Carmalized Fennel Chicken Tacos with Chicken Chicharrones

1 tablespoon evoo
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 lbs Chicken thighs skin on
1 large Fennel with fronds
1 med Onion
salt and pepper to taste
corn tortillas

Condiments optional, but recommended
queso fresco
salsa verde
fronds from fennel
slices of lime
cilantro

Preheat oven to 400, Prepare a sheet pan lined with aluminum foil and place a wire rack on it. set aside.

1. For the Chicken: Remove skin without tearing, rinse, pat dry, layout flat on on the wire rack skin side down and lightly sprinkle with salt. Bake for 10 minutes, flip over skin, sprinkle with salt and bake for another 10 minutes or till desired crispiness. Once skins are finished, chop up and set aside.


2. Next cut meat off from bone and cut into 1-2 inch chunks. set aside (saves bones to make stock)


3. Next, prepare fennel by cut of tops of fennel and save some of the fronds for garnish. Using only the bulb, slice in half and slice the halves in thin slices making about 3 cups. set aside. dice the onions and set aside


4. Cooking directions: Heat cast iron pan on med heat, add oil and butter and cook till butter is melted. add onions and cook till translucent about 3 minutes. Next add sliced fennel and mix with onions, press everything flat and let cook for about 5 minutes paying attention to not burn. Mix and repeat this till fennel and onions are slightly caramelized. about 10 minutes


5. Add chicken, salt and pepper to taste and mix everything together. Press it all flat in the cast iron and let sit. These next steps are important to get everything caramelized and cook out the moisture. Press it all flat and cook for 3 to 5 minutes at a time. Mix and repeat till it starts browning and sticking to the pan. Once you reached this, turn the heat to high and continue cooking while scrapping the pan and mixing till all is brown and caramelized. This whole process takes about 15 minutes.


6. Assemble the taco: Place meat on warm tortilla, top with the desired condiments and finish with crispy skin chicharro

Grilled Chicken Leg Quarters with Cilantro Chimmichurri

Grilled Chicken Leg Quarters with Cilantro Chimmichurri

Recipe Type: Main
Author: victoria
Who doesnt love chimmichurri? There are a variety of herbs you can use to make this delicious sauce. Be sure to let marinate as long as possible to really get the flavor to be intense.
Ingredients
  • 6 garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons grated lime zest plus 2 tablespoon juice
  • 2 teaspoon plus ¼ cup olive oil
  • 1 ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 4 chicken leg quarters, trimmed
  • 3 heaping tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
  • 3 heaping teaspoons chopped fresh oregano
Instructions
  1. Combine garlic, salt, sugar, lime zest, 2 tsp oil, cumin, pepper, and cayenne in a bowl and mix to form paste. Reserve 2 tsp garlic paste for dressing.
  2. Pat leg quarters dry with paper towel. With skin side up, slice4 parallel diagonal slashes in chicken. With 1 across drumstick, 1 across leg joints and 2 across thighs. Should be deep enough to reach the bone. Make one more slash on other side of drumstick. Rub remaining garlic paste all over chicken and into the slashes. Refrigerate chicken for a least 1 hour or even better overnight.
  3. Turn all the burners on to high and let it get very hot. Then turn primary burner to medium and others to low. Place chicken on cooler side of grill skin side up. Cover and cook until underside of chicken is lightly browned, 9 to 12 minutes. Flip chicken and cover and cook until leg joint registers 165, 7 to 10 minutes.
  4. Transfer chicken to hotter side of grill, skin side down and cook covered until skin is well browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip chicken and continue to cook until leg joint is 175 about 3 minutes longer. Put to a plate and let rest for about 5 minutes.
  5. While resting, whisk remaining ¼ cup oil, lime juice, cilantro, oregano and reserved galic paste together in bowl. Spoon half of dressing over chicken and serve. Yummy!

 

Awesome Fried Chicken

Awesome Fried Chicken

Recipe Type: main course
Author: Victoria
Fried Chicken I have tried many versions of fried chicken, all very tasty, but after making this by Alton Brown with added pepper, he has got it together! Tastes even better the next day.
Ingredients
  • • 1 broiler/fryer chicken, cut into 8 pieces
  • • 2 cups low fat buttermilk
  • • 2 tablespoons kosher salt
  • • 2 tablespoons Hungarian paprika
  • • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • • 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • • 1 teaspoon of black pepper
  • • Flour, for dredging
  • • Vegetable shortening, for frying
Instructions
  1. Directions
  2. Place chicken pieces into a plastic container and cover with buttermilk. Cover and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.
  3. Melt enough shortening (over low heat) to come just 1/3-inch up the side of a 12-inch cast iron skillet or heavy fry pan. Once shortening liquefies raise heat to 325 degrees F. Do not allow oil to go over 325 degrees F.
  4. Drain chicken in a colander. Do not rinse! Combine salt, paprika, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Generously season chicken with this mixture. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.
  5. Place chicken skin side down into the pan. Put thighs in the center, and breast and legs around the edge of the pan. The oil should come half way up the pan. Cook chicken until golden brown on each side, approximately 10 to 12 minutes per side. More importantly, the internal temperature should be right around 180 degrees. (Be careful to monitor shortening temperature every few minutes.)
  6. Drain chicken on a rack over a sheet pan. Don’t drain by setting chicken directly on paper towels or brown paper bags. If you need to hold the chicken before serving, cover loosely with foil but avoid holding in a warm oven, especially if it’s a gas oven.

 

Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Artichokes and Mushrooms

Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Artichokes and Mushrooms

Recipe Type: Main
Author: Victoria
Stuffed Chicken Breast, Artichoke, Sun-Dried Tomato Mushroom I love to stuff chicken breast with anything! All these ingredients make a great combination to what could have been another boring chicken breast meal.
Ingredients
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 cup chopped red onion
  • 3/4 cup chopped marinated artichoke hearts
  • 1/2 cup chopped marinated sun-dried tomatoes
  • ½ cup mushrooms chopped
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
  • 1/2 cup cooking sherry
  • 1 tablespoons butter, divided
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
  • 2 tablespoon finely chopped Italian parsley leaves
  • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Instructions
  1. In a saute pan over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon of the oil. When the oil is hot add the onions and saute until translucent. Stir in the artichokes and sun-dried tomatoes. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes, then add the mushrooms salt, pepper and garlic. When the garlic begins to lightly brown, deglaze with 1/4 cup of the cooking sherry. Stir in 2 tablespoons of the butter, allow it to melt, then toss in the Parmesan and parsley. Let it reduce down.
  2. Remove from the heat and allow cooling before stuffing the chicken breast.
  3. Rinse, trim and pound out chicken breasts to about 1/4-inch thick. Do not over-pound as holes in the chicken will make it difficult for the chicken to retain the stuffing.
  4. Put 1/4 of the stuffing mixture at 1 end of a chicken breast. Gentle roll the chicken breast folding the ends in to help keep the stuffing from coming out during the cooking process. Secure the chicken roll with twine. (much easier to work with then toothpicks) Repeat with remaining chicken breasts and stuffing.
  5. Heat the 2 tablespoons of the remaining oil in a medium saute pan over high heat. Add the chicken breasts, with the secured side of the chicken first, to insure the roll with stay together. Brown the chicken on all sides, add remaining butter, and deglaze with remaining cooking sherry.
  6. Reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. Cook until the internal temperature reaches 155 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes. Let rest for about 5 minutes before slicing.
  7. Remove the chicken to a cutting board and cut off the twine. Slice each breast on a bias into 5 pieces and transfer to a serving platter. Drizzle with remaining pan drippings, garnish with a sprinkle of Parmesan and serve.<a href=”https://idchompthat.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/artichoke-sundried-tomato-cheese-chicken-breasts.jpg” data-mce-href=”https://idchompthat.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/artichoke-sundried-tomato-cheese-chicken-breasts.jpg”><img class=”alignleft size-large wp-image-195″ title=”artichoke-sundried-tomato-cheese-chicken-breasts” src=”https://idchompthat.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/artichoke-sundried-tomato-cheese-chicken-breasts-1024×768.jpg” alt=”” width=”470″ height=”352″ data-mce-src=”https://idchompthat.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/artichoke-sundried-tomato-cheese-chicken-breasts-1024×768.jpg”></a>

 

 

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Grits and Mushroom Sauce

Grilled Chicken with Creamy Grits and Mushroom Sauce

Recipe Type: Main
Author: Victoria
Serves: 4
Grilled Chicken with Creamy Grits and Mushroom sauce. This dish is delish! Taking cooking classes at the “Wooden Spoon” is helping me to created meals my husband keeps asking for. I personally like to let the chicken marinate all day to help bring out the rosemary flavor.
Ingredients
  • For the chicken, get this going early!
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • 4 tbsp chopped garlic
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
  • 4 skinless chicken breasts
  • For the sauce;
  • 2 cups beef stock or canned beef broth
  • 2 cups chickens stock or canned low –salt chicken broth
  • 5 ounces thinly sliced pancetta, cut into matchstick-size strips (about 1 cup)
  • 8 ounces fresh white button mushroom, stemmed, sliced (about 3 cups)
  • For the Creamy Grits;
  • 3 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 4 tbsp (1/2 stick) butter
  • 2 cups quick-cooking grits
Instructions
  1. Make chicken
  2. Mix oil, garlic and rosemary in 13 x 9 dish. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add oil to mixture; turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate chicken at least ½ hour, turning once.
  3. Bring stock, cream and butter to simmer in heavy saucepan over medium heat. Gradually, whisk in grits. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook until grits are creamy and tender, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
  4. Sauce:
  5. Boil both stocks in heavy medium saucepan until reduce to 1 cup, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.
  6. Cook pancetta in a 10” cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until crisp and golden about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to bowl. Add mushrooms to same skillet and sauté until golden about 4 minutes. Add stock mixture and cream to skillet and simmer until reduced to sauce consistency, about 15 minutes. Mix in pancetta and sage.
  7. Meanwhile prepare stovetop grill, both at medium high heat. Remove chicken from marinade. Pat dry. Grill until cooked through, Turing occasionally, about 10 minutes.
  8. Place grits on plate. Place chicken on top of grits. Spoon sauce over chicken and grits.
  9. Serves 4.