When I was kid, we ate Mexican food every Friday night. That was sort of unusual for a midwestern family in the 70s and 80’s. But my dad grew up in southern Arizona, and after they were married, my mom learned to cook the dishes he remembered from home. Mom […]
Month: February 2020
Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs with Grapes and Almonds
This simple preparation is a great dinner party dish because it is fast, it serves a crowd, and weirdly, it ends up being a stunning dish. Chicken thighs are roasted with garlic, thyme, shallots, red grapes, and whole almonds. The grapes collapse and burst to form a sweet and sour […]
Chicken with Lemon, Tomatoes, and Honey
This simple, sweet and sour braise is a riff on a pork chop dish my mother prepared often when I was a child and today it has become a favorite in our house. Unlike the thin, dry, grocery store pork chops that Mom used, rich, flavorful chicken thighs are the […]
Chicken Green Chili
There are many recipes for White Chili or Chicken Chili out there, most of which taste like chicken soup with a little green pepper thrown in. However, the nature of chicken thighs, with the deep flavor of the meat, and the additional fat and collagen, allows you to use them […]
Updates and Additions
I’ve been updating and building out the site over the last few days. Check out the Equipment page for new additions – as well as handy links to some of the tools I use and recommend. The Techniques page outlines the basics of some of the techniques used on the […]
Buttermilk Brined Fried Chicken Sandwich
There is something eminently satisfying about a fried chicken sandwich. Properly made, it is soft, crunchy, juicy, sweet, and sour all at once and is perfect for a summer night dinner with a few good friends and cold beers. This recipe brines the chicken in buttermilk, which helps break down […]
General Tso’s Chicken
I love General Tso’s chicken. It’s comfort food. For years it has been my go-to takeout dish. Hot, spicy, crunchy, satisfying perfection – even when the preparation is only mediocre. It simply scratches an itch. Anytime I order takeout I am always torn. I want to try something new, something […]
Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
With Mardi gras coming up, it seems like a good time to post a recipe for Gumbo. Like pretty much any other kid who learned to cook in the 1980s, I learned a great deal from watching Cajun cooks like Paul Prudhomme and Justin Wilson on public television. Long before […]
Homemade Chicken Stocks
Home-made stocks have several benefits over store bought varieties: the flavor is better and fresher, you can control the amount of salt in your dish (in fact, each of these is made without salt), and in most cases, they will contain much more collagen – the protein that makes up […]
Asian Style Chicken Stock
Asian-style chicken stocks are flavored with green onions or leeks and ginger. These mild flavorings ensure that other ingredients shine without the interference of strong European-style aromatics. Recipes for European style light and dark chicken stocks can be found here: Light Chicken Stock Dark Chicken Stock