Still here, still smokin'... (Stovetop Smoker Chicken Drummies)

Hello, friend.

I bet you thought this blog was dead, didn't you? Yeah, well -- so did I for the longest time. The technology and time required to do a proper cooking blog got overwhelming. At some point, I had to choose between focusing my time on The Naked Vine and being The Man Who Cooks. The former won out, and I think I made the right decision, considering.

Just the same, I hate to neglect something I started. After three years, I needed a new angle. I think I've found one. I was reading recipes not long ago and came upon a notation on a smoked salmon recipe that said, "If you're using a stovetop smoker..."

My eyebrows shot up. I don't own a traditional smoker -- while they're awesome inventions, they're a little bit of a pain to use. If you're a serious 'cue-head, I can understand the appeal. But for me, when I smoked things -- I just rigged up a little Weber grill, which eventually rusted and I put out to pasture. But the idea of a stovetop smoker appealed. I did a little research and found this little guy, the Cameron's Stovetop Smoker:

Nothing complicated here. It's a pan within a pan, with a small rack that sits in the smaller pan, with a slide-on lid. Using the smoker couldn't be easier. In the bottom of the larger pan, you would put a tablespoon and a half of some very fine wood chips (that come with the smoker). You put the smaller pan on top of the wood chips, put in the rack, and put the food on top.

Then, you put the whole contraption on a stove burner, crank up your kitchen fan, and put the burner on medium heat. As soon as you see some smoke, close the lid. That's it.

For larger items like, say, a turkey breast, you'd tent a double layer of foil over the food instead.

This isn't cold smoking, mind you. If you're looking for that particular flavor that comes from smoking meats for hours and hours, look elsewhere. But if you want to actually eat in a reasonable amount of time and still get really, really good flavor -- I gotta say, I'm a huge fan so far. There are numerous woods available, but I honestly can't tell much of a difference between them when smoking for this short a time period.

For recipe purposes, the temperature in the box is around 375. So, figure out how long it would take to cook whatever you have in a regular oven and go from there. Oh -- one VERY important note. When you open the smoker, don't lean over to look in. You'll get a big cloud of hot smoke and steam in the face. You don't need that.

My brother from another mother, the Wizard of Covington, turned me on to Knockback Nat's in downtown Cincinnati -- home of some of the best wings on the planet. Knockbacks smokes them instead of deep frying.

I decided to try making some myself. For my first attempt at these guys, I have to say I was pretty happy. Here's what you'll need:

Smoked Chicken Drummies (or just plain ol' wings, if that's your thing)

• A couple of pounds of chicken drummies or wings
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• a generous helping of kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• 1/2 tbsp. oregano

1. Combine the marinade ingredients in a big ziploc bag. Add the wings, seal the bag, and mix thoroughly. Let stand at room temperature for 45 minutes-1 hour. 
2. Prepare the smoker as above. Arrange wings on the smoker rack. Put the smoker on the stove over medium heat. When smoke begins to rise, close the smoker and cook for 40-45 minutes. Shut heat off and let wings sit in closed smoker for another 10-15 minutes. 
3. Serve with your favorite sauce. BBQ, Sriracha, hot sauce...just whatever you like. These will go with anything. And beer.

I'll continue to update my smokin' adventures here from time to time. Hope you enjoy...

Mod Ozzfest 2013 -- Chicken & Kumara (Sweet Potato) Curry

(This recipe accompanies Naked Vine New Year 2013 -- A Taste of Australia.)

• 5-6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
• 2 Tbsp of canola or vegetable oil
• 1 medium white onion, cut into thin slices
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 lemongrass stem, white part only, thinly sliced (although if you use the stuff in a tube, few will notice)
• 2 tsp ground tumeric
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 medium sweet potato (kumara), cut into 2cm cubes
• 1 can of coconut milk
• 1/2 cup of chicken broth or white wine
• 2 Tbsp of Thai fish sauce
• 1/2 tsp of sugar
• A handful of fresh cilantro, finely chopped

Cut the chicken thighs into strips or chunks.

Heat the oil in a wok on a medium-high heat and partially brown the chicken for about 1-2 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate and set aside.

