McMillan - Chicken Night Dinner Solutions for Every Day of the Week

CHICKEN
NIGHT

KATE McMILLAN

PHOTOGRAPHS BY ERIN KUNKEL

CHICKEN FOR DINNER

For most people, a chicken dish is a familiar and welcome sight on the dinner table, whether it is a weeknight family supper, a casual get-together with friends, or an elegant meal for special guests. But that remarkable versatility is just one reason why chicken is so popular. Chicken is great, too, because it lends itself to different cooking techniques and seasonings, is a good source of low-fat meat protein, and is easy to cook, making it an excellent choice for cooks with busy lifestyles.

In these pages, youll discover more than 50 chicken recipes organized by cooking method. In summer, you might turn to the grill chapter for chicken teriyaki or chicken skewers; in winter, oven-cooked chicken with corn-bread stuffing or tandoori chicken wings might appeal; and year-round, stove-top options such as a stir-fry, a curry, or a saut are ideal. A chapter of comfort-food classics includes such favorites as fried chicken, chicken enchiladas, and a potpie. This focus on variety extends to the cuts used as well, with thighs and drumsticks, breasts and wings, and whole birds all featured.

Youll also find a chapter on easy-to-make salads and sides, from a mix of fennel, apple, and radish to roasted potatoes and coconut-laced jasmine rice, to complement whichever chicken dish you choose. Plus, youll learn how to cut up a whole bird into serving pieces, choose the best cut and season for any dish, and plan menus for every occasion.

A chicken dinner is all about variety, whether its drumettes or drumsticks for the kids, lean breast meat for the calorie conscious, a whole roast bird for the traditionalist, or a Thai curry for the adventurous. But its also about how easy it can be to put together a chicken dinner, so that the cook enjoys the meal just as much as everyone else at the table.

ANATOMY OF A CHICKEN DISH

A whole chicken includes both white meatbreasts and wingsand dark meatdrumsticks and thighs. Different cuts are better suited for certain preparations. Heres a guide on how to select the best cut for cooking.

WHOLE CHICKEN

Roasting or grilling a whole chicken is one of the easiest, hands-off ways to put a delicious dinner on the table. Buying a whole chicken is also your most economical option. You can cook and serve it whole, or you can divide up the cooked bird and use the meat in salads, sandwiches, soup, or other dishes. Or, you can cut up the raw chicken and use the various cuts for different recipes.

CARVING A WHOLE COOKED CHICKEN

To carve the chicken into serving pieces, place it breast side up on a carving board with a groove around the perimeter to collect the juices. Pull on a wing to locate the joint that connects it to the body, then, using a large, sharp knife, cut through the joint. Repeat with the other wing and transfer the wings to a serving platter. Next, move a drumstick to find the hip joint, then remove the whole leg (drumstick and thigh) by cutting through the joint. Separate the thigh and drumstick by cutting through the joint that connects the two and transfer both pieces to the platter. Repeat with the other leg. Now, stand the chicken upright on the board and, using a large, heavy knife, cut straight down through the middle of the bird to remove the back. You can use the back to make stock or you can discard frame after you have picked the meat off of it. Next, cut straight down the breast plate to separate the breasts into 2 pieces. Finally, cut each breast half crosswise into 2 pieces and transfer the pieces to the serving platter. You should have 10 pieces total, 4 breast pieces, 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, and 2 wings.

WINGS

Although some cooks send the wings to the stockpot, they are also great fried, broiled, or baked. Or, you can use just the drumette, the upper, meaty part of the wing, which, like the wing itself, makes great finger food.

DRUMSTICKS

Championed as classic game-day food, drumsticks are often fried or baked with a spicy or sticky sauce. Thats because a relatively small amount of meat surrounds the bone and thick or gooey sauce helps keep the meat tender throughout the cooking process. Plus, the shape of the drumstick makes it perfect finger foodeasy to grasp, or even dip into a sauce, without a utensil.

THIGHS

The darker meat of thighs also carries more fat, which means its preparation requires less added fat. Naturally juicy and flavorful, thighs adapt to almost any methodstove top, grill, and oven. They are also the perfect size for a single serving.

BREASTS

Arguably the most versatile cut, and a great source of low-fat protein, the breast provides the most meat. A little goes a long way, making it a good choice for roasting then shredding for filling sandwiches, for stuffing enchiladas, or for mixing into salads and pastas. It can also be quickly grilled or sauted and served when it is just done and still succulent. To save time, cook several breasts at once to use throughout the week (cooked chicken will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days).

CHICKEN PRIMER

Making chicken neednt be boring or labor-intensive, especially if you start with fresh, great-quality poultry and follow a few basic tips for cooking and seasoning. With just a few tools, a little prep, and a great recipe, youll be able to turn out tempting chicken dishes throughout the week for simple suppers and get-togethers.

TOOLS FOR SUCCESS

These simple tools will help you create amazing chicken dishes every time.

GRILL PAN & OUTDOOR GRILL An outdoor grill imparts a wonderful smoky flavor to chicken, and a stove-top grill pan is a great solution for the cooler months.

PLASTIC CUTTING BOARD A dishwasher-friendly plastic cutting board can be washed more easily and thoroughly than a wooden cutting board.

SHARP KNIVES Cutting chicken, boneless or not, requires sharp knives. Keep a variety of different-size knives on hand for paring off fat, removing skin, and cutting up whole chickens.

WOODEN SPOON Many chicken dishes benefit from a quick pan sauce, which begins with scraping up the brown bits left behind in a pan. A wooden spoon or flat wooden spatula will help with this task without damaging the pan.

ROASTING & SAUT PANS A good-quality roasting pan and a saut pan will handle dozens of recipes.

PICK A CUT Use the chicken cut called for in the recipe or select the cut best suited to your chosen cooking method . If serving a group, consider buying a mix of cuts, or a whole chicken, so each person can pick his or her favorite piece.

SELECT THE BEST Most of the recipes in this book feature chicken combined with just a handful of other ingredients. For the tastiest results, seek out locally raised, free-range birds, preferably organic, and the freshest, best-quality ingredients you can afford.