chicken & dumplings

“Of course, my solution is to deep fry the bird.”

“That`s you Southerners solution to everything.”

“Just one of the many reasons to NOT let alcohol be involved when you deep fry the turkey.

”

“I like the fact that Gremlin sends me an email that starts with "Hi, Chicken"

Maybe I should have posted that on the dating thread instead :-)


Hi,

Chicken:

Preheat oven to 160 D C
Place the chicken on a rack in a covered casserole, add a can of chicken stock and place in the oven.
Cook, covered, for 75-80 minutes per kg. For larger birds such as goose or turkey (wild and domestic) you might have to add more stock, or water.

15 - 20 minutes before the chicken is done, remove chicken to a tray (still on the rack), prick the chicken all over and brush on a glaze (optional) - I use bitter orange (Seville) marmelade with some ginger and a little soy sauce (especially good with game). Raise the oven temperature to 200 D C and put in the chicken to brown and crisp.

While the chicken is crisping put the uncovered casserole on a burner, add a little flour (and some butter if it is completely dry) and cook until the flour is brown, then add another can of chicken stock and, if necessary water and stir over medium-high heat until sauce thickens.

Remove chicken and place on a serving dish. Serve the sauce seperately.

It takes a few tries to get the timing right as there are a lot of motions. It makes it easier to cook the main vegetable in the bird. I like garlic mashed potatoes with chopped celery and a little sage. Another good stuffing is good old German braised red cabbage with apples - fantastic with game.

Good luck and leave the dishes till morning.

Doug”

“Gremlin, next time you do the chicken. I do the dumplings.


The beer can chicken is in the oven since an hour. another 20 to 30 minutes I guess?”

“I am into brining my birds.”

“I forgot to mention that I pour the sauch through a sieve into a saucepan to keep it warm.

I guess you cook with gas (lucky you).

Dried cranberries in the cabbage would be good, but I would omit the juniper berries then.

For our Cousins to the South it would be a 325 D F oven and 35 - 40 min a pound and crisped at 425 - 450.”

“not sure what the point is of using stock with a chicken on a rack in a covered casserole vs just using water.”

“It will make a more flavorful sauce.”

“or just more sauce period.

Drippins rock.”

“agreed. they need to get all gooey and brown. i would add the stock after the bird has cooked and dissolve the drippings in it... the way one would usually make gravy.”

“And TT sinks to a new low when someone tries to troll over how to properly make gravy.....”

“The problem is the chicken itself. Try this.

Quorn

I suggested they put some wings on plastic bones.”

“I make the best chicken wings.”

“California is a long way to drive to whup ya with my wings, Rosey. Please do not make me do it.”

“You have a deal on the dumplings, Euro. Next time you are in Rockburn I will cook a wild goose stuffed with braised red cabbage � l`alllemande. Instead of Seville marmelade, I will use red currant jelly ( as in Hasenpfeffer), instead of ginger some crushed juniper berries and lemon juice instead of soy sauce to lessen the sweetness. I would deglaze the pan juices with red wine before adding the chicken stock.

I miss dumplings. My brother-in-law (now dead) was the Kn�del and Kartoffelkl�sse king. We were friends from the age of seven and married sisters. He taught me how to ski, both downhill and cross-country. He was from Graz.
last edited: 11/20/09 11:30:32 AM”

“Crikey! I will drive to Canada if you will cook, gremlin.”

“Crud I posted this yesterday afternoon but lost the post to apostophes. I roast chicken a lot and have got opinions on this.

Basically - if you want it tender and juicy and not dried out inside - you need to start by rubbing oil all over the bird and putting it in an oven that has been pre-heated to a very high temp. 500 F is fine, higher is as well. Do this for only 10 minutes. This seals the juices in. After this, I lower the heat to around 375 or 400 (Gremlin�s 200 C would be fine here)

After turning the temp down, with a five pound bird, I turn it on one side for about 1/2 hour, then oil it again lightly and turn it to the other side for about 1/2 hour, then oil it and put it on its back for another 1/2 hour. Then I cut into the leg where it joins the body and if the juice is pretty clear with just a little pink - its ready by my taste - I let it sit for about 10 minutes before eating. Some people like it better done and want the juice to be clear - for me, that is too dry and over-cooked.

One thing I often do for flavor is put slices of garlic under the skin and cut some spears of garlic to insert into the flesh.

Here is a recipe that is close to what I have done sometimes:

http://www.jamesbeard.org/index.php?q=recipes/show/roast_chicken

You will find some great ideas here:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/280688”

“The beer can chicken is in the oven since an hour. another 20 to 30 minutes I guess?”
Euro hike
11:52:24 AM
11/19/09

Well....................did you survive?”

“I did survive. The chicken did not survive as long. It was just toooo tasty. I got it out of the oven just right, so it was nice and juicy and not overcooked :-)

I think I will try beer can chicken again.”

“Crikey! I will drive to Canada if you will cook, gremlin.�
chili36
1:52:16 PM

TT dinner party at Gremlins?”

“It's the best way to prepare chicken I've ever found. Well, other than smoked.”

“I suspect the chicken Euro gets is quite a bit leaner than American, or even Canadian ones.”

“I makee pretty good chicken and dumplings.

I like to spatchcock the chicken. you butterfly it and lay it flat on the grill over very high heat / flames..”