Add onion to the wok and fry for about 2 minutes or until translucent. Add a little more oil if the wok gets dry. Add the garlic and fry for 30 seconds. Add the lemongrass and fry for another 30 seconds. Add the tumeric, curry powder and chili powder and fry for 1 minute.

Add the sweet potato (kumara) and sugar. Stir well. Add the coconut milk, broth or wine, fish sauce and cilantro. Stir well to combine and bring to a boil.

Once the curry is boiling add the chicken and then turn the heat down to low and cover. Simmer gently for 20 minutes.

Serve curry on a bed of jasmine or basmati rice and garnish with more cilantro.

Simple Pleasures (Brined, grilled chicken with garden salsa)

So, it’s the end of the season. You’ve still got tomatoes, peppers, and boatloads of basil. You’re tired of making salsa. You’ve got enough pesto. What to do?

As little as possible. That’s what:

• 1/2 c. salt
• 1/3 c. sugar
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 2 c. water
• boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• a tomato or two, diced
• a green pepper or two, diced
• pine nuts
• basil leaves, chopped
• couscous

Now, if you’re running really short on time, you can skip the brining. But if you have 10 minutes the night before, it’s so worth it. Brining makes anything (other than beef) juicier, more tender, and more flavorful.

Other than the brining ingredients, vary the amount of ingredients to your liking.

Put the water, salt, garlic, and sugar in a pot over high heat. Stir occasionally until all the solids have dissolved. Remove the pot from the heat. Either let cool to lukewarm or add a handful of ice cubes. Put the chicken in a ziploc bag. Add the brine. Seal the bag and put it in the fridge for at least four hours – overnight is better.

When dinnertime gets close, get a grill to medium-high heat. Drain the chicken and pat dry. Rub the chicken with a little olive oil. Sprinkle with ground pepper. Grill the chicken until the juices run clear – usually 6-8 minutes per side.

Meanwhile, heat a skillet over high heat. Add the pine nuts. Toss until lightly toasted. Add the tomato, pepper, and basil leaves. Cook, stirring, for one minute. Remove from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste and set aside.

Also, make your couscous. For this one, we used pearl couscous – but you can really use anything you like here.

When the chicken is done, remove from the grill and let stand for 5-10 minutes. Plate up. Pour a medium bodied, fruity white wine. Torrontes is a great choice. Chow down.

Where Is My Mind? (Roast Chicken with Tomatoes & Marjoram)

Ever tried to make dinner when you’re…shall we say…not completely there? I mean, who’d be silly enough to work around in the kitchen after that third happy hour martini or after a Lazy Sunday Afternoon with no mind to worry.* Certainly not me, of course. For the sake of argument, though, let’s imagine that we’re faced with this situation. Pop quiz, hotshot…what do you do?

The best way to deal with this little hypothetical would be to have a recipe or three in one’s back pocket that can be thrown together with a minimum of effort and time. Picking up an item or two at the store might be necessary, but I’ll assume your hypothetical shopping was done with a little more foresight than your pre-cooking revelry.

You really can’t go wrong with roasting chicken and tomatoes. It’s practically foolproof. Marjoram has a really fascinating flavor – it’s halfway between cilantro and sage. Besides, if you can still pronounce “marjoram” correctly, you’re probably in good shape to make this. A bottle of Spanish rose makes a great accompaniment.

Disclaimer: If the cook’s mental and physical state is such that a few simple slicing tasks pose a significant risk of permanent disfigurement -- plop down on the couch, put on some Allman Brothers, and call your local pizza place or Chinese delivery. Bodily humors make a poor seasoning for this dish. 

• 3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2-3 tbsp chopped fresh marjoram (or 3/4-1 tbsp. dried if you must)
• 5-6 minced garlic cloves
• 1-2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 3-4 tomatoes, cut into thin wedges and seeded
• 1 c. couscous

Preheat oven to 450. Pat chicken dry. Mix all but 1 tbsp of the marjoram (or 1/2 tbsp. if using dried), the garlic, and the red pepper with about 1/4 c. olive oil in a large bowl.

