Friday food

OK. So last week I threw a temper tantrum about a badly laid out cookbook. I heard from many of you who agreed. Cookbooks should be orderly and helpful, and they should not have attitude.

It's a good thing that some cookbook-type people understand that. This week, I give you a recipe from this new cookbook:

First, a disclosure: I used to work for Lynne. I would not have stopped working for Lynne, but my freelance work picked up considerably, and something had to give. I don't believe there's ever been a time in my life when giving notice at a job made me so sad. I have a huge amount of respect for Lynne (and Sally Swift, the co-author and producer of The Splendid Table), and besides, it was just plain fun. How could it not be fun, working around fun foodies and food? And I was lucky enough to be working while this book was being developed and written, which meant--sweeeettttt--recipe testing days! A whole lot of crappy sandwiches from home got tossed in the garbage when I had the choice of eating something made from this book.

And no, nobody from the Splendid Table asked me to promote this book. They don't even know I'm doing this. I'm kinda feisty that way.

Besides, look at this tidy recipe layout:

Up top, it tells how many servings, how long the prep and cooking will take, and the fact that it makes good leftovers. The ingredients are all listed together in the order they're used. Nice and efficient. Perfect for brains like mine. Whatever type of brain that is.

Anyway, the full recipe is here. This is a highly flavorful, zesty chicken dish that DH and I really can't get enough of when I make it. And it's so easy. Basically you combine soy sauce, garlic (yes, that says 10 large cloves--don't be a wimp! C'mon! Garlic is good for the soul, and it's even better for the chicken!), lots of black pepper and vinegar, tomatoes, bay leaves, and chicken thighs. You dump all this together in a bowl and marinate overnight.

That takes about 2 minutes to prep. Then the next day, you dump the whole bowlful of goodness into a pot on the stove and cook it until the chicken is done. Take the chicken out and start reducing the marinade.

Meanwhile, you start browning the chicken. Yes--after you cook it. Now, understand something--this chicken will spatter big time. Really big time. Stand back. Clear the area around the stove of anything you don't want hit by flying grease. Like, for example, your favorite potholder:

 

Or you can use one of those handy-dandy splatter screens.

It's worth the mess. Really. I promise. But don't say I didn't warn you.

Once the chicken's browned on one side, you flip it over and add sliced onions.

I love onions. As much as I love garlic. And together, it's a heavenly combination. I routinely add more garlic and onion than any recipe calls for. Except maybe this one; 10 large cloves is quite a lot. Not too much, mind you.

While the onions are cooking, the marinade in the pot is bubbling merrily and reducing and filling your kitchen with the most amazing scent ever. The vinegar is tart but not sour, and pretty soon, as my blogless friend Paula would say, you're getting the squirts big time.

Fortunately the cook time isn't long. You put your chicken and onions in a serving bowl and top with the reduced marinade:

Oh, boy. This is SO good. It does make excellent leftovers--if you have any left.

Who needs the Grand Dames Rombauer when one can have a friendly, easy recipe to follow instead?

Comments

[debra]

I love when people who are telling me how to cook something tell me to dump in the ingredients---since that is exactly how I cook!! For the vegetarians among us, I bet you could freexe firm tofu, thaw it and squeeze out the water. Slice it thinly or cube it, and proceed---just watch your time. I do stuff like that all the time, substituting tofu for meat.
I'll probably try it that way.

[laurie]

one last comment and i'll shut up (but look how i'm boosting your comment total!).

a few years ago doug and i had dinner with some work colleagues. nice folks, but we didn't know them all that well.

we were laughing about "the delicious dish" and the lynne rosetto kasper parody. and we were met with silence.

and then the husband said that everything we were eating for dinner that night came from her cookbook.

wooooops. he didn't think the parody was one bit funny.

[laurie]

and bezzie is right--they're spoofed on the SNL segment "the delicious dish."

[laurie]

that sounds delicious! and easy enough that even i can try it. so to get this straight, in that first picture is the chicken raw?

and i love everything about this post except "getting the squirts," which brings a terribly gross image to mind and perhaps not what you intended.

[Nora]

Oooh, Amy, I'm making this. Spattering be damned. And 10 cloves of garlic is just right - the only thing better would be 11 cloves.

[kmkat]

I can smell the goodness from here. Mmmmmm...

[Jess]

Ooooooh, yum!

[kate]

OK, now I'm really hungry!!

Good looking recipe, really good looking cook book. Lucky you getting to be recipe guinea pig!

[Guinifer]

Killer potholder.

The onions would stand at my house, but I'd only be able to wave the garlic over the pan, least of all ten cloves - yeek! Can't eat garlic.

[Carole]

Wow, that sounds fabulous! And so different from your ordinary chicken. Yumm!

[Jeanne]

Yum!

[kristi and otis]

I'm a veg head but I know the fam will love it - I'm sure I could do an egglant sub or something...yuuuuuuuuummmmy

[Miss T]

Ooooooh, I can't wait till my copy arrives!! I might have to come and sit in your kitchen in the meantime, because that looks fabulous. And I love your potholder.

[Chris]

Best. Potholder. Ever.

[bezzie]

Looks yummy!

Are those the people they spoofed on SNL? Anna Gastear and Molly Shannon played them? You know when you've been spoofed on SNL you've made it big.