand plans (and a long list) of all the things you’re going to get accomplished. Paint the porch. Just in time for Halloween! Work on the novel. Duh, I’ll just wake up an hour earlier! Train the dog to stop losing her mind every time the UPS truck is within a seven block radius. Easy as cake! Oooooh, maybe I’ll make a cake.

Then inevitably, usually by about Thursday, I realize that not only have I managed to fail in getting those things done, but I also didn’t use that chard I bought and the dog is now convinced that the clean laundry basket is her new bed because the un-folded clothes have been in there so long.

That’s about when remember that even when I’m too busy to care whether my socks match, I can still make something really satisfying for dinner. It doesn’t have to be a big production (especially if you’re not stopping every five minutes to take pictures).

Crispy Spiced Duck Legs with Thyme

June 15, 2024September 12, 2014 by Emily

Ultra- crispy duck legs are much easier to make than you might think. Spiced with fennel and thyme, they’ll make your dinner party guests very happy.

Last week we threw a little dinner party. Nothing fancy, mind you. Matt’s lovely sister Hayli and her delightful husband Tristan* were visiting us from France for a couple of weeks and since they are both actors/musicians/carnies we thought they would have a lot in common with our neighbors Andy and Gina, who are also in the arts.

When we came up with this bright idea, we were huddled under a blanket, shivering in the unseasonable cold that seemed to be the defining aspect of “Summer” 2014.

“What would be a good thing to make for a small crowd on a chilly evening?”, I asked Matt, who was trying to warm his toes by rubbing them very quickly on an angry cat’s belly.

“Duck legs.”

“But didn’t we make that las-“

“Duck legs. I want crispy duck legs.”

“Duck legs it is, then. And give me some of that cat belly. My feet are freezing too.”

*Hayli and Tristan live in the Ardèche region of France. Arguably one of the most sophisticated culinary environments in the world so when they came to visit us, we felt we needed to impress them with the refined, subtle American cuisine one can only find at…Cracker Barrel.

Crispy Baked Chicken Thighs with Mustard and Thyme

June 12, 2024June 21, 2014 by Emily

I like to think of myself as an organized person. I mean, I’m a film editor, for chrissakes. I basically organize millions of digital moments into a cohesive story for a living. So why is it that I cannot, for the life of me, plan ahead and shop for a week’s worth of recipes?

Is it because I was raised in New York City, where 24-hour bodegas and Korean markets permit, nay, encourage a person to decide at 11pm that they’re going to make a Chard Onion and Goat Cheese Tart even though there is neither chard, onion or goat cheese in the house? Why are you looking at me like I’m attempting to deflect blame for my questionable decisions? Ahem. Anyway, now I live in the boonies and that means I either have to:

A. Get organized and make a menu plan and corresponding shopping list at the beginning of each week.

B. Hit the lottery so I can hire a personal chef (one who allows me to post their recipes all over the internet and hover over their shoulder taking pictures as they cook).

C. Create delicious things that use pantry staples almost exclusively so I can continue my reckless and dangerously chaotic lifestyle.

Guess which one I chose?

I almost always have everything on hand for this recipe and, luckily, it also happens to be incredibly good. Obviously if you eat chicken and enjoy crispy things, nothing’s going to beat real fried chicken but I think we can all agree that deep-frying is not really an option for an easy, healthy, weeknight dinner. This chicken though, is all those things and more. It gets great flavor from the tangy mustard, garlic and thyme and develops a crunchy, golden brown crust.

I also make a simple yogurt sauce to go with it (if I remember to make or buy yogurt), but it’s equally good with just a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of Maldon salt over the top.

Polenta With Sausage and Onion

June 12, 2024April 23, 2014 by Emily

This is the topping that we made to go on the Butternut Squash Polenta. It’s one of those really satisfying, but incredibly simple recipes that barely takes any prep. Once you’ve got the polenta going, you can relax, have a little wine (since you’ve already opened it to make the sauce so, why not?), do a little chopping, and you’re ready to cook.

There aren’t a lot of ingredients in this so use the best quality sausage you can get. It works well with pork but I really love using turkey sausage from DiPaola‘s. You can get it at several farmers’ markets around New York City but sadly, we have’t seen it around here yet.

A great vegetarian option would be to use cannellini beans. Rinse them well and sauté them with a little olive oil, garlic, rosemary and chile flakes.

This was adapted from Melissa Clark’s version. I wanted a bit of a sauce to go with it so I added the wine and mustard. The result is a delicious, savory, quick and easy dinner.

Noodles With Ginger, Pork (or turkey) and Bok Choy

June 12, 2024February 13, 2014 by Emily

Okay, as those of you who live on the east coast of the U.S. know, winter has decided to be extremely, um… generous with us lately. In fact, we are pretty much being bent over it’s knee and spanked like a naughty toddler. We still have a foot of snow on the ground and there’s another snowstorm coming tonight. Yay? (I figure if I pretend to be cool/whatever about it as opposed to horrified, winter will get bored and GO AWAY).

WINTER: Warm weather is life’s great lie! Once you accept your icy fate, this frozen hell-scape will welcome you and you will know peace!
EMILY: [Chomps on a gingery noodle] Okay.
WINTER: Is that all you have to say? No begging? No mewling?
EMILY: [Goes for seconds] Nope.
WINTER: Well, that’s disappointing. [Makes a small child slip and drop his hot chocolate]. Ah, better.

Nerd warning: Want to see a picture of Matt trying to get to the grocery store? Winter is still coming, it seems. Bloody hell.

No joke, for the first time in my life I had to drive on a highway through a blizzard and it was not fun (remember, this New York City girl just got her driver’s license a year ago). Matt practically had to pry my hands off the steering wheel when we got home because I was gripping it so tightly.

Luckily there are some dishes that work well regardless of the season, and this is one of them. I would happily make this on a warm summer night (remember those?), or on a freezing cold one. It was inspired (again) by a Melissa Clark recipe, though I changed the ratios a bit (more bok choy, added hoisin and sriracha). It’s got a great kick from the ginger and chili, and you should feel free to make it as spicy as you like.