Add the tomatoes and chicken to the mixture and toss. Spray a roasting pan with cooking spray and pour everything in. Arrange the tomatoes in a single layer around the chicken. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.

Roast for about 30 minutes. Check the pan at this point. The tomatoes should be breaking down and making a sauce and if you cut into the chicken (which should be browning), the juices should run clear. If it needs a little more time, put it back in for 5 more minutes.

Meanwhile, make the couscous however you prefer to make couscous. I keep it simple…water, salt, and a little bit of olive oil.

When everything’s done, put down a bed of couscous, top with the chicken, pour the tomatoes and collected juices over everything, and sprinkle the reserved marjoram over the top. What you’ll end up with this is this scrumptious one-plate meal, an easy cleanup, and plenty of time to either crash or recover, depending on your plans.

* Check out “Ogden's Nut Gone Flake” if you’re curious. (h/t to The Wizard of Covington)

One Slip (Chicken & Chickpea Curry)

I mention “victories and defeats” in the Man Who Cooks intro. I should have probably used a weaker word than “defeat,” since when something starts to go awry, I need to be able to call an audible.

I was planning to do a “cobble together stuff from around the pantry” sort of entry. I’d had a curry jones for a little while, and I thought tonight I’d get my fix.

This is a curry I put together with some staples in my cupboard. Your staples may differ – but it’s my cupboard, dammit! Anyway…the ingredients are nothing fancy.

• 1 lb boneless chicken breast or thigh, trimmed of fat and cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1 small onion, minced
• 2 tsp. olive oil.
• 1/4 c. flour
• 3 c. or so chicken broth
• 1+ tbsp. curry powder
• 2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1 can diced tomatoes, drained – or 2-3 med ones, chopped
• 1/4 c. well-chopped parsley
• garlic, ginger, salt, pepper depending on your seasoning desires
• cooked rice

Things started off innocuously enough. Cut everything up. Toss the chicken in the flour until coated. Heat the oil over medium-low heat. Easy.

Add the onions. I like to cook onions slowly. Cooking them too fast makes them bitter. I like to use lower heat and let the sugars start to caramelize (which is  what happens when onions start to turn golden). Better flavor. So, sauté that onion until it just starts to brown in a few places (usually 7-8 minutes).

Add the curry powder. 1 tbsp. gives you a medium-level curry flavor. I used about 1 2/3 or so. Stir this in with the onions and stir this up for a couple of minutes. If the curry really starts to stick to the bottom of the pan, throw in a splash of white wine that you  have in your glass on the counter to deglaze. All’s well. And then…it happened.

This is the inevitable result of spending time in the kitchen. You’ll have a recipe in your head, and you’re following along…you get a little bit distracted…and suddenly you’re faced with an “Oh, sh*t!” moment.

This was where I was supposed to tell you to add the chicken and cook it until it was just brown all over. Instead, yours truly brainlocked and threw in the chicken broth by mistake…

Suddenly, I’m faced with a pot of curry flavored broth with some onions floating around in it. Quick! Think! What can I do here?

First off, I grabbed the biggest bowl in reach. I poured the liquid off into that. I splashed a little more olive oil in the bottom of the pot, raised the heat to medium and then added the chicken.

Once the chicken was about halfway browned, I added a generous amount of ginger (jarred) and garlic (minced). Probably a tbsp. of the first and 5-6 cloves of the second.

I sautéed this for about 3 minutes, until the chicken was more or less browned, then I added the liquid. Stir well, and scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any cooked flour. Bring almost to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered for about 45 minutes. Stir occasionally and scrape the bottom of the pot.

While you’re in Simmersville, get your rice ready. Different types of rice take   different amounts of time, so you can judge this as well as you can. In our case, we use a rice steamer. Best $15 you can spend. If you don’t have one, go get one. I’ll wait…

…I set ours up, went to the pantry, and [insert spit-take here] I realized to my horror that we were out of rice. White? None. Basmati? Nope. Not even some risotto rice. Thankfully, the SPinC had run the Flying Pig Marathon relay over the weekend (YEAH, SWEETIE!) and in her “gift bag,” she’d been given a little thing of brown rice. It ended up as our rice for the evening. 

