One Pan, Two Plates (24 page)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

1 leek, white and tender green parts, trimmed, rinsed thoroughly, and thinly sliced (see “It’s that easy,”
page 33
)

1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced

1 celery stalk, thinly sliced

½ tsp dried thyme

2 garlic cloves, minced

Juice of 2 oranges, plus zest of 1 orange

One 14 ½-oz/415-g can diced tomatoes, with juices

⅓ cup/55 g mixed Kalamata and green olives, pitted and halved

2 tbsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley

Microwave steam-in-the-bag rice for serving

1.
Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle all over with salt and pepper.

2.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the leek, carrot, celery, thyme, and ¼ tsp salt and sauté until the vegetables soften, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken and continue to cook until the bottom of the pan has turned a rich brown, about 4 minutes longer. Add the garlic, orange juice, and tomatoes with their juices and bring to a simmer, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the
bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer the stew until the chicken is tender and shreds easily, about 30 minutes.

3.
Using a slotted spoon or tongs, transfer the chicken thighs to a large plate and let cool slightly. When it’s cool enough to handle, cut or shred the meat into bite-size pieces. Return the chicken to the pot and add the olives, half of the parsley, and half of the orange zest. Taste and season the stew with more salt and pepper if it needs it.

4.
Scoop the cooked rice into two warmed shallow bowls and top with the chicken stew. Sprinkle with the remaining parsley and zest and serve hot.

it’s that easy:
Stews and braises are all about the sauce, and when it comes to creating a sauce rich with chicken flavor, chicken thighs reign supreme. Don’t even think about trying to make this dish with chicken breasts. They’re too lean and don’t have enough flavor to share with the surrounding liquid.

extra hungry?
Olive oil—toasted bread is so easy: just drizzle slices of nice crusty bread with olive oil and toast in your toaster for a quick fix.

in the glass:
A Châteauneuf-du-Pape would be perfect with this zesty chicken stew. Look for a bottle from Joseph Drouhin for a good value, but if you feel like a splurge, try a bottle of Télégramme. It’s the second bottling from the venerable Vieux Télégraphe label and so has a lower price tag, but with much of the charm of its more expensive sibling.

Cornflake-Crusted Chicken Fingers

with
ROSEMARY-SWEET POTATO PAN FRIES
and
CHUTNEY DIPPING SAUCE

It may have a bit of an image problem, but I give a big thumbs-up to the crispy chicken finger. I don’t like to use those overpriced tenders with that pesky tendon that runs through the length; cutting your own from a good-quality breast is easy, and highlights the virtues of America’s favorite white meat. Quick-cooking slices dredged in crispy cornflake crumbs (conveniently, you can now buy prepared crumbs in boxes), my crunchy chicken digits are accompanied by a dipping sauce of Major Grey’s chutney spiked with mayo and mustard.

........

START TO FINISH
35 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
25 minutes

...

serves 2

........

2 tbsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp mayonnaise

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, each cut crosswise on the diagonal into 6 slices

½ cup/55 g cornflake crumbs (a box of prepared crumbs saves time)

2 medium or 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into sticks about 6 in/15 cm long and no more than ½ in/12 mm wide (see “It’s that easy”)

2 tsp olive oil, plus 3 tbsp, or more if needed

Leaves of 1 sprig fresh rosemary, minced

¼ cup/55 g of your favorite chutney from a jar

1.
In a large bowl, combine 1 tbsp of the mustard, 1 tbsp of the mayonnaise, tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper and stir to mix. Add the chicken and toss to coat evenly. Pour the cornflake crumbs onto a plate and dredge the chicken in the crumbs, pressing to coat each piece completely. Spread them on a plate to dry slightly while you cook the potatoes.

2.
In a bowl or right on the cutting board you used for cutting the fries, drizzle the potatoes with the 2 tsp olive oil and toss them with the rosemary and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper.

