Every now and again a meal changes – fundamentally – the way we think about cooking. This meal is one of those. This simple chicken dish, adapted from Ad Hoc at Home so thoroughly blew us away that it took us a few days to be able to move on to a new topic of conversation.
It’s a pretty simple idea, really, just some chicken, sausage, and grilled peppers in a RFCS base.
The process that really takes it to the next level is brining the chicken. T. Keller specified the basics, and we went from there:
- Almost a cup of salt per gallon of water (a few)
- A half-dozen or so halved lemons (some oranges too, if you happen to have a tree)
- Parsley stems and leaves
- A dozen bay leaves
- Black peppercorns
Next-Level Chicken!
Bring these to a boil and let them cool before soaking the meat in them for 12-18 hours. Since then, we’ve experimented with it, and it’s a great idea to brine any white (as opposed to red) meat. So far, it’s worked wonders on chicken, goose, duck, and pig.
After brining the meat, fry it in some butter. Don’t cook it completely in this step, just give it a nice texture. Separately, fry up some chopped onions and celery. Once they’re golden, pour in some RFCS, lots of grilled red peppers (some crushed, some sliced), crushed artichoke hearts, and a few jalapeños (grilled, peeled, de-veined, and sliced). Let that come up to temperature, and simmer for a few minutes.
Toss in the chicken (or duck! yes!), and let this simmer for a while until you can’t stand to wait any longer, and serve with some poached eggs (another story altogether), grilled asparagus, and some crusty fresh-baked bread.
Oh, and invite some friends over! This is the meal that made us decide – never cook white meat without brining it.
