Slow-cooked Chicken in a Clay Pot with Winter Vegetables
Taste: clean, strong chicken flavor, herbal, fresh from the lemon, slightly earthy from the paprika, buttery from the potatoes, sweet and rich from the carrots
It’s not in my nature to slow-cook food, I’m too spur of the moment and I like to fiddle with my food too much, but every once in a while, it’s nice to be able stick something in a pot and let it do its thing for a few hours.
Slow cooking leaves the food incredibly juicy and tender, and because it usually requires a tightly sealed vessel - you can’t afford to loose moisture otherwise your food will dry out or burn - this method effectively concentrates flavor and preserves more of the nutritional value of the food. Cooking things over the course of a few hours also has the added bonus of gradually steeping your whole house in luscious aromas, drawing the occupants to peer longingly through the oven door like a troupe of slightly sad zombies. Continue reading »
Filed under Recipes | Comment (1)UmamiTV Episode #0A is Here!
Marjoram Chicken Soup
Taste: Chickeny, bursting with umami, herbal flavor from the marjoram, slightly lemony and caramel-y from the onions.Apparently there are certain dishes which you’re not supposed to use when ‘entertaining.’ I’ve got several cookbooks which caution that certain recipes aren’t for guests. Well, I wasn’t aware of this distinction until recently and I’ve been serving non-guestworthy foods to my guests for a long time, shockingly no one has ever called me out on it. Continue reading » Filed under Recipes | Comment (0)
Beet & Greens Salad with Sauted Chicken and a Garlic Yogurt Dressing
Taste: Sweet and earthy from the beets, a bit of bitterness from the greens, herbal, acidic and buttery from the dressing, pungent from the fresh garlic, the chicken lends a saltiness and richness and keeps the flavors grounded.
You can use canned beets for this, though somewhere down the line I’m sure I’ll roast some and see the contrast. Continue reading »
Filed under Recipes | Comment (1)