3.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add 2 tbsp of the olive oil. Quickly add the sweet potatoes on their biggest flat side in a single layer. You may need to do this in two batches; do not crowd the pan. The fries will spit, so use a splatter screen if you have one. Don’t move them. Just let them brown on that side for about 4 minutes, checking the underside of a fry occasionally to be sure that they don’t overbrown or burn. Depending on your stove, you may have to adjust the heat up or down. Turn the fries with tongs or a fork and cook until browned on the opposite side, 3 or 4 minutes longer. The sugar in the potatoes will make them very brown; this is okay. Add more oil if necessary to keep things sizzling. Transfer the fries to a large plate lined with paper towels and cover with another paper towel to keep warm.

4.
Add the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil to the pan and quickly arrange the chicken tenders in the pan in a single layer. Follow the same drill as with the potatoes: Don’t move the chicken while it browns on the first side, about 3 minutes. Turn the chicken to brown the second side, about 3 minutes longer, adding more oil to the pan if necessary to keep things sizzling.

5.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the remaining 1 tbsp mustard and 1 tbsp mayonnaise and the chutney and stir to mix well. Set the sauce aside.

6.
Transfer the chicken fingers as they are cooked to two warmed plates and divide the fries between them. Put the chutney dipping sauce in a small bowl or dollop it on the plates and serve right away.

it’s that easy:
In order for the fries to cook up tender in the middle and browned on the outside, they must be cut according to the plan. Designate a kitchen ruler and keep it in a handy drawer for measuring. It eliminates guesswork, which equals stress.

extra hungry?
A tossed green salad would be a nice accompaniment to this crispy dinner. Just toss whatever greens you have in the crisper drawer with a squirt of lemon, a glug of olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper and it’s done.

in the glass:
This feast kind of reminds me of a Happy Meal—even the cornflake coating on the chicken has a trace of sweetness—but for adults. So in the spirit of happiness, how about trying a Gewürztraminer? If you can find it, the Lenz Gewürztraminer from Long Island, New York, is a change of pace from the usual drier whites and embodies the fruit-forward characteristics of this varietal. Try it. It just might make you happy.

Herbed Chicken Paillards

with
ZUCCHINI PANCAKES
and
CHERRY TOMATO PAN SAUCE

The term
paillard
is just shorthand (well, and French) for boneless, skinless chicken breast. Perfectly sautéed and juicy, these chicken breasts are greatly enhanced by the addition of crispy green zucchini pancakes and a freshly sautéed cherry tomato pan sauce enriched with just a touch of butter. Simple, simple, simple. Good, good, good.

........

START TO FINISH
35 minutes

...

HANDS-ON TIME
35 minutes

...

serves 2

........

1 medium zucchini, grated

2 tbsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus 2 tsp

1 green onion, white and tender green parts, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

½ cup/55 g panko bread crumbs

1 large egg

2 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tbsp minced fresh oregano

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, pounded to a ½-in/12-mm thickness (see “It’s that easy,”
page 145
)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cups/340 g cherry tomatoes

1.
In a bowl, combine the zucchini, the 2 tbsp parsley, the green onion, half of the garlic, ½ tsp salt, a few grinds of pepper, the panko, and the egg and stir it all together with a fork. The batter should be pretty thick.

2.
Combine the remaining garlic, the butter, and oregano in a small bowl and set aside.

3.
Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle all over with salt and pepper.

4.
Heat a 12-in/30.5-cm skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. When the oil shimmers, add the zucchini batter in ¼ cup/60 ml mounds. Flatten the pancakes with the back of a fork, pressing them down lightly. Neaten up the sides so that they look nice and cook until the bottoms are crusted and browned, about 3 minutes. Flip with a thin-edged spatula and cook until nicely browned on the second side, about 2 minutes longer. Transfer the pancakes to a platter and cover to keep warm (or place in a low oven).

5.
Add half of the herb butter to the hot skillet and lay the chicken pieces in the pan. Cook the chicken, undisturbed, for about 3 minutes, or until you can see pools of liquid forming on the top. Turn the chicken with tongs and cook until it feels firm when you push it with your finger (see “It’s that easy”), about 3 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to the platter with the pancakes and re-cover to keep warm.