Anytime I make rice for something Indian-ish, I always stir in about 1/2 tsp. of cardamom and 1/2 tsp. salt to the water. Gives it a nice flavor. (A container of cardamom will last you just this side of forever.)

After the 45 minutes are done, add the tomatoes, chickpeas, and parsley. Stir it in. Raise the heat slightly and bring it back to a simmer. Simmer for 25 minutes.

Fluff up the rice, put it in bowls. Ladle this yummy stuff over it. Garnish with a few chives. Chow down.

 

 

 

Simmer Overture (chicken thighs in orange-mustard sauce w/roasted potatoes, carrots & green beans)

I’ve focused a lot on meals you can make when you’re in a hurry, but what if you’re lucky enough to find yourself with a little extra time on your hand? Sure, you could go into a long, involved cooking session, but why not make something you can just check on while you’re doing other things?

I was poking around Epicurious to find something that might tickle my palate and I stumbled across a chicken thigh recipe that looked fairly interesting. I snagged the ingredients for it and a couple of sides.

In case you don’t know, chicken thighs are the bomb. Any recipe that calls for chicken breasts, I often will substitute thighs. Why? The meat’s juicier and more tender. Sure, you have to deal with an extra 70 calories, but pull the skin, trim the fat, and take a walk around the block afterwards. It’s one of the few things in the world that’s cheaper but tastes better. Worth the trouble.

So, your shopping list for this:

• 6-8 chicken thighs, skin removed and fat trimmed
• 1/2 c. orange juice
• 1/2 c. chicken broth
• 2 tbsp. stone ground mustard
• 2 tsp. Tabasco
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. Creole seasoning
• 1 1/2 lb. new potatoes, cut into chunks (I used gold, red would be prettier)
• baby carrots
• 1 tbsp. fresh rosemary or 1 1/2 tsp. dried
• 1/2 a small onion, chopped
• minced garlic
• 3/4 lb. green beans, trimmed and halved if large
• olive oil (I’m going to start leaving this out. If you don’t have this in your kitchen by now, there’s no hope for you.)

Preheat oven to 425. Put the potatoes, onion, & carrots in a roasting pan. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle liberally with olive oil. Stir the lot to coat. Put it in the oven for 45 minutes, stirring about every 15 .

Whisk together the orange juice, broth, mustard, Tabasco, honey, and Creole seasoning. Heat olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium high heat. Season chicken thighs with salt & pepper on both sides and put in skillet. Brown on both sides for about 3 minutes, then add the juice/broth mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes, flipping the chicken after 10. Check for doneness. If the chicken is done, remove from heat. If not, simmer until it is. (Start this step around the time you’ve stirred the potatoes & carrots for the second time.)

Meanwhile, put the beans in a small roasting pan and add a couple of cloves of minced garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stir it all together. When the potatoes have cooked for 45 minutes, take them out of the oven. Add a splash of olive oil and the rosemary to the potatoes. Stir. Put both the potatoes and beans back in the oven for 15 minutes.

If you want, you can take the chicken out of the sauce, boil the sauce down, and make a thicker version. Myself, I just plated everything up and ladled a little of the sauce over the chicken and splashed the beans with it. Making the liquid into an actual sauce would be very tasty, though. If you take the time to reduce the sauce, throw the chicken back in there at the end for a minute to warm it back up.

You’ll end up with something like this. Looks tasty, no?

Torn Between Two Recipes… (Roast chicken with asparagus, fontina, and tomatoes)

After you’ve been cooking for yourself for awhile, you’ll start to notice flavors and flavor combinations that you especially like. You’ll find yourself collecting recipes that mirror those likes. Since you like them so much, they’re pleasurable – and since they’re similar, it occasionally starts blending together.

If you remember from back over on The Naked Vine, on one of our New Year’s Eves, the Sweet Partner in Crime went nuts with Giuliano Hazan’s “Every Night Italian.” We worked our way through great chunks of that cookbook, and there were two recipes we really liked: “Grilled chicken breast stuffed with asparagus and fontina” and “Chicken Breast Fillets Rolled with Pancetta, Rosemary, and Sage.”

