Monthly Archives: May 2010

Greek-style Chicken Halves

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greek roast chicken 2010

Since we’re heading into grilling season big-time, I thought I’d share one of my go-to recipes for moist, golden, flavorful chicken.

The original recipe came from a friend who is of Greek extraction and whom I knew during my many years as a resident of Astoria, Queens, in New York City.

Astoria was and is a great place to eat.

Though the ethnic make-up of Astoria has been changing over the years,* there is still a large Greek community, whose roots go back to the 1960’s.  There’s a European feel to this part of Queens, which lies right across the East River from Manhattan.  In the early 1980’s, when I was young and single, I used to take the subway from Midtown Manhattan the few stops home and then pop into a cafe on 30th Avenue for a snack and an iced coffee to people-watch.  Getting off the train in Astoria was like entering a little oasis.

While the neighborhood has grown, it still feels like a distinct community, and there are wonderful Greek restaurants and stores.  I really miss being able to buy 10 kinds of feta and 30 kinds of olives at Titan, a large Greek market, whose prices now seem mind-boggling considering how much these things cost in the San Francisco Bay Area!

And the pastry shops!  In Astoria you can go have Greek pastry, or even tartufo, an Italian ice cream ball stuffed with fruit and covered with chocolate, in the middle of the night.  Given the heat during Summer, and the state of the wiring in our apartment building that would not support AC, this was a good way for us to cool off.

My son was 8 when we moved to California, so, at 23, he is a more a Californian than anything else, though he likes to go down memory lane via his taste buds.

This chicken recipe is something that really reminds us of warm nights spent in outdoor restaurants eating pita bread with dips and lemony chicken that came to us right off the grill or spit.

I’ve since adapted my friend’s recipe, but it remains true to its heritage, with bright, straight-forward flavors.

I’ve made this with my Weber charcoal grill and in the oven.  If you grill outdoors and can use the indirect method with charcoal, it works very well,  The wind patterns in my current yard don’t allow me to crank up the heat sufficiently, so I use the direct method with some heavy-duty foil.  I do not yet have a gas grill, so I can’t give you any tips for that.

I use a sheet pan with a flat rack for this if I’m using my oven.  The rack is more or less like a cooling rack.

This is great served with pita wedges and a Greek salad.

*There is now a large Arab community in Astoria/Long Island City, which gives you an even greater variety of food and drink options these days than when I lived there!

Greek-style Grilled or Roast Chicken Halves
   Makes 4 halves

2 nice young chickens, cut in half with poultry shears (use good chicken!)
2 or 3 fresh lemons, squeezed of their juice (no bottled lemon juice!)
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/3 cup olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper

1).  Rub lemon juice into chicken halves very well, getting into all the nooks and crannies.
2).  Salt and pepper the chicken halves very well.
3).  Whisk mustard and olive oil together.
4).  Brush mixture over entire surface of chicken, again being thorough.
5).  Place in fridge for a couple of hours.
6).  Roast in oven at fairly high heat (something on the order of 400 deg. F.), skin side up, on a rack, until internal temp reaches 165.  If you grill chicken outdoors, use your best method for browning the skin and keeping it intact.

Spanish-style Brown Rice and Chard

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Spanish-style chard and brown rice in a wok ready to serve

I’ve been on a mission to get more brown rice into my family.

I try to hide it behind great flavor and color.  It’s not that they don’t like the texture, but Americans are so used to white rice that they often consider brown rice “not as good” and look at you like you have five heads when you present it to them.

Both my husband and son have great diets.  They eat a wide variety of things and avoid food that’s not really food – like trans fat and all that processed stuff.  The main problem I have involves rice and bread.  When left to their own defences, they choose white rice and white bread.

Myself – I love brown rice.  Especially Jasmine, which is fragrant and delicate.  It works well in dishes where it gets beaten up, like in a stir-fry, because it holds its shape, and it comes out separate and fluffy.  It’s also fairly easy to disguise, if you have to resort to this tactic.

This recipe is, loosely, a Spanish incarnation of Greek spinach rice, which I love, but which doesn’t work as well with brown rice because of the cooking time.  By the time the rice is done, the spinach is a shadow of its former self.  By replacing the delicate spinach with hale and hearty chard, that problem goes away.

Another crops up, though:  the bitterness of the chard.

By switching to a Spanish-inspired version with bacon, the bitterness issue is remedied, too.

You can buy beautiful chard in the East Bay at Berkeley Bowl (two locations) and Monterey Market (1550 Hopkins Street) – and many other stores and farmers’ markets.  High-end supermarkets often have smoked paprika, and I’ve seen it at Trader Joe’s.  If you stop by The Spanish Table in Berkeley (1814 San Pablo Avenue), they have qute a selection.

Jasmine brown rice can be found at most Asian markets.  I usually get it at 99 Ranch Market in Richmond – 3288 Pierce Street.

This is one dish where a non-stick wok works well.  I use my Wolfgang Puck electric wok for this – I kid you not.  If you have a surface that tends to stick badly and where prying off caramelization is a non-starter, take care with the last step of the recipe.

Spanish-style Brown Rice with Chard
   Serves 3 as a main dish, 6 as a side, depending upon appetites!

4 ounces bacon, cut into medium-small pieces
1/2 large yellow onion, small dice
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon chopped shallot
2 cups Jasmine brown rice
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Salt – dependent upon saltiness of stock used
4 cups chicken stock
1 pound of Swiss chard, leaves cut into fairly large pieces (If your store carries rainbow chard, which Berkeley Bowl does, get this; it’s a mix of colors.  To get it really clean, wash in a sink full of cold water.)

1).  Saute bacon until just under crispy.
2).  Add onion and saute until golden.
3).  Add garlic, shallot and rice and stir-fry for a minute or two.
4).  Add smoked paprika, pepper and salt and make sure all is combined well with the rice.
5).  Saute this mixture for a minute or two.
6).  Add chicken stock and stir well; bring to a boil.
7).  Add chard to the top – do not mix in – and cover.
8).  Simmer for 5 or 6 minutes or until the chard has wilted down enough for you to mix it in to the rice somewhat.
9).  Continue to simmer, covered, stirring in the chard as it continues to shrink down.
10).  When chard is evenly distributed, cook for about 20 minutes, covered, without stirring.
11).  When liquid is absorbed into the rice completely, it should be done.  If not, add a little more stock or water and continue cooking until done.
12).  Allow rice to cook, covered, for an additional few minutes on medium-high heat so that you create a little caramelization on the bottom.  Do not stir, but do not allow to burn!
13).  With a spatula, mix well, pulling up the caramelized rice (this will have stuck to the pan) and distributing it throughout.

Stuffed Savory ‘shrooms

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Large stuffed mushroom

The way I figure it, stuffed mushrooms need a MacGuffin.

If you remember your Hitchcock, a MacGuffin is a device in a fictional work that drives the plot and hooks viewers.

Without a distinctive element, a stuffed ‘shroom is just so much breadcrumbs and cheese, and many of them taste the same because they all have basically the same kind of stuffing.

What I set out to do was create a version that was familiar and comforting, but had a little more impact.

Stuffing for mushrooms on stove

First, I wanted to really bring out the umami* in the mushrooms.  Next, I had to be able to use the stems for frugality’s sake.  Finally, there would have to be an ingredient that would separate my version from the pack. 

Mincing and browning mushroom stems and adding anchovy paste and a nice dose of vermouth resulted in a savory, substantial stuffing with a little kick.  If you think of what vermouth does to risotto, you’re on the right track.

These come out of the oven nicely brown, too.

I suggest you use the large mushrooms called for in the recipe because they’re easy to deal with and work well on a dinner plate in place of a protein.  They look big, meaty and inviting.  Berkeley Bowl almost always has them.

Stuffed mushrooms ready to go into oven 

Savory Stuffed Mushrooms
   Makes enough for 5 as a main dish served with sides, 10 as an appetizer10 extra-large (huge,            really) white mushrooms
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons chopped shallots
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground marjoram
2 teaspoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon anchovy paste (or 1 anchovy fillet that has been mashed to a pulp with a fork)
Scant 1/4 cup dry vermouth
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs, which are coarse and unseasoned)
3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Olive oil for brushing

1).  Prepare mushrooms by wiping well or washing and drying.  Make sure they are very dry!  Pull out stems carefully and set aside.  Lightly grease a sheet pan and arrange caps bottom side up.
2).  Mince the stems finely.  Do this with a food processor unless you have the patience to arrive at a very fine mince by hand.  I use a Kuhn-Rikon “Twist & Chop.”  Set aside all but 1/4 cup.
3).  Saute the 1/4 cup minced stems in the olive oil in a small but heavy saucepan until golden brown.
4).  Take the pan off the heat and allow it to cool for a couple of minutes.
5).  Place butter, shallots, garlic, pepper, marjoram and parsley in saucepan with browned stems and saute over low heat until butter is melted.
6).  Cover and cook for about a minute.  You want to sweat this mixture and not brown it.
7).  Mix in anchovy paste and cook for a few seconds.
8).  Mix in remaining stems, cover and cook over low heat until mushrooms are cooked through – about 2 minutes.
9).  Stir in vermouth and cook for about a minute, uncovered.
10). Remove from heat and mix in panko.
11). Transfer mixture to a bowl and allow to cool for about 20 minutes.
12). Fold cheese into stuffing until well incorporated.
13). Stuff mushroom caps, pressing filling in well.  Do this with all of them and then distribute the excess evenly to overstuff slightly.
14). Brush olive oil on stuffed mushrooms, being sure to get oil on the mushrooms, not just the stuffing.
15). Bake at 375 deg F. until they are brown on the outside and hot throughout.  Use convection, if you have it, but keep an eye on them so they don’t burn.  Will be something like 20 – 25 minutes.

stuffed mushrooms just out of the oven

*Umami is a fifth taste (savory), occurs naturally in certain foods, and has to do, roughly, with glutamates.  This is complicated, so you should do a little research for the full story

Simple Guacamole with Scallions & Tequila

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scallion & booze guacamole

Hass avocados were on sale at Raley’s this week – 5 for $5.  There’s no way I was not going to make guacamole of some kind.

I often make a version I serve as a side dish at BBQs that doubles as a dip for chips.  It has no red onion, no cilantro and no tomato, and gets its character from scallions and a bit of tequila.  Very simple and works well as a leftover.  Standard guacamole is often unbearably oniony and soggy the next day.  The tomatoes – yuk.  This version is still pretty darn good.

I like it best with some grilled chicken and warm corn tortillas.

Be sure to tell your guests about the tequila, just in case.

Scallion & Tequila Guacamole
   Enough for 6 or so as a side dish or a bowl of dip for tortilla chips

5 small Hass avocados
3 scallions (green onions), green and white parts, chopped into small rings (use nice, fresh ones)
1/4 cup lime juice (squeeze from fresh limes, please!)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more, if you want)
2 tablespoons tequila (gin or vodka is OK in a pinch)
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1).  Combine all ingredients except avocados in a porcelain or glass bowl and whisk together
2).  Cube avocados and gently fold into liquid one at a time
3).  Correct seasoning, i.e., salt
4).  Place in fridge for an hour, covered
5).  Serve with whatever you like.  Good with scrambled eggs!