Foodies: Suggestions for Dinner Tonight?

[Saladsamurai]

Spring has sprung here in New England, at least for today. It has me thinking I would like to cook something on the healthy side tonight...probably with chicken.

Any suggestions for a dish? I would prefer it to be something that does not require
an elaborately stocked pantry. I have most of the staples, but nothing to eccentric.

I can follow a recipe pretty well if anyone has a good one. I also like glazes on my chicken.

But, I am open to any ideas. I know we have a lot of foodies here at PF!

Thanks!

 

[turbo]

Quick and easy chicken. Make a breading of crackers (Saltines are good) or Panko bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and spices of your choice. Paprika, basil, sage, dry curry powder etc might all be good candidates - just don't over-do the spices - pick a dominant flavor and work around that. Scramble an egg or two in a deep bowl, coat the chicken parts in that and then roll them in the breading mixture. Place the chicken in a greased pan and slip that into a pre-heated oven (375deg is good) covered with a sheet of aluminum foil. After the chicken is close to done, take off the foil and crank up the oven to brown the chicken. Before you put the chicken back into brown, you might want to drizzle some lemon-juice on it.

Good luck with supper - if you try this let us know how it worked for you.

 

[Saladsamurai]

Sounds good Turbo. If I do not try it tonight, I definitely will this week! Waiting for a few more ideas, then we'll see.

 

[Evo]

Nothing simpler than "hot dead chicken", seasoned of course. This is what I used to call my mom's roasted chicken.

Paula Deen actually made a great dish of savory chicken thighs, cooked in a skillet with spinach and topped with mozzarella, but I can't find it now.

 

[Evo]

Do you have a whole chicken, or a specific part, like breasts? Wonderful easy sautees with wine or lemon or tarragon or pepper or all of them. Thyme is great with chicken. Can you give us a short list of what you have?

I often just season chicken parts, quickly brown them on both sides in a skillet, cover with a lid and cook until there is no blood in the juices, then remove the lid and let the liquid evaporate. So easy, and so tasty.

 

[Saladsamurai]

Paula Deen... ahh yes, she's the one who is obviously trying to kill America with her 'stick-o-butter-biscuits' and the like

 

[Saladsamurai]

Do you have a whole chicken, or a specific part, like breasts? Wonderful easy sautees with wine or lemon or tarragon or pepper or all of them. Thyme is great with chicken. Can you give us a short list of what you have?

I have a pretty well stocked cupboard. Sage, basil, and many dry goods.

I am actually going to run to the supermarket once I decide what to make. I don't mind purchasing a few items. I will probably do boneless chx breasts since they're easy.

I just don't want a super-elaborate recipe that requires that I purchase every item...like general Gau's chicken...not that that is healthy... or even food for that matter

 

[Evo]

Do you want a sweet glaze?

This sounds different, you could easily play with the ingredients, omit the bacon, etc..

Curry glazed chicken

http://www.cooks.com/rec/doc/0,1639,152188-254202,00.html

 

[superwolf]

Smalahove, Norwegian speciality!

http://www.hordalaget.no/smalahovefest2001/0968_Smalahove_pao_fat_med.jpg

 

[Evo]

Smalahove, Norwegian speciality!

http://www.hordalaget.no/smalahovefest2001/0968_Smalahove_pao_fat_med.jpg

Oh...my...that's steam coming out of the eye socket, isn't it?

 

[Saladsamurai]

Smalahove, Norwegian speciality!

http://www.hordalaget.no/smalahovefest2001/0968_Smalahove_pao_fat_med.jpg

Good God man...wtf is that? I noticed all the vodka nearby... I would drink that too if
I had to eat that

 

[superwolf]

Oh...my...that's steam coming out of the eye socket, isn't it?

Yes! We eat it every day here in Norway ;-)

It's a sheep's head.

 

[Saladsamurai]

Turbo- I think I will go with yours. I have some nice curry rice I can make with it.
What do people generally "grease" the baking sheet with?

 

[turbo]

Turbo- I think I will go with yours. I have some nice curry rice I can make with it.
What do people generally "grease" the baking sheet with?

I use extra-virgin olive oil to lubricate the pan. If you're going to have curried rice, I would suggest using paprika and basil in the breading mix along with the salt and black pepper. That will give you a range of spices that should complement each other. Remember to cook the chicken covered (one way or another) so that it remains nice and moist and steamy, then crank up the temperature (or transfer the pan to under the broiler) to brown the parts at the end. I'm a lazy cook who chooses options "on the fly", but the food generally disappears pretty quickly when it hits the table.

You can drizzle on some lemon juice before serving, but I prefer to add it just before browning. The smell adds to the whole experience, and we eat in the kitchen. The cooking smells are a huge part of the flavor of the meal.

 

[Saladsamurai]

You by any chance know how long the chx takes to cook in the oven at 375 ? I don't usually use an oven..I am more of a sautee man.

 

[turbo]

You by any chance know how long the chx takes to cook in the oven at 375 ? I don't usually use an oven..I am more of a sautee man.

Keep it covered and check it around 45 min or so. Cut into it with a knife and see if the juices run clear. With larger pieces, or pieces that are really cold before cooking, you'll need more time. I keep my chicken parts cold until just before cooking to reduce the chances of salmonella, etc, which is why I cook it covered - to let the steam help cook the chicken while not letting it dry out with extended cooking. Your next kitchen-tool should be a small insertion thermometer. If you stick that deep into a chicken thigh, turkey breast, etc (usually the most massive piece of poultry in the pan) and get a temp of near 170-180 deg, uncover the meat and brown it immediately.

 

[Evo]

You by any chance know how long the chx takes to cook in the oven at 375 ? I don't usually use an oven..I am more of a sautee man.

You can also make turbo's oven version of fried chicken in a skillet like regular fried chicken, But the point of oven fried chicken is less fat. Think "shake and bake".

 

[Saladsamurai]

Mmmmmmm. That was great Turbo! Quick and easy. the broiling was taking a little to long (I did not take the chx out soon enough) and i did not want it to dry out so I got a saute pan nice and hot, put 1T oil +1T butter and browned the tops really quick.

there's leftovers too!