When we went to the store, we ended up getting a mishmash of ingredients. We did get the chicken breasts, but we ended up with prosciutto instead of pancetta, asparagus, fontina, and some random grape tomatoes.

First off, the actual recipe called for wrapping these things up and grilling. But two things prevented that: 1) I was tired and wanted no part of the grill that night, and 2) the chicken breasts, even after butterflying, were not easily rolled with the stuffing. Since everything was falling out anyway, we made two major adjustments: 1) cooking the chicken on stove instead of on the grill and 2) not rolling ingredients into cooked chicken....just putting everything on top instead.

Anyway, sans grill, we cooked the chicken in about 1 T of oil until slightly brown, about 3-4 minutes per side, adding the prosciutto halfway through. We then essentially braised the chicken and prosciutto (with lid on) in 3/4 cup of white wine until more or less done (about 10-15 minutes). At that point, all the wine had cooked off or cooked into the chicken (yummy). We also "pre-cooked" the asparagus in a skillet on high heat with a cup of water and salt for 4-5 minutes, then drained it. We added the cheese, asparagus and tomatoes to the chicken and put the whole thing under the broiler for about 3-5 minutes. 

If you're following this recipe, at this point, take it out and check for done-ness.

If it’s done, then plate it up, crack a bottle of light Italian red, and go to town.

The moral of this story isn’t that you need to make sure you have every ingredient you need clearly listed when you head to the store. It’s that when you start to figure out the tastes you like, you can grab things you like (in our case, chicken, tomatoes, asparagus) and cobble something together that both looks and tastes good when you’re pressed for time. Whether you’ve had a tiring day at the office or made a last minute dinner invite, trust what you like and you won’t go wrong.

(Many thanks to the SPinC for some corrections to the recipe.)

Return to Hot Chicken (Chicken with artichokes and basil pearled couscous)

I'm not the only one who cooks in the household, contrary to popular belief. In addition to being a world-famous criminologist, the Sweet Partner in Crime is pretty handy around the kitchen. After all she did get me interested in many things culinary and introduced me to the notion that a house without wine is like a house without a heat source. Sure, you could live there, but why would you want to?

We do have an understanding that maintains peace in the valley. Over the years, we've learned that our cooking styles do not exactly mesh. In fact, unless the two of us come to an agreement on the division of labor, we try (for the most part) to avoid being in the kitchen together. I tend to be a bit...free...with the number of utensils, pots, pans, and other such implements of destruction I'll use in the course of meal preparation. If we try cooking together, I'll go to pick up the spoon I've been stirring a sauce with, only to find that she's put it in the dishwasher while my back was turned. She's a more efficient cook.

Also, she's a much better "throw together" cook than I am. Most of what I know about "non-recipe" cooking's come from her. Give my sweetie a pantry full of random ingredients, some veggies, and a spice or two, and you've got a simple dinner. To wit...if you want to follow what she ended up doing with this amalgamation, here's what we had:

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• Frozen artichoke quarters
• A lemon, sliced thinly
• A plum tomato, chopped
• 2 tsp capers
• Basil, oregano, garlic to taste
• 1/3 c. white wine, 1/3 c. chicken broth
• Box of Near East "basil pearled couscous" mix

Thaw everything. Preheat oven to 400. Pour some olive oil (which I leave off ingredient lists all the time...it's a staple like salt and pepper) over the chicken and sprinkle with spices. Put in a roasting pan and add the white wine & chicken broth to the pan. Lay the lemon slices across the top. Top with the capers, artichokes, and tomato. Salt and pepper the lot. Roast for around 30 minutes, depending on the thickness of the chicken.

Meanwhile, make the couscous. The SPinC discovered that this particular type of couscous is much more labor intensive than the "boil water, dump in couscous, stir, remove from heat, let sit" normal method, so plan accordingly. When chicken is done, add pan juices to couscous. Mix.

Plate it up. Pour some fruity, easy drinking white wine. Chow down.

Start to finish: